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THE leader of ISIS has been killed in battle, the terror group has said. The extremists have revealed a new commander after Abu Hasan al-Hashimi al-Qurashi died fighting in Syria. AlamyIslamic state fighters pose on the border between Syria and Iraq[/caption] GettyThe terror group have confirmed a their leader[/caption] Al-Quraishi had been selected to lead the IS militants in March before being killed in an operation carried out by the rebel Free Syrian Army in mid-October, the US military said. No American troops were involved in the operation, the county’s military spokesman said. ISIS spokesman Abu Omar al-Muhajer confirmed the leader’s death in an audio message on Wednesday. He said al-Quraishi was killed while “fighting enemies of God”, without elaborating. Al-Quraishi had been appointed in March after Joe Biden announced the death of Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi in Syria. The US President said the leader blew himself and his family up after using his own children as human shields during a bloody raid by US special forces. He was put in charge after former head Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was killed in a similar raid by US forces in 2019 in the nearby town of Barisha. The jihadis have announced their latest leader as Abu al-Hussein al-Husseini al-Qurashi. ISIS’ spokesman did not much detail on the new head, but said he was a “veteran” jihadist and urged all groups loyal to the IS to pledge allegiance. Hassan Hassan, author of a book on Islamic State, said the group has diminished. He said: “This doesn’t mean the group is finished, but for now it is a shadow of its former self, they are hollowed out in terms of their leadership and their ability to carry out attacks. “They don’t have iconic, charismatic leaders any more, and they haven’t carried out any major attacks recently.” The White House welcomed the news that al-Quraishi had been killed, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters. Islamic State emerged from the chaos of the civil war in neighbouring Iraq and took over vast swathes of Iraq and Syria in 2014. Former IS caliph Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared an Islamic caliphate from a mosque in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul that year and proclaimed himself caliph of all Muslims. Islamic State’s brutal rule, during which it killed and executed thousands of people in the name of its narrow interpretation of Islam, came to an end in Mosul when Iraqi and international forces defeated the group there in 2017. Since the peak of its power seven years ago, when it ruled millions of people in the Middle East and frightened the world with deadly bombings and shootings, Islamic State has slipped back into the shadows. Its remaining thousands of militants have in recent years mostly hid out in remote hinterlands of fractured Iraq and Syria, though they are still capable of carrying out significant insurgent-style attacks. 

A DRONE submarine is to guard Britain’s internet cables from attack. The unmanned craft will help foil underwater threats from Vladimir Putin’s subs. AFPA drone submarine is to guard Britain’s internet cables from an attack by Russia[/caption] The unmanned craft will help foil underwater threats from Vladimir Putin’s subsIt can cover 1,000 miles over seven days and is to be deployed by the Royal Navy as part of £15million Project Cetus. The battery-powered 17-tonne drone sub will be 12 metres long — the length of a double decker bus. It is being built by a technology firm in Plymouth. Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said: “In order to meet the growing threats to our underwater infrastructure, the Royal Navy needs to be ahead of the competition with cutting edge capabilities.” READ MORE ON RUSSIA EVIL FORCES More than 20,000 Ukraine civilians killed as Putin to 'expand nuclear arsenal' YOB ARMY Desperate Putin 'recruits ultras football hooligans' for his bloody war in Ukraine The development came as Mr Wallace was in Rome yesterday meeting his Italian counterpart. The vessel could also be deployed around the world on missions because it can be shipped in a sea container. First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Ben Key called the project “a capability step-change in our mission to dominate the underwater battlespace”. UK armed forces chief Admiral Tony Radakin has warned that Russian submarine activity poses a major threat and any damage to cables carrying internet data could be seen as an “act of war”. He said in January there had been a huge rise in Russian submarine and underwater activity in the past 20 years.

