"Spain Sets Up Commission To Probe Blackout": Prime Minister
Madrid:
Spain has set up a commission to investigate the causes of a sweeping blackout that paralysed the Iberian Peninsula, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Tuesday.
The announcement came as the country's top criminal court announced a probe into possible "sabotage" of critical infrastructure.
Sanchez refused to rule out potential explanations, and defended his government's planned nuclear phase-out.
"All the necessary measures will be taken to ensure that this does not happen again," Sanchez told a press conference a day after Spain and Portugal were plunged into darkness, cutting phone and internet access and stranding trains.
In its separate announcement, the top criminal court, the Audiencia Nacional, said it was investigating whether the blackout was "an act of computer sabotage on critical infrastructure" that could be classified as "a terrorism offence".
Its announcement came after Spanish grid operator Red Electrica ruled out a cyberattack as the cause of the crisis.
Spain's far-right Vox party attacked the leftist government by linking the sudden loss of power to the scheduled phase-out of Spanish nuclear plants, prompting Sanchez to bite back.
"Those who link this incident to the lack of nuclear power are frankly lying or demonstrating their ignorance," Sanchez said, saying atomic power "was no more resilient" than other electricity sources.
Sanchez said the nuclear plants were still being reconnected on Tuesday, which showed that, "with a greater dependence on nuclear, the recovery would not have been so quick".
Renewable energies like solar and wind power are now leading the country's energy mix and reducing nuclear's contribution, raising hackles among some sector figures and the right-wing opposition.
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Time of India
14 hours ago
- Time of India
Soldiers, Strykers and 100-degree temps: Inside Trump's border military zone
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Remove Ads BORDER BUILDUP 'COVERED BY DESERT SAND' The weapons system atop a drab green U.S. Army Stryker swivels, its camera shifting downward toward a white Ford F-150 driving slowly along the U.S.-Mexico the watchful eye of the 26-ton armored vehicle perched on a sand dune above them, humanitarian volunteers are driving the dirt road next to the border wall to see if they can continue to search for migrant remains inside one of two military zones established along the border by the Trump administration in April and they get their not long before an unmarked gray pickup appears, makes a U-turn in the sand, and puts on its siren, here in the desert 5.6 miles (9 km) west of the Santa Teresa, New Mexico border driver pulls alongside, introduces himself as a U.S. Border Patrol agent, and tells the volunteers they can no longer be Holman, founder of the Battalion Search and Rescue group, whose volunteers also hand water to migrants through the bars of the barrier, he vents his frustration."We're ramping up all this military and taking this public land away, it doesn't make sense, and it's theater, it's deadly, deadly theater," says Holman, 59, a former are in one of two so-called " National Defense Areas " set up along 260 miles (418 km) of the U.S. southern border in New Mexico and Texas as part of the Trump administration's military buildup on the border.U.S. President Donald Trump has long shown interest in using the military for civilian law enforcement, sending Marines to Los Angeles this week in their first domestic deployment in over 30 border military zones are one of his most audacious attempts yet to use troops trained for overseas combat in roles normally carried out by Border Patrol or local Army has not made public the zones' boundaries. The New Mexico area may run over three miles into the United States, in places, based on "restricted area" warning signs in English and Spanish posted along State Road 9 parallel to the zones are classified as U.S. Army installations , giving troops the right to temporarily detain and question migrants and other civilian trespassers caught in the primary mission is to detect and track illegal border crossers as part of the Trump administration's quest for "100% operational control" of the border at a time when migrant arrests are near an historic the international boundary, Reuters saw warning signs posted inside the United States around 45 feet north of the border barrier around every 100 meters, facing south. That meant if you had crossed the border and could read them, you were already in the caught illegally crossing the border into the zones face new trespassing charges on top of unlawful entry to the country, with combined penalties of up to 10 years imprisonment. Attempts to prosecute them for trespassing have in May, federal judges in Texas and New Mexico have dismissed trespassing charges against migrants caught within the area and acquitted a Peruvian woman brought to trial, ruling there was no evidence they saw signs before entering the border crossings fell to a record low in March after the Biden administration shut down asylum claims in 2024 and Mexico tightened immigration who banned people from claiming asylum on the southern