by Presented by Lucy Hough with Devika Bhat; produced on (#78MRF)
More than 100 people were arrested at large protests against the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu's address to the UN general assembly. Susan Sarandon, Chelsea Manning and Caleb Hearon were among the famous faces arrested. Inside the assembly hall, Netanyahu faced a mass walkout as he took to the stage. Then, in an inflammatory address, he claimed Israel's war in Gaza was the opposite of a genocide' and labelled the New York mayor, Zohran Mamdani, antisemitic. Lucy Hough speaks to UK global editor Devika Bhat - watch on YouTube - Listen to Thursday's episode of Stateside with Kai and Carter on whether Netanyahu has lost America here Continue reading...
Rat-free' Canadian province recently took a verminous hit when a dead rodent turned up in town of BowdenFor more than seven decades, residents of Alberta have shared something in common with Antarctica and the high Arctic: all locations are officially free of rats.But on Thursday the Canadian province's reputation as a firewall against rodent infestation took a hit when the town of Bowden announced the discovery of a dead rat and called on the province's rat patrol" to investigate. Continue reading...
by Alexandra Topping Political correspondent on (#78MRH)
About 1.5 million people have watched footage of foreign secretary that capitalises on social media's love of a cringe momentIt sparked delight among the diehard Milifans and a begrudging smile from those less keen on the foreign secretary, but a viral video of Ed Miliband has - possibly - confirmed his status as the internet's awkward dad.About 1.5 million people have viewed an interaction between Miliband and the TikTok personality Feroz Khan on the streets of New York, during which the digital content creator asks Miliband a series of questions including his name, job and his top piece of advice. Continue reading...
by Philip Oltermann European culture editor on (#78MQP)
Thelyson Orelien had been in the running to win a top literary prize before the AI claim emerged on social mediaThe organisers of France's most prestigious literary prize said they had removed a critically acclaimed novel by a Canadian-Haitian writer from the longlist after an anonymous online account claimed the book was almost entirely" written by AI.The Academie Goncourt, a Paris-based literary organisation, said on Friday its decision to withdraw Thelyson Orelien's novel C'etait ca ou mourir (It Was That or Die) was driven by the desire to preserve the integrity of the Goncourt prize and the academy itself, whose central role is to promote and honour literature written by women and men". Continue reading...
The justice called out her colleagues in a speech she made at the UDC school of law, hours after Trump filed his latest requestUS supreme court justice Ketanji Brown Jackson acknowledged serious concerns about her colleagues' handling of emergency requests, the method Donald Trump often uses to seek approval from the court.Jackson, one of the three liberal members of the supreme court, criticized the justices' willingness to issue rulings via the shadow docket", saying it undermines the public's faith in the judicial system. Continue reading...
by Joseph Gedeon, Dara Kerr and Chris Stein on (#78M7D)
Who are the groups backing candidates in the midterms - and why? Joseph Gedeon, Dara Kerr and Chris Stein answered your questionsSign up to The Stakes newsletter: your weekly guide to the US midtermsNola67 asks Alex Vindman had $16 million fundraised during his losing campaign against Angie Nixon [to be the Democrat's Senate nominee in Florida]. Will he be giving that money to Nixon now, and is she getting more funding help from the national Democratic Party?Joseph: Our understanding is that he's using his sizeable war chest to boost Democrats across the country, and to the Florida Democratic state party, though not Nixon herself. He announced back in August that he'd be sending $250k to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign committee and candidates like Abdul El Sayed in Michigan, Troy Jackson in Maine, Roy Cooper in North Carolina, Sherrod Brown in Ohio, Charles Booker in Kentucky, and more.In Florida, he says he invested $400k to the state democratic party, though not directly to Nixon herself. It seems like the Senate Majority PAC, led by Chuck Schumer and meant to boost Democrats to the Senate, are steering clear of Nixon's campaign - it seems they don't find that one winnable, and don't want to put the investment into it.Dara: Theoretically AI could be used for recovering debt for investors for the government, but given the mistakes and bias the technology still has it would likely need human oversight for this work. It's more feasible that AI will be used as a tool to help identify trends and organize material, but then people would have to direct this work and keep tabs on the technology to ensure all rules and regulations are being followed. Continue reading...
