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Putin's Daughters Make Rare Appearance at Economic Forum

Member of the presidium of the Russian Association for the Promotion of Science Maria Vorontsova attends the Saint-Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in Saint Petersburg on June 7, 2024. (Photo by Olga MALTSEVA / AFP)
Member of the presidium of the Russian Association for the Promotion of Science Maria Vorontsova attends the Saint-Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in Saint Petersburg on June 7, 2024. (Photo by Olga MALTSEVA / AFP)
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Putin's Daughters Make Rare Appearance at Economic Forum

Member of the presidium of the Russian Association for the Promotion of Science Maria Vorontsova attends the Saint-Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in Saint Petersburg on June 7, 2024. (Photo by Olga MALTSEVA / AFP)
Member of the presidium of the Russian Association for the Promotion of Science Maria Vorontsova attends the Saint-Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in Saint Petersburg on June 7, 2024. (Photo by Olga MALTSEVA / AFP)

Vladimir Putin's two alleged daughters both made rare public appearances this week at a flagship economic forum in the Russian president's home city of Saint Petersburg, Agence France Presse reported.

Putin keeps details of his family life fiercely secret and has never publicly confirmed that the two women -- Maria Vorontsova, 39, and Katerina Tikhonova, 37 -- are his daughters.

But the pair have been widely linked to Putin through various media reports and in 2022, the US Treasury sanctioned both as "daughters of Russian President Putin."

On Thursday and Friday, they appeared on panels at the Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), Russia's flagship annual business summit.

Tikhonova, a technology executive who works in areas connected to the Russian military, spoke Thursday on a panel about the role of the defense sector in boosting Russia's "technological sovereignty."

"The sovereignty of the state is one of the key topics of recent years, it is the basis of Russia's security," Tikhonova said in her opening remarks, delivered via video link.

Vorontsova, a biology researcher who leads a state-backed genetics institute, spoke on a panel Friday about innovation in biodiversity.

The two women have taken on more public roles in recent years, including some speaking roles at various forums and industry events.

But public appearances are still rare.

Both have previously attended SPIEF as guests, but Russian independent media outlets reported it was the first time both have been part of the official program.

Putin has occasionally referenced the existence of "daughters" in public remarks during his quarter-century in power.

Although he has never provided details, confirmed their identity or been clearly photographed with them.

Putin's now ex-wife, Lyudmila, gave birth to two children, named Maria and Katerina, in 1985 and 1986 while the two were married.

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World

UK Sanctions 12 Iran-Linked People, Entities

An Iranian man walks past an anti-US and anti-Israel mural painted on a wall, in the capital Tehran on May 10, 2026. (AFP)
An Iranian man walks past an anti-US and anti-Israel mural painted on a wall, in the capital Tehran on May 10, 2026. (AFP)
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UK Sanctions 12 Iran-Linked People, Entities

An Iranian man walks past an anti-US and anti-Israel mural painted on a wall, in the capital Tehran on May 10, 2026. (AFP)
An Iranian man walks past an anti-US and anti-Israel mural painted on a wall, in the capital Tehran on May 10, 2026. (AFP)

Britain on Monday slapped sanctions on a dozen Iran-linked individuals and entities accused of involvement in "hostile activities" by Tehran targeting the UK or other countries.

Updating its official sanctions list, the Foreign Office in London imposed the UK travel bans and asset freezes on nine people, two shadow banking exchange houses and the allegedly criminal Zindashti network.

The UK government had already sanctioned its alleged leader, Naji Ibrahim Sharifi-Zindashti, in 2024 alongside the United States, labelling him the head of international drug and trafficking cartel.

The European Union sanctioned his network last year, with London, Washington and Brussels all claiming it is connected to Iran's Ministry of Intelligence and Security and accusing it of conducting assassination and kidnapping operations against Tehran's critics.

The latest UK curbs follow a string of attacks over recent months against the Jewish community in Britain, and repeated warnings from officials that hostile states are intent on using proxies for such purposes.

Zindashti's nephew, Turkish national Ekrem Abdulkerym Oztunc, was among the nine people sanctioned Monday by Britain.

London also targeted five members of the Zarringhalam family -- Farhad, Fazlolah, Mansour, Nasser and Pouria -- said to have helped finance efforts to "destabilize" the UK.

Mansour, Nasser and Fazlolah Zarringhalam were sanctioned by the US last year for their involvement in Iran's "shadow banking" network.

The US Treasury said the trio had "collectively laundered billions of dollars" for Iran through a network of front companies in the United Arab Emirates and Hong Kong.

London also added Berelian Exchange and GCM Exchange, two US-sanctioned Iran-based exchange houses linked to them, to its sanctions list.

Iranians Nihat Abdul Kadir Asan and Reza Hamidiravari, and Azerbaijani national Namiq Salifov, were the other three individuals hit with the British travel bans and asset freezes.

