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Turkey’s parliament descended into chaos Friday after a member of an opposition party called President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s party a "terrorist organization." 

A member of Erdoğan’s party approached Ahmet Sik, who is in the same Workers’ Party of Turkey as a delegate believed to have been jailed for political reasons, and attacked him after Sik made the "terrorist" claim. 

"We're not surprised that you call Can Atalay a terrorist, just as you do everyone who does not side with you," Sik said in his speech. "But the biggest terrorists are the ones sitting in these seats." 

Soon, dozens of lawmakers had joined the skirmish, with some throwing punches and papers and others trying to stop the fighting. 

LAWMAKERS BRAWL AS TAIWAN'S PARLIAMENT DESCENDS INTO CHAOS

A female lawmaker was hit, splattering blood across the parliamentary podium. 

"It is a shameful situation," Ozgur Ozel, who heads the Republican People's Party, the largest opposition party, told The Associated Press. "Instead of words flying in the air, fists are flying. There is blood on the ground. They are hitting women."

The Turkish Grand National Assembly had been debating Can Atalay, who was elected as a parliamentary deputy in May 2023 while imprisoned for his role in 2013 anti-government protests. 

Atalay, who was sentenced to 18 years in prison in 2022 over the protests that challenged Erdoğan’s rule, wants to serve his term in parliament, saying he would return to prison afterward. 

ITALIAN LAWMAKERS BRAWL IN PARLIAMENT: VIDEO

Being in parliament would give him immunity from prosecution.

In an Aug. 1 ruling, the Constitutional Court said the decision to not allow Atalay to take his seat in parliament was "null and void" after parliament stripped him of his seat. 

It was the Constitutional Court's third ruling in Atalay’s favor, but the lower courts have been ignoring its rulings. 

International human rights groups have called Atalay’s and others' jailing and sentencing, including philanthropist Osman Kavala, arbitrary and politically motivated. 

"Atalay’s personal freedom and security, as well as his right to be elected, which the Constitutional Court ruled to have been violated, should be restored," Amnesty International’s Turkey office said Friday in a social media post.

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Parliament reopened three hours later with Sik and the lawmaker who attacked him being reprimanded by the parliament's speaker. 

Claims made this week by the head of Russia’s technology development for its Defense Ministry suggesting that Moscow is "ahead" when it comes to the Artificial Intelligence (AI) race that erupted amid the war in Ukraine are being shot down by one top expert.

Speaking from a Military-Technical Forum held in Moscow this week, Gen. Vasily Elistratov, head of the Kremlin’s AI development, claimed on Wednesday that Russia is "ahead of our foreign partners" despite "attempts to isolate us at the technical level."

Russia’s more than two-year-long invasion of Ukraine has driven an AI race as Kyiv, Moscow and NATO nations rush to advance their AI capabilities for wartime applications. 

US, UK AND AUSTRALIA TAKE NEXT STEP IN INTEGRATING AI DEFENSE SYSTEMS

But while the war has brought renewed focus to AI-integrated defense systems, particularly when it comes to the development of autonomous weapons systems, Russian President Vladimir Putin has long made developing AI a top priority.

In 2017, five years prior to the largest war Europe has seen since World War II, Putin declared, "Whoever leads in AI will rule the world," and by 2022, Russia had grown its AI market by 18 percent in that year alone, according to Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin.

Moscow doubled down on its AI efforts last year and allocated some $54 million of its federal 2024 budget for AI investment – though that is just a fraction of the $1.8 billion that the U.S. has allocated for AI in its 2024 and 2025 defense budgets.

Despite Moscow's efforts, former DIA intelligence officer and author of "Putin’s Playbook," Rebekah Koffler, told Fox News Digital, "It is highly unlikely that Russia is ahead of the U.S. in AI development."

Koffler explained that from the beginning, the U.S. and Russia have taken different approaches when it comes to AI, and while Washington focused its efforts of technological advancement, Moscow also focused on how it could use AI for psychological warfare. 

'HISTORIC BREAKTHROUGH': US DITCHES DEFENSE TRADE RESTRICTIONS WITH TOP ALLIES TO COUNTER CHINA

"When you have a cyberattack, not only can it disrupt your computer, it can also have a psychological impact on the user," she explained. "In wartime, you can disorganize forces by attacking computer [systems]."

Koffler pointed to the clear psychological impact that Russia has made on entire populations following its use of disinformation campaigns, propaganda, digital fakes and election interference – a strategy the U.S. and the West typically do not pursue. 

"The U.S. just doesn’t do that sort of thing," she said. "That’s just not how we operate.

 "In regard to Russia, it’s always been a thing – not just for foreign audiences but for domestic," Koffler continued. "With the power of AI, you can spread disinformation a lot faster."

This could mean that Moscow may be ahead when it comes to decision-making technologies, Koffler said, though she reiterated her doubt that Russia was beating the U.S. in any aspect of AI development. 

The U.S. began employing AI technologies in warfare at the tail end of its War on Terror in Afghanistan in a move to alleviate the burden that U.S. and coalition forces were under as they attempted to maintain human intelligence networks on the Taliban amid the drawdown. 

From the beginning, human oversight has played a major role in how the U.S. and its Western allies approach "responsible" AI employment in wartime, and it remains unclear how this specific factor could play a role in adversarial strategizing when it comes to AI on the battlefield. 

But it wasn’t just the U.S. that Elistratov was likely referring to when he propped up Moscow’s AI developments compared to its "partners."

China, a top ally of Russia, has been making great strides when it comes to AI development and is frequently considered the U.S.'s chief competitor in the race to develop all aspects of the burgeoning technology. 

Koffler said that while Moscow is almost certainly beating allies like Iran and North Korea in the AI race, it is more likely that Russia is "close" to China when it comes to AI development.  

The U.S. and its top allies have taken a significant step in removing defense trade restrictions to ensure that technology and equipment can be shared at rapid speed as the AUKUS partnership looks to counter growing Chinese threats in the Indo Pacific.

The "historic breakthrough" means the U.K. and Australia will no longer be subject to strict export license controls under the U.S.’s International Trafficking in Arms Regulations (ITAR) for the "majority" of Washington’s defense technology.

"We want the U.K. to be the U.S.’s number-one ally, and Australia's desire is to be the U.S.’s number-one ally in the Pacific," a U.K. official familiar with the agreement told Fox News Digital. "AUKUS is about us recognizing the threat that China poses and the need for us, as America's allies, to do everything we can to be part of competing with China in that space."

US, UK AND AUSTRALIA TAKE NEXT STEP IN INTEGRATING AI DEFENSE SYSTEMS

A limited number of sensitive items will remain under tight U.S. control, and the U.K. official said this is another area in which the alliance can look to deepen its trust and partnership in the face of growing adversarial aggression. 

