Member states of the International Criminal Court voted on Friday to dismiss Karim ‌Khan as prosecutor following allegations of sexual misconduct, according to two diplomatic sources. Speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive matter, the sources said that 82 of the court’s 125 member states voted in favour of the prosecutor’s removal. Khan, 56, denies any wrongdoing and his lawyers have called the process that led to the vote unlawful, procedurally unfair and unsupported by...

She tours major international defence shows, negotiates with arms manufacturers and takes part in discussions on Europe’s rearmament. At 34, Iryna Terekh, an architect by training, heads Fire Point, a company that has become one of the driving forces behind Ukraine’s long-range strike capabilities in the war with Russia. With her long hair tied back in a ponytail, a white top, beige jacket and wide-legged jeans, she stands out in an industry dominated by men in suits. She met with Agence...

Beijing’s point man on Hong Kong affairs has called on lawmakers to better support the city’s leader, enhance governance, inject new momentum into local development and address residents’ needs. Xia Baolong, director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, made the call as he met 88 legislators on Friday at a seminar during their unprecedented week-long national affairs study tour to the capital. Meeting the group in the Hong Kong Room of the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Xia affirmed...

A volunteer was injected on Friday with the first dose of a rapidly developed vaccine targeting the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola driving a deadly outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Oxford University said. More than 1,000 people have been killed in the DRC and Uganda since the outbreak emerged in May, according to the World Health Organization. Researchers and health organisations have since been racing to get a vaccine or treatment for the relatively rare strain to the clinical...

Washington’s recent wave of trade, tech and visa restrictions on China appears to be a deliberate push to build leverage ahead of the presidential summit in September, according to Chinese analysts. However, they warn that such aggressive pressure tactics risk souring the political atmosphere ahead of the high-stakes meeting between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping. The assessment comes as the two powers seek to establish a new framework of “constructive strategic stability”, in line with the...

Hong Kong can take on a new role as a “super converter” for technical standards, legal norms and innovations exchanged between mainland China and the wider world, the city’s finance chief has said. Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po stressed that Hong Kong’s reputation for quality had established the city as a “brand name” that was trusted by the international community. Citing the Middle East as an example, he said: “In general they will automatically give the go-ahead to those products that...

A Russian ⁠ballistic missile strike on Friday in Ukraine’s Kyiv region killed 10 people and injured almost 100 others at a site where a defence ‌industry event was being held, Ukrainian officials and industry representatives said. The attack came a day after President Volodymyr Zelensky met in Kyiv with senior representatives of Raytheon, the US company that makes Patriot air defence systems. Raytheon did not immediately respond to an email inquiring whether any of its workers were at the...