World

Eyewitness footage shows a funnel-shaped column ripping through Shandong province.

Rescue operations are under way, after the tornado killed one person and injured 79 people, according to the Dongming Emergency Management Bureau.

China has seen extreme weather conditions in recent months, from searing heatwaves to torrential rain.

Controversial influencer Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan are free to leave Romania but not the EU, a Bucharest court has ruled.

They had previously been banned from leaving the country where they are awaiting trial, indicted on charges of human trafficking, rape and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women. They deny all allegations against them.

The decision to allow freedom of movement in the EU is not final and can be appealed.

The brothers said the move represented a “significant victory and major step forward” in their ongoing case.

The brothers’ lawyer, Eugene Vidineac, called the ruling a “reflection of the exemplary behaviour and assistance of my clients.

“Andrew and Tristan are still determined to clear their name and reputation; however, they are grateful to the courts for placing this trust in them.”

Posting on X, a platform from which he was previously banned, Andrew Tate said: “The sham case is falling apart.”

The Tate brothers, former kickboxers who are dual UK-US nationals, are accused of exploiting women via an adult content business, which prosecutors allege operated as a criminal group.

Two female Romanian associates were also named alongside the brothers in an indictment published in June last year, and seven alleged victims were identified.

Andrew Tate is a self-described misogynist and was previously banned from social media platforms for expressing misogynistic views.

He has repeatedly claimed Romanian prosecutors have no evidence against him and there is a conspiracy to silence him.

The internet personalities are also wanted in the UK over sexual offences allegedly committed there.

The brothers have had restrictions on their movement for the past two years.

They were held in police custody during the criminal investigation from late December 2022 until April 2023, before being placed under house arrest until August, when courts put them under judicial control.

A Tanzanian portrait artist, who was accused of burning a photo of President Samia Suluhu Hassan, has been sentenced to two years in prison or a fine of $2,000 (£1,600) after being found guilty of cybercrimes.

Shadrack Chaula was arrested for allegedly recording a viral video, showing him burning a picture of President Samia while verbally insulting her.

The 24-year-old painter admitted committing the crime and failed to defend his action in court.

His arrest sparked legal controversy, with some lawyers saying that no law was broken in burning the picture.

Some social media users have started an online drive to raise money to pay Chaula’s fine so he can be freed from jail.

In 2018, Tanzania enacted tough laws against the spread of “fake news”, which critics see as a way of curbing freedom of expression.

Police said Chaula used “strong words” against the president in the video he posted on his TikTok account on 30 June in Ntokela village, in the south-western city of Mbeya.

Local police chief Benjamin Kuzaga on Tuesday told journalists that the artist’s offences included burning the president’s portrait and disseminating offensive content online.

“It is not the culture of Mbeya people to insult our national leaders,” Mr Kuzaga said.

Some lawyers said there was no law that criminalises burning a picture of the president.

“Was the picture taken by a government photographer? Let them come out publicly and explain their impact on society and the nation. Who can show the law that burning a picture is an offence?” lawyer Philip Mwakilima told the Mwananchi newspaper.

But the act, which is deemed unethical in Tanzania, sparked public outrage.

On Thursday, magistrate Shamla Shehagilo found Chaula guilty of distributing videos on TikTok that contained false information in violation of the country’s cyber laws.

The court ruled that his actions constituted cyber-harassment and incitement.

Chaula remained silent when given the chance to defend himself against the charges, local media reported.

The prosecutor had urged the court to impose a harsh penalty on him in order to deter others from “disrespecting” the president.

The case has sparked a debate in the country with critics saying the sentence is too harsh and a reflection of the government’s crackdown on dissent.

President Hassan, who came to power in 2021, has introduced reforms that have opened up the political and civic spaces.

But the opposition and rights groups have expressed concerns that the country is sliding back to retrogressive policies.

Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban has met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, in a visit that has been heavily criticised by EU leaders and Ukraine’s government.

Friday’s meeting was part of what Mr Orban called a “peace mission”, coming three days after a visit to Kyiv where he met Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Hungary has just taken over the presidency of the Council of the European Union, but EU leaders have stressed that Mr Orban is not acting on behalf of the bloc.

Mr Orban is the EU’s only head of government to have kept close ties to the Kremlin following its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

After the meeting, which lasted several hours, Hungary’s PM said Russia and Ukraine were still “far apart” in their views on achieving peace.

“Many steps are needed to end the war, but we took the first step to restore dialogue,” he said.

The Russian leader called it a “frank and useful” conversation. He also repeated a previously rejected proposal for Ukraine to withdraw from regions in the south and east of the country which Russia claims to have annexed – an area that includes territory Russia does not currently occupy.

