Officials working to identify people found in Alexandroupolis region as firefighters battle second wave of firesThe bodies of 18 people have been found in an area of north-east Greece where firefighters are battling a major wildfire, authorities have said, as a record-breaking late summer heatwave continues to sear swathes of continental Europe.Hundreds of firefighters were struggling on Tuesday to contain dozens of outbreaks, including several burning out of control for several days that have forced widespread evacuations, in the second deadly wave of blazes in Greece in a month. Continue reading...
The studio behind John Wick and The Hunger Games has reinstated the use of masks after several employees tested positive for Covid-19The Hollywood film studio Lionsgate has reinstated its mask mandate as cases of Covid-19 continue to rise.In a company-wide email obtained by Deadline, it was announced that nearly half of the company's employees would need to wear medical grade" face masks again in the flagship offices in Los Angeles. The rule applies except when alone in an office with the door closed, actively eating, actively drinking at their desk or workstation, or if they are the only individual present in a large open workspace". Continue reading...
Local people puzzled over motive for theft of signs on route around a lonely moor in north WalesThe culprit has been called the phantom post snatcher", who for some unfathomable reason has taken to whisking away signs installed to help guide ramblers across a lonely moor in north Wales.The snatcher, or snatchers - there may be more than one - has been pinching way-markers from a remote spot on the 83-mile Snowdonia Slate Trail, putting walkers at risk of wandering off the beaten path in misty weather into the mire. Continue reading...
MoJ policy says such restraints must only be used in emergency scenariosStaff working in children's prisons are to be banned from using techniques that deliberately cause pain, except in emergency scenarios to save life or to prevent life-changing injury.The new Ministry of Justice policy, for England and Wales, which follows a review completed by the now chief inspector of prisons Charlie Taylor in 2020, will be effective from February 2024. It states that it is never acceptable to deliberately cause pain when a non-painful alternative can safely achieve the same objective". Continue reading...
Watchdog says policy on prescribed drugs could lead to a medical emergency and endanger livesA watchdog has condemned the Home Office for confiscating life-saving prescription drugs from people it detains.Rules requiring guards to take away prescribed medicines from people at short-term holding facilities (STFHs), where migrants can be detained for up to 24 hours, could lead to a medical emergency and endanger their lives, says the annual report of the Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) for the North East, Midlands and Yorkshire & Humber STHF published on Tuesday. Continue reading...
Shoppers warned to be careful with sales as collapsed budget chain only selling goods in its storesShoppers have been warned to avoid a spate of fake websites attempting to scam bargain hunters by pretending to offer heavily discounted goods from the collapsed budget chain Wilko.Wilko is no longer selling goods online and has stopped all home deliveries or click and collect services after calling in administrators from PricewaterhouseCoopers on 10 August as it ran short of cash. Goods are only available to buy directly in one of its 400 stores. Continue reading...
by Rebecca Ratcliffe South-east Asia correspondent on (#6E18K)
Arrangement angers many Pheu Thai supporters and could coincide with former PM's return from exileThe party associated with Thailand's former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra has struck a deal with its former military rivals, a move that could coincide with his return after more than 15 years in exile.The deal announced on Monday has angered many Pheu Thai supporters, as well as those of the reformist Move Forward party that won the most votes and seats in the May general election but whose leader was blocked from taking office. Continue reading...
Canary Islands regional president opens inquiry into fire, while people flee from four Greek villagesAn out-of-control wildfire on Tenerife that has forced thousands to flee was started deliberately, authorities have said, as four more villages in Greece were evacuated in the face of another advancing blaze and more than half of mainland France was on extreme heat alert.As much of southern Europe continues to roast after July was named the world's hottest month on record, the Canary Islands regional president, Fernando Clavijo, said on Sunday that police had confirmed the blaze raging on the Spanish island since Tuesday had been lit intentionally, and had opened three separate lines of inquiry. Continue reading...
by Josh Halliday North of England correspondent on (#6E0P2)
Exclusive: Officers investigating suspicious' incidents at Countess of Chester and Liverpool women's hospitalsPolice believe Lucy Letby, the nurse convicted of murdering seven babies, may have harmed dozens more infants at two hospitals in the north-west of England, the Guardian has been told.A source with knowledge of the police investigation said detectives had identified about 30 babies who suffered suspicious" incidents at the Countess of Chester hospital where she worked. Continue reading...
