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Decision to not make endorsement for first time in nearly three decades comes in wake of scrutiny of its president

The Fed has announced an interest-rate cut for the first time in four years - what effect will it have on consumers?The Federal Reserve announced a half-percentage point interest-rate cut on Wednesday, the first decrease in four years. It's a moment that many economists see as the end of an era, and the beginning of the end of the central bank's fight against inflation.The Fed's prime rate - used to set the rates on everything from mortgages to car loans - has sat at a 20-year high for the last year, making it more expensive to borrow money. Continue reading...

Benjamin Netanyahu's hold on power depends on his nation being at war. The region is paying a high priceIn the second world war, guerrilla forces scattered large quantities of booby-trapped objects likely to be attractive to civilians. The idea was to cause widescale and indiscriminate death. The Japanese manufactured a tobacco pipe with a charge detonated by a spring-loaded striker. The Italians produced a headset that blew up when it was plugged in. More than half a century later, a global treaty came into force which prohibited in all circumstances to use booby-traps or other devices in the form of apparently harmless portable objects that are specifically designed and constructed to contain explosive material". Has anyone told Israel and its jubilant supporters that, as Brian Finucane of the International Crisis Group points out, it is a signatory to the protocol?On Tuesday, pagers used by hundreds of members of the militant group Hezbollah exploded almost simultaneously in Lebanon and Syria, killing at least 12 people - including two children and four hospital workers - and wounding thousands more. This situation is directly analogous to the historical practices that current global arms treaties explicitly prohibit. US media say Israel was behind the attack, and the country has the motive and the means to target its Iran-backed enemies. Israel's leaders have a long history of carrying out sophisticated remote operations, ranging from cyber-attacks, suicide drone attacks and remote-controlled weapons to assassinate Iranian scientists. On Wednesday it was reported that Israel blew up thousands of two-way personal radios used by Hezbollah members in Lebanon, killing nine and wounding hundreds. Continue reading...

Move comes after about 33,000 workers in Pacific north-west began strike on FridayBoeing's CEO said on Wednesday that the company would begin furloughing a large number" of employees to conserve cash during the strike by union machinists that began last week.The chief executive, Kelly Ortberg, said the layoffs would be temporary and affect executives, managers and other employees. Continue reading...

In recent weeks, a handful of Republicans have crossed party lines to endorse Democratic presidential candidate

FBI and US Postal Service launch joint investigation into parcels, some containing white powder found to be flour

With thousands injured in a coordinated attack, the Lebanese group is seriously hobbled but under unprecedented pressure to strike backThe extraordinary 17 September pager attack in Lebanon, followed by today's walkie-talkie attack, constitute the biggest security breach that Hezbollah has encountered in its history. The attacks - widely attributed to Israel's Mossad agency though not yet officially claimed by Israel - present a serious dilemma for Hezbollah. They add to the pressure on the group to retaliate against Israel but at the same time severely limit its military options. The attacks also deal a blow to Hezbollah's morale and credibility as an armed group purporting to possess high security standards.Hezbollah can no longer claim to be impenetrable when it comes to its security. For decades, the group presented observing secrecy in its operations and communications network as necessary for its role in supporting Lebanon's defence. This is why it insisted on having a telecommunications network that is completely separate from the national grid. It is also why Hezbollah defended its clandestine activities in Beirut's port and airport. It has been importing and exporting goods through those public facilities as well as across Lebanon's border with Syria without any supervision or intervention by Lebanon's state authorities. Continue reading...

Data shows more Americans supporting political violence in nation where firearms outnumber peopleAfter the second apparent assassination attempt against Donald Trump in two months, gun safety advocates say the episode underlines the perilous political landscape of potentially lethal violence against public officials in a nation where firearms outnumber people.A 58-year-old man, identified as Ryan Wesley Routh, was apprehended by authorities on Sunday after Secret Service agents spotted the barrel of a rifle peeking through foliage at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, where the former president was playing golf. Routh appeared in federal court in Florida on Monday and was charged with federal gun crimes. Continue reading...

The undisputed heavyweight world champion, Oleksandr Usyk, said he has been released after he was briefly detained by Polish authorities in Krakow airport. It was not immediately clear why the 37-year-old Usyk was detained but in a statement on Instagram after the incident Usky said: 'Everything is fine, I am free, there are some misunderstandings'. Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said: 'I was outraged by this attitude towards our citizen and champion'

The US Coast Guard has released a video that shows the Titan submersible for the first time since the vessel's deadly implosion in June 2023. In the video, a broken tail cone can be seen on floor of Atlantic Ocean, with fragments of the vessel visible around the cone. The images were revealed as authorities opened a public hearing into the deaths of five people who were onboard Continue reading...

