history

Paying for a selfie: Rome starts charging for Trevi Fountain

UBS

UBS grilled on Capitol Hill over Nazi-era probe

  • Neil Barofsky, an ombudsman tasked with investigating funds stolen from Holocaust victims, told the panel that 150 or more key documents are being withheld by the Swiss banking giant, which acquired Credit Suisse in 2023. 
  • A Senate panel grilled UBS officials Tuesday over withholding documents sought in a probe of Holocaust-era assets stolen by Nazis and held at Credit Suisse.
  • Neil Barofsky, an ombudsman tasked with investigating funds stolen from Holocaust victims, told the panel that 150 or more key documents are being withheld by the Swiss banking giant, which acquired Credit Suisse in 2023. 
A Senate panel grilled UBS officials Tuesday over withholding documents sought in a probe of Holocaust-era assets stolen by Nazis and held at Credit Suisse.
Neil Barofsky, an ombudsman tasked with investigating funds stolen from Holocaust victims, told the panel that 150 or more key documents are being withheld by the Swiss banking giant, which acquired Credit Suisse in 2023. 
"What we're talking about are documents that are relevant to the question of whether a Nazi had an account or didn't have an account at Credit Suisse," said Barofsky.
The former prosecutor has documented numerous previously unknown Credit Suisse accounts linked to Nazi officials and unearthed the financial trajectory of many Nazis who fled to Argentina.
The clash over documents represents the latest hurdle in the probe after Barofsky was ousted by Credit Suisse in 2022, before being reinstated by UBS in 2023.
Barofsky said the dispute began in November. "Up until that point UBS cooperation has been picture perfect," he said.
He suspects the contested papers include information listing German clients, info on looted art and valuables, and other matters that are "very very core to the heart of our investigation."
UBS General Counsel Barbara Levi told the Senate Judiciary Committee the bank was committed to openness over past actions, but said it faced an "active threat" of litigation from the Simon Wiesenthal Center and other NGOs.
"We believe that bringing to light this information is extremely important," Levi said. "But at the same time, if the same organization threatens us of litigation, we are put in a very difficult situation."
Both UBS and Credit Suisse were part of a longstanding $1.25 billion settlement between Swiss banks and more than a half-million plaintiffs over looted assets from the Holocaust.
Levi described the accord as providing "final closure to the parties," covering both known and future claims.
"It cannot be that for every piece of information that comes to light, we get under the threat of litigation," Levi said. 
"Where is the incentive then for any financial institution or any other institution to look into the past and bring this information to light?"
UBS on January 28 asked US District Judge Edward Korman for an order "clarifying the scope of the settlement."
Korman -- who approved the $1.25 billion Swiss bank settlement in 2000 -- set a hearing for March 12.
Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, a Rhode Island Democrat, said the dispute "seems like an unnecessary quarrel that is tainting both Mr. Barofsky's ability to proceed and the reputation of the bank, which I think wants to be seen as cooperative and in good faith."
Senator Charles Grassley, an Iowa Republican who chaired the hearing, called UBS's conduct an "historic shame that'll outlive today's hearing."
jmb/ksb

LCup

Guardiola 'hurt' by suffering caused in global conflicts

  • Conflicts in Palestine, Ukraine and Sudan, as well as recent shootings by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in the United States, have all left Guardiola angry and determined to draw attention to the issues.
  • Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has vowed to keep speaking out on humanitarian issues because of the "hurt" caused to the victims of global conflicts.
  • Conflicts in Palestine, Ukraine and Sudan, as well as recent shootings by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in the United States, have all left Guardiola angry and determined to draw attention to the issues.
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has vowed to keep speaking out on humanitarian issues because of the "hurt" caused to the victims of global conflicts.
Guardiola missed his press conference prior to last weekend's draw at Tottenham after making a speech in support of Palestinian children at a charity event in his home city of Barcelona.
It was not the first time the Spaniard has spoken on matters outside of football, and he insisted it won't be the last despite suggestions in some quarters that he should stick to matters on the pitch.
Speaking ahead of City's League Cup semi-final second leg against Newcastle on Wednesday, Guardiola became emotional as he discussed watching news footage of children being killed and injured in conflict zones across the world.
Conflicts in Palestine, Ukraine and Sudan, as well as recent shootings by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in the United States, have all left Guardiola angry and determined to draw attention to the issues.
"Never, ever in the history of humanity have we had the info in front of our eyes, watching more clearly than now - genocide in Palestine, what happened in Ukraine, what happened in Russia, what happened all around the world, in Sudan, everywhere," he told reporters on Tuesday.
"It's our problems as human beings. There is somebody who sees the images from all around the world who is not affected? Today we can see it. Before we could not see it.
"If it was the opposite side, it would hurt me. Wanting harm for another country? It hurts me. To completely kill thousands of innocent people, it hurts me. It's no more complicated than that. No more.
"When you have an idea and you need to defend it and you have to kill thousands, thousands of people? I'm sorry, I will stand up. Always I will be there, always."
Guardiola stressed his stance was not about politics or taking sides, but about defending human life wherever civilians are suffering.
The 55-year-old said: "The people who have to do that, run away from their countries, go in the sea and then go on a boat to get rescued. Don't ask if he is right or wrong, rescue him. It is about a human being.
"Protecting the human being and human life is the only thing we have, not just in these parts of the world but every part of the world.
"What is happening right now, with the technologies and advances that we have, the humanity is better than ever in terms of possibilities. We can reach the moon, we can do everything.
"But still right now, we kill each other. For what? When I see the images, I am sorry, it hurts. 
"That is why in every position I can help by speaking up to be a better society, I will try and will be there. From my point of view, the justice? You have to talk."
smg/bsp 

politics

Colombia's Petro, Trump hail talks after bitter rift

BY DANNY KEMP

  • Despite being worlds apart politically, the Colombian returned praise for the 79-year-old US leader.
  • Colombian President Gustavo Petro and US President Donald Trump appeared to bury the hatchet on Tuesday, after a year of sparring that culminated in threats by Trump to topple the left-wing leader like in Venezuela.
  • Despite being worlds apart politically, the Colombian returned praise for the 79-year-old US leader.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro and US President Donald Trump appeared to bury the hatchet on Tuesday, after a year of sparring that culminated in threats by Trump to topple the left-wing leader like in Venezuela.
"My impression of the meeting a few hours ago is first and foremost that it was positive," Petro told reporters after meeting Trump at the White House behind closed doors.
Trump said he "got along very well" with the leader whom he recently accused of pumping cocaine into the United States and had warned to "watch his ass" after the fall of Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro.
"He and I weren't exactly the best of friends, but I wasn't insulted because I never met him. I didn't know him at all, and we got along very well," said Trump at the White House, hours after talks ended. 
Trump said the two countries were "working on" anti-drug trafficking cooperation, and also on lifting US sanctions the Republican had placed on the South American country.
Fears in Bogota that Petro could be subjected to one of Trump's famously fiery televised Oval Office confrontations were dispelled when reporters were kept out.
Instead it was Petro and his office who posted a series of pictures of the meeting.
"You are great," Trump wrote to Petro as he signed a copy of his 1987 book "Art of the Deal," according to the photos.
Despite being worlds apart politically, the Colombian returned praise for the 79-year-old US leader.
"The truth is I like straightforward Americans, people who say what they feel. We’re different, undoubtedly, by a lot. But frankness comes first," he said.
The two leaders reclined in gold chairs in the Oval Office as they talked, accompanied by US Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio and senior Colombian officials, according to photos released by Petro's office.
They also shared a warm handshake in the West Wing colonnade, next to portraits of former US presidents that Trump recently installed along with unflattering biographies of some of his recent predecessors.
Petro also said after the meeting that Trump had agreed to mediate Colombia's trade war with Ecuador.
The South American neighbors have imposed import tariffs of 30 percent on one another in a dispute over how to tackle drug trafficking -- also a major political issue for Trump.

