Browsing: Gaming
Turkey on Tuesday called on Russia and Ukraine to take measures to ensure navigational safety in the Black Sea after a drone attack hit a Turkish-owned vessel and seriously injured three crew members near Russia's Novorossiysk port.The Turkish Foreign Ministry said Ankara was seriously concerned about the targeting of civilians vessels in the Black Sea despite ‘all of our warnings’, adding it was closely following the condition of its citize Source link
US President Donald Trump said Monday that negotiations with Iran were ongoing despite Tehran’s denials and the country was facing a “last chance before decapitation.”Trump, speaking to reporters at the White House, said he agreed to continue to pursue talks with Iran at the request of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and other countries.Iran’s foreign ministry denied Monday that negotiations with Washington were taking place, but Trump insisted they were. “We are talking right now,” he said.”This is a last chance for them to sign a good document,” the US president added. “I want to give them every last chance before decapitation.”The talks are focused on reopening the Strait of Hormuz, which Trump said could come “literally by tomorrow,” and the denuclearisation of Iran, which he said could “take a little while.”Washington and Tehran have been at war since February 28, when the United States and Israel launched surprise strikes against Iran, though months of on-and-off diplomacy have led to periods of relative calm.More than five months later, Iran remains able to fire missiles and drones at US and allied targets in the region and retains its enriched uranium stockpiles.In what has become a familiar pattern, Trump last week had threatened to hit Iran “very hard” — potentially with renewed attacks against energy infrastructure — only to pull back on Saturday, saying the “perimeters” of a deal were there.Iran, for its part, said it is not currently negotiating with the United States.”Our negotiations are with Oman to secure passage through the Strait of Hormuz,” the critical oil corridor, foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said.Calling Tehran “duplicitous” for “openly and proudly” saying it was not negotiating, Trump wrote on social media: “Whether Iran wants to admit it or not, we are, in fact, talking of a solution to a problem that they have caused, for decades.”He pointed to the United States’ counter-blockade of Iranian ports, adding: “Nothing gets through to Iran, unless we want it to, and nothing will get through, unless a Deal, or Total Surrender, is accomplished.”Before the war, there was free passage through Hormuz, but Iran now insists on retaining control and charging fees, something the United States rejects.Tehran has refused to let ships travel any route other than one that hugs the Iranian coast.On Sunday, Baqaei told state television that a deal was close on managing Hormuz together with Oman, which sits on the other side of the narrow waterway.”We are now going to reach an understanding on a route acceptable to both sides — neither the northern route nor the southern route — but one that respects the sovereign rights of both sides and safeguards our national interests and security,” he said.But he insisted that such an agreement did not mean the reopening of the strait.On Sunday, a tanker off the coast of Oman reported hearing an explosion nearby, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) Centre reported, but the ship and crew were all reported safe.The US president said at the start of the conflict that the war was necessary to deal with Iran’s nuclear programme and he repeated Monday that “the denuclearisation of Iran has to happen.”Speaking to reporters on Air Force One over the weekend, Trump said he had been asked by Iran as well as regional US partners to hold off on further strikes, which he claimed would have been “the biggest attack since World War II.”Iranian media denied that Tehran had asked Trump not to strike.A previous ceasefire deal fell through last month. It was supposed to open the Strait of Hormuz to ships carrying vital energy exports from the Gulf to feed the global economy. Related Story Source link
Two firefighting helicopters collided in Greece while helping to control a huge wildfire Sunday that has destroyed more than 100 homes northwest of Athens, while a fresh blaze forced evacuations on the popular tourist island of Kefalonia. Europe has been ravaged by wildfires this summer after a period of record-breaking heatwaves and little rain — conditions that scientists say have been exacerbated by climate change. Destructive blazes in France and Spain showed signs of easing over the weekend, but several wildfires have broken out in Greece after a period of relative calm there. Two helicopters collided during a firefighting operation in the area of Psatha in the Attica region, west of Athens, Greece’s fire service said in a statement. Footage posted on the Forecast Weather Greece Facebook page appeared to show two helicopters closing to cross paths at low altitude, before the main rotor of the lower helicopter struck the underside of the one flying above it and crashed in flames. The second helicopter then dumped its load of water and flew away. Reuters has not verified the authenticity of the footage. The crew of one helicopter had been located and were safe, with ambulances on the way to pick them up, government officials said. As for the second crew, the helicopter had been located, and a search-and-rescue operation was underway, officials said. ‘FORCE OF NATURE’Gale-force winds that had fuelled a fire around Porto Germeno on the Gulf of Corinth 60km (40 miles) northwest of Athens subsided, but flames crossed a mountain to the south and reached the settlement of Veniza and a military firing range, igniting unexploded ordnance. Firefighters focused their efforts on preventing fire from advancing towards the coastal town of Megara, which has a population of around 30,000. “There are moments when the force of nature and the intensity of weather conditions exceed all human planning and every operational