Amendment to conscription law means those who have not served must pay £5,700 or have assets seizedA legal amendment in Syria has been greeted with anger and dismay by people displaced by the civil war who are now at risk of losing homes and property they left behind unless they pay exorbitant fines to the government in Damascus.Bashar al-Assad’s sanctions-hit, cash-strapped government, looking for ways to raise money in any way possible, announced a change to an article of the law concerning military conscription earlier this month. Under the amended law, those who did not do military service before the age of 43 must pay $8,000 (£5,700) or lose their property without notice or any right to appeal. Continue reading...

As Netflix airs an intimate documentary about the late hip-hop legend, we pick his finest moments, from sublime braggadocio to gripping storytellingIn its original version a nasty sex rhyme – “I got the cleanest, meanest penis” etc – the remix tones down the lyrics and smooths the music by way of DeBarge’s 1983 hit Stay With Me, drafting in a vocal from Biggie’s wife, Faith Evans, to spectacular effect. End result: a beautifully languid slow jam. Continue reading...

Prime minister says immunisation ‘roadmap’ will be released soon

Tributes from across the world have poured in since the music promoter’s sudden death on MondayAustralian music journalist Molly Meldrum has issued an emotional statement about Michael Gudinski and Bruce Springsteen has dedicated a new song to him, as tributes to the late promoter continue to pour in.Gudinski, a giant of the Australian music scene who established dozens of local artists and brought many of the biggest names in the music industry to the country, died suddenly at the age of 68 on Monday. Continue reading...

A letter signed by 29 experts and activist groups says Cormann’s climate record should rule him out of secretary-general’s jobInternational climate change groups and influential advisers on the global shift from fossil fuels have written to the OECD expressing “grave concerns” over Australian politician Mathias Cormann’s bid to be its next secretary-general.Former Australian finance minister Cormann’s record in a government that “persistently failed to take effective action” to cut emissions while blocking international action meant he was “not a suitable candidate”, the letter says. Continue reading...

Residents on North Island instructed to evacuate after three earthquakes felt across the country in one day

Threat of action follows UK moves to unilaterally delay implementation of part of deal relating to Northern IrelandBrussels has warned it will launch legal action “very soon” following a move by the UK to unilaterally delay implementation of part of the Brexit deal relating to Northern Ireland.The European commission vice-president, Maroš Šefčovič, said the announcement by the government on Wednesday had come as a “very negative surprise”. Continue reading...

Army veteran Diane Allen tells MPs that women are coerced to withdraw harassment complaintsWomen who serve in the armed forces find that they face “a hostile environment” when they are victims of bullying or harassment and try to complain, according to candid testimony given to a parliamentary committee on Thursday.Diane Allen, who served for 30 years in the British army, told MPs that women were often pressed to withdraw their complaints, reflecting what she said were “mixed messages” from the defence leadership. Continue reading...

Visitors would need vaccine approved by EMA administered at least seven days before travel

Meghan and Harry will not be involved in investigation, announced just before Oprah Winfrey interviewThe Duke and Duchess of Sussex have yet to be contacted by Buckingham Palace after it announced it would launch an investigation into allegations of bullying by the duchess, the Guardian understands.Harry and Meghan will not be personally involved in the investigation as they are no longer part of the royal household, but the Los-Angeles based couple are understood to be hoping to hear details of what the process will entail. Continue reading...

Boris Johnson’s new EU relations chief is wrecking the agreement he once negotiated. The prime minister must rein him in or give him his cardsLord Frost became a member of Boris Johnson’s cabinet, in charge of relations with the European Union, only on Monday. He has wasted no time in wielding the wrecking ball. On Tuesday, he told the EU that Britain would unilaterally extend the “grace period” for checks on mainly food-related goods that ship between Britain and Northern Ireland. This has triggered a major row with the EU, done serious harm to Britain’s longstanding relations with Ireland, and significantly ramped up the political tensions in Northern Ireland. Lord Frost’s impact is seriously alarming. The effect on Britain’s standing with the US administration, and in the world, threatens to be dire. Thank goodness he never became national security adviser, as was once planned.The cabinet office minister may see all this as a good first week’s work for an ardent hard Brexiter like himself. He will doubtless be cheered on by the usual xenophobic parts of the Tory party and the press. But this approach disables trust in the British government at home and abroad. Lord Frost’s reckless actions do nothing but damage to Britain’s international standing, show disrespect to our nearest and best international neighbour, and crank up an increasingly confrontational mood in Northern Ireland politics after two decades of peace. This has to stop, and it has to stop now. Boris Johnson must call Lord Frost off – or sack him. Continue reading...

