World news | The Guardian

Covid gives us an opportunity to weigh up what truly belongs and what can be left back in the life before the plague

On a writing grant to the eternal city an Italian-born Australian encounters its two faces – the tourist’s fantasy and the residents’s realityMy desire to live in Rome germinated on a European holiday almost 20 years ago. I exited Trastevere train station, bleary eyed after the long-haul flight, and was instantly revived by the sight of women in tight skirts and stilettos zooming past on their Vespas. Men at the local bar made fun of my Italian pronunciation. Come si dice ‘tre’? they would tease each time I turned up to buy tram tickets or the paper. How do you say three? Tre, trre, trrrrrre, I’d sputter, trying desperately to roll my Rs.Last year my fading dream of living in Rome for more than a tourist heartbeat came true. Scrolling listlessly through emails after a night out, I found one from the Australia Council for the Arts with the subject heading: Grant Notification. It could only be a fail. Wouldn’t there be trumpet blasts and marching bands, a phone call at least, if I had passed? Continue reading...

Nation is facing shortage of shearers for its 68 million sheep as hundreds are barred from taking their usual trip across the Tasman SeaIt’s a tradition that stretches back decades. Every year, hundreds of New Zealanders fly in to Australia for the spring shearing season – a huge mobilisation of workers essential to the success of the nation’s wool industry.In dusty sheds on outback farms they join up with local shearers and, between them, relieve five million sheep of their fleeces over eight weeks. Continue reading...

Numbers of foreign visitors are already down – and the fresh surge of Covid cases could spell the end for the holiday season

Landowners turn to camping and cottage rentals to boost income after lockdown lossesJonathan Simper is busy preparing his family’s idyllic farm on the sandy shores of the River Deben in Suffolk for the influx of weekend campers.“We are in a beautiful place, down by the estuary,” he says. “We are fully booked this weekend.” Continue reading...

Employer aims to remove stigma in a nation where menstruation is still taboo to someIndian food delivery company Zomato has said it will give female employees up to 10 days of “period leave” a year, as part of an effort to combat what it said was stigma around the issue.Zomato is the most high-profile organisation to institute the policy in India, a country where menstruation is still taboo to some. Continue reading...

Anger rises in the capital as crowd demands resignation of the Lebanese government following Tuesday’s explosionTens of thousands of demonstrators demanded the resignation of Lebanon’s embattled government yesterday, clashing with police and soldiers and railing at a political class they universally blamed for the catastrophic explosion that destroyed parts of Beirut last Tuesday.The rally in the capital’s Martyrs’ Square was preceded by the resignation of three MPs from the nearby Lebanese parliament. The seething crowd called for others to follow, and Hassan Diab, the Lebanon prime minister, called for early elections, potentially after two months. Continue reading...

Suspect Alex Sartain, who died in motorbike crash as he fled, reportedly thought victim was spying on himA children’s author who was shot in the head at his home in Hampshire has died.James Nash was critically injured in the attack at his cottage this week. The man thought responsible fled on a motorcycle and crashed and died as police gave chase. Continue reading...

Action supported by Black Lives Matter calls for end to ‘institutionally racist policing’Chants of “no justice no peace” echoed around Tottenham police station on Saturday afternoon as hundreds of peaceful demonstrators gathered outside the building calling for an end to what they say is institutionally racist policing in this part of north London.The event marks the ninth anniversary of the fatal shooting by police in Tottenham of Mark Duggan. His death was followed by the biggest riots in recent times. The event is supported by Black Lives Matter, Tottenham Rights and Stopwatch. Continue reading...

Boeing 737 crashed on landing in heavy rain, killing at least 18, including the two pilots

Thousands turn out to call for accountability for one of world’s biggest non-nuclear blastsPolice in Beirut fired teargas and rubber bullets at thousands of people who had turned out to demand accountability for one of the biggest non-nuclear explosions the world has seen. They also shot live ammunition in the air, in an attempt to disperse the furious crowds.Driven by anger at the corruption and incompetence that appears to have fostered Tuesday’s tragedy, people gathered from early afternoon in the city’s central Martyrs Square, where activists have erected a mock gallows for Lebanon’s top politicians. Continue reading...

Several former financial backers report rejoining, with some ‘ready to give again’ in wake of Jeremy Corbyn’s departureFormer Labour donors who had abandoned the party are already considering renewing their support under Keir Starmer’s leadership, it has emerged.Figures who have given the party large sums in the past said they had rejoined Labour, with one major donor saying they were already prepared to give again. Another former supporter said there was “a long road” ahead after allegations of antisemitism in the party, but that they had been impressed with Starmer’s start. Continue reading...

