US Marine veteran Trevor Reed is on his way home after being released from Russia, where officials said he was wrongfully detained since 2019.“Today, our prayers have been answered and Trevor is safely on his way back to the United States,” his family said in a statement.Reed’s release came as part of a prisoner swap with Russia, with the US sending back Konstantin Yaroshenko, a Russian pilot sentenced in 2011 to a 20-year prison term for importing more than $100 million of cocaine.The surprise prisoner exchange was the result of long and difficult negotiations between the US and Russia, according…
Author: National Tone
World Cup winner Ebony Rainford has been appointed to the ECB board as a non-executive director.Rainford-Brent, the first black woman to play for England, was part of the squad that won the Women’s 50-over and T20 World Cups in 2009. Since retiring as a player, Rainford-Brent has established the African-Caribbean Engagement (ACE) Programme, creating opportunities for young cricketers from black communities.She has also been director of women’s cricket at Surrey and forged a successful broadcasting career.Rainford-Brent’s appointment will be ratified at the England and Wales Cricket Broad’s annual general meeting on Wednesday. ECB chair Richard Thompson said: “Ebony is a…
Captagon has featured large in regional diplomatic discussions as some Arab countries look to normalise relations with Syria. The addictive, amphetamine-type stimulant mass-produced in Syria and smuggled to the Gulf states seemed to be a bargaining chip for President Bashar al-Assad in talks on reinstating Syria’s Arab League membership as nations looked to curb the illicit drug trade. At a May 1 meeting of Arab foreign ministers in Amman, Damascus agreed to cooperate with Jordan and Iraq to identify sources of drug production and smuggling, according to a statement from Jordan’s foreign ministry. A week later, a high-profile Syrian drug…
Arguably the most incendiary issue Benedict faced upon becoming pope was the ongoing fallout from the sexual abuse of children by Catholic priests, as well as accusations of a cover-up effort on the part of church administration.When Benedict became pope in 2005, the Catholic Church was in the midst of a very public reckoning with its history of sex abuse — a crisis about which he was very well informed. In 2001, John Paul II empowered the CDF to centralize all investigations into abuse allegations, removing that power from local dioceses after it became clear that they often failed to…
Expulsion comes after Canada said it was sending home a Chinese diplomat amid an alleged attempt to intimidate a Canadian legislator.China’s foreign ministry will expel a Canadian diplomat from the country’s Shanghai consulate as a “reciprocal countermeasure” hours after Canada declared a Chinese diplomat in China’s Toronto consulate as “persona non grata” over alleged involvement in a campaign to intimidate a Canadian legislator critical of Beijing. “As a reciprocal countermeasure in reaction to Canada’s unscrupulous move, China decides to declare Jennifer Lynn Lalonde, consul of the Consulate General of Canada in Shanghai persona non grata,” China’s foreign ministry said in…
It was early morning in Kabul, Afghanistan, when Fatima Amiri first heard the gunshots from inside her classroom. She and hundreds of other students had been preparing for college entrance exams at the time, but then the girls began screaming in panic. Amiri swiftly stood up to calm the class down, but when she turned around, she saw a man with a gun deliberately firing at students.“I was afraid; I tried to take shelter under the desks when an explosion happened,” the 17-year-old said.Amiri lost an eye and an eardrum as a result of the explosion. Her jaw was also…
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia — When Ivan Chan moved to the United Kingdom with his wife and two children in 2021 to escape China’s crackdown on Hong Kong, he knew it would mean leaving behind almost $90,000 in retirement savings. Under the rules of Hong Kong’s compulsory pension scheme, Chan, 40, would normally be entitled to withdraw his savings early as someone who has permanently departed the city. Instead, Chan has been locked out of his pension as authorities in the former British colony refuse to recognise the British National (Overseas) — or BNO — passport that he used to emigrate…
Blania described a futuristic world awash in Orbs of varying shapes and sizes, where each person would be assigned a unique and anonymized code linked to their iris that they could use to log in to a host of web and blockchain-based applications.Blania did not rule out the possibility that Worldcoin would charge a fee for providing this service, but the startup primarily plans to make money through the appreciation of its currency. “You distribute a token to as many people as you can,” Blania said. Because of that, the “utility of the token increases dramatically” and the “price of…
Sudan’s military ruler General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan has said the talks taking place in Saudi Arabia with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) will have no benefit without a ceasefire. Al-Burhan’s remarks on Monday come as warring factions hold talks in Jeddah in a bid to end bloodshed that has killed hundreds and triggered a mass exodus. The United States-backed talks began on Saturday between the army and the rival paramilitary RSF. No progress has been reported so far on the talks, which have focused on the possibility of introducing a lasting ceasefire. “We can discuss a settlement after we…
Paris Saint-Germain have shown tentative early interest in Roma boss Jose Mourinho becoming their next manager.The French champions will assess their options at the end of the season, with current head coach Christophe Galtier out of contract in 2024. Mourinho’s future as Roma boss is uncertain heading into the summer and the Portuguese may consider a change of club. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Take a look at Jose Mourinho’s highs and lows as Manchester United manager The 60-year-old has a great relationship with PSG sporting director Luis Campos after the pair worked together at…