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As brick-and-mortar retail stores compete with e-commerce, chains are spending heavily to immerse customers in bespoke fragrancesWhen Dallas Pratt worked at an outpost of Aesop in an outdoor shopping mall outside Chicago, one of her and her co-workers' favorite ways of drawing in new customers was making a concoction they called sidewalk tea". They would put a few drops of scented lotion in a cup of hot water, and then they would pour it onto the slab of concrete outside the shop. As the water evaporated, the smell of the lotion would fill the air.It drew people in," Pratt tells me. They asked questions. They spent time." And, crucially, they bought stuff. Continue reading...

The US paused shipment of 3,500 bombs over fears they would fuel killing in Rafah, it has emerged. Plus, Ukraine says it foiled Zelenskiy assassination plot

The closer Nato hugs Ukraine, the more Putin is sure to brandish his nuclear arms, and the greater the risk he uses themFrustrated by the precarious state of Ukraine's war effort and the long delays in US aid, leaders in France and Britain have stepped up their promises to Ukraine in the last few days. The French president, Emmanuel Macron, repeated in an interview last week that he might send ground forces to shore up beleaguered Ukrainian defenses. Meanwhile, speaking in Kyiv, the British foreign minister, David Cameron, gave Ukraine the green light to strike into Russian territory, clearly signaling that the UK wants a more aggressive approach to the war.Their frustration is understandable, as is the temptation to get more directly involved in the war, with more powerful weapons and more guarantees of long-term backing for Ukraine. Perhaps with enough time and a lot more effort, and if Washington can maintain its focus amid all the crises bearing down on it, Ukraine could eventually regain its footing on the battlefield. It might then be able to start taking back some of the territory it has lost to Russia - perhaps in 2025, or maybe the year after that.Christopher S Chivvis is a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace where he directs the program on American Statecraft. He served as the US national intelligence officer for Europe from 2018-2021 Continue reading...

The veepstakes' see prominent Republicans discarding any last shreds of integrity to impress Trump. It's a grim omenKristen Welker, the moderator of NBC's Meet the Press, did her best to pin down Tim Scott last Sunday.Would the junior senator from South Carolina state that he will accept the results of the 2024 presidential election no matter who wins? Pretty basic stuff, you'd think, but apparently not.Margaret Sullivan is a Guardian US columnist Continue reading...

Freddie O'Connell is leading his progressive city in a heavily Republican state with equanimity and a spirit of cooperationTennessee's legislative session concluded in late April with some laws that alarm liberals, such as a bill to arm teachers and school staff. But the relatively progressive city of Nashville emerged largely unscathed by the GOP-dominated legislature.In fact, Nashville's legislative fortunes improved markedly this term, with approval for a massive redevelopment project, created at the behest of the mayor, Freddie O'Connell, to accompany the construction of a new stadium for the Tennessee Titans across the river from the city's tourist-friendly downtown. Continue reading...

Red' Harris and Jovanna Gardne allegedly involved in murder of person cooperating in inquiry into over 100 staged truck accidentsTwo clients of a television stuntwoman-turned-attorney helped orchestrate the shooting death of another of the lawyer's clients who was cooperating with a federal investigation into their purported roles in an insurance fraud scheme involving more than 100 staged truck accidents, prosecutors allege in a newly obtained indictment.Ryan Red" Harris, 35, and Jovanna Gardne, 39, face charges of witness tampering through murder in the 2020 slaying of Cornelius Garrison in New Orleans, according to federal court filings unsealed Monday but arbitrarily withheld from public release by officials until Tuesday. Continue reading...

The center was a dominant defensive force at his peak but mental and physical problems took their toll while he was still in his prime playing yearsIt was Christmas Eve 2014 when Larry Sanders, the budding star center for the Milwaukee Bucks, knew it was over. The night before, his team had lost by seven points at home to a middling Charlotte Hornets squad and the Bucks' new coach, Jason Kidd, was angry. Milwaukee, who were hovering around .500, were slated to have the holiday off to spend with family but Kidd changed those plans and decided his roster should practice - as punishment. The players had to cancel flights and alert their family of the change - something, of course, they did not want to do. During the Christmas Eve practice, Sanders went full-on. He didn't lollygag but, peeved, he also didn't back away from engaging his coach in confrontation. Afterwards, while he was the last one left in the locker room, his body started to break down.I was cramping from my ears to my toes," Sanders tells the Guardian. Full body cramps." Continue reading...