Home Office asked for patrols after saying migrants should face ‘real consequences’Alarm is growing over UK proposals to introduce hardline measures to discourage refugees and illegal migrants from seeking sanctuary after the Ministry of Defence confirmed it was considering a Home Office request to deploy navy vessels in the Dover Straits.It comes after the immigration minister, Chris Philp, called for migrants caught crossing the Channel to be fingerprinted and face “real consequences”, before a meeting next week with his French counterparts. Continue reading...

Greenpeace investigators say the firm, which also donated to the Conservatives, will be sole beneficiary of rule changes on importing raw cane sugarA company that backed Brexit and has donated to the Conservatives is in line to save £73m as the only direct beneficiary of a post-Brexit trade reform.Under plans that will come into force at the end of the year, the government has confirmed that companies will be able to import 260,000 tonnes of raw sugar cane from anywhere in the world, tariff-free. Continue reading...

Luiz Henrique Mandetta says the Brazilian president’s ‘misguided’ handling of the crisis has failed to comfort familiesJair Bolsonaro’s former health minister has accused the Brazilian president of failing to offer “a single word of comfort” to the families of the 100,000 Brazilians who have lost their lives to Covid-19.In an interview marking Brazil’s latest Covid-19 milepost, Luiz Henrique Mandetta – who was sacked in April after challenging the president’s internationally condemned coronavirus response – expressed consternation that Brazil’s leaders had failed to recognise so much pain. Continue reading...

Al-Shabab extremist group claims responsibility for blast in Somali capital that wounded 14 others

Police inquiry said it was unacceptable to return car to Ryan Colaço full of shards of glass

More than 30 marches due on Saturday in recognition of work during coronavirus pandemic

BLM in the Stix promotes online toolkit to encourage UK communities to take a stand

Residents describe wildfire that began on Chobham Common and spread to golf courseSurrey fire and rescue service has declared a major incident as crews continue to battle a 40-hectare wildfire after up to 100 homes were reportedly evacuated as a precaution.The blaze started in Chobham Common on Friday amid soaring temperatures in the south-east and spread to Wentworth golf course, halting play in the Rose Ladies Series Grand Final tournament as competitors became within eyeshot of the fire. Continue reading...

The Nigerian pop star on Black Lives Matter, how British fans find it easier to tune into his wavelength – and why everyone’s got it wrong about Muammar Gaddafi

Fears measures may be extended to France, but little enforcement appears to be taking place

In a world where big cinema releases are all but extinct, we go back in time to find the greatest movie summer of them allPlanet-killing asteroids! Alien invasions! Sneaky dinosaurs! These were the existential threats that 45 years of summer blockbusters had pre-programmed us to expect. Instead, something rather more insidious wiped 2020’s May-to-August movie slate clean, depriving audiences of their usual buffet of unmissable communal spectacles and/or over-marketed idiotainment. Starved of popcorn entertainment, it seems natural to look back hungrily. So what were the most explosive movie summers of the past? Continue reading...

The disaster has roots in a global network of maritime capital and legal chicanery designed to protect businesses at any costAt about 6pm on Tuesday, a seemingly small warehouse fire near Beirut port’s grain silos began to fizz with red sparks. The sparks led to an enormous explosion, a mushroom cloud of water and debris, and a column of orange-red and black smoke rising out of the warehouse.The shockwave pulverised nearby warehouses and apartment blocks, lifted doors off their hinges and shattered windows several miles away. At the time of writing, 154 people have been reported killed over 5,000 injured and 300,000 have been left homeless. Dozens of people are still missing. Continue reading...

More 18- 24-year-olds are anxious about careers as coronavirus hits jobs and mental healthRaymond Christie is having sleepless nights. The 18-year-old is worrying about how difficult it will be to find work opportunities as he anticipates an upcoming recession. Christie left school at 16 with no qualifications and went into training on a construction scheme that went into administration during the pandemic. Since then, he has had to rely on his family for financial support.“My mental health has never been as bad as it has been over the last few months since my mid-teens,” he says. “Losing my place in something that I really enjoyed doing and the overwhelming feeling of uncertainty has made me struggle with deep moods of depression and boredom. Most days, I don’t want to do anything or get up from my bed and I find it hard to motivate myself with nothing to do.” Continue reading...

Teacher, worker, carer, cook ... family life has gone back to the 1950s for many women. The Three Women author on why it’s time to let go of the tyranny of the ‘good’ motherNever in my life had I been so high.I’d just given a reading in Amsterdam after which the gracious hosts of the evening took me out for drinks. Three young women asked me questions about sex and love and desire as though I were an expert and it was nice but I was tired and unused to being considered an expert in anything but panic. Continue reading...

