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Thu, 14 May 2026 18:49:23 GMT |
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Judge called Adriana Maria Quiroz Zapata’s deportation to the Democratic Republic of Congo ‘likely illegal’ A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to bring a Colombian woman back to the US from the Democratic Republic of Congo, after she was deported to the African country that had refused to accept her. The deportation of Adriana María Quiroz Zapata “was likely illegal”, the US district judge Richard Leon ruled on Wednesday. Continue reading...
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Thu, 14 May 2026 11:00:25 GMT |
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Human rights experts make rare public appeal as US deportees describe being held in ‘prison-like’ conditions Human rights experts at the United Nations issued a rare public appeal to Equatorial Guinea, urging the central African country to halt its plans to return US deportees to their home countries, where they face political violence, torture and death. The statement, co-signed by a representative of the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights, adds diplomatic pressure on Equatorial Guinea, one of the world’s most repressive regimes, to comply with international human rights standards and avoid refoulement, or the expulsion of people to countries where they face persecution. Continue reading...
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Wed, 13 May 2026 23:01:13 GMT |
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Mariyah Symone Collington and Kendrick Lamont Key Jr, who also died, had fallen off a cliff during an off-duty hike The remains of the second US army soldier who went missing during military exercises in Morocco have been recovered, the army said on Wednesday, ending a multinational search operation that deployed air, naval and artificial intelligence assets. The soldier was identified as Spc Mariyah Symone Collington of Taveres, Florida, the US Army Europe and Africa said in a statement. She was 19 years old. Continue reading...
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Wed, 13 May 2026 04:00:20 GMT |
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Activists claim use of laws to curtail internet freedoms part of well-documented history of cracking down on dissent When Gabon’s media regulator indefinitely suspended major social media platforms in February, citing security concerns during anti-government protests, it became the talk of town – literally. Within weeks of the announcement, use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) to bypass the restrictions surged in the central African country. When gendarmerie began stopping young men at road checkpoints in the capital Libreville and other urban centres to confiscate mobile phones with VPNs installed or detain the owners, warnings spread by word of mouth. Activists and opposition members said their accounts were also suspended due to efforts of state officials. Continue reading...
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Tue, 12 May 2026 08:01:28 GMT |
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The 32.3m surpasses those caused by disasters for the first time, as 82.2m people displaced in total around world The number of internal displacements triggered by conflict or violence around the world reached a record high in 2025, surpassing the number of disaster-driven internal displacements for the first time. A report published by the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) shows that by the end of 2025 there were 32.3m conflict-driven internal displacements. That is 60% higher than those recorded the previous year, and – for the first time since data collection began in 2008 – above displacements driven by natural disasters, which reached 29.9m in 2025. Continue reading...
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Fri, 15 May 2026 10:04:50 GMT |
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Record heat in North and Central America coincides with egg-sized hailstones in eastern China Extreme weather across several parts of the world this week has brought record-breaking temperatures to Honduras, North America and Indonesia. Honduras smashed its all-time May maximum temperature record earlier this month – only for it to be broken again on 13 May in Choluteca, known as the furnace of Central America. Temperatures climbed to 42.2C (107.9F), surpassing the previous record of 42.1C. With intense heat forecast to persist over the coming weeks, more records are expected to fall. Continue reading...
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Fri, 15 May 2026 10:00:37 GMT |
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All victims of US strikes in eastern Pacific and the Caribbean identified so far came from extremely poor communities A five-month investigation has named 13 previously unidentified victims of US attacks on boats allegedly carrying narcotics in a campaign that has killed nearly 200 people in the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific. It is unclear if the US has ever identified any of its 194 victims before attacking them, and the names of just three had previously emerged, after their families launched legal cases against the White House. Continue reading...
