Top World News
Infosys CEO Denies Employee Was Deported From US, Says He Was Not Allowed In
Infosys CEO and Managing Director Salil Parekh denied claims that an Infosys employee was in detention or deported by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Trump holding millions from Venezuelan oil deal in Qatar
President Donald Trump's administration was reportedly holding part of the proceeds from a deal made for seized Venezuelan oil in offshore accounts in Qatar.An administration official told Semafor that the total value of the first sale of Venezuelan oil was $500 million. The move comes just days after the U.S. military conducted strikes on Venezuela and took its leader, Nicolás Maduro, into custody.Trump has said that the U.S. would run Venezuela for an indefinite period of time, including taking control of 50 million barrels of oil. The president also indicated that he would not pay back Venezuela's debts, saying the U.S. is "not going to look at what people lost in the past, because that was their fault.""Revenue from the oil sales is currently being held in bank accounts controlled by the US government, as indicated in Friday's order, according to the administration official," Semafor reported, "The main account, according to a second senior administration official, is located in Qatar.""The second official described Qatar as a neutral location where money can flow freely with US approval and without risk of seizure," the report added. "Trump's order noted that at least some of the revenue would be held in US Treasury accounts."The idea of holding money from Venezuela oil sales in foreign countries has already sparked criticism from some Democrats."There is no basis in law for a president to set up an offshore account that he controls so that he can sell assets seized by the American military," Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) said recently. "That is precisely a move that a corrupt politician would be attracted to."
Three Palestine Action protesters end their hunger strike
Four more who had paused their strikes choose not to continue after government opts against giving contract to Elbit Systems UKThree Palestine Action-affiliated prisoners have announced the end of their hunger strike after the government decided not to award a £2bn contract to the Israeli arms company subsidiary Elbit Systems UK – with another four who had paused their protest choosing not to continue.Fears had been growing for the welfare of those taking part. On Wednesday, Heba Muraisi, 31, would have been on day 73 of refusing food, the same number of days as reached by the Irish republican hunger striker Kieran Doherty, who survived the longest of 10 men who died in a 1981 action. The earliest death among the Irish republicans was after 46 days, raising fears about the risk to life of the prisoners in jail awaiting trial for offences relating to protests claimed by Palestine Action. Continue reading...
Bears under California homes go from one-off to trend
It’s unclear whether bear removed from Altadena house is same one seen under other homesLast week, it appeared the the saga of a black bear that had captivated the Los Angeles community of Altadena for months had come to an end: the Bear League, a Lake Tahoe-based non-profit, was able to successfully remove a 550lb black bear that had been living in a crawlspace under Ken Johnson’s home in Altadena since late November.This week, however, reports emerged of bears appearing under other homes. Continue reading...
The full list of 75 countries where Trump is suspending visa processing
The Trump administration indefinitely suspended immigrant visa processing from 75 countries – see which nations have been affectedFull story: Trump administration halts visa processing from 75 countriesThe Trump administration has indefinitely suspended immigrant visa processing for people from 75 countries, marking one of its most expansive efforts yet to restrict legal pathways to the United States.The freeze, which takes effect on 21 January, targets applicants officials deem likely to become a “public charge” – people who they believe may rely on government benefits for basic needs.AfghanistanAlbaniaAlgeriaAntigua and BarbudaArmeniaAzerbaijanBahamasBangladeshBarbadosBelarusBelizeBhutanBosnia and HerzegovinaBrazilMyanmarCambodiaCameroonCape VerdeColombiaCôte d’IvoireCubaDemocratic Republic of the CongoDominicaEgyptEritreaEthiopiaFijiThe GambiaGeorgiaGhanaGrenadaGuatemalaGuineaHaitiIranIraqJamaicaJordanKazakhstanKosovoKuwaitKyrgyzstanLaosLebanonLiberiaLibyaNorth MacedoniaMoldovaMongoliaMontenegroMoroccoNepalNicaraguaNigeriaPakistanRepublic of the CongoRussiaRwandaSt Kitts and NevisSt LuciaSt Vincent and the GrenadinesSenegalSierra LeoneSomaliaSouth SudanSudanSyriaTanzaniaThailandTogoTunisiaUgandaUruguayUzbekistanYemen Continue reading...
US To Suspend Visa Processing Of 75 Nations Including Russia, Iran: Report
The Trump administration is suspending all visa processing for visitors from 75 countries starting January 21, Fox News reported on Wednesday, citing a memo from the US State Department.
Jan 14, 2026
Trump accused of lying by key NATO ally
Poisoning Suspected As Sweets In Abandoned Bag Kill 3 In Madhya Pradesh
The discovery of an unclaimed bag of sweets outside a Public Health Engineering (PHE) office in Junnardeo, Chhindwara, has triggered a chilling mystery that has claimed three lives and left two others hospitalised.
Labour MPs could rebel over Hillsborough law after talks with families break down
Families are concerned about possibility for intelligence services to veto officers giving evidence after disastersKeir Starmer is facing the prospect of Labour MPs rebelling on his manifesto-promised Hillsborough law after talks broke down with families over how the duty of candour would apply to serving intelligence officers.Starmer was introduced at last year’s Labour conference by Margaret Aspinall, whose son James, 18, was one of the 97 people killed in the 1989 Hillsborough disaster. She praised him for pushing forward with the bill after months of arguments over its future. Continue reading...
US announces start of second phase of Gaza ceasefire
No details given of committee members who will run territory but they are expected be technocrats, not politiciansThe US has announced the start of the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire, including the creation of a committee of Palestinian technocrats who are supposed to take over the day-to-day running of the territory for a transition period.The announcement was made on social media by Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, but it lacked any detail or names of potential members of the proposed “national committee for the administration of Gaza”. The committee is not expected to begin work until mandated by a “peace board” chaired by Trump, which has yet to be created. Continue reading...
Amazon to close Milton Keynes fulfilment centre, affecting 590 workers
The site was the UK’s first Amazon warehouse and staff will be offered a transfer to a new Northampton site or elsewhereAmazon is planning to close one of its UK fulfilment centres, offering workers the chance to transfer to another site.The company announced a consultation on a proposal to close the site in Milton Keynes, which was the first Amazon centre to open in the UK, in 1998. Continue reading...
Venezuela regime claims release of political prisoners is sign of new era
NGOs estimate that there are still close to 1,000 political prisoners in Venezuela despite claims by new leadersVenezuela’s acting president has claimed that the regime’s release of political prisoners sent a “very clear message” that the country was “opening up to a new political moment”, days after the seizure and rendition of the dictator Nicolás Maduro.Delcy Rodríguez also vowed to continue the releases and accused NGOs that have described the process as slow and opaque of “lying to the world and trying to sell falsehoods about Venezuela”. Continue reading...
Why western diplomats are wary of predicting end days for Iran’s regime
Failure to foresee shah’s fall in 1979 was diplomatic disaster, but experts see little indication of mass defections nowWhen asked to predict whether fissures are appearing at the top of the Iranian state that may imply Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s days as supreme leader are numbered, western diplomats adopt a haunted demeanour, perhaps recalling one of western diplomacy’s greatest collective disasters.Before the fall of the Shah of Iran in January 1979, insouciant diplomats based in Tehran were sending cables to their capitals offering total reassurance that Mohammad Reza Pahlavi’s hold on power was utterly secure. In September 1978, the US Defence Intelligence Agency, for instance, reported that “the shah is expected to remain actively in power over the next 10 years”. A state department report suggested “the shah would not have to stand down until 1985 at the earliest”. Continue reading...
