A look at some of the biggest headlines today.
North Korea threatens to cancel Trump summit over US nuke demands
A statement published by the state-run Korea Central News Agency (KCNA) said North Korea would never accept economic assistance from the US in exchange for unilaterally abandoning its nuclear program. Kim Kye Gwan, North Korea’s First Vice Minister of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was quoted in the article as saying the US said “it would offer economic compensation and benefit in case we abandon (nuclear weapons).”
Rare drone footage shows Yemen frontline city in ruins
Rare images from inside Yemen’s city of Taiz show the devastation wrought by months of fighting between Houthi forces backed by Iran and Yemeni government forces, bolstered by Saudi Arabia and its US-equipped air power.
The Royal Wedding: How Meghan and Harry’s love story unfolded
CNN looks at the timeline of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s romance.
Gulf widening between US and key allies over Gaza
The gulf between Washington and the rest of the world widened Tuesday as a majority of UN countries expressed their distress and anger about violence along the Israeli-Gaza border, while US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley offered a staunch defense of Israel and blamed Hamas.
Meghan Markle’s youngest bridesmaid is two years old
The youngest of the six bridesmaids and four page boys chosen by Harry and Meghan is two and the oldest is seven, Kensington Palace announced Wednesday. Along with Princess Charlotte, the bridesmaids include two of Prince Harry’s goddaughters, Florence van Cutsem, 3, and Zalie Warren, 2, and two goddaughters of Markle.
Africa leaps forward into space technology
In 1964 Edward Mukuka Nkoloso, high school teacher and self-appointed director of Zambia’s national space program, had the bold ambition of beating the USA and the Soviet Union in the space race, and landing a Zambian on the Moon. Using unconventional techniques, such as spinning students around a tree in an oil drum, Nkoloso trained 12 astronauts.
Rare Farnese blue diamond sells for $6.7 million
A rare blue diamond, passed between Europe’s royal houses for more than 300 years, has been sold at a Sotheby’s auction for $6.7 million.
China using ‘debtbook diplomacy’ to spread its strategic aims in Asia Pacific
The independent report, written by a pair of Harvard University scholars, identified 16 countries targeted by the Chinese government for “debtbook diplomacy, ” with Pakistan, Djibouti and Sri Lanka identified as being most vulnerable.
China is getting nearly 3,000 new Starbucks
The Seattle coffee chain on Wednesday announced plans to build nearly 3,000 new stores in mainland China over the next few years. It’s aiming to almost double its number of coffee shops in the world’s second largest economy, from 3,300 at the moment to 6,000 before the end of 2022.
N Korea threatens to cancel Trump summit
North Korea has said it may reconsider attending a summit with US President Donald Trump if the US unilaterally insists it gives up nuclear weapons. The highly anticipated meeting between Mr Trump and North Korea’s Kim Jong-un is due to take place on 12 June.
Markle sister hopes dad will go to wedding
Meghan Markle’s estranged half-sister has said she hopes their father Thomas will attend his daughter’s wedding to Prince Harry on Saturday. Mr Markle told celebrity news site TMZ he would no longer be walking her down the aisle, following reports in the Mail on Sunday he staged photographs.
The Ghanaian shoe seller taking on an ex-dictator
A Ghanaian man is leading a campaign to bring The Gambia’s ex-ruler Yahya Jammeh to justice over the murder of 56 migrants who were mistaken for coup plotters, writes the BBC’s Alex Duval Smith. Martin Kyere leapt from the pick-up truck into the darkness.
‘Disappearing’ lake re-emerges in Tasmania
A lake known as the Disappearing Tarn has delighted hikers and photographers on a mountain in Australia after filling with a rare volume of water. The normally dry lake on Mt Wellington in Tasmania is not easily seen. It was once described by a local newspaper as part of state “bushwalking folklore”.
White House Eliminates Cyber Czar Post After First Appointee Leaves
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The White House has eliminated the position of cybersecurity coordinator after President Donald Trump’s first appointee for the job departed last week, a spokesman for the National Security Council confirmed on Tuesday. “Today’s actions continue an effort to empower National Security Council Senior Directors.
Fox News Said To Settle Group Of Discrimination Lawsuits For About $10 Million
Fox News settled lawsuits with several plaintiffs suing the network for racial and gender discrimination in a deal worth about $10 million, the New York Times reported Tuesday. The settlement is far lower than the $60 million figure the network was approached with last summer, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Teen Claims He Visited Heaven During Near Death Experience
An Alabama teenager says he had visions of walking with God after a traumatic brain injury pushed him to the brink of death. Trenton McKinley, a 13-year-old from Mobile, claims he remembers walking through an open field with a shadowy, bearded figure during an apparent near-death experience.
Deadpool Crashes Colbert’s Monologue To Crack Some X-Rated Trump Jokes
Making jokes about President Donald Trump is usually the core of Stephen Colbert ‘s “Late Show” monologue. But not on Tuesday night. Actor Ryan Reynolds turned up in costume ― and in character ― as the superhero Deadpool. Then Deadpool took over the monologue and delivered a few zingers aimed at Colbert, his audience and, of course, the president.
People are mesmerised by the return of this disappearing lake
Nestled deep in the mountains of southern Tasmania in Australia, the Disappearing Tarn is sought after by photographers and intrepid hikers. As the name suggests, the tarn isn’t always there, but recent heavy rainfall in the region has given it new life.
WhatsApp just made group messaging more like Slack
WhatsApp’s newest feature is one you might be familiar with if you’ve used another popular messaging app: Slack. The Facebook-owned messaging service is trying to make big group chats easier to manage, and who better to borrow from than the company that “disrupted” how teams communicate (even if that disruption sometimes comes at a cost)?
Tiny NASA satellite bound for Mars snaps photo of Earth from thousands of miles away
Just call it an interplanetary postcard. On May 5, NASA launched two, tiny, briefcase-sized satellites (called cubesats) to Mars, but at least one of them still has an eye for Earth. One of the Mars Cube One (MarCO) cubesats, nicknamed Wall-E, snapped a photo of Earth from more than half a million miles away.
Robert Downey Jr. is hosting a Youtube show about A.I, is basically Iron Man
In a move straight out of Tony Stark’s playbook, Robert Downey Jr. will executive produce and host a new YouTube Red exclusive series about artificial intelligence. The yet-untitled series will feature experts in A.I. and related fields and is set to premiere on the platform in 2019.
