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Campaign of intimidation began after the Birmingham gang were jailed for new year's shooting of two teenage girlsIt remains one of the UK's most shocking gangland killings. In the early hours of 2 January 2003, best friends Letisha Shakespeare, 17, and Charlene Ellis, 18, were gunned down as they stood outside a new year party in Aston, Birmingham.Mistakenly killed in an escalating feud between rival inner-city factions the Burger Bar Boys and the Johnson Crew, their double murder propelled both gangs to national notoriety. Continue reading...

This blog is closed. Go to our Israel-Hamas war page for further coverageTurkey's president, Recep Tayyip Erdoan, says Israel must stop the madness" and end Gaza strikes, according to Agence France-Presse.The Israeli bombardments on Gaza intensified last night and once again targeted women, children and innocent civilians and worsened the ongoing humanitarian crisis," Erdoan said on X. Israel must immediately stop this madness and end its attacks." Continue reading...

Opposition leader says government squibbed' key United Nations vote, but trade minister says his comments are not helpful at this time'

Policing minister Chris Philp suggests target of more than 200,000 searches over next six monthsPolice are being encouraged to double their use of retrospective facial recognition software to track down offenders over the next six months.Policing minister Chris Philp has written to force leaders suggesting the target of exceeding 200,000 searches of still images against the police national database by May using facial recognition technology. Continue reading...

Scotland's first minister speaks of family worry after Israel cuts off population of Gaza from communication with worldScotland's first minister has said he does not know if his parents-in-law who are trapped in Gaza are dead or alive after Israel knocked out communications there.Humza Yousaf said he and his wife, Nadia, are desperately worried" and that she is numb" as they try to find out news about her parents. Continue reading...

Government's failure to back ceasefire resolution adds to tensions among demonstrators

As Israel's ground operation intensifies, World Health Organization issues an urgent statement saying it is unable to cope with a total blackout

With all internet and phone connections now cut, many people have lost their only way of checking on family and friends

While women's groups on the platform support and warn others, men's groups feature mostly derogatory comments

As many as 100,000 believed to have joined march organised by Palestine Solidarity CampaignPolice arrested two people after thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrators took to the streets of central London on Saturday to demand a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war.Aerial footage showed large crowds setting off on the march organised by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, which has coordinated multiple protests in response to the escalating conflict in the Gaza Strip. Continue reading...

Fee income for 20 largest operators - many private equity-owned - soars as councils struggle to meet costsThe biggest private providers of children's homes in England made profits of more than 300m last year, as concern mounts over the conditions some children are being placed in and the spiralling costs for councils.Fee income for the 20 largest operators of independent children's homes totalled 1.63bn last year, a 6.5% increase on the previous year. And 19% of that - 310m - was recorded as profit, according to an independent analysis. Half of the top 20 providers have some private equity or sovereign wealth fund ownership. Continue reading...

Comedian shares incredulity at former PM's hire by news channel that will host Cleese's own interview showJohn Cleese has said that he can hardly believe" the decision by GB News to platform former prime minister Boris Johnson.On Sunday the Fawlty Towers star will make his debut on the news channel with new show The Dinosaur Hour which sees Cleese, 84, interview a range of people from inside a 12th-century castle. Continue reading...

Hope the purloined pooch was returned to Jeannine Staller after she was told by Scott Casterline that her dog was deadA New York state animal control officer was arrested after selling a stolen pet and telling the owner that the animal had died, authorities have said.Scott Casterline, 51, was arrested on Thursday and charged in connection with stealing the dog, a nine-year-old Yorkshire terrier called Hope, and later selling it while working as an animal control officer, according to a press release from the Steuben county sheriff's office. Continue reading...

Silver ticket promising free theatre shows for life is expected to sell for as much as 2,500The Bristol Old Vic has vowed to honour a centuries-old policy and provide free tickets for every show to the new owner of a silver token dated to 1766 that is being sold at auction.Only 50 tokens were minted for the original shareholders at the theatre and entitled the owner to watch every performance. Continue reading...

