Author: By AFP

Audio By Vocalize View of a TUI Airways plane at the International Airport of Tenerife Sur-Reina Sofia in Granadilla de Abona on the island of Tenerife in Spain’s Canary Islands on May 7, 2026. [AFP] The United States said Friday it was organizing an evacuation flight for Americans on a hantavirus-struck cruise ship that has sailed to the Canary Islands. “The Department of State is arranging a repatriation flight to support the safe return of American passengers on this ship,” a State Department spokesperson said. The State Department said it was coordinating with the Spanish government as well as other…

Pep Guardiola said Manchester City must bounce back against Brentford on Saturday to put pressure back on Arsenal in the Premier League title race. Published Date: 2026-05-08 15:35:02 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Michael Carrick said Thursday he is more worried about Manchester United finishing the season in style than his own future at Old Trafford. Published Date: 2026-05-08 13:25:28 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Real Madrid said they would punish midfielders Federico Valverde and Aurelien Tchouameni after a clash at the club’s training ground which left the former needing hospital treatment. Published Date: 2026-05-08 13:18:15 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Arsenal are firmly back in control of the Premier League title race and a win at struggling West Ham on Sunday could all but seal the Gunners’ first English title in 22 years. Published Date: 2026-05-08 13:08:11 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

There were ecstatic scenes at a bar in Nairobi on Wednesday when Arsenal beat Atletico Madrid 1-0 to reach the Champions League final for only the second time. Published Date: 2026-05-08 13:01:59 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Audio By Vocalize A British Airways plane prepares to take off Gatwick airport, south London, on March 21, 2025. [AFP]   AG, parent group of British Airways and Spanish carrier Iberia, said Friday that the Middle East war will lower its annual profits despite a strong start to 2026. “Whilst the first quarter was relatively unaffected by the Middle East conflict we expect it to have a more substantial impact throughout the rest of the year as the increase in the fuel cost starts to manifest itself,” IAG said in an earnings statement. “As a result we expect our profit…

Published Date: 2026-05-08 11:26:00 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Audio By Vocalize Former SriLankan Airlines CEO Kapila Chandrasena arrives at the Magistrate’s Court following his arrest, in Colombo on February 6, 2020. [AFP] The former chief of Sri Lanka’s state-owned airline, who was charged with corruption over the purchase of 10 Airbus aircraft, was found dead on Friday, police said. Kapila Chandrasena, the former chief executive of SriLankan Airlines, was found at the Colombo home of a relative, said police. “We are investigating the cause of death and circumstances,” a police officer told AFP. Chandrasena was remanded in March on charges of conspiring to accept a $16 million bribe…

Audio By Vocalize The US Navy Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) sailing in the Arabian Sea, on May 3, 2026. [AFP] US President Donald Trump said the ceasefire with Iran was still in place despite an Iranian attack on three American destroyers in the Strait of Hormuz that fanned fears Friday that the truce was faltering. The US military said it carried out strikes on Iranian military targets in response, although Tehran charged that it was Washington that had initiated the exchange of fire. The latest violence threatens to unravel a fragile truce in effect since…

Audio By Vocalize Singapore’s National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID) in Singapore on May 8, 2026. [AFP] The World Health Organization said Thursday that more hantavirus cases could emerge after the disease killed three passengers from a cruise ship, but it expected the outbreak to be limited if precautions were taken. Another sick passenger from the MV Hondius landed in Europe earlier in the day, as the vessel headed to the Spanish Canary Islands and health officials scrambled to trace the outbreak of the potentially deadly human‑to‑human strain. The fate of the Hondius sparked international alarm after three people travelling…

Audio By Vocalize Russian veterans of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict walk outside the Museum of the Great Patriotic War (also known as the Victory Museum ) at Poklonnaya Hill in western Moscow on May 6, 2026, few days ahead of the Victory Day military parade, to be held at Red Square on May 9. [AFP] Russia and Ukraine launched major attacks on each other on Friday, with a two-day unilateral ceasefire that Moscow had declared around its World War II commemorations appearing to be in tatters. “On the Russian side, there was not even a token attempt to cease fire on…

Audio By Vocalize A child diagnosed with measles receives treatment inside a paediatric ward at the Bangladesh Shishu Hospital and Institute in Dhaka on May 6, 2026. [AFP] Bangladesh’s deadliest measles outbreak in decades is stretching its health system, with children filling hospital wards and doctors struggling to contain a surge in infections that have killed more than 300 youngsters. The South Asian nation had made advancements in vaccinations to help stem the deadly virus — but coverage gaps during and after the chaos of a 2024 uprising that overthrew the autocratic government left the youngest generation badly exposed. “I…

Audio By Vocalize Lawyers Bill Doogue (C) talks to media outside the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court in Melbourne on May 8, 2026, as he appears on behalf of one of the two women accused of having links to the Islamic State group. [AFP] An Australian mother and daughter “kept a female slave” after travelling to Syria in 2014 to support the Islamic State group, police said Friday as the pair faced charges in Melbourne. The women returned to Australia on Thursday after years spent in a Syrian detention camp, where they were stranded after Islamic State’s collapse. Counter-terrorism forces arrested Kawsar…

