Ecuador’s presidential candidates struggled to distinguish themselves in a bumpy debate on Sunday, marked by the absence of

The tragic last words of two heroic pilots who died fighting wildfires in Greece have been revealed, as blazes continue to rage across Europe. Commander Christos Moulas, 34, and co-pilot Pericles Stefanidis, 27, were killed just before 3pm on Tuesday when their plane, which had been dropping water, crashed near the town of Karystos on the island of Evia near Athens. A firefighter on the ground is believed to be the last person to speak with the pair, telling Greek broadcaster OPEN: “I still can’t believe that three minutes ago I was talking to them and after exactly 10 minutes I learned that the plane had crashed. “We had contact with them,” he continued. “They did not report any problems with the aircraft. They told us, ‘We are ready to try. We go for a last supply and we leave.’ Have you been affected by this story? Email tara.cobham@independent.co.uk “A few minutes after we spoke, we learned over the radio that the aircraft had crashed,” he added. Footage showed the bright yellow CL-215 aircraft releasing its load of water before its wingtip apparently snagged on a tree branch. Moments later it disappeared into a deep fold in the ground from which a fireball erupted. The pilots, who were both said to be passionate about flying, died at the scene, with investigations into the tragedy ongoing, according to the Greek Fire Brigade. Greek City Times said Commander Moulas’ wife is believed to be three months pregnant with their first child. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said of the tragedy on Tuesday: “Today, we Greeks mourn the tragic loss of our pilots Christos Moulas and Pericles Stefanidis in Evia. “They gave their lives saving lives, proving how risky their daily firefighting missions are,” he continued. “The state respectfully stands by the families of the two heroes. They are two children, two brothers of all of us.” A three-day period of mourning in the Armed Forces was announced by the defence ministry to honour the pair. Mr Mitsotakis continued: “Words are poor to describe the national mourning for their loss... So, we grit our teeth and turn our silence into strength. In their memory, we continue the war against the destructive forces of nature.” The prime minister has warned of tough days ahead as Greece is bracing for at least another 48 hours of scorching wildfires and soaring temperatures, until conditions possibly improve after Thursday. He told ministers: “All of us are standing guard. In the face of what the entire planet is facing, especially the Mediterranean which is a climate change hot-spot, there is no magical defence mechanism.” The Greek Fire Brigade has already been battling more than 500 fires for almost two weeks, while the high temperatures of the recent new heatwave are set to peak throughout Europe on Wednesday, exceeding 44C in some areas of Greece. A blaze in Rhodes prompted “the biggest evacuation in Greek history”, with over 20,000 people forced to flee homes and hotels over the weekend, while around 2,500 people have already been evacuated from Corfu, which has been enduring dozens of blazes. Croatia, Portugal, Turkey, Italy and France are among the other European countries that have been battling wildfires in recent days, while the extreme weather conditions on the continent are being mirrored globally, from the US to Asia and Africa. Italy suffered a twin pounding from the elements when severe storms battered the north, killing a woman and a 16-year-old girl scout, while southern regions sweltered. In the south, a bedridden 98-year-old man died when fire swept through his home. The charred bodies of a couple in their 70s were found in their burnt-out home on the outskirts of Palermo, the regional capital of Sicily, according to Italian media reports. Another woman in her late 80s died in the Palermo province after an ambulance was unable to reach her home due to fires in the area. In north Africa, Algeria was fighting to contain devastating forest fires along its Mediterranean coast in a blaze, which has already killed at least 34 people. Read More Greece fires – live: Rhodes and Corfu brace for another 48 hours of wildfire hell as temperatures rise When will heatwave in Europe end? New forecast shows relief in sight Watch: Rhodes wildfire burns for seventh day as temperatures rise on Greek island How to tell if you have Covid or heatstroke Why do heatwaves in the UK feel hotter than abroad?

