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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 00:01:08 GMT |
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Governments opting for oligarchy while brutally repressing protests over austerity and lack of jobs, charity report says The world saw a record number of billionaires created last year, with a collective wealth of $18.3tn (£13.7tn), while global efforts stalled in the fight against poverty and hunger. Oxfam’s annual survey of global inequality has revealed that the number of billionaires surpassed 3,000 for the first time during 2025. Since 2020, their collective wealth grew by 81%, or $8.2tn, which the charity claims would be enough to eradicate global poverty 26 times over. Continue reading...
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Sun, 18 Jan 2026 17:17:19 GMT |
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Yoweri Museveni wins seventh term but poll criticised by observers and rights groups over repression of opposition and internet blackout Uganda’s president, Yoweri Museveni, fresh from winning a seventh term in office at 81, said on Sunday that the opposition were “terrorists” who had tried to use violence to overturn the election results. Official results showed Museveni winning a landslide with 72% of the vote, but the poll was criticised by African election observers and rights groups due to the heavy repression of the opposition and an internet blackout. Continue reading...
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Sat, 17 Jan 2026 17:20:15 GMT |
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Museveni’s opponent, Bobi Wine, alleges that members of polling staff were kidnapped and called for peaceful protests Yoweri Museveni, has won the Ugandan election and his seventh term with more than 70% of the vote, state election authorities have said, amid an internet shutdown and claims of fraud by his opponent. His opponent, a youthful musician known as Bobi Wine, condemned what he called “fake results” and alleged that members of polling staff were kidnapped, among other election irregularities. He called for peaceful protests to pressure the authorities to release what he called the “rightful results”. Continue reading...
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Sat, 17 Jan 2026 13:00:28 GMT |
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Atlas Lions face Senegal in final of Africa Cup of Nations on Sunday and Moroccan diaspora scents victory London’s Little Morocco is brimming with pride and anticipation. The Moroccan diaspora in North Kensington is in no doubt that on Sunday the Atlas Lions will triumph against Senegal in the final of the Africa Cup of Nations. “There’s not just an excitement, it has completely taken over everything else,” said Souad Talsi, who runs the Al-Hasaniya Moroccan women’s centre at the base of 31-storey Trellick Tower, at the north end of Golborne Road. Continue reading...
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Sat, 17 Jan 2026 06:00:19 GMT |
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Virunga park ranger says babies are well cared for by mother Mafuko but high infant mortality makes first weeks critical It was noon by the time Jacques Katutu first saw the newborn mountain gorillas. Cradled in the arms of their mother, Mafuko, the tiny twins clung to her body for warmth in the forest clearing in Virunga national park, in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Katutu, head of gorilla monitoring in Virunga, has seen dozens of newborns in his 15 years as a ranger. But, he tells the Guardian, even he was touched by the sight of the fragile infant males, who face serious obstacles if they are to become silverbacks one day. Continue reading...
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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 12:53:59 GMT |
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President announces 30-day order after inmates also took 46 people hostage at three prisons Guatemala’s president has declared a 30-day nationwide state of emergency to combat criminal gangs after authorities accused them of killing eight police officers and holding hostages at three prisons. The killings occurred in the capital, Guatemal City, and surrounding areas a day after gang-affiliated inmates took 46 people hostage in the three prisons across the country to demand incarcerated gang leaders be moved to lower-security facilities. Continue reading...
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Sun, 18 Jan 2026 20:16:02 GMT |
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Fires blaze through 8,500 hectares, forcing 50,000 people to evacuate as firefighters struggle to extinguish flames Wildfires raging across central and southern Chile have killed at least 18 people, scorched thousands of hectares of forest and destroyed scores of homes, authorities said, as the South American country swelters under a heatwave. Chile’s president, Gabriel Boric, declared a state of catastrophe in the country’s central Biobío region and the neighbouring Ñuble region, about 500km (300 miles) south of Santiago, the capital. Continue reading...
