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City in Guangxi, with population of 3.7 million, reportedly under lockdown; James Marape tests positive on arrival at Winter Olympics

Prime minister’s wife insists she is a ‘private individual who plays no role in government’Carrie Johnson has denied that she has any role in shaping government policy and claimed she has been targeted by enemies of the prime minister in a “brutal campaign”.Boris Johnson’s wife took the unusual step of issuing a statement through her spokesperson on Sunday evening after months of claims that she is a “Lady Macbeth” figure behind government decision-making in Downing Street. Continue reading...

White House believes Moscow has amassed at least 70% of firepower needed for mid-February invasionRussia has enough troops in place to seize Kyiv or another Ukrainian city but not yet sufficient numbers for a full takeover and occupation of the country, Ukraine’s former defence minister has said, as Washington warned that an invasion could take place at any time.Andriy Zagorodnyuk said in an interview with the Guardian that the situation looked “pretty dire”. “Russia could now seize any city in Ukraine. But we still don’t see the 200,000 troops needed for a full-scale invasion,” he said. Continue reading...

Prime minister may still face more letters of no confidence and revelations from Dominic CummingsAllies of Boris Johnson have insisted that “grownups” are now in charge of his operation as he heads into critical week for his beleaguered premiership that could see him face a confidence vote and the threat of further damaging revelations.Tory MPs said Johnson may have bought some time by bringing a new team into No 10. One major Conservative donor, Alexander Temerko, told the Guardian that the prime minister should now take the opportunity to “purge” the cabinet of disloyal leadership rivals. Continue reading...

Singer’s upbeat and socially conscious songwriting appears on tracks by Wu-Tang Clan, Public Enemy and Kanye WestSyl Johnson, the blues, funk and soul singer whose work was much sampled in US hip-hop, has died aged 85.No cause of death was announced by his family, who said of Johnson: “He lived his life as a singer, musician and entrepreneur who loved black music … A fiery, fierce, fighter, always standing for the pursuit of justice as it related to his music and sound, he will truly be missed by all who crossed his path.” Continue reading...

Rayan Oram, five, was found dead after four-day operation to rescue him from shaft 32 metres deepTributes have been paid to Rayan Oram, the five-year-old Moroccan boy whose body was recovered from a well on Saturday, and whose plight had moved his country and the world.News of Rayan’s death after a massive four-day rescue operation pitched Morocco into deep grief and prompted condolences and expressions of gratitude to the search teams. Continue reading...

Kristina O’Connor says detective who was investigating after men tried to steal her phone asked her outA woman is taking legal action against the Metropolitan police after a detective who told her she was “amazingly hot” while investigating her attack kept his job.Kristina O’Connor, now 33, said she was sent inappropriate messages by DCI James Mason after he responded to her report of an attempted robbery in October 2011. Continue reading...

Longest-running programme in Australian television history loses out to homegrown British dramaThe residents of Ramsay Street have survived almost four decades of affairs, disasters and terrible haircuts – but in the end it might be the popularity of a 1930s Yorkshire vet that finally kills off Neighbours.The long-running soap opera that launched the careers of Kylie Minogue, Guy Pearce and Margot Robbie faces the axe after Channel 5 confirmed it would stop airing the series this summer. The broadcaster no longer wants to spend millions of pounds a year on the show and is instead looking to use its programme budget to reach upmarket audiences with original British dramas – driven by the success of All Creatures Great And Small, its hit revival of the series about rural life in the Yorkshire Dales. Continue reading...

Serial killer reportedly wrote letter detailing 1996 murders of mother and daughter in KentThe serial killer Levi Bellfield has reportedly penned a letter confessing to the murders of mother and daughter Lin and Megan Russell in 1996.The Sun revealed that lawyers acting for Michael Stone, who has twice been found guilty of the murders of Lin and Megan in Kent, have claimed to have received a statement written by Bellfield detailing the killings. Continue reading...

