Global Pulse

作者： admin

  • A Yazidi tells an Australian court she was enslaved and raped in an IS home in Syria

    A Yazidi tells an Australian court she was enslaved and raped in an IS home in Syria

    MELBOURNE, Australia — A disturbing case of alleged wartime enslavement tied to the Islamic State group has opened in an Australian court, with prosecutors laying out graphic accusations of systematic abuse against a 15-year-old Yazidi girl who was held captive in Syria more than six years ago.

    Thirty-one-year-old Zeinab Ahmad appeared at the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court this week, filing an application for bail while facing two counts of slavery-related crimes against humanity. Her bail hearing will resume Friday, after police laid out the full scope of the allegations before the court.

    Zeinab and her 53-year-old mother Kawsar Ahmad — also known as Kawsar Abbas — have been held in Australian custody since last month. The pair returned to Australia from a Syrian refugee camp alongside a larger group of Australian women and children with confirmed ties to the Islamic State, after years spent living in territory controlled by the extremist group.

    Detective Senior Constable Mark Clendenning, leading the case for police, told the court that the anonymous Iraqi-born Yazidi complainant, who was a minor when the abuse occurred, laid out years of mistreatment in a formal police statement. According to the statement, Zeinab’s father and Kawsar’s husband, Mohammed Ahmad, purchased the then-teen for $10,000 in 2017 in Raqqa, the de facto capital of the Islamic State’s self-declared caliphate at the time.

    Clendenning told the court that Kawsar actively participated in purchasing the teen for enslavement — an unusual role for a woman within the extremist group’s hierarchical structure. He added that the entire Ahmad family held elevated status and privileges within the Islamic State that most other supporters did not access, granting them exceptions to the group’s standard internal practices.

    Per the allegations laid out by Clendenning, the victim was brought into the family’s Raqqa home, where the couple lived with their five children, including Zeinab. The victim was assigned to share a bedroom with Zeinab, the court heard. Mohammed explicitly told the victim upon bringing her to the home that he had purchased her for two purposes: repeated sexual assault and unpaid domestic labor, even introducing her to the entire family with that explicit explanation.

    Court documents further detail that Zeinab’s first husband, an Islamic State fighter, was killed in a 2016 drone strike, after which she remarried an Egyptian IS fighter who had lost a limb in combat.

    Police have alleged that Zeinab was present on multiple occasions when her father abused the victim, including one incident where Mohammed beat the captive and dragged her by her hair down two flights of stairs inside the family home. Mohammed beat the victim two to three times every month for the entire duration of her captivity with the Ahmad family, Clendenning said, with all members of the family present during the assaults.

    While Zeinab never physically harmed the victim, the complainant told police that Zeinab repeatedly issued violent threats against her and ordered her to complete endless domestic housework. The victim also stated that Mohammed sexually assaulted her “many times” despite consistent resistance from the captive.

    After 16 months of captivity, Mohammed sold the victim to another IS member for the same $10,000 he had paid to acquire her, justifying the sale by claiming the teen was “bad” and refused to follow his orders. Mohammed is currently incarcerated in an Iraqi prison for his role in Islamic State-linked crimes.

    The case unfolds against the long-documented historical context of the Islamic State’s systematic persecution of the Yazidi people, a small Kurdish-speaking ethno-religious minority primarily concentrated in Iraq, Syria and Turkey. The victim told investigators she was just 15 years old when she was captured as part of the IS’s mass enslavement campaign that trapped more than 6,800 Yazidi women and children. Over five years of captivity, she was traded between 17 different IS members before Kurdish forces liberated her from extremist control in 2019.

    Court records show that three generations of the Ahmad family originally relocated from Melbourne to Syria via Turkey between 2013 and 2014, with Zeinab flying to the conflict zone to join the group with her first husband in 2014.

    In opposing Zeinab’s bail application, Clendenning argued that releasing her from custody would create an unacceptable public safety risk. He noted that Zeinab has married multiple men with ties to the Islamic State, and her current husband, an Egyptian IS fighter, has an unknown current whereabouts. Critically, Clendenning added that Zeinab has never explicitly renounced the Islamic State or stated that she no longer supports the extremist group’s ideology following her surrender to Kurdish forces earlier this year.

