WORLD

These countries have the most positive influence on global affairs No. 12: Iran 21 per cent of 18,000 respondents thought Iran had a positive influence on world affairs. (Canadian Press) This week, Canada appeared at the top of the list of countries with the best civil servants. Now it’s topped the list of places with the most positive effect on the world ...

Former Brazilian leader Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, a top contender to win next year’s presidential election, was convicted on corruption charges on Wednesday and sentenced to nearly 10 years in prison. The ruling marked a stunning fall for Lula, one of the country’s most popular politicians, and a serious blow to his chances of a political comeback. The former ...

Facebook has shut down pages offering marijuana for sale in Alaska, angering the businesses that run them, who say they were licensed to sell it. It highlights the problems faced by social networks trying to set boundaries for what users can post. The National Cannabis Industry Association said it was seeking “clearer guidelines” from Facebook. Affected businesses should appeal to ...

Defending champion Andy Murray appeared hampered by injury as he was knocked out of Wimbledon in the quarter-finals by Sam Querrey on Centre Court. Querrey, 29, won 3-6 6-4 6-7 (4-7) 6-1 6-1 to become the first American man to reach a Grand Slam semi-final since Andy Roddick at Wimbledon in 2009. Murray, 30, led by a set and a ...

ISIS has finally admitted its leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is dead, according to reports in Iraq. The terror group is said to have confirmed that the 45-year-old was killed in an air strike in the Iraqi province of Nineveh. Reports claim ISIS fanatics are scrambling to find a successor to the terror chief, who announced the formation of the group’s ...

A woman who acted as a legal analyst for the media during the Oscar Pistorius trial has appeared in court charged with fraud. Brenda Wardle , who denies the charges is accused of pretending to be a practising attorney and offering to represent a convicted murderer. She appeared at Port Elizabeth Commercial Crimes Court on Monday, South African media report. ...

MANCHESTER UNITED may want Eric Dier but they know it will not be easy to prise him out of Tottenham. Manchester United have been offered encouragement by Dier himself – a boyhood Red Devils fan – who is understood to be open to a move to Old Trafford especially as he could double the £70,000-a-week wages he earns at Tottenham. ...

President Donald Trump has been party to an eye-watering 4,000 lawsuits over the last 30 years, US media say. And now the mogul turned commander-in-chief has attracted one more, after seven people sued him for blocking them on Twitter. Mr Trump is an avid user of the social media forum, which he deploys to praise allies and lambast critics. The ...

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is investigating an apparent near-miss involving an Air Canada flight at San Francisco’s airport. It says Flight AC759 from Toronto was cleared to land on a runway last Friday, but the pilot “inadvertently” lined up for a taxiway where four aircraft were waiting to depart. An air traffic controller became aware of the problem ...

Nigeria’s first lady has warned the “hyenas and jackals” will be banished in a cryptic Facebook post apparently aimed at her husband’s officials. Aisha Buhari’s comments seem to be directed at powerful ruling party politicians, said the BBC’s Naziru Mikailu, in the capital Abuja. They appear to be suspected of manoeuvring for presidency or deputy presidency while her husband is ...