Author: News Desk

Moldova’s EU referendum too close to call with 98% of votes counted Moldova’s referendum on joining the EU remains undecided, with Yes votes at 50.08% and No at 49.92% after 98% of ballots were counted. The tight race has sparked tension, as many expected the pro-EU vote to pass in the country of 2.6 million, which borders Romania and Ukraine. President Maia Sandu, a strong EU supporter, claimed foreign interference influenced the narrow results, accusing Russia of paying voters—an allegation Moscow denies. Sandu called it an “unprecedented assault on democracy” and cited evidence of vote-buying. Alongside the referendum, Moldova held…

Hurricane Oscar slams Cuba causing widespread blackouts  Hurricane Oscar made landfall in eastern Cuba on Sunday evening, intensifying the country’s ongoing struggle with power outages. The Category 1 storm, with winds reaching 80 mph (130 km/h), struck just as Cuba was dealing with its third day of near-total blackout after the collapse of its largest power plant on Friday. This power plant failure triggered a nationwide power crisis, and the government is working to restore electricity by Monday night. Energy Minister Vicente de la O Levy said most Cubans should have power by then, though full restoration might take until…

Israeli bombing of northern Gaza leaves 87 dead or missing Israeli airstrikes on multiple homes in northern Gaza have resulted in at least 87 people dead or missing, according to the territory’s Health Ministry. The strikes, which occurred overnight and into Sunday, also injured around 40 individuals in the town of Beit Lahiya, a location that was one of the initial targets of Israel’s ground invasion nearly a year ago. The Israeli military stated that the attacks were precise strikes aimed at Hamas targets. For the past two weeks, Israel has conducted a large-scale operation in northern Gaza, claiming that…

The U.S. government is currently investigating a leak of classified documents that detail American assessments of Israel’s potential military response to Iran.  The leaked documents reportedly include satellite imagery showing Israel moving military assets in preparation for a response to a missile attack from Iran on October 1. The materials were shareable within the Five Eyes intelligence alliance, which includes the US, Britain, Canada, New Zealand and Australia. Israel has been deliberating its response to Iran’s missile strike, with its defence minister warning that any retaliation will be “deadly, precise, and surprising.” The two leaked documents are attributed to the…

Prabowo Subianto Sworn in as Indonesia’s President Former military general Prabowo Subianto has been inaugurated as Indonesia’s president, unveiling the largest cabinet in decades. At 73 years old, Prabowo takes office as the country’s eighth president, succeeding Joko Widodo, known as Jokowi, who led the nation through a decade of economic growth. After two previous unsuccessful bids for the presidency, Prabowo secured over 58% of the vote in February’s elections, defeating two opponents. In his inaugural speech, he pledged to tackle corruption and poverty, stating he would be a president for all Indonesians. Prabowo was sworn in alongside his running…

Musk promises $1 million a day to voters in swing states Elon Musk has announced a plan to distribute $1 million daily to a registered voter in key swing states until the US presidential election on November 5. The winner will be randomly selected from those who sign a pro-US Constitution petition organised by Musk’s campaign group, America PAC, which aims to support Republican nominee Donald Trump’s return to the White House. The first prize was awarded to an attendee at a town hall event in Pennsylvania over the weekend, followed by another cheque handed out on Sunday. Pennsylvania Governor…

Jack Grealish names former Man Utd star as one of his toughest-ever opponents Manchester City star Jack Grealish has named former Manchester United right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka as one of his toughest-ever opponents. Erik ten Hag’s side sold Wan-Bissaka to West Ham for £15m in the most recent summer transfer window, a move which raised eyebrows among some pundits. Grealish has played against some of the top full-backs in world football – and the 29-year-old is convinced that Wan-Bissaka is among the very best he’s faced. The City winger appeared on Sky Sports and was asked who he thought fans would…

Budget UK latest news: ‘Big and difficult choices’ warns Wes Streeting as tax threshold freeze not ruled out The health secretary has declined to rule out extending the freeze on income tax thresholds as speculation about possible tax increases in the Budget continued to mount. Wes Streeting said he would not guess measures that the Chancellor might introduce in the Budget, but told broadcasters on Sunday morning that he had already agreed health spending with Rachel Reeves. Mr Streeting told Sky News: What we’re not going to do is duck the difficult decisions, have Government by gimmick, short-term sticking plasters, because that…

Charles jokes about ‘sands of time’ as he gifts hourglass to local Australian parliament – royal family news King Charles joked about the “sands of time” as he presented an hourglass to a local Australian parliament which was celebrating its 200th anniversary. The King was also present at the Legislative Council of New South Wales’ 150th anniversary in 1974. He gifted the timepiece – which sits on a cedar base made from the trees from the grounds of his Highgrove home – and suggested it could be used as a “speech timer” for the parliament. “Democratic systems must evolve, of…

Archaeologists discover ‘significant’ permanent side-effect of smoking Tobacco leaves traces in the bones of smokers lasting not only throughout their lives but for centuries after their deaths, research by archaeologists has revealed. Researchers from the University of Leicester have studied human remains buried in Britain between the 12th and 19th centuries, revealing the profound impact of tobacco on bones and its link to bone-related conditions, such as an increased risk of fractures. The study highlights how the introduction of tobacco to Western Europe around 500 years ago led to significant changes in human skeletal structure. Traditionally, archaeologists relied on dental…