Anti-radiation and anti-tank missiles among purchase which will be locked in just days after raucous internal debate at Labor conference over Aukus pact
Exclusive: Consultancy firm ran event at Department of Health and Aged Care in December, days before former PwC partner was banned by tax advice regulator
Detective from force's specialist crime unit says cross-border operation was the result of four years' workThree men have been convicted after a 2m vase stolen from a museum was recovered in a police sting operation.The Chinese Ming dynasty vase was stolen from the Museum of Far Eastern Art in Geneva, in Switzerland in June 2019. Three men plotted to sell it on for hundreds of thousands of pounds, but were caught in a Scotland Yard operation. Continue reading...
Global temperature was warmest on record last month as Britain faced cloudy and wet conditionsAt the start of this week Nasa announced that July 2023 had the highest global temperature recorded for that month since 1880. It was also the warmest month on record.Readers in the UK may find this hard to believe, given the wet and generally miserable conditions in the country that month. Britain received 19% less sunshine and 170% more rain compared with the 1991-2020 average. Continue reading...
Talks in Riyadh declared successful by Tehran after years of hostility between regional rivalsIran's foreign minister has visited Saudi Arabia, the first such trip in years, marking the continuing thaw in relations between two powers who recently have been locked in destabilising competition.The visit by Hossein Amir-Abdollahian comes as the countries have been trying to ease tensions including over Iran's nuclear programme, the Saudi-led war in Yemen and security across the region's waterways. Continue reading...
ONS figures for 2022 also show record proportion of babies whose mothers were born outside UKThe number of babies born in England and Wales in a year dropped in 2022 to the lowest level in two decades, according to official figures.It follows the recent trend of decreasing live births, which had been the case before the pandemic, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said. Continue reading...
Eight onboard and two motorists on ground killed as aircraft comes down in ElminaA light plane crashed into a street in Malaysia's central Selangor state on Thursday, killing eight people on board and two motorists on the ground.For now, I can say at least 10 people were killed in the plane crash. Two passing motorists - one in a car and one on a motorcycle - also perished together with the eight onboard the plane," said the local police chief, Mohamad Iqbal Ibrahim. Continue reading...
Dietmar Bartsch's departure comes days after his co-chair of the leftwing party, Amira Mohamed Ali, resignedGermany's ailing leftwing party Die Linke has come another step closer to splitting following the resignation of its parliamentary co-chair amid deep divisions within the bloc.Dietmar Bartsch's departure comes just days after his co-chair, Amira Mohamed Ali, announced she was resigning. Continue reading...
Fire and Rescue New South Wales confirms discovery of the material after it was called to assist Australian Border Force during search of Arncliffe property
The Lib Dems criticise the PM after he suggested some people did not realise the government was still providing bill supportJohn McTernan writes for the Guardian today, calling for Labour to stop being so cautious and make the election a referendum on net zero:Or nearly everything. Labour currently lacks one vital quality: confidence. While heading for a victory bigger than Tony Blair's landslide of 1997, the party appears to be too frightened to fight. Whenever the Tories do something profoundly amoral or un-British - such as telling refugees to fuck off", as their vice-chair, Lee Anderson, recently did - Labour seems scared of going on the attack. Continue reading...
Co-author of Sister Sledge song about inclusion and diversity' condemns move by rightwing SVPThe songwriter and musician Nile Rodgers has asked Switzerland's rightwing populist Swiss People's party (SVP) to cease and desist from using a soundalike" version of Sister Sledge's hit We Are Family in its election campaigns.Ahead of Swiss parliamentary elections in October, the Eurosceptic and anti-immigration SVP on Monday released Das Isch d'SVP (That's the SVP), a song whose chorus directly echoes that of the 1979 Sister Sledge hit composed by Rodgers and Bernard Edwards. Continue reading...
The book would continue the two he wrote with the late Peter Straub, while new stories are due next yearStephen King has suggested that he may write a third instalment of the two-book Talisman series, which he co-wrote with the late Peter Straub. Asked on a podcast if his days of writing epics" were in the past, King replied never say never". Before he died, Peter sent me this long letter and said we oughta do the third one, and he gave me a really cool idea and I had some ideas of my own," he said.Speaking as a guest on an episode of the Talking Scared podcast, King added that the volume - which would follow The Talisman and its sequel, Black House - would be a long book". Continue reading...
Figure fell from 1.15 in 2021 to 1.09, the lowest of any country with a population over 100 millionChina's fertility rate dropped to an estimated record low of 1.09 in 2022, the lowest of any country with a population over 100 million, according to government data.Demographers from the China Population and Development Research Centre, a Chinese government research institution, released data indicating that last year's fertility rate fell to 1.09 from 1.15 in 2021, below Japan's rate for the same time period and only slightly higher than South Korea's, which was estimated to be 0.8. Continue reading...