Emails reveal Georgia Election Integrity Coalition, a group of officials and election deniers, coordinating in swing state

Donald Trump's pet eating' conspiracy shows how falsehoods driven by political bias are spreadIn recent weeks, racist conspiracy theories about immigrants have dominated the election cycle. High-ranking Republicans have doubled down on unsubstantiated rumors about Black and brown migrants, tapping into anxieties that immigrants are responsible for increased crime in US cities.During last week's presidential debate, Donald Trump echoed a baseless claim that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, were eating pets. In Springfield, they're eating the dogs. The people that came in. They're eating the cats. They're eating - they're eating the pets of the people that live there," the Republican nominee said. Continue reading...

Taiwanese company says firm in Europe made devices imported by Lebanese group and used in unprecedented attack. Plus, the mysterious world of psychics

Khalil Allah is set to be killed by lethal injection despite a key witness saying last month he made false remarks at trialSouth Carolina is on track to execute a man on death row for the first time in 13 years, despite new evidence raising doubts about critical testimony used to secure his conviction.Khalil Divine Black Sun Allah, 46, is scheduled to be killed by lethal injection on Friday, one of six executions that could move forward in the coming months in South Carolina, marking a brutal resurgence of capital punishment since the state's last execution in 2011. Continue reading...

From banging on about childless cat ladies' to spreading racist rumours about Haitians eating pets, Trump's running mate can't seem to move on from his strange fixation with felinesWant to know the secret to winning elections and influencing people? Cat memes. This is according to JD Vance, who, you might have noticed, has a bizarre fixation with felines. Donald Trump's running mate - a man who might soon become one of the most powerful people in the world - has been widely ridiculed and condemned for his comments about childless cat ladies". But instead of trying to move the news cycle on from cat-related matters, he seems to have doubled down on them. Vance is now in the headlines for spreading outrageous, and wildly racist, false rumours about Haitian immigrants eating pets in Springfield, Ohio. Trump amplified those rumours during his debate with Kamala Harris last week.These accusations, which partly stemmed from a Facebook post some random woman wrote (and has now apologised for) about a friend of a neighbour losing a cat, have wreaked havoc in Springfield. There have been bomb threats against local hospitals and Haitian community members are reportedly terrified. We all know Trump doesn't have a conscience - but is Vance even the slightest bit contrite?Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...

Matt Stutzman, Team USA's self-described armless archer', wants to follow up gold with a move into a new sportHollywood has been turning Olympic stories into biopics for decades, but - documentaries aside - studios rarely give the blockbuster treatment to Paralympians. After his gold medal at this year's Paralympics in Paris, however, Team USA archer Matt Stutzman's career now has the kind of feelgood ending tailor-made for a sports movie.Indeed, if Stutzman's life were a film, a fitting climax would feature his Paris semi-final against reigning Paralympic champion He Zihao. It's worth setting the scene. Each athlete is down to their final arrow. China's He shoots first and, releasing the arrow with his right hand, strikes the 10-point circle, finishing the round with an almost-perfect cumulative score of 148 (a 150 score is theoretically possible, although no one has ever achieved it at the Paralympics). Sitting on 138 with one arrow remaining, Stutzman needs a 10 to tie the contest. Seemingly nonplussed, he loads the arrow and uses his right foot to pull the bow taut. Continue reading...

As the English top-flight grapples with spending regulations, the US league offers a blueprint for improved parity and financial transparencyThe pre-Profit and Sustainably Rules age was a simpler time. Premier League clubs were broadly allowed to spend freely. So freely that occasionally a club would spend their way into oblivion (looking at you, Leeds United and Portsmouth), but at no point was it expected that a club would have to sell a hotel to balance the books. Many supporters - and club executives, for that matter - are still getting their heads around the Premier League's PSR.Major League Soccer fans know how they feel. Spending limits and complex roster rules have been part of the league's DNA since its inception nearly 30 years ago. In MLS, it's not just about what you can spend, it's about what you're allowed to spend, often to the frustration of those who believe the league is holding itself back from reaching its full potential. Continue reading...