Advocates say the legislation will be ‘life changing’ for workers who currently face rampant discrimination in all aspects of their lives

Homelessness report reveals health and discrimination issues as authors call for new national strategyLeigh Jorey was pretty successful in his mid-30s. A panel beater by trade, he’d completed an apprenticeship, owned his own tow truck company, and worked at it hard. His success didn’t stop him becoming homeless. In fact, it may have contributed to the problem.Under pressure, Jorey began to turn to less healthy ways of coping, which led him into a downward spiral. Continue reading...

Journalist Fahad Shah detained on Friday under terrorism and sedition laws in disputed Indian regionA prominent journalist has been arrested under terrorism and sedition laws, as a crackdown on the press in Indian-administered Kashmir continues to escalate.Fahad Shah, the founder and editor of the widely read local news website The Kashmir Walla, was arrested on Friday evening when he was summoned to a police station in the southern district of Pulwama. Continue reading...

Relief for many as department says post-Brexit applications received before 29 March deadline will be processedBritish citizens who want to return permanently visa-free to the UK with EU families post-Brexit will not be penalised by Home Office delays as long as they apply for their paperwork within the next two months, the government has said.The confirmation will come as a relief to British citizens suffering anxiety and distress over Home Office delays because of the looming 29 March deadline to apply for the EU settlement scheme (EUSS). Continue reading...

First in line to throne thanks Duchess of Cornwall for support as royal family paves way for her to take title of queenThe Prince of Wales has paid tribute to his “darling wife” the Duchess of Cornwall for her “steadfast support” after the Queen announced that Camilla will be known as “Queen Consort” when Charles becomes king.In a statement released on Sunday, Charles heralded the Queen for the way her “devotion to the welfare of all her people inspires still greater admiration with each passing year”. Continue reading...

Spending time high above the ground allowed me a unique view of the land and my relationship with itClimbing, I once thought, was a very manly activity. A pursuit for macho adventurers on a mission to conquer – conquer the mountain, conquer their fear, conquer themselves. That may be the story for some climbers, but as I found my way into this activity, I came to see that something quite different happens on the rock.Like wild swimming, rock climbing immerses you within the landscape. On the rock, I am fully present. Eyes pay close attention, scanning the details of the rock, trying to read the passage up the cliff. Ears are alert, tuned in to the sounds of the stone, my partner and the environment. Hands roam across the surface, feeling for features while the whole body works to stay within balance, coordinating itself around the various forms of the cliff. Unlike walking, where I could happily trundle absent-mindedly through the landscape, in climbing, attentive observation is essential. Continue reading...

The Queen’s platinum jubilee message in full

Monarch expresses ‘sincere wish’ in candid message marking 70th anniversary of her accessionThe Queen has expressed her “sincere wish” that the Duchess of Cornwall becomes Queen Consort when Charles becomes king.In a candid message marking the 70th anniversary of her accession, the monarch made clear her desire, unambiguously paving the way for Queen Camilla. Continue reading...

A large swing against Liberals may create ‘uncomfortable questions’ before the next state election

Podcast host says sorry for ‘most regretful and shameful thing I’ve ever had to talk about’ but says remarks were taken out of contextThe podcast host Joe Rogan has offered “sincere and humble apologies” after footage emerged of him repeatedly using the N-word on his hit show.The comedian, 54, who has a lucrative deal with the streaming giant Spotify, said it was the “most regretful and shameful thing” he has ever had to speak about, but stressed the clips were “taken out of context”. Continue reading...

More MPs set to submit resignation demands as No 10 rejigs teamBoris Johnson’s desperate efforts to save his premiership were undermined on Saturday as one of his most loyal backbench supporters said it was now “inevitable” that Tory MPs would remove him from office over the “partygate” scandal.In an interview with the Observer, Sir Charles Walker, a former vice-chairman of the 1922 Committee of backbench Conservative MPs, implored the prime minister to go of his own accord in the national interest, and likened the events in the Tory party to a Greek tragedy. Continue reading...