Audio By Vocalize People scramble to receive a warm meal at the Nuseirat camp for Palestinian refugees in the central Gaza Strip on May 7, 2026. [AFP] A Gaza hospital and Hamas on Thursday said the son of the Palestinian Islamist movement’s chief negotiator had died from wounds sustained in an Israeli strike a day earlier. Azzam Khalil al-Hayya, 23, the son of top Hamas official Khalil al-Hayya, “was martyred after succumbing to wounds sustained in an Israeli airstrike targeting him yesterday”, Gaza City’s Al-Shifa hospital said in a statement. The city’s Al-Ahli hospital and a security source said on…

The IOC on Thursday lifted its ban on Belarusian athletes competing in the Olympics, although restrictions on Russian athletes remain in place. Published Date: 2026-05-07 21:51:11 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Audio By Vocalize Fans during the CONCACAF Champions Cup semifinal second leg football match between Mexico’s Toluca and US’ Los AngelesFC (LAFC) at the Nemesio Diaz stadium in Toluca, Mexico on May 6, 2026. [AFP] President Donald Trump said in an interview published Thursday that he would not pay the $1,000-plus ticket price for the United States’ first World Cup match, piling pressure on FIFA over its sky-high costs. “I did not know that number,” the billionaire Trump told the New York Post, adding “I would certainly like to be there, but I wouldn’t pay it either, to be honest…

Audio By Vocalize U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is welcomed by the Prefect of the Papal Household Archbishop Petar Rajic as he arrives at San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican prior a private audience with Pope Leo XIV on May 7, 2026. [AFP] The top US diplomat, Marco Rubio, went to the Vatican on Thursday for talks with the first US pope, Leo XIV, against the backdrop of sharp tensions between the White House and the Vatican. The US Secretary of State’s visit comes after Trump’s extraordinary criticism of Leo, the head of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics, over…

Audio By Vocalize A person in a white hazmat suit (Centre R) disembarking a Bombardier Challenger 605 medical aircraft allegedly carrying some of the passengers believed to be infected with hantavirus from the cruise ship MV Hondius. [AFP]  A plane believed to be carrying a sick passenger from the hantavirus-hit cruise ship arrived in Amsterdam on Thursday, AFP reporters saw, after an emergency evacuation from the vessel off the Cape Verde coast. The air ambulance landed at Schiphol Airport at 08:54 local time, according to an AFP reporter on the scene. The ship’s operator, Oceanwide Expeditions, has confirmed that a…

Audio By Vocalize A person in a hazmat suit (second right) is escorted to an ambulance from a medical aircraft allegedly carrying some of the passengers from the cruise ship MV Hondius believed to be infected with hantavirus, at Schiphol airport on May 6, 2026. [AFP] A plane believed to be carrying a passenger from a cruise ship struck by the deadly hantavirus landed in the Netherlands on Wednesday after patients were evacuated from the vessel off Cape Verde. Downplaying fears over the outbreak aboard the MV Hondius that has killed three people, World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus…

FIFA president Gianni Infantino has defended World Cup ticket prices, insisting that football’s global governing body was obliged to take advantage of US laws Published Date: 2026-05-06 16:15:19 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Arsenal’s Champions League elimination of Atletico Madrid condemned Diego Simeone’s side to a fifth straight season without silverware Published Date: 2026-05-06 15:56:38 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Audio By Vocalize Vodafone Group Plc is a British multinational telecommunications company and one of the largest mobile and fixed network operators in Europe. [AFP] British mobile phone giant Vodafone announced Tuesday it has agreed a £4.3 billion ($5.8 billion) deal to take full ownership of the country’s biggest mobile phone operator, VodafoneThree. Under the agreement, Vodafone will buy out Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison’s 49-per cent stake in the company through a share cancellation. VodafoneThree was formed last year by a merger between Vodafone UK and Three, the UK division of CK Hutchison, creating Britain’s largest mobile operator in terms…

Audio By Vocalize The Strait of Hormuz in the Middle East on a globe under a magnifying glass in Shanghai, China on March 26, 2026. [AFP] The US trade deficit grew slightly less than expected in March, government data showed on Tuesday, as spending linked to the artificial intelligence buildout boosted imports. But US exports of crude oil and petroleum products also jumped after war in the Middle East began on February 28 with US-Israeli strikes on Iran. This could narrow the gap in the following month, analysts said. Oil prices have surged since Tehran’s retaliation in virtually blocking off…

Audio By Vocalize Boxes of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine and Seqirus Fluad adjuvanted flu shot are kept in cold storage during an immunization event at the L.A. [AFP] Germany‘s BioNTech said Tuesday it will halt operations at several sites, in a move affecting up to 1,860 jobs, as sales of its blockbuster Covid vaccine drop. The biotech company plans to stop operating at three manufacturing sites in Germany by the end of 2027, it said, while a site in Singapore would cease work in the first quarter of next year. Sites of former competitor CureVac – which BioNTech acquired last…

