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President plots expansion of crime crackdown as Pentagon chief says troops patrolling DC streets will be armedDonald Trump has threatened to take his federal crackdown on crime and city cleanliness to New York and Chicago, as the defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, ordered that national guard troops patrolling the streets of Washington DC under federal control will now be armed.The US president talked to reporters in the Oval Office and said: When ready, we will start in Chicago ... Chicago is a mess." He added that then the administration will help with New York", amid the controversial and aggressive federal efforts to control leading Democratic-voting cities, each of which has a Black mayor. Continue reading...

Russian airstrikes across Ukraine, mourning in Gaza, wildfires across Europe and a church move in Sweden: the past seven days as captured by the world's leading photojournalists

From Compton outsider to American nonpareil, she came to embody resistance to toxic norms. But her embrace of GLP-1 drugs feels like capitulation to ideals she once rejectedWhen Serena Williams was featured in a People magazine story on Thursday morning discussing her 31lb weight loss, the rollout had all the hallmarks of an advertisement draped in the thin veil of an all-caps EXCLUSIVE.Vogue's social channels amplified their own access, NBC's Today show gave her a one-on-one segment and Elle published a carefully packaged interview in which Williams declared she wanted to break the stigma around weight-loss drugs, each of them in lockstep with what appeared to be a hard 9am press embargo. This vintage Jill Smoller quadrafecta was not a spontaneous confessional; it was a coordinated media blitz pegged to the US Open, the tentpole event of American tennis, which kicks off on Sunday in earnest. Continue reading...

Group of NGOs claim deal was unconstitutional and violated the imprisoned men's human rightsA group of NGOs is challenging Eswatini's acceptance of five people deported by the US, arguing the deal was unconstitutional and violated the imprisoned men's human rights.The men from Vietnam, Jamaica, Laos, Yemen and Cuba, who the US said were dangerous criminals, were flown to the small southern African country in July, as the Trump administration attempts to deport millions of migrants and asylum seekers. Continue reading...

People with temporary protected status face possible deportation even though their home countries - including Afghanistan and Haiti - remain unsafeMany thousands of immigrants living in the US who came from certain countries regarded as risky or dangerous are at the mercy of US judges and the Trump administration's agenda to slash their work authorization and protection from deportation.Since taking office, the Trump administration has announced the termination of temporary protected status (TPS) for citizens of seven of the 15 countries previously designated for shelter under this legal umbrella - with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) controversially citing improved conditions in some of those places. Continue reading...

A group of news execs stepped in to buy them, but across the US, 3,200 local news outlets have shuttered since 2005Wyoming saw a resurrection last week.Eight small towns across the vast rural state were reeling from the gut punch of the abrupt closures of their newspapers just a week earlier. Staff had woken up to an email from News Media Corporation (NMC) announcing the immediate closures of the printing presses. Continue reading...

Removal of crosswalk honoring 49 people killed in 2016 is latest anti-LGBTQ+ move by DeSantis administrationA rainbow crosswalk designed to honor victims of a mass shooting at a LGBTQ+ nightclub in Orlando was painted over by the Florida state government on Wednesday night.The abrupt erasure of the memorial street crossing, which honored the 49 people killed at the Pulse nightclub in 2016, was described as a scandalous act of betrayal" by one Florida state senator. Continue reading...

As Republicans tout their stewardship of public lands, Montana protesters say their park is suffering - and help is urgently neededDozens of former rangers, park volunteers, and local residents protested at the gateway to Montana's Glacier national park on Wednesday against the staff cuts and hiring freezes that have thrown many national parks into crisis, including Glacier.Current and former staffers and watchdog groups say the cuts have meant staff are not able to keep up the facilities and infrastructure. Some say the park has been left with inadequate infrastructure and too little staff to be able to respond to emergencies. Continue reading...

The president's strategy is straight out of the authoritarian playbook. Congress and the courts must put a stop to itAmericans have long glorified their constitution and the rule of law. But Donald Trump's volatile and vindictive presidency has increasingly replaced that philosophy with something very different - call it governing by shakedown."Trump has often violated federal law, and sometimes the constitution, as he has sought to throttle his targets - whether universities, law firms or America's trading partners - in the hope that they will cry uncle and agree to his demands. This style of governance would make any caudillo proud. But it should make anyone who cares about the rule of law - and avoiding authoritarian rule - very worried.Steven Greenhouse is a journalist and author, focusing on labor and the workplace, as well as economic and legal issues Continue reading...

