A crowd gathered in the central Iranian city of Isfahan on October 22 for a protest against a series of acid attacks on women there. Authorities vowed strict punishment for the perpetrators of the attacks, reported in some local media as prompted by the belief that victims were not dressed modestly enough. Footage shows a crowd listening to a speaker and cheering. Credit: Instagram/vahid8832
The head of the European Union's executive branch said Friday that Finland's decision to close its border crossings with Russia over a surge in migrants was a security matter for the whole 27-member bloc to consider. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen made the remarks during a trip to the frontier, visiting a part of the border located in the Arctic. “We all know how (Russian President Vladimir) Putin and his allies instrumentalize migrants to test our defenses and to try to destabilize us,” von der Leyen said.
Lawyers in Donald Trump's criminal trial are expected on Friday to wrap up the painstaking process of selecting a jury that will for the first time in U.S. history determine whether a former president is guilty of breaking the law. With the 12-member jury already chosen, prosecutors and defense lawyers need to select six alternates for the trial, which is expected to run through May. Opening statements could start on Monday. On Thursday, Justice Juan Merchan dismissed one juror who said she felt intimidated after friends and relatives figured out she had been chosen for the trial.
U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson looks set to push forward this weekend on a $95 billion aid bill for Kyiv, Israel and other allies, despite a firestorm of protest from hardline Republicans that could lead to an attempt to oust him. His performance, six months after the 52-year-old Louisiana Republican acquired the speaker's gavel, has won him accolades from centrist Republicans who worry that party infighting could erode U.S. status on the world stage. Johnson was elected speaker after a small band of hardline Republicans ousted his predecessor, Kevin McCarthy, a move that brought the House of Representatives to a halt for weeks.
Democrat Ro Khanna is touring swing states, talking to young voters about Gaza. Why he thinks President Joe Biden has a 2024 problem.
Tesla's growth story was about leading the paradigm shift to EVs, and an affordable car was a part of that story. Now without it, the narrative has changed.
Russian strikes on Ukraine in the early hours of Friday killed at least eight people, including two children, as Kyiv said it shot down a Russian strategic bomber for the first time.In a boost for their forces, Kyiv said it had downed a Russian long-range strategic bomber during a combat mission for the first time.
India began voting Friday in a six-week election with an all but assured victory for Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi."I urge all those voting... to exercise their franchise in record numbers," he wrote in a social media post on X as the election began.
Indonesian authorities were on alert Friday for more eruptions from a remote island volcano that forced thousands to evacuate this week, as nearby residents began clearing debris after molten rocks rained down on their villages. And then it rained and rocks fell.
Plus: Nationwide antisemitism; Trump allies join forces with sheriff's group. It's the week in extremism, from USA TODAY.
Here’s what we know so far amid fears of conflict escalating in the region.
The line was orderly at Government Middle School as people waited patiently to vote, even after one of the voting machines malfunctioned. The officers working at the polling station in Chedema village in India's tiny mountain state of Nagaland on Friday had arrived the day before, all of them women on electoral duty for the first time. The four women surveyed the polling station, secured the perimeter and started on the tedious paperwork involved with India's multiphase national election.
Got a few hundred thousand dollars to spare? Here’s how Olympic-class spenders will be watching the summer games in Paris this year.
The trauma of the massacre at Columbine High School still haunts survivors, witnesses nationwide and students who weren’t alive when it happened.
Firefighters in Copenhagen plan to start taking down scaffolding that is left dangling dangerously Friday outside the ruins of the Danish capital's historic Old Stock Exchange building after a fire tore through it and collapsed much of its structure. “Right now, structural engineers and engineers are assessing how it can be done to cut the scaffolding free,” said Tim Ole Simonsen, a spokesman for the Greater Copenhagen Fire Department. Tuesday's blaze was believed to have started on the roof of the building, which had been wrapped up in scaffolding while the building was being renovated.
The Biden administration said Friday it will restrict new oil and gas leasing on 13 million acres (5.3 million hectares) of a federal petroleum reserve in Alaska to help protect wildlife such as caribou and polar bears as the Arctic continues to warm. The decision — part of an ongoing, yearslong fight over whether and how to develop the vast oil resources in the state — finalizes protections first proposed last year as the Biden administration prepared to approve the controversial Willow oil project. The approval of Willow drew fury from environmentalists, who said the large oil project violated Biden's pledge to combat climate change.
The Biden administration on Friday took steps to limit both oil and gas drilling and mining in Alaska, angering state officials who said the restrictions will cost jobs and make the U.S. reliant on foreign resources. The measures are aligned with President Joe Biden's efforts to rein in oil and gas activities on public lands and conserve 30% of U.S. lands and waters to combat climate change. The Interior Department finalized a regulation to block oil and gas development on 40% of Alaska's National Petroleum Preserve to protect habitats for polar bears, caribou and other wildlife and the way of life of indigenous communities.
An important ally of Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif demanded the government lift a two-month-old ban on the social media platform X, saying on Friday that it violates citizens' right to speech and expression. The ban on X has been in place since February, when the party of imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan announced a nationwide protest against alleged election rigging ahead of the Feb. 8 vote that allowed Sharif to come to power. “We demand that the ban on X, which is known as Twitter, should immediately be lifted by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to stop any further violation of human rights,” said Farhatullah Babar, a senior leader of the Pakistan People's Party.
The rights of LGBTQ+ students will be protected by federal law and victims of campus sexual assault will gain new safeguards under rules finalized Friday by the Biden administration. The new provisions are part of a revised Title IX regulation issued by the Education Department, fulfilling a campaign pledge by President Joe Biden.
The Biden administration is banning drilling on nearly half of the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska.
Yahoo Home