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Fri, 16 Jan 2026 20:59:29 GMT |
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Any Lucía López Belloza was detained at Boston’s airport in November and flown to Honduras two days later The Trump administration apologized in court for a “mistake” in the deportation of a Massachusetts college student who was detained trying to fly home to surprise her family in Texas for Thanksgiving. But the administration still argued that the federal government error should not affect her immigration case. Continue reading...
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Fri, 16 Jan 2026 17:23:11 GMT |
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John Ratcliffe meets Delcy Rodríguez in Caracas less than two weeks after his agents helped to oust her precedessor The CIA chief whose agents reputedly played a key role in abducting Nicolás Maduro has flown to Venezuela to meet his successor as the sidelined opposition leader, María Corina Machado, vowed she would become the country’s first elected female president. Machado’s comments were broadcast on Friday, a day after she handed her Nobel peace prize medal to Donald Trump in recognition of what she called a principled and decisive move against Maduro, whom US special forces snatched on 3 January. Continue reading...
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Fri, 16 Jan 2026 13:19:39 GMT |
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Former president convicted for coup plot to take advantage of law that knocks four days off jail term for each book read Jair Bolsonaro’s lawyers appear to have been reading up on the country’s penal code and have found a way to help their client reduce the 27-year prison sentence he received last year for plotting a coup: by reading books. There is only one problem: the former far-right Brazilian president has never been known as a bibliophile. “Sorry, I don’t have time to read,” Bolsonaro once declared. “It’s been three years since I read a book.” Continue reading...
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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 12:12:38 GMT |
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Fourth year of decline deepens concerns over ageing, shrinking workforce and long-term economic impact China’s population fell for a fourth consecutive year in 2025 as the birthrate plunged to another record low despite the introduction of polices aimed at encouraging people to have children. Registered births dropped to 7.92 million in 2025 – or 5.63 for every 1,000 members of the population – down 17% from 9.54 million in 2024, and the lowest since records began in 1949. Continue reading...
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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 09:39:27 GMT |
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Sanae Takaichi tells senior figures in ruling Liberal Democratic party she plans to dissolve lower house on 23 January Japan’s prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, has called a snap election as she attempts to capitalise on high approval ratings since becoming the country’s first female prime minister three months ago. Takaichi, a conservative who is embroiled in a deepening dispute with China over the security of Taiwan, said on Monday she would dissolve the lower house of the Diet – Japan’s parliament – on 23 January, with an election to follow on 8 February. Continue reading...
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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 06:26:44 GMT |
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Economy weathered a fraught geopolitical landscape to reach 5% goal but domestic structural challenges ‘not going away’, say experts China has said its economy grew 5% last year, hitting Beijing’s official target as the world’s second-largest economy overcame Donald Trump’s tariff war with a record trade surplus. Data released on Monday by Beijing’s National Bureau of Statistics showed the Chinese economy hit the official target of “around” 5% – the same growth as in 2024 – despite a slowdown to 4.5% in the final three months of the year. Continue reading...
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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 06:00:19 GMT |
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Decision expected on Monday or Tuesday, potentially smoothing relations before Keir Starmer’s visit to China A decision on China’s proposed mega embassy in London is expected on Monday or Tuesday, with Chinese officials and British diplomats in Beijing holding their breath in anticipation of the planning application finally being approved. The saga, which has been running since 2018, is widely expected to end with the British government giving the green light for construction. If it does, one group likely to be grateful is those who work in the British embassy’s dilapidated building in Beijing. The UK’s plans to redevelop its outpost in China’s capital have been blocked for years by the Chinese government because of the London embassy row. Continue reading...
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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 01:46:10 GMT |
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A return to nuclear power is at the heart of Japan’s energy policy but, in the wake of the 2011 disaster, residents’ fears about tsunamis, earthquakes and evacuation plans remain The activity around the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant is reaching its peak: workers remove earth to expand the width of a main road, while lorries arrive at its heavily guarded entrance. A long perimeter fence is lined with countless coils of razor wire, and in a layby, a police patrol car monitors visitors to the beach – one of the few locations with a clear view of the reactors, framed by a snowy Mount Yoneyama. When all seven of its reactors are working, Kashiwazaki-Kariwa generates 8.2 gigawatts of electricity, enough to power millions of households. Occupying 4.2 sq km of land in Niigata prefecture on the Japan Sea coast, it is the biggest nuclear power plant in the world. Continue reading...
