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The first image of Imelda Staunton portraying the Queen in the fifth series of The Crown has been released. Netflix released the picture via their Twitter account, saying it was an "early glimpse" of the new monarch in the royal drama. Staunton, 65, takes on the role played by Claire Foy and Olivia Colman, as the latest series follows the royal family in the 21st century. Netflix said the drama's sixth and last series will end in the early 2000s.

Source: bbc.com

The United States imposed sanctions on the Cuban police force and two of its leaders on Friday in response to the Havana government's crackdown on protesters, and President Joe Biden promised Cuban-American leaders more actions were coming. The U.S. Treasury Department said the sanctions, which appeared to be largely symbolic, were a reaction to "actions to suppress peaceful, pro-democratic protests in Cuba that began on July 11."

Source: reuters.com

An Afghan police guard was killed Friday when a United Nations compound came under attack in Herat, officials said, as fighting raged between government forces and the Taliban on the outskirts of the western city.

Source: france24.com

Japan’s prime minister has warned the country’s health system could collapse if Covid infections continue to spread at their current rate, as he extended and expanded a state of emergency. Yoshihide Suga also issued new pre-emergency measures as daily Covid-19 infection rates climbed above 10,000 cases for the first time since the pandemic hit in early 2020.

Source: independent.co.uk

Netflix will air a documentary series on Formula One great Michael Schumacher from Sept. 15, the online streaming platform said on Friday. Approved by his family, "Schumacher" features interviews with his wife and children, including F1 racer son Mick, and other past and present drivers, Netflix said. Schumacher, 52, who won a record seven F1 titles since equalled by Briton Lewis Hamilton, has not been seen in public since suffering severe head injuries in a skiing accident in 2013.

Source: reuters.com

Nigerian sprinter Blessing Okagbare has been provisionally suspended for doping just hours before the former World Championships silver medallist was due to run in Saturday’s semi-finals of the women’s 100 metres at the Olympics. Okagbare tested positive for human growth hormone in an out-of-competition test on July 19, four days before the Olympics opened, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) said, prompting a mandatory provisional suspension.

Source: aljazeera.com

A "unique" Anglo-Saxon coin found in a field in south Wiltshire is expected to fetch up to £200,000 at auction. The Gold Penny, or Mancus of 30 Pence, was unearthed by a metal detectorist in a field near West Dean in March 2020. Weighing 4.82g, it was struck between 802 and 839 during the reign of Ecgberht, King of the West Saxons. Thought to be the only late Anglo-Saxon gold coin in private hands, it is expected to fetch between £150,000 and £200,000 at auction on 8 September.

Source: bbc.com

The U.S. State Department said on Friday it has approved the potential sale of 18 CH-53K heavy lift helicopters to Israel in a deal valued at up to $3.4 billion. The package would include engines, navigation systems, weaponry, support equipment, spares and technical support. Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N)and General Electric Co (GE.N)are the prime contractors on the deal. Despite the approval by the State Department, the notification does not indicate that a contract has been signed or that negotiations have concluded.

Source: reuters.com

Flooding and landslides have left thousands of refugees cut off from food supplies in Ituango, the conflict-strewn municipality in north-western Colombia. Roads have been blocked by mud and debris after heavy rains, while helicopters have been unable to land. As a result, the delivery of food and medical supplies has been stymied, and communications cut off. More than 4,000 people have fled the violence of militias operating in the resource-rich region in recent months. Bringing only what they could carry with them, entire families have fled from their homes in rural hamlets to the urban hub anchoring the region. According to the UN, 1,300 of those displaced are children.

Source: theguardian.com

Two crew members of an oil tanker managed by a prominent Israeli businessman's company were killed off Oman in what appears to be a drone attack, the vessel's London-based operator and the US military said Friday, with Israel blaming Iran.

Source: france24.com

An Illinois woman has been charged with disturbing wildlife after she was filmed approaching a grizzly bear in Yellowstone National Park. A widely shared video showed Samantha Dehring approaching the bear and two cubs to take a photograph. Ms Dehring only walks away after the mother bear runs at her. She now faces several charges, as well as "violating closures and use limits". She has faces federal charges under a federal law that bans "feeding, touching, teasing, frightening or intentional disturbing of wildlife nesting, breeding or other activities".

Source: bbc.com

The United Nations children's agency said on Friday that more than 100,000 children in Ethiopia's northern region of Tigray could suffer life-threatening malnutrition in the next 12 months, a 10-fold increase to normal numbers. UNICEF spokesperson Marixie Mercado said that one-in-two pregnant and breastfeeding women screened in Tigray were acutely malnourished.

Source: reuters.com

AWorld War II Royal Air Force (RAF) pilot's uniform is set to be sold at auction after it was discovered wrapped in newspaper dating back to 1951. The "mystery" parcel containing the jacket and pants was found in a house in a village in East Staffordshire, England. It had been unopened for 70 years, Hansons Auctioneers said in a press release.

Source: cnn.com

China’s military and state media have warned the UK against provocation as it sent a carrier strike group, led by a Royal Navy aircraft carrier, through the contested South China Sea. A spokesman for China’s Ministry of National Defence, Wu Qian, said it respected freedom of navigation but firmly opposed any naval activities that aimed to provoke controversy.

Source: theguardian.com

A security guard has been jailed for more than five years for stabbing 16 cats in a series of night-time attacks. Steven Bouquet killed nine cats around Brighton between October 2018 and June 2019. Seven more were injured. The 54-year-old had denied 16 counts of criminal damage and possession of a knife but was found guilty in June. Bouquet, who has been dubbed the "Brighton cat killer", was sentenced to five years and three months in prison at Hove Crown Court.

Source: bbc.com

Monsoon floods and landslides have cut off more than 300,000 people in villages across southeast Bangladesh and killed at least 20 people including six Rohingya refugees, officials said Friday. The region along the Bangladesh-Myanmar border where nearly one million Rohingya refugees from Myanmar are in camps has been battered by torrential rain since Monday.

Source: france24.com

Novak Djokovic's hopes of winning a 'Golden Slam' are over after he lost to Alexander Zverev in the Olympic tennis semi-finals. Serb Djokovic, the world number one, was bidding to become the first man to win all four Grand Slam titles and an Olympic gold medal in the same year. But German Zverev, 24, came from a set down to win 1-6 6-3 6-1 at the Ariake Tennis Park in Tokyo. The fourth seed will meet Russian Karen Khachanov in Sunday's final.

Source: bbc.com

The National Gallery of Australia announced Thursday that it will return more than a dozen "culturally significant" artworks to India due to the items' alleged links to looting and trafficking networks. Thirteen of the works, which include bronze and stone sculptures, historical photographs and a painted scroll, had been purchased directly from the disgraced New York art dealer Subhash Kapoor, who stands accused of smuggling thousands of antiquities from across Asia. A 14th item, acquired from the late dealer William Wolff, will also be repatriated.

Source: cnn.com