Minimalist News

Japan Might Challenge China Sooner Than Expected Authored by Andrew Korybko via Substack, It was recently assessed that “Japan Will Play A Much Greater Role In Advancing The American Agenda In Asia”, which its new ultra-nationalist Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has wasted no time in doing. Her first move in this direction was telling parliament that “If there are battleships and the use of force (by China against Taiwan), no matter how you think about it, it could constitute a survival-threatening situation.” That lingo refers to a legal term for activating the use of Japan’s “Self-Defense Forces” (SDF). Although she didn’t elaborate, her controversial logic is presumably that

China Prepares New Property Stimulus Package As Housing Crisis Enters Year Six The global stimmy train is about to leave the station.  With Japan - which is now in recession - set to announce a massive (for its GDP) $150BN fiscal stimulus any second, it's (increasingly belligerent) neighbor to the west is also about to make it rain. China is considering new measures to turn around its zombified property market, about to enter its 6th year of contraction, as concerns mount that a further weakening of the sector will threaten to destabilize its financial system, Bloomberg reports  Policymakers including the housing ministry are considering

America's Real Crisis: The Collapse Of The Citizen Authored by Kay Rubacek via The Epoch Times, Across the free world, people are exhausted, institutions appear unresponsive, and leaders feel distant. Politics remains an endless quarrel. In this climate, a new idea is taking hold, that perhaps the machines can do better. Billionaire technologist and former Google CEO Eric Schmidt has publicly cautioned against this temptation while acknowledging why it is on the rise. When democracies fail to deliver, he notes, people naturally look for something—anything—that promises competence. Surveys from 2025 even show that many citizens now trust artificial intelligence (AI) systems to make decisions

Marc Andreessen: How America Can Beat China At "The Biggest Industry Ever Built" Billionaire venture capitalist Marc Andreessen has grown impatient with what he regards as a dangerously misguided national conversation about manufacturing in the United States, one that continues to fixate on bringing back the factories and jobs that disappeared four decades ago, when the far more consequential opportunity lies in dominating the complex, capital-intensive, software-defined hardware industries that will shape the rest of the century.  “You’re just not going to get the old factories back and you’re not getting the old jobs back in the way that they were 40

Pennsylvania Bill - 'Jetsons Act' - Aims To Green-Light Flying Cars Weeks after we suggested that the next-generation Tesla Roadster could very well be the Alef "flying car," we turn our attention to Pennsylvania, which is positioning itself to join several states preparing for a world of flying cars.  Fox News reports that State Sen. Marty Flynn, of the 22nd District, has reintroduced Senate Bill 1077, also known as the Jetsons Act. This piece of legislation allows vehicles capable of driving on public roads and flying like aircraft.  Senate Bill 1077 would create a new category under state law, require registration and inspections, and apply standard

Collagen Could Be A Natural Way To Ease Osteoarthritis Authored by Zena le Roux via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), The word “collagen” comes from the Greek word for glue, and for good reason—it’s the main protein holding our bodies together. It’s especially critical for cartilage, the tissue that cushions our joints. When osteoarthritis causes cartilage to wear down, collagen provides more than just structural support—it actively protects joints and helps them move more comfortably. That’s why collagen supplements are gaining ground as therapy for early osteoarthritis. The key is using the right type and amount. WHY COLLAGEN MATTERS FOR JOINT HEALTH Collagen is the

Federal Judge Issues Fiery Dissent From Ruling Striking Down Texas Redistricting Authored by Matthew Vadum via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), A federal judge who was outvoted in a judicial panel’s decision to strike down a redrawn election map in Texas issued a blistering 104-page dissent on Nov. 19. Texas state Rep. Matt Morgan holds a map of proposed new congressional districts in Texas during a legislative session at the Texas State Capitol in Austin on Aug. 20, 2025. Sergio Flores/Reuters Judge Jerry E. Smith of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, who was appointed to a three-judge U.S. District Court

Jasmine Crockett Shares List Of Republicans Who Took Money From Epstein - Only Problem - It Was A Different Epstein! Authored by Debra Heine via American Greatness, Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) has publicly beclowned herself for the second time in a week by falsely accusing several Republican politicians of taking money from “somebody named Jeffrey Epstein.” “Folks who also took money from somebody named Jeffrey Epstein, as I had my team dig in very quickly—Mitt Romney, the NRCC, Lee Zeldin, George Bush, McCain-Palin,” Crocket declared on the House floor on Tuesday. > Crockett: Folks who also took money from somebody named Jeffrey Epstein, as

Queer Socialist NYC Councilman To Challenge Jeffries For House Seat Hoping to ride New York City's wave of surging Marxism, socialist City Council member Chi Osse has filed federal paperwork to challenge House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. The move adds new a new dimension of entertainment value to next year's midterms, but has sparked some discouragement from prominent members of the far left. > “The Democratic Party’s leadership is not only failing to effectively fight back against Donald Trump, they have also failed to deliver a vision that we can all believe in. These failures are some of the many reasons why I

Socialism Is A Political Doctrine, Not An Economic One Authored by William Andersen via The Mises Institute, The doctrines of socialism have been with us for more than 150 years, but no one had really tried it in a total way until the advent of the Soviet Union from the 1920s to the early 1990s. During that period, a number of communist/socialist revolutions occurred in Asia, Cuba, and Africa, all of which provided a laboratory to observe how these socialist economies would perform. The socialist economies failed spectacularly, as Ludwig von Mises had predicted. His works on socialism published in 1920 and in

MAHA And GLP-1s Are About To Deal A Big Blow To The Processed-Foods Industrial Complex  The US processed-food industrial complex, partly controlled by globalist mega-corps, is beginning to reckon with a new reality: Make America Healthy Again and rising weight-loss drug use are reshaping what Americans eat - and what they're walking away from, mostly junk food loaded with toxic seed oils, as well as alcohol.  In the coming weeks, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President Donald Trump's Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary, will be releasing new dietary guidelines to reset America's food supply chain away from toxic seed oils and highly processed foods toward real food. This is part

