World news | The Guardian

Other lenders likely to follow suit as analysts say 0.25 percentage point cut could fuel summer of savings' for borrowers

At meeting with Idris Elba and victims' families, Labour leader says he will take strongest action in a generation'Keir Starmer has vowed to make tackling knife crime a moral mission" at an emotional meeting with victims' families and the actor Idris Elba.The Labour leader said he would take the strongest action in a generation" if elected and told campaigners to hold him to account on his progress within six months. Continue reading...

Luxury brand's studio team turn to timeless tweeds and neat silhouettes in first show since Virginie Viard's sudden exitThere were 12 boucle-tweed suits, in colours from pistachio to raspberry. There were endless swishy blond ponytails tied with black silk bows, and a clatter of satin mary-jane shoes with pearled heels. There were Hollywood faces - Keira Knightley and Michelle Williams - in the front row of the Palais Garnier opera house in Paris, countless quilted-flap 2.55 handbags in the front row and a finale bridal gown with a sweeping ivory silk train.But one crucial thing was missing from this season's Chanel haute couture show: a designer to take a bow. Since the sudden exit this month of the designer Virginie Viard, who had led Chanel since the death of Karl Lagerfeld five years ago, this mighty luxury brand, worth an estimated 15.5bn ($19.7bn), is headless. The vacancy for fashion's top job is the talk of Paris fashion week. Continue reading...

Fiery former foreign minister enters campaign to elect consensual reformist Masoud PezeshkianJavad Zarif, the former foreign minister and probably the Iranian politician best known to the west, has thrown himself into the campaign to elect the reformist Masoud Pezeshkian as the country's president.Zarif emerged from academia back to frontline politics to face heckling at public rallies, outright bans from one university and allegations that he is seeking to settle scores with those who thwarted his foreign policy when in office between 2013 and 2021. Continue reading...

Party says it can no longer support Craig Williams and Laura Saunders - who are under investigation over alleged bets

Stellantis says it will decide in less than a year' whether to keep Ellesmere Port and Luton production lines open

Journalist alleges public broadcaster sacked her without proper basis and without due process

The largest KFC franchisee in Australia, Collins Foods, has defied expectations with a 6.6% lift in revenue

Banking watchdog finds Westpac committed serious and systematic' breaches when closing remote NT branch in 2022

Federal health minister counters that Pharmacy Guild did not make submission to regulation inquiry and selling vapes still a decision for individual stores

Prosecution claims Anne Geeves and husband Robert, who have both pleaded not guilty, used Haigh as a surrogate mother' and then killed her

Reports surface days before UN summit on Afghanistan that will exclude Afghan women and debate on women's rightsTeenage girls and young women arrested by the Taliban for wearing bad hijab" say they have been subjected to sexual violence and assault in detention.In more than one case the arrests and sexual abuse that young women faced while in custody earlier this year led to suicide and attempted suicide, reporters from the Afghan news service Zan Times were told. Continue reading...

Unfair' rejection rates of up to 70% harm cultural diversity and create a global apartheid', say promoters and musiciansMusicians, authors, producers and festival managers have hit out at humiliating" and costly visa-rejection rates for African and Asian artists visiting Britain and European Union countries, saying it is having a chilling impact on cultural diversity.Analysis shows the UK last year raised 44m in fees for visa applications that were then rejected, mainly coming from low- and middle-income countries. The EU made 130m (110m). Continue reading...

Amid a loosening of Israel's approach to targeting, a record number of media workers have been killed in GazaAs Israel's offensive in Gaza has become the deadliest conflict for journalists in recent history, its military has repeatedly said it is not deliberately targeting the media.There is no policy of targeting media personnel," a senior official said, attributing the record number of journalists killed to the scale and intensity of a bombardment in which so many of Gaza's civilians have died. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Poll finds widespread unhappiness in European countries with way things are going, and lack of optimismBritons are the most likely of seven European nations to say their country is in a sorry state, but the French are the most likely to think things will get worse over the next 12 months, according to a poll weeks before high-stakes elections in both countries.With the exception of Denmark, however, none of the European countries surveyed by YouGov in late May and early June revealed themselves to be particularly happy with the the way things were going, or overly optimistic for the future. Continue reading...

