Cate Blanchett and Angelina Jolie appeal for refugee protections as UN convention turns 75

Cate Blanchett, Angelina Jolie and Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally were among public figures who on Tuesday called for refugee protections to be upheld as the United Nations decried mounting pressure ‌on asylum systems.

Legal safeguards for refugees are enshrined in the 1951 Refugee Convention, drafted in the aftermath of World War II, which displaced tens of millions of people. But while most people still support the principle of safe refuge, many governments are tightening border controls amid near-record displacement worldwide as conflicts proliferate.

The United Nations


Defendant in Salman Rushdie stabbing declines to testify in federal terrorism trial

The man on trial in the stabbing of Salman Rushdie chose on Tuesday not to testify or call any witnesses in the federal terrorism case, which is expected to head to the jury as soon as Wednesday.

Hadi Matar’s lawyer told the court that the 28-year-old – who already has been convicted of state-level attempted murder charges – would not take the stand at his trial on charges that include engaging in an act of transnational terrorism.

“At this time, the defence rests,” lawyer


Keiko Fujimori sworn in as president of Peru following narrow election victory

Keiko Fujimori was sworn in as Peru’s ninth president in a decade at an official ceremony in Lima on Tuesday, Agence France-Presse journalists observed.

The conservative 51-year-old won June’s run-off by fewer than 50,000 votes and will govern until 2031.

Fujimori, the daughter of a former president jailed for human rights abuses, will become Peru’s ninth president in a decade. The 51-year-old is hoping to stabilise


Trump shows irritation with Netanyahu before White House talks on Iran

US President Donald Trump voiced ⁠irritation with Benjamin Netanyahu ahead of their White House meeting on Tuesday, complaining that details of the Israeli prime minister’s planned talking points on Iran had surfaced publicly, in a fresh sign of strain between the two leaders.

Asked about reports that Netanyahu wanted to talk to him about Pickaxe Mountain, a fortified facility buried deep underground near one of Iran’s main nuclear sites, Trump said, using Netanyahu’s nickname. “I don’t need Bibi to tell me that.


Zelensky has a ‘good meeting’ with Trump as he seeks more cooperation with US

US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met on Tuesday ahead of Senator Lindsey Graham’s funeral, with the two leaders discussing ways for Ukraine to produce its own powerful weapons and “other ideas that could help” in its continuing war against Russia.

The sit-down in the Oval Office, which was closed to the media, followed a consequential meeting at the Nato summit earlier this month in Ankara, Turkey, where Trump announced that the US will give Ukraine a licence to make Patriot defence systems – a


France, Spain make headway against wildfires but new heatwave looms

A helicopter flies over smoke rising from a forest fire outside Lege-Cap-Ferret, southwestern France, on Tuesday. Photo: AFP
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Lindsey Graham eulogised as an ‘American original’ at memorial service

Senator Lindsey Graham, the son of pool hall owners who rose to become one of his generation’s more influential US politicians at home and abroad, was being eulogised Tuesday as a “swashbuckling” public servant and “true American original” during memorial services in Washington.

Graham’s remains arrived at the US Capitol, where the Republican served for more than 30 years as an indefatigable deal maker who talked and laughed and badgered his colleagues into action. His flag-draped casket was carried inside by an armed forces


‘I was quite scared’: Hongkonger in Japan’s quake-hit Kumamoto describes shock

A Hongkonger has described being “quite scared” as a 7.1-magnitude quake shook Japan’s southern Kumamoto prefecture where she and her boyfriend were travelling, while the city’s travel authority confirmed that about 200 members of tour groups visiting the region were all safe.

Leon Chan, 18, recounted to the South China Morning Post that she and her boyfriend had just got off a bus on the west side of Kumamoto city when the quake hit on Tuesday afternoon. The epicentre was about 2


Exclusive: The Jacob Helberg interview

In this exclusive interview, US Undersecretary of State for Economic Affairs Jacob Helberg discusses the AI battle between Washington and Beijing, talks American efforts to end dependence on China’s rare earths, and gives a commitment to the Philippines on the Pax Silica Initiative.

Updated: 28 Jul, 2026

Undersecretary of State for Economic Affairs Jacob Helberg speaks at the AI Impact Summit in New Delhi, India, in February 2026. Photo: AP


Record Chinese biotech out-licensing meets rising US scrutiny

China’s emergence as a global biotechnology innovation hub has become a source of strategic concern in the United States, prompting policymakers in Washington to re-evaluate how to respond to its growing influence, according to a recent report by a leading analytics firm.

“The country’s latest biotechnology success is strategically important, with implications extending beyond healthcare innovation to include pharmaceutical supply-chain resilience, economic competitiveness and national security,” said Edita Hamzic, a healthcare analyst at UK-based data analytics and consulting firm GlobalData,