Life as a professional athlete brings plenty of unwelcome attention. But many basketball players started getting stares when they were still in their early teensWhen Paul Mokeski traveled to China several years ago to teach a month-long basketball clinic, he says he couldn't help but feel like Godzilla. For the 7ft former NBA center, who played 12 years in the league, many of them on a Milwaukee Bucks team that battled Larry Bird's Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference finals, it was a familiar feeling. People would come out of stores and point as if they were seeing a giant from a storybook. That's all part of the gig when you're as tall as I am," says Mokeski.For decades, when it came to the NBA, height was king. And while that trend has diminished some, thanks to players like Steph Curry and his small ball" Golden State Warriors team, players of Mokeski's stature are hardly a rarity in the NBA. But to be 7ft in the wider world is a different matter. Some estimates show that there are fewer than 3,000 seven-footers in the entire world. And that means for people like Mokeski, life is often defined by being super visible. I don't know any other way," he says with a laugh. Continue reading...

Boxing's power brokers have again chosen short-term gain over the long-term health of the sport by marketing Joshua-Dubois as a fight for the world heavyweight championshipOn Saturday Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois will meet in the ring before more than 90,000 screaming fans at Wembley Stadium. It's a quality match-up between two good fighters. But once again, boxing's powers that be have chosen short-term gain over the long-term health of the sport by marketing Joshua-Dubois as a fight for the heavyweight championship of the world.It isn't. Continue reading...

The organic farm shop is a paradise for wealthy Germans. Behind the scenes, we pick and chop vegetables until we're on the point of collapse

I took on three of the jobs shunned by western workers. Our mini-series reveals the hidden lives of those with no choice

Elon Musk's America Pac replaces voter turnout operations in Arizona and Nevada with less than 50 days until electionAmerica Pac, one of the largest and the most ambitious of the groups supporting Donald Trump's campaign, is replacing its voter turnout operations in the crucial battleground states of Arizona and Nevada, according to two people familiar with the matter.The political action committee, backed by billionaire Elon Musk, has ended its contract with the September Group and will hire a new company to knock on doors with fewer than 50 days left until the election. Continue reading...

Jimmy Carter doesn't turn 100 until 1 October, but the red carpet was nevertheless rolled out at the Fox Theater to pay homage to America's oldest living former presidentFormer president Jimmy Carter's 100th birthday is on 1 October. His supporters didn't want to wait that long to throw a party.A parade of Georgia luminaries on Tuesday lit up the venerable Fox Theater on Peachtree Street. In a city that boasts new, swanky modern glass and steel venues like the Cobb Energy performing arts center or the Eastern befitting the city's rising prominence, organizers chose Atlanta's oldest concert hall to celebrate Carter's centennial. Continue reading...

Former president talks up tariffs in Flint, Michigan, and warns attendees of dangers of nuclear obliteration'Trump held his first campaign event on Tuesday since the thwarted assassination attempt over the weekend, telling a packed 6,000-seat arena in Flint, Michigan that the assassin couldn't even get a shot off" while describing the Secret Service's great" response to the threat.During a town hall moderated by former White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Trump took audience questions about manufacturing and the economy, among other issues. Like his first appearance after the attempt on his life in July - also a rally in Michigan - Trump appeared ready to return to business as usual on the campaign trail, and his supporters were eager to see him in action. Continue reading...

Microsoft researchers found that the group created a video, paid an actor to appear as the alleged victim, and spread the claim through a fake websiteA false claim circulating on social media that Kamala Harris was involved in an alleged hit-and-run in San Francisco in 2011 is the work of a covert Russian disinformation operation, according to new research by Microsoft.Researchers found that the group created a video, paid an actor to appear as the alleged victim, and spread the claim through a fake website for a nonexistent San Francisco news outlet named KBSF-TV. The Russian group responsible, which Microsoft dubs Storm-1516, is described as a Kremlin-aligned troll farm. Continue reading...

The union has accused the company of refusing to provide information about 2023 contract promisesOne of America's biggest carmakers, Stellantis, could face fresh strikes after the United Auto Workers (UAW) announced plans for members to vote on authorizing a walkout.The UAW president Shawn Fain accused executives at the automotive giant of being out of control" on Tuesday evening. The company wants you to be scared," he told his union's members, but we are 100% within our rights and within our power to take strike action if necessary." Continue reading...