Trump's media ban resulted in an effective TV blackout of coverage of the president during the UN general assemblyThe primary White House television pool has resumed filming administration events after a court ruling temporarily overturned a Trump administration ban on CNN a day earlier.In an unprecedented move, the pool - which also includes NBC, ABC, CBS and Fox News - ceased recording and transmitting White House footage on Monday, in solidarity with CNN, MS Now and Politico, which had been banned by Trump from the building over what he said was their constant reporting' FAKE NEWS." Continue reading...
by Jakub Krupa (now) and Tom Ambrose (earlier) on (#78MDJ)
The pope gives landmark speech on AI development and Europe's futureLater today, Pope Leo will go to the Elysee Palace for (another) formal welcome and a meeting with authorities, civil society and the diplomatic corps, before visiting Unesco and delivering a speech on AI in mid-afternoon.He is then expected to go on a stroll through the streets of Paris, before going to the restored Notre Dame Cathedral. Continue reading...
Powered by sun and wind, the uncrewed vehicle will collect data to help Australian scientists better understand how oceans absorb emissionsA small uncrewed vessel has embarked on a lap around Antarctica and may not return for months.The seven-metre craft, which looks like a large kayak in hi-vis orange, is expected to travel about 22,000km through inhospitable waters, propelled by powerful westerly winds and energy from the sun. The journey is seven times the distance between Sydney and Perth. Continue reading...
by Amy Qin with graphics by Flávio Pessoa on (#78MMT)
National Center for Education Statistics, which collects critical data to guide policy on learning, was decimated after Doge canceled crucial contractsAs reading and math scores fall to their lowest point in the past quarter-century, the US now has fewer tools to understand and develop interventions for this troubling trend.When the Trump administration took a wrecking ball to the Department of Education last year, firing nearly half of its workers and allowing the so-called department of government efficiency" (Doge) to cancel nearly $900m in contracts, a little-known agency called the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) was among the hardest hit. Continue reading...
As the UN warns traditional safeguards are unravelling', Donald Trump says he will encourage, not restrain, the AI raceWhen the Australian prime minister, Anthony Albanese, sat down for an interview in the heart of Silicon Valley at the weekend he had known for two days that his was the first government known to have been attacked by a rogue AI agent.He didn't reveal the attack then, but he sounded a warning about the march of AI: the risk is that AI develops in a way in which humans are no longer in control of what AI is producing." Continue reading...
by Tom Ambrose (now); Taz Ali and Martin Belam (earli on (#78MEZ)
The media organisation reports that three of its journalists were denied media passesA record 66m of emergency security funding was issued by the Home Office for mosques and related community sites in the UK when violent disorder spread in the aftermath of the Southport attacks in 2024.Exclusive figures obtained by the Guardian also reveal a record of about 41m of security funding was issued for mosques and related community sites for the year from April 2025-26 as part of the protective security scheme.We reserve the right to reject an application if we cannot find any evidence the applicant is a working journalist or photographer with a political portfolio or working on behalf of a relevant media outlet." Continue reading...
Unnamed woman who filed and later dropped lawsuit against rap superstar states that she never met him, contrary to initial allegation of 2000 assaultA woman who accused Jay-Z of raping her when she was 13 years old has formally withdrawn her allegation, saying that she has never met the rap superstar.The unnamed woman had originally made the allegation in a lawsuit filed in 2024, claiming that Jay-Z, real name Shawn Carter, had drugged and raped her with Sean Combs, known as P Diddy. The incident was alleged to have happened at a party after an MTV awards ceremony in 2000. Continue reading...
by Ashifa Kassam European community affairs correspon on (#78MH3)
Critics say decree also banning burqa in schools shows Italian PM running scared ahead of next year's voteRights campaigners have accused the Italian government of ramping up divisive rhetoric in an attempt to court far-right voters ahead of next year's general election after it passed a decree aimed at capping the number of newly arrived migrants in classrooms and banning the burqa and niqab in schools.The prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, who leads the far-right Brothers of Italy party, said her government had approved what she called commonsense measures that do not divide but genuinely help to integrate". Continue reading...
Thomas appeared at Basingstoke magistrates court on Friday after being charged with criminal damageThe far-right activist Daniel Thomas has pleaded not guilty to criminal damage after he allegedly slashed a boat in the Channel with an emergency responder on board.Thomas, 37, of no fixed address, appeared at Basingstoke magistrates court on Friday after being charged on Thursday night. He also denied failing to disclose the pin to his phone to police, under section 53 of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000. Continue reading...
