World News
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Israel recognizes Somaliland as sovereign state, becoming first UN member to do so
Israel has formally recognized Somaliland as an independent and sovereign state, becoming the first United Nations member country to do so, the Prime Minister’s Office announced on Friday.Read More... -
Ariane 6 delivers Galileo satellites on fourth commercial flight
Ariane 6 has successfully placed two new Galileo navigation satellites into orbit, marking another milestone for Europe’s next-generation launcher and its flagship satelliteRead More... -
Russia says it made proposal to France over jailed researcher Laurent Vinatier
Russia has made a “proposal” to France regarding the case of French researcher Laurent Vinatier, who has been imprisoned in Russia since June 2024 and now faces espionage charges thatRead More... -
Arkansas ticket wins $1.8bn Powerball jackpot in Christmas Eve draw
A Powerball ticket sold in Arkansas has won a $1.817bn (£1.34bn) jackpot in a Christmas Eve drawing, marking the second-largest lottery prize ever claimed.Read More...

Culture
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IWM Duxford to open new Second World War rooms revealing unseen artefacts and daily life of wartime pilots
IWM Duxford is set to open three newly restored Second World War spaces, offering visitors an intimate look at the lives of aircrew stationed at the Cambridgeshire airfield during the conflict.Read More... -
War-torn Trafalgar Union Flag faces possible departure from UK
A rare Union Flag that led the British charge at the Battle of Trafalgar has been placed under an export bar, giving UK institutions the chance to keep the historic relic in the country.Read More... -
Barbican to host Liam Young’s first UK solo exhibition in 2026
The Barbican has announced ‘In Other Worlds’, the first UK solo exhibition by artist, director and BAFTA-nominated producer Liam Young. Opening May 2026, the immersive show will exploreRead More... -
The Manchester Museum displays thousands of African artefacts it knows little about
A museum in northwest England has unveiled a new gallery showcasing thousands of African artefacts, many of which the institution admits it knows very little about. The exhibition aims toRead More... -
Captain John Narbrough’s journal faces export ban amid fears it could leave the UK
A rare 17th-century manuscript journal documenting Captain John Narbrough’s secret expedition to Spanish America and the Pacific has been placed under a temporary export ban, giving UKRead More... -
Earliest evidence of human fire-making unearthed in Suffolk
A team led by the British Museum has uncovered what is now the earliest known evidence of humans deliberately making fire—dating back around 400,000 years—at a site in Barnham,Read More... -
Rothschild 15th-century prayer book set to fetch up to $7 million at Sotheby’s auction
Ultra-rare 15th-century mahzor features vivid medieval illustrationsRead More... -
Ray Winstone honoured with Freedom of the City of London
Ray Winstone, one of the UK’s most celebrated ‘hard man’ actors, has been awarded the Freedom of the City of London in recognition of his extensive charitable and fundraising work.Read More... -
Golden Globe 2026 nominations announced ahead of January ceremony
The nominations for the 83rd annual Golden Globe Awards were unveiled on Monday, setting the stage for the first major awards ceremony of the season on January 11.Read More... -
Mayor of London granted right to use historic GLC coat of arms
The Mayor of London has been officially granted permission to use the historic coat of arms once belonging to the former Greater London Council (GLC), following approval from the King.Read More... -
Who will shape the National Gallery’s tomorrow? Architects shortlisted for landmark expansion
The National Gallery has announced a shortlist of six architectural teams competing to design a major new wing as part of its ambitious £750 million Project DomaniRead More... -
National Gallery unveils ambitious exhibition programme for 2026
The National Gallery has announced a landmark line-up of exhibitions for 2026, spanning five centuries of European art and bringing together rare loans, first-ever UK presentations, and iconicRead More...

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Comment

Prince Harry and his wife Meghan formally step down as senior members of the British royal family on Tuesday, as they start a controversial new life in the United

Help groups on social media are connecting people with those most in need during the coronavirus lockdown, fostering a community spirit often neglected in the capital's fast-paced life.