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Fri, 15 May 2026 00:39:47 GMT |
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Visit comes after US-Cuba relations deteriorated significantly, and as the island nation declared it had ‘absolutely no fuel’ because of US blockade CIA director John Ratcliffe met Cuban officials in Havana on Thursday as a way to improve dialogue between the US and the communist-run island, the Cuban government said. The meeting took place “in a context marked by the complexity of bilateral relations, with the aim of contributing to the political dialogue between both nations”, a statement said. Continue reading...
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Thu, 14 May 2026 23:58:31 GMT |
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‘We know that Mark Carney wants to sort of embrace Europe,’ says competition director Martin Green Canada is welcome to join Eurovision if it wishes, its director has said, months after the country revealed it wanted to “explore” joining the song contest in its federal budget. Eurovision director Martin Green told the BBC on Wednesday that Canada hadn’t yet applied, but would be welcome to. Continue reading...
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Thu, 14 May 2026 21:58:29 GMT |
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Revelation seen as serious blow to candidacy of Flávio Bolsonaro, Brazil’s leading rightwing presidential hopeful Flávio Bolsonaro, Brazil’s leading rightwing presidential hopeful, has been caught on tape asking a banker accused of corruption for $26.8m (£20m) to fund a film about his father, the former president Jair Bolsonaro. The leaked voice memos and text messages were published on Wednesday by the Intercept Brasil, and later acknowledged by Flávio Bolsonaro, a far-right senator who is tied in polls with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva ahead of October’s election. Continue reading...
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Fri, 15 May 2026 10:24:20 GMT |
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China calls for ceasefire and opening of seaway, while Donald Trump says Xi feels ‘very similar’ about ending the war in Iran Donald Trump has claimed that the US and China “feel very similar” about ending the war in Iran but offered no details about a possible breakthrough. The US president was speaking alongside Xi Jinping of China at the Zhongnanhai garden in Beijing on the second and final day of the leaders’ summit. Continue reading...
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Fri, 15 May 2026 10:10:52 GMT |
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Trump says ‘a lot of good’ has come from summit and ‘we’ve made some fantastic trade deals for both countries’ Jamieson Greer also said US export controls on semiconductor chips were not a major topic of discussions with Chinese officials in Beijing. The US trade representative’s comments to Bloomberg on Friday suggest a breakthrough on selling Nvidia’s advanced H200 chips to China remains far away, Reuters is reporting, despite Nvidia chief Jensen Huang’s last-minute invitation to Donald Trump’s Beijing trip this week. This was not a major topic of discussion at the bilateral meeting. We did not talk about chip export controls at the meeting.” First of all, it’s really important for China to have the strait of Hormuz open – no tolling, no military control. That was clear from the meeting, so we welcome that. With respect to Chinese involvement with Iran, our view is the Chinese are being very pragmatic – they don’t want to be on the wrong side of this. They want to see peace in that area, President Trump wants to see peace in that area, so we have a lot of confidence that they will do what they can to limit any kind of material support for Iran.” Continue reading...
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Thu, 14 May 2026 23:26:27 GMT |
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This live blog is now closed. Donald Trump will drive through a Chinese capital that is smoggier than it was on his last visit in 2017, when the authorities launched emergency measures to clear the skies of pollution days before his first state visit to Beijing. Factories were ordered to halt production and heavily polluting cars were banned from the roads in the days ahead of the US president’s trip nearly a decade ago, an era in which China had declared war on air pollution and made special efforts to clear the skies ahead of important political events such as visiting dignitaries and the Beijing Olympics. Continue reading...
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Thu, 14 May 2026 21:15:54 GMT |
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‘Backward’ photo panned for display of patriarchy, signaling that ‘women’s voices don’t matter in shaping global order’ By the time Donald Trump and Xi Jinping met at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People on Thursday, the bilateral had featured all the expected pomp and pageantry: a meticulously choreographed display of Chinese soldiers, children waving American and Chinese flags, and rows of senior officials and the US’s top business executives. Conspicuously absent at the table, however, were women from either delegation – a stark visual that quickly drew criticism from observers who saw it as an unmistakable display of patriarchal power. Continue reading...