"We're looking for deep collaboration with the U.S. over the coming period," the official said.  "Some of the restrictions that remain on the excluded lists will be in those very advanced technologies where the U.S. is still rightly cautious about controlling access to them and really safeguarding the technology. 

"What we want to do with this new status quo is use it to show that our industry is equally competent of controlling those secrets, equally competent of safeguarding the technology, so we can build even more trust with the U.S., so we can expand this sharing of technology even further," the U.K. official added.  

The official could not pinpoint the percentage of U.S. defense weapons and technology that will remain exempt from the latest trade-sharing deal but noted that those exemptions remain only in the "far reaches of technology" on systems involving artificial intelligence, autonomous weaponry and hypersonic weaponry. 

The reform is estimated to cover up to £500 million in U.K. defense exports annually along with billions of dollars of trade across all three nations, which will in turn "boost our shared economic growth," Fox News Digital was told.

The AUKUS deal comes as the U.S. and the U.K. look to help Australia acquire nuclear-powered submarines as the alliance looks to bolster its defense posture to counter Chinese aggression in the region and beyond. 

US NAVY UNDER SECRETARY ERIK RAVEN ON THE AUKUS AGREEMENT

"I think it's very difficult to overstate how important the submarines are, in terms of the Indo-Pacific and containing China," the official told Fox News Digital. "Just because they look quite old school, they are still very, very critical to that theater."

The alliance, which was formed in 2021 specifically to counter Beijing, was received with some frustration and concern among European allies who feared that the U.S. and the U.K. were distancing themselves from Europe at a time when security threats on the continent had reached a level not seen since World War II. 

But Washington and London have pushed back on these arguments, and in speaking with Fox News Digital, the British official highlighted that increasing ties with the U.S. can only help deepen security in theatres across the globe. 

"The U.K. being a very close ally of the U.S. helps lock the U.K. and the U.S. together in NATO," the official argued. "I don't think this does anything to distance us from that. 

"If anything, it gives us both even better capability and even better interoperability to work together in the Euro-Atlantic area if we needed to do that militarily," the official added. 

North Korea will be partially resuming international tourism this year after nearly half a decade, according to tourist operators. 

The Beijing-based tourism agency, Koryo Tours, which specializes in tourism to North Korea, announced Thursday that tourism to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea will resume in December of this year. 

Tours will only be organized for the North Korean city of Samjiyon but the reopening may be extended to other locations, Koryo Tours said. 

"Having waited for over 4 years to make this announcement, Koryo Tours is very excited for the opening of North Korean tourism once again," the agency said in a press release. 

The agency said Samjiyon was chosen because it had recently been developed as a tourist destination. It previously visited in 2018 when filming the British documentary series "Michael Palin in North Korea."  

NORTH KOREAN OLYMPIC ATHLETES DENIED GIFTS FROM SAMSUNG THAT EVERY OTHER TEAM GOT

Koryo Tours said its North Korean partners had informed the agency that itinerary and dates will be announced in the coming weeks. 

"Once we have finalized dates and itineraries, they will be available for booking our website," the company said. 

The Hermit Kingdom closed its borders at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, banning almost all outsiders from entering the country for business, travel, or non-vital diplomatic relations. The country only partially started to re-open its borders last year. 

The country has struggled to open itself fully since the pandemic, when the regime could not field the necessary resources and infrastructure to effectively combat the outbreak within its borders.

Fox News Digital’s Timothy H.J. Nerozzi contributed to this report. 

Researchers made an exciting discovery during a dive in Bulgaria's Chengene Skele Bay in the Black Sea when they found over 100 ancient glass objects.

The June 2024 discovery was made by a team from the National History Museum, led by professor Ivan Histrov, according to a translated Facebook post by the Burgas Regional History Museum. 

The 112 glass objects most recently found joined a larger collection of 310 glass vessels that have been uncovered in the same bay in 2020 and 2021. 

SKELETAL REMAINS OF MAN, WOMAN DISCOVERED IN POMPEII OFFER CHILLING DETAILS OF FINAL MOMENTS

The glass objects were found at a depth of 2 to 2.5 meters, according to the statement. These ancient items are believed to be from the late 16th or early 17th century. 

The glass objects have been credited to the Venetian island of Murano, which is still known today for its production of high-quality glassware. 

"Until now, the hypothesis has been proposed that the vessels were most likely produced in a workshop on the island of Murano, Venice, in the second half of the 16th century or the beginning of the 17th century. Here the question of the exact dating of the glass objects and the possible shipwreck remains to be determined," the statement said. 

ART HISTORIAN SPOTS ANCIENT PORTRAIT THOUGHT TO BE LOST IN THE BACKGROUND OF PHOTO SHARED ON SOCIAL MEDIA

It has been theorized that the glass found could have been on a boat or ship that faced destruction by a storm, sending the ancient artifacts into the water. 

It's likely the ship wreckage will be discovered near the area where the glass fragments were found, according to the museum. 

While much of the glassware was found in fragments, there are pieces that are very much intact, displaying the intricate craftsmanship in their creation many years ago. 

The discovery of these underwater artifacts is "an important source of information on the poorly researched topic of consumption, trade, and production of glass in the Balkans during the Late Ottoman Period," the museum wrote in the Facebook post. 

The new underwater finds will be exhibited at the Burgas Regional Historical Museum.

U.S. President Joe Biden said on Thursday that he would support a new election in Venezuela, after Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva also floated the idea, despite rebuffs from Venezuela's ruling party and its opposition which both claim victory in the July 28 contest.

Biden spoke to reporters in the wake of Lula's suggestion that Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro could call a new contest involving international observers as a potential solution for the political crisis in the country. The U.S. has rejected Madura's victory claim.

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Asked if he supports a new election in Venezuela, Biden said "I do".

The suggestion is among several from the international community which have no support so far from either Maduro or his opposition coalition opponents.

The U.S., which hardened oil sanctions in April on the OPEC member for what it said was Maduro's failure to comply with a deal on electoral conditions, and other Western countries are showing little sign of swift, tough action over what many of them have condemned as voting fraud.

Lula said a "coalition government" could be another possible solution for Venezuela.

"If (Maduro) has common sense, he could put it to the people, perhaps calling new elections with a nonpartisan electoral committee," Lula said in a radio interview.

Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado ruled out Biden and Lula's suggestion.

"The election already happened," Machado told journalists from Argentina and Chile in a video call later on Thursday. "Maduro must be made to know that the cost of his staying grows with each day that passes."

