Author: DW

Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Manet on Saturday said 20 soldiers were killed in an ammunition blast at a military base in Kampong Speu province, west of the capital Phnom Penh. “I am deeply shocked to receive the news of the ammunition explosion incident,” Hun Manet said in a statement on Facebook and expressed his “deepest condolences” to the families of those killed. Cambodia’s military said a “warehouse ammunition explosion” had destroyed a truck fully loaded with weaponry. Four buildings have been destroyed. The exact cause of the blast remains unclear. Pictures circulating on social media showed damaged buildings, including houses with…

Supporters of Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Saturday gathered in their thousands urging him not to step down from office. On Wednesday the Socialist premier said that he was considering the possibility of resigning after a court opened a fraud investigation into his wife. He said he would suspend all public duties until he announces his decision on Monday. “I need to stop and think whether I should continue to head the government or whether I should give up this honour,” he wrote in a four-page letter posted on X, formerly Twitter.Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said he would suspend all…

A tourist has been fined NOK 12,500 Norwegian Kroner (£900) for approaching a walrus in the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard.The authorities said the man went out onto an ice floe on Wednesday and “disturbed a walrus that was lying on the ice”. They said members of the public saw him approach the mammal and reported him to the local governor, and that “parts of the incident were also observed by the governor’s employees”.There is a law in Svalbard which stipulates people must conduct themselves in a way which does not lead to unnecessary disturbance of wildlife.The tourist was subsequently brought…

Reliable, cheap and low carbon — since coming into use over a hundred years ago, hydropower has become a vital clean energy source, today providing more electricity than all other renewables combined. But recent power shortages in Ecuador and Colombia have highlighted its vulnerability in the face of climate change.  A drought fueled by the El Nino weather phenomenon has reduced reservoir water levels in hydropower plants, which both countries rely on for most of their electricity. This has led Ecuador to declare a state of emergency and institute power cuts. In neighboring Colombia, water has been rationed in the…

The Olympic flame sailed from the Greek port of Piraeus for France on Saturday aboard a three-masted ship as it slowly makes its way to the French capital ahead of the Games opening ceremony on July 26. As is traditional, the flame was lit in ancient Olympia. It was then carried through Greece by relay for 11 days. It was handed to the Paris Games organizers on Friday in a ceremony at Athens’ Panathenaic stadium, where the first modern Olympics were held in 1896. Well-known Greek singer Nana Mouskouri sang the French and Greek anthems at the ceremony. At another brief…

A well-known Iraqi social media influencer has reportedly been shot dead in her car by a gunman on a motorbike.Om Fahad, whose real name is Ghufran Sawadi, was killed outside her home in Baghdad’s Zayouna district on Friday, according to the AFP news agency, citing security officials. It appears the unidentified attacker pretended to be delivering food to the victim, one security source said.Om Fahad, who has nearly half a million TikTok followers, became famous for posting light-hearted videos where she dances to Iraqi music. TikTok This content is provided by TikTok, which may be using cookies and other technologies.…

Palestinian militant group Hamas said in a statement on Saturday that it was reviewing Israel’s latest counterproposal for a cease-fire in Gaza. “The movement will study this proposal, and upon completion of its study, it will submit its response,” Khalil Al-Hayya, Hamas’ deputy Gaza chief currently based in Qatar, said of the proposal presented to Egyptian and the Qatari mediators on April 13. Hamas, recognized as a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union, and Israel, among others, had earlier submitted a proposal for a permanent cease-fire, which Israel rejected. After more than six months of the Israel-Hamas war…

The money that we use to buy things is only printed paper or stamped metal. If the payment is electronic, as is increasingly the case, then it’s no more than electronic data. Money’s actual value comes from the trust we have in it: Every person should be able to count on the fact that the paper or metal they possess is worth precisely what it has been marked as being worth. Counterfeit currency causes economic damage that affects everyone. Anyone who happens to be paid with counterfeit money or receives it as change, bears additional costs, as it can be confiscated by law…

A journalist for the Russian edition of the US business magazine Forbes has been placed under house arrest after being accused of disseminating “false information” about the armed forces, the Russian state-run RIA news agency said on Saturday. Sergei Mingazov has been held in the Far Eastern city of Khabarovsk since Friday, his magazine said. He was reportedly ordered into house arrest following a hearing at a court in the city on Saturday. Mingazov is the latest prominent figure to fall foul of laws introduced by the Kremlin after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 that criminalize any statements seen as…

The daughter of a British man who died in Cambodia says she has been left with unanswered questions – and claims the Foreign Office isn’t “doing enough” to address them.Sonny Suberu, 60, was found dead in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh following a fall from the 22nd floor of his hotel on 26 March.The retired IT consultant and author from London was on a solo trip through South Asia and had travelled the world extensively.Cambodian authorities say Mr Suberu’s death was suicide but his daughter Shannon doesn’t believe the police account – and points out another man fell to…