Just in time for Hanukkah, the In Praise of Veg author shares her crispy, golden latkes recipe, in celebration of all things friedAlice Zaslavsky describes her parsnip and potato latkes as “like an edible plate”, but the lacy, crunchy, deep-golden latkes are wonderful even on their own. Once topped with creme fraiche, dill, finely sliced pickled beet or smoked salmon (and roe, if you’re feeling very fancy), they’re more than worthy of a little reverence.Eating oily, fried foods is a tradition when it comes to celebrating Hanukkah, which begins on 28 November in 2021. Zaslavsky explains: “The reason we cook a lot of oily foods for Hanukkah is because we’re symbolising the [lamp] oil. It was supposed to only last an afternoon and it lasted for eight days, which are the eight days of Hanukkah. So we eat fried doughnuts, we eat fried latkes. Continue reading...

Four boys arrested on suspicion of murder after Ava White suffered ‘catastrophic injuries’ in LiverpoolPolice are trawling hundreds of hours of CCTV and camera phone footage to piece together how a 12-year-old girl was stabbed to death in a busy shopping street in Liverpool.Ava White, an “incredibly popular” girl who had been made an “peace ambassador” in 2019, died after suffering “catastrophic injuries” on Church Street in the city centre on Thursday evening. Continue reading...

Travel restrictions on southern African states imposed by countries after discovery of B.1.1.529 already harming economy

Indigenous settlers of the Chatham Islands celebrate ‘significant milestone’ as treaty enshrined in law apologises for wrongs and returns landAfter more than 150 years of struggle for justice, truth and reparation, the Moriori people of Rēkohu, or the Chatham Islands, can turn a new leaf on the history book that rewrote their story and taught generations of New Zealanders they were an inferior race that was now extinct.Moriori were the first settlers to the archipelago, 800 kilometres east of New Zealand, between 600 and 1,000 years ago and developed a distinct language, customs and culture before they were nearly wiped out. Continue reading...

Charles EL Gilman urges the government to resume and complete electrification schemes, Jim Grozier fondly remembers on-board sightseeing booklets, while Victoria Owens recalls an ecclesiastical jewel seen from a trainI was glad to read in Ian Jack’s article (The London to Edinburgh train ride was once a thing of wonder. Can it be again?, 19 November) that, on the trains operated by Lumo in the east coast mainline, “every part of the train is electric”. Even an exclusively diesel-powered train is better for the environment than flying, but a train with no onboard engine at all is the best of all.If only the same were true of the Azuma trains run by the line’s main operator, for it is not true of all of them. Those trains travelling through, to or from Aberdeen or Inverness – or turning off to places such as Hull – are “bi-modes”, which can take power either from electrification or from an onboard engine – a diesel one in this case, but a hydrogen or battery one would not be much better. A train engine is not like a stationary generator: being carried around means that it uses energy whether switched on or off. Carrying such an engine under the wires all the way from London to Edinburgh, for example, somewhat undermines the advantages of using electrification. Continue reading...

In transient tent towns near Dunkirk people disappear and no one knows if they made it safely across the ChannelFor four days this week Karwan Tahir shared a tent in the woods around Dunkirk with a young man named Karim. In the early hours of Wednesday morning Karim set off for the UK – a journey in darkness to the nearby beach, and from there into the vast and uncertain Channel in a flimsy dinghy.“I don’t know if he made it or if he drowned,” Tahir said on Friday, showing off the living space he and Karim had briefly shared. “He didn’t come back. I only knew he came from [Iraqi] Kurdistan, like me. We met at the camp. He knew I spoke English and so he invited me to share his tent. Continue reading...

Former environment minister denies allegations as four women come forward in TV documentaryA popular French environmentalist and former government minister faces new allegations of rape and sexual abuse after several woman came forward in a TV documentary to testify that he had assaulted them.The claims come four years after Nicolas Hulot, 66, was first accused of rape by the granddaughter of the late Socialist president François Mitterrand. Continue reading...

Series of 30 maps highlights underappreciated musical impact of the cityUB40 have launched a series of maps celebrating Birmingham’s musical heritage that will be featured at every railway station across the city.Revealing the first of 30 specially commissioned works at Hall Green station as part of the Musical Routes project, the reggae group welcomed the installation that celebrates the underappreciated musical impact of the city. Continue reading...

