Spain expels two US embassy staff for allegedly bribing intelligence agents | Espionage News

Spain expels two US embassy staff for allegedly bribing intelligence agents | Espionage News

The Spanish paper El Pais reports that the US quietly withdrew two staff workers at the request of Spain’s government. Spain has ejected two staff workers at the United States embassy, following allegations that they attempted to bribe Spanish intelligence officers in exchange for secrets. Spanish Defence Minister Margarita Robles…

Iran’s Raisi says ‘genocide’ under way in Gaza as he meets Russia’s Putin | Israel-Palestine conflict News

Iran’s Raisi says ‘genocide’ under way in Gaza as he meets Russia’s Putin | Israel-Palestine conflict News

Putin hosts Raisi as part of a blitz round of Middle East diplomacy after visits to the UAE and Saudi Arabia. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has condemned Israel’s assault on Gaza as he met Russian President Vladimir Putin for talks in Moscow. Putin hosted Raisi on Thursday as part of…

Student shoots classmate dead in Russian school before killing herself | Crime News

Student shoots classmate dead in Russian school before killing herself | Crime News

Investigators say 14-year-old also wounded five children using a pump-action shotgun as interior ministry probes motive. A 14-year-old girl shot a fellow pupil dead and wounded five other children before killing herself at a school in the Russian city of Bryansk, officials said. Investigators on Thursday said they were working to establish the…

Russia set to hold presidential election in March 2024 | Elections News

Russia set to hold presidential election in March 2024 | Elections News

Vladimir Putin is widely expected to run again after constitutional reforms he orchestrated in 2020 to help extend his term. Russia’s upper house of parliament has voted to set the date for the country’s next presidential election for March 17, 2024, potentially moving President Vladimir Putin closer to a fifth…

Republicans block Ukraine funding over US-Mexico border despite Biden pleas | Russia-Ukraine war News

Republicans block Ukraine funding over US-Mexico border despite Biden pleas | Russia-Ukraine war News

Republican senators in the United States have blocked $106bn in new funding for Ukraine and Israel, rejecting appeals from President Joe Biden amid anger over the exclusion of immigration reforms they had demanded as part of the package. Biden had earlier warned of dire consequences for Kyiv – and a…

Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 652 | Russia-Ukraine war News

Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 652 | Russia-Ukraine war News

As the war enters its 652nd day, these are the main developments. Here is the situation on Thursday, December 7, 2023. Fighting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told Ukrainians that Kyiv would defeat Russia and win a fair peace in an unusual early-morning video that showed him walking through Kyiv on…

Bosnian Serb leader Dodik stands trial for defying peace envoy | Politics News

Bosnian Serb leader Dodik stands trial for defying peace envoy | Politics News

Dodik called the envoy a ‘stinker’ as he demanded the trial be relocated to the capital of Bosnia’s Serbia entity. The trial of Bosnian Serb leader Milord Dodik has opened at a court in the Bosnian capital, Sarajevo, where the contentious leader is facing charges of ignoring rulings from an…

Pro-Russian former Ukrainian parliamentarian shot dead near Moscow | Russia-Ukraine war News

Pro-Russian former Ukrainian parliamentarian shot dead near Moscow | Russia-Ukraine war News

Illia Kyva, declared a traitor by Ukraine, has been shot dead in a park in Odintsovo region in the southwest of Moscow. A former pro-Russian member of Ukraine’s parliament has been shot dead near Moscow in an assassination claimed by Kyiv. Illia Kyva, declared a traitor by Ukraine, was shot…

Putin makes rare trip to Middle East to meet with UAE and Saudi leaders | Vladimir Putin News

Putin makes rare trip to Middle East to meet with UAE and Saudi leaders | Vladimir Putin News

The Russian leader has been bolstering his partnerships with Gulf nations as Moscow faces growing isolation by the West. Escorted by four fighter jets, Russian President Vladimir Putin made a rare one-day lightning tour to the Middle East during which he visited the United Arab Emirates before departing for Saudi…

Sports bodies ask IOC to allow Russian, Belarusian athletes at Olympics | Olympics

Sports bodies ask IOC to allow Russian, Belarusian athletes at Olympics | Olympics

Athletes from both countries have faced sanctions in multiple sports but may be allowed to compete at the Paris 2024 Games under a neutral flag. Representatives of international sports federations and national Olympic committees have called for Russian and Belarusian athletes to be admitted under a neutral flag for the…