World news | The Guardian

With gas more than $6 in state, delivery of some 2m barrels is last planned shipment to pass through strait of Hormuz

Statement comes after Trump's threats to escalate bombing if Iran doesn't agree deal and IRGC suggestions the strait of Hormuz could reopenThe UK work and pensions secretary, Pat McFadden, has warned that job losses could happen" in Britain due to the economic impacts of the Iran war.He said the UK economy was going in the right direction" at the start of the year and unemployment figures for February showed a decline. He added that interest rates were expected to come down and the markets were pricing in cuts during the course of the year. Continue reading...

Ro Khanna criticizes commerce secretary after closed-door interview about ties to Jeffrey Epstein as Democrats call performance embarrassing'

After two years in parliament, Reform UK leader has brought in 2m on top of his Commons salary

Reform UK leader has registered wide range of financial interests on top of his Commons salary since July 2024

Democrats sharply criticize the US commerce secretary's testimony, saying he was dishonest' and should resignThe US commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, appeared before the House oversight and reform committee on Wednesday to answer questions over his past ties to Jeffrey Epstein.Lutnick agreed in March to sit for a transcribed interview with the committee after the justice department's release of millions of documents related to Epstein, which included documents showing that Lutnick continued correspondence with Epstein after the disgraced financier had been convicted of soliciting prostitution from a minor. The session is part of the committee's broader investigation into Epstein. Continue reading...

Video shows looksmaxxing' influencer shooting an apparently already dead alligator in the EvergladesA controversial social media influencer known as Clavicular is facing charges in connection with a live stream showing him shooting an apparently already dead alligator in the Everglades, local Florida media has reported.Clavicular, whose real name is Braden Eric Peters and is known for the practice of looksmaxxing", faces charges of unlawfully discharging a firearm in a public place or residential property, according to legal files obtained by television station ABC6 in South Florida. The charges stem from his alleged actions in a 26 March live stream. Continue reading...

Ship's doctor, a Briton, among those evacuated from MV Hondius, which is now heading for Canary Islands

Utz issues voluntary recall for certain varieties of Zapp's and Dirty potato chips over contamination linked to seasoning

Suit says director used Q'orianka Kilcher's features without permission after seeing her in advert for The New World

Though Trump's popularity has dwindled, staying loyal to him seems to still be a winning strategy among the GOP

Sarah Schloegl was unable to board flight home from Spain as 11-month-old lacked documents needed under new rulesA British woman from Aberdeen has been stranded abroad after her 11-month-old baby was prevented from boarding a flight because of new rules regarding dual nationals.Sarah Schloegl was unable to board a Ryanair flight from Alicante last week after she went to Spain for a short break with her Austrian husband, Philipp, their three-year-old daughter and 11-month-old baby. Continue reading...

Approval for exploration in 70 new areas prompts fierce backlash from fossil fuel opponentsThe Norwegian government has been heavily criticised for approving plans to reopen three North Sea gasfields nearly three decades after they were closed to help fill the gap in energy supplies created by the Middle East war.Amid sharp price rises in oil and gas since the US and Israel's attack on Iran in February, Oslo has also given its approval for oil and gas companies to explore in 70 new locations in the North Sea, Barents Sea and Norwegian Sea. Continue reading...

Finding would explain why type of stroke affecting about 35,000 a year in UK is not as responsive to some medicationThe cause of a type of stroke that affects about 35,000 people across the UK each year has been uncovered by researchers and may explain why some medications are ineffective as treatment.Lacunar strokes, which account for a quarter of all strokes in the UK, had been linked to the blockage of arteries in the brain by fatty deposits. However, a study published on Wednesday suggests they are not caused by blocked arteries but by the enlargement and widening of arteries in the brain. Continue reading...

Researchers found that TikTok's For You pages prioritized pro-Republican content in New York, Texas and GeorgiaA study published Wednesday in the journal Nature finds that TikTok's algorithm systematically prioritized pro-Republican content in three states leading up to the 2024 US elections.Researchers created hundreds of dummy accounts and conditioned them to mimic real users' behavior by watching a set of videos either aligned with the US Democratic or Republican parties. Then, they tracked the videos TikTok recommended on these accounts' For You pages, TikTok's main feed. Continue reading...