After Adele got Spotify to hide their album shuffle button, Alyx Gorman, Michael Sun and Steph Harmon called up Aria-winner Georgia Mooney, of All Our Exes Live In Texas, to talk about writing music for the world of streaming – and trying to make a buck from it. Later, Alyx quizzes Michael and Steph on Macquarie Dictionary’s new contenders for Word of the Year Continue reading...

Leader calls legislation ‘greatest blow to civil and political liberties’ since return to democracyThe leader of Spain’s Podemos party has defended the coalition government’s push to change its predecessor’s “gag law”, calling it “the greatest blow to civil and political liberties” since the country’s return to democracy.Ione Belarra, who serves as the minister for social rights in the Socialist-led minority government, said the public security legislation had eroded basic democratic rights since it was introduced by the conservative People’s party (PP) six years ago. Continue reading...

BA and Virgin cancel flights and review schedules as fears grow over new Covid variantThousands of Britons in South Africa and many more with bookings to travel have had their plans thrown into disarray as flights were suspended on Friday.The UK government temporarily blocked direct flights as it placed six southern African countries on the red list due to concerns over a new Covid-19 variant. The move comes at the start of peak holiday season, with airlines having booked tens of thousands of passengers to fly before Christmas. Continue reading...

Urgent measures needed to avoid ‘chaos’, warns expert, as Spain, Portugal and Netherlands tighten rules

Activists threaten legal action over mouflon hunting on Tuscan island as part of EU-funded biodiversity projectAnimal rights activists have threatened legal action against the national park that runs a group of islands off Italy’s Tuscan coast as controversy intensifies over the culling of rare mouflon sheep on the tiny island of Giglio.Hunters arrived on Giglio this week and have so far killed four mouflons, a wild sheep native to the Caspian region that is thought to be an ancestor of domestic breeds. Continue reading...

Don’t buy too much cheese. Do buy enough washing-up liquid. Keep the big day stress-free with our tips from top chefsFestive shifts at a butcher’s shop are exhausting, with customers at their best and worst. Ben Curtis, previously a butcher, now head chef at Smoking Goat in Shoreditch, remembers people asking, “What should I have for Christmas?”, without saying who they were cooking for or what they liked, “so you could never give a helpful answer”. Butchers, fishmongers and cheesemongers want you to have delicious food, but give them something to go on. Continue reading...

Donald Robertson, 66, has also been charged with kidnap and rape of 16-year-girl in BerkshireA 66-year-old man charged with the murder of Shani Warren, who was found bound and gagged in a lake nearly 35 years ago, has failed to appear in court for his first remand hearing.Donald Robertson was charged at High Wycombe magistrates court on Friday with falsely imprisoning, indecently assaulting and murdering Warren in Taplow, Buckinghamshire, on 17 April 1987. Continue reading...

Decision paves way for Council of Europe to launch infringement proceedings against TurkeyA Turkish court on Friday extended the imprisonment of the philanthropist Osman Kavala, whose case caused a diplomatic crisis with the US and other western countries after they called for his release.The court’s decision paves the way for the Council of Europe to launch infringement proceedings against Turkey. Continue reading...

Variant found in unvaccinated woman with no links to southern Africa, as UK bans flights from six countries

Scientists are combing Ireland’s west coast for seaweed to feed to farm animals after research showed it could stop them belching out so much climate-heating methane

Michael Sellers is believed to have killed 23-year-old months after she reported him to Derbyshire policeTwo police officers have been served with misconduct notices over their handling of a stalking allegation made by 23-year-old Gracie Spinks several months before she was killed, the police watchdog has said.Spinks was stabbed to death in a field in Duckmanton, Derbyshire, in June as she was caring for her horse, and is believed to have been killed by Michael Sellers, 35, who was found dead nearby. Continue reading...

With its punchy scripts and feminist gaze, the subversive period drama has become a word-of-mouth hit. As it returns, stars Elle Fanning and Nicholas Hoult talk racy Russians, randy frogs – and the weird things they’ve robbed off the setAt the top of the stairs in his Los Angeles home, a portrait of Nicholas Hoult in military regalia hangs on the wall. “That’s very, very normal,” the actor deadpans, before breaking into a laugh. Gladly it isn’t some kind of big-headed shrine to himself, but rather a prop he took from the set of The Great, the gory and garish TV show in which he stars as the Russian emperor Peter III. His co-star Elle Fanning giggles as she admits pinching a sculpture of herself made of butter (“I receive a lifesize version in the show, but I just took the little one”). In fact, as they recall other decorations – a baby’s teddy bear said to be “made from a real bear”, and the mummified remains of Hoult’s onscreen mother, wheeled around in a glass case – the portrait and sculpture start to sound normal, even mundane, by comparison.Created by Tony McNamara – co-writer of the Oscar-winning film The Favourite – The Great isn’t your average period drama. A racy, raucous and not-at-all historically accurate comedy-drama shot through with feminist revisionism, it tweaks and embellishes the story of how Catherine the Great (Fanning) overthrew Hoult’s Peter to become Russia’s longest serving female leader. Hoult, 31, was cast after nailing the “flamboyant, cruel egotist in a wig” role of the Earl of Oxford in The Favourite. Meanwhile, Hollywood star Fanning is perfectly cast as Catherine, appearing much older than her 23 years, but always with an air of youthful mischief. Continue reading...

