Committed student came to UK with family as they fled Lebanon a decade before she was killed in BlackburnFive years after her family fled violence in Lebanon, a 14-year-old Aya Hachem sat with her parents at a charity event to help traumatised refugees settle into life in Lancashire.Hachem was not one to simply settle. She thrust herself into British life. She learned English, excelled at school, and became one of the Children’s Society’s youngest ever trustees aged 16. She seemed destined to fulfil her ambition to become an international lawyer. Continue reading...

Israeli court rejects request for country’s prime minister to be absent from start of proceedingsAn Israeli court has ordered the country’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, to appear for the opening of his criminal trial in Jerusalem on Sunday.Netanyahu’s lawyers had asked the court for an exemption from appearing for the opening of proceedings. Continue reading...

HC-One faced being stopped from running Home Farm after concerns over its management

A summary of the major developments in the coronavirus outbreak across Australia

Samantha Murozoki bartered her jeans and sneakers to stop the food running out, inspiring others to pitch in

Jealous friend unable to admit to ‘extreme betrayal’ and her evidence is ‘nothing but a pack of lies’, coroner saysA coroner has delivered a scathing assessment of a jealous friend who catfished Sydney woman Renae Marsden, finding she lied repeatedly to an inquest.The coroner Elaine Truscott said Camila Zeidan created the fake persona “Brayden Spiteri” to coerce and control Marsden between late 2011 and August 2013. Continue reading...

Both city and state aim to recruit thousands to trace contacts of those diagnosed with coronavirus as part of plans to reopen

We bring together all the latest on new and active Covid-19 cases, as well as maps, stats, data and graphs from NSW, Victoria, Queensland, SA, WA, Tasmania, ACT and NT to get a broad picture of the Australian outbreak and track the impact of government response.

Malaysian man receives sentence remotely for role in 2011 drug deal as city-state tries to curb its coronavirus ratesA man has been sentenced to death in Singapore via a Zoom video-call for his role in a drug deal, the city-state’s first case where capital punishment has been delivered remotely.Punithan Genasan, a 37-year-old Malaysian, received the sentence for his role in a 2011 heroin transaction on Friday, court documents showed, with the country under lockdown to try to curb one of the highest coronavirus rates in Asia. Continue reading...

Survivors say an armed forces’ patrol vessel intercepted an overloaded dinghy, giving the refugees fuel and GPS coordinates for Sicily

The actor on 40 years in show business, why he channelled Donald Trump in American Beauty – and having a face that makes directors sickThe director Robert Altman used to tell Peter Gallagher, the suave star of his 1992 movie The Player: “Gallagher, you’re so good-looking it makes me sick.” To hear Gallagher impersonating the gruff auteur, it was not quite a compliment. But he was used to that.During a heated rehearsal for The Real Thing, Gallagher’s breakout role on Broadway at the age of 29, another director, Mike Nichols, admitted to not being able to stand the sight of him. “And we were close!” says Gallagher cheerfully, speaking over Zoom from his home in Los Angeles. He responded by growing an “awful white goatee” until Nichols pleaded for him to shave. Continue reading...

Met Office predicts scorching day across country before thunderstorms on Thursday

How far can you drive? What are the travel restrictions in NSW, Queensland and Victoria and when will they be lifted? Can you visit your family or parents in Tasmania, ACT, SA, WA or NT? Untangle Australia’s Covid-19 laws with our guide

Prime minister says flexible working options can boost productivity and domestic tourism and improve work/life balance

Former Today show host accuses Farrow of shoddy journalism in his Catch and Kill book as journalist responds that Lauer is ‘just wrong’Matt Lauer has accused Ronan Farrow of shoddy and biased journalism in his book Catch and Kill, which included a rape accusation against the former Today show host that Lauer claims is false.Farrow, a Pulitzer Prize-winning staff writer at the New Yorker, said Lauer “is just wrong”. Continue reading...

Rami Makhlouf, former backer of Assad regime, also barred from doing business with state

Wednesday: Gas and coal sectors welcome the government’s proposed climate measures. Plus, if you failed to tick off your quarantine to-do list, join the clubGood morning, this is Emilie Gramenz bringing you the main stories and must-reads on Wednesday, 20 May. Continue reading...

Authorities waited hours to warn the public that the gunman, who would eventually kill 22 people, was using a fake police carPolice in Nova Scotia knew that a gunman carrying out a murderous rampage was traveling in a fake police car 12 hours before they warned the public, according to a recently unsealed warrant.New details of Canada’s worst mass shooting were revealed on Tuesday after media outlets successfully petitioned for the unsealing of warrants used during the hunt for the man to search two properties he owned. Continue reading...

Coronavirus rebellion by councils forces government to say it will not sanction them

Fiji-born Taitusi Ratucaucau told he is not eligible for free treatment due to immigration statusThe children of a Commonwealth-born veteran, who is struggling to find £27,000 to pay for emergency surgery, have called on the government to waive mounting NHS and immigration fees.Their public appeal came as the veterans’ minister, Johnny Mercer, said he was making inquiries about the case of Taitusi Ratucaucau, which was revealed by the Guardian on Monday. Continue reading...

Authorities say they have evidence tying Toronto attack in which a woman was murdered and two others injured to ‘incel’ movementPolice in Canada are treating a machete attack in which a woman was murdered and two others injured as an act of terrorism, after discovering evidence suggesting that it was motivated by violent misogyny.The move is thought to be the first time that terrorism charges have been brought in a case connected to the so-called “incel” ideology. Continue reading...

