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Judge rules that the wife of Spanish PM must face corruption charges
A 'judge' ruled that the?wife of Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez must face corruption charges, and is banned from leaving Spain. Begona Gómez is being investigated over allegations that she abused her position as wife of the Prime Minister to obtain work contracts. She denies all wrongdoing. The far-right groups brought the case. The investigating judge,?Juan Carlos Peinado, ordered Gomez surrender her passport and barred her from leaving Spain. She was also required to appear in court twice per month. Sanchez, Europe's last leftist leader, is weighing down by several corruption cases that are nearing or have already been tried. He hasn't been named in any of these cases, and he has claimed that they are all part of an effort to remove him from his office. The Socialist Party reacted quickly to the ruling of the judge, posting on social media X that "(Begona has been subjected?)to judicial and politcal persecution for two year. The development of today is a step forward in this process." Investigations are underway against several close friends, including the number three of the Socialist Party and Sanchez's ex-transport minister. The cases involve alleged kickbacks in connection with public works contracts, oil and gas deals, and the purchase of masks for the pandemic. They deny any wrongdoing. Separately the Spanish High Court announced that it was investigating ex-prime minister?Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero for allegations he led a?network?that benefited from lobbying government authorities on behalf third parties including airline Plus Ultra. He denies these claims. Reporting by Graham Keeley. Mark Potter edited the story.
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Nine people are still in critical condition following fatal UK train accident
The 'driver' of one of the trains was killed in the crash that occurred on Friday near Bedford, approximately 60 miles (100km) north of London. Around 5.15 pm local time (16:15 GMT), two passenger trains headed for London collided on Friday. One of the drivers of the two trains died at the scene. British Transport Police Chief Constable, Lucy D'Orsi, provided an update of those injured in the crash that occurred on Saturday. She said more than eighty people were hospitalized on Friday evening. She said that as of "this morning", 28 people were still in the hospital and nine are in critical condition. D'Orsi said that investigators were trying to determine what caused the accident. One of the passengers posted a video on Facebook on Friday showing what appeared to be the damaged front of one railcar entangled with another's back, while the carriages remained upright. In a blog post on X, Prime Minister Keir starmer called it a "devastating event". Buckingham Palace, the official residence of King Charles I, also released a statement saying that "His Majesty is deeply saddened by yesterday's rail crash in Bedford and is regularly kept updated on developments." "His thoughts?and sympathies are with the family of the deceased as well as with those who were injured or affected in such a tragic event." (Reporting and editing by William James)
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Business Post reports that Ryanair CEO O'Leary believes fares will remain 'flat' this summer.
Michael O'Leary, Chief Executive Officer of Ryanair Group, told Ireland's Business Post newspaper that: He said: "We believe that?bookings will get a little boost as we move into the summer peak. I would use 'inverted commas' to say 'the peace agreement between Iran and the US.' But spot oil prices have fallen significantly." * "We don't expect prices to rise this summer into the peak. "I'm not sure that prices will drop, volumes are high, but pricing appears to be similar to last year," said he. We're not under pressure to hedge into May, June or July of next year. If prices fell to the low $80s, or even below $80, we would certainly start hedging summer '27. Here is the source text for more company coverage.
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Uganda: Islamic Development Bank approves EUR650 Million Loan
The executive board of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), announced late Friday, approved a EUR650.7m ($746.2m) loan to Uganda 'to help finance its standard gauge rail project. Uganda is raising money for the EUR2.7billion?project. It has already received backing from lenders such as the World Bank and?African Development Bank. Citibank has been appointed to assist in the mobilisation of?financing. Turkish company Yapi Merkezi is responsible for the construction of the railway. IsDB was one of Uganda's largest sources of external funding and had, as of the end May, projects in a country east of Africa worth $896.5 Million, according to government data. The 272-km line (169-miles) will connect landlocked Uganda to Kenya's rail system, giving it access to the Indian Ocean port at Mombasa through which Uganda imports most of its goods.