Trump officials and Republicans are rolling back protections against heat-related illnesses and deathsWhen it's 90F on a hot summer day, Esther Minton wears a long-sleeved shirt to work.Working outside, you don't have cover. There's nowhere for you to really go if you're on a roof or if you're on the side of a building," said Minton, a member of the Sheet Metal Workers Local Union 28 in New York City. Having the sun beaming on your skin all day long, you'll never make it through, so what you wear makes a difference." Continue reading...
After years of illegal mass flytipping in Gospi, fed-up residents decided to take matters into their own handsGospi is our home," eljka iki shouted to a crowd of 40,000 people outside the Croatian parliament earlier this month. The slogan is the name of a campaign she helped to set up to protest against the illegal dumping of waste in Gospi, a town in the mountainous Lika region of central Croatia.Between 2022 and 2024, waste was illegally abandoned at several sites in the town. At one of the biggest, just 50 metres from iki's home, an estimated 35,000 tonnes of waste, some of it hazardous, was dumped and buried. Continue reading...
Government-backed help to save is aimed at working people on universal credit and pays 50p for every 1 saved over four yearsAmid claims that millions are missing out, the UK government is encouraging low earners to sign up to a savings scheme that offers free cash.Help to save is a government-backed savings account that lets people earn a bonus of 50p for every 1 they save over four years. Continue reading...
Catherine Corless's exposure of almost 800 infant deaths at a home led by nuns prompted Neeson to bring the story to screenLiam Neeson still remembers his shock and shame when he read a New York Times article about the mother and baby institution in Tuam, County Galway.It was 2017 and the article chronicled the campaign by Catherine Corless, an amateur local historian, to expose abuse and neglect by Irish nuns that led to hundreds of children being buried in a mass, unmarked grave. Continue reading...
by Alexandra Topping Political correspondent on (#78MDK)
Camden council leader's message is clear: she's visible, committed and local', and has been for a long timeSagal Abdi-Wali does not want to be the prime minister. She doesn't even want to lead her party. Labour's candidate for Holborn and St Pancras laughs and shakes her head with unusual vigour when asked if she would like to follow in the footsteps of the last member of parliament for the constituency, Keir Starmer.No, no, no, no, that's not at all, in any way, what I'm trying to do," she says during a break in campaigning in the Primrose Hill cafe in Regent's Park. I'm literally trying to get through the next few weeks and trying to be the member of parliament for this constituency, and that's all I care about." Continue reading...
Patient groups decry scandalous' delays as four integrated care boards take step due to soaring demand for diagnoses Two-year waiting times highlight NHS struggle with rise in ADHD and autism awarenessNHS bodies are forcing people with suspected attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and autism to wait at least two years before they can be assessed as they struggle to meet surging demand for diagnoses of neurodiversity.Four NHS integrated care boards (ICBs) covering large regions of England have adopted the approach because they cannot afford the cost of the number of assessments that people are seeking. Continue reading...
by Patrick Butler Social policy editor on (#78MBW)
Assessment bottlenecks have knock-on effects, with delays in medical help and access to specialist support NHS bodies in England impose two-year minimum wait for ADHD and autism assessmentsThat NHS boards have imposed minimum two-year waiting times for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and autism assessments shows a health service struggling to deal with the consequences of huge changes in understanding of and social attitudes to these conditions.Sharp rises in referrals for clinical assessments over the past six years mean nearly 1 million people in England are on ADHD waiting lists, with the average wait already over a year (64 weeks). About 295,000 await an autism assessment. Continue reading...
Locals raised 1m for Mayday Saxonvale scheme involving homes and park but Somerset officials agreed deal with London-based real estate companyA bold bid by residents of a progressive town in the English West Country who raised almost 1m to create what could have been the UK's largest community-led regeneration project is in tatters.More than 1,000 residents of Frome in Somerset had clubbed together with the aim of building homes, workspaces, a riverside park and a lido on a brownfield area in their town centre. Continue reading...
The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said the missiles were aimed at Taif and the Yanbu area on the Red Sea, the main alternative route for Saudi oilSaudi Arabia says it intercepted six ballistic missiles fired by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis, with the latest attacks pushing oil prices to a one-week high over fears of spiralling supply disruptions.The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said the missiles were aimed at Taif in western Saudi Arabia and the Yanbu area on the Red Sea, with the Houthis claiming their attacks were aimed at a sensitive target" in the capital Riyadh and on Saudi Aramco facilities in Tanbu. Continue reading...