border shortly after starting his second term in January, nonetheless says the military areas are needed to repel an "invasion" of human traffickers and drug the past four months Trump raised the number of active-duty troops on the border to 8,000 from 2,500 at the end of the Biden administration, according to the U.S. since Richard Nixon have used regular troops and reservists for support roles on the border. Trump has taken it a step Bureau of Land Management in April transferred 110,000 acres (172 square miles) of land in New Mexico, an area seven times the size of Manhattan, to the U.S. Army for three years to establish a first zone. A second was created in May with a transfer of International Boundary and Water Commission land in areas are satellites of the Fort Huachuca and Fort Bliss Army bases in Arizona and Texas, gives troops the right to hold and question civilian trespassers without the need for Trump to invoke the Insurrection Act. The law lets a president deploy federal forces domestically during events like civil 105 Stryker combat vehicles and around 2,400 troops from the 4th Infantry Division deployed from Colorado Springs in March. They rove in armored personnel carriers across New Mexico, Texas and saw Strykers concentrated in a roughly 20-mile ribbon from El Paso west to Santa Teresa, one of the 2,000-mile border's busiest and most deadly areas for migrant 8-wheeled vehicles, used by Americans in Iraq and Afghanistan, and now by Ukraine in its war with Russia, can be seen parked under a bridge to Mexico, atop a landfill and on a ridge above a gap in the border engines run 24/7 to cool crews in the 100 F. (38 C.) plus heat. Vehicles are unarmed but soldiers have personal weapons. Crews take shifts operating the joystick-controlled camera systems that can see for two miles (3.2 km) and have night vision, according to the Army.A person familiar with Strykers, who asked not to be named, said the work was "monotonous" but said it gave soldiers "a sense of purpose."Troops have alerted Border Patrol to 390 illegal crossings in the nearly two months since the first zone was established. They made their first detentions on June 3, holding 3 "illegal aliens" in New Mexico before handing them over to Border Patrol, according to Army spokesperson Geoffrey Patrol arrested 39,677 migrants in the El Paso sector in the fiscal year to April, down 78% from the year-earlier outside his juice bar in Sunland Park, Harold Gregory says he has seen a sharp drop in migrants entering his store or asking customers for a ride since Strykers arrived."We feel safer," said Gregory, 38. "They do kind of like intimidate so there's not so many people come this way."In neighboring Santa Teresa, trade consultant Jerry Pacheco says the optics of combat vehicles are not good as he tries to draw international firms to the town's industrial park."It's like killing an ant with a sledgehammer," says Pacheco, executive director of the International Business Accelerator , a nonprofit trade counseling program. "I think having the military down here is more of a political splash."About 90 miles (143 km) west, New Mexico rancher Russell Johnson said he saw five Strykers briefly positioned in a gap in the border barrier on his welcomes the zone as an extra layer of security and has testified to the U.S. Congress on illegal border crossers destroying barbed wire fences, cattle thieves driving livestock into Mexico and a pickup stolen at gunpoint by drug is unsure if his home, or over half his ranch, is inside the area but has been assured by U.S. Border Patrol he can continue to work land ranched by his family since 1918."I don't know, I don't think anyone knows," says Johnson, 37, a former Border Patrol agent, of the zone's says the Army has not communicated rules for hunters with permits to shoot quail and mule deer this fall in the military area, or hikers who start or end the 3,000-mile (4,800 km) Continental Divide Trail within Army has been seeking memoranda of understanding with local communities and agencies to continue activities in the New Mexico zone, said Nicole Wieman, a U.S. Army spokesperson."The MOU process for commercial and recreational activities, such as hunting, mining and ranching, is complex," Wieman Jones, Republican state representative for Johnson's area, said Americans can keep doing what they did before in the zone."They can carry their firearms as they would have prior," said Jones, who welcomed the troops to her "neglected" area where only a barbed-wire fence separates the two countries in the east in Las Cruces, the state's second largest city, State Representative Sarah Silva, a Democrat, said the zones have created fear and apprehension"I see this as an occupation of the U.S. Army on our lands," said in desert west of Santa Teresa, Battalion Search and Rescue leader Abbey Carpenter, 67, stands among dunes where the group has discovered the remains of 24 migrants in 18 months, mostly women. She is concerned the area could be absorbed into the military zone."Who's going to look for these remains if we're not allowed out here," she said, showing the jaw and other uncollected bones of a woman her group reported to local authorities in September. "Will they just be covered up by the desert sands?"