Ruling party officials in Venezuela have also previously ruled out new elections.

The Brazilian president said he still does not recognize Maduro as the winner of the vote and that his government must publish voting tallies that have not been released, echoing calls from countries around the world over the last two weeks.

"Maduro knows he owes Brazil and the world an explanation," Lula said.

Lula and his Colombian counterpart Gustavo Petro spoke by phone on Wednesday as part of efforts to find a solution to Venezuela's crisis, but no details were released of the conversation.

Petro suggested in a post on X on Thursday that the Venezuelan ruling party and the opposition could temporarily trade off power, echoing an arrangement used in Colombia for 16 years in the twentieth century.

"The political solution for Venezuela depends on Nicolas Maduro, who carries the peace and prosperity of his country," Petro said, adding in another post that a political deal is the best option and depends on Venezuelans.

Petro, who reopened trade and diplomatic relations with Venezuela after he took office in 2022, also called for the lifting of all sanctions on Venezuela.

Latin American leaders will discuss the crisis this weekend when many are in the Dominican Republic to attend the inauguration of that country's new president, Panama's President Jose Raul Mulino said on Thursday during his weekly press conference.

Lula's top foreign policy advisor Celso Amorim, speaking to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said Brazil had not formally proposed a new election in Venezuela.

Conservative senators at the hearing criticized the Lula administration for favoring Maduro with its soft stance, and asked what Brazil was doing for jailed opposition leaders.

Amorim said Brazil offered to send a plane to pick up six opposition members seeking asylum in the Argentine embassy, now under a Brazilian flag since Venezuela broke ties with Argentina.

Venezuela's electoral authority proclaimed Maduro won 51% of the vote but has not divulged full vote tallies.

Tallies in possession of the opposition, which it has posted to a public website, show Gonzalez received 67% of the vote.

A partnership between Russia and Iran is allegedly deepening, according to the Pentagon.

In a press conference on Thursday, Deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh responded to a journalist's question regarding a recent meeting between leaders of the two nations.

PENTAGON SAYS AN ATTACK BY IRAN IS 'CERTAINLY POSSIBLE' THIS WEEK: ‘WE NEED TO TAKE IT SERIOUSLY'

"So I can't speculate on, you know, on that visit, I would say that I think, separately, we've seen a deepening cooperation and relationship between Russia and Iran as Russia continues to, engage in its unlawful war in Ukraine," said Singh. 

"So, you know, we've we've seen that deepening partnership."

"We've seen Russia continue to seek weapons out from Iran. While I can speculate on what this visit entails, you know, we've seen these visits of leaders, happen over the course of the last two years," Singh added.

U.S. MILITARY EXPANDS PRESENCE IN MIDDLE EAST, REPOSITIONS FORCES AS REGIONAL TENSIONS SIMMER

Russia has recently promised missile support to Iran after a visit by a defense minister to the Middle Eastern nation.

Singh clarified, "in terms of how this plays, you know, into the Middle East. Look, Iran has a choice. I think we've been very clear in our messaging when it comes to the defense of Israel. We are going to stand in the defense of Israel just as we did, you know, on April 13th."

The United States has recently expanded its presence in the Middle East, sending the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group to the region.

According to the Pentagon, it is unclear exactly where these additional American defense resources will be located.

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The Pentagon did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.

Holding candles, hundreds of thousands of women marched through the night in cities across India, to protest the brutal rape and murder of a young female doctor in a hospital that has fueled anger over a lack of safety for women despite tough new laws.

A 31-year old trainee doctor was raped and murdered inside the medical college in Kolkata where she worked on Friday, triggering nationwide protests among doctors and drawing parallels to the notorious gang rape and murder of a 23-year-old student on a moving bus in New Delhi in 2012.

INDIA PROTESTS AGAINST SEPARATIST SLOGANS AT CANADIAN EVENT FOLLOWING KILLING OF SIKH LEADER A YEAR AGO

"We have come here to demand justice because even I have a daughter. I am scared to send her anywhere...I am scared to send my daughter to study," said Rinky Ghosh, who took part in a protest in Kolkata. "So I am here today because something ... must be done, this injustice must stop."

The doctor had retired to sleep on a piece of carpet in a seminar room in the R G Kar Medical College after a marathon 36-hour shift, given the lack of any dorms or resting rooms for doctors in the premises, her colleagues told Reuters.

She was found dead on Friday. Police said she had been raped and murdered and a police volunteer was subsequently arrested in connection with the crime.

Many government hospitals in cities across India suspended all services except emergency departments earlier this week, as junior doctors sat outside in protest, demanding justice.

The victim was found bleeding from her eyes and mouth, with injuries to her legs, stomach, ankles, her right hand and finger, a doctor's inquest report Aug. 9 and accessed by Reuters said.

In protests called "Reclaim the Night", women marched across several Indian cities from midnight on Wednesday, on the eve of the country's 78th Independence Day, to protest against the lack of safety for women in India, especially at night.

"As a society, we have to think about the atrocities being committed against our mothers, daughters and sisters. There is outrage against this in the country. I can feel this outrage," Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in an Independence Day address to the nation on Thursday.

The 2012 Delhi rape case was seen as a turning point in attitudes towards women's safety in Indian society. It triggered huge protests and was the catalyst for rapid change in laws tackling crimes against women.

These included fast-track courts for swifter convictions in such cases, but protesters say a decade on, the situation for women has not improved.

"This horrific incident has once again reminded us that women disproportionately bear the weight of ensuring their own safety," Bollywood actor Alia Bhatt said in a post on her Instagram page, which has more than 85 million followers.

Doctors in India's crowded and often squalid government hospitals have long complained of being overworked and underpaid, and say not enough is done to curb violence levelled at them by people angered over the medical care on offer.

Crimes against women in India rose 4% in 2022 from the previous year, data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), released late last year, showed.

A New Zealand charity issued an apology after police recovered as many as 400 pieces of candy laced with "potentially lethal levels of methamphetamine" distributed in food parcels.

"We don’t know how widespread these contaminated lollies are, so we recommend not eating any Rinda brand pineapple lollies if you have them," the New Zealand Drug Foundation (NZDF) wrote in a statement on its website. "If you or someone you know has eaten one and feels unwell, call 111 immediately."

Aukland City Mission contacted authorities after one person who received the candy said it was "funny tasting." At least three people, including a child, needed medical attention after eating the candy, though none went to hospital as of Wednesday. 

The New Zealand Drug Federation estimated the street value of each meth-laced candy at around $600. Police recovered 29 of the candies, but did not know how many remained in circulation.