Nearly a month after former president Donald Trump was arraigned on the 38-count federal indictment he and his longtime aide Walt Nauta are facing for allegedly unlawfully retaining national defence information and obstructing justice, the ex-president’s co-defendant still needs legal representation. Mr Nauta, a retired Navy chief petty officer who served as Mr Trump’s White House valet before following him home to Florida after the end of the ex-president’s term, is charged with a single count of making a false statement to federal investigators. The other 37 charges are against Mr Trump, who pleaded not guilty to all of them at his arraignment last month. But even though the charge against him was unsealed at the same time as the charges against his boss, Mr Nauta was not arraigned at the same time as Mr Trump because he did not have a local attorney to appear with him in court. A second attempt to arraign him was scuttled last week after his flight to Florida was cancelled, and a third attempt to arraign him is set for Thursday. Although he is represented by a veteran Washington-based criminal defence lawyer, Stanley Woodward, the Trump aide still needs a lawyer who is licensed to practice in the Southern District of Florida to sponsor Mr Woodward so he can be admitted to practice before that federal court. And without local counsel, Mr Nauta won’t be able to enter a plea when he appears in court. Last week, Mr Woodward told the federal magistrate judge who is set to preside over the arraignment that Mr Nauta would attempt to find a Florida-based attorney by his third attempt at an arraignment, but a review of court records does not show that any local lawyer has officially entered an appearance for him. Although the magistrate judge, Edwin Torres, excused Mr Nauta from appearing in person at the 27 June court date because weather had caused him to be unable to travel, he told Mr Woodward at the time that he could “discuss” the need for a court-appointed lawyer for Mr Nauta if necessary. The charge against Mr Nauta stems from a May 2022 interview with FBI agents, during which he was asked about boxes Mr Trump had brought with him to his Palm Beach, Florida social club after leaving the White House. When investigators asked if he knew of any boxes being brought from a storage room to Mr Trump’s private suite at the club, Mr Nauta replied that he did not even though he had participated in moving some of the boxes at issue. Read More Trump news – live: Trump suggests White House concealing security footage over cocaine scandal as Don Jr branded ‘big baby’ DeSantis doubles down on ‘homophobic’ anti-Trump ad: ‘Totally fair game’ Australian minister calls Donald Trump Jr a ‘big baby’ for cancelling trip down under

The infant, identified in court documents as LW, was shifted to a hospital following the incident, however, the baby was pronounced dead three days later

The country singer filed for divorce from Hurd on October 2 citing 'irreconcilable differences'