STRIKING images taken across the world show the very best of wildlife photography.  Each photographer who has captured these images is up for a gong at the Wildlife Photographer of the Year award.  This snap of golden snub-nosed monkeys trying to keep warm is a hot fave to win a wildlife photo awardTwo foxes were pictured nuzzling each other on Canada’s Prince Edward IslandA snap of golden snub-nosed monkeys trying to keep warm is a hot fave to win. The chilly trio were captured while huddling together at China’s Qinling Mountains. Also photographed was Olobor, one of a five-strong coalition of lions in Kenya’s Maasai Mara National Reserve. Most read in The Sun RUMBLE IN THE JUNGLE I'm A Celeb rows and backstage threats fans never saw revealed by star BABY LOVE Hollyoaks' Jorgie Porter gives birth to first baby and reveals adorable name ARCH RIVALS Sweet new pic of Archie released on day William and Kate start US tour FIFA FUSS England opponents Senegal under investigation for breaking World Cup rules NO WEIGH! Corrie's Sue Cleaver shows off I'm A Celeb jungle weight loss 'A SENSATION' Strictly star set for huge new TV job as BBC bosses cash in on popularity And a snow leopard has also been pictured perfectly in northern India. Twenty-five images are in the running for the award.  They are run by the National History Museum in London.  Graffiti art of a cat on a wall with a real gecko in Corella, northern Spain, also made the shortlist for Wildlife Photographer of the YearThree bottlenose dolphins were pictured swimming in Monterey Bay, CaliforniaA snow leopard was pictured perfectly in northern IndiaOlobor, one of a five-strong coalition of lions in Kenya’s Maasai Mara National Reserve was also photographed

HE was Osama bin Laden’s chosen son – anointed heir to the al-Qaeda warlord amid the rugged Afghan peaks. During a fractured childhood in Tora Bora, Omar bin Laden’s beloved pets were used to test chemical weapons and he was taught to fire an AK-47 assault rifle in terrorist training camps. Osama bin Laden’s son Omar has told how his father made him fire AK47s and wanted him to be a terroristOmar is now a painter whose work sells for up to £8,500 apieceAs a child Omar’s beloved pets were used to test chemical weaponsCollect“I saw it,” he says of the horrific chemical experiments conducted by his father’s henchman. “They tried it on my dogs and I wasn’t happy. “I just try to forget all the bad times as much as I can. It’s very difficult. You suffer all the time.” Omar, 41, who turned his back on his blood-soaked jihadi father before 9/11, considers himself “another victim”. READ MORE ON BIN LADEN CASH SHOCK Prince Charles accepted £1million from Osama bin Laden’s family for charity WIPED OUT Osama bin Laden's right-hand-man and Al Qaeda chief killed in US drone strike Today, his eyes blinking with emotion, he deftly sketches a jagged mountain range on canvas with a palette knife in vivid blue oils. “My favourite subject is mountains after living in Afghanistan for five years,” he tells me as he paints. “They give me a safe feeling, like I’m untouchable.” Watching Omar paint is his wife, mentor and confidante Zaina bin Laden — a great grandmother who, when she was known as Jane Felix-Browne, was a parish councillor in Moulton, Cheshire. Most read in The Sun RUMBLE IN THE JUNGLE I'm A Celeb rows and backstage threats fans never saw revealed by star BABY LOVE Hollyoaks' Jorgie Porter gives birth to first baby and reveals adorable name ARCH RIVALS Sweet new pic of Archie released on day William and Kate start US tour FIFA FUSS England opponents Senegal under investigation for breaking World Cup rules NO WEIGH! Corrie's Sue Cleaver shows off I'm A Celeb jungle weight loss 'A SENSATION' Strictly star set for huge new TV job as BBC bosses cash in on popularity Six-times-married Zaina, 67, who describes Omar as “my soul mate”, tells me he suffers from “very bad trauma, stress and panic attacks”. Omar’s torment over his father — Zaina thinks he suffered PTSD after 9/11 — led him to consult therapists and be prescribed medication. Zaina once said: “Omar loves and hates Osama at the same time. He loves him because he is his father but hates what he has done.” Omar left Afghanistan in April 2001, just five months before al-Qaeda crashed passenger jets into New York’s Twin Towers, killing almost 3,000 people. Recalling his last conversation with his father, he revealed: “I said goodbye and he said goodbye. “I’d had enough of that world. He wasn’t happy that I was leaving.” They would never speak again. Omar was in Qatar on May 2, 2011 