'Common goal'

It was a far cry from the previous harsh rhetoric between a pair who come from absolute opposite ends of the political spectrum.
The Colombian had repeatedly defended Venezuela's leader Nicolas Maduro, a fellow left-winger, before his capture by US forces on January 3. He also criticized deadly US air strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats.
Trump meanwhile has been pressing Colombia to crack down on drug trafficking, threatening military strikes on its territory as he had against both Venezuela and Mexico.
After the Maduro raid an emboldened Trump stepped up his barbs, saying a Venezuela-style action against Petro "sounds good to me." 
But things turned a corner after an unexpectedly warm phone call on January 7. 
"I mean, he's been very nice over the last month or two," Trump said on Monday on the eve of the visit. "He was certainly critical before that, but somehow, after the Venezuelan raid, he became very nice."
Petro said on X shortly before the meeting that during the talks he was "determined to continue strengthening the relationship between two nations that share a common goal: the fight against drug trafficking." 
In an apparent reference to the strikes on drug boats in the Caribbean and Pacific that have killed more than 100 people, he added that he wanted to do so "from an approach that prioritizes life and peace in our territories."
In an olive branch to Trump hours before their talks, Petro extradited an accused drug lord to the United States after a months-long suspension on such transfers.
Colombia also abruptly agreed on Friday to accept US deportation flights -- reversing the very decision that triggered the falling-out between Trump and Petro last year.
dk/sla

Buddhism

'We just need something positive' - Monks' peace walk across US draws large crowds

BY MICHAEL MATHES

  • "If it takes 20 monks walking from Texas to DC," she'd be thrilled, she said.
  • Buddhist monks walking from Texas to Washington to promote peace have become a surprise popular hit as they near the US capital -- attracting crowds of thousands who line the route or join in for a few miles.
  • "If it takes 20 monks walking from Texas to DC," she'd be thrilled, she said.
Buddhist monks walking from Texas to Washington to promote peace have become a surprise popular hit as they near the US capital -- attracting crowds of thousands who line the route or join in for a few miles.
At a time of strife and political tension in the United States, the monks offer a change of tone on their 2,300-mile (3,700-kilometer) odyssey across eight states through freezing temperatures and along ice-covered roads.
On Tuesday, north of Virginia's capital Richmond, Louella Glessner stood on a mound of plowed snow, flowers in hand, hoping the robed monks and their mission might somehow begin to heal America's toxic divisions.
"I am a Christian, but this whole concept, I think it's great," Glessner, a 62-year trust administrator, told AFP ahead of the monks' arrival at a Buddhist temple where people gathered on the roadside and in the pagoda grounds.
"It's what the country needs. We need to have peace and we need to find commonality between all people," she said.
Since launching their ambitious trek 101 days ago from a Buddhist center in Fort Worth, Texas, the group of about 20 monks have spread a message of unity, compassion, mindfulness, healing and peace.
It has resonated in unexpectedly dramatic fashion, with thousands of people turning up to share in the experience. Last month, 20,000 well-wishers greeted them in Columbia, South Carolina.
The mission's Facebook page tops 2.5 million followers and its videos have garnered over 100 million views.
The group's peace dog Aloka, a former stray from India that has accompanied the monks on the trip, has also become a celebrity in its own right.
The monks, who often stay overnight at churches or university campuses, hail from Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.
On Tuesday in Glen Allen, onlookers kneeled and offered fruit, police officers shook the monks' hands, and the monks presented people with blessing threads and other gifts.
Children shyly offered flowers or waved as the group walked past.
Leading the procession has been Bhikkhu Pannakara, a Vietnamese monk whose saffron sash is adorned with sheriff badges from the many counties that have hosted them and secured the roads.

'In the moment'

Despite the bitter cold, and the fractious state of US politics during the first year of Donald Trump's presidency, the monks are accomplishing something few others have: bringing people together.
Two weeks ago in North Carolina, 10,000 people packed a baseball stadium to hear Bhikku Pannakara speak.
"It's been crowded like this for the last couple of states," he told those in attendance, urging listeners to avoid "chasing materialism" and to abandon thoughts of greed, anger and hatred.
North of Richmond, Sarah Peyton and her two young sons stood quietly contemplating the monks who walked briskly past.
"Right now I think we just need something positive," the 38-year-old Black woman and Virginia native told AFP moments later in a hushed voice.
"It doesn't matter where you're from, you can come stand here and just witness a peaceful experience.
"There's nobody dragging anybody out of cars, nobody's yelling, nobody's angry. Everybody is just here in the moment."
The walk has not been without anguish. One monk was struck by a vehicle in a November traffic accident, and his leg had to be amputated. He reportedly reunited with the group in Georgia.
"Our walking itself cannot create peace," the monks wrote in an early blog post.
"But when someone encounters us... when our message touches something deep within them, when it awakens the peace that has always lived quietly in their own heart -- something sacred begins to unfold."
The monks are expected to arrive in the capital on February 10 and visit the Washington National Cathedral before holding a meditation retreat the following day.
Will the "Walk for Peace" change much? Perhaps it could help Americans to think with more compassion and humility, Glessner suggested. 
"If it takes 20 monks walking from Texas to DC," she'd be thrilled, she said. "People want to try something."
mlm/bgs

culture

Homage or propaganda? Carnival parade stars Brazil's Lula

BY LUCíA LACURCIA

  • Lula, 80, who is expected to attend the parade as a spectator, is seeking a fourth term in the October elections.
  • The face of the Brazilian president is omnipresent as a samba school rehearses its Carnival parade in front of thousands of spectators chanting the refrain of its theme song: "Ole, ole, ole, ola; Lula, Lula!"
  • Lula, 80, who is expected to attend the parade as a spectator, is seeking a fourth term in the October elections.
The face of the Brazilian president is omnipresent as a samba school rehearses its Carnival parade in front of thousands of spectators chanting the refrain of its theme song: "Ole, ole, ole, ola; Lula, Lula!"
The decision by samba school Academicos de Niteroi to pay homage to veteran leftist President Inacio Lula da Silva at this year's Carnival extravaganza has raised eyebrows just eight months before elections.
Academicos de Niteroi will be the first to parade down Rio de Janeiro's Sambodrome on February 15, at the start of the three-day competition that is the peak of the city's annual Carnival festivities.
Twelve samba schools will compete in parades featuring thousands of participants, with colossal, often animated floats, booming drum sections, and dancers draped in little more than beads and glitter.
Each year the schools choose a theme linked to Brazilian culture, history, or popular figures.
While Academicos argues it wants to honor Lula to thank him for his social welfare policies, the opposition has denounced the parade as equivalent to a campaign event months before official campaigning begins in August.
Lula, 80, who is expected to attend the parade as a spectator, is seeking a fourth term in the October elections.
"This is not propaganda, it's a tribute. Many people in our school were able to get an education thanks to the president's public policies," Hamilton Junior, one of the school's directors, told AFP.

'One of Brazil's greatest presidents'

Junior said it was a story of a man from Brazil's poor north-east who "faced many hardships and became one of Brazil's greatest presidents."
During technical rehearsals at the Sambodrome -- which draw large crowds -- dancers dressed as steelworkers in reference to Lula's past occupation.
The lyrics of the song recount Lula's poor childhood in rural Pernambuco, his move to Sao Paulo, his union activism, and social policies implemented under his different administrations.
There is no mention of the October election, but the song does not shy away from Brazil's current political scene.
It refers to "tariffs and sanctions" imposed by US President Donald Trump to punish Brazil for putting his ally, former far-right leader Jair Bolsonaro, on trial for plotting a coup.
Trump has since lifted many of these measures.
The song also includes the phrase "no amnesty," a nod to efforts by Bolsonaro's supporters to reduce a 27-year prison sentence he began serving in November.
A large screen mounted on the back of a truck displayed images mocking Bolsonaro -- showing him in a prison uniform or with blood-stained hands, a reference to his Covid-skepticism.
Bolsonaro has anointed his eldest son, Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, as his political heir and presidential candidate.