The English-born left back is the latest MLS academy graduate to draw interest from Europe's elite clubsDown the years, it has been common for US Soccer to track young English talent who also hold American passports. From Fulham's Antonee Robinson to Milan's Yunus Musah, the US has benefited from players gaining an education across the Atlantic. But New York City's Christian McFarlane looks set to do the reverse, a sign of the growing influence of MLS academies.The left-back was born in England but moved to New York at three years old. Over the past 18 months, McFarlane has represented the USMNT and England at youth level, keeping his options open before committing to any one country. The 17-year-old also has the option of playing for Jamaica, but why complicate matters more? Continue reading...

Ending an unsafe relationship does not always end abuse. In my experience, it has only escalated the efforts to control and destroy meI left an abusive relationship almost a decade ago, but my abuser has kept a noose around my neck every day since.At the time we had four young children, including a 12-month-old baby. Continue reading...

The adult film star testifies in a hush-money trial that could land the ex-president and Republican frontrunner behind barsAt 10.30am Tuesday in a New York City courtroom, five words changed the course of American history: The people call Stormy Daniels."Daniels, now a household name, is an adult film actor at the center of a hush-money criminal trial that could land Donald Trump, the former president and present Republican presidential frontrunner, behind bars. Continue reading...

John Hostettler of Indiana, whom pro-Israel groups deemed antisemitic', loses to Mark Messmer, who led opponents with 40% of voteRepublican John Hostettler has lost his House primary in Indiana, delivering a victory to pro-Israel groups who sought to block the former congressman from returning to Washington. The groups attacked Hostettler as insufficiently supportive of Israel at a time when criticism of Benjamin Netanyahu's government has hit new highs because of the war in Gaza.When the Associated Press called the eighth district primary race at 7.49pm ET, less than an hour after the last polls closed in Indiana, Mark Messmer led his opponents with 40% of the vote. Messmer, the Indiana state senate majority leader, will advance to the general election in November, which he is heavily favored to win because of the district's Republican leanings. The victor will replace Republican congressman Larry Bucshon, who announced his retirement earlier this year. Continue reading...

Officials made announcement Tuesday, as demolition crews prepared to use explosives in continued cleanup effortThe body of the last missing construction worker killed in the collapse of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge in March has been recovered, officials announced Tuesday, as demolition crews prepared to use explosives in the ongoing cleanup effort.Officials said the crew of the Dali will remain on board the grounded container ship while crews conduct a controlled demolition to break down the largest remaining span of the fallen bridge. Continue reading...

The adult film actor Stormy Daniels offered the most lurid, explosive testimony so far in the trial against the former president

The $130,000 hush-money payment to Daniels is at the center of the trial. Trump complained that he should've been given more notice about Tuesday's witness, Associated Press reports

Charged Lemonade drinks, which can contain 302mg of caffeine, are being eliminated after multiple lawsuitsPanera Bread will pull its infamous Charged Lemonade drinks after the highly caffeinated beverages were connected to at least two deaths and prompted lawsuits.The Charged Lemonades, which contain upwards of 178mg of caffeine for the regular size and 302mg for the large, are being eliminated by the restaurant chain amid a recent menu transformation", a Panera spokesperson told NBC News. Continue reading...

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Stormy Daniels undercuts some of Trump's defenses as his lawyer suggests Daniels has a propensity to embellishStormy Daniels, whose alleged sexual affair with Donald Trump prompted a hush-money scheme at the heart of the criminal case brought by the Manhattan district attorney, described in excruciating detail on Tuesday her encounters with the former US president.The testimony from Daniels appeared to be embarrassing for Trump, who shook his head at times, and was notably freewheeling - to the extent that the presiding judge sustained multiple objections, even as he denied a mistrial motion on the basis that key parts of her account were prejudicial. Continue reading...

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Organization will become Scouting America after decades of turmoil and flagging membership numbersThe Boy Scouts of America is changing its name for the first time in its 114-year history and will become Scouting America. It's a significant shift as the organization emerges from bankruptcy following a flood of sexual abuse claims and seeks to focus on inclusion.The organization steeped in tradition has made seismic changes after decades of turmoil, from finally allowing gay youth to welcoming girls throughout its ranks. With an eye on increasing flagging membership numbers, the Irving, Texas-based organization announced the name change Tuesday at its annual meeting in Florida. Continue reading...