Host nation’s speedskating win overshadowed by criticism for using athlete from a persecuted minority to light the Olympic flameGlory on the track. Growing criticism off it. China ended day one of these Winter Olympics by celebrating a thrilling first gold medal, while also finding itself facing growing condemnation from human rights groups after selecting a Uyghur to light the Olympic flame.The small number of fans in the Capital Indoor Stadium because of Covid-19 regulations certainly made themselves heard as China’s mixed relay quartet held off Italy by the width of a blade in a dramatic short-track speedskating final. Continue reading...

Long gone are the steel works, and the coalfields are on notice. Newcastle is a city in transitionIt’s not quite yet the new Berlin, as some have whispered, but a tipping point might have been reached as Australia’s sixth-largest city is being reimagined to embrace a very different future.Not that Newcastle can ever escape its industrial past. Coal will forever occasionally wash on to its beaches from exposed coastal seams, while Newcomen Street, Bolton Street and Watt Street in the city centre salute 18th century giants of power generation. And though there’s no Pitt Street, there is a Pit Street. Continue reading...

11-year-old boy left in Trafford hotel room while man went drinking after victory against Manchester UnitedA Middlesbrough supporter has been arrested after leaving his 11-year-old son at a hotel while celebrating his side’s FA Cup victory against Manchester United.Greater Manchester police used a Twitter post to confirm news of the man’s arrest on suspicion of child neglect. Continue reading...

Rescuers have entered a tunnel to free a five-year-old boy who has been trapped for days after falling into a well in northern Morocco. Workers with mechanical diggers have been trying round the clock to rescue five-year-old Rayan after he fell into a well 32 metres (105ft) deep in the hills near Chefchaouen on Tuesday

After a respite following mass vaccinations, infections in Iran have surged to more than 30,000 a day

Woman who helped perfect dish served to guests at 1953 coronation meets monarch at platinum jubilee eventThe Queen has met a former cookery school student who helped create coronation chicken on the eve of her platinum jubilee.The monarch, hours away from becoming the first British sovereign to reach a historic 70 years on the throne, came face to face with Angela Wood, who helped to perfect the dish served to guests after the Queen’s 1953 coronation ceremony. Continue reading...

Hundreds still dying from Covid each day in the UK as fear of the virus wanes

Exiles advised to keep a low profile as hitman is convicted in LondonPakistani exiles seeking refuge in the UK are being advised by counter-terrorism police to keep a low profile following warnings that their lives may be at risk after criticising Pakistan’s powerful military.Counter Terrorism Policing, a collaboration of UK police forces and the security services, has told possible targets that they need to inform police if they intend to travel within the UK. Continue reading...

Non-English speakers may soon rival the millions playing the original version of the viral word gameIt only took two days for Louan Bengmah’s French-language version of the viral Wordle game to run into trouble. His online dictionary threw up “slush”, Québécois slang that was essentially an English word co-opted in North America.French players hoping to join the hundreds of thousands of English speakers cluttering up social media with boastful grids showing how quickly they had guessed a mystery word, were frustrated. Continue reading...

Maureen Lipman criticised decision to cast Mirren as former Israeli prime minister as she is not JewishDame Helen Mirren has said questions over the choice to have her play Israel’s first female prime minister, Golda Meir, are “utterly legitimate”.The Academy award-winning actress said there was “a discussion to be had” about the suitability of certain actors for certain roles. Continue reading...

President Gabriel Boric has brought renowned named climate scientist Maisa Rojas into government to help ensure a greener futureHidden behind the Andes in a quiet corner of South America, a formidable generation of former student leaders are putting together one of the world’s most exciting progressive movements.On 11 March, Gabriel Boric, 35, a tattooed leftist with a steely resolve to reform Chile from the bottom up, will become the country’s youngest ever president – and his green agenda is echoing across the world as time ticks away on an impending climate catastrophe. Continue reading...

