A 15-year-old and an 18-year-old stabbed to death in attacks in Stratford and CamberwellTwo teenagers have been fatally stabbed within hours of each other in London.A 15-year-old boy was stabbed to death outside a busy shopping centre in Stratford, east London, shortly after 3pm on Thursday. Continue reading...

EU gives go-ahead to weekend meetings after PM appears to backtrack on customs stanceBoris Johnson has signalled that he will make a last-ditch U-turn on his plans for the Irish border, setting up 48 hours of intense negotiations that will make or break a Brexit deal.On a day of rapid movement in talks, EU sources said the prime minister had conceded that there could not be a customs border on the island of Ireland – a critical step away from his previous position. Continue reading...

US congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez gave a speech at a global mayors event on Friday, highlighting that the world's most advanced and richest economies are failing to take sufficient steps to combat climate change. Ocasio-Cortez's voice began to crack as she spoke about the future of any children she might have, stating that it was the current population's responsibility to steer the world away from environmental jeopardy Continue reading...

Hardened door and security cameras helped protect dozens of people from gunmanA German synagogue targeted in an attempted mass shooting this week had been upgraded to fortify its main entrance and install security cameras, measures that probably saved the lives of dozens of people hiding inside.The attack on Wednesday in the city of Halle left two people dead but the number could have been much higher as the gunman failed to break through the synagogue door, despite repeatedly shooting at it and attempting to blast it open with an improvised bomb. Continue reading...

The Irishman actor tells the Guardian that Trump and the Republicans ‘have to know they can’t get away with bullying us’Robert De Niro has renewed his criticism of Donald Trump, calling the US head of state a “gangster president” and saying he “can’t wait” to see him jailed.De Niro was speaking to the Guardian ahead of the London film festival premiere of The Irishman, Martin Scorsese’s new film, in which he plays mafia killer Frank Sheeran, now generally presumed to have been responsible for the murder of celebrated union boss Jimmy Hoffa in 1975. Continue reading...

British poet Sissay names persecuted Ethiopian writer and activist as this year’s ‘international writer of courage’The poet Lemn Sissay has won the PEN Pinter award alongside the Egyptian writer Befeqadu Hailu, who dedicated his award “to all those who use their voices for the voiceless”.Hailu, a writer, activist and co-founder of the blogging platform Zone 9, has been jailed four times for his work, although never convicted of the charges brought against him. Under the motto “we blog because we care”, Zone 9 sets out to create a space for freedom of expression, where individuals can speak out against human rights violations in Ethiopia. Continue reading...

Visual effects technician Sergey Koudryavtsev admitted murder following dispute over his petA former Lord of the Rings visual effects technician has been jailed for 26 years after he admitted killing his parents at their home in west London after a row over his dog.Sergey Koudryavtsev, 48, stabbed his 68-year-old mother, Tatiana Koudriavtseva, and 69-year-old father, Vladimir Koudriavtsev, at the family’s home in Appleford Road, Kensington, on 20 May. Continue reading...

Spanish deputy PM says dictator’s family will be given 48 hours’ notice of exhumationThe remains of the Spanish dictator Francisco Franco will be exhumed from the state mausoleum where they have lain since his death in 1975 within the next two weeks, the government has announced.Disinterring Franco from his tomb in the Valley of the Fallen near Madrid has been one of the key promises of Spain’s ruling socialist party, the PSOE, since it came to power in June last year. However, its efforts have been bitterly opposed by the dictator’s family. Continue reading...

Award recognises efforts for peace, in particular in resolving Eritrea border conflict

Green growth and ‘hedonistic sustainability’ have helped keep the public on board as the Danish capital seeks to reach its goal by 2025 – and so far it’s all going according to plan“We call it hedonistic sustainability,” says Jacob Simonsen of the decision to put an artificial ski slope on the roof of the £485m Amager Resource Centre (Arc), Copenhagen’s cutting-edge new waste-to-energy power plant. “It’s not just good for the environment, it’s good for life.”Skiing is just one of the activities that Simonsen, Arc’s chief executive, and Bjarke Ingels, its lead architect, hope will enhance the latest jewel in Copenhagen’s sustainability crown. The incinerator building also incorporates hiking and running trails, a street fitness gym and the world’s highest outdoor climbing wall, an 85-metre “natural mountain” complete with overhangs that rises the full height of the main structure. Continue reading...