Miller: Democrats Are A "Third World Party"; They Want "An Insurrection" Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news, Senior Trump advisor Stephen Miller has unleashed a blistering tirade during a Fox News interview, accusing Democrats of inciting “insurrection” by urging the CIA and Armed Forces to defy President Trump’s orders—demanding their resignation and labeling the party a “third world” entity obsessed with power through any means. Miller slammed Democrat lawmakers for calling on spy agencies and troops to rebel, urging “These lawmakers should resign in disgrace and never return to public office again!”  “Saying that you have the right and duty and obligation to defy

India's Reliance To Stop Processing Russian Oil At Giant Jamnagar Refinery India's Reliance Industries said it would stop processing Russian oil at part of its giant Jamnagar oil refinery as US sanctions force the company to shy away from dealings with Moscow, Bloomberg reported.   The export-focused part of the refinery took its last shipment of Russian crude on Thursday, the company said in statement adding that some purchases bought before the US put sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies would discharge at another part of the facility. Starting Friday, four of Russia’s top producers - accounting for as much as 80% of

RFK Jr. Says Government Going To Figure Out What's Causing Food Allergies Authored by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times, Government agencies are going to pinpoint causes of food allergies, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said on Nov. 17 at an event held by an organization that funds and promotes research aimed at preventing and treating food allergies. Kennedy said that while there have been lots of animal studies on food allergies, there has been a dearth of human studies, including research that looks at whether allergies are caused by aluminum-containing vaccines. “It’s pretty easy to figure this out, and we will figure

Louisiana Has The 2nd Highest Incarceration Rate In The World... Millions of prisoners are detained in America, but incarceration rates vary widely by state. Overall, detaining inmates costs an estimated $182 billion each year across 1,566 state prisons, 3,116 local prisons, and 98 federal facilities. Despite being the world’s largest economy, America has the fourth-highest incarceration rate globally. This graphic, via Visual Capitalist's Dorothy Neufeld, shows prisoners per 100,000 people by state, based on data from the Prison Policy Initiative. INCARCERATION RATES ARE HIGHEST IN THE SOUTH Below, we rank states by incarceration rates, using 2021 state-level data applied to the 2024 national prison population: With 1,067 prisoners per 100,000

Florida Dem. Rep. Indicted On $5 Million FEMA Money-Laundering Scheme, Faces Up To 53 Years In Prison Authored by Debra Heine via American Greatness, Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-Fla.) is facing suspension from Congress and up to 53 years in prison after being indicted on federal charges for stealing $5 million in FEMA disaster relief funds. The funds were allegedly overpayments to Trinity Health Care Services, a family-run company she previously led, which had a state contract for COVID-19 testing and vaccinations. McCormick allegedly laundered the proceeds to support her 2021 congressional campaign. Prosecutors claim she and her brother, Edwin Cherfilus, conspired to funnel the money through multiple accounts

Chicago Homeowners Demand Answers As Property Taxes Spike Chicago homeowners are demanding answers as property taxes rise without visible improvements, according to Fox News. In Lawndale on Chicago’s West Side, residents told ABC7 Chicago they’re paying more but seeing little change. Community leaders and the Lawndale Christian Development Corporation held a “property tax bonfire” to voice frustrations. Resident Milton Clayton said, "There's been a divestment in this community for the most part, but it seems like now that people have found an interest in reclaiming the neighborhood, now it’s like we're being taxed for prosperity." Fox News writes that another resident, Thomas Worthy,

California Faces $18 Billion Deficit Next Year, Deepening Multiyear Budget Crisis Authored by Tom Ozimek via The Epoch Times, California is staring at another major budget shortfall, as the state’s nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) has projected that next year’s deficit will hit nearly $18 billion and described the state’s budget position as “relatively weak.” The LAO report, released on Nov. 19, is an early look at the 2026–2027 budget. It paints a picture of a state with growing obligations, slowing economic momentum, and fewer tools left to steady itself as it faces the prospect of the fourth straight year of operating in

See Spot Terminate: Police Increase Use Of Robot Dogs For Law Enforcement Five years after Boston Dynamics introduced the cute but creepy "Spot" robot dog, the 5-pound German Shepherd-sized robot dog is finding work.  With its ability to climb stairs, open doors, and dazzle inebriated suspects, police are now using it in situations including armed standoffs, hostage rescues, and hazardous materials incidents - things where sending in a human or a real dog could be life-threatening.  According to Bloomberg, over 60 bomb squads and SWAT teams in the US and Canada are now using Spot, Boston Dynamics has revealed.  Yet, there are obvious ethical concerns - including oversight, and the risks that

The Embarrassments Of Ideology Authored by Victor Davis Hanson via American Greatness, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) is a euphemism for a rigid racialist theology. It deductively postulates that a large percentage of the population is oppressed by racism and sexism, mostly by white males. DEI makes no allowance for the class or wealth of the alleged victims or their supposed victimizers. So once that rigid party line is set, it cannot account for tens of millions of affluent and privileged non-white Americans or like numbers of poor and non-privileged whites. Absurdities and ridicule must then follow. One example is the spectacle of former First Lady Michelle

Nearly 13m people are hoarding millions of dollars’ worth of the stylish 50 peso note, featuring Mexico’s cutest critter For most of her life, Gorda was just an axolotl who lived in a museum in Mexico City – that is, until she became the star of the country’s favourite banknote. The note, which features a depiction of Gorda as the model for Mexico’s iconic species of salamander, went into circulation in 2021, dazzling the judges of the International Bank Notes Society, who declared it the Note of the Year. Continue reading...

Mexican woman Ary Gisell Silva, 23, admitted she instigated robbery of Jake and Callum Robinson, as well as American Jack Carter Rhoad A Mexican court sentenced a woman to 20 years in prison for her involvement in the April 2024 killings of two Australian surfers and an American at a surfing hotspot in Baja California, judicial authorities said Thursday. The victims were Australian brothers Jake and Callum Robinson, aged 30 and 33, respectively, and Jack Carter Rhoad, a 30-year-old US citizen. Continue reading...

