Narendra Modi leads tributes to ‘Flying Sikh’, who won India’s first Commonwealth gold in 1958Milkha Singh, one of India’s first sport superstars, has died of Covid-related complications at the age of 91.Singh, who was popularly known as the Flying Sikh, died late on Friday in a hospital in the northern Indian city of Chandigarh, his family said. Continue reading...
The mid-century ‘Lodge in Waiting’ in Cabramatta will be preserved and treasured for future generations, minister saysThe federal government will put up $1.3m to buy and restore the former prime minister Gough Whitlam’s family home in Sydney’s west.The assistant minister to the prime minister, Ben Morton, announced on Saturday that the mid-century ‘Lodge in Waiting’ would be entrusted to the Whitlam Institute, within Western Sydney University. Continue reading...
International Rescue Committee hires law firm to review internal policies as leadership accused of ‘belittling and gaslighting’ staffThe International Rescue Committee reinforces “white supremacy culture”, staff have alleged, with the aid organization subsequently hiring a law firm to review its policies relating to discrimination, harassment and retaliation, the Guardian can reveal.Headed by former UK foreign secretary David Miliband, the IRC is a major NGO with 20,000 staff and volunteers and a budget of $800m. It delivers aid in more than 40 countries, primarily in Africa, and helps resettle refugees across the US, with operations mainly directed out of New York. Continue reading...
Politicians among signatories of two open letters urging investigation into reports of sexual violence in Ethiopian conflictThe former prime minister of New Zealand, Helen Clark, and Zimbabwean author and 2020 Booker prize nominee Tsitsi Dangarembga are among the signatories of two separate letters demanding international action after shocking reports of sexual violence in Tigray.In one, more than 50 women of African descent call for an immediate ceasefire and express horror at reports that African women and girls are “once again the victims” of violence and rape in war. Continue reading...
Thousands expected to turn up to free event on 18 July where chess coaches will offer free lessonsIt has been one of the runaway success stories of the pandemic, fuelled by the Netflix series The Queen’s Gambit and an explosion in online play. Now plans to stage Britain’s biggest ever chess festival in Trafalgar Square have been unveiled, with organisers hoping to showcase the game’s inclusivity, attract converts from the poorest parts of the UK, and possibly unearth a future champion.Thousands of people are expected to turn up for ChessFest, a free event on 18 July in which more than 50 chess coaches will provide free lessons to children and adults, with top British grandmasters taking on all-comers in speed and blindfold chess, and a range of activities designed to show chess is for everyone. Continue reading...
Observers warn established UK media that they write off the new channel and its chief, Angelos Frangopoulos, at their perilIt is probably fair to say that GB News, the UK’s new conservative TV channel, has launched to a somewhat mixed reception.The Telegraph derided the content as “unutterably awful; boring, repetitive and cheapskate”. Others criticised its claims of being “anti-woke” and unbiased as simply bias in another direction. Continue reading...
An art expert believes the paintings are by Dutch artist Samuel van Hoogstraten and Italian Pietro BellottiGerman police have appealed for information from the public after two 17th century paintings were discovered in a skip at a highway rest stop.Police said a 64-year-old man found the oil paintings at the rest stop near Ohrenbach in central Germany last month. He later handed them in to police in the western city of Cologne. Continue reading...
Arrests made as police dealt with football crowds in Leicester Square and around Wembley after scoreless draw on Friday nightMore than two dozen people have been arrested as police dealt with football fans when England took on Scotland in a much-anticipated Euros match.Crowds thronged into Leicester Square in central London after the scoreless draw at Wembley on Friday night. Continue reading...
Coalition says despite going to the World Trade Organization it ‘remains open to engaging directly with Beijing to resolve the issue’Australia is lodging a formal complaint with the World Trade Organization over China imposing anti-dumping duties on Australian wine exports, the federal government announced on Saturday.The decision follows “extensive consultation with Australia’s winemakers”, it said, adding: “Australia remains open to engaging directly with China to resolve this issue.” Continue reading...
Rare move by general assembly demonstrates widespread global opposition to military juntaIn a rare move, the UN general assembly has condemned Myanmar’s military coup and called for an arms embargo against the country in a resolution demonstrating widespread global opposition to the junta and demanding the restoration of the country’s democratic transition.Related: Trial of Aung San Suu Kyi begins in closed courtoom in Myanmar Continue reading...