Councillor announces plan to withdraw from government-funded programme on eve of local elections

Mamata Banerjee says Narendra Modi's party forcefully captured' election that ended her party's 15 years in powerA political showdown is taking place in the Indian state of West Bengal as the chief minister, Mamata Banerjee - India's most powerful female politician - has dramatically refused to resign after she lost elections to the prime minister's party this week.On Monday, Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) won an overwhelming victory in the state elections in West Bengal, where Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress party (TMC) have been in power for 15 years. Continue reading...

New owner Modella Capital, which rebranded shops to TG Jones, blames weak consumer spendingDozens of former WH Smith stores are likely to close, putting thousands of jobs at risk under a radical restructuring plan by their new owner, which had rebranded the shops to TG Jones,The investment company Modella Capital, which bought WH Smith's chain of 480 high street stores for 76m last year, blamed weak consumer spending" as it set out the plan to landlords on Wednesday. Continue reading...

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps navy has announced the strait of Hormuz could reopen following the end of threats from aggressors'Job vacancies in the UK bounced back in March but remained near a five-year low, and openings for graduates slumped more than a third.UK job vacancies showed signs of recovery in March, rising 3.74% month-on-month to 752,711 - the second monthly increase after an extended period of decline, according to the job matching platform Adzuna. Yet despite this tentative rebound, the overall picture remains tough for job seekers. Vacancies are still 13.60% lower than in March 2025, and the market remains near its weakest level since 2021.Like BP last week, these are unearned windfall profits driven by Trump's war with Iran.Equinor now wants to cash in even more by developing the Rosebank oil field, which would be a terrible deal for the UK. This government must put the needs of the British public - for affordable energy and a safe climate - ahead of this Norwegian oil giant's relentless pursuit of profit. Continue reading...

National park closes areas near Old Faithful after attack by one or more bears, with incident under investigationTwo hikers were injured in a bear attack on Monday on a trail in Yellowstone national park, park officials said.The National Park Service said in a statement on Tuesday that the hikers sustained injuries on Monday by one or more bears" on the Mystic Falls trail near Old Faithful in Yellowstone national park. Officials did not specify which species of bear. Continue reading...

Leading newspaper La Nacion calls US's barring of board members indirect attack on press freedom'The US state department has cancelled tourist visas for more than half of the board members of Costa Rica's leading national newspaper, La Nacion, which has been a critical voice against the country's president, Rodrigo Chaves, an ally of Donald Trump.During Chaves's 2022 presidential campaign, La Nacion published several articles documenting allegations of sexual harassment against him that had forced him out of his job at the World Bank. The paper also reported on allegations of illegal campaign financing, which Chaves denied. Continue reading...

Biologists had guessed coyote paddled a shorter distance to former prison in the San Francisco Bay earlier this yearA lone coyote stunned biologists and others when earlier this year it paddled its way to the remote Alcatraz Island, a former federal prison in the San Francisco Bay surrounded by swift, choppy waters notorious for thwarting prisoners' escapes.At the time, biologists guessed the coyote swam from San Francisco, which is a little over 1 mile (1.6km) from the fortress. But it turns out the male coyote actually made an even longer swim from nearby Angel Island, 2 miles (3.2km) away. Continue reading...

Researchers say 481-metre wave in fjord was triggered by rockslide linked to climate crisisA mega tsunami in Alaska last year in a fjord visited by cruise ships is a stark warning of the risks of coastal rockslides and glacier retreat fueled by the climate crisis, a new study warns.Scientists recorded the world's second-tallest tsunami after it struck the Tracy Arm fjord in south-east Alaska last August after a massive rockslide around the toe of a glacier. The tsunami reached 481 metres (1,578ft) in height; by comparison the Eiffel Tower is 330 metres (1082ft). Continue reading...