CANCUN POLICE DISMISS US COLLEGE KIDS' CLAIMS OF DRUGGED WATER AS ‘EXAGGERATED’: REPORT

Symptoms of consuming the candy may include chest pain, heart palpitations, seizures, hyperthermia, delirium or loss of consciousness, the charity warned. The candy may have an "acrid and revolting" taste. 

"The public can be assured we are treating this matter extremely seriously," Detective Inspector Glenn Baldwin said during a news conference. 

The charity has worked to track down as many of the packages as they can, saying the candies contained potentially lethal doses of methamphetamine. It received the candy as part of an anonymous donation sometime in the past six weeks in a sealed retail package. 

OVER 2,000 POUNDS OF METH SMUGGLED IN CELERY AT ATLANTA FARMERS' MARKET: ‘THAT DIDN’T MAKE IT TO THE STORE'

"A common dose to swallow is between 10-25mg, so this contaminated lolly contained up to 300 doses," Sarah Helm of the NZDF said. "Swallowing that much methamphetamine is extremely dangerous and could result in death."

The group distributes around 50,000 food parcels a year and only includes commercially manufactured food, The New York Times reported. Individual packages handed out with the contaminated candy could contain just a few pieces or dozens.  

MILLIONS OF ILLICIT CANNABIS PACKAGES DISGUISED AS CHILDREN'S CANDY SEIZED IN CALIFORNIA

Ben Birks Ang, a foundation spokesperson, told The Associated Press that disguising drugs as innocuous goods is a common cross-border smuggling technique and more of the candies might have been distributed throughout New Zealand.

The meth was disguised in pineapple candies, stamped with the label of Malaysian brand Rinda. Police currently believe that the delivery happened by mistake, calling it a smuggling ploy gone wrong. 

"We want to make it clear that Rinda Food Industries does not use or condone the use of any illegal drugs in our products," general manager Steven Teh said in a written statement to the media after learning of the "misused" candy through media reports.

German authorities have issued an arrest warrant for a Ukrainian national in connection to the explosion that damaged the Nord Stream 2 pipeline two years ago, resurrecting questions of Ukraine's involvement in the incident. 

The suspect, identified by German media only as "Volodymyr Z," had lived in Poland at the time but fled to Ukraine before authorities could execute the arrest warrant in early July. He had lived in the town of Pruszkow near Warsaw, Poland, according to the BBC. 

Volodymyr Z allegedly participated in a six-man diving team of experienced Ukrainians who, in September 2022, rented a German yacht to sail over the Nord Stream pipeline and planted explosives that damaged a few of the pipelines.  

The pipelines were condemned by the West as a national security threat. They allowed Russia to sell gas more easily to Europe despite sanctions over its invasion of Ukraine. 

PUTIN SCRAMBLES AS UKRAINE ADVANCES TROOPS ALONG ‘DORMANT FRONT’ IN BORDER SECURITY OPERATION

The underwater detonations on the Nord Stream gas pipelines, which were built to carry Russian natural gas to Germany, occurred in international waters but within Swedish and Danish economic zones. Sweden earlier said that a state actor was the most likely culprit.

The Wall Street Journal reported that the plan took four months to enact and cost around $300,000. The group brought a female diver so that they could pose as a group going out on a pleasure cruise. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy originally supported the plan, but after the CIA learned of it and asked him to stop it, he tried to halt the effort. The WSJ reported that Commander-in-Chief Valeriy Zaluzhniy ignored the order and pushed ahead with the plan. 

Four senior Ukrainian defense and security officials told the outlet that the pipelines were viewed as a legitimate target in the war. Zaluzhniy denied the claims, saying he had no knowledge of the operation and labeled such claims as "mere provocation." 

RUSSIA CLAIMS NAVALNY DIED FROM ARRHYTHMIA, COMBINATION OF DISEASES AS WIDOW ALLEGES ‘PATHETIC’ COVER UP

German intelligence officers raised concerns that, despite these reports, they believe it is entirely possible that this amounts to a Russian "false flag operation" that could cover up the country’s involvement in self-sabotage that helped justify their continued invasion of Ukraine, according to Politico, citing German publication Welt am Sonntag.

Politico reported that Polish security agents support this theory and sent a document with names of Russian suspects to Germany’s Federal Intelligence Service, but the Germans remained convinced of Ukrainian responsibility.

German media named two other suspects: Svitlana and Yevhen Uspenska, a married couple who run a diving school in Ukraine. They denied involvement, with Svitlana Uspenska claiming she was in Kyiv at the time of the incident. 

Germany, Denmark and Sweden all opened investigations into the incident, but Sweden and Denmark closed their investigations earlier this year. 

MIDEAST OIL POWERHOUSE BANS RUSSIAN ‘SHADOW FLEET’ VESSELS THAT SEEK TO UNDERMINE SANCTIONS

Sweden had found traces of explosives on several objects recovered from the site, confirming the incident was indeed an act of sabotage, but the Swedes and Danes determined that they did not have "sufficient grounds" to pursue a criminal case. 

Denmark's decision to close the investigation was expected, Kenneth Øhlenschlæger Buhl of the Royal Danish Defense College told The Associated Press.

"The Swedes said they had a fairly good idea of who was behind it but have no jurisdiction over those they wanted to talk to," Øhlenschlæger Buhl said. The Danes are saying "the same, just slightly different words."

U.S. intelligence in 2023 suggested that a pro-Ukrainian group was behind the attack, and then-National Security Council spokesman John Kirby confirmed that the U.S. believed "it was an act of sabotage" while stressing that the U.S. was not involved.

Neither the U.S. State Department nor the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry responded to a Fox News Digital request for comment by the time of publication.

Fox News Digital's Louis Casiano and The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Protesters from the "Last Generation" climate activist group shut down the runway at the Cologne airport in Germany on Thursday.

Activists filmed themselves on the runway tarmac and gave testimonies against the use of fossil fuels and air travel. Images from inside the airport show dozens of canceled flights and hundreds of stranded travelers.

The Germany-based group routinely disrupts public events and transportation, often resorting to publicly defacing historic art pieces in an attempt to gain attention.

"What is at stake right now are billions of human lives. Climate collapse is already a reality for many people. We still have the privilege of being able to do something about it here. Please join OIL KILLS!" one women sitting on the tarmac says, according to a translation.

WHALE OF A LAWSUIT THREATENS TO SWALLOW UP BIDEN GREEN ENERGY AGENDA

Other images showed some activists gluing themselves to the runway.

The organization said eight of its activists had been taken into custody. It confirmed later Thursday that all eight have now been released.

OPINION: BACKLASH AGAINST WIND, SOLAR PROJECTS IS REAL, GLOBAL AND GROWING

The German Airport Association (ADV) condemned the demonstration in a Thursday statement.

