conflict

Russia pummels Kyiv, killing at least 24 and denting peace hopes

diplomacy

Trump says made 'fantastic trade deals' with Xi, but details scarce

BY DANNY KEMP, ISABEL KUA

  • "We've settled a lot of different problems that other people wouldn't have been able to solve," Trump added, without providing specifics.
  • US President Donald Trump said he had made "fantastic trade deals" and settled "a lot of different problems" in his meetings with China's Xi Jinping this week, but hours after the summit ended on Friday details on exact agreements remained scarce.
  • "We've settled a lot of different problems that other people wouldn't have been able to solve," Trump added, without providing specifics.
US President Donald Trump said he had made "fantastic trade deals" and settled "a lot of different problems" in his meetings with China's Xi Jinping this week, but hours after the summit ended on Friday details on exact agreements remained scarce.
Trump had arrived in Beijing seeking to seal accords in sectors including agriculture, aviation and artificial intelligence, as well as to contain differences between the two sides in a number of tense geostrategic areas.
After the first day wrapped, Trump said Xi had agreed to help open the Strait of Hormuz, as well as buy 200 Boeing jets and more American oil and soybeans.
But there have been no formal announcements, and the Chinese foreign ministry would not confirm or deny Trump's statements when asked on Friday afternoon. 
The reserve on the Chinese side echoes the tone of the summit as a whole, where Trump's overtures to Xi -- whom he described as a "great leader" and "friend" -- were met with more muted tones by Beijing.
However, the US leader said Friday "a lot of good" had come out of the visit. 
"We've made some fantastic trade deals, great for both countries," he said after a walk with Xi among the rosebushes in the gardens of Zhongnanhai, a central leadership compound next to Beijing's Forbidden City.
"We've settled a lot of different problems that other people wouldn't have been able to solve," Trump added, without providing specifics.
Xi, who promised to send Trump seeds for the White House Rose Garden, said it was a "milestone visit". 
He said the two sides had to date established "a new bilateral relationship, which is a relationship of constructive strategic stability".
On the streets of the capital, reaction to the talks was tepid. 
"This meeting could be considered a success –- though, to be honest, none of us really had very high expectations to begin with," Zhang Yong, a 46-year-old IT worker, told AFP. 

'Help on Hormuz'

In an interview with Fox News after the summit's first day, Trump said Xi had agreed to several US wishlist points. 
On the topic of the war in Iran, the US president said Xi had effectively assured his counterpart that China was not preparing to militarily aid Tehran, which has essentially closed the Strait of Hormuz. 
"He'd like to see the Hormuz Strait open, and said 'if I can be of any help whatsoever, I would like to help'," Trump said.
The Chinese foreign ministry on Friday released a statement on Iran calling for "a comprehensive and lasting ceasefire".
"Shipping lanes should be reopened as soon as possible," it added. 
At a regular press briefing later a ministry spokesman did not comment when asked if Xi had said China would help with that process. 
In the Fox interview, Trump said one big business deal struck involved Xi agreeing to purchase "200 big" Boeing jets.
The president also said Beijing had "agreed it wanted to buy" US oil, and expressed interest in buying American soybeans. 
China, which is the key foreign customer of Iranian oil, bought small amounts of US oil before Trump imposed tariffs last year. 
It has sharply slowed down purchases of US soybeans, turning instead to Brazil.
China's foreign ministry again did not confirm or deny the details mentioned by Trump.
No announcements were made regarding the advanced Nvidia chips used in artificial intelligence, even though CEO Jensen Huang was among business leaders in Trump's business delegation.
Chinese tech firms are barred from purchasing Nvidia's most cutting-edge chips, under US export rules that Washington says are to protect national security.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC that there was discussion about setting up "guardrails" for the use of AI, adding that the world's "two AI superpowers are going to start talking".

Taiwan policy 'unchanged'

The summit began Thursday with a blunt warning from Xi on longstanding geopolitical flashpoint, Taiwan. 
Shortly after talks started, Chinese state media reported Xi had told Trump that missteps on the sensitive issue of Taiwan could push their two countries into "conflict".
Trump did not comment on Taiwan during the summit, but US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC the president would say more "in the coming days". 
Secretary of State Marco Rubio told NBC on Thursday though that "US policy on the issue of Taiwan is unchanged". 
Taipei responded Friday thanking Washington "for repeatedly expressing its support". 
On Friday, after their garden walk, Xi and Trump had lunch together, before the latter left for the airport.
As the US president entered Air Force One just before take-off, he pumped his fist in the air twice. 
"In terms of substance, I do not think there have been major surprises," The Economist Intelligence Unit's Yue Su told AFP. 
The new description of bilateral ties outlined by Xi "should be seen as a positive sign" in terms of reducing risk in the relationship, she said. 
"But... this is likely to be a fragile stability that does not eliminate underlying frictions."
bur-dhw-sms/reb

US

War in Middle East: latest developments

  • - Israel soldier killed - Israel's military said one of its soldiers had died in combat in southern Lebanon, bringing its losses to 20 personnel since the war with Hezbollah began in early March.
  • Here are the latest developments in the Middle East war: - Israeli strikes - Israel's army said it has launched strikes on Hezbollah sites in Tyre area of south Lebanon.
  • - Israel soldier killed - Israel's military said one of its soldiers had died in combat in southern Lebanon, bringing its losses to 20 personnel since the war with Hezbollah began in early March.
Here are the latest developments in the Middle East war:

Israeli strikes

Israel's army said it has launched strikes on Hezbollah sites in Tyre area of south Lebanon.
The military told residents of five villages earlier to immediately leave ahead of the expected attacks, despite a shaky ceasefire.

Oil rises

Oil prices were rising again as another weekend approached with no prospect of a return to normal oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz, with the price well over the symbolic $100 a barrel.

India hikes fuel prices

India's state-run oil companies raised petrol and diesel prices by more than three percent as the Middle East war continues to disrupt energy supplies and put pressure on the economy.

India PM seeks energy security

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the United Arab Emirates where he hopes to strengthen his country's energy security, as the war continues to sow uncertainty across the world.
"Keeping Hormuz free, open and safe is our highest priority, and in this matter adherence to international laws is essential," Modi said, in footage released by the Indian foreign ministry.

China: war 'should not have happened'

China called for a lasting truce in the Middle East and for shipping lanes to be reopened "as soon as possible".
"There is no point in continuing this conflict, which should not have happened in the first place," the foreign ministry said in a statement.

Israel soldier killed

Israel's military said one of its soldiers had died in combat in southern Lebanon, bringing its losses to 20 personnel since the war with Hezbollah began in early March.

Trump softens on Iran uranium

US President Donald Trump suggested that hunting down Iran's enriched uranium was primarily for political optics, after Israel demanded it as a goal in the Mideast war.
"I just feel better if I got it, actually, but it's -- I think, it's more for public relations than it is for anything else," Trump told Fox News host Sean Hannity.

Iran must make deal: Trump

In the same interview, Trump told Hannity he was running out of patience to reach a truce with Iran as peace talks have stalled.
"I'm not going to be much more patient... They should make a deal. Any sane person would make a deal, but they might be crazy," Trump said.

Israel-Lebanon talks 'positive'

A US official said talks in Washington between Israel and Lebanon about an expiring ceasefire were "positive" and would continue into a second day.
"We had a full day of productive and positive talks that lasted from 9 am to 5 pm," a senior State Department official said. "We look forward to continuing this tomorrow (Friday) and hope to have more to share then." 