Cause of death of two men, a woman and a boy in Broadmeadows yet to be determined, police say

One in four customers who purchased GPS tracking device had history of domestic violence offending, NSW Crime Commission study findsOne in four people who purchase tracking devices in New South Wales have a history of domestic violence, a new state Crime Commission report suggests.The study, released on Tuesday, states there has been a sharp rise" in the use of trackers in recent years, including among organised crime networks to monitor, locate and ultimately attack their rivals". Continue reading...

Qantas comes 24th in Skytrax world airline awards, a month after $100m fine for allegedly selling flights to customers which did not exist

Dismissal of Lt Gen Yuriy Sodol comes amid series of personnel changes by Ukrainian presidentPresident Volodymyr Zelenskiy has replaced the commander of the Joint Forces Command of Ukraine's military, after a well-known soldier accused the commander of causing mass casualties in the war with Russia.In his nightly video address on Monday, Zelenskiy said Lt Gen Yuriy Sodol had been replaced by Brig Gen Andriy Hnatov, without giving a reason for the shake up. Continue reading...

Hiker, whose body was discovered near a ravine in Crete, is sixth tourist to die in the country this month amid soaring temperaturesA German hiker has been found dead on the island of Crete, the fire department said - the latest tourist fatality during a period of unseasonably high temperatures in Greece.The man had been declared missing on Sunday and was found near a ravine in the south of the island, the fire department said in a statement. Continue reading...

Prime minister says he fought against predecessor's plans and warns of migration surge if Labour scraps Rwanda planKeir Starmer has defended serving in Jeremy Corbyn's shadow cabinet, saying he wanted to help preserve the Labour party and that he always knew there was going to be a day after".Speaking in separate interviews hosted by the Sun newspaper that included questions from a watching audience, Rishi Sunak and Starmer underwent at times difficult interrogations, including over migration and the NHS. Continue reading...

Iain Duncan Smith and Tobias Ellwood make case for new rules as questions raised over 500 wagerSenior Conservatives and campaigners are calling for a ban on political bets by MPs, as the Gambling Commission was urged to look into another 500 wager connected with the growing election gambling scandal.The former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith said parties should examine the rules when parliament returns amid growing outrage over Tory candidates and aides allegedly staking money on politics. The former defence minister Tobias Ellwood also said there should be new restrictions. Continue reading...

Latest snapshot also finds half of households have had to sell or swap clothes for food, despite pressure on Israel to improve aid deliveriesMore than half of households in Gaza have had to sell or swap their clothes to be able to buy food, the UN is to report, as a high risk of famine remains across the whole of the territory after a new round of violence in recent weeks.The latest Special Snapshot" of Gaza from the UN's hunger monitoring system, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), that will be published on Tuesday also says that one in five of the population - more than 495,000 people - are now facing catastrophic levels of acute food insecurity" involving an extreme lack of food, starvation, and exhaustion". Continue reading...

Activists and candidates sent to campaign for Cleverly, Dowden and Barclay, who all hold 20,000-plus majorities

Rishi Sunak says his party will act on any relevant findings or information' as he denies placing any bets himself

State security service said last month it had caught two guard service colonels accused of cooperating with Russia to plot Zelenskiy's assassinationUkraine's state security service (SBU) said it had detained a mole" spying for Russia who passed on information about Ukrainian troop positions on the border with Belarus.The SBU wrote on Telegram:At the instruction of the occupiers (Russian military), the mole' established the locations of fortified areas and the approximate number of Ukrainian troops defending the border with Belarus.He also tried to transmit the coordinates of warehouses with weapons and ammunition of the armed forces of Ukraine in the region.For the first time, the EU has adopted a measure targeting specific vessels contributing to Russia's warfare against Ukraine, which are subject to a port access ban and ban on provision of services.These vessels can be designated for various reasons such as the transport of military equipment for Russia, the transport of stolen Ukrainian grain, and support in the development of Russia's energy sector, for instance through the transport of LNG components or transshipments of LNG. Continue reading...