It's a moment of truth for Biden's policy on Israel and the Palestinians - and at the least will make continued prevarication harder to disguiseWhen Israeli troops paraded through the Rafah crossing with an oversized star of David on Tuesday morning, they were making a point to Hamas - and at the same time driving up to the very edge of Joe Biden's red line".The Biden administration avoids that phrase at all costs. Its top officials also served Barack Obama, who drew a red line he did not enforce over Syria's chemical weapons. But there is no hiding from the fact that they have clearly and repeatedly stated US opposition to a Rafah offensive, absent proper humanitarian provision for the more than 1 million people sheltering there. Continue reading...

In a blow to reproductive rights advocates and Democrats, judge rules procedures were not followed for constitutional amendmentA New York judge on Tuesday blocked a politically important abortion rights amendment from appearing before voters on the November ballot, dealing Democrats a setback as the party moved to focus battleground races in the state around abortion access.State supreme court justice Daniel J Doyle found that state lawmakers failed to follow procedural rules around passing constitutional amendments, incorrectly approving the amendment before getting a written opinion on the language from the attorney general. Continue reading...

Trump's disgraced former attorney somehow frittered away almost $120,000 in January. As a cash-strapped millennial, I'm delighted to share some money-saving tipsBankruptcy" is a surprisingly amorphous term. For poor people, it means not having any money. For corporations and the super-wealthy it means a nifty legal strategy that can shield their riches from lawsuits. And for Rudy Giuliani, the disgraced former mayor of New York City and personal attorney of Donald Trump, it means being forced to try to subsist on a measly $43,000 (34,200) a month.Half a million dollars in spending money a year might seem a princely sum to the common man, but Sir" Rudy (recipient of an honorary knighthood) is anything but. We're talking about a gentleman with elevated tastes here: a bon vivant who, during a legal battle with his estranged third wife, was accused of spending $7,000 on fountain pens and $12,000 on cigars over a five-month period. In that same timeframe, his ex-wife's lawyer claimed he spent $286,000 on his alleged lover, $165,000 on personal travel and $447,938 for his own enjoyment". That's a lot of enjoyment. Continue reading...

When asked what advice an eminent surgeon might give other doctors, I brace myself for another mountain I can't climbWhat's a Festschrift?" my youngest asks.In German it means celebration writing'," I say, I'm going to an academic conference to honour a doctor." Continue reading...

At least 16,000 without power after 17 tornadoes struck plains region on Monday with 40 homes damaged in Sooner stateMore than 10 million people in parts of Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky have been warned that they face severe thunderstorms on Tuesday, including some strong tornadoes, as the southern plains continue to be battered by extreme weather.As many as 17 tornadoes struck the plains region on Monday night, leaving at least 16,000 homes and businesses without power and bringing destruction to small towns across the area. Continue reading...

The Israeli PM has rejected the latest deal. Both he and Hamas's leadership must stop playing politics with people's livesThe latest twists and turns in negotiations to end the war in Gaza appear labyrinthine and confusing. But it's really not that complicated. Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's prime minister, must compromise on the outstanding details of the proposed ceasefire deal and Hamas's weekend counter-offer - and immediately halt Israel's criminal bombing of Gaza and reckless military incursions into refugee-populated areas around Rafah.For its part, Hamas must honour previous understandings about the staged release of Israeli hostages and cease its crude, last-minute haggling, especially about exactly how many Palestinian detainees, and which ones, are freed in return. Its priority should be alleviating the plight of Gaza's civilians, not scoring points. Its demands that Israel agree a permanent" end to the war at this stage were always unrealistic.Simon Tisdall is the Observer's foreign affairs commentatorDo 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...

Roll up for a buffet of baffling outfits, celebs scared stiff of Anna Wintour and an utter refusal to acknowledge the outside worldTuesday is officially the morning after the Met Gala of the night before, when we civilians get to press our noses up against the glass of our phone screens and pass unsparing judgment on dresses whose trains alone cost more than HS2.If you haven't sat in mismatched pyjamas huffing toast while remarking what an unacceptable misstep Lana Del Rey's mosquito net was, and how Chanel seems to be going tits up, then you have simply failed to capitalise on the digital banquet spread out for you. These are dark times, and nothing but ... gratitude, I think? ... should be shown for film director Taika Waititi's decision to come dressed as a brown pleather three-piece suite, while his wife, Rita Ora, presented as the ribbon curtain tacked over their back door to keep the flies off it.Marina Hyde is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

Ronnie Wiggs strangled his wife as she was in a hospital for a procedure related to her ongoing kidney dialysis treatmentA 75-year-old Missouri man strangled his wife to death in a hospital bed while claiming that he could no longer afford to pay for her ongoing kidney dialysis treatment, according to authorities.Ronnie Wiggs has been jailed on a count of second-degree murder in connection with a femicide that starkly demonstrates how US women in general face disproportionately high levels of violence at the hands of intimate partners and family caregivers. Continue reading...