England had the points on the board, they had the star quality and the theory was that they would drive home their favouritism, making a statement en route to the last 16 of this European Championship. So much for theories. Instead, it turned into a night of frustration, when the flaws in Gareth Southgate’s attacking gameplan were etched across Wembley and Scotland revelled in showing their old rivals that it is a perilous business to write them off.On an occasion that will live long in the memories of the few thousand visiting fans in attendance, who included Sir Alex Ferguson, their team defied England, holding them at arm’s length with a performance of spirit and no little quality. From an England point of view, it was disconcerting to witness the relative ease with which they did so. Continue reading...
Pursuit of ‘normal birth’ has sometimes compromised the safety of mothers and babies, with consequences for maternity careWhen I was a medical student and junior doctor, the terms most commonly used to describe a vaginal birth without the use of instruments such as forceps or vacuum extractor were SVB (spontaneous vaginal birth) or SVD (spontaneous vertex delivery – the vertex is the top of the baby’s head).Gradually, in the late 1980s and 1990s, there appeared in the lexicon the words “normal birth”. This was part of the reaction against the perceived high rates of interventions in pregnancy and labour, and the desire of women to take more control over their own bodies, something I support. Continue reading...
After 123 days, Alexandr Kudlay and Viktoria Pustovitova decide they were not meant to be togetherAfter 123 days handcuffed together to save their on-again off-again relationship, Ukrainians Alexandr Kudlay and Viktoria Pustovitova have split up, shedding their bonds on national TV and saying the experiment had brought home uncomfortable truths.The couple, from the eastern city of Kharkiv, decided to handcuff themselves together on Valentine’s Day in a last-ditch attempt to break the cycle of breaking up and making up. Continue reading...
Course in Nova Scotia asked racist questions about residential schools, which forced the assimilation of Indigenous childrenA series of racist questions in a high school English course sparked outrage among parents and students and highlighted persistent shortcomings in how Canada teaches the grim legacy of colonialism and its impact on Indigenous peoples.Students taking a grade 10 correspondence course in the province of Nova Scotia were asked to list the benefits and disadvantages of being placed in one of the country’s notorious residential schools, where 150,000 Indigenous children were sent as part of a campaign of forced assimilation. Continue reading...
The couple, from the eastern city of Kharkiv, decided to handcuff themselves together on Valentine’s Day in a last-ditch attempt to break the cycle of breaking up and making up.After 123 days handcuffed together to save their on-again, off-again relationship, Ukrainians Alexandr Kudlay and Viktoria Pustovitova shed their bonds on national TV, saying the experiment had brought home uncomfortable truths
by Gwyn Topham Transport correspondent on (#5K88N)
Shortage of HGV drivers and workers exacerbated by Brexit and Covid is creating ‘real crisis of food supplies’Chilled food will struggle to reach some shops in the UK this summer, logistics organisations have warned, due to a lack of drivers and production workers.A chronic shortage of HGV drivers, exacerbated by Brexit and Covid, is now running into unusually high summer demand as the end of lockdown and opening of hospitality combines with the UK’s forced staycation. Continue reading...
Scottish fans chant ‘No Scotland, no party’ as thousands travel to London for Euros 2020 matchOn the quiet, sodden streets of central London, you heard them long before you saw them. It might have been only half a dozen fans, wearing disposable ponchos and clutching plastic bags of cans, but they sounded like a battalion. “When you hear that noise of the Tartan Army boys, we’ll be coming down the road.”On Friday, for one afternoon only, Soho belonged to Scotland. The Euro 2020 fixture with England at Wembley had been preceded by a week of warnings: of 20,000 Scots descending on the English capital, of hordes of kilted masses wandering the streets without tickets or a pre-booked pub table to call their own. It was a situation that necessitated interventions from the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, Scotland’s first minister Nicola Sturgeon, and the UK government’s sports minister, Nigel Huddleston. “Remember you are guests in London at the moment, so make sure you behave in a way that shows the Tartan Army at its best,” said Sturgeon on Friday. There were other calls for calm and consideration for public safety, which were absent for the 12,000-a-day crowds attending Royal Ascot earlier in the week. Continue reading...
Imran Ahmad Khan, elected in Wakefield at the last election, is accused of having groped teenagerA Tory MP is facing trial accused of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old boy in 2008.Imran Ahmad Khan, 47, the Conservative MP for Wakefield, West Yorkshire, said he denies “in the strongest terms” an allegation he groped the teenager in Staffordshire. Continue reading...