The 1940 painting of Kahlo asleep in bed has surpassed the record set by the $44.4m sale of Georgia O’Keeffe’s Jimson Weed/White Flower No. 1 in 2014 A 1940 self-portrait by famed Mexican artist Frida Kahlo has sold for $54.7m (£41.8m, A$84.7m) at a New York art auction, setting a new top sale price for a work by any female artist. El sueño (La cama), or The Dream (The Bed), which depicts Kahlo asleep in a bed with a smiling skeleton wrapped in dynamite on the canopy above her, sold on Thursday night at a Sotheby’s auction of surrealist art after four

UN secretary-general António Guterres earlier used speech at Belem summit to urge countries to find compromises in final hours of negotiations Inside the halls of Cop30 you see people from all around the world, and it can be easy to forget that there are many people who remain unrepresented. On Thursday morning, Magne Tony was standing with compatriots from French Guiana outside the entrance to the conference centre, trying to push pieces of paper into the hands of arriving delegates and observers headed: “Our Amazon is dying”. The main problem is that France are in 9,000 kilometres from Amazonia, from South America, and

Release of documents comes amid conjecture Trump may have authorized the agency to assassinate Venezuelan president The White House under Gerald Ford tried to block a landmark Senate report that disclosed the CIA’s role in assassination attempts against foreign leaders and ultimately led to a radical overhaul in how the agency was held to account, documents released to mark the 50th anniversary of the report’s publication reveal. The documents, dating from 1975, were posted on Thursday by the National Security Archive, an independent research group, as it sought to highlight the report’s significance amid conjecture that Donald Trump may have authorized the

California faced evacuation warnings over flood risk, while Japan experienced heavy early season snowfall Evacuation warnings were issued last week in California as heavy rain brought the risk of flooding and landslides. The storms in the US were linked to a phenomenon known as an “atmospheric river” – a long filament of moisture-laden air that originates above the Pacific Ocean and provides vital replenishment of reservoirs and snowpack along the western coast of the US. However, they can also bring destructive volumes of rain, particularly along coastal areas. Elsewhere in the US, parts of Colorado experienced some of their longest stretches of

It’s a climate-vulnerable nation, while also being the world’s sixth-largest greenhouse-gas emitter. Global investment in climate action is vital Continue reading...

Penny Wong says translation notes were ‘taken hastily’ by official who was not accredited translator and were ‘for internal purposes only’ * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast A top secret translation of the Nauruan president’s public commentary on the NZYQ deal will remain suppressed for a decade after the Albanese government considered its release “inappropriate”. Nauru declined to endorse an informal translation by Australia’s high commission of the 10-minute public interview uploaded to Facebook in February, nor did it provide its own translation, newly released documents

Guo, who pretended to be Filipina to become mayor, found guilty of human trafficking after raid on compound where more than 700 people were forced to run scams Alice Guo, a Chinese national who became a mayor in the Philippines while masquerading as a Filipina, has been sentenced to life in prison along with seven others on human trafficking charges, state prosecutors have said. Guo, who served as mayor of a town north of Manila, was found guilty of overseeing a Chinese-operated online gambling centre where hundreds of people were forced to run scams or risk torture. Continue reading...

Prime minister has accused the Samoa Observer of inaccurate reporting during his eight-week medical stay in New Zealand Samoa’s only daily newspaper has been banned from attending press conferences with the Samoan prime minister, in a move that critics say threatens the democratic integrity of the Pacific nation. Relations between La’aulialemalietoa Leuatea Polataivao Fosi Schmidt and the Samoa Observer have deteriorated in recent weeks, with the prime minister accusing the newspaper of inaccurate reporting during his eight-week medical stay in New Zealand. Continue reading...

Third man charged for allegedly harassing ‘Australian high-office holder’ as police target people ‘causing high levels of harm to Australia’s social cohesion’ * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Two men have been charged over threatening messages to two federal MPs, one in relation to messages to Lidia Thorpe, and another in relation to a message about Allegra Spender. A third man has been charged for allegedly harassing an “Australian high-office holder”. Guardian Australia has been told the charge relates to the prime minister, Anthony Albanese. Continue reading...

The enormous, serpentine fish, regarded in Japanese folklore as a herald of disaster, usually live deep below the surface and are only sighted when sick or dying * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast It was a beautiful warm day in north-west Tasmania when a fish with a reputation as a harbinger of doom washed ashore. Tony Cheesman, who lives in the seaside town of Penguin, was walking his two dogs, Ronan and Custard, along the beach at Preservation Bay on Friday morning when something silvery and surrounded by gulls grabbed his attention. Continue reading...

This blog is now closed * Wieambilla police shooting not ‘terrorism’ but driven by Train family’s shared ‘delusions’, Queensland coroner finds * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Government urging those in Fina’s path to stay up-to-date and heed warnings Kristy McBain, the federal minister for emergency management, said officials are urging people to “prioritise their safety” and heed cyclone warnings and advice. We’ve been working really closely with the Northern Territory government on the pre-deployment of assets, but it is really important that people listen to those warnings and they’ll be continually updated. … But these things

Former television reporter and presenter, now the member for Vaucluse, praised for her ‘enormous potential’ * Kellie Sloane elected NSW Liberal leader unopposed, replacing Mark Speakman * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast After months of speculation about her leadership ambitions, and the drawn-out demise of Mark Speakman, Kellie Sloane’s message after being elected unopposed to lead the New South Wales Liberal party was succinct. “What a day!” she said on Friday morning, before thanking her colleagues and saying she was “ready to work for NSW”. Then

Coroner’s report into deaths of Rachel McCrow, Matthew Arnold and Alan Dare released following five-day inquest * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast A Queensland coroner has found that the three members of the Train family behind the 2022 Wieambilla shootings were not terrorists, but instead killed two police officers and a neighbour due to their shared “persecutory” delusions. Officers Rachel McCrow and Matthew Arnold were killed by the trio of conspiracy theorists at the remote property about 270km west of Brisbane on 12 December 2022. Continue reading...

American diplomats said Donald Trump was trying to achieve peace ‘with an incredible sense of momentum’ German Bild tabloid is also reporting that Merz is expected to hold a phone call not only with Zelenskyy, but also with the US president, Donald Trump. Mind you: there’s been no official confirmation yet. Continue reading...

