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D-Day 82nd anniversary honoured in France

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D-Day 82nd anniversary honoured in France
By&nbspSertac Aktan&nbspwith&nbspAP

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On June 6, 1944, during World War II, nearly 160,000 Allied troops landed in Normandy, France, on what is known as ‘D-Day’, and they launched ‘Operation Overlord’ to liberate German-occupied Western Europe.

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Over 4,400 Allied troops were killed on that single day, and more than half of them were Americans. The exact number of German casualties on D-Day is not known, but it is estimated between 4,000 and 9,000 killed, wounded or missing.

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This year commemorates the 82nd anniversary of the Normandy beach landings, with only a handful of war veterans still alive to tell the story. And six of those last veterans have made the journey to France to commemorate the landings at the British Normandy Memorial.

French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu and the Pentagon’s second-in-command, Elbridge Colby, take part in the international ceremony at Langrune-sur-Mer on Saturday to honour those veterans.

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth was also present at the ceremony and laid tributes at the American memorial honouring war veterans who took part in the invasion that helped change the course of the war.

Hegseth was joined at the ceremony by Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Dan Caine, as well as other military personnel.

Referring to the servicemen who sacrificed their lives, Hegseth stated they “carried the hopes and prayers of a free world.”

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“They crossed an ocean to fight for their country on a continent that they’d never seen, to save a people they did not know..()..Alongside the brave forces of Great Britain, Canada, France, Norway, Poland, and our other capable and steadfast allies, the United States military spearheaded a great crusade to shatter the Nazi war machine and liberate the continent,” Hegseth said.

UK Defence Secretary John Healey also paid his respects as he laid a wreath at the foot of the British Normandy Memorial, which lists 22,540 British names on its Roll of Honour.

As the largest seaborne military operation in history, D-Day launched with tens of thousands of troops landing simultaneously across 5 separate beaches in Normandy.

Following more than a year of intense strategic planning, the invasion was delayed by 24 hours due to severe storms, missing its original 5 June target date, which commanders chose to capitalise on rare optimal weather, low tides, and a full moon.

In military terminology, the “D” simply stands for “day”, marking the designated start date of a major operation.

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Rescuers comb Venezuelan quake rubble, thousands reported missing

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Rescuers comb Venezuelan quake rubble, thousands reported missing
Rescuers worked through the night on Friday to save hundreds of Venezuelans trapped in rubble and find thousands more missing after two of the biggest earthquakes in Latin America’s modern history ​smashed areas in and around the capital Caracas.
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Video shows gaping hole after small plane crashes into towering skyscraper

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Video shows gaping hole after small plane crashes into towering skyscraper

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Video captured a large emergency response after a small plane crashed into Beijing’s tallest skyscraper on Friday, prompting an immediate information blackout from Chinese authorities, The Associated Press reported.

Video and photos shared on social media appear to show the aircraft plummeting to the ground after smashing a large hole in the 108-story CITIC Tower, located in the Chinese capital’s business district. 

Police, fire and EMS workers were spotted at the scene preventing witnesses from taking photos and attempting to clear the area.

People gather near the CITIC Tower in Beijing on June 26, 2026, after an eyewitness reported plane debris at the base of Beijing’s tallest building. Video footage taken from a nearby building by the witness showed fire trucks blasting water at smoke billowing from the 528-metre (1,732-foot) CITIC Tower, while the wreck of a plane lay on the ground beside the building. (Adek Berry/AFP via Getty Images)

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A person working inside the high-rise said the plane crash triggered the building’s fire alarms. 

Flight tracking data from Flightradar24 indicated the aircraft was a Sunward SA 60L Aurora, which took off about 30 miles east of the city and crashed shortly before 6 p.m. local time. 

ADS-B data for the flight only includes a partial flight path and stops prior to the crash, according to air traffic data.

A hole is seen (R) on the side of the CITIC Tower in Beijing on June 26, 2026, after a reported plane crash. (Peter Catterall/AFP via Getty Images)

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The AP reported that photos and videos of the incident escaped the country’s “great firewall” and were circulated on social media platform X, though Chinese censors have removed content about the crash from the country’s restricted internet. 

No information has been released by government officials or state-run media, as of Friday afternoon.

Police personnel block the road near the CITIC Tower in Beijing on June 26, 2026. (Adek Berry/AFP via Getty Images)

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The cause of the crash, identity of the pilot, and the number of casualties remain unclear.

The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates. 

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Burkina Faso cuts diplomatic ties with former colonial ruler France

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Burkina Faso cuts diplomatic ties with former colonial ruler France

The military government, in power since a coup in 2022, accused France of having ‘neo-colonial ambitions’.

Burkina Faso has broken off diplomatic relations with France, further widening the rift with its former colonial ruler.

“The government of Burkina Faso hereby informs the national and international community that it has decided to sever diplomatic relations with France with effect from today, June 26, 2026,” said Friday’s statement read out on national television.

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The military government led by Captain Ibrahim Traore, in power since a coup in September 2022, is pursuing a policy against critical voices and Western countries, especially France.

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In the TV announcement, the government accused France of persistently acting against its interests.

“The essential conditions for promoting relations based on mutual ⁠respect, reciprocal trust, respect ⁠for the principle of non-interference in internal affairs and national sovereignty are not in place,” said Communications ⁠Minister, Gilbert Ouedraogo.

He said the decision ⁠followed a review of relations with Paris. He accused France of having “neo-colonial ambitions, made evident by its active support for subversive networks and the terrorists who are plunging our country and the Sahel into mourning”.

In January, political parties in Burkina Faso were formally dissolved by the military government, which has also seized all their assets in a move analysts say is a major blow for democracy in the West African nation.

Landlocked Burkina Faso is grappling with several armed groups which have seized control of land in the country’s north, south and west. These include the al-Qaeda-backed Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) and Islamic State Sahel Province (ISSP), which also operate in neighbouring Mali and Niger.

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Burkina Faso’s military has been accused of committing atrocities, including the ethnic cleansing of Fulani civilians, amounting to war crimes and crimes against humanity, Human Rights Watch found last April.

According to the government statement released on Friday, the decision to cut ties with France “exclusively concerns diplomatic relations between the two states” and “does not call into question the historical, human, cultural and social ties between the people of Burkina Faso and France”.

It added that French nationals in Burkina Faso will continue to be protected in accordance with the law.

Once a significant power in northern, central and western Africa, France has seen its influence shrink in recent years, especially as many of its former African colonies, particularly in the Sahel, have distanced themselves and become more closely aligned with Russia and China.

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