Author: viraltrendingcontent

Crude oil and natural gas supplies have been disrupted worldwide by the United States-Israel war on Iran, but one energy sector appears to be cashing in – coal.This week, South Africa’s thermal coal producer Thungela Resources said it had doubled its half-year profits as the war has forced more countries to buy the fuel.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of listAlthough abundant and relatively cheap to produce, coal is considered one of the dirtiest fossil fuels.Mining it causes water pollution, and burning it releases enormous amounts of carbon into the atmosphere, which contributes to global warming.In recent months, several countries,…

Former Ukrainian defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov has called for wartime elections, in what is widely seen as the biggest challenge to Volodymyr Zelensky’s presidency since Russia’s full-scale invasion four and a half years ago.”Democracy cannot be held hostage by Russia,” said Fedorov, 35, in a video posted to YouTube on Tuesday, adding that Ukraine is fighting “precisely because we want to remain a free European state”.Since the war broke out in 2022 Ukraine has been under martial law, which means elections are suspended.Fedorov, who did not mention Zelensky by name in the video, was unexpectedly fired from his role as…

UK inflation rose to 2.9% in July as the impact of the Iran war on energy prices triggered a renewed cost of living squeeze for British households.Underscoring the challenge for Andy Burnham’s government to give “breathing space” to hard-pressed consumers, the Office for National Statistics said inflation rose from 2.6% in June.It comes after British consumers faced the sharpest summer increase in energy charges in four years in July as the US-Israel war on Iran sent shock waves through global energy markets.City economists had forecast an increase in the consumer prices index measure of inflation to 2.9%.Against a volatile backdrop…

Political commentator Tim Montgomerie has told BBC Newsnight he will fight his suspension from Reform UK for criticising senior party figures in media interviews.He said his appeal against suspension would be a test case of whether Reform could tolerate free speech.The party said Montgomerie had been suspended in line with its rules after public criticism he made.Montgomerie is a right-of-centre political commentator who defected from the Conservatives to Reform UK in 2024, and who has seen himself as a critical friend of the party leadership.But it seems he is now regarded as more of a critic and less of a…

South Korea’s annual joint military drills with the US will be cut short by six days at the request of Washington, its defence ministry has announced.Seoul said that the “period and scale” of the 2026 Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise had been adjusted due to a “proposal of the US side”. The drill will now conclude on 21 August, rather than 27 August as planned. It comes after Donald Trump announced plans to curtail exercises with South Korea, citing his “very good” relationship with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un.South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun told a parliamentary hearing that neither South…

TALLAHASSEE, Florida — Million-dollar fundraising advantages and even endorsements from President Donald Trump did little to sway Florida voters Tuesday as they rattled the state’s parties by opposing candidates backed by the establishment. Newly minted Democratic socialist Angie Nixon scored a massive upset — and notched a win for progressives — by beating retired Lt. Col. Alex Vindman, who had a huge fundraising edge. And, in another major development, two candidates endorsed by Trump, scandal-plagued Rep. Cory Mills and former administration official Catalina Lauf, lost their bids for Congress. Taken together, the results show Democratic and Republican voters in solidly…

Unitree, officially known as Yushu Technology Co Ltd, was founded in 2016.It has become a robotics industry leader, selling a wide range of devices from sensors and automated arms to four-legged and human-like machines.The firm shipped more than 5,500 humanoid robots last year as demand for the technology grows.Unitree is one of the few companies in the sector to make money, delivering a net profit of 278 million yuan in 2025.For several years, it has been a fierce rival to developers in the US as it rolled out robots with similar features but at lower prices.The company – which plays…

Representative Cory Mills of Florida, who is facing allegations of assault and threatening behavior toward women and a House Ethics Committee investigation, lost his Republican primary on Tuesday, according to The Associated Press.Mr. Mills, a two-term congressman, lost to Ryan Elijah, a former local Fox television news anchor. The race had divided Republicans, with President Trump endorsing Mr. Mills in February and Representatives Anna Paulina Luna and Mike Haridopolos of Florida more recently backing Mr. Elijah.Mr. Mills’s campaign was troubled by the allegations of misconduct against him. A former girlfriend was granted a protective order against Mr. Mills last year…

Venezuela is exporting about half of its oil output to the United States, according to a senior US official, seven months after Washington abducted President Nicolas Maduro and installed an interim government in Caracas.Speaking at an industry event in Houston on Tuesday, Under Secretary of Energy Kyle Haustveit said more than 500,000 barrels per day (bpd) are now moving from Venezuela to the US out of national output of roughly 1.25 million bpd.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of listHe said the oil was moving to refineries “built specifically for that crude”.Venezuela holds the world’s largest proven oil reserves –…

Bunia, Democratic Republic of the Congo – When three members of his hospital team died within days of treating the same patient, Dr Richard Lokudu suspected Ebola had been spreading before authorities detected the outbreak.The patient had arrived at Mongbwalu General Hospital in Ituri Province for surgery in early April, weeks before the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) officially declared an Ebola outbreak.“Before the outbreak was declared, we discovered at the hospital that there was a patient who had been admitted on 2 April and who was due to undergo surgery performed by our team on 7 April,” Lokudu…