Former permanent secretary sued government over alleged bullying by home secretaryPriti Patel has reached a six-figure settlement with a senior civil servant after claims that he was forced out of his job for intervening in her alleged bullying of fellow staff, it has emerged.Whitehall sources said Sir Philip Rutnam, a former permanent secretary in the Home Office, received a £340,000 settlement with a further £30,000 in costs. He had threatened to take the home secretary to an employment tribunal hearing in September. Continue reading...

Witnesses shaken by brutality of security forces but remain resolute in fighting military coupEarly on Wednesday morning, the protests building in North Okkalapa, in Yangon, Myanmar, seemed peaceful. “I saw around three or four police officers along the road, but it was calm,” said Khin, who like all demonstrators the Guardian spoke to asked not to give her real name. Onlookers cheered as the crowds passed.About 1,000 people, she estimated, had joined the march. Many had turned out in the hope that they would put pressure on police resources, and in forcing them to spread more thinly would protect demonstrators elsewhere in the city. After weeks of defiant mass protests opposing the military coup, the security forces were using increasing violence, including live ammunition, to break up rallies. Continue reading...

The budget should offer more to support disabled jobseekers, writes Gemma Hope, while Mike Pender believes the costs of the pandemic should not fall solely on working-age adults. Plus letters from Michael Leigh, Adrian Cosker and Martin PiercyI read Heather Stewart’s piece with interest (Sunak goes long on support for jobs – but says little about NHS or inequality, 3 March). The budget certainly did “go long”, but I’d still ask whether it was enough. We should certainly welcome measures like the extension to furlough and top-ups to universal credit. The issue is that they risk kicking key issues down the road unless the government follows them up with a long-term plan. The pandemic’s impact on jobs won’t end when we lift restrictions.The barriers facing disabled jobseekers are systemic. Our research shows that the pandemic has exacerbated these barriers. Now is the time for the government to create specialised support for disabled jobseekers, and extend key skills programmes like Kickstart. Taking action now will do much to halt a deeper employment crisis and longer-term disability discrimination. We also need to see gaps in social care addressed. Disabled adults need social care in order to work. We cannot be said to be levelling up the country if disabled people are left out of the economic recovery.

Report after report has looked into Australia’s broken aged care system, and now a royal commission has handed down 148 recommendations. But will the Morrison government make the radical changes needed to improve the lives of older Australians?You can also read: Continue reading...

Fifteen of the defendants had been granted bail but are still being held pending an appeal

Peter Attwood died in hospital on 30 January last year, weeks before first UK Covid death was declaredThe daughter of a man who died of Covid in Kent before the virus had been detected in the UK has called for her father to be officially acknowledged as Britain’s first victim of the pandemic.Peter Attwood, 84, a retired company secretary from Chatham, died on 30 January last year at Medway hospital. A postmortem report completed last August based on retained samples from his lungs found that “the underlying cause [of death] is due to Covid-19 infection”. Continue reading...

Are Muslim women being asked to change too much of themselves in order to fit in?“Modest fashion” has been a defining style for the past decade. The trend for oversize silhouettes and loose layers has united fashion fans, religious and secular, and has been in part an attempt by western brands to buy into the lucrative market of Muslim consumers. This shift has also seen the headscarf become increasingly acceptable, even covetable, in western fashion, with Nike, Uniqlo, Liberty, Tommy Hilfiger and Dolce & Gabbana among the brands selling scarves overtly tailored for use as hijabs in recent years.Islamic dress, however, remains a lightning rod for controversy. Hijab bans are continually discussed in France while Switzerland is to hold a referendum on burqas this week, even as governments around the world encourage the use of face masks. China, too, has persecuted women for wearing the hijab. Continue reading...