Coronavirus has been allowed to run amok by governors and the president, spreading inexorably into the rural heart of AmericaA letter landed on the desk of the governor of Georgia, Brian Kemp, this week that given the public health catastrophe swirling all around him might give him pause. His state is one of 21 across the US that have been placed by the White House coronavirus taskforce in the “red zone”, indicating the disease is now so prevalent that immediate restrictions must be imposed to avoid dire consequences.Kemp, a Republican governor and Donald Trump ally, has adopted a controversial approach to Covid-19. Since early July the virus has roared across his state, with new infections rising sharply to top a devastating tally of 182,000. Continue reading...

It’s never been easier to track down your first love online, and during the pandemic many people did just thatDressed up for the first time in lockdown, and wearing a full face of makeup, Annabelle Richards went to meet her first love. The last time she had seen Junior St Clair was in the summer of 1992. She was 17, and on a bus bound for London. He was 20 and standing outside Ipswich bus station, bawling. “As the coach pulled away there were tears pouring down his cheeks,” Annabelle recalls, “and I cried all the way home.”In late March, after reconnecting on Facebook during lockdown, Annabelle met him for the first time in 28 years, outside an office block in Croydon, south London. “We sat on a bench two metres apart and talked nonstop for over an hour,” she says. “We were in awe of the situation. We made each other laugh, like no time had passed. After the meeting, we couldn’t stop messaging. I thought, do I still love this guy?” Continue reading...

Ida lost two brothers in 10 days, and Ken’s teenage sweetheart died at 44. Now, they’re looking for answersSir Oyaseh Ivowi sits in front of a poster of two of his three boys. Olume, the older brother, hovers over Isi; both wear traditional Nigerian dress. Underneath are the words: “Gone too soon, but not forgotten. Olume Godfrey Ivowi, 7 November 1973 to 10 April 2020. Isi Benjamin Emitsemu Ivowi, 17 November 1985 to 19 April 2020.”Olume, 46, and Isi, 34, died in Luton and Milton Keynes respectively. Their passing made headlines because it was so shocking: two brothers killed by Covid-19 in such a short space of time. A third brother, Osi, also caught the virus, but has recovered. Continue reading...

China’s most senior figure in Hong Kong defiant after US takes action against leaders over crackdown on freedom in cityThe head of China’s Hong Kong Liaison Office, Luo Huining, has mocked sanctions announced by the US over the crackdown on freedoms in the city, offering to send Donald Trump $100 so he can freeze the asset.Luo, whose statement appeared on the liaison office’s website on Saturday, is the most senior Chinese figure in the city. “Being put on the US sanctions list just means that I have done what I should do for the nation and Hong Kong,” it read. “Isn’t such a ‘sanction’ in vain as I don’t have any assets abroad? Of course, I can also send $100 to Mr Trump for freezing.” Continue reading...

Observers confused by unidentified men directing port cleanup as politicians’ excuses are shunned

The New Zealand politician has swapped twerking on TV for a more serious policy agenda. As the election looms, it seems to be workingHe went viral in an awkward campaign video that featured him repeatedly saying “hi” – with an emotionless, thousand-yard stare – at famous spots in his constituency. He twerked merrily on Dancing with the Stars wearing neon Lycra. He once proclaimed – with unintentional double entendre – in a news interview about national flags, that “the French, for instance, love the coq.”That was the old David Seymour. The New Zealand lawmaker is the leader and sole member of parliament for ACT – a minor, libertarian party that has at times in its history been plagued by the inadvertent comedy of its eccentric members. The 37-year-old wears a sober suit and a quiet, serious demeanour when he meets the Guardian at his parliamentary office in Wellington. Continue reading...

Staff at Estia’s Keilor Downs aged care home were tested four days after the company was told a worker had tested positive to Covid-19

Fire on Chobham Common covers more than 40 hectares and has spread to golf courseFire crews are tackling a wildfire in Surrey which is larger than 40 hectares and has spread to a golf course.Play at the Rose Ladies Series Grand Final had to be halted after a blaze which began on Chobham Common spread to Wentworth golf course. Continue reading...

Fifth-generation agricultural show vendor Jesse McDonald has run foul of Brisbane authorities with his driveway food truck“It even smells like the Ekka,” a young girl calls to her mother as she races towards the red food truck.Brisbane’s annual agricultural show – the Ekka – was cancelled this year for just the third time in its 143-year history. It had been scheduled to begin on Friday. Continue reading...