Polls suggest that four in five people blame the Israeli government for the 7 October massacres and over half want the PM to resignIn October 2011 Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier abducted by the Palestinian group Hamas and held for five years in the blockaded Gaza Strip, walked through the Rafah crossing into Egypt, accompanied by militants wearing suicide vests.His release was widely celebrated across Israel; in the occupied West Bank and Gaza, so too was the agreed exchange of 1,027 Palestinians held in Israeli jails. Foremost among them was Yahya Sinwar, who returned home to Gaza, eventually becoming Hamas's most important leader in the territory. Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, then in his second term, did face some criticism for the starkly asymmetric deal. The daily Jerusalem Post said at the time that any such exchange, however humane to Shalit and his family, would imperil thousands of other Israelis". Continue reading...

Human rights campaigners say the Pegasus initiative wrongly criminalises people of colour, women and LGBTQ+ peopleSome of Britain's biggest retailers, including Tesco, John Lewis and Sainsbury's, have been urged to pull out of a new policing strategy amid warnings it risks wrongly criminalising people of colour, women and LGBTQ+ people.A coalition of 14 human rights groups has written to the main retailers - also including Marks & Spencer, the Co-op, Next, Boots and Primark - saying that their participation in a new government-backed scheme that relies heavily on facial recognition technology to combat shoplifting will amplify existing inequalities in the criminal justice system". Continue reading...

People with families in Gaza call on British government to help get them out and to join calls for ceasefireOn Friday evening, as Israeli air and ground forces ramped up their operations in the Gaza Strip and a communications blackout fell across the embattled territory, Salim Hammad received a text from the UK Foreign Office notifying him of a possible increase in attacks and violence.What are we supposed to do with that information?" said Salim, a 34-year-old doctor in Oxford whose father, Abdel, is stuck at the Rafah border crossing. Continue reading...

With food, energy and vet bills soaring, sanctuaries face huge demand for space and fewer offers of new homesIt's another busy day at Holly Hedge Animal Sanctuary in north Somerset where Lou - who has been part of the team for 23 years - is cleaning the pens and preparing food in the cattery where Margaux is nursing her 10-day-old kittens.Margaux's owner was made homeless due to the cost of living crisis. With no place to call home and an uncertain future, she could no longer care for her much-loved cat. Having to say goodbye to her pet and bring her to Holly Hedge was heartbreaking, but such stories are becoming increasingly familiar to the staff and volunteers at the sanctuary in Barrow Gurney, near Bristol. Continue reading...

Southern England, the Highlands and north-east of Scotland and Northern Ireland are likely to be affectedHeavy showers and strong winds over the weekend could bring flooding to already soaked parts of the UK, just a week after Storm Babet caused serious damage and several deaths.Forecasters said areas in London and the south of England, the Highlands and north-east of Scotland and Northern Ireland were all expected to be hit with heavy rain over the next few days. Continue reading...

Wael al-Dahdouh's wife, children and grandson were killed in Nuseirat camp in central Gaza on Tuesday Israel and Hamas at war - live updatesAn Al Jazeera correspondent has returned to work just days after his entire immediate family were killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza.Wael al-Dahdouh's wife, son, daughter and grandson were killed in the strike late on Tuesday. They had moved to a house in the Nuseirat camp in central Gaza following Israel's warning on 13 October. Continue reading...

Armita Geravand, 16, fell into coma on 1 October and was pronounced brain dead last weekA 16-year-old Iranian girl has died after an alleged encounter with officers over violating the country's hijab law, state media and activists have said.Iran has denied that Armita Geravand was hurt after a confrontation on 1 October with officers enforcing the mandatory Islamic dress code in the Tehran metro. She had been pronounced brain dead last week after falling into a coma on 1 October. Continue reading...

The president has lost favor with young, Muslim and Arab Americans, important Democratic constituenciesOn Wednesday afternoon, hundreds of liberal Jewish American activists staged sit-ins in the Capitol Hill offices of top Democrats, including in the senate office of progressive champion Bernie Sanders, to demand a ceasefire in the escalating war between Israel and Hamas.As they sang in Hebrew and prayed for peace, the House floor resumed legislative activity for the first time in weeks after the election of a new Republican speaker, congressman Mike Johnson. Continue reading...

When Hamas attacked Israel on 7 October it took 220 people captive, leaving family and friends clinging agonisingly to the hope others will be releasedOn 7 October, Shira Havron was on a short holiday in London when she woke up to a thousand messages" and horrific news on the television.Eleven members of her extended family were at kibbutz Be'eri, where some lived and some were visiting. My mum told me they were hiding in safe rooms. Then at 10.30am, we lost contact with all of them." Continue reading...