Volodymyr Zelensky has long said Ukraine will not negotiate with Moscow until Russian forces leave all Ukrainian territory, including Crimea.

Earlier, Mr Putin said Mr Orban was visiting “not just as a long-time partner” but as a European Union representative.

However, European leaders openly condemned the Moscow trip and emphasised he was not representing the EU.

“The EU rotating presidency has no mandate to engage with Russia on behalf of the EU,” Charles Michel, President of the European Council, wrote on X.

“The European Council is clear: Russia is the aggressor, Ukraine is the victim. No discussions about Ukraine can take place without Ukraine.”

“Appeasement will not stop Putin,” European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen wrote on X.

Ukraine also condemned the visit: “For our country, the principle of ‘no agreements on Ukraine without Ukraine’ remains inviolable and we call on all states to strictly adhere to it,” the foreign ministry said a statement.

Earlier this week, Mr Orban visited Kyiv, saying “a quick ceasefire could be used to speed up peace negotiations”.

President Zelensky – who has had frosty relations with Mr Orban – did not publicly respond to the proposal.

Ahead of Ukraine’s offensive last summer, Mr Orban warned that Ukraine cannot win on the battlefield.

Since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, the Hungarian prime minister has underlined that Russia’s advantage in resources and men makes Putin’s country unbeatable.

However, many Ukrainians believe any ceasefire would simply cement Russia’s hold over territory it has seized from Ukraine and, if negotiations were to take place, they would prefer them to be conducted from a position of strength rather than on the back foot.

Mr Orban has been a vocal critic of Western support for Ukraine. He previously slowed agreement on a €50bn ($54bn; £42bn) EU aid package designed to support Ukraine in its defence against Russia.

Tuesday’s visit to Kyiv was his first in 12 years, while he met Mr Putin repeatedly during that time.

During Mr Orban’s joint appearance with Mr Zelensky, the body language between them was not warm, and neither took questions from the media after they gave their statements.

But for the next six months Mr Orban’s position as head of the Council of the European Union means he has an influential role as a figurehead for Europe.

His visit to Kyiv came on his second day in that role, saying there was a need to solve previous disagreements and focus on the future.

Russian dissident Vladimir Kara-Murza, who was jailed after criticising President Vladimir Putin and the war in Ukraine, has been taken to a prison hospital, his wife says.

Evgenia Kara-Murza said on X that officials refused to comment on his condition when his lawyers tried to visit him.

Last year Mr Kara-Murza, a dual Russian-British citizen, was jailed and transferred to a prison colony in Siberia.

His wife says he suffers from a neurological condition as a result of poisonings.

Mr Kara-Murza, 42, has accused Russian authorities of trying to poison him in 2015 and 2017.

On Friday, lawyers for the dissident arrived at the Omsk prison colony but were not told where he was for five hours and then not permitted to visit him in hospital, Evgenia Kara-Murza says.

The outspoken critic of the Kremlin was arrested in April 2022.

In 2023 he was sentenced to 25 years for spreading “false” information about the Russian army and being affiliated with an “undesirable organisation”.

He has criticised President Vladimir Putin over the Russian government’s crackdown on dissent and the war in Ukraine.

He had also played a key role in persuading Western governments to sanction Russian officials for human rights abuses and corruption.

The US state department has described Mr Kara-Murza as “yet another target of the Russian government’s escalating campaign of repression”.

Mr Kara-Murza, who comes from a Soviet dissident family, received British citizenship when he moved to the UK as a teenager with his mother.

His wife has expressed concern over his wellbeing while in prison, particularly following the death of opposition leader Alexei Navalny earlier this year.

The head of Israel’s spy agency Mossad, David Barnea, is reported to have travelled alone to Doha to meet Qatar’s Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani as momentum is again building over a possible ceasefire and hostage deal between Israel and Hamas.

This appears to be very much a preliminary move in what could once again be a complicated series of discussions aimed at finally bridging the gap between the Israeli government and Hamas over what each defines as its bottom line in what any potential deal would comprise.

Israeli officials have already said that expectations need to be lowered.

The latest rekindling of hope for a deal came after Hamas delivered its response to the three-phase proposal that President Biden set out several weeks ago.

The key to that formulation was to put off what has long appeared to be the main obstacle in either side accepting a deal – the demand by Hamas that there must be a permanent ceasefire and the counter-demand by Israel that it must have the freedom to resume fighting in Gaza if necessary.

Exactly what Hamas has presented has not yet been made public. But the Israeli response appears far more positive than in other instances in the past seven months when the process has regained momentum. A source in Israel’s negotiating team said that the proposal put forward by Hamas included a “very significant breakthrough”.