capability,” Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said in his regular Sunday message. Greek authorities issued emergency alerts for evacuations for a number of settlements in western Attica, including an industrial estate near Megara. In the village of Agios Konstantinos, residents were doing their best to halt the spread of the blaze. “The fire has been burning since last night, it is certain that they cannot have forces everywhere. We as residents are doing everything we can,” said Tasos Tzempelikos, 61, who along with his son was pouring water on the fire. Greek daily Protothema reported that a major effort was under way to prevent the fire from Veniza from reaching the nearby coastal town of Megara. It said more than 10,000 hectares of land had likely been destroyed by the fire so far. Overnight, several settlements on the Ionian island of Kefalonia were evacuated after a fire broke out in the Pastra area in the south. FIRES IN FRANCE AND SPAIN MOSTLY UNDER CONTROLIn France, wildfires in the Gironde and Var departments showed signs of easing. Authorities reported only minor flare-ups in the southwestern Gironde area and said the blaze in the southeastern Var department had not spread overnight. In Monfort-Sur-Argents, in the region of Var, Georges Blanc, who fled from the fire, returned home and was busy putting out hot embers to prevent a flare-up, while firefighters watered the wider area. “With the combined efforts of the two Canadairs (firefighting planes) and the firefighters, I think you could say all the houses were saved … And now, well, I’m coming back to check, because since I saw the flames, I thought the houses wouldn’t have survived,” he told Reuters. In central Spain, wildfires that ripped through tens of thousands of hectares over the past week were mostly under control, though firefighters were dealing with reignitions in some areas. In the western province of Caceres, a forest blaze erupted on Saturday, prompting the evacuation of around 800 people. Those residents were allowed to return Sunday but remained confined to their homes as the fire was still active. HUNGARY NUCLEAR PLANT FORCED TO SHUTOther European countries are struggling with drought and receding water levels in major rivers, including the Rhine and the Danube, which recorded its lowest-ever water levels in Hungary, Serbia and Romania. Hungary faces a critical five days, Prime Minister Peter Magyar said Sunday, as the drying out of the Danube forced the country’s sole nuclear power plant to shut for the first time in more than four decades, with a new heatwave looming. Falls in water levels amid a lack of rain have also disrupted shipping and tourism in Hungary and triggered water-use restrictions in more than 100 cities and villages. Danube levels in Serbia fell to their lowest since 1985, cutting the daily output of the country’s biggest hydropower plant to only 20%, the energy minister said Sunday. Related Story Source link
Cosplayers take part in the Osu Cosplay Parade, during the second day of the World Cosplay Summit 2026 in Nagoya on Saturday. (AFP) Shawn, like her sister Whitney dressed as a character from “Demon Slayer”, has two words to describe the weather as she waits to watch the grand parade at this year’s annual cosplay extravaganza in Japan: “Damn hot”.”I have had about five of these (bottles of water). I have on full sleeves, socks, and whoo! When we first came outside we were just drenched in sweat,” the Houston, Texas native told AFP at the World Cosplay Summit (WCS) in Nagoya.But relief is coming for the upwards of 250,000 people from all over the world who attend the WCS every year to embody manga, animation or video game characters.From next year, the three-day event in the central Japanese city will be in November in pleasant autumn temperatures, as opposed to the oppressive 40C (104F) forecast for this Sunday, the final day.”Since around the end of the Covid pandemic, Japan has been getting increasingly warmer,” said Tokumaru Oguri, chief executive of the WCS.”The heat can genuinely put people’s lives at risk, so first of all, we ask each individual to take every possible precaution themselves, by making sure they are in good physical condition, getting enough sleep and staying hydrated,” Oguri told AFP.A Japanese journalist coined the term cosplay — combining costume and play — in 1984 after seeing people dressed as monsters and aliens at a sci-fi convention in Los Angeles.The concept exploded in Japan before morphing into a global phenomenon in the 1990s and 2000s.Typically people dress up as characters — human or otherwise — from movies, series, comics, pop culture, fantasy, roleplay or computer games.But cosplayers can also embody everything from fast food brands, internet browsers and memes to intangible ideas like gravity or hunger, while also experimenting with gender.Scientists say human-induced climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme heat events in Japan and elsewhere.Japan had its hottest summer on record last year and in recent weeks many places have had “kokushobi”, a new official classification meaning “cruelly hot days”. Thousands of people, many of them elderly, needed hospital care.But although some people at the WSC still go all out — one participant was enclosed in a huge “Castle in the Sky” robot soldier outfit in Saturday’s parade in a covered but stifling shopping arcade — many adapt their costumes.”Orena”, 40, from France, said she deliberately chose to make her outfit — Haku from Studios Ghibli’s animated movie “Spirited Away” — from linen and cotton to keep cool.She will be co-representing France on Sunday at the climax of the WCS, when acts flying in from 41 countries ranging from Peru and Saudi Arabia to Latvia will be judged on costume craftsmanship, dramatic performance, and character recreation.”At major competitions such as the World Cosplay Summit, people tend to want to wear costumes that involve a certain level of technical complexity and often have several layers,” the electrical technician told AFP.”When it gets hot, there comes a point when you cannot take off any more layers (of costume),” the 40-year-old said. “There is the risk of feeling unwell, but even when it comes to makeup and wearing wigs, we sweat, and it quickly becomes very difficult.””Most of the cosplayers that will be joining the parade today will definitely have more comfortable (costumes) because they’re going to walk under the heat of the sun,” said Jeoffry Quiban, or “OPet”, portraying fire demon Hiei from “Yu Yu Hakusho”.”You need to deal with what you wear and wear it comfortably,” the 35-year-old teacher told AFP, brandishing a sword and wearing blood-red contact lenses.Having the event in November will allow people to go all-out, said his performance partner Krizel Guiral, or “Zhel”, dressed as Youko Kurama, the red-headed fox demon from the same Japanese manga and anime classic.”I think it would be really exciting to see different kinds of costumes,” the 38-year-old nurse told AFP. Source link