Kathy Hochul made comment at California conference to showcase upstate AI center before apologizing on Monday nightThe governor of New York, Kathy Hochul, has rapidly backtracked on remarks she made on Monday after she came under a blizzard of criticism for saying that Black children in the Bronx did not know the word computer".Hochul had intended her appearance at the Milken Institute Global Conference in California on Monday to showcase Empire AI, the $400m consortium she is leading to create an artificial intelligence computing center in upstate New York. Instead, she dug herself into a hole with an utterance she quickly regretted. Continue reading...

US labor department announced that Fayette Janitorial Service agreed to $650,000 fine and mandate to no longer employ minorsA Tennessee-based sanitation company has agreed to pay more than half a million dollars after a federal investigation found it illegally hired at least two dozen children to clean dangerous meat processing facilities in Iowa and Virginia.The US labor department announced on Monday that Fayette Janitorial Service LLC entered into a consent judgment, in which the company agrees to nearly $650,000 in civil penalties and the court-ordered mandate that it no longer employ minors. The February filing indicated federal investigators believed at least four children had still been working at one Iowa slaughterhouse as of 12 December. Continue reading...

FAA examining whether employees may have falsified records after firm said it might not have properly carried out checks

Israel takes control of only gateway for aid between Egypt and Gaza. Plus, Trump threatened with jail over gag order breaches

Prosecutors, witnesses, jurors - all are in the ex-president's sights and it could lead to violence, former federal prosecutors and judges sayDonald Trump's verbal assaults on judges, prosecutors, witnesses, jurors and the broader US justice system, are undermining the rule of law and American democracy while fueling threats and potential violence against individuals involved with the legal cases against him and egging on his extremist allies, former federal prosecutors and judges say.In his campaign to win the presidency again, and in the midst of various criminal and civil trials, Trump has launched multiple attacks on the American legal system on his Truth Social platform to counter the 88 federal and state criminal charges he faces. Continue reading...

Inmates cook together, eat together - and sometimes even forage together. It puts Britain's rat-infested facilities to shameI spent three weeks visiting prisons across Scandinavia to find out how they feed their prisoners. You may ask why any of us should be concerned with what people in prison eat. But research suggests that good nutrition not only improves wellbeing, security and safety in prisons, it may have an effect on rehabilitation and keep people from returning to prison.So does a region with one of the lowest reoffending rates in the world - only about 30% of Nordic prisoners end up back inside within two years - and a humane approach to incarceration treat prison food differently from countries with higher recidivism and a more punitive culture? As the founder of a charity dedicated to improving prison food in the UK, I wanted to find out.Lucy Vincent is the founder and chief executive of Food Behind Bars Continue reading...

As a patient, it's frustrating to know a solution may be just around the corner but that you probably won't be there in time to benefitI'm kneeling on the hard, cold tiles of my bathroom floor retching into the toilet bowl, and I've been here for some time. The colour has drained from my skin and I'm clammy and delirious from a pain so intense, it is simply indescribable. Something is squeezing me from the inside so ferociously that I can barely catch my breath. All I can do is retch, unproductively, and writhe. This must be what labour feels like," I think, in a surreal, out-of-body way.Ten years on, and one difficult childbirth later, I can confirm with some authority that this unrelenting, all-consuming pain was so much worse than giving birth. The bathroom floor episode was my first major inkling that something wasn't right in my body. It was so frightening that I couldn't dismiss it (even if A&E staff told me there was nothing wrong when I dragged myself there, and a GP explained it away as probably just a stomach bug). In reality, I had always been in pain to some degree. I had always bled through my PE shorts at school, swelled two dress sizes during my period - didn't everyone? But even when my symptoms were at their worst, no one mentioned endometriosis. Continue reading...

Dashcam footage captured the moment a tornado tore through a building in Lincoln, Nebraska, in late April. The state was hit by more than a dozen tornadoes that destroyed hundreds of homes and businesses, according to the National Weather Service. The building in the video, which belonged to Garner Industries, was bit by a tornado with wind speeds of 158mph Continue reading...

