🇸🇪🇹🇷Notorious Swedish gang leader arrested in Turkey
One of Sweden's most wanted gang leaders, Ismail Abdo, has been arrested in Turkey, the Swedish prosecutor's office said on Friday.
The dual Swedish-Turkish national has an extensive list of drug-related charges against him according to the global police agency, Interpol.
The 35-year-old, nicknamed The Strawberry, is a well-known leader of the Rumba crime gang in Sweden. He is accused of orchestrating illegal operations from abroad and has been the subject of an Interpol red notice since last year.
Swedish police did not identify him, but confirmed the arrest of a man "suspected of having engaged in serious drug trafficking and inciting serious violent crimes" for many years in Sweden.
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🇦🇫🇬🇧Payout offered to Afghans hit by UK data breaches
Afghan nationals whose personal information was mistakenly exposed by the Ministry of Defence in 2021 will be offered up to £4,000 each in compensation, the government has said.
The data breaches affected 277 people, some of whom had worked for the UK government and were in hiding from insurgent Taliban forces at the time.
Defence Minister Luke Pollard said he could not "undo past mistakes" but promised that the payments would be made "as quickly as reasonably practical".
The government expects the total cost to be around £1.6m and comes on top of the £350,000 it had to pay after receiving a fine from the data watchdog.
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🇺🇸🇻🇳Trump announces trade deal with Vietnam
President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that the US will charge 20% tariffs on imports from Vietnam under a new trade deal reached during last-minute negotiations.
Products sent from Vietnam to the US had faced a 46% levy, which was set to go into effect next week as part of Trump's "reciprocal" tariffs announced in April.
Dozens of other economies, including the European Union and Japan, are still scrambling to make their own deals with the US before the planned increases.
Under the agreement, Vietnam will charge no tariffs on US products, Trump said in a social media post.
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🇹🇭Thousands protest in Bangkok calling for Thai PM to resign
Thousands of protesters have gathered in the Thai capital Bangkok, calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra after a phone call she had with the former Cambodian leader Hun Sen was leaked.
In the call, which was about a recent incident on their border, she addressed Hun Sen as "uncle" and said a Thai military commander handling the dispute "just wanted to look cool and said things that are not useful".
The call has sparked public anger and a key partner in her ruling coalition has quit. Paetongtarn apologised, but defended the call as a "negotiation technique".
Before leaving to visit flood-hit northern Thailand, Paetongtarn told reporters it is the people's "right to protest, as long as it's peaceful".
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🇨🇩DR Congo-Rwanda peace deal met with scepticism in rebel-held city
The signing of a peace agreement between the governments of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda in Washington has elicited mixed reactions, with the former Congolese president, Joseph Kabila, describing it as "nothing more than a trade agreement".
The deal signed on Friday demanded the "disengagement, disarmament and conditional integration" of armed groups fighting in eastern DR Congo - but offered few other details.
While some, including Kabila, have been critical, others have hailed the agreement as a turning point in a devastating conflict that has dragged on for decades.
Rwanda has denied allegations it backs an armed group, known as M23, which has been fighting in the eastern DR Congo.
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🇨🇦Canada passes law fast-tracking 'nation building' projects to counter Trump
Canada's parliament has passed a landmark bill giving Prime Minister Mark Carney's government new powers to fast-track major national projects.
The One Canadian Economy Act was passed by the Senate on Thursday, and allows the cabinet to streamline approvals processes and bypass certain provisions of federal laws for projects that could boost the economy.
Supporters have argued the legislation is a critical step in reducing Canada's dependence on the United States, amid trade tensions sparked by President Donald Trump's tariffs.
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🇺🇸🇮🇷US gained nothing from strikes, Iran's supreme leader says
Iran's supreme leader has insisted the US "gained no achievements" from strikes on its nuclear facilities, in his first public address since a ceasefire with Israel was agreed on Tuesday.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the strikes did not "accomplish anything significant" to disrupt Iran's nuclear programme, and described the retaliation against an American air base in Qatar as dealing a "heavy blow".