Republican VP nominee claims at Wisconsin rally that constituents told him they'd seen something in Springfield'JD Vance defended his comments about Haitian immigrants eating pets during a Tuesday rally, saying that the media has a responsibility to fact-check" stories - not him.The rally in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, came two days after the Ohio senator told CNN host Dana Bash it was OK to create stories" to draw attention to issues his constituents care about, regarding inflammatory and unfounded claims that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, had eaten residents' pets. Continue reading...

This blog is closed now, thanks for following along. You can find the latest US elections coverage here.As far as the election campaign is concerned, this week the Kamala Harris team has its focus on youth turnout to coincide with today's National Voter Registration Day.In a statement campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez said: The stakes this November couldn't be higher, and vice-president Harris knows our democracy is stronger when we all vote. We are focused on meeting young Americans where they are to drive home the stakes of this election on the issues they care most about." Continue reading...

Animal known as Big Mama' accidentally gulps marine mammal, who escapes in waters off Anacortes, WashingtonIt's a good thing seals aren't on a humpback whale's menu.A photograph by a whale-watching naturalist captured a seemingly bewildered seal in the mouth of a humpback whale after the giant marine mammal accidentally gulped it last Thursday in the waters off Anacortes, Washington. Continue reading...

Violent blow against Hezbollah leaves the militia vengeful and vulnerable - and again dashes Washington's diplomacy

National Association of Black Journalists panel also addresses Gaza and economic opportunity for Black menOn Tuesday, Kamala Harris was interviewed by a panel of three National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) members, during which the vice-president talked about the anti-immigrant sentiment toward Haitians in Springfield, Ohio; Israel's war in Gaza; domestic economic issues; gun violence; and reproductive rights. The conversation was one of the few interviews Harris has done since becoming the Democratic nominee, and it served as an opportunity for her to reaffirm policies.When asked about where [she] sees the line in terms of aggression and defense" in regards to the war, she said that she supported the Biden administration's one-time pause on the delivery of 2,000lb bombs to Israel as leverage" that they have had and used", but that achieving a deal was the real means to ending the war. Continue reading...

Voter registration issue splits politicians in the swing state as they enter legal battle over best solutionArizona's top elections official said on Tuesday that a newly identified error in the state's voter registration process needs to be swiftly resolved, as early ballots are set to go out to some voters as soon as this week.Election staff in the Maricopa county recorder's office identified an issue last week, which concerns voters with old driver's licenses who may never have provided documentary proof of citizenship but were coded as having provided it and therefore were able to vote full ballots. The state has a bifurcated system in which voters who do not provide documentary proof of citizenship cannot vote in local or state elections, only federal ones. Continue reading...

There was no crime,' says author about Robert Roberson who was convicted of murder based on discredited scienceThe bestselling writer John Grisham has joined scores of bipartisan politicians, lawyers, scientists and doctors in sounding the alarm that Texas is about to execute an innocent man convicted of a crime that never happened.Grisham, whose legal thrillers have been turned into such Hollywood blockbusters as The Firm and The Pelican Brief, spoke out on Tuesday about the case of Robert Roberson, 57. Roberson has been on death row in Texas for more than 20 years for violently shaking to death his two-year-old daughter, Nikki. Continue reading...

Measure falls short of 60-vote majority as Democrats highlight election issue after Alabama court decision

Prosecutors say the group beat children as young as eight years old and imposed strict rules on what they did and ateSix members of a Kansas-based cult have been convicted in a scheme to house children in overcrowded, rodent-infested facilities and force them to work up to 16 hours a day without pay while subjecting them to beatings and other abuse.The defendants were either high-ranking members of the organization formerly known as the United Nation of Islam and the Value Creators, or were wives of the late founder, Royall Jenkins, the US Department of Justice said on Monday in announcing the verdict. Continue reading...

Appeals court upholds former British socialite's conviction over helping Jeffrey Epstein sexually abuse teen girlsA federal appeals court on Tuesday upheld the sex trafficking conviction of the former British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, rejecting her appeal.Maxwell, 62, was arrested in 2020 and charged with involvement in her ex-boyfriend Jeffrey Epstein's sexual abuse of teenage girls. Continue reading...

Suspected gunman lurked for nearly 12 hours undetected in apparent second assassination attemptThe Secret Service did not search the perimeter of the golf course where a suspect lurked for nearly 12 hours in the apparent hope of killing Donald Trump, the agency has admitted.The revelation has increased the pressure on an organisation that was already under intense scrutiny over alleged security failures surrounding a similar attempt on the ex-president's life two months ago and has raised questions over whether it is adequately funded. Continue reading...