    If convicted on both charges of enslavement and the use of an enslaved person, Zeinab faces a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison for each count.

  • UK lawmaker says she is suing Elon Musk’s company over fake Grok bikini images

    UK lawmaker says she is suing Elon Musk’s company over fake Grok bikini images

    LONDON — A landmark legal challenge targeting artificial intelligence accountability has emerged in the United Kingdom, as a sitting Labour Party legislator has launched a privacy invasion lawsuit against Elon Musk’s AI development firm xAI over deepfake explicit images generated without her consent by the company’s Grok chatbot.

    Jess Asato, who serves in the UK parliament for the governing party, revealed Thursday that the unauthorized deepfake content was produced in January, shortly after she publicly spoke out against the growing proliferation of non-consensual deepfake pornography across digital platforms. According to Asato’s account, an anonymous party leveraged Grok’s image generation capabilities to create fake photos of her wearing a bikini that were never shot or authorized by her.

    The formal legal claim was submitted to London’s High Court this week, with Asato arguing that xAI violated the UK Data Protection Act through the misuse of her private personal information. Beyond seeking monetary damages for the harm she has endured, the lawmaker has a larger strategic goal: to establish a binding legal precedent that holds AI developers legally responsible for dangerous design flaws in their systems that enable harmful misuse.

    In a statement explaining her decision to pursue legal action, Asato drew a parallel between the online violation and a physical offense. “Nobody would be able to walk up to me in the street and strip me and put me in a bikini, and I don’t see why anybody should be able to do that to me online, because the feeling, while it is not quite the same, is very similar,” she said. “It is like somebody has digitally stripped me without my consent.”

    Asato also said she encourages other people who have suffered similar harm from AI-generated non-consensual deepfakes to join her legal action, framing the case as a broader fight for digital privacy safety.

    This lawsuit comes amid a growing global backlash against the spread of non-consensual deepfake pornography, which has triggered widespread calls for tighter regulation of AI tools. Back in January, after the incident involving Asato drew public attention and international outcry, xAI announced it would update Grok’s policies to ban users from editing images of real people to remove clothing.

    The UK passed a national law last year that explicitly criminalizes the creation or solicitation of non-consensual deepfake images of adults, but Asato argues that existing accountability frameworks are incomplete. Even after companies patch dangerous flaws in their AI systems, she notes, irreversible harm has already been done to victims of misuse.

    “Once the damage is done, the damage is done,” Asato said. “If you think about any other products, like a car, for example, that might have been manufactured with a fault, it doesn’t matter if, you know, the cars get recalled and the faults are fixed and no more harm is done.” Companies must still be held responsible for the harm their flawed products caused before the fix, she argues.

    As of Thursday, xAI had not issued any immediate public response to requests for comment on the new lawsuit.

  • Dutch police detain 4 suspects in probe into men who drugged, abused women they knew

    Dutch police detain 4 suspects in probe into men who drugged, abused women they knew

    THE HAGUE, Netherlands – Dutch law enforcement has taken four men into custody as part of a sweeping probe into allegations of systematic drug-facilitated sexual assault, where perpetrators allegedly targeted women they knew, recorded the abuse, and circulated graphic footage among private online groups. The investigation carries striking parallels to the high-profile Gisèle Pelicot abuse case that shocked France late last year.

  • Ukraine accused of killing four in occupied Crimea

    Ukraine accused of killing four in occupied Crimea

    Escalating cross-border strikes have sent fatalities climbing across Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories and mainland Russia, marking a sharp intensification of hostilities three months into the fifth year of Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The latest outbreak of violence began with a series of Ukrainian strikes on the Russian-annexed Crimean Peninsula, where Russian-installed local authorities confirmed at least four civilian and personnel deaths across two separate attack sites.

    In the regional capital of Simferopol, one strike targeting what local officials described as non-residential infrastructure left three people dead and seven others injured. This incident marks the first recorded fatal Ukrainian attack on Simferopol since Russia illegally occupied and annexed the peninsula from Ukraine in 2014, a move ordered directly by Russian President Vladimir Putin. A second attack targeted a commuter train en route to Kerch, killing one additional passenger and wounding three more, according to the Moscow-appointed head of Crimea.