when he heard the news that US Navy Seals had assassinated his father at a Pakistan safehouse. He shed no tears for his slain father. He recognised the dead body of his brother Khalid from pictures on the internet of the stormed compound in the city of Abbottabad. His brow furrowed, Omar revealed: “I thought everything was finished and that I’m not going to suffer any more. “And I was mistaken, because people still judge me today.” He would have liked a funeral, for closure. The official US account is that Bin Laden’s body was buried at sea from the supercarrier USS Carl Vinson within 24 hours of his death. Omar is doubtful, adding: “It would have been much better to bury my father and know where his body is. “But they didn’t give us the chance. “I don’t know what they did to him. They say they threw him in the ocean but I don’t believe that. “I think they took his body to America, for people to see.” MENACING SHADOW Omar’s artwork, which he sells for up to £8,500 apiece, is therapy — for his father’s menacing shadow still hangs over him. Bin Laden’s fourth eldest son, Omar was born in Saudi Arabia to 6ft 4in Bin Laden’s first wife, Najwa, in March 1981. In 1991 Bin Laden was banished from Saudi Arabia for his anti-US diatribes after forming al-Qaeda to fight the Soviet Union in Afghanistan in 1988. The family moved to Sudan, north Africa, where many of Bin Laden’s jihadi fighters worked in his farming and road-building businesses. Omar — who has been denied entry to Britain — shows me his vivid painting of his father’s sunflower crop fringed by high mountains in Sudan. The US accused Bin Laden Senior of running terrorist training camps in Sudan, where the authorities asked him to leave. By May 1996 he was back in the Tora Bora mountains in Afghanistan, choosing 15-year-old Omar to accompany him. The teenager became his tea boy, living in freezing huts and on meagre rations. He was later joined by his mother and siblings. “I was in Afghanistan for five years,” he said. Omar learned to fire a Kalashnikov rifle and to drive a Russian tank, but he was disgusted when the fanatics started killing his pets to test chemical weapons. He once recalled: “My father never asked me to join al-Qaeda, but he did tell me I was the son chosen to carry on his work. “He was disappointed when I said I was not suited to that life.” When asked today why he thinks his father chose him as his heir, he tells me: “I don’t know, maybe because I was more intelligent, which is why I’m alive today.” I’m speaking to Omar in his studio in a rambling villa in Qatar, where he and Zaina — who live in Normandy, France — are on a short break. He bears a striking resemblance to his infamous father, with a long, broad nose, but his eyes lack the al-Qaeda warlord’s sinister glint. Omar and Zaina attended Qatar’s final World Cup group game against the Netherlands on Tuesday, an experience he described as “amazing”. He tells me his father also enjoyed the sport, though he says of rumours that Bin Laden Senior was an Arsenal fan: “I never heard him say he liked this team or that team.” Omar supports the World Cup being held in Qatar, saying: “Arab people are human too. Qatar is one of the greatest countries in the Middle East. “They should have the right to invite the rest of the world to celebrate the World Cup here.” On the face of it the son of history’s most infamous terrorist and the former Cheshire parish councillor 25 years his senior are an odd couple. BRITISH VISA Yet they seem joyful in each other’s company, with Omar at one point serenading her with Queen’s Love Of My Life as we talk. Zaina, an accomplished artist too, is a mum of three who once worked in interior design for light aircraft and later for the Citizens Advice Bureau after doing a psychology degree. The great grandmother of three says: “My boys love Omar.” She met him while horse riding near the Great Pyramid, in Giza, Egypt, in 2007 and they married soon after. In 2010 they attempted to have a child together through IVF but the British surrogate mum miscarried their twins at ten weeks. Today the couple are renovating flats in a 500-year-old building in Normandy to turn into holiday lets. They also plan to open a restaurant. Once indoctrinated by his anti-American father, Omar now loves McDonald’s, Kentucky Fried Chicken and Clint Eastwood movies. An anglophile, he dreams of visiting Zaina’s family in Britain. After the Queen died he made a video tribute on Tik Tok, saying: “I loved the Queen. “People come and go and she was always there. King Charles is very kind and welcoming to Arabic and