Lyle Menendez will face parole board a day after brother Erik was denied release. Follow every key event from arrest to parole hearings 35 years laterErik Menendez was denied parole on Thursday after serving decades in prison for killing his parents. Lyle Menendez, his brother, will be next to get a chance to plead his case in front of a panel of California state parole board commissioners.Erik and Lyle Menendez were sentenced in 1996 to life in prison for killing their father, Jose Menendez, and mother, Kitty Menendez, in their Beverly Hills mansion in 1989. They were 18 and 21 at the time. Defense attorneys argued the brothers acted out of self-defense after years of sexual abuse by their father, while prosecutors said the brothers killed their parents for a multimillion-dollar inheritance. Continue reading...

Figures from classified IDF database listed 8,900 named fighters as dead or probably dead in May, as overall death toll reached 53,000. Plus, John Roberts and the death of rule of law in America Don't already get First Thing in your inbox? Sign up hereGood morning.Figures from a classified Israeli military intelligence database indicate five out of six Palestinians killed by Israeli forces in Gaza have been civilians, an extreme rate of slaughter rarely matched in recent decades of warfare.How has Israel responded? The Israel Defense Forces said figures presented in the article are incorrect", without specifying which data the Israeli military disputed. It also said the numbers do not reflect the data available in the IDF's systems", without detailing which systems.What are human rights experts and legal scholars saying about Israel's actions in Gaza? Many genocide scholars, lawyers and human rights activists, including Israeli academics and campaign groups, say Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, citing the mass killing of civilians and imposed starvation.This is a developing story. Follow our updates here.Why did the judge decide to close it? In her 82-page order, published in the US district court's southern district of Florida on Friday, Williams determined the facility was causing severe and irreparable damage to the fragile Florida Everglades. Continue reading...

Erik will be eligible after three years as two brothers have spent 30 years in prison for the murder of their parents

For centuries, Canada hasn't needed to prioritize its military. But the US transformation calls for a Finland-style approachThe second Trump administration has been worse than Canada's worst nightmare. The largest military force in the history of the world, across a largely undefended border, is suddenly under the command of a president who has called for our annexation. Canada could not be less prepared. The possibility of American aggression has been so remote, for so long, that the idea has not been seriously considered in living memory. Donald Trump has focused on economic rather than military pressure, but the new tone in Washington is finally forcing Canada to ask itself the most basic question: how do we defend ourselves?For most other countries in the world, self-defence is the key to national identity. Canada's immense good fortune has been that we haven't really needed a strong military to build our country. In the war of 1812, we were British, and the British kept us alive because we were British. There hasn't been an attack on our homeland since. Confederation, the founding of the country, was the result of a political negotiation rather than a conquest or a violent independence movement. Our military was based on a fundamental assumption about our place in the world, and the nature of the world itself. Our place in the world was to contribute to the global order. The global order shared our fundamental values. Peacekeeping was more our style than defense. Continue reading...

Vaccine-hesitant communities might benefit from free treatment centers and smaller vaccination clinicsThe measles outbreak in Texas has officially ended, but as cases continue to be detected in other parts of the US state health experts are warning of the need to prepare for outbreaks in undervaccinated communities, especially as anti-vaccine beliefs are becoming more prominent during the Trump administration.So far this year, 1,356 confirmed measles cases, largely from 32 outbreaks, have been reported across the US - compared with last year's entire total of 285 cases and 16 outbreaks. While the Texas outbreak initially drove the case counts, other US outbreaks are now contributing in increasing numbers. Continue reading...

Administration has stripped hundreds of thousands of their union contracts as White House says it is just getting startedThe Trump administration has unilaterally stripped hundreds of thousands of federal workers of their union contracts after a federal appeals court overruled an injunction which halted the plans. It is just getting started, according to the White House.An executive order issued in March sought to cancel all collective bargaining agreements for most federal employees, citing national security concerns - and remove collective bargaining rights from more than a million workers. Continue reading...