Opposition complains

One of the composers of the samba told local media that Lula had cried when Academicos leaders travelled to Brasilia last year to play the song for him.
Center-right lawmaker Kim Kataguiri filed a lawsuit demanding Academicos return the one million reais ($180,000) each of the 12 schools receives in federal funding for the parade. 
"It is unacceptable that the president sends one million reais, and even worse in an election year, to a samba school to celebrate a festival whose main theme is the president himself," Kataguiri told AFP on Tuesday. 
Lawmakers from the right-wing Partido Novo asked Brazil's Federal Court of Auditors to block the funding.
A senator allied with Bolsonaro demanded that the courts prohibit the television broadcast of the parade.
The Brazilian agency for the promotion of international tourism, Embratur, which provides the funds, said in a statement that it "respects the artistic autonomy and freedom of expression of the samba schools." 
Watching the rehearsal, Adriano Santos, a 43-year-old social worker from the Rocinha favela, said the samba school was "being brave, innovative."
"There will be those who like it and those who don't, but I believe this parade will represent Brazil."
ll/app/fb/msp

children

Spain to seek social media ban for under-16s

  • Sánchez had broached a social media ban for under-16s in November but fleshed out his idea on Tuesday in a package of five measures to be approved "starting next week."
  • Spain will seek to ban social media for under-16s to protect them from harmful content such as pornography and violence, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said on Tuesday, drawing a furious response from X owner Elon Musk.
  • Sánchez had broached a social media ban for under-16s in November but fleshed out his idea on Tuesday in a package of five measures to be approved "starting next week."
Spain will seek to ban social media for under-16s to protect them from harmful content such as pornography and violence, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said on Tuesday, drawing a furious response from X owner Elon Musk.
"Platforms will be required to implement effective age verification systems—not just checkboxes, but real barriers that work," Sánchez told a summit in Dubai.
"Today, our children are exposed to a space they were never meant to navigate alone: a space of addiction, abuse, pornography, manipulation, violence. We will no longer accept that."
The Socialist leader also pledged to change Spanish law to make the chief executives of tech platforms "face criminal liability for failing to remove illegal or hateful content."
Musk, in a post on X, called out the premier as "Dirty Sanchez," who was a "tyrant and traitor to the people of Spain," adding a poop emoji.
In another post, Musk called Sánchez "the true fascist totalitarian."
The posts were part of a series that also lashed out French authorities that carried out police raids on the social media giant's Paris offices over alleged political interference and sexual deepfakes.
Sánchez had broached a social media ban for under-16s in November but fleshed out his idea on Tuesday in a package of five measures to be approved "starting next week."
However, his coalition government lacks a parliamentary majority and often struggles to pass legislation.
Australia established a world first in December when it banned young teenagers from some of the world's most popular platforms, including Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.
France and Portugal have also sought to follow suit. Spain has joined Denmark, Greece and France in leading a push for similar action across the European Union.
bur-arp/sla

conflict

Russia resumes large-scale Ukraine strikes in glacial weather

BY BARBARA WOJAZER AND SERHII OKUNEV

  • Tuesday's strike on Ukraine's battered energy facilities was "the most powerful" since the start of 2026, the country's largest private energy provider confirmed.
  • Russia launched the "most powerful" attack this year on Ukraine's battered energy facilities overnight, Kyiv said on Tuesday, leaving hundreds of thousands without heating in glacial temperatures ahead of talks to end the four-year war.
  • Tuesday's strike on Ukraine's battered energy facilities was "the most powerful" since the start of 2026, the country's largest private energy provider confirmed.
Russia launched the "most powerful" attack this year on Ukraine's battered energy facilities overnight, Kyiv said on Tuesday, leaving hundreds of thousands without heating in glacial temperatures ahead of talks to end the four-year war.
Russia's strikes hit as temperatures dropped to their lowest since the start of the war in February 2022, and damaged an iconic Soviet-era World War II monument.
The attack came a day before Ukrainian and Russian negotiators were due to meet for a second round of US-brokered talks in Abu Dhabi.
"Taking advantage of the coldest days of winter to terrorise people is more important to Russia than turning to diplomacy," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said, denouncing the attack.
He said Russia had "once again disregarded the efforts of the American side".
NATO chief Mark Rutte, who visited Kyiv on Tuesday, said that "Russian attacks like those last night, do not signal seriousness about peace".
An air alert blared out across Kyiv during Rutte's visit.
AFP journalists heard explosions across the capital overnight, and residents in hundreds of buildings woke to find their heating cut off as temperatures dipped towards -20C.
More than 1,100 residential buildings remained without heat as of late Tuesday, Restoration Minister Oleksiy Kuleba said.
Some residents gathered around a damaged building, stepping over creaking debris and a thick layer of ice coating the ground.
"Our windows are broken and we have no heating," Anastasia Grytsenko told AFP. "We don't know what to do."
Russia's defence ministry confirmed it had launched "a massive strike" against "Ukrainian military-industrial complex enterprises and energy facilities".
The Kremlin had last week said it agreed to a US request not to strike Kyiv for seven days, ending Sunday.
US President Donald Trump was "unsurprised" after Russia resumed attacks, the White House said Tuesday.
Ukraine had not reported large-scale Russian attacks on the capital last week, while denouncing continued attacks in other parts of the country.
"Several types of ballistic and cruise missiles, as well as drones, were used to strike high-rise buildings and thermal power plants," Energy Minister Denys Shmygal said.
"Hundreds of thousands of families, including children, were deliberately left without heat in the harshest winter frosts," he added.
Tuesday's strike on Ukraine's battered energy facilities was "the most powerful" since the start of 2026, the country's largest private energy provider confirmed.
Ukraine's air force said Russia had attacked with 71 missiles and 450 attack drones.
Six people were wounded in the capital, officials said.
"We are awaiting the United States' response to the Russian strikes," Zelensky said in his daily address.

'Symbolic and cynical'

The base of the city's towering Soviet-era Motherland statue was damaged.
"It is both symbolic and cynical: the aggressor state strikes at a place of remembrance of the struggle against aggression in the 20th century, repeating its crimes in the 21st century," Culture Minister Tetyana Berezhna wrote on social media.
Recent Russian strikes have repeatedly cut power and heating to tens of thousands of homes.
Strikes also hit Ukraine's second-largest city, Kharkiv, temporarily cutting heating to around 100,000 subscribers.
Authorities had to cut heating to more than 800 homes to prevent the wider network from freezing, the regional governor said, urging people to go to round-the-clock "invincibility points" if they needed to warm up.
Overnight temperatures plunged to -19C in Kyiv and sank as low as -23C in Kharkiv.
A drone strike on Tuesday evening on residential buildings in the city of Zaporizhzhia killed two people and wounded at least nine, regional governor Ivan Fedorov said.