Holmes was sentenced to 11 years in prison in 2022 but has seen her sentenced reduced several timesElizabeth Holmes, the disgraced founder of blood testing startup Theranos, will reportedly be transferred from a minimum security prison to a halfway home next August.In 2022, Holmes, 42, was sentenced to more than 11 years in prison for defrauding Theranos investors out of hundreds of millions of dollars and ordered to pay restitution. The company falsely promoted its technology as being capable of detecting diseases, including types of cancer, from drops of finger-pricked blood. Continue reading...
Industry leaders call on government to protect homegrown produce in the interest of national securityThe gap between Britain's food and drink exports and imports has neared its highest this century, as a combination of Brexit, war in the Middle East and US tariffs dented deliveries overseas while imports soared.The UK's food and drink trade deficit has risen to more than 21bn - the largest since 2000 - in what industry leaders said was a wake-up call" for the government to protect homegrown produce in the interest of national security. Continue reading...
Thirty-seven-year-old charged with one count of criminal damage and failing to disclose his phone pin to policeThe far-right agitator and anti-migrant activist Daniel Thomas has been charged with criminal damage and failing to disclose his phone pin to police following an incident in the Channel on Tuesday, where he allegedly slashed a dinghy while a French rescuer was on board.Thomas, 37, of no fixed abode, has been charged with one count of criminal damage along with an offence under section 53 of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (Ripa), for allegedly failing to comply with a notice to disclose a phone pin to police. Continue reading...
Court says Chad Bianco's conduct unlawful and seizure of ballots creates substantial risk to election integrity'California Republican sheriff Chad Bianco must return more than 650,000 ballots his department confiscated earlier this year in an unprecedented move that violated election law, a state supreme court ruled on Thursday.Allowing law enforcement unfettered access to ballots, or the ability to handle and count them in secret, based on unregulated protocols, itself creates a substantial risk to election integrity," chief justice Patricia Guerrero wrote in a Thursday opinion. Continue reading...
by Joseph Gedeon and Chris Stein in Washington on (#78M2X)
GOP stymies House-passed war powers resolution as conflict passes 200-day mark with 19 US service members killedSenate Republicans on Thursday blocked a Democratic effort to end the US war with Iran, voting down a House-passed war powers resolution as the conflict that has killed 19 American service members passed the 200-day mark.The measure, which passed the House last week with bipartisan support, failed in the Senate by a 49-50 vote. Senate Democrats, led by the minority leader, Chuck Schumer, and the senator Andy Kim of New Jersey, forced the vote under the War Powers Resolution, which allows lawmakers to bring such measures to the floor. Continue reading...
Crystal Mason has spent nearly a decade fighting conviction for casting provisional ballot that ultimately wasn't countedThe nearly decade-long case of a Black Texas woman who was sentenced to five years in prison in a controversial illegal voting case will end with an acquittal, the state's highest criminal court said in a 5-4 decision on Thursday.The woman, Crystal Mason, has been appealing against the case ever since her 2018 conviction for casting a provisional ballot that ultimately wasn't counted. In 2024, the Texas court of criminal appeals acquitted her in the case. The local prosecutor handling the case appealed that ruling to Texas's highest criminal court, which initially agreed to hear it. But on Thursday, the court reversed itself, and said it would not hear an appeal, letting the acquittal stand. It did not offer any explanation for why. Continue reading...
Officers left feeling hamstrung', says Mark Rowley after offender allowed to return to flat overlooking playgroundPressure to cut the number of prisoners on remand has led to dangerous and prolific offenders" being granted bail, the country's most senior police officer said after a paedophile was allowed to return to his flat that overlooked a children's playground.Zafer Dogan was jailed on Thursday for two years and four months after he was convicted of taking thousands of pictures of women and girls before using AI technology to turn them into nude images for his sexual gratification. Continue reading...
Israeli PM attacks critics and calls New York mayor Zohran Mamdani antisemitic' in inflammatory addressBenjamin Netanyahu delivered an inflammatory address to the United Nations on Thursday, decrying what he said was a global anti-Jewish conspiracy and swatting aside criticism of Israel's war in Gaza, as he faces down international isolation and a fight for political survival in upcoming elections in Israel.As planned protests erupted on the streets of New York City, Netanyahu took aim at critics of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, the international media, regional leaders such as Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdoan, the leftwing commentator Hasan Piker and the New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani in an address that doubled as a stump speech to ignite his rightwing base for the elections. Continue reading...
Deference was deafening as US president rolled out red carpet for world's biggest jailer of journalists - perhaps he was seeking tipsOne is an authoritarian who represses the media with a strong allergy to democratic elections. The other is head of the Chinese Communist party.Donald Trump welcomed the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, to the White House on Thursday, setting the stage for a scene quite unlike anything the august old building has seen over more than two centuries. Continue reading...
