World Echo

When Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva learned that a samba school in Rio de Janeiro would base its carnival parade this year on his journey from factory worker to president, he broke into tears and then smiled for pictures holding the school's flag. But, as Rio's world‑famous carnival parade approached, the tribute became a political headache. Opposition parties and politicians have filed a flurry of lawsuits alleging that Lula is benefiting from what they describe as an illegal form of early campaigning ahead of this year's presidential election. The president hopes to be elected for his fourth nonconsecutive term in October. Courts have already rejected all but one of the lawsuits, including one that asked judges to stop the parade from taking place. But more could be filed if critics believe politicians used the event, scheduled to happen on Sunday night, to ask for votes, which would be illegal. Read: US pushes AI funding, fisheries tech at APEC amid China ...

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called on the international community to “bridge divides, deliver help and hope to those in need”, in a message ahead of the holy month of Ramazan. In remarks delivered through his spokesperson at a briefing at UN Headquarters in New York on Friday, Guterres described Ramadan as a sacred period of reflection and prayer, “representing a noble vision of hope and peace”. “Yet, for too many members of the human family, this vision remains distant," he added. Highlighting ongoing crises across several conflict-affected regions, he pointed to war-torn countries from Afghanistan to Yemen, and from Gaza to Sudan, saying “people continue to suffer from conflict, hunger, displacement and discrimination.” Read More: PM Shehbaz, UN Secretary-General discuss key regional, global issues “In these difficult and divided times, the secretary-general calls on all to heed Ramazan’s enduring message, to bridge divides, deliver help and hope to tho...

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Saturday that countries in the region were capable of resolving their problems collectively and peacefully, stressing that they did not need external guardianship, state news agency IRNA reported. Speaking at the international Iran Corridor 2026 conference in Tehran on investment opportunities and financing for rail and road corridors, Pezeshkian said: “We do not need a custodian. Regional countries can sit together and solve their problems.” Pezeshkian said the world had become “very small” and that nations must work to create conditions for peace, security and stability for present and future generations. “No country benefits from war,” he said, noting that conflict, violence, and bloodshed did not lead to progress. He praised efforts by regional leaders to enhance security and governance, citing cooperation among countries, including Türkiye, Azerbaijan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Pak...

Bangladesh’s largest party conceded defeat Saturday, clearing the way for nationalist leader Tarique Rahman to become prime minister after a landslide election victory. Election Commission figures showed Rahman’s Tarique Rahman-led Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) had won 212 seats in Thursday’s polls, the first since a deadly 2024 uprising toppled the long rule of Sheikh Hasina. The BNP alliance secured 212 seats compared with 77 for an alliance led by Jamaat-e-Islami, according to official results. Rahman, 60, returned to Bangladesh in December after 17 years in exile in Britain, marking a dramatic political comeback. He is expected to deliver a victory speech later Saturday. He is the son of former president Ziaur Rahman, who was assassinated in 1981, and former prime minister Khaleda Zia, a dominant political figure for decades. Interim leader Muhammad Yunus, who has headed the country since the uprising, said Rahman “would help guide the country toward stability, inclusiveness, ...

The mother of two infants found dead in a freezer in eastern France has been charged and placed in pre-trial detention, a prosecutor told AFP on Friday. The case is the latest suspected instance of infanticide to emerge in France in recent years. Prosecutor Cedric Logelin told AFP the 50-year-old woman was charged late on Thursday, a day after she was arrested in the western Paris suburb of Boulogne-Billancourt and admitted to freezing her newborns. No one else has been charged, he added. The grim discovery was made after the woman, who had nine children from three different fathers, had abruptly left the family home in the eastern town of Aillevillers-et-Lyaumont in December. She left behind four of her children, aged 14 to 20, their father and a fifth child from another relationship. On Tuesday, a family member discovered the body of a newborn in a freezer. After the family raised the alarm, police discovered a second body in the same freezer, wrapped in a bag. Suspicion quickly focu...

The British government's ban on pro-Palestinian campaign group Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation is unlawful, London's High Court ruled on Friday after a legal challenge by the group's co-founder. Palestine Action was proscribed in July, having increasingly targeted Israel-linked defence companies – particularly Elbit Systems – in Britain, with "direct action", often blocking entrances, or spraying red paint. The ban had put Palestine Action on a par with Islamic State or al Qaeda and made it a crime to be a member, which carries a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison. Lawyers representing Huda Ammori, who co-founded Palestine Action in 2020, argued at a hearing last year that the move was an authoritarian restriction on the right to protest. The High Court upheld two grounds of challenge, including that the ban was a disproportionate interference with the right to freedom of expression and freedom of assembly. Read: Australia urges calm after violent...