World news | The Guardian

This live blog is now closed, you can find our latest coverage of the Russia-Ukraine war hereThe UK’s foreign secretary, Liz Truss, has refused to be drawn on whether she would negotiate directly with the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic over the situation of Aiden Aslin and Shaun Pinner. The two British men have been sentenced to death in eastern Ukraine by what Truss called a “sham trial”. She told listeners of the BBC’s Radio 4 Today programme:The two people were fighting for the Ukrainian army. They were permanently located in Ukraine and they are prisoners of war. And the case is being taken up by the Ukrainians, by the Ukrainian foreign minister.I am doing everything I can, in the best way I can, in the way that I judge is most effective, to deliver these people’s release.These people are prisoners of war, fighting for the Ukrainian army. And it’s important to maintain that principle. And the Russian proxies are violating the Geneva Convention. And we need to be very, very clear about that.That’s why the best route is through the Ukrainians, and I can’t go into the details of my discussions with the Ukrainians, but I can assure you, and I can assure the families, that we’re working flat out on this.Crews of ground attack aviation launched rocket air strikes on military facilities and equipment of units of the armed forces of Ukraine. Missile launches were carried out in pairs from low altitudes. As a result of the combat use of aviation weapons, camouflaged fortified field positions and armoured vehicles of the Armed Forces of Ukraine were destroyed. Continue reading...

This blog has now closed, you can the full story on the government’s failed first deportation flight hereYou can watch the Sturgeon press conference here.Sturgeon is now taking questions. Continue reading...

Health secretary says emergency departments remain under significant pressure due to high Covid-19 and flu cases

Johnny Mercer criticised ministry’s operations as he tried to prevent prosecutions for alleged offences in conflictThe former veterans minister Johnny Mercer has lifted the lid on the toxic atmosphere in Boris Johnson’s government, saying ministers’ behaviour “would have got [you] punched in the mouth” if displayed in the army.Mercer, who resigned from the role last year in a row over the treatment of soldiers who served in Northern Ireland, said the Ministry of Defence was not a “professional working environment” and his fellow ministers had treated him as a “dope on a rope”. Continue reading...

In letter sent to every trust in England, charity says standard masks create serious communication barrier for deaf patientsThe National Deaf Children’s Society has written to every NHS trust in England urging them to start using transparent face masks because standard ones create a “serious communication barrier” for deaf patients.The letters, co-signed by the British Academy of Audiology, said deaf patients could “miss vital information about their health” as opaque masks make lip reading impossible and facial expressions difficult to read. Continue reading...

Employees walk off the job amid anger over statements criticising the former Funai employee who went missing with Dom PhillipsEmployees with Brazil’s national Indigenous foundation (Funai) have launched a one-day strike, amid anger over what they say is the dismantling of a key government agency and official statements criticising Bruno Pereira, the former Funai employee who went missing along with the British journalist Dom Phillips last week.Funai staff and related civil service employees walked off the job at 9am on Tuesday in Brasília, Florianópolis and Dourados, and others are voting on whether to launch a wider strike next week, officials with the unions said. Continue reading...

Advocates call for a leaders’ meeting to coordinate support for people displaced by floods, pandemic and soaring house prices

Noise meters will be deployed to confirm ‘acoustically stressed’ areas where action will be takenBarcelona’s streets and plazas have long been home to a raucous cacophony of restaurant patios, buskers and throngs of residents and tourists. Now the city is on a mission to find out just how noisy these spaces can get, with the installation of sound level monitors in 11 areas.“It’s an absolute priority,” said Eloi Badia, the Barcelona city councillor for climate emergency and ecological transition. “Noise pollution – with all of its sleep disorders, pathologies and stress – is one of the most important public health issues we have in the city, second only to air pollution.” Continue reading...

Campaigners says uplift falls way short of inflation and only applies to youngest childrenThe government is to increase the funding rate for universal infant free school meals (UIFSM) by just 7p per pupil, it was announced on Tuesday, a move immediately branded “inadequate” by the sector.Following an outcry over the government’s new food strategy, which did not include the hoped for expansion of free school meals, the education secretary, Nadhim Zahawi, announced that funding for free school meals for all pupils in reception, year 1, and year 2, would go up from £2.34 to £2.41. Continue reading...

‘Mentally exhausted’ expected deportees launched last-minute legal bids to avoid removal from UKAn Albanian asylum seeker and suspected victim of trafficking has told the Guardian he is in a “very bad mental state” as he expects to board a deportation flight to Rwanda, a country of which he knows “nothing”.The 26-year-old Albanian man is one of seven asylum seekers who have launched last-minute legal challenges to avoid being forcibly flown to the east African country. Continue reading...

