CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida: A SpaceX rocket has failed for the first time in nearly a decade, leaving the company’s Internet satellites in an orbit so low that they’re doomed to fall through the atmosphere and burn up.
The Falcon 9 rocket blasted off from California on Thursday night, carrying 20 Starlink satellites. Several minutes into the flight, the upper stage engine malfunctioned. SpaceX on Friday blamed a liquid oxygen leak.
The company said flight controllers managed to make contact with half of the satellites and attempted to boost them to a higher orbit using onboard ion thrusters. But with the low end of their orbit only 84 miles (135 kilometers) above Earth — less than half what was intended — “our maximum available thrust is unlikely to be enough to successfully raise the satellites,” the company said via X.
SpaceX said the satellites will reenter the atmosphere and burn up. There was no mention of when they might come down. More than 6,000 orbiting Starlinks currently provide Internet service to customers in some of the most remote corners of the world.
The Federal Aviation Administration said the problem must be fixed before Falcon rockets can fly again.
It was not known if or how the accident might impact SpaceX’s upcoming crew flights. A billionaire’s spaceflight is scheduled for July 31 from Florida with plans for the first private spacewalk, followed in mid-August by an astronaut flight to the International Space Station for NASA.
The tech entrepreneur who will lead the private flight, Jared Isaacman, said Friday that SpaceX’s Falcon 9 has “an incredible track record” and as well as an emergency escape system.
The last launch failure occurred in 2015 during a space station cargo run. Another rocket exploded the following year during testing on the ground.
SpaceX’s Elon Musk said the high flight rate will make it easier to identify and correct the problem.
SpaceX rocket accident leaves company’s Starlink satellites in wrong orbit
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SpaceX rocket accident leaves company’s Starlink satellites in wrong orbit
- An upper stage engine malfunctioned minutes after the Falcon 9 rocket blasted off from California on Thursday night, carrying 20 Starlink satellites
- More than 6,000 orbiting Starlinks currently provide Internet service to customers in some of the most remote corners of the world
Young women in UK face more strangulation and violent threats, says charity
Refuge, one of the largest specialist domestic abuse organizations in Britain, said 525 young women and girls receiving long-term support from the charity reported experiencing physical violence between April 2024 and March 2025. Around half of them were subjected to strangulation or suffocation — a 9 percent rise from a year earlier.
Nearly half of those reporting psychological abuse — about 615 individuals — said their perpetrator had threatened to harm them, marking a 4 percent increase. Additionally, 35 percent said they had been threatened with death.
“Domestic abuse often goes unnoticed, yet these new figures reveal the harrowing reality: many young lives are being devastated by this horrific crime,” said Refuge CEO Gemma Sherrington.
“To actively tackle domestic abuse, there must be a major societal shift toward improved education that shines a light on the many red flags of abuse.”
Refuge said many young victims were experiencing coercive control, a pattern of behavior designed to isolate, manipulate, and intimidate.
Survivors quoted in Refuge’s report described how abuse often began with subtle controlling behaviors and escalated over time. Such behaviors can often be overlooked by authorities as markers of domestic abuse.
Reuters reported on Wednesday that Britain would reassess a tool widely used by the police and domestic abuse specialist services to gauge the level of risk faced by victims following criticism that, among other issues, it downplays patterns of coercive and controlling behavior.
Refuge has called for domestic abuse education to be more deeply embedded in schools and for the government’s upcoming strategy on violence against women and girls to strengthen support for young people.
Spain signals support for UN-led mission to stabilize Gaza
MADRID: Spain signalled support on Wednesday for French President Emmanuel Macron’s proposal of an international coalition under a United Nations mandate to stabilize Gaza, calling it “one of the tools” that could bring peace to the region.
Macron said on Monday that such a UN mission would be tasked with securing the Gaza Strip, protecting civilians and working in support of unspecified Palestinian governance. He said the UN Security Council should work on establishing the mission, while France would also work with its partners.
“The proposal ... is one of the tools that can help achieve peace and security in Gaza and the Middle East, as is the work of UNRWA as the UN agency for aid to the Palestinian people,” the Spanish ministry said in an emailed reply to questions from Reuters.
“This force must be a step toward building the two-state solution,” it added, referring to the idea of bringing peace through the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel in territory Israel captured in a 1967 war.
Spain is a sharp critic of Israel’s widening war in Gaza and last year joined a handful of EU nations in recognizing a Palestinian state, a group now joined by France.
By proposing a UN-mandated mission in Gaza, Macron is seeking to build on the momentum created by his recognition of a Palestinian state last month, which set off a domino of recognitions, with Britain, Canada and Australia announcing plans to follow suit next month.
Spain’s Foreign Ministry said a temporary UN mission could ultimately contribute to a successful transfer of power to a Palestinian state administration and to achieving peace and security for all.
Last week, Israel’s security cabinet approved a plan to take control of Gaza City, in a move that expanded its military operations in the shattered Palestinian territory and drew strong criticism at home and abroad.
Mortar kills 2 children and their mother in northwest Pakistan where troops are targeting militants
- Government officials said the ongoing offensive against the Pakistani Taliban has displaced 25,000 families or an estimated 100,000 people in Bajaur, where authorities eased a curfew on Wednesday, allowing residents to buy essential items
KHAR: A mortar struck a home and killed two children and their mother in a northwestern Pakistani region where security forces are carrying out a “targeted operation ” against the Pakistani Taliban, residents and a hospital official said Wednesday.
