Connect with us

Foreign News

COP28 president denies UAE using UN climate talks to seek oil deals

Published

on

COP28 President Sultan al-Jaber walks through the venue for the COP28 UN Climate Summit in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (pic Aljazeera)

The Emirati president of the United Nations Climate conference in Dubai has denied reports that he has used his role at the negotiations to pursue fossil fuel deals.

A day before the talks are due to begin, Sultan al-Jaber, who also is the CEO of the state-run Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (Adnoc), rejected allegations made in a joint investigation by the Centre for Climate Reporting (CCR) and the BBC.

“These allegations are false, not true, incorrect and not accurate,” Jaber told reporters on Wednesday ahead of the talks, which will draw world leaders and tens of thousands of delegates to Dubai over the next two weeks.

“It’s an attempt to undermine the work of the COP28 presidency. Let me ask you a question: Do you think the UAE or myself will need the COP or the COP presidency to go and establish business deals or commercial relationships?”

Leaked documents show that al-Jaber planned to discuss fossil fuel deals in bilateral meetings at the climate summit, the CCR said.

According to the non-profit investigative journalism group, the documents include more than 150 pages of briefings prepared by COP28 staff from July to October and obtained by the CCR and the BBC from an anonymous whistle-blower. The documents indicate Jaber planned to discuss commercial interests with almost 30 countries, according to CCR.

The briefing notes, detailed in reports published on Monday, signalled Adnoc’s willingness to work with countries including China, Germany and Egypt to develop oil and gas projects.

Former United States Vice President Al Gore, who won the Nobel Peace Prize for campaigning for climate action, said the allegations “have confirmed some of the worst fears” around al-Jaber while former UN climate chief Christiana Figueres said the COP28 host had been caught “red-handed”.

“The global community’s gaze is fixed upon these leaders, expecting them to embody the very essence of integrity, untainted by bias and national or personal gain,” said Tasneem Essop, executive director of Climate Action Network International.  “Any deviation from this path represents a betrayal of the trust placed in them by the world and a failure in their duty to future generations,” she wrote on X.

Al-Jaber, a 50-year-old longtime climate envoy, is a trusted confidant of the leader of the United Arab Emirates, Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. He’s been behind tens of billions of dollars spent or pledged towards renewable energy in the UAE.

He has weathered other controversies over alleged conflict of interest since being appointed COP28 president this year, including calls from US and European lawmakers for his replacement.

Supporters, including US climate envoy John Kerry, said al-Jaber is uniquely positioned to broker compromise at the COP28 talks, where world leaders will be confronted by their lack of progress in curbing global warming in a record-breaking hot year.

Reining in the use of fossil fuels and carbon emissions are expected to top the agenda of the 13-day summit, which runs from Thursday until December 12. International funding to help countries adapt to climate change will also be hotly debated as developing countries have been demanding more contributions from industrialised nations.

An ambitious loss and damages fund agreed last year to support poorer nations to help manage the negative effects of climate change is also going to be one of the main issues covered in the negotiations. World leaders agreed to the fund at COP27 last year, but they have failed to reach consensus on the most important questions of all – which states will pay into it and how much

The CCR said that alongside the briefings, it has also seen emails and meeting records “which raise serious questions about the COP28 team’s independence from Adnoc”.

“Please, for once, respect who we are, respect what we have achieved over the years and respect the fact that we have been clear, open and clean and honest and transparent on how we want to conduct this COP process,” al-Jaber said.

(Aljazeera)



Foreign News

USA midfielder sues doctors after on-pitch cardiac arrest

Published

on

By

Savannah DeMelo collapsed during a league match between Racing Louisville and Seattle Reign [BBC]

United States women’s national team player Savannah DeMelo is suing a hospital and two doctors after she suffered a cardiac arrest on the pitch last year.

Midfielder DeMelo, who has seven senior caps for the USA, has filed a lawsuit against University of Louisville Health (UofL Health) for negligence.

The 28-year-old, who plays for Racing Louisville, collapsed in the first half of a National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) match on 14 September 2025.

According to documents seen by BBC Sport, the case was filed on Tuesday morning with Jefferson Circuit Court in Kentucky, where her club is based – a year and a day after her on-field collapse.

DeMelo’s filing claims UofL Health and two doctors, Dr Sarabjeet Suri and Dr Jennifer Daily, “failed to act as a reasonably prudent and competent medical practice, and such negligence was a substantial factor in causing DeMelo to suffer severe physical injuries, including, but not limited to, her cardiac arrest”.

Dr Daily, according to her online UofL biography, is Racing Louisville’s chief medical officer. The lawsuit states DeMelo was under the care of Dr Daily from January 2024 to July 2026.

It states that in March 2025, Dr Daily referred DeMelo to Dr Suri for “evaluation and treatment” after she had been complaining of chest pain, dizziness and shortness of air; Dr Suri obtained a history, performed a physical examination and ordered diagnostic tests.

Nearly six months later, DeMelo suffered the cardiac arrest.