Milan allegations link Aleksandar Vučić to 1990s shootings of civilians in Bosnian capital by Italians and others * In the snipers’ sights: life under fire during siege of Sarajevo – in pictures A Croatian investigative reporter has filed a complaint with Milan prosecutors against the Serbian president, Aleksandar Vučić, for his alleged involvement in the “Sarajevo safari” affair, in which snipers from Italy and other countries allegedly travelled to the Bosnian capital to kill civilians during the four-year siege of the city in the 1990s. Last week, Milan prosecutors launched an investigation aimed at identifying the Italians allegedly involved on charges of

Ukrainian president’s office issues statement after other officials condemn ‘absurd’ plan to end conflict Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said he will negotiate with Donald Trump on a US-backed peace plan that called on Ukraine to make painful concessions in order to end the Kremlin’s invasion of his country. The president’s office on Thursday confirmed he had received the draft peace plan, which was prepared by US and Russian officials, and that he would speak to Trump in the coming days about “existing diplomatic opportunities and the main points that are necessary for peace”. Continue reading...

Statement from Ukrainian president’s office says country supports all ‘meaningful proposals capable of bringing true peace closer’ In the last hour, Ukraine said it had received from Russia the remains of 1,000 people that Moscow said were killed Ukrainian soldiers, in the latest repatriation – a rare area of cooperation between the warring sides, AFP reported. “Today, repatriation measures took place. 1000 bodies, claimed by the Russian side to belong to Ukrainian servicemen, were returned to Ukraine,” Kyiv’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War said on social media. Continue reading...

Foreign ministers express misgivings about draft US-Russian peace plan favourable to Putin Europeans must be involved in any attempt to broker peace between Ukraine and Russia, the continent’s top diplomats said after reports of a US-Russia plan favourable to Kremlin interests emerged. The EU’s foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, welcomed any “meaningful efforts” to end the war, but said Ukrainian and European input was needed for any plan to work. Continue reading...

‘The world thinks Palestinians don’t need help any more,’ aid organiser says, despite desperate need as winter nears Fundraisers collecting for Palestinian civilians in Gaza are seeing a “catastrophic” drop-off in donations since the ceasefire was announced in October. Donations collected by volunteers and funnelled to needy families living in temporary shelters and struggling with illness, hunger and malnutrition have been harder to raise since then, according to organisers, many of whom have been running volunteer initiatives for Palestinians in Gaza on third-party crowdfunding platforms over the past two years. Continue reading...

Medical officials say 17 people killed in Khan Younis area and 16 in strikes on Gaza City Israeli attacks in Gaza have killed 33 people and injured many more, according to medical officials, in one of the most serious escalations of violence since the US-backed ceasefire came into effect last month. Officials at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis said they received the bodies of 17 people, including five women and five children, after four Israeli airstrikes targeted tents sheltering displaced people. In Gaza City, medical officials said two airstrikes killed 16 people, including seven children and three women. Continue reading...

Saad Almadi’s family thanks Trump and state department as announcement comes after meeting with crown prince Saudi Arabia has agreed to allow US citizen Saad Almadi to return home to Florida, five months ahead of the scheduled lifting of travel restrictions and a day after Saudi crown prince and prime minister Mohammed bin Salman met Donald Trump at the White House. Almadi, 75, was sentenced to 19 years of incarceration in the kingdom in 2021 after he wrote 14 tweets critical of the Riyadh government. Two years later, the charges were reduced to so-called “cyber crimes” and he was sentenced to a

Exclusive: Images are first indication that Israel has used cluster munitions in nearly 20 years Israel used widely banned cluster munitions in its recent 13-month war in Lebanon, photos of munition remnants in south Lebanon seen by the Guardian suggest. The images, which have been examined by six different arms experts, appear to show the remnants of two different types of Israeli cluster munitions found in three different locations: south of the Litani River in the forested valleys of Wadi Zibqin, Wadi Barghouz and Wadi Deir Siryan. Continue reading...

This live blog is now closed. * Trump shrugs off Khashoggi murder during Saudi prince’s White House visit A reminder that Donald Trump’s family has a strong personal interest in Saudi Arabia. In September, London real estate developer Dar Global announced that it plans to launch Trump Plaza in the Red Sea city of Jeddah. It’s Dar Global’s second collaboration with the Trump Organization, the collection of companies controlled by the US president’s children, in the kingdom. Last year, the two companies announced the launch of Trump Tower Jeddah. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Tshering Tobgay says his country is doing ‘a lot more than our fair share’ on climate and west must cut emissions ‘for the happiness of your people’ The wealthy western countries most responsible for the climate crisis would improve the health and happiness of their citizens by prioritising environmental conservation and sustainable economic growth, according to the prime minister of Bhutan, the world’s first carbon-negative nation. Bhutan, a Buddhist democratic monarchy and biodiversity hotspot situated high in the eastern Himalayas, is among the world’s most ambitious climate leaders thanks to its people’s connection with nature and a strong political focus on

Hasina sentenced in absentia by court in Dhaka over deadly crackdown on student-led uprising last year Bangladesh’s deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina has been sentenced to death in absentia by a court in Dhaka for crimes against humanity over a deadly crackdown on a student-led uprising last year. A three-judge bench of the country’s international crimes tribunal convicted Hasina of crimes including incitement, orders to kill and inaction to prevent atrocities as she oversaw a crackdown on anti-government protesters last year. Continue reading...

The accidental explosion comes days after a deadly car blast in New Delhi which killed at least eight people near the city’s historic Red Fort At least nine people were killed and 32 injured after a cache of confiscated explosives detonated inside a police station in Indian-controlled Kashmir, police have announced. The blast occurred in the Nowgam area of Srinagar, the region’s main city, late on Friday while a team of forensic experts and police were examining the explosive material, said Nalin Prabhat, the region’s police director general. He ruled out any foul play, saying it was an accident. Continue reading...

Investigators believe an explosion that killed 13 people may be linked to group operating in the disputed region Police have carried out raids and made several arrests across the Indian region of Kashmir in the aftermath of a car explosion in Delhi that left 13 people dead. On Wednesday, the Indian government confirmed it was treating the blast as a “terror incident” perpetrated by “anti-national forces”. The explosion took place outside one of India’s most significant monuments during rush hour on Monday evening. Continue reading...