It came as Washington doubled down on its assessment that the strikes had severely undermined Iran's nuclear ambitions.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said intelligence gathered by the US and Israel indicated the operation "significantly damaged the nuclear programme, setting it back by years".
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🇺🇸US asks 🇨🇳China to stop Iran from closing Strait of Hormuz
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has called on China to prevent Iran from closing the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most important shipping routes.
His comments came after Iran's state-run Press TV reported that parliament had approved a plan to close the Strait but added that the final decision lies with the Supreme National Security Council.
Any disruption to the supply of oil would have profound consequences for the economy. China in particular is the world's largest buyer of Iranian oil and has a close relationship with Tehran.
Oil prices rose following the US attack on Iranian nuclear sites, with the price of the benchmark Brent crude reaching its highest level in five months.
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🇺🇸US Supreme Court allows Trump to resume deportations to third countries
The US Supreme Court has cleared the way for President Donald Trump's administration to resume deportations of migrants to countries other than their homeland.
By 6-3, the justices reversed a lower court order requiring the government to give migrants a "meaningful opportunity" to tell officials what risks they might face being deported to a third country.
The court's three liberal justices dissented from the majority ruling, saying it was "rewarding lawlessness".
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🇨🇳🇬🇧China criticises UK warship's patrol in Taiwan Strait
China's military has called a British warship's recent passage through the Taiwan Strait a disruptive act of "intentional provocation" that "undermines peace and stability".
The British Royal Navy says HMS Spey's patrol on Wednesday was part of a long-planned deployment and was in accordance with international law.
The patrol - the first by a British naval vessel in four years - comes as a UK carrier strike group arrives in the region for a deployment that will last several months.
China considers Taiwan its territory - a claim that self-ruled Taiwan rejects - and has not ruled out the use of force to "reunify" the island.
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🇿🇦🇬🇧South Africa's firebrand MP banned from entering UK
A controversial South African opposition MP, central to a row over race relations in the country, has been denied entry to the UK.
The Home Office said Julius Malema had been deemed "non-conducive to the public good" and that it was "undesirable" to grant him entry.
In a letter released by Malema's party, the Home Office cited his vocal support for Hamas, including a speech he made after the 7 October attacks in which he said his own party would arm the group if it came to power.
The UK said Malema had made "statements calling for the slaughter of white people [in South Africa] or hinted that it could be an acceptable option in the future", and also cited this as a reason for its decision.
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👀Watch: A trade deal, a family photo and the Middle East - Trump's short G7
US President Donald Trump has cut short his trip to attend the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada, citing the Middle East conflict.
The summit, being hosted by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, includes leaders from France, Germany, Italy, United Kingdom, United States, Japan, and the European Union.
Trump is not expected to sign the G7 statement on the Iran-Israel conflict, despite other leaders' plan to call for de-escalation and protection of civilians.
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🇺🇬Uganda leader signs new law allowing military trials for civilians
Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni has signed into law an amendment that will allow, once again, civilians to be tried in a military court under certain circumstances.
A previous law permitting such trials was ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in January.
Before that ruling, civilians could be taken to a military tribunal if they had been found with military equipment like guns or army uniforms. Activists had complained that the law was used to persecute government critics.
Parliamentarians passed the amendment last month amid a heavy police presence and a boycott by opposition lawmakers, who argued that it violated the ruling by the country's highest court.
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🇺🇸US to partially evacuate embassy in Iraq as Iran tensions rise
Non-essential US embassy staff and their dependants in Baghdad are to be evacuated from Iraq due to heightened security risks, US government sources have said.
Officials did not say exactly what prompted the removal, however, on Wednesday, US officials were told Israel was ready to launch an operation into Iran, the BBC's US partner CBS reported, citing officials familiar with the matter.
The officials said this was part of the reason the US advised some Americans to leave the region, and that the US anticipated Iran could retaliate on certain US sites in Iraq
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🇵🇱Polish PM Donald Tusk wins confidence vote
Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk has won a vote of confidence in his pro-EU government after his political camp narrowly lost the recent presidential election.
Some 243 parliamentarians voted in favour of the coalition government, with 210 voting against and no abstentions.