As they seek safety away from Turkish shells, Syrian Kurds burn with anger at Donald Trump’s betrayalWaiting at a roadside depot, Hussein Rammo, a stooped elderly Kurd, his eyes wet with tears, had the look of a broken man. “Betrayal leaves the bitterest taste,” he said, his voice at a whisper as he discussed Donald Trump’s decision to abandon Syria’s Kurds.“I am 63 years old and I have never seen anything like this. Before there was regime oppression and now we are getting betrayal. This is worse.” Continue reading...

At 87, le Carré is publishing his 25th novel. He talks to John Banville about our ‘dismal statesmanship’ and what he learned from his time as a spyI have always admired John le Carré. Not always without envy – so many bestsellers! – but in wonderment at the fact that the work of an artist of such high literary accomplishment should have achieved such wide appeal among readers. That le Carré, otherwise David Cornwell, has chosen to set his novels almost exclusively in the world of espionage has allowed certain critics to dismiss him as essentially unserious, a mere entertainer. But with at least two of his books, The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (1963) and A Perfect Spy (1986), he has written masterpieces that will endure.Which other writer could have produced novels of such consistent quality over a career spanning almost 60 years, since Call for the Dead in 1961, to his latest, Agent Running in the Field, which he is about to publish at the age of 87. And while he has hinted that this is to be his final book, I am prepared to bet that he is not done yet. He is just as intellectually vigorous and as politically aware as he has been at any time throughout his long life. Continue reading...

A fire in a block of flats in one of the city’s most expensive neighbourhoods has highlighted Berlin’s increasing gentrification – and the plight of vulnerable tenants Continue reading...

Despite hating guns, Harris stars as a tough cop up for a fight in her new action thriller. She talks about how she almost quit acting after Moonlight, the pain of her family’s past and Bond getting wokeLater this month, Naomie Harris appears in her first starring role in a film. She is 43. What has taken her so long? Not laziness. Harris has always been a grafter, acting on TV from the age of nine, saving every penny to pay for university (social and political science at Cambridge, one of only two black students in her year). The work ethic, she says, comes from her mother, who discovered she was pregnant when doing her A-levels and raised her daughter solo, funded by a job at the post office. She later went to university, worked as a scriptwriter on EastEnders and is now a reiki healer.So, Harris is no slouch. But for years she told her agents: supporting roles only. No leads. “I get consumed by the characters that I play, and acting is quite a stressful, adrenaline-inducing thing. So I didn’t really know how well I would cope with being a lead. It was partly a confidence issue, as well. I just thought I’d be biting off more than I could chew.” Continue reading...

After an earthquake struck in 2010, the US pledged to help rebuild the Caribbean country. A decade later, nothing better symbolises the failure of these efforts than the story of a new port that was promised, but never built. By Jacob KushnerWhen Bill and Hillary Clinton travelled to the Caribbean nation of Haiti as newlyweds in 1975, they were enchanted. Bill had recently lost a race for Congress back home in Arkansas, but by the time they returned to the US, he had set his mind to running for Arkansas state attorney general, a decision which would put him on the path to the White House. “We have had a deep connection to and with Haiti ever since,” Hillary later said.Over the next four decades, the Clintons became increasingly involved in Haiti, working to reshape the country in profound ways. As US president in the 1990s, Bill lobbied for sweeping changes to Haiti’s agricultural sector that significantly increased the country’s dependence on American food crops. In 1994, three years after a military coup in Haiti, Bill ordered a US invasion that overthrew the junta and restored the country’s democratically elected president to power. Fifteen years later, Bill was appointed United Nations’ special envoy to Haiti, tasked with helping the country to develop its private sector and invigorate its economy. By 2010, the Clintons were two of Haiti’s largest benefactors. Their personal philanthropic fund, The Clinton Foundation, had 34 projects in the country, focused on things such as creating jobs. Continue reading...

