Wednesday, July 9, 2025

BIG Wrap

‘Stranded astronauts’ Butch and Suni set to begin journey home

(BBC News) After an epic nine months in space, NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams are finally getting ready to head home. Their stay on the International Space Station (ISS) was supposed to last eight days, but their mission was dramatically extended after the spacecraft on which they arrived suffered technical problems. The pair are travelling back to Earth in a SpaceX capsule along with NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov. They are expected to...

Power outage in Cuba leaves millions in darkness

(Al Jazeera Media Network) Cuba’s national power grid has collapsed once again, leaving millions of people without electricity. The grid failed on Friday evening about 8:15 pm (00:15 GMT) after a breakdown at Diezmero substation in the capital, Havana, kicked off a chain reaction that shut down power generation across the island, according to officials at operator Union Electrica (UNE). At sunrise on Saturday, UNE said it was generating only a trickle of electricity – about 225...

Death toll from North Macedonia nightclub fire rises to 59

(BBC News) At least 59 people have been killed and more than 155 injured in a nightclub fire in North Macedonia, officials say. The blaze broke out around 02:30 (01:30 GMT) at the Pulse club in Kocani, a town around 100 km east of the capital Skopje, where 500 people were thought to be attending a concert by DNK, a popular hip-hop duo in the country. Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski called it a "difficult and very sad...

US launches wave of air strikes on Yemen’s Houthis

(BBC News) The US has launched a "decisive and powerful" wave of airstrikes on Houthi rebels in Yemen, President Donald Trump has said, citing the armed group's attacks on shipping in the Red Sea as the reason. "Funded by Iran, the Houthi thugs have fired missiles at US aircraft, and targeted our Troops and Allies," Trump wrote on his Truth social platform, adding that their "piracy, violence, and terrorism" had cost "billions of dollars" and put...

UK’s Starmer says coalition to beef up Ukraine security in any peace deal

(Al Jazeera Media Network) British Prime Minister Keir Starmer stresses the United Kingdom’s intention to provide “robust and credible” security guarantees to prevent Russia from attacking Ukraine again as Russian President Vladimir Putin has yet to sign up to a US-brokered truce proposal as fighting rages on the ground. “We will build up Ukraine’s own defences and armed forces and be ready to deploy as a ‘coalition of the willing’ in the event of a...

U.S. team headed to Moscow for Ukraine talks as Putin visits Kursk

(BBC News) US officials are headed to Russia to discuss a potential ceasefire in Ukraine, according to President Donald Trump. The news comes after Ukrainian officials agreed to a 30-day ceasefire following a highly anticipated meeting with American officials in Saudi Arabia. Earlier, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the "ball is truly in their court" and that the US believes the only way to end the fighting is through peace negotiations. The Kremlin has...

Trump says he will impose 50% tariffs on Canadian steel, aluminium

(Al Jazeera Media Network) US President Donald Trump has announced he will double planned tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminium imports to 50 percent, escalating a trade war with the United States’s northern neighbour. In a social media post on Tuesday morning, Trump said the increased tariffs come in response to a decision by the province of Ontario to put a 25-percent surcharge on electricity exports to some US states. He said the increased tariffs on...

Syria says operation against Assad loyalists over after deadly violence

(BBC News) Syria's defence ministry says it has completed a military operation in the country's western coastal region, after days of violence in which hundreds of people have been killed. Security forces had "neutralized" loyalists of former president Bashar al-Assad in several towns in Latakia and Tartous provinces and were "paving the way for life to return to normal," a ministry spokesman said. A monitoring group says more than 1,500 people have been killed since Thursday, including...

South Korea’s impeached President Yoon released from prison

(Al Jazeera Media Network) South Korea’s impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol has been released from prison a day after a court cancelled his arrest warrant. Footage aired on local TV channels showed Yoon leaving prison on Saturday, waving his hand and bowing deeply to his supporters. Despite the release, Yoon’s criminal and impeachment trials continue over his short-lived imposition of martial law on December 3. His lawyers said the court decision “confirmed that the president’s detainment was problematic...

Three suspects at large after 12 injured in Toronto pub shooting

BBC News) Three suspects are still at large after 12 people were injured in a shooting at a pub in Toronto, police in the Canadian city say. The shooting took place at 22:39 on Friday local time (03:39 GMT Saturday) near Scarborough city centre in eastern Toronto. Authorities said six people suffered bullet wounds and others were hurt by flying or broken glass. The injuries were not life-threatening, they said. Toronto police said the three men, armed with...