Government confirms ticket price rises will be delayed until March and will be below retail prices indexRail fare rises in England will not exceed 9% next year and will be delayed until March, the government has said.Ticket costs used to increase in January in line with inflation as measured by the retail prices index over the 12 months to the previous July. On Wednesday the Office for National Statistics revealed last month's RPI rate was 9%. Continue reading...
Christian family accused of desecrating copy of Qur'an, setting off rampage in FaisalabadA Muslim crowd has attacked a Christian community in eastern Pakistan, vandalising several churches and setting scores of houses on fire, after accusing its members of desecrating a copy of the Qur'an.Hundreds of people armed with sticks and rocks stormed a predominantly Christian area in Faisalabad on Wednesday. Images on social media showed smoke rising from church buildings and people setting fire to furniture. Continue reading...
Three killed in Russian strikes on Volyn; Russia raises interest rates to 12%Three people were killed, several people were wounded and buildings were damaged in a large-scale air-attack on Ukraine's western region of Lviv and the north-western region of Volyn. Many missiles were shot down, but there were also hits in Lviv," city mayor Andriy Sadovyi said, adding that orders were given to evacuate at least one burning apartment building. The barrage came just hours before top Russian military officials and their counterparts from allied countries in Asia, the Middle East and Africa gathered outside Moscow for a security conference.The Bank of Russia raised its key rate to 12% from 8.5%. The statement announcing the increase did not mention the rouble, which dropped to its lowest level in nearly 17 months on Monday. The Russian currency was boosted by the central bank's move.Russia fined social media site Reddit for the first time for not deleting banned content" that it said contained fake" information about Russia's military campaign in Ukraine, RIA reported, citing a Moscow court. Reddit joins a list of sites under scrutiny in Russia for failing to remove content that Moscow deems illegal, including Wikimedia, streaming service Twitch, and Google.Three Bulgarian nationals suspected of spying for Russia while living in the UK have been arrested and charged, police have said. The defendants were among five people detained in February after a long-running counter-terrorism investigation. Three of those were then charged with possession of false identity documents, according to the Metropolitan police, which is responsible for espionage cases.Andriy Yermak, head of the office of the president of Ukraine, said Russian athletes should be banned from participating in international competitions after Russian strikes destroyed a sports facility in Dnipro. Kira Rudik, a Ukrainian MP and the leader of the liberal Golos party, also said Ukraine will boycott the Olympic Games if Russia and Belarus participate in the competition.Mali's military leader Assimi Goita said on Tuesday that he had spoken on the phone to the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, about the coup in Niger. Putin stressed the importance of a peaceful resolution of the situation for a more stable Sahel," Mali's interim president, Assimi Goita, said on Twitter. The Kremlin said the call was initiated by Mali. The statement added: The parties specifically focused on the current situation in the Sahara-Sahel region and emphasised, in particular, the importance of settling the situation in the Republic of Niger solely through peaceful political and diplomatic means."The US said that Russia would be violating UN resolutions if it reaches an arms deal with North Korea, after the two countries' leaders called for greater cooperation. State department spokesperson Vedant Patel told reporters: Any kind of security cooperation or arms deal between North Korea and Russia would certainly violate a series of UN security council resolutions."Sweden's government said Tuesday that it would donate to Ukraine ammunition and spare parts for previously donated weapon systems worth over $300m (240m). Speaking at press conference, defence minister Pal Jonson said the military aid package, Sweden's 13th to Ukraine, would include ammunition and spare parts valued at about 3.4bn kronor ($313m/250m).The Ukrainian government is to build new fortifications and military infrastructure in northeast regions that border Russia and Belarus at a cost of nearly $35m, prime minister Denys Shmyhal said on Tuesday.Ukrainian president Zelenskiy visited the south-eastern region of Zaporizhzhia and met troops fighting in the counteroffensive against Russian forces, the president's office said on Tuesday. Zelenskiy was shown in a video with senior Ukrainian soldiers examining a battlefield map at what the president's office said was the frontline command point of the 46th separate airmobile brigade, near the town of Orikhiv.Russia and North Korea on Tuesday advocated closer collaboration including in the defence sector. Moscow and Pyongyang have drawn closer since the Kremlin deployed troops to Ukraine and commenced large-scale hostilities last year, according to AFP. Continue reading...