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Tue, 20 Jan 2026 02:55:03 GMT |
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Follow updates live The attorney general, Michelle Rowland, says the two bills on gun control and hate speech will be introduced to parliament this morning and that there has been “constructive engagement” with the Coalition over the last 48 hours. But on whether that deal is signed, sealed and delivered, Rowland, speaking on the ABC’s Radio National Breakfast, won’t guarantee the Coalition will support the bill when introduced and she says she won’t “pre-empt” anything. I don’t want to pre-empt any of those conversations, and particularly since they have been undertaken in good faith … some of those issues go around the listing of hate groups and that framework. And it is a fact that the opposition has sought a number of amendments to this area. I will point out that the removal of the serious vilification provisions do mean that these remaining provisions in the prohibited hate groups section do need to do a lot of work. I think we’re really close. I mean, effectively, the laws won’t be as strong as what the government wants them to be, and that’s been public for a while. But importantly, this will still involve the strongest hate speech laws that Australia’s ever had. We’ve got to deal with the parliament that we have, and I can’t see a pathway in the current parliament. Continue reading...
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Tue, 20 Jan 2026 01:58:35 GMT |
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Surfer taken to hospital with minor injuries after latest shark attack at Point Plomer beach on mid-north coast A surfer has been taken to hospital after being bitten by a shark off the coast of a New South Wales national park campground, the state’s fourth incident in 48 hours. The local health district said the man, 39, was in hospital in a stable condition with minor injuries. The attack took place near the Point Plomer campground, less than 20km up the coast from Port Macquarie, on Tuesday morning. Continue reading...
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Tue, 20 Jan 2026 00:09:29 GMT |
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Liberal MPs likely to vote for watered-down hate speech provisions and new powers to legally designate extremist organisations Labor says moves to legislate “the strongest hate speech laws that Australia’s ever had” are close to success, with Liberal MPs expected to support tough new proposals in parliament on Tuesday. Late-night and early morning negotiations have continued in Canberra as the second day of a special sitting gets under way. Continue reading...
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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 23:46:21 GMT |
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Life of Eraring power station in Lake Macquarie extended to April 2029, Origin Energy says Australia’s largest coal-fired power plant, Eraring, will stay open for an extra two years until 2029, amid concerns about the national energy grid’s ability to support demand ahead of the station’s planned retirement. The operator of the plant in Lake Macquarie, Origin Energy, had previously agreed a deal with the New South Wales government to extend Eraring’s closure from 2025 to August 2027. While the state environment minister said the new extension would contribute to NSW’s emissions reductions, climate advocates described it as a “disaster” for emissions targets. Continue reading...
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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 21:22:21 GMT |
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All northern beaches remain closed on Tuesday after attack in Manly on Monday evening follows attacks in Dee Why and Vaucluse A man believed to be in his 20s is in a critical condition after being bitten by a shark in the third attack at Sydney beaches in two days. He was taken to Royal North Shore hospital on Monday evening after New South Wales ambulance officers treated the man at Manly beach in Sydney’s north following the attack. Continue reading...
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Tue, 20 Jan 2026 01:16:24 GMT |
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Red caps are becoming a symbol of protest in Denmark as Donald Trump ratchets up the pressure on Greenland Red baseball caps spoofing Donald Trump’s Maga hats have become a symbol of Danish and Greenlandic defiance against the US president’s threat to seize the frozen territory. The caps reading “Make America Go Away” – parodying Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan – have gained popularity, along with several variants on social media and at public protests, including a weekend demonstration held in freezing weather in Copenhagen. Continue reading...