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Business Standard
2 days ago
- Business Standard
Trump's military parade rare in peacetime, but rooted in US tradition
Troops marching in lockstep. Patriotic tunes filling the air. The commander in chief looking on at it all. The military parade commemorating the US Army's 250th anniversary and coinciding with President Donald Trump 's 79th birthday will be a new spectacle for many Americans. This will not be the first US military parade. However, it is unusual outside of wartime, and Trump's approach stands out compared to his predecessors. The Army had long planned a celebration for its semi-quincentennial on June 14. Trump has wanted to preside over a grand military parade since his first presidency from 2017 to 2021. When he took office a second time, he found the ideal convergence and ratcheted the Pentagon's plans into a full-scale military parade on his birthday. The president, who is expected to speak in Washington as part of the affair, pitches the occasion as a way to celebrate US power and service members' sacrifice. But there are bipartisan concerns about the cost as well as concerns about whether Trump is blurring traditional understandings of what it means to be a civilian commander in chief. Early US troop reviews Ceremonial reviews troops looking their best and conducting drills for top commanders trace back through medieval kingdoms to ancient empires of Rome, Persia and China. The pageantry continued in the young US republic: Early presidents held military reviews as part of July 4th independence celebrations. That ended with James K. Polk, who was president from 1845 to 1849. President Andrew Johnson resurrected the tradition in 1865, holding a two-day Grand Review of the Armies five weeks after Abraham Lincoln's assassination. It came after Johnson declared the Civil War over, a show of force meant to salve a war-weary nation though more fighting and casualties would occur. Infantry, cavalry and artillery units 145,000 soldiers, and even cattle traversed Pennsylvania Avenue. Johnson, his Cabinet and top Army officers, including Ulysses S. Grant, Lincoln's last commanding general and the future 18th president, watched from a White House viewing stand. Spanish-American War and World War I: An era of victory parades begins The Spanish-American War was the first major international conflict for a reunited nation since the Civil War. It ended in a US victory that established an American empire: Spain ceded Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Guam, and the US purchased the Philippines for $20 million. Puerto Rico and Guam remain US territories. New York City hosted multiple celebrations of a new global power. In August 1898, a fleet of warships, including the Brooklyn, the Texas, and the Oregon, sailed up the North River, more commonly known today as the Hudson River. American inventor Thomas Edison filmed the floating parade. The following September, New York hosted a naval and street parade to welcome home Rear Adm. George Dewey, who joined President William McKinley in a viewing stand. Many US cities held World War I victory parades a few decades later. But neither Washington nor President Woodrow Wilson were the focal point. In Boston, a million civilians celebrated 20,000 troops in 1919. New York honoured 25,000 troops marching in full uniform and combat gear. New York was the parade epicentre again for World War II On June 13, 1942, as US involvement in World War II accelerated, about 30,000 people formed a mobilisation parade in New York City. Participants included Army and Navy personnel, American Women's Voluntary Services members, Boy Scouts and military school cadets. Scores of floats rolled, too. One carried a massive bust of President Franklin Roosevelt, who did not attend. Less than four years later, the 82nd Airborne Division and Sherman tanks led a victory parade down Manhattan's Fifth Avenue. Gen. Dwight Eisenhower, the Allied commander during World War II, rode in a victory parade in Washington, DC. In 1952, Eisenhower would join Grant and George Washington as top wartime commanders elevated to the presidency following their military achievements. Other World War II generals were honoured in other homecoming parades. A long parade gap, despite multiple wars The US did not hold national or major city parades after wars in Korea and Vietnam. Both ended without clear victory; Vietnam, especially, sparked bitter societal division, enough so that President Gerald Ford opted against a strong military presence in 1976 bicentennial celebrations, held a year after the fall of Saigon. Washington finally hosted a victory parade in 1991 after the first Persian Gulf War. The Constitution Avenue lineup included 8,000 troops, tanks, Patriot missiles and representatives of the international coalition, led by the US, that quickly drove an invading Iraq out of Kuwait. The commander in chief, George H.W. Bush, is the last US president to have held an active-duty military post. He had been a World War II combat pilot who survived his plane being shot down over the Pacific Ocean. Veterans of the second Iraq and Afghanistan wars that followed the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks have not been honoured in national parades. Inaugurations and a flight suit Inaugural parades include and sometimes feature military elements. Eisenhower's 1953 inaugural parade, at the outset of the Cold War, included 22,000 service members and an atomic cannon. Eight years later, President John F. Kennedy, a World War II Naval officer, watched armoured tanks, Army and Navy personnel, dozens of missiles and Navy boats pass in front of his reviewing stand. More recent inaugurations have included honour guards, academy cadets, military bands and other personnel but not large combat assets. Notably, US presidents, even when leading or attending military events, wear civilian attire rather than military garb, a standard set by Washington, who also eschewed being called General Washington in favour of Mr. President. Perhaps the lone exception came in 2003, when President George W. Bush, who had been a National Guard pilot, wore a flight suit when he landed on the USS Abraham Lincoln and declared the end of major combat operations in Iraq, which US forces had invaded six weeks earlier. The aircraft carrier was not a parade venue but the president emerged to raucous cheers from uniformed service members. He put on a business suit to deliver a nationally televised speech in front a Mission Accomplished banner. As the war dragged on to a less decisive outcome, that scene and its enduring images would become a political liability for the president. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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First Post