US pushes for deal

Russian occupation authorities in southern Ukraine said Ukrainian shelling had killed three people in the town of Nova Kakhovka.
Kremlin-installed authorities said the shelling hit a municipal building and a fruit shop.
"There are dead: three people, including an employee of the administration," said Vladimir Saldo, the Moscow-backed head of the Russian-controlled part of the Kherson region.
Nova Kakhovka fell to Russian forces in the first days of their 2022 invasion.
The United States has sought to craft a settlement between the two sides, but a first round of trilateral talks held in Abu Dhabi last month failed to yield a breakthrough.
A second round is due to begin on Wednesday in the Emirati capital, and is expected to focus on the crucial issue of territory.
Russia has demanded Kyiv withdraw from the Donetsk region and has repeatedly said it is ready to seize the rest of eastern Ukraine by force if diplomacy fails.
bur-mmp/jhb

US

US jet downs Iran drone but talks still on course

  • The aircraft carrier was dispatched to the Arabian Sea last month amid a build up of American forces.
  • A US fighter jet shot down an Iranian drone that approached an American aircraft carrier in the Middle East on Tuesday, Washington said, as renewed tensions on the high seas overshadowed plans for nuclear talks.
  • The aircraft carrier was dispatched to the Arabian Sea last month amid a build up of American forces.
A US fighter jet shot down an Iranian drone that approached an American aircraft carrier in the Middle East on Tuesday, Washington said, as renewed tensions on the high seas overshadowed plans for nuclear talks.
White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told Fox News that US envoy Steve Witkoff is still expected "to have conversations with the Iranians late this week," despite the incident.
The downing of the drone was the second clash between the foes in Middle Eastern waters on the same day, after Iranian forces attempted to detain a US-flagged tanker in the Strait of Hormuz.
Washington and Tehran have agreed to talks after US President Donald Trump repeatedly threatened Iran with military action -- and Iran warned that it would respond with strikes on US vessels and bases.
The United States bombed Iran's nuclear sites last summer, and has sent a naval battlegroup back to the region since Tehran's deadly crackdown on anti-government protests.
Negotiations are now set for Friday, but Trump has refused to rule out military action and his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian insists talks will only go ahead provided they were free of threats.
"An F-35C fighter jet from Abraham Lincoln shot down the Iranian drone in self-defence," Central Command spokesman Captain Tim Hawkins said in a statement.
The aircraft carrier was dispatched to the Arabian Sea last month amid a build up of American forces.

'Bad things'

Trump had told Iranians that "help is on its way" during anti-government protests in Iran that were met with a deadly crackdown last month.
Pezeshkian confirmed on Tuesday that he had ordered the start of talks with the United States, provided they were free of threats, after Trump suggested "bad things" would happen without a deal.
There has been no official confirmation from Iran on where the talks would be held, but an Arab official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP a meeting was likely to take place in Turkey.
US outlet Axios reported that Iran wanted the venue moved to Oman.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Witkoff in Jerusalem on Tuesday that Iran "cannot be trusted," according to a statement from Netanyahu's office.
The US opposes Iran's nuclear program, which it maintains is a precursor to acquiring nuclear weapons, while Tehran insists it is for civilian research purposes.
Washington also wants to curtail Iran's support for proxy forces in the region and cut its vast arsenal of ballistic missiles.
"I have instructed my minister of foreign affairs, provided that a suitable environment exists -- one free from threats and unreasonable expectations -- to pursue fair and equitable negotiations," President Masoud Pezeshkian wrote in a post on X. 
Iran has repeatedly stressed that any talks should focus solely on the nuclear issue and not its missile program or defense capabilities.
While Trump and Pezeshkian insisted they were dedicated to talks, US and Iranian forces were in action at sea.
A US-flagged tanker was challenged on Tuesday by Iranian gunboats in the Strait of Hormuz, US Central Command said.
Spokesman Captain Tim Hawkins said two Iranian boats and a drone approached the M/V Stena Imperative "and threatened to board and seize the tanker."
An American destroyer responded with air support and escorted the tanker onwards.
British maritime security firm Vanguard Tech reported that the Stena Imperative was approached by three pairs of small armed boats belonging to the Revolutionary Guards while transiting the strait 16 nautical miles (30 kilometers) north of Oman. 
The ship increased speed and maintained course, the firm added, stressing it did not enter Iranian waters.
But the Iranian news agency Fars said a vessel, whose nationality it did not specify, had entered the country's territorial waters in the Strait of Hormuz.
"It was therefore warned and immediately left Iranian waters," Fars said.

Thousands arrested

Protests against the rising cost of living broke out in Tehran in December before evolving into wider nationwide anti-government demonstrations that triggered a deadly crackdown by the authorities.
Iranian officials have acknowledged more than 3,000 deaths during the unrest, but insist that most were members of the security forces and innocent bystanders, attributing the violence to "terrorist acts."
The Human Rights Activists News Agency, a US-based NGO, says it has confirmed 6,854 deaths, mostly protesters killed by security forces, with other rights groups warning the figure is far higher.
On Tuesday, the NGO said it had counted at least 50,235 arrests linked to the protests, with further detentions ongoing.
Iranian authorities have said the "riots" were inflamed by the United States and Israel. 
bur/dcp-dc/bgs

politics

UK police launching criminal probe into ex-envoy Mandelson

BY MARTIN POLLARD AND HELEN ROWE

  • "The alleged passing on of emails of highly sensitive government business was disgraceful," the prime minister said, warning he feared more information could yet emerge.
  • British police Tuesday launched a criminal probe into the former UK ambassador to Washington, Peter Mandelson, amid allegations he passed confidential information to late US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
  • "The alleged passing on of emails of highly sensitive government business was disgraceful," the prime minister said, warning he feared more information could yet emerge.
British police Tuesday launched a criminal probe into the former UK ambassador to Washington, Peter Mandelson, amid allegations he passed confidential information to late US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The news came only hours after Mandelson resigned from the upper house of parliament Tuesday, as the scandal over his ties to Epstein effectively ended his decades-long political career.
"The Metropolitan Police has now launched an investigation into a 72-year-old man, a former Government Minister, for misconduct in public office offences," Commander Ella Marriott, of the London-based force, said in a statement.
A pivotal and often divisive figure in British politics, Mandelson, once dubbed the "Prince of Darkness", has joined the dozens of royals and politicians engulfed in the Epstein maelstrom.
The former minister and ex-EU trade commissioner announced he was resigning from the House of Lords as of Wednesday, Speaker Michael Forsyth told members.
Documents released by the US Justice Department last week contained emails between prominent figures and Epstein, who died by suicide in prison in 2019, often revealing warm relations, illicit financial dealings and private photos.
Records released on Friday suggested that in 2009, Mandelson, while business secretary, forwarded an economic briefing to Epstein intended for then-prime minister Gordon Brown, captioning it: "Interesting note that's gone to the PM."
According to one email, Epstein, who was released from jail in 2009 after serving an 18-month term for soliciting a minor, also emailed Mandelson in May 2010 asking about the European Union's bailout of Greece.
"Sources tell me 500b euro bailout, almost compelte (sic)," Epstein wrote. "Sd be announced tonight," came the reply.
Epstein appeared to have transferred a total of $75,000 in three payments to accounts linked to the veteran Labour politician between 2003 and 2004.
Mandelson told the BBC on Sunday he had no memory of the money transfers and did not know whether the documents were authentic.
His decision to quit came shortly after Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he had "let his country down".
Starmer told ministers he was "appalled" at the revelations regarding Mandelson, according to a Downing Street readout of a cabinet meeting.
"The alleged passing on of emails of highly sensitive government business was disgraceful," the prime minister said, warning he feared more information could yet emerge.