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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 22:17:56 GMT |
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The US president said he would “100%” push ahead with his plans to hit European nations with tarrifs if he doesn’t get Greenland In a nod to Trump’s efforts on Ukraine, Starmer says he recognises the US president’s role in pushing for ceasefire there – as he says “we will work closely with the United States, Ukraine and our other allies to apply pressure where it belongs: on Putin.” In his strongest criticism of Trump yet, Starmer goes on to say: A trade war is in no one’s interest, and my job is always to act in the UK’s national interest. Continue reading...
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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 20:33:44 GMT |
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PM says US tariffs are in no one’s interests – and Greenland row should be resolved through ‘calm discussion’ Keir Starmer has played down the prospect of retaliatory tariffs on the US, after Donald Trump threatened to impose fresh levies against Nato allies if a deal over Greenland is not reached. The prime minister said US tariffs would damage the British economy and were “in no one’s interests”, despite growing pressure domestically to take a more forceful response. The UK would prefer a “calm discussion” with allies, he added. Continue reading...
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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 19:24:36 GMT |
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Officials say death toll likely to rise as rescuers continue to comb through wreckage in remote area of Andalucía Spain will begin three days of mourning on Tuesday as rescuers continue to comb through the wreckage of twisted train cars and scattered debris to locate victims after a train collision that killed at least 40 people and injured dozens. On Monday, more than 18 hours after a high-speed train carrying about 300 Madrid-bound passengers derailed and collided with an oncoming train, people across the country were still scrambling to make contact with missing loved ones caught up in Spain’s worst rail disaster in more than a decade. Continue reading...
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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 19:04:09 GMT |
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Russia says it is seeking to ‘clarify all the nuances’ of offer it claims Washington has made before responding The Kremlin has announced that Vladimir Putin has been invited to join Donald Trump’s “board of peace”, set up last week with the intention that it would oversee a ceasefire in Gaza. The Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, told journalists on Monday that Russia was seeking to “clarify all the nuances” of the offer with Washington, before giving its response. Continue reading...
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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 18:39:04 GMT |
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Two sides blame each other for release of inmates, as Syria’s president looks to gain control of north-east Dozens of inmates from a jail holding Islamic State prisoners have been freed in Syria amid clashes between the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces and government-affiliated forces in the north-east of the country. Videos released by the SDF showed what it said were IS members being broken out from a jail in Shaddadi by figures in black balaclavas. It said it had lost control of the building after an attack by government-affiliated fighters that killed or wounded dozens. Continue reading...
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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 05:00:16 GMT |
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Two people detained in Kermanshah, including 16-year-old, tell group they were subjected to sexual abuse during arrest A 16-year-old was among protesters sexually assaulted in custody by the security forces in Iran during the nationwide uprising that has left thousands dead, according to a human rights group. Two people, one of them a child, detained in the city of Kermanshah in western Iran told the Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) that they were subjected to sexual abuse by riot police during their arrest. Continue reading...
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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 02:47:39 GMT |
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Government’s truce with Syrian Democratic Forces follows advance on Kurdish-held areas amid struggle to control entire country The Syrian government on Sunday announced a ceasefire with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), taking almost full control of the country and dismantling the Kurdish-led forces that controlled the north-east for over a decade. The announcement comes as tensions between government forces and the SDF boiled over earlier this month, eventually resulting in a major push by government forces towards the east. The SDF appeared to have largely retreated after initial clashes on a tense frontline area in eastern Aleppo province. Continue reading...
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Sun, 18 Jan 2026 18:10:58 GMT |
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President issues warning amid speculation Donald Trump plans to assassinate or remove supreme leader Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian, warned on Sunday that any attack on the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, would be a declaration of war. In an apparent response to speculation that Donald Trump is considering an attempt to assassinate or remove Khamenei, Pezeshkian said in a post on X: “An attack on the great leader of our country is tantamount to a full-scale war with the Iranian nation.” Continue reading...