There are indications that this could be that Hamas has accepted the key point of the proposal announced by President Biden – that it would allow negotiations to achieve its goal of a permanent end to the war through the first six-week phase of the ceasefire, rather than demanding it as the starting point.

Hamas has throughout bridled at its portrayal by the US in particular as the main stumbling block in agreeing a deal. Should it become clear that it has indeed made this concession, then the ball would be firmly back in the court of the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

At no time has he personally yielded an inch in his public commitment to the complete eradication of Hamas – and Israel’s right to continue fighting in Gaza after any ceasefire. He has resisted all pressure from inside and outside Israel to modify that stance. But the pressure has been building on him from all sides, inexorably.

The latest push seems to have come from within his own military. A recent article in the New York Times, citing unnamed current and former security officials, said that Israel’s top generals “want to begin a ceasefire in Gaza even if it keeps Hamas in power for the time being”.

Mr Netanyahu dismissed this as defeatist. But he may not be able to resist such pressure forever – nor the ever growing anger on the streets of Israel from those who want the remaining hostages in Gaza to be brought home now.

For Hamas, there are also some signs of growing despair over the continuing war by those who suffer from it every day, the civilian population of Gaza. And internationally, the patience of mediators, like Egypt and Qatar, may be running out.

Regional countries that wholeheartedly support the Palestinian cause have also been reported to be putting increasing pressure on Hamas to accept a deal. Its leadership may feel that the group’s apparent survival, even if severely degraded both politically and militarily, may be victory enough.

And for the international community, the need to find some end to the war has grown even more urgent with the spectre of the confrontation between Israel and Hezbollah potentially erupting into all-out war. A ceasefire in Gaza could potentially ease those tensions.

And for the Biden administration – still reeling in the aftermath of last week’s debate between the president and Donald Trump – a diplomatic success here would be a much-needed boost.

All these elements suggest that the hopes that have once again been raised may this time finally prove more resilient to the negative factors that have seen them dashed before.

BBC

Europe: Centre-left success bucks a trend

US sees ‘frustrated’ voters plump for ‘dull competence’

India: ‘Dismal end’ for Sunak

China: ‘Can Starmer clean up UK’s mess?’

Russia: No change in policy expected

Reuters

Reuters

Getty Images

Where will Hurricane Beryl go next?

Kenya’s President William Ruto has faced tough questions from furious anti-tax protesters during a debate on the social media platform X.

For the first time he apologised for the police brutality witnessed during the recent protests and the abductions of the alleged organisers.

Last week, the president was forced to withdraw his controversial finance bill because of the demonstrations that have rocked his presidency.

The protests were organised via X Spaces, a feature that allows users to host live audio conversations with others on the platform formerly known as Twitter.

Mr Ruto’s X Space session, dubbed #EngageThePresident, started more than an hour late. Technical difficulties cut into what was supposed to be a three-hour debate.

But the discussions were frank, with more than 150,000 people listening – some calling the president a liar and accusing him of lacking empathy – to which he responded robustly.

He pledged to sack all officials implicated in corruption, adding: “I agree some of our officials display obnoxious opulence and I have called them personally and advised them how to conduct themselves. I will do more.”

A state-funded human rights commission estimates more than 40 people died during the protests, most on the day the bill was passed by MPs last week.

But during the X Space conversation, Mr Ruto accused some “reckless” people of inflating the number of people who were killed during the recent protests, putting the number at 25.

The proposed tax increases were intended to help reduce Kenya’s debt burden of more than $80bn (£63bn).

He confirmed that the bill had indeed been withdrawn – protesters feared it still might become law after 21 days as it had been passed by parliament. But the president defended many of the proposals, saying a lot of them had been misunderstood and had been intended to boost Kenyan businesses.

The demonstrations have since morphed into calls for Mr Ruto’s resignation and demands that the security forces face justice over the killing of protesters.

Earlier Mr Ruto’s daughter Charlene tweeted to publicise the three-hour opportunity to chat directly with the president: “Young people, the chance of a lifetime awaits you,” she posted.

Some members of Mr Ruto’s cabinet were also present for the X Space conversation – though none of them spoke.

On the matter of police brutality, the president said he did not personally instruct the police, but would make sure the regulator investigated.

When pushed on the subject, he urged those at the X Space session to share photos and videos of an officer they described as a “killer policeman” for opening fire on protesters.

“I will look for the rogue police and ensure he is apprehended,” he said.

The discussion was hosted by the president’s spokesperson and Kevin Monari, an online content creator and leading voice of the protesters who spoke about his abduction by plain clothes gunmen.

