Author: James Harden
The Houses of Parliament are seen on June 28, 2024 in London, England ahead of the UK general election.Peter Nicholls | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesThe U.K. government is pushing ahead with planned sanctions targeting Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, despite U.S. officials and lawmakers warning of economic consequences for doing so.Speaking in the country’s parliament on Tuesday, U.K. Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said Britain would ban imports from Israeli settlements built on land that is internationally recognized as Palestinian territory. The measures are expected to take six to nine months to come into force, he added.”Today…
A Boeing 747 (top) belonging to the Iranian Mahan Air airline is photographed at Mehrabad Airport in western Tehran, Iran, on October 16, 2024. Morteza Nikoubazl | Nurphoto | Getty ImagesThe Treasury Department on Tuesday sanctioned 27 Iranian airlines and a handful of other entities as part of its ongoing effort to isolate Iran’s economy.The move comes as Tehran and its proxies continue to launch attacks in the Strait of Hormuz and the surrounding region, further entangling other countries in the U.S.’s more-than-six-month war and placing more pressure on global energy prices.The latest U.S. action under “Operation Economic Outcast” targets…
Stay informed with free updatesSimply sign up to the European banks myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox.The former head of Switzerland’s banking lobby has been convicted of bribery and aggravated money laundering over SFr82mn ($101mn) in payments to a Kuwaiti official in exchange for placing state pension assets with his bank.Pierre Mirabaud, a former senior partner of the Geneva private bank that bears his family name, was handed a two-year suspended prison sentence by Switzerland’s Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona on Tuesday.Mirabaud was president of the Swiss Bankers Association from 2003 to 2009, putting him at the top…
Some veterans will be mobilised as part of a major exercise next year testing the UK’s resilience for war.The government exercise will challenge the Ministry of Defence (MoD) “on a scale that we haven’t seen for a very long time” on its reaction in the event of a conflict, armed forces minister Louise Sandher-Jones said.The drill will involve an as-yet unspecified number of the British military’s strategic reserve, which has an estimated 95,000 retired regular and reserve officers.It forms part of a plan by the MoD for a “real step change” to use the strategic reserve more, following warnings of…
Council leader Steve Pitt said the decision had caused “needless disruption”.Around 200 people, some wearing masks, confronted police in riot gear after they descended on the Eastney Landing ferry port area, where the migrants were landed.Police protected a number of coaches parked on a road leading away from Eastney Marina as protesters blocked traffic. A dispersal order was put in place, meaning anyone failing to comply with police could be arrested. In a statement, Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary said a handful of officers were treated at the scene for injuries, none of which were serious.It said: “Violence and…
FILE PHOTO: The logo of Swiss drugmaker Novartis is seen at the company’s new cell and gene therapy factory in Stein, Switzerland, November 28, 2019.Arnd Wiegmann | ReutersNovartis shares tanked 10% on Tuesday after the pharmaceutical giant said its del-desiran drug for muscle-wasting disorder failed in a late-stage trial. The company’s stock was last seen down by 10%, as investors reacted to what was its third drug trial setback in a week. It put the shares on track for their worst trading day ever. Stock Chart IconStock chart iconNovartis stockNovartis said its global phase III HARBOR study, which had been…
A flag adorns the ArcelorMittal Dofasco steel plant as trade tensions escalate over U.S. tariffs and retaliatory measures by Canada in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Aug. 24, 2026. Carlos Osorio | ReutersIran hit out at Canada for supporting U.S. actions in the Strait of Hormuz, calling Ottawa’s moves “a display of strategic confusion and submission to intimidation.” In a post on X, Tehran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said that Canada chose to “appease” the U.S. “on the very day the U.S. president, in blatant contempt for Canada’s sovereignty and independence, portrayed the entire country as part of the United States.”Baghaei…
The UK government is to set out new restrictions on buying goods made in Jewish settlements in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, the BBC understands.Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband is expected to outline the measures in the Commons on Tuesday, which could include restrictions on trade in agricultural products from settlements.Last week, Miliband said he would unveil a “comprehensive reset” of the British government’s policy on Israel.The Israeli government has previously warned it would retaliate if any new measures were introduced.Settlements are illegal under international law, and recent months have seen a rise in violence towards Palestinians in the West Bank by…
The past month has seen a number of major natural disasters occur around the globe, from earthquakes to floods, droughts and typhoons.While the geological events would occur anyway, one problem is that the onset of the super El Nino phenomenon is setting off more risks of extreme weather worldwide. Here are some of the biggest natural disasters of the past month:Earthquake strikes Colombia This aerial view shows the rubble and debris of collapsed buildings 14 days after the 7.4-magnitude earthquake in Pereira, Colombia on August 24, 2026. The powerful earthquake that killed hundreds of people in western Colombia on August…
Blood sample for a lipoprotein(a) test.Md Babul Hosen | Istock | Getty ImagesNovartis’ failure in a closely watched cardiovascular trial has raised questions about one of the pharmaceutical industry’s biggest drug races and rival treatments from U.S. heavyweights Amgen and Eli Lilly.The pelacarsen drug, developed jointly with Ionis Pharmaceuticals, reduced a particularly harmful form of cholesterol in a late-stage clinical trial, but failed to significantly improve cardiovascular outcomes, Novartis said after the bell on Friday. The stock fell 3% on Monday.It is the first major clinical setback in the race to develop treatments that lower Lp(a), which elevates cardiovascular risks that are…