Gulf people especially.” Two years ago Omar was denied entry to Britain after the couple arrived by ferry at Portsmouth. He said: “When I put my foot on English soil they took us straight away to the questioning room for many hours. “But they were very kind and very respectful.” The couple were sent back to France when Omar’s paperwork was found not to be in order. He is now applying for a British visa. He hopes this interview will help him sell paintings. After our chat, his landscape of Tora Bora is finished — and signed OBL with a flourish. Asked if his infamous last name has helped him sell his artwork, Omar adds: “My name has helped me very much. “It’s very well known around the world.” Finally, I ask if he still loves his father, and he replies: “Family will always be family, no matter what.” Max MolyneuxOmar considers himself ‘another victim’ of his father[/caption] GettyHe turned his back on Osama before the 9/11 terrorist attacks[/caption] Omar and his wife Zaina attended the World Cup Netherlands v Qatar game

AN evil bouncer who was jailed for 18 years after strangling his British heiress girlfriend has had his sentence increased. Marc Schatzle, 33, was locked up in October 2021 for the murder of Anna Reed, 22, and appealed against the sentence and conviction last month. Refer to CaptionMarc Schatzle was originally handed an 18-year prison sentence for the murder of Anna Reed[/caption] Tim StewartAnna was found dead in her hotel room in Lugano, Switzerland[/caption] Tim StewartSchatzle has the word ‘Warrior’ tattooed on his face[/caption] Anna was found dead in their luxury hotel room in Lugano, Switzerland, three years ago. During his trial, German-born Schatzle and his defence team claimed she died in a sex game which went wrong and pleaded for the conviction to be changed to manslaughter, which would have meant less time behind bars. However, the Court of Appeal in Lugano increased the sentence by six months. A spokesman said: “The reasoning will be given at a later date but from the evidence heard in the appeal they decided a longer sentence was warranted.” In addition, the court ruled that once he had served his sentence he will be deported and prevented from entering Switzerland for 14 years, instead of the original 12, meaning he will be unable to visit his child. Schatzle, who has ‘Warrior’ tattooed on his face and the acronym ACAB – which stands for ‘All Cops are B*******’ – said at his appeal: “What happened was an accident, I never wanted Anna’s death. “Despite what the prosecutor says, I have said sorry, I’ve said sorry to Anna’s family, and I’ve said sorry to my family for causing this disaster. “I didn’t do what the prosecution says, it was just a banal accident, I accept I inadvertently caused her death.” As he spoke, a former girlfriend, named only as Michelle, wept. Earlier in the court proceedings, he was allowed to kiss and cuddle her during breaks. At his original trial last year, the court heard how he used Anna’s credit card to go on a spending spree after admitting he “liked the finer things in life”. The jury heard how he met Anna in Thailand in February 2019 and she had splurged £50,000 on him, paying for hotels, restaurants and clothes while they were together. She had gone to the Far East after her dad, Clive, had given her an around-the-world ticket as a 21st birthday present. Anna had also inherited £250,000 from her mum who died in a 2016 domestic accident. Schatzle claimed in court Anna died after he had placed a towel around her throat during consensual sex in the bathroom of their five-star hotel La Palme au Lac in Locarno in April 2019. Judge Mauro Emani though slammed him as a “liar” and a “dangerous man” and sentenced him to 18 years. At the appeal last month, prosecutor Petra Canonica Alexakis blasted Schatzle, saying he had been “lying for three years” and his claims of an “accident and sex game tragically gone wrong” were unfounded. She said: “He is a killer and the first trial confirmed this. The first trial didn’t believe it was an erotic game and an accident. “There is nothing to confirm his version of events and he has refused to cooperate with investigators from the beginning. “If things had gone as he claims, then one would have excepted his attitude to be different but there is nothing to suggest he and Anna Reed practised erotic asphyxiation or sadomasochism.” Ms Canonica Alexakis described how the telephone cable in their room had been found ripped from the wall by investigators and Schatzle had insisted it was already broken. But she said: “We know that’s not true because