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Best photos of July 18: Wildfires in France to drying tomatoes in Tunisia

Best photos of July 18: Wildfires in France to drying tomatoes in Tunisia

The National18-07-2025
People walk past dried lava from previous volcanic activity as they make their way to watch the fresh eruption near Grindavik, Reykjanes, in south-west Iceland. EPA
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Trump opens Scottish golf course and vows 'peaceful world'
Trump opens Scottish golf course and vows 'peaceful world'

Khaleej Times

time6 days ago

  • Khaleej Times

Trump opens Scottish golf course and vows 'peaceful world'

Donald Trump officially opened his new golf course in Scotland on Tuesday, ending a five-day trip in which the US president signed a major trade deal with the EU and gave Russia less than two weeks to end the Ukraine war. To the sound of bagpipes, secret agents and golfers criss-crossed the sprawling complex on the Aberdeenshire coast, waiting for the president to tee off. "We started with a beautiful piece of land, but we made it much more beautiful, and the area has ... really, really welcomed us," Trump said before cutting the ribbon. "We'll play it very quickly, and then I go back to (Washington) DC and we put out fires all over the world," he added. "We have a world that's got some conflict, but we've ironed out a lot of it. We're gonna have a great and peaceful world." Trump's campaign song, the Village People's "YMCA", blared out after the ribbon cutting, as fireworks exploded in the background. The president then teed off with son Eric, who led the project. "This will be a tremendously successful place and a place where people can come and enjoy life," the US leader said, highlighting how his trip has again blurred the lines between his presidency and his business interests. "We wanted this to be the greatest 36 holes anywhere on Earth. And there's no question that that's been achieved," said Eric Trump. "This was his Mona Lisa," he said of his father's connection with the course. "Sculpting the dunes, sculpting the land, that was always his painting," he added. The new course features the world's largest natural bunker, dunes and greens overlooking the sea, with a "focus on environmental sensitivity", said a press release. Visible out to sea were the offshore wind turbines that Trump unsuccessfully tried to block. The president again spoke out against wind power as he hosted European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen on Sunday and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday. It was one of the many issues Trump addressed during free-wheeling press conferences at his other golf complex in Turnberry, western Scotland over the past days. With Von der Leyen, he announced a trade agreement in which the EU resigned itself to 15 per cent tariffs on goods entering the United States, a deal heavily criticised across the continent. At a press conference Monday with Starmer, Trump promised more aid for Gaza, gave Russian President Vladimir Putin a "10 or 12 day" ultimatum to cease hostilities in Ukraine. "I really felt it was going to end. But every time I think it's going to end he kills people," Trump said of the Russian leader. "I'm not so interested in talking (to him) anymore," he added. Trump also criticised London mayor Sadiq Khan at the press conference and waded back into UK politics on Tuesday when he took to his Truth Social platform to urge the government to cut taxes and incentivise oil drilling in the North Sea, denouncing wind turbines as "ugly monsters". "Incentivise the drillers, FAST. A VAST FORTUNE TO BE MADE for the UK, and far lower energy costs for the people," he wrote. Trump played golf at Turnberry on Saturday and Sunday on a visit that mixed leisure with diplomacy. He is to fly back to Washington on Tuesday.

Iceland volcano eruption forces residents and spa tourists to be evacuated
Iceland volcano eruption forces residents and spa tourists to be evacuated

The National

time17-07-2025

  • The National

Iceland volcano eruption forces residents and spa tourists to be evacuated

Dramatic pictures show lava spewing into the air as a volcano erupted in south-western Iceland. The seismic activity took place on the Reykjanes Peninsula south-west of capital Reykjavik on Wednesday at about 4am, Iceland's Met Office said. It forced residents and tourists at the Blue Lagoon geothermal spa to be evacuated, the national broadcaster RUV reported. About 100 people were evacuated from the nearby town of Grindavik. Tourists at a campsite and guests at the Blue Lagoon were also forced to leave, RUV reported. Police commissioner Margret Palsdottir told AP the evacuation went smoothly and lasted about 90 minutes. 'Of course, people have different opinions on whether the evacuation is necessary, but it is a decision we make and take responsibility for,' she said. Lava from the eruption continued to flow south-east from a fissure of 700 to 1,000 metres wide but was not threatening infrastructure, the Met Office said. Grindavik has been affected by activity since November 2023 when a volcano came to life after lying dormant for 800 years. Watch: Reykjanes volcano eruption in August 2024

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