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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

Health secretary to increase pay offer and guarantee working conditions for resident doctors onlyWes Streeting is to offer resident doctors a bigger pay rise than other NHS staff as part of a new package of measures to try to end their long-running dispute.The health secretary also plans to guarantee resident doctors in England that hospitals will be fined if they do not give them good working conditions, such as rest areas and access to hot food. Continue reading...

MPs say release of papers on Mandelson's appointment as US ambassador could trigger leadership challengeLabour MPs have warned that Keir Starmer's days as prime minister are numbered after a day of fury over the appointment of Peter Mandelson as US ambassador despite his friendship with Jeffery Epstein.The government was on the brink of a defeat in the Commons until a mid-debate amendment brokered by Meg Hillier and Angela Rayner to force the release of documents about Mandelson's appointment and the depth of his relationship with the convicted child sex offender. Continue reading...

Government faces call for transparency on former peer's involvement amid fears he may have leaked more sensitive informationPeter Mandelson's involvement with the US tech company Palantir must be exposed to full public transparency, campaigners have said, amid fears he may have leaked more sensitive information than is alleged in his emails to Jeffrey Epstein.Palantir, a $300bn startup that provides military technology to the Israel Defense Forces and AI-powered deportation targeting for Donald Trump's ICE units, has UK government contracts worth more than 500m. Global Counsel, a lobbying company Mandelson co-founded and part-owns, also works for Palantir. Continue reading...

No 10 is under huge pressure to reveal exactly how the former peer was vetted for his job as US ambassadorAfter 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. Continue reading...

Position of Mountbatten-Windsor now appears even more grave, and the shadow cast over his family even darkerWhen King Charles stripped Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor of his titles and announced he would be booted out of Royal Lodge, Buckingham Palace said the censures are deemed necessary, notwithstanding the fact that he continues to deny the allegations against him".Four months and more than 3m documents later, Charles must surely feel vindicated on his tough approach. For while there is nothing to suggest the king nor any other senior royals knew then what was to come in the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files, what has emerged has been truly shocking. Continue reading...

Melinda French Gates insists Microsoft founder has questions to answer over his relationship with EpsteinBill Gates has said he regrets" ever knowing Jeffrey Epstein, as his former wife Melinda French Gates alluded to muck" in their marriage, and insisted the Microsoft founder has questions to answer over his relationship with the deceased child sex offender.Allegations that Gates hid a sexually transmitted disease from his wife after contact with Russian girls" surfaced in the latest release of the Epstein files, which have provided remarkable insight into the disgraced financier's multiple celebrity connections and activities. Continue reading...

Robb Pitts said call came days before federal agents seized 2020 election documents in Georgia

Former phone hacker Graham Johnson denies claims, saying payments were part of effort to draw attention to unlawful behaviour by mediaA researcher investigating lawbreaking by the media paid private investigators and ex-journalists for their testimony about alleged unlawful activity at the publisher of the Daily Mail, the high court has heard.Graham Johnson, a former phone hacker who later turned to researching unlawful activity in the press, confirmed he had made payments to six people who all feature in the case Prince Harry and others have brought against Associated Newspapers Ltd (ANL). Continue reading...

Six children among dead as Israeli agency restricts evacuations two days after crossing to Egypt reopenedIsraeli tank shelling and airstrikes have killed at least 21 people, including six children and seven women, in Gaza, and Israel has halted the evacuation of patients through the Rafah border crossing just two days after it reopened.Among the casualties was a medic who rushed to the scene to assist the wounded and was killed by a second strike on the same location in the southern city of Khan Younis. Tents in al-Mawasi, an encampment of displaced people in Khan Younis, were shredded by the blasts. Continue reading...

Former Post executive editor blasts owner Jeff Bezos's sickening efforts to curry favor' with TrumpThe Washington Post laid off hundreds of employees on Wednesday, which its former executive editor said ranks among the darkest days" in the newspaper's history. Approximately one-third of employees were affected.Staffers at the Post have been on edge for weeks about the rumored cuts, which the publication would not confirm or deny. It's an absolute bloodbath," said one employee, not authorized to speak publicly. Continue reading...

