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Shabana Mahmood insists deportations will rise, as Labour government is accused of promoting harmful stereotypes' of migrantsNearly 60,000 unauthorised migrants and convicted criminals have been removed or deported from the UK since Labour took office, the Home Office has said.The announcement came amid claims that the government was promoting harmful stereotypes" by equating migration with criminality. Continue reading...

Umar Bio Salihu, 53, the local head of Woro in Kwara state, says gunmen just came in and started shooting'The traditional chief of a village in western Nigeria where jihadists massacred residents earlier this week has recounted a night of terror during which the attackers killed two of his sons and kidnapped his wife and three daughters.Umar Bio Salihu, the 53-year-old chief of Woro, a small, Muslim-majority village in Kwara state, said that at about 5pm on Tuesday the gunmen just came in and started shooting". Continue reading...

Amid warnings McSweeney's survival would leave his position untenable', PM apologises to Epstein's victims for appointing Mandelson as US ambassadorDowning Street has defied calls to remove Keir Starmer's most senior aide, insisting Morgan McSweeney retains the prime minister's confidence, as frustration grows over a wait for documents on Peter Mandelson, which some fear could last for weeks.Amid warnings from Labour backbenchers that McSweeney's survival would leave Starmer's position untenable", Starmer apologised to victims of Jeffrey Epstein for appointing Mandelson, a close friend of the convicted child sex offender, as US ambassador. Continue reading...

US president says deal, which he previously described as act of great stupidity', was best' PM could makeDonald Trump has watered down his criticism of the UK's plan to hand the Chagos Islands back to Mauritius, saying the deal was the best" Keir Starmer could make.The US president had described ceding sovereignty of the British Indian Ocean Territory, which includes the Diego Garcia military base, as an act of great stupidity" only last month. He also claimed the deal was one of many national security reasons" why the US should acquire Greenland. Continue reading...

New rule to be published in the Federal Register on Friday would strip job protections for 50,000 federal employeesThe Trump administration is seeking to finalize its overhaul of the federal government's civil service system through a rule issued this week by the office of personnel management (OPM) to strip job protections from 50,000 civil service employees.Under the rule, the president would have the authority to fire and hire an estimated 50,000 career federal employees. Continue reading...

Newly unsealed files claim the banker, who has denied any wrongdoing, forced a woman to touch his genitalsUS prosecutors reviewed allegations of rape and bodily harm against the former Barclays boss and former JP Morgan banker Jes Staley, according to newly unsealed files linked to the child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.Multiple documents in the Epstein files cite serious allegations of sexual misconduct against Staley, including that he forced a woman to touch his genitals during a massage before raping her, and left bloody marks" on the arms of a woman he called tinkerbell". Continue reading...

Miguel DiazCanel says Cuba is willing to engage Washington amid the island's deepening economic crisisAfter months of threats from Donald Trump, the president of Cuba, Miguel Diaz-Canel, has said that his government is willing to talk to the United States, just so long as it is without pressure".Standing in front of a life-sized photograph of Fidel Castro carrying a rifle during the 1959 revolution, Diaz-Canel, the 65-year-old president, said on Thursday that his island nation had been subject to an intense media campaigns of slander, hatred and psychological warfare". Continue reading...

Cryptocurrency-based prediction market announced it would open store in apparent nod to mayor's signature policyZohran Mamdani made city-operated grocery stores a key pledge of his campaign for mayor of New York City. So when one company seemed to muscle in on the idea this week, apparently as a PR stunt, Mamdani was quick to reply.Polymarket, the cryptocurrency-based prediction market, announced on Tuesday it would be opening New York City's first free grocery store," seemingly a nod to the mayor's signature policy. In a statement the firm said it hoped to empower every New Yorker to achieve food security for good", and that it had donated $1m to the Food Bank for NYC. Continue reading...

PM clings on to power amid damaging fallout from Mandelson row on a day Commons mutiny filled the airThe most dangerous moment of Keir Starmer's premiership came just after lunchtime on Wednesday, when mutiny was the talk of the Commons tea room.Anger is widespread across Labour - but it was at its most palpable among the party's new MPs, as the Conservatives used a humble address to force the disclosure of the vetting documents and communications linked to Peter Mandelson, disgraced by his close association with Jeffrey Epstein. Continue reading...

