Town Hall News

KYIV (Reuters) – Ukraine denied on Wednesday that a Russian hypersonic missile had destroyed a U.S.-made Patriot missile defence system during an air strike on Kyiv. Russia’s defence ministry made the assertion on Tuesday after an overnight air attack on the Ukrainian capital. Two U.S. officials later said a Patriot system had probably suffered damage but that it did not appear to have been destroyed. “I want to say: do […]

SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australian police on Wednesday charged a truck driver over a collision with a school bus near Melbourne that hospitalised eighteen children, including seven who were seriously injured. The school bus carrying 45 students overturned after being hit from behind by a truck just before 4 p.m. (0600 GMT) on Tuesday in Eynesbury, about 40km west of state capital Melbourne. Police on Wednesday charged a 49-year-old man with […]

By Lucy Craymer WELLINGTON (Reuters) -New Zealand police said on Wednesday a fire at a hostel in the capital, Wellington, in which at least six people were killed was suspected to have been arson and they had opened a homicide inquiry. A blaze broke out on the top floor of the Loafers Lodge in the suburb of Newtown in the early hours of Tuesday, causing major structural damage that is […]

By Kate Holton LONDON (Reuters) -British car factories will be forced to close with the loss of thousands of jobs if the government does not renegotiate its Brexit deal immediately, automaker Stellantis warned on Wednesday. The owner of the Vauxhall, Peugeot, Citroen and Fiat brands told parliament that under the current deal it would face tariffs when exporting electric vans to Europe from next year when tougher post-Brexit rules come […]

JAKARTA (Reuters) – Indonesian authorities on Wednesday arrested a senior cabinet minister on corruption charges in a case they said caused more than half a billion dollars in state losses. Johnny G. Plate is the fifth minister in President Joko Widodo’s administrations to be charged with corruption. Most recently, his social affairs and fisheries ministers were jailed in 2021 for graft. The Attorney General’s Office (AGO) said Johnny was arrested […]

ROME (Reuters) – Two people died and thousands were evacuated from their homes as devastating floods hit Italy’s northern Emilia-Romagna region, authorities said on Wednesday, warning that worse may be yet to come. “Rainfall is not over, it will continue for several hours,” the deputy head of the Civil Protection Agency, Titti Postiglione, told the SkyTG24 news channel. “We are facing a very, very complicated situation.” She said several people […]

By Hyonhee Shin and Ju-min Park SEOUL (Reuters) – Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Wednesday his country is ready to partner with South Korea on critical minerals and clean energy projects, and to fend off North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats. Addressing South Korea’s parliament, Trudeau said Canada was committed to increase military engagement to mitigate threats to regional security, while working together with Seoul to denuclearise North […]

TOKYO (Reuters) – Visitors to Japan rose to a post-pandemic high of almost 2 million in April, official data showed on Wednesday, benefiting from a relaxation of travel restrictions in China. The number of foreign visitors for business and leisure climbed to 1.95 million last month from 1.82 million in March, the Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO) said. Arrivals were still down 33% from April 2019, before pandemic travel curbs […]

By Daren Butler and Ezgi Erkoyun ISTANBUL (Reuters) -President Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday called Turkish voters to support him in a May 28 election runoff to maintain stability in Turkey, as he seeks to extend his rule into a third decade. Erdogan got 49.5% in Sunday’s vote and fell just short of the majority needed to avoid a runoff in a vote seen as a referendum on his autocratic rule. […]