World

The world’s longest rail tunnel has closed for repairs after a freight train derailed – and it is not expected to open for months. The Gotthard railway tunnel in Switzerland will be shut until the end of 2023, much longer than was initially anticipated. The 16 cars that derailed last Thursday caused considerable damage to

Being in possession of small amounts of cannabis is on its way to becoming legal in Germany after the country’s cabinet approved a plan to begin decriminalising the drug. A bill that lets people have 25 grams (nearly one ounce) of cannabis for recreational purposes, grow up to three plants, or acquire marijuana at “cannabis

England will thrive playing Australia in front of more than 70,000 fans in Sydney in their World Cup semi-final, captain Millie Bright has said. Far from being intimidated, Bright sees the prospect of a raucous, sell-out crowd in Stadium Australia as a sign of welcome progress for women’s football. She said: “That is what we

There was no prior suggestion that today’s set of economic data would be any different in make up than previous months; indeed figures for retail sales, industrial production and employment were all there as expected. But there was one set of data notably missing, and it was one that many observers had been specifically looking

A passenger has been arrested after a flight from Australia to Malaysia was flown back to Sydney in what police called an “emergency incident”. The Airbus A330 plane returned to Sydney Airport after more than three hours into its eight-hour journey to Kuala Lumpur due to a “disruptive passenger”, Malaysia Airlines said. The incident involving

Sicily’s Mount Etna has erupted, sending ash and lava high over the Mediterranean island, forcing flights to be suspended and leaving tourists facing holiday disruption. The Italian volcano, which at 3,330m (10,925 ft) high is Europe’s tallest and most active, began erupting overnight, officials said. Although the lava flow subsided before dawn, ash was still

Russian experts monitoring their moon-bound unmanned spacecraft Luna-25 have switched on its scientific equipment and started processing the first data. Russia is aiming to become the first country to carry out a soft landing on the lunar south pole – a region thought to hold pockets of water ice. Space agency Roscosmos said in a

Vladimir Putin is the man who brought war back to Europe, by sending his tanks into Ukraine on 24 February last year. Little is known about the murky workings of the Kremlin and of Mr Putin’s state of mind – to his citizens, he is both “the old man” and the symbol of Russia. To

The Lionesses have secured a spot in the semi-finals of the Women’s World Cup after beating Colombia 2-1. Colombia led the match with Leicy Stantos’s goal 44 minutes in after she looped a shot over Mary Earps from the right, but England’s Lauren Hemp managed to equalise just minutes before half time after a mistake

Elon Musk has suggested his planned cage fight with Meta co-founder Mark Zuckerberg will take place in an “epic location”. In a series of posts on X, formerly known as Twitter, the company’s controversial owner said he has been in contact with the Italian prime minister and minister of culture about hosting the event. He

Russia has launched its first moon mission in almost 50 years. A rocket carrying a lunar landing craft blasted off from the Vostochny spaceport in the far eastern Amur region. Russia launches lunar spacecraft – war latest It’s expected to reach its destination on 23 August, the same day as an Indian vessel that launched

Ecuadorian presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio has been shot and killed by an unidentified gunman while at a political rally in Quito. The killing comes amid an alarming wave of violence in the country, with drug trafficking and violent killings on the rise. Incumbent president, Guillermo Lasso, suggested an organised crime gang was behind the killing.

Syrian President Bashar al Assad has said he would welcome home refugees who escaped the country’s long-running civil war. In an exclusive interview with Sky News Arabia, he blamed the country’s economic situation as the reason why refugees are not returning to their homeland, pointing to the “image of war” in Syria for the lack

The oil-rich country hosting the next UN climate summit, which this year said it was “running towards” a clean power future, missed its own green energy target, Sky News can reveal. The United Arab Emirates, which will host COP28 in Dubai in December, pledged in 2015 to generate 24% of its electricity from clean sources

A YouTube chef has been charged with murdering and dismembering a Colombian surgeon on a Thai island. Daniel Sancho Bronchalo has been charged with premeditated murder, which carries a possible death penalty, and with concealment of a body to cover up the death, said Surat Thani provincial police commander Saranyu Chamnanrat. The 29-year-old was taken

The Italian government has introduced a surprise 40% windfall tax on the profits made by banks from high interest rates. Ministers said they planned to use the proceeds to help mortgage holders – but said it was a one-off levy to be applied this summer. The announcement sent banking shares tumbling. Italy’s largest chain Intesa

Niger has closed its airspace until further notice citing the threat of military intervention from the West African regional bloc after coup leaders rejected a deadline to reinstate the country’s ousted president. The airspace was closed by the junta on Sunday “in the face of the threat of intervention that is becoming more apparent,” a

Another Russian warship listing in the water is probably not the image Vladimir Putin had in mind for his beloved Black Sea fleet – but it does demonstrate the increasing effectiveness of Ukraine’s sea drones. The last few days have seen two attacks on Russian ships, both reportedly carried out by Ukrainian unmanned vessels. In

A deadline for Niger’s coup leaders to stand down and reinstate the country’s elected president has arrived. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) said on Friday its defence chiefs had drawn up a plan for military action if the junta, which has said it will not bow to outside pressure, did not comply

Ukraine is embroiled in a fight for its very survival as an independent state. Although Moscow is able to strike Ukrainian territory with impunity, the West will not allow Ukraine to use Western-supplied weapons to strike Russia across the border for fear of an escalation. But is this limitation preventing Ukraine from striking a potentially