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AdvertisementMiddle EastWorldMiddle EastIraq PM Sudani claims election win after early results show decisive leadThe incumbent prime minister’s candidate list is in the lead with more than 1.3 million votes, about 217,500 more than the next closest list
Reading Time:3 minutesWhy you can trust SCMPAgence France-PressePublished: 7:39am, 13 Nov 2025Incumbent Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani claimed victory for his coalition on Wednesday in Iraq’s general election after preliminary results showed it had secured a decisive lead.
AdvertisementSupporters of Sudani, who is vying for a second term, flocked late in the evening to Tahrir Square in Baghdad to celebrate with fireworks and music.
Casting the victory as one for all Iraqis in a televised speech, Sudani congratulated the country “on your coalition winning first place in the parliamentary elections”.
“Our coalition, ‘Reconstruction and Development’, is first,” Sudani said separately on social media, expressing “deep gratitude to t..

Kyle Seraphin claimed Kash Patel's foundation is behind the lawsuits that his girlfriend Alexis Wilkins filed against MAGA influencers for 'Israeli spy' narrative. Kyle Seraphin, Sam Parker and Elijah Schaffer have been sued by Kash Patel's girlfriend Alexis Wilkins for spreading malicious lies about Alexis that she works for the Israeli spy agency and 'honeytrapped' FBI director Kash Patel. Wilkins sought $5 million from each of them in damages after relentlessly fighting the rumor, claiming she has no connection with Israel. But MAGA has now drawn a line and stood by the conspiracy theorists as they are all MAGA voices, and condemned Wilkins' action against 'freedom of speech'. Though FBI director Patel is not involved with the lawsuits filed by his musician girlfriend, MAGA claimed that Patel's foundation, 'Kash Foundation', is behind the lawsuits. Kyle Seraphin, a former FBI agent who has been targeting Patel and his girlf..

Image Via “X” Twitch is under fire after streamer Tectone accused the platform of hypocrisy over its Veterans Day tribute. The controversy began when Twitch posted a message honoring U.S. service members, only for Tectone to respond angrily, alleging that he had been banned for defending veterans in the past. In a post from his verified X account, Tectone claimed he was punished for insulting a woman who allegedly said that “all American soldiers deserved PTSD,” while, according to him, Twitch took no action against her. His tweet quickly went viral, sparking debate over Twitch’s moderation policies and priorities.The post, filled with frustration and disbelief, resonated with many streamers and viewers who believe Twitch often enforces its community guidelines inconsistently. Tectone’s sharp criticism, dropped on the same day Twitch attempted to celebrate Veterans Day, amplified the backlash, with many accusing the platform of double standards. Supporters rallied behind Tectone, calli..

AdvertisementJapanThis Week in AsiaHealth & EnvironmentJapan caught in web of woe as over 3,500 venomous spiders found at US baseThe record number of spiders – including redbacks, black and grey widows – highlights Japan’s struggle in containing invasive species
Reading Time:3 minutesWhy you can trust SCMPJulian RyallPublished: 8:00am, 12 Nov 2025More than 3,500 venomous spiders – including black widows and redbacks – have been exterminated at a US military base in western Japan, alarming residents and officials already struggling with a rise in invasive species across the country.AdvertisementThe record number of spiders, found between July and October at the US Marine Corps Air Station in Iwakuni, included three known venomous species and prompted local authorities to demand urgent action to prevent the infestation from spreading beyond the base’s perimeter.
Experts believe the arachnids likely arrived aboard aircraft operated by the US Marines or Japan’s Maritime Self-Defence Force,..

AdvertisementUnited StatesWorldUnited States & CanadaUS Supreme Court lets Trump continue cuts on Snap food aid, even as shutdown nears endReopening the government would restart the programme that helps 42 million Americans, but it’s not clear how soon full payments can resume
Reading Time:3 minutesWhy you can trust SCMPAssociated PressPublished: 7:49am, 12 Nov 2025The US Supreme Court on Tuesday extended an order blocking full Snap payments, amid signals that the government shutdown could soon end and food aid payments resume.
AdvertisementThe order keeps in place at least for a few more days a chaotic situation. People who depend on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programme to feed their families in some states have received their full monthly allocations, while others have received nothing.
The order will expire just before midnight on Thursday.
The Senate has approved a bill to end the shutdown and the House of Representatives could vote on it as early as Wednesday.
Reopening..