First minister tells MSPs she wants to be allowed to ‘get on with the job’ of tackling coronavirus pandemic

Unclear if Meghan’s ire is directed at particular royals but teasing trailer is sign ‘never complain, never explain’ era is overIt is one brief clip, just 30 seconds long. But what the latest trailer for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s highly anticipated interview with Oprah Winfrey hints at is there will be no holding back.Meghan’s response, that she and Harry could not be expected to stay silent if “the firm” is playing an active role in “perpetuating falsehoods” about them, appears on the face of it to be extraordinary. Continue reading...

IOPC says inquiry into death of Cardiff man after his release from custody could take nine monthsThe family of a young man who died hours after being released from police custody in January have expressed concern that the cause of his death is not yet known.Relatives of Mohamud Hassan, 24, whose death in Cardiff sparked protests and vigils, also said they were worried by the police watchdog saying it may take up to nine months to complete its investigation. Continue reading...

Balladur was accused over arms deal kickbacks, but ex-defence minister receives suspended jail termThe former French prime minister Édouard Balladur has been cleared of financing his failed 1995 presidential campaign with illegal kickbacks from international arms deals.A Paris court found no evidence the 91-year-old rightwing politician had committed any wrongdoing. He denied the charge of complicity in the misappropriation of public funds. Continue reading...

Scotland Yard says there will be no investigation into BBC journalist’s TV interview with Princess of WalesThe BBC journalist Martin Bashir will face no criminal investigation over allegations he used fake documents to persuade Diana, Princess of Wales, to take part in an explosive interview in which she opened up about her marriage and other issues.The Metropolitan police said on Thursday that officers had sought legal advice from internal lawyers, independent counsel and the Crown Prosecution Service and determined their further involvement was not appropriate. Continue reading...

Staff of charities including Save the Children and MSF among dozens facing sentences of up to 20 years over humanitarian work

Founder member of the Wailers whose debut solo album Blackheart Man is regarded as one of reggae’s finestAs one-third of the Wailers with Bob Marley and Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailer, who has died aged 73 of a stroke, was an integral part of the most influential musical group to have emerged from Jamaica. The least feted of the trio, he was in many ways the most respected, for as each of the Wailers pursued solo careers from the mid-1970s onwards – Marley to become reggae’s global evangelist and Tosh its militant conscience – Wailer continued on his quiet path as its spiritual ambassador. His debut album, Blackheart Man, is widely felt to be one of reggae’s highest peaks.While Wailer’s initial acclaim stemmed from his work with Marley and Tosh, his later fame was derived from his solo output, which rested heavily, though by no means exclusively, on the masterful Blackheart Man. Released in 1976, just over two years after the Wailers had split, it was a gigantic achievement, simultaneously homespun and polished, uplifting and sorrowful, ethereal and worldly wise – and with an elemental aura about it that was summed up by its dark, foreboding cover, featuring a lion-like representation of its dreadlocked creator. Continue reading...

Chris and Shannon Prynoski make distinctly adult animated series – then let their employees unwind by smashing stuff up. Now the duo are coming to terms with hitting the big time

(Fire Records)

The chancellor has defended his decisions on universal credit amid claims it will put half a million more into poverty. On his decision to go ahead with the cut to the £20-a-week universal credit uplift later this year, Sunak said other measures on pay and training would help people likely to be affected

CBS releases two brief clips from Winfrey’s interview with Meghan and Harry, in which they talk about Princess DianaThe Duke of Sussex, who shocked Britain when he and his wife, Meghan, stepped back from royal duties, has told the US interviewer Oprah Winfrey that he had worried about history repeating itself.CBS has released two brief clips from Winfrey’s interview of the couple, which is scheduled to air on 7 March. It is the first TV interview they have given since making California their home last year. Continue reading...

Boosted by the popularity of RuPaul’s Drag Race, the writer Greg Bailey and photographer Gerrard Gethings have devised Drag Match, a before-and-after card-matching game. The cards show the lengths performers go to in order to transform themselvesMilk Continue reading...