Cabinet says explosion near Red Fort that killed 12 is suspected to have been perpetrated by ‘anti-national forces’ India has confirmed it is treating the explosion that killed 12 people outside Delhi’s Red Fort on Monday as a “terror incident” perpetrated by “anti-national forces”. The statement by the cabinet, led by the prime minister, Narendra Modi, confirmed mounting speculation that a terrorist attack was behind the blast that took place during peak time in one of the capital’s busiest areas and outside one of India’s major landmarks. Continue reading...

Liz Kendall says ‘we are clear-eyed about our relationship with China and national security will always come first’ Prime minister Keir Starmer had a bilateral meeting with South African president Cyril Ramaphosa on the sidelines of the G20 summit on Friday. The two leaders discussed the 11-hour flight from London to Johannesburg in brief remarks in front of reporters, according to the PA news agency. Energy bills are still far higher than five years ago, on top of sky-high mortgages and rents and prices in the shops. The government has pledged time and time again to bring down energy bills – it is time

Online fashion retailer says action to cut discounts and deter ‘serial returners’ contributed to fall in sales * Business live – latest updates Asos has turned to online stylists powered by artificial intelligence as it attempts to win back customers and reverse a fall in sales. The online fashion retailer said sales had fallen 12% in the year to 31 August, and City analysts predicted another year of declining sales ahead. Continue reading...

Supermarkets, clothing stores and online mail order firms suffer sales declines as consumers delay purchases * Business live – latest updates Sales at UK retailers slumped unexpectedly last month as shoppers waited for Black Friday deals, and uncertainty over the upcoming budget dampened consumer confidence. Retail sales fell 1.1% month on month in October, the first fall since May, according to official figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Economists had been expecting sales growth to be flat on the previous month. Continue reading...

October figures represent final snapshot of public finances before Rachel Reeves’s tax and spending statement * Business live – latest updates The UK government borrowed more than expected in October, official figures show, in the final snapshot of the public finances before Rachel Reeves’s crunch budget. The Office for National Statistics said borrowing – the difference between public spending and income – was £17.4bn last month. Continue reading...

Energy price cap for average dual fuel bill will increase to £1,758 a year, from £1,755 in the current quarter * Business live – latest updates Energy bills will rise for millions of households in Great Britain from January, after the industry regulator announced a surprise increase in gas and electricity costs. The energy regulator, Ofgem, said on Friday that the quarterly price cap covering January to March will rise by 0.2% for the average annual dual fuel energy bill to £1,758, from £1,755 in the current quarter. Continue reading...

The pristine copy of Superman No 1, the character’s first solo title from 1939, was discovered in an attic in California last year A copy of Superman No 1 that was discovered in an attic in California last year has become the world’s most expensive comic book after selling for US$9.12m (£6.96m, A$14.14m). Superman No 1 was published in 1939 and was the Man of Steel’s first solo title. It marked the first time a character that debuted in a comic book had their own title devoted entirely to them. Continue reading...

This live blog is now closed. * Trump news at a glance: president says Democrats should be arrested for ‘seditious behavior’, drawing outrage The Trump administration presented a new plan to roll back regulations in the Endangered Species Act (ESA) on Wednesday, a move experts fear will accelerate the extinction crisis if adopted. The proposed changes would allow the federal government more power to weigh economic impact against habitat designations, remove safeguards against future events – including the impacts from the climate crisis – and rescind the “blanket rule” that automatically grants threatened species the same protections as those designated as endangered. Continue

Prakazrel ‘Pras’ Michel was convicted in 2023 after a trial that included testimony from actor Leonardo DiCaprio and former US attorney general Jeff Sessions The Grammy-winning rapper Prakazrel “Pras” Michel of the Fugees has been sentenced to 14 years in prison for a case in which he was convicted of illegally funnelling millions of dollars in foreign contributions to former US president Barack Obama’s 2012 reelection campaign. Michel, 52, declined to address the court before US district judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly sentenced him on Thursday. Continue reading...

Activist detained by ICE condemns ‘smear and harassment campaign’ and demands release of key communications Mahmoud Khalil, the Palestinian activist who participated in protests at Columbia University and was detained by Ice earlier this year, has filed a lawsuit demanding the Trump administration release its communications with anti-Palestinian groups he says contributed to his March arrest and efforts to detain him. The groups, a number of which have boasted about their involvement in sharing dossiers on Palestine activists with the administration, have claimed credit for Khalil’s arrest, according to the Center for Constitutional Rights, which is part of the legal team representing

But Sunshine state Republicans might oppose drilling off state’s famous beaches that keep tourism dollars coming in The Trump administration on Thursday announced new oil and gas drilling off California’s and Florida’s coasts, setting the stage for a political showdown – including with Sunshine state Republicans who have largely opposed petroleum development in the Gulf of Mexico. This announcement comes as the US petroleum industry, despite contending with low crude prices, has been pushing for an entree to additional offshore drilling areas. The industry’s move for increased access also marks an effort to increase jobs and US energy independence, according to the

Grammy-winning rapper Prakazrel “Pras” Michel of the Fugees was sentenced on Thursday to 14 years in prison for a case in which he was convicted of illegally funnelling millions of dollars in foreign contributions to former US president Barack Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign. Michel, 52, declined to address the court before US District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly sentenced him. In April 2023, a federal jury convicted Michel of 10 counts, including conspiracy and acting as an unregistered...

The White House on Thursday defended US President Donald Trump after he called a female reporter “piggy” as she questioned him about the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, saying the president’s remarks reflected his frankness and transparency. In the exchange aboard Air Force One last week, which has since gone viral, Trump leaned towards the reporter, pointed his finger and said “Quiet, piggy” as she pressed him about a recently released Epstein email in which the New York financier...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said after talks with a top US Army official on Thursday he was ready for “honest” work with Washington on a plan to end the war in Ukraine, while European allies pushed back against punishing concessions to Russia. According to the US-backed plan, seen by Reuters, Kyiv would be required to give up the entire Donbas region and significantly downsize its military, conditions long seen by Ukraine’s allies as tantamount to capitulation. The plan says Ukraine...

