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Campaigners say people unlikely to look favourably' on package for Wael Sawan, which rose to 13.8m in 2025The chief executive of Shell saw his pay jump more than 60% to almost 14m in 2025 despite a slump in profits at the oil company and prospects of rising pump prices related to war in the Middle East.The package for Wael Sawan, who took the top job in 2023 and has refocused the company on fossil fuels, rose from 8.6m in 2024 to 13.8m in 2025. Continue reading...

President delivered a vague and contradictory forecast on the future of the war in Middle East. Plus, how to recognize a psychopath

If regime holds, control of enriched uranium may be ultimate measure of US-Israeli success, insiders say

Under new Taliban laws, a husband is allowed to beat his wife as long as it is not done with obscene force', which the woman must prove in courtThe shocking level of physical violence against women permitted under the Taliban's new laws has been revealed this week by the case of a woman in northern Afghanistan, who said she was beaten with a cable wire by her husband and told by a judge: You want a divorce just because of that? ... A little anger and a few beatings won't kill you."Farzana* said her husband was quick-tempered and often resorted to beating her. He regularly humiliated her and called her disabled", she said, because her right leg was slightly shorter than the left. She had tolerated the abuse for the sake of their children, but one evening, she said, his violence went too far. Continue reading...

Comments in books, speeches and videos shed new light on defense secretary's personal commitment to war on IranThe US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has expressed a violent antipathy towards Iran for years in books, Fox News broadcasts, educational videos and a 2018 speech to an Israeli media conference in Jerusalem, a Guardian review has revealed.In a 2020 book, for example, Hegseth wrote that Iran's leaders were actively seeking the military means - especially nuclear weapons - to bring the West to its knees". And in a 2017 video for PragerU, the hard-right media platform, Hegseth described Iran as America's mortal enemy". Continue reading...

TV star announces birth of Ozzy Matilda Osbourne on social media, alongside image of cuddly batJack Osbourne, the only son of Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne, has honoured his late father by naming his baby daughter after him.Jack, 40, announced the birth of Ozzy Matilda Osbourne on social media alongside his wife, Aree, who he married in 2023. The newborn Ozzy was pictured lying next to a cuddly bat toy: another reference to his father, who famously bit the head off a real bat during a 1982 concert believing it was made of rubber. Continue reading...

Protester alleges that Iranian handler turned around and looked at us and then drew a line on his throat and pointed to us'

Prime minister makes claim as accusations mount that he is using row with Ukraine for political gain in run-up to electionsHungary's prime minister, Viktor Orban, has accused Ukrainians of plotting to attack his family, as an increasingly bitter standoff between Kyiv and Budapest continues.Orban and his allies appear to be using the dispute for maximum political gain before the election due next month that could end the 16-year rule of his nationalist government. Continue reading...

Health minister Tim Nicholls corrects claim alleged Bondi terror attack gunman Naveed Akram used controversial phrase, as laws roundly criticised

The fox is said to be settling in well' after mischievous 3,400 mile journey from Southampton to New YorkA sly fox slipped on to a cargo ship and travelled from Southampton to New York, according to officials at Bronx Zoo.The zoo, which is looking after the animal, said it appears healthy after early examinations. Continue reading...

Party leader Ashton Hurn confirms Carston Woodhouse will not run for Liberals in SA's state election, but says people are entitled to have their views'

Payment of 2% at employee-owned partnership follows sales increase to 13.4bnThe owner of John Lewis and Waitrose has paid an annual bonus to workers for the first time in four years after underlying profits rose by 6%.The retail group's 69,000 employees - which it calls partners - will receive a bonus of 2% of salary after it recorded an increase in sales and profits. Continue reading...

The final report into the Centrelink debt recovery process that wreaked havoc on the vulnerable is not the full-stop many wanted. It has not restored the trust that was so fundamentally broken

Hail Creek is responsible for about 20% of Australia's coalmine methane, while only producing 1% of the country's coal

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Dennis Richardson quits Bondi attack inquiry a fortnight after its opening hearing, telling the ABC he felt surplus to requirements'

Cathay Pacific, AirAsia and Thai Airways join Qantas in increasing prices, as travellers flock to airlines that don't have Middle East stopoversCathay Pacific, AirAsia and Thai Airways are among a growing number of airlines hiking air fares as conflict in the Middle East boosts oil prices and sends travellers flocking to alternative stopover destinations in Asia.The US and Israel's war on Iran has sent the price of oil soaring while restricting access to refineries, with experts predicting air fares could be elevated for months even if the conflict ends. Continue reading...