Bezalel Zini accused of role in taking goods into the occupied Palestinian territory during an Israeli blockadeThe brother of Israel's internal security chief has been charged with assisting the enemy in wartime" for his alleged role in a smuggling network taking cigarettes and other goods into Gaza during an Israeli blockade of the occupied Palestinian territory.Bezalel Zini was one of more than 10 people charged in relation to the alleged network. His brother, David Zini, is the head of the Shin Bet, the domestic intelligence agency. He was appointed by the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, last May and began the job in October. Continue reading...

This blog is now closed, you can read more on this story hereAfter the release of a vast tranche of documents and emails that shed further light on the close relationship between Peter Mandelson and Jeffrey Epstein, the government has come under intense pressure to release details about its vetting process before Mandelson's appointment as US ambassador in December 2024.Below, we look at how much Keir Starmer knew about Mandelson's relationship with Epstein, and what vetting process the former peer went through for the top diplomatic job in Washington. Continue reading...

Keir Starmer's days as prime minister are numbered, Labour MPs have warned, after a week of fury over the appointment of Peter Mandelson as US ambassador despite his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein. While several MPs have said the prime minister's chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, should take responsibility and resign, the mood surrounding No 10 has seemed terminal', said an MP from the 2024 intake. Lucy Hough talks to political correspondent Alexandra Topping Continue reading...

Donald Trump's former adviser told Epstein in 2019 that he was focused on raising money for Le Pen and Salvini' before European electionsDozens of messages contained in the latest tranche of Epstein files lay bare the attempts by Donald Trump's former chief strategist Steve Bannon to tap Jeffrey Epstein for support and funding to bolster European far-right parties.The messages mostly date to 2018 and 2019, when Bannon, after being sacked by Trump, regularly visited Europe in his quest to forge a movement in the European parliament uniting ultra-rightwing and Eurosceptic forces from several countries including Italy, Germany, France, Hungary, Poland, Sweden and Austria. Continue reading...

Family of Lilia Valutyte, killed by Deividas Skebas in July 2022, say she will always live in our hearts'A man who stabbed a nine-year-old girl to death in 2022 has been found guilty of her murder.Deividas Skebas, a 26-year-old Lithuanian man, killed Lilia Valutyte by stabbing her through the heart while the child was playing with a hula hoop outside her mother's embroidery shop in Boston, Lincolnshire, on 28 July 2022. Continue reading...

This blog is now closed, you can read more on this story hereUS presidential envoy Steve Witkoff said that the US, Ukraine and Russia have agreed to exchange 314 prisoners in the first such exchange in five months."He said:This outcome was achieved from peace talks that have been detailed and productive. While significant work remains, steps like this demonstrate that sustained diplomatic engagement is delivering tangible results and advancing efforts to end the war in Ukraine."We may be, in the course of 2026, coming to a point where the whole thing becomes unsustainable, because so much of the Russian economy has been distorted so much by the building up of the war economy at the expense of the civil economy. I think defying the laws of economic gravity can only go on for so long." Continue reading...

EU urged to tell authorities to stand down EES controls if needed to avert delays at airports and border crossingsTravel industry leaders have called on the European Commission to tell all border authorities to stand down the new entry-exit system (EES) if needed, as fears increase of summer disruption.European airports have warned of a potentially disastrous" experience for passengers and huge queues unless the new biometric controls for foreign visitors are relaxed. Continue reading...

Prisoner exchange agreed at most significant contact between Kyiv and Moscow in months, but work remains'Ukraine and Russia concluded a second day of US-led talks in Abu Dhabi on Thursday without a breakthrough towards ending Europe's most deadly conflict since the second world war.The two sides agreed to a reciprocal exchange of 157 prisoners of war each, offering a rare concrete outcome from the discussions. Continue reading...

Owner of local cinema says Amazon is upset at way they marketed movie as some in US say healthy ticket sales are not reflected by empty seatsAn independent cinema in Oregon has claimed Amazon pulled screenings of their documentary about Melania Trump in protest at the cinema's marketing strategy.As reported by local newspaper the Lake Oswego Review, the general manager of the Lake Theater & Cafe has claimed the corporation cancelled future screenings of Brett Ratner's authorised study of the first lady after being alerted to promotional pushes such as: To defeat your enemy. You must know them. Melania" and Does Melania wear Prada? Find out on Friday!" Continue reading...

Bankers and billionaires are flocking to the city where income tax is zero but critics say it ignores money laundering - and pay disparities are huge

Vladimir Motin sentenced in UK for manslaughter by gross negligence after failing to take action to prevent his ship crashing into an oil tankerA Russian container ship captain has been jailed for six years after an explosive collision in the North Sea off the coast of Yorkshire killed a crew member.Vladimir Motin, 59, was told by an Old Bailey judge that he was a serious accident waiting to happen" as he was jailed for manslaughter by gross negligence. Continue reading...

