World

“Super high-IQ revolutionaries” who are willing to work 80+ hours a week are being urged to join Elon Musk’s new cost-cutting department in Donald Trump’s incoming US government. The X and Tesla owner will co-lead the Department Of Government Efficiency (DOGE) with former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy. And in a post on X, the

UN climate talks are “no longer fit for purpose” and should only be hosted by countries who are trying to give up fossil fuels, veterans of the process have said. An open letter to the United Nations, signed by former UN chief Ban Ki-moon, makes an explosive intervention in the 29th COP climate summit, under

A body has been recovered from a South African mine after police cut off basic supplies in an effort to force around 4,000 illegal miners to resurface. The body has emerged from the closed gold mine in the northwest town of Stilfontein a day after South Africa’s government said it would not help the illegal

A necklace believed to contain jewels from the infamous Marie Antoinette “Affair of the Diamond Necklace” has been sold for £3.7m. Set with nearly 500 diamonds and weighing about 300 carats, it smashed price expectations at a Sotheby’s auction in Geneva. The Marchioness of Anglesey wore it at Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation in 1953, and

Argentinian negotiators have been summoned home from global climate talks in Azerbaijan by the President Javier Milei’s government. The team were ordered to pack up and leave on Wednesday, just three days into the two-week COP29 summit in Azerbaijan. No reason was given, but the Argentinian president – a right-wing populist who has previously dubbed

In the courtyard of a farmhouse now home to soldiers of the Ukrainian army’s 47th mechanised brigade, I’m introduced to a weary-looking unit by their commander Captain Oleksandr “Sasha” Shyrshyn. We are about 10km from the border with Russia, and beyond it lies the Kursk region Ukraine invaded in the summer – and where this

Russia has dramatically scaled up its long-range drone attacks on Ukraine, in an effort that analysts say could be intended to grind down the country’s air defences. New data from conflict-monitoring organisation ACLED shows the number of reported Shahed drone attacks has surged in recent weeks, and that incidents have been reported across the country.

Some people in Spain appear to have covered their cars in plastic wrap ahead of another approaching storm. Two weeks ago Spain experienced the worst floods in its modern history, with more than 220 people killed in the disaster. Spain’s national weather service AEMET has issued an orange alert, the second-highest, for strong or torrential

Donald Trump urged Vladimir Putin not to escalate the war in Ukraine in a phone call the day after the presidential election, according to reports. The US president-elect also reminded the Russian president of America’s sizeable military presence in Europe during the conversation on Thursday, according to The Washington Post and Reuters, citing sources familiar

More than 100 pro-Palestinian protesters have been taken away by police during a banned demonstration in Amsterdam following “antisemitic” violence in the wake of a football game. Hundreds of people had defied an order banning protests and gathered in the city’s Dam Square on Sunday, chanting “Amsterdam says no to genocide” and “free Palestine”. A

Azerbaijan, a major oil and gas producer accused of serious human rights abuses, is “perfectly suited” to host a critical global climate summit, according to its man in charge of it. Before the COP29 climate talks kick off in the capital Baku on Monday, the president of the talks, Mukhtar Babayev, told Sky News the

Qatar has told Hamas that it will no longer host its political office unless the militant group and Israel engage in constructive and meaningful talks. The Gulf country will stop trying to mediate a ceasefire deal until Hamas and Israel “demonstrate a sincere willingness to return to the negotiating table with the objective of putting

A cryptocurrency businessman has been shot and killed in Brazil’s busiest airport in an attack that left three others injured. Antonio Vinicius Lopes Gritzbach was killed by unidentified gunmen in a black car at Sao Paulo’s Guarulhos International Airport on Friday. Mr Gritzbach had received death threats from the First Command of the Capital (FCC)

Police in Amsterdam are set to use a life-size hologram of a murdered sex worker to try to catch her killer 15 years after her death. The visualisation will show Bernadett “Betty” Szabo, who was stabbed multiple times on 19 February 2009, sitting on a stool behind a window as she reaches out to passersby

The Israeli military has said it is preparing to deploy an immediate rescue mission with the coordination of the Dutch government. “The mission will be deployed using cargo aircraft and include medical and rescue teams,” the Israeli Defence Forces said. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been informed of the details of “a very violent incident”

St Lucia’s Julien Alfred became a household name this summer after storming to gold in the 100-metre final at a rainy Stade de France during the Paris Olympic Games. Her time – 10.72 seconds – saw her become the sport’s latest fastest woman in the world. Reflecting on crossing the finishing line in her historic

Vladimir Putin has hailed Donald Trump as “courageous” for his response to an assassination attempt as he congratulated the next US president. Mr Trump won a decisive victory in the 2024 election – comfortably clearing the 270 Electoral College votes needed to secure the presidency and clinching five battleground states. Throughout his campaign, Mr Trump

Spanish authorities have shared dramatic footage of a raid on a property linked to the seizing of 13 tonnes of cocaine, in what they described as the biggest anti-narcotics operation in the country’s history. Officials found bricks of drugs hidden in a shipment of bananas in a container from Ecuador at the port of Algeciras

Germany’s ruling coalition is on the brink of collapse, triggering potential political chaos in Europe’s largest economy. It means Chancellor Olaf Scholz and his Social Democratic Party (SDP) face heading a minority government after sacking his finance minister Christian Lindner from the pro-business Free Democrats Party (FDP). Mr Scholz made the decision after weeks of

Ireland’s prime minister has announced the planned date for a general election to be held this month. Taoiseach Simon Harris said he hopes the election will take place on 29 November, formally kicking off a truncated campaign which will last mere weeks. Mr Harris, 38, was appointed Irish prime minister – the youngest in the