Red Bull’s Max Verstappen took pole position in a wet qualifying at the Canadian Grand Prix with Alpine’s Fernando Alonso a surprise second. Verstappen was in control throughout the session as the track started wet and progressively dried and ended up 0.645 seconds clear of the field. Alonso took his first front-row grid slot since […]

It’s not even two months since Emmanuel Macron was convincingly re-elected as president but he is already in a crunch election that could prevent him pushing through his reforms. French voters go to the polls on Sunday to decide who will control their National Assembly. Mr Macron beat the far right in April, but this […]

Sri Lanka could have avoided its current economic turmoil if it had gone to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a bailout sooner, the country’s central bank governor says. P Nandalal Weerasinghe told BBC Newsnight that the delay in seeking outside help was a mistake. The country has said it needs $5bn this year in […]

Charges have been brought against “a number of individuals” by English cricket’s governing body in relation to allegations of racism at Yorkshire. The accused, who have not been named, could be banned or fined by the England and Wales Cricket Board. Yorkshire itself has also been charged with breaching the anti-racism rules. Details of abuse […]

The US central bank has announced its biggest interest rate rise in nearly 30 years as it ramps up its fight to rein in soaring consumer prices. The Federal Reserve said it would increase its key interest rate by three quarters of a percentage point to a range of 1.5% to 1.75%. The rise, the […]

Thousands of civilians are trapped in the Ukrainian city of Severodonetsk with essential supplies running out, the United Nations is warning. Many of them are sheltering in bunkers beneath the city’s Azot chemical plant. The last bridge leading out of the city was destroyed in fighting earlier this week – effectively trapping its 12,000 remaining […]

Authorities in the Chinese province of Henan are suspected to be restricting some residents’ movements using a Covid app, following rare protests. Multiple people say they are being forced to quarantine, blocked from public transport or entering buildings. Most appear to be customers of four rural banks which had run into issues providing cash withdrawals, […]

All bridges to the embattled Ukrainian city of Severodonetsk have now been destroyed, the local governor says. With the city effectively cut off, Serhiy Haidai says delivering supplies and evacuating civilians are now impossible. Fierce fighting is taking place in the eastern city where Ukrainian officials said Russian artillery had driven its forces out of […]

Russia has killed hundreds of civilians in the north-eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv using indiscriminate shelling and widely-banned cluster munitions, according to new research by Amnesty International. Amnesty said it had found evidence of Russian forces repeatedly using 9N210/9N235 cluster bombs, as well as “scatterable” munitions – rockets that eject smaller mines that expl...

Russia’s Daniil Medvedev has replaced Novak Djokovic at the top of the world rankings, two weeks before a Wimbledon at which he will not be allowed to play. Wimbledon has been stripped of its ranking points over its decision to ban Russian and Belarusian players over the Russian invasion of Ukraine. However, that decision means […]

Singer Justin Bieber has revealed he is suffering from facial paralysis after cancelling shows this week. The 28-year-old said in an Instagram video that the condition is due to a diagnosis of Ramsay Hunt syndrome. “As you can see this eye is not blinking. I can’t smile on this side of my face… So there’s […]

New Zealand captain Kane Williamson will miss the second Test against England after testing positive for Covid-19 the night before the match. Williamson, 31, took a rapid antigen test after experiencing minor symptoms on Thursday and will be in isolation for five days. The rest of the touring party tested negative before the second Test […]

One of Pakistan’s most prominent and contentious TV hosts, Aamir Liaquat Hussain, has died aged 50 after being found unconscious at home in Karachi. The anchor was taken to hospital but pronounced dead on arrival. A post mortem exam is being carried out. Aamir Liaquat Hussain switched from televangelism to politics, becoming an MP for […]

People in Thailand can now grow cannabis plants at home and sell the crop after the nation removed marijuana from its banned narcotics list. The nation is the first to advance such a move in South-East Asia, a region known for its stringent drug laws. But recreational use is still banned, even though advocates say […]