IMF downbeat

The International Monetary Fund warned that continuing disruptions caused by the Iran war meant its global economic outlook was moving towards an "adverse" scenario, with growth pared down and greater risks to inflation.
Last month, the multilateral lender's World Economic Outlook predicted global growth would drop to 3.1 percent in 2026 in its "reference" scenario, but warned of a bleaker outlook if the war were to drag on.
In the "adverse" scenario, where oil prices remain higher for longer, inflation expectations become less stable and financial conditions tighten, growth would slow to 2.5 percent, the Fund said at the time.
burs-jxb/rmb

health

NZ passenger from hantavirus cruise quarantines in Taiwan

  • Health authorities have repeatedly emphasised that the broader risk to public health from the outbreak of the Andes strain of hantavirus -- the only one known to spread between people -- is low.
  • A New Zealand passenger from the hantavirus-stricken MV Hondius cruise ship is in hospital quarantine in Taiwan, Taiwanese health authorities said on Friday.
  • Health authorities have repeatedly emphasised that the broader risk to public health from the outbreak of the Andes strain of hantavirus -- the only one known to spread between people -- is low.
A New Zealand passenger from the hantavirus-stricken MV Hondius cruise ship is in hospital quarantine in Taiwan, Taiwanese health authorities said on Friday.
The person, who has tested negative for the rare disease and is showing no symptoms, arrived in Taiwan on May 7 after disembarking from the cruise ship in Saint Helena on April 24.
New Zealand authorities told Taiwan's Centers for Disease Control (CDC) on Wednesday that the person was in Taiwan, CDC spokeswoman Tseng Shu-hui said.
The person was admitted to hospital the same day and will remain there until June 6, Tseng told AFP. 
Tseng declined to provide details about the person's age, gender or current location in Taiwan. 
"At present, we believe their probability of developing the disease is relatively low," Tseng said.
"Their last exposure with the other passengers was on the 25th (of April), which is about 20 days ago."
The virus has a potential incubation period of 42 days.
CDC director-general Lo Yi-chun told reporters that the person did not return to New Zealand after leaving the cruise ship, but he would not provide information on the route they took to Taiwan.
A spokesperson for New Zealand's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) said it is "providing consular assistance to a dual national" in Taiwan.
"The person resides outside New Zealand and sought help from MFAT on Wednesday 13 May," the ministry said in a statement.
The ship set sail from Argentina on April 1, charting a course across the Atlantic Ocean.
Health authorities have repeatedly emphasised that the broader risk to public health from the outbreak of the Andes strain of hantavirus -- the only one known to spread between people -- is low.
Globally, the death toll remains at three.
No vaccines or specific treatments exist, but health officials have said the risk is low and have dismissed comparisons to the Covid-19 pandemic.
joy/amj/pbt

conflict

Russia, Ukraine swap 205 prisoners of war each

  • Trump said last week that Russia and Ukraine would carry out a mutual swap of 1,000 prisoners as he announced a three-day US-brokered ceasefire that covered Russia's May 9 parade celebrating the defeat of the Nazis. 
  • Russia and Ukraine exchanged 205 prisoners of war each on Friday, Moscow and Kyiv said, a week after US President Donald Trump announced a large swap would take place between the warring sides.
  • Trump said last week that Russia and Ukraine would carry out a mutual swap of 1,000 prisoners as he announced a three-day US-brokered ceasefire that covered Russia's May 9 parade celebrating the defeat of the Nazis. 
Russia and Ukraine exchanged 205 prisoners of war each on Friday, Moscow and Kyiv said, a week after US President Donald Trump announced a large swap would take place between the warring sides.
The Russian defence ministry said in a statement on social media that "205 Russian servicemen were returned from territory" controlled by Kyiv, adding that, "in exchange, 205 Ukrainian armed forces prisoners of war were transferred".
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Telegram most of the Ukrainians handed over had been in Russian captivity since 2022.
Trump said last week that Russia and Ukraine would carry out a mutual swap of 1,000 prisoners as he announced a three-day US-brokered ceasefire that covered Russia's May 9 parade celebrating the defeat of the Nazis. 
Both sides have traded accusations of violating the truce and Ukraine has accused Moscow of ramping up its strikes against civilians after it expired, killing at least 24 in an air barrage on Kyiv on Thursday. 
"This is the first phase of the 1,000-for-1,000 prisoner exchange," Zelensky said. 
He posted pictures of the released Ukrainians, wrapped in national blue-and-yellow flags, smiling and embracing each other.
Zelensky said they included troops who fought in the bloody battle for Mariupol's steelworks Azovtsal and those who defended Chernobyl, which briefly fell to Moscow at the start of its invasion. 
The POW swaps remain one of the few remaining areas of cooperation between the two sides, at war since Russia ordered troops into its neighbour in February 2022.
Moscow's defence ministry said its troops were brought to its ally Belarus, where "they are receiving the necessary psychological and medical assistance".
It added that "the United Arab Emirates provided humanitarian assistance during the return of the Russian servicemen from captivity".
bur-mmp/oc/rmb 

Wale

Solomon Islands elects opposition leader Matthew Wale as PM

BY KIRSTY NEEDHAM

  • The Solomons has been seen as one of Beijing's closest Pacific islands partners in recent years, and any change of leaders in the strategically located archipelago is closely watched by Western diplomats.
  • Solomon Islands on Friday elected as its new prime minister Matthew Wale, who has been a critic of the South Pacific nation's closeness to China and pledged to bring change.
  • The Solomons has been seen as one of Beijing's closest Pacific islands partners in recent years, and any change of leaders in the strategically located archipelago is closely watched by Western diplomats.
Solomon Islands on Friday elected as its new prime minister Matthew Wale, who has been a critic of the South Pacific nation's closeness to China and pledged to bring change.
The Solomons has been seen as one of Beijing's closest Pacific islands partners in recent years, and any change of leaders in the strategically located archipelago is closely watched by Western diplomats.
Wale -- who leads the Solomon Islands Democratic Party -- won 26 votes to the government candidate's 22 in a secret ballot of lawmakers.
Former prime minister Jeremiah Manele was ousted last week in a no-confidence motion in parliament after a dozen ministers quit the government in March.
"Change is coming. These changes are necessary and may be painful," Wale, 57, told reporters outside parliament.
"We are not immune from these geopolitical events," he said, calling for young Solomon Islanders to "be ambitious".
As opposition leader since 2019 -- when the Solomons switched ties from Taiwan to China -- Wale has campaigned for greater government transparency in dealings with foreign mining and logging businesses.
Despite a population of just 700,000, the Solomon Islands occupies a strategic position 1,600 kilometres (990 miles) northeast of Australia, a major aid donor that is critical of China's police presence in Honiara.

'Outspoken against China'

Wale, a former accountant, hails from Malaita, the most populous province whose local government boycotted Chinese companies until 2023.
Wale criticised then prime minister Manasseh Sogavare, who struck a secret security deal with China, for saying he was "back home" upon arriving in Beijing on a visit in 2023.
Wale previously called for the security pact to be made public.
On Friday he told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation he wanted to first look at the deal before deciding what to do.
Anouk Ride, associate professor at the Australian National University, said Wale's election was "a seismic shift" in Solomons politics.
He was likely to be "more moderate" on China ties and focused on the national interest, education, policing and health, she told AFP.
China's foreign ministry congratulated Wale on Friday, saying it would be open to working with his government.
"China is willing to work with the new Solomon Islands government to expand practical cooperation between the two countries in various fields" and deepen their strategic partnership, foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun told a press briefing.
Ordinary Solomon Islanders are struggling because of a surge in fuel prices brought on by the war in the Middle East and there has been little improvement to health and education in rural villages since a conflict destroyed many services 20 years ago.
"You can see this very visibly in the rural areas and also Honiara town, where people are living without electricity and water supply," Ride said.
While the "geopolitical switch" to China brought large, visible developments -- including a national stadium and provincial airports -- she said "those big-ticket projects haven't impacted the lives of people".
Former Australian diplomat to the Solomon Islands James Batley said Wale was "pragmatic when it comes to international relations" and likely to continue to balance ties with China and Australia.
Australian National University Pacific affairs expert Graeme Smith said while Wale has been outspoken against China, "it will be a tricky balancing act for him" as several of his new coalition partners are close to Beijing.
University of Queensland professor Clive Moore, who has known Wale for 20 years, told AFP his father was a Canadian anthropologist with an American university who undertook research in the Solomons, and his mother a Malaitan.
Wale was a civil society leader with a Christian group as the nation emerged from a period of ethnic violence in 2003, entering parliament in 2008, he added.
The election of Wale would "calm things down" after a period of political upheaval where lawmakers were offered large sums of money from foreign business figures to back the previous government, said Moore.
kln/oho/dhw/fox

diplomacy

Rapprochement, debates, dissidents: US presidential visits to China

BY JING XUAN TENG

  • The US president had said he expected a "big hug" from Xi, but the Chinese leader stopped short of reciprocating Trump's heavy praise for his "friend". 
  • Donald Trump's summit with China's leader Xi Jinping in Beijing this week was the latest in decades of high-level diplomatic encounters between the two countries marked by drama, tension and surprising breakthroughs.
  • The US president had said he expected a "big hug" from Xi, but the Chinese leader stopped short of reciprocating Trump's heavy praise for his "friend". 
Donald Trump's summit with China's leader Xi Jinping in Beijing this week was the latest in decades of high-level diplomatic encounters between the two countries marked by drama, tension and surprising breakthroughs.
Here are some of the most notable visits by US presidents to China:

Cold War summit

The United States cut ties with China when the Communist Party (CCP) took over the country in 1949.
Over two decades later, in February 1972, then US president Richard Nixon flew to China to break the ice.
Nixon met with Chairman Mao Zedong as well as premier Zhou Enlai, with whom he famously raised glasses of the fiery Chinese spirit baijiu. 
At a banquet in the Great Hall of the People, Nixon declared "there is no reason for us to be enemies".
A secret visit by national security adviser Henry Kissinger the year before laid the groundwork for the presidential trip, alongside reciprocal visits of table tennis teams termed "ping-pong diplomacy". 
Nixon's visit kicked off formal contacts that led to full diplomatic ties in January 1979.
The landmark trip is widely seen as a catalyst for China's emergence from decades of isolation.

