UK house prices surged in January, as buyers rushed to snap up properties ahead of the stamp duty increases being implemented from 1 April 2025 onwards. The January UK Halifax House Price Index was released on Friday, with the average property price surging to a new record high of £299,138 (€358,822) last month. House prices inched up 0.7% in January, compared to a fall of 0.2% in December. On an…

The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, has accused South Africa of “anti-Americanism” and refused to attend a G20 meeting in Johannesburg later this month, as diplomatic ties sour between the two countries under Donald Trump’s administration. Rubio made the announcement on X, where he repeated the US president’s unfounded claim that South Africa was expropriating private property. “South Africa is doing very bad things. Expropriating private property. Using G20…

Forces from Somalia’s semi-autonomous Puntland region have captured swathes of territory from Islamic State during a weeks-long offensive they hope will draw increased international support, according to officials and Reuters reporters. The advances come against an IS faction that has gained in importance and was the target last week of the first air strikes of U.S. President Donald Trump’s new administration. Before those strikes, Reuters reporters who gained rare access to the village of…

Russian news outlets have reported that two Russian flight instructors were killed when their plane crashed in the Moscow region on Thursday. A state-owned news agency, Tass, reported the Russian Emergencies Ministry said the small plane crashed close to the Myachkovo airfield, which is located near Moscow. The cause of the crash is still under investigation. The fatal crash will likely raise concerns about safety in Russia’s aviation industry. In…

U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) employees and contractors are contemplating potential lawsuits targeting the unprecedented attack on the federal agency by President Donald Trump’s administration, according to four sources familiar with the talks. As a matter of fact, some federal workers associations in the United States have asked a federal high court in Washington to stop the Trump administration from shutting down the agency. The lawsuit was filed by…

*Both sides thanked the United Arab Emirates for their ‘humanitarian mediation efforts.’ Ukraine carried out a prisoner swap with Russia on Wednesday that saw 150 of its fighters returning home, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on his Telegram page. Footage posted by Zelenskyy showed jubilant prisoners, many wrapped in Ukrainian flags, getting off buses and being reunited with loved ones at a location that was not disclosed for security reasons. “And…

Ukraine is using a new type of drone capable of destroying Russian gas pipelines—and unlike kamikaze drones, they can be used multiple times. For several months, Kyiv has been targeting infrastructure, refineries, and ammunition depots on Russian soil with next-generation drones. On Thursday, Ukraine struck the Druzhba oil pipeline, located near the Belarus-Russia border, and the extent of the damage was visible from space, including through NASA imagery. According to…

In what critics are calling a “bonfire of rainbow tape,” President Donald Trump has launched a sweeping and aggressive campaign against Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives across American institutions. From the private sector to federal agencies, DEI programs are being defunded, dismantled, and, in some cases, weaponized in what appears to be a purge targeting perceived ideological opponents. Since signing a series of executive orders aimed at eliminating DEI…

Argentina’s president has ordered the country’s withdrawal from the World Health Organization due to “profound differences” with the U.N. agency, a presidential spokesperson said Wednesday. President Javier Milei ‘s decision echoes that of his ally, U.S. President Donald Trump, who began the process of pulling the United States out of WHO with an executive order on his first day back in office on January 20. The loss of another member…

President Donald Trump will on Thursday sign an executive order sanctioning the International Criminal Court, accusing the body of improperly targeting the United States and Israel, according to a copy of a fact sheet supporting the order obtained by NBC News. The order will include both financial sanctions and visa restrictions against unspecified ICC officials and their family members found to have assisted in investigations of U.S. citizens or allies.…

President José Raúl Mulino’s comments came after the State Department claimed U.S. government vessels would be able to pass through the Panama Canal without paying. Panama President José Raúl Mulino said on Thursday the U.S. was spreading “lies and falsehoods” after the State Department claimed U.S. government vessels would be able to pass through the Panama Canal without paying. The comments were likely to exacerbate tensions between the two countries…

President Donald Trump doubled down on controversial plans for the Gaza Strip on Thursday, saying the Palestinian enclave would be “turned over to the United States by Israel” once the war there ends. The comments in a string of posts on Truth Social followed his proposal for the U.S. to “take over” and “develop” Gaza, which were derided by rivals and even questioned by close allies earlier this week. Israeli…