Hungary's decision to block a €90bn EU loan for Ukraine has provoked sharp criticism from fellow European leaders and exposed deep divisions ahead of next month's Hungarian elections.After a tense summit in Brussels, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán refused to lift his veto, posting on X: "No oil = no money." He linked his move to a dispute over a damaged section of the Druzhba pipeline that...

A crippled Russian tanker loaded with liquefied natural gas and heavy fuel is drifting without a crew in the central Mediterranean, raising urgent alarm over the risk of a major ecological incident.Italian authorities, who joined eight other EU governments in urging the European Commission to act, say the vessel presents a severe and immediate danger after sustaining serious damage near Maltese...

A sudden cluster of meningitis cases in a small area of Kent has left health officials searching for answers.Around 20 people fell ill over a single weekend, an unusually rapid spike for a disease that normally appears as isolated cases.Meningitis in the UK is rare and usually scattered. Past notable outbreaks, such as a 1980s MenB episode in Gloucestershire, unfolded over years rather than...

A striking triangular formation spotted in a vast Martian canyon has reignited questions about whether the Red Planet might once have hosted built structures.Filmmaker Brian Dodds recently circulated images of the feature in Candor Chasma, part of the enormous Valles Marineris system, and suggested it rivals the size of Egypt’s Great Pyramid.He cautions that the photos are not proof of past...

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen warned that Moscow does not appear ready to pursue genuine negotiations to end the war in Ukraine, describing the conflict as unpredictable and hazardous.She made the remarks in Strasbourg as EU lawmakers met to discuss the crisis.Von der Leyen argued that any meaningful settlement will require strong security arrangements to deter future...

The government has announced a rise in the national minimum pay that will take effect from April, with adults aged over 21 set to receive an extra 50p an hour, lifting the rate to £12.71.Chancellor Rachel Reeves said around 2.7 million workers will benefit from the increases.Younger workers will also see larger percentage gains. Pay for 18 to 20-year-olds will increase by 85p to £10.85 an...

Senior US officials are pressing the European Union to rethink its rules for major tech firms as part of talks over steel and aluminium tariffs in Brussels.Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Europe should make its digital regulations more welcoming to American tech companies if it wants lower US duties on metals.The comments come during negotiations to follow up on a trade framework agreed in...

A widely circulated leaked draft of a US-brokered peace proposal lays out 28 points intended to end the war between Russia and Ukraine. The document contains a mixture of provisions that Kyiv might accept and others that would amount to major concessions to Moscow — notably territorial arrangements and limits on Ukraine’s military — but many details remain vague and contested. Territory...

DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) was a groundbreaking technology that brought high-speed internet to millions of homes and businesses in the late 1990s and early 2000s. It marked a significant improvement over dial-up by offering faster speeds and always-on connectivity while utilizing existing telephone lines. DSL was a major stepping stone in the evolution of internet access, paving the way for...

Starlink, a satellite internet constellation developed by SpaceX, is transforming how the world accesses the internet. Spearheaded by Elon Musk, Starlink aims to provide high-speed, low-latency internet to even the most remote corners of the planet. This ambitious project is reshaping global connectivity and bridging the digital divide like never before.How Starlink WorksStarlink relies on a vast...