Polls suggest Reform could win most seats in Senedd election but party is unlikely to be able to form government

Team of 100 extra officers is aimed at providing more consistent model of protection' for Jewish communities

Shabana Mahmood has announced plan to cut leave to remain to 30 months, to concern of UN's refugee agencyTwo Sudanese asylum seekers are challenging a key element of Labour's plans to strip refugees of basic rights, rejecting the home secretary's accusation that they are asylum shoppers".Shabana Mahmood has announced plans to halve refugees' leave to remain in the UK from five years to 30 months, while refugees will have to wait 20 years before being eligible for permanent stay in the UK. Previously, people could apply for permanent settlement after five years. Continue reading...

With most major European cities well-served by trains and buses, bringing US transit up to par would cost $4.6tnThe only train station in Houston, the US's fourth-largest city and one of the fastest-growing conurbations in the country, is a diminished, morose sight. Intercity trains arrive at this squat, shed-like Amtrak building, which cringes in the shadows of roaring highways, just three times a week.That such a meager train station could ostensibly serve a metropolitan area of about 7 million people is a stark symbol of how the sprawling, car-dominated US has fallen behind cities around the world where people can rely on extensive, high-quality public transport to get around. Continue reading...

Owner of Japan nightclub says This is a response to a year of insults directed at us - as a country - by the United States'A Mexico City nightclub has gone viral for charging Americans a nearly $300 cover charge, while citizens from any other country pay just $20 for access, and Mexicans and other Latin Americans pay only $14.The Instagram announcement from the nightclub Japan in the Roma Norte neighborhood has been liked over 26,000 times and received more than 200 comments, mostly supporting the policy as part of a broader revolt in the capital against what many see as a US takeover. Continue reading...

Green party leader also accuses rightwing media of politically motivated attacks as popularity grows

The third day of hearings of the royal commission on antisemitism and social cohesion heard further evidence from Jewish Australians

Janine Roebuck, from London, says she no longer considers herself deaf after double cochlear implants restored hearingAn opera singer who hid her deafness for more than 30 years has described life-changing" surgery that has the potential to become the norm for thousands of NHS patients.Janine Roebuck, 72, from London, had double cochlear implants fitted to restore her hearing, a method now being trialled nationwide to see whether it can transform the lives of thousands more people. Continue reading...

Home affairs minister Tony Burke says government continues to refuse to help the group of 13

Nigel Farage's party sees local elections as showcase for a sleeker approach borrowing from an unlikely sourceNigel Farage was midway through his walkabout of Waltham Abbey when a hunting horn loudly sounded on the Essex market town's pedestrianised high street. Oi oiii!" exclaimed the owner of Ouch Tattoos, Rob Chillingworth, putting down the instrument and reaching out a welcoming hand to the approaching Reform UK leader.For Farage, this was the latest stop in a midweek tour of half a dozen towns in Essex, where more than 1m county council votes are up for grabs. Barring breakthroughs in Wales and Scotland, going from having a single councillor here to taking power would be one of Reform's biggest achievements in Thursday's polls. Continue reading...

Tent where twins were born up to a 15-minute walk away from nearest public toilets or running water

Spain says MV Hondius will be received in Canary Islands and passengers and crew treated before repatriation

Scores of women have told how they were affected by placenta accreta spectrum for an awareness campaignWomen have had to undergo major emergency surgery, including a hysterectomy, when medical staff failed to detect they had a rare but potentially fatal complication of pregnancy.Scores of women have come forward to tell their stories of how they were affected by placenta accreta spectrum (PAS) since the launch in February of a campaign to raise awareness among NHS staff and mothers-to-be of the dangers it poses. Continue reading...

Objection after museum removes word Palestine' from list of countries of ancient Levant and Egypt and from some explanatory panelsThe Palestinian ambassador to the UK has called for Foreign Office intervention after the British Museum removed references to Palestine from its exhibits.The UK recognised the state of Palestine in September 2025, but the same year the museum removed the name Palestine" from a panel listing the present-day countries encompassed by the ancient Levant, and replaced it with Gaza and the West Bank. Continue reading...

Wastewater from nearly 40,000 people and businesses pumped straight into sea as island still has no treatment plantRaw sewage from nearly 40,000 people and businesses is being pumped straight into the sea because the British overseas territory of Gibraltar does not have, and has never had, a wastewater treatment plant.For decades, untreated sewage has poured into the Mediterranean from the southern tip of the peninsula at Europa Point, where the government of Gibraltar says there are high levels of natural dispersion". Continue reading...

