Global news and relationship

The headmaster of a leading British boarding school has threatened to expel pupils if they have romantic relationships. Mr Belfield, 45, a Cambridge maths graduate who became head in 2010, has previously criticised "pathetic" children for being ill and female pupils for wearing short skirts, it has been reported. The school held a sixth-form casino night on Saturday where pupils dressed up, with girls in "little black dresses", according to its website. Mr Belfield was unavailable to talk to Sky News on Wednesday as he was dining with 72 parents in Hong Kong, the school said. Just under two thirds of the pupils at Ruthin are from overseas. In an email to parents regarding relationships, seen by Sky News, he said that all students, staff and parents were aware of his "strict views on behaviour and this is one reason why parents choose Ruthin School". He continued: "Unlike many other schools in the UK, the young people at Ruthin School have exc...

Rocket Man singer Sir Elton John says he wants to "go out with a bang" as he revealed plans for a final world tour. The 70-year-old British musician - who has been touring for nearly 50 years - said he will no longer perform live following his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour, which is due to start in September. Announcing his retirement plans, the star said his "priorities have changed" as he and husband David Furnish care for their two sons, Elijah and Zachary. "In 2015 we sat down with a school schedule and I thought I don't want to miss too much of this," he said. "My life has changed, my priorities have changed and my priority now is my family." Sir Elton said the mammoth 300-date tour was a chance "to say thank you to all my fans around the world and then to say goodbye." "I have had a good run ... I want to go out with a bang," he added. Asked if he could later reconsider his decision, Sir Elton vowed not t...

New head coach of the England women's football team, Phil Neville, will not be charged over sexist tweets, the FA has said. The former Manchester United and Everton player has apologised after comments he wrote several years ago resurfaced hours after he was appointed on Tuesday. On Wednesday Roisin Wood, who heads football's equality and inclusion organisation, Kick it Out, asked whether the 41-year-old's "misogynistic and sexist" posts would be examined by the FA. In response, the governing body's chief executive, Martin Glenn, said the comments did not meet the "threshold for issuing a charge". However, Mr Glenn added the coach would be "educated on all aspects of the FA's regulatory functions and his responsibilities thereunder". Neville has been "warned that any future comments that are deemed to cross the charging threshold will be treated with the utmost seriousness and may lead to disciplinary action". Kick I...

North Korea has called on "all Koreans at home and abroad" to "promote contact (and) cooperation between North and South Korea". State media in North Korea also said Pyongyang would "smash" all challenges against reunification of the Korean peninsula. Koreans are being urged to make a "breakthrough" for unification without other countries' help. It is the latest in a series of overtures. North and South Korea will march under one flag as their first joint Olympic team competes in the winter games in the South's Pyeongchang County next month. The Unification Flag, which features the entire peninsula and surrounding islands in blue on a white background, was last used in 2006 at the Winter Olympics in Italy.

Disgraced Olympics doctor Larry Nassar has been sentenced to up to 175 years for sexually abusing young gymnasts in his care. As she read his sentence on Wednesday, Judge Rosemarie Aquilina said Nassar's decision to assault was "precise, calculated, manipulative, devious and despicable". She told him: "It is my honour and privilege to sentence you. You do not deserve to walk outside a prison ever again... I've just signed your death warrant." The decision follows more than 150 victim impact statements from women and girls who told the court they had been sexually assaulted by Nassar. Among them was Olympic medal winner Aly Raisman, who said he "should have been locked up a long, long time ago". "We have no idea how many people you victimised, or what was done, or not done, that allowed you to keep doing it, and to get away with it for so long," she said. Prosecutor Angela Povilaitis described the "breadth and ripple" of Na...

Zimbabwe is going for elections in four to five months’ time and we have to preach peace, peace and peace,” the new president, who served as Mugabe’s right-hand man for decades before taking power, said during a visit to neighbouring Mozambique. Successive polls have been marred by violence and intimidation, leading to sanctions and the diplomatic isolation of the former British colony. The vote is being seen as a key test of Mnangagwa’s democratic credentials and it is crucial to unlocking badly needed financial assistance from international financial institutions as well as repairing relations with western powers. “We will ensure that Zimbabwe delivers free, credible, fair and indisputable elections to ensure Zimbabwe engages the world as a qualified democratic state,” Mnangagwa was quoted as saying by the Herald, a government-run newspaper. Under the constitution, Zimbabwe should hold elections between 22 July and 22 August, but parliament can elect to dissolve itself, triggeri...

New mainframes and incredibly low tax rates prop up Big Blue’s earnings report. Mainframes have been a core technology for IBM for decades. IBM Corp. achieved  its first quarter of revenue growth in more than five years thanks mostly to the same technology that helped make Big Blue a technology titan in the past, which doesn’t exactly bode well for its future. IBM sales increased year-over-year for the first time in 23 quarters in a decent earnings report Thursday that was overshadowed by news that it would take a $5.5 billion charge related to the U.S. tax overhaul. The charge pushed IBM’s fourth quarter into a net loss of $1.05 billion, or $1.14 a share. Before the charge, IBM’s adjusted earnings were $5.18 a share, compared with consensus expectations of $5.17, according to FactSet. Don’t miss:  The tax bill lowered corporate tax rate, so why are some companies announcing charges? The tax-related loss and a so-so forecast did not sit well with investors. IBM’s...

The Pope has married two flight attendants in a mid-air wedding on a plane during his trip to Chile. Bride Paola Podest Ruiz, 41, and groom Carlos Ciuffardi Elorriaga, 39, said "I do" after Francis agreed to conduct the ceremony on the flight from Santiago to Iquique. The couple had got married in a civil ceremony in 2010 but were unable to follow it up with a church service because of the earthquake that hit the country that year. Mr Elorriaga told journalists that Francis told him that no pope had ever married a couple on board a plane. He said: "We told him that we are husband and wife. That we are married. That we have two daughters and that we would have loved to receive his blessing. "All of a sudden he asked us if we were married by the church too. We are not married by the church because the 2010 earthquake happened on the day we got married. He took our hands and he asked if there was love in our marriage and if we want to keep on...