World

Former US president Jimmy Carter has died aged 100. The Carter Centre said its founder, who was the oldest living former US president, died in Plains, the town where he was born in Georgia. Mr Carter, a Democrat, became the 39th US president when he defeated former president Gerald Ford in 1976. The Georgia native

An Azerbaijan Airlines plane that crashed, killing 38 people, was damaged while flying over Russia “due to shooting from the ground”, the country’s president has said. President Ilham Aliyev said he believed that the plane, which crashed around two miles from Aktau in Kazakhstan on Wednesday, was not shot down intentionally. However, he accused some

Passengers are being rescued from the tail of a plane which crashed into a wall at an airport in South Korea after veering off the runway. The plane was carrying 175 passengers and six crew when it attempted to land at Muan Airport in the southwest of the country. Firefighters are attempting to rescue 23

Russian air defences may have shot down an Azerbaijan Airlines flight after misidentifying it, according to US military sources. Two unnamed officials who spoke to Sky News’ US partner NBC News said America had intelligence indicating Russia may have believed the flight was a drone and engaged its air defences. It added that this was

In Russia, size matters when it comes to family. Just look at the Asachyovs. Vera and her husband Timofey have eight children – from 18-year-old Sofiya to 18-month-old Marusya – and they’ve just been crowned Moscow Family of the Year. “It’s a great honour and joy,” Vera Asachyova told Sky News when asked how it

South Korea’s parliament has voted to impeach acting President Han Duck-soo. The move could deepen a constitutional crisis in the Asian country triggered by a short-lived period of martial law declared by Mr Han’s predecessor, Yoon Suk Yeol. After the vote on Friday, Mr Han said he will step aside to avoid more chaos. The

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he would be open to peace talks with Ukraine in Slovakia “if it comes to that”.  Mr Putin said Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico, who this week visited the Kremlin, had offered his country as a location for negotiations as the war in Ukraine nears the three-year mark. The

Azerbaijan is observing a national day of mourning after 38 people were killed in a plane crash – as footage from inside the aircraft emerged. People can be heard praying as oxygen masks are lowered on board the Azerbaijan Airlines’ Embraer 190, in a clip filmed by a passenger before the plane went down. The

Ukrainians sheltered in metro stations on Christmas morning as Russian missiles and drones rained down on their cities. Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the attack on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure that he said sought to plunge his people into darkness. “Putin deliberately chose Christmas,” he said on Wednesday. “What could be more inhumane?” Russia’s defence ministry said it

Dozens are feared dead after a passenger plane carrying 67 people crashed in Kazakhstan, the country’s emergencies ministry said. Preliminary data suggests 25 people survived the crash, authorities have said. The Azerbaijan Airlines flight was en route from Baku in Azerbaijan to Grozny in Russia, but was rerouted due to fog. It crashed near the

The sense of hollowness of the Church of the Nativity is deeper than absent tourists. The chants and prayers are pain-stricken and desperate. Down in the manger by the enshrined spot where baby Jesus was said to be born, a priest solemnly swings incense into the corners. Image: Bethlehem’s Christian community struggles to celebrate amid

A Russian cargo ship that Ukraine claims was sent to Syria to collect weapons has sunk in the Mediterranean Sea, according to officials in Moscow. Two crew members are missing after an engine room explosion sank the Ursa Major between Spain and Algeria, the foreign ministry said. Fourteen other crew were rescued and taken to

Slovakia’s prime minister has drawn criticism from across Europe and from his own people after his surprise visit to Moscow for face-to-face talks with Vladimir Putin on Sunday. Robert Fico is only the third EU leader to visit Mr Putin in Moscow since the Russian president ordered the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Ukraine

The iconic crocodile who starred in hit film Crocodile Dundee has died, his zoo has announced. Crocosaurus Cove, where Burt had been kept since 2008, said he passed away “peacefully” over the weekend. He was estimated to be over 90 years old, well over the usual life expectancy. “Burt was truly one of a kind.

The mother of a nine-year-old boy killed in the German Christmas market attack has paid tribute to “my little teddy bear”. Andre Gleissner was one of at least five people who died, while more than 200 others were injured when a car ploughed into crowds in Magdeburg on Friday evening. German Christmas market attack –

As we stare at a bullet-ridden wall, two young Palestinian boys stand behind us on a stoop and look on in fearful awe. “It’s the military,” one boy in a beige hoodie tells his friend. His friend stares at the wall with wide eyes and gives a little nod. Balata camp in Nablus, the commercial

The suspect in the attack on the Christmas market in Magdeburg appeared to be dissatisfied with the treatment of Saudi refugees in Germany, a prosecutor has said. On Friday evening, a car was driven at speed into visiting crowds in the central German city. Five people have died so far – including a nine-year-old child

A police investigation is under way after a car was “driven at speed” into a crowd at a Christmas market in Germany. At least two people have been killed, including a small child, and dozens of others have been injured following the incident in Magdeburg, according to local officials. They say the suspect is a

At least one person has been killed and dozens of others injured after a car was driven into a crowd at a Christmas market in Germany, local media reports. News agency dpa said the driver had been arrested following the incident in the eastern city of Magdeburg, while AFP news agency reports 60-80 people have

Vladimir Putin has said Russia should have invaded Ukraine earlier, in a national address spanning more than four hours. Russia began the conflict with its neighbour in February 2022 and at his annual televised news conference, Mr Putin claimed the war has made Russia “stronger”. The decision to invade “should have been made earlier” he