World news | The Guardian

In remarks that will be seen as criticism of Starmer allies, health secretary says own side are helping right roll the pitch'Wes Streeting has criticised the centre-left for an excuses culture" that blames the UK's slow pace of change on Whitehall officials and interest groups.As No 10 prepares to make a fresh attempt at civil service reform, the health secretary said politicians were not simply at the mercy of forces outside of our control". Continue reading...

Approval shortly before Keir Starmer's trip to Beijing would come despite widespread concern among Labour MPsA vast new Chinese embassy complex in east London is almost certain to be formally approved next week despite renewed worries among Labour MPs about potential security risks and the effect on Hong Kong and Uighur exiles in the capital.The green light for the super-embassy at Royal Mint Court near Tower Bridge would smooth relations before Keir Starmer's visit to China, which is expected to take place at the end of January, but officials insist there has been no political input in the planning process. Continue reading...

Doctors in Tehran have described overwhelmed medical staff as thousands of demonstrators have been killed by security forcesAn ophthalmologist in Tehran has documented more than 400 eye injuries from gunshots in a single hospital, as overwhelmed medical staff struggle to cope with the toll of an increasingly violent crackdown on nationwide protests by Iranian authorities.Three doctors, in messages forwarded to the Guardian on Monday, described overwhelmed hospitals and emergency wings overflowing with protesters who have been shot. Medical staff said that the gunshot wounds were mostly concentrated on protesters' eyes and head - a tactic that rights groups said authorities used against demonstrators in the country's 2022 Woman, Life, Freedom protests. Continue reading...

US president gives clearest signal yet that he might take military action against Tehran over killing of demonstrators

Shadow home office minister Alicia Kearns says unredacted plans show 208 secret rooms and approving plans would be insanity'Q: Why are the Liberal Democrats still using X?Davey says he is not afraid to pick a fight with Elon Musk. He says Musk has interfered in British democracy in the most outrageous way". Musk has also incited violence, he says.I've picked a few fights with Elon Musk because I think he has interfered in British democracy in the most outrageous way. He's incited violence and I have called in the past for investigations into him.The point about Grok - which is quite shocking - and what it is doing, and the danger that it poses to women in the UK, to our children, is quite shocking. We need to take it really seriously. Continue reading...

Ministers hope to reach compromise after MPs and families said bill went too far in shielding intelligence officersThe government is to delay the progress of the Hillsborough law while ministers thrash out a compromise, amid concerns from MPs and families over how it will apply to serving intelligence officers.The bill will enforce a duty of candour on public officials and contractors to tell the truth in the aftermath of disasters. But concerns were raised by campaigners that it went too far in protecting individual employees of the intelligence agencies who might have misled public inquiries or investigations. Continue reading...

Figure emerges as judge considers legal challenge to Scotland Yard policy forcing police to declare affiliation to semi-secret organisationMore than 300 Metropolitan police officers and staff have obeyed an order to tell their bosses if they are members of hierarchical organisations such as the Freemasons, the high court has heard.Britain's largest force announced the policy last month and it has met fierce opposition from bodies representing Masons. They have taken legal action to seek an injunction, claiming it amounts to religious discrimination and breaches human rights laws. Continue reading...

Danish PM adds that Greenland is not for sale' in joint briefing ahead of tomorrow's talks with the USNordic correspondent

Sanctions to target finance, energy, transport, software and other significant industries, Yvette Cooper tells MPs

Northumberland teenager, who denies terrorism charges, amassed weapons and researched local synagogues, alleges prosecutorA white teenage boy alleged to hate Jews and black people gathered weapons and researched local synagogues as he prepared to commit acts of terrorism, a jury has heard.The boy, now 16, from Northumberland, was proud of holding Nazi beliefs and became a member of a banned terror group which had the goal of creating a white supremacist utopia", prosecutors said. Continue reading...

US president is suing for defamation over documentary that joined two parts of speech he made on 6 January 2021President Trump is expected to come under pressure to make rare disclosures about his properties and business interests as part of his $10bn lawsuit against the BBC, the Guardian understands.Trump is suing the BBC for defamation over a Panorama documentary that spliced together two parts of the president's address to a rally on 6 January 2021. The BBC has already apologised and said the edit was misleading, but has denied it defamed Trump. Continue reading...