Michael Steadman, Michael Bulley, Robert Vanderplank and Peter Millen on the difficulties facing British residents abroad, EU citizens in the UK, and employers in BritainYour article highlighting the post-Brexit problems faced by British residents in France has a major omission (British nationals in France face losing rights if they miss residency deadline, 15 June). It is likely that a considerable number, between 3,000 and 6,000, stand to lose the right to drive as of the end of this year. This is because Boris Johnson’s withdrawal agreement made no provision for an exchange of licences between our two countries. The only option for these Brits, many of them elderly and in rural areas, will be compulsory driving tuition followed by a written and practical test – all in French, of course. Happily, this is not the outcome for citizens of over 150 other countries, including South Korea and Botswana, who have long since negotiated exchange agreements with France.
Cruise collection at Panathenaic stadium includes pieces inspired by contemporary GreeceThe 2,000-year-old Panathenaic stadium in Athens was able to hold 70,000 on marble seats for the first modern Olympics in 1896. So there was plenty of room in the front row at Dior’s catwalk show at the venue this week, where the guest list was capped at 400.
Alieu Kosiah gets maximum 20-year sentence in Switzerland’s first war crimes trial in a civilian courtA Liberian rebel commander has been sentenced in Switzerland to 20 years in jail for rape, killings and an act of cannibalism in one of the first convictions over the west African country’s civil war.The case was also Switzerland’s first war crimes trial in a civilian court. It involved the 46-year-old Alieu Kosiah, who went by the nom de guerre “bluff boy” in the rebel faction Ulimo that fought former President Charles Taylor’s army in the 1990s. Continue reading...
Analysis: Legitimacy of Future of Europe talks called into question as only a quarter of citizens likely to take partThe socially distanced places are set, the guests will soon arrive. Everything is ready for the EU’s most ambitious attempt to debate with citizens. Everything, except most of the citizens who are meant to be involved.The Conference on the Future of Europe, an 11-month consultation whose centrepiece will be citizens’ assemblies across the EU, holds its first working session at the European parliament in Strasbourg on Saturday. While a full complement of EU politicians and officials are expected in the Rhine city, about only 27 citizens are likely to take part – a quarter of the total who would usually participate in such meetings, according to the conference website. Continue reading...
Clarisa Navas’s film is a confident, visually engaging romance conjuring a world of teenage waiting and wantingThis is an LGBT urban pastoral from film-maker Clarisa Navas, set in a tough barrio in Corrientes province, north-eastern Argentina. Sofia Cabrera plays Iris, a teenage girl who appears to have been excluded from school – although that doesn’t make her lifestyle any more obviously aimless than all the people she’s hanging out with. Iris is obsessed with basketball and spends most of her days loafing around, shooting hoops, talking with her brother and cousins, and chatting with the neighbourhood kids, gay and straight. Then she chances across a charismatic older woman called Renata (Ana Carolina García), who has an elegantly wasted image; Renata has mysteriously been abroad for a while and apparently dances at a local club called Traumatic, where she appears to be on the fringe of sex work. Some are saying that she has HIV – although this may simply be spite. Iris and Renata are drawn to each other and soon they are in love. Continue reading...
Islamic republic’s leaders may face crisis of legitimacy if disillusioned Iranians stay away from pollsThe 2021 Iranian presidential election will mark a turning point in the country’s history and a fundamental crisis of legitimacy for the regime if turnout fed by disillusionment falls below 50%, according to leading experts.The election – in effect a contest between the hardline chief of the judiciary, Ebrahim Raisi, and the quasi-reformist former governor of the central bank Abdolnaser Hemmati – has been one of the most engineered in the history of the Islamic republic. Continue reading...
by Libby Brooks Scotland correspondent on (#5K7XX)
National Trust for Scotland presents exploration of intimacy from 17th to 20th centuryThe chafing doesn’t bear thinking about. A replica linen condom secured with a dainty blue ribbon is one of the more wince-inducing props for a new exploration of the history of sex and intimate lives in Scotland.The other material used to fashion prophylactics in the 17th century was animal gut, which was dried then rehydrated at the crucial moment. The Edinburgh-born diarist James Boswell writes about dipping one in a river before intercourse. He was adamant about their use to ward off venereal disease, but still recorded numerous painful bouts of infection in his journals. Continue reading...