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Thu, 14 May 2026 17:37:29 GMT |
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Trump says China’s president also pledged ‘strongly’ not to send weapons to Iran, after two-hour meeting between the leaders China’s president, Xi Jinping, has warned of “clashes and even conflicts” with the US over Taiwan after meeting Donald Trump in Beijing. Xi’s remarks, published by China’s foreign ministry after his two-hour meeting with Trump on Thursday morning, said Taiwan was “the most important issue in China-US relations”. Continue reading...
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Fri, 15 May 2026 07:43:05 GMT |
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This blog is now closed Good morning, it’s Nick Visser here to take over the blog. Let’s get to it and see what Friday holds. Big news to start the morning: Australia’s Delta Goodrem has qualified for the Eurovision final. Continue reading...
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Fri, 15 May 2026 06:12:55 GMT |
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Home affairs minister Tony Burke says listing will stop group from organising and meeting, and may prevent more ‘horrific bigoted rallies’ The government has banned neo-Nazi group the National Socialist Network, also known as White Australia, listing it as a prohibited hate group under legislation passed in the wake of the Bondi terror attacks. The listing will mean that activities including supporting, funding, training, recruiting and joining the group will constitute a criminal offence with a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison. Continue reading...
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Fri, 15 May 2026 05:27:51 GMT |
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Federal court affirms an August 2024 finding that Tickle was discriminated against on the basis of her gender identity and awards her $20,000 The federal court has upheld a landmark decision that found a women-only social media app and its founder unlawfully discriminated against Roxanne Tickle after the transgender woman was denied access to the platform. In their judgment on Friday, justices Melissa Perry, Wendy Abraham and Geoffrey Kennett affirmed an August 2024 finding that Tickle was discriminated against on the basis of her gender identity, and also sided with Tickle’s cross appeal, claiming she experienced two instances of direct discrimination by the Giggle for Girls app and its founder Sall Grover. Continue reading...
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Fri, 15 May 2026 04:30:26 GMT |
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Redevelopment of the former Department of Lands building on Sydney’s Bridge Street wins National Trust heritage award It was once a grand old sandstone masterpiece, where returned soldiers would cram into marble corridors to anxiously await lottery draws that could change their lives. Then the 20th century happened. Continue reading...
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Fri, 15 May 2026 04:11:00 GMT |
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Pressure grows on Alcoa over strip-mining of Western Australian jarrah forest, which also threatens Perth’s water supply US mining company Alcoa’s strip-mining of Western Australia’s jarrah forest is under further investigation after its “deliberate repeat breach” of environmental laws that destroyed habitat for protected species – including black cockatoos, quokkas and numbats – and cost it $40m to avoid prosecution. The ongoing inquiry into Alcoa’s clearing at its Willowdale mine was revealed in talking points for federal ministers prepared ahead of the February announcement of a record $55m settlement for clearing at its Huntly mine. Continue reading...
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Fri, 15 May 2026 10:21:41 GMT |
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Large-scale attack on Russian regions and huge oil refinery comes after 24 were killed when missile hit flats in Kyiv Ukraine has launched a large-scale long-range drone attack targeting several regions in Russia including the huge Ryazan oil refinery, after three days of massive strikes by Moscow against Ukraine. Kyiv’s attack on Friday followed a series of drone and missile attacks on Ukraine, including on the capital, Kyiv, where a cruise missile hit an apartment block on Thursday, killing 24 people including three children. Continue reading...
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Fri, 15 May 2026 10:17:37 GMT |
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The death toll included three children, Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Back to Ukraine, 36 countries and the European Union have backed plans for the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine. It looks like the tribunal, long in the making, is now getting closer to being actually established. Continue reading...
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Fri, 15 May 2026 09:14:57 GMT |
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Under aviation regulator proposals rival companies would bid to design and build parts of airport expansion Heathrow could be forced to allow other companies to design and build its third runway and new terminal after the UK aviation regulator argued that rival bids could keep construction costs down. A long-awaited review by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) proposes changes to the regulatory model that governs how Heathrow runs and covers its costs. Continue reading...