At first, I could hardly get through a novel. But slowly reading – and writing – saved me from a life of drugs, rehab and jailWhen I was in tenth grade in Tampa, Florida, I was, like millions of other high school students, assigned to read The Catcher in the Rye for English class. Like millions of other high school students, I was extremely fragile. I was holding on by a thread. I was 15 and spent much of my time at school, on the days I would go, doing OxyContin, Xanax, cocaine and speed in the bathroom. I jittered and itched through class, and my internal life was, to say the least, stifled. It would continue to be stifled for the next few years, until it became so claustrophobic that I attempted suicide. Needless to say, I was pretty hit or miss with school assignments. But I had always liked to read. I decided to crack Salinger’s book and read a chapter or two. I stayed up all night and finished it. I came into class the next day wired, eyes wide: it felt as if I had been hooked up to a car battery. I remember walking into the classroom and saying to my English teacher, “What the hell was that?”I didn’t know anything about the book. I didn’t know that the men who shot John Lennon and Ronald Reagan were both obsessed with it. I didn’t know that it was the subject of endless think pieces debating the ethical ramifications of Holden Caulfield’s character. I didn’t know Salinger stormed the beaches on D-Day, carried scars from his years in war. I just got sucked in. It is a funny, polarising little book. I remember my girlfriend at the time saying she hated it, that she couldn’t get through it. But my teacher told me that every year at least one person does what I did, gets hooked up to the car battery. Looking back, it makes sense that someone in my particular situation would have this reaction to it. In fact, it is almost embarrassing just how cliched it is. But that’s what happened. And, in what would become a theme of my life, what stuck with me more than any of the particular content of the book was the feeling of being sucked in, of losing time trapped in someone else’s words and turbulent emotions. Continue reading...

Recipes for Superbowl 56 next weekend from the kitchen of Joe Allen in Covent Garden: slow-braised smoked baby back ribs and vegetarian hot dogs with quinoa chilli. Touchdown!I’m a huge sports fan, so revel in everything around a big sporting event: getting friends over, the TV set up and, of course, prepping the ultimate game-day spread. The Super Bowl next weekend is the perfect excuse to get some American-style dishes on the go, and it wouldn’t be right if I didn’t make a couple of Joe Allen classics. Today’s recipes have been a closely guarded secret – or at least until now – and, regardless of whether or not you’re a meat eater, together they make the perfect finger food for everyone who can’t take their eyes off the screen.UK readers: click to buy these ingredients from OcadoUK readers: click to buy these ingredients from Ocado Continue reading...

Repatriating the spoils of empire is stuck in all manner of legal and historical impasses that preserve the status quoThose who would see the Parthenon marbles return to Greece sense change in the air. As the politics of identity resurge, as the legacies of colonialism are scrutinised, Benin bronzes held in Aberdeen and Cambridge have been sent back to Nigeria, those in Glasgow are the subject of a formal request, and those in Germany are to return too. The Benin bronzes – looted by the British in a punitive raid on Benin City in 1897 – are a very different case from the sculptures that once adorned the great temple of Athens’ patron goddess on the city’s Acropolis, acquired (or so it is argued) legally by Lord Elgin in 1801. But still: Palermo’s Archaeological Museum has just sent its share of the Parthenon sculptures to the Acropolis Museum – on loan, but with talk of a permanent arrangement.The Palermo sculpture is a shoe-box-size fragment showing part of the goddess Artemis’s foot, rather than the 75m of frieze plus magnificent pediment held in the British Museum, but still, it’s a precedent of sorts. The Greek prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, made return of the Parthenon marbles a talking point on a recent visit to London. Even the Times has reversed its leader line to support repatriation. “Separating components of an artistic whole is like tearing Hamlet out of the First Folio of Shakespeare’s works,” says its editorial – though bringing the Bloomsbury sculptures to Athens would not complete anything at all, since half of the stonework is destroyed, and they will never be intact again.Charlotte Higgins is the Guardian’s chief culture writer Continue reading...