State’s union movement says Labor government’s move could easily be used to target striking workersThe Queensland union movement says anti-protest laws being rushed through state parliament are a “slippery slope” that could easily target striking workers or suppress the activities of trade unions.The state’s legal affairs committee is holding an 11th hour hearing in Brisbane on the proposed laws, which target the disruptive tactics of climate change protesters. Continue reading...

Headlines capture optimistic mood after Anglo-Irish summit but hint of serious obtacles to be overcomeThe meeting between Boris Johnson and Irish leader Leo Varadkar, which has been dubbed “an “extraordinary summit” resulting in a “surprising burst of optimism”, leads on most of the front pages today.The Daily Mail asks with – one imagines – bated breath: “Dare we dream of a deal?” Continue reading...

New analysis confirms the relationship between climate drivers such as El Niño, climate change and the Australian bushfire seasonSummer might be more than six weeks away but out-of-control bushfires have already torn across parts of eastern Australia in recent days, killing two people, destroying homes and threatening more lives.By Wednesday afternoon up to 30 homes were feared lost or badly damaged by bushfires burning in northern New South Wales. About 40 fires burned across the state. Continue reading...

Sterling Mervyn Free sexually assaulted the girl after luring her away from the store at Westfield North LakesA Queensland man who abducted a girl from a Kmart and sexually abused her in bushland has been sentenced to eight years’ prison.Sterling Mervyn Free, 27, lured the girl from a Kmart store at Westfield North Lakes, north of Brisbane, in December last year. Continue reading...

Writers including Salman Rushdie, Hari Kunzru and Slavoj Žižek say the 2019 Nobel laureate ‘combines great insight with shocking ethical blindness’

Eight uniformed officers were brought onto a stage and forced to address a crowd of thousands of activists but were not harmedIndigenous protesters in Ecuador have paraded a group of captured police officers on stage in a brazen show of defiance to the government of Lenín Moreno, as protests against austerity-measures dragged into a second week.Eight uniformed officers were brought onto a stage and forced to address a crowd of thousands of activists who have occupied the Casa de Cultura theatre in the capital Quito. A group of journalists, including the Guardian, were also temporarily prevented from leaving the theatre. Continue reading...

Friday: ErdoÄŸan defiant as tens of thousands run from fighting. Plus, Australia thrash Nepal in World Cup qualifierGood morning, this is Helen Sullivan bringing you the main stories and must-reads on Friday 11 October. Continue reading...

Former Australian headteacher to remain in jail for remainder of extradition case over alleged child sex abuseIsrael’s supreme court has overturned a decision to release alleged child sex abuser Malka Leifer to house arrest.In a shock ruling last week, a Jerusalem district court announced that the former Melbourne headteacher wanted on 74 sexual assault charges in Australia should be released on bail. Continue reading...

Tickets for Iran-Cambodia match sell out in minutes after four decades of near-total ban

Baby’s death in prison cell | Court pendu plat apple | Sark | Lost cars | High tea | DessertsWhen a newborn baby dies because the mother has been left alone with no medical care in a privatised prison, the time has come for political change (Inquiries launched into death of baby in prison cell, 9 October). Handwringing apologies which ignore the fact that four women have also died at HMP Bronzefield since 2016 are indicative of the increasing collapse of penal provision. A country is judged by its prisons and this latest disaster would have Elizabeth Fry turning in her grave.

France’s candidate Sylvie Goulard rejected over job with thinktank and misuse of fundsEmmanuel Macron’s government has said “a political game” brought down France’s choice for European commissioner following an overwhelming rejection of the candidate by MEPs.In a vote that spells trouble for the incoming European commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, MEPs emphatically rejected the French commissioner candidate, former MEP and defence minister Sylvie Goulard. Continue reading...

China’s vice-premier, Liu He, to lead delegation in 13th round of talks as Trump tweets: ‘They want to make a deal, but do I?’

Europe says Polish judges can be disciplined for rulings and are not insulated from political controlPoland is being taken to the EU’s highest court over a law said to violate the principle of judicial independence.Just three days before parliamentary elections on Sunday, the European commission announced it was referring Poland to the European court of justice over its disciplinary regime for Polish judges. Continue reading...

