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BBC News with Chris Barrow.
Saudi Arabia has shut down a major oil pipeline that pumps crude towards the Red Sea, bypassing the Strait of Hormuz after it was attacked by drones launched from inside Iraq. It comes as Iran's Houthi allies seized control of Yemen's entire Red Sea coast. The Houthis say they'll blockade Saudi shipping in the Bab al-Mandab Strait, increasing pressure on global oil supplies. The Houthis advance has also triggered a humanitarian crisis. A United Nations spokesman, Farhan Haq, said the U.N. compound in Mokha was taken over when the port city was overrun. "We are gravely concerned by the seizure of a key humanitarian common premises and its assets in Mokha by the Houthi de facto authorities. The compound houses staff of U.N. agencies working to provide humanitarian assistance to vulnerable communities in the area. All U.N. personnel working at the common premises had left the compound before the seizure and are safe and accounted for." President Trump has used remarks at a memorial ceremony marking the 25th anniversary of the September the 11th attacks to defend the U.S.-led war on Iran. Speaking at the Pentagon in Washington, he saluted the U.S. military who he said served in the war on terror, including against Iran. "Today we renew the sacred oath that we first swore in their names a quarter of a century ago. We will never ever forget. That's why we fight today. We don't have a choice. There can only be victory. We fight hard. We fight to win." In a separate speech, the Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the Iran war was part of the continuing fight against Islamic theocracy. An Iranian spokesman described the comparison of Iran with the 9/11 hijackers as absurd. The Democratic Republic of Congo has confirmed the Ebola outbreak that's claimed over 3,000 lives has spread to the country's northwest. The number of cases nationwide now exceeds 7,000, with an estimated death rate close to 50 percent. David Bamford reports. The governor of South-Ubangi province said tests have identified the deadly Bundibugyo strain of Ebola. So far, one death has been confirmed. South-Ubangi borders the Central African Republic and Congo-Brazzaville. It becomes the seventh province to be affected by Ebola. All the others are in the northeast. Controlling this latest outbreak in Congo has proved difficult because of its weak health infrastructure. Vaccine trials have begun but mass manufacturing is still some months away. The head of Britain's armed forces has said half a million Russian soldiers have now been killed in action in Ukraine since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion. On Wednesday, Ukraine's armed forces claimed the number of Russian military personnel killed or wounded in that time had passed one and a half million. This is the world news from the BBC. A British crypto billionaire is giving 36 million pounds, that's almost 50 million dollars, to the right-wing Reform U.K. party. It's the biggest ever donation to a British political party. Ben Delo said he wanted a level playing field ahead of the next general election which must be held by 2029. The BBC's Greg McKenzie explains the significance of the size of the donation. That potentially now gives Nigel Farage something his party hadn't previously had, which is the firing power financially and the infrastructure now to compete nationally with the other parties, mainly the governing Labour Party and of course the main opposition the Conservatives. So Reform could use that money to move headquarters, they could start bringing in campaigning managers and start preparing for an election years ahead. The Reform U.K. party has come under intense scrutiny recently over its funding. The British government has rejected the idea of creating a so-called "kill switch" to stop a dangerous attack from rogue artificial intelligence. A spokesperson said blocking access to AI models here wouldn't prevent them being developed or misused elsewhere. He said the U.K. couldn't simply switch the technology off. The U.S. says its largest ever outbreak of cyclosporiasis food poisoning has ended. The outbreak was linked to contaminated lettuce imported from Mexico and prompted one of the largest food recalls in [recent histo...] recent years. Nearly 13,000 people in 21 states fell ill, two died. Officials in the U.S. state of Tennessee have agreed to rename Nashville Airport after the singer and songwriter Dolly Parton who died last month. It would be the first time one of America's 50 busiest airports would be named after a woman. And that's the latest BBC News. |