Long Epstein shadow

Starmer made it clear the government "would cooperate" with any police inquiries into the matter, and the Met police confirmed there had been "a referral from the UK government".
Ex-PM Brown, under whom Mandelson served as business secretary from 2008 to 2010, said Tuesday he had written to the Met with "relevant" information.
"Corruption in public office is ordinarily regarded as a serious abuse of the public's trust, and conviction for a misconduct offence would almost invariably lead to a prison sentence," criminal law professor at the London School of Economics, Jeremy Horder, told AFP.
Starmer has faced mounting criticism of his initial decision to appoint Mandelson as ambassador to Washington, before sacking him last September, less than a year into his post.
The Epstein affair has cast a shadow far beyond the United States.
Other documents previously made public and a posthumous memoir by Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre prompted King Charles III to last year strip his brother Andrew of all royal titles and order him to leave his 30-room mansion in Windsor.
Giuffre, who died by suicide last year, had accused the then-prince Andrew of sexual assault.
Andrew, who has denied any wrongdoing, paid her a multi-million-pound settlement in 2022 without making any admission of guilt.
His ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, has also been caught up in the scandal with a series of embarrassing emails. Her charity, "Sarah's Trust", said Tuesday it was now closing down.
US President Donald Trump spent months trying to block the disclosure of files linked to Epstein, who moved in elite circles for years, cultivating ties with billionaires, politicians, academics and celebrities.
Former US president Bill Clinton and his wife, Hillary, will now testify in a US House investigation into Epstein on February 26 and 27.
Neither Trump nor the Clintons have been accused of criminal wrongdoing related to Epstein's activities.
Meanwhile, the European Commission said Tuesday it will look into whether Mandelson, who served as EU trade chief between 2004 and 2008, broke its code of conduct over his Epstein ties.
Mandelson was a back-room architect of Labour's revival as an electoral force in the 1990s under Tony Blair.
har-rh-jkb/sbk

diplomacy

US-Iran talks 'still scheduled' after drone shot down: White House

  • The meeting between Witkoff, a businessman whom Trump has appointed as his roving global conflict negotiator, and Iranian officials will "probably" take place in Turkey, a source close to the issue told AFP. The US military said earlier that an F-35C stealth fighter jet shot down the Iranian drone that "aggressively" drew near to the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier on Tuesday.
  • The United States is still planning talks with Iranian officials this week, the White House said Tuesday, even after a US warplane shot down an Iranian drone that approached an American aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea.
  • The meeting between Witkoff, a businessman whom Trump has appointed as his roving global conflict negotiator, and Iranian officials will "probably" take place in Turkey, a source close to the issue told AFP. The US military said earlier that an F-35C stealth fighter jet shot down the Iranian drone that "aggressively" drew near to the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier on Tuesday.
The United States is still planning talks with Iranian officials this week, the White House said Tuesday, even after a US warplane shot down an Iranian drone that approached an American aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea.
"I just spoke with special envoy (Steve) Witkoff, and these talks as of right now are still scheduled," Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters, adding that they were due to happen "later this week."
"President Trump is always wanting to pursue diplomacy first, but obviously it takes two to tango," Leavitt said outside the West Wing.
The meeting between Witkoff, a businessman whom Trump has appointed as his roving global conflict negotiator, and Iranian officials will "probably" take place in Turkey, a source close to the issue told AFP.
The US military said earlier that an F-35C stealth fighter jet shot down the Iranian drone that "aggressively" drew near to the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier on Tuesday.
Trump's spokeswoman added that the US president was keeping open the possibility of military action against Iran, with a large number of US warships now in the region.
"Of course, the president has always a range of options on the table, and that includes the use of military force," Leavitt told Fox News in a separate interview.
She added that "the Iranians know that better than anyone," referring to US military strikes that hit Iran's nuclear program last year. 
dk/iv

fraud

French prosecutors stick to demand for five-year ban for Le Pen

BY PAUL AUBRIAT AND ALEXANDRE MARCHAND

  • The lower court ordered that Le Pen's ban from public office take effect immediately -- without waiting for an appeal.
  • French prosecutors on Tuesday demanded that an appeal court maintain a five-year ban on far-right leader Marine Le Pen from holding public office for a European parliament fraud, stepping up threats to her presidential ambitions.
  • The lower court ordered that Le Pen's ban from public office take effect immediately -- without waiting for an appeal.
French prosecutors on Tuesday demanded that an appeal court maintain a five-year ban on far-right leader Marine Le Pen from holding public office for a European parliament fraud, stepping up threats to her presidential ambitions.
If the court upholds last year's bombshell ruling by a lower tribunal, Le Pen would be banned from running in France's 2027 presidential election, widely seen as her best chance at the top job.
The prosecution also sought a four-year prison term with three suspended and a 100,000 euro ($118,000) fine for the figurehead leader of the National Rally (RN) party, which has been riding high in the opinion polls.
Le Pen had hoped her appeal against her ban over a fake jobs scam at the European parliament -- an accusation the 57-year-old has denied -- would clear the way for her to run in the election afte Emmanuel Macron stands down. 
But during closing arguments lasting nearly six hours, attorney general Stephane Madoz-Blanchet told the court that "Marine Le Pen was the instigator, following in her father's footsteps, of a system that enabled the party to embezzle 1.4 million euros".
Le Pen, the RN and 11 others are appealing a March 2025 ruling by a lower court, which sentenced her to four years in jail, with two suspended.
The first trial found Le Pen, along with 24 former European lawmakers, assistants and accountants as well as the party itself, guilty of operating a "system" from 2004 to 2016 using European parliament funds to employ RN staff in France.
Not all of those convicted have appealed.
The prosecutor's office had requested bans from public office ranging from one to five years for Le Pen and 23 others in the initial trial.
The lower court ordered that Le Pen's ban from public office take effect immediately -- without waiting for an appeal. The others were also banned.

Presidential race at stake

Le Pen has, during the appeal trial, denied that the RN had any "system" to embezzle European parliament funds and said her party acted in "complete good faith".
The appeal ends this month, with a verdict expected within months.
Le Pen made it to the second round in the 2017 and 2022 presidential polls, losing to Macron both times. But he cannot run again next year after two consecutive terms in office.
She now again risks the maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a one-million-euro ($1.16-million) fine if the appeal fails.
During Tuesday's hearing, prosecutor Thierry Ramonatxo pushed back at claims that the judiciary had in any way aimed to "block a party leader's ascent to the highest executive office".
"To suggest that the judiciary could oppose the will of the sovereign people is inaccurate," he said.
"A judge is the guardian of the law and merely applies it."
A French court last year handed an eight-month suspended jail sentence to a 76-year-old man over a death threat against the judge who convicted Le Pen.
pab-amd/ah/sbk/tw

economy

Russia's economic growth slowed to 1% in 2025: Putin

  • "Russia's GDP grew by one percent last year.
  • Russia's economy grew by one percent in 2025, President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday, marking a much slower expansion compared to the 2024 figure as it stutters under the burden of the Ukraine war.
  • "Russia's GDP grew by one percent last year.
Russia's economy grew by one percent in 2025, President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday, marking a much slower expansion compared to the 2024 figure as it stutters under the burden of the Ukraine war.
Huge spending on its army fighting in Ukraine has initially spurred growth and helped Moscow buck predictions of economic collapse after it launched its offensive in 2022.
But the ramped-up spending pushed up inflation, weighing on real growth, while businesses have railed against high borrowing costs introduced to rein in the rise in prices.
"Russia's GDP grew by one percent last year. This is lower than the dynamics observed earlier, as we are well aware: in 2023 and 2024, growth was 4.1 percent and 4.3 percent, respectively," Putin told a government meeting.
"But we also know that this slowdown was not simply expected, one could even say it was man-made: it was connected with targeted measures to reduce inflation," Putin added.
He said the inflation "had been reduced to 5.6 percent" last year, compared to 9.5 percent a year prior. 
In December, Russia's central bank cut its benchmark interest rate to 16 percent as inflation showed signs of slowing down.
But state statistics agency Rosstat said last year it expected annual inflation to ease to the four-percent target only in 2027.
"The task is clear: we need to restore the growth rate of the domestic economy, improve the business climate, and increase investment activity with a focus on increasing labour productivity," Putin said on Tuesday.
Earlier this month, Moscow published budget information indicating that its oil and gas revenues -- crucial for its state coffers -- dropped to a five-year low.
The country's oil and gas sectors and many of its businesses have been subject to numerous European and US sanctions since Moscow sent its troops into Ukraine in 2022.
bur/rmb