Streaming platform known for subscription-based adult content reports $1.4bn revenue and rising usageThe owner of OnlyFans was paid a record $701m (523m) in dividends last year as the subscription service best known for offering adult content positions itself for a potential multibillion-dollar sale.The payment to Leonid Radvinsky, the Ukrainian-American entrepreneur behind the streaming platform, adds to the more than $1bn in dividends he has already received from the business as he profits from connecting porn stars and celebrities more directly with their audiences. Continue reading...

As Russian drones and missiles continue to rain down death, the prospect of a Putin-Zelenskyy meeting seems unlikelyIt was night in Ukraine when President Trump met President Putin in Alaska - a night during which Russia shelled only frontline Ukrainian cities. People in Kyiv, Lviv, Odesa, Dnipro and even Kharkiv could sleep, but they did not. They were waiting for news from Alaska. I was also awake and watching the news feed, aware that this meeting would lead to nothing, or worse, something bad for Ukraine. But in difficult, seemingly hopeless situations, human nature is prone to desperate optimism. In the middle ages, people often hoped for a miracle, forgetting about the logic of events. So, the night of 15 August was a night of hope for a miracle, which, of course, did not happen.Unlike on the eve of the Alaska meeting, in Ukraine, there was no particular tension in the buildup to the meeting of European leaders at the White House on Monday, despite images of a hugely powerful team arriving in Washington. Ukrainians seemed to sense that this meeting had to be visually positive in order to push into the shade the Alaska meeting, which ended in nothing, if not actual failure. Continue reading...

Panel declines to grant parole to Menendez, convicted over parents' deaths, while brother Lyle faces hearing on FridayThe California board of parole hearings denied the release of Erik Menendez, on Thursday who has spent nearly 30 years in prison since he was convicted with his brother in the shooting deaths of their parents.Erik and Lyle Menendez were sentenced in 1996 to life in prison for fatally shooting their father, Jose Menendez, and mother, Kitty Menendez, in their Beverly Hills mansion in 1989. They were 18 and 21 at the time. While defense attorneys argued the brothers acted out of self-defense after years of sexual abuse by their father, prosecutors said the brothers killed their parents for a multimillion-dollar inheritance. Continue reading...

This live blog is now closed. You can read more on Alligator Alcatraz' ruling hereThe government lost its bid to unseal grand jury transcripts in the sex-trafficking case against Jeffrey Epstein.Richard Berman, a federal judge in New York, said the transcripts pale in comparison to the documents the government already has on Epstein and that disclosing them could harm victims.It's kind of bizarre that we have a bunch of old, primarily white people who are out there protesting the policies that keep people safe when they've never felt danger in their entire lives. Continue reading...

Judge's order finds jail, which has attracted waves of criticism, was causing severe harm to Florida EvergladesA federal judge in Miami late on Thursday ordered the closure of the Trump administration's notorious Alligator Alcatraz" immigration jail within 60 days, and ruled that no more detainees were to be brought to the facility while it was being wound down.The shock ruling by district court judge Kathleen Williams builds on a temporary restraining order she issued two weeks ago halting further construction work at the remote tented camp, which has attracted waves of criticism for harsh conditions, abuse of detainees and denial of due process as they await deportation. Continue reading...

Court, in 5-4 split, lifts judge's order blocking $783m in cuts made by NIH to align with president's prioritiesThe Trump administration can slash hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of research funding in its push to cut federal diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, the supreme court decided on Thursday.The split court lifted a judge's order blocking $783m worth of cuts made by the National Institutes of Health to align with Donald Trump's priorities. Continue reading...

Trump administration's move includes people already admitted to the US, with vetting also to occur on social media - key US politics stories from 21 August 2025The Trump administration is reviewing the records of more than 55 million US visa holders for potential revocation or deportable violations of immigration rules, in a significant expansion of Donald Trump's immigration crackdown.The state department said that all of the foreigners who now hold valid US visas are subject to continuous vetting" for any indication that they could be ineligible for the document, including those already admitted into the country. Should such evidence come to light, the visa would be revoked and, if the visa holder were in the United States, they would be subject to deportation. Continue reading...