Ill-fated barbecue

George H. W. Bush's February 1989 visit was overshadowed by growing calls for democratic reform in China that would culminate in massive protests and a bloody crackdown later that year.
A Texas-style barbecue hosted by Bush at a Beijing hotel during his visit sparked a small diplomatic crisis after the Chinese government objected to the inclusion of astrophysicist and dissident Fang Lizhi on the guest list.
Officials attempted to block Fang multiple times on his way to the banquet.
Bush later expressed regret to the Chinese over the incident.
In June that year, Fang played a key role in the pro-democracy Tiananmen protests that were violently crushed by the Chinese government.

Televised debate

Bill Clinton's nine-day tour of China in 1998 marked a thaw in relations after the US slapped sanctions on Beijing in the aftermath of the 1989 protests. 
The visit's highlight was a surprise decision by Chinese President Jiang Zemin to allow a live broadcast of a press conference with Clinton.
In an extraordinary scene, the two presidents sparred on national television about the usually off-limits subjects of human rights and the Tiananmen crackdown.
"I did not anticipate being able to have that sort of open, sweeping communication with the Chinese people," Clinton said at the time.

Olympics opening

George W. Bush attended the spectacular opening ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, a highly symbolic display of ambition by an ascendant China.
Bush trod a delicate diplomatic line during his August 2008 trip, as human rights groups called for a tough stance on China's rule of Tibet, arrests of dissidents and Internet censorship.
The president made subdued calls for greater freedom of expression and religion while in China.
"We've emphasised that being a global economic leader carries with it the duty to act responsibly on matters from energy to the environment to development in Africa," Bush said at the time.

Tarmac tension

Barack Obama's last visit to China as president threw a spotlight on the country's growing assertiveness and mounting rivalry with Washington.
Obama made an awkward landing in September 2016 when there was no staircase provided for Air Force One at Hangzhou airport.  
He was forced to use the plane's own staircase, only to step out onto the tarmac rather than a red carpet, prompting speculation of a snub.
The president later played down the moment, as well as an exchange where a Chinese official shouted at a White House staffer: "This is our country! This is our airport!"
Xi and Obama discussed Beijing's territorial claims in the South China Sea during the visit, an issue that has continued to set the region on edge. 

Trump 1.0

In contrast, Trump was given "state visit plus" treatment when he arrived in Beijing during his first term in November 2017.
The bitter trade war Trump launched in 2018 was still months away, and the US leader enjoyed a Chinese opera performance and a private tour of Beijing's Forbidden City with Xi.
Trump showed Xi videos of his granddaughter singing in Mandarin and reciting classical Chinese poetry, to which Xi responded that the girl deserved an "A+".
Trump's second state visit, which wrapped up Friday, was far more subdued. 
The US president had said he expected a "big hug" from Xi, but the Chinese leader stopped short of reciprocating Trump's heavy praise for his "friend". 
Still, Trump said "a lot of good" had come out of the meetings, after a walk with Xi among the rosebushes in central leadership compound Zhongnanhai. 
Xi promised to send Trump some seeds for the White House rose garden.
tjx/reb/fox

court

Indian magnate Adani agrees multi-million-dollar penalty in US court case

  • Adani, along with his nephew Sagar Adani, agreed to the "payment of a civil penalty" totalling $18 million, while noting that it came "without admitting or denying the allegations made in the civil complaint", a letter from Adani Green Energy to the Mumbai stock exchange read.
  • Indian billionaire industrialist Gautam Adani has agreed to pay a multi-million-dollar settlement in a US civil court case linked to corruption without admitting guilt, his company said Friday.
  • Adani, along with his nephew Sagar Adani, agreed to the "payment of a civil penalty" totalling $18 million, while noting that it came "without admitting or denying the allegations made in the civil complaint", a letter from Adani Green Energy to the Mumbai stock exchange read.
Indian billionaire industrialist Gautam Adani has agreed to pay a multi-million-dollar settlement in a US civil court case linked to corruption without admitting guilt, his company said Friday.
The November 2024 indictment in New York accused the industrialist and multiple subordinates of deliberately misleading international investors as part of a vast bribery scheme. 
Adani was accused of having participated in an estimated $250 million scheme to bribe Indian officials for lucrative solar energy supply contracts.
Adani, along with his nephew Sagar Adani, agreed to the "payment of a civil penalty" totalling $18 million, while noting that it came "without admitting or denying the allegations made in the civil complaint", a letter from Adani Green Energy to the Mumbai stock exchange read.
The penalty payment comes as US prosecutors are reported to be set to drop charges against Adani, The New York Times reported on Thursday.
The Adani letter, which noted that the final judgement of the US court is still awaited, stressed that the "company is not a party to this proceeding, and no charges have been brought against it".
The New York Times said the move to abandon the charges, brought under US president Joe Biden's administration, came after Adani hired a new legal team led by Robert Giuffra, one of President Donald Trump's personal lawyers.
With a business empire spanning coal, airports, cement and media, the chairman of Adani Group has been rocked in recent years by corporate fraud allegations and a stock crash.
Adani, a close ally of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, was born in Ahmedabad in Gujarat state to a middle-class family but dropped out of school at 16.
He moved to India's financial capital, Mumbai, to find work in the city's lucrative gem trade. 
After a short stint in his brother's plastics business, he launched the flagship family conglomerate that bears his name in 1988 by branching out into the export trade.
His big break came seven years later with a contract to build and operate a commercial shipping port in Gujarat.
uzm/pjm/fox

shooting

Drones to fight school shooters? One US company says yes

BY MOISéS ÁVILA

  • "So he started thinking about how can you introduce this type of system to be able to combat a growing problem in the United States, with school shootings," Oborski said.
  • A new idea for combatting America's horrific problem of school shootings is to unleash an unarmed drone to confront the attacker, like a giant buzzing insect.
  • "So he started thinking about how can you introduce this type of system to be able to combat a growing problem in the United States, with school shootings," Oborski said.
A new idea for combatting America's horrific problem of school shootings is to unleash an unarmed drone to confront the attacker, like a giant buzzing insect.
It is the brainchild of a company called Campus Guardian Angel, which has pilot programs using the technology in Georgia and Florida, with growing interest in Texas. These drones have not yet been battle-tested, however.
The approach seems to reflect that part of America which says the way to address recurrent school shootings -- part of the country's broader gun violence epidemic -- is not with stricter gun control laws but rather with weaponry, such as giving teachers guns.
The company says the new approach would work like this: when a potential shooter enters a school, a teacher hits an alarm on their cell phone to alert the police and as officers rush to the scene, a drone is activated from a pre-established position inside the school as a first line of defense.
These small, black, roughly square drones weighing about two pounds (one kilo) are piloted by humans in the Texas state capital Austin and can actually buzz around inside the school by navigating 3D maps that Campus Guardian Angel will have made beforehand.
The drones do not shoot bullets or any other kind of projectile. 
Rather, they are designed to disable the attacker by flying right into him or her or spraying them with pepper gel.
Khristof Oborski, Campus Guardian Angel's director of tactical operations, said the firm's CEO Bill King observed that small drones were highly effective in attacks on the battlefield in the war in Ukraine.  
"So he started thinking about how can you introduce this type of system to be able to combat a growing problem in the United States, with school shootings," Oborski said.
Oborski explained that what the drone actually does depends on what the shooter or potential shooter does.
If a child with a gun is walking in a school corridor, the drone has two-way radio so human operators can talk to the attacker and try to persuade him or her to put down the weapon, Oborski said.
The operators are in constant contact with police so officers can, say, be guided to where the attacker is.
If the assailant is actually shooting people, "we go straight to either kinetic impacts or we use our less lethal JPX pepper gel on the suspect," Oborski said.
In 2025, US schools endured 233 incidents involving firearms, according to a data base called IntelliSee.
One of the worst recent school shootings was in Uvalde, Texas in 2022, with 19 children and two teachers shot and killed. It took police 77 minutes to move in close enough to kill the attacker.

