British oil and gas giant Shell announced Thursday that first-quarter earnings fell but beat expectations in a "strong" performance, and unveiled another bumper stock buyback.Shell had already warned last month that it expected lower natural gas sales in the first quarter after a particularly strong performance in the final three months of 2023.
The number of people who have lost their lives in devastating floods in Kenya since March has risen to 188, with dozens still missing, the interior ministry said on Thursday.The interior ministry said 52 bodies had been recovered and 51 people were still missing after the dam disaster.
A Nigerian court on Thursday adjourned a money laundering trial against cryptocurrency exchange Binance and two of its executives to May 17 after a lawyer for the exchange said he had not been served with documents needed to prepare for the case. Binance and its executives Tigran Gambaryan, a U.S. citizen and head of financial crime compliance, and British-Kenyan Nadeem Anjarwalla, a regional manager for Africa, have been charged with laundering more than $35 million and engaging in specialised financial activities without a licence. On Thursday, Binance's lawyer complained in court that he had not been served with the additional proof of evidence that he would have used to prepare for the case and commence trial.
Hamas on Thursday was considering the latest proposal for a cease-fire with Israel that the United States and other mediators hope will avert an Israeli attack on the Gaza town of Rafah. The stakes in the cease-fire negotiations were made clear in a new U.N. report that said if the war in Gaza stops today, it will still take until 2040 to rebuild all the homes that have been destroyed by nearly seven months of Israeli bombardment and ground offensives in the territory. Hamas has insisted it won’t sign onto the deal without assurances that, if it eventually releases all its hostages, Israel will end its onslaught in Gaza and pull its troops out of the territory.
Rebuilding homes in the Gaza Strip could drag into the next century if the pace follows the trend of previous conflicts, according to a U.N. report released on Thursday. Nearly seven months of Israeli bombardment have caused billions of dollars in damage, leaving many of the crowded strip's high-rise concrete buildings reduced to heaps, with a U.N. official referring to a "moonscape" of destruction. Palestinian data shows that around 80,000 homes have been destroyed in a conflict triggered by Hamas fighters' deadly attacks on southern Israel on Oct. 7.
Several flights to Dubai were cancelled and diverted Thursday, airport authorities announced, as heavy rains hit the United Arab Emirates for the second time in a month. An airport authority spokesperson said five inbound flights were diverted overnight, while nine arriving and four departing flights were cancelled. In April, heavy thunderstorms dumped the heaviest rains ever recorded in the UAE in a span of hours, flooding portions of major highways and Dubai International Airport, the world’s busiest for international travel and a hub for the long-haul carrier Emirates.
Scotland's former deputy first minister, John Swinney, announced on Thursday he would stand to succeed Humza Yousaf as leader of the country's governing Scottish National Party (SNP).The announcement follows Yousaf's announcement on Monday that he would resign as party leader and Scotland's first minister once a successor has been chosen to head the devolved government.
A group of children holding red, yellow and blue balloons – the colors of Colombia's flag – run to the playground of a newly-opened school built and paid for by the Estado Mayor Central (EMC) guerrillas. The new school - which opened last month in a troubled area in the country's south - is just one example of how the group is consolidating control of certain regions, gaining social support and territorial dominance, and potentially stymieing already-fraught efforts by President Gustavo Petro to ink a new peace deal. The 3,500-strong EMC are rebels who rejected a landmark 2016 peace deal with the government that largely put an end to decades of conflict.
Taiwan's defence ministry on Thursday said that China had carried out a "joint combat readiness patrol" near the island for the second time in a week. Over the past four years, China's military has significantly ramped up its activities around democratically-governed Taiwan. The ministry said that starting from 4 p.m. (0800GMT) on Thursday it had detected 15 Chinese military aircraft, including Su-30 fighters, carrying out "joint combat readiness patrols" with Chinese warships around Taiwan.
The United States has formally accused Russia of using chemical weapons “as a method of warfare” against Ukraine and imposed sweeping new sanctions on Russian firms and government bodies.
Joshua Dean is the second Boeing-linked whistleblower to have died in the last two months.
Vietnam's legislature on Thursday approved the resignation of National Assembly chairman Vuong Dinh Hue, state media reported, the latest top official to step down amid an intensifying anti-graft crackdown by the ruling Communist Party. Hue's departure, which had already been announced last week by the party's central committee, leaves Vietnam with no permanent holders for two of its four top leadership positions, after president Vo Van Thuong quit in March, raising questions about the country's political stability. Both Hue, 67, and Thuong, 53, were publicly accused of unspecified violations and shortcomings, after corruption cases entangled people close to them, or under their supervision.
(Reuters) -Moderna on Thursday reported quarterly revenue that beat Wall Street estimates but came in dramatically lower than the previous year when demand for COVID-19 vaccines was higher. Sales of Moderna’s COVID-19 shot Spikevax, its only marketed product, dropped 91% from the previous year to $167 million for the quarter but surpassed analysts’ expectations of $97.5 million. The Cambridge, Massachusetts-based company reaffirmed that it expects to receive approval from regulators for its respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine in time for it to be included in this fall's U.S. vaccine campaign.
Danish shipping giant Maersk posted a huge drop in net profit for the first quarter on Thursday as Yemeni rebel attacks force it to avoid the vital Red Sea route.- Costly alternate route - Iran-backed Huthi rebels, who control the Yemeni capital Sanaa and much of the country's Red Sea coast, have launched dozens of attacks on ships since November, claiming solidarity with Palestinians caught up in the Israel-Hamas war.
EU chief Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday announced $1 billion in aid for Lebanon during a visit to the crisis-hit country and urged it to tackle illegal migration to the bloc."I can announce a financial package of $1 billion for Lebanon that would be available from this year until 2027," von der Leyen said, adding that "we want to contribute to Lebanon's socio-economic stability".
Biden to meet with families of slain officers and more news to start your Thursday.
The Norwegian center-left government said Thursday that it wants to add 7 billion kroner ($630 million) to the Scandinavian country’s armed forces over the next 12 years amid increased tensions in the region. The announcement came on top of plans announced last month of a “historic increase” of 600 billion kroner ($54 billion) in the oil-rich country's defense budget over the same period. “We must increase the operational capability of the Armed Forces,” Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, citing heightened tensions in the region as the reason for the boost.
Urris in Donegal, Ireland, was once a hub for illegal Irish “moonshine.” The valley formed an “outlaw republic” for three years, successfully evading authorities.
At Columbia University, tensions between the administration and students protesting over Israel's war in Gaza have reached the point that scores of New York City police marched onto campus to clear an encampment and arrest demonstrators who had commandeered a classroom building. It was the second time in as many weeks that the administration has called on police to control the protests. Students have been suspended, and threatened with expulsion.
Escalating campus protests are forcing U.S. President Joe Biden to walk a careful line of denouncing antisemitism while supporting young Americans' right to protest and trying to limit longer-term political damage. As violent police crackdowns and counter-protests greet spreading demonstrations across U.S. campuses, Biden faces sharp criticism of his Israel policy from both the left and right. Students at dozens of schools have rallied or camped out in recent days to oppose Israel's war in Gaza, demanding institutions stop doing business with companies that support the war.