State-owned company will sell under the Lepas brand, continuing its rapid expansion in the British market

Both sides downplay chances of immediate breakthrough in US-brokered talks as western allies reportedly weigh new defence pactThe Kremlin has reacted to comments made by French president Emmanuel Macron that he was looking to resume contact with Putin on the war in Ukraine.According to Reuters news agency, the Kremlin confirmed ongoing technical discussions between Russia and France, but provided no further details or indicated any dialogue between Putin and Macron.At night, the enemy carried out a massive attack with strike drones on the Odesa region. Damage to civilian, residential and industrial infrastructure was recorded.In the city of Odesa, about 20 residential buildings and cars were damaged. Four people were rescued from the rubble, but one person was unfortunately injured. Continue reading...

Beazley, which also covers fine art, agrees to Zurich takeover at 60% premiumA British company specialising in insuring against cyber-attacks that also covers fine art and luxury yachts has agreed to be taken over in an 8bn deal, in the latest loss to the London stock market.Beazley said on Wednesday it had agreed the deal with its larger rival Zurich, after the Switzerland-listed company raised its bid for the Lloyd's of London insurer. Continue reading...

Questioned at PMQs, PM says former US ambassador lied repeatedly' about depth of contact with child sex offender

Cheshire coroner says there is reason to suspect unnatural deaths', with proceedings to begin in SeptemberA coroner has formally opened inquests into the deaths of five newborn babies who Lucy Letby was convicted of murdering.In a 20-minute hearing at Cheshire coroner's court, the senior coroner Jacqueline Devonish heard brief details of the deaths before adjourning proceedings until September. Continue reading...

Philando Castile, a lawful gun owner, was shot and killed by a police officer in 2016 - gun rights groups were largely silentThe killing of Alex Pretti by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis has sparked a thorny conversation among gun rights groups and Trump administration officials about the second amendment and the right to carry concealed firearms at protests and demonstrations. Among the questions is which cases the movement rallies behind, and behind which it doesn't.In the hours and days after Pretti's killing, dozens of local national and local gun rights groups lambasted federal officials like Kristi Noem, the homeland security secretary, and Gregory Bovino, a senior border patrol official, who baselessly claimed that Pretti's carrying of a handgun proved that he planned to harm and kill border patrol agents. Prominent gun rights organizations, including Gun Owners of America (GOA) and the National Rifle Association (NRA), called for an independent investigation into the shooting and defended Pretti's right to carry a gun. Continue reading...

DNC's Local Listeners initiative will target one million infrequent' voters in battleground districtsDemocrats are launching an aggressive campaign to win back voters they lost, not to Donald Trump, but to the proverbial couch," as they look to regain support ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.On Wednesday, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) rolled out a new initiative called Local Listeners with the goal of targeting over one million infrequent" voters in key battleground districts. Seeking to build on the party's string of off-year election victories, which extended into 2026 with an upset in Texas last weekend, the DNC is betting that early, localized outreach will be crucial in winning back these voters' trust - and their ballots - this time around. Continue reading...

Unionized baristas continue to fight for a fair contract and ask public for solidarity as strike stretches into third monthStriking Starbucks baristas are calling on customers of the world's largest coffee chain to delete its popular mobile app in solidarity with their demands for a first union contract.Starbucks Workers United, which has been coordinating a strike for almost three months, is vowing to press ahead. Continue reading...

Road closures in place as university says it is offering direct support to students and staff who witnessed the incident'Several roads have been closed in Leicester after a serious incident" on a university campus.De Montfort University said it was working with Leicestershire police, who confirmed the incident took place on Oxford Street in the city on Tuesday evening. They gave no further details about the incident. Continue reading...

Pressure grows on PM over ex-minister's Jeffrey Epstein links as Tories criticise move to withhold some records

Signalling issue and train derailment in south London hits Southern, Thameslink and Gatwick Express servicesA do not travel" alert has been issued by the UK's largest railway franchise, after a train derailment and signalling issues affected services across south-east England.Train operators Southern, Thameslink and Gatwick Express - all part of the Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) franchise in south-east England - urged passengers not to travel on Wednesday morning if at all possible" because of multiple incidents". Continue reading...