Nurse convicted last year of seven murders takes stand for first time in attempted murder trialLucy Letby has denied ever having murdered babies as she gave evidence in her trial over the alleged attempted murder of a two-hour-old infant.The nurse also said on Monday that she had never tried or intended to harm any newborn in her care at the Countess of Chester hospital in north-west England. Continue reading...

Many describe Hunt as a good local MP but some are looking to tactical voting to punish the Conservatives

Princess Royal in hospital for observation after being injured by horse at Gatcombe Park estate, it is understoodThe Princess Royal is in hospital with a head injury and concussion after an incident in which she was understood to have been injured by a horse.Princess Anne, 73, suffered a concussion and minor injuries, thought to possibly have been caused by being either headbutted or kicked by a horse on her estate at Gatcombe Park in Gloucestershire on Sunday. Continue reading...

Three days of mourning declared after 15 people reportedly killed during multiple assaults in restive provinceFive people responsible for multiple gun attacks targeting churches and synagogues in Russia's Dagestan region have been eliminated", said the authorities as the region began three days of mourning.A criminal investigation has been launched under anti-terrorism laws after gunmen killed 19 people in co-ordinated attacks in two cities in the restive region in the North Caucasus. Continue reading...

Independent candidate Akhmed Yakoob pledges to fight misogyny' after outcry over podcast comments

Racing Post describes shake-up as significant blow' to profile of sport as it struggles to stay relevantBBC Radio 4's Today programme is axing its daily horse-racing tips, which will now be offered only for the biggest days in the racing calendar, the presenter Amol Rajan has announced on air.Racing tips have been part of the news programme for 47 years and the decision to scrap them was described by the Racing Post as a significant blow for the profile of the sport as it battles to maintain relevance with the wider public". Continue reading...

Sports Direct owner to acquire luxury goods sites and sell online retailer's protein powder in its shops

Labour candidate and police urge witnesses to come forward after frontage smashed with hammer and sprayed with graffitiThe Labour candidate Stella Creasy has said she will not be intimidated after a window and door of her office in north-east London was smashed by an attacker.Creasy, who is standing again for her former Walthamstow seat, posted CCTV photos of a man dressed in black who she said had attacked the office with a hammer and sprayed it with graffiti. If you know who this is please stand up for democracy and come forward," she wrote on X. Continue reading...

Government's original proposal would have made vapes a prescription-only product but Greens raised concerns about criminalising users and cost of seeing a GP

Albanese government wants bill passed to lift Sam Mostyn's salary by 43%, in line with estimated average of chief justice of the high court's salary

Brazilian man, whose fate is uncertain, allegedly spent month hiding out at property in Lurnea after alleged bungled drug plot at Newcastle harbour

Zambia's Mubita Nawa, who is on shortlist for top job, is accused of involvement in an attempted extortion in 2022A candidate to be the next head of Interpol has been accused of involvement in the kidnap, detention, assault and attempted extortion of two Indian businessmen.Lawyers for Vinod and Uddit Sadhu have written to Interpol saying the allegations against Mubita Nawa, a deputy commissioner of police in Zambia, suggest he is plainly unsuitable" to be its next secretary general. Continue reading...

Images, which have not been widely seen before, are part of exhibition to mark 40th anniversary of the fireDramatic photographs showing just how close York Minster came to being destroyed by fire after a freak lightning bolt are to go on public display to mark the day's 40th anniversary.Many of the images have not been widely seen before. They include photographs taken by a neighbour through a bedroom window, which vividly show the intensity of the blaze at its height. Continue reading...