Military figures and MPs on list along with staff from most major British newspapers and broadcastersRussia has banned 29 members of the British media, including five Guardian journalists, from entering the country, the foreign ministry said on Tuesday.Moscow said the sweeping action was a response to western sanctions and the “spreading of false information about Russia”, as well as “anti-Russian actions of the British government”. Continue reading...

Alex Wood and Alison Tilsley were with four other people when vessel overturned in lakePolice have named two care home residents who died after a boat capsized in a Devon lake.Alex Wood, 43, and Alison Tilsley, 63, known as Ali, were on the vessel with four other people when it overturned in Roadford Lake near Okehampton last Wednesday. Continue reading...

Labour leader urges colleagues to focus on returning to government, after a string of negative storiesKeir Starmer has urged his shadow cabinet to stop briefing the press that he is boring, warning them: “What’s boring is being in opposition.”Stung by a series of negative stories about his leadership, Starmer angrily urged colleagues at Tuesday’s shadow cabinet meeting to focus on the job in hand, telling them it was “boring” to undermine Labour’s project of getting back into government. Continue reading...

TSSA demanding a guarantee of no compulsory redundancies this year and pay increase reflecting inflationA second rail union is balloting Network Rail members for industrial action, in a move that could stop train services entirely in a co-ordinated strike this summer.The Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA) union announced that its 6,000 members, in managerial and control roles for railway infrastructure, will vote later this month on whether to strike. Continue reading...

Media freedom groups say New York Times reporter’s verdict reflects press clampdown as election loomsMedia freedom campaigners have criticised the conviction of a journalist in Zimbabwe for allegedly breaking immigration laws, describing the decision as “a monumental travesty of justice” that raises concerns for the press in the lead-up to elections next year.Jeffrey Moyo, a freelance correspondent for the New York Times, was given a suspended prison sentence of five years and fined $615 by a court in Bulawayo after being found guilty on Tuesday of helping to obtain press accreditation needed by two reporters from his news organisation to enter Zimbabwe. Continue reading...

Netherlands court convicts father’s Austrian helper and ‘disciple’A Dutch court on Tuesday sentenced an Austrian man to three years’ imprisonment for his involvement in illegally detaining six children held for years and isolated from the outside world by their father at a remote farmhouse in the Netherlands.The case made headlines around the world when it was discovered in October 2019 that father had been living for years with six of his children in the farmhouse in the village of Ruinerwold in the eastern Netherlands. Their plight only came to light when one of the sons left the building and raised the alarm. Continue reading...

Hans Island ‘whisky war’ – described by some as a ‘pseudo-confrontation’ – ends after formal division agreedIt has been described by some as a “pseudo-confrontation”, by others as a diplomatic afterthought. Now, however, the so-called “whisky war”, which was never really a conflict at all, has finally been resolved with the formal division of a tiny barren Arctic island between Canada and Denmark.Sitting in the Kennedy Channel of Nares Strait between the north-western coast of the semi-autonomous Danish territory of Greenland and Canada’s Ellesmere Island, the uninhabited half-mile-square Hans Island has no mineral resources nor much else of interest unless you are a visiting sea bird. Continue reading...

Filippo Grandi says foreign secretary was wrong to claim critics hadn’t offered alternativesLiz Truss has been accused by the UN’s refugee chief of making “untrue” statements after claiming that critics of the UK government’s Rwandan removals policy have failed to come up with alternative policies.Filippo Grandi, the United Nations high commissioner for refugees, said the foreign secretary was wrong because the UN has offered “many, many suggestions” instead of sending people to the east African state which “violates the fundamental principles of refugees”. Continue reading...

James Watts was serving with West Mercia police in 2020 when he shared ‘grossly offensive’ material in group chatA former police constable has been jailed for 20 weeks after sending a string of racist WhatsApp memes, including images that mocked the death of George Floyd.James Watts was serving with West Mercia police in 2020 when he shared the “grossly offensive” material in a group chat, which included former colleagues at a Warwickshire prison. Continue reading...

The celebrity faces backlash after attending the Met Gala last month sporting the gown in which Monroe serenaded President KennedyA Marilyn Monroe collector has claimed that “permanent damage” has been inflicted by Kim Kardashian on the iconic dress Monroe wore to serenade John F Kennedy on his 45th birthday, shortly before the actor’s death.Kardashian wore the gown to the Met Gala last month; photographs taken in the last week by Scott Fortner, a collector who works to authenticate and verify Monroe memorabilia, appeared to show stretched and buckled fabric and missing crystals on the back of the dress. Continue reading...