Kurds

Syria govt forces enter Qamishli under agreement with Kurds

BY BAKR ALKASEM AND GIHAD DARWISH

  • Friday's deal "seeks to unify Syrian territory", including Kurdish areas, while also maintaining an ongoing ceasefire and introducing the "gradual integration" of Kurdish forces and administrative institutions, according to the text of the agreement.
  • Syrian government forces entered the Kurdish-majority city of Qamishli on Tuesday as part of a deal agreed last week to gradually integrate the Kurds' forces and institutions into the state.
  • Friday's deal "seeks to unify Syrian territory", including Kurdish areas, while also maintaining an ongoing ceasefire and introducing the "gradual integration" of Kurdish forces and administrative institutions, according to the text of the agreement.
Syrian government forces entered the Kurdish-majority city of Qamishli on Tuesday as part of a deal agreed last week to gradually integrate the Kurds' forces and institutions into the state.
Their arrival in the stronghold of the Kurds' de facto autonomous administration came after government security personnel entered the mixed Kurdish-Arab city of Hasakeh and the countryside around the Kurdish town of Kobane the day before.
Kurdish forces have ceded swathes of territory to advancing government troops in recent weeks following months of tension and sporadic clashes as Syria's new Islamist authorities -- who overthrew former ruler Bashar al-Assad -- have sought to impose their authority across the country.
An AFP correspondent saw vehicles including armoured personnel carriers enter the city and forces setting up checkpoints at its entrances.
Another correspondent said few people were on the streets inside Qamishli amid a curfew in place until Wednesday morning, with Kurdish security forces also lightly deployed and Kurdish flags and banners raised.
"I'm not comfortable at all about these forces entering our cities," said Mohammed al-Sayyed, 29, who works in a clothes shop.
"Our fear for the future is clear -- that they will repeat the experience of al-Assad in our cities, with arrests, kidnappings and security crackdowns," he told AFP by telephone, adding: "These fears are because I am Kurdish."

Security headquarters

Saad Mohammed, 35, a Kurdish language teacher, said the forces' entry was "good provided the government commits to guarantees on resolving the Kurdish issue within the constitution, and that the integration is fair for all Kurdish employees."
At the city's entrance, interior ministry spokesman Noureddine al-Baba said work would be undertaken to integrate the Kurds' domestic security forces, known as the Asayish, "into the ranks and payroll" of the ministry.
He welcomed Syria's diversity and "all Syrian national personnel" wishing to serve the country.
State television reported that Baba and Marwan al-Ali, the new head of internal security in Hasakeh province, inspected the Asayish security headquarters in Qamishli ahead of its handover.
Friday's deal "seeks to unify Syrian territory", including Kurdish areas, while also maintaining an ongoing ceasefire and introducing the "gradual integration" of Kurdish forces and administrative institutions, according to the text of the agreement.
It was a blow to the Kurds, who had sought to preserve the de facto autonomy they exercised after seizing vast areas of north and northeast Syria in battles against the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group during the civil war.

Kobane

Mazloum Abdi, head of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), had previously said the deal would be implemented on the ground from Monday, with both sides to pull forces back from frontline positions in parts of the northeast, and from Kobane in the north.
He added that a "limited internal security force" would enter parts of Hasakeh and Qamishli, but that "no military forces will enter any Kurdish city or town".
On Monday, government security personnel also deployed to the countryside around Kobane, more than 200 kilometres (125 miles) from Hasakeh.
Hemmed in by the Turkish border and Syrian government forces, the town has long been seen as a symbol of Kurdish fighters' victory against IS jihadists.
The United States, which leads a military coalition that had backed the Kurds' campaign against IS, has drawn close to Syria's new Islamist authorities and recently said the purpose of its alliance with the Kurdish forces was largely over.
As state forces deploy to Kurdish-held areas, only Druze-majority Sweida province in the country's south will remain effectively outside government control.
str-lar/nad/lg/dc

investigation

Air India inspects Boeing 787 fuel switches after grounding

  • News of the inspection followed Air India's grounding Monday of a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner jet after one of its pilots reported a possible defect in the fuel control switch.
  • Air India has begun inspecting fuel control switches on its 33 Boeing 787 aircraft after grounding a flight over a possible defect, according to a company note seen by AFP on Tuesday.
  • News of the inspection followed Air India's grounding Monday of a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner jet after one of its pilots reported a possible defect in the fuel control switch.
Air India has begun inspecting fuel control switches on its 33 Boeing 787 aircraft after grounding a flight over a possible defect, according to a company note seen by AFP on Tuesday.
The checks came as Indian authorities were probing the crash last year of a 787 Dreamliner that killed 260 people shortly after takeoff. 
News of the inspection followed Air India's grounding Monday of a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner jet after one of its pilots reported a possible defect in the fuel control switch.
"Following the reported defect... Engineering has escalated the matter to Boeing for priority evaluation," the internal company note said.
India's aviation regulator said incorrect handling of the fuel switch had caused the issue in Monday's flight, and not a mechanical fault.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation said that twice the fuel control switch, which regulates fuel into the plane's engines, did not "remain positively latched in the run position when light vertical pressure was applied".
It was stable the third time and the flight was "completed without incident", the regulator said in a statement.
It advised the airline to reinforce crew training on Boeing's recommended procedures.
In a statement to AFP, Boeing said: "We are in contact with Air India and are supporting their review of this matter."
Air India, owned by the Tata Group conglomerate, said it had launched a precautionary fleet-wide re-inspection of the switch latch.
A source close to the company told AFP that fresh inspection of several planes had been completed, with no adverse findings yet.
A London-bound Boeing 787 Dreamliner operated by Air India crashed shortly after taking off from Ahmedabad in June, killing all but one of the 242 people on board and 19 on the ground.
An inspection of the locking feature on the fuel control switches of the aircraft after the crash found no issues.
A preliminary report by India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) said fuel supply to the jet's engines was cut off moments before impact, raising questions about possible pilot error.
According to the AAIB, one pilot was heard asking the other why fuel had been cut off, to which the second pilot replied that he had not done so.
Two major Indian commercial pilots' associations, as well as the father of one of the dead pilots, have rejected suggestions that human error caused the crash.
Indian authorities have yet to release a final report into the crash.
sai-ash/abh/ami

diplomacy

US envoy evokes transition to 'democratic' Venezuela

  • She pointed to a three-phase plan for the crisis-stricken South American country, starting with the restoration of security, followed by economic "recovery" and finally "the transition to a friendly, stable, prosperous and democratic Venezuela."
  • Washington has plans for a "prosperous and democratic" Venezuela, the new American envoy to Caracas said Tuesday, a month to the day after the deadly US military ouster of leader Nicolas Maduro.
  • She pointed to a three-phase plan for the crisis-stricken South American country, starting with the restoration of security, followed by economic "recovery" and finally "the transition to a friendly, stable, prosperous and democratic Venezuela."
Washington has plans for a "prosperous and democratic" Venezuela, the new American envoy to Caracas said Tuesday, a month to the day after the deadly US military ouster of leader Nicolas Maduro.
The US mission published a video on social media showing charge d'affaires Laura Dogu arrive at the US mission, which had been mostly shuttered since Caracas and Washington severed ties in 2019.
"The work has already begun," read a video caption.
Dogu arrived in Venezuela on Saturday and two days later met with interim president Delcy Rodriguez, who stepped into Maduro's shoes, during a visit to the presidential palace in Caracas.
"It's a historic moment for both countries," Dogu -- a former ambassador to Nicaragua and Honduras -- said in the video.
She pointed to a three-phase plan for the crisis-stricken South American country, starting with the restoration of security, followed by economic "recovery" and finally "the transition to a friendly, stable, prosperous and democratic Venezuela."
Venezuela's opposition has been clamoring for fresh elections since Rodriguez and other Maduro associates were left in power after American troops whisked him away in cuffs to stand trial in New York.
US President Donald Trump has expressed a willingness to work with Rodriguez and her team provided she toes Washington's line, particularly by granting access to Venezuela's vast oil resources, which she so far has done.
Venezuela said Monday that former foreign minister Felix Plasencia would head its mission in Washington.
Caracas and Washington severed diplomatic ties after Maduro's widely disputed claim to reelection in 2018, and the US embassy has been mostly deserted since the following year, barring a few local employees.
John McNamara has served as US charge d'affaires for Venezuela -- based in neighboring Colombia -- since last year.
A charge d'affaires heads a diplomatic mission in the absence of a full ambassador.
jt/nn/mlr/iv

