The US Supreme Court will take up two cases this autumn that ask whether university race-based admissions violate civil rights laws. How the court rules could pave the way for a historic end to policies meant to help applicants previously seen to face discrimination. The cases concern admissions at Harvard and the University of North […]
Ukraine conflict Russia’s foreign minister and his US counterpart have held what they called “frank” talks to try to reduce the chance of a wider conflict in Ukraine. Sergei Lavrov repeated denials that a huge Russian force assembled near Ukraine’s borders would be used to invade Ukraine. Antony Blinken said America would respond severely […]
Ryanair Belarus flight diversion The US has charged four Belarusian officials with aircraft piracy over the diversion of a passenger plane to Minsk last May. Prosecutors allege the officials used a false bomb threat to divert a Ryanair flight to the Belarus capital, where opposition journalist Roman Protasevich and his partner were detained. FBI […]
Billionaire investor Chamath Palihapitiya is under fire for saying that he – and most Americans – “don’t care” about abuses against the Uyghur minority in China. Mr Palihapitiya, a part-owner of San Francisco’s basketball team, made the comments during a podcast discussion of whether President Joe Biden’s action on the issue had helped him politically. […]
Four people who were held hostage at a synagogue in a suburb of Dallas, Texas, have been freed unharmed after a 10-hour stand-off with police. They were taken hostage during a morning service in Colleyville on Saturday. Police deployed special weapons teams, while FBI negotiators spent hours talking to the assailant. Explosions and gunfire could […]
Four more US diplomats working in Geneva and Paris have fallen ill with a suspected neurological illness known as “Havana syndrome”, US media report. Three diplomats became sick in the Swiss city and one in the French capital last summer, with some 200 people affected over five years. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the […]
Coronavirus pandemic The US has recorded more than one million new Covid cases as officials warn the peak of a fast-spreading Omicron surge is still to come. A record 1,080,211 cases were reported on Monday – the highest one-day tally of new cases anywhere in the world, according to Johns Hopkins University. The Omicron […]
Theranos trial Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes has been convicted of defrauding investors after a months-long landmark trial in California. Prosecutors said Holmes knowingly lied about technology she said could detect diseases with a few drops of blood. Jurors found Holmes guilty of conspiracy to commit fraud against investors and three charges of wire fraud. […]
Coronavirus pandemic Flight cancellations in the US have hit a new peak in a Christmas season hit hard by the Covid pandemic and bad weather. Nearly 4,400 flights around the world were cancelled on Saturday, more than 2,500 of them in the US, air traffic site FlightAware reported. Airlines have been struggling with staffing […]
Ukraine conflict US President Joe Biden is set to hold talks with Russia’s Vladimir Putin for the second time this month, in a bid to de-escalate tensions over Ukraine. The two leaders will speak by phone on Thursday. They will discuss forthcoming security talks between the countries and the situation in Europe, a White […]