Police discovered the bodies of the mother and daughter after reports of an injured man, covered in blood, in Logan, in Brisbane's south

Home Office targets 150 families whose asylum claims were refused and offers them up to 40,000 to leave or face forcible removalFamilies who received notices asking them to agree to return to their home countries are begging the Home Office to give them more time to make a decision that will significantly affect their children's futures.The Home Office has targeted 150 families whose asylum claims were refused and given them just seven days to make the decision, which would uproot their children from schools and adopted communities. Those who refuse to leave voluntarily may be forcibly removed in handcuffs, including children. Continue reading...

Former PM says schools deserve same moral status as hospitals' after 168 schoolgirls killed in US-Israel war on Iran

Irish artists, British indie legends and US stars such as Tom Waits also contribute, with Springsteen writing essay about the bottomless humanity' of the late Pogues frontmanBruce Springsteen has written an essay celebrating the flashing, alive and historically rich" songwriting of the late Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan, as an all-star covers album is announced featuring Springsteen, Kate Moss, Johnny Depp and others.Springsteen's cover of A Rainy Night in Soho is out now, the first song to be released from 20th Century Paddy: The Songs of Shane MacGowan, which is out 13 November.Many, unsurprisingly, led difficult lives not easily bound by the shackles of convention. They were natural rebels unable to stifle or heed the impulses that led them to their glory and personal hardships. Great art is by nature lawless. We do not get to choose our obsessions. We do not get to dictate our blessings or our transgressions. It's a little joke the gods play on us. Shane's voice was so deeply real, profane and honest, his writing so flashing, alive and historically rich its genesis appeared as a mystery to all including, I believe, its creator. The dangerous joy, the glee and courage, the humour in the face of fate, the wild ramble of a life driven towards the artistic heavens and the daily balm of self-obliteration. Shane was all naked bottomless humanity. Threatening to force us to ask ourselves if we were living deeply, authentically. He was raw, hilarious, no apologies and profound. His soul was filled with the transgressive and ecstatic properties of the saints. I don't know who'll be listening to my music in 100 years but I know they'll be listening to Shane's. Continue reading...

Viral video of girl being shoved by fellow pedestrian has reignited debate over butsukari - with experts blaming stress and gender dynamicsIt starts out as a heartwarming clip. A young girl, clearly delighted to be in Tokyo, beams as she makes a peace sign to the camera. Seconds later, she is shoved to the ground from behind by a woman wearing a surgical mask. The assailant doesn't skip a beat, striding out of shot of the clip filmed by the girl's mother.This was no accidental clash of shoulders in a crowded place, but one of the most visible examples of a spate of butsukari otoko - bumping man" - shoving incidents in Japan that experts attribute to a combination of gender dynamics and the stresses of modern life. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Oil at $100 a barrel means higher prices in the EU and UK, making savings for those with electric vehicles even greater, analysts sayEuropean drivers face paying an extra 220 (190) a year at the pumps because of the surge in oil prices caused by the war in Iran, analysts have warned. In the UK, a separate estimate puts the cost at an extra 140.A sustained oil price of $100 a barrel, the level seen on Monday, would mean motorists in the EU paying 55bn more over a year, researchers at the Transport & Environment (T&E) thinktank estimated. That is the equivalent of an average of 220 for each driver, with higher-mileage drivers facing even bigger hikes. The assessment was made by comparing data from 2022, when Russia's invasion of Ukraine pushed the oil price to the $100 mark, with data from 2017-2019. Continue reading...

Influential Treasury committee chair Meg Hillier says review follows growing concern over graduate debt

This blog is now closed- follow the latest news and live updates in the Middle East crisis here

From fuel caps to four-day work weeks, the Middle East conflict has left the world's top crude oil importing region desperate to shore up suppliesDonald Trump has scrambled in recent days to reassure the world that the economic impact of his war on Iran can be contained.Sure, one of the most important waterways in global trade has, in effect, been shut for almost two weeks - but it might reopen before long. In the meantime, US oil-related sanctions on some countries" will be lifted. And besides, the entire conflict could be over soon. Continue reading...