Pressure mounts on the government for an inquiry into the historical rape allegation. This blog has now closed

In the documentary Persona: The Dark Truth Behind Personality Tests, the discriminatory nature of a widely used tool is put under the microscopeScrolling dating apps in 2015, Tim Travers Hawkins didn’t know who his type was. He didn’t even know what a type was. Hawkins, a British film-maker then new to New York, “noticed something that was very different to people’s profiles in the UK and that was the use of these four letters,” he said to the Guardian. Curious, he looked it up. “I was like, ‘Huh, that’s different’.”Related: 'We're all part of the story': behind Will Smith's 14th amendment docuseries Continue reading...

Analysis: The world’s poorest country has successfully organised a smooth transition of power. Could other Sahel countries follow?Niger, the world’s poorest country, has peacefully and successfully organised its first democratic transition of power since regaining its independence in 1960 – a milestone that should have been splashed across the front page of every newspaper.This underreported counter-trend in a continent that has a host of rich and rabidly authoritarian rulers – and during a global crisis that UN chief António Guterres said had brought about a “pandemic of human rights abuses” – is a historic democratic moment in Niger. Continue reading...

Gianfranco Rosi’s documentary depicts a Middle East emerging from trauma, but it is self-conscious at timesDocumentary film-maker Gianfranco Rosi has created a very characteristic cine-poem of sadness, about the Middle East as it emerges from Isis terror, but remaining scarred by the intervention of western powers who had promised so much. It’s an intensely considered curation of scenes: glimpses, perhaps, into a collective mind or soul. Rosi has assembled this from years of filming in Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and the Kurdistan region of northern Iraq. It’s similar in its observational procedures to films such as Sacro GRA, his 2013 study of those who live on the periphery of Rome, near the “GRA” ring road, and also his masterly Fire at Sea from 2016, about the lives of desperate migrants who arrive in Lampedusa, Sicily, and the locals who are coming to terms with them.

The social media giants raise concerns about the eSafety commissioner’s investigative powers and lack of oversightFacebook and Twitter have raised concern controversial new legislation aimed at curbing bullying and governing online activity will give Australia’s eSafety commissioner too much power over speech online with little oversight.The online safety bill, introduced into parliament last week, is aimed at giving a broad range of powers to the eSafety commissioner to target bullying and harassment online, extending existing powers protecting children from online bullying to adults, as well as powers over abhorrent violent and terrorist material and adult content online and on social media in Australia. Continue reading...

Are you left scrambling for paints and glue-guns every year? Never fear – here are some options that Donna Ferguson and nine-year-old Flora put together in less than 30 minutesIt’s World Book Day in the UK and Ireland today, one many parents approach each year with a stomach-clenching sense of dread. I know, because I used to be one of them. I cannot sew, I am useless at craft and I am not the most organised parent in the world. Or even in our house.But my daughter Flora is nine, and I’ve learned a few tricks over the years. Armed with just four essential items – a professional face-paint kit, safety pins, a stash of coloured card and ribbons – I can throw together a World Book Day outfit in minutes, using the clothes in my daughter’s wardrobe. Here are five options using things most of us will already have in the house, and a good daytime activity that will cheer up those still remote-learning in the UK. Continue reading...

Mild end to February saw Germany record sharpest temperature rise in a week, going from -23.8C to 18.1CEurope experienced well above normal temperatures last week, with the cold conditions at the start of February all but a distant memory.The mild and very dry conditions developed thanks to an extensive area of high pressure, combined with south to south-westerly winds from Morocco and Algeria. A number of all-time February temperature records were broken, most notably in Sweden where 16.8C was recorded in Kalmar on the 25th. On the same day, 22.1C was observed in Maków Podhalański, surpassing Poland’s record. Göttingen in Germany also recorded the country’s sharpest temperature rise in one week, with -23.8C on the 14th, and 18.1C recorded one week later. Continue reading...

We ask people about what measures on furlough, universal credit, property and more will mean for themThe coronavirus crisis has hit household finances after Covid restrictions froze key parts of the British economy. Wednesday’s budget included measures designed to help first-time buyers and the self-employed, and news that a temporary increase in universal credit would be extended. We spoke to people about what it would mean for them and their families. Continue reading...