Carr says his partner of 50 years collapsed in his arms at a hotel in Vienna at the age of 77

About 100 jets involved in heavy bombardment as Palestinians report clashes in north-east and central strip Israel and Hamas at war - live updatesThe Israel Defence Forces have said they struck 150 underground Hamas targets in Gaza overnight in the heaviest aerial bombardment of the Gaza war so far, as Palestinian residents of the territory reported clashes with Israeli armoured vehicles and infantry overnight.According to the IDF, about 100 Israeli jets were involved in the strikes which began in earnest after dusk on Friday. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Vince Cable, Chris Huhne and Norman Lamb claim they were targeted for stories or to 'exert political influence'Two former Lib Dem cabinet ministers and a former party whip are suing the publisher of the Sun and the defunct News of the World, claiming that their phones were hacked for stories or to exert political influence", including when Rupert Murdoch was seeking approval for a takeover of BSkyB.Journalists working at Murdoch's newspapers are said to have unlawfully targeted the former business secretary Vince Cable as well as Chris Huhne, a former energy and climate change secretary, and Norman Lamb, a whip and sometime adviser to the then deputy prime minister, Nick Clegg. Continue reading...

Doha positions itself as region's lead mediator but balancing relations with Hamas and the west has become diplomatically precarious

Officials to take inspiration from way US authorities rooted out Italian mob in Nevada in bid to reduce Russian exploitation of industryUkrainian officials seeking to oust Russian actors from its gambling industry are going to emulate the methods of the US authorities in the 1980s when they rooted out the Italian mob from the casinos of Las Vegas.Gambling was legalised in Ukraine after a 10-year ban shortly before the full-scale invasion in February 2022 and has since continued to be a profitable avenue for Russians who want to make money in the country and collect the personal data of Ukrainian gamblers. Continue reading...

Vue cinemas add an interval to Scorsese's bladderbusting 206-minute Killers of the Flower MoonWe have all felt it: that numbness in the back and legs, a full bladder, or desperately avoiding checking your watch to see how long is left of the film.But the experience seems to be happening more and more for cinemagoers, who say the growing trend for long movies is putting them off going altogether. Continue reading...

Emergency doctors say figures are aggregated with those of minor injury centres to get closer to targetsNHS bosses are using misleading figures to hide dangerously poor performance by A&E units in England against the four-hour treatment target, emergency department doctors claim.Some A&Es treat and admit, transfer or discharge as few as one in three patients within four hours, although the NHS constitution says they should deal with 95% of arrivals within that timeframe. Continue reading...

Representative explains resolution did not recognise terror group Hamas as perpetrator of 7 October attack'

Aid trucks trickle into Gaza while Israel steps up operations and the UN's general assembly calls for an immediate truceFourteen more aid trucks crossed the border from Egypt to Gaza, joining the 20 aid trucks that had entered the previous day, which was the first aid convoy to arrive in the territory since Hamas's terrorist attacks on Israel on 7 October. Continue reading...

UN refugee agency says 10 of 50 bakeries it helps have been hit and fuel is running out to transport flour to those that remainA fifth of bakeries supported by the UN's agency for Palestinian refugees in Gaza have been bombed so far, as warnings have been issued of catastrophic" food shortages due to a lack of fuel.The UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) said 10 of the 50 bakeries it supplies with flour, helping to lower the soaring cost of bread, have been hit in airstrikes and fuel is running out for vehicles to transport flour to those that remain. Continue reading...

Health bodies demand all governments immediately cease expansion of new fossil fuel infrastructure and production

Firefighters continue to battle major blazes near Tara, where more than 30 homes have already been lost

Russia loses brigade's worth of troops in push for Avdiivka, says Zelenskiy; heavy shelling hits Kherson; Macron condemns Orban's meeting with Putin

Collins's notes on his collaborator's weakest book' and astonishingly bad' work were sold at auction in 1890Charles Dickens may be lauded by many as the greatest Victorian novelist, but one close friend did not demur from fierce criticism after the writer's death.Wilkie Collins, the author of The Woman in White, collaborated on drama and fiction with Dickens and the two enjoyed a long, close friendship until Dickens's death in 1870. Continue reading...