US President Donald Trump’s administration on Thursday unveiled a plan for a dramatic expansion of oil and gas drilling rights auctions in US waters, including in California, where state officials strongly oppose energy development along its world-famous coastline. The Interior Department proposal is aligned with Trump’s energy dominance agenda to supercharge domestic fossil fuel production. It immediately set off a fresh conflict with California Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat who is among...

A US federal judge on Thursday ordered the Trump administration to end its months-long deployment of National Guard troops to help police the nation’s capital. US District Judge Jia Cobb concluded that President Donald Trump’s military takeover in Washington DC illegally intrudes on local officials’ authority to direct law enforcement in the district. She put her order on hold for 21 days to allow for an appeal, however. District of Columbia Attorney General Brian Schwalb sued to challenge the...

A fire broke out Thursday inside the UN climate summit venue in Brazil, burning through the roof and causing a panicked evacuation and the suspension of talks entering a crucial phase. The blaze engulfed pavilions in the summit site in Belem around 2pm, torching a hole through its fabric ceiling, sparking a rush for the exit as smoke filled the corridors and people cried “fire!” It was the third major incident since the Cop30 negotiations started last week in the Amazon region, after Indigenous...

Dick Cheney, celebrated as a master Republican strategist but defined by the darkest chapters of America’s “War on Terror”, was honoured on Thursday in a funeral attended by Washington’s elite that pointedly left out President Donald Trump. Cheney’s career reads like a catalogue of American statecraft, even as his long shadow over foreign policy - as defence secretary during the Gulf War and the 46th vice-president under George W. Bush - still divides the country. Bush and fellow former...

The White House hit out on Thursday at South Africa’s leader for “running his mouth” over the United States’ boycott of this weekend’s Group of 20 summit in Johannesburg in another diplomatic rift between the US and a country that has been especially targeted for criticism by President Donald Trump. South African leader Cyril Ramaphosa told reporters in Johannesburg that the US had indicated it was changing its mind over its boycott of the G20 leaders summit at the “11th hour” and wanted to take...

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will visit China at the end of January, Sky News reported on Thursday, in what would be the first visit to the country by a British leader in seven years. Starmer’s Labour government has made improved relations with Beijing a priority as it seeks foreign investment to make good on its election pledge to upgrade infrastructure and grow Britain’s economy. But the relationship has been bumpy, with both countries trading accusations of spying. The prime minister’s...

A public inquiry report released on Thursday slammed the UK’s initial response to the coronavirus pandemic in the early months of 2020 as “too little, too late”, saying the failure to lock down the country earlier “led to an unacceptable loss of life”. The inquiry, chaired by former judge Heather Hallett, found that chaos at the heart of the then Conservative government and a failure to take Covid-19 seriously potentially cost 23,000 lives in England alone during the first wave of the...

New York’s incoming leftist mayor Zohran Mamdani will meet with US President Donald Trump at the White House on Friday, after an exchange of barbs that has seized national attention. Mamdani, a 34-year-old political insurgent who came from nowhere to win leadership of America’s biggest city, said Thursday he was “ready for whatever happens”. Sparks could fly when the self-declared Democratic Socialist comes face-to-face with the 79-year-old Republican. Trump brands Mamdani a “communist” and has...

This month, the Russian Academy of Sciences completed a study assessing the comprehensive strength of 193 countries across economic, technological, demographic, military, infrastructural and other dimensions. This annual assessment of national power is conducted using advanced methods of multivariate statistical analysis. The latest results, calculated for 2025 and 2026, show the global balance of power has finally shifted from the United States towards China. Also, several regional power cores...

The White House ratcheted up its attack on ABC News Wednesday, a day after US President Donald Trump criticised an ABC News correspondent for asking Saudi Arabia’s crown prince about the 2018 killing of a Washington Post columnist. The fresh critique came as the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said on Wednesday it was opening a review of agreements between national networks and local broadcast stations. Trump suggested the commission should move to revoke the broadcast licenses of...

The Grevin waxwork museum in Paris unveiled a new star attraction on Thursday: Princess Diana in the “revenge dress” she wore after public revelations about her then-husband Prince Charles’s infidelity. The Grevin Museum in central Paris, similar to Madame Tussauds in London, already has models of Charles, who is now King Charles, and his late mother, Queen Elizabeth. But Diana was a notable absentee, despite her tragic association with the city where she died in a car crash in August 1997. She...

The US formally warned South Africa against pushing for a joint statement at this weekend’s Group of 20 summit in Johannesburg that the Trump administration is boycotting, according to a document seen by Bloomberg. The diplomatic stand-off is particularly awkward given it’s the first time the continent is hosting a G20 and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is passing the baton to US President Donald Trump at the end of this year. Tensions between the two men came to a head at an Oval...

China’s shipments of rare earth permanent magnets to the US surged to a nine-month high in October as the two countries engaged in a roller-coaster round of manoeuvring over export controls that led to an easing of trade tensions late last month. During the same period, exports to the European Union fell from the level recorded in September. China is the world’s largest supplier of permanent magnets – essential components in hi-tech products such as electric vehicles and defence systems – and...

China should prepare for stricter US and EU regulations on global rules of origin – as signalled in the recent trade deal between the Western economic powers – with the changes potentially weighing on its export sector by redefining global trade patterns, according to a Chinese economist. “Trump’s current measures are temporary – tariffs can be imposed today and rolled back or even eliminated tomorrow. The real question for us is what the future global trade framework looks like,” said Zhang...

South African police and army units held a parade on Wednesday involving helicopters, K-9 dog units and officers on motorcycles in a show of force ahead of expected protests around this weekend’s Group of 20 world leaders summit in Johannesburg. South Africa has deployed 3,500 extra police officers and put the army on standby under its National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure - a body that brings police, army and intelligence services together under one command to provide security...