The terror of earlier crackdowns taught me to write between the lines as a journalist – now I see repressive tactics returning

Dissidents decry lack of sanctions for Mohammed bin Salman over Khashoggi killing and warn of ‘permanent impunity’ for Saudi heirExiled dissidents who have been warned about threats against them by Saudi Arabia said they have been put in greater danger by the Biden administration’s decision to forgo direct sanctions on Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman – even as US intelligence agencies acknowledged that he was complicit in the murder of Jamal Khashoggi.The activists, including some who have previously been warned that they were possibly at risk of being hurt by agents of the kingdom, said in interviews with the Guardian that they believed the 35-year-old crown prince would be emboldened after the White House declined to sanction him. Continue reading...

Marine biologist Dr Lisa-ann Gershwin says the 17-year old’s death was preventable with better resources and education for remote communitiesA teenager has died a week after being stung by a box jellyfish while swimming at a beach on Queensland’s western Cape York.It is the first recorded fatality from a box jellyfish sting in Australia in 15 years. Continue reading...

Australian study finds a ‘coordinated effort by CCP’s propaganda apparatus’ to distract from critical BBC reports and redirect narrativeChina’s Communist party orchestrated an international campaign to undermine the BBC and discredit its reporting during the first two months of the year, using western social media networks, an Australian thinktank has found.Attacks intensified in response to high-profile BBC reports, including an investigation into systemic rape in internment camps in Xinjiang that was broadcast in early February, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute said, in its report, “Trigger Warning”. Continue reading...

Threatening letters sent to Asian councillors and a surge in race hate attacks during the pandemic has renewed calls for a centralised hate trackerCouncillor Kun Huang received the letter on a Monday. Among the insults about his name, the threats of death, the blame for the Covid-19 pandemic, the accusation that he had been stealing all the milk powder, buying up all the houses and bringing disease to Australia “for centuries”, the staff at the Cumberland Council noticed a name and an address. This was a race hate letter signed by its supposed perpetrator.Two days later, councillor Craig Chung at the City of Sydney, councillor Christina Wu at the Georges River council and another local councillor received similar letters. Continue reading...

Police in China and South Africa have seized thousands of fake doses of Covid-19 vaccine

Police investigate death of Byun Hee-soo, who was forced out of military after becoming first soldier to have gender reassignment surgerySouth Korea’s first transgender soldier, who was forcibly discharged after having gender reassignment surgery, has been found dead, news agency Yonhap has reported.Firefighters found Byun Hee-soo, 23, in her home in Cheongju, south of Seoul, after a mental health counsellor called emergency services to report that she had not been heard from since Sunday, the agency reported on Wednesday. Continue reading...

Feline was a whisker away from a 125mph ride when it was spotted at Euston station on Tuesday eveningYou hear about delays from leaves on the line, maybe even the occasional swan, but on Tuesday evening a cat was discovered on a train roof at London Euston station – a whisker away from hitching a 125mph ride up north.The tabby was spotted curled up on top of an Avanti West Coast train about half an hour before it was due to depart for Manchester at 9pm and refused to move. Continue reading...

She was told there was no room for a ‘brown swan’ in the London Festival Ballet, so she went to the US. There she found enormous success, dancing for everyone from Michael Jackson to Prince

Brazil suffers another day of record Covid losses; Greece prolongs lockdown to 16 March

Virginia judge gives relatives go ahead for civil case against both Anne Sacoolas and her husbandHarry Dunn’s family have been given the go-ahead to proceed with a civil claim for damages in the US against both the teenager’s alleged killer and her husband.A judge’s ruling in the Alexandria district court in Virginia has taken the Dunn family a step closer to a legal showdown with suspect Anne Sacoolas, 18 months on from the 19-year-old’s death in the UK. Continue reading...

Britain is alert to interest being shown in certain individuals, agent tells Sky NewsMI5 has quietly stepped up the security protection offered to potential Kremlin targets living in the UK in the aftermath of the poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal in Salisbury in 2018.The security agency warned that the Russian state continues to take “quite an active interest” in a handful of individuals in the UK, prompting the need to take more active measures involving the police and other agencies. Continue reading...