Charles James Spencer-Churchill, 70, also faces charges he strangled his estranged wife on three occasionsThe Duke of Marlborough has appeared in court to face allegations of controlling or coercive behaviour towards his estranged wife, as well as accusations that he strangled her on three occasions, according to a court indictment.Charles James Spencer-Churchill, a distant relative of Sir Winston Churchill and Diana, Princess of Wales, is accused of three charges of intentional strangulation against Edla Marlborough, 57, his second wife. Continue reading...

Exclusive: John Doyle says theatre should be able to disturb and challenge audiences, and not sanitise difficult themesThe Tony award-winning theatre director John Doyle has warned that trigger warnings before plays risks mollycoddling" audiences and sanitising theatre.The Scottish director, who has led four British theatres, said: Take care of the audience, but the theatre is supposed to make you uncomfortable. It's supposed to make you fearful. Continue reading...

Joanna Howe says a whistleblower' sent her the image, which she says was taken inside the hospital's room for grieving parents

Cranston report highly critical of systemic failings and missed opportunities around deaths of at least 33 peopleLoss of life was avoidable in the worst mass drowning from a small boat crossing in the Channel, a public inquiry has found.The 454-page report by the former high court judge Sir Ross Cranston is highly critical of failings around the deaths of at least 24 men, seven women and two children in November 2021, four of whom are still missing. Continue reading...

FBI and Venezuela's intelligence agency also reportedly arrest billionaire media mogul Raul Gorrin at same addressA close and powerful associate of the deposed Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro has reportedly been detained during a joint operation by Venezuela's intelligence agency and the FBI.Alex Saab, a wealthy Colombian-Venezuelan businessman long considered Maduro's frontman, was removed from his position in Venezuela's government a fortnight after US forces captured his ally on 3 January. In the early hours of Wednesday, the 54-year-old was reportedly detained by members of the Bolivarian national intelligence service (Sebin) at a luxury home in Venezuela's capital, Caracas. Continue reading...

Clinical reports show the children had consumed batches of recently recalled products, UKHSA saysThere have been 36 clinical reports of children suffering symptoms consistent with toxin poisoning linked to recent baby formula recalls, the UK Health Security Agency has said.The UKHSA said it and partner agencies had received 24 notifications in England, seven in Scotland, three in Wales, one in Northern Ireland and one from the crown dependencies of children who had consumed implicated batches and developed symptoms. Continue reading...

The move is among several measures the acting president has touted since Maduro's capture - yet critics say it erases Venezuela's long history of repressionIt was designed in the 1950s to be the world's first drive-through shopping centre", a futuristic structure with more than than two miles of ramps looping past 300 shops, as well as cinemas, a hotel, a private club, a concert hall and a heliport.But the building was never completed, and under the regimes of Hugo Chavez and Nicolas Maduro, spaces envisioned as shops were turned into cells, and El Helicoide became Venezuela's most notorious torture centre for political prisoners. Continue reading...

Documents relating to US ambassador appointment being assessed for release by intelligence and security committeeA parliamentary committee looking into the appointment of Peter Mandelson as US ambassador and the depth of his relationship with the convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein will not be afraid to publish material that is embarrassing to the government, its chair has said.Lord Beamish, who leads parliament's intelligence and security committee, said there had to be maximum transparency" about the vetting process Mandelson went through before he was appointed ambassador to the US in December 2024 and what the government knew about his friendship with Epstein. Continue reading...

Diocese holds consultation on future of long-closed city centre site thought to be slave trader's burial placeWork is about to begin repairing an unused city centre church in Bristol, which is believed to be the burial place of the slave trader Edward Colston.After the work on the roof of All Saints is completed, the building may be deconsecrated, turned into a community resource and the remains of Colston could be removed. Continue reading...

Resort where family was staying conducting a safety review after mother and two children found drifting in ocean

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Taiwanese president says ties with Washington rock solid', hours after leaders of US and China share first call since NovemberIn their first call since November, Chinese leader Xi Jinping warned US president Donald Trump to be prudent" about supplying arms to Taiwan, according to a readout of their call provided by China's foreign ministry.President Xi emphasised that the Taiwan question is the most important issue in China-US relations," the readout said. China must safeguard its own sovereignty and territorial integrity, and will never allow Taiwan to be separated. The US must handle the issue of arms sales to Taiwan with prudence." Continue reading...