Pierre Poilievre's party may see more defections to the Liberal Party in a few days. Nova Scotia MP Chris d’Entremont who recently crossed the floor of the House of Commons to the Liberals said that he felt on several occasions that he was not part of a serious political party but of a frat house. The former Conservative leader slammed the conduct of the leaders of Pierre Poilievre's party and said he crossed over to Mark Carney's party without any promise of any cabinet post.After it was speculated that d'Entremont was mulling a switch, two Conservative leaders barged into his office, pushed open the door, almost knocking down his assistant, and yelled at him about “how much a snake” he was. The Nova Scotia MP said he believed “three or four” other Conservative caucus members were considering crossing the floor — all disgruntled by Poilievre's leadership style. The Conservative Party denied d'Entremont's account and said he established himself as a ..

The BBC has been plunged into a massive row after broadcasting a Panorama documentary that showed a doctored version of US President Donald Trump’s January 6, 2021, speech. MAGA critics, including the White House, said the programme misleadingly portrayed Trump as inciting violence during the Capitol attack. The row over the clip has led to the resignations of BBC director-general Tim Davie and BBC News chief Deborah Turness.Edited remarks
In the programme, titled Trump: A Second Chance, the edited clip shows Trump saying: “We’re gonna walk down to the Capitol, and I’ll be there with you and we fight. We fight like hell and if you don’t fight like hell, you’re not going to have a country anymore.”The broadcast gave the impression that Trump was directly urging his supporters to storm the Capitol, inviting backlash of the BBC’s editorial choices.Unedited remarks
The unedited speech shows a very different message. Trump actually said: “We’re going to walk down, and I’ll be there with you..

AdvertisementSouth KoreaThis Week in AsiaPeopleSouth Korea’s Yoon tried to goad North into attacking to justify martial law: prosecutorsMemos show the ex-president’s intelligence chief contemplated strikes on Kim Jong-un’s private resort and nuclear facilities
Reading Time:3 minutesWhy you can trust SCMPPark Chan-kyongPublished: 8:00am, 11 Nov 2025South Korea’s former president Yoon Suk-yeol, removed from office and arrested earlier this year for attempting to impose martial law, is facing new charges alleging he sought to provoke North Korea to justify his failed power grab.AdvertisementProsecutors say Yoon and senior aides orchestrated risky military operations near the border to draw a retaliation from Pyongyang, which they hoped would legitimise the emergency decree Yoon signed on December 3 while still in office.
An American soldier observes a South Korean AH-64 Apache helicopter firing rockets during a live-fire exercise in Pocheon, near the inter-Korean border, on October 30, 20..

AdvertisementBBCWorldEuropeHow scandals at Britain’s BBC have rocked its leadership over the yearsBBC’s past blunders, from holding a report on TV host Jimmy Savile’s sexual abuse of young girls to Martin Bashir’s Princess Diana interview
Reading Time:2 minutesWhy you can trust SCMPAssociated PressPublished: 7:59am, 11 Nov 2025The BBC’s top leader and head of its news division resigned over criticism of how the broadcaster edited US President Donald Trump’s speech before some of his supporters stormed the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.
AdvertisementThe scandal leading to Sunday’s resignations is hardly the first controversy to hit Britain’s publicly funded broadcaster – or to topple one of its leaders.
The editorially independent British Broadcasting Corporation was founded in 1922 to be impartial, act in the public interest and be open, transparent and accountable.
While it is widely respected for its global news operation and the entertainment and sports programmes it produces, it is..

US President Donald Trump on Sunday responded to the resignation of Tim Davie as Director‑General of the BBC. The MAGA chief thanked The Telegraph for “exposing corrupt journalists.” On his social‑media platform Truth Social, he posted: “The TOP people in the BBC, including TIM DAVIE, the BOSS, are all quitting/FIRED, because they were caught ‘doctoring’ my very good (PERFECT!) speech of January 6th. Thank you to The Telegraph for exposing these Corrupt ‘Journalists.’ These are very dishonest people who tried to step on the scales of a Presidential Election. On top of everything else, they are from a Foreign Country, one that many consider our Number One Ally. What a terrible thing for Democracy!”Davie announced his departure on Sunday, effectively ending a 20‑year career at the corporation and five years in the top job. His exit comes amid a storm over a documentary broadcast by the BBC’s flagship series Panorama, which is alleged to have misled viewers by editing together different p..