    As of publication, Ukrainian officials have not issued any official comment on the Crimean strikes. This wave of attacks marks the third consecutive day that Ukrainian forces have been accused of targeting transport and infrastructure in Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories. In addition to its strikes on occupied Crimea, Kyiv has steadily expanded the scope and frequency of its long-range strikes deep inside Russian territory over recent weeks.

    The most high-profile of these recent strikes came on Wednesday, just hours before the official opening of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Russia’s flagship annual economic event designed to draw foreign investment into the country. Once known as the “Russian Davos,” the forum drew high-profile Western political and business delegations before Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that Ukrainian drones struck multiple targets near St. Petersburg, including an oil terminal and a naval facility in Kronstadt, the primary outpost of Russia’s Baltic Fleet. A separate Russian-installed official in occupied Donetsk reported that a drone strike on a passenger bus in the region killed seven civilians the same day.

    Over the four years since Russia launched its full-scale invasion, Ukraine has rapidly expanded and developed its domestic defense industry, allowing it to produce enough long-range drones and other precision weapons to regularly strike targets deep inside Russian and Russian-occupied territory. Ukrainian military strategy prioritizes strikes on energy and oil infrastructure, which Kyiv views as critical to sustaining Russia’s war effort. This escalation in Ukrainian long-range strikes has been matched by continued heavy Russian strikes across Ukrainian population centers, which have resulted in consistent civilian casualties. On Monday alone, combined Russian missile and drone strikes across multiple Ukrainian cities killed at least 22 civilian people.

    Moscow has continued to frame its illegal 2014 annexation of Crimea as a permanent territorial acquisition, a claim rejected by the vast majority of the international community and UN member states. Ukraine has repeatedly stated it aims to fully liberate all occupied territories, including Crimea, as a core condition of any lasting peace deal.

  • Heat experts warn Fifa of bottle ban health risk

    Heat experts warn Fifa of bottle ban health risk

    Just seven days before the 2026 Fifa World Cup kicks off on June 11, football’s global governing body has triggered widespread criticism with a sudden, late reversal of its stadium policy that prohibits fans from bringing reusable water bottles into match venues, a move public health and heat experts warn puts spectator well-being at severe risk amid forecast extreme tournament temperatures.

    The original, publicly released stadium code of conduct explicitly permitted empty, transparent reusable plastic bottles of up to one liter to be brought inside venues. In its policy update, Fifa framed the new blanket ban – which also covers personal cups, jars and cans – as a safety measure to reduce the risk of injury from thrown projectiles. “Fifa is committed to protecting the health and safety of all players, referees, fans, volunteers, and staff,” the organization said in a formal statement. It added that spectators would still be able to purchase water inside stadiums, with prices capped to match those charged at other major events held at the same venues, and that existing heat mitigation infrastructure, including misting stations, cooling tents, hydration points and portable fans across stadium grounds, would remain in place to manage high temperatures. To protect player welfare, Fifa has also already added one three-minute hydration break per half to all match schedules.

    But heat and health specialists have roundly condemned the last-minute U-turn, warning it exacerbates already documented gaps in the tournament’s heat safety planning. Back in May, a group of leading scientists issued an open letter warning that existing heat safety measures were inadequate, as forecast temperatures at 14 of the 16 host venues will exceed the threshold for dangerous heat exposure.

    Ollie Jay, a professor of heat and health at the University of Sydney who was one of the signatories of the May open letter, told reporters his greatest concern now centers on spectator rather than athlete welfare. “If you look at the athlete population, all of them are very fit,” Jay explained. “Whereas if you think about the spectators, you’ve got a broad range of different people that will be attending, from young kids to elderly people, people with chronic diseases, people taking different types of medications – all of which results in different levels of heat sensitivity. Your average spectator is probably going to be less resilient to the heat than these highly-conditioned professional athletes.”

    Jay added that many fans will already face accumulating heat exposure during their travel to stadiums, leaving them dehydrated even before they enter the venue. Once inside, packed seating, direct sunlight, high humidity and limited airflow can combine to create dangerous levels of heat stress that the body struggles to regulate. “Unless the cooling controls are really successful, I would imagine this decision [to ban water bottles in stadiums] will clearly heighten the risk of heat-related health incidents,” he warned.