The bodies of some Ukrainian fighters killed defending the key south-eastern port of Mariupol have arrived in Kyiv, the soldiers’ families say. They say this was part of a swap with Russia, with each side receiving 160 bodies. Moscow has not commented. The fighters spent weeks holed up in the city’s Azovstal steelworks. In May, […]

Russia’s UN ambassador has stormed out of a UN Security Council meeting after the European Council president blamed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine for causing a global food crisis. Charles Michel said Russia was using food supplies as a “stealth missile” against the developing world, forcing people into poverty. The Russian envoy Vassily Nebenzia accused Mr […]

Rafael Nadal reclaimed his crown as the king of the French Open, winning a record-extending 14th title by beating Norway’s Casper Ruud in straight sets. Spain’s Nadal, 36, won 6-3 6-3 6-0 against eighth seed Ruud to also extend his record number of Grand Slam men’s singles titles to 22. He moves two ahead of […]

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North Korea has temporarily taken over as head of a top nuclear disarmament forum at the United Nations. It comes as the pariah state was earlier this year accused of testing an intercontinental ballistic missile, which are banned by the UN Security Council. However it assumed the presidency of the Conference on Disarmament as the […]

Denmark substitute Andreas Cornelius scored twice as they came from behind to beat holders France in the Nations League at the Stade de France. Karim Benzema opened the scoring with a stunning effort, cutting in from the right wing before dummying his way past three defenders and slotting in. Cornelius volleyed in Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg’s ball […]

The Queen will not attend Friday’s Jubilee service at St Paul’s Cathedral after experiencing discomfort while watching Thursday’s parade at Buckingham Palace. The decision was made with “great reluctance” after considering the “journey and activity required”, the palace said. However, she did take part in a beacon lighting ceremony on Thursday evening. Fou...

A US jury has found Amber Heard defamed ex-husband Johnny Depp with an article in which she claimed she was a victim of domestic abuse. Jurors awarded Depp – who denied abusing Ms Heard – $15m (£12m) in compensatory and punitive damages. Ms Heard, 36, won one of three counter-claims against Mr Depp, 58, and […]

Around 15,000 suspected war crimes have been reported in Ukraine since the war began, with 200 to 300 more reported daily, its chief prosecutor said. Some 600 suspects have been identified and 80 prosecutions have begun, Iryna Venediktova told reporters in The Hague. The list of suspects includes “top military, politicians and propaganda agents of […]

Amid the already deteriorating condition of the minority communities in Pakistan, the country has gone below the belt with Ahmadiyyas as the graves of their dead are being dug up and their mortal remains being thrown away. Recently, the latest case was that of Ishfaq Ahmed, who was desecrated on May 19 in Peshawar, as […]

Taiwan says it deployed fighter jets to warn off 30 warplanes sent by China into its air defence zone. The incident on Monday marked the biggest incursion since January. It came days after US President Joe Biden warned China against invading Taiwan, and on the same day as a US official visited the island to […]

Australia’s main opposition party has named prominent conservative Peter Dutton to succeed Scott Morrison as leader, after a bruising election loss. Mr Dutton – the former defence minister – was elected unopposed by Liberal MPs. The Liberal-National coalition had governed for almost a decade when it lost to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s Labor on 21 […]

Hardik Pandya produced a magnificent all-round display as Gujarat Titans won the Indian Premier League in their first season with a seven-wicket victory over Rajasthan Royals. Titans captain Pandya took 3-17, including the prize scalp of England’s Jos Buttler for 39 to restrict Royals to 130-9 and then hit 34 from 30 balls. Shubman Gill […]

Defending champion Novak Djokovic produced another outstanding display as he reached the French Open fourth round without dropping a set all week. Serbia’s Djokovic, 34, won 6-3 6-3 6-2 – saving one break point in the third set – against Slovenia’s Aljaz Bedene. The top seed remains on course for a potential quarter-final meeting with […]