“I promise to follow up on the [abduction] issue and take action,” the president said.

Several others involved in the protests say they were abducted by state agents, held for several hours, intimidated and then released without ever going to court.

Before his X Space session began, President Ruto delivered a national address on TV, promising a raft of spending cuts, saying they were needed because the planned tax rises had been scrapped. These include:

• The dissolution of 47 state corporations with overlapping functions
• Suspending the purchase of new vehicles for state officials for six months
• Suspending all non-essential travel for state officials
• Reducing government advisers by 50%
• Scrapping the budget for first lady and spouses of deputy president and the prime cabinet secretary
• Enforcing the retirement of public servants at the age of 60.

He expressed his condolences but said this “difficult time” was an opportunity for the country:

“We are finally having the right conversation, not about our tribes, or personalities, or political formations, but rather issues that affect each and every one of us: issues such as taxation, debt, the budget, corruption, the cost of living, unemployment, and opportunities for our young people.”

He reiterated such sentiments during his X Space session.

But one X user summed up the mood of protesters with the comment: “Why do you keep quiet until things get out of hand? It is so clear that our lives don’t really matter to you?”

Unlike in the previous addresses where he appeared combative and defensive, President Ruto showed more remorse.

The 57-year-old handled with finesse what could have become a shouting match – and had a confident, friendly manner, addressing most of those who asked questions as “my brother”, “my sister” or “my friend”.

The president ended the debate despite many wanting to ask more questions, saying he had to go off to meet Kenya’s Olympic team before they departed for Paris.

But he said he had learnt much during the X Space session and hoped to do more of them.

In particular, he said it had taught him that he needed to show more empathy about the plight of his fellow citizens.

Palestinian officials have condemned a dramatic new settlement drive by Israel in the occupied West Bank which includes retroactively authorising three outposts.

The move is set to further stoke tensions in the territory which has seen a surge in violence since the war in Gaza began on 7 October.

Palestinians claim the West Bank as part of their hoped-for future state. Settlements are widely seen as illegal under international law although Israel disagrees.

The three unauthorised outposts that have now been legalised under Israeli law were described as new neighbourhoods of existing settlements. They are in sensitive areas in the Jordan Valley and near the southern city of Hebron.

In addition, the Israeli anti-settlement watchdog Peace Now said on Thursday that Israeli authorities had approved or advanced plans for 5,295 homes in dozens of settlements.

It also emerged this week that the Israeli government’s Higher Planning Council had approved the largest seizure of West Bank land in over three decades.

Some 12,700 dunams (5 sq miles) has been seized in the Jordan Valley and declared as Israeli state land. This year has marked a peak in the extent of declarations of state land with a total of 23,700 dunams affected.

The Palestinian president’s spokesman, Nabil Abu Rdeinah, said the new announcements confirmed that Israel’s “extremist government is bound by the right-wing policy of war and settlement”.

He said the latest steps would not “achieve security and peace for anyone” and were meant to prevent the establishment of a geographically contiguous Palestinian state in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza Strip.

Last week, Israel’s security cabinet decided to authorise retroactively five settlement outposts built without official government approval.

The UN, the UK and other countries denounced the move as undermining hopes for the two-state solution – the internationally approved formula for peace that would see the creation of an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel.

“Israel must halt its illegal settlement expansion and hold to account those responsible for extremist settler violence,” the British Foreign Office said.

“The UK’s priority is to bring the Gaza conflict to a sustainable end as quickly as possible and ensure a lasting peace in the Middle East, through an irreversible pathway towards a two-state solution.”

The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not immediately respond to a BBC request for comment on the overall strategy for the West Bank.

However, the far-right Israeli minister, Bezalel Smotrich, who lives in a West Bank settlement, has welcomed the recent steps. “We are building the good land and thwarting the establishment of a Palestinian state,” he said Wednesday on social media platform X.

Not counting annexed east Jerusalem, about half a million settlers live in the West Bank alongside three million Palestinians. Last year, Mr Smotrich instructed government departments to prepare to double the number of settlers to one million.

Since Israel captured the West Bank from Jordan in the 1967 Middle East War, successive Israeli administrations have allowed settlements to grow. However, expansion has risen sharply since Mr Netanyahu returned to power in late 2022 at the head of a hardline, pro-settler governing coalition.

Last month, Peace Now released the recording of an address by Mr Smotrich to his Religious Zionism party, in which he proposes transferring the management of settlements from military to civilian officials, building a separate road bypass system for settlers, expanding farming outposts and cracking down on unauthorised Palestinian construction.

Peace Now warned that the plan would irreversibly change the way the West Bank was governed and lead to “de facto annexation”.