2 days ago
- First Post
FirstUp: Meloni to host Nato's Mark Rutte, UNGA vote on Gaza... The headlines today
Italian PM Giorgia Meloni will be hosting Nato General Secretary Mark Rutte in Rome today. UNGA will hold an emergency vote on a resolution demanding a ceasefire and humanitarian access in Gaza read more It is set to be a busy Thursday with several events lined up for the day. Firstly, Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni will be hosting Nato chief Mark Rutte today in Rome. Meanwhile, the UN General Assembly will hold an emergency vote on a resolution demanding a ceasefire and humanitarian access in Gaza. The Chinese Vice President is scheduled to meet Spanish PM Pedro Sánchez today to hold bilateral talks. In India, a hearing for a petition concerning the stampede at the Chinnaswamy Stadium will take place today while Krutrim, the artificial intelligence arm of Bhavish Agarwal's Ola Group, will launch its own AI assistant chatbot. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Here is all that is set to take place today. Meloni to host Nato chief Mark Rutte Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will officially host Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte today. The meeting will take place at the Palazzo Chigi in Rome. According to reports, this invitation signals Italy's strong commitment to Nato solidarity. According to experts, this high-level meeting is more than ceremonial. With the Nato summit looming, Meloni and Rutte are set to chart a course for stronger defence collaboration, increased military spending and unified support for Ukraine, all while reaffirming Italy's strategic role within Nato's evolving defence landscape. UNGA vote on Gaza The UN General Assembly (UNGA) will hold an emergency vote on a Spain‑led resolution demanding a ceasefire and humanitarian access in Gaza . This comes after a nearly identical text in the UNSC was vetoed by the United States on June 4, preventing adoption despite support from 14 of 15 members. UNGA will meet to vote on the humanitarian situation in Gaza. File image/AP Since the Security Council couldn't act, member states escalated the issue to the General Assembly, where no veto is possible, to issue a global political statement. Although non-binding, UNGA resolutions reflect global sentiment. Observers anticipate broad support as most countries are expected to vote 'yes,' with the United States and Israel almost certainly opposing. Chinese VP to meet in Spain's PM China's Vice President, Han Zheng is set to hold bilateral talks with Spanish PM Pedro Sánchez in Madrid today. The meeting is a reciprocal of Sánchez's efforts to position Spain as a strategic EU–China interlocutor and to entice Chinese investment in green tech. Zheng is on a four-day visit to Spain starting June 10. The trip comes after Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez's earlier trip to Beijing. He is also expected to hold a formal audience with King Felipe VI. While the relationship between the two nations is largely seen as blossoming, some tensions exist, particularly concerning Beijing's anti-dumping inquiry into EU pork, which has impacted Spain as a major exporter. Krutrim to launch chatbot Ola Group's Artificial Intelligence wing, Krutrim , is set to launch its own agentic AI assistant dubbed 'Kruti' today. 'Ask Kruti what to eat, where to order, or how to cook it. Your own food agent will now be just a prompt away. Coming on 12th June!' Krutrim posted on social media platform X, with a video visualising the tool. Ask Kruti what to eat, where to order, or how to cook it. Your own food agent will now be just a prompt away. Coming on 12th June! ⚡ — कृत्रिम (@Krutrim) June 10, 2025 STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'Kruti' is billed as 'India's first agentic AI assistant,' indicating a move beyond traditional chatbots that merely respond to prompts. Unlike standard conversational AI, Kruti is designed to be proactive, anticipate user needs, make decisions, and autonomously execute tasks within defined boundaries. Hearing on Bengaluru stampede case The Karnataka High Court is set to continue the hearing on a petition in connection to the stampede in Bengaluru's Chinnaswamy Stadium that claimed 11 lives. During previous hearings, the High Court has pressed the government for a comprehensive report, which the Advocate General was granted permission to submit in a sealed cover by June 12 due to ongoing investigations and legal sensitivities. The state government has largely blamed RCB and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), alleging that no proper permissions were sought for the event and that organizers 'invited the whole world' via social media without adequate arrangements. The stampede took place during a felicitation event for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) IPL team, where an unexpectedly large crowd gathered. The Karnataka High Court took suo motu cognizance of the incident and has been actively seeking answers from the state government regarding crowd safety, administrative planning, and adherence to protocols. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD With inputs from agencies