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Sun, 18 Jan 2026 12:43:03 GMT |
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Finance minister says Netanyahu should back annexation and settlement, and attacks Turkey and Qatar’s role on Gaza ‘executive board’ Far-right members of Israel’s governing coalition on Sunday rejected a US-backed plan for postwar governance in Gaza, criticising their prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, for failing to annex the Palestinian territory and establish new Israeli settlements in the territory. After the announcement of the White House’s pick of world leaders who will join the so-called Gaza “board of peace”, which includes representatives of Turkey and Qatar, both of which have been critical of Israel’s war in the strip, Israeli far-right finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, described Netanyahu’s “unwillingness to take responsibility for Gaza” as “the original sin”. Continue reading...
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Tue, 13 Jan 2026 07:07:05 GMT |
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Eastern region on high alert as authorities try to track animal tearing through villages in Jharkhand after apparently becoming separated from herd Forest officials in India are on the hunt for an elephant that has killed more than 20 people in a days-long rampage through the eastern state of Jharkhand. Since the beginning of January, 22 people have been killed by a single-tusked elephant that has been tearing through forests and villages in West Singhbhum district of Jharkhand. Continue reading...
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Tue, 13 Jan 2026 05:00:25 GMT |
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Delhi is world’s second largest purchaser of Russian crude, which is now cheaper than oil from Middle East Russia is already working to circumvent the latest US sanctions to ensure India can continue to import high levels of cheap Russian crude oil, according to industry analysts. Since the outbreak of the Ukraine war, India has become the world’s second largest purchaser of Russian crude oil, which has been heavily discounted due to the impact of western sanctions. Continue reading...
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Mon, 12 Jan 2026 10:04:14 GMT |
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Police ask Paramjeet Singh Pamma to install security cameras and reinforce door locks at his home Police have advised a high-profile Sikh activist in the UK to install security cameras at his home and reinforce door locks because of threats from Hindu nationalist elements. Paramjeet Singh Pamma, 52, said he had been visited by police and received verbal advice to increase his security due to intelligence suggesting threats to his safety. Continue reading...
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Sun, 11 Jan 2026 01:03:50 GMT |
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UN and many western countries as well as human rights groups say that in the absence of a meaningful opposition the election is neither free, fair nor credible Voters in war-torn Myanmar queued up on Sunday to cast their ballots in the second stage of a military-run election, following low turnout in the initial round of polls that have been widely criticised as a tool to formalise junta rule. Myanmar has been ravaged by conflict since the military ousted a civilian government in a 2021 coup and detained its leader, Nobel peace prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, sparking a civil war that has engulfed large parts of the impoverished nation of 51 million people. Continue reading...
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Thu, 08 Jan 2026 10:40:14 GMT |
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Satat Sampada founders Harjeet Singh and Jyoti Awasthi say allegations are ‘baseless, biased and misleading’ Police have raided the home of one of India’s leading environmental activists over claims his campaigning for a treaty to cut the use of fossil fuels was undermining the national interest. Investigators from India’s Enforcement Directorate (ED) claim Harjeet Singh and his wife, Jyoti Awasthi, co-founders of Satat Sampada (Nature Forever), were paid almost £500,000 to advocate for a fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty (FFNPT). Continue reading...
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Tue, 20 Jan 2026 00:01:10 GMT |
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Cancer charity highlights apparent ‘postcode lottery’ of testing and diagnoses across different regions seen in study Prostate cancer is now the most commonly diagnosed form of cancer across the UK, surpassing breast cancer, according to a leading charity. There were 64,425 diagnoses of prostate cancer in 2022, an analysis of NHS figures by Prostate Cancer UK found, and 61,640 new cases of breast cancer. Continue reading...
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Tue, 20 Jan 2026 00:01:09 GMT |
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Guidance for GPs and nurses says other factors should be taken into account, such as changes in behaviour A child’s body mass index should not be the key factor when deciding which under-18s get help for an eating disorder, the NHS has told health professionals. The new guidance from NHS England to GPs and nurses follows criticism that over-reliance on BMI has led to children who have an illness such as anorexia or bulimia being misdiagnosed and missing out on care. Continue reading...