'To be the nerd'

Campus Guardian Angel offers its services with yearly contracts, the fee depending on the size of the school and how many buildings it has.
Besides the pilot programs in Florida and Georgia, the company says some parents in Houston are interested in getting the drones set up in their kids' schools.
"The best-case scenario is we put this in every single school in America and then never have to use it, right? Because it's got a deterrent quality to it," said King, a former Navy SEAL.
He said he is often asked if the drones are operated by artificial intelligence and the answer is no, which King said people find reassuring.
Alex Campbell, a 30-year-old operator in this system and professional drone-racing competitor, describes himself as more of a nerd than a soldier.
"To be the nerd behind the scenes, to help the heroes on this Earth saving us from the bad things happening, it's really fulfilling to be able to have a hand in that," Campbell said.
mav/dw/sla/cms

politics

Malaysia PM says not opposed to fugitive financier's bid for pardon

BY ISABELLE LEONG

  • The businessman, better known as Jho Low, is formally seeking a "pardon after completion of sentence", according to the US Department of Justice website.
  • Malaysia will not oppose a bid by a fugitive businessman involved in the massive 1MDB corruption scandal to seek a pardon from US President Donald Trump, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said Friday.
  • The businessman, better known as Jho Low, is formally seeking a "pardon after completion of sentence", according to the US Department of Justice website.
Malaysia will not oppose a bid by a fugitive businessman involved in the massive 1MDB corruption scandal to seek a pardon from US President Donald Trump, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said Friday.
Speaking to reporters during a visit to Seremban district, south of Kuala Lumpur, Anwar described the plea by Low Taek Jho as a "non-issue".
The businessman, better known as Jho Low, is formally seeking a "pardon after completion of sentence", according to the US Department of Justice website.
Whistleblowers allege that Jho Low, a well-connected Malaysian financier with no official role, helped set up the 1MDB state investment fund and made key financial decisions before disappearing about a decade ago. 
Low, who has been indicted in the United States, has denied wrongdoing but remains at large.
"As far as we are concerned, we are not going in that route," Anwar said when asked if the goverment will formally oppose Jho Low's plea.
"Even if he has submitted, it is not an issue that we should discuss because he is still undergoing this process in courts."
Malaysia's Trade Minister Johari Abdul Ghani, who chairs a task force seeking to recover assets linked to 1MDB worldwide, said Wednesday the plea should be rejected and Low returned for trial.
The 1MDB fund was launched by former prime minister Najib Razak in 2009, shortly after he became premier.
It is alleged that more than $4.5 billion was diverted from 1MDB between 2009 and 2015 by fund officials and associates, including Low.
Najib, who has been convicted in multiple cases, has been jailed and fined $2.8 billion for his role in the plunder. 
Najib's defence lawyers blamed Low and dubbed him the mastermind of the scheme.
Malaysia unsuccessfully sought the return of Low through extradition, and it was widely speculated in media that he was hiding in China. 
The scandal shook Malaysian politics, contributing to the 2018 downfall of the ruling coalition that had governed since independence in 1957, and led to the convictions of two former Goldman Sachs bankers.
Investigators said top officials used their ill-gotten gains to splurge on assets worldwide, including a luxury yacht, high-end real estate, Monet as well as Van Gogh paintings, and even to fund the Hollywood blockbuster "The Wolf of Wall Street". 
Actor Leonardo DiCaprio testified in court about Low's wild spending sprees and lavish parties.
llk/mba/fox

health

Passenger from hantavirus cruise quarantines on remote Pitcairn Island

  • Three people died after the rare rat-borne hantavirus spread through passengers holidaying on the MV Hondius cruise ship, sparking a global health scare.
  • A passenger from the hantavirus-stricken MV Hondius cruise ship is in quarantine on tiny Pitcairn Island, a volcanic outcrop in the South Pacific famously settled by mutineers from the HMS Bounty.
  • Three people died after the rare rat-borne hantavirus spread through passengers holidaying on the MV Hondius cruise ship, sparking a global health scare.
A passenger from the hantavirus-stricken MV Hondius cruise ship is in quarantine on tiny Pitcairn Island, a volcanic outcrop in the South Pacific famously settled by mutineers from the HMS Bounty.
The woman, a US citizen, journeyed halfway across the globe to reach remote Pitcairn Island after disembarking the cruise ship in Saint Helena, authorities said.
"We can confirm that someone who had contact with a hantavirus-exposed individual is currently isolating on Pitcairn Island, showing no signs of illness," said a Pitcairn government spokesman.
"We are working closely with the health authorities and the UK Government to manage the situation. The wellbeing of our community remains the top priority."
It was not clear how long the woman might be stuck on Pitcairn Island or how she will be isolated from the around 50 people who call the British territory home.
Pitcairn Islanders contacted by AFP said they had been advised against speaking with journalists and should pass all questions on to government officials.
It was no small effort for the jet-setting American to reach Pitcairn Island, which bills itself as a "must see for adventurous travellers seeking truly remote horizons".
She first flew from San Francisco to Tahiti and then onwards to the isle of Mangareva in outer French Polynesia.
From Mangareva most tourists reach Pitcairn by hitching a 32-hour ride on one of the cargo ships that shuttle back and forth every few days.
The government of French Polynesia said she had done all this without telling authorities of her possible exposure to hantavirus.
She will not be allowed to leave the island as long as she "poses a risk to others", the government said in a statement earlier this week.
The UK government -- which counts Pitcairn as an overseas territory -- said the woman was not symptomatic, but it was still taking a "precautionary approach".
There is only one grocery store on Pitcairn Island, which typically opens three times a week. 
The nearest hospitals are in French Polynesia, some 1,350 miles (2,170 kilometres) to the northwest, or New Zealand, about 5,300 kilometres (3,300 miles) southwest.
Three people died after the rare rat-borne hantavirus spread through passengers holidaying on the MV Hondius cruise ship, sparking a global health scare.
Health authorities have repeatedly emphasised that the broader risk to public health from the outbreak of the Andes strain of hantavirus -- the only one known to spread between people -- is low.
Globally, the death toll remains at three.
No vaccines or specific treatments exist, but health officials have said the risk is low and have dismissed comparisons to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Pitcairn Islands were colonised in 1790 by the mutinous crew of the Royal Navy ship HMS Bounty, led by the master's mate Fletcher Christian.
Their actions, casting adrift the ship's captain William Bligh, have been immortalised in books and film.
Pitcairn's people are descended from the mutineers and their Tahitian companions.
sft/oho/abs

conflict

Russia pummels Kyiv, killing at least 24 and denting peace hopes

BY STANISLAV DOSHCHITSYN AND SERHII OKUNEV

  • Twenty-four people, including three children, were killed and 47 were wounded in the attacks, Ukraine's emergency service said Friday, updating a previous death toll. 
  • Ukrainian emergency services said Friday that a massive Russian missile and drone attack that pummelled Kyiv the previous day killed at least 24 people, further shredding hopes of a halt to Moscow's grinding invasion.
  • Twenty-four people, including three children, were killed and 47 were wounded in the attacks, Ukraine's emergency service said Friday, updating a previous death toll. 
Ukrainian emergency services said Friday that a massive Russian missile and drone attack that pummelled Kyiv the previous day killed at least 24 people, further shredding hopes of a halt to Moscow's grinding invasion.
AFP journalists in the capital heard air raid sirens wailing across the city on Thursday before several hours of thunderous explosions and flashes in the sky sent Kyiv residents running to shelter in metro stations.
The Ukrainian air force said Russia had launched 675 attack drones and 56 missiles, mainly at Kyiv, adding its air defence units had downed 652 of the drones and 41 missiles.
"Everything was burning. People were screaming... people were shouting," Andriy, a Kyiv resident still wearing a nightgown and with blood stains on his shirt, told AFP near a collapsed Soviet-era residential building.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said 20 sites in the capital were damaged, including homes, a school, a veterinary clinic and other civilian infrastructure.
"Work is still ongoing in Kyiv at the site of the strike on the building –- a Russian missile strike that literally levelled a residential block, from the first to the ninth floor," he said in a Thursday evening address.
Twenty-four people, including three children, were killed and 47 were wounded in the attacks, Ukraine's emergency service said Friday, updating a previous death toll. 
Seven bodies were pulled from the rubble of a single destroyed residential building -- three men, three women and a young girl, police said.
The two nations frequently exchange overnight aerial attacks, and officials in western Russia said later Friday that Ukrainian strikes on the city of Ryazan killed three people and wounded at least 12 others.