    Dr Theodore Keeping, a researcher at Imperial College London and lead author of a World Weather Attribution study focused on heat safety at the 2026 World Cup, emphasized that accessible hydration is the most basic foundational protection against extreme heat. “Allowing fair and equitable access to hydration is a basic first defence against the extreme heat risks climate change is bringing to this World Cup,” Keeping said.

    Critics from fan groups and climate advocacy organizations have also raised sharp concerns about the policy change. The Free Lions England supporters’ group described the ban as a “strange, late change”, noting that it directly contradicts prior assurances Fifa gave to fan representatives that personal reusable bottles would be permitted. “In all of our discussions, free water availability in stadiums was a key one and we were assured by Fifa that this would be the case and that fans will have the ability to bring their own water bottle,” the group said in a statement posted to X. “Naturally, the immediate thought from supporters is this is just the latest money-grab. For how hot the stadiums will be, many in open air, just let fans bring a bottle if they want. We hope the water fountains in stadiums will still be free, hopefully you aren’t charged in the queue!”

    Andrew Simms, from the UK-based New Weather Institute, argued the ban is the latest in a pattern of reckless decision-making from Fifa that ignores basic duties of care to spectators, amid growing climate risks. “Is Fifa climate-trolling the game it’s meant to protect?” Simms said. “It is already staging the most polluting World Cup ever, sponsored by one of the world’s biggest climate-polluting oil companies, and has heat safety protocols heavily criticised by world leading health experts. Now making it even more difficult for fans to stay safe in a competition vulnerable to global heating seems to be a reckless rejection of Fifa’s duty of care.”

    The policy change arrives amid a broader wave of fan anger over the 2026 tournament, with spectators already complaining about what they describe as “extortionate” ticket prices and inflated public transport fares for traveling to matches. It is not the first time Fifa has implemented a reusable bottle ban at a World Cup – spectators were also barred from bringing personal bottles into venues during the 2022 tournament in Qatar.

  • Uneasy neighbours: Can three World Cup hosts put differences aside for a month?

    Uneasy neighbours: Can three World Cup hosts put differences aside for a month?

    The 2026 FIFA World Cup, the first men’s edition of the global tournament to be co-hosted across three separate nations, faces an unprecedented set of political and logistical challenges, as simmering tensions between the United States, Canada, and Mexico threaten to overshadow the historic continental sporting event. When the three national leaders joined FIFA President Gianni Infantino for the official tournament draw in Washington D.C. last December, the gathering was marked by friendly photo opportunities and public displays of unity. But behind the polished optics, long-running frictions over trade, immigration, security, and geopolitical strategy have created a fragile foundation for the 39-day cross-border competition, which will spread across 16 host cities spanning the entire North American continent.

  • Missing guide found on Mount Everest after ‘miracle’ self-rescue

    Missing guide found on Mount Everest after ‘miracle’ self-rescue

    In an extraordinary story of survival that has stunned the global mountaineering community, a Nepali climbing guide declared missing and presumed dead on Mount Everest has emerged from six days stranded at lethal altitude, crawling back to base camp in a remarkable self-rescue.

    Dawa Sherpa, an experienced veteran climber also known as Hillary Dawa Sherpa in honor of pioneering mountaineer Edmund Hillary, vanished on May 29 while assisting a Polish climber above Camp 3, at roughly 7,500 meters (24,600 feet) above sea level. At that extreme elevation, atmospheric oxygen levels drop to just a fraction of what is available at sea level, making multi-day survival nearly impossible. By all accounts, the climbing community had prepared for the worst, with most assuming Dawa had become the season’s latest climbing fatality.

    That grim expectation shifted on Thursday, when a crew from the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee, tasked with cleaning waste from the mountain’s upper slopes, spotted Dawa moving slowly through the dangerous Khumbu Icefall, steadily descending toward Base Camp. When rescuers reached him, they confirmed he was in overall stable good condition despite his week-long ordeal at high altitude.

    Pemba Sherpa, executive director of 8K Expeditions, the organizing company that led initial search operations, called the survival nothing short of extraordinary. “This is a true self-rescue,” Pemba explained in remarks to reporters. “Dawa managed to survive against all odds for days. It is nothing short of a miracle.”