Audio By Vocalize Crew members wearing hazmat suites leave the port on an ambulance boat towards the cruise ship MV Hondius, while stationary off the port of Praia, the capital of Cape Verde, on May 6, 2026. [AFP] A former passenger on a cruise ship stricken by a deadly hantavirus outbreak is being treated in a Zurich hospital for the disease, Swiss authorities said Wednesday. “One person has tested positive for hantavirus in Switzerland,” said a Swiss health ministry statement. The man was being treated at the University Hospital Zurich (USZ) and the ministry said the hospital was “prepared to…

Audio By Vocalize Crew members wearing hazmat suites leave the port on an ambulance boat towards the cruise ship MV Hondius, while stationary off the port of Praia, the capital of Cape Verde, on May 6, 2026. [AFP] Emergency crews on Wednesday evacuated three people from a cruise ship stricken with a deadly outbreak of hantavirus, the UN’s health agency said, as experts confirmed a rare strain that can be transmitted between humans. Two crew members and one other person thought to be infected were being taken off the MV Hondius, anchored off Cape Verde, the World Health Organization said.…

Bayern Munich coach Vincent Kompany said he was in a state of “total calm” before Wednesday’s Champions League semi-final second leg against holders Paris Saint-Germain. Published Date: 2026-05-06 11:29:03 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique said his side’s one-goal first leg lead meant “nothing” ahead of Wednesday’s second Champions League semi-final at Bayern Munich. Published Date: 2026-05-06 11:25:30 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Mikel Arteta has urged Arsenal to use the “energy and belief” generated by reaching the Champions League final for the first time in 20 years as fuel to complete an historic double. Published Date: 2026-05-06 11:22:45 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Audio By Vocalize Supporters of Labour Party Senedd election candidate Huw Thomas after canvassing in the Llanrumney suburb of Cardiff, South Wales, on April 23, 2026. [AFP] Zack Polanski, a pugnacious, self-styled “eco-populist” and one-time hypnotherapist, hopes to lead the Green Party to a landmark political breakthrough in British local elections on Thursday. An expected swing to the party, which has long been regarded as marginal, under the fledgling 43-year-old leader could reshape local politics and the wider political landscape. Rallying campaigners in south London before this week’s polls, Polanski, a former community theatre worker, was given a rapturous welcome…

Audio By Vocalize Supporters of Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan gather in Victoria Square, in front of the Romanian Government headquarters, to demonstrate their backing for his minority government, on May 3, 2026. [AFP] Romania’s parliament on Tuesday will vote on a motion of no confidence that could oust liberal Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan, deepening political turmoil in the country, an EU and NATO member bordering Ukraine. Romania’s biggest party, the Social Democrats (PSD), quit the government last month and joined forces with the far right to file the motion. Tensions with the PSD escalated as Bolojan pushed for unpopular austerity…

Audio By Vocalize The Gambia-flagged tanker vessel Bili is pictured anchored in the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas in southern Iran, on May 2, 2026. [AFP] World leaders on Tuesday piled pressure on Tehran to stick to diplomacy to bring an end to the Middle East war, after a salvo of attacks in the region left a ceasefire crumbling. The scramble for more talks came after Iran and the United States traded fire over the strategic Strait of Hormuz, while US ally the United Arab Emirates reported Iranian attacks for the first time since the truce was declared nearly…

Bukayo Saka has reignited Arsenals attack ahead of their crucial Champions League clash with Atletico Madrid. Published Date: 2026-05-05 00:00:00 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Audio By Vocalize Commuters make their way past an anti-US billboard referring to President Donald Trump and the Strait of Hormuz, installed on a building at the Valiasr Square in Tehran on May 2, 2026. [AFP] Iran warned on Monday that it would consider any US attempt to interfere in the Strait of Hormuz a breach of the Mideast ceasefire, as President Donald Trump said the United States would begin escorting ships through the blocked waterway. Negotiations between the two countries have been deadlocked since a ceasefire came into effect on April 8, and Iran’s stranglehold on the strategic strait…

Audio By Vocalize Election officials count votes after the West Bengal Legislative Assembly elections at the Netaji Indoor Stadium in Kolkata on May 4, 2026. [AFP] Vote counting in key Indian state elections was underway Monday under tight security, with the focus on West Bengal, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party is hoping for crucial gains. Elections in five states and territories took place in April and May, and Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the ruling party in the national parliament, is hoping to make inroads into opposition-held states. In West Bengal, the Hindu-nationalist BJP waged an aggressive bid to…

Audio By Vocalize Elon Musk arrives at the federal courthouse during proceedings in the trial over his lawsuit against OpenAI in Oakland, California, on April 30, 2026. [AFP] Following high-profile testimony from billionaire Elon Musk last week, one of OpenAI’s co-founders will testify Monday in the California lawsuit brought by the world’s richest man against the creators of ChatGPT. Musk is seeking to force his rivals in artificial intelligence (AI) development to revert to a non-profit foundation. Greg Brockman, co-founder and president of OpenAI, will face questioning from Musk’s lawyers on Monday in the Oakland courthouse. OpenAI CEO and co-founder…