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Thu, 14 May 2026 22:46:31 GMT |
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Export’s performances scandalised Austria in the 1960s, but are now recognised for exposing the objectification of the female body Valie Export, the Austrian performance artist and film-maker who inverted the male gaze in ways that were provocative, shocking and often outrageously fun, has died aged 85. The artist’s own foundation announced on Thursday evening that Export died in Vienna earlier the same day, three days before her 86th birthday. Continue reading...
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Thu, 14 May 2026 21:30:18 GMT |
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Council of Europe members plan to change interpretation of ECHR to make it easier to deport refused asylum seekers Keir Starmer’s government has been accused of trying to water down legal protections for torture victims as ministers from 46 countries including the UK prepare to make it easier to deport refused asylum seekers and foreign criminals. Yvette Cooper, the foreign secretary, is expected to agree a “political declaration” on Friday with other members of the Council of Europe, which oversees the European convention on human rights (ECHR). Continue reading...
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Thu, 14 May 2026 21:24:54 GMT |
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Far-right Jewish marchers call for Palestinian villages to ‘burn’ as they storm through Muslim quarter of Old City Israeli nationalists chanted “death to the Arabs”, “may your villages burn” and “Gaza is a graveyard” in a state-sponsored march through Jerusalem to mark the anniversary of the city’s capture and annexation. The annual assertion of Jewish control over Palestinian East Jerusalem has grown more extreme in recent years, and Thursday’s event culminated with the national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, unfurling an Israeli flag in front of the al-Aqsa mosque, the holiest Islamic site in the city. Continue reading...
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Thu, 14 May 2026 14:26:48 GMT |
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West Bank home described as ‘ideal for outdoor gatherings’ is among 41 listed rentals in illegal Israeli settlements Some of Mohammad al-Sbeih’s fondest childhood memories are of his small farm in the hills south of Bethlehem, where three generations of his family grew wheat and barley. “It was a hard plot to farm as it was on a hillside with terraces, but it was so beautiful,” Sbeih remembers. Continue reading...
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Thu, 14 May 2026 13:11:37 GMT |
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Docked ship reportedly seized outside UAE port by “unauthorised personnel” The Iranian foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, has said ships entering the strait of Hormuz must cooperate with the Iranian navy as reports emerged of a ship being seized outside a United Arab Emirate port and taken towards Iranian waters. The UK Maritime Trading Organisation said the docked ship was seized by “unauthorised personnel” while it was anchored off the coast of the United Arab Emirates port of Fujairah near the southern entry to the strait of Hormuz. Continue reading...
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Thu, 14 May 2026 09:47:35 GMT |
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Emirates’ foreign ministry rejects claims that Netanyahu visited country, describing them as ‘baseless’ Benjamin Netanyahu has claimed he made a secret trip to the United Arab Emirates at the height of the Iran war to meet the president, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. “This visit has led to a historic breakthrough in relations between Israel and the UAE,” the Israeli prime minister’s office said on Wednesday night. Continue reading...
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Thu, 14 May 2026 08:35:06 GMT |
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Impact of disruption from Iran war may be felt into 2027 even if strait of Hormuz reopens, says aviation body boss Increases in air fares for travellers in Europe are “inevitable” over the peak summer period because of the high cost of jet fuel, according to the head of the international aviation body. While some airlines faced with weak demand have reduced their European fares recently, Willie Walsh, the former British Airways boss who leads the International Air Transport Association, said there was no way carriers could absorb the extra costs in the long run. Continue reading...
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Thu, 14 May 2026 18:35:58 GMT |
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Gautam Adani, richest man in Asia, was accused of conspiring to pay $250m in bribes to Indian government officials The US Department of Justice is dropping its fraud charges against the Indian billionaire Gautam Adani, the richest man in Asia, after he hired a new legal team led by Donald Trump’s personal lawyer, according to new reports. In an undisclosed April meeting at the justice department, Trump’s personal lawyer, Robert J Giuffra Jr, said that Adani would invest $10bn in the US economy and create 15,000 jobs if prosecutors dropped the charges against him, according to the New York Times and Bloomberg. Continue reading...