Philip Lowe says he is confident inflation can be brought back to 2-3% target range ‘but it’s going to take time’

Lord Geidt implies to Commons committee he did not have power to investigate Boris Johnson’s potential breach of lockdown rulesBoris Johnson’s ethics adviser has said it was “reasonable” to suggest the prime minister may have breached the ministerial code when he was fined during the Partygate scandal.Giving evidence to MPs, Christopher Geidt suggested he did not have the power to investigate Johnson’s potential breach linked to lockdown parties and that he had not requested an investigation, but instead had required a statement from the prime minister – who cleared himself of any breach. Continue reading...

Theary Seng receives six-year sentence in ongoing mass trial of government critics in Phnom PenhA prominent Cambodian-American lawyer has been sentenced to six years in jail for treason in an ongoing mass trial against critics of the ruling party.Theary Seng and dozens of activists, many of whom are members of the dissolved opposition group the Cambodia National Rescue party (CNRP), were found guilty at Phnom Penh municipal court on Tuesday. The trial is one of four covering nearly 130 defendants, seen by many as prime minister Hun Sen’s attempt to stamp out growing dissent to his 37 years of rule. Continue reading...

Patrick Grady should be suspended from Commons for ‘unwanted physical touching with sexual intent’, watchdog saysThe SNP MP Patrick Grady should be suspended from the Commons for two days for breaching parliament’s sexual misconduct policy, a report by the Independent Expert Panel has said.The watchdog concluded: “An unwanted physical touching, with sexual intent, from a senior MP to a junior member of staff, even on a single occasion, is a significant breach of the policy. It must be marked by some period of suspension from the house. Continue reading...

Five-member crew was detained after they found a bag of cocaine on 5 April and spent nine days in jail in a ‘hellish situation’A five-person Canadian airline crew caught up in a drug-trafficking investigation is begging their government to repatriate them after two months trapped in the Dominican Republic.“It’s absolutely horrendous – terrible, terrible stuff we’re going through,” said captain Robert Di Venanzo, who said he and his crew could be held for up to a year while an investigation proceeds. Continue reading...

Margot Robbie played the character in the Suicide Squad movies, but Gaga’s version is expected to ‘exist in a different universe’Lady Gaga is to play Harley Quinn in the sequel to the multi-award-winning Joker, which is due to see Joaquin Phoenix return to his lead role.According to the Hollywood Reporter, Gaga is in line to take the role of Quinn, the former Arkham Asylum psychiatrist who has regularly appeared in Batman-related narratives as the Joker’s sidekick and love interest. Margot Robbie played the character in a high-profile outing in the 2016 film Suicide Squad, as well as its 2021 sequel The Suicide Squad. Robbie’s version of the character was also the central figure in the 2020 superhero film Birds of Prey. Continue reading...

Liza Begum said confusion with Apsana Begum who was acquitted of fraud charges ‘reflects notion all people of colour look the same’The BBC has agreed to pay £30,000 in damages to a British Bangladeshi Labour councillor after it mixed her up with Apsana Begum in a news item about the MP facing housing fraud charges.Pictures of Liza Begum at an event to launch Labour’s 2019 race and faith manifesto were broadcast on BBC London News during an exchange on 29 October 2020, in which the BBC London political correspondent said: “This is Apsana Begum … she faces three charges of dishonesty.” Continue reading...

Advocates hope other states will follow suit with reforms to help lift workforce participation

Liberty Victoria president says addressing emerging rightwing extremist groups must be balanced with freedom of speech

Fatal shooting of Shireen Abu Aqleh in May raises fresh concerns over military inquiries into deaths of PalestiniansIn August 2020, 23-year-old Dalia Samoudi was killed when a bullet came through the window of her home in Jenin, in the occupied West Bank, during an Israel Defence Forces (IDF) raid on a nearby house.Al Jazeera reported on the incident, in which witnesses said she had been killed by an IDF soldier firing in the direction of Palestinians throwing stones. Two years later, the television network would report on the death of its longtime correspondent, Shireen Abu Aqleh, in nearly the same spot. Continue reading...

Move to restrict sales of new-build properties is not legally binding but organisers hope to influence planning decisionsWhitby has become the latest tourist hotspot to vote for a limit on the sale of second homes as residents sounded a “very loud message that enough is enough”.Families in the Yorkshire fishing port said they had been priced out of the housing market as wealthy incomers paid exorbitant prices for holiday boltholes. Continue reading...

State government accuses New South Wales Teachers Federation of breaching orders from Industrial Relations Commission

Benchmark ASX200 index closes 246 points lower, after falling 360 points in the first 15 minutes of trading on Tuesday.

