Sales of arms and military services by the world’s 100 biggest defence companies rose 1.9 percent to $592BN in 2021 despite supply chain issues that held up shipments of critical components, according to new data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

The slowed pace of fighting in Ukraine is set to continue over the next several months and the United States sees no evidence that Ukraine’s will to resist Russia has diminished, despite Moscow’s crippling attacks on the Ukrainian power grid, a senior US intelligence official

Iran said on Saturday it is reviewing a decades-old law that requires women to cover their heads, as it struggles to quell more than two months of protests linked to the dress code. Protests have swept Iran since the September 16 death-in-custody of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian

The Israeli air force said it had carried out overnight air strikes against sites of the Islamist movement Hamas in the Gaza Strip after a rocket was fired from the Palestinian enclave toward Israeli territory. The Israeli army reported on Saturday evening a rocket had been fired from

Finnish PM Sanna Marin has said Europe is "not strong enough" to stand up to Russia's invasion of Ukraine on its own, and has had to rely on US support. During a visit to Australia, the leader of the pending Nato member said Europe's defences must be strengthened.

A federal appeals court panel has scrapped former President Donald Trump’s lawsuit aimed at derailing the FBI’s investigation of classified records stashed at his Mar-a-Lago estate after he left the White House. The three-judge panel’s unsparing ruling moves to shut

Up to 13,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed since the start of Russia's invasion, a senior official has said. Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said between 10,000 and 13,000 troops had died. It is rare for Ukraine to give figures for

Japan, South Korea and the United States have imposed sanctions on North Korean officials connected to the country’s illicit weapons programmes, with Washington saying Pyongyang’s ballistic missiles “pose grave risks to the region and the entire world”. The US

The United States Senate has passed a bill forcing railroad unions to accept a deal that would increase wages to avoid a nationwide strike that was anticipated to have devastating economic effects. The legislation was approved on Thursday by a vote of 80 to 15 and it now heads to

China has accused a committee of British legislators visiting Taiwan of “gross interference” in its internal affairs and warned that it could be “met with forceful responses”. The ongoing visit to Taiwan by members of the British parliament’s Foreign

Former President Clinton announced on Twitter Wednesday that he has tested positive for COVID-19 and is experiencing mild symptoms.  Clinton tweeted that he is “doing fine overall” and is grateful to be fully vaccinated and boosted.  “I’m grateful

China's top Covid official has signalled a possible relaxing of the country's strict zero-tolerance approach to the virus, after nationwide protests calling for an end to lockdowns and greater political freedom. Anger over China's zero-Covid policy -- which involves mass

Global wages fell in 2022 for the first time since the global financial crisis due to soaring living costs, threatening to worsen inequality and drive social unrest, the United Nations labour agency has warned. Monthly wages dropped 0.9 percent in real terms in the first half of 2022

Ukraine urged Nato members on Tuesday to speed up weapons deliveries and help restore its shattered power grid, as Western allies vowed to bolster support to aid Kyiv through winter in the face of Russia’s attacks. Moscow has unleashed waves of strikes against Ukraine’s

Radhika and Prannoy Roy, founders of leading Indian news network New Delhi Television (NDTV), have resigned as directors of a group promoting their company, bringing a conglomerate led by Gautam Adani, one of the world's richest man, closer to taking over the media firm. The BBC looks

Scientists have triggered new fears of a pandemic after resurrecting a “zombie virus” that’s been under the ice of a frozen lake in Russia for 48,500 years – a new world record. A team of researchers from Russia, Germany and France discovered the “zombie

People in China who attended weekend protests against Covid restrictions say they have been contacted by police, as authorities begin clamping down. Several people in Beijing said police had called demanding information about their whereabouts. It is unclear how police might have

Special Coordinator Tor Wennesland called for stronger international commitment towards the two-State solution and outlined potential ways to move forward.   Surge in violence  “After decades of persistent violence, illegal settlement expansion, dormant negotiations

Rishi Sunak has said the so-called "golden era" of relations with China is over, as he vowed to "evolve" the UK's stance towards the country. In his first foreign policy speech, the PM said the closer economic ties of the previous decade had been

Chinese authorities have begun inquiries into some of the people who gathered at weekend protests against COVID-19 curbs, three people who were at the Beijing demonstrations told Reuters, as police remained out in numbers on the city’s streets. In one case, a caller identifying