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Killing of the conservative activist in Utah remains an active investigation', say authorities. Plus, how not to lose hope in the fight against ecological disasterGood morning.Law enforcement were still searching on Thursday for a suspect in the shooting of the conservative activist Charlie Kirk, hours after the close ally of Donald Trump was killed at a Utah university, triggering bipartisan condemnation.How did it unfold? Local officials said the shooting was believed to be a targeted attack" by a shooter from the roof of a building.What's happening in response? Warsaw said Nato allies had made concrete proposals to boost its air defenses, with the UK considering deploying Typhoon jets as part of an enhanced air policing mission to protect Nato's eastern flank.Why might Russia send drones into Poland? The Guardian's defense and security editor, Dan Sabbagh, dissects this question in his analysis, suggesting that a desire to create fear, assess Nato's air defenses and test the US's commitment to the alliance may all be factors.Head to our live blog for the latest updates. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Andrea Brower quits Gonzaga University after the Civil Rights Act is used to challenge her pro-Gaza activismWhen Andrea Brower was hired two years ago as the lead instructor for Gonzaga University's solidarity and social justice program, she thought she had landed a dream job. Brower was tasked with mentoring students in their social justice pursuits" at the private, liberal arts university in eastern Washington state. The school's Jesuit mission highlighted a commitment to diversity, global engagement and solidarity with the poor and vulnerable" - a perfect fit for Brower, who had come to academia by way of grassroots, environmental activism in her native Hawaii.Brower felt at first that her activist credentials were welcome, but when she started organizing around issues on campus - criticizing the treatment of adjuncts and rising administrator salaries and speaking out against the university's investments in fossil fuels - she began to run into opposition from university administrators. Continue reading...

Like an infectious disease, it efficiently finds more and more victims. It's not picky about who they areOnce unleashed, political violence comes for everyone.It doesn't know what side of the aisle you're on or what your ideology might be, who your allies are or what your vision for the future includes. It doesn't know what brand of media you consume or how many ardent followers you have.Margaret Sullivan is a Guardian US columnist writing on media, politics and culture Continue reading...

Only months ago, Mike Lee had posted disparaging tweets after Democrat Melissa Hortman and her husband were fatally shotThe official X account of Mike Lee, a Republican US senator, drew backlash after quickly condemning Wednesday's killing of influential conservative activist Charlie Kirk in Utah - less than three months from when the politician initially responded to the shootings of two Minnesota Democratic lawmakers by boosting misinformation about that case.A post from Lee, who joined the Senate in 2011, denounced Kirk's murder as a cowardly act of violence" while hailing the Turning Point USA executive director as an American patriot" and inspiration to countless young people". His post also solicited prayers for the 31-year-old Kirk's widow, Erika, and their children. Continue reading...

After rightwing activist was killed, nation already grappling with polarization faces shock bordering on despair

It's risky making calls after just one week. But there are a few worrying signs for prominent teams, players and coaches early in the seasonFun fact: the Giants returned 10 of their 11 offensive starters from last year, despite finishing 29th in EPA per play last season. The only change came at quarterback, with the Giants signing Russell Wilson, Jameis Winston, and trading up in the first round of the draft for Jaxson Dart. Continue reading...

The French coach on his partnership with Serena, why he parted ways with Naomi Osaka and how to break the Sinner-Alcaraz duopolyPatrick Mouratoglou was notably absent from this year's US Open. Since his breakout advising Marcos Baghdatis, who he guided to the Australian Open final in 2006, Mouratoglou has distinguished himself as a tennis guru - with pros and prospects making the pilgrimage to his academy on the French Riviera. But it was his partnership with Serena Williams, who won 10 of her 23 grand slam singles titles after pairing with the Frenchman, that helped cement Mouratoglou as a coaching great.In between touring clients at the moment, Mouratoglou caught up with me near the end of the US Open to talk about Naomi Osaka's resurgence, Williams's weight loss and what it will take to break Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner's duopoly in the men's game.Interview has been edited and condensed for clarity. Patrick Mouratoglou is working with Motorola's Behind the Icons campaign. Continue reading...

This blog is now closed, you can follow the latest developments in our new live blog hereA jump in greenhouse gas pollution in the US helped push global emissions higher in the first half of this year. This could be an omen of what's to come, with Donald Trump's pro-fossil fuel agenda set to significantly slow down the emissions cuts required to avoid disastrous climate impacts, a new forecast has found.The most abrupt shift in energy and climate policy in recent memory" that has occurred since Trump re-entered the White House will have profound consequences for the global climate crisis by slowing the pace of US emissions cuts by as much as half the rate achieved over the past two decades, the Rhodium Group forecast states. Continue reading...