Audio By Vocalize Plaid Cymru candidate Heledd Fychan (right) talks with Men in Sheds participants ahead of the Senedd election in Pontypridd, South Wales on April 24, 2026. [AFP] Wales — the cradle of Britain’s revered National Health Service and a former industrial powerhouse — has been a Labour Party stronghold for well over a century. But that is set to end in crunch polls Thursday as impatient Britons abandon their old political loyalties for anti-establishment parties amid persistent cost of living pressures. A Labour defeat in the country of three million people will be a major indictment of lacklustre…

Manchester United secured Champions League football next season as Kobbie Mainoo’s strike earned a thrilling 3-2 victory over old rivals Liverpool yesterday Published Date: 2026-05-04 00:00:00 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Audio By Vocalize US President Donald Trump speaks to journalists before boarding Air Force One at Palm Beach International Airport in Palm Beach, Florida, on May 2, 2026. [AFP] US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will visit Rome and the Vatican this week, an Italian government source said Sunday, just weeks after a clash between Donald Trump and Pope Leo. Rubio, who is a Catholic, is expected to meet Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin and Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, the source told AFP. Italian media reported that he would also meet Defence Minister Guido Crosetto during the Thursday-Friday…

Audio By Vocalize A worker cleans the river of petroleum products following a spill caused by a recent drone attack on the Tuapse oil refinery in Tuapse, Krasnodar region, on April 29, 2026. [AFP] Russian drone strikes on Ukraine killed three people across the country, while Ukrainian attacks killed one near Moscow and targeted Russia’s lucrative oil facilities, according to statements by the warring countries on Sunday. The two neighbours have been firing hundreds of explosive-packed drones at each other on a daily basis throughout the four-year war, as talks to end the conflict have gone nowhere. Russian attacks on…

Audio By Vocalize Sri Lankan police have arrested 37 Chinese nationals suspected of running a cyberscam centre in the capital Colombo, a spokesman said on Sunday, in the latest crackdown on foreign-run online fraud. The suspects, aged between 23 and 44 and including one woman, were arrested after a tip-off, the police spokesman said. “They had entered the country on tourist visas and were illegally employed, while two of them had overstayed their visas,” he added. A local police source said 35 tablet computers, 147 mobile phones and 100 SIM cards were seized at the suspected scam centre in the…

Michael Carrick believes Manchester United against Liverpool is always a “standout” fixture even though neither club are challenging for the Premier League title this season. Published Date: 2026-05-03 03:54:06 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Audio By Vocalize Red Bull Racing’s Dutch driver Max Verstappen gives a thumbs up after finishing in second place in the qualifying session for the 2026 Miami Formula One Grand Prix at Miami International Autodrome, Florida, on May 2, 2026. [CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP] Four-time world champion Max Verstappen said he could “see light at the end of the tunnel” after claiming an impressive second place in Saturday’s qualifying for Sunday’s Miami Grand Prix. The 28-year-old Dutchman, frustrated by progress at Red Bull and the driving experience of racing in the new hybrid era of F1 cars, said his team’s…

Ipswich secured an immediate return to the Premier League as they beat QPR 3-0 to hold off the challenge of Millwall as Hollywood-backed Wrexham missed out on the play-offs. Published Date: 2026-05-03 03:39:57 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Arsenal stormed six points clear as Bukayo Saka and Viktor Gyokeres put Fulham to the sword, while West Ham’s defeat at Brentford offered Tottenham a lifeline Published Date: 2026-05-03 03:31:48 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Mercedes’ championship-leading teenager Kimi Antonelli stormed to pole position on Saturday for the Miami Grand Prix, resisting a late charge by four-time champion Max Verstappen Published Date: 2026-05-03 03:27:25 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Robert Lewandowski and Ferran Torres took Barcelona to the brink of the La Liga title with late goals to earn them a 2-1 win at Osasuna on Saturday. Published Date: 2026-05-03 03:19:59 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

PSG warmed up for the second leg of their Champions League semi-final against Bayern Munich by fielding a second-string line-up and throwing away the lead twice in a 2-2 draw Published Date: 2026-05-03 03:12:11 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

World Athletics president Sebastian Coe said he will remain “tough” on the issue of athletes switching nationality after blocking a bid by Kenyans to move to Turkey. Published Date: 2026-05-03 03:07:57 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Mikel Arteta warned Manchester City that Arsenal aren’t finished yet after the Premier League leaders moved six points clear of their title rivals with a 3-0 win against Fulham on Saturday. Published Date: 2026-05-03 03:02:09 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Audio By Vocalize People march during a May Day rally marking International Workers’ Day in Los Angeles, on May 1, 2026. [AFP] Turkish authorities have released more than 500 protesters arrested at May Day rallies in Istanbul, a lawyers’ association said Saturday. Police cracked down on Friday’s demonstrations, firing tear gas to break them up and arresting hundreds of people. All 576 people arrested were released by Saturday morning, including union official Basaran Aksu, the lawyers’ association CHD said on X. The association’s Istanbul branch had deployed members into the city’s streets to document arrests and aid those detained. The…

Audio By Vocalize Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted the southern Lebanese village of Mayfadoun in the Nabatieh district on May 2, 2026. [AFP] President Donald Trump said on Friday the US Navy was acting “like pirates” as he described an operation seizing a ship amid the tit-for-tat American blockade of Iranian ports. “We… land on top of it and we took over the ship. We took over the cargo, took over the oil. It’s a very profitable business,” Trump said at a rally in Florida. “We’re like pirates,” he added to cheers from the…