Joint statement from UN agencies lays bare the effect of violence on the country's food and healthcare systemsMore than 1 million people have fled Sudan to neighbouring states, as people inside the country are running out of food and dying due to a lack of healthcare after four months of war, the United Nations has said.Fighting between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has devastated the capital Khartoum and sparked ethnically driven attacks in Darfur, threatening to plunge Sudan into a protracted civil war and destabilise the region. Continue reading...
Thousands of images from second world war include bomb damage to Old Trafford and troops at leisureBlack-and-white aerial photographs offering a bird's eye view of England as it changed during the second world war are being made available to the public for the first time.The 3,600 images include pictures of bomb damage to Old Trafford in Greater Manchester, as well as other towns and cities. They also show ancient monuments surrounded by anti-tank defences in West Sussex, and troops at play at a US army camp in Wiltshire. Continue reading...
Health secretary suggested patients could go directly to diagnostic test or clinician to ease bottleneck' in NHS systemPatients with cancer symptoms could bypass their GP in the future and go straight for a scan, the health secretary has suggested, in the latest radical" attempt by the government to cut huge NHS waiting lists.The suggestion, which comes as the government is expected to reduce the number of NHS cancer waiting time targets, could form part of proposals to design out bottlenecks" in the NHS system, Steve Barclay said in an interview. Continue reading...
Republican says no one has produced evidence of fraud in court of law despite ex-president's vow to present irrefutable' proofGeorgia's Republican governor, Brian Kemp, insisted on Tuesday that the 2020 presidential election in his state was not stolen" in an apparent defense of the latest criminal indictment of Donald Trump.Kemp, who has clashed frequently with the former president over his false claim the election was rigged, responded on Twitter to an earlier post on Truth Social from Trump announcing a press conference next week at which he promised to present irrefutable" evidence of fraud. Continue reading...
Event celebrates Afghan culture and protests against restrictions on women and girls two years after Taliban offensiveHordes of colourful kites soared into the sky over London in solidarity with the people of Afghanistan on the second anniversary of the fall of their homeland to the Taliban.Participants said the event, at a park in north London, was intended to demonstrate how colourful" the culture of Afghanistan once was and to provide a voice, far from our home" for all the Afghans, especially women and girls, living under the Taliban's oppressive regime. Continue reading...
Legal case against Deja Taylor seeks accountability for January shooting, including teacher's $40m lawsuit against the schoolThe mother of a six-year-old boy who shot his teacher in Virginia pleaded guilty on Tuesday to a charge of felony child neglect, seven months after her son used her handgun to critically wound the educator in a classroom full of students.Prosecutors agreed to drop a misdemeanor charge of reckless storage of a firearm against Deja Taylor. As part of the plea agreement, prosecutors said they will not seek a sentence that is longer than state sentencing guidelines, which call for six months in jail or prison. Continue reading...
Tyler Massengill admitted to using homemade explosive to set fire in January, after governor signed law with abortion protectionsA man who set a fire at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Illinois was sentenced on Tuesday to 10 years in federal prison.Tyler Massengill has admitted using a homemade explosive to set a fire at the Peoria clinic in January, a few days after the Democratic governor, JB Pritzker, signed a law with additional legal protections for abortion procedures. No one was inside the clinic when the fire happened. Continue reading...
by Presented by Nosheen Iqbal with Daniel Trilling an on (#6DVFE)
After removing asylum seekers from the Bibby Stockholm barge on Friday, the government says they will be returned as soon as possible'. Daniel Trilling and Sammy Gecsoyler reportThe government plans to house up to 500 asylum seekers on the Bibby Stockholm, a barge docked in the Port of Portland, Dorset. However, due to concerns over the potentially deadly legionella bacteria being found onboard, the first 39 people to be housed on the vessel were evacuated on Friday.Dr Sapna Mawkin, a GP working on the barge, conducted health screenings on board last week. She tells Nosheen Iqbal what health concerns asylum seekers have when they arrive in the UK. Continue reading...