E Jean Carroll won her case, but in Trumpland the only sex offences that matter are committed by paedophiles with links to DemocratsOn Monday, Donald Trump appeared in two, unrelated stories involving the sexual abuse of women. The first was a ruling by the US federal court of appeals, upholding an earlier judgment in which the president was found liable for $83.3m in damages for defaming the writer E Jean Carroll - a woman whom, it was ruled in civil court in 2023, had been sexually abused by Trump. On the same day, Trump's alleged contribution to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein's birthday book" was shared by Democrats on social media in the form of a lewd drawing the president denied having made. The E Jean Carroll news caused no public inconvenience for Trump; the Epstein story went up like a mushroom cloud in what has become the most politically dangerous episode of his presidency.What, exactly, is the difference then between the sexual abuse of E Jean Carroll, for which Trump has been found liable in a civil court, and the trafficking and abuse of victims by Epstein, in which there is no direct evidence of Trump's involvement? For that matter, why does Trump's record of gross references to grabbing women by the pussy" and calling them fat" and ugly" elicit barely a shrug from supporters, while his friendship with Epstein, a man referred to in the press, variously, as the billionaire paedophile", the paeodophile financier", and, surely coming down the pike at some point, the hell-based paedophile money manager", has triggered not only fury among the Maga faithful but accusations of a Trump cover-up?Emma Brockes is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

Optimists cling to a faith in the old alliance, but the best we can achieve is an amicable divorceIs the transatlantic rupture temporary or structural? Is Donald Trump the cause of the rift, or is the US president only a symptom of underlying trends? Optimists latch on to the hope that the stability we have lost can be restored post-Trump. Having spent the past few days in Washington, I doubt it.Even in recent history, things were not quite so bad for the transatlantic relationship. The current tensions make the first Trump administration look like a walk in the park for Europeans. It is one thing to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal, which Trump did in his first term. It is quite another to bomb Iran and give Israel the green light for its war against the regime.Nathalie Tocci is a Guardian Europe columnist Continue reading...

US lawmakers, in bipartisan rebuke, say violence has no place in America as Trump orders flags lowered

In an Oval Office address delivered before the person who killed the conservative activist Charlie Kirk has been identified, Donald Trump blamed the radical left' for the shooting and promised a crackdown. Trump recited a list of incidents of what he termed 'radical left political violence', including the attempt to kill him last year. The president's list did not include violence against Democrats, such as the murder of Melissa Hortman, a Minnesota state lawmaker, and her husband, and the shooting of another Democratic state lawmaker and his wife in June. The attack on the former House speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband; the Trump supporter who sent pipe bombs to leading Democrats; and the threats to the life of his first vice-president, Mike Pence, were also omitted

Rightwing commentator killed while speaking at Utah Valley University, as Trump blames radical left' while suspect remains at large

Rightwing activist Charlie Kirk died after being shot in the neck while speaking at Utah Valley University in Utah. Kirk was about 20 minutes into a presentation when a shot was fired, according to the university. Political leaders across the US condemned the attack

Labelling the conservative activist a Great American Patriot' Trump said the flags would remain at half mast until Sunday evening. Key US politics stories from 10 September 2025Donald Trump has ordered US flags to be flown at half mast to honour Charlie Kirk, the conservative activist who was shot dead at a university in Utah on Wednesday.In honor of Charlie Kirk, a truly Great American Patriot, I am ordering all American Flags throughout the United States lowered to Half Mast until Sunday evening at 6 P.M.," Trump posted on his Truth Social platform. Continue reading...

Author, activist and host co-founded Turning Point USA and used huge social media reach to push rightwing causes

Shooting of the commentator comes as a series of events show a rising level of violence related to political dissent

Emma Pitts and Eva Terry of Deseret News were covering event at which TPUSA executive director was speaking

In an exclusive interview, the New York City mayoral candidate spoke about his love for Arsenal, distaste for dynamic pricing, and what he'd do if he saw Donald Trump at the World Cup finalNew York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani has launched a public petition against Fifa's use of dynamic pricing for World Cup tickets, telling the Guardian that it amounts to an affront to the game."Mamdani's rise from little-known state assemblyman to heavily favored Democratic frontrunner for the mayoralty of the largest city in the United States has been one of the political stories of the year - not least because he identifies as a socialist, and has stumped for policies that most in his party either do not believe in, or are hesitant to support publicly. Continue reading...