Nasa released fresh images on Wednesday of the interstellar object called 3I/ATLAS that astronomers have determined is a comet probably even older than our solar system, as US space agency officials dismissed speculation that it was actually an alien spacecraft. 3I/ATLAS was first spotted in July by an Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System, or ATLAS, telescope located in Rio Hurtado, Chile, and has been tracked by astronomers since then. Its unusual trajectory indicated that it was...

Indonesia has launched emergency vaccination drives after measles outbreaks killed more than 20 children in two provinces, stoking fears of a wider epidemic amid a global resurgence of the virus. The scale and speed of the outbreaks have alarmed health experts, who warn the crisis is not simply the result of faltering immunisation coverage, but also a symptom of growing vaccine hesitancy – fuelled by online misinformation, religious concerns and a legacy of public distrust. This erosion of...

US President Donald Trump vowed Wednesday to end Sudan’s grinding civil war at the request of Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, condemning “tremendous atrocities” in a conflict he has previously overlooked. Trump admitted that the devastating war between Sudan’s army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) was “not on my charts” before Prince Mohammed bin Salman pushed him to get involved. But Trump said he would now work to “stabilise” the conflict with regional powers, notably including the...

At least 25 Palestinians were killed in four Israeli air strikes on Wednesday in a part of Gaza under Hamas control since a shaky ceasefire took effect in October, health authorities said. The Israeli military said its forces struck Hamas targets across Gaza after members of the Palestinian militant group fired on its troops in violation of the nearly six-week-old ceasefire. No Israeli forces were injured. Hamas condemned the Israeli strikes as a dangerous escalation, and urged the United States...

A US judge on Wednesday repeatedly questioned the validity of the grand jury indictment of former FBI director James Comey secured by a prosecutor closely aligned with US President Donald Trump in the latest signal that the charges may be dismissed before trial. After repeated questioning by US District Judge Michael Nachmanoff, prosecutors acknowledged that the final version of the indictment was never presented to the entire grand jury that approved the charges after panel members previously...

Toronto-Dominion Bank was sued by a group of former employees who claim they were improperly fired from their jobs amid disclosure of widespread criminal money laundering through bank branches. Five Chinese and Chinese-American former employees sued Toronto-Dominion claiming they were dismissed from branches in New York as part of the bank’s effort to crack down on money laundering. At least 22 people were fired from four Chinatown branches in the city’s Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens boroughs,...

US President Donald Trump signed legislation on Wednesday that compels his administration to release files on convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, bowing to political pressure from his own party after initially resisting those efforts. Trump could have chosen to release many of the files on his own months ago. “Democrats have used the ‘Epstein’ issue, which affects them far more than the Republican Party, in order to try and distract from our AMAZING Victories,” Trump said in a social media...

Britain said on Wednesday that it would ban the resale of tickets to concerts, sport and other live events for profit, disrupting ticket touts and the platforms that benefit from their activities. Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said touts were ripping off fans by using bots to snap up batches of tickets for coveted shows and reselling them at sky-high prices. “Our new proposals will shut down the touts’ racket and make world-class music, comedy, theatre and sport affordable for everyone,” she...

Former US Treasury secretary Larry Summers abruptly went on leave on Wednesday from teaching at Harvard University, where he once served as president, over recently released emails showing he maintained a friendly relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, Summers’ spokesperson said. Summers had been retreating from his public commitments amid the fallout of the emails revelation, but he had maintained that he would continue teaching economics classes at Harvard. Yet by Wednesday evening, Summers had...

British defence minister John Healey said on Wednesday that “military options” are ready should the Russian spy ship Yantar become a threat after it directed lasers at British pilots sent to monitor it. Britain’s Royal Navy and Royal Air Force routinely shadow potential threats to national security, and such missions to monitor Russian vessels and submarines have become more frequent since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. Healey said directing lasers at RAF pilots was “deeply dangerous” and...

China slightly increased its US Treasury holdings in August and September – though the uptick did little to offset an overall downward trend – as persistent worries over US debt sustainability and the Federal Reserve’s independence deepened doubts about the safety of assets backed by the US dollar. The country’s stockpile rose to US$701 billion in August, up from July’s multi-year low of US$696.9 billion, but it again trimmed the total to US$700.5 billion in September, according to data from the...

China’s €4 billion (US$4.6 billion) euro-denominated bond sale has drawn record demand, highlighting robust investor confidence in its sovereign assets amid a global shift towards diversification. International and regional investors placed €100.1 billion in orders for the offering – 25 times the fundraising target – China’s Ministry of Finance said in a statement on Wednesday. The seven-year tranche, issued alongside an equal-sized four-year tranche, attracted demand 26.5 times its allocation,...

Christie’s said on Wednesday it was suspending the Paris auction of one of just a handful of examples of the world’s first calculating machine, developed by French mathematician and inventor Blaise Pascal in 1642. The auction of “La Pascaline” had been scheduled for Wednesday afternoon, but late on Tuesday a Paris court suspended authorisation for export – meaning buyers would not be able to take it abroad. This example is one of only nine still existing and the only one believed to be in...

Russia pummelled Ukrainian cities with missiles and drones overnight, killing at least 25 people and throwing doubt over Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s attempts to “reinvigorate” the peace process with talks in Ankara later on Wednesday. “Twenty-five people, including three children, were killed as a result of Russian shelling of the city. Another 73 people, including 15 children, were wounded,” the country’s interior ministry said on social media, updating earlier tolls from one of...

Hong Kong’s Tsim Sha Tsui remained the world’s fourth most expensive retail strip with rents at US$1,515 per square foot per year, as two other core shopping districts in the city – Causeway Bay and Central – also ranked among the Asia-Pacific’s priciest shopping locations, according to Cushman & Wakefield. London’s New Bond Street jumped two spots from last year to emerge as the world’s most expensive retail district, according to the real-estate services consultancy’s 35th “Main Streets Across...

Former US commerce secretary Gina Raimondo said US President Donald Trump’s tariffs are likely to outlive his administration, sustained by political fears that removing protectionist barriers will alienate workers who fear losing their jobs to offshoring and AI. Speaking at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum in Singapore, Raimondo argued that the political cost of unwinding tariffs is too high for any future administration, regardless of party. “Tariffs, once they’re put on, are hard to take off,”...

