A FEMALE journalist has died after spending more than a year in Russian detention, claim Ukrainian officials.

Victoria Roshchyna, 27, mysteriously disappeared last August while reporting from inside Russian-occupied Ukraine with officials now saying she has tragically died as Vladimir Putin’s prisoner of war.

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Roshchyna’s family first reported her missing to Ukrainian officials on August 12 last year after not hearing from her for days.

The journalist last spoke to her sister a week earlier as she said she had made it through routine border checks to get across Russian land but didn’t disclose her location.

An official missing person case was then filed on September 21.

The esteemed Ukrainian reporter was missing for over 6 months with her whereabouts finally revealed in April 2024 when her worried father was sent a letter from Moscow.

Russia‘s defence ministry said Roshchyna was being held at a Russian detention centre, according to Ukraine’s main journalist union.

The reason why she was arrested and subjected to months of imprisonment has never been made public.

The exact location of the jail has also been kept underwraps by Russian officials.

Her death was first announced by Petro Yatsenko, a spokesman for Ukraine’s prison of war coordination headquarters.

He said: “Unfortunately, information about Victoria’s death has been confirmed.

“It is too early to talk about the circumstances of the death, we are working to establish them.”

Press rights group Reporters Without Borders say they are “shocked” over Roshchyna’s death.

Russian news outlet Mediazona have claimed she may have died when she was being transferred to Moscow from a prison in Taganrog, near to the Ukrainian border.

The 27-year-old was also caught up in Russian aggression in March 2022 when a group of Kremlin spies reportedly kidnapped Roshchyna just hours after her car was shot at.

Victoria claimed at the time that Russians fired at her vehicle and forced a group of press to abandon the car and lie down hiding in a field.

After returning to the car some time after and continuing on with the trip across southern Ukraine Roshchyna was allegedly taken by the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB), her colleagues said.

She was released after 10 days in captivity.

Unfortunately, information about Victoria’s death has been confirmed

Petro YatsenkoUkraine’s prison of war coordination headquarters

Roshchyna worked as a freelancer for various independent news outlets in Eastern Europe.

These included Ukrainska Pravda and the Ukrainian service of US-funded media outlet Radio Free Europe.

In 2022, her frontline reporting was honoured when she received the Courage in Journalism award by the International Women’s Media Foundation.

Roshchyna is just one of thousands of Ukrainians known to be held in Russia after they opposed to Moscow’s iron fist ruling.

Many have been detained in Russian-occupied territories since Putin’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Rights groups say some have faced torture and abuse at the hands of their captors.

Back in May, Ukraine claimed more than two dozen media officials are being held in Russian captivity.

The country are in negotiations to free those still locked up.

Many other Russian prisoners jailed on bogus charges have been released this year.

A huge 24 person swap deal between the US and Russia in July saw journalists, military officials and foreign opposers to Putin’s regime freed in exchange for Russian prisoners.

Those rescued included former US marine Paul Whelan and British-Russian journalist Vladimir Kara-Murza.

The most notable person was Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich who had spent 491 days inside a horrific Russian penal system on trumped up charges.

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Barack Obama has said Black men’s support for Donald Trump is “not acceptable”, suggesting they were uncomfortable with a female candidate as the former Democratic president hit the campaign trail for Kamala Harris.

Obama said in an unannounced stop at a Harris campaign office in the swing state Pennsylvania that he had not detected the “same kinds of energy and turnout in all quarters of our neighbourhoods and communities as we saw when I was running”.

The problem seemed to be “more pronounced with the brothers”, Obama said. Support for Trump, whom he said had denigrated women, was “not acceptable”.

“You’re coming up with all kinds of reasons and excuses. I’ve got a problem with that,” Obama, the first African-American US president, said hours before he was due to hold a rally for Harris, the vice-president, in Pittsburgh.

The comments come as Harris and Trump vie for undecided voters that could determine one of the tightest White House races in decades. Trump has made inroads with some Black male voters in battlegrounds such as Georgia, in contrast to Harris’s success in energising women voters.

Obama’s intervention comes less than a month before the election and marks a new effort to boost Harris, who was an early supporter of his bid for the White House in 2008. The former president remains among the most popular Democratic politicians and is one of its best communicators.