For Labour veterans of the financial crisis the Epstein files revealed a betrayal - but 16 years on, is the City calling the shots?Today's advocates of a windfall tax on the UK's highly profitable banking sector detected a whiff of familiarity in Peter Mandelson's suggestion, back in 2009, that JP Morgan should mildly threaten" the chancellor.Feeding a Wall Street financier market sensitive titbits was an extraordinary breach of trust - perhaps even illegal, it seems - but for Labour veterans of the financial crisis, Mandelson's collusion with the banks against his own colleagues was the worst betrayal. Continue reading...

Mandarin transliteration of character's name regarded as auspicious, prompting wave of memes and fan artDraco Malfoy, one of Harry Potter's most recognisable villains, has become an unlikely lunar new year icon across China, as fans embrace the character for the year of the horse.In Mandarin, Malfoy's name is transliterated as m r fu". The first character means horse" while the final character, fu", means fortune" or blessing" - a powerful symbol found across lunar new year celebrations. Continue reading...

Formal approval given for new university group to operate from August, with both institutions keeping their namesThe universities of Greenwich and Kent have confirmed they have been given formal approval to merge into the UK's first super-university".The merged entity will be the third-largest higher education institution in the UK, the universities said, and is consulting on being named the London and South East University Group. Continue reading...

Judge says neo-Nazi's offending outside Melbourne court was contemptuous' and Hersant relished' the opportunity to do itFar-right extremist Jacob Hersant has been jailed for one month after losing an appeal against his Nazi salute conviction.The 26-year-old looked straight ahead as Victorian county court judge Simon Moglia re-sentenced him on Wednesday for the contemptuous" offending. Continue reading...

Opposition leader may announce promotion of six MPs to shadow cabinet early amid deadlock in talks to reunite with Nationals

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A spokesperson says Dr Michael Byrom no longer has any conditions placed on his practising and cited a rigorous recruitment process'

Billionaire says he spoke to former Trump strategist once, when he mistook him for a potential donor, denying claims revealed in the Jeffrey Epstein files

MP also tells Guardian Australia's Full Story podcast he backs peaceful protests against country's actions in Gaza

The 27-year-old died after reportedly collapsing while skiing with friends near a Niseko ski report

Cameron Murphy, one of three MLCs to rally next week, says we should not be welcoming to Australia the head of a state engaged in an ongoing genocide'

Prediction markets allow you to put money on everything from the US attacking Iran to Jesus returning. Saahil Desai explains their dizzying riseIn the early hours of 3 January, Donald Trump ordered a surprise attack on the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, to kidnap the country's leader, Nicolas Maduro. Millions of Venezuelans' lives were thrown into uncertainty. Politicians at home and abroad scrambled to respond. It seemed this was something no one had seen coming. Except one person did actually predict it.In the hours before the attack, someone - and we have no way of knowing who - placed a series of bets that Donald Trump would oust Maduro on a prediction market platform, netting them nearly $500,000 when it happened. These platforms allow their users not just to bet on whoever's going to win the Super Bowl, but also on world events. Heavily regulated under the Biden administration, these apps have enjoyed a huge boom in popularity since Trump came to power. Continue reading...

What have I done?' thought Joanne Appelbee as she waited for rescue with two other children in rough seas off Western AustraliaJoanne Appelbee says asking her 13-year-old son Austin to swim four hours through dangerous waters to get help after her family was swept out to sea was one of the hardest decisions" she has ever made.I knew he was the strongest and he could do it," she told the ABC. I would have never went because I wouldn't have left the kids at sea, so I had to send somebody." Continue reading...