aid

WHO wants $1 bn for world's worst health crises in 2026

  • - 'Severe' consequences warning - The 2026 priority emergency responses also include the Democratic Republic of Congo, Myanmar, Somalia, South Sudan, Syria, Ukraine and Yemen, plus ongoing cholera and mpox outbreaks.
  • The World Health Organization on Tuesday appealed for $1 billion to tackle health crises this year across the world's 36 most severe emergencies, including in Gaza, Sudan, Haiti and Afghanistan.
  • - 'Severe' consequences warning - The 2026 priority emergency responses also include the Democratic Republic of Congo, Myanmar, Somalia, South Sudan, Syria, Ukraine and Yemen, plus ongoing cholera and mpox outbreaks.
The World Health Organization on Tuesday appealed for $1 billion to tackle health crises this year across the world's 36 most severe emergencies, including in Gaza, Sudan, Haiti and Afghanistan.
Hit by deep cuts in foreign aid from wealthy countries, the WHO made its emergency request significantly lower than in recent years, saying it had to be realistic about how much money would arrive.
"We are deeply worried about the vast needs and how we will meet them," WHO health emergencies chief Chikwe Ihekweazu told reporters in Geneva.
"We are making some of the hardest choices we have to make."
The WHO estimated 239 million people would need urgent humanitarian assistance this year, and said the money would keep essential health services afloat.
"A quarter of a billion people are living through humanitarian crises that strip away the most basic protections: safety, shelter and access to health care," Ihekweazu said.
"In these settings, health needs are surging, whether due to injuries, disease outbreaks, malnutrition or untreated chronic diseases," he warned.
Washington, traditionally the UN health agency's biggest donor, has slashed foreign aid spending under President Donald Trump, who on his first day back in office in January 2025 handed the WHO his country's one-year withdrawal notice.
Last year, the WHO appealed for $1.5 billion, but Ihekweazu said only $900 million came through -- below 2016 levels.
"We've calibrated our ask a little bit more towards what is available realistically, understanding the situation around the world, the constraints that many countries have," he said.
Ihekweazu said the WHO was "hyper-prioritising" high-impact services, focusing on "where we can save the most lives".
He said the WHO was shifting footing towards enabling 1,500 local partners to do more of the frontline work on the ground.

'Severe' consequences warning

The 2026 priority emergency responses also include the Democratic Republic of Congo, Myanmar, Somalia, South Sudan, Syria, Ukraine and Yemen, plus ongoing cholera and mpox outbreaks.
Ihekweazu said if the funding does not come through, it "absolutely" leaves the world more vulnerable to epidemics and pandemics.
"Imagining that these challenges will somehow disappear without global solidarity is wishful thinking," he said.
"The consequences might be not only severe for them but severe for the world."
Last year's top emergency donors were the European Union, Germany, Japan, Italy and Britain.
Ihekweazu said the immediate response to the appeal was "quite encouraging".
"There are many countries around the world we think can and should do more... countries that sometimes speak the loudest don't do the most," he said.
Last year, the WHO responded to 50 health emergencies in 82 countries, reaching more than 30 million people with essential services.
However, global funding cuts forced 6,700 health facilities across 22 humanitarian settings to either close or reduce services, "cutting 53 million people off from health care", Ihekweazu said.  
"We are appealing to the better sense of countries, and of people, and asking them to invest in a healthier, safer world."
nl-rjm/jhb

crime

Sex was consensual, Norway crown princess's son tells rape trial

BY PIERRE-HENRY DESHAYES

  • The alleged rapes -- including one while he was on holiday in 2023 with his royal stepfather in Norway's Lofoten Islands -- all took place after consensual sex, often following evenings of heavy drinking when the women were not in a state to defend themselves, the prosecution claimed.
  • The 29-year-old son of Norway's crown princess told an Oslo court on Tuesday that he did not rape four women, arguing that he perceived the sex as consensual.
  • The alleged rapes -- including one while he was on holiday in 2023 with his royal stepfather in Norway's Lofoten Islands -- all took place after consensual sex, often following evenings of heavy drinking when the women were not in a state to defend themselves, the prosecution claimed.
The 29-year-old son of Norway's crown princess told an Oslo court on Tuesday that he did not rape four women, arguing that he perceived the sex as consensual.
Marius Borg Hoiby, Crown Princess Mette-Marit's son from a relationship prior to her 2001 marriage to Crown Prince Haakon, is accused of raping them between 2018 and 2024, as well as a string of other crimes.
His trial has thrown the Norwegian royal family into turmoil, at a time when Mette-Marit has also come under fire over recently unsealed US documents revealing her close friendship with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Clad in green trousers and a sweater, Hoiby remained expressionless in the Oslo district court as prosecutors read out the 38 charges against him, which could see him jailed for up to 16 years.
While Hoiby pleaded not guilty to the rapes, he admitted guilt for several of the more minor counts, including assaults, a narcotics charge, traffic offences and violations of restraining orders.
He was arrested again on Sunday on suspicion of assault, making threats with a knife and violating a restraining order, and was remanded in custody for four weeks.
The prosecution presented details of the alleged rapes and assaults to the packed courtroom as Hoiby, his head bowed, fidgeted nervously.
The alleged rapes -- including one while he was on holiday in 2023 with his royal stepfather in Norway's Lofoten Islands -- all took place after consensual sex, often following evenings of heavy drinking when the women were not in a state to defend themselves, the prosecution claimed.
"If Marius says he is not guilty ... it's simply because he perceived all of the acts as perfectly normal and consensual sexual relations," the defence argued.
One of his alleged victims testified, in tears, about an after-party in 2018 at Hoiby's residence on his parents' Skaugum estate outside Oslo.
Police discovered footage on Hoiby's phone showing what they described as Mette-Marit's son raping the alleged victim while she slept. The victim told the court that she could not remember having fallen asleep after cutting short a brief sexual encounter with Hoiby.
- Treated like anyone else - 
Hoiby "must not be treated more severely nor more leniently because of his family connections", prosecutor Sturla Henriksbo told the court.
The defence meanwhile criticised the "negative media tsunami" that risked convicting Hoiby in advance.
"The judgment must be handed down in this courtroom, nowhere else," lawyer Ellen Holager Andenaes told the court.
"It is really impossible for me to describe the impact that this has had on Marius's life and mental health during the past 18 months," she added. 
Hoiby was first arrested on August 4, 2024 on suspicion of assaulting his girlfriend the night before. 
Several days later, he admitted he had acted "under the influence of alcohol and cocaine after an argument", having suffered from "mental troubles" and struggling "for a long time with substance abuse".
Several ex-girlfriends then came forward and said he had abused them, both physically and mentally.
The police investigation uncovered a string of other suspected offences, including the rapes of four women while they were sleeping or passed out drunk, which he filmed or took pictures of.
The last alleged rape took place after the police investigation began.
In January, police announced six more counts against him, including a drug charge from 2020 after he confessed to transporting 3.5 kilos (nearly eight pounds) of marijuana.