Select committee chair accuses UK tax authority of egregious error' and of causing parents unnecessary pain'

Foreign ministers from the Arctic island and Denmark are to meet in Washington amid tensions over Trump's claim on the territory

Jasper Jones and Runt writer charged after search warrant issued at his Fremantle home on Monday

US president announces measure in response to situation in Iran, which is facing anti-government protests

Reported move would be part of new CEO Dave Lewis's streamlining of world's largest spirits maker

ICO says it is making inquiries with banking group over data privacy after it accessed 30,000 staff accountsThe information watchdog is questioning Lloyds Banking Group over a potential breach of privacy rules after it accessed data from 30,000 staff bank accounts during union pay talks last year.Lloyds - which owns the Halifax and Bank of Scotland brands - used aggregated salary, spending and savings data as part of a presentation to staff union representatives, which suggested that its lowest-paid staff had been in a better financial position than the wider population in recent years. Continue reading...

Exclusive: China Labor Watch says people aged 16-18 employed without required special protectionsA labour rights NGO says it has found evidence of worker exploitation in the supply chain of Labubus, the furry toys that took the world by storm last year and which are expected to continue to grow in popularity in 2026.Labubus, toothy gremlins made by the Chinese toy company Pop Mart, have become one of China's hottest cultural exports. In the first half of 2025 alone, the Monsters" line of toys, which includes Labubus, generated 4.8bn yuan (511m) in sales for the Hong Kong-listed company. In August, Pop Mart's chief executive, Wang Ning, said the company was on track to reach 20bn yuan in revenues in 2025. Continue reading...

Road project, part of blueprint for new illegal settlement in E1 area east of Jerusalem, is considered a tool of annexationIsrael plans to start work next month on a bypass road that will close off the heart of the occupied West Bank to Palestinians and cement the de facto annexation of an area critical for the viability of a future Palestinian state.The road is a key part of the blueprint for a vast illegal new settlement in the E1 area east of Jerusalem, which would fragment the occupied West Bank. The Israeli finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, said the plans were intended to bury the idea of a Palestinian state". Continue reading...

Ryan Chapman and a friend survived 90 minutes in the ocean before being picked up by a passing boat - and carrying on with their dive

Analysts and experts say the PM would do well to consider the Aukus alliance and reactions from Maga base in making his choice

Anthony Albanese thanks former Labor PM, who will step down in March, for his service to Australia

Former late-night host makes comments amid merger of CBS's parent company Paramount with Skydance MediaThe former CBS late-night host David Letterman has criticized his old network, calling its news division a wreck" under its newly installed leadership.By the way, what about those idiots at CBS?" Letterman, 78, said in a clip posted to his YouTube channel on Friday from his appearance on The Barbara Gaines Show, a podcast hosted by his former executive producer. Continue reading...

Foreign minister says talks only possible on basis of respect after Trump threatened very strong' military responseIran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, has said Iran is willing to negotiate with the US about its nuclear programme on the basis of respect, but did not comment on claims by Donald Trump that Iran was arranging a meeting with the US.The US president, who has threatened to intervene in Iran, said on Sunday such a meeting was being planned, but added it could be derailed by the crackdown on protesters. He has claimed that Iran reached out and proposed negotiations, as he considers very strong" military action against the regime. Continue reading...

Demonstrations initially focused on economic issues but as they have grown and become political the regime has responded with deadly force

Arlene Lillis, 56, was escaping midwest winter in Caribbean before losing arm in attack and dying of her injuriesA shark recently killed a Minnesota woman by biting her arm off as she swam off the coast of the US Virgin Islands while on vacation recently, according to authorities and media reports.Arlene Lillis, 56, was in waters off St Croix's Dorsch Beach when the rare deadly shark attack occurred at about 4.30pm on 8 January, the Virgin Islands police department said in a statement. Emergency crews who responded to multiple calls about Lillis's plight soon confirmed she had lost an arm", and she ultimately died from her injuries, the police statement added. Continue reading...

Internal documents show tax officials withdrew funds without warning families despite concerns about data

Police ask Paramjeet Singh Pamma to install security cameras and reinforce door locks at his homePolice have advised a high-profile Sikh activist in the UK to install security cameras at his home and reinforce door locks because of threats from Hindu nationalist elements.Paramjeet Singh Pamma, 52, said he had been visited by police and received verbal advice to increase his security due to intelligence suggesting threats to his safety. Continue reading...