he ordered room service from reception, and this was confirmed by the hotel staff. CRUEL KILLING “Instead, he ripped the cable, maybe Anna was trying to make a call or maybe he did it to stop her calling for help.” The prosecutor went on to highlight how there were no wounds on Schatzle inflicted by Anna, as she weighed just 55kg compared to his weight of 105kg and her fingernails were short. Ms Canonica Alexakis added: “Anna hated liars and she hated being lied to and the night she died she had learnt what sort of man Schatzle was. “She had been warned about him by a previous boyfriend after he had been tipped by an ex-girlfriend of Schatzle, who said he had manipulated and used her, lying continuously. “The night Anna died there was no sex game and there was no attempt at a joke by hiding her credit card in a lift. “She died because of an intentional gesture and the medical report revealed a wound to her gums consistent with a hand being placed over her mouth.” Ms Canonica Alexakis said that on the night of Anna’s death Schatzle had “only seven Francs in his account and 20 Francs in his wallet”. She added: “But he knew that a Visa card Anna had was preloaded with 25,000 Swiss Francs which may not seem much but to a man who has nothing it was enough to use to flee the country. “That’s why after killing Anna he set about falsifying the scene. He hid her credit card in the lift to retrieve later because we know guests along the corridor heard heavy footsteps that morning. “He put her body in a bath of warm water to delay the time of death, but the paramedics were suspicious when they arrived because of the colour and texture of her skin. “Schatzle waited to raise the alarm, maybe as much as two hours because he wanted to take the time to save his own skin. “He simulated an accident in the bathroom before raising the alarm but let’s remember how he raised the alarm he took the elevator to the reception. “Would you not rush down the stairs if you were in that situation instead of waiting for the lift? And it was noticed he had taken the time to tie his shoes and get dressed.” Ms Canonica Alexakis continued: “Anna was certainly disinhibited when it came to sex but she was not into rough sex or erotic asphyxiation her friends and ex-boyfriend have confirmed it. “Schatzle was not into sado masochism or rough sex two of his ex partners have confirmed this it’s only he who says they were but we all know he is a liar.” Tim StewartSchatzle’s original sentence had been increased by six months[/caption] Tim StewartThe pair had met in Thailand in 2019[/caption]

A SELF-proclaimed time traveller has wildly claimed that he knows the winning lottery numbers that can make you a millionaire. The TikTok user has bizarrely claimed that he has the magic combination of digits for an upcoming draw – but there’s a catch. A TikToker claims he has the winning lottery numbersIn a video shared online, @timetraveler047 said: “Probability changes realities all the time, especially random events. “That being said, a lot of people ask me the winning numbers for one of the lotterines happening soon.” The user goes on to predict the winning numbers as 47, 17, 32, 24, 18 and 5. But crucially he doesn’t say which lottery the digits are for. The irony wasn’t lost on sceptic users in the comments who made light of the TikToker’s cryptic predictions.   One person: “When should I play.” While another user added: “Thanks for the lotto numbers… but what’s the powerball number?” The latest odd forecast comes just four years after so-called time traveller said he was forbidden from revealing future national lottery results. Alexander Smith, who claimed to be from the year 2118 and used work for the CIA, said that doing so would end the human race. He explained that if he had cheated the system and won big, our entire species would be wiped out. Asked in an interview with the Daily Star about whether he knew the lotto numbers, Smith laughed: “I didn’t buy a lottery ticket. “It was strictly forbidden by the CIA to do anything that would increase my monetary wealth. “You see the CIA were paying me very well for my mission. “I was paid a substantial amount so there was no reason for me to try to get lottery numbers from the past.  “They also explained to me if I did so, it could spell the end of the human race because it would cause a paradox.” In other news, a time traveller who bizarrely thinks he has travelled to the future claims he has pictures to prove it. While another supposed voyager, from the year 2671, has wildly suggested a mega tsunami will hit California.

