The family behind La Luz del Mundo Church allegedly facilitated sexual abuse of children and women for decadesSince its inception nearly 100 years ago, La Luz del Mundo Church has been a family affair even as it spread from Mexico to the US and around the world.Eusebio Aaron" Joaquin Gonzalez, who founded the Guadalajara-based Christian church, was succeeded by his son, Samuel Joaquin Flores, upon his death in 1964. Continue reading...
Victims include nine children at election campaign gathering in Tamil Nadu led by popular actor and politicianPolice in India have opened a criminal case against the leaders of a party headed by the actor turned politician Vijay, after a crowd crush at one of his rallies killed 40 people and injured at least 124 others.Local officials reported that at least nine children had died at the rally, which took place on Saturday night in the Karur district of Tamil Nadu state in southern India. Vijay, one of the most popular and successful actors in Tamil cinema, who entered politics last year, was addressing the crowd for his Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) party before state elections early next year. Continue reading...
Housing secretary is set to announce initiative modelled on Clement Attlee's postwar housing boom'The government is expected to announce on Sunday a programme to build 12 new towns across England in a bid to address the country's housing crisis.The housing secretary, Steve Reed, will unveil the initiative at Labour's annual conference as it begins in Liverpool. The prime minister, Keir Starmer, described the proposals as national renewal in action". Continue reading...
Labour party conference really big opportunity to make our case to the country', says PMHundreds of thousands more children are to receive a free breakfast through a government scheme, Bridget Phillipson has announced.On Saturday, education secretary, said that 500,000 more children across England will soon benefit from the government's role out of free breakfast clubsThe start of the national rollout of free breakfast clubs will be an historic change in working families' daily routines and is another example of this Labour government making good on its promises to deliver the change the British people voted for.This is Labour choosing a path of renewal towards a fairer country - breaking down the barriers to opportunity and ensuring every child starts school ready to learn.I have worked hard as a councillor for Langside for the past three years to build a better community and now I can't wait to be the voice of change across our great communities in the constituency.As your candidate for Glasgow Southside, I will always put people and planet before corporate greed, I will fight back against the millionaires who are pushing racist anti-migrant narratives and I will call out the horrific genocide in Gaza.Since then, she's been a great voice for the local community and I have no doubt that she'll be a fantastic candidate for the constituency.Green support in Glasgow Southside has been growing steadily in recent years and we're looking forward to the campaign for Holyrood, in Southside, across Glasgow and throughout the country. Continue reading...
Foysol Choudhury, who represents Lothian, will sit as an independent while an investigation takes placeA Scottish Labour MSP has been suspended from the party over an allegation of inappropriate conduct.Foysol Choudhury, who has served as an MSP for Lothian since 2021, will sit as an independent while the party carries out an investigation. Continue reading...
by Haroon Siddique Legal affairs correspondent on (#70BMJ)
People charged before protest group was proscribed describe restrictions on wearing keffiyehs and holding certain prison jobsPeople who have been in jail since last year awaiting trial for alleged offences relating to Palestine Action activities say they have faced a crackdown since the group was proscribed, including being banned from wearing the keffiyeh and from prison jobs.The prisoners were charged before Palestine Action was banned and none have been charged with Terrorism Act offences, although the Crown Prosecution Service has said there is a terrorism connection". Continue reading...
Lorenz Kraus, 53, tells WRGB in Albany he killed elderly parents as act of mercy and buried bodies in back yardA man confessed to killing his parents and then burying them in their back yard during a recent interview with a local television news channel in upstate New York, leading authorities to charge him with two counts of murder.Lorenz Kraus's remarkable interview with WRGB aired pn Thursday, shortly after police discovered two bodies at his family's home in Albany - and about eight years after his parents were last seen alive before apparently vanishing without a trace. Continue reading...
by Jessica Murray Social affairs correspondent on (#70BGE)
Fears raised over social media posts urging action against shared properties housing asylum seekersFears are growing that shared houses may become the focus of anti-migrant protests, with residents and charities saying tensions are building in some areas.Homes of multiple occupation (HMOs) have grown in number as renters seek affordable accommodation amid a housing crisis. Continue reading...