Obama said on Thursday that he was “speaking to men directly” when he said: “It makes me think that, well, you just aren’t feeling the idea of having a woman as president, and you’re coming up with other alternatives and other reasons for that.

“Women in our lives have been getting our backs this entire time . . . when we get in trouble and the system isn’t working for us, they’re the ones out there marching and protesting. And now, you’re thinking about sitting out or supporting somebody who has a history of denigrating you, because you think that’s a sign of strength, because that’s what being a man is? Putting women down? That’s not acceptable.”

Harris, the daughter of a Black father and an Indian-American mother, would be the first female US president. Polls put her in a dead heat with Trump in the seven swing states that will determine who wins the White House in November.

Several recent polls have shown that Harris’s levels of support are lower among Black voters, and Black men in particular, than Joe Biden had in 2020.

CHRISTMAS is a magical time of year and one of the best ways to get into the festive spirit is to see a light show. 

There are many stunning light shows across England from Kew Gardens in London to Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire.

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Some even serve festive treats including mulled wine and gingerbread men to help you get into the fun of the season. 

Here are the eight best Christmas light shows in England.

Kew Gardens, London

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When Christmas arrives, Kew Gardens is lit up with more than a million bulbs.

It’s an entirely new way to see the 320 acre attraction which is home to over 16,000 species of plants. 

The gardens are bathed in warm, colourful light and the trail is lined with thousands of candles, holographic laser beams and canopies of fairy lights. 

Visiting Christmas at Kew doesn’t have to break the bank either, as ticket prices range from £21.50 for members at off-peak times to £26 at peak times. 

For non-members, it is a little bit more expensive with off-peak tickets costing £25.50 and peak tickets costing £32. 

Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire

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The grounds at Blenheim Palace are already so beautiful that they have been used in Harry Potter, James Bond and Indiana Jones — but Christmas there is really something special.

There are thousands of illuminated lights transforming the historic building and grounds into a winter wonderland.

Kids will love the Neverland in the palace experience, which gives them the opportunity to explore the sparkling state rooms, complete with a model London skyline

Also, £1 will be added at basket stage for each Neverland in the Palace ticket to Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity. 

Longleat, Wiltshire

Bristol is home to the beautiful Longleat House which opens its gates for visitors to welcome them to its annual Festival of Light. 

The grounds, which are home to one of the UK’s most exciting safari parks, will turn back the clock and take visitors on a journey from the dawn of man to the present day. 

But that’s not all because this light show has a Santa train to meet Father Christmas and his elves.

The Festival of Light runs from November 9, 2024 to January 5, 2025.

Oxford Street and Regent Street

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Oxford Street and Regent Street are among the busiest streets in Europe and they are both home to some of England’s best light displays every Christmas.

Both streets have over 300,000 LED lights which provide great photo opportunities while you do some Christmas shopping. 

Regent Street has huge angels of light spanning across the entire street and Oxford Street is draped in over 5,000 white stars. 

Oxford Street will be lighting up from November 5, 2024, and Regent Street will follow suit just two days later. 

Killerton, Exeter

Christmas at Killerton will feature a traditional Christmas experience that includes an enchanted decorated house, which has green garlands, warming fireplaces and lush trees to make you feel cosy.

There is more fun to be had in the garden, which has an outdoor trail for the kids to enjoy.

The gardens and chapel grounds will be covered in Christmas lights, making it the best location for a Christmas family photo so dress to impress.

Christmas at Killerton will run from November 26, 2024 to January 2, 2025.

Bedgebury, Kent

Bedgebury is home to a one-mile magical winter trail which has fields of light and giant luminous seed pods.

Then, you’ll walk through sparkling tunnels of light and the forest is drenched in all of the colours of the rainbow.

It’s perfect for a little Christmas warmth on a cold December day.

Christmas at Bedgebury runs from November 14 to December 31, 2024.

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Mayfield Park, Manchester

The Twilight Trail transforms Mayfield Park into a 6.5 acre Christmas extravaganza with 50,000 lights.

From hot chocolate to toasted marshmallows, there is plenty to eat and drink as visitors wander through the winter wonderland.

Tickets are now on sale. Adult tickets priced at £14 and child tickets are £9, with under two-year-olds gaining free entry.

The Twilight Trail runs from November 14 to December 31, 2024.