Cauchi, who lived with schizophrenia, killed six people in 2024 Westfield shopping centre stabbing before being shot dead by police inspector Amy Scott

Gus was last seen playing outside home on family sheep station in September, with his disappearance declared a major crime

Exclusive: David O'Sullivan says war-based economy may be nearing point of becoming unsustainable'Western sanctions are having a significant impact" on the Russian economy, the EU's sanctions envoy has said, ahead of the fourth anniversary of Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.David O'Sullivan, a veteran Irish official, said sanctions were not a silver bullet" and would always face circumvention, but insisted that after four years he was confident they were having an effect. Continue reading...

The 27-year-old man from Maryborough is alleged to have had 23,000 photographs and videos stored on a hard drive

Darcy Tinning, 19, allegedly made threat ahead of Herzog's planned visit and made remark that constitutes hate speech, court hears

WA premier Roger Cook says police allege the act was motivated by a hateful, racist ideology'

Backlash grows against Israel president Isaac Herzog's planned visit next week with calls to rescind invitation

Satellite photographs show rows of gravestones removed and soil disturbed at the Gaza War Cemetery where more than 250 Australians are buried

The message, believed to be from Ghislaine Maxwell, was released as part of the latest tranche of the Epstein filesAn email believed to have been sent by Ghislaine Maxwell appears to confirm a photograph of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor with his arm around Virginia Giuffre's waist is real.The message, released as part of the latest tranche of the Epstein files, was headed draft statement" and sent by G Maxwell" to Jeffrey Epstein in 2015. Continue reading...

Luke Pollard says blueprint expected last autumn is a bigger task than many people outside defence realise'

The Puerto Rican singer's highly anticipated Super Bowl half-time show has inspired non-Spanish speakers to study Puerto Rican dialect and slangBad Bunny is expected to perform the Super Bowl half-time show on Sunday entirely in Spanish - which has inspired fans to quickly learn the language.In October, the Puerto Rican singer - born Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio - kicked off the 51st season of Saturday Night Live expressing pride over the achievement in Spanish, after which he said in English, If you didn't understand what I just said, you have four months to learn!" Continue reading...

Major obstacles to viable deal remain after Volodymyr Zelenskyy accuses Moscow of violating energy truceUkrainian and Russian negotiators have held a productive" first round of US-led peace talks in Abu Dhabi, as Washington seeks a pathway to end the nearly four-year war in Ukraine.The two-day trilateral talks that are due to continue on Thursday come after Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Moscow of exploiting a US-backed energy truce last week to stockpile weapons before launching a record number of ballistic missile attacks at Ukraine on Tuesday. Continue reading...

Tribunal heard Bunnings store managers' evidence of regular threatening or abusive behaviour from some customers

Singer was member of vocal group that scored 1960s hits with Up, Up and Away and Aquarius/Let the Sunshine InSinger LaMonte McLemore has died. He was a founding member of the 5th Dimension, a vocal group whose smooth pop and soul sounds with a touch of psychedelia brought them big hits in the 1960s and 70s.McLemore died on Tuesday aged 90 at his home in Las Vegas, surrounded by his family, his representative Jeremy Westby said in a statement. He died of natural causes after having a stroke. Continue reading...

Becoming garners 47.5m minutes viewed on same weekend as current first lady's documentary released in cinemasMichelle Obama's 2020 documentary Becoming saw a major rise in views over the same weekend that Melania was released in cinemas.The film, which followed the former first lady in the wake of her hit book, saw a rise in views of more than 13,000% over the past weekend, with 47.5m minutes viewed, according to the Hollywood Reporter. The weekend before saw only 354,000 minutes watched, according to Luminate. Continue reading...

Talks that had been scheduled in Turkey salvaged after Arab states convince White House not to walk away from negotiationsTalks between the US and Iran scheduled for Friday have been brought back from the brink of collapse after the US initially rejected Iran's request to move them from Turkey to Oman without the presence of a group of Arab states.Iran's foreign minister said late on Wednesday that the talks would proceed in Oman after reports of a last-minute effort by Arab states to convince the White House not to walk away from negotiations. Continue reading...

Commons committee chair says DWP repeatedly failed to prioritise the vulnerable and was slow to fix errorsThe government's most senior welfare official has been accused of presiding over a culture of complacency" that led to thousands of unpaid carers inadvertently running up huge benefit debts.Debbie Abrahams, the chair of the work and pensions select committee, said the Department for Work and Pensions had repeatedly failed to prioritise vulnerable people, was unwilling to learn from its mistakes, and slow to fix errors. Continue reading...

Starmer faces criticism from MPs on all sides of the Commons