The French president, Emmanuel Macron, has reprimanded Boris Johnson for trying to negotiate with him about stopping people crossing the Channel in public, via Twitter. He said he was 'surprised' by Johnson’s decision to communicate with him in this way, because it was 'not serious'. He added: 'We don’t communicate by tweets'

While the world has wondered about the fate of the tennis star, the former Chinese vice-premier has remained silentFor the past three weeks, the world has been asking #WhereIsPengShuai, after the Chinese tennis star alleged on social media she was sexually assaulted by a former senior government official.Peng’s allegations, published on Weibo in a post, were shocking and quickly censored. She was not seen for almost three weeks, prompting an international campaign calling for information on her whereabouts and wellbeing. Continue reading...

And I’m still waiting for a steward’s inquiry into how Jurgen got knocked out in the Bake Off semi-finalDuring the half-time break at the Spurs v Leeds game yesterday, I was chatting to my friend Matthew, with whom I have been going to the football for longer than either of us cares to remember. It had been a particularly bleak first half. Tottenham were supposed to be reinvigorated under their new manager, Antonio Conte, but there appeared to be no difference to how they had played under both José Mourinho and Nuno Espírito Santo. The team still lacked any creative ideas – the default mode of every player was to pass the ball sideways – and Leeds, a side just above the relegation zone, were in complete control. What’s more, Spurs had not managed a single shot on goal, let alone one on target. So I told Matthew what had been on my mind. That I wasn’t sure how much longer I could face putting myself through such unremitting suffering: something that I had previously effortlessly taken in my stride. Indeed I had always worn Spurs’ capacity to let its fans down as something of a badge of honour. I had expected Matthew to tell me to get a grip and stop moaning. If I expected to win a major trophy I should support another team. Instead, he told me that his father – a longtime season-ticket holder back in the day – had also reached the same point at roughly the same age as me and had stopped going to games. Which got me wondering if there was a quantity theory of disappointment in football and that I had reached my limit. I’ve a while to find out. Spurs came out for the second half looking like a different team and went to dominate the game and win quite comfortably. We left the ground making plans to meet up for the Brentford game next week. Maybe I’m just incurably shallow. Continue reading...

Gabriel Abutbul Alon accused of helping remove Eitan Biran, six, from Italy during bitter custody battleA man suspected of assisting the alleged kidnap of a six-year-old boy who survived a cable car crash in Italy has been arrested in Cyprus.Gabriel Abutbul Alon, an Israeli national, is accused of driving the car in which Eitan Biran was taken across the Italian border to the Swiss city of Lugano and arranging the private plane that flew him from there to Tel Aviv. Continue reading...

Cody Ackland to appear before magistrate in connection to disappearance of 18-year-old at bus stop in DevonA 24-year-old musician has been charged with the murder of 18-year-old Bobbi-Anne McLeod, who disappeared from a bus stop in Devon.Cody Ackland, who lives in the Southway area of Plymouth, appeared before magistrates in the city on Friday dressed in a grey sweatshirt and grey trousers, and flanked by two custody officers. Continue reading...

Grand ceremony for reopening of 3,400-year-old road aims to help revive tourism industryA restored road connecting two ancient Egyptian temple complexes in Karnak and Luxor has been unveiled in a lavish ceremony aimed at raising the profile of one of Egypt’s top tourist spots.The procession on Thursday to reopen the 1.7-mile (2.7km) road included a reenactment of the ancient Opet festival, in which statues of Theban deities were paraded annually during the New Kingdom era in celebration of fertility and the flooding of the Nile. Continue reading...