Liverpool Cathedral

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The Light Before Christmas 2024: Starlight is an immersive sound and light installation by the acclaimed artistic collective Luxmuralis, in one of the most historic cities in England.

The cathedral will be become a stunning display of sound, light and storytelling — but it only runs for one day so you’ll need to hurry to get tickets.

Head on to Liverpool to catch The Light Before Christmas when takes place on November 30, 2024.

Barack Obama laid into fellow former President Donald Trump so thoroughly on Thursday that more than one X user quipped, “I’d like to report a murder.“

Obama, speaking at a rally in Pittsburgh, ticked off a long list of reasons why voters should reject Trump and vote for Democratic nominee Kamala Harris next month.

He disparaged “the constant attempts to sell you stuff” including gold sneakers, a $100,000 watch and the Trump Bible. “Who does that?” asked Obama with an incredulous shrug.

“You know, he wants you to buy the word of God, Donald Trump edition. Got his name right there next to Matthew and Luke,” he said of Trump’s “God Bless the USA Bibles,” which, it was reported this week, were printed in China. They are priced at $59.99 each.

The 44th president continued to blast the 45th, recalling his shock at finding out how much diapers cost after his oldest daughter Malia was born. “Do you think Donald Trump ever changed a diaper?,” he asked about the father of five.

One attendee shouted, “His own!”

Obama admitted with a laugh, “I almost said that, but I decided I should not say it.”

Trump was dubbed “Diaper Don” by the media in 2020 over reports that he wore adult diapers while filming the reality competition “The Apprentice.”

Trump supporters not only shrugged at the suggestion when it resurfaced during Trump’s tax fraud trial earlier this year, but proudly began wearing the absorbent underwear themselves at campaign events and carrying signs that read “real men wear diapers.”

Obama also blasted Trump for taking credit for the state of the economy when he took office in 2021. “I remember that economy when he first came in being pretty good. Yeah, it was pretty good, because it was my economy. It wasn’t something he did. I spent eight years cleaning up the mess that the Republicans had left me,” he said.

Watch a clip from the rally in the video above, and click through to @Acyn’s X account for more.

The post Obama Roasts Trump for Everything From Selling Bibles to Needing a Diaper at Pittsburgh Rally | Video appeared first on TheWrap.

Your editorial on Governor Gavin Newsom’s veto of California’s artificial intelligence safety bill (SB 1047) hits the nail on the head (“California’s AI bill was well-meaning but flawed”, FT View, October 3). The bill was flawed for several reasons. It risked stifling innovation, applied stringent standards too broadly, and couldn’t account for unforeseen misuses of AI. The FT board is correct that getting AI regulation right is worth the effort.

However, your suggestion that lawmakers should simply “rework and clarify vague rules” does not address a fundamental issue. Legislators currently lack the necessary information about how harms from these systems materialise and evolve in the real world to be able to design truly effective regulations. No amount of rule tweaking — whether adjusting metrics, adding safeguards or redefining terms — will resolve this problem.

Thankfully, California can be the birthplace of a better approach. The upcoming meeting of the International Network of AI Safety Institutes in San Francisco provides an ideal platform to shift the focus. Countries on this global stage should collaborate on tracking AI incidents and developing methods to assess the broader societal impacts of these models, such as effects on the environment.

By championing a smarter, evidence-based approach to AI safety, policymakers can better balance fostering innovation with establishing the necessary guardrails to protect society.

Hodan Omaar
Senior Policy Manager, Center for Data Innovation, Washington, DC, US

Renault defends the decision by emphasizing that with continuous updates—what would typically be called facelifts—the Renault 5 can remain relevant for at least 10 to 15 years.

“We won’t keep the 5 exactly the same for seven years. But it’s an iconic product, so we don’t want to change the design. The structure will stay the same for a long time—perhaps 10, 12, or even 15 years—just like the Fiat 500. But you can change everything inside,” Renault CEO Luca de Meo told the publication.

The French automaker is already considering the first updates to the car, even before the first customers take the wheel. One such update includes adding shift paddles on the steering wheel.

However, unlike traditional cars with combustion engines, these paddles won’t be used to shift gears.

Instead, Renault plans to allow drivers to control braking and energy regeneration through the steering wheel paddles.

Additionally, the car will feature a ‘one-pedal’ driving mode, where the car slows down enough on its own that drivers only need to keep their right foot on the accelerator.