Author: Gulf News Week

BBCAugust was a brutal month for Ukraine. Russian aerial attacks increased significantly, launching thousands of drones. Kyiv was intensely bombarded, as were the southern cities of Mykolaiv and Odesa. Amid the destruction and loss of life, Odesa reported damage to six Unesco-protected sites, including the salmon-pink 19th Century Alexandru Sturdza House.It raised again the question of why it is so hard to hold actors accountable for the destruction of buildings and objects with real cultural significance.In the last month alone, Ukraine’s Ministry of Culture reported that 148 cultural heritage sites were recorded as damaged or destroyed, including in Odesa.Several Ukrainian…

Would Australians support a smart glasses ban?As Australia considers barring the use of smart glasses in government offices, the BBC asks people in Sydney what they think. 24 hrs agoAustralia

Getty ImagesDaisy Edgar-Jones has been well cast in her new film.She plays Elinor, the rational elder sister in Sense and Sensibility, opposite the younger, more romantic sister Marianne.Speaking to the BBC, Edgar-Jones says that in her personal life, she really is like her character.”When it comes to love, I think I am very much more Elinor in every sort of way,” she says.But she notes that one of the joys of the film is seeing Elinor learn to enjoy a “wilder, passionate side” of herself. “And I feel like I learnt to do that too,” she says.Best known for starring…

Getty ImagesGreenlanders protested against Trump’s ambitions for the territory in the country’s capital, Nuuk, earlier this yearThe US and Denmark have announced a deal on Greenland’s security, resolving a diplomatic dispute sparked by President Donald Trump’s threats to seize it by force.Nato said the deal would help stabilise the region, as Trump said Denmark would grant the US “permanent control over security, and all other needs” in the semi-autonomous Danish territory.The leaders of Denmark and Greenland welcomed the deal to “strengthen security”, which they said was expected to be signed next week, but did not outline its contents.The deal comes…

Getty ImagesThe legacy of the shocking death of Diana, Princess of Wales, is still the rawest of wounds for the royals, as demonstrated by the no-holds-barred memoir from her brother Earl Spencer.It might be almost 30 years ago, but Buckingham Palace’s unusually angry rebuttal to the book’s allegations of a callous response to his ex-wife’s death from the then Prince Charles shows how much this still matters.That late summer in 1997 was a moment when the Royal Family looked out of touch, lacking in empathy for Diana’s loss, and at peril of losing public support, as people laid siege to…

EPAPresident Donald Trump has infused his ongoing feud with the White House press with a new level of acrimony.Journalists from three major media outlets – CNN, Politico and MS Now – were denied access and had their press credentials confiscated on Saturday morning as they attempted to enter the White House grounds for work.As media watchdog organisations and the White House Correspondents Association cry foul, Trump appears set to press ahead with a sweeping effort to punish these outlets.In his Truth Social post announcing his decision on Friday, he said he was “banning” the organisations because “of their constant ‘reporting’…

‘Enough is enough’: Women protest after string of murders near JohannesburgThe police have since set up a task team to investigate the murders and have urged women in the Kempton Park area to avoid walking or running alone “particularly in isolated areas”.5 hrs agoAfrica

Watch: Trump says ban on some news outlets from White House is “because they’re fake news”Politico, CNN and MS NOW journalists have been denied access to the White House after US President Donald Trump announced he was banning the outlets.An MS NOW reporter and a photographer tried entering the White House grounds on Saturday morning, but their badges would not scan and an officer confiscated them, the outlet reported. Both CNN and Politico also said Saturday morning that their reporters were denied access and had their badges seized. Trump said on Friday he was barring all three major US media…

Getty ImagesA photo posted on Converse’s Instagram account was described as evoking KKK imageryAmerican footwear brand Converse has pulled an advert that social media users said evoked Ku Klux Klan imagery, saying it recognised “that we got this wrong”.The photo, posted to the company’s Instagram account, received backlash online after critics described lighting in the image as looking like a white pointed hood.A pair of shoes, dangling in the picture, were also likened to an image of a lynching victim by social media users.In an apology, first issued on Friday, Converse said the photo had been removed from its social…

Watch: Thick black plumes of smoke rise from near Riyadh’s international airportA column of black smoke has been seen near Riyadh’s international airport hours after air raid alerts were issued in the Saudi capital.It was the first time residents had been given an alert and urged to stay indoors since a recent escalation in the conflict with Iran-backed Houthi militants in neighbouring Yemen.A number of apparent explosions have since been heard in the capital and major problems reported at King Khalid International Airport, with the tracking website FlightRadar24 reporting long delays and cancellations.One report suggested a fuel tank had been…