Audio By Vocalize Employees of Basra Oil Company, work at the Nahr Bin Umar Oil and Gas Field on the outskirts of the southern Iraqi city of Basra on April 29, 2026. [AFP] At a gas station in Los Angeles, Ryder Thomas wore a grimace of barely suppressed anger as he filled his pickup truck, watching the cost tick up to $130 for a full tank — $30 more than he was paying before the US and Israel attacked Iran. “I’m mad about the price, but I’m even madder about why it’s so high,” the 28-year-old told AFP. This week,…

Audio By Vocalize Employees of Basra Oil Company, work at the Nahr Bin Umar Oil and Gas Field on the outskirts of the southern Iraqi city of Basra on April 29, 2026. [AFP] US President Donald Trump said Friday he was “not satisfied” with a new Iranian negotiating proposal, as peace talks remain frozen despite a weeks-long ceasefire. Iran delivered the draft to mediator Pakistan on Thursday evening, the IRNA news agency reported, without detailing its contents. “At this moment I’m not satisfied with what they’re offering,” Trump told reporters, blaming stalled talks on “tremendous discord” within Iran’s leadership. “Do…

Audio By Vocalize A customer shops at the Audible Story House in New York, on April 30, 2026. [AFP] Audiobook giant Audible opened what it billed as the first “bookless bookstore” in New York on Friday as industry statistics show more American consumers embracing the format. There is no rustle of pages or stacks of best-selling novels at the pop-up store opened by the Amazon subsidiary on the Lower East Side in Manhattan. “This is a physical place entirely dedicated to bringing audio storytelling to life,” Audible CEO Bob Carrigan said during a press tour of the “Audible Story House”…

Arsenal coach Mikel Arteta left raging at the decision to overturn a penalty his team had been awarded in their 1-1 Champions League semi-final first leg. Published Date: 2026-05-01 00:00:00 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Audio By Vocalize US President Donald Trump holds up an executive order appointing Dr Nicole Saphier as the new surgeon general in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on April 30, 2026. [AFP] Iraqi Prime Minister-designate Ali al-Zaidi received a call from US President Donald Trump, who congratulated him on his nomination and invited him to the US once his government is formed, his office announced Thursday. Trump’s threat earlier this year to end all support to the country if frontrunner Nouri al-Maliki became the next prime minister left Iraqi leaders looking elsewhere and ultimately paved…

Chelsea women’s boss Sonia Bompastor said retired Blues captain Millie Bright should be celebrated after revealing the mental struggles caused by the abuse she has faced. Published Date: 2026-04-30 22:00:00 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Audio By Vocalize An Emirati man stands at the oil terminal of Fujairah during the inauguration ceremony of a dock for supertankers on September 21, 2016. [AFP] The exit of the UAE from OPEC and OPEC+ starting in May has cast doubts over the Saudi-led cartel’s future after losing its fourth largest producer and further strains ties between the two Gulf rivals. While the United Arab Emirates is not the first country to leave OPEC, it is by far the biggest oil producer to do so — dealing a massive blow to the group’s hegemony and its ability to regulate…

Audio By Vocalize Thai citizens, suspected of being involved in online scams, at Poipet town in Banteay Meanchey province on April 30, 2026. [AFP] Cambodia deported more than 600 Thais allegedly involved in online scams on Thursday, the information minister said, part of a crackdown against the multibillion-dollar illicit industry that has ballooned in the country in recent years. Cambodia has emerged as a hub for crime syndicates running fake romantic relationship and cryptocurrency investment schemes in which scammers — some willing, others trafficked — defraud internet users around the world. Operated out of hotels, casinos and fortified compounds around…

Audio By Vocalize A relative and an Israeli soldier comfort the grieving mother of Sergeant Idan Fooks, who was killed in combat in southern Lebanon, during his funeral in Petah Tikva on April 27, 2026. [AFP] Iran’s supreme leader declared Thursday that the United States had suffered a shameful defeat, defiantly rejecting a warning from President Donald Trump that an economically-punishing US naval blockade could be enforced for months to come. Oil prices hit a four-year high then fell back slightly, before Mojtaba Khamenei issued a written statement that was read out on state television declaring that Iran was now…

Audio By Vocalize An Emirati man stands at the oil terminal of Fujairah during the inauguration ceremony of a dock for supertankers. [ Karim Sahib, AFP] The United Arab Emirates will withdraw from the OPEC and OPEC+ oil cartels to focus on “national interests”, it announced on Tuesday, causing fresh shockwaves as energy prices soar over the Middle East war. The UAE, one of the world’s top oil producers, which has previously chafed at OPEC production quotas, will pull out on Friday, a statement carried by the official WAM news agency said. The UAE has been an OPEC member since…

Audio By Vocalize Local residents pose in their destroyed flat, a three-storey residential building destroyed after a Russian drone’s attack in Odesa on April 24, 2026, amid Russian invasion in Ukraine. [AFP] A Ukrainian drone attack Tuesday killed three people in the Russian border region of Belgorod, local authorities said, while a Russian attack killed one in central Ukraine. A major oil refinery in southern Russia was also set ablaze, triggering a local state of emergency as thick black smoke billowed over the coastal town of Tuapse. “Three civilians were killed following drone attacks by the Ukrainian armed forces,” Belgorod…