Global heating linked to rising risk of extreme rain that causes devastating landslides and rising coffee pricesThe record floods that have brought death and destruction to the heartland of Brazil's coffee industry are expected to intensify if people continue to burn fossil fuels, analysis has shown.Dozens of residents in the state of Minas Gerais have been buried alive in landslides or swept away as roads turned into rivers over the past month. Thousands more have been forced to evacuate their homes, while the wider, longer-term effects are likely to include higher prices for coffee across the world. Continue reading...

Layoffs to affect 10% of workforce amid Australian company's restructuring plan to push into artificial intelligence and enterprise salesSoftware giant Atlassian has announced it is laying off about 10% of its workforce, or roughly 1,600 positions, and replacing its chief technology officer as it restructures to invest further in artificial intelligence.More than 900 affected positions were involved in software research and development, a spokesperson said. Most of Atlassian's employees work in software engineering and design, accounting for over 50% of its 13,813 full-time workforce in June 2025. Continue reading...

President tells John Thune to force through Save America act, which requires proof of citizenship while registering to vote and curbs mail-in votingDonald Trump said that the US-Israel war in Iran will end soon" because there is practically nothing left to target" in a phone interview with Axios.Any time I want it to end, it will end," the president told the outlet. The war is going great. We are way ahead of the timetable. We have done more damage than we thought possible, even in the original six-week period." Continue reading...

Two international tourists travelling to flood-ravaged North Burnett region from Brisbane thought to be first flood-related deaths

Some river levels are still increasing after parts of Queensland recorded their highest three-day rainfall totals

New legislation will require schools to use Mandarin by default, taking priority over minority ethnic languages such as Tibetan, Uyghur and MongolianChina's National People's Congress (NPC), the state legislature, will vote on Thursday on a suite of new laws agreed at this year's annual two sessions gathering, including a piece of legislation that will diminish the role of minority ethnic languages in the education system.NPC delegates are expected to approve a new ethnic unity law, along with a new environmental code and the 15th five-year plan, the economic planning document for 2026-2030. Delegates have spent the last week debating Beijing's proposed bills, which they are all but certain to approve. The NPC, which is often described as a rubber-stamp parliament, has never rejected an item on its agenda. Continue reading...

John Thune refusing to alter rules to force a vote as US president says he won't sign any legislation until bill is passed

Newly released documents also show Peter Mandelson was offered highly classified briefings before formal vetting was completeKeir Starmer overruled officials who warned of a reputational risk" in making Peter Mandelson US ambassador, despite being handed a dossier of evidence about the peer's relationship with the sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, documents reveal.The disclosure in newly released files will raise fresh questions about Starmer's judgment - as well as about the vetting procedures at the highest levels of government.Mandelson was offered a severance payment of 75,000 after initially asking the Foreign Office to pay him more than 500,000;Starmer was warned before appointing Mandelson that he remained in contact and stayed with Epstein after the financier was first convicted of procuring an underage girl in 2008;Powell told an investigation that he thought the appointment was weirdly rushed";Starmer was reassured about Mandelson's friendship with Epstein by Matthew Doyle, his former communications chief and a friend of Mandelson. Doyle said he was satisfied" with Mandelson's explanation of the relationship. Continue reading...

Release shows that Jonathan Powell warned Morgan McSweeney about the appointment of Mandelson as US ambassadorAs reported by Nadeem Badshah this morning, the documents relating to Peter Mandelson's appointment as ambassador to the US expected to be released today will include a due diligence report by the Cabinet Office, which is believed to be two pages long.It is likely to raise questions about Keir Starmer's judgment, with sources saying it had warned the prime minister of the serious reputational risk" of going ahead with Mandelson's appointment in December 2024 given his links with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.He has said, as you know that it is a little bit - it does fall into the category of too little too late, but I think they have a good, solid relationship, and hopefully they'll be able to repair it. I go by what the president says, and the president says continuously that everybody is entitled to their point of view. But I think sometimes we detect that there's not that feeling of gratitude.I think the president's position is that we do plenty for Europe, plenty for the UK, in the area of trade, in the area of defence, in the area of the support we give to Nato. And I think sometimes the response back, the reciprocity back, is a little bit lacking. I would leave it at that, OK? Continue reading...

Latest sculpture titled King of the World' includes plaques with pointed commentary on pair's past associationA woman's heart is a deep ocean of secrets. The appearance of a golden statue depicting Donald Trump and the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein as doomed lovers from the movie Titanic is confronting Washington with a murkier mystery.The nearly 12ft sculpture, unveiled on Tuesday on the National Mall, is the third piece of guerrilla art satirising Trump's past relationship with Epstein attributed to The Secret Handshake, a shadowy collective whose members remain anonymous. Continue reading...