Chief magistrate at Woolwich crown court rules that charge brought against musician is unlawful and null'A terrorism charge against the Kneecap rapper Liam Og O hAnnaidh has been thrown out by the chief magistrate due to a technical error.O hAnnaidh had been charged with a terrorism offence for allegedly displaying a Hezbollah flag at a gig at the O2 Forum in Kentish Town, north London, last November. Continue reading...
by Peter Walker Senior political correspondent on (#70AVY)
Campbell was North East Fife MP for nearly three decades and was made a peer, and once held UK 100m recordMenzies Campbell, the long-serving Liberal Democrat MP who led the party for 18 months, has died aged 84, his family have said.Lord Campbell, usually known as Ming, died in London after a period of respite care, his grandson Gregor Grant-Suttie said in a statement. He had spent some of his final days watching last weekend's Lib Dem conference. Continue reading...
Mother of victim Barnaby Webber says allegations about watchdog staff have left families asking whom they can trustPolice watchdog investigators who are alleged to have described an inquiry into the 2023 Nottingham stabbings as politically motivated are disrespectful and inhumane", the mother of one victim has said.Emma Webber said new allegations about staff at the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) had left families asking whom they could trust. Continue reading...
by Stephanie Convery and earlier Caitlin Cassidy on (#70ACQ)
This blog is closed.Parents need boost to lift flagging vaccination rateParents need practical strategies such as easier access to appointments and bulk-billing to help reverse a concerning decline in childhood vaccination rates, research has found.The top barriers were mostly around ability to get appointments easily, being able to prioritise their child's vaccination over all of the other things that they have to get done, the cost of getting their child vaccinated.We now know that that will be on the 20th of October. The point here is that they had spoken a number of times by phone. The relationship is conducted at many, many levels. It is going well.We've got the lowest tariff rate. Aukus is happening at a pace. And so we're really confident ... about the progress of our relationship with the US. Continue reading...
by Peter Walker Senior political correspondent on (#70AQF)
Exclusive: Group warn coastal communities need greater investment to reduce inequality and fight off threat from ReformA group of Labour MPs representing coastal areas will demand urgent action to tackle deprivation in their seats, warning a lack of progress could leave them vulnerable to Reform.They will use the party conference this weekend to call for an equivalent of the London Challenge, which turned around failing schools in the capital under Tony Blair's government, but with a focus on post-16 training and apprenticeships. Continue reading...
Exclusive: critics say the move, part of the sentencing bill for England and Wales, would bring shame upon families of offendersMinisters are pushing through powers to photograph, name and shame offenders who have been ordered to complete unpaid community work in England and Wales.The sentencing bill, now moving through parliament, will for the first time give probation officers a legal power" to take and publish the names and pictures of individuals ordered by courts to tidy grass verges, litter-pick or scrub graffiti. Continue reading...
Peak winds of 165mph bring 17 deaths in Taiwan, while Storm Bualoi threatens to strengthen into typhoon on its way to the PhilippinesSuper Typhoon Ragasa pounded Taiwan, Hong Kong and China before moving into Vietnam on Thursday night, though as a much-weakened storm.At its peak Ragasa had mean wind speeds of 165mph as it moved to the south of Taiwan, where it brought significant heavy rain resulting in 17 deaths as a barrier lake burst. Continue reading...
by Mark Brown North of England correspondent on (#70AMK)
Station Hall displays from a microwave-burger box to royal carriages intended to showcase best and worst of rail travelThere is Queen Victoria's funeral wreath, a station ticket kiosk allegedly used by Rod Stewart and then an object so important it comes on its own plinth: the last ever microwave-burger box before the introduction of deli-style" meals on GNER trains.I can remember having a cheeseburger on the train coming down from Aberdeen to London in the 1990s," said Andrew McLean with fondness. Continue reading...
British officials said they feared Trump would recognise Israeli control over the West Bank in retaliation for the UK, Australia, France and other recognising PalestineDonald Trump has said he will not allow Israel to annex the West Bank, rejecting calls from some far-right politicians in Israel who want to extend sovereignty over the area and snuff out hopes for a Palestinian state.I will not allow Israel to annex the West Bank. Nope, I will not allow it. It's not going to happen," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, adding There's been enough. It's time to stop now." Continue reading...
by Presented by Helen Pidd with Oliver Laughland and on (#70AK8)
Data leak gives Guardian US investigations team an unprecedented look into Trump's deportation regime - and how people are seemingly being disappeared'. Oliver Laughland and Maanvi Singh reportNear the 13th hole of a golf course in Alexandria, rural Louisiana, the Guardian US's southern bureau chief, Oliver Laughland, could see a telling image of where America is at the moment'. On one side, golfers teeing off on a scorching hot day; on the other, in the distance and through a fence, lines of people shackled at the feet and hands, loaded on to planes'.They were people being held at the Alexandria staging facility, a detention and removal centre that has become central to Donald Trump's deportation regime. Continue reading...