Monthly thank you' payments for people hosting refugees to be cut from 350 to 100 from next yearUkrainian refugees in the UK fear they could be left homeless after the government quietly axed 70% of funding for hosts of the Homes for Ukraine scheme, reducing monthly thank you" payments to them from 350 to 100.The scheme was launched after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and has provided support for 181,000 of the 234,000 Ukrainians who have since sought sanctuary in the UK. Continue reading...
If you're not in the internal market, you don't get the same protection,' says French minister of policy designed to curb Chinese competitionFrance is leading a push to exclude the UK from the EU's Made in Europe" policy that could result in British companies losing out in the race to supply European countries with low-carbon technologies and electric cars.The plans were raised by Andy Burnham when he met the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, on the sidelines of the UN general assembly earlier this week. Continue reading...
Resolution Foundation says households outside London are paying hundreds of pounds a year more in council tax than they would be under a fair systemTim Shipman has written about what will be coming up at the Labour conference next week in his cover story for the Spectator. He says:Labour special advisers summoned last week to the pillared state room on the first floor of No. 10 to hear the plan for conference from Burnham's political secretary, Hayden Munro, left in no doubt that the PM wants to be a transformational figure. The conference narrative' these advisers were urged to push includes the telling line: This Labour government will bring forward the biggest change to Britain in 40 years, with a new political and economic model.' On the specifics, Burnham will pledge: We will make the choices that are needed to end rough sleeping, solve the social care crisis and get more young people into work.'Burnham will pledge to run a cost-of-living government' with further immediate action' to provide the breathing space people need', as well as outline plans to devolve power out of Whitehall', reindustrialise Britain' and take back public control of the essentials in life - such as energy, water and housing' to make them affordable again'.Ultimately, the election choice is Burnham's. If you knew what Keir's aides thought, you knew what he would do,' says a ministerial aide. But Andy has political opinions of his own.' Burnham may go for it. But those closest to him doubt it. He likes risk, but he has stuff he wants to get done,' says one close confidant. While outsiders think his ambitions require an election, Burnham thinks he can transform Britain without one. Andy really cares about the devolution stuff,' the ministerial aide observes. Most of Westminster roll their eyes but he thinks that will change the country. He thinks doing that will make him a great prime minister.'And those who think none of that will deal with Britain's economic problems seize on another clue. A Labour adviser concludes: Ultimately I think Burnham and his team will do what they often do with difficult decisions, and not make one.'What I imagine is that some schools will offer some of these subjects where their local labour market demands, and this is where our mayors and our local leaders are really helping to shape that in their area.So I wouldn't expect a school to offer all of these, as they don't offer all GCSEs at the moment. They will specialise in particular areas.If you're trying to do engineering or construction, for example, you know that involves a lot of problem solving, a lot of maths, a lot of thinking, as well as the hands-on skills that's required.So it's not dumbing down, it's the opposite of that, actually, because this is about raising the standards and the rigour and regulating these qualifications. Continue reading...
The incident is the latest in a series of recent cases involving people entering or departing the US city's sewer networkThree unidentified people were seen emerging from a manhole in New York City's Upper East Side neighborhood early Wednesday before fleeing the area, police said, in an incident that comes as many world leaders have gathered in the city for the United Nations general assembly.The incident is the latest in a series of similar cases involving people entering or emerging from New York City's sewer network in recent months that have gone viral online. Continue reading...
Warning comes hours after Poland says fire at Starlink satellite station was act of sabotage'Russia could launch a limited military attack against a Nato country in the coming months, Danish intelligence said, in one of the starkest warnings yet by western security services.In a report published on Thursday, the Danish defence intelligence service warned of a low but growing risk" that Russia could launch long-range strikes on Nato infrastructure supporting Ukraine, or carry out a limited incursion into a neighbouring country with a small number of troops, potentially operating without insignia. Continue reading...
Wallace and Gromit stop-motion models and other beloved creations raise money to train new generations of animatorsWallace's reaction as the auction got into full swing might have been a trademark good grief!" - and the enthusiasm of some of the bidding could have caused even the phlegmatic Gromit to show surprise.Fans of Wallace and Gromit and other beloved creations of the Aardman studio seized the chance to grab souvenirs when more than 200 pieces - including Wallace, Gromit, Shaun the Sheep and Chicken Run puppets that starred in Aardman productions - went under the hammer on Thursday. Continue reading...
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