World news | The Guardian

Prosecutors say cuts to funding and training limits their ability to bring child predators to justiceThe US Department of Justice has slashed funding and training resources for law enforcement working on investigations and prosecutions of sex crimes against children under the Trump administration, which limits their ability to carry out this work.Major cuts include the cancelation of 2025 National Law Enforcement Training on Child Exploitation, due to be held in Washington DC in June. The conference is an annual event that provides technical training to prosecutors, state and federal law enforcement officers on investigating online crimes against children. Continue reading...

Umer Khalid, 22, has stopped drinking water as well as food in protest against charges against himThe last Palestine Action prisoner still on hunger strike has now stopped drinking water, which a doctor has warned could kill him.Umer Khalid, 22, has been on a hunger strike since November. His action was briefly paused at Christmas when he became unwell. Continue reading...

Korey LaVergne was jailed on three counts of indecent behavior with a juvenile and was released after posting bailThe arrest of a Roman Catholic priest in south-west Louisiana occurred after local authorities were told that the clergyman had inappropriately touched a child" over the course of a year, according to investigators' initial report on the case.The Guardian obtained the report Friday through a public records request, a week after the sheriff's office of Acadia parish, Louisiana, booked Korey LaVergne with three counts of indecent behavior with a juvenile. Continue reading...

Attempt to reclaim alleged unpaid debts comes months after 25-year relationship with cinema chain came to an endCoca-Cola is taking legal action against Vue after the cinema chain switched to its arch-rival PepsiCo to supply soft drinks in Europe.Vue, which operates more than 90 cinemas across the UK and Ireland, put the contract up for tender last year. Continue reading...

Dancing2 by Keli Holiday comes in second, with almost twice as many Australian songs making the count this year compared to last

Health secretary will describe plan to offer tax relief on private healthcare as tax cut for the wealthiest'Reform UK's policy of tax relief on private health insurance could cost the country 1.7bn, the health secretary, Wes Streeting, is expected to say on Saturday.Streeting will make the claim at a conference organised by the Fabian Society, a socialist thinktank aligned to the Labour party, and will describe the Reform proposal as a tax cut for the wealthiest". Continue reading...

Hobbycraft removes product from sale after parent sent samples to a lab for testing but declines to issue a recallBottles of children's play sand have been withdrawn from shelves by the craft retailer Hobbycraft after a parent discovered they were contaminated with asbestos.The parent, who did not wish to be named, raised the alarm after her children played with the sand at a party. Continue reading...

NHS England pays for private assessments under right to choose', but can reject diagnoses and is struggling to cope with demandSameer Modha knows the ADHD system all too well. He has been diagnosed himself, as have his two children, giving him a clear view of how the system works - and where it breaks down.While his own diagnosis was relatively straightforward, the experience with his daughter was very different. The diagnosis he obtained for his eldest child, after an assessment carried out privately by a very senior ex-Camhs [child and adolescent mental health service] director, someone who knows the system and has seen a huge amount of this", was later rejected by the NHS. He was told it was not compliant with guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice), which sets healthcare standards nationally. Continue reading...

US policy document suggests South Korea take primary responsibility, as Pentagon prioritises defending US homelandThe Pentagon foresees a more limited" role in deterring North Korea, with South Korea taking primary responsibility for the task, a Pentagon policy document released on Friday said, in a move likely to raise concern in Seoul.South Korea hosts about 28,500 US troops in combined defence against North Korea's military threat and Seoul has raised its defence budget by 7.5% for this year. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Natalie Fleet says power balance is with criminals not victims as delays make hell of being raped' worseA Labour MP who became pregnant after being groomed and raped as a teenager has called on colleagues to back plans for judge-only trials or allow the power balance to remain in favour of criminals as opposed to the victims".Natalie Fleet, the MP for Bolsover, said she would not encourage survivors to seek justice through the courts because the hell of being raped is made worse by the hell of going through delays in the system". Continue reading...

Family confirms boy has died almost a week after the attack, describing him as possessing the most kind and generous spirit'

Rescue efforts at Mount Maunganui site switch to recovery operation that police say could take several daysEfforts to rescue six people buried by a landslide at a New Zealand holiday park ended on Saturday, with police shifting into a recovery operation.Police Supt Tim Anderson said human remains had been uncovered on Friday night beneath the mountains of dirt and debris that crashed into a campsite in Mount Maunganui on Thursday, adding that it could take several days to locate all of the victims due to the unstable ground. Continue reading...

US president says we have a lot of ships' going in that direction and that Washington is watching Iran closelyDonald Trump has said an American armada" is heading towards the Middle East and that the US is monitoring Iran closely, as activists put the death toll from Tehran's crackdown on protesters at 5,002.Speaking on Air Force One as he returned from the World Economic Forum in Davos overnight, he said: We have a lot of ships going that direction, just in case. I'd rather not see anything happen, but we're watching them very closely ... we have an armada ... heading in that direction, and maybe we won't have to use it." Continue reading...

Police reveal Julian Ingram reported to local officers as part of his bail conditions hours before the shootings

Home Office to set targets for response times and victim satisfaction as home secretary takes powers to intervene directlyPolice forces will face new targets for crime fighting and those performing poorly will be named and shamed under government plans to take sweeping powers over law enforcement.The new plans come as part of changes to policing in England and Wales to be announced on Monday by the home secretary, Shabana Mahmood. The Home Office claims the reforms are the biggest in two centuries. Continue reading...

PM joins veterans in condemning claim that troops avoided frontlines and suggests US president should apologiseKeir Starmer has issued an unprecedented rebuke to Donald Trump for his insulting and frankly appalling" remarks about British troops in Afghanistanand suggested he should apologise.After a week of fractious relations with the White House, Starmer said he was not surprised that relatives of British soldiers killed in Afghanistan were hurt by Trump claiming they avoided the frontline. Continue reading...

Alleged attacks took place in Cambridgeshire and Buckinghamshire against two prominent supporters of jailed former Pakistani prime minister Imran KhanThree men have been charged after a series of highly targeted" attacks against two Pakistani dissidents living in Britain.Police carried out a series of seven raids and arrests this week in London, Essex and the Midlands after four attacks, which began on Christmas Eve. Continue reading...

Organizers say ICE agents have been targeting African nationals amid surge focused in Portland and Lewiston

Judge described Nick Gratwick's crimes - which included plotting to rape children as young as six - as the stuff of nightmares'A dangerous" paedophile who had worked as a police informer spying on environmental and animal rights activists has been jailed for life.Nick Gratwick had been found guilty of 38 offences, including arranging to rape children as young as six in the UK and abroad. Continue reading...

Display at President's House site, residence to George Washington, had information on people enslaved by himPhiladelphia is taking legal action against the Trump administration following the National Park Service's decision to dismantle a long-established slavery-related exhibit at Independence National Historical park, which holds the former residence of George Washington.The city filed its lawsuit in federal court on Thursday, naming the US Department of Interior and its secretary, Doug Burgum, the National Park Service, and its acting director, Jessica Bowron, as defendants. The lawsuit seeks a court order requiring the exhibits to be restored while the case proceeds. Continue reading...

Angela Rayner is expected to urge PM to let Greater Manchester mayor stand in Gorton and Denton byelectionKeir Starmer is facing mounting pressure not to block Andy Burnham from making a comeback to parliament, with Angela Rayner planning to urge No 10 to let him stand in a forthcoming byelection.The