Audio By Vocalize An SAIC Z7T displayed at the Beijing Auto Show in Beijing on April 26, 2026. [AFP] In a sprawling office in Hefei, the eastern Chinese electric vehicle hub, hundreds of employees and several robotic arms sat refining software developed jointly by German behemoth Volkswagen and Chinese EV maker XPeng. The days when foreign firms saw such partnerships largely as a necessary entrance fee to the world’s largest auto market are long gone. Legacy overseas brands are now seeking out collaboration, hoping the domestic market’s blistering pace and technological innovation will rub off and boost their competitiveness in…

‘Joint venture in reverse’: foreign carmakers seek edge with China partners Published Date: 2026-04-27 09:11:09 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Audio By Vocalize North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (centre), Russian State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin (left) and Defence Minister Andrei Beloussov (second right) during a dinner party in Pyongyang on April 26, 2026. [AFP] North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has reaffirmed Pyongyang’s support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, vowing to help Moscow achieve victory in its “sacred” war, state media reported on Monday. Pyongyang has sent missiles, munitions and thousands of troops to assist Russia in Ukraine, and analysts say Moscow is sending financial aid, military technology, food and energy to the diplomatically isolated country in return. A…

He led a group of six as they passed the halfway point in a time of 1:00:29. Published Date: 2026-04-26 14:16:52 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Audio By Vocalize A Buddhist monk gets his documents verified before casting his ballot at a polling station in Dharamsala on April 26, 2026 during the final round of parliamentary elections held for exiled Tibetans. [AFP] Tibetans outside Chinese control vote on Sunday for a government-in-exile, an election of heightened significance as they brace for an inevitable, eventual, future without their revered spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama. The India-based Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) — condemned by China as “nothing but a separatist political group” — is a key institution for the exiles, especially after the Dalai Lama handed over political…

Audio By Vocalize Thailand’s Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul and China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi at Government House in Bangkok, on April 24, 2026. [AFP] China and Myanmar have pledged to expand trade and security ties, especially along their border, during talks in the Southeast Asian nation with its junta chief-turned-president and both countries’ top diplomats, the two governments said. China’s Wang Yi has been on a three-country visit to Southeast Asia, travelling to Cambodia, Thailand and Myanmar this week, seeking to strengthen ties and present Beijing as a more stable alternative to Washington. China will “firmly support” Myanmar in safeguarding…

Audio By Vocalize An FBI tactical team prepares to enter a house associated with the suspected White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooter in Torrance, California, on April 25, 2026. [AFP] US President Donald Trump and other attendees at a glitzy media gala in Washington made a hasty exit Saturday night after gunshots were fired. As details continue to emerge and investigations are underway, here is what we know about the shooting: What happened in the ballroom? Shots were heard after the welcoming speech at the annual dinner of the White House Correspondents’ Association being held at the Washington Hilton Hotel, according…

Audio By Vocalize   Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif greets Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi (2R) before their meeting amid the Middle East war, at the Prime Minister House in Islamabad. [AFP] US President Donald Trump cancelled his envoys’ trip to Pakistan for peace talks with Iran on Saturday, saying there was no point “sitting around talking about nothing” but adding the war would not immediately resume. Trump said he scrapped the visit after being unimpressed with Tehran’s negotiating position, adding that a revised proposal followed within minutes of his decision. “They gave us a paper that should have been…

Audio By Vocalize Shots were allegedly fired as President DonaldTrump attended a press dinner in Washington on Saturday night. [AFP] President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump “are safe,” the US Secret Service has said after a shooting incident at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner. “The president and the first lady are safe along with) all protectees,” the Secret Service added in a statement, saying one suspect has been arrested. According to the service, the shooting incident took place near the main screening area for the event. Shots were allegedly fired as Trump attended a press dinner in Washington…

Audio By Vocalize Pope Leo XIV (C) leads a Holy Mass at the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Mongomo on the tenth day of an 11-day apostolic journey to Africa, on April 22, 2026. [AFP] A meeting between Pope Leo XIV and Sarah Mullally, the first woman to lead the Church of England, will highlight the differences in the treatment of women in the two institutions. Mullally on Saturday begins a four-day visit to Rome and the Vatican, her first abroad since being enthroned last month. Here are some key distinctions: Catholic Church Only men can serve as clergy,…

Audio By Vocalize This photo illustration shows the DeepSeek app on a mobile phone in Beijing on January 27, 2025. [AFP] Chinese startup DeepSeek released a new artificial intelligence model with “drastically reduced” costs Friday, more than a year after it stunned the world with a low-cost reasoning model that matched the capabilities of US rivals. The AI race has intensified the rivalry between China and the United States, with the White House on Thursday accusing Chinese entities of a massive effort to steal artificial intelligence technology. Beijing called the claim “baseless”. Hangzhou-based DeepSeek burst onto the scene in January…