Reasons for shortages are often unclear and substitutes, which are not subsidised by PBS, are prohibitively expensive

Reassuring people in the middle of a pandemic is all about instilling confidence in the government’s strategies

‘Not one official has been in touch to help,’ says family member, as Lebanon’s sorrow turns to anger

Footage appears to show the moments after an Air India Express passenger plane crashed in Kozhikode, India. The aircraft, carrying 190 passengers from Dubai, skidded off the runway on landing in heavy rain and broke in two

Special flight carrying 190 people skids off runway while landing in heavy rain and breaks in twoA special flight carrying evacuees to India who had been stranded abroad because of the coronavirus skidded off a runway and split in two while landing in heavy rain in the southern state of Kerala, killing at least 16 passengers and injuring 123 more.The Air India Express had flown from Dubai with 190 passengers and crew and landed at Kozhikode, also known as Calicut, on Friday. Continue reading...

On Tuesday evening, a massive explosion ripped across Beirut, killing at least 150 people and injuring thousands more. The scale of the damage was immense, with buildings miles from the port lying in ruin.The Guardian's international correspondent Michael Safi looks at the cause of the blast and the impact it has had on Lebanon, a country already on the brink of financial collapse

Canada to impose C$3.6bn in tariffs as Chrystia Freeland says: ‘Any American who buys a can of beer … will suffer’Canada has announced that it will retaliate dollar for dollar – to the tune of C$3.6bn – after the US announced a 10% tariff on Canadian aluminum.Donald Trump announced the new aluminum tariffs on Thursday at a campaign stop at a Whirlpool appliance plant in Ohio, accusing Canada of taking advantage of its trade relationship with the US. Continue reading...

Beaches and parks packed and emergency services stretched as temperature reaches 36.4C Continue reading...

City latest to face tougher measures; Sage experts say R value as high as 1 in England; Scotland brings in law to force pubs to take customer details

Exclusive: Former leader and allies say alleged diversion of funds in 2017 could be fraudJeremy Corbyn and his former leadership team have openly accused disgruntled Labour officials of potentially costing the party the chance of victory by sabotaging the 2017 election campaign in a factional dispute.In a joint statement that shines a light on the scale of continued Labour splits, Corbyn, the former shadow chancellor John McDonnell and seven other former shadow ministers and aides have for the first time formally endorsed claims made in a party report leaked in April. Continue reading...

Home secretary tells MPs she obtained legal advice that sending in the navy would be permittedPriti Patel’s plans to use the navy to tackle the growing number of migrants crossing the Channel from northern France would be unlawful and dangerous, lawyers have warned.Thursday was a record day for small boat crossings, with 235 people identified in 17 separate incidents. More than 2,000 people are said to have entered the country by this route in June – more than four times the known total of 500 for the whole of 2018. Continue reading...

Police watchdog to interview officer who apparently knelt on teenager’s neck during arrest outside Leeds United stadiumA criminal investigation has been launched after a police officer was filmed apparently kneeling on a teenager’s neck during his arrest as Leeds United fans celebrated their club’s promotion to the Premier League.Investigators from the police watchdog will interview the West Yorkshire officer on suspicion of common assault and he will be investigated for gross misconduct. Continue reading...

Angry Lebanese plan major protest on Saturday, one day before team investigating explosion reports to cabinetDozens of bags of fireworks were stored in the same hangar as thousands of tonnes of ammonium nitrate at Beirut’s port and may have been a decisive factor in igniting the explosive chemical compound that fuelled Tuesday’s huge explosion, a former port worker and other sources have told the Guardian.As angry Lebanese plan a major protest in central Beirut on Saturday, scrutiny has focused on how 2,750 tonnes of the dangerous material could have been stored so close to residential neighbourhoods for years – despite repeated warnings of the risk it posed. Continue reading...

Daniel Snowman interviewed the former US president in 1963 and reveals what he was told. Frank Jackson thinks the bombing of Nagasaki was even more of a war crimeClifton Daniel is right about his grandfather’s bombing of Hiroshima (‘He felt he had to do it’, 4 August). “That was no decision!” Harry S Truman told me when I interviewed him in July 1963 in the presidential library in Independence, Missouri. I was a postgraduate student and had come to ask him about Hiroshima, the case study at the centre of my recently completed thesis on presidential decision-making. At a stroke, the very core of my research was undercut by the amiable old man.Truman, who had only become president a few weeks before Hiroshima upon the sudden death of Franklin D Roosevelt, told me how FDR’s advisers, notably the venerable secretary of war, Henry L Stimson, persuaded him that dropping the atomic bomb on people was the one initiative that might bring the war in the Pacific to a rapid end, without the need for a protracted invasion of the Japanese islands at the cost of a million more lives. When I asked Truman about the dangers of nuclear radiation, or whether the bomb was really used to impress or scare the Soviets, all this was dismissed as the dreamings of people who weren’t present at the time and were speculating about matters they weren’t competent to judge. “All the atomic bomb was,” said Truman, “was a big bomb to end the war. And it did end it too!” Continue reading...