Paul Thomas Anderson's One Battle After Another looks unstoppable ahead of the Oscars, despite Timothee Chalamet's triumph over Leonardo DiCaprio for best actorThe biggest backlash brewing concerns Ryan Coogler's Sinners, lauded by critics and embraced - especially in the US - by audiences as one of 2025's key cultural landmarks. The thriller did win two Globes - for cinematic and box office achievement and original score - but both wound up not really counting. The first is the Globes's consolation prize (it was won by Barbie in 2023 and Wicked last year); the second wasn't even broadcast on the telecast. Coogler missing out on screenplay to One Battle After Another was perceived by some as a slap in the face - the Oscars and Baftas separate the category into original and adapted, however, so a corrective could come. Continue reading...

Australian National Imams Council say criminalising slogan will unduly impact Muslim Australians including Palestinian and Arab communitiesBanning phrases such as globalise the intifada" is likely to disproportionately affect Muslim Australians, including Palestinian and Arab communities," a New South Wales parliamentary inquiry has been told.The submission by the Australian National Imams Council [Anic] has been echoed by activist group the Palestine Action Group [PAG], who said a ban on the chant risks importing repressive models from overseas, particularly the United Kingdom", where police have announced they will arrest protesters who use the phrase. Continue reading...

Amy Scott, who confronted Joel Cauchi alone during the April 2024 Westfield attack, has been diagnosed with aggressive' breast cancer

Man, thought to be in his 50s, was found under 2.5 metres of snow and had been skiing off-pisteA British skier has been killed by an avalanche in the French Alps.The man, believed to be in his 50s, was found under 2.5 metres of snow after a 50-minute search, a statement from the La Plagne resort in south-eastern France said. Continue reading...

Stars from Bob Dylan to Brandi Carlile remember rock band co-founder as beautiful human' after his death at 78The death of Bob Weir, the Grateful Dead co-founder, rhythm guitarist, vocalist and writer of much of the legendary psychedelic rock band's songs, drew a chorus of tributes from fellow musicians and fans who described him as a musical guru" and the last actual hippie".Weir recently survived cancer but died from underlying lung issues", according to a statement posted on Saturday on Instagram. Continue reading...

Danish prime minister says country is at a crossroads and accuses US of turning its back on NatoMette Frederiksen has said that Denmark is at a fateful moment" amid Donald Trump's threats to take over Greenland, accusing the US of potentially turning its back on Nato.Speaking at a party leader debate at a political rally on Sunday, the Danish prime minister said her country was at a crossroads". Continue reading...

Move would mean Brussels would receive compensation if future government reneged on deal Starmer is negotiatingThe EU is reportedly demanding guarantees the UK will compensate the bloc if a future government reneges on the Brexit reset" agreement Keir Starmer is currently negotiating.The termination clause is a stark reminder of the painful and costly divorce in which the EU set up a colossal 5.4bn (4.7bn) fund to help its member states cope with the disruption caused by the UK's exit in 2020. Continue reading...

Michael Steele argues law firms, universities and media capitulated with startling speed and voters want accountabilityThe biggest surprise of Donald Trump's first year back in office is how quickly America's institutions capitulated to the bully", said Michael Steele, a former chair of the Republican National Committee (RNC) turned arch critic.But with the midterm elections for Congress looming, Steele predicts a resounding Democratic victory amid a hunger among voters to hold the president and his allies accountable for threatening democracy. Continue reading...

Frances and Ceri Menai-Davis, who lost their son Hugh to cancer, say gap in financial help is devastating'Parents of critically ill children are being crushed" by a lack of statutory financial support when they need to take time off work, the parents of a six-year-old boy who died of cancer have said.Hugh Menai-Davis was diagnosed with a rare form of the disease when he fell ill suddenly in October 2020. The boy, then aged five, had been happy and healthy before he developed severe stomach pains. Continue reading...

Three hundred Kurds detained and further 400 evacuated following clashes in AleppoSyrian government forces have detained 300 Kurds and evacuated more than 400 Kurdish fighters after clashes in Aleppo, the interior ministry has said, as US and allied forces carried out separate large-scale" strikes against Islamic State targets.An interior ministry official told Agence France-Presse that about 360 Kurdish fighters and 60 wounded had been bussed to the Kurds' de facto autonomous zone in the north-east from the Sheikh Maqsoud district, the last area of Aleppo to fall to the army. Continue reading...