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Tue, 20 Jan 2026 00:01:08 GMT |
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Government replaces recruitment goal with plan to increase ‘education exports’ to £40bn a year by 2030 Ministers are scrapping target numbers for international students in the UK and will instead focus on encouraging universities to open hubs abroad, as part of a plan to bring British education to people “on their own doorsteps”. The government’s new international education strategy will set a target of increasing global “education exports” to £40bn a year by 2030, replacing the previous target – set in 2019 – of recruiting 600,000 international students a year to study in the UK. Continue reading...
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Tue, 20 Jan 2026 00:01:08 GMT |
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Government, Bank of England and FCA criticised for taking ‘wait-and-see’ approach to AI use in financial sector Consumers and the UK financial system are being exposed to “serious harm” by the failure of government and the Bank of England to get a grip on the risks posed by artificial intelligence, an influential parliamentary committee has warned. In a new report, MPs on the Treasury committee criticise ministers and City regulators, including the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), for taking a “wait-and-see” approach to AI use across the financial sector. Continue reading...
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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 22:30:06 GMT |
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Exclusive: Campaigners claim changes will let companies ‘off the hook’, as government prepares to unveil new white paper for water industry Water companies could be let off fines for polluting the environment under changes announced in the government’s new white paper. The environment secretary, Emma Reynolds, hailed the changes as “once-in-a-generation reforms” featuring “tough oversight, real accountability and no more excuses”. Continue reading...
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Tue, 20 Jan 2026 00:51:05 GMT |
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Major disturbance in the Earth’s magnetic field may make northern lights visible far more south than usual The aurora could be visible across Canada and much of the northern tier of US states on Monday night, and possibly even further south, following a major disturbance in the Earth’s magnetic field, a forecast shows. The forecast, from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s space weather prediction center, comes amid intense geomagnetic and solar radiation storms, said Shawn Dahl, service coordinator at the center. Continue reading...
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Tue, 20 Jan 2026 00:30:15 GMT |
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Holiday marked with parades and services but tempered by anxieties over racial and social equality under Trump Martin Luther King Jr Day was marked with parades and services across the US on Monday. But the celebration for the achievements of the slain 60s civil rights leader was tempered by contemporary anxieties over racial and social equality and Trump administration’s crackdown in Minneapolis. At a rally in Harlem, the Rev Al Sharpton referred to Renee Good, the 37-year-old mother of three who was killed by an immigration officer in Minneapolis earlier this month. Continue reading...
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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 21:07:17 GMT |
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Victor Manuel Diaz was found unresponsive at Camp East Montana in what ICE officials claim is ‘presumed suicide’ A second man being held at a US immigration detention facility in Texas has died in two weeks, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said on Monday. Victor Manuel Diaz, 36, originally from Nicaragua, was found “unconscious and unresponsive in his room” on 14 January at the Camp East Montana detention facility in El Paso, ICE said in a press release. Continue reading...
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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 17:34:48 GMT |
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European carmakers among hardest hit with US president’s talk of Greenland-linked trade levies also pushing down the dollar European stock markets fell on Monday and gold and silver prices hit record highs after Donald Trump threatened to impose additional tariffs on eight European countries in an increasingly aggressive attempt to claim Greenland. France’s Cac fell 1.8%, while Germany’s Dax and Italy’s FTSE MIB were down 1.3%. In the UK, the FTSE 100 fell 0.4%. Continue reading...
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Mon, 19 Jan 2026 16:42:38 GMT |
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US justice department announced it is investigating protesters in Minnesota who disrupted church services Kristi Noem first denied that federal agents were using chemical agents against protesters, then after being shown video footage turned to blaming the protesters themselves, as tensions continued to run high amid the Trump administration’s surge of federal officers into Minneapolis. The head of homeland security, who has acted as spearhead for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operation in the city – known as “Operation Metro Surge” – told the CBS show Face the Nation on Sunday that her department had not used pepper spray against crowds. Continue reading...
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