ENVIRONMENTAL ACTIVISTS SUE GOVERNMENT TO PROTECT WHALES FROM SHIP COLLISIONS

"Today’s disruptions at several airports are a concerted act of criminal extortion. This is not a peaceful protest and it is not about supposedly higher goals," ADV managing director, Ralph Beisel, said. "These are malicious interventions in air traffic and in the personal rights of every traveler who is unable to take their flight as planned."

Last Generation protests have frequently led to conflicts between activists and bystanders. Last year, a woman in Germany was dubbed a "brutal blonde" by European media after she dragged a climate change activist from blocking traffic in Bottrop, Germany.

Footage showed the woman grabbed the activist by her hair and dragged her to the side of the road. When the girl returned to block the road, the German woman dragged her by the hair a second time. 

The boyfriend of the U.S.-Russian ballerina who was sentenced Thursday to 12 years in prison after pleading guilty to a treason charge tells Fox News Digital that she should "keep the faith strong" as it’s "just a matter of time" until America gets her back. 

Chris Van Heerden made the remarks as the attorney representing Ksenia Karelina — who was detained in Russia in February over allegations that she donated $51 to a Ukrainian organization that passed the money onto the country's military — is planning to appeal the case. 

When asked by Fox News Digital if he had a message for Karelina following the sentencing Thursday, Van Heerden said "If I could just tell her that she is loved – all over the world, people are fighting for her, we have not forgotten about her. I want to remind her not to lose hope, keep the faith strong because now more than ever, don’t lose hope. Keep your eye on the prize because we will get you back." 

"Stay strong, it’s just a matter of time," he added. 

AMERICAN BALLERINA LEFT OUT OF RUSSIA PRISONER SWAP PLEADS GUILTY TO TREASON: REPORT 

Karelina’s attorney Mikhail Mushailov was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying Thursday that "she admitted guilt in part in transferring the funds, but did not admit her intent to transfer the funds to the organizations where they were most likely received." 

"She did not assume that the funds she transferred would be used for anti-Russian actions," he also said. 

Russia’s Federal Security Service, according to The Associated Press, said Karelina "proactively collected money in the interests of one of the Ukrainian organizations, which was subsequently used to purchase tactical medical supplies, equipment, weapons, and ammunition for the Ukrainian armed forces." 

Karelina, a dual-citizen, lives in Los Angeles but was taken into custody while visiting family in Russia. 

BOYFRIEND OF AMERICAN BALLERINA DETAINED IN RUSSIA SAYS PRISONER EXCHANGE IS ‘ONLY BET’ TO BRING HER HOME 

Authorities reportedly have examined Karelina’s phone, producing photos that appear to show her at an anti-Putin and anti-war protest in Los Angeles, where she was holding a sign declaring, "We want peace." 

A State Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital following Karelina’s guilty plea last week that it was aware of reports of the detention and trial of an American citizen in Russia. 

The spokesperson said the State Department has no higher priority than the safety and security of U.S. citizens overseas and that officers seek to provide detained Americans with assistance. 

The spokesperson also reiterated a travel warning from the State Department advising Americans not to travel to Russia, due to the risk of unjust detention. 

Fox News' Taylor Penley and Peter Aitken contributed to this report. 

The widow of deceased Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny is pushing back on a new report from investigators claiming he died as a result of an irregular heartbeat and a combination of diseases, calling the findings a "rather pathetic attempt to hide what happened -- a murder." 

The declaration comes six months after Navalny – a fierce critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin – died at a penal colony in Siberia. Russian officials at the time said Navalny reported feeling unwell following a walk before losing consciousness and dying.   

Investigators are now claiming in a report shared Wednesday by Navalny’s widow Yulia Navalnaya that the 47-year-old passed away after suffering from a variety of ailments, including arrhythmia and cholecystitis, the swelling of a gall bladder.  

"The truth is that this is not a diagnosis, not the results of a test, but a mockery. This is another rather pathetic attempt to hide what happened -- a murder," Navalnaya wrote on Navalny’s official website. "And everyone who writes these papers, writes these false reports -- are accomplices to this murder." 

MIDEAST OIL POWERHOUSE BANS RUSSIAN ‘SHADOW FLEET’ VESSELS THAT SEEK TO UNDERMINE SANCTIONS 

"I showed this diagnosis to my doctors. They all came to the same conclusion: they opened it up, examined it, but couldn't find anything -- no blood clot, no signs of a heart attack or stroke either," she added. "So they wrote about ‘arrhythmia’ to at least write something. Because people don't just die like that." 

"All these chronic diseases, like the gastroduodenitis and pancreatitis listed by the investigator... Well, excuse me, every third person in Russia has such diseases. Suddenly, in an hour, you don't die from such things. But even if we assume that they existed... why weren't they diagnosed in the numerous colonies where Alexei was? Why wasn't he treated? Why was such a sick person sent to a punishment cell and kept there for months?" Navalnaya continued. 

PUTIN SCRAMBLES AS UKRAINE ADVANCES TROOPS ALONG ‘DORMANT FRONT’ IN BORDER SECURITY OPERATION 

"There can be one explanation for this. The only one. They killed him, and now they are trying to cover up the tracks as much as possible," she said. 

"If Putin and his obliging comrades... think that we will now shrug our shoulders and say ‘well, okay, so no’ -- they are deeply mistaken. The lawyers will appeal every such document. We will demand that a criminal case be opened," Navalnaya concluded. "I demand that they hand over to us all the medical documents, including the autopsy report... and also that they hand over all of Alexei's personal belongings." 

In February, President Biden said President Biden said there is "no doubt" that Navalny’s death was a "consequence of something that Putin and his thugs did." 

Life in Afghanistan has gotten perpetually worse for Afghans living under Taliban rule for the last three years as the humanitarian crisis continues to escalate, rights for women have all but vanished and Kabul remains essentially shut off from the international community.

A quarter of Afghans face "acute" food insecurity, more than half the nation requires humanitarian assistance, and according to the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), nearly 70% of the country is "subsistence insecure," meaning they do not have reliable access to basic resources like food, water, housing or health care.

After the Taliban takeover of Kabul on Aug. 15, 2021, the nation’s economy "basically collapsed," according to the UNDP, in large part because international funding through government donor plans, like the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund, were shut down.

TALIBAN PARADES AMERICAN WEAPONS 3 YEARS AFTER CHAOTIC WITHDRAWAL FROM AFGHANISTAN

The Taliban has further exacerbated its own economic crisis by propelling its extremist ideologies and enforcing oppressive bans on women by barring their access to the workplace or education. 