    The ordeal unfolded as Dawa accompanied a group of climbers descending from Camp 4, the highest campsite positioned just below Everest’s summit. Former British Royal Marine and climber Chris Thrall, who was part of the descending party, recalled that Dawa stopped to rest with his backpack as the group moved lower. When Thrall checked in on him, Dawa insisted he was fine and told the party to continue ahead. “This is nothing new, you know, I’d go ahead, he’d go ahead,” Thrall said in an Instagram tribute he posted Wednesday, when he still believed Dawa had died on the mountain. As Thrall continued down, he stopped to assist a struggling Polish climber, and the two continued their descent together. Dawa never caught up to the group.

    After Dawa failed to arrive at lower camps, 8K Expeditions launched a extensive aerial search of the upper mountain, but crews were unable to locate any trace of the missing guide. Before his discovery, Dawa’s wife told Agence France-Presse she had already conducted last rite prayers for his soul, a devastating step families take when climbers are confirmed lost on the world’s highest peak.

    This 2026 Everest spring climbing season has already made history for two stark reasons: it is the busiest season on record, with more than 1,000 climbers and guides successfully reaching the summit, but it has also recorded five fatalities so far. Three of those who died this season were Nepali workers involved in pre-season route preparation and logistics work on the mountain, according to AFP data. Dawa’s unlikely survival has brought a rare moment of joy and celebration to a climbing community already grappling with multiple losses this year.

  • A fire at a nursing home in Sri Lanka kills 12 people

    A fire at a nursing home in Sri Lanka kills 12 people

    A devastating blaze at a residential care facility in western Sri Lanka has claimed the lives of 12 residents and left eight others with injuries, national police confirmed in an official briefing on Thursday.

    The inferno broke out after hours on Wednesday at the facility located in the quiet town of Anguruwatota, roughly 50 kilometers east of the country’s capital Colombo. First responders and emergency teams were able to evacuate and save 51 residents from the burning structure, according to police spokesperson Fredrick Wootler. He added that the facility, which primarily serves elderly patients, also provides housing and care for people living with mental health conditions.

    In the wake of the tragedy, authorities have taken the nursing home’s director into custody. The arrest comes on allegations that the deaths were a direct result of negligence on the part of facility leadership, including suspected failures to maintain functional fire safety equipment and adhere to emergency evacuation protocols. A full formal investigation into the cause of the fire and any wider institutional failures is already underway.

    Visual footage captured by the Associated Press shows the full scope of the destruction: the two-story building has been completely gutted by the flames, leaving only blackened, charred remains of furniture, medical equipment, and interior structures. Victims’ bodies were recovered from the site in the immediate aftermath of the blaze.

    Local Sri Lankan broadcaster Hiru TV released on-scene footage showing a massive emergency response, with dozens of firefighters, police officers, and local civilians working together to bring the fast-spreading blaze under control. Videos show security forces and military personnel assisting evacuated residents, many of whom are elderly, to board waiting buses that transported them to temporary emergency shelter at a nearby safe location.

  • Man City consider legal action after Haaland claim

    Man City consider legal action after Haaland claim

    As Real Madrid prepares to hold its first contested presidential election in two decades this Sunday, a bold pledge from an underdog candidate to pry two star players from English champions Manchester City has sparked a major cross-club controversy, putting transfer politics at the center of the club’s leadership race.

    Enrique Riquelme, a 37-year-old renewable energy tycoon who is challenging long-time incumbent Florentino Perez for the club’s top job, made headlines during a televised appearance Wednesday when he unveiled a Real Madrid jersey printed with star striker Erling Haaland’s name. Riquelme claimed Haaland, who scored twice against Real Madrid during their three Champions League matches last season, has a release clause in his City contract and wants to move to the Spanish capital, promising “if I become president, he will play for Real Madrid.” He followed that announcement with a second pledge to sign City’s star midfielder Rodri, adding “he is a great player, in a position where Madrid need to strengthen. We have spoken to his agent. We have to respect his club, but if I’m president he will play for Madrid. I will do everything possible.”