Retaliatory strike against gerrymandered maps in Texas now heads to voters in a special election this NovemberCalifornia governor Gavin Newsom on Thursday signed a sweeping redistricting proposal aimed at redrawing the state's congressional boundaries to create five new Democratic US House seats - a direct response to the gerrymandered maps Republicans in Texas are advancing at the behest of Donald Trump.The Democratic-controlled state legislature voted to advance a legislative package revising California's maps after hours of debate. With Newsom's signature, the measure now heads to voters in a special election this November. Continue reading...

President touts police takeover in rambling remarks and pledges new grass so DC parks resemble his golf coursesDonald Trump told law enforcement officials his administration will buy new grass for parks in Washington DC so they resemble his golf courses, during his visit to a US park police facility on Thursday - an event ostensibly scheduled to tout his crackdown on crime in the city.The president had indicated earlier in the day he would join police and national guard troops on something resembling a patrol, but his remarks at park police's Anacostia station was his lone stop on his excursion from the White House. Continue reading...

Vice-president extolled One Big Beautiful Bill Act's benefits for families while Senate hopefuls tried campaign materialThe US vice-president, JD Vance, previewed in Georgia on Thursday the lines of attack candidates will use to defend the president's signature One Big Beautiful Bill Act in the midterms next year, calling it the biggest tax cut for families that this country has ever seen".Vance touted an increase in the child tax credit, the elimination of taxes on overtime and on tips in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act while speaking in a warehouse for ATLA Refrigeration in Peachtree City, Georgia. Continue reading...

Matthew Brann finds US government used a novel series of legal and personnel moves' to try to retain Alina HabbaA federal judge ruled on Thursday that Donald Trump's former lawyer, Alina Habba, has been unlawfully serving as the top federal prosecutor in New Jersey.In his order disqualifying Habba from prosecuting three defendants who challenged her appointment, chief US district judge Matthew Brann wrote: The Executive branch has perpetuated Alina Habba's appointment to act as the United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey through a novel series of legal and personnel moves. Continue reading...

State department says all people who hold valid US visas are subject to continuous vetting', including of social mediaThe Trump administration is reviewing the records of more than 55 million US visa holders for potential revocation or deportable violations of immigration rules, in a significant expansion of Donald Trump's immigration crackdown.In a move first reported by the Associated Press, the state department said that all of the foreigners who currently hold valid US visas are subject to continuous vetting" for any indication that they could be ineligible for the document, including those already admitted into the country. Should such evidence come to light, the visa would be revoked and, if the visa holder were in the United States, they would be subject to deportation. Continue reading...

Move comes after state refused to remove gender identity, trans and nonbinary references from sex-ed curriculumThe Trump administration has terminated a grant that provided millions of dollars for a California sex education program after the state refused to remove all references to gender identity, transgender people and nonbinary people from its curriculum.Advocates fear more states could lose more money in a burgeoning war between the Trump administration and supporters of comprehensive sex ed. Continue reading...

Group cuts profit forecasts and launches review after mistake relating to North American armAlmost 600m was wiped off the market value of WH Smith on Thursday after the retailer cut financial forecasts and launched an independent review when it discovered an accounting blunder at its North American arm.Shares plunged 42% after investors took fright at the news that profits at the division had been overstated by 30m. Continue reading...

Divided decision by New York appeals judges dismisses excessive' penalty but leaves room for further appealsA New York appeals court has thrown out the massive civil fraud penalty against Donald Trump, ruling on Thursday in the state's lawsuit accusing him of exaggerating his wealth.The decision, which was not unanimous, came seven months after the Republican returned to the White House. A panel of five judges in New York's mid-level appellate division said the verdict, which stood to cost Trump more than $515m and rock his real estate empire, was excessive". Continue reading...

Selected employees will join Trump's mass deportation campaign and offer critical support' to Ice operationsThe Pentagon is recruiting civilian employees to join Donald Trump's mass deportation campaign and asking staff to sign up for deployments to immigration enforcement facilities across the United States.The defense department has posted a job listing requesting volunteers for civilian federal employees apply to join a volunteer force" supporting Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) operations. On Wednesday, the department reportedly emailed civilian employees asking them to take up this opportunity. Continue reading...

