Top World News

Nov 5, 2026 - World

Dismissals follow Houthi victories and pressure from southern Yemenis for more powerThe UN-recognised government of Yemen has shaken up its political and military leadership in an attempt to regain territory lost to the Houthis in September and lift the four-week siege of Taiz, the country’s third largest city.A counteroffensive launched on 5 October and aimed at liberating the entire country from Houthi control has failed amid fighting that has left thousands dead on both sides. The air superiority of the government’s ally Saudi Arabia – which has had to fend off near-daily Houthi attacks on its airports and military bases – has not translated into progress on the ground. Continue reading...

Nov 5, 2026 - World

Wong, 30, in prison since 2020, is only activist in Hong Kong prosecuted twice under national security lawExclusive: Joshua Wong laments city’s fate from inside maximum security prisonThe Hong Kong activist Joshua Wong has been sentenced to 10 years in prison after earlier pleading guilty to “foreign collusion”, his second conviction under a national security law critics say has been used to silence political opposition in the city.Wong, who rose to prominence as the teenage face of Hong Kong’s 2014 pro-democracy demonstrations, submitted his guilty plea in September. He had been accused of working with the exiled Hong Kong activist Nathan Law to urge foreign powers to impose sanctions, blockades or other hostile measures against China. Continue reading...

Nov 5, 2026 - World

Delivering net zero also at risk, say MPs as they call for centralised policy and funding for mines and diversification The UK is “dangerously” dependent on China for critical raw materials needed for the military, renewable energy infrastructure and AI, a parliamentary investigation has found.MPs on the business select committee called for an urgent centralised policy and the creation of a “critical minerals finance facility” to help fund rare earth and other critical mineral mines, and deploy grants, equity and debt to accelerate a diversification programme. Continue reading...

Nov 5, 2026 - World

Hubert Aiwanger, leader of a conservative party influential in Bavarian politics, has been found dead in a Berlin hotel

Nov 4, 2026 - World

Analysis by human rights organisation Global Echo shows 85 of 132 shipments over eight years contained more than US$5m of organic dates grown in settlementsGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastMillions of dollars of food grown in illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank has been shipped to Australia labelled as “produce of Israel”, a new analysis of trade data has shown.The human rights legal organisation Global Echo has analysed commercial documents and official trade data from the Israeli government and the Australian Bureau of Statistics, showing at least US$5m (A$7.2m) of organic dates grown in illegal settlements across the West Bank have been shipped to Australia over the past eight years. Continue reading...