Genetic links have been revealed between the crippling chronic condition and painful gastrointestinal disorders

Investigation into Thomas Sewell and Jacob Hersant comes a week after new laws took effect in Victoria outlawing the Nazi salute

Resolution, passed by 120 votes to 14, is not binding, but carries great political and symbolic weightThe UN general assembly has overwhelmingly called for an immediate, durable and sustainable humanitarian truce" between Israel and Hamas and demanded unhindered aid access to the besieged Gaza Strip.The motion drafted by Jordan is not binding, but carries political weight, reflecting the degree to which the US and Israel are isolated internationally as Israel steps up its ground operations. Continue reading...

As the former prime minister lands a job as a GB News host, we look back at his previous TV appearances, from that doomed zip wire stunt to hiding in a fridge toBoris Johnson is set to join GB News, in his first formal job as a TV presenter. But the former prime minister has long been a star of the small screen, famed for his cringe-worthy on-camera gaffes.As a politician, Johnson was often loose with the facts and vague on matters of policy. But even when appearing to act (if he was indeed acting) the idiot, he had a genius for lodging himself in the public consciousness. Despite the litany of missteps that marked his time in politics, he had a knack for getting the public to laugh with, rather than at, him. Here are some of his more memorable moments on screen. Continue reading...

Ukraine's president tells British PM brigade's worth of troops lost trying to encircle embattled city; Putin demands action on weapons trafficking

Secretary of state Antony Blinken made request of Qatari prime minister Sheikh Mohammed during frantic trip to DohaThe US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, has reportedly asked Qatar to moderate Al Jazeera's coverage of Israel's war against Hamas, amid concerns within the Biden administration that the channel is inflaming public opinion and heightening the risks of a wider conflict.Blinken raised the satellite news channel's coverage with the Qatari prime minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al-Thani, according to the website Axios, which said the US's top diplomat had disclosed the request in a meeting with US Jewish leaders. Continue reading...

Gillian Keegan says to trust in due process as eighth Conservative loses whip over sexual misconduct allegations since 2019A cabinet minister has said there is no cultural issue" with Tory MPs after Crispin Blunt became the eighth Conservative this parliament to lose the whip over allegations of sexual misconduct.Gillian Keegan, the education secretary, said all the individual incidents were separate and the prime minister expected due process in the investigation into Blunt. Continue reading...

The latex-clad individual has caused much distress in the sleepy West Country area, though others say they feel sorry for them'Search for the Somerset villages of Claverham, Yatton, Cleeve and Bleadon on the local police website and one topic dominates. Not appeals relating to burglaries, car crime or missing people - but sightings of a figure who slips out from the shadows at night, dressed top to toe in black bondage-like gear.Since the so-called Somerset gimp first emerged five years ago, he has caused a mishmash of distress, fear and concern in this picturesque, usually peaceful, rural area 10 miles south of Bristol, set just back from the coast. Continue reading...

Only 29% of those surveyed backed an immediate offensive, while 49% said it would be better to waitAfter the murderous onslaught by Hamas on 7 October Israelis rallied around the prospect of a swift invasion of Gaza.Benjamin Netanyahu's government mobilised tanks and reservists amid widespread agreement that Israel needed to enter the enclave and destroy Hamas. Continue reading...

French president says Hungarian leader's meeting risks weakening European unity against RussiaThe French president, Emmanuel Macron, has condemned the Hungarian leader Viktor Orban's recent meeting and handshake with Vladimir Putin.In the situation we are in with Russia, we should not use these bilateral contacts to negotiate things about ourselves that would weaken our unity [on Ukraine]," Macron said after a meeting of EU leaders in Brussels. Continue reading...

Yonat Or, 50, was killed during the October 7 attack but her husband and two of her children are missingA British-Israeli lawyer is holding out hope of being reunited with family members held hostage by Hamas after being told the gunmen had murdered his sister.Ahal Besorai said his sister Yonat Or, 50, her husband, Dror, 50, and two of their three children, who are 15 and 13, were spotted being dragged out of the safe room of their burning home in Be'eri kibbutz by Hamas militants on 7 October.

Competition for savers' cash is putting pressure on its finances, says group

Cosmetic industry becoming more attractive as new rules considered and discontent in health service growsDoctors and nurses are increasingly training to administer Botox due to the pressures involved in working for the NHS, data suggests.The Harley Academy in central London - one of the only institutes in the UK that trains medical professionals to provide injectables such as Botox and dermal fillers, as well as cosmetic dermatology - has seen a 24% rise in new recruits every three months. Continue reading...