World

Tens of Millions Risk Hunger as Hormuz Standoff Blocks Fertilizer, UN Official Says

An aerial view shows Jerry Fuerstenau planting a farm field on May 06, 2026 near West Bend, Iowa. (Getty Images/AFP)
An aerial view shows Jerry Fuerstenau planting a farm field on May 06, 2026 near West Bend, Iowa. (Getty Images/AFP)
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Tens of Millions Risk Hunger as Hormuz Standoff Blocks Fertilizer, UN Official Says

An aerial view shows Jerry Fuerstenau planting a farm field on May 06, 2026 near West Bend, Iowa. (Getty Images/AFP)
An aerial view shows Jerry Fuerstenau planting a farm field on May 06, 2026 near West Bend, Iowa. (Getty Images/AFP)

Tens of millions of people could face hunger and starvation if fertilizers are not soon allowed through the Strait of Hormuz, the head of a UN task force aimed at averting a looming humanitarian crisis told AFP on Monday.

Iran has had the strategic waterway -- through which a third of the world's fertilizers normally pass -- in a chokehold for months in retaliation for the war launched by the United States and Israel on February 28, disrupting a trade critical for farmers around the world in a race against the end of planting seasons.

"We have a few weeks ahead of us to prevent what will likely be a massive humanitarian crisis," Jorge Moreira da Silva, executive director of the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) and leader of the task force, told AFP in an interview in Paris.

"We may witness a crisis that will force 45 million more people into hunger and starvation."

The UN secretary general created the task force in March to spearhead a mechanism to allow fertilizers and related raw materials such as ammonia, sulphur and urea through the strait.

For weeks, Moreira da Silva has been working to convince the belligerent parties to allow even a few ships through, and has met with "more than 100 countries" to rally UN member state support around the mechanism.

While the ultimate hope is for a "lasting peace" deal in the region and "freedom of navigation for all commodities" through the strait, "the problem is the planting season can't wait", Moreira da Silva said, with some ending in African nations within weeks.

Global focus has been on the economic impacts of the throttled oil and gas trade, but the United Nations has been sounding the alarm of the threat the blockade poses to the world's food security, with countries in Africa and Asia likely to be particularly hard hit.

- 'Political will' -

Moreira da Silva said the United Nations could have the mechanism up and running in seven days but even if the strait were to reopen now, it would take three to four months to return to normality.

"It's just a matter of time. If we don't stop the origin of the crisis soon, we will have to deal with the consequences through humanitarian aid."

While food prices have not exploded yet, Moreira da Silva said, there has been a "massive increase" in fertilizer costs, which experts say would likely lead to a drop in agriculture productivity and send food prices soaring.

Moreira da Silva said moving just an average of five vessels a day of fertilizers and related raw materials through the strait would head off the crisis for farmers.

What's missing, he said, is "the political will".

"We can't procrastinate on what is possible to do, and what is urgent to do -- which is let the fertilizers cross the strait and, through that, minimize the risk of massive food insecurity at the global level."

World

‘Utter Rubbish’ Says Erdogan Rival as Spying Trial Opens

Former Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) addresses supporters on the eve of the municipal elections, Istanbul, Türkiye, March 30, 2024. (AFP)
Former Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) addresses supporters on the eve of the municipal elections, Istanbul, Türkiye, March 30, 2024. (AFP)
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‘Utter Rubbish’ Says Erdogan Rival as Spying Trial Opens

Former Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) addresses supporters on the eve of the municipal elections, Istanbul, Türkiye, March 30, 2024. (AFP)
Former Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) addresses supporters on the eve of the municipal elections, Istanbul, Türkiye, March 30, 2024. (AFP)

"It's all utter rubbish," Istanbul's jailed mayor Ekrem Imamoglu told an Istanbul court of the spying charges against him at a new trial on Monday, his words conveyed by lawyers and journalists.

"This indictment is a complete travesty of justice," said the 54-year-old, waving a copy of the indictment as the latest case against him opened at a court linked to the prison where he has been held for more than a year.

His remarks were posted on X by the MLSA rights group that is observing the trial.

Imamoglu was arrested and jailed as part of a graft probe in March last year, although the charges against him -- which include allegations of espionage and terror ties -- have continued to pile up.

"I will not defend myself against such an absurd charge as espionage," said Imamoglu, who is widely seen as one of the only politicians capable of defeating President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the ballot box.

His arrest came just days before the main opposition CHP named him as its candidate for the next presidential race, due by mid-2028.

According to the indictment, Imamoglu and three other suspects -- one a journalist -- are accused of sharing the details of millions of Istanbul residents with foreign intelligence services in an alleged crime of "political espionage".

"If there is espionage, let the MIT (intelligence service) and all relevant intelligence units come forward and show the nation a single piece of concrete evidence," he said, according to supporters observing the trial.

"The indictment is 159 pages long. All of it is utter rubbish! ... Shame on you, Mr. President, members of the jury," he told the presiding judge, saying he had not read "a single page" of the charges against him, and would not do so.

Imamoglu was elected mayor of Türkiye's largest city in 2019, and re-elected in 2024 when the CHP won a huge victory over Erdogan's ruling AKP in the local elections.

"Is it a crime to win the election in Istanbul, or to have a say in our country's politics, starting with Istanbul, Mr. President?" he asked.

"Who will call this a case of espionage? This is a political case, Mr. President, brought by those who are afraid of facing me at the ballot box."

The espionage charges were brought against him in October, with the trial running in parallel to a sweeping graft case which opened on March 9 in which prosecutors want him jailed for 2,430 years.