World

The mother wept with relief as she cradled her newborn baby at the only maternity hospital still working in the Ukrainian city of Kherson. Yulia Khomchyk, 37, discovered she was pregnant after Russian forces had seized the regional capital during the first days of the full-scale invasion in February. But almost nine months later, a

Farmers living in the Republic of the Congo say that they have been barred from accessing their land so that the French oil giant Total Energies and the Congolese government can use it for a high-profile carbon offsetting project to plant 40 million trees in the next decade. According to an investigation shared exclusively with

NASA’s Orion spacecraft has successfully splashed down into the Pacific Ocean after a 25-day mission around the moon. The uncrewed capsule – designed to carry astronauts on future trips – landed near Guadalupe Island, southeast of Cuba, shortly after 5.40pm UK time. The spacecraft hurtled towards Earth at 25,000mph, slowing to around 325mph after entering

Vladimir Putin could use any peace talks with Ukraine as an excuse to rearm and recruit Russian troops, the foreign secretary has warned. James Cleverly told Sky News’ Sophy Ridge on Sunday that negotiations need to be “real” and “meaningful”. The Russian president said on Friday that Moscow may have to strike a deal with

Morocco made history by becoming the first African nation to reach a World Cup semi-final after beating Portugal 1-0. Each of the previous three African sides to reach a quarter-final were all eliminated at this stage – Cameroon in 1990, Senegal in 2002 and Ghana in 2010. It was a strong start for Morocco, scoring just

Opposition politician Ilya Yashin, one of the few remaining voices in Russia prepared to speak out against Vladimir Putin and his war in Ukraine, was sentenced to eight and a half years in jail in Moscow this Friday.  Once that is over, the 39-year-old will also be barred from posting anything online for a further

Vladimir Putin has said Russia may have to strike a deal with Ukraine to end its war. Speaking at a news conference in Kyrgyzstan, the Russian president also admitted there had been problems in mobilising hundreds of thousands of conscripts to fight in the conflict. Russia has suffered a series of military setbacks since launching

A middle-aged woman with a bright yellow hat stepped out of a white van close to the frontline Ukrainian town of Bakhmut, one of the most dangerous places on the planet. Smiling cheerfully, Liudmyla Bila handed out a jumble of supplies – from woollen socks and metal pans to dried noodles and cans of beans

Iran says it has executed a prisoner arrested during the ongoing anti-government protests – the first known death sentence linked to the unrest. The execution on Thursday came after people are believed to have gathered around Azadi Square in the capital Tehran overnight. The prisoner has been identified as Mohsen Shekari by the Mizan news

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and “the spirit of Ukraine” has been named Time magazine’s 2022 Person of the Year. The annual award by the US magazine’s editors is given to someone who is felt to have had the most global influence during the last 12 months. The magazine has previously said their Person of the Year

Around 3,000 police officers have carried out raids across Germany to stop an alleged plot by a far-right terrorist group to overthrow the government. Federal prosecutors said 25 suspected members and supporters of the Reichsburger group – the so-called Reich Citizens movement – were detained during the raids in 11 of the country’s 16 states

Standing by a makeshift stove at the bottom of a bitterly-cold ditch, the Ukrainian troops enjoyed a quick tea break. Suddenly there was a loud whistle and a crack as a Russian artillery round flew overhead and exploded in a field behind them. The soldiers barely flinched, hardened by months of war. Instead, their focus

Explosions have been heard at two air bases in Russia – including at one which is home to bombers carrying nuclear weapons, according to reports. Three servicemen were killed and six others injured when a fuel truck exploded at an air base in Ryazan on Monday, reported Russian state news agency RIA Novosti. A plane

Facing a serious challenge from ongoing widespread unrest, Iran’s government is blaming Kurdish separatists for inciting the unrest, an Iranian academic has said. Protests demanding the overthrow of Iran’s clerical rulers are now in their fourth month, which erupted after the death of Mahsa Amini, a Kurdish-Iranian woman, while in custody of the morality police.

Bulgaria has been accused of shooting a refugee after a new video emerged showing a young Syrian man being fired at on the border with Turkey. It is the first footage of an asylum seeker being hit with live ammunition on the EU border. It follows a joint investigation by Sky News, Lighthouse Reports, The

France reached the World Cup quarter-finals after strikers Olivier Giroud and Kylian Mbappe both broke scoring records in a comfortable 3-1 win over Poland. The reigning champions claimed victory as Giroud made history by becoming France’s all-time top goalscorer during the match at Al Thumama Stadium in Qatar. World Cup 2022: Follow live updates from

US intelligence experts have said they expect a “reduced tempo” in fighting in Ukraine to last several months, with both sides looking to prepare for a counter-offensive after the winter. The Director of National Intelligence said that while this might be the case, there is no evidence of a reduced Ukrainian will to resist and

A woman has died and four people have been injured after a “rogue wave” hit a cruise ship in the Atlantic. The Viking Polaris was sailing towards the Argentinian resort town of Ushuaia as part of its Antarctic Explorer cruise when the wave hit at 10.40pm local time on Wednesday. The travel company said the

A group of people tried to steal a Banksy mural from a battle-scarred wall in Ukraine, the governor of the region has said. They managed to slice off a section of board and plaster bearing the image of a woman in a gas mask and dressing gown holding a fire extinguisher. But they were spotted

The host of a conference in Kyiv alerted guests that air raid sirens were sounding, before assuring them they were safe and the event would carry on as planned. It is a small example of how people across Ukraine are learning to cope with the unpredictability of war while carrying on with their lives in