Month: August 2022

Filings made by Elon Musk's legal team in his battle with Twitter have been questioned by leading bot researchers.  Botometer - an online tool that tracks spam and fake accounts - was used by Mr Musk in a countersuit against Twitter. Using the tool, Mr Musk's team estimated that 33% of "visible accounts" on the social media platform were "false or spam accounts". However, Botometer creator and maintainer, Kaicheng Yang, said the figure "doesn't mean anything". Mr Yang questioned the methodology used by Mr Musk's team, and told the BBC they had not approached him before using the tool. Mr Musk is currently in dispute with Twitter, after trying to pull out of a deal to purchase the company for $44bn (£36.6bn). A court case is ...

Russia has rejected appeals for a complete demilitarisation of the area around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in southern Ukraine. The move would make the plant more vulnerable, a Russian official said. The calls come amid growing concern over safety at the site - Europe's largest nuclear plant - as both sides accuse each other of shelling the area. Ukrainian workers operate the plant, which has been under Russian control since March. It was one of the first sites seized by Russian troops following the invasion of Ukraine on 24 February. UN Secretary General António Guterres sounded the alarm after meeting Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky and Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Lviv on Thursday. "Any potential...

The Finnish Prime Minister, Sanna Marin, is facing a backlash after being seen partying in a leaked video. In the footage, thought to be taken from social media, she and friends including Finnish celebrities are seen dancing and singing. She has faced criticism from opposition parties, with one leader demanding she take a drug test. Ms Marin, 36, denied taking drugs, saying she only drank alcohol and just partied "in a boisterous way". Formerly the world's youngest head of government - a title now held by Chilean President Gabriel Boric - Ms Marin makes no secret of partying, and has often been photographed at music festivals. Last year she apologised for going clubbing after coming into close contact with a Covid-19 case. ...

The rhetoric surrounding Europe's biggest nuclear power plant close to the front line in Ukraine is becoming increasingly alarming, with international figures warning of the risk of a major accident. UN Secretary General António Guterres believes potential damage to the Zaporizhzhia plant could be "suicide" and Turkey's president has said no-one wants another Chernobyl - the world's worst nuclear accident when Ukraine was under Soviet rule. Russia seized the site on the left bank of the River Dnieper at the start of its war but this month the two sides have accused each other of repeatedly shelling it. Each claims the other is planning a provocation. Ukraine says a Russian film crew has already staged a shelling to blame on Kyiv. Russian defence officia...

Voters in the US state of Wyoming have cast their ballots in a primary election that pits moderate Republican views against Donald Trump's unfounded claims of election fraud. Liz Cheney - the sitting state congresswoman and one of the few Republicans to have been fiercely critical of the former president - faces a major challenge from a relative political newcomer and Trump-backed candidate, Harriet Hageman. As one of only two members of her party to have joined the committee investigating Mr Trump's attempts to cling to power, Ms Cheney has placed her three-term tenure on the line. All 10 Republicans who voted to impeach Mr Trump after his supporters attacked the US Capitol building in January last year have been targeted in a scorched-earth campaign o...

A week after an apparent Ukrainian attack on a Russian military base in occupied Crimea, an arms store at another military facility has been hit by a series of explosions. Blaming "sabotage", Russian officials said a fire triggered the blasts in the Dzhankoi area, another fire hit a power station and a railway was damaged. A string of blasts last week destroyed Russian warplanes at a Black Sea base on the Crimean coast. Ukraine has not admitted that attack. However, presidential office adviser Mykhailo Podolyak has described the latest incident as "demilitarisation in action", indicating that the explosions were not accidental. Crimea was seized from Ukraine and then annexed by Russia in early 2014. Russia gave no indication...