Richard Marles has decided to sell more than 60 properties, including Victoria Barracks in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane

Netflix film revisits evidence that led to Letby's conviction and hears from expert who says his research was misusedShortly after Lucy Letby was sentenced to 15 whole-life terms for murdering seven infants and attempting to murder seven others between June 2015 and June 2016 - a conviction that made her Britain's worst ever child serial killer - Cheshire police agreed to give unparalleled and exclusive access" to the makers of a Netflix film about the case.The finished documentary, The Investigation Of Lucy Letby, which is released on Wednesday, must be very different from what the producers envisaged when they first began work on the project, given the subsequent unexpected turns in the story. Since the two trials, the prosecution evidence and police handling of the case have faced criticism from an unprecedentedly large number of distinguished British and international medical experts. Led by the Canadian neonatologist, Dr Shoo Lee - who says again in the feature-length Netflix documentary that his research was misused to convict the nurse - many of the experts are convinced Letby is innocent, the victim of a catastrophic miscarriage of justice. Continue reading...

Report to tackle courts' backlog also recommends new criminal justice adviser to oversee courts, prisons and policingA new post of prime minister's criminal justice adviser and the widespread use of remote hearings are among the recommendations of a government-commissioned independent review on tackling the courts' backlog in England and Wales.The second part of Sir Brian Leveson's review - unlike the first part, which recommended slashing jury trials - focuses on efficiencies that can be achieved without legislation. Continue reading...

Leaders had been trading hostile remarks for months but Gustavo Petro's visit ended with warm words from US counterpartAfter months of trading insults - from sick man" and drug trafficking leader" on one side, to accomplice to genocide" with a senile brain" on the other - the first meeting between Donald Trump and Gustavo Petro ended with pleasantries, autographs and a Maga cap.The Colombian president was received by his US counterpart for a closed-door meeting at the White House, with no press access. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Police say they will review allegation that Epstein sent woman to UK to have sex with Andrew at Royal Lodge, his former homeBritish police are to review fresh allegations that Jeffrey Epstein provided Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor with a woman to have sex with at the Royal Lodge in 2010, as it emerged that the former prince had moved out of his home.The woman has claimed she spent the night at the then prince's residence in Windsor, her US lawyer, Brad Edwards, said after the allegations surfaced over the weekend. The woman, who is not British, was in her 20s at the time, and was later given a tour of Buckingham Palace, it is further alleged. Continue reading...

March state election will test the growing vote for Pauline Hanson's party, with newest recruit Cory Bernardi among the former Liberals in play

Search and rescue operation involving boats, helicopter and divers under way off the eastern Aegean island of ChiosA collision between a speedboat carrying migrants and a Greek coastguard patrol vessel off the eastern Aegean island of Chios has killed at least 14 people, the coastguard said.A search and rescue operation involving four patrol vessels, an air force helicopter and a private boat carrying divers was under way for potential missing passengers. Continue reading...

Files released by US apparently show Mandelson sending Epstein market-sensitive information while serving as business secretaryThe Department for Work and Pensions has named 12 disability experts with lived experience of disability or long-term health conditions" who will sit on the steering group of the review looking at the future of the personal independence payment (Pip), a disability benefit. Stephen Timms, the minister leading the review, says:Disabled people deserve a system that truly supports them to live with independence and dignity, and that fairly reflects the reality of their lives today.That's why we're putting disabled people at the heart of this review - ensuring their voices shape the changes that will help them achieve better health, greater independence, and access to the right support when they need it.* Could we see a crunch point as soon as tomorrow over Mandelson?* Tories have an opposition day debate - could they force a vote on Mandelson vetting disclosure. Shadow cabinet sources tell me they're thinking about it Continue reading...

Nancy Guthrie was last seen on Saturday night and is believed to have been taken against her willOfficials in Arizona said on Tuesday afternoon they were no closer to finding the missing mother of Savannah Guthrie, the Today show host, three days after the octogenarian disappeared from her Tucson home - which detectives are treating as a crime scene".Nancy Guthrie, 84, was last seen on Saturday night and is believed to have been taken against her will, Chris Nanos, the Pima county sheriff, said. Media reports on Tuesday said blood was found at the residence, and there were signs of forced entry. Continue reading...