Ceremony marks end of archaeological dig that unearthed web of tunnels and remains of 110 menThe plot of land – little bigger than two football pitches – has been described as “the first world war’s Pompeii”. But many of the secrets of those who fought and died on this Flemish field are still destined never to be told.At 11am on Thursday, the burial of 13 British and Commonwealth soldiers at Wytschaete military cemetery near Ypres brought to a close a nearby archaeological dig responsible for uncovering the remains of 110 men, an intricate web of trenches and tunnels, and arguably the most comprehensive snapshot of the changing fortunes and horror of the 1914-1918 war. Continue reading...

Prime ministers’ Wirral meeting appears to revive hope of agreement between UK and EU

Geraint Thomas, 47, from Cardiff had been accused of inappropriate sexual behaviourA partner at a global law firm who was found dead at the foot of cliffs had been suspended from his job for alleged inappropriate sexual behaviour at works parties, an inquest has been told.Geraint Thomas, 47, from Cardiff, worked for Eversheds Sutherland as a Brexit lawyer, giving advice to business owners preparing for the UK’s exit from the EU. Continue reading...

Police remove demonstrators staging sit-down protest at airport’s railway stationSeveral people have been arrested as dozens of Extinction Rebellion demonstrators staged a sit-down protest at an entrance to London City airport.Protesters chanted “fly today, gone tomorrow” as they sat at the exit of the airport’s Docklands Light Railway station, blocked by a line of police from entering the airport, just after 9am on Thursday. Continue reading...

Visitors disappointed as Instagram-famous tracks in Hanoi closed for safety reasonsSelfie-snapping tourists railed against the closure of Hanoi’s “train street” on Thursday after police blocked off the Instragram-famous tracks for safety reasons.The narrow railway corridor in central Hanoi has become a hotspot among visitors seeking the perfect holiday snap on the tracks – often dodging the trains that rumble through daily. Continue reading...

Samer Nashef, author of The Angina Monologues, tells of coronary bypass that didn’t go to planIt was a routine heart operation which was all going smoothly until one thing led to another and the surgeon set fire to his patient.The alarming but entertaining story of how a patient was flambéed on the operating table was told at Cheltenham literature festival by the leading heart surgeon and Guardian crossword setter, Samer Nashef. Continue reading...

Ontario premier, whose stock as an electoral asset has plummeted as the party struggles to build momentum outside their base, has been compared to TrumpWhen a brash businessman-turned-politician won a majority government in Canada’s most populous state in 2018, Conservatives in the country wondered if they could ride a similar populist wave to national victory in this year’s general election.Promising to slash income tax, cut fuel prices and repeal carbon pricing, Doug Ford took 41% of the vote and ended 15 years of Liberal rule in Ontario. Continue reading...

Former Supreme will make first appearance at the festival in Sunday teatime slotDiana Ross will play the Sunday afternoon “legends” slot at Glastonbury 2020, her first performance at the festival.“To all my fans across the world, this is my tribute to you,” Ross said. “Every concert feels like a private party, I can see your eyes and feel your hearts. I’m coming to Glastonbury, with love.” Continue reading...

‘They didn’t help us in WWII,’ fighters who stopped Isis are told … England v France cancelled due to typhoon … and Johnson to meet VaradkarGood morning, I’m Warren Murray and we can’t make the news all good, but we can make it all a bit more clear. Continue reading...

Deputy leader Richard Marles says ALP must be more pragmatic and become the party of ‘aspiration’Labor must be prepared to disappoint its supporters by avoiding “manufactured parliamentary tests” and helping to pass Morrison government legislation, its deputy leader, Richard Marles, suggests.In a draft of a speech to be delivered at the John Curtin research centre on Thursday, Marles has argued the opposition’s “clumsy” attempts to “walk the tightrope” on the Adani coalmine left blue-collar workers feeling abandoned at the last election and it must take a more pragmatic approach even if it risks disappointing “purists”. Continue reading...

Queensland government had asked for Guy Debelle to speak to meeting of state treasurers on climate and monetary policyThe treasurer, Josh Frydenberg, knocked back a request for the deputy governor of the Reserve Bank, Guy Debelle, to address a meeting of state treasurers on climate change.The Queensland treasurer, Jackie Trad, wrote to Frydenberg in June asking for Debelle to talk to treasurers at the October meeting of the council of federal financial relations in Canberra on Friday about how climate change could affect monetary policy, inflation and economic growth. Continue reading...