Boris Johnson’s public letter to Emmanuel Macron on Channel drownings deemed ‘unacceptable’

Girls to have two years in which to return to school after giving birth, but will still be excluded whilst pregnantThe Tanzanian government has announced it will lift a controversial ban on teenage mothers continuing their education.Girls will have two years in which to return to school after giving birth, the ministry of education said. However, the move is not legally binding and girls will continue to be banned from class while pregnant. Continue reading...

The one-year-old’s parents told authorities they gave a woman at a Sydney coffee shop $200 to care for the child

The US author on becoming a feminist, growing into Gertrude Stein, and the comfort of folk talesMy earliest reading memory

Anxiety and desperation are setting in for 84 people forced to isolate inside Aquarius Backpackers because of a Covid caseDay three of lockdown at the Aquarius Backpackers, and all Nina D’Angelo craves is a decent coffee.“I saw a cop drinking one and asked, ‘sir, could I have an almond latte please?’ But really it’s the lack of information that’s getting to me,” she said from her hostel dorm. Continue reading...

Government-appointed officials say the troubled council still faces significant issues following a ‘toxic period’Liverpool city council is “emerging from a difficult, somewhat toxic period”, according to the first report from government-appointed commissioners sent in following the former mayor’s arrest and allegations of corruption.The report, published after the commissioners’ first three months, also warned that the desire for quick change has led to a “frenetic rather than purposeful and targeted approach”. Continue reading...

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Ahmed Nasser al-Raisi of United Arab Emirates elected despite concerns of human rights groups and MEPsAn Emirati general accused of torture has been elected president of Interpol, despite the concerns of human rights organisations and members of the European parliament who fear the global police agency will be at risk of exploitation by repressive regimes.The appointment follows generous funding by the United Arab Emirates for Interpol, which is based in Lyon, France, and accusations Abu Dhabi has abused its system of “red notices” for wanted suspects to persecute political dissidents. Continue reading...

Regulator probes potential mismanagement at Fashion for Relief and payments to trusteeThe fashion charity established by the supermodel Naomi Campbell has come under formal investigation from the charities watchdog over misconduct concerns relating to its management and finances.Campbell created Fashion for Relief in 2005 to raise funds for children living in poverty and adversity around the world, and says it has raised millions over the years for good causes through its annual charity fashion show. Continue reading...

Double-edged, curved falcata particularly sought after because of the original condition of its bladeMore than 2,000 years after it was last wielded by a warrior somewhere on the Iberian peninsula, a rare, magnificent – and plundered – sword has been recovered by Spanish police, who tracked it down before it was sold online.The pre-Roman falcata, a double-edged, curved sword used by the Iberians between the fifth and first centuries BC, was seized along with 202 other archaeological pieces after it appeared on what Policía Nacional officers termed “a well known social media site”. Continue reading...

Prime minister aims to dampen criticism that bill could enable discrimination at religious schools

Airlines report more than 5,000 incidents involving passenger behaviour on flights this yearThe US attorney general Merrick Garland has directed the swift prosecution of federal crimes on commercial flights as officials face a large increase in the number of investigations into passenger behaviour.Airlines and their unions have pressed the US government to push more aggressively for criminal prosecution. Airlines have reported more than 5,000 incidents involving unruly passengers this year, with more than 3,600 of those involving people who refused to wear face masks. Continue reading...

Scott Morrison announces deployment of personnel to Solomon Islands as protests continue; Labor targets federal integrity commission during question time; George Christensen ‘clarifies’ Hitler, Mao, Stalin comments; Victoria records 1,254 new Covid cases and five deaths; NSW reports 276 cases and no deaths. Follow live updates

People who’ve integrated into society are expected to return to the country’s oldest refugee camp, as cost of living and anti-refugee sentiment risesDzaleka, Malawi’s first refugee camp, is about 25 miles north of the capital Lilongwe. Built 25 years ago in response to a surge of people fleeing genocide and wars in Burundi, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, it was then home to between 10,000 and 14,000 refugees. But the camp now houses more than 48,000 people from east and southern African countries – four times more than its initial capacity.Several hundred continue to arrive each month, according to the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), and in August 181 babies were born there. The deteriorating situation in neighbouring Mozambique is swelling the numbers further, as is the government’s recent decree that an estimated 2,000 refugees who had over the years left Dzaleka to integrate into wider Malawian society should go back, citing them as a possible danger to national security. Continue reading...