Videos emerging despite internet and mobile phone blackout show demonstrations continuing despite reports of escalating crackdownDemonstrators have continued to take to the streets of Iran, defying an escalating crackdown by authorities against the growing protest movement.An internet shutdown imposed by the authorities on Thursday has largely cut the protesters off from the rest of the world, but videos that trickled out of the country showed thousands of people demonstrating in Tehran overnight into Saturday morning. They chanted: Death to Khamenei," in reference to supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and: Long live the shah." Continue reading...

Barclays, HSBC and NatWest shareholders already approved big pay rises after post Brexit loosening of remuneration rulesLloyds Banking Group boss, Charlie Nunn, could be in line for a maximum annual pay packet worth more than 13m, as he becomes the latest boss to benefit from the UK's controversial decision to lift a cap on banker bonuses.The bank's remuneration committee has begun drafting a new three-year executive pay policy that, for the first time, will take advantage of looser pay rules that have sent potential payouts soaring at rival banks. Continue reading...

Palestinian academic rejects accusations of hypocrisy, saying board resisted attempts to remove Thomas Friedman, while cancelling her invitation this year

Officials expect charge against Daricka Moore, 24, to be elevated to capital murder, with death penalty consideredAuthorities in Clay county, Mississippi, say a man has been taken into custody and charged with first-degree murder following the fatal shootings of six people, including a child, on Friday night.Daricka Moore, 24, is accused of killing multiple relatives as well as a local pastor before his arrest, according to Clay county sheriff Eddie Scott, who addressed the case during a Saturday news conference. Officials said the charge against Moore, who lives in the county, is expected to be elevated to capital murder, and prosecutors could seek the death penalty if he is determined to be mentally competent. Continue reading...

Jacques Moretti, who is in custody, told Swiss prosecutor's office he forced door open and found people lying behind itThe French owner of the Swiss bar where 40 people died in a fire during new year celebrations has told investigators a service door had been locked from the inside.Jacques Moretti, co-owner of the Constellation bar in the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana, was taken into custody on Friday, as prosecutors investigated the tragedy. Continue reading...

The New York mayor's popular moves on rent and free childcare defied rightwing predictions of a far-left hellscapeRightwing politicians and media issued grave warnings about Zohran Mamdani.The election of the democratic socialist would, according to some, cause a spike in crime, and a reduction in freedom, prompting rich people to flee the city and leading to, in the words of one conservative thinktank, collapse, dependency, and political repression" in the manner of Venezuela" and Cuba". Continue reading...

Exclusive: Voters say they have little confidence that government can control borders despite sharp falls in net migrationA large majority of UK voters believe immigration is increasing despite sharp falls in the number of people entering the UK, according to exclusive polling shared with the Guardian.Voters also say they have no confidence in the government's ability to control the UK's borders, according to the poll by More in Common. The results will come as a blow to Keir Starmer's administration, which has taken an increasingly hardline stance on immigration in recent months. Continue reading...

Warnings in place covering most of the weekend as weather system continues to sweep UKA man has been found dead after a tree fell on to a caravan during Storm Goretti, as weather warnings have been put in place covering most of the UK for the rest of the weekend.Devon and Cornwall police said emergency services were called at about 7.35pm on Thursday to the Mawgan area of Helston where work took place on Friday to remove the tree. A man in his 50s was found dead in the caravan. His death is not being treated as suspicious and his next of kin have been informed, police said. Continue reading...

Surge in 2025 sales correlates with growth in church attendances in England and Wales, research showsFor Christian booksellers, any good news about Bible sales has been few and far between. But recent retail figures have shown a revival.Sales of the good book reached a record high in the UK in 2025, increasing by 134% since 2019 - the highest since records began - according to industry research. Last year, total sales of Bibles in the UK reached 6.3m, 3.61m up on 2019 sales. Continue reading...

State and local officials say they do not believe investigation into shooting death of Renee Nicole Good will be objectiveState and local leaders say they do not believe that the FBI investigation of the shooting death of Renee Nicole Good will be fair and impartial, and are sounding alarms about the impact of federal officials holding onto evidence in a potential prosecution of the ICE agent who killed her.Minnesota's lead investigative agency, the bureau of criminal apprehension, initially began investigating the shooting in conjunction with the FBI. But the BCA issued a statement Thursday morning saying that the US attorney's office had reversed course: the investigation would now be led solely by the FBI, and the BCA would no longer have access to the case materials, scene evidence or investigative interviews necessary to complete a thorough and independent investigation". Continue reading...