Pre‑election polls showed left‑wing senator Ivan Cepeda narrowly ahead but facing a strong challenge from hard‑right lawyer Abelardo de la Espriella

Netanyahu says Israel will tighten grip on Hezbollah areas

Japan’s Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi yesterday rejected accusations of “new militarism” by Tokyo and criticised China for rapidly expanding its military with little transparency, underscoring mounting tensions between the two countries.

Israel’s flag flew over the medieval fortress on Beaufort in Lebanon yesterday as it warned Lebanese civilians to evacuate a large area of the south of the country ahead of stepped up ground operations.

Iran’s chief negotiator warned yesterday the United States is not to be trusted, saying Tehran would not agree to any deal with Washington unless it fully secures Iranian rights.

Australian researchers have trained lab-grown brain cells on a silicon computer chip to play the nineties shooter game “Doom” and say they are just scratching the surface of what the neurons could be capable of doing.

Ukrainian drones yesterday struck an oil depot in southern Russia and a pumping station hundreds of kilometres from the front, Kyiv said, with Russian officials confirming strikes in the areas.

Malta’s Labour party yesterday won an unprecedented fourth term in a victory for outgoing Prime Minister Robert Abela, who had called a snap election in light of geopolitical uncertainties.

A meteor crashing toward Earth exploded over the northeastern United States on Saturday, Nasa said, setting off booms that echoed over the region with a blast equivalent to 300 tonnes of TNT.

The Trump administration has walked back its announcement that non-citizens seeking permanent US residency, commonly called a Green Card, would need to return to their home country to apply, The New York Times reported.

From their shared hospital room, several survivors freed from a semi-submerged cave in Laos after more than a week underground are advising rescuers on how to find the last two missing men believed to be trapped even deeper inside.

Australia will only receive used nuclear-powered submarines from the United States as part of an agreement to “streamline” the AUKUS deal, with the move branded yesterday as a “cost-effective” measure by Defence Minister Richard Marles.

Myanmar has been mired in a civil war since the military grabbed power in a 2021 coup

Trump says his priorities include stopping Iran from any nuclear weapon development

Bodies of all nine missing workers recovered at paper mill as investigation continues

US President Donald Trump said he had secured guarantees from Iran that it would not develop nuclear weapons, as reports emerged he had sent a tougher peace proposal back to Tehran

The fireball broke up over northeastern Massachusetts and southeastern New Hampshire at 2:06 pm (1806 GMT), the US space agency's deputy news chief Jennifer Dooren told AFP in a statement.

In May, China's foreign ministry called on Asia-Pacific countries to be vigilant and "jointly resist the reckless actions of Japan's neo-militarism"

The New York Times reported Trump's changes involved toughening the terms of the deal, and has sent the new framework back to be considered by Iran, according to officials familiar with the proceedings.

The White House had signaled Trump was close to a decision on a potential deal