“She was subsequently diagnosed and treated for ventricular tachycardia [an abnormal heart rhythm],” the suit states.

DeMelo, who has spent her entire professional career with Racing Louisville, has not played since her collapse.

In a post to her instagram page on Tuesday, De Melo – who was picked in the USA squad for the 2023 Women’s World Cup and started their first two games – marked the anniversary of the incident.

“A year ago today, while playing soccer, I collapsed due to an undiagnosed cardiac arrhythmia, that caused me to go into cardiac arrest,” she wrote.

“I respect and appreciate the privacy everyone has met me with while going through everything I have this year. I’ll never be able to fully put into words how emotionally hard this year has been. There has been a lot of uncertainty and emotions intertwined with it all.”

[BBC]

Continue Reading

Foreign News

Death toll from Philippines ferry fire rises to 76, with more still missing

Published

on

By

The ferry caught fire near tourist hotspot Coron on Wednesday [BBC]

The Philippine Coast Guard says it has recovered 41 bodies from the wreckage of a ferry that caught fire this week, bringing the total death toll to 76.

More than 130 people were on board the MV June Aster when the blaze erupted on Wednesday as it neared its destination at the tourist hotspot of Coron, after departing from Manila.

The coast guard said on Saturday the number of survivors remained 43, with many receiving treatment in hospital, but 13 people remain unaccounted for.

Recovery of bodies had been hampered due to toxic fumes and lingering heat, which meant authorities were unable to board until Friday.

Geronimo Tuvilla, an official for the Philippine Coast Guard, said the priority was identifying victims and determining the cause of the blaze.

Kristine Ablana, a tourism official in Coron, said relatives were being asked to help identify family members through personal items and DNA testing.

“Once someone is able to verify that this photo or these belongings are indeed those of their relative, they will be asked to provide a DNA sample,” she said.

Coast Guard spokesperson Commodore Noemie Cayabyab said the fire began in a cargo hold before spreading.

She said survivors had described hearing a loud explosion, “the appearance of smoke and then fire. It spread very quickly”. She added that those who had made it off the ship did not have time to put on lifejackets.

A survivor who was hauled to safety on a rescue boat told the BBC he had heard frantic cries onboard when the fire erupted, and was trampled by panicked people as he tried to escape.

The ferry, built in 2002, held valid safety certificates and passed an enforcement inspection in March, but investigators are looking into potential manifest discrepancies, cargo loading integrity, and crew emergency response protocols, the Palawan Daily reported.

The vessel was carrying 117 passengers and 17 crew members.

Atienza Interisland Ferries, the vessel’s operator, has pledged full co-operation with the inquiry.

[BBC]

Continue Reading

Foreign News

Princess Diana’s ‘revenge dress’ goes up for auction on 9th December

Published

on

By

[pic BBC]

A dress worn by Princess Diana to a party in London hours after a documentary was televised in which the then-Prince Charles admitted to committing adultery during their marriage is going up for auction.

Her dramatic arrival at the Serpentine Gallery in 1994 in a custom-made black silk evening dress by designer Christina Stambolian became an iconic pop-culture moment.

The media dubbed her outfit the “revenge dress”.

Auction house Sotheby’s expects the dress to sell for up to £220,000 ($300,000) when it goes under the hammer on 9 December.

A press release from Sotheby’s said it is the first time the dress has been offered at auction since 1997, when the late princess sold 79 of her dresses to raise money for charities.

Morgane Halimi, Sotheby’s Global Head of Handbags and Fashion, said in a statement that Princess Diana “understood instinctively” that fashion can be a language in its own right.

“On her own terms, Princess Diana turned the dress into one of the most powerful messages she ever made, during one of the most scrutinised and emotionally charged episodes of her life,” Halimi said.

“She walked into a moment in which so much of her story was being told for her and, through what she chose to wear, reclaimed the narrative for herself.”

Martin Keene/PA Wire Princess Diana arriving at the Serpentine Gallery wearing a dress designed by Christina Stambolian dress. The famous "revenge dress" worn worn by Diana during a Vanity Fair fundraising dinner at the Serpentine Gallery in London, on the same night her then-husband the Prince of Wales publicly admitted his infidelity on national television
[BBC]

According to Sotheby’s, Anna Harvey, her stylist at the time, said Diana “wanted to look a million dollars”.

The princess made a last-minute wardrobe change for the fundraising dinner and chose the strapless evening dress by the Greek designer Christina Stambolian – which she accessorised with a royal jewel, a black clutch and black heels.

The vintage Jaguar XJ40 car that Diana arrived in at the event was sold at auction earlier this year for £66,250.

The revenge dress is expected to fetch a considerably higher price.

If it does, it will not be the first time an item from the princess’s wardrobe has sold for a significant sum.

Princess Diana’s sweater featuring a black sheep among rows of white ones was sold for £920,000 at an auction by Sotheby’s in New York in 2023.

[BBC]

Continue Reading

Trending