International

Oldest human relative walked upright 7 mn years ago: study

AFP

The earliest known human ancestor walked on two feet as well as climbing through trees around seven million years ago, scientists said Wednesday after studying three limb bones.

When the skull of Sahelanthropus tchadensis was discovered in Chad in 2001, it pushed back the age of the oldest known representative species of humanity by a million years.

Nicknamed “Toumai”, the nearly complete cranium was thought to indicate that the species walked on two feet because of the position of its vertebral column and other factors.

However the subject triggered fierce debate among scientists, partly due to the scarcity and quality of the available bones, with some even claiming that Toumai was not a human relative but just an ancient ape.

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In a study published in the Nature journal on Wednesday, a team of researchers exhaustively analysed a thigh bone and two forearm bones found at the same site as the Toumai skull.

“The skull tells us that Sahelanthropus is part of the human lineage,” said paleoanthropologist Franck Guy, one of the authors of the study.

The new research on the limb bones demonstrates that walking on two feet was its “preferred mode of getting around, depending on the situation,” he told a press conference.

But they also sometimes moved through the trees, he added.

– ‘Not a magical trait’ –

The leg and arm bones were found alongside thousands of other fossils in 2001, and the researchers were not able to confirm that they belonged to the same individual as the Toumai skull.

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After years of testing and measuring the bones, they identified 23 characteristics which were then compared to fossils from great apes as well as hominins — which are species more closely related to humans than chimpanzees.

They concluded that “these characteristics are much closer to what would be seen in a hominin than any other primate,” the study’s lead author Guillaume Daver told the press conference.

For example, the forearm bones did not show evidence that the Sahelanthropus leaned on the back of its hands, as is done by gorillas and chimpanzees.

The Sahelanthropus lived in an area with a combination of forests, palm groves and tropical savannahs, meaning that being able to both walk and climb through trees would have been an advantage.

There have been previous suggestions that it was the ability to walk on two feet that drove humans to evolve separately from chimpanzees, putting us on the path to where we are today.

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However the researchers emphasised that what made Sahelanthropus human was its ability to adapt to its environment.

“Bipedalism (walking on two legs) is not a magical trait that strictly defines humanity,” paleontologist Jean-Renaud Boisserie told the press conference.

“It is a characteristic that we find at the present time in all the representatives of humanity.”

– Our ‘bushy’ family tree –

Paleoanthropologist Antoine Balzeau of France’s National Museum of Natural History said the “extremely substantial” study gives “a more complete image of Toumai and therefore of the first humans”.

It also bolstered the theory that the human family tree is “bushy”, and was not like the “simplistic image of humans who follow one another, with abilities that improve over time,” Balzeau, who was not involved in the research, told AFP.

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Daniel Lieberman, a professor of human evolutionary biology at Harvard University, said in a linked paper in Nature that the study’s “authors have squeezed as much information as possible from the fossil data”.

But he added that the research will not offer “full resolution” of the debate.

Milford Wolpoff, a paleoanthropologist at the US University of Michigan cast doubt on whether Toumai is a hominin, telling AFP that “extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence”.

Wednesday’s study was carried out by researchers from the PALEVOPRIM paleontology institute, a collaboration between France’s CNRS research centre and Poitiers University, as well as scientists in Chad.

Guy said the team hopes to continue its research in Chad next year — “security permitting”.

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Chadian paleontologist Clarisse Nekoulnang said the team was “trying to find sites older than that of Toumai”.

International

Rubio signals possible engagement with Iranian factions amid internal divisions

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Monday that Washington is hopeful of engaging with factions within the government of Iran, noting that the United States has received positive private signals.

Speaking to ABC News’ Good Morning America, Rubio suggested that internal divisions exist within the Islamic Republic and expressed confidence that figures with the authority to act could emerge.

“We are hopeful that this will be the case,” Rubio said. “Clearly, there are people there who are communicating with us in ways that those previously in power in Iran did not. This is reflected in some of the steps they appear willing to take.”

Despite this, Rubio maintained a firm stance toward Iran, reiterating that the ongoing conflict seeks to eliminate its capacity to develop nuclear weapons—an objective that President Donald Trump has previously claimed was achieved during a military strike last year.

International

King Charles III to visit the U.S. on first state trip since taking the throne

King Charles III and Queen Camilla will undertake a state visit to the United States on the recommendation of the British government, Buckingham Palace announced on Tuesday, adding that further details will be released at a later date.

The visit aims to highlight the historic ties and current relationship between the United Kingdom and the United States, as both countries prepare to mark the 250th anniversary of American independence in 2026.

The trip is expected to take place at the end of April and follows U.S. President Donald Trump’s visit to the United Kingdom last year, which sought to strengthen bilateral relations.

This will be Charles III’s first state visit to the United States since ascending to the throne in 2022, although he previously traveled there 19 times as Prince of Wales.

By comparison, Queen Elizabeth II made four state visits to the United States—in 1957, 1976, 1991, and 2007—while U.S. presidents have carried out four state visits to the United Kingdom since 1952, in 2003, 2011, 2019, and 2025.

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Following the U.S. trip, the monarch is also expected to travel to Bermuda, marking his first official visit to the territory since becoming head of state.

The visit comes amid tensions between the two countries due to differences between President Trump and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer over the war in Iran. Starmer has reiterated that the United Kingdom will not take part in the conflict, although it will defend its interests and support allies in the Persian Gulf.

Trump has criticized that stance, urging countries not involved in the military campaign to act decisively, stating that “the hardest part is already done.”

The trip also follows a request by U.S. Congressman Ro Khanna, who called on the king to meet privately with victims linked to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein during his stay.

The case has also involved the king’s brother, Prince Andrew, who has faced scrutiny over his past associations with Epstein. The former royal, stripped of his titles and honors, has denied any wrongdoing despite ongoing allegations and investigations.

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International

Leopoldo López thanks Spain for fast-track citizenship but says “I am still Venezuelan”

Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo López expressed gratitude on Tuesday to the Government of Spain after being granted Spanish citizenship through an expedited process, following the revocation of his Venezuelan nationality by the administration of Nicolás Maduro.

Speaking in Madrid, López acknowledged the gesture but admitted having mixed emotions. “I am grateful to the Spanish government for granting me citizenship, but I have mixed feelings, as do millions of Venezuelans who have had to leave their country. It is not easy,” he said.

The opposition figure highlighted Spain’s role as a refuge for Venezuelans, while emphasizing that his identity remains unchanged. “Spain has been, for me, my family, and hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans, a homeland away from home. That does not mean we stop being Venezuelan. I am Venezuelan, I carry Venezuela in my heart, and everything I have done has been for Venezuela,” he added.

López requested Spanish nationality after the Venezuelan government stripped him of his citizenship in October, accusing him of promoting a “military invasion,” a move that left him effectively stateless.

Initially, he applied through the standard process in late 2025 but, unable to meet the requirements, later sought nationality through a special mechanism known as “carta de naturaleza,” with the support of Spain’s foreign minister, José Manuel Albares.

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To support his application, López submitted documentation from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, which determined that he had been a victim of political persecution, arbitrary detention, imprisonment, and other actions by the Venezuelan government.

“For me, this has been a long journey. The persecution by the dictatorship against me began many years ago. I was banned, persecuted, censored, imprisoned, and sentenced to 14 years in prison. I had to escape from Venezuela, from prison,” he said.

Spain’s decision to grant him citizenship through an exceptional procedure was justified by his “very special situation,” including the lack of documentation and legal status.