Ballistic challenge

Russian attacks also wounded people in the southern regions of Odesa and Kherson, and in the eastern region of Kharkiv.
"These are definitely not the actions of those who believe the war is coming to an end. It is important that partners do not remain silent about this strike," Zelensky said.
Ukraine said it shot down 94 percent of all drones and 73 percent of the missiles fired by Russia.
"The most difficult challenge is defending against ballistic missiles," he said.
A slew of Ukraine's allies, including the United Kingdom, Estonia, Latvia, Finland, the Netherlands, Moldova and Slovakia, condemned the fatal attacks.
"By bombing civilians, Russia demonstrates less its strength than its weakness: it is running out of solutions on the military front and does not know how to end its war of aggression," French President Emmanuel Macron said.
EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said the attacks on Kyiv showed that Russia "openly mocks" efforts to end the war.
Russia, which invaded Ukraine more than four years ago, said the wave of missiles and drones had targeted military-linked sites and energy facilities that support the Ukrainian army.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko announced that Friday would be a day of mourning in the capital "in memory of the victims of the enemy's most massive attack" on Kyiv.
He said flags will be flown at half-mast and entertainments events will be prohibited.
The conflict is the worst in Europe since World War II and has killed hundreds of thousands of people and displaced millions more.

Chaotic rescue scenes

At daybreak Thursday, AFP journalists witnessed chaotic scenes as rescue workers dug through mounds of debris from a collapsed residential building.
Emergency service workers were seen hauling from the site those wounded and killed in the strikes, and residents cried as they waited for news of loved ones and neighbours.
The barrage is the latest setback for efforts to end the conflict after US President Donald Trump raised faint hopes for peace by brokering a three-day ceasefire between Kyiv and Moscow last week.
Russia's leader Vladimir Putin also suggested the war could be winding down.
But the brief truce was marred by allegations of violations and both sides resumed attacks straight after.
Russia's army fired more than 1,500 drones at Ukraine over Wednesday and Thursday, Kyiv's air force said.
"This barbaric attack during such an important summit shows that the Russian regime poses a global threat to international security. Instead of peace and development, Moscow pursues aggression and terror," Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga said.
Russian drones on Thursday also struck a UN vehicle in the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, Zelensky said, accusing Moscow of having deliberately targeted it, but adding there were no casualties.
burs/lga/abs

electricity

CIA director visits Cuba as communist island runs out of oil

  • And that oil has now "run out," Energy Minister Vicente de la O Levy told state television.
  • The head of the CIA visited Cuba on Thursday, an extraordinary step-up in contact between Washington and Havana as the communist-run island reels from US pressure, declaring that it is out of oil.
  • And that oil has now "run out," Energy Minister Vicente de la O Levy told state television.
The head of the CIA visited Cuba on Thursday, an extraordinary step-up in contact between Washington and Havana as the communist-run island reels from US pressure, declaring that it is out of oil.
The Central Intelligence Agency, at the heart of the decades-long struggle between the United States and Cuba, confirmed a Cuban government statement about Director John Ratcliffe's visit.
Photos posted by the agency on X showed Ratcliffe alongside several people with blurred-out faces meeting with Ramon Romero Curbelo, chief of the intelligence of the Cuban Interior ministry, and other Cuban officials.
The visit comes during a deepening crisis in US-Cuba relations, with the island enduring constant power outages prompted by President Donald Trump's fuel blockade.
Only one tanker from Russia -- a historic ally of the Cuban authorities -- has got through.
And that oil has now "run out," Energy Minister Vicente de la O Levy told state television. "The impact of the blockade is indeed causing us significant harm...because we are still not receiving fuel."
Trump has repeatedly signalled that he wants to topple the communist government in Cuba.
According to a report on CBS News, citing unidentified US officials, the Trump administration is also seeking to indict Raul Castro, the 94-year-old brother of the late Cuban communist leader Fidel Castro. 
But Cuba framed the Ratcliffe visit as a chance to calm tensions.
The meeting with Ratcliffe took place "in a context marked by the complexity of bilateral relations, with the aim of contributing to the political dialogue between both nations," a government statement read.
The exchanges "made it possible to demonstrate categorically that Cuba does not constitute a threat to US national security, nor are there any legitimate reasons to include it on the list of countries that allegedly sponsor terrorism," the Cuban statement added.
Cuba "has never supported any hostile activity against the United States, nor will it permit actions against any other nation to be carried out from Cuba," it emphasized, referring to allegations of a Chinese presence.

Blockade

One of Cuba's last economic lifelines was cut in January when US forces toppled the strongman leader of oil-rich Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro, and instituted a fuel blockade.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has renewed an offer of $100 million in aid on the condition that the assistance be distributed by the Catholic Church, bypassing the government.
In an interview with NBC News that aired Thursday, Rubio blamed Cuba for the island's current suffering.
"The Cuban people should know there's $100 million of food and medicine available for them right now," Rubio said. "It's in our national interest to have a prosperous Cuba, not to have a failed state 90 miles from our  shores."
In a post on X, Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel urged the United States to instead lift its blockade.
"The damage could be eased in a much simpler and faster way by lifting or relaxing the blockade, since it is known that the humanitarian situation is coldly calculated and induced," he said.
Despite tensions, intergovernmental talks are ongoing, with a high-level diplomatic meeting taking place in Havana on April 10 -- the first time a US government plane landed in the Cuban capital since 2016.

'Turn on the lights!'

Eastern Cuba was Thursday plunged into the latest outage affecting the whole country, with power returning to some areas later in the day.
The crisis prompted protests on the island.
A resident of San Miguel del Padron, a neighborhood on the outskirts of Havana, told AFP that people had protested by banging pots and pans on Wednesday evening.
Several other similar small demonstrations were held in neighborhoods across the capital, according to accounts gathered by AFP.
"Turn on the lights!" shouted residents in Playa, in the western part of the city.
Data compiled by AFP showed prolonged blackouts and record generation shortfalls in recent days. Some 65 percent of Cuban territory endured simultaneous blackouts on Tuesday.
"It's a broken, nonfunctional economy, and it's impossible to change it. I wish it were different," Rubio told Fox News.
"I don't think we're going to be able to change the trajectory of Cuba as long as these people are in charge."
burs-sms/msp/sla/abs

health

Six hantavirus cruise passengers land in Australia

  • Australia has yet to determine how to handle the passengers after the initial three-week quarantine, given the virus' potential incubation period of 42 days. sft-oho/jm
  • A plane carrying six passengers caught up in the hantavirus outbreak on the MV Hondius cruise ship landed Friday at a military airbase in western Australia, where they will immediately enter a strict three-week quarantine. 
  • Australia has yet to determine how to handle the passengers after the initial three-week quarantine, given the virus' potential incubation period of 42 days. sft-oho/jm
A plane carrying six passengers caught up in the hantavirus outbreak on the MV Hondius cruise ship landed Friday at a military airbase in western Australia, where they will immediately enter a strict three-week quarantine. 
The six travellers -- four Australians, a Briton living in Australia and a New Zealander -- tested negative before boarding the charter flight and will be screened again "immediately" after landing, Health Minister Mark Butler said.
They will then be shuttled off to a purpose-built quarantine facility on the outskirts of Perth city.
"They will be there for at least three weeks," Butler told national broadcaster ABC.
"They are on their way back and they will be subject to one of the strongest quarantine arrangements you will see anywhere in the world."
The plane left the Netherlands on Thursday, with all on board required to wear personal protective equipment.
The 500-bed facility was purpose built for returning travellers during the Covid-19 pandemic, but has hardly been used.
Health authorities have repeatedly emphasized that the broader risk to public health from the outbreak of the Andes strain of hantavirus -- the only one known to spread between people -- is low.
Globally, the death toll remains at three.
The ship set sail from Argentina on April 1, charting a course across the Atlantic Ocean.
No vaccines or specific treatments exist for the virus, but health officials have said the risk to the public is low and have dismissed comparisons to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Australia has yet to determine how to handle the passengers after the initial three-week quarantine, given the virus' potential incubation period of 42 days.
sft-oho/jm