From starting new careers and reconstructing houses to keeping children's rooms the same, these parents are navigating a rollercoaster'The term empty nest" first emerged in the late 19th century, gaining traction in psychological and sociological discourse by the 1940s. Originally, it evoked a singular image: a mother alone in a quiet house, mourning the departure of her last child. But the reality, then and now, is far more nuanced. While the term was once gendered, today the emotional impact is felt across all parents, regardless of role or identity.The empty nest is not a fixed state but a mutable one. For some, it arrives with a deep ache, a sense of disorientation or loss. For others, it marks a period of renewal, space reclaimed, silence embraced, autonomy rediscovered. The nest may stay quiet or grow noisy again with boomerang children, ageing parents or new partners. Some preserve their homes like time capsules; others transform them entirely, reimagining their lives within, claiming room for new identities, desires and rhythms. Continue reading...

Survey shows 60% of students say they would personally feel impact of bill that sets new caps on borrowingWith Donald Trump's big, beautiful bill" set to alter how families and students finance higher education starting in July 2026, a new survey suggests the majority of college students expect to be affected by the bill.A US News & World Report surveyed nearly 1,200 college students, with most responders saying the changes will affect them. When asked about the law's broader effects, 61% of students said they would personally feel its impact, while 20% said they would not and 19% responded I don't know." Continue reading...

President threatened harsh measures' if Tina Peters - sentenced to nine years - isn't released from prisonDonald Trump again called for the release of a former election clerk in Colorado who was convicted for her role in breaching election data in a quest to find fraud, threatening he would take harsh measures" if she was not let out of prison.FREE TINA PETERS, a brave and innocent Patriot who has been tortured by Crooked Colorado politicians, including the big Mail-In Ballot supporting the governor of the State," Trump said on Truth Social. Let Tina Peters out of jail, RIGHT NOW. She did nothing wrong, except catching the Democrats cheat in the Election. She is an old woman, and very sick. If she is not released, I am going to take harsh measures!!!" Continue reading...

Category 2 storm led to evacuation orders and road closures, with rip currents and high surf forecast on FridayHurricane Erin, a large category 2 storm with winds reaching 105mph, was slowly moving away from the North Carolina coast on Thursday morning after hitting the state's Outer Banks with intense winds, large waves, storm surge and flooding.While Erin is not expected to make landfall, weather officials warn that the storm's effects are not over yet. Coastal communities up and down the east coast are bracing as storm conditions continue as life-threatening rip currents, flooding and dangerous surf, are forecast in some areas through Friday. Continue reading...

Republicans once championed the policy on economic grounds. Undoing it is disrupting students' lives and sowing confusion on campusesXimena had a plan.The 18-year-old from Houston was going to start college in the fall at the University of Texas at Tyler, where she had been awarded $10,000 a year in scholarships. That, she hoped, would set her up for her dream: a PhD in chemistry, followed by a career as a professor or researcher. Continue reading...

Continued detention of Mario Guevara is retaliation for his reporting and violates his first amendment rights, filing saysThe ACLU called Immigration and customs enforcement (Ice)'s continued detention of Atlanta-area journalist Mario Guevara an act of retaliation for his reporting on immigration raids, according to a federal petition filed on Thursday.Guevara, a Salvadorian immigrant who has been in the United States for more than 20 years, was arrested on 14 June by a police officer in suburban Atlanta while covering the No Kings Day protests in a neighborhood with a high density of immigrants. Despite all charges being dropped, Guevara has been in Ice detention in south Georgia for almost two months, the only journalist in America imprisoned as a consequence of their work today, the ACLU said. Continue reading...

Lawsuit claims that plaintiffs bought tickets for plane seats next to windows that instead were next to windowless wallsDelta Air Lines and United Airlines are being sued by a group of passengers who claim they paid extra money to sit in window" seats which were not actually next to windows.Proposed class actions were filed against United in San Francisco federal court and against Delta in Brooklyn, New York, federal court, seeking millions of dollars in damages for more than 1 million passengers at each airline. Continue reading...