    The claims were immediately met with firm denials from all parties connected to Manchester City and Haaland. In a joint statement, Haaland’s father Alfie Inge Haaland and his agent Rafaela Pimenta called the rumors “all very entertaining but not true” and closed by wishing both candidates well in the election. Manchester City followed with an even stronger rebuke, confirming that no such release clause exists and that a transfer is completely out of the question. “The stories which have emerged from Spain regarding the future of Erling Haaland are untrue. There is no chance of this happening and there is no contractual clause to enable it,” the club said in its official statement. The Premier League side also confirmed it is evaluating legal options over the unauthorized use of Haaland’s image in Riquelme’s campaign stunt.

    The controversial transfer pledge comes as Riquelme wages an uphill campaign against Perez, who has led Real Madrid since 2009 and held the presidency for 20 years total without facing any challenger until this year’s vote. Riquelme launched his bid after two back-to-back trophy-less seasons for the La Liga giant, running on an aggressive populist platform that includes major fan perks: he has promised to build a dedicated member’s leisure complex near the club’s training ground with swimming pools, padel courts and a basketball arena, and pledged to cut annual membership fees by up to 50% if the club fails to win the Champions League next season. He has also publicly opposed Perez’s reported plan to hire Jose Mourinho as the next first-team manager, with his campaign hinting that former Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp is his top target for the role.

    Perez, for his part, has framed his campaign around fixing last season’s underperformance and has dismissed Riquelme’s superstar transfer promises as economically unfeasible and unrealistic. The 79-year-old construction magnate and former city councilor has acknowledged the club’s underwhelming results in the last two seasons, blaming a congested schedule caused by the Club World Cup, which forced the team to skip pre-season preparation, and an unprecedented injury crisis that saw nearly 30 first-team players sidelined in the first half of the campaign. He has already reached pre-agreements to sign two high-profile defenders, Liverpool’s Ibrahima Konate and Inter Milan’s Denzel Dumfries, once he secures re-election, and pledged to end internal squad conflict that disrupted the second half of the most recent season.

    Rodri, the 29-year-old Spanish midfield star whose name has also been dragged into the election campaign, addressed the rumors last month, saying he will finalize his future plans after this summer’s World Cup. “When a player is approaching the final stage of his contract, it’s normal for names to be mentioned,” he said. “I’m very calm, I know exactly where I stand, and I’ll tell you that perhaps if there hadn’t been a World Cup, things might be different now.”

    Founded as a member-owned club, Real Madrid’s presidential election gives nearly 100,000 eligible voting members the chance to shape the future of one of the world’s most valuable sports franchises. Perez called the election early this year to shore up his mandate after growing fan discontent over on-field results at the Santiago Bernabeu, and he remains the heavy favorite to win another term, even as the race has devolved into repeated public attacks between the two camps. During Riquelme’s recent appearance on popular Spanish variety show *El Hormiguero*, Perez’s campaign bought ad time to formally announce Mourinho’s pending appointment and call for voters to back the incumbent.

    Club legends are split along the two campaigns: the majority of former stars, including Karim Benzema, Casemiro and Roberto Carlos, have lined up behind Perez, while former captains Iker Casillas and Fernando Hierro have backed Riquelme’s challenge. Perez first won the Real Madrid presidency in 2000 on a similar promise of signing global superstars, when his pledge to bring Barcelona icon Luis Figo to the club secured his upset victory over incumbent Lorenzo Sanz, launching the iconic ‘Galacticos’ era that saw the club sign Zinedine Zidane, Ronaldo, David Beckham and Michael Owen in consecutive summers. He resigned in 2006 amid poor results, but returned unopposed to the presidency in 2009, holding power ever since until this year’s challenge.

  • Israel strikes Lebanon after truce announcement

    Israel strikes Lebanon after truce announcement

    Fresh Israeli airstrikes hit multiple locations across southern Lebanon on Thursday, just hours after diplomats from Israel and Lebanon announced a tentative conditional ceasefire agreement following four rounds of negotiations mediated in Washington. The deal, reached during the fourth round of talks between the two countries’ envoys on Wednesday, hinges on the Iran-aligned militant group Hezbollah halting all cross-border attacks against Israeli targets. But the agreement has already been thrown into doubt, as Hezbollah — which rejects direct bilateral negotiations with Israel — has issued no official response to the announcement, and top Israeli defense officials have made clear that military operations will not pause.