It was not immediately clear who was responsible for the overnight civilian casualties in Mamund, a town in the Bajaur district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan.
Naseeb Gul, a medical doctor at a local hospital, said the dead were two children and their mother. Two people were also wounded Tuesday when another mortar hit their home, he said.
Angered by the deaths, hundreds of demonstrators were refusing to bury the bodies and demanding an investigation, according to local villager Mohammad Khalid.
There was no immediate comment from the government or the military.
The latest development came days after security forces launched an offensive in Bajaur to target militant hideouts. The provincial government said the “targeted operation” was launched after tribal elders failed to evict insurgents from the region.
Government officials said the ongoing offensive against the Pakistani Taliban has displaced 25,000 families or an estimated 100,000 people in Bajaur, where authorities eased a curfew on Wednesday, allowing residents to buy essential items.
Thousands of displaced people are currently residing in government buildings, and many other have gone to other safer areas to live with relatives.
The Bajaur offensive is the second operation there since 2009, when the military launched a large-scale campaign against the Pakistani Taliban, also known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP. The TTP is a separate but a close ally of the Afghan Taliban, who seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021.
Many TTP leaders and fighters have found sanctuary in Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover and have been living there openly. Some have crossed the border back into Bajaur to carry out attacks.
Clashes erupt at Serbian anti-government protests, with dozens injured
- Incidents first started on Tuesday evening in Vrbas, northwest of the capital Belgrade, where riot police separated protesters from the opposed camps outside the ruling Serbian Progressive Party offices in the town
BELGRADE: Clashes erupted at protests in Serbia between opponents and supporters of the government in an escalation of tensions following more than nine months of persistent demonstrations against populist President Aleksandar Vucic.
Incidents first started on Tuesday evening in Vrbas, northwest of the capital Belgrade, where riot police separated protesters from the opposed camps outside the ruling Serbian Progressive Party offices in the town.
Video footages from the scene showed government supporters throwing flares, rocks and bottles at the protesters, who hurled back various objects. Police said dozens of people were injured, including 16 policemen. Similar incidents were reported at protests in other parts of the country.
The student-led protests in Serbia first started in November after a train station canopy collapse in the northern city of Novi Sad killed 16 people, triggering accusations of corruption in state infrastructure projects.
Protests have since drawn hundreds of thousands of people, shaking Vucic’s firm grip on power in Serbia. The president’s supporters have recently started organizing counter-demonstrations, fueling fears of violence.
Police said several people were detained after the clashes in Vrbas. Police Commissioner Dragan Vasiljevic told the state RTS television that the protesters “came to attack” the ruling party supporters outside the party offices.
Protesters have said government supporters attacked them first in Vrbas and also further south in Backa Palanka and later in Novi Sad and the southern city of Nis. In Belgrade, riot police pushed away protesters who gathered in a downtown area.
Protests in Serbia since November have been largely peaceful. Led by university students, the protesters are demanding that Vucic calls an early parliamentary election which he has refused. Protesting students have also called for the ouster of Interior Minister Ivica Dacic over recent violence at demonstrations.
Serbia is formally seeking European Union membership but Vucic has maintained strong ties with Russia and China. He has faced accusations of stifling democratic freedoms since coming to power 13 years ago.
Persistent student-led protests against Vucic’s populist government have been held almost daily since November when a fatal train station canopy crash killed 16 people, triggering a wave of anti-corruption
Clashes erupt at Serbian anti-government protests, with dozens injured
- Tensions have escalated following more than nine months of persistent demonstrations against populist President Aleksandar Vucic
BELGRADE: Clashes erupted at protests in Serbia between opponents and supporters of the government in an escalation of tensions following more than nine months of persistent demonstrations against populist President Aleksandar Vucic.
Incidents first started on Tuesday evening in Vrbas, northwest of the capital Belgrade, where riot police separated protesters from the opposed camps outside the ruling Serbian Progressive Party offices in the town.
Video footages from the scene showed government supporters throwing flares, rocks and bottles at the protesters, who hurled back various objects. Police said dozens of people were injured, including 16 policemen. Similar incidents were reported at protests in other parts of the country.
The student-led protests in Serbia first started in November after a train station canopy collapse in the northern city of Novi Sad killed 16 people, triggering accusations of corruption in state infrastructure projects.
Protests have since drawn hundreds of thousands of people, shaking Vucic’s firm grip on power in Serbia. The president’s supporters have recently started organizing counter-demonstrations, fueling fears of violence.
Police said several people were detained after the clashes in Vrbas. Police Commissioner Dragan Vasiljevic told the state RTS television that the protesters “came to attack” the ruling party supporters outside the party offices.
Protesters have said government supporters attacked them first in Vrbas and also further south in Backa Palanka and later in Novi Sad and the southern city of Nis. In Belgrade, riot police pushed away protesters who gathered in a downtown area.
Protests in Serbia since November have been largely peaceful. Led by university students, the protesters are demanding that Vucic calls an early parliamentary election which he has refused. Protesting students have also called for the ouster of Interior Minister Ivica Dacic over recent violence at demonstrations.
Serbia is formally seeking European Union membership but Vucic has maintained strong ties with Russia and China. He has faced accusations of stifling democratic freedoms since coming to power 13 years ago.
Persistent student-led protests against Vucic’s populist government have been held almost daily since November when a fatal train station canopy crash killed 16 people, triggering a wave of anti-corruption