Family offices in Hong Kong, Singapore and Dubai are redrawing the global map of private capital. Each hub combines favourable tax and regulatory regimes with strong local networks of banks, advisers and deal makers. Together, they now rival Western centres in deploying private equity across the Global South. Drawing inspiration from family offices in the United States – where private equity has represented a major share of assets – these Asian hubs are scaling rapidly, positioning themselves as...

Portuguese football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo and billionaire Elon Musk were among the guests at a lavish White House dinner hosted by US President Donald Trump for the visiting Saudi crown prince on Tuesday. Ronaldo plays for Saudi club Al Nassr, one of a number of ageing players who have been attracted to the desert kingdom’s heavy spending on stars despite its rights record. The 40-year-old, whose contract with the Saudi club ends this summer, took his place near the head of Trump’s table a...

An Israeli air strike on a Palestinian refugee camp in southern Lebanon on Tuesday killed 13 people and wounded several others, state media and government officials said. It was the deadliest strike on Lebanon since a ceasefire in the Israel-Hezbollah war a year ago. The drone strike hit a car in the car park of a mosque in the Ein el-Hilweh refugee camp on the outskirts of the coastal city of Sidon, the state-run National News Agency said. The Lebanese Health Ministry said 13 people were killed...

Kissing did not begin with star-crossed human lovers but with the primate ancestors of great apes around 20 million years ago, according to a study published on Wednesday. Researchers from Oxford University and the Florida Institute of Technology wanted to examine when kissing began, given that from an evolutionary standpoint it has no obvious survival benefit, and could spread disease. Yet humans, chimpanzees, bonobos, orangutans and gorillas all kiss, which strongly suggests the habit was...

A Gustav Klimt portrait painting sold on Tuesday for US$236 million, a record for a modern art piece, at an auction where a solid gold, fully functional toilet satirising the ultrarich also fetched US$12.1 million. The toilet, by Maurizio Cattelan - the provocative Italian artist known for taping a banana to a wall - went up for auction on Tuesday evening at Sotheby’s in New York. The starting bid for the 101kg, 18-karat gold work was about US$10 million. Cattelan has said the piece, titled...

Donald Trump ripped into a reporter from the US network ABC News on Tuesday, just days after calling another woman journalist “piggy” after she asked a question related to the convicted sexual offender Jeffrey Epstein. Trump threatened ABC’s broadcast license after reporter Mary Bruce posed questions during a White House visit by Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The earlier incident involving Bloomberg reporter Catherine Lucey happened a few days ago on Air Force One, but only...

A US district court, in a setback for President Donald Trump, struck down a congressional map on Tuesday redrawn by Republicans in Texas that was intended to give the party five more likely seats in the House of Representatives. The court ruled that the new map, which weakened five Democratic districts, could not be used in the 2026 midterm elections, where Republicans are seeking to safeguard their slim majority in the House. Democrats are eyeing a big win that would allow them to challenge the...

Facebook parent company Meta Platforms defeated a US attempt to unwind its acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp on Tuesday when a federal judge ruled the company did not hold a social media monopoly. The ruling gives Big Tech its first decisive win against the antitrust crackdown started in US President Donald Trump’s first term, and is a major setback for the Federal Trade Commission, which is pursuing a separate antitrust case against Amazon.com. The agency sought to force Meta to...

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s recent remarks suggesting that Japan could intervene militarily in the Taiwan Strait under the pretext of a “survival-threatening situation” represent a strategic pivot away from Japan’s post-war pacifist ethos. These statements, explicitly condemned by Beijing as “blatant interference in China’s internal affairs”, transcend mere diplomatic indiscretion. They reflect a calculated alignment with containment strategies aimed at curtailing China’s...

Brazil has cleared a Chinese navy hospital ship to dock in Rio de Janeiro in January, ending a months-long review that drew quiet pushback inside the country’s military, according to local media. The approval, dated November 13 and published Tuesday in the government’s official gazette, allows the Ark Silk Road to remain in Rio from January 8 to January 15 next year. The 178 metre (584 feet) vessel operates under China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy. Records show a United States ship will...

US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that Mohammed bin Salman knew nothing about the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi agents, offering a fierce defence of the visiting Saudi crown prince that contradicted a US intelligence assessment. The controversy over the killing of Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist and US-based critic of the Saudi leadership, flared again in the Oval Office in front of cameras as the kingdom’s de facto ruler made his first White House visit in...

Once the symbol of the president’s immigration policies, the wall has been eclipsed by his deportation efforts, but with $46.5 billion from Congress, construction is ramping up on the Rio Grande.

The proposal, which the White House confirmed on Thursday without providing details, echoes many long-held Russian demands.

A series of setbacks for the G.O.P. leaves an unlikely opening for Democrats to narrowly win this year’s redistricting wars.

Facing reprisals from Beijing for a remark over Taiwan, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi must walk a fine line to prevent escalating the dispute without looking weak at home.

As a boy in Brooklyn, Adrien Nunez dreamed of playing in the N.B.A. He got close, but it turns out he had a gift for singing at the top of his lungs in his car.

As some lawmakers press U.S. universities to curtail ties with China, a postdoctoral student’s prosecution raises questions about how big the danger actually is.

A new generation of craft chocolatiers in Brazil is making bars with “identity.” They’re helping to sustain the forest, too.

From the day he took the oath of office, the president has pursued policies that are making life in America less affordable.

Something new is happening in the breadth and ferocity of efforts to change the makeup of this country.

“Let’s ride off into the sunset together like Butch Cassidy and the Suntan Kid,” Kimmel said after the president demanded (again) that ABC take him off the air.

Representative Eric Swalwell, a Democrat, is likely to emphasize his history of fighting President Trump, an approach that many Democratic voters say they want their elected officials to take.

The company, now owned by a Chinese conglomerate, is investing $150 million in 19 American suppliers across 10 states.

The surrealistic self-portrait was made in 1940, a turbulent year in the Mexican artist’s life as her health and marriage deteriorated.

Fátima Bosch was crowned in Thailand on Friday. The competition got off to a rocky start this month when she briefly walked out after being scolded by an organizer.