Chris Dawson’s murder trial hears audio recordings of Ross Hutcheon telling police of alleged Sydney sighting

One Nation senator’s chief of staff told court he didn’t ‘want to appear evasive’ and eventually said Senate speech was a warning to Brian Burston after presiding justice accused him of avoiding the question

Former NSW minister who ran as star candidate in ultra-marginal seat comes up just short against Labor’s Fiona Phillips

Probe follows inquiries into casino operators in other states and comes as parliamentary committee examines new gaming bill

Pop star says she ‘never want[ed] to promote derogatory language’ and re-releases song, removing offensive term for spastic diplegiaLizzo has removed an offensive term for disabled people from her latest song after days of public criticism, saying she “never want[ed] to promote derogatory language”.GRRRLS, the latest track from the musician’s upcoming album Special, was released on Friday. In the opening verse, the pop star – who has become well-known for her lyrics championing acceptance and self-love – used a derogatory term for cerebral palsy, also known as spastic diplegia. Continue reading...

Southern right whale populations were severely depleted by whaling but may be bouncing back in Geographe Bay

This live blog is now closed, you can find our latest coverage of the Russia-Ukraine war hereAn industrial zone where about 500 civilians are sheltering is under heavy artillery fire from Russian forces, Reuters reported the regional governor saying.Serhiy Haidai, governor of the Luhansk region in eastern Ukraine that includes Sievierodonetsk, said on Facebook that Russian forces controlled about 70% of the city and fighting there was fierce. Continue reading...

The UK government hopes a little-known legal principle will overturn parts of the post-Brexit agreementIn justifying its attempt to unilaterally overturn parts of the post-Brexit agreement with the EU, the UK government has invoked a little-known legal principle known as the “doctrine of necessity”. The loophole is allowed by the UN’s International Law Commission to be used by a state facing “grave and imminent peril”.But the government’s ex-legal adviser Jonathan Jones said the EU would find the use of the doctrine “completely unpersuasive”. Continue reading...

Mounting violence in the north of the country linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State groupGunmen killed at least 55 people over the weekend in northern Burkina Faso, in the latest attack in the west African country, which is seeing mounting violence blamed on Islamic extremists.Suspected militants targeted civilians in Seytenga in Séno province, government spokesman Wendkouni Joel Lionel Bilgo said at a news conference. While the government put the official toll at 55, others put the figure far higher, with some saying as many as 100 had died. Continue reading...

EU, legal experts and some Conservative MPs warn that Northern Ireland protocol bill is illegal under international law

Home Office source says individual legal cases mean too few people may be able to board plane anywayTwo last-ditch legal challenges that attempted to halt the inaugural flight carrying asylum seekers to Rwanda have been rejected by judges.The court of appeal upheld a previous decision to reject an injunction blocking the first flight, which was due to take off for the east African state on Tuesday. Continue reading...

President faces a messy scramble if he cannot achieve absolute majority in second round of electionsA new alliance of the French left is putting pressure on Emmanuel Macron’s grouping in the second round of the parliament election, as the president tries to hold on to his parliamentary majority.Macron’s centrists could lose dozens of seats in France’s national assembly in the final next Sunday after a strong showing by a historic alliance of parties on the left, led by the hard-left Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s France Unbowed with the Socialists and the Greens. Continue reading...

HBOS, now part of Lloyds Banking Group, was involved in major fraud at its Reading branch in early 2000sVictims of one of Britain’s biggest banking frauds will each be offered £3m compensation packages, according to a source familiar with the proposed deal expected to be announced later this week.Halifax Bank of Scotland (HBOS) – which is now part of Lloyds Banking Group – was involved in a major fraud at its Reading branch in the early 2000s. Continue reading...

The acclaimed character actor reportedly died peacefully ‘surrounded by loved ones’Actor Philip Baker Hall, known for films such as Magnolia and Boogie Nights, has died at the age of 90.The news was initially shared by his neighbour and Los Angeles Times writer Sam Farmer on Twitter. “My neighbor, friend, and one of the wisest, most talented and kindest people I’ve ever met, Philip Baker Hall, died peacefully last night,” he wrote. “He was surrounded by loved ones. The world has an empty space in it.” Continue reading...

Russian artillery bombarding industrial area of Sievierodonetsk; Finnish president says Russia using ‘weapons of mass destruction’

Data suggests exits after invasion of Ukraine, while UAE predicted to overtake US and UK as top destination for world’s wealthyMore than 15,000 millionaires are expected to flee Russia this year, as wealthy citizens turn their back on Vladmir Putin’s regime after the invasion of Ukraine, according to an analysis of migration data.About 15% of Russians with more than $1m (£820,000) in ready assets are expected to have emigrated to other countries by the end of 2022, according to projects based on migration data by Henley & Partners, a London-based firm that acts as matchmaker between the super-rich and countries selling their citizenships. Continue reading...