Top 10 world news: Putin to skip BRICS summit, Afghan women take a stand against Taliban, and more

Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend the upcoming BRICS summit in Johannesburg. This comes as the Kremlin leader faces an international arrest warrant over the Ukraine war. In India, a complaint has been filed against 26 Opposition political parties over their use of the acronym 'INDIA' for their election campaign for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Meanwhile, United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has issued an apology for the abuse the LGBTQ community faced in the army back when homosexuality was banned.

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Putin, facing international arrest warrant, will not attend upcoming BRICS summit in Johannesburg

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Russian President Vladimir Putin will not be attending the upcoming BRICS summit which is to be hosted in Johannesburg next month, said the South African presidency, on Wednesday (July 19). This comes a day after court papers revealed that South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said arresting Putin, who is under an international arrest warrant over alleged war crimes in Ukraine, would amount to a declaration of war.

Complaint fired against opposition parties using alliance name 'INDIA' for 'undue influence'

Just a day after 26 political parties in India announced their decision to take on the ruling party BJP under the alliance name 'INDIA' (Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance), a police complaint has been registered against the aforementioned parties.

UK: PM Rishi Sunak apologises for abuse of LGBT in British military

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Wednesday (July 19) formally apologised for the "horrific" historic treatment of people from LGBT communities who served in the country's military when homosexuality was banned.

Afghanistan women stage demonstrations against ban on beauty parlours

Security officials in Afghanistan on Wednesday fired air shots and used firehoses to disperse dozens of women demonstrating in Kabul against an order by Taliban authorities to shut down beauty parlours.

Former US president Trump loses bid for new trial in E. Jean Carroll sexual abuse case

A federal judge, on Wednesday (July 19), rejected former United States President Donald Trump’s request for a new trial on damages, months after he was found guilty of sexually abusing and defaming the writer E. Jean Carroll. At the time, the court had awarded Carroll $5 million in compensatory and punitive damages.

Iranian actress handed jail sentence for not wearing hijab

An Iranian court has given a prominent actress in the country a suspended two-year prison sentence for not wearing the compulsory hijab headscarf in public, said local media on Wednesday (July 19).

Mysterious object on Australian beach moved to 'secret location'; India says not from Chandrayaan

A large mysterious object that was found on a remote West Australian beach - initially thought by many to be a rocket debris from India's recent moon mission Chandrayaan-3 has now been moved to a secret location. The origins of this object still remain unknown, however, it is widely believed to be debris from a space vehicle. India's space agency ISRO had earlier denied that it had any links to the object.

‘Stupid’ AI can’t threaten humanity, says Meta executive Nick Clegg

Even as experts argue whether Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a boon or bane for humanity, Meta’s president of global affairs Nick Clegg believes that the current set of technology doesn’t have the capacity to do either.

Indian Navy strengthens maritime cooperation with Africa

In a strategic move to bolster security cooperation and exchanges, the Indian Navy has embarked on a series of high-impact engagements with African countries along the east coast and southwestern Indian Ocean region.

'If looks could kill': Hong Kong asks citizens to 'stare' at people smoking in public

As per the World Health Organization (WHO), approximately 1.3 billion people smoke tobacco around the world. The habit is widely frowned upon and in many places around the globe smoking in public is banned. This is also true for Hong Kong, where the nation's health chief has now urged HongKongers to "stare" at people, who light up in public.