FORENSIC experts believe they may have made a major breakthrough in the cold case investigation of 1930s aviator Amelia Earhart.   Kenan Ünlü, director of the Radiation Science and Engineering Center at Penn State University, believes he has unearthed clues on a key piece of evidence that could solve the mystery. BettmannNew evidence might shed light on the fate of aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart[/caption] Getty - ContributorHistorians have spent years determining what happened to the American pilot after her plane vanished over the south Pacific in 1937[/caption] TIGHARAnd this piece of metal, discovered in 1991, could hold the answer[/caption] Pioneering pilot Earhart, 39, was attempting to fly around the world when she vanished with navigator Fred Noonan on July 2, 1937, during a flight from Papua New Guinea to Howland Island. She was declared dead two years later and for decades it was assumed she died in the smash, with her remains being lost to the deep waters. But in 2018, it was revealed Earhart did crash on a remote Pacific island where scientists claimed to have found her skeleton. And now they believe an aluminium panel, which washed up on a remote island close to where Earhart’s plane went missing, could shine further light on her final days. According to scientific analysis shared with Mail Online, the panel, found in 1991, was once etched with various letters and numbers that experts say could be related to a manufacturing code. They add the panel could have been added to the aircraft when repairs were made during the pilot’s historic world tour attempt. Ünlü told the outlet: “We found what looks like stamped or painted marks that could be from the original manufacturer. “D24 and 335, or maybe 385. We don’t know what they mean, but they are the first new information from this panel that has been examined by various experts with different scientific techniques for over 30 years.” Sources close to the investigation say the 19 x 23-inch panel – that washed up on Nikumaror – is thought to be an exact match of the one attached to the fuselage of Earhart’s famous Lockheed Model 10-E Electra. Richard ‘Ric’ Gillespie, who found the panel in 1991 and leads The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery (TIGHAR), is hoping forensics can determine whether the new find can determine the fate of Earhart’s plane once and for all. He told the Mail: “Whether this information provides more evidence or disproves that the panel belonged to Earhart’s plane, I’ll be glad to know. “Further research may explain the numbers and help move Artifact 2-2-V-1 closer, or farther, from being a relic of NR16020.” Amelia Earhart was flying from Papua New Guinea to Howland Island when she disappearedSince their last find in 2018, The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery have been investigating the theory that Earhart landed on Nikumaroro – now part of Kiribati. It came after other artefacts were also been found on the island – including American products, some for women, which were all made in the 1930s. Before her disappearance, Earhart had made history by setting many early aviation records at a time when there were hardly any female pilots. She was an accomplished flyer who in 1932 became the first woman to make a solo flight across the Atlantic. Her adventures brought her global fame and later recognition as she was posthumously inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1968 and the National Women’s Hall of Fame in 1973. GettyThe aviator’s plane was last seen on radar on July 2, 1937 after running into trouble having missed the island[/caption] Credit: Pen News/TIGHARFragments were picked up that match a bottle of women’s skin softener on sale in the late 1930s[/caption] This knife was also found on the island and was the same as one listed in the plane’s inventoryCredit: Pen News/TIGHAR

MORE than “20,000 civilians” have been slaughtered by since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began, a top EU chief has said. Announcing EU plans to launch a special tribunal to try the Kremlin for its Ukraine war crimes, Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, slammed the brutality of Putin’s forces. Sharing a speech on Twitter, she said: “Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has brought death, devastation and unspeakable suffering…It is estimated that more than 20,000 civilians and more than 100,000 Ukrainian military officers have been killed so far.” This comes as the Kremlin reveals plans to expand its nuclear arsenal in the coming year. According to Russian state media, defence minister Sergei Shoigu said: “When preparing the list of major construction facilities for 2023, special attention will be paid to construction in the interests of the strategic nuclear forces.” Read our Ukraine-Russia live blog below for the latest news…

AN intruder managed to get within feet of Emmanuel Macron’s office after sneaking past guards at the Elysee Palace. The astonishing security lapse at the French president’s official residence was revealed by the magazine Le Canard enchaîné. AlamyThe intruder managed to evade hundreds of security officials to reach the inside of the palace[/caption] AlamyThe Salon Dore is the president’s office within the vast palace[/caption] The publication said the suspect, 26, was able to wander the halls before he was spotted and apprehended on September 28.  The bizarre event has left palace security and French police stunned as to how he got inside the palace and so close to Macron’s office.  The sprawling 18th-century Elysee Palace, located in the 8th arrondissement in Paris, consists of over 365 rooms, two hectares of gardens, and around 180 round-the-clock soldiers who patrol the grounds.  French authorities believe the intruder was able to slip past security during the changing of the Republican Guards and somehow cross the main courtyard undetected.  