Drains blocked by sand after extended dry period are thought to have worsened conditionsFlash flooding affected some parts of Israel last week with the country hit by frequent storms. Earlier this year, the country experienced an extended period of dry and windy conditions. This is thought to have exacerbated the flooding, with drainage systems blocked by sand and the infrastructure unable to cope with torrential downpours. Vehicles skidded off roads and people became stranded in the flooding. One man found unconscious in the flood waters.Somalia is heading for its fourth consecutive drought, with worsening conditions expected over the coming months. So far, more than 100,000 people have fled their homes looking for water and food. Extreme drought conditions can affect 80% of the country of 2 million people. Projected to be one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change, Somalia has been ravaged by natural disasters, with 12 droughts and 19 flooding events since 1990. Continue reading...

Two survivors in intensive care as four are arrested after deaths in boat described as like ‘a pool you blow up in your garden’Dozens of people including a young girl have died trying to cross the Channel to the UK in an inflatable dinghy, officials say, in what is the deadliest incident since the current crisis began.Two survivors are in intensive care while police have arrested four people suspected of being linked to the drownings. The International Organisation for Migration said it was the biggest single loss of life in the Channel since it began collecting data in 2014. Continue reading...

Two officers reported domestic abuse by former PC Clarke Joslyn and condemn force’s ‘boys’ club culture’A police force has apologised to two women whose reports of domestic abuse at the hands of a fellow officer were ignored.Gwent police issued a statement on Wednesday saying it is “extremely sorry” for failing to properly investigate allegations of abuse made by both women, and said it had now “taken the actions needed to get this right in future”. Continue reading...

International community’s high representative calls for diplomatic engagement from US and EuropeThe top international official in Bosnia has said that the Serb separatist threat to re-establish their own army had receded for now, but the country and surrounding region were still heading for crisis without substantial diplomatic engagement from the US and Europe.Christian Schmidt, a German former minister serving as the international community’s high representative to Bosnia-Herzegovina, said the Serb separatist leader, Milorad Dodik, had been persuaded by regional leaders to suspend his plans to pull Serb soldiers out of the Bosnian national army and reconstitute a Bosnian Serb force. Continue reading...

The prime minister said on Wednesday he was shocked after 31 people died trying to cross the Channel to the UK in an inflatable dinghy.'My thoughts and sympathies are first of all with the victims and their families,' Johnson said. 'It’s an appalling thing that they have suffered. But I also want to say that this disaster underscores how dangerous it is to cross the Channel in this way'

Thursday: Liberal MP blasts Morrison government for failing to establish an anti-corruption watchdog. Plus: 130 local, sustainable or just plain delightful Christmas present ideasGood morning. Scott Morrison faces more criticism from his backbench, Australia is accused of failing to provide international leadership over global vaccine access and Sweden’s first female PM lasts just 12 hours in the job.A Liberal MP has condemned the government’s failure to draft legislation to establish a commonwealth integrity commission, almost three years after it promised to do so. A Tasmanian MP, Bridget Archer, said she was “perplexed” as to why little progress had occurred, and also that she was “a bit offended” that the religious discrimination bill had been prioritised. Archer also attacked “tribalism” within politics, warning she was “absolutely” prepared to cross the floor to back legislation introduced by the independent MP Helen Haines, saying integrity should be “above politics”. Continue reading...

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi was ruled ineligible amid disputes over rules and threats to peace processLibya’s election commission said on Wednesday that Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, the son of the former ruler and a strong candidate in December’s planned presidential election, was ineligible to run, compounding the turmoil surrounding the vote.Gaddafi was one of 25 candidates that the commission disqualified in an initial decision pending an appeals process that will ultimately be decided by the judiciary. Ninety-eight Libyans registered as candidates. Continue reading...

Judge reveals identities of more than 30 people whose wills – showing details of their assets – were sealedWills detailing the assets of distant relatives of the royal family have been kept secret through an obscure legal procedure, a court document has revealed.The Windsor family has over the last century managed to exempt itself from a law requiring the wills of British citizens to ordinarily be made public. Continue reading...

The world champion opens up on his struggle for motivation ahead of an intriguing showdown with youth rival Ian Nepomniachtchi“I’m less hungry. I think you’re always going to be if you’re playing for the world title for the fifth time, rather than the first.” It is quite the opening gambit from Magnus Carlsen, in his final newspaper interview before he puts his crown on the line again. But sport’s deepest thinker is merely revving up before he truly opens up.Carlsen has long established himself as the greatest chess player of his generation. Perhaps any generation, given he is the highest-rated of all time and has held the Fide world title since 2013. But there is something else that marks the Norwegian out in an era where sporting superstars are increasingly bland and on brand: his unflinching honesty. Continue reading...