Homophobic murder of a consultant psychiatrist in July 2021 was among several crimes recorded at that timeCampaigners in Cardiff are calling for the police and other authorities to do more to protect LGBTQ+ people after it emerged the sadistic homophobic murder of a consultant psychiatrist was only one of a spate of hate crimes recorded at the time.A vigil is to be held near Bute Park in the city on Sunday after a 17-year-old girl and two men were found guilty of murdering Dr Gary Jenkins by beating him and stamping on his head for 15 minutes in the early hours of a morning in July last year. Continue reading...

From the DJ fined £12,000 to the host of a small new year’s gathering – the people who did get busted for breaking lockdown restrictions tell their storiesThe knock on the door came just before midnight on New Year’s Eve. Chloé Gardiner and her boyfriend were at home, but not alone. After a hard year, they had invited two friends over to see in 2021 with them, breaking strict rules in force in her area as the UK entered its second wave of the pandemic.“There were three carloads of police in the end,” says Gardiner, a 23-year-old care assistant from the small town of Portstewart in Northern Ireland. “And there were only four of us.” It was hardly a wild party, she says – they were just hanging out, listening to music and posting the odd picture to social media – and she doesn’t know who reported them; they weren’t being loud, and they have no close neighbours. They were fined £200 each for breaching Covid regulations, deducted automatically in her case from her wages. Gardiner, who works two jobs, says money went from both pay packets, and she is still trying to recoup £100 she thinks was wrongly deducted in the confusion. Continue reading...

A roundup of the coverage of the struggle for human rights and freedoms, from Mandalay to Montevideo Continue reading...

Andy Haldane says city’s crucible-like atmosphere created ‘combustion’ for economic prosperityThe government’s new levelling-up strategy should help Britain’s left-behind towns and cities emulate Renaissance Florence in cooking up the “secret sauce” of economic success, according to its co-author Andy Haldane.The hefty report, published on Wednesday, was mocked by some for its frequent historical references – including to 15th-century Florence under the Medici – but Haldane, a former Bank of England chief economist, is deadly serious. Continue reading...

In Cameroon’s Minawao refugee camp, young Nigerians use the game to help rebuild lives put in danger by Boko HaramLucy is the team’s captain, so she looks after the ball. Her family’s house is about 10 minutes’ walk from the pitch: it is one of the more established dwellings in Minawao, a permanent structure largely screened behind a high mud wall. She greets her mother, who is sitting outside with an aunt, in Hausa before disappearing inside. Once she has retrieved what she came for, the day’s training can begin. “We play football with our friends to ease our minds,” she says. “That’s why they give girls this ball to play with: to forget about what happened to us.”This could barely seem further from Yaounde, where the Africa Cup of Nations final will take place on Sunday. We are 500 miles away in Cameroon’s extreme north region, tropical greenery having given way to the parched fringes of the Sahel. Continue reading...

Since his early days in the underground comix scene, Spiegleman has reveled in ‘saying the unsayable’ and subverting conventionIn 1985, at the height of popularity for the faddish baby dolls, the Cabbage Patch Kids, the cartoonist Art Spiegelman debuted a subversive line of trading cards, the Garbage Pail Kids.Featuring viscerally queasy drawings of, say, a mushroom cloud detonating from the roof of a cheery toddler’s skull, or a Raggedy Ann facsimile barfing up dinner into a pot, the Garbage Pail Kids were a sensation among edgy preteens all over the world. They were also swiftly banned in a slew of schools. To this day, Mexico has a law restricting the import and export of Garbage Pail Kids material. Continue reading...