Kicks and punches

The identities of the seven alleged victims cannot be disclosed, with the exception of ex-girlfriend Nora Haukland, a model and influencer who has publicly accused him of physical abuse.
In 2022-2023, while the two were in a relationship, Hoiby repeatedly struck her in the face, kicked and punched her, grabbed her by the throat, threw her against a refrigerator and hurled insults at her, the prosecution said.
The scandal has dealt a blow to the monarchy's reputation, though it remains broadly popular thanks to King Harald and Queen Sonja -- both 88 -- who are respected as unifying figures.
A poll published Tuesday by television channel TV2 suggested that more than 70 percent of Norwegians think the monarchy's standing has been weakened in recent years by various scandals.
The crown prince couple is not attending the trial, which comes as Mette-Marit, 52, faces battles on several fronts.
Besides questions over her relationship with Epstein, she suffers from an incurable lung disease and will likely need a risky lung transplant in the future.
The Hoiby verdict is expected several weeks after the trial ends on March 19.
str-phy/po/sbk

transport

Finland building icebreakers for US amid Arctic tensions

BY ANNA KORKMAN

  • But Trump's desire to acquire strategically-located Greenland has now raised "more and more" suspicions about the deal, Sanna Kopra, an Arctic geopolitics and security professor at the University of Lapland, told AFP. Trump's long-standing territorial designs on Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory, have triggered the most serious crisis in the history of US-led military alliance NATO. The US president last week backed off threats of using force to seize Greenland and began talks with Copenhagen and Nuuk.
  • Finland is building a new fleet of icebreakers for the US but President Donald Trump's plans for Greenland, which he covets, and tense US-EU ties have raised concerns over the deal.
  • But Trump's desire to acquire strategically-located Greenland has now raised "more and more" suspicions about the deal, Sanna Kopra, an Arctic geopolitics and security professor at the University of Lapland, told AFP. Trump's long-standing territorial designs on Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory, have triggered the most serious crisis in the history of US-led military alliance NATO. The US president last week backed off threats of using force to seize Greenland and began talks with Copenhagen and Nuuk.
Finland is building a new fleet of icebreakers for the US but President Donald Trump's plans for Greenland, which he covets, and tense US-EU ties have raised concerns over the deal.
Sixty percent of the world's icebreakers are Finnish-made and 80 percent are designed by Finnish companies, according to Arctia, the state-owned firm which manages the country's icebreaker fleet.
Jukka Viitanen, Sustainability and Communications Director of Arctia, told AFP that Finland's expertise was born from necessity.
It is the only country in the world where all ports can freeze in winter, Viitanen said.
"We need to export and import stuff to be able to maintain people living in this country. That is why we need icebreaking," he said.
Nations such as China, Russia and the United States are scrambling to secure a foothold in the Arctic for strategic reasons and to access huge reserves of natural resources.
Many are now looking to enhance their icebreaker fleet.
In October, Trump and Helsinki announced that the United States coast guard will procure 11 icebreakers.
The US coast guard currently operates three ageing vessels.
Four vessels will be built in Finnish shipyards, and the remaining seven in the United States.
"It is not possible to sail through the Arctic Sea without icebreakers and many big nations have interests in the Arctic right now," Viitanen said.

US threats  

The US order -- estimated at $6.1 billion according to media reports -- is a welcome boost for Finland, where unemployment is at a record high and the economy is in the doldrums.
But Trump's desire to acquire strategically-located Greenland has now raised "more and more" suspicions about the deal, Sanna Kopra, an Arctic geopolitics and security professor at the University of Lapland, told AFP.
Trump's long-standing territorial designs on Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory, have triggered the most serious crisis in the history of US-led military alliance NATO.
The US president last week backed off threats of using force to seize Greenland and began talks with Copenhagen and Nuuk.
"But if Trump changes his mind about taking control over Greenland and the politics of the United States turns increasingly imperialistic, of course it raises questions about how wise it is to proceed," Kopra said.
If Trump again starts talking about seizing Greenland, "the question of cancelling these deals could become a very important political issue," Kopra noted.
Charly Salonius-Pasternak, an expert in geopolitics and the CEO of Finnish think-tank Nordic West Office, meanwhile doubted Trump's threats would endanger the deal.  
"There are voices," against it, he said,  adding: "Are these people influential in the matter? No."

'Greenland saga not over'

But Salonius-Pasternak conceded "the Greenland saga" was not over.
"Trump said at the end of October 2025 that there were no plans to use military force in Venezuela," he noted -- but US forces seized its president in a raid there on January 3.
In December, Finland's Rauma shipyard confirmed a contract from the US coast guard to build two icebreakers, to be completed in 2028.
The Helsinki shipyard, owned by Canadian company Davie, is also expecting an order.
Managing director Kim Salmi told AFP they expected to sign a contract with the US coast guard for two icebreakers shortly.
"I'm preparing to start building those icebreakers as soon as possible," Salmi said.
"When the ink drops on the paper, the first US icebreaker will be delivered 26 months from that," he said with a smile.
ank/jll/ach/rlp

diplomacy

Petro extradites drug lord hours before White House visit

  • Colombia abruptly agreed to accept US deportation flights on Friday, effectively offering an olive branch to Trump days before the White House meeting. das-vd/nn/md/sms
  • Colombian President Gustavo Petro extradited a drug lord to the United States early Tuesday morning, hours before his meeting with President Donald Trump at the White House.
  • Colombia abruptly agreed to accept US deportation flights on Friday, effectively offering an olive branch to Trump days before the White House meeting. das-vd/nn/md/sms
Colombian President Gustavo Petro extradited a drug lord to the United States early Tuesday morning, hours before his meeting with President Donald Trump at the White House.
Under pressure from Washington, the leftist leader resumed the extraditions of criminal leaders to the United States, which had been suspended for months amid stalled peace negotiations with armed groups in his country.
Petro "gave a very clear order over the weekend that the criminal alias Pipe Tulua be extradited from Colombia to the United States as quickly as possible," Defense Minister Pedro Sanchez said Monday.
Sanchez will be accompanying Petro to Washington, for what will be the president's first face-to-face meeting with Trump.
The criminal leader was wearing a helmet and bulletproof vest when he was put aboard an executive jet that took off from a military base at Bogota's airport early Tuesday.
Nearly 70 uniformed officers were deployed for his transfer, said police Colonel Elver Sanabria.
The highly anticipated meeting between Trump and Petro follows a bitter war of words on social media, which culminated with Washington sanctioning Petro and his family for alleged narcotrafficking.
Colombia abruptly agreed to accept US deportation flights on Friday, effectively offering an olive branch to Trump days before the White House meeting.
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conflict

Macron says work under way to resume contact with Putin

  • Macron said last year he believed Europe should reach back out to Putin, rather than leaving the United States alone to take the lead in negotiations to end the conflict in Ukraine that started with Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022.
  • French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday that he was preparing to resume dialogue with Vladimir Putin nearly four years after Russia's invasion of Ukraine but stressed Moscow was not showing any "real willingness" to negotiate a ceasefire.
  • Macron said last year he believed Europe should reach back out to Putin, rather than leaving the United States alone to take the lead in negotiations to end the conflict in Ukraine that started with Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022.
French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday that he was preparing to resume dialogue with Vladimir Putin nearly four years after Russia's invasion of Ukraine but stressed Moscow was not showing any "real willingness" to negotiate a ceasefire.
Macron said last year he believed Europe should reach back out to Putin, rather than leaving the United States alone to take the lead in negotiations to end the conflict in Ukraine that started with Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022.
"It is being prepared and so discussions are taking place at a technical level," Macron said Tuesday in response to a question during a visit to northeastern France.
He said the preparations to resume dialogue with Putin were being done "transparently" and in consultation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European allies.
He said France continued to support Ukraine but contact with the Kremlin was needed to negotiate security guarantees after the war.
"In this context, it is important that Europeans restore their own channels of discussion," he said.
Macron did not give a specific timeframe. 
"I think it would be useful, but I don't think Russia is currently willing to conclude a peace agreement in the coming days or weeks."
"We continue to support Ukraine, which is under bombardment, in the cold, with attacks on civilians and on Ukraine's energy infrastructure by the Russians, which is intolerable and does not demonstrate a genuine willingness to negotiate for peace."
Dialogue between the EU and Russia has been virtually frozen since the offensive launched in 2022. The bloc has imposed huge sanctions and travel restrictions on Russia.
In January, the Kremlin said it considered calls by some European states to resume dialogue with Russia as "positive".
Macron had been criticised for continuing to speak to Putin for months after the start of the full-scale invasion, but then ceased all contact and shifted his focus to supporting Ukraine.
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