Officials claim FBI director said he had been instructed by White House to fire any agent who worked on an investigation of Trump

The attempt to assassinate Hamas negotiators in the capital of a US ally was the act of a rogue government uninterested in peaceWhy does the PM insist on blowing up any deal that comes close?" despaired the mother of a hostage held in Gaza, following Israel's airstrike in Qatar on Tuesday. For anyone who doubted Benjamin Netanyahu's commitment to the forever war he unleashed after 7October, the attempt to wipe out Hamas's ceasefire negotiation team in Doha offered grim confirmation that peace - and the return of Israeli hostages - is low on Mr Netanyahu's list of current priorities.Just how close Hamas's leadership was to endorsing ceasefire proposals backed by Donald Trump - which were being discussed in the capital of an established US ally - is unclear. However, MrNetanyahu's strike has ensured that its negotiators will not agree to sit round a table again anytime soon. Israel swiftly stated that the attack was in response to the Hamas-claimed shooting in Jerusalem on Monday, in which six people died. But it also occurred as the Israeli military ordered the complete evacuation of Gaza City, ahead of a full-scale invasion that will bring further death and destruction to a starving, traumatised population. Continue reading...

Free speech group finds most students against their college hosting hypothetical speakers with controversial viewsA new survey of nearly 70,000 college students across the United States has found that a majority oppose allowing speakers with controversial viewpoints, whether liberal or conservative, to speak on their campuses.The findings come from the sixth annual College Free Speech Rankings, released on Tuesday by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (Fire), a free speech watchdog, in partnership with College Pulse. Continue reading...

Shipping containers tumble overboard off the Mississippi vessel in Port of Long Beach, one of the busiest ports in USDramatic footage has captured the moment that more than 60 containers toppled off a cargo ship on Tuesday morning in the Port of Long Beach, one of the busiest ports in the US.The shipping containers fell off a vessel named the Mississippi shortly before 9am at the port, located about 20 miles (32km) south of Los Angeles. Video on social media showed a huge stack of containers tumbling overboard and into the waters below. Continue reading...

More than 60 containers have toppled off a cargo ship in the Port of Long Beach, tumbling overboard and floating in the water. The shipping containers fell off a vessel named the Mississippi shortly before 9am. No injuries have been reported, according to Art Marroquin, a spokesperson for the Port of Long Beach. About 67 containers were in the water, the US Coast Guard said on X Continue reading...

Charles Breyer, who ruled that president broke law by sending troops to LA, declines to make immediate rulingA federal judge who ruled last week that the Trump administration broke federal law by sending national guard troops to the Los Angeles area said on Tuesday he will not immediately consider a request to bar the use of 300 guard troops.In a court order, senior district judge Charles Breyer in San Francisco said he was not sure he had the authority to consider California's motion for a preliminary injunction blocking the administration's further deployment of state national guard troops. That is because the case is on appeal before the ninth US circuit court of appeals, the judge said. Continue reading...

After a 2-0 loss to South Korea and a win by the same scoreline against Japan, our experts consider the state of the program overallYes, any time a World Cup host country and a generation of prodigies lose a handful of consecutive games with their A-team, or what passes for one, alarm bells should be ringing. That's not to say all is lost. While Mauricio Pochettino's optimism rankled after a 2-0 loss to a South Korea side that had a disconcertingly easy time of it, there was much more to feel good about in the 2-0 win over Japan. Still, it was one game. Japan rested a lot of regulars. (Then again, the US were hardly at full strength.) LS Continue reading...

Donna Hughes-Brown, who has lived in US since 1977 and wrote cheque a decade ago, being held in isolation by IceAn Irish grandmother who has lived in the US for most of her life and holds a green card is facing deportation because she wrote a bad cheque for $25 in 2015.Donna Hughes-Brown, 58, was detained in July after landing in Chicago on a flight from Dublin and is being held in isolation in a detention centre in Kentucky. She has lived in the US since 1977, has five children and grandchildren, and ran a horse farm in Troy, Missouri. Continue reading...

Survey puts Democratic nominee at 43% and independent Andrew Cuomo at 28%, in line with recent pollingZohran Mamdani continues to hold a commanding lead in the race for New York City mayor, with a new poll released on Wednesday showing the Democratic nominee 15 points ahead of former governor Andrew Cuomo, who is running as an independent candidate.The new poll, conducted by Emerson College Polling/PIX11/The Hill, shows Mamdani with 43% support among New York City registered voters, compared with 28% for Cuomo, who is running as an independent after losing the Democratic primary to Mamdani in June. Continue reading...

