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Police Search Royal Mansion as Probe Into King's Brother Goes On

British newspapers, featuring coverage of the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, younger brother of Britain's King Charles, on suspicion of misconduct in public office, sit on display in a newsagent in London, Britain, February 20, 2026. REUTERS/Jack Taylor
British newspapers, featuring coverage of the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, younger brother of Britain's King Charles, on suspicion of misconduct in public office, sit on display in a newsagent in London, Britain, February 20, 2026. REUTERS/Jack Taylor
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Police Search Royal Mansion as Probe Into King's Brother Goes On

British newspapers, featuring coverage of the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, younger brother of Britain's King Charles, on suspicion of misconduct in public office, sit on display in a newsagent in London, Britain, February 20, 2026. REUTERS/Jack Taylor
British newspapers, featuring coverage of the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, younger brother of Britain's King Charles, on suspicion of misconduct in public office, sit on display in a newsagent in London, Britain, February 20, 2026. REUTERS/Jack Taylor

British police were searching the former mansion of King Charles' younger brother Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor on Friday after a photograph of the royal emerging from a police station was splashed on newspapers around the world.

Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested on Thursday, his 66th birthday, on suspicion of misconduct in public office over allegations he sent confidential government documents to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein when he was a trade envoy.

The former prince was released under investigation after being held by police for more than 10 hours. He has not been charged with any offence but looked haunted in a Reuters photograph after his release, slumped in the back of ‌a Range Rover, eyes ‌red and with a look of disbelief on his face.

The photograph ‌of ⁠a man who ⁠was once a dashing naval officer and reputed favorite son of the late Queen Elizabeth was carried on the front page of newspapers in Britain and around the world, accompanied by headlines such as "Downfall".

Mountbatten-Windsor has always denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein, a convicted sex offender who took his own life in 2019, and said he regrets their friendship. But the release of millions of documents by the US government showed he had remained friends with Epstein long after the financier was convicted of soliciting prostitution from ⁠a minor in 2008.

Those files suggested Mountbatten-Windsor had forwarded to Epstein British ‌government reports about investment opportunities in Afghanistan and assessments of Vietnam, Singapore ‌and other places he had visited as the government's Special Representative for Trade and Investment.

The arrest of the senior royal, eighth in line to the throne, ‌is unprecedented in modern times. The last member of the royal family to be arrested in Britain was Charles I, who was beheaded in 1649 after being found guilty of treason.

King Charles, who stripped his brother of his title of prince and forced him out of his Windsor home last year, said on Thursday he ‌had learned about the arrest with "deepest concern".

"Let me state clearly: the law must take its course," the king said. "What now follows is the ⁠full, fair and proper process ⁠by which this issue is investigated in the appropriate manner and by the appropriate authorities."

The news broke early on Thursday morning that six unmarked police cars and around eight plain-clothed officers had arrived at Wood Farm on the king's Sandringham estate in Norfolk, eastern England, where Mountbatten-Windsor now resides.

Thames Valley Police officers also searched the mansion on the king's Windsor estate west of London where Mountbatten-Windsor had lived before being forced out amid anger at the Epstein revelations.

Officers said late on Thursday that the royal had been released under investigation. They said the searches at Sandringham had concluded but the searches in Windsor were continuing.

While being arrested means that police have reasonable suspicion that a crime has been committed and that the royal is suspected of involvement in an offence, it does not imply guilt.

A conviction for misconduct in a public office carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, and cases must be dealt with in a Crown Court, which handles the most serious criminal offences.

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World

Trump to Travel to China Next Month, with US Trade Policy in Focus

US President Donald Trump arrives at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, US, February 19, 2026. (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump arrives at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, US, February 19, 2026. (Reuters)
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Trump to Travel to China Next Month, with US Trade Policy in Focus

US President Donald Trump arrives at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, US, February 19, 2026. (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump arrives at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, US, February 19, 2026. (Reuters)

US President Donald Trump will travel to China from March 31 to April 2 for a highly anticipated meeting between the world's two biggest economies, following the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Trump's sweeping tariffs against imported goods.

A White House official confirmed the trip on Friday, just before the highest US court struck down many of the tariffs Trump has used to manage sometimes-tense relations with China.

Trump is expected to visit Beijing and meet Chinese President Xi Jinping as part of a lavish, extended visit. Trump was last in China in 2017, ‌the most ‌recent trip by a US president.

A key topic had been whether ‌to ⁠extend a trade ⁠truce that kept both countries from further hiking tariffs. After Friday's ruling, however, it was not immediately clear whether - and under what legal authority - Trump would restore tariffs on imports from China.

TRUMP SEES TRADE IMBALANCE AS NATIONAL EMERGENCY

The administration has said the tariffs were necessary because of national emergencies related to trade imbalances and China's role in producing illicit fentanyl-related chemicals.

"That's going to be a wild one," Trump told foreign leaders visiting Washington on Thursday ⁠about the trip. "We have to put on the biggest display you've ‌ever had in the history of China."

The Chinese ‌embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Beijing has not ‌confirmed the trip.

The visit would be the leaders' first talks since February and their first ‌in-person visit since an October meeting in South Korea. At that October meeting, Trump agreed to trim tariffs on China in exchange for Beijing cracking down on the fentanyl trade, resuming US soybean purchases and keeping rare earth minerals flowing.

While the October meeting largely sidestepped the sensitive issue of ‌Taiwan, Xi raised US arms sales to the island in February.

Washington announced its largest-ever arms sales deal with Taiwan in December, ⁠including $11.1 billion in ⁠weapons that could ostensibly be used to defend against a Chinese attack. Taiwan expects more such sales.