PM knew of US ambassador's close relationship' with Jeffrey Epstein and potential conflicts of interest from his lobbying roleFour months after Peter Mandelson was sacked as UK ambassador to Washington over his links with Jeffrey Epstein, he sat down for a primetime BBC interview. A less hubristic individual would have long since slunk away into the shadows.But despite all the condemnation and humiliation surrounding his departure, Mandelson seemed intent on maintaining a public profile. Who knows what's next?" he told Laura Kuenssberg. I don't know what's next. I'm not going to disappear and hide - that's not me". Continue reading...

Richard Kemp tells high court former Sinn Fein leader would have authorised attacks carried out in EnglandA former British army commander has told the high court it is inconceivable" that Gerry Adams was not involved in the authorisation of IRA bombings.Richard Kemp said there was evidence from a multitude of intelligence" spanning 20 years about the former Sinn Fein leader's membership of the paramilitary organisation. Continue reading...

Payment for Inditex founder, the world's 15 richest person, tops last year's dividend of 3.1bnThe billionaire founder of Zara is to receive a company record 3.23bn (2.8bn) dividend this year from the world's biggest fashion retailer.Amancio Ortega, who still controls 59% of Spain's Inditex and whose daughter Marta Ortega Perez is now chair, will receive half his dividend in May and half in November - as will other shareholders. Continue reading...

Lack of public appearances prompted speculation about new leader's mortality after multiple family members perishedThe confirmation that Iran's new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, was injured in the first wave of Israeli attacks underlines how desperate the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (ICRG) was to ensure their wounded choice was elevated to high office, and how confident it is that the wartime machinery can operate almost on automatic pilot without him.The full scale of Khamenei's injuries and speed of his recovery remain unclear, but a broken leg and facial injuries are the minimum. It is not a medical bulletin on which the authorities are seeking to dwell, although Ali Larijani, the secretary of the supreme national security council, chose his words carefully in saying his condition has not been reported as critical", a phrasing that suggests he has not personally seen him. Continue reading...

More than a week into the US-Israel war on Iran, president has provided little clarity on how the conflict might end

Grammy-winning singer is in advanced talks to lead an adaptation of Sylvia Plath's novel for Oscar-winning writer-directorGrammy-winning singer-songwriter Billie Eilish is set to make her big screen acting debut in an adaptation of Sylvia Plath's semi-autobiographical novel The Bell Jar.According to Deadline, the 24-year-old will take on the lead role for Sarah Polley, the writer-director who previously won an Oscar for her Women Talking screenplay. Eilish is reportedly in advanced talks for the part. Continue reading...

Green party leader has said he immediately apologised for comments made in 2013 Sun interview, but footage six days later shows him standing by claimZack Polanski's claim to have immediately apologised for offering hypnosis intended to increase a woman's breast size has been cast into doubt by the emergence of a 2013 interview with the Green party leader.In 2013, before he entered politics, Polanski was approached by a Sun journalist to see if a hypnotherapy session could make her breasts bigger. This experience was then written up as an article. Continue reading...

Tens of thousands of residents and tourists have left UAE since the US and Israel started bombing Iran two weeks ago, leaving beach bars, malls and hotels eerily emptyIn the playground of the rich, nobody wanted this war. For decades, Dubai built itself up as a sanctuary of unadulterated consumerism visited by tourists the world over.But now, the city in the United Arab Emirates faces an existential threat, as the war between the US and Israel and Iran has shaken the foundations of the Dubai dream" that so many foreigners had bought into. Continue reading...

What have we learned from release of files relating to former peer's appointment - and sacking - as UK ambassador to Washington?

Supreme court recently rejected Cedric Ricks' claim that potential jurors in his trial were eliminated based on race

Advisers to RFK Jr drop the plan to end federal guidance amid Republican worries about the political impact

Strike that killed at least 175 people, most of them children, reportedly due to targeting mistake by US military planners

Reform UK leader supported US war on Iran from start, but is now being accused of a U-turnNigel Farage has suggested Iran potentially poses a bigger danger than Putin poses to us", despite Russia having nuclear weapons and invading Ukraine.The Reform UK leader made the remarks in an interview with the New Statesman, which are likely to fuel further questions about his stance on Russia. Continue reading...

Prime minister says UK would be at war' now if it were up to Tory and Reform leaders and accuses both of changing position on war