Glyphosate is currently sprayed on cereal and pulse crops to dessicate them and make them easier to harvestA new trade deal with the EU could lead to restrictions on the use of the controversial weedkiller glyphosate on UK food crops.The full-spectrum herbicide, which kills almost every plant it touches, is often sprayed on wheat, oats and other cereal and pulse crops immediately before harvest to desiccate them and make them easier to handle. Continue reading...

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Without offering details or evidence, US Southern Command describes the people killed as narco-terrorists'The US military said on Tuesday it had struck a vessel in the eastern Pacific, killing three people, in the latest such attack that rights groups label as extrajudicial killings" and Washington describes as targeting narco-terrorists".US Southern Command posted about the strike on social media Tuesday evening, alleging that the vessel struck on Tuesday was operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations" that it did not identify. Continue reading...

Party's incumbents had resisted Trump's bruising campaign to pressure them into redrawing congressional districtsA majority of Indiana Republican legislators whose opponents were backed by Donald Trump lost their primaries on Tuesday, giving the president wins in a deep-red state just months after lawmakers there rejected his redistricting plan.Of the seven Trump-endorsed challengers to state senate candidates, at least five won. Continue reading...

This blog is now closed. Our full report is here: Trump puts Project Freedom' on hold, saying he hopes to finalise a deal with IranIran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, is travelling to Beijing later today for talks with his Chinese counterpart on bilateral relations and regional and international developments", his ministry said on its Telegram account.While Beijing condemned the initial US and Israeli strikes on Iran which started the war in late February, China has largely adopted a posture of neutrality ever since and has urged for a diplomatic resolution to the conflict. Continue reading...

Police suspend extensive' six-day air and ground search in Nova Scotia, citing no new information'Teams in eastern Canada have called off an extensive" six-day air and ground search of a rugged park for a missing Australian hiker.The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said this week it had suspended operations after an effort involving dogs, 100 people, aircraft and ground crews yielded no new information" in the whereabouts of Denise Ann Willams. Continue reading...

Ohio's Senate seat is one Democrats have prioritized in the party's bid to retake control of the chamber

Conflict appears to have reached impasse, but leaders in Tehran and Washington seem to think victory is nearThe month-old ceasefire between Iran and the US appeared to be in new peril on Tuesday with a fresh barrage of Iranian missiles reported to have targeted the United Arab Emirates as US naval forces pressed ahead with efforts to reopen the strait of Hormuz.The Iranian strike on the UAE was the second in 48 hours, and came shortly after the US defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, insisted the shaky truce which has paused the war in the Middle East was intact, despite the new increase in violence. Continue reading...

US secretary of state says US is better off than other countries hit by disruption in oil suppliesMarco Rubio has argued the US is in a very fortunate" position as fuel prices continue to climb nationwide amid disruption sparked by the US-Israel war on Iran.With average US fuel prices now approaching $4.50 a gallon - their highest level in four years - the US secretary of state was asked on Tuesday how long Americans should accept them at such levels. Continue reading...

Serious side-effects from vaccines were rare, scientists found in studies funded by US taxpayer moneyThe US Food and Drug Administration has blocked the publication of several studies that found Covid-19 and shingles vaccines to be safe, according to a spokesperson from the Department of Health and Human Services.Agency scientists conducted the studies by analyzing millions of patient records and found that serious side-effects from the vaccines were rare, the spokesperson confirmed. The studies - funded by taxpayer money and costing several million dollars - included research examining the safety of Covid-19 vaccines in 2023 and 2024. Continue reading...

Green party leader also accused of incorrectly stating he was a full member of the National Council of HypnotherapyZack Polanski falsely claimed to be a spokesperson for the British Red Cross while campaigning for the Green party leadership, the charity has said.The claim was also mentioned on his personal website in 2020, where he said he was really proud of the work we do". Continue reading...

US president directs fresh criticism at pontiff days before secretary of state Marco Rubio's visit to Vatican