China views Taiwan as its own territory, a position Taipei rejects. The United States has formal diplomatic ties with China, but it maintains unofficial ties with Taiwan and is the island's most important arms supplier. The United States is bound by law to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself.

Xi also said during the February call that he would consider further increasing soybean purchases, according to Trump.

Struggling US farmers are a major political constituency for Trump, and China is the top soybean consumer.

Although Trump has justified several hawkish policy steps from Canada to Greenland and Venezuela as necessary to thwart China, he has eased policy toward Beijing in the past several months in key areas, from tariffs to advanced computer chips and drones.

World

Diplomacy Is Still the Only Viable Path to Peace in Ukraine, UN Refugee Chief Barham Salih Says

UNCHR High Commissioner Barham Salih talks during an interview with The Associated Press in Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, Feb. 20, 2026. (AP)
UNCHR High Commissioner Barham Salih talks during an interview with The Associated Press in Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, Feb. 20, 2026. (AP)
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Diplomacy Is Still the Only Viable Path to Peace in Ukraine, UN Refugee Chief Barham Salih Says

UNCHR High Commissioner Barham Salih talks during an interview with The Associated Press in Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, Feb. 20, 2026. (AP)
UNCHR High Commissioner Barham Salih talks during an interview with The Associated Press in Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, Feb. 20, 2026. (AP)

There are many obstacles to a peace deal in Ukraine, but a diplomatic solution remains the only viable option, the newly appointed head of the UN refugee agency said Friday, warning that humanitarian operations are increasingly overstretched because of multiple global crises.

Barham Salih, Iraq’s former president who was elected UNHCR high commissioner in December, made his first visit to Ukraine since taking office.

After traveling to Ukraine’s front-line cities, including Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia, he met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and discussed the latest in efforts to secure a peace deal. He also discussed the future of UNHCR operations as Ukraine endures Russian attacks on its energy grid during a harsh winter.

“You have to be hopeful, but I do understand the difficulties in the situation, and it’s clear, of course, there are many, many impediments along the way, but at the end of the day, there is no military solution. There needs to be peace, a durable and just peace so that people can go back to their lives,” he said, speaking to The Associated Press in an interview in Kyiv.

“Things are not necessarily easy, definitely not easy, but let’s redouble the effort to make sure that diplomacy has a chance and really bring about a durable and just peace to this war that has been going on for far too long,” he added.

Of the agency’s $470 million appeal for Ukraine, only $150 million has been pledged. The shortfall reflects deep cuts across the humanitarian sector, making it increasingly difficult to deliver aid across multiple crises.

There are 3.7 million Ukrainians displaced within the country and nearly 6 million Ukrainians outside the country who have become refugees in Europe and elsewhere, he said.

“This tells you the gap between what is needed and what is available,” he said. “My appeal to the international community is, really, this is not the moment to walk away, this is not a moment to look the other way round. These vulnerable populations need support. We should deliver this help to them.”

The UN agency in Ukraine predicts 10.8 million Ukrainians will require humanitarian assistance in 2026, according to a report from the agency. The most critical needs are concentrated along the war’s front lines in the eastern and southern parts of Ukraine, as well as in the northern border region. Intensified hostilities produce fresh waves of displacement.

The agency’s Ukraine appeal competes with large-scale conflicts in Sudan and Gaza. Since his appointment, Salih has spent only one week in his Geneva office, traveling to Kenya, Chad, Türkiye and Jordan before visiting Ukraine.

Drastic cuts to US humanitarian funding under President Donald Trump has accelerated the erosion of global humanitarian infrastructure and severely undermined the ability of organizations to deliver aid.

There are 117 million displaced people worldwide, including at least 42 million refugees, Salih said. Two-thirds face protracted displacement and remain dependent on humanitarian assistance.

Deciding where to prioritize given shrinking resources is “difficult” he said.

“It’s really very difficult to prioritize given the scale of the problem. I was in Kenya and I was in Chad recently and I was in Türkiye and in Jordan talking to refugees from Syria. And of course, now in Ukraine, these are all pressing issues, pressing requirements,” he said.

“We need to be there to help people, but also I have to say we really need to look at durable solutions too as well. It’s not a matter of sustaining dependency or humanitarian assistance,” he added.

In his meeting with Zelenskyy, Salih said they discussed the need to focus on the “recovery phase and sustainable solutions and self reliance as we go forward,” he said.

World

Israel Army Says on ‘Defensive Alert’ Regarding Iran but No Change to Public Guidelines

Israeli air defense system fires to intercept missiles during an Iranian attack over Tel Aviv, Israel, Thursday, June 19, 2025. (AP)
Israeli air defense system fires to intercept missiles during an Iranian attack over Tel Aviv, Israel, Thursday, June 19, 2025. (AP)
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Israel Army Says on ‘Defensive Alert’ Regarding Iran but No Change to Public Guidelines

Israeli air defense system fires to intercept missiles during an Iranian attack over Tel Aviv, Israel, Thursday, June 19, 2025. (AP)
Israeli air defense system fires to intercept missiles during an Iranian attack over Tel Aviv, Israel, Thursday, June 19, 2025. (AP)

The Israeli army said it was on "defensive alert" as the United States threatens potential military action against Iran, but insisted there were no changes in its guidelines for the public.

"We are closely monitoring regional developments and are aware of the public discourse concerning Iran. The (Israeli military) is on defensive alert," army spokesman Brigadier General Effie Defrin said in a video statement published Friday.

"Our eyes are wide open in all directions, and our finger is more than ever on the trigger in response to any change in the operational reality," he added, but emphasized "there is no change in the instructions".