In three years since Washington concluded its "War on Terror," many have questioned whether life in Afghanistan is worse than it was before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the U.S. and its subsequent invasion.

"If it's not worse, it's heading in that direction quickly," Michael Rubin, senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and expert on security issues in the Middle East and South Asia, told Fox News Digital.  

The Taliban has not only reinstated harsh bans on women, it has also brought back corporal punishment through public floggings and group-enforced executions. Additionally, the Taliban's supreme leader, Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada, in May threatened to reinstate stoning women to death for adultery – a Taliban punishment on women that was never fully eradicated even during the U.S. incursion. 

"The biggest difference between now and pre-2001 is the Taliban are much better resourced," said Rubin, who spent time with the Taliban before the 9/11 attacks.

TALIBAN VOWS TO PUBLICLY STONE WOMEN TO DEATH IN DIRECT MESSAGE TO WESTERN DEMOCRACIES

Rubin said that even though the Taliban are not directly funded by international humanitarian groups, it has found ways to siphon off funding for its own gains. 

The Taliban marked the three-year anniversary of the takeover of Kabul in a parade on Wednesday at Bagram Air Base – formally the largest U.S. military base in Afghanistan – while showing off U.S. military hardware that had been abandoned following the withdrawal.

While neglecting any mention of the hardship Afghans face, speeches championing Taliban efforts to squash opposition to the extremist group were flaunted, along with a reference to Afghanistan’s continued isolation from the international community.

"The Islamic Emirate eliminated internal differences and expanded the scope of unity and cooperation in the country," Deputy Prime Minister Maulvi Abdul Kabir said in reference to a term the Taliban uses to describe its government, according to an AP News report. "No one will be allowed to interfere in internal affairs and Afghan soil will not be used against any country."

Former U.S. military machinery abandoned at the airbase like helicopters, tanks and vehicles were displayed alongside soldiers holding light and heavy machine guns.

"The Taliban holds these parades yearly to rub their victory and our defeat in our face," Bill Roggio, senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and founding editor of "The Long War Journal," told Fox News Digital.

Afghanistan has largely remained an international pariah over its human rights violations. But even as some countries have begun to allow for diplomatic engagement with the insurgent group, Western nations remain highly concerned over how Afghanistan has once again become a haven for terrorist organizations.

"Afghanistan is far more dangerous today than it was prior to 9/11," Roggio said. "The Taliban is in full control of the country, and it is sheltering and supporting al Qaeda and allied terror groups."

Roggio said al Qaeda is once again running training camps in at least 12 provinces across the country with very little internal resistance.

Newly elected Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian stressed his country’s right to retaliation against Israel in a rare phone call with the United Kingdom. 

British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer made clear to Pezeshkian during the 30-minute call that "war is not in anyone’s interest" and urged Tehran to "refrain from attacking Israel." The call followed a joint statement from the heads of the United States, the United Kingdom and three other European countries. 

The Iranian president, however, insisted that a strong response to an attack "is a right of nations and a solution for stopping crimes and aggression," Sky News reported. 

"The support of some Western countries for the Zionist regime is irresponsible and contrary to international standards since it endangers regional security by encouraging the Zionist regime to continue its crimes," Pezeshkian reportedly told Starmer.

BLINKEN POSTPONES MIDDLE EAST VISIT OVER SECURITY CONCERNS, ANTICIPATED IRANIAN RETALIATION

Tensions remain high after Israel’s alleged assassination of Hamas commander Ismail Haniyeh, who was in Tehran at the time of his death. Iran denounced Haniyeh’s murder and blamed Israel, even though Haniyeh died in what was later deemed a localized explosion that killed no Iranian citizens.

International pressure from European and Arab nations alike did not seem to dent Iran’s desire to avenge the commander of one of its most prominent proxy groups. 

Regional sources this week told Fox News foreign correspondent Trey Yingst on Monday that they are concerned Iran and its proxies could attack Israel within the next 24 hours in retaliation for the killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran late last month. No attack materialized in that time, but it did not dampen concerns.

BIDEN FOCUSED ON ‘LEGACY’ IN FINAL MONTHS, BUT SKELETON SCHEDULE ‘SIGNALS’ AN EMPTY HOUSE TO RIVALS: EXPERT

Hamas representatives on Sunday declared they would not participate in new negotiations for a cease-fire in Gaza unless mediators presented a plan based on previous talks. The representatives insisted that the group had shown "flexibility" throughout the negotiation process but that Israel – through actions such as the alleged assassination of Haniyeh – indicated it was not serious about a cease-fire agreement.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ordered his forces to "harshly punish" Israel for the killing of Haniyeh, and Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps deputy commander Ali Fadavi told Iranian media last week that the orders would be "implemented in the best possible way," according to Al Jazeera. 

Israel this week conveyed to the United States and several European allies that any attack from Iran – even if it does not kill any Israelis – will lead to another retaliatory strike on Iranian territory, the Times of Israel reported.

JORDAN REMAINS ‘LAST HOLDOUT’ AS IRAN LOOKS TO CREATE NEW ‘TERROR FRONT’ ON ISRAELI BORDER

The statement aimed to preempt another round of international pressure that would try to stop Israel from responding forcefully.

Tensions continue to slowly ratchet up across the week, with Iranian banks on Wednesday suffering a major cyberattack that all but crippled the institutions, according to Israeli outlet i24 News. Hackers stole information belonging to account holders and hit several other banks.

Iran has not yet blamed Israel, and no other nation or party has claimed credit, but Iran blamed the U.S. and Israel for the last major cyberattack to hit the country.

Fox News Digital's Greg Norman and Bradford Betz and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

Federal and international authorities are reportedly backtracking after saying that newly disclosed evidence showed that no blood was found at the Spain apartment where a Florida woman vanished.

Ana Maria Knezevich, 40, was last seen in Madrid, Spain, on Feb. 2 around 10 p.m., just 30 minutes after a man wearing a motorcycle helmet spray-painted surveillance cameras in her apartment building in the Salamanca quarter.

According to the Miami Herald, lawyers for her husband, David Knezevich, are pushing back against the prosecution's case due to the alleged lack of forensic evidence found at the scene.

"There was no blood, no struggle ... no sign of foul play," Knezevich’s lead attorney, Jayne Weintraub, said. "He’s being detained in a United States court for something that happened in Spain — if it happened in Spain."

HUSBAND OF FLORIDA WOMAN ANA KNEZEVICH, WHO VANISHED IN SPAIN, ARRESTED AT MIAMI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

At a recent hearing, Magistrate Judge Edwin Torres said that the evidence was "challengeable," pointing to the absence of blood evidence found at the Madrid apartment.