US

Egypt farmers hit by Iran war price surge

BY MENNA FAROUK

  • With most expenses nearly doubling since the war began, Abu Ragab said farming "no longer pays", forcing painful cutbacks.
  • Egyptian smallholders have seen their lives upended by the war in Iran, with soaring fertiliser and energy prices forcing many to lay off workers and reduce the amount of land they farm.
  • With most expenses nearly doubling since the war began, Abu Ragab said farming "no longer pays", forcing painful cutbacks.
Egyptian smallholders have seen their lives upended by the war in Iran, with soaring fertiliser and energy prices forcing many to lay off workers and reduce the amount of land they farm.
Before the United States and Israel launched the war that would end up engulfing the region, Ashraf Abu Ragab cultivated a full acre with a small crew. 
Now he farms just half on his own after sacking the workers he once relied on, and has quit growing wheat, a fertiliser-intensive crop.
"Everything has become more expensive," the 45-year-old told AFP, standing among rows of maize and sesame in the village of Nazlet Al-Shobak, about 50 kilometres (30 miles) south of Cairo.
"Fertilisers, seeds, chemicals. The crops no longer cover their costs."
With most expenses nearly doubling since the war began, Abu Ragab said farming "no longer pays", forcing painful cutbacks.
"I used to have three workers. Now I work with my own hands."
He is among thousands of smallholders in the vast nation struggling with rising input costs, from fertilisers and fuel to seeds and feed, as the Iran war hits global markets.
In Nazlet Al-Shobak, irrigation pumps sit idle for hours to conserve fuel. 
Some plots lie uncultivated, while thin lines of grass grown as animal fodder weave between vegetables to stretch scarce inputs.
Nearby, dusty sacks of potatoes are piled along the field edges, some loaded onto trucks, others left to sit for weeks, as farmers gamble on prices that rarely improve.
A short walk away, a threshing machine spews clouds of dust and chaff as wheat pours out in a steady stream, rattling into worn brown sacks at farmers' feet.
Watching the harvest, tenant farmer Mohamed Ragab, 40, doubts it will bring profit.
"I will barely get by," he told AFP.

'Difficult choices'

Disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital artery for global trade, have hit energy and fertiliser supplies. 
In peace time, about one-third of traded fertilisers pass through the waterway, along with one-fifth of liquefied natural gas and 35 percent of crude oil.
Higher fuel costs have directly impacted agriculture, from fertiliser production and irrigation to transport.
"A significant share of critical inputs is being affected," Maximo Torero, chief economist at the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), told AFP.
"Farmers will have to make difficult choices, using fewer inputs, switching crops or reducing irrigation, all of which lower yields," he said.
Although Egypt produces seven to eight million tonnes of nitrogen fertiliser annually and exports more than half, domestic access remains uneven.
The strain is compounded by domestic pressures. Egypt relies heavily on imported fuel, leaving it particularly exposed to global energy shocks. 
Fuel prices rose by up to 30 percent in March, while the pound has shed around 15 percent of its value since the war began, pushing up the cost of imported seeds and feed.
Nitrogen fertilisers are particularly affected, as natural gas dominates production costs.
Sherif El-Gebaly, head of the Chemical Industries Chamber, told AFP granular urea has risen to $700–$750 per tonne, up from about $400 before the war.

'Very hard'

The strain on farmers contrasts sharply with how fertiliser producers are benefiting from higher global prices and strong export demand.
Abu Qir Fertilizers, one of Egypt's largest nitrogen producers, said unaudited first-quarter profits more than doubled.
"Producers can export or raise prices," said Nader Nour Eldeen, a former supplies ministry advisor and now a Cairo University agriculture professor. 
"Smallholder farmers don't have that flexibility," he told AFP.
Hussein Abu Saddam, head of the Farmers' Syndicate, expects fertiliser-intensive crops such as wheat, maize and rice to decline if costs stay high.
"The coming season will be very hard," he said.
Wheat accounts for around a third of Egypt's cultivated land, making any pullback significant for supply. 
Egypt also imports 12–14 million tonnes annually to sustain its subsidised bread system.
In Nazlet Al-Shobak, Abu Ragab said he lost about half his investment last season but continues working, uncertain about what comes next.
"If prices stay like this, many farmers won't be able to continue," Abu Saddam said.
Torero warned that even if the Strait of Hormuz reopens tomorrow, markets "will take six to eight months to recover".
"It's not only fertilisers, it's energy, packaging, plastics, cooling," he said. "A whole range of inputs is being disrupted across the value chain."
maf/ser/lga

television

Romanian metal, Aussie star through to Eurovision final

BY ROBIN MILLARD

  • In line with the final, this year, the semis were decided by public televoting and also by professional juries.
  • Romanian metal, a Danish ode to clubbing and Australian star Delta Goodrem will fill the airwaves in the Eurovision grand final after making it though the second semi-final on Thursday.
  • In line with the final, this year, the semis were decided by public televoting and also by professional juries.
Romanian metal, a Danish ode to clubbing and Australian star Delta Goodrem will fill the airwaves in the Eurovision grand final after making it though the second semi-final on Thursday.
Contestants from 15 countries sang their hearts out in the Austrian capital to try to secure the last 10 places in Saturday's showpiece extravaganza at the Wiener Stadthalle.
Besides Australia, Denmark and Romania, which bookmakers place among the front-runners, Albania, Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Malta, Norway and Ukraine live to fight another day.
But it was Goodnight Vienna for Armenia, Azerbaijan, Latvia, Luxembourg and Switzerland, who saw their Eurovision dreams crumble.
In line with the final, this year, the semis were decided by public televoting and also by professional juries.
While waiting for the nerve-shredding results reveal, the crowd danced a mass Viennese waltz.
Eurovision is the world's biggest live televised music event, typically reaching more than 150 million viewers, and Vienna 2026 is the 70th edition of the glitzy show where spectacle and drama go hand in hand.

Going off with a 'Bangaranga'

Thursday's concert saw Switzerland's Veronica Fusaro tangled up in red webbing, Londoner Antigoni singing the sultry "Jalla" for Cyprus and Ukraine's Leleka hitting some ear-shredding high notes.
Bulgarian pop singer Dara got the party started with some highly choreographed dancing on "Bangaranga".
Filmed in close-up, the Czech Republic's Daniel Zizka sang "Crossroads" in a hall of mirrors that began swirling like a zoetrope.
Armenia's Simon worked up a sweat on "Paloma Rumba", a song about a man "stuck on a wage / In a rage", which saw him trapped in a lift, wearing a jacket covered in yellow sticky notes.
Romania swung the show into heavy rock on "Choke Me", which caused a minor furore in the Eurovision build-up over the lyrics.
However, singer Alexandra Capitanescu, a master's student at the Faculty of Physics in Bucharest, defended the song's meaning.
"Unlike the classic heart, which represents romance or cute love, the anatomical heart suggests vulnerability... and emotions that feel intense, physical and almost painful," she insisted.

Mother love

There were quieter moments too: Latvia's Atvara sang the gentle "Ena" seemingly in a swirl of broken glass.
Meanwhile, Albania's Alis sang his song "Nan", about missing one's mother, in which veteran Albanian actress Rajmonda Bulku, 67, appears as a fleeting maternal figure, touching his face.
"The first idea was to have my mum on stage but I couldn't make it: I would get so emotional," he said.
Australia has appeared at Eurovision by invitation since 2015, and Goodrem's performance went down well with the more than 10,000 fans in the arena.
The 41-year-old had a string of international hits in the early 2000s and sang "Eclipse", evoking a romantic alignment of the planets.
Goodrem stood on top of a glittering piano then soared into the air on a riser as sparks fell from the ceiling.
"It's higher than it looks!" she said afterwards.
"We've got the stage and then the piano and then the lift up. I can see the whole room. I definitely get a great vantage point up there."
Denmark's Soren Torpegaard Lund is gaining traction with "For Vi Gar Hjem" ("Before We Go Home"), plunging the crowd into the world of nightclubs.
"I did a little wave around and just hearing the roar is crazy. I've never played for so many people," said Lund, whose background is in musical theatre.