Wounds such as burns or leg injuries more common in Gaza than among US soldiers who fought in Iraq and AfghanistanCivilians in Gaza have sustained injuries of a type and on a scale more usually seen among professional soldiers involved in intense combat operations, research has found.A study published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) found that some types of wounds - such as burns or injuries to legs - were more common among civilians in Gaza than among US soldiers fighting in recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Continue reading...
Russian efforts to delay the return of sanctions is expected to fail during vote on FridayA final Russian attempt to defer the snapback of large-scale UN sanctions on Iran is expected to fail at the UN security council on Friday after European countries rejected last-minute Iranian offers to give UN weapons inspectors limited access to its bombed nuclear sites.Russia will call for the reimposition of the sanctions to be deferred for six months to give more time for diplomacy, but European diplomats are confident that Russia will not get the nine votes it needs on the security council for the snapback to be deferred. The last time Russia put the same issue to a vote it received only four votes. Continue reading...
Boys and girls in demographic start secondary school with weakest levels of engagement, research findsWhite pupils from low-income families in England start secondary school with far lower levels of enthusiasm or effort than other ethnic groups, according to new research that may partly explain differences in academic results and behaviour.Both girls and boys from lower-income white families reported weak levels of engagement from year 7 onwards. Girls were less likely to enjoy being at school while the boys made less effort with their school work. Continue reading...
by Gwyn Topham Transport correspondent on (#70AGE)
Ashford and Ebbsfleet have been shut to cross-Channel services since 2020, with Eurostar calling them unviableHopes that international rail services could return to UK stations abandoned by Eurostar have grown, with the government backing new competitors who plan to serve stops in Kent.Ministers have been leaning on the rail regulator to give crucial space on the railway to prospective entrants who pledge to bring cross-Channel services back to Ashford and Ebbsfleet stations - and possibly London's Stratford International. Continue reading...
Legal opinion for campaign group says deal amounts to reversal of UK's commitment to nuclear disarmamentBritain will violate its nuclear disarmament obligations if Labour presses ahead with the 1bn purchase of 12 F-35A fighter jets, according to a specialist legal opinion prepared on behalf of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND).Two international lawyers argue that the government's plan to reintroduce air-launched nuclear weapons for the RAF will break a key provision of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT) signed by the UK and 190 other countries. Continue reading...
Police search former Doctor Who star's property and are seen leaving with boxesThe actor Noel Clarke has been arrested by police at his family home in London.Detectives searched the former Doctor Who star's property in Kensington and officers were seen leaving the address with boxes apparently containing a laptop and documents. Continue reading...
Reported proposal for international body to oversee Gaza for up to five years counters UN-backed plan for faster transition to Palestinian ruleThe White House is backing a plan under which the former British prime minister Tony Blair would head a temporary administration of the Gaza Strip, initially without the direct involvement of the Palestinian Authority (PA), according to reports in the Israeli media.Under the proposal, Blair would head a body called the Gaza International Transitional Authority (Gita) which would have a mandate to be Gaza's supreme political and legal authority" for as long as five years. Continue reading...
As Keir Starmer aims to revive ID card system first proposed by Tony Blair, we look at the arguments for and againstIt is 21 years since Tony Blair's government made proposals for an ID card system to tackle illegal working and immigration, and to make it more convenient for the public to access services.The same issues are on the agenda again as Keir Starmer revives what became one of New Labour's most controversial policies. He is about to find out if he can defeat the argument that David Cameron's Conservatives made before scrapping it. They said the ID card approach to personal privacy was the worst of all worlds - intrusive, ineffective and enormously expensive". Continue reading...