"I agree with you that some of their evidence is challengeable," Torres said. 

Torres also pointed to previous evidence that saw Knezevich purchasing duct tape and spray paint at a nearby hardware store.

"Doesn’t that make their case stronger?" Torres said.

Ana and David ran an IT company together in South Florida, and they were also interested in real estate. 

Rameau previously described them as a "successful couple" who had been married for 13 years before they decided to separate last summer, in a phone interview with Fox News Digital.

"It was difficult for her, obviously, so she started spending more time in Europe, in Madrid, where she has friends from before," Rameau said.

Then she disappeared.

FLORIDA WOMAN DISAPPEARS IN MADRID AFTER SUSPICIOUS TEXTS, BLACKED-OUT SURVEILLANCE CAMERAS

Rameau got a strange text from Ana on Feb. 3, a day after she suspected that her friend was taken against her will.

"I met someone wonderful!" the WhatsApp message reads. "He has a summer house about 2 [hours] from Madrid. We are going there now and I will spend a few days there. Signal is spotty. I'll call you when I get back."

A second message to Rameau reads, "Yesterday after therapy I needed a walk and he approached me on the street! Amazing connection. Like I never had before."

Knezevich was arrested in early May at Miami International Airport by FBI agents when returning from Serbia, where his mother lives. 

Since his arrest, he has been held at the Federal Detention Center in Miami.

Fox News Digital has reached out to the State Department for comment.

Fox News' Audrey Conklin contributed to this report.

Members of the Taliban on Wednesday commemorated the third anniversary of the chaotic American withdrawal from Afghanistan by parading through a former U.S. air base with American weapons and vehicles that had been abandoned.  

Bagram Airfield was once the center of America's war to unseat the Taliban and hunt down the al-Qaeda militants responsible for 9/11.

Uniformed soldiers marched with light and heavy machine guns, and a motorcycle formation carried the Taliban flag. Pickup trucks crammed with men of all ages drove through Kabul's streets in celebration of the takeover. 

Members of the Taliban Cabinet lauded achievements such as strengthening Islamic law and establishing a military system that allegedly provided "peace and security."

"This is the Taliban rubbing their victory over us in our face," U.S. Army Veteran Bill Roggio told Fox News Digital. 

Roggio, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and editor of its Long War Journal, called the parade evidence of U.S. failure in Afghanistan. 

"The Biden administration’s effort to get out of Afghanistan quickly has led to the Taliban having an American-supplied arsenal," Roggio said. 

‘PATH TO JUSTICE’: DURBIN URGES AUSTIN TO RETHINK REVOKING 9/11 MASTERMINDS' PLEA DEALS

Biden’s decision to pull troops from Afghanistan faced widespread global backlash after Taliban insurgents retook the country in a matter of days, on Aug. 15, 2021, 20 years after their ouster by U.S.-led forces. Just a month earlier, Biden told Americans that the likelihood of a Taliban takeover was "highly unlikely."

The military evacuation, which required thousands of additional U.S. troops on the ground and significant cooperation from the Taliban to complete, ended a day ahead of a deadline on Aug. 30, 2021, leaving behind hundreds of U.S. citizens and thousands of Afghan allies, despite President Biden's promise to "get them all out."

On Aug. 26, 2021, during the U.S. military's mass evacuation at the Kabul airport, suicide bombers killed 183 people, including 13 U.S. service members. The U.S. retaliated by launching two drone strikes against suspected ISIS-K terrorists, one of which ended up killing 10 Afghan civilians, including seven children.

Taliban speeches were aimed at an international audience, urging the West to interact and cooperate with the country's rulers. Currently, no country recognizes the Taliban as the legitimate government of Afghanistan.

"The Islamic Emirate eliminated internal differences and expanded the scope of unity and cooperation in the country," Deputy Prime Minister Maulvi Abdul Kabir said Wednesday, using the Taliban's term to describe their government. "No one will be allowed to interfere in internal affairs, and Afghan soil will not be used against any country."

Roggio dismissed that last assertion as preposterous, noting that the Taliban has consistently lied about not allowing its soil to be used for terrorist activities against other countries. 

"They lied about it pre-9/11. They lied about it while the U.S. was in Afghanistan. They sheltered Al-Qaeda and other groups which they support to this day," Roggio said. 

ROCKET ATTACK LAUNCHED AGAINST US MILITARY BASE IN SYRIA

"What I do believe them on is their desire to maintain control in Afghanistan, to enforce their will, to impose Sharia on its people," he said. "You can’t doubt them on that one." 

Roggio said the Taliban’s parading on Wednesday was primarily for optics but still demonstrated the terrorist group’s capabilities. 

"I don’t think the Taliban is a threat to project power outside its border. But certainly the equipment is useful to project power within Afghanistan to remain in power," he said. 

Despite the Taliban’s grandiose showing of their capabilities on Wednesday, there was no mention of a plan to improve the lives of the Afghan people. Decades of conflict and instability have left millions of Afghans on the brink of hunger and starvation. Unemployment is high and women are banned from attending school beyond sixth grade. 

The Bagram parade was the Taliban's grandest and most defiant since regaining control of the country in August 2021.

The audience of some 10,000 men included senior Taliban officials such as Acting Defense Minister Mullah Yaqoob and Acting Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani. Supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada was not at the parade.

The ancient ritual meaning of Stonehenge is still a mystery, but researchers are one step closer to understanding how the famous stone circle was created.

The unique stone lying flat at the center of the monument was brought to the site in southern England from near the tip of northeast Scotland, researchers reported Wednesday in the journal Nature. It’s not clear whether the 16-foot (5-meter) stone was carried by boat or through land — a journey of more than 460 miles (740 kilometers).

"It’s a surprise that it’s come from so far away," said University of Exeter archaeologist Susan Greaney, who was not involved in the study.

'COLOSSAL' THEORY ON STONEHENGE ORIGIN EXPLORED IN NEW FOX NATION SPECIAL

For more than a hundred years, scientists believed that Stonehenge’s central sandstone slab — long called the "altar stone" — came from much closer to Wales. But a study last year by some of the same researchers showed that the stone didn’t match the geology of Wales’ sandstone formations. The actual source of the stone remained unknown until now.

For the study, the team was not permitted to chip away rocks at the site, but instead analyzed minerals in bits of rock that had been collected in previous digs, some dating back to the 1840s. They found a match in the sandstone formations of Orcadian Basin in northeast Scotland, a region that includes parts of the tip of the Scottish peninsula as well as the Orkney Islands.

"That geological ‘fingerprint’ isn’t repeated in any other area of sediment in the U.K.," said Aberystwyth University geologist Nick Pearce, a study co-author.