Framework deal pledges to cut 27.5% tariff once EU tables legislation, and both sides say they want swift actionWashington will not lower steep tariffs on European cars until Brussels has introduced legislation to reduce its own tariffs on US exports, maintaining pressure on the EU's automotive industry.While the Trump administration has agreed to lower the current 27.5% US tariffs on European cars and car parts to 15%, details of a framework trade deal published on Thursday revealed the terms and conditions. Continue reading...

Hospitality giant responded to Guardian story about Ice's use of Sheraton hotel to hold families prior to deportationMarriott, the hospitality giant, has not disputed recent revelations that a Louisiana hotel in its portfolio was used to detain migrant families before deportation, which contradicts a 2019 policy that it would not cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice). In a new statement to the Guardian, the company suggested that its acceptance of business" did not mean it supported the Trump administration's immigration policies.The Guardian reported on Tuesday that a Sheraton hotel in the city of Alexandria, situated close to a major Ice deportation hub, has been used to hold family groups before they are removed from the US. The Sheraton brand is owned by Marriott International. Continue reading...

Workers were led away in zip ties after CBP officials raided a workplace in Edison, New JerseyDozens of immigrant workers were detained at a warehouse in New Jersey on Wednesday, in the latest federal raid as part of Donald Trump's immigration crackdown.Agents from Customs and Border Protection (CBP) descended on the warehouse, in Edison, New Jersey, at 9am on Wednesday, the New York Times reported. Officers led some workers away in zip ties, employees told the Times, while people they deemed to have legal status in the US were given yellow wristbands. Continue reading...

In the Arms Down program at San Quentin in California, incarcerated men analyze the violence, heartbreak and poor choices that have shaped their livesOn a recent Friday morning, the chapel of San Quentin prison was abuzz as more than 100 incarcerated men and their friends and families took their seats at tables filling the room. A banner with large orange lettering hanging at the front read Arms Down: Teaching there are options between the first and second amendment", and the mood was festive, with the men hugging their spouses, parents and siblings.Now sheltered from the foggy, misty Marin county morning, participants and leaders of this first-of-its-kind program stepped onto the stage and started to talk, about mistaking being feared for being respected, about living with unaddressed trauma, about leaning into misconceptions of manhood and how that led them to rely on firearms as a source of safety and power. Continue reading...

Democrats hope to negate Republican gains with their own redistricting. Plus, seeking a safe place to abandon a babyGood morning.The Republican-controlled Texas House passed a redrawn congressional map requested by Donald Trump on Wednesday despite the attempts of Democrats to thwart it.What happens now? The measure will go to the state Senate, where it is expected to pass, before being signed into law by the state's Republican governor.Could other states do the same? Yes - Trump has said Florida, Indiana, and others are looking to do the same thing". Even Democrats highly opposed to the brazen practise of gerrymandering are backing aggressive efforts to counter the Republicans' efforts.What has the administration been asking for? It has instructed museum officials to issue content corrections" including replacing divisive" language. Continue reading...

Lawyer for Winnie Greco says cash for journalist was gesture of friendship and not an attempted bribeA former longtime adviser to the mayor of New York City who resigned while under FBI scrutiny gave a reporter a potato chip bag filled with cash Wednesday after a campaign event.A lawyer for Winnie Greco, the former adviser, insisted the cash was not an attempted bribe. Continue reading...

Coco Gauff is once again the home favourite while this is Aryna Sabalenka's last chance to win a grand slam this yearAryna Sabalenka Is 2025 just not the world No 1's year? Finishing as runner-up in Melbourne and Paris and falling in the semi-finals at Wimbledon, Sabalenka has failed to get over the line at slams this season despite being a constant favourite. But with her powerful game and a devastating serve - especially on hard courts - she has the tools to make a deep run as the defending champion in New York. The Belarusian has racked up a total of 52 weeks as the world No 1, surpassing her compatriot Victoria Azarenka's 51 for the 13th-most weeks atop the WTA rankings since they began in 1975. Perhaps, like Roger Federer in 2008, the 27-year-old can triumph in the final slam of the year after making two finals and a semi. Continue reading...