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Drone attack on Panama flagged ship in Black Sea kills one, injures two
Panama's Maritime Authority said that two crew members were injured and one was killed in a drone attack against a Panama flagged ship in the Black Sea. The AMP'said that the incident took place on Thursday - and that one of those injured was in a'serious condition. It?added that the ship was able?to continue?on course. The authority said that it had "activated relevant protocols to collect official information about the incident and maintain communication with the parties concerned." The AMP 'didn't say where the drone came from but advised ships to avoid travelling?through Ukrainian - and Russian waters in Black Sea, & the Sea of Azov,??to the north. Panama is the largest ship registry in the world, with 16% of the global merchant fleet under its flag. (Reporting and editing by Sam Holmes; Elida Moreno)
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Trump unveils Qatari Boeing 747 before joining Air Force One
The President Donald Trump got to see his upgraded Boeing 747, which was a gift from Qatar, on Friday at the Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, as the aircraft approached delivery and would join the Air Force One fleet. This is the most luxurious aircraft in the world. It was built to a standard that was probably never seen before," Trump said in front of a crowd gathered at a brand new hangar on the base. The jumbo jet, which Qatar gave to Trump as a present last year, has been overhauled and repainted in the red, white and dark blue livery that Trump chose. This is a departure from Air Force One's iconic design. Trump said that the upgrade was needed to keep up with foreign leaders who fly more modern aircraft. "These countries respect us a great deal, but they also have an aircraft that is much better and newer." Trump said, "It's a bit ridiculous." Trump has said that the rest of Air Force One's fleet will be redesigned. The new addition to Trump’s fleet will provide a modern, luxurious aircraft that the president, his aides and security detail, as well as the media, can travel on. The cost of the upgrade has not been revealed, and because it was completed so quickly, some experts are concerned that it might not be as safe as Air Force One. Air Force fast-track program skipped some planned modifications to the next-generation Presidential jet to deliver interim version earlier, but officials claimed?it was upto presidential standards. In a Friday statement, Secretary of Air Force Troy Meink stated that "the safety and security of the commander-in-chief is our top priority." "We meticulously evaluated each requirement from the start to ensure delivery was expedited while maintaining the high standard expected for the presidential mission." JULY 4, WASHINGTON FLYOVER Trump said the aircraft would lead the formation, which he called the "biggest in American history", during the July 4th ceremony on the National Mall. Trump said, "This will lead a large group of planes." Trump arrived back in the United States on Thursday morning, aboard a Boeing 747-200 military grade that has been serving U.S. Presidents for over three decades. Trump announced that this was the final flight of the aircraft, and it would be eventually placed in a Museum. The U.S. government accepting the 747 luxury jet from Qatar raised concerns about whether this was an excessively expensive gift. Trump dismissed criticisms of the arrangement by saying that it would be "stupid' to reject the offer. Experts said that retrofitting the luxury aircraft required upgrades in security, communication to prevent eavesdropping and missile defense capabilities. Democratic senators estimated that the conversion would cost more than $1 billion, and increase security risks. The Qatari aircraft is being used as a temporary bridge while Boeing delivers two 747-8s built to order under a fixed-price $3.9 billion contract signed in 2018. The program is currently four years behind schedule. Delivery will not be expected until the middle of 2028. This delay could leave Trump without a plane by January 2029, when his term ends. The Boeing program has cost more than $5 billion. Boeing posted $2.4 billion of charges against its earnings. The new color scheme is a departure from the two-tone white and blue design that dates back to President John F. Kennedy. The Air Force has revived a palette of red, white and navy blue that Trump had pushed for but was scrapped by the service in 2022 because darker colors were deemed to be overheating. The new livery, which includes red, white and dark blue, will also be used on the VC-25B, the military designation of the Boeing 747-8, and four modified Boeing 757 200s that are used to transport senior officials, including the vice president and cabinet members. (Reporting from Washington by Mike Stone; Jarrett Renshaw, additional reporting; and Alistair Bell, Stephen Coates and Edmund Klamann editing)
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Trump unveils Qatari Boeing 747 before joining Air Force One