Many of the thousands of people who attempt the deadly Channel crossing in tiny boats land in towns like Folkestone. Local resident James Harkin meets some on the shoreOnly the hardy wade into the Channel in winter, and this year I’m one of them. Nearing the end of my stone-cold morning swim at Mermaid Beach in Folkestone, Kent, I notice something out of the ordinary. A commotion has broken out around a small inflatable dinghy a few beaches away as it skirts a vicious pile of rock groynes there to protect the shingle beach. Shortly afterwards, a fellow swimmer hollers in my direction, wondering whether I’ve seen the arrivals. They tossed their lifejackets in the water when they landed, he says, with what sounds like disdain.I swim back to shore and walk up the beach, following a coastguard car. The dinghy is still bobbing up and down on the rocks, surrounded by military-looking jetskis; by the time I get there, it’s empty. Six men sit, soaking, on two semicircular stone banquettes adjoining the beach, surrounded by police and medics. According to the chatter on police radios, other men might have fled into a nearby coastal park, perhaps because they had contact information for people to help them. All six have been handed rugs and bottles of water; they look stunned, and a little sheepish. I ask a police officer if I can talk to the men and he shrugs his shoulders. “They haven’t been checked for Covid,” he says. Continue reading...

Flo, 27, graphic designer, meets Toby, 29, producerWhat were you hoping for?

Taipei calls ‘no limits’ agreement announced after Xi-Putin summit an insult to the Olympic spiritTaiwan has condemned as “contemptible” the timing of China and Russia’s “no limits” partnership at the start of the Winter Olympics, saying the Chinese government was bringing shame to the spirit of the Games.China and Russia, at a meeting of their leaders hours before the Winter Olympics officially opened, backed each other over standoffs on Ukraine and Taiwan with a promise to collaborate more against the west. Continue reading...

Environmentalists spot floating carpet of blue whiting covering thousands of square metres after spill from the FV MargirisDutch-owned trawler FV Margiris, the world’s second-biggest fishing vessel, has shed more than 100,000 dead fish into the Atlantic Ocean off France.France’s maritime minister, Annick Girardin, called the images of the dead fish – which formed a floating carpet of carcasses spotted by environmental campaigners – “shocking” and has asked the national fishing surveillance authority to launch an investigation. Continue reading...

From honjok – taking part in activities alone – to bihon – pledging never to marry – a pushback against the traditional family unit is reshaping societyMin Kyeong-seok is not shy about eating in restaurants alone, or staying in luxury hotels by himself, and shares his experiences online in his blog “One happy person”.“I want to show people that I am living a happy life despite being single,” says Min, 37. Continue reading...

After refusing to sign a statement condemning North Korea’s latest missile tests, China called for US to create ‘attractive and practical’ solutionsChina’s ambassador to the UN has called on the United States to be more flexible in its dealings with North Korea, as Beijing joined others in refusing to sign a US-drafted security council joint statement condemning Pyongyang’s missile launches.Kim Jong-un’s regime conducted an unprecedented seven weapons tests in January, including launching its most powerful missile since 2017 as it hinted it could restart long-range and nuclear testing. Continue reading...

RMT members will walk out on 1 and 3 March, as TfL and government extend funding arrangement for two weeksTube workers are to go on strike for two days next month over fears for jobs, pensions and working conditions, threatening widespread disruption across London.The RMT union announced that its members on the tube would walk out on 1 and 3 March. Continue reading...

Sajid Javid has joined Rishi Sunak in rejecting slur on Keir Starmer as two more MPs call for PM to goBoris Johnson’s attempts to rally his dilapidated top team floundered on Friday after a second cabinet minister distanced himself from the prime minister and two more Conservative MPs called for him to go.In a bid to shore up support, Johnson wrote to MPs promising them a “direct line to Downing Street”, but his move came as Sajid Javid followed the chancellor, Rishi Sunak, in rejecting Johnson’s remarks linking Starmer with the failure to prosecute paedophile Jimmy Savile. Continue reading...

Turkish daily death toll highest in four months as cases surge; UK health agency says number of cases each day could be rising

Parliament backs no-confidence motion after internal disputes and weeks of political deadlockMontenegro’s conservative pro-Serbian governing coalition collapsed on Friday amid internal disputes, after parliament backed a no-confidence motion tabled by a junior coalition partner.Lawmakers voted 43-11 in favour of the motion against prime minister Zdravko Krivokapić’s government after weeks of political deadlock. Other lawmakers in the 81-seat parliament either abstained or left the session before the vote. Continue reading...