What the two laws have in common is desire to silence Israel-Gaza war criticsThe White House rightly said it was concerning" when Israel's parliament laid the groundwork to shut down Al Jazeera within its borders in April. On Sunday, Israel made its move. The Foreign Press Association called it a dark day for democracy".If the White House remains concerned, it has a strange way of showing it. Joe Biden and his administration have supported and encouraged recent censorial laws and court cases that virtually ensure that dark days" are ahead at home as well.Seth Stern is the director of advocacy at the Freedom of the Press Foundation and a first amendment lawyer Continue reading...

Early season disappointments put the Argentinian coach on the hot seat, but a resurgent Lionel Messi has shown the value of experienceRiding a six-game unbeaten streak in MLS, leading the race for the Supporters' Shield and with their star players featuring at the top of the goals and assists charts, all is well in the world of Inter Miami.Yet little over a month ago, head coach Gerardo Tata' Martino was on the hot seat. A humiliating 4-0 defeat to New York Red Bulls in late March was followed by elimination from the Concacaf Champions Cup at the hands of Mexican side Monterrey in early April. Continue reading...

Police officers arrested multiple pro-Palestinian demonstrators who were attempting to disrupt the Met Gala in New York City.Law enforcement clashed with protesters who came within a block of disrupting the event, which is held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Celebrities often wear extravagant outfits to the invitation-only gala.

Stars and celebrities from the worlds of film, fashion, music, sport and politics acended the steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art for the 2024 Met Gala. Zendaya and Cardi B were the talk of the event, which took JG Ballard's 1962 short story, The Garden of Time, as its theme

The Israeli army launched targeted airstrikes against Hamas targets in eastern Rafah. The attacks came as Hamas announced its acceptance of an Egyptian-Qatari cease-fire proposal, but Israel said the deal did not meet its 'core demands' and that it was pushing ahead with an assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah. Israel said it would continue negotiations.

Dramatic conjunction of forces with aim to crash gala separated only by New York police and metal barricadesDozens of pro-Palestinian protesters came within a block of disrupting celebrity fashion's biggest night out - the Met Gala - on Monday evening in a dramatic conjunction of forces that was separated only by New York police and metal barricades.Some protesters, chanting Rafah!, Gaza!", said it was their intention to crash the gala. Others said they didn't know about it. At times, a roughly equal number of police were guiding the winding protest through New York's Upper East Side as they were preventing fashion fans from getting a glimpse of their favorite celebrities. Continue reading...

Students link arms around tents on campus and block local thoroughfare as they call for end to killings in GazaPro-Palestinian protesters who had been blocked by police from accessing an encampment at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on Monday broke through fencing, linked arms and encircled tents that remained there, as Columbia University canceled its university-wide commencement ceremony following weeks of pro-Palestinian protests.Sam Ihns, a graduate student at MIT studying mechanical engineering and a member of MIT Jews for a Ceasefire, said the group had been at the encampment for the past two weeks and that they were calling for an end to the killing of thousands of people in Gaza. Continue reading...

University and police denounced as masked group marched on campus and attacked pro-Palestinian demonstrators last weekThe University of California, Los Angeles, said that it would create a new office dedicated to campus safety following mounting criticism of authorities' slow response to a brutal attack on pro-Palestinian protesters by a mob of instigators".The school's chancellor, Gene Block, said on Sunday that urgent changes were needed to better protect our community moving forward" and announced that a new office of campus safety would oversee the university police department and the UCLA office of emergency management, effective immediately". Continue reading...

Officials say Staff Sgt Gordon Black, 34, was stationed in South Korea and was in the process of returning home to TexasAn American soldier has been arrested in Russia and accused of stealing, according to two US officials.US officials said the soldier, Staff Sgt Gordon Black, 34, was stationed in South Korea and was in the process of returning home to Fort Cavazos in Texas. Instead, officials said, he traveled to Russia. Continue reading...

Prosecutors pressed witnesses on the alleged falsification of business records to cover up the payments to Stormy DanielsDonald Trump's criminal trial in New York entered a new phase on Monday, as prosecutors moved on to the alleged falsification of business records to cover up the hush-money payments to Stormy Daniels, after previously calling witnesses who described the conspiracy to kill the story.The prosecutors in the Manhattan district attorney's started with the former Trump Organization controller Jeffrey McConney, the number two in the accounts department, who processed the former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen's invoices seeking reimbursement for the hush money. Continue reading...