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Fri, 08 May 2026 00:57:43 GMT |
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Thu, 07 May 2026 15:02:03 GMT |
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Turmoil and violence rocks state after prime minister Narendra Modi’s party claimed victory in legislative election Tensions have been high in the Indian state of West Bengal after a top political aide from Narendra Modi’s party was shot dead in the street and hundreds were arrested as violence broke out following elections this week. The prime minister’s Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) claimed victory in the West Bengal elections on Monday, defeating Trinamool Congress (TMC), which had ruled over the state legislature for 15 years. Continue reading...
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Wed, 06 May 2026 13:46:24 GMT |
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Mamata Banerjee says Narendra Modi’s party ‘forcefully captured’ election that ended her party’s 15 years in power A political showdown is taking place in the Indian state of West Bengal as the chief minister, Mamata Banerjee, India’s most powerful female politician, has refused to resign after she lost elections to the prime minister’s party this week. Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) won an overwhelming victory on Monday in state elections in West Bengal, where Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress party (TMC) have been in power for 15 years. Continue reading...
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Mon, 04 May 2026 17:34:24 GMT |
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Result in key Indian state is set to have significant implications for the country’s political landscape Narendra Modi’s party has won a resounding election victory in West Bengal, a state which had been a rare opposition stronghold, expanding his unrivalled consolidation of power across the country. It is the first time that the Indian prime minister’s Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) has won assembly elections in West Bengal, a large and politically significant state in eastern India. Continue reading...
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Fri, 15 May 2026 10:43:25 GMT |
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The Greater Manchester mayor is hoping to return to parliament after a Labour MP stepped down, triggering a byelection Labour’s deputy leader, Lucy Powell, has backed Andy Burnham’s efforts to return to parliament, saying there will be no attempt to stop the Greater Manchester mayor from fighting an upcoming byelection in Makerfield. Speaking at a Fire Brigades Union conference in Coventry, she said We could have further to fall as a party and we absolutely need to come back together as one team, because we’ve got to take the fight to [Nigel] Farage. We are at real risk of Nigel Farage walking up Downing Street in a few years time, and we can’t let that happen. But we’ve got to do our politics differently. We’ve got to end the factionalism. We’ve got to embrace all the different traditions of the Labour party, all the different voices, and bring one team back together. Continue reading...
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Fri, 15 May 2026 10:20:32 GMT |
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Statement follows speculation party would not field candidate in Makerfield or barely fight seat The Greens are going to campaign for the upcoming Makerfield byelection, complicating Andy Burnham’s potential route back to parliament against what is expected to be a strong Reform UK challenge. A statement from the Greens said candidate selection was in process and that the party had learned from its win in another Greater Manchester seat in February, when they overcame a 13,000 Labour majority in Gorton and Denton. Continue reading...
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Fri, 15 May 2026 09:50:26 GMT |
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Tube stoppages due on two 24-hour periods next week but sources say RMT seeking talks Hopes have been raised that next week’s strikes by London Underground drivers could yet be averted, after sources said the RMT union had put out feelers for talks. The RMT members, almost half of London’s tube drivers, are due to strike for two 24-hour periods from midday on Tuesday and Thursday, closing some lines entirely and bringing widespread travel disruption to the capital until the weekend. Continue reading...
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Fri, 15 May 2026 08:14:01 GMT |
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Crypto billionaire goes straight into top 10 on Sunday Times list, with Noel and Liam Gallagher among other first-timers Christopher Harborne, the crypto billionaire who controversially gifted Nigel Farage £5m, has been named in the list of the UK’s wealthiest people for the first time. Other first-timers include Noel and Liam Gallagher and Emily Eavis, the daughter of the Glastonbury festival founder, Michael Eavis, according to the latest Sunday Times Rich List published on Friday. Sanjay and Dheeraj Hinduja and family: £38bn David and Simon Reuben and family: £27.971bn Leonard Blavatnik: £26.852bn Idan Ofer: £24.481bn Guy, George, Alannah and Galen Weston and family: £18.939bn Christopher Harborne: £18.177bn Nik Storonsky: £16.411bn Alex Gerko: £16.006bn Jim Ratcliffe: £15.194bn Igor and Dmitry Bukhman: £14.26bn Continue reading...