Eurovision's LGBTQ history

The show featured a pre-filmed segment in a lecture theatre with presenter Victoria Swarovski rebutting the question: "Why are there only gays at the Eurovision now? Have they taken over?"
She went through the history of Eurovision embracing the LGBTQ community but declared "No takeover detected".
Eurovision director Martin Green told reporters beforehand: "It's timely, and I think it is a message to the world that we, for 70 years, have given a voice to the voiceless and welcomed the disenfranchised."
A total of 25 countries will appear in Saturday's final, with Finland the overall favourites.
rjm/lga

conflict

Israelis chant threats, anti-Palestinian slogans at Jerusalem Day march

BY ALICE CHANCELLOR AND MARIE DHUMIERES

  • - Show of solidarity - Crowds chanted "Death to Arabs" and "May your villages burn" under the watch of Israeli police deployed throughout the area, according to an AFP correspondent and online footage.
  • Israeli nationalists swept through the narrow streets of Jerusalem's Old City on Thursday, chanting "Death to Arabs" and "May your villages burn" during the annual Jerusalem Day march, while many Palestinian residents remained barricaded indoors.
  • - Show of solidarity - Crowds chanted "Death to Arabs" and "May your villages burn" under the watch of Israeli police deployed throughout the area, according to an AFP correspondent and online footage.
Israeli nationalists swept through the narrow streets of Jerusalem's Old City on Thursday, chanting "Death to Arabs" and "May your villages burn" during the annual Jerusalem Day march, while many Palestinian residents remained barricaded indoors.
Every year, tens of thousands of Israelis -- many of them teenagers and young adults -- parade through Jerusalem to celebrate what Israeli authorities call the "reunification" of Jerusalem following Israel's capture and annexation of east Jerusalem in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.
The annexation of east Jerusalem, home to a predominantly Palestinian population, is not recognised by the United Nations.
Over the years, the annual march has repeatedly descended into violence, with groups of young ultranationalists targeting Palestinians with racist chants, intimidation and assaults.
This year's march comes against the backdrop of the Iran war and a ceasefire in Gaza, which sees near-daily violations.
Mustafa, a Palestinian resident of the Old City's Via Dolorosa, said young ultranationalist Israelis had broken into the courtyard of his home, breaking glass and chanting "Death to Arabs".
"This is a black day... I was inside the home, when around 20 settlers came inside, they broke the doors," he told AFP.
"If you push them, you'll go to prison... you can't do anything."

'Gets worse every year'

Thousands marched along the main roads outside the Old City, among them teenagers draped in Israeli flags and parents carrying babies in their arms.
"It's an extraordinary atmosphere," said Isabelle, 59, who drove two-and-a-half hours to watch the sea of blue and white flags.
Reuven, 37, who attended with his young son, said: "Christians and Muslims can stay here, but this city, one united city, belongs to the Jews."
Israel's far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben Gvir, marked the occasion by visiting the highly sensitive Al-Aqsa mosque compound, Islam's third-holiest site.
Known to Jews as the Temple Mount, it is also Judaism's holiest place.
"Fifty-nine years after the liberation of Jerusalem, I raised the Israeli flag on the Temple Mount, and we can say with pride: we have restored sovereignty over the Temple Mount," Ben Gvir said on Telegram.
An AFP correspondent saw Ben Gvir, flanked by bodyguards, marching with the crowds and posing for photos. 
Most Palestinian shopkeepers in the Old City had pulled down their metal shutters and deserted the stone alleyways.
A handful of shops remained open under the protection of activists from the Israeli-Palestinian grassroots movement Standing Together, who deployed across the Old City in an effort to shield Palestinian residents and businesses from harassment and attacks.
Videos on social media showed activists being shoved and surrounded by youths wearing matching T-shirts emblazoned with Jerusalem-themed slogans.
In one video, the youths hurled plastic chairs at a Palestinian shopkeeper while chanting "Arab sons of whores".
The shopkeeper appeared to throw one chair back before raising a stick in warning.
"The situation gets worse every year," one Palestinian shopkeeper told AFP, refusing to give his name for fear of reprisals.

Show of solidarity

Crowds chanted "Death to Arabs" and "May your villages burn" under the watch of Israeli police deployed throughout the area, according to an AFP correspondent and online footage.
Some people clapped rhythmically, while others pounded on the metal shutters of closed Palestinian shops.
Authorities sometimes order Palestinian shops in the Old City to shut for the march, which ends at the Western Wall -- the last remnant of the Second Temple destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD, the holiest site where Jews are allowed to pray.
The crowds included some members of a hardline settler movement called Hilltop Youths, linked to near-daily attacks on Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
"They have no place here," said one of them, declining to give his name.
Marchers also confronted journalists, shoving them and blocking them from filming.
Earlier in the day, dozens of Israeli peace activists handed flowers to passersby.
"It was important for me to come in order to show some solidarity with the local community and say that as a Jew, as a Zionist, as someone who wants a Jewish state here, I want them to be part of it and be part of the nation with equal rights," said Ilan Perez, 52, a tech worker from Raanana, near Tel Aviv.
acc-mdh-mib-jd/amj

health

US Supreme Court maintains mail access to abortion pill for now

  • A panel of the US 5th Circuit Court of Appeals had previously ordered a halt to mail access to mifepristone, which is used in the majority of abortions in the United States.
  • The US Supreme Court on Thursday temporarily maintained mail access to the widely used abortion pill mifepristone.
  • A panel of the US 5th Circuit Court of Appeals had previously ordered a halt to mail access to mifepristone, which is used in the majority of abortions in the United States.
The US Supreme Court on Thursday temporarily maintained mail access to the widely used abortion pill mifepristone.
The court extended its stay of a lower court order that would have halted nationwide mail delivery of the drug.
A panel of the US 5th Circuit Court of Appeals had previously ordered a halt to mail access to mifepristone, which is used in the majority of abortions in the United States.
But that ruling now remains on hold until the Supreme Court decides whether it will hear the case.
Two conservative justices, Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas, dissented from the decision to extend the stay of the 5th Circuit decision.
The 5th Circuit ruling was in response to a lawsuit brought against the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) by the state of Louisiana, which has some of the strictest anti-abortion laws in the country.
Danco Laboratories and GenBioPro, which manufacture mifepristone, asked the Supreme Court to pause the appeals court order while they prepare to bring an emergency case to the top court.
The 5th Circuit ruling would require women seeking abortions anywhere in the United States to obtain mifepristone in person from health clinics and ban delivery by mail or through a pharmacy after a virtual visit with a health provider.
The conservative-dominated appeals court overturned a district court ruling that allowed mifepristone to continue to be delivered by mail while the FDA conducts a "safety study" of the drug.
Mifepristone has been approved by the FDA since 2000 and is also routinely used for managing early miscarriages.
Anti-abortion activists, however, have called the drug's safety into question, with some citing a study conducted by a conservative think tank that never underwent a formal peer review.

'Buys time'

Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights, welcomed the Supreme Court move, but cautioned that while it "buys time" it does not bring "peace of mind."
"Mifepristone access remains highly at risk as this case moves forward and the Trump administration conducts a politically motivated review of this pill with the hardly disguised aim of making it harder to get," Northup said in a statement.
Mifepristone, which prevents pregnancy progression, and misoprostol, which empties the uterus, are approved to terminate a pregnancy up to 70 days of gestation in the United States.
More than 20 states have banned or restricted abortion since the Supreme Court in June 2022 overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling that enshrined the constitutional right to abortion for half a century.
Polls show a majority of Americans support continued access to safe abortion, even as conservative groups push to limit the procedure or ban it outright.
In 2024, the Supreme Court rejected a bid to restrict mifepristone, ruling that anti-abortion groups and doctors challenging the medication lacked the legal standing to bring the case.
cl/acb