This vote has been seen by some as a piece of political theatre on the part of Tusk - a way of showing his broad coalition still has a mandate despite the presidential election defeat.
Wednesday's vote was also a formality. Tusk's coalition has a 12-seat majority in the lower house, the Sejm, and only a simple majority in the presence of half the 460 parliamentarians was required to win.
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🇰🇪Kenyan leader to build huge church at presidential office
Kenyan President William Ruto says he is building a church at the presidential residence in Nairobi that he will pay for himself - and says he has nothing to apologise for.
"I am not going to ask anyone for an apology for building a church. The devil might be angry and can do what he wants," Ruto said on Friday.
That statement alone has angered Kenyans already frustrated with his style of leadership and what they regard as the entanglement of the state and the church.
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🇳🇦Namibia halts all state funerals amid criticism of the high cost
The Namibian government has announced a temporary ban on state funerals amid criticism over the rising costs of these burials.
Only President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has the power to exempt funerals from the moratorium, the government said.
Minister of Information and Communication Technology Emma Theofelus made the announcement following a Cabinet meeting earlier this week.
She said the moratorium would last until April 2026, while a review committee looks into the "criteria and processes associated with bestowing official funerals".
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🇺🇸🇯🇵Trump threatens Japan with tariff up to 35% as deadline looms
US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose a "30% or 35%" tariff on Japan if a deal between the two countries is not reached before a deadline next week.
That would be well above the 24% tariff Japan was hit with as part of Trump's so-called "Liberation Day" on 2 April, when he announced steep import duties on countries around the world.
The tariffs on most US trading partners, including Japan, were later lowered to 10% for 90 days to give them time to negotiate deals with Washington.
That pause is due to expire on 9 July and Trump has said he is not planning to extend the deadline.
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🇭🇺Thousands party at Budapest Pride in clear message to Orban
Budapest advertises itself as a party town. On Saturday, the party spilled out onto the streets, and occupied, in the scorching heat of summer, the Elizabeth Bridge and the river banks and downtown areas on both shores of the Danube.
Between 100,000 and 200,000 mostly young people danced and sang their way from Pest to Buda.
A distance that usually takes only 20 minutes on foot stretched to three hours.
Prime Minister Viktor Orban's ban, many Budapest Pride participants told me, spurred them to attend an event they usually stay away from.
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🇮🇳India refuses to sign joint statement at defence summit over Kashmir
India has refused to sign a joint statement at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in China as it did not reflect the country's concerns on terrorism, India's foreign ministry has said.
Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Thursday that India's desire for its concerns to be reflected was "not acceptable to one particular country".
While he did not share more details, Indian media reported that Delhi refused to sign the statement after it omitted the Pahalgam attack, a deadly militant attack that killed 26 tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir.
India has blamed its neighbour Pakistan for sheltering a militant group it blames for the attack. Pakistan has rejected the allegations.
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🇦🇲Armenia's PM offers to expose himself in escalating Church row
A bitter standoff between Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and the Armenian Apostolic Church has seen mass arrests, allegations of a coup plot, and an extraordinary offer by Armenia's leader to reveal his private parts to prove he is a Christian.
Earlier this week, Pashinyan told his 1.1 million followers on Facebook he was prepared to expose himself to the head of the Armenian Church and his spokesman, to prove they were wrong that he had been circumcised.
Social media became his preferred means of communication after he came to office after Armenia's so-called Velvet Revolution of 2018.
Pashinyan faces pivotal elections next year and the Church has become a prominent anti-government voice since Armenia was defeated in a 2020 war with neighbouring Azerbaijan.
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🇨🇲Ally of Cameroon president, 92, quits 'broken' government to challenge him
Issa Tchiroma Bakary - a prominent minister and long-time ally of President Paul Biya - has quit Cameroon's government, in the hope of ending 92-year-old Biya's four-decade grip on power in upcoming elections.
Just four months before the central African nation goes to the polls, Tchiroma said the Biya administration he belonged to had "broken" public trust and he was switching to a rival party.
"A country cannot exist in the service of one man," he said on Wednesday.