Canada premier's move prompts criticism from road safety activists and is likely to cue another showdown with TorontoDoug Ford has announced plans to ban speed cameras in Ontario, describing the devices as an out-of-control tax grab" in his latest populist appeal to suburban voters.The move prompted criticism from road safety activists and is likely to cue another showdown with Toronto, after the mayor of Canada's largest city urged councillors to keep the cameras in place, warning that speed kills". Continue reading...
by Jessica Elgot, Eleni Courea and Hannah Al-Othman on (#70A8F)
Starmer understood to be furious at Greater Manchester mayor's admission that he would seek to challenge for the leadershipLabour's internal warfare broke into the open on Thursday as Keir Starmer and several cabinet ministers criticised Andy Burnham over his comments dismissing the bond markets.Senior Labour figures compared the Greater Manchester mayor's attitude to the cavalier approach taken by former Conservative prime minister Liz Truss in a sign of how low relations between No 10 and Burnham have plunged. Continue reading...
Thinktank's Alexander Iosad claims says cards will tackle illegal migration and help people access government servicesSweeney asked about Northern Powerhouse Rail, and reports it is being shelved again.Burnham said these reports were disappointing".It feels always that projects in the southern half the country are green lighted but often red lighted up here. Continue reading...
Former French president receives five-year prison sentence for criminal conspiracy over pact with Gaddafi regimeThe former French president Nicolas Sarkozy said he would sleep in jail but with my head held high" after receiving a five-year prison sentence for criminal conspiracy - the first time a former head of state has been sent to prison in modern French history.The verdict and sentencing followed a trial in which he and his aides were accused of making a corruption pact with the regime of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi to receive funding for the 2007 French presidential election campaign. Continue reading...
Similar legislation introduced in Rio in mid-1990s caused an explosion of extrajudicial killings in the city's favelasHuman rights activists have voiced outrage after Rio de Janeiro's parliament approved plans to pay police officers a wild west bonus" for neutralizing criminals" during operations.The move is a throwback to the mid-1990s when Rio's then governor, Marcello Alencar, introduced similar legislation that caused an explosion of extrajudicial killings in the city's favelas. Continue reading...
Speech by Palestinian Authority president also says Hamas should have no role in governing Palestine and must disarmAlimi says the policy of containment has given the Houthis time to expand its arsenal.It has become clear the peace we seek cannot be asked for but must be imposed by force," he says. Continue reading...
by Jakub Krupa (now) and Amy Sedghi (earlier) on (#709SV)
Sarkozy found guilty of criminal conspiracy for receiving millions of euros from late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi and will spend time in custody even if he appealsHere is a bit more on that from Reuters:Sarkozy, who has always denied the charges, was accused of making a deal with Gaddafi in 2005, when he was France's interior minister, to obtain campaign financing in exchange for supporting the then-isolated Libyan government on the international stage.... Continue reading...
The background, key players and likely outcome of a contest of crucial interest to both Europe and RussiaMoldova will vote this Sunday in parliamentary elections that its president has described as the most important" in the history of the small country. The results will confirm if Moldova, a former Soviet Republic that gained independence in 1991, continues on its path of western integration, or moves back into Russia's orbit. Continue reading...
Gary Poland, who rang police 50 minutes after attack, tells inquiry he wishes he had checked on the children's welfareA taxi driver who took the Southport killer to the scene of the attack has said he regrets not phoning the police sooner.Gary Poland, who did not phone police until 50 minutes after the attack, said he feared a gunman was at large and that he would be a target. Continue reading...
Higher education regulator describes findings from survey of 50,000 final-year students as national scandal'One in three female students say they have endured sexual harassment during their time at university or college, with most of it taking place around campus, according to data published by England's higher education regulator.The results showed that nearly one in five women also experienced sexual assault or violence during their time as a student, often at the hands of other students or staff, with younger women, lesbian, gay or bisexual students and students with disabilities at higher risk. Continue reading...
Bilingual production by Theatr Cymru is expected to be first time Welsh will be heard at South Bank venueGrappling with the subtleties of Shakespeare's poetry and prose has proved a challenge for many a theatre company but a novel linguistic challenge has been added into the mix in a new production of Romeo and Juliet.A Welsh-English bilingual version of the tragedy, called Romeo a Juliet, is about to set off on tour, ending at Shakespeare's Globe in London - believed to be the first time Cymraeg (the Welsh language) will have been heard at the venue on the South Bank.Romeo a Juliet opens at the Sherman theatre in Cardiff on 29 September and will tour venues across Wales before its run at the Globe. It will be performed at the Globe's Sam Wanamaker Playhouse from 5-8 November. Continue reading...
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