Skip to main content

Rare light aircraft crash in Beijing kills pilot, injures 13 people

A light aircraft crash into Beijing's tallest building on Friday killed ​the pilot and injured 13 people who were not on ‌board, the local government said following the unusual accident for the Chinese capital, where airspace is heavily restricted. Those injured are receiving medical treatment and authorities are ​investigating the incident, Chaoyang district government said in a statement ​on Saturday. "A single-engine, two-seat light sport aircraft collided with ⁠a high-rise building while flying near the East third ring road ​in Chaoyang, at 5:55pm (0955 GMT) on June 26," said the ​statement, which was posted on social media. "There was only one person on board, the pilot, who died," the statement added, without giving any further details of ​the possible cause of the crash. Damage to the facade of the ​skyscraper appeared to be limited to a hole caused by the loss of ‌two ⁠large glass panels. The gap had been temporarily boarded up as ...

Iran urges US to drop ‘excessive demands’ to reach deal

Iran said on Friday that the United States must drop its “excessive demands” to secure an agreement, tempering earlier optimism after talks seen as a last-ditch effort to avert war. The Oman-mediated negotiations come amid repeated threats from US President Donald Trump to strike Iran and a major American military build-up in the region. Trump on February 19 gave Tehran 15 days to reach a deal. While Iran insists the talks should focus solely on its nuclear programme, Washington wants curbs on Tehran’s missile programme and its support for militant groups. The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday that Trump’s team would demand Iran dismantle its three main nuclear sites and hand over all remaining enriched uranium to the US. Without detailing the demands he referenced, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told his Egyptian counterpart that “success in this path requires seriousness and realism from the other side and avoidance of any miscalculation and excessive demands”. pic.twitter.com/TVtFE0H0hf — Seyed Abbas Araghchi (@araghchi) February 26, 2026 Read: Iran, US hold talks in push to avert war Following Thursday’s talks in Geneva, Araghchi told state TV the negotiations had “made very good progress and entered into the elements of an agreement very seriously, both in the nuclear field and in the sanctions field”. Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi said technical discussions would take place next week in Vienna. “We have finished the day after significant progress in the negotiation between the United States and Iran,” he wrote on X. We have finished the day after significant progress in the negotiation between the United States and Iran. We will resume soon after consultation in the respective capitals. Discussions on a technical level will take place next week in Vienna. I am grateful to all concerned for… — Badr Albusaidi - بدر البوسعيدي (@badralbusaidi) February 26, 2026 Araghchi, in a separate post, described the latest round as “the most intense so far”. “It concluded with the mutual understanding that we will continue to engage in a more detailed manner on matters that are essential to any deal — including sanctions termination and nuclear-related steps,” he said. UN nuclear chief Rafael Grossi also joined the negotiations, a source close to the talks told AFP. ‘Big lies’ Trump, in his State of the Union address, said Iran had “already developed missiles that can threaten Europe and our bases overseas” and was working to build missiles that could soon reach the US. He accused Tehran of “pursuing sinister nuclear ambitions”, a charge Iran denies, insisting its programme is civilian. The Iranian foreign ministry dismissed the claims as “big lies”. On Wednesday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Iran is “not enriching right now, but they’re trying to get to the point where they ultimately can”, adding that Tehran “refuses” to discuss its ballistic missile programme — “and that’s a big problem”. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said ahead of the talks that the Islamic republic was “not at all” seeking a nuclear weapon. Read More: Another geopolitical storm US Vice President JD Vance told The Washington Post there was “no chance” a long-threatened strike on Iran would lead to “a Middle Eastern war for years with no end in sight”. Military pressure Parallel to the diplomacy, Washington has mounted a major military build-up, sending the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford to the Mediterranean. The US currently has more than a dozen warships in the Middle East, including one aircraft carrier — the USS Abraham Lincoln — nine destroyers and three other combat ships. It is rare for two US carriers to be deployed in the region simultaneously. Iran says the maximum range of its missiles is 2,000 kilometres. However, the US Congressional Research Service estimates the range could reach about 3,000km — still less than one-third of the distance to the continental US. A previous round of negotiations collapsed when Israel launched strikes on Iran last June, sparking a 12-day war that briefly drew in the US to bomb Iranian nuclear sites. Protests have since resumed around Iranian universities.

from Latest World News, International News | Breaking World News https://ift.tt/c6Sse0a

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

At least 32 miners dead after bridge fails at cobalt site in southeast DR Congo

A bridge collapsed at a cobalt mine in southeast Democratic Republic of Congo killing at least 32 wildcat miners, a regional government official said Sunday. The bridge came down Saturday onto a flooded zone at the mine in Lualaba province, Roy Kaumba Mayonde, the provincial interior minister, told reporters. He said 32 bodies had been recovered and more were being searched for. The DRC produces more than 70 percent of the world supply of cobalt, which is essential for batteries used in electric cars, many laptop computers and mobile phones. More than 200,000 people are estimated to be working in giant illegal cobalt mines in the giant central African country. Local authorities said the bridge collapsed at the Kalando mine, about 42 kilometres (26 miles) southeast of the Lualaba provincial capital, Kolwezi. "Despite a formal ban on access to the site because of the heavy rain and the risk of a landslide, wildcat miners forced their way into the quarry," said Mayonde. He said ...

Indian devotees splurge on jets, gold idols as Hindu temple opens

The private jet parking lots at airports near the Indian city of Ayodhya are full and the shops have run out of gold-plated idols, as wealthy devotees prepare for the invite-only opening ceremony of one of Hinduism's holiest temples. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Asia's richest man Mukesh Ambani are among the 8,000 or so attendees at Monday's inauguration event for the Ram Temple, which devotees believe is built on the birthplace of Lord Ram, a sacred Hindu deity. The construction of the temple, which began after the Supreme Court awarded the site to Hindus in 2019 more than two decades after a Hindu mob razed a mosque there, triggering deadly riots, fulfils a key campaign promise of Modi and his Hindu nationalist party. Read BJP-promised temple transforms Ayodhya: Muslims, locals feel neglected The opening ceremony, organised by the trust that built the temple, comes months before a national election which the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is widely expected to w...

Vancouver tribunal says 'every dog is entitled to one bite' in injury case

A woman who sought nearly $5,000 in damages after being bitten by a dog on Christmas Eve has had her claim dismissed, after a British Columbia tribunal ruled the incident amounted to an accident — and that “every dog is entitled to one bite.” Ying Shen was bitten on the hand by a mini Australian Shepherd named Juliet as she stepped out of an elevator in her apartment building in Vancouver on 24 December 2022. The dog, which was leashed and accompanied by neighbour Jeffrey Dale Polo, bit Shen as the two passed each other in the corridor. According to the B.C. Civil Resolution Tribunal’s decision, Polo apologised, saying Juliet was “usually well behaved.” Shen sought medical attention that night at St. Paul’s Hospital, where she was treated for a superficial abrasion and given a tetanus shot. She later filed a report with the City of Vancouver. A bylaw officer determined that Juliet was not considered dangerous under city regulations, though the dog was found to be unlicensed. In his 5 M...