Seychelles will have at least three participants in the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris from July 26 to August 24 according to a top official.  So far no athletes from Seychelles have qualified for the Games but the island nation will compete as the International Olympic Committee (IOC) will issue invitations to ensure that every nation can be represented at the games. The secretary general of the Seychelles Olympic and Commonwealth Games Association (SOCGA), Alain Alcindor, told reporters, «In athletics, one athlete will be invited, unlike before when it was two.» He explained the Seychelles Athletics Federation will have three events they can apply to participate in; 100m sprint, 800m and the marathon. Two athletes will be invited in the swimming competition, a male and a female, and «this already guarantees that we will have at least three athletes at the games.» said Alcindor. He said that late last year, «we were asked to submit the names of the athletes that we believe could be invited based on their 2023 performance, which is called a universality place, and we have applied for mainly the athletes that are on the Olympic scholarships.» Alcindor explained that not all disciplines will accept the universality place and that includes swimming and athletics, since they will receive an invite through their federations. According to SOCGA, there are five Seychellois athletes on the Olympic Scholarship and they are swimmer Felicity Passon, sprinters Ned Azemia and Sharry Dodin, boxer Shain Boniface and sailor Dean Mathiot.   Alcindor explained that more places could become available as there are times when countries decide not to send their athletes to the games even if they have qualified. When this happens, spots remain open and the IOC redistributes it to other nations. Seychelles, an archipelago in the western Indian Ocean, has been participating in the Olympic Games since 1980 after it set up a National Olympic Committee in 1979 now the Seychelles Olympic and Commonwealth Games Association (SOCGA). In the last competition in Tokyo, Japan, five Seychellois took part. Two athletes qualified for a spot - sailor Rodney Govinden and swimmer Felicity Passon. Swimmer Simon Bachmann was invited in view of his performance and participation in high level competitions.  Ned Azemia made his second appearance in the Games after his debut in the 2016 Rio Olympic in which he competed in the 400-metre hurdles while judoka Nantenaina Finesse, made his Olympic debut by invitation. Paris 2024 will feature the debut of breakdancing as an Olympic event and will be the final Olympic Games held during the presidency of IOC President Thomas Bach. The Games will be the first to feature an identical number of athletes between men and women.

The town of Happy Valley-Goose Bay, N.L., has declared a state of emergency following «several explosions» at the site of an uncontrolled fire burning near explosive material. No injuries have been reported, but residents in the area have been urged to evacuate their homes.

It has reached 911 centimeters

Indian voters are conscious of New Delhi’s stand on the global stage, foreign policy expert tells RT, as the country goes to the polls Read Full Article at RT.com

Dmitry Polyansky noted that the IAEA chief is being very cautious about the issue of attacks on the nuclear facility

According to Al Jazeera, air strikes hit the towns of Deir al Balah and Rafah

According to Al Jazeera, Israeli security forces have killed at least five people over the past 24 hours

SC's recent verdicts reshaped election laws, mandating CEC appointments by a 3-member panel, striking down electoral bonds scheme for political donors' anonymity, and emphasizing voter rights protection and transparency in poll funding.

During an election rally in MP's Damoh on Friday, PM Narendra Modi emphasized that amidst the «clouds of war» looming worldwide, India requires a government capable of operating with urgency and safeguarding the nation under all circumstances. He asserted that only a BJP government, securing a return to office with an absolute majority, can effectively undertake this crucial task.

Chandrashekhar Azad, a prominent figure contesting from Nagina, has stirred political discussions by challenging established parties. His background as a Dalit icon and advocate adds depth to his campaign, attracting support from diverse communities in the region.

In Itanagar, female voters were pleasantly surprised with sanitary napkins for voting, part of an initiative to boost participation and raise awareness about menstrual hygiene. The gesture was well-received despite low voter turnout.

Le Haut-commissaire confirme avoir reçu le courrier cosigné de la main d'Edouard Fritch et de Nicole Sanquer. Dans ce document, révélé par Tahiti Infos, les élus de l'opposition dénoncent une « violation de la législation » de la part du gouvernement Brotherson et demandent à Eric Spitz d'agir en tant que « garant de la légalité ».

L'ancien président du Pays, Gaston Flosse, a été hospitalisé trois jours, cette semaine, suite à une fatigue. Il va mieux, est sorti ce matin et a besoin de repos.

