Author: Loveworld UK

Russia has blamed Israel and threatened retaliation after one of its military planes was shot down by Syrian missiles in a “friendly-fire” incident. It said Israeli jets attacking targets nearby had “used the Russian plane as a cover, exposing it to fire from Syrian air defences”.Russia’s defence ministry said the aircraft, carrying 15 servicemen, disappeared from radar 22 miles (35km) off Syria on Monday night as it was returning to Hmeimim airbase, near Lattakia.It said Israel had not warned it about the jets’ attack until a minute before, and that it reserved “the right to proper retaliatory actions”. Image: The…

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has welcomed South Korea’s president Moon Jae-in to Pyongyang for their historic summit. The two leaders smiled and hugged each other as they met at Sunan International Airport, joined by their wives, at the start of the three-day visit.They were greeted by thousands of cheering North Koreans waving flowers, North Korean flags and a blue-and-white map symbolising a unified peninsula.Mr Moon is only the third South Korean leader to visit North Korea’s capital for a meeting between the two countries since the end of the Second World War. Image: Thousands of people turned out…

The biggest storm of the year wreaked havoc on Southeast Asia over the weekend, killing dozens of people and causing extensive damage with landslides, huge waves and catastrophic winds from the Philippines to Guangdong in China. At least 69 people are now believed to have died as Typhoon Mangkhut left its path of destruction in the course of just a few days. Friday 14 September As the biggest storm of 2018 approaches a massive evacuation is under way.Over two days more than 15,000 people leave the northern Philippines, as winds of up to 158 mph and a band of rain…

The Duchess of Sussex has launched her first solo charity project – a cookery book for Grenfell. Since the beginning of the year Meghan has made private visits to meet those affected by last summer’s fire at Grenfell Tower.One of the projects she has visited is a communal kitchen at the Al Manaar Muslim Cultural Heritage Centre in west London, which has helped feed those who lost everything in the fire and provided a space where people can meet and talk.Now Meghan has worked with them to produce a cook book, full of their own recipes, called Together: Our Community…

The International Monetary Fund has given a bleak assessment of the UK’s prospects as the country counts down towards leaving the European Union. Presenting a report on the UK economy to the UK Treasury on Monday, IMF managing director Christine Lagarde said that “all Brexit outcomes” will entail costs for the UK economy.”Any Brexit deal will not be as good as the current smooth process by which goods, people and services move now,” Ms Lagarde said.The IMF boss warned that a more disruptive Brexit would lead to a “significantly worse outcome,” adding that the range of Brexit issues left to…

The British Chamber of Commerce has downgraded its near-term growth predictions for the UK economy, citing uncertainty around the country’s prospective departure from the EU. The business group is now forecasting UK gross domestic product growth (GDP) for 2018 at just 1.1%, down from 1.3%, sparked, it says, by a weaker outlook for trade and investment in the country.It also predicted that real wage growth “would remain muted despite the historically low unemployment rate”.The BCC has also downgraded its GDP growth forecast for 2019 from 1.4% to 1.3%.Its 2020 predictions are unchanged at 1.6%.”Our latest forecast implies that by 2020…

There is “nothing to suggest” novichok is the substance that has led to two people falling ill at a restaurant in Salisbury, police have said. A major incident was declared and the Prezzo restaurant was sealed off after a man in his 40s and a woman in her 30s became unwell on Sunday evening.One of the pair is a Russian national, according to Sky sources.Wiltshire Police said the pair have been assessed at Salisbury District Hospital following concerns they had been “exposed to an unknown substance”.”We can now confirm that there is nothing to suggest that novichok is the substance,”…

Hopes are fading for dozens of people trapped after a major landslide in the Philippines following the devastation caused by Typhoon Mangkhut. At least 40 people, mostly gold miners, are missing after part of a mountain slope collapsed on houses in Itogon town in Benguet province.Sky’s Asia correspondent Tom Cheshire, who is the only UK broadcaster at the rescue site, said one worker had voiced fears that none of those missing would be found alive.At least 65 people are confirmed to have died in the Philippines since Mangkhut made landfall on Saturday with the equivalent strength of a category five…

A member of Russian activist group Pussy Riot, who is suspected to have been poisoned, has been flown to Germany for treatment. Video has emerged of Pyotr Verzilov, who was said to be in a critical condition on Thursday, arriving in Berlin after being flown to see medics.One of his bandmates, Maria Alekhina, told reporters Mr Verzilov, who has both Canadian and Russian citizenship, regained consciousness on Friday, but has remained unwell. Image: Pyotr Verzilov is said to have been moved from Russia to Germany for treatment She also said she thinks the 30-year-old was poisoned for political reasons.A video…

Typhoon Mangkhut has left 36 people dead and a trail of destruction across the northern Philippines. The strongest storm in the world this year has now moved on to southern China and densely populated Hong Kong, after causing landslides on the northern tip of the Philippines’ Luzon island yesterday.Some news agencies reported the death toll was as high as 49.While the worst of the storm has passed in the Philippines, authorities are dealing with the devastation left in its wake.At least 40 people, mostly gold miners, are feared to have been trapped in a landslide in and seven bodies have…