Boris Johnson's girlfriend Carrie Symonds looked on as the former mayor of London entered his Downing Street headquarters for the first time as prime minister -- but

Ryanair's annual net profit slumped by almost one third as overcapacity in the European short-haul sector caused it to cut ticket prices, the Irish no-frills airline said

Legal PR is one of the most promising areas of the PR services market in modern Europe. Nowadays the possibility of formation of a public opinion on any controversial issue is an

Theresa May briefly escapes the Westminster bear pit to bring her Brexit battle to Brussels on Wednesday, just four days before the divorce deal is to be signed.

British inflation has hit its highest level in almost six years, official data showed Tuesday, forcing Bank of England governor Mark Carney to explain the rise in an exceptional letter.

Hidden cameras have captured images of the critically endangered Sumatran rhino on the Indonesian part of Borneo island, where it was thought to have long ago died out, the WWF said Wednesday.
Sixteen camera traps -- remote-controlled cameras with motion sensors frequently used in ecological research -- filmed the rhino walking through the forest and wallowing in mud in Kutai Barat, East Kalimantan province.
The footage, filmed on June 23, June 30 and August 3, is believed to show different rhinos although the WWF said confirmation of this will require further study.
There were once Sumatran rhinos all over Borneo but their numbers have dwindled dramatically and they were thought to now exist only on the Malaysian part of the island.
But the research disclosed Wednesday, a joint effort between the WWF and authorities in Kutai Barat, shows that the animal is still present on the Indonesian side of Borneo.
Borneo is the world's third-largest island and is shared between Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei.
“This physical evidence is very important, as it forms the basis to develop and implement more comprehensive conservation efforts for the Indonesian rhinoceros,” said Indonesian Forestry Minister Zulkifli Hasan.
“This finding represents the hard work of many parties, and will hopefully contribute to achieving Indonesia's target of three percent per year rhino population growth.”
He urged officials and environmentalists to try and come up with a scientific estimate of the remaining Sumatran rhino population in Indonesian Borneo.
The research was unveiled at the start of an international meeting on efforts to protect rhinos in Bandar Lampung on Indonesia's western island of Sumatra, with governments from Bhutan, Indonesia, India, Malaysia and Nepal represented.

Egypt’s cultural heritage is at risk: As a consequence of political chaos in the country significant archaeological resources are not sufficiently guarded. Raiders’ empty spaces millennia-old grave chambers – the authorities are overwhelmed.
A few hundred meters from the pyramids in Chur roof of sandy-brown soil is full of holes. Dozens of open shafts lead into the depths, some up to seven meters: Here grave robbers were at work. Below the earth’s surface is one of the oldest cemeteries roof Churchill Egypt – tombs, possibly full of treasures from the Pharaonic period. Archaeologists have partially mapped but not yet exposed. The situation is similar in many areas of Egypt.
Civilizations of the pharaohs of the Romans, Greeks, Copts and Fatimid have left traces everywhere in the country. Long, not all treasures being uncovered. Grave robbing has always been a problem with the Egypt had to fight – but since the 2011 revolution, “this phenomenon has increased even further,” complains Abdel-Halim Nur el-Din, a professor of archeology and ex-head of the Egyptian Antiquities Authority. “We piecemeal lose our heritage.”

Multinational organisations should be forced to publish one simple figure for how much corporation tax they pay in the UK, Ed Miliband has said.
The Labour leader said making finances more transparent would help the public judge whether companies were behaving in a responsible way. The party is also reviewing the whole system of corporation tax to see if loopholes can be closed.
The pledges follow heavy criticism of a number of big firms, such as coffee chain Starbucks and online retailer Amazon, for using dubious tactics to minimise their corporation tax bills.
Speaking on the BBC's Andrew Marr show, Mr Miliband said: "We've got to take action on tax avoidance in this country.
"We've got a situation where many British companies and many individuals are paying their fair share of tax and they look in horror at a system where some multinational companies from other countries can make huge profits in Britain and not pay taxes in Britain.
"This is scandalous. It's got to change; the next Labour government will change it. We'll end the tax secrecy because we can't have a situation where we don't know how much tax people are paying against how much profit they're making.
"It's wrong and frankly it's an insult to hard-working taxpayers in this country."
Mr Miliband said David Cameron had spoken about international action to crack down on corporate tax avoidance, but insisted there were steps that could be taken alone.