Protests erupt again in Tunisian capital after man ‘beaten to death’ amid claims of police impunityAlmost everyone in the streets around Ahmed Ben Ammar’s house in the Tunis district of Sidi Hassine claims to have known him or his family. Nearly everyone also has a slightly different account of his death in police custody on Tuesday. Details vary but all agree that the 32-year-old was beaten to death by police this week.Sidi Hassine is to the west of Tunisia’s capital, on the far side of the Sebkha Sijoumi wetlands and the hulking landfill at Borj Chakir, already years past its scheduled closure date. The smell and the mosquitoes fill the air. At one end of the road is a thriving market, at the other – near where Ben Ammar lived – cafes and shops line the dusty street. Continue reading...
A Murder in West Cork delves into the killing of Sophie Toscan du Plantier – but this doc makes her more than a victim. Its creators discuss how they fused intrigue with empathyOn the morning of 23 December 1996, Sophie Toscan du Plantier was found murdered in a lane near Schull, West Cork. She was 39 years old and a regular visitor to Ireland from Paris, where she lived with her husband, a celebrated film-maker, and 13-year-old son, Pierre Louis Baudey-Vignaud. Her death transfixed the media in both Ireland and Paris, partly because it was just so jarring. The murder rate in Ireland was so low that there was only one state pathologist, and it took him 28 hours to reach the scene.It was close to Christmas. Sarah Lambert, the producer of Netflix’s new documentary, Sophie: A Murder in West Cork, struggles to underline how big a deal this was. “More so in Ireland than a lot of other countries, Christmas is such a family time. I know a lot of married couples that will separate and go back to their parents. People were flabbergasted that she, a mother, would be there by herself so late in December.” The location was so remote, the community so tight-knit, that such violence seemed incongruous. It was expected there would be a swift resolution. In a place where you couldn’t buy a new cardigan without everyone knowing about it, how would anyone get away with murder? Continue reading...
Israel launched airstrikes on the Gaza Strip for a second time since a ceasefire ended May’s 11-day conflict with Palestinian militants. The strikes came after incendiary balloons were launched into Israel for a third day running. Israel's military reported that fighter jets struck Hamas 'military compounds and a rocket launch site' and said its forces were preparing for a 'variety of scenarios including a resumption of hostilities'
Analysis: The leader of the Democratic Unionist party in Northern Ireland has quit after just 21 days in the jobPoots quit on Thursday night because colleagues revolted over a deal he had agreed with Sinn Féin and the British government about Irish language legislation. The deal clinched Sinn Féin’s agreement to revive the stalled Stormont executive and to install Poots’ protege Paul Givan as first minister. But DUP assembly members and Westminster MPs considered it a concession too far. Continue reading...
by Joe Parkin Daniels Elena Morresi Katie Lamborn on (#5K7T0)
From the Amazon to the Caribbean coast, several weeks of protests have swept Colombia – dozens have died as demonstrators have faced sometimes deadly retaliation from police.The catalyst was a proposed tax hike, since withdrawn, in response to the coronavirus crisis. Demands expanded to calls to end inequality, economic disparity and police violence in Colombia – in almost two months, demonstrations have caused food and goods shortages.Protest leaders have temporarily suspended in-person demonstrations due to a rise in Covid cases, but Joe Parkin Daniels, reporting for the Guardian, explains why this widespread discontent is unlikely to end
by Written by Nacho Carretero & Arturo Lezcano, r on (#5K7QK)
The new international crime organisations have made Marbella their centre of operations. And as violence rises, the police lag far behind. By Nacho Carretero and Arturo Lezcano Continue reading...
Celebrations become ‘month of mourning’ after three murders in a week, with calls for urgent state reformGuatemala’s LGBTQ+ community is in mourning after two transgender women and a gay man were murdered in less than a week during pride month.Andrea González, a prominent activist and leader in the transgender women’s organisation Otrans Reinas de la Noche (Queens of the Night) was shot dead on 11 June in the street near her home in Guatemala City. Her murder followed the killing of another Otrans member, Cecy Ixpatá, who was assaulted and died from her injuries on 9 June in a hospital in Salamá, about 50 miles north of Guatemala City. José Manuel Vargas Villeda, a 22-year-old gay man was also shot and killed on 14 June in Morales, 150 miles north-east of the capital. Continue reading...