President Donald Trump got to see his upgraded Boeing 747 on Friday at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, as it was nearing delivery for the Air Force One fleet. The aircraft was a gift from Qatar to Trump last year. It has since been overhauled and painted by L3Harris Technologies in the colors of red, white and dark blue that Trump selected. Trump now has a modern, luxurious aircraft that he, his staff, security team and media can travel on. It was completed so quickly and at an unknown cost that some experts are concerned it might not be as safe as the current 'Air Force One' aircraft. Air Force fast-tracked effort skipped some planned upgrades for the next generation presidential jet to deliver an interim model sooner. Officials said that?it met presidential standards. In a Friday statement, Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink stated that "the safety and security for the commander-in-chief is our top priority." "We meticulously evaluated each requirement from the start to ensure delivery was expedited while maintaining the high standard expected for the presidential mission." The U.S. government accepting the 747 luxury from Qatar raised concerns about it being an excessively expensive gift. Trump said it would be "stupid", to reject the offer, if critics were to voice their concerns. Experts said that retrofitting a luxury aircraft required upgrades in security, communications to prevent eavesdropping and missile defense capabilities. The conversion, according to Democratic Senators, could cost over $1 billion. It also poses security risks. The Qatari aircraft is being used as a temporary bridge while Boeing delivers two 747-8s built to Boeing's specifications under a $3.9billion fixed-price agreement signed in 2018 The program is currently four years behind schedule and delivery will not be until mid-2028. This delay could leave Trump without a new plane by the end of his presidency in January 2029. Boeing's program has cost more than $5 billion. The company posted $2.4 billion of charges against the earnings from the project. The new color scheme is a departure from President John F. Kennedy’s white and two-tone?blue?design. The Air Force has revived the red, white, and blue color scheme that Trump originally pushed but was scrapped by 2022 when it determined darker colors would cause overheating. The new livery, which includes red, white and dark?blue, will also be applied on the VC-25B, the military designation of the Boeing 747-8, and four modified Boeing 757 200s, used to transport vice presidents, cabinet members, and other senior officials. (Reporting from Washington by Mike Stone; Jarrett Renshaw, additional reporting; Stephen Coates, Edmund Klamann and Stephen Coates)
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Multiple injuries reported after two trains collided north of London
The British Transport Police said on Friday that it was responding to media reports about a major collision between two trains, 60 miles north-east of London. Media reports claimed the incident resulted in'multiple injuries. The video was posted on Facebook and showed what appeared to be the front of a train intertwined with the?back of another train, both of which were still on the track. The East of England Ambulance Service sent multiple resources, including an air ambulance, to the accident on the rail south of Bedford and advised people to avoid that area. In a post to X, Heidi Alexander, the Transport Minister said she was "deeply worried"?by the reports of this collision. Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service reported that crews were on the scene of a?railway incident just south 'of Bedford and also asked the public to stay away. East Midlands Railway said that it would not be able to run any services into or out of London until the end of today, while Thameslink reported that all lines between Luton and Bedford had been blocked because of an investigation. (Reporting and editing by Louise Heavens, Kate Holton and Sam Tabahriti)
Judge rules that the wife of Spanish PM must face corruption charges
A?judge's ruling?on Saturday said that the wife of Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez will be tried on corruption charges, and is banned from leaving the country.
Begona Gomez faces an investigation for allegedly using her position as wife of the Prime Minister to obtain work contracts. She denies all wrongdoing. The case was brought by?far-right groups.
The investigating judge Juan Carlos Peinado required Gomez to surrender her passport, bar her from leaving Spain, and require her to "report twice a monthly to court."
This case is just one of many corruption?probes that are nearing or have already been tried and weighing down on?Sanchez. He's one of Europe’s last leftist leaders. He hasn't been named in the cases, but has claimed that they are all part of an effort to remove him from his office.
Investigations are underway against several?close ally, including the number three of the Socialist Party and Sanchez's ex-transport minister. The cases involve alleged kickbacks in connection with public?works?,?oil contracts?, and the purchase of masks for the pandemic. They deny any wrongdoing.
Separately the Spanish High Court announced that it was investigating Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero for allegations that he led a 'network' of lobbyists who profited by lobbying public authorities on behalf third parties including airline Plus Ultra. He denies these claims. Reporting by Graham Keeley. Mark Potter edited the story.
(source: Reuters)