Cases growing in Brazil, South Africa and India as Spain begins to open beaches and restaurant terraces

Chief negotiator David Frost says proposed trade deal would make UK ‘bend to EU norms’Britain’s chief negotiator, David Frost, has accused Brussels of treating the UK as an “unworthy” partner by offering a low-quality trade agreement that he says would force the country to “bend to EU norms”.In an extraordinary letter to the EU’s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, the prime minister’s envoy says Brussels’ proposal that EU state aid rules be part of British law is “egregious” and “simply not a provision any democratic country could sign”. Continue reading...

George Eustice, the environment secretary, has urged Britons on furlough to 'lend a hand' picking fruit and vegetables on British farms, as only a third of the pickers from eastern European countries who usually complete the work have arrived this year

Family pays tribute to Phoenix Netts, 28, whose death is being investigated as murderA woman whose remains were found in two suitcases in Gloucestershire last week has been named by police as 28-year-old Phoenix Netts.The discovery close to a quarry near Coleford in the Forest of Dean came after a member of the public reported some erratic driving. The vehicle was located a short while later and two suitcases were discovered containing human remains. Officers used DNA analysis to help identify Netts’ body. Continue reading...

Families forced to halt hunt for nearly 62,000 who’ve vanished since ‘war on drugs’ began in 2006: ‘We can’t go out and search’

Previously dismissed mob is characterised by ‘primitive’ forms of brutality, say investigatorsOn 1 April, just as Italy was at the peak of its coronavirus crisis, a man in a protective face mask approached a residential home for vulnerable old people in Foggia in the southern region of Puglia. He was not coming to help residents, however, but rather to blow the home’s doors off with an explosive device.The incident, in which fortunately no one was injured, came as no surprise to the care home’s owner, Luca Vigilante. He had only recently completed repairs following a bomb attack on the premises in January. Continue reading...

Education minister claims scheme a success but says old system was effective as more parents set to return to workSign up for Guardian Australia’s daily coronavirus email

A summary of the major developments in the coronavirus outbreak across Australia

Measures tightened further in city of 700,000 close to Russian border that has been deemed a high-risk area

Restrictions were due to end but Hong Kong extends social distancing measures for 14 days

Trade tensions between the two countries heighten as China imposes barley tariffs, but Australian ministers insist ‘there is no trade war’The Chinese embassy in Canberra has declared it is “nothing but a joke” for Australia to claim vindication over the growing global support for an international review into the handling of the coronavirus outbreak.The comments come as trade tensions intensify over China’s decision to hit Australian barley imports with tariffs of more than 80% – a move that Australia will consider challenging through the World Trade Organization. Continue reading...

New research also warns that half of those with a problem are not getting the help they need

Police appeal for witnesses continues after murder of law student described as ‘truly remarkable’Three men have been arrested on suspicion of the murder of Aya Hachem, 19, who died after she was shot in Blackburn on Sunday.The second year law student at Salford University was gunned down from a car on Sunday afternoon on her way to Lidl supermarket in the town’s centre. Continue reading...

About 300 localities without confirmed virus cases are allowed to resume economic activities, but Amlo warns to maintain discipline

Female genital mutilation being inflicted on girls stuck at home as circumcisers go door to door

Action comes over articles Papua New Guinea commerce minister William Duma says imply he was corruptPapua New Guinea’s commerce minister is suing the Australian Financial Review over a series of articles about a multinational oil company’s dealings in the small Pacific nation, court documents show.Earlier this year, the AFR published a series of articles about ASX-listed Horizon Oil’s dealings in PNG in 2011, which named William Duma, the former minister for petroleum and current commerce minister. Continue reading...

After two months of coronavirus lockdown, Italy takes cautious steps towards normality

Boy, 15, denies murdering 17-year-old Tyrone Hayman with ‘Rambo-style’ knife in Bristol flatA 15-year-old boy stabbed another teenager to death with a “Rambo-style” knife during an argument over a phone charger, a jury has heard.The defendant, who cannot be identified due to his age, is accused of murdering Tyrone Hayman, 17, in Bristol. Continue reading...

‘It was inspired by a hectic night at a club we ran – people were taking their clothes off and hanging from ceiling pipes’We never wrote a love song in the Kaiser Chiefs. At the time of I Predict a Riot, I was inspired by tracks like Sharp Darts by the Streets, songs that were gritty and real. The inspiration for the verses came from me DJing at the Cockpit in Leeds, and at the end of the night we’d drive home past this club called the Majestyk. There was always a big snarl-up there, loads of people in the road, police everywhere. Continue reading...

Foreign states are increasingly active in this new chapter of the long-running conflict

Plans being drawn up are expected to cover most passengers, with exemptions

Test funded by federal government cuts wait times to 45 minutes, but Queensland Health has vetoed the rollout

Firefighters pull two girls out of house fire but despite attempts to revive them, both died at the sceneThree-year-old twin girls have died in a house fire in New South Wales.The girls were pulled from the house at Batlow, near Tumut, by firefighters on Monday morning, NSW police said in a statement, but despite efforts to revive them both died at the scene. Continue reading...

League of Youth has sent out messages of peace and goodwill every springtime for decades

India extends Covid-19 lockdown but eases many restrictions; South Africa reports highest daily new cases; World Health Assembly to begin

The world’s fifth largest weapons buyer is eating up its reserves - and its political cloutSaudi Arabia may be forced to forego new weapons contracts and delay already-agreed weapons purchases as a financial crisis grips the kingdom, experts predict.The expected delay of new weapons deals could have long-term political repercussions for the country under the rule of Mohammed bin Salman, the crown prince and de facto ruler who has waged a bloody war with neighbouring Yemen. Continue reading...

This year’s meeting of the WHO’s decision-making body will be held virtually, and the stakes couldn’t be higher

Trafficking victims and others around world unable to get help during pandemic, says study

Barack Obama attacks Trump’s virus response; Russia sees 9,709 new confirmed cases in past 24 hours; China reports five new Covid-19 cases