Selon nos informations, la présidence aurait demandé «oralement» à la Diren (direction de l'environnement) de déménager avant le 1er juillet. Les agents supposent que c'est pour laisser la place à l'école privée numérique et demandent à dialoguer pour «déménager dans les meilleures conditions et pas sur la base de rumeurs».

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s assistant minister of defense, Talal Al-Otaibi, on Friday held talks with top officials from the Pakistan Army during an official visit to Islamabad. He reviewed relations between the two countries during meetings with the commander of the army, Gen. Syed Asim Munir, the head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Sahir Shamshad Mirza, and the chief of the general staff, Gen. Muhammad Avais Dastgir.

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia is taking part in a special Camel Parade in France on Saturday, in celebration of the UN’s designation of 2024 as International Year of Camelids. The event in Paris has been organized by the French Federation for the Development of Camelids in France and Europe, under the umbrella of the International Camel Organization, and is sponsored by the Saudi Ministry of Culture and the Kingdom’s Camel Club. This is the third year in which the event has taken place.  The event was first held in January 2019 and repeated in 2022.  

Two men who allegedly shot and killed a man in Old Harbour Bay, St Catherine, last year were remanded when they appeared in the St Catherine Parish Court, on Friday. The accused are 30-year-old Shelldon Brown and 20-year-old Gregory...

Elvis Jones, the Jamaican businessman who was arrested on fraud-related charges after his deportation from Panama last week, has been acquitted. Jones, 52, of Portmore, St Catherine, was facing two counts of fraudulent conversion for allegedly...

The Minister of Culture, Olivia Grange, says she has been left saddened by the death of Bishop Dr Ronald Blair, who passed away today at age 86. “We give thanks for and celebrate the life of Bishop Dr Ronald Blair who for an...

The Conservative donor, whose recent book about the deputy leader has led to questions about her former living arrangements, hit back after Sir Keir's jibe.

When she did need the NHS last year, aged 73, Pat Dawson was full of apologies to the kind and capable paramedics who arrived at her home in Rawtenstall, Lancashire. She was weak and in pain.

ALTHOUGH she wasn't ­photographed, Annie Walker did show up at the Etihad stadium on Wednesday night to watch Kyle Walker play in the Champions League quarter-finals.

On the 48,000-acre estate Christopher Moran (pictured) acquired almost 60 turbines form the Dorenell wind farm whose operators pay rent at more than £1million a year.

Unveiling the biggest shake-up of the welfare system for a generation, the Prime Minister said he was determined to prevent people staying on benefits as a 'lifestyle choice'.

Russia has used illegal migrants to damage the European Union, Finland says Read Full Article at RT.com

A top State Department official accepted Niger’s demand that U.S. forces leave the West African country, a move the Biden administration has long resisted.

MADRID — A Singaporean man has been remanded after appearing in court in Spain on April 19 in connection with the death of Singaporean architect Audrey Fang, who had gone missing last week while on holiday and was found with multiple stab wounds. The 43-year-old suspect, who has not been named, as is the custom in Spain, appeared in a court in Murcia in south-eastern Spain. He was photographed being led by two Spanish Civil Guard officers into court, in handcuffs. Fang's body was found with signs of an assault with a «bladed weapon», the Spanish Civil Guard told The Straits Times. Fang, 39, was reportedly stabbed more than 30 times. The court magistrate on April 19 said that her body can be returned to her family for repatriation to Singapore. An autopsy was completed by forensic scientists, but the results have not been made public. Her body was found on April 10 at a lorry park in Abanilla, a municipality in the Murcia region, around 150km away or about two hours' drive from her hotel in Xabia, also in south-eastern Spain, where she was seen alive on April 9 at 8.45pm on closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras.

Mike Johnson has embraced the rhetoric of the Bush era in a bid to funnel more weapons to Ukraine Read Full Article at RT.com

About half of the unofficial Muslim prayer sites in Rome are reportedly under police surveillance for potential risk of terrorism Read Full Article at RT.com

German broadcaster RTL is claiming to have discovered evidence that a presumed-dead German billionaire may still be alive, in Russia Read Full Article at RT.com

One of Benjamin Netanyahu’s key allies, Itamar Ben-Gvir, has been accused of working for Iran over a single-word social media post Read Full Article at RT.com

According to Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov, a private residence in the village of Poroz caught fire when the unmanned aerial vehicles dropped two explosive devices

According to the news agency, one PMF fighter was killed and six were wounded

A Manitoba mother is praising firefighters for their quick work in helping her daughter who got stuck at a playground in Lorette, Man.