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Fri, 15 May 2026 07:34:15 GMT |
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Housing secretary Steve Reed says no one has numbers for challenge and Labour should row in behind prime minister One of Keir Starmer’s closest allies in the cabinet has conceded that the prime minister is “unpopular” but has insisted Labour should not repeat the same pattern of changing leaders that damaged the Conservatives. The housing secretary, Steve Reed, one of Starmer’s most loyal ministers and staunch defenders, told broadcasters on Friday that no one had the numbers to challenge him and the party should come together behind the prime minister. Continue reading...
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Fri, 15 May 2026 10:00:37 GMT |
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Homework, social pressure and jobs still keep teens up but now screen time and social media rob their sleep A new study from the University of Minnesota School of Public Health shows that today’s teenagers are sleeping less than ever before. The findings, which appeared in Pediatrics, showed a consistent decline in sleep across every age category. The latest figures revealed record-low sleep levels for all groups, with only 22% of older adolescents saying they slept at least seven hours each night. Continue reading...
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Thu, 14 May 2026 23:11:06 GMT |
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A 2023 supreme court decision banned the use of affirmative action in college admissions The US Department of Justice on Thursday accused Yale University of illegally considering race in admissions to its medical school – the second institution to face discrimination allegations by the federal agency this month. In a letter to a lawyer for Yale, Harmeet Dhillon, assistant attorney general for civil rights, said a justice department investigation found that Black and Hispanic students have a much higher chance of admission to the medical school than white or Asian students, despite having lower grade-point averages and lower test scores. Continue reading...
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Thu, 14 May 2026 23:08:06 GMT |
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Nine-person jury to consider whether AI firm bilked world’s richest person and unjustly enriched themselves Closing arguments began on Thursday in Elon Musk’s lawsuit against Sam Altman and OpenAI, bringing the weeks-long courtroom battle between the two tech moguls nearer to a decision. A nine-person jury is set to deliberate and return a verdict on whether they believe the AI firm and Altman are liable in the case. The trial, which began last month in an Oakland, California, federal courthouse, has gripped Silicon Valley and featured some of the tech industry’s biggest names as witnesses. Attorneys for both sides have presented testimony and documents that have exposed Musk and Altman’s private dealings, as well as provided a window into the contentious history of OpenAI. Continue reading...
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Thu, 14 May 2026 22:16:02 GMT |
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Media law experts cast doubt on viability of a defamation lawsuit promised by Netanyahu over Nicholas Kristof essay Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and foreign minister, Gideon Sa’ar, have threatened to sue the New York Times for defamation over the publication of an essay by Nicholas Kristof detailing allegations that Palestinian women, men and children have been raped and sexually abused in Israeli military detention. “Following the publication by Nicholas Kristof in The New York Times of one of the most hideous and distorted lies ever published against the State of Israel in the modern press, which also received the backing of the newspaper, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar have instructed the initiation of a defamation lawsuit against The New York Times,” Israel’s ministry of foreign affairs wrote in a social media post on Thursday. Continue reading...
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Thu, 14 May 2026 21:38:21 GMT |
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Louisiana had sued the FDA in a bid to curtail the regulatory agency’s rules on prescribing mifepristone remotely The US supreme court upheld nationwide access to mail-order mifepristone, an abortion medication, in a shadow-docket decision on Thursday. Louisiana sued the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in October in a bid to curtail the regulatory agency’s rules on prescribing mifepristone remotely, arguing that it interfered with the state’s ban on abortion. Continue reading...
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