While he was communications minister, Tchiroma notably came under fire for denying - then backtracking on his denial
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🇹🇭Thailand bans tourists from going to 🇰🇭Cambodia as border dispute persists
Thailand has imposed restrictions on all travellers heading into Cambodia, as the two countries remain locked in a bitter border dispute.
The ban applies to any vehicle or person trying to cross into Cambodia from checkpoints across several Thai provinces, as well as foreign tourists flying into Siem Reap.
The military said in a statement on Monday that the new restrictions "matched the current security situation".
Bilateral relations between the two countries are at their worst in more than a decade, after armed clashes along the border in May left one Cambodian soldier dead.
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🇺🇸Watch: US strikes against Iran spark protests in North America
Demonstrators took to the streets in New York, Los Angeles, Washington DC and Toronto on Sunday to protest US President Donald Trump's decision to launch major strikes against Iran's nuclear program.
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🇪🇸Spain's embattled PM Sánchez defies clamour for resignation
Seven years after taking office by ousting corruption-ridden conservatives from government, Pedro Sánchez is fighting for his political life amid investigations into alleged graft in his Socialist party (PSOE).
On June 12, an ashen-faced prime minister apologised to Spaniards after audio gathered by civil guard investigators was made public and appeared to show the PSOE secretary, Santos Cerdán, discussing commissions paid by companies in exchange for public contracts.
Sánchez has not himself been directly implicated, but the Socialist leader who came to power promising to clean up politics is now facing calls to resign from an invigorated opposition.
Cerdán, who was party number three, has resigned from the PSOE and stepped down as a member of parliament. He is due to appear before the Supreme Court on 25 June. He maintains he has never committed a crime nor been implicit in one.
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🇷🇼🇨🇩Rwanda and DR Congo agree draft peace deal to end conflict
Officials from Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo have reached a draft agreement aimed at ending decades of conflict.
The breakthrough, mediated by the US and Qatar, provides for the "disengagement, disarmament and conditional integration" of armed groups fighting in eastern DR Congo.
Rwanda denies widespread accusations that it backs one of those groups, the M23, which has seized large parts of the region this year.
It also includes provisions for a joint security mechanism to prevent future flare-ups. The peace deal is expected to be formally signed next week.
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🇺🇸🇬🇧Trump signs order confirming parts of UK-US tariff deal
A deal removing some trade barriers between the UK and US has been signed off by President Donald Trump.
The move will bring into force parts of an agreement agreed between the two countries last month, and reduce tariffs on UK cars being shipped to the US.
It comes after weeks of talks to implement parts of the pact, which the UK government hopes will shield British businesses from the impact of Trump's tariffs.
But the deal includes a 10% levy on most UK goods, including cars, and did not address the expected removal of charges on steel imports.
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CIA analyst who leaked Israel strike plan sentenced to three years
A former CIA analyst who leaked classified documents about Israel's plans to strike Iran has been sentenced to 37 months in prison.
Asif William Rahman, 34, pleaded guilty in January to two counts of willful retention and transmission of national defence information under the Espionage Act.
Authorities say that, using his high-level security clearance, Rahman printed, photographed and sent out top secret documents. They later ended up being circulated on social media.
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🇬🇧UK agrees post-Brexit deal over Gibraltar
The UK has agreed a deal with the European Union over Gibraltar's status after Brexit.
Talks on rules governing the border between Spain and the British Overseas Territory have been ongoing since the UK left the EU in 2020.
The UK said the agreement would avoid the need for checks on people and goods crossing the Gibraltar-Spain border.
For travellers arriving at Gibraltar airport, passport checks will be carried out by Gibraltar and Spanish officials.
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🇰🇷🇰🇵South Korea turns off propaganda loudspeakers to North
South Korea's military says it has suspended its loudspeaker propaganda broadcasts across the border to North Korea, as part of a bid to "restore trust" between both countries.
The move comes a week after the country elected its new president Lee Jae-myung, who had campaigned on improving inter-Korean ties.
Pyongyang considers the loudspeaker propaganda broadcasts an act of war and has threatened to blow them up in the past.
They were paused for six years but resumed in June last year in response to Pyongyang's campaign of sending rubbish-filled balloons across the border to the South.
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