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Turkey and Israel hold talks to avoid accidental conflict in Syria

Turkey and Israel hold talks to avoid accidental conflict in Syria [deltaMinutes] mins ago Now
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Meghan Markle Podcast Gets Very Different Score on Apple to Spotify

The Duchess of Sussex’s new podcast bizarrely missed the top 100 on Spotify, but is fourth most popular on Apple.
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Andrew Tate told woman ‘I’m debating whether to rape you’, court told

Claims by four women are filed at high court, including of rape, coercive control and assault and battery

Andrew Tate told a woman he was “debating whether to rape you or not” before he strangled and forced himself upon her, according to one of four women suing the self-proclaimed misogynistic influencer.

He is also accused of whispering “good girl” as he raped a woman he employed at his webcam business whom he had separately threatened with a gun, and strangling another so often that she developed spots from burst capillaries around her eyes.

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First Thing: US-China trade row escalates as Beijing’s 84% tariffs come into effect

Retaliatory tariffs enforced hours after Trump announced a pause on dozens of levies against all countries except China. Plus, France could recognize Palestinian statehood within months

Good morning.

Beijing’s 84% retaliatory tariffs came into force on Thursday morning, hours after Donald Trump said he was freezing steep levies on dozens of countries, except China.

What impact could this have on the rest of the world? Given trade between the US and China makes up 3% of global trade, it could “severely damage the global economic outlook”, Okonjo-Iweala said.

What did Panama say? “Panama made clear, through President Mulino, that we cannot accept military bases or defence sites,” its security minister, Frank Abrego, said.

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There’s danger in the Islanders becoming the champs of NHL free agency

There’s nothing like a trip to Nashville to remind you that cap space isn’t always your best friend.
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U.S.-Russian Dual National Jailed Over Ukraine Donation Is Released in Prisoner Swap Between Moscow and Washington

Russia US Prisoner Exchange

A U.S.-Russian dual national imprisoned in Russia on treason charges was freed Thursday in a prisoner exchange with Washington, the woman’s lawyer and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said.

Ksenia Karelina, also identified in the media as Ksenia Khavana, is “on a plane back home to the United States,” Rubio said in a post on X. She was arrested in the Ural Mountains city of Yekaterinburg in February 2024 and convicted of treason later that year on charges stemming from a donation of about $52 to a charity aiding Ukraine.

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The U.S. authorities have called the case against her “absolutely ludicrous.” Karelina was among a growing number of Americans arrested in Russia in recent years as tensions between Moscow and Washington spiked over the war in Ukraine. Her release is the latest in a series of high-profile prisoner exchanges Russia and the United States carried out in the last three years.

Karelina, a former ballet dancer, reportedly obtained U.S. citizenship after marrying an American and moving to Los Angeles. She was arrested when she returned to Russia to visit her family last year.

Russia’s Federal Security Service, or FSB, accused her of “proactively” collecting money for a Ukrainian organization that was supplying gear to Kyiv’s forces. The First Department, a Russian rights group, said the charges stemmed from a $51.80 donation to a U.S. charity aiding Ukraine.

Karelina’s lawyer Mikhail Mushailov said on Instagram that she was flying to the U.S. from Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, where the exchange took place. It was first reported by the Wall Street Journal, citing a statement from CIA director John Ratcliffe, who it said was on hand for the exchange at an airport in Abu Dhabi.

“Today, President Trump brought home another wrongfully detained American from Russia,” Ratcliffe said. “I’m proud of the CIA officers who worked tirelessly to support this effort, and we appreciate the Government of U.A.E. for enabling the exchange.”

The CIA could not be immediately reached for comment in the early hours of Thursday.

The WSJ said that the U.S. in exchange freed Arthur Petrov, a dual German-Russian citizen, who was arrested in 2023 in Cyprus at the request of the U.S. for allegedly exporting sensitive microelectronics to Russia. There was no immediate confirmation from the Russian or U.S. authorities.

Petrov was extradited to the U.S. in August 2024 where he faced charges of export control violations, smuggling, wire fraud and money laundering. He was accused of involvement in a scheme to procure U.S.-sourced microelectronics subject to U.S. export controls on behalf of a Russia-based supplier of critical electronics components for manufacturers supplying weaponry and other equipment to the Russian military.

Abu Dhabi was earlier the scene of another high-profile prisoner swap between Russia and the United States. In December 2022, American basketball star Brittney Griner was traded for the notorious Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.

The UAE has been a mediator in prisoner swaps between Russia and Ukraine, while the skyscraper-studded city of Dubai has become home to many Russians and Ukrainian who fled there after the start of Moscow’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

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EU pauses retaliatory tariffs following Trump’s trade U-turn

The European Union has announced it is putting retaliatory measures against US tariffs on hold for 90 days.
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Startup makes breakthrough that could slash costs of future food source: ‘We are committed’

This patented formulation isn’t just theoretical — it’s been put to the test. Startup makes breakthrough that could slash costs of future food source: ‘We are committed’ first appeared on The Cool Down.
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Russian-American Ksenia Karelina released in prisoner exchange

Russia released a dual Russian-U.S. citizen jailed for donating to a charity providing aid to Ukraine, her lawyer said on Thursday, in what the Wall Street Journal described as a swap for a Russian-German national jailed in the United States.
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Convicted killer Kathan Guzman mistakenly released from Georgia prison — as ‘petrified’ victim’s family fear for their safety

“He is a trained killer with his hands, and he looks nice and friendly. No one is safe. The public is not safe.”