World News

Vladimir Putin has been cheered by large crowds in central Moscow after securing his fifth term as Russian president - in what Western nations have condemned as an "undemocratic" election.Thousands of people had gathered for an open-air concert to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Russian annexation of Crimea, which is internationally recognised as part of Ukraine. In Moscow's Red Square, they greeted Mr Putin who received more than 87% […]

Now the three-day electoral spectacle is done - a shiny semblance of democracy, unfree, unfair and underpinned by Soviet-style repressions - what is next for Vladimir Putin and for the country he leads?Expect the state to clamp down still further on what remains of Russia's enfeebled civil society. Putin's authoritarian course was set way ahead of his invasion of Ukraine, but over the last two years there has been a […]

A man has died after falling from a hot air balloon in Australia.The aircraft had only been in the air for around 30 minutes when the passenger went over the side of its basket above the city of Melbourne on Monday. Police said the man's body was found in a residential street at around 7.30am, while the balloon later landed safely in a park a few miles away.There were several […]

Vladimir Putin has claimed victory in an election he said showed the people had "trust" and "hope" in him.Sunday was the last day of a presidential election that offered Russians no real alternatives to Mr Putin after he ruthlessly cracked down on dissent. Early returns after the polls closed showed he is poised to extend his near 25-year rule until 2030, with some 87% of the vote after about 80% […]

A defiant Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to press ahead with a long-expected assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah, despite international criticism.The Israeli prime minister was speaking on Sunday following a meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz as he reiterated his promise to "eliminate the remaining terrorist battalions in Rafah".But he also said this promise "goes hand in hand with enabling the civilian population to leave", although he gave […]

The alarm came loud and long - piercing and insistent. And when I opened our hotel bedroom door seconds later, there were already hotel workers running down the corridor.A window immediately opposite our room held the answer for the urgent reaction. It was filled with a huge orange glow of a mushroom cloud billowing into the skies. If there'd been any doubt, it was dispelled in that moment. The volcano […]

Grant Shapps was forced to abandon a visit to a port city in Ukraine after British intelligence warned of a credible missile threat from Russia.Officials told the defence secretary Russia had become aware of his travel plans to Odesa, where a convoy carrying Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Greece's prime minister had narrowly avoided an airstrike. That news raised the threat level to Mr Shapps's safety from substantial to critical, according to […]

A volcano in Iceland has erupted for the fourth time since December after previous eruptions destroyed roads and forced a town to evacuate.Livestreams from the area showed fountains of molten rock soaring into the night sky from fissures in the ground. Authorities had warned for weeks that an eruption was imminent on the Reykjanes peninsula, just south of Iceland's capital Reykjavik. Image: The volcano is erupting for the fourth time […]

Sinn Fein president Mary Lou McDonald says the Middle East is at "a tipping point" and "words are not enough" from the United States.Speaking ahead of the annual White House reception marking St Patrick's Day, she told Sky News that America had got it "dangerously wrong" on the Israel-Hamas conflict.Referring to the "ongoing, vicious, criminal bombardment of Gaza", she urged US President Joe Biden to "take a firm position" with […]