Woman, now 38, accused of killing baby boy when she was 14 and 55-year-old man now faces charges of historic child sexual abusePolice investigating the death of a newborn baby in 1995 have charged a Queensland man with raping the baby’s 14-year-old mother.The boy’s body was found in a caravan park in Kambalda, a mining town 60km south of Kalgoorlie, on 12 July 1995. Police believe it was discovered soon after his birth. Continue reading...

John Wood and Gemma Harris got married in West Sussex on 50th anniversary of show’s first broadcastA British couple spent two years and thousands of pounds planning their Monty Python-themed wedding in the hope of inspiring other superfans to try to find their Python-mad soulmate.John Wood, 59, who once won a competition looking for the biggest fan of the surreal comedy sketch show, and Gemma Harris, 35, tied the knot in a “totally bonkers” ceremony in West Sussex on 5 October, the 50th anniversary of the first Monty Python broadcast. Continue reading...

British rocker delays tour for second time and tells fans he is taking longer than expected to recover after a year of illnessBritish rocker Ozzy Osbourne has postponed his solo European tour for a second time but insisted that he was not dying or retiring despite a year of bad health.“I’m not dying, I am recovering. It’s just taking a little bit longer than everyone thought it would,” the 70-year-old former Black Sabbath frontman said in a video posted on his social media accounts. Continue reading...

Secret briefing spotted at media conference reveals US will not allow Anne Sacoolas to face questioning over crash that killed teenagerThe wife of a US diplomat suspected of involvement in the death of a British teenage motorcyclist will not be returned to the UK for trial, according to briefing notes provided to Donald Trump.Briefing notes for a press conference on Wednesday, pictured by a Washington Post photographer, tell the president to say: “(If raised) note, as Secretary Pompeo told [foreign secretary] Raab, that the spouse of the US Government employee will not return to the United Kingdom.” Continue reading...

Police investigation under way after blaze on Springfield Street on Wednesday afternoonTwo men have died in a fire at a working men’s club in Lancashire, police have said.They were rescued from the fire at the Gordon working men’s club in Morecambe, but died a short time later. Lancashire police said they were in the process of contacting next of kin. Continue reading...

Trump offers only mild criticism of ErdoÄŸan offensive as civilians flee bombing

Ali Jabernansari’s engagingly downbeat comedy-drama offers intriguing insights into life into modern Iranian lifeThree lonely souls in Tehran search for love in this interesting, downbeat comedy-drama from writer-director Ali Jabernansari. Part portrait of alienation in Iran, part examination of modern dating, its characters suffer as much from their own human frailties as they do from the oppressive politics of Iran’s theocratic regime. There are echoes here of Abbas Kiarostami and Asghar Farhadi, and something, too, of the bittersweet air of an American indie pic hangs over it.Forough Ghajabagli injects genuine sympathy into the sad-sacky role of Mina, a receptionist at a beauty clinic, unhappy with her weight and smouldering with bitterness. In her spare time, Mina anonymously stalks hot guys who come to the clinic (for laser hair removal mostly), messaging them with fake photos, pretending to be a model-beautiful woman called Sara. Continue reading...

Oversight committee says PM failed to provide details of contact with businesswomanBoris Johnson could be summoned by the London assembly after failing to provide details of his contact with a US businesswoman and explain how any potential conflict of interest was addressed.The assembly’s oversight committee gave Johnson 14 days to explain how grants and privileged access to trade trips were awarded to Jennifer Arcuri during his time as mayor. Johnson’s confidential response was sent to the watchdog on Tuesday night an hour after the initial deadline. Continue reading...

Campaigners demand change as study finds system may push jurors towards acquittal in rape casesCampaigners against sexual violence have renewed calls to abolish the controversial Scottish verdict of not proven as the UK’s largest study of jury behaviour reveals that the availability of this option may push more jurors towards acquittal before they have even discussed the evidence.Welcoming the landmark research, Scotland’s justice secretary, Humza Yousaf, said whether to move from a three- to a two-verdict system was central to further consultation on reform. Continue reading...

More than 50 MPs could refuse to stand at election if no-deal pledge is in manifesto