Six volunteers shared their phone activity to give a snapshot of how voters keep themselves abreast of current affairsIs this the first post-mainstream-media election? The Guardian asked six volunteers to record their phone screens for three days - and the results provide a glimpse of what news, if any, the British public is consuming as they go to the polls.Zoya, 28, a British-Pakistani woman in Birmingham, used to be a loyal Labour voter who knew nothing about Palestine. After watching TikTok videos and AI-generated Instagram posts, she is now a Green supporter who feels Gaza is her top issue. Continue reading...

Exclusive UK accused of trying to head off condemnation of Gulf ally over alleged aid to forces accused of genocide in DarfurUK government officials attempted to suppress criticism of the United Arab Emirates and its alleged role in supplying arms to a notorious militia waging a campaign of ethnic cleansing in Sudan, sources have told the Guardian.Claims that Foreign Office officials put pressure on African diplomats to avoid criticising the UAE over its alleged military support for Sudan's Rapid Support Forces (RSF) will intensify scrutiny of the UK's relationship with the Gulf state. Continue reading...

Adult cats were released into national park last year after British population had come close to extinctionThe birth of wildcat kittens in the Cairngorms national park has been hailed as a major milestone" in efforts to rescue the secretive mammals from extinction in the UK.In footage exclusively shared with the Guardian by the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS), two of the kittens can be seen playing in grassland with their mother and leaping on to a fallen tree branch. Continue reading...

Employers told to prepare for wave of sickies or last-minute requests for time off as warm weather coincides with Euros matchA surge in workers taking a day off, working from home or calling in sick is being forecast for Wednesday as the aftermath of England's last group game in the Euros combines with an expected heatwave.After a cold, damp start to June, warm weather is predicted across the UK from Monday, and temperatures of up to 31C are likely in south-east England. Continue reading...

Transfer of seven detainees to custody 17,000 kilometres away on charges tied to deadly unrest criticised as political deportation'Buildings, including a police station and a town hall, were set on fire in New Caledonia overnight, authorities said, as the French Pacific territory was hit by a new surge of unrest.It comes after seven independence activists linked to a group accused of orchestrating deadly riots last month in the French Pacific territory were sent to mainland France for pre-trial detention, a local prosecutor said. Continue reading...

Hany Bebawy wins bid to overturn suspension, after two women alleged they were inappropriately touched at one of his three clinics in Victoria - claims that he denies

South Australia police investigate after reports of two groups of young males fighting in food court area of the Westfield Marion centre

Riyadh says more than four-fifths did not have permit to make pilgrimage to Mecca, where temperatures hit 51.8CAt least 1,300 people have died during the hajj pilgrimage, which took place during intense heat, Saudi Arabia has said, adding that most of the deceased did not have official permits.Regrettably, the number of mortalities reached 1,301, with 83% being unauthorised to perform hajj and having walked long distances under direct sunlight, without adequate shelter or comfort," the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported. Continue reading...

Officers search around two structures at bottom of ravine in rugged Rural de Teno parkOutbuildings close to where the missing teenager Jay Slater's phone last picked up signal are the current focus of a police search in Tenerife.As the hunt for the 19-year-old continued for a seventh day on the Canary island, his mother thanked those who had together donated more than 30,000 to a GoFundMe page, exceeding its target. Continue reading...

Company is looking for help from next government to upgrade to less polluting technologyChinese-owned British Steel has reportedly submitted a request for a package of taxpayer support worth 600m as it looks for assistance from the next government to upgrade to less polluting technology.Government officials are due to review plans that set out the costs of switching from blast furnaces to electric arc furnaces at the company's steelworks in Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, the Sunday Times reported. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Party has pledged to abolish House of Lords but plans initial appointments to bolster its benchesLabour is to appoint dozens of peers within weeks in an attempt to push through its policies and improve the representation of women in the House of Lords, the Guardian has learned.Senior Labour figures have drawn up a list of peerages to bolster the party benches and help implement its legislative programme if it wins the election on 4 July. The Conservatives have 104 more peers than Labour, while fewer than a third of the 784 members of parliament's second chamber are women. Continue reading...