Newly-appointed Ghana coach Carlos Queiroz said Thursday that leading the Black Stars at the 2026 World Cup will be “the biggest challenge” of his career. Published Date: 2026-04-23 22:12:09 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Michael Carrick said he loves managing Manchester United but is not “chasing” an answer on his future as the club close in on a Champions League spot. Published Date: 2026-04-23 22:04:12 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Audio By Vocalize A section of the 215 Kenyan police officers of the 2nd contingent from Haiti security mission after landing at the JKIA Airport in Nairobi on March 17, 2026. [Boniface Okendo, Standard] The new multinational force tasked with combating gangs in Haiti will deploy in “phases” over the coming months, a special representative for the force said Thursday. “We are at a critical early phase of establishing the GSF,” said Jack Christofides, the special representative for the Gang Suppression Force, told the UN Security Council. He said the GSF will gradually replace the previous Multinational Mission to Support…

Italy has played down suggestions that its national team could replace Iran at the World Cup, following reports that an envoy to US President Donald Trump had asked FIFA to consider the move. Published Date: 2026-04-23 21:49:10 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Audio By Vocalize US President Donald Trump during a NCAA Collegiate National Champions Day event in the State Dining Room at the White House on April 21, 2026 in Washington, DC. [AFP] France on Thursday defended keeping climate change off the agenda at a meeting of G7 environment ministers in Paris, saying it was necessary to avoid a clash with the United States. Ecology minister Monique Barbut said Group of Seven ministers had made progress on environmental issues even if climate change was studiously avoided on the opening day of the talks. “If I had tackled the issue head-on, there…

Manchester City moved to the top of the Premier League after a 1–0 win over Burnley, who were relegated to the Championship. Published Date: 2026-04-23 20:45:53 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Audio By Vocalize International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Rafael Grossi talks to the press on a road outside Zaporizhzhia city, after his visit to the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine on September 1, 2022. [AFP] Contenders for next UN secretary-general made their case this week for a United Nations more invested in peace, but avoided taking positions that could antagonize the member states who will choose the world body’s next chief.  Chile’s Michelle Bachelet, Argentina’s Rafael Grossi, Costa Rica’s Rebeca Grynspan and Senegal’s Macky Sall are all hoping to succeed Antonio Guterres on January 1, 2027,…

Audio By Vocalize People carry Hezbollah, Iranian and Lebanese flags, and portraits of Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei during a memorial ceremony at the Iranian Embassy in Beirut on April 22, 2026. [AFP] The United States blocked a plane carrying nearly $500 million in banknotes from delivering the cash to Iraq, US media reported on Tuesday, piling pressure on Baghdad to fight Iran-backed militant groups. The Wall Street Journal reported that Washington has suspended cash shipments to Iraq and frozen funding for security programs following attacks on US interests in the country by groups showing solidarity with Iran. Iraq has…

Liam Rosenior has been sacked as Chelsea manager following a run of five successive Premier League defeats. Published Date: 2026-04-22 19:51:05 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Audio By Vocalize Reckitt Benckiser, the British supplier of health and hygiene products including Durex condoms, said Wednesday that soaring oil prices caused by the Middle East war could cost it up to £150 million ($203 million). Reckitt, whose brands also include Dettol surface cleaner and Nurofen painkillers, revealed the fallout in a first-quarter trading update. “Modelling a scenario of oil at $110 a barrel for the remainder of 2026 indicates a £130 million to £150 million gross impact on our input cost base… which we see as a manageable level,” it said. Petrochemical-linked materials including ammonia, ethanol and silicone…

Audio By Vocalize Nepal’s home minister Sudan Gurung (left), Prime Minister Balendra Shah (right) and Rastriya Swatantra Party’s president Rabi Lamichhane (second right) during their swearing-in ceremony in Kathmandu on March 27, 2026. [AFP] Nepal’s home minister stepped down Wednesday over growing criticism of his finances, the second member of the cabinet to leave the new government just weeks after it was formed. Sudan Gurung, a key figure in the Gen-Z protests in September that toppled Nepal’s previous government, said he was leaving his post ensure a “fair investigation”. “For me, morality is greater than a position and there is…

Audio By Vocalize View of the PCK Industrial Park which houses the PCK Oil refinery, just outside Schwedt, some 110 km north of Berlin, northeastern Germany, taken on April 2, 2022. [AFP] Russia confirmed Wednesday it will halt the pipeline flow of Kazakh oil to Germany next month, citing technical reasons, as Berlin stressed it does not expect an energy supply crunch. The stoppage from May 1 will impact a refinery, run by the German subsidiary of Russia’s state-owned oil company Rosneft, that supplies much of the Berlin region and the capital’s international airport with fuel. German government spokesman Stefan…

Audio By Vocalize Rescuers at the scene of a heavily damaged apartment building following a drone attack in Syzran on April 22, 2026.  [AFP] The EU on Wednesday gave the green light to unblock a 90-billion-euro ($106 billion) loan for Kyiv, after the deadlock was broken in a months-long row between Ukraine and Hungary over a damaged pipeline. Diplomats said the definitive sign-off should come by Thursday as Budapest waits for Russian oil to arrive through the Druzhba pipeline after Kyiv said operations had restarted. The bitter feud over the pipeline pitted Hungary’s nationalist premier Viktor Orban against Ukrainian President…