Networking site tells users that references to Tiananmen Square, even as academic study, are prohibited contentLinkedIn is blocking profiles from being viewed inside China if they mention politically sensitive topics such as the Tiananmen Square massacre, including benign references to academic study.In recent weeks, the professional networking site has written to several China analysts, alerting them to “prohibited content” on their profile pages. Continue reading...
The most eye-popping record sleeves, including Pink Floyd’s floating pigs, De La Soul’s flower power and Patti Smith’s simple portraiturePre-internet, it could be hard to find anything out about music, so a record cover might be the only information you had access to. At primary school, I learned that Tubular Bells was in a controversial film called The Exorcist (which at the time I thought was porn). I got the album for its mysterious shiny tube floating in the clouds like a UFO – and the music inside matched that soaring image. Continue reading...
If Ammonite and Supernova are anything to go by, queer roles are no longer awards bait. Instead, such films’ stars find themselves having to justify taking work away from LGBT+ performersIn February 1994, Hollywood seemed to change for ever. Tom Hanks – the epitome of the American everyman – won a best actor Oscar for playing the out gay protagonist in a major studio movie.In retrospect, Philadelphia looks a bit iffy. It is melodramatic, littered with tropes, and gets an awful lot of cathartic mileage out of the tragic martyrdom of its lead. Still, the tide appeared to have turned for good. Hollywood was not merely telling queer stories, it was rewarding them. Gay and lesbian roles were no longer something an agent would immediately bin; they were a fast track to kudos and awards. Continue reading...
by Heather Stewart and Haroon Siddique on (#5K7AT)
Sarah Green takes formerly safe Buckinghamshire seat despite senior Tories’ canvassingThe Liberal Democrats have pulled off an extraordinary victory in the Buckinghamshire constituency of Chesham and Amersham, taking the formerly safe seat from the Tories in a byelection.In a shock result, the Lib Dem Sarah Green secured 21,517 votes, leaving the Conservative Peter Fleet trailing with 13,489, and giving the Lib Dems a majority of 8,028. Continue reading...
Hostile alien planets, giant vampire women and a jazz age murder mystery – plus some old favourites, rebooted – are among the best games released this yearPC
Military says it is prepared for all scenarios including ‘resumption of hostilities’Israel has launched airstrikes on the Gaza Strip for a second time since a shaky ceasefire ended last month’s 11-day war.The strikes late on Thursday came after Palestinian militants on the frontierlaunched incendiary balloons into Israel for a third day running. The helium-filled balloons are cheap, basic devices intended to set fire to farmland and bush surrounding the Gaza enclave. Continue reading...
As oppressive legislation passed by Viktor Orbán’s government, activists plan procession to ‘show LGBT people they are not alone’For the second year in a row, Covid has succeeded in doing what many had once thought impossible: toning down Pride celebrations. From Berlin to Brighton, Toronto to San Francisco, parades have been cancelled or put online, floats forgotten and parties swapped for quieter, often more reflective events.But in Budapest, where LGBTQ+ activists are engaged in a near-existential fight against the rightwing government of Viktor Orbán, the stakes were too high for Pride to take a back seat. Continue reading...
A wild bear has run through the of streets the Japanese city of Sapporo and made it past the gates of a Japanese defence base next to Okadama airport. According to Japanese broadcaster NHK, the bear reached the grounds of the airport by jumping the fence. The bear was first sighted in the early hours of Friday before it was killed. Continue reading...
by Vincent Ni China affairs correspondent on (#5K7D5)
Bao Yinan from East China University of Political Science and Law accused over WeChat statementsA Chinese academic has been suspended by his university after he advocated polygamy on his personal WeChat account, sparking a new discussion around China’s evolving attitudes towards sex.Bao Yinan, a legal researcher at the prestigious East China University of Political Science and Law in Shanghai, was accused by his employer of “making wrong statements”. The university has now suspended all his teaching activity and formed a “special working group” to investigate the matter, it said in a statement at the weekend. Continue reading...
She told police 10 times her ex-partner would kill her and he did – one of 146 such deaths in France that yearJulie Douib told many people she thought her ex-partner would kill her. She told her family. She reported him to the police on 10 occasions. She even told them he had a gun and she was afraid he would use it, but they said they could not do anything unless he pointed it at her.So it should have been little surprise when he did. Or that Julie’s last words as she lay dying of gunshot wounds on the balcony of her home in L’Île-Rousse, Corsica, were, according to the neighbour who held her hand: “He’s killed me.” Continue reading...
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