LONDON: Iran’s seizure of a British oil tanker was a response to Britain’s role in impounding an Iranian supertanker first, senior officials said Saturday, as newly released video of the incident showed Iranian commandos in black ski masks and fatigues rappelling from a helicopter onto the vessel in the strategic Strait of Hormuz. In a […]
British
Genius or joker? British PM favorite Johnson set to face the world
Loose cannon or influential statesman — what kind of British prime minister would Boris Johnson make on the world stage? Judging by his time as foreign secretary, possibly both. When Johnson was given the foreign job in 2016, after Britain voted to leave the EU, he was viewed as an unlikely choice by politicians and […]
Trump kicks off British trip with tweet against London mayor
President Donald Trump arrived in Britain on Monday for a largely ceremonial visit meant to strengthen ties between the two nations, but the trip was immediately at risk of being overshadowed by Brexit turmoil and a political feud with London’s mayor. Even before Air Force One touched down north of London, Trump unleashed a Twitter […]
Powerful, rich and shrouded in secrecy: Thailand’s King Rama X
A king married four times with a penchant for piloting jets; a shrewd tactician with a hefty fortune and the army’s loyalty — snippets from the closely-guarded life of Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn who remains an enigma to his subjects. The 66-year-old heir will be crowned in a royal ceremony this weekend as Rama X […]
A case in American and British Democracies
To borrow a concept as archaic in provenance as done so in the title, is as purposeful to the state of democracy in Britain and Brexit in particular as was Nigel Farage’s address to the European Parliament earlier this year. “….I think many will say, we are simply dealing with fanatics who are not prepared […]
Greece: free our marbles from British Museum’s ‘murky prison’
Greece’s president called on Monday for Britain to free the Parthenon marbles from the “murky prison” of its national museum, upping the rhetoric in a near 200-year-old campaign for the sculptures’ return. President Prokopis Pavlopoulos spoke at Athens’ own glass-fronted Acropolis Museum, which campaigners hope will one day house the classical reliefs and figures taken […]
No official British apology for 1919 Amritsar Massacre
The Amritsar massacre, 100 years ago this Saturday in which British troops opened fire on thousands of unarmed protestors, remains one of the darkest hours of British colonial rule in India. Known in India as the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, it is still an emotive subject with many demanding a British apology — which so far […]
British comedian Ken Dodd dies age 90
LIVERPOOL: British comedian Ken Dodd, a legendary variety performer known for his unruly hair and buck teeth, has died at the age of 90, his publicist said Monday. Dodd, from Liverpool in northwest England, won millions of fans with his epic stand-up shows filled with non-stop jokes, in which he brandished his trademark colourful “tickling […]
EU opens next Brexit phase with warning of troubles ahead
EU leaders formally agreed Friday to open crucial talks on a future relationship with Britain but warned they would be even tougher than the first torturous phase of negotiations. A day after applauding British Prime Minister at a summit in Brussels for the progress made so far, her 27 counterparts endorsed an interim deal on […]