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Germany’s Merz faces new vote for chancellor after failing to win majority
Germany’s conservative leader Friedrich Merz unexpectedly fell short of a majority in a parliament vote to become chancellor on Tuesday.
His failure was unprecedented in modern German political history and members of the Bundestag convened for a second vote on Tuesday afternoon.
Merz needed 316 votes in the 630-seat Bundestag but only secured 310, in a significant blow to the Christian Democrat leader, two and a half months after winning Germany’s federal elections.
His coalition with the centre left has enough seats in parliament but it appears 18 MPs who had been expected to back him dissented.
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Seeking funds to rebuild, Lebanon government works to regain donor trust
More than five years into an economic crisis that sent inflation spiralling and saw the Lebanese lira plummet, Lebanon’s government is facing its biggest infrastructure project in years: Post-war reconstruction.
After 14 months of war with Israel, Lebanon needs $11bn to rebuild, according to World Bank estimates.
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Hamas says ‘no point’ to truce talks as Israel plans to capture all of Gaza
A senior Hamas official has said there is “no point” in further talks on a new Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal, after Israel approved an expanded offensive that may include seizing all of the Palestinian territory indefinitely.
Bassem Naim told the BBC the armed group would not engage with new proposals while Israel continued its “starvation war”.
On Monday, the Israeli military said the aim of the “wide-scale” operation was the return of hostages held by Hamas and its “decisive defeat”.
Israeli officials said it would involve “capturing” Gaza, displacing the majority of its population, and taking control of aid after a two-month blockade the UN says has caused severe food shortages.
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Israel has turned 70% of Gaza into no-go zones, in maps
Israel has restricted Palestinians’ access to 70 percent of Gaza, either by declaring large areas as no-go zones or issuing forced displacement orders, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
In southern Gaza, much of Rafah governorate has been declared a no-go zone, placed under forced displacement orders by the Israeli military since late March. In the north, nearly all of Gaza City is under similar orders, with only small pockets in the northwest still exempt. Entire areas east of the Shujayea neighbourhood and along the Israeli border have been declared a restricted zone.
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UK and India agree ‘landmark’ trade deal
After three years of on-off negotiations, the UK and India have agreed a trade deal that will make it easier for UK firms to export whisky, cars and other products to India, and cut taxes on India’s clothing and footwear exports.
The deal does not include any change in immigration policy, including towards Indian students studying in the UK, the British government said.
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said the benefits for UK businesses and consumers were “massive”.
Last year trade between the UK and India totalled £41bn and was already forecast to grow, but the government said the deal would boost that trade by an additional £25.5bn a year by 2040.
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Ugandan activist reportedly held by military chief shows signs of torture
An opposition activist whom Uganda’s military chief, Muhoozi Kainerugaba, claimed to have held captive in his basement has appeared in court “visibly weak” and showing signs of torture, according to the justice minister.
Eddie Mutwe, who acts as the chief bodyguard for Uganda’s leading opposition figure, Bobi Wine, went missing on April 27 after being grabbed near the capital, Kampala, by armed men, according to Wine’s National Unity Platform (NUP) party.
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‘We were happy to be invited’, only survivor of toxic mushroom lunch tells court
The only surviving guest of a deadly beef wellington lunch at the heart of a high-profile Australian court case has described beingrun down a hospital corridor to urgent care after medical staff realised he had eaten toxic mushrooms.
Ian Wilkinson told the courtroom on Tuesday that he and his wife Heather had been “very happy to be invited” to the lunch hosted by Erin Patterson.
But the meal left Heather and two other relatives dead, and Mr Wilkinson seriously ill.
Ms Patterson, who is on trial for the murder of three people and the attempted murder of another, has pleaded not guilty and her defence team says she “panicked” after unintentionally serving poison to family members she loved.
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India seeks to stop auction of jewels linked to Buddha remains
The Indian government has threatened to take legal action against Sotheby’s in Hong Kong unless they stop an upcoming auction of jewels linked to the Buddha’s remains and requested their return to India.
The auction, which is set to take place on Wednesday, includes gems which were found buried with Buddha’s bone fragments more than a hundred years ago.
India’s ministry of culture has said the sale “violates Indian and international laws as well as UN conventions”, and asked for the jewels should be treated as sacred. The sale has also been condemned by several Buddhists and art scholars globally.
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Three dead, seven missing after panga boat capsizes near San Diego
Three people are dead and at least seven more are missing after a small boat overturned off the coast near San Diego, California, officials said.
At least 16 people, including two children, were on board the panga-style fishing boat, the US Coast Guard said. Initially, as many as nine people were reported missing – but two were later found and detained.
An official told CBS News, the BBC’s US partner, that the incident was being treated as a suspected case of human smuggling. A number of Indian passports were found near where the boat washed up on a beach, news agency Reuters reported.
Four of those found have been taken to hospital. It is not known if anyone else entered the water.
Russia accuses Ukraine of drone attack on Moscow days before WW2 parade
Russia says Ukraine launched a drone attack on Moscow – days before the start of a ceasefire, ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin to coincide with a World War Two parade.
Moscow’s four major airports shut for a few hours on Tuesday amid the barrage, authorities said. There were no casualties and Ukraine has not commented.
Moscow is due to hold a parade on 9 May to mark the victory of the Soviet Union and allies over Nazi Germany. This year is the 80th anniversary of the end of WW2 and will see world leaders, including China’s Xi Jinping, in Russia for the event.
Putin has called for a three-day ceasefire from 8 May – something Ukraine has not committed to. Kyiv wants a longer truce.
“Fire will be halted, but should the Kyiv regime fail to do the same and should it continue trying to strike our positions and facilities, then an appropriate response will be given immediately,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has dismissed Russia’s ceasefire plans as a “theatrical play”. Instead, he has been pushing for a ceasefire of at least 30 days where there would be a halt to missile and drone strikes on civilian targets.
He has also reportedly said his country cannot guarantee the safety of anyone travelling to Moscow this week.