READ MORE ON FRANCE THE SUN SAYS Signing a deal with Macron to stop migrants will look like the easy bit STREETS OF RAGE Riot cops charge protesters & violence erupts in Paris after Macron win And despite the high security, he was only stopped when a bailiff spotted him at the foot of a staircase that leads directly to Macron’s office in the first-floor Salon Doré. French officials said Macron was not in his office at the time of the break-in, but was attending a meeting in another wing of the mansion.  If prosecuted by French police, the trespasser risks up to a year in prison and a fine of €15,000 euro (£12,935).  However, this is not the first time a mysterious individual has attempted to breach palace security. Most read in The Sun RUMBLE IN THE JUNGLE I'm A Celeb rows and backstage threats fans never saw revealed by star BABY LOVE Hollyoaks' Jorgie Porter gives birth to first baby and reveals adorable name ARCH RIVALS Sweet new pic of Archie released on day William and Kate start US tour FIFA FUSS England opponents Senegal under investigation for breaking World Cup rules NO WEIGH! Corrie's Sue Cleaver shows off I'm A Celeb jungle weight loss 'A SENSATION' Strictly star set for huge new TV job as BBC bosses cash in on popularity In 2012, an armed man tried to break into the palace residence of then-French president Francois Hollande.  However, he was quickly thwarted by authorities and arrested at the gates. The threat was low as Mr Hollande was not inside at the time, and the gun was later found to be a replica.  The news of this September’s break-in has surfaced in the midst of Macron’s three-day state visit to Washington – the first official visit of Biden’s presidency.  After a somewhat fractious relationship between the two old allies, the countries have forged closer ties recently. As war rages in Ukraine and China’s aggressiveness escalates, elements of the two nations’ diplomatic ambitions have more closely aligned.  Far from thoughts of the strange palace intruder, the French president’s mind will likely be focused on ending the war in Ukraine, bolstering France’s nuclear energy industry, and the effects of Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act on the EU’s ability to compete in the US market.  GettyPresident Macron’s trip to the US will be the first state visit by a foreign leader under Biden’s presidency[/caption]

THE wife of a Russian crypto tycoon killed in a mystery helicopter crash has hit back at claims he was a Kremlin spy. Vyacheslav Taran, 53, died when the chopper came down near Monaco and his grieving widow Olga has insisted he has actually supported Ukraine. Vyacheslav Taran pictured with his wife OlgaEast2WestEast2WestThe chopper he was travelling in was heading to Monaco from Lausanne in Switzerland[/caption] A 35-year-old French pilot was also killed in the accident that happened in the Alpes-Maritimes, in the southeast of France. Russian-born Taran – originally from Vladivostok – had three children with OIga, the founder of Hello Monaco media. In the wake of the crash, a Ukrainian news agency reported he had ties to Russia’s foreign intelligence service. But that claim has been strenuously denied by his wife who described the allegations against him as “outrageous” and “an absolute and utter lie”. READ MORE ON RUSSIA YOB ARMY Desperate Putin 'recruits ultras football hooligans' for his bloody war in Ukraine FIRING LINE Belarus opposition leader's mystery illness after 'Putin plot kills minister’ Mrs Taran said her husband left Russia to pursue and focus on his business interests back in 2008. The UNIAN agency report alleged Taran was linked to the SVR foreign espionage agency. He was responsible for “laundering Russian funds through a system of cryptocurrency operations”, it alleged. The tycoon’s wife hit back saying: “My husband never had any connections to the Russian government or any political affiliations.” Mrs Taran said that since 2014, her husband has supported two charities for Ukrainian refugees. They are Changeonelife, which she said has helpedthousands of children in Ukraine find new parents since 2014, and Pristaniste, which is based in Montenegro. “This attack is unfair to Vyacheslav who always actively supported Ukrainian people through his charity foundations, especially children who lost their parents,” she said. “We still have not received Vyacheslav’s body due to the investigation and each day brings unbearable pain.” The accident happened around 1 pm on November 25 when the single-engine light helicopter Eurocopter EC130 operated by Monacair crashed after flying from Lausanne in Switzerland. The pilot of the helicopter was said by his employers to be an experienced local man and had not reported an emergency So far there is no indication of what had caused the aircraft to hit the hillside as it descended in good visibility after the 90-minute flight. A second passenger had been due to board the helicopter, an almost new machine, but cancelled shortly before it took off. Taran was the founder of the trading and investment platform Libertex and Forex Club. The company said in a statement: “It is with great sadness that Libertex Group confirms the death of its co-founder and Chairman of Board of Directors, Vyacheslav Taran, after a helicopter crash that took place en route to Monaco on Friday, 25 November 2022. “The Board of Directors of Libertex Group and company employees extend their most heartfelt condolences and sympathy to the Taran family.” The Government of Monaco has also issued a statement expressing condolences to the families of the victims and said that it “shares the pain caused by this tragedy”. An investigation has been launched into the crash by French authorities. East2WestThe crash happened near the village of Eze[/caption] East2WestTaran was the founder of the trading and investment platform Libertex and Forex Club[/caption]