US

Khamenei Says US Nuclear Proposal Against National Interest

Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said Wednesday a US proposal for a nuclear agreement was against the national interest, amid sharp differences over whether Tehran can continue to enrich uranium. The longtime foes have held five rounds of talks since April to thrash out a new accord to replace the deal with major powers that US ...

On the Brink of Nuclear Capability, Iran Challenges Red Lines

Under growing international scrutiny, Iran is enriching uranium at levels unseen since the collapse of the 2015 nuclear deal. While Washington publicly hardens its rhetoric, more flexible proposals are reportedly being floated behind closed doors. Amid firm statements, covert negotiations and ongoing inspections, Iran’s nuclear program has ...

NATO Wrestles Over How to Handle Ukraine at Trump Summit

How to have Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky at NATO's Hague summit and avoid a bust-up with US President Donald Trump? What to say on Kyiv's desire to join their alliance? With NATO appearing on track to seal a deal on ramping up defense spending, another thorny issue now threatens to overshadow the gathering in three weeks: what to do about ...

Austrian Daily Under Fire After Clint Eastwood Slams 'Phony' Interview

An Austrian newspaper came under fire Tuesday after Hollywood star Clint Eastwood said an alleged interview with him published by the paper to mark his 95th birthday was "entirely phony". The row was sparked by a purported interview with the Oscar-winning actor and director carried by the German-language Kurier newspaper Friday. In the ...

Integration of 3,500 Uyghur Jihadists into Syrian Army Raises Questions

A major strategic shift is underway in Ahmad al-Chareh’s Syria. In a controversial move, the United States has approved the integration of approximately 3,500 former foreign jihadist fighters – mostly Uyghurs – into the 84th Division of the Syrian Army. While the decision is reportedly conditional on full transparency during the integration ...

Immersive Matrix Experience Aims To Bring Audiences Back

Quasi-hypnotic lighting, surround sound, a dome-shaped screen: a new immersive experience in the United States is trying to lure audiences out of their living rooms and back into movie theaters, which have been struggling against the rise of streaming platforms. Cosm Theater in Los Angeles is one of the driving forces behind this trend and is ...

Taylor Swift Buys Back Rights to Her Old Music

Pop icon Taylor Swift, who has been publicly feuding with record executives since 2019 over the rights to her early music, now owns her entire catalogue, she said on her website Friday. "All of the music I've ever made ... now belongs ... to me," she wrote, after years of dispute over her first six albums, a number of which she has rerecorded to ...

Salman Rushdie Says 'Pleased' With Attacker's Jail Sentence

Salman Rushdie said Monday he was "pleased" with the maximum 25-year jail sentence handed to a man who tried to kill him with a knife at a New York cultural center in 2022. "I was pleased that he got the maximum available, and hopefully he uses it to reflect upon his deeds," Rushdie told BBC radio in an interview. Hadi Matar was sentenced to 25 ...

Nuclear Negotiations in Rome End Without Final Agreement Between Iran and the US

The fifth round of nuclear negotiations between Iranian and US delegations held in Rome on Friday has ended, the Omani foreign minister who mediated the talks said. "The fifth round of Iran US talks have concluded today in Rome with some but not conclusive progress," Badr Albusaidi said on X, adding that he hoped "the remaining issues" will be ...

Cannes 2025: ‘The Six Billion Dollar Man’ Revisits the Julian Assange Story

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has recovered well after his release from jail last year, his wife told AFP ahead of the premiere of a documentary Wednesday that includes never-seen-before footage of the whistleblower. Assange is at the Cannes Festival to promote the documentary by American filmmaker Eugene Jarecki, who said he was trying to ...

Rushdie's Attacker Sentenced to 25 Years in US Prison

Hadi Matar, the American-Lebanese man who stabbed Salman Rushdie in 2022, was sentenced Friday to 25 years in prison in the United States. Rushdie, a symbol of freedom of expression, sustained serious injuries in the knife attack. Matar, 27, who grew up in the U.S., was found guilty in February of attempted murder and assault by a jury following ...