US

US brokers between Israel, Lebanon and says progress with China

BY SHAUN TANDON

  • Trump discussed the issue on a state visit to China, which is the main international buyer of Iran's oil, which the United States has sought to ban worldwide through unilateral sanctions.
  • The United States on Thursday sought to extend a shaky ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon as President Donald Trump voiced optimism at China's efforts on Iran.
  • Trump discussed the issue on a state visit to China, which is the main international buyer of Iran's oil, which the United States has sought to ban worldwide through unilateral sanctions.
The United States on Thursday sought to extend a shaky ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon as President Donald Trump voiced optimism at China's efforts on Iran.
A ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel -- considered to still be in place despite hundreds of deaths in Israeli strikes -- ends on Sunday and violence again flared as the two governments met in Washington.
Israel has pounded Lebanon and invaded its south in response to retaliatory fire from Shia movement Hezbollah following Israel's killing of Iran's supreme leader at the start of the war on February 28.
Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors held the first of two days of talks at the State Department, with Israel bringing along military officers.
"We had a full day of productive and positive talks," a senior State Department official said, expecting more to say on Friday.
A Lebanese official told AFP that the country would seek "the consolidation of the ceasefire" and said: "The first thing is to put an end to the death and destruction."
The two sides last met on April 23 at the White House, where Trump announced a three-week ceasefire extension between the countries, which have technically been at war for decades.
Trump at the time made the bold prediction that during the three-week extension he would welcome Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun to Washington for a historic first summit between the countries.
The summit has not happened, with Aoun saying a security deal and an end to Israeli attacks were needed before such a landmark meeting.
Israel has vowed to keep pursuing attacks against Hezbollah. The Israeli military said Thursday it struck more than 65 more Hezbollah sites across Lebanon.
Lebanon's state-run National News Agency reported Israeli airstrikes on the south and east on Thursday, including on areas not mentioned in an earlier Israeli evacuation warning.
Hezbollah said it targeted Israeli troops in northern Israel with a drone. The Israeli military said several Israeli civilians were injured and evacuated for medical treatment.
Hezbollah lawmaker Ali Ammar denounced the talks in Washington, calling them "free concessions" to Israel.
Israeli attacks since March 2 have killed more than 2,800 people in Lebanon, including at least 200 children, according to Lebanese authorities, a toll Hezbollah says includes its fighters.

Trump courts Xi

The Middle East war has roiled the global economy and impacted hundreds of millions of people worldwide.
Iran, the patron of Hezbollah, has made a lasting ceasefire in Lebanon a condition for any agreement to end the wider war, further frustrating Trump by refusing his appeals for an accord on his terms.
Iran responded to the war by imposing control over the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow passageway through which one-fifth of the world's oil once transited, and it has been loath to give up its leverage.
Trump discussed the issue on a state visit to China, which is the main international buyer of Iran's oil, which the United States has sought to ban worldwide through unilateral sanctions.
Trump, in an interview in Beijing, said that President Xi Jinping promised "strongly" to him that "he's not going to give military equipment" to Iran.
"He'd like to see the Hormuz Strait open, and said 'if I can be of any help whatsoever, I would like to help,'" Trump told Fox News host Sean Hannity.
Netanyahu has said that China has provided missile technology to Iran.
In a sign of China's clout with Tehran, the elite Revolutionary Guards said that its naval forces had allowed a number of Chinese ships to pass through the Strait of Hormuz since late Wednesday.
"It was ultimately concluded that a number of Chinese ships requested by this country would pass through this area after an agreement on Iran's strait management protocols," the Revolutionary Guards, the ideological arm of Iran's military, said in a statement.

Narrow US vote on war

The Iran war has been deeply unpopular in the United States, even among elements of Trump's Republican Party base, with the administration scrambling to find ways to tame soaring fuel costs months before congressional elections.
The US Senate on Thursday narrowly rejected, in a 50-49 vote, a resolution that would curb Trump's power to wage war on Iran.
The rival Democratic Party says that, under the War Powers Act passed after the Vietnam War, the administration had until May 1 to secure congressional approval for military action and that Trump is now in clear violation of the law. 
The administration disputes that interpretation, arguing that the clock was paused by a ceasefire announced more than a month ago.
Senator Jeff Merkley, the Democrat who led the effort, said of Republicans: "I think many of our colleagues are uncomfortable with where they stand, but they're also uncomfortable with being on the wrong side of Trump."
burs-sct/sla

diplomacy

Xi warns Trump on Taiwan at Beijing summit

BY DANNY KEMP, ISABEL KUA AND LUDOVIC EHRET

  • "If mishandled, the two nations could collide or even come into conflict, pushing the entire China-US relationship into a highly perilous situation," Xi added.
  • Chinese President Xi Jinping warned his US counterpart Donald Trump that missteps on Taiwan could push their two countries into "conflict", a stark opening salvo as they met Thursday at a superpower summit in Beijing.
  • "If mishandled, the two nations could collide or even come into conflict, pushing the entire China-US relationship into a highly perilous situation," Xi added.
Chinese President Xi Jinping warned his US counterpart Donald Trump that missteps on Taiwan could push their two countries into "conflict", a stark opening salvo as they met Thursday at a superpower summit in Beijing.
Trump arrived in China with accolades for his host, calling Xi a "great leader" and "friend" and extending an invitation to visit the White House in September.
Beyond the pomp as he welcomed Trump, Xi in less effusive tones said the two sides "should be partners and not rivals", and quickly highlighted the issue of Taiwan -- which Beijing claims as its territory. 
"The Taiwan question is the most important issue in China-US relations," Xi said, according to remarks published by Chinese state media shortly after the start of the talks, which lasted two hours and 15 minutes. 
"If mishandled, the two nations could collide or even come into conflict, pushing the entire China-US relationship into a highly perilous situation," Xi added.
Trump's trip to Beijing is the first by a US president in nearly a decade, with the grand reception belying a roster of unresolved trade and geopolitical tensions.
Xi greeted Trump with a red-carpet welcome at the opulent Great Hall of the People, with military band fanfare, a 21-gun salute and schoolchildren chanting "Welcome!"
Seemingly enjoying the ceremony, the 79-year-old Trump said "the relationship between China and the USA is going to be better than ever before".
Xi, who at 72 has led China for more than 13 years, instead referenced a political theory about the risks of war when a rising power rivals a ruling one, inspired by an ancient Greek historian.
"Can China and the United States transcend the so-called 'Thucydides Trap' and forge a new paradigm for major-power relations?" Xi asked.
At a state banquet in the evening, the Chinese leader insisted it was possible.
"Achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and making America great again can totally go hand in hand... and advance the wellbeing of the whole world," Xi said, in reference to Trump's MAGA movement.

'Blunt language'

But there are longstanding hurdles to overcome, with Taiwan looming large. 
The United States recognises only Beijing but under US law is required to provide weapons to the self-ruled democracy for its defence.
China has sworn to take the island and has not ruled out using force, ramping up military pressure in recent years.
Following Xi's Thursday comments, Taipei called China the "sole risk" to regional peace, and insisted "the US side has repeatedly reaffirmed its clear and firm support".
Trump had said Monday he would speak to Xi about US arms sales to Taiwan, a departure from Washington's previous insistence that it will not consult Beijing on the matter.
The White House said Thursday's initial talks had been "good", though it did not mention Taiwan in the readout.
Adam Ni, editor of newsletter China Neican, told AFP that while Xi's "blunt language" was not uncommon in party state media, it was unusual coming from the leader himself. 
China has been "signalling a desire for US compromise on Taiwan", the National University of Singapore's Chong Ja Ian told AFP. 
Xi's demand could suggest "they see some opportunity to convince Trump", he said.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC the president would say more on Taiwan "in the coming days". 

Iran overshadows

Trump told Fox News that Xi had offered China's help to open the Hormuz Strait -- the key oil route largely blocked since the US-Iran war erupted -- and that Xi had also pledged not to send military equipment to aid Iran.
"He said he's not going to give military equipment... he said that strongly," Trump told the "Hannity" show. "He'd like to see the Hormuz Strait open, and said 'if I can be of any help whatsoever, I would like to help.'"
Meanwhile Iran's Revolutionary Guards said naval forces had allowed multiple Chinese ships to pass through the strait since Wednesday night.
China's foreign ministry said the Middle East had been discussed but did not give further details. 
The two leaders also discussed economic cooperation, with Trump hoping for business deals on agriculture and other sectors.
He told Fox that China had agreed to purchase 200 Boeing jets, a deal that would equate to "a lot of jobs."
US media had described a possible China order of 600 jets, however.
Boeing's CEO Kelly Ortberg was among the elite businessmen in the US delegation, which also included Nvidia's Jensen Huang and Tesla's Elon Musk.
At the state banquet Trump said the talks had been "extremely positive", describing the evening ahead as "another cherished opportunity to discuss among friends".
bur/reb/bgs/mlm/msp