Republican governor Mike DeWine deploys highway patrol to Springfield school district after at least 33 bomb threats

University students believe event hosted by Proud Boys founder will encourage racism, homophobia, and sexism'

Harris points to Trump's anti-abortion policies in what was reported as a rare preventable' abortion-linked deathKamala Harris blamed Donald Trump's policies and condemned state abortion bans on Tuesday after it was reported that a woman in Georgia died after being denied timely medical care due to the state's restrictive abortion ban.Harris's comments came on the heels of an investigation published by ProPublica on Monday, recounting the circumstances surrounding the 2022 death of Amber Nicole Thurman, a medical assistant from Georgia. The outlet called the case the first preventable" abortion-related death to be confirmed, and said it would name a second in coming days. Continue reading...

Marvin Harrison Jr recovered from a bumpy start in his second NFL game, while missed field goals have become a rarityIt is always satisfying to see shaky NFL narratives proven false shortly after they bubble up, especially when it concerns a first-round draft pick. The knives were out for Arizona's rookie wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr fafter his one-catch debut against the Buffalo Bills in week one. Some assessments were unkind to say the least: shockingly slow and uncertain" was one of the more gentle ones on social media. But some grace for a difficult debut was due considering how a fierce Bills defense limited his impact. On Sunday, he put in a redo for the record books as he torched the LA Rams with two touchdowns and 130 yards in the opening quarter, more than his father gained in any quarter in his Hall of Fame career. The highlight was a 60-yard score in which Harrison's raw speed turned tight coverage into a yawning runway. Rams safety Kamren Curl is still asking for directions to the nearest end zone. Continue reading...

Unlike Donald Trump, most of us do not get to face the risk of violence with Secret Service protectionIt is not a good sign for US politics that an apparent second assassination attempt against the former president and current Republican nominee, Donald Trump, seems to be fading into the media's background noise as a relatively minor story. In part, this might be because of the particulars of the incident at Trump's Palm Beach golf club in Florida, not far from his resort home at Mar-a-Lago.For one thing, the suspect never fired a shot, though he was armed with an AK-47-style assault rifle with the serial number scratched off; having hidden in the bushes on the golf course for an estimated 12 hours, apparently waiting for Trump to appear, the would-be shooter was apprehended by Secret Service agents, who shot at him and missed. Continue reading...

Republican Bruce Zuchowski sparks alarm after writing remarks in anti-immigrant tirade on FacebookAn Ohio sheriff instructed residents to keep a list of homes displaying campaign signs in support of the Democratic presidential nominee, Kamala Harris, and her running mate, Tim Walz, in remarks on social media that caused alarm.Bruce D Zuchowski, the Republican sheriff of Portage county, posted the remarks on Friday to his personal and professional Facebook pages, warning that undocumented immigrants would arrive if Harris were elected over his party's nominee, Donald Trump. Continue reading...

Ryan Wesley Routh has been charged with two gun-related crimes. Plus, Jane's Addiction and rock'n'roll's biggest bust-ups

Former president praises Secret Service as cellphone records show alleged gunman camped out near golf course for about 12 hours

There has been surprisingly little fanfare about the book, which is published next month. Is the former first lady about to reveal all?There's something weird going on with Melania Trump. I know that's an evergreen statement - but bear with me, OK, because we've got a bit of a mystery on our hands. The former first lady, you see, has a memoir coming out on 8 October. There's nothing particularly surprising about this: every grifter who spent five minutes in the Trump White House seems to have written a tell-all book. It was inevitable she would put pen to paper at some point. After all, if there's a dollar to be squeezed from something - be that Mother's Day jewellery, Bibles, steaks or cryptocurrency - you can be sure to find a Trump with their hands out.What is surprising is how little fanfare there has been around this new book - which is simply titled Melania. Indeed, unless you keep a close eye on the Trumps, you may have missed news of the forthcoming memoir altogether. We're only a few weeks away from the release date and there hasn't been a big press tour. This seems bizarre. Presuming Melania wants to sell as many books as possible, you'd have thought she would have spent the last few months doing nonstop PR to drum up preorders. Then again, she may assume there is no need for marketing if the Republican National Committee does what it did with Donald Trump Jr's bestselling" book in 2019 and just bulk buys copies.Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...