Western europe

6 LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Tuesday denied misleading Parliament about lockdown-breaching parties, as senior government ministers said he would have to resign if he was proven to have lied. Former Johnson aide Dominic Cummings has said he is willing to swear under oath that the prime minister was warned in advance that a May 2020 garden party for Downing Street staff would break coronavirus restrictions. Johnson denies he was warned. He told Parliament last week that he had attended the party, but considered it a work gathering that fell within the rules. “Nobody told me that what we were doing was … against the rules,” Johnson told broadcasters on Tuesday. “When I went out into that garden I thought that I was attending a work event.” The garden party is one of a string of alleged rule-flouting government parties being investigated by senior civil servant Sue Gray. Gray is due to report by the … [Read more...] about Under-fire Boris Johnson denies lying over lockdown parties

Ukrainian servicemen walk past a minefield warning sign on the front line with Russia-backed separatists near Luganske in Ukraine’s Donetsk region. Photo: Anatolii Stepanov/AFP via Getty Images Over the past few months, Russia has amassed tens of thousands of soldiers, along with tanks, artillery, and other materiel near its border with Ukraine in what U.S. intelligence (and much of the world) has interpreted as a buildup in preparation for an invasion. At the same time, online propaganda and disinformation activity has increased , as have cyberattacks on Ukrainian targets, including one that took down several government websites on Friday. It is no coincidence that these ominous activities look strikingly similar to the lead-up to Russia’s 2014 invasion of its weaker neighbor, in which it annexed Crimea and launched the still-ongoing insurgency by Moscow-backed separatists in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine. Indeed, if Russia does send troops into Ukraine in the … [Read more...] about Is Another Russian Invasion of Ukraine Inevitable?

A Norwegian man suspected of killing his stepsister and then storming an Oslo mosque with a gun appeared in court Monday with a smirk on his bruised face as evidence grew that he sought to emulate attacks by white supremacists in the U.S. and New Zealand. Security experts believe Philip Manshaus is the latest example of an extremist who was radicalized by far-right conspiracy theories spread online, particularly the "great replacement" theory, which falsely warns of a "genocide" in which white people are being replaced by immigrants and Muslims. Manshaus, 21, was arrested Saturday after entering a mosque in the Oslo suburb of Baerum, where three men were preparing for Sunday's Eid al-Adha Muslim celebrations. Police said he waved weapons and fired several shots. They did not specify what type of weapon was used. One person was slightly wounded before people inside the Al-Noor Islamic Center held the suspect down until police arrived. Police then raided Manshaus' nearby … [Read more...] about Suspect in Norway mosque attack smirks through bruised face in court

At a subway station deep under Manhattan, a dingy room is filled with rows of antique equipment built before World War II. The weathered glass boxes and cloth-covered cables are not part of a museum exhibit, however — they are crucial pieces of the signal system that directs traffic in one of the busiest subways in the world. Much of the signal equipment at that station, at West Fourth Street, is decades beyond its life span, and it is one of the main culprits plaguing the overburdened subway. As New York City’s sprawling subway faces a deepening crisis over delays , the Metropolitan Transportation Authority says that modernizing the signals is a top priority. But the rollout of a new signal network is unfolding at a glacial pace even as the subway system is straining under the demands of a booming ridership. Two decades after the agency began its push to upgrade signals, work has been completed on just one line. At the current pace, transforming every subway line could take … [Read more...] about Key to Improving Subway Service in New York? Modern Signals

26 PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — As climate change pushes states in the U.S. to dramatically cut their use of fossil fuels, many are coming to the conclusion that solar, wind and other renewable power sources might not be enough to keep the lights on. Nuclear power is emerging as an answer to fill the gap as states transition away from coal, oil and natural gas to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and stave off the worst effects of a warming planet. The renewed interest in nuclear comes as companies, including one started by Microsoft founder Bill Gates, are developing smaller, cheaper reactors that could supplement the power grid in communities across the U.S. Nuclear power comes with its own set of potential problems, especially radioactive waste that can remain dangerous for thousands of years. But supporters say the … [Read more...] about Majority of US states pursue nuclear power for emission cuts