Greaney said the difficult logistics of moving the stone such a long distance show a high level of coordination and cultural connection between these two regions of ancient Britain.

Stonehenge was constructed around 5,000 years ago, with stones forming different circles brought to the site at different times. The placement of stones allows for the sun to rise through a stone "window" during summer solstice. The ancient purpose of the altar stone — which lies flat at the heart of Stonehenge, now beneath other rocks — remains a mystery.

"Stonehenge isn’t a settlement site, but a place of ceremony or ritual," said Heather Sebire, senior curator at English Heritage, who was not involved in the study. She said that past archaeological excavations had not uncovered evidence of feasting or daily living at the site.

Previous research has shown cultural connections — such as similarities in pottery styles — between the area around Stonehenge and Scotland’s Orkney Islands. Other stones at Stonehenge came from western Wales.

While Britain is dotted with other Neolithic stone circles, "the thing that’s unique about Stonehenge is the distance from which the stones have been sourced," said Aberystwyth University’s Richard Bevins, a study co-author.

The newest discovery in the ancient city of Pompeii details the final moments of a man and a woman before the city of Pompeii was destroyed by Mount Vesuvius. 

During the excavations of Region IX, Insula 10, in Pompeii, the skeletal remains of a man and a woman were found, according to a press release from the Archaeological Park of Pompeii shared on Monday. 

"We know the woman was between 35 and 45 years of age, and the man was much younger, between 15 and 20 years of age," Sophie Hay, an archaeologist with the park told Fox News Digitial in an email. "We do not know the relationship between them nor their social status."

VIOLENT DOODLES MADE BY CHILDREN 2,000 YEARS AGO RAISE EYEBROWS

The woman had several valuable objects on her person that further contribute to the tragic story of her final moments. 

"The woman had on her person a purse and probably a small casket both filled with precious and valuable objects such as gold, silver and bronze coins, small engraved gemstones, some pendants, and a pair of gold and pearl earrings," Hays told Fox News Digital. 

"We know the objects had a monetary value, but we will never know what sentimental value they may have had for her, nor even if they belonged to her. The items must have represented something in the moments of chaos and terror that she thought would be important to take, whether for their monetary value or, especially in the case of the jewelry, personal belongings that meant something to her."

2 SKELETONS FOUND BURIED IN POMPEII REVEAL EARTHQUAKES ACCOMPANIED ERUPTION OF MOUNT VESUVIUS

The two sought refuge in the small room, where they found themselves trapped.

"As with each victim of the eruption, their individual death tells us a micro-story of the last moments of their lives. The very nature of this discovery – a man and a woman trapped in a room during a violent volcanic eruption – perhaps gives us a glimpse as to how absolutely terrifying the moments before their deaths must have been," Hays told Fox News Digital.

"In this case, the most significant thing we have learned is that they died at different stages of the eruption having both protected themselves against the 18 hours of falling pumice. The man was trapped in the corner of the room and the perimeter wall collapsed on him during an early stage of the pyroclastic flow, and the woman who had partially fallen onto the wooden bed in the room had died sometime later in another wave of the pyroclastic material," Hays said. "These people decided to seek shelter in their home rather than flee, and the room in which they sought safety became their tomb."

Since Mount Vesuvius erupted in A.D. 79, claiming the lives of about 2,000 people living in Pompeii, the city buried in ash was rediscovered by explorers in 1748, per History.com.

RESEARCHERS USE AI TO DECIPHER ANCIENT ROMAN TEXTS CARBONIZED IN DEADLY MOUNT VESUVIUS ERUPTION

That volcanic ash covering the ancient city left much of it preserved and discoveries to be made. 

Since the site was rediscovered, it has been visited by millions of tourists each year and is a dig site for archaeologists to unearth historic finds that further tell the story of life in the ancient city. 

In 1997, it was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

Other recent findings in Pompeii include a prison bakery where enslaved workers and donkeys were held, and a banquet room filled with artwork depicting mythological characters inspired by the Trojan War. 

The discovery of the man and woman was found south of the Roman shrine with rare blue paint covering the walls of the room that was uncovered in June.

The Taliban celebrated the third anniversary of their return to power Wednesday at a former U.S. air base in Afghanistan, but there was no mention of the country’s hardships or promises to help the struggling population.

Under blue skies and blazing sunshine at the Bagram base — once the center of America’s war to unseat the Taliban and hunt down the al-Qaida perpetrators of the 9/11 attacks — members of the Taliban Cabinet lauded achievements such as strengthening Islamic law and establishing a military system that provides "peace and security."

TALIBAN PUBLICLY FLOGS 63 IN AFGHANISTAN, INCLUDING WOMEN, DRAWING UN CONDEMNATION

The speeches were aimed at an international audience, urging the diaspora to return and for the West to interact and cooperate with the country’s rulers. No country recognizes the Taliban as the legitimate government of Afghanistan.

"The Islamic Emirate eliminated internal differences and expanded the scope of unity and cooperation in the country," Deputy Prime Minister Maulvi Abdul Kabir said, using the Taliban's term to describe their government. "No one will be allowed to interfere in internal affairs, and Afghan soil will not be used against any country."

None of the four speakers talked about the challenges facing Afghans in everyday life.

Women were barred from the event, including female journalists from The Associated Press, Agence French-Presse and Reuters. The Taliban did not give a reason for barring them.

Decades of conflict and instability have left millions of Afghans on the brink of hunger and starvation. Unemployment is high.

The Bagram parade was the Taliban’s grandest and most defiant since regaining control of the country in August 2021.

The audience of some 10,000 men included senior Taliban officials such as Acting Defense Minister Mullah Yaqoob and Acting Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani. Supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada was not at the parade.

The Taliban said foreign diplomats also attended, but did not specify who.

Aid agencies warn that humanitarian efforts in the country are gravely underfunded as economic collapse and climate change destroy livelihoods.

They say that Afghans, particularly women and girls, will suffer if there isn’t more diplomatic engagement with the Taliban.

The Bagram parade was also an opportunity to showcase some of the military hardware abandoned by U.S. and NATO-led forces after decades of war, including helicopters, Humvees and tanks.

Uniformed soldiers marched with light and heavy machine guns, and a motorcycle formation carried the Taliban flag.

Pickup trucks crammed with men of all ages drove through Kabul's streets in celebration of the takeover. Some men posed for photos with rifles.

In a parade in southern Helmand province, men held yellow canisters to represent the type of explosives used in roadside bombings during the war.

The Taliban declared Wednesday a national holiday. As in previous years, women did not take part in anniversary festivities.