Audio By Vocalize Apple CEO Tim Cook speaks during Apple’s “Awe-Dropping” event at the Steve Jobs Theater on the Apple Park campus in Cupertino, California, on September 9, 2025. [AFP] Apple’s Tim Cook will step down as the California tech giant’s chief executive this year, handing the top job to a company veteran as it navigates a technology landscape being upended by AI. The 65-year-old Cook, who ran Apple for 15 years after taking the reins from its visionary co-founder Steve Jobs, will be succeeded by John Ternus, a senior vice president of hardware engineering. The announcement on Monday answered…

Audio By Vocalize Mourners hold portraits of members of the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah who were killed in southern Lebanon during their funeral in the Kafaat area in Beirut’s southern suburbs on April 20, 2026. [AFP] The United States and Iran both warned they were ready for war as the clock ticked down on a ceasefire on Tuesday, with uncertainty over whether talks that President Donald Trump had announced would resume in Pakistan. The White House said Vice President JD Vance was ready to fly back to Islamabad, which was preparing for a second round of talks on ending the…

Audio By Vocalize Ukrainian combat medic Anastasia Podobailo (right), with her husband Mykola Yasinenko (second left), treat an injured soldier at a stabilisation point of the 56th brigade in Donetsk, on March 15, 2026. [AFP] While Ukrainian combat medic Anastasia Podobailo cleaned blood from a wounded soldier’s arm and called him “little bun”, her colleague and husband Mykola Yasinenko checked that the patient’s intravenous drip was flowing. The couple navigated their small surgery together and treated the groaning serviceman, following a closely choreographed routine perfected over years of working shoulder-to-shoulder throughout Russia’s invasion. “We know our strengths, and, well, our…

English and Italian football giants Manchester City, Chelsea, Inter Milan and Juventus will square up for pre-season friendlies in Hong Kong in August, the clubs announced on Tuesday. Published Date: 2026-04-21 09:44:37 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Audio By Vocalize A single “Type-88” missile being tested off the coast at the JGSDF Shizunai Anti-aircraft firing range in Shinhidaka, Hidaka district on the northern island of Hokkaido, on June 24, 2025. [AFP] Japan will ease decades-old arms export rules, the government’s top spokesman Minoru Kihara said on Tuesday, a policy shift that paves the way for the sale of lethal weapons overseas. The new rules end Japan’s self-imposed curb on sales of lethal arms as Tokyo seeks to enter the international arms market, hoping to bolster national defence as well as boost economic growth. It comes as anxiety…

Audio By Vocalize Alleged members of the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) during a remote court hearing via video link from the Counter-Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) mega-prison in Tecoluca, El Salvador, on April 20, 2026. [AFP] Nearly 490 alleged members of the powerful Central American gang Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), including several alleged leaders, went on trial collectively in El Salvador on Monday, accused of thousands of murders. El Salvador is conducting mass trials of thousands of suspected gang members, many of whom have spent years in prison without charge or visiting rights, as part of iron-fisted President Nayib Bukele’s anti-gang crackdown. The…

Defending champions John Korir and Sharon Lokedi completed a Kenyan double-double at the Boston Marathon on Monday. Published Date: 2026-04-20 21:23:47 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Audio By Vocalize SpaceX, Twitter and electric car maker Tesla CEO Elon Musk arrives for a US Senate bipartisan AI Insight Forum at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on September 13, 2023. [AFP] Elon Musk did not appear Monday for a voluntary interview with Paris prosecutors, who had summoned the American tech billionaire over a probe into his social media platform X and AI chatbok Grok. Prosecutors told AFP they had “taken note of the absence of the first people summoned,” without mentioning Musk’s name. The billionaire had dubbed the French authorities “retards” weeks earlier in a French-language X…

Audio By Vocalize Security personnel stand guard at a security checkpost ahead of anticipated US-Iran peace talks in Islamabad on April 20, 2026.[AFP] Iran’s foreign ministry said on Monday that the United States was not serious about pursuing diplomacy, citing what it called “violations” of their two-week ceasefire. “While claiming diplomacy and readiness for negotiations, the US is carrying out behaviours that do not in any way indicate seriousness in pursuing a diplomatic process,” said ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei in a weekly press briefing. He said a US attack on an Iranian cargo ship early Monday, the US naval blockade…

Audio By Vocalize President Donald Trump.[AFP] Oil prices surged on Monday on a re-escalation of hostilities in the Middle East war after Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz at the weekend, just a day after reopening it, citing the United States’ blockade of its ports. However, lingering hopes that a deal to end the seven-week crisis continued to support equities, even as Tehran said it was not currently planning to attend peace talks. Crude plunged while US and European stocks rallied Friday after the Islamic Republic said it would again allow ships to pass through the waterway, through which a…

Oil prices bounce back on Iran war escalation Published Date: 2026-04-20 09:17:06 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard

Manchester City beat stumbling Arsenal 2-1 on Sunday to take charge of the Premier League title race. Published Date: 2026-04-19 21:22:22 Author: By AFP Source: The Standard