War is returning to Russia, Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky has warned, after early-morning drone attacks hit Moscow on Sunday. Although Ukraine has not claimed responsibility for the strikes, Mr Zelensky said such attacks were an inevitable and fair process of the war between the nations. Earlier on Sunday, Russia blamed Ukraine for what it called an “attempted terrorist attack by the Kyiv regime” and said three drones had targetted the capital. Its defence ministry said two buildings were damaged in the Moskva-Citi business district after being brought down using electronic jamming equipment, while another was shot down over the Odintsovo area. One of the residential buildings damaged was home to three government ministries, local media reported. Vnukovo airport on the southern outskirts of the capital was forced to temporarily close due to the attacks, according to Russia’s state news agency. Nobody was hurt, Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin said. It is the fourth attempt at a strike on the capital region this month and the third this week, fuelling concerns about Moscow’s vulnerability to attacks as Russia’s war in Ukraine drags on into its 18th month. President Vladimir Putin was briefed on the attempted attacks, his spokesperson said. He was in his home town of St Petersburg for meetings with African leaders and a naval celebration at the time. “On the morning of 30th July, an attempted terrorist attack by the Kyiv regime using unmanned aerial vehicles against targets in the city of Moscow was foiled,” Russia’s defence ministry said in a statement. In a video address from the western Ukrainian city of Ivano-Frankivsk, Mr Zelensky said that Ukraine was getting stronger. “Today is the 522nd day of the so-called ‘Special Military Operation’, which the Russian leadership thought would last a couple of weeks,” he said. “Gradually, the war is returning to the territory of Russia – to its symbolic centres and military bases, and this is an inevitable, natural and absolutely fair process.” A Ukrainian airforce spokesperson did not claim responsibility for the attacks but said the Russian people were seeing the consequences of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. “All of the people who think the war ‘doesn’t concern them’ – it’s already touching them,” Yurii Ihnat told journalists. “There’s already a certain mood in Russia: that something is flying in, and loudly,” he said. “There’s no discussion of peace or calm in the Russian interior any more. They got what they wanted.” Mr Ihnat also referenced an attempted drone attack in Crimea early on Sunday – the Ukrainian territory occupied and illegally annexed by Russia in 2014. Russia’s defence ministry said it had shot down 16 Ukrainian drones and neutralised eight others through electronic jamming. No injuries or damage were reported. Mr Zelensky has vowed to take back all land Russian forces have occupied, including Crimea, and his efforts have been strengthened by the receipt and deployment of increasingly advanced Western weapons. It comes after a ramping up of Ukraine’s counteroffensive in recent weeks, with the head of Ukraine’s intelligence directorate telling Ukrainian news site TSN on Saturday that Kyiv’s forces were set to enter Crimea “soon”. In Ukraine, the airforce claimed it had destroyed four Russian drones above the Kherson and Dnipropetrovsk regions. Meanwhile, a Russian missile strike late on Saturday killed two people and wounded 20 in the city of Sumy in northeast Ukraine. The Ukrainian Interior Ministry said a four-storey college building was hit, with local authorities saying accommodation and teaching buildings were damaged in the blast and fire that followed. Read More Ukraine war – live: Putin blames Kyiv for early morning drone attacks on Moscow Volodymyr Zelensky takes selfies with soldiers during Bakhmut visit Ukraine’s newest attack on Russia? Moving Christmas Putin thanks North Korea for ‘unwavering support’ for Ukraine war The Body in the Woods | An Independent TV Original Documentary The harrowing discovery at centre of The Independent’s new documentary

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Former NBA player Royce White wrote “Trump Won!” on the side of his head as he appeared at a Big3 game. The Big3 is a basketball league co-founded by rapper Ice Cube featuring three-on-three games. Mr White played for the Sacramento Kings and the Houston Rockets, but his NBA career was brief as he played only three regular season games. Since then, he has become an outspoken right-winger. Last year, he ran for the Republican nomination in Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District to challenge Democratic Rep Ilhan Omar. But he faced criticism when his campaign committee spent large amounts of money at major retailers without detailing how much of it was used for his campaign, Axios reported last year and he ultimately lost the primary in the solidly Democratic district. Mr White’s message earned him the praise of many on the right. “Royce White = MAGA fearless,” Steve Bannon said. “Royce White knows what’s going on,” former Arizona Republican gubernatorial nominee Kari Lake tweeted. “Trump won. EVERYONE knows it.” Similarly, last week, Mr White said he would support a presidential ticket with Mr Trump and Democratic presidential candidate and conspiracy theorist Robert F Kennedy Jr. Mr Kennedy also appeared at a Big3 game on Sunday. Despite initially criticising Mr Trump, Ice Cube later met with Mr Trump in 2020 to discuss the then-president’s agenda for Black Americans. “Every side is the Darkside for us here in America,” he tweeted at the time. “They’re all the same until something changes for us. They all lie and they all cheat but we can’t afford not to negotiate with whoever is in power or our condition in this country will never change. Our justice is bipartisan.” Read More Trump news – live: Guy Fieri faces backlash as new book claims Trump wanted to tap White House aides’ phones Trump wanted to tap phones of White House aides, new book claims Trump leaves Iowa Republicans with big bill after no-show at charity event Trump spreads White House cocaine conspiracy – live ‘Heartbreaking’ court ruling blocks trans youth from affirming care in Tennessee