Wreckage of the small plane involved in a fatal accident that claimed the lives of its 13 occupants is pictured in the Vista Alegre district, Nazca,…
A group of migrants wave from the coastal rocks near the border post of the Spanish enclave of Ceuta on August 2. At least 72 people…
Wildfires that broke out on the Greek island of Kefalonia forced residents to evacuate their homes as the flames spread dangerously close to residential areas, while aircraft conducted water-dropping missions over the island in the Ionian Sea.In a statement, the Greek Fire Service said the blaze had also spread in the western Attica region near the capital, Athens, advancing toward residential neighborhoods and an industrial area outside the city of Megara. Strong winds prevented firefighting aircraft from scooping up water from the sea.Around 500 firefighters and 23 aircraft were deployed, but powerful winds drove the flames through the dry forests, hampering firefighting efforts.Authorities ordered the evacuation of residents as thick smoke billowed over the mountains. Fire crews also expressed particular concern about the coastal town of Porto Germeno. Source link
Cuba experienced another nationwide blackout on Sunday after the country’s national electricity grid collapsed, according to the state-run utility, Union Electrica.The outage follows three nationwide blackouts in July and comes as a US-imposed oil blockade further strains the island’s ageing energy infrastructure.Since October 2024, Cuba has suffered several nationwide power outages due to malfunctions in power facilities, hurricanes, and other factors. Related Story Source link
Ankara and Baghdad on Saturday agreed to extend an oil pipeline agreement by one year, just days after a top-level visit by Iraqi Prime Ali al-Zaidi, officials on both sides said. In a post on X, Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said the agreement was signed following a “productive meeting” in Ankara with Iraqi Oil Minister Bassem Mohammed Khudair.Zaidi also hailed the deal in a post on X, describing it as “an important strategic milestone” which would involve “a minimum export capacity of 750,000 barrels per day”. The decades-old agreement on the pipeline — which carries Iraqi crude to Turkiye’s Mediterranean export terminal of Ceyhan, a key outlet for regional oil shipments — had expired on Monday.“While our efforts continue toward a new long-term agreement for this pipeline.. We have implemented this transit arrangement covering a daily capacity of 750,000 barrels,” Bayraktar wrote.Zaidi said Iraqi and Turkish companies would begin implementing the agreement while the two governments would push ahead with efforts “to finalise a comprehensive framework agreement covering the oil, electricity, and water resources sectors. ” The Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline has a maximum capacity of about 1.5mn barrels per day, although actual flows have been well below that in recent years.Bayraktar went to Baghdad for talks on oil and gas cooperation in early July, and on Tuesday, the Iraqi premier and several top ministers were in Ankara to meet President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and their counterparts. Source link
British trip-hop band Massive Attack has been barred from performing in Singapore after an investigation found two members unfurled a Palestinian flag during a concert, police said. Two band members who held the flag on stage during a concert on Wednesday were also banned from re-entering Singapore and issued with warnings, police said in a statement late Friday, without naming the pair.Singapore, known for its tough laws on public speech and assembly, bans the open display of all foreign flags, national emblems or banners without a permit. A video circulating online showed two Massive Attack members on stage unfurling a Palestinian flag to loud, prolonged cheers from the audience, prompting the police probe.After concluding their investigation and in consultation with state prosecutors, police said they “administered stern warnings to both men” and barred them from coming back to the city-state.The media regulator is also probing possible breaches of licensing conditions. “Notwithstanding the event organiser’s prior acknowledgement of the licence conditions, during the performance, two band members held a foreign flag on stage, and one of them also shouted ‘Free Palestine’,” police said. The media regulator “will also not grant any future application for performances by the band in Singapore in view of the entry ban”, police said.The concert promoter has not responded to an AFP request for comment. The band is known for its criticism of Israel’s military actions in Gaza and has used its popularity to support the Palestinian cause. In April, frontman Robert Del Naja was among more than 200 people arrested at a protest in London’s Trafalgar Square in support of Palestine Action, an activist group banned by British authorities. Affluent Singapore has established itself as a top concert hub for Southeast Asia, boasting of multi-night performances by Taylor Swift, Coldplay, Ed Sheeran and Bruno Mars.The police urged the public, including foreigners, “to refrain from importing foreign politics as this can undermine our social cohesion and the rule of law”. Source link