Mayor of Portland says buck stops with Suella Braverman' after it took three days to inform ministers about outbreakThe Home Office should accept responsibility for failing to immediately remove asylum seekers from a giant barge after the detection of a dangerous bacteria, the mayor of Portland has said.Carralyn Parkes said the the buck stops with Suella [Braverman]" after Whitehall briefings over the weekend claimed that contractors on the Bibby Stockholm were to blame for delays as it took three days to inform ministers about the outbreak of legionella. Continue reading...
by Kalyeena Makortoff Banking correspondent on (#6DV1B)
Inquiry aims to find out extent of denial of banking services to politically exposed persons such as politicians and army leadersThe City watchdog is to write to politicians and civil servants asking whether they have been denied banking or other financial services, following the scandal that erupted after Nigel Farage's accounts were threatened with closure.The Financial Conduct Authority plans to send letters on Tuesday to politically exposed persons (PEPs) - who include MPs, peers, leaders of UK political parties and senior ranking military officers - to ascertain whether individuals are struggling to secure services and how widespread the problem may be. Continue reading...
The World Cup clash with England's Lionesses has pushed aside restaurant bookings, trivia nights, movies - and football trainingGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastCaught up in Matildas mania, Australians are abandoning everything from live gigs to restaurant bookings to watch the World Cup semi-final against England on Wednesday night.For some it's an economic boon but even many who have given up a night's earnings have said they were happy to do so.Sign up for Guardian Australia's free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup Continue reading...
Activist Mikaela Loach staged protest over investment firm's bankrolling' of the climate crisisA leading climate crisis author has staged a walkout at the Edinburgh international book festival in protest at its sponsor's links to fossil fuel companies.The author and climate activist Mikaela Loach interrupted a discussion about changing the climate narrative on Saturday evening to lead a demonstration about the festival's main sponsor, the investment company Baillie Gifford. Continue reading...
by Mark Brown North of England correspondent on (#6DT6T)
Met Office issues yellow warning until 9pm on Monday, after which conditions should become drier and much warmerA yellow weather warning of heavy, persistent rain and possible flooding has been issued for parts of Wales and northern England on Monday.After the downpours, however, there should be sunshine with temperatures expected to reach 30C (86F) in southern England by the weekend, the Met Office said. Continue reading...
Tim Loughton criticises announcement as hostage to fortune' after more than 500 people cross Channel on SaturdayA senior Conservative MP has questioned the government's immigration strategy, after 509 people were found to have crossed the Channel on the same day six people lost their lives off the French coast.Tim Loughton, the MP for East Worthing and Shoreham, said it was not a good idea" for the Tories to boast of a week dedicated to immigration announcements, which they billed as small boats week", as it was a hostage to fortune". Continue reading...
Asylum seekers were evacuated from vessel following detection of bacteria that can cause legionnaires' diseaseThe clean-up of legionella bacteria on the Bibby Stockholm barge could take around a week, a leading expert has said, after asylum seekers were evacuated from the vessel following the detection of the health hazard.Legionella bacteria can cause legionnaires' disease, a type of severe pneumonia, if small droplets of water containing the bacteria are inhaled. In some cases, legionnaires' disease can be fatal. Continue reading...
Fred Thomas has been selected as the Labour candidate to run against the veteran's minister at the next electionA former Royal Marines captain is aiming to neutralise Johnny Mercer's electoral trump card" of having a military service record, after being selected by Labour to stand against the veterans' minister at the next general election.Fred Thomas, 31, who spent seven years in the elite commando force, will be attempting to overturn a nearly 13,000 Conservative majority in Plymouth Moor View. Continue reading...
Officials say 900 homes were left without power following disaster, which struck after unusually high rainfall and two typhoonsA mudslide in China's north-western city of Xi'an has killed 21 people, with six still missing, officials said on Sunday.The city's emergency management authority released an update on the number of casualties from Friday's disaster as China grapples with unusually high summer rainfall. Continue reading...
by Constance Malleret in Rio de Janeiro on (#6DT1Q)
Thaigo Menezes Flausino, who dreamed of becoming a footballer, is the ninth child in a shooting this year in RioThose who knew Thiago Menezes Flausino described him as a boy with dreams. These were brutally shattered by several police bullets this week, when the 13-year-old became the latest victim of state violence in a Rio de Janeiro favela.He dreamed of becoming a professional footballer. He'd passed tryouts for a bigger team and was going to start playing on the day he was killed," said his aunt Nataly Bezerra Flausino, standing outside the evangelical church where her nephew's funeral was being held on Tuesday - mere months after his baptism. Continue reading...
England's health secretary says devolved administrations have worse backlogs, which they robustly disputeWelsh and Scottish patients who are waiting for treatment on lengthy NHS lists could request care on the health service in England, Steve Barclay has said.The health secretary invited ministers from the devolved administrations to discuss different approaches taken to address the record backlogs. Continue reading...
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