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But Friedrich Merz cautions such a move could not replace the US's existing protective shield over EuropeGermany's chancellor-to-be, Friedrich Merz, has said he will reach out to France and Britain to discuss the sharing of nuclear weapons, but cautioned that such a move could not be a replacement for the US's existing protective shield over Europe.The sharing of nuclear weapons is an issue we need to talk about," Merz said in a wide-ranging interview on Sunday with the broadcaster Deutschlandfunk (DLF). We have to be stronger together in nuclear deterrence." Continue reading...

Jean-Michel Aphatie stands by comments he made on broadcaster RTLA prominent French journalist has said he is stepping down from his role as an expert analyst for broadcaster RTL after provoking an uproar by comparing French actions during colonial rule in Algeria to a second world war massacre committed by Nazi forces in France.Jean-Michel Aphatie, a veteran reporter and broadcaster, insisted that while he would not be returning to RTL, he wholly stood by his comments made on the radio station in February equating atrocities committed by France in Algeria with those of Nazi Germany in occupied France. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Costs particularly acute in more rural areas, where many children with special needs have to use taxisCouncils in England urgently need more money to help them pay for school transport for children with special needs.Many councils have told the Guardian that their obligations under the wider special educational needs and disabilities (Send) system are financially unsustainable, with the rapid increase in pupil transport costs becoming a particular issue. Continue reading...

Commission president says something fundamental' has shifted and democracy and rule of law are under threatNothing is off the table" when it comes to raising money for defence, the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has said, as she warned European values such as democracy and the rule of law were under threat in a increasingly transactional" world.Without mentioning Donald Trump by name, the head of the EU executive told reporters there was a new sense of urgency in the geopolitical sphere and that something fundamental" had shifted since she began her second term in office on 1 December, nearly 100 days ago. Continue reading...

Digital targets and performance-linked pay to be brought in under plans expected to be announced this weekPat McFadden has vowed to bring about radical" civil service changes including digitisation and stricter performance targets for officials to mirror private sector practices.Under the plans expected to be announced this week, under-performing officials could be incentivised to leave their jobs and senior officials will have their pay linked to performance. Continue reading...

Publishers and analysts say popularity of genres like manga and superhero comics is a gateway into readingThe best route to learning to love words in print could well be pictures. This, at least, is the hope of the publishing industry this spring, as it welcomes news that sales of children's comics and graphic novels have reached an all-time peak of almost 20m in Britain.While publishers and editors are celebrating this boom for its own sake, the popularity of these titles is also being hailed as a good omen for novels, ahead of the London Book Fair at Olympia this week. Over the last decade we've seen a significant rise in sales of graphic novels for both the adult and children's markets," said Philip Stone, media analyst at NielsenIQ BookData, as he revealed details of the latest trends, hits and flops this weekend. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Department told minister in November 2023 Palestinian and Muslim communities were extremely angry, hurt and betrayed'

Omar Prempeh, 32, from Forest Hill, charged after 16-year-old shot dead in Stockwell on TuesdayA man has been charged with the murder of a teenage boy who was shot dead in Stockwell, south London, the Metropolitan police said.Lathaniel Burrell, 16, was shot dead in south London on Tuesday. Officers were called to the scene at about 3pm after reports of a shooting on Paradise Road. The teenager died while being treated at the scene by paramedics. Continue reading...

Wingfield Manor is part-managed by English Heritage, but has fallen into a state of disrepairAt various points in history it has been a prison for Mary, Queen of Scots, a battleground in the English civil war, and the site of one the country's first flushing toilets.But despite its storied past, Wingfield Manor in Derbyshire has fallen into disrepair, and members of the public can no longer visit the magnificent ruins on a hilltop in Amber Valley. Continue reading...

Since becoming president, Trump has upended the US approach to Ukraine and treated Moscow more as an allyIn just seven weeks since returning to the White House for a second term, Donald Trump has upended the US approach to the invasion of Ukraine and treated Russia increasingly not as an adversary, but an ally.After tossing aside decades of alignment with Europe against Russian aggression, the US president suspended military assistance and intelligence to Kyiv and said on Friday he finds it easier" to work with Russia than Ukraine. Continue reading...

