At least 17 people have been killed across the US as a storm system unleashed multiple tornadoes that struck across several states in the south and midwest, officials said. On Saturday, the Missouri state highway patrol reported three deaths in Ozark county, one death in Butler county, six deaths in Wayne county and one death in Jefferson county. “We urge residents to stay away from debris-filled areas, watch for downed…

The Trump administration is considering issuing travel restrictions for the citizens of dozens of countries as part of a new ban, according to sources familiar with the matter and an internal memo seen by Reuters. The memo lists a total of 41 countries divided into three separate groups. The first group of 10 countries, including Afghanistan, Iran, Syria, Cuba and North Korea, among others, would be set for a full…

In different ways, new podcast hosts Gavin Newsom and Michelle Obama are picking up where Kamala Harris left off The current condition of the Democratic Party is nothing if not uncertain. Paralysing anxiety and insecurity are clearly its present state, but glimpses into its possible future are beginning to appear, albeit not from among the party’s troubled leadership in Congress. Case in point, recent machinations from both former first lady…

As a podcaster and freelance journalist, Ole Nymoen admits he enjoys freedom of expression and other democratic rights in his home country of Germany. But he would not want to die for them. In a book published this week, Why I Would Never Fight for My Country, the 27-year-old argues ordinary people should not be sent into battle on behalf of nation states and their rulers — even to…

By Fatimah Idera As Brazil prepares to host the COP30 climate summit in Belém this November, a four-lane highway is being constructed through tens of thousands of acres of the Amazon rainforest. The road is intended to ease traffic congestion for the more than 50,000 attendees expected at the conference. The Brazilian government has defended the project as a “sustainable” development initiative, despite the irony of clearing rainforests for a…

Top diplomats from the Group of Seven (G7) leading democracies urged Russia on Friday to accept a U.S.-proposed ceasefire in the Russia-Ukraine war or face the possibility of additional sanctions. “We called for Russia to reciprocate by agreeing to a ceasefire on equal terms and implementing it fully,” the diplomats said in a joint statement from the site of their talks talks in Canada. “We discussed imposing further costs on…

By Fatimah Idera NASA and SpaceX successfully launched a new crewed mission to the International Space Station (ISS) on Friday, marking a critical step in bringing home NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore, who have been stranded in space since last June. According to NASA’s live broadcast, the Dragon spacecraft lifted off aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 7:03 p.m. ET…

Officials of the Chinese government are planning to limit social media and screen time for youths, citing concerns about harmful online content. While some youth in China admit to spending an excessive amount of time on the internet, many are skeptical about new government proposals aimed at regulating the time young Chinese spend online and on social media sites. In conversations at China’s annual political meetings that wrapped up in…

Hamas said Friday it would be releasing Edan Alexander, the last living American hostage held in Gaza. The 21-year-old New Jersey native will be the only living hostage in the next release, which will include the bodies of four dual nationals who died in captivity, the terror group said, as negotiations forged ahead on the second phase of a cease-fire deal with Israel. Edan Alexander, a 21-year-old Israeli-American, will be…

Police in Japan said Friday that they had arrested a suspect in the fatal stabbing of a YouTuber while she was livestreaming on a downtown Tokyo street. Tokyo metropolitan police said they had arrested Kenji Takano, 42, on the spot on suspicion of attempted murder Tuesday. He has since been sent to the prosecutors but has not been charged yet. The victim, Airi Sato, 22, was rushed to a hospital…

Vladimir Putin has praised Donald Trump for “doing everything” to improve relations between Moscow and Washington, after Trump said the US has had “very good and productive discussions” with Putin in recent days. Putin told a meeting of his security chiefs that improved relations with the US were now on the agenda. “We know that the new administration headed by President Trump is doing everything to restore at least something…

Mark Carney has been sworn in as Canada’s prime minister, succeeding Justin Trudeau, as the country faces questions about its sovereignty from US President Donald Trump and a trade war with Canada’s largest trading partner, the United States. Carney, a former central banker who has never held public office in Canada, is stepping in to confront numerous challenges facing the country, including leading the Liberal Party into an election to…