DC being under attack is a problem for American democracy,' says leader of group fighting for city's rightsWhen a protest against Donald Trump'smilitarized crackdown in Washington DC reached the White House last Saturday after a mile-and-a-half march, the thousands-strong crowd shouted a simple, two-word chant: Free DC."It's a slogan with a long history in the federal district that has again become prominent after an activist group formed this year specifically to respond to the president's threats of meddling took it as their name. Arguing that the struggle for the city's rights is part of the larger fight for the country's democracy, Free DC has galvanized thousands of district residents against the president's attempts to interfere in Washington DC - a cause that came into focus last month when the president took over the police department and sent the national guard and federal agents on to city streets. Continue reading...

In 107 Days, the former vice-president breaks on certain points from her typically loyal public stance

We'd like to hear from US job seekers how their search for a new position has been going, as well as from employees who decided to stay put, and whyThe US added 911,000 fewer jobs than first estimated for the year through March 2025, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has announced, highlighting recent concerns about the health of America's labor market.The revision comes after a lackluster August jobs report, with only 22,000 jobs added in the US. Continue reading...

Protesters shouted Trump is the Hitler of our time!' as he dined near White House to promote crime crackdown

Texas A&M also removes two senior administrators from roles after student's video sparked Republican pressureA children's literature professor at Texas A&M was fired on Tuesday after a video showing a student objecting to course material about gender identity and sexuality went viral.Both the dean of the school's college of arts and science and the head of department were also removed from their roles, the university president, Mark Welsh III, said in a statement. Continue reading...

44,000 immigrants, 1,700 flights, 100 days: a Guardian investigation of leaked flight data and government detention data reveals the inhumane journey of immigrants shuttled around and outside the USThe Trump administration is shuttling immigrants around the US in irregular and unprecedented ways, according to the findings of a Guardian investigation, effectively vanishing people into a purgatory" that denies them constitutionally-protected rights.A review of leaked flight records and passenger manifests from Global Crossing Airlines (GlobalX), the charter company that operates the majority of deportation flights for US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice), has provided a rare look at the winding journeys of more than 44,000 immigrants detained or deported by the Trump administration. Continue reading...

Kent Broussard joined Louisiana State University's famed Golden Band from Tigerland after retiring as an accountantSome dreams live on in time forever, says the summer Olympics anthem considered by many to be the greatest - and living proof of that is a retired accountant who recently enrolled as a freshman at Louisiana State University in his mid-60s to fulfill his lifelong ambition of playing for the school's famed marching band.Kent Broussard drew nationwide media attention after being shown on ESPN's broadcast of the LSU football team's victory at home against in-state rival Louisiana Tech on 6 September. Continue reading...

The deployment of troops has led to arrests for low-level crime, indiscriminate detention and a rise in racial profilingIn the 30 days since Donald Trump took control of Washington DC's police department and deployed national guard troops, the city has seen the indiscriminate detention of immigrants, the rise of racial profiling and the arrests of large numbers of people for low-level crimes.The US president claimed the takeover, which began on 11 August, was necessary because of violent crime in the country's capital, especially after the attempted carjacking and assault of a former Doge staffer. Our capital city has been overtaken by violent gangs and bloodthirsty criminals, roving mobs of wild youth, drugged-out maniacs and homeless people," he said during a news conference at the White House at the time. Continue reading...

PM says operation followed repeated violations of Polish airspace'. Plus, New Mexico to be first state to offer free universal childcareGood morning.Polish and Nato air defenses shot down several drones that entered its airspace on Wednesday morning, as Russia's attack on Ukraine spread to Nato territory in the most significant way since the war began.Is this a first? A stray Ukrainian missile struck a southern Polish village in 2022, killing two people, but there have previously been no reports of Polish or other Nato defence forces destroying drones.Could it be an accident? The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, does not think so owing to the number of drones that entered Polish airspace. In his view Moscow is always testing the limits of the possible, and if it does not meet a strong reaction, moves to a new level of escalation".Stay up to date with our live blog.How significant is this? A Georgia-based immigration attorney based said it was outrageous" and emphasised that it was illegal to detain a valid visa-holder in this way.Are there others? Attorneys working on the case had already claimed that immigrants with a valid working status were swept up alongside the people allegedly working unlawfully, and placed in removal proceedings. That view was backed up by an agency official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive government matters. Continue reading...

Ben Bergquam was with Ice agents during a raid on Sunday and yelled at protesters that they were the enemy within'A rightwing influencer accompanied officials from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) in Chicago on Sunday as the agency ramps up arrests in the city. Ice agents arrested four people on the city's south-west side.Ben Bergquam, the rightwing internet personality, was with agents, filming and making content as well as getting into altercations with local residents along the way, according to a video the Guardian viewed on X. In the video, he appears to be in the car with Ice agents and nearby as they arrest people; later on he yells at a group of Chicagoans who are gathered to prevent Ice operations that they are the enemy within". Continue reading...

Research comparing chronic illness in vaccinated and non-vaccinated kids had never been peer-reviewed, nor is any of its data availableA congressional hearing on Tuesday titled How the Corruption of Science Has Impacted Public Perception and Policies Regarding Vaccines" largely consisted of a debate over an unpublished study comparing chronic illnesses in children who received vaccines with those who didn't.The study was lead-authored by Marcus Zervos of Henry Ford Health, completed in 2020, and never submitted for publication, according to testimony during the hearing. Senator Ron Johnson, the chair of the subcommittee for the hearing, and the witness Aaron Siri, a lawyer who has represented RFK Jr and the anti-vaccination non-profit Informed Consent Action Network, both claimed the study was not submitted because the authors would lose their jobs were it to be published. Continue reading...

Exclusive: critics accuse Ice of outrageous' and unlawful' detention of Korean manAt least one of the Korean workers swept up in a massive immigration raid on a Hyundai Motor factory site in Georgia last week was living and working legally in the US, according to an internal federal government document obtained by the Guardian.Officials then mandated" that he agree to be removed from the US despite not having violated his visa. Continue reading...

Mamdani, who was born in Uganda, has faced backlash in the US over his identity - but in Kampala, Ugandans of Indian descent are unquestioningly considered AfricanAmid the trees clustered with jackfruit and the boda boda motorcycles weaving precariously around Kampala's congested roads earlier this year was a campaign poster for Katongole Singh, an immaculately coiffed candidate who positively beamed alongside the president, Yoweri Museveni.With a Sikh Indian surname and an indigenous Ugandan first name, Singh is no rarity in the Ugandan capital, where people of Indian descent have lived for more than 125 years. Many people here boast a multi-hyphenated African Indian" identity - as indeed does the Zohran Kwame Mamdani, the 33-year-old running for mayor of New York City. Continue reading...

Protesters heckled the US president with pro-Palestinian slogans after he arrived at a restaurant in Washington DC. They chanted 'Free Palestine. Trump is the Hitler of our time' before they were escorted out of the restaurant Continue reading...

Agency governor is legally challenging Trump after he sought to remove her, citing unconfirmed mortgage fraud allegationsA federal judge has ruled that Federal Reserve board member Lisa Cook can stay in her post while suing Donald Trump over his unprecedented bid to fire her.Cook is legally challenging the US president after he sought to remove her, citing unconfirmed allegations of mortgage fraud, amid an extraordinary campaign by his administration to strengthen its control over the US central bank. Continue reading...

White House press secretary denies that president wrote Epstein a card that included the outline of a woman's body for the sex trafficker's 50th birthday. This blog is now closed.

Mauricio Pochettino made big changes to the US setup, and the moves paid off with the team's most complete performance in a long whileThis United States' international window once looked like it could be disastrous. Now, it has been upgraded to strangely uneven.A much-improved US got goals from Alejandro Zendejas and Folarin Balogun to beat a heavily rotated Japan side 2-0 at Lower.com Field in Columbus. The result lends some credence to Mauricio Pochettino's insistence that the US's recent subpar results were all part of a plan with a single target: arriving at the World Cup in peak form. Continue reading...

Trump, who was friends with Epstein before becoming president but had a falling out with the former financier, has denied giving him a letter. Key US politics stories from 9 September 2025The White House has said it would support a forensic analysis of the signature on a letter purportedly given by Donald Trump to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein that Trump's aides say is not the president's.Trump, who was friends with Epstein before becoming president but had a falling out with the former financier years before his death, has denied giving him a letter that appears in a birthday book for Epstein with the sketch of a woman's body and a note about secrets. Continue reading...

Charge for Decarlos B Jr, accused of killing Iryna Zarutska in apparent random attack on train, could carry death penaltyThe justice department on Tuesday charged a man accused of fatally stabbing a Ukrainian refugee on a North Carolina commuter train last month with a federal crime that could carry the death penalty.The federal charge comes amid growing questions about why Decarlos Brown Jr was on the street despite 14 prior criminal arrests before he was accused of pulling out a knife and killing 23-year-old Iryna Zarutska in an apparently random attack captured on video. Continue reading...

Move is expansion of existing program that has helped lift tens of thousands of people out of povertyNew Mexico will become the first state to offer free universal childcare, the governor Michelle Lujan Grisham announced this week, an expansion of an existing program that has helped lift tens of thousands of people out of poverty.Beginning 1 November, the state will guarantee no-cost childcare to all residents, regardless of their income level in what the governor's office described as a groundbreaking new initiative". Continue reading...