About 745 civilians among those killed in fighting in Latakia province between security forces and fighters loyal to former president AssadMore than 1,000 people, including 745 civilians, were killed in the two days of clashes between Syrian security forces and fighters loyal to the former Assad regime and ensuing revenge killings, a war monitor has said, one of the highest death tolls in Syria since 2011.The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitor, said 745 civilians were killed mostly execution-style, while 125 Syrian security forces and 148 Assad loyalists were killed. Death tolls from the two days of fighting have varied wildly, with some estimates putting the final death toll even higher. Continue reading...

Buyers say they were misled over likely rise in costs after they moved in, which are now ruining people's lives'Housing associations are facing allegations of mis-selling so-called affordable" homes, with service charges that have soared, in some cases by more than 400%, after residents moved in.Marketing and property documents examined by the Observer reveal how buyers who may be struggling financially are enticed to buy shared ownership homes with estimated monthly service charges as low as 120. Residents accuse housing associations of failing to accurately reflect the likely cost, which in some cases has risen to more than 650 a month. Continue reading...

Diplomats gasp as Keith Kellogg claims Zelenskyy to blame for soured relations with AmericaThere was an audible gasp in the room at the Council on Foreign Relations as Keith Kellogg, the White House's special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, characterised the US decision to cut off intelligence sharing and military aid to Kyiv as like beating a farm animal with a piece of wood.Very candidly, they brought it on themselves, the Ukrainians," Kellogg said as the veteran diplomats, academics, and journalists in the room recoiled in surprise. Several held their hands in their faces. I think the best way I can describe it is sort of like hitting a mule with a two-by-four across the nose," he continued. You got their attention, and it's very significant, obviously, because of the support that we give." Continue reading...

Card giants processing payments for unlicensed operators as customers report losing thousandsMastercard and Visa are processing payments for illegal gambling websites accused of scamming UK customers out of thousands of pounds.An investigation has found that the payment giants are failing to stop their networks being used to make transactions on unlicensed sites despite a previous pledge to do so. Continue reading...

With internal politics at their most unstable for years, the risk of escalation is risingThe letter the US president, Donald Trump, says he sent to Iran's leadership offering to reopen talks on the country's nuclear programme comes at a point when Iranian domestic politics is at its most unstable for years.In the past month, the conservative-dominated parliament has asserted its power over the broadly reformist president elected last June by impeaching and sacking the experienced economy minister, Abdolnaser Hemmati, while Mohammad Javad Zarif, the vice-president and most prominent reformist, has also been forced out. Continue reading...

Germany, France and UK sweep away old rules in pledge to do whatever it takes' to defend Europe from Russian threatWhen he rose to his feet at prime minister's questions on Wednesday, Keir Starmer delivered a stirring tribute to six British soldiers who lost their lives in Afghanistan 13 years ago.He read out their names very deliberately, one by one. The House was silent. The prime minister then added a tribute to a 22-year-old British Royal Marine, also killed on 6 March, but in 2007 in Helmand province. Continue reading...

Both supporters of Yoon Suk Yeol and those who backed his impeachment rallied in Seoul ahead of his releaseSouth Korea's impeached conservative president, Yoon Suk Yeol, has been released from prison, a day after a Seoul court cancelled his arrest to allow him to stand trial for insurrection without being detained.After walking out of a detention centre near Seoul on Saturday, Yoon waved, clenched his fists and bowed deeply to his supporters who were shouting his name and waving South Korean and US flags. Yoon climbed into a black van headed to his presidential residence in the capital. Continue reading...

Michael Murphy outed himself as subject of Icac investigation that found he had mismanaged a conflict of interest

One truck rolled several times into a paddock and another tipped onto its side, attempting to avoid the first vehicle, at around 5pm on Saturday

Met Office says aurora borealis may be visible across north of country and possibly even further southThe northern lights are expected to be visible in Scotland this weekend, the Met Office has said, with a chance of sightings further south.Sightings of the aurora borealis, a naturally occurring light display caused when electrically charged particles from the sun collide with atoms and molecules in the Earth's atmosphere, are possible over northern Scotland and potentially over much of Scotland where skies remain clear" on Saturday night and into Sunday morning, according to the latest space weather" forecast. Continue reading...

Conservative bloc and SPD to start full coalition talks as chancellor-in-waiting plans to revive ailing economyGermany's conservative election winner, Friedrich Merz, came a step closer on Saturday to forming a government that he says will revive Europe's top economy and its armed forces with massive new spending.The bold moves are part of his plan to rebuild Berlin's standing in Europe, which Merz has said must respond to the sweeping changes driven by the US president, Donald Trump, that have rocked the transatlantic alliance. Continue reading...

Nominee for undersecretary for defense policy says Aukus deal to deliver Virginia class submarines could leave US sailors vulnerable'

Ayatollah Khamenei says US demand to reopen talks on Iran's nuclear programme is aimed at dominationIran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has criticised what he described as bullying tactics a day after Donald Trump threatened military action against Iran.Some bully governments - I really don't know of any more appropriate term for some foreign figures and leaders than the word bullying - insist on negotiations," Khamenei told officials after Trump threatened military action if Iran refused to engage in talks over its nuclear programme. Continue reading...

From Istanbul and Warsaw to Athens and Madrid, activists demand equality and the end of gender-based violenceWomen took to the streets of cities across Europe, Africa and elsewhere to mark International Women's Day with demands for ending inequality and gender-based violence.On the Asian side of Turkey's biggest city Istanbul, a rally in Kadikoy saw members of dozens of women's groups listen to speeches, dance and sing in the spring sunshine. The colorful protest was overseen by a large police presence, including officers in riot gear and a water cannon truck. Continue reading...

The territory is mired in a grey zone' of uncertainty as the peace process has stalled and neither side seems willing to compromiseFears of a return to war in Gaza are intensifying this weekend, with faltering diplomatic efforts and almost daily airstrikes by Israeli forces in the devastated territory.There has been relative calm in Gaza since a ceasefire for prisoners deal between Hamas and Israel came into effect in January, pausing 15 months of conflict. However, the first phase of that agreement expired more than a week ago and a second phase has stalled, leaving Gaza plunged into a grey zone" of uncertainty. Continue reading...

After the spying convictions of six Bulgarians, police have warned of further Russian operations against opponentsA second Kremlin spy operation has been discovered targeting Russian dissidents in Britain, it can be revealed.Roman Dobrokhotov, a journalist in the sights of the six Bulgarians convicted of spying for Russia, said he had been informed of fresh attempts to surveil his family. Continue reading...

Ubiquity of then-illegal relations at King's College, Cambridge, explains puzzling 1952 admission, says scholarFor decades, it has puzzled historians. Why, in the course of reporting a burglary to the police in 1952, did the maths genius Alan Turing volunteer that he was in an illegal homosexual relationship? The admission enabled the police to prosecute the Bletchley Park codebreaker for gross indecency", ending Turing's groundbreaking work for GCHQ on early computers and artificial intelligence and compelling him to undergo a chemical castration that rendered him impotent. Two years later, he killed himself.Now, research by a University of Cambridge academic has shed light on the reasons why Turing, a former undergraduate and lecturer at King's College, Cambridge, did not hide his homosexuality from the police. There was a whole community in King's quite different from stories one knows about from gay history, usually involving casual pickups and a lot of despair, hiding and misery," said Simon Goldhill, professor of classics at the college. Continue reading...

The two women were said to have been stargazing with three male travellers when the incident took placeTwo men have been arrested in India in connection with the alleged rape of an Israeli and a local woman.The Israeli woman and her homestay operator were said to be stargazing with three male travellers in Koppal town in southern Karnataka state on Thursday night. Continue reading...

Communities in northern NSW and south-east Queensland remain on alert for heavy rain and flooding

Center for Political Accountability, which advocates for corporate disclosure, warns of fallout from Trump's effortsA new report warns of profound risks" in American politics as cryptocurrency companies increase their political spending and Donald Trump oversees regulatory retreat while promising to create a crypto strategic reserve".The situation illustrate[s] the profound risks that unchecked corporate political spending presents, particularly within the volatile and often unpredictable cryptocurrency industry", reads the report, from the Center for Political Accountability (CPA), a non-profit that advocates for corporate political disclosure. Continue reading...

Jefferson Griffin trying to remove thousands of ballots from North Carolina count in case that has drawn large protestsFour months after the 2024 election, and after recounts affirmed his loss, a North Carolina judge running for a seat on the state's high court has yet to concede. Instead, Jefferson Griffin is still trying to remove more than 65,000 voters' ballots from the count, contending they were not lawfully able to vote.Griffin's case, closely watched by both political parties for its ability to set a precedent in a swing state, is now before the state's court of appeals, on which he sits. Griffin, a Republican, lost to Democratic supreme court justice Allison Riggs by 734 votes, affirmed by two recounts. The parties filed briefs in early March, and the Republican-leaning court of appeals is expected to schedule arguments soon. Continue reading...

Reports of Fort Bliss being used for detention as well as expulsion purposes spark outrage from criticsThe huge US army base of Fort Bliss at the Texas-Mexico border is poised to become a deportation hub under plans proposed by the Trump administration - prompting an outcry from critics as it once again becomes a focal point in the immigration debate.Situated in the heart of El Paso, the base has already been used by Donald Trump since he returned to the White House to fly deportees on military aircraft to Guantanamo Bay and Central and South America amid intense publicity around his wider anti-immigration agenda. Continue reading...

WA Labor will hold a third term in office, with the early vote count showing the Liberals failing to gain traction with any significant swing Western Australia has one story about the gas industry. It won't accept dissent from over east'Labor will govern for a third term in Western Australia, with the Liberal Party failing to attract the swing required to threaten Roger Cook's majority.Polls predicted a 12-13% swing could put up to 11 seats in reach of the Liberal party. Continue reading...

Despite winning a landmark legal battle, academic Alice Jolly believes it won't benefit othersAn academic who won a landmark court battle last year against Oxford University for employing her and her colleague on sham" gig economy contracts has criticised the university for trying to brush their case under the carpet.Alice Jolly and her colleague Rebecca Abrams, both award-winning authors, taught on Oxford's prestigious creative writing course for 15 years but were employed on zero hours personal services" contracts, often earning only 23 an hour. After they publicly challenged the university on their lack of employment rights, Oxford wrote to the Society of Authors in April 2022, agreeing to offer the two academics more appropriate contracts. Continue reading...

In the UK, more than 170 women have been murdered by their sons in the past 15 years. An anonymous mother reveals what it is like to be frightened of your child while desperately wanting to support himI am staring at the faces of women on my screen, transfixed by emotions too complex to disentangle; discernible, though, are grief, rage... and fear.For the women pictured are some of the more than 170 who have been killed by their sons in the UK in the past 15 years. Their appalling tragedy - being killed by the person to whom they gave life - has a chilling resonance. Like many of those whose deaths have been highlighted in the 2,000 Women report by the Femicide Census, I am a professional with adored adult children and a close circle of friends. I am also frightened of my son. Continue reading...

Police sources raise alarm over cut as anti-Muslim hate incidents in Britain hit record highThe government is cutting all funding for the Islamophobia reporting service Tell Mama, leaving it facing closure weeks after it revealed a record number of anti-Muslim hate incidents in Britain.Since its foundation in 2012, Tell Mama has been wholly funded by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to run its reporting service, which received almost 11,000 reports in 2023-4, and support victims of Islamophobia. Continue reading...

Malcolm Rifkind joins diplomats and analysts urging focus on European cooperation to replace TridentBritain's ability to rely on the US to maintain the UK's nuclear arsenal is now in doubt, experts have warned, but working with European states to replace it will be costly and take time.An existing debate about the future of Trident - Britain's ageing submarine-launched nuclear missile system - has taken a dramatic new turn in recent weeks amid fears Donald Trump could pull out of Nato. Continue reading...

Alma Asinobi wants to break Guinness world record for shortest time to visit seven continentsIn 2019, Alma Asinobi, a Nigerian postgraduate architecture student, gave herself an ambitious goal after obtaining her first passport: to visit up to 16 countries every year.Then Covid-19 triggered a global lockdown, curtailing her dreams. Since restrictions were lifted, she has visited more than 30 countries and founded a travel agency, Kaijego. Continue reading...

Andrea Michelle Reyes was two when her mother took her from her father in Connecticut and fled the countryA woman who was abducted in Connecticut as a toddler has been found alive 25 years later in Mexico.Andrea Michelle Reyes was two years old when she was taken by her mother, Rosa Tenorio, in October 1999, according to a news release from the New Haven police department. Tenorio did not have legal custody of Reyes, who was in the care of her father at the time of the kidnapping, police said. Continue reading...

Fighting in Latakia is marked escalation by Bashar al-Assad loyalists against Syria's new Islamist-led governmentAbout 125 civilians have been executed by government security forces in north-west Syria during a rolling two-day battle with loyalists to the ousted Assad regime, a Syrian war monitor reported on Friday.The Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR), a human rights monitor considered independent and credible, documented large-scale field executions of men and young adults, without any clear distinction between civilians and combatants", in north-west Syria. Continue reading...

Criminals dressed as utilities repair teams dug up roads to access cables to power industrial-scale drug productionA group of eight criminals who dug up roads and diverted electricity to cannabis farms run by organised crime gangs have been jailed by a judge in Liverpool.The criminals used a legitimate company as cover and pretended to be workmen who were digging up the roads to repair utilities in a sophisticated operation", according to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS). Continue reading...

Discovery in Jalisco is demonstration of country's crisis of forced disappearance related to organised crimeTwo hundred pairs of shoes have been found at a clandestine crematorium on a ranch in the Mexican state of Jalisco, in a disturbing demonstration of the country's crisis of forced disappearance related to organised crime.Warrior Searchers of Jalisco, a collective of relatives of the disappeared, found the crematorium following an anonymous tip-off, and the authorities have since confirmed the presence of burnt remains and empty bullet casings. Continue reading...

US president says Russian counterpart doing what anybody else would do' as Ukraine faces escalating aerial attacksDonald Trump has said he finds it easier" to work with Russia than Ukraine and that Vladimir Putin wants to end the war", days after his administration cut off military assistance and intelligence to Kyiv.I'm finding it more difficult, frankly, to deal with Ukraine. And they don't have the cards," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Friday. In terms of getting a final settlement, it may be easier dealing with Russia." Continue reading...

Exclusive: union umbrella body calls for new cooperation agreement ahead of Keir Starmer's reset talks with BrusselsThe UK should forge much closer ties with Europe amid an increasingly volatile and unpredictable" global economy, Britain's biggest trade unions will argue as they push for new workers' rights across the continent.In its first major intervention on Europe in five years, the Trades Union Congress (TUC) will call for a much-needed" closer relationship with the EU, in a joint statement with European counterparts. Continue reading...

Party chair and Lowe's fellow MP Lee Anderson issue statement alleging complaints by female employeesReform UK has erupted into open civil war after the party said its MP Rupert Lowe had received complaints about bullying and had made threats against the party chair, a day after Lowe criticised Nigel Farage for being messianic".Lowe responded with anger, saying there was no evidence to back up the bullying claims, and that it was entirely untrue" that he had made threats. He again criticised Farage, saying Reform was our party as much as it is Nigel's". Continue reading...

Almost 100,000 homes in Queensland and NSW were without power on Friday evening as cyclone crawled towards the coast

Ministers say unsustainable' rise in spending must be tackled but many backbenchers fear changes will not workDozens of backbench Labour MPs are unhappy with plans to cut billions from the rising welfare bill, with ministers holding meetings to convince them that the changes to disability benefits are necessary.Labour MPs told the Guardian there were deep concerns within the parliamentary party that the changes would take money from the poorest, which was not what they had entered government to do. Continue reading...

Officer who investigated Rhianan Rudd, who killed herself, tells inquest wider conversation' needed on such casesMI5 officers investigating a schoolgirl who went on to kill herself after being charged with far-right terror offences had complained of a lack of guidance on handling the growing number of such cases, according to internal emails heard at an inquest.A special evidence session in London heard that intelligence agents working on the case of Rhianan Rudd, who died at the age of 16, lamented the lack of national strategy in dealing with a proliferation of vulnerable young people holding violent far-right views. Continue reading...

First step by president to open discussions comes as Iranian government locked in dispute over negotiating with USDonald Trump has said he wants to negotiate a new deal with Iran to prevent its development of nuclear weapons and sent a letter to its leaders saying he hoped they would open talks.It is the first practical step taken by the US president to see if new negotiations on Iran's nuclear programme are possible. Continue reading...

IOPC to look again at Valdo Calocane's history after representations from victims' familiesThe police watchdog has reopened its investigation into previous assaults by the Nottingham killer Valdo Calocane, after representations from the families of the murdered victims.The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) previously prepared a report that concluded Leicestershire police officers had failed to properly investigate an assault on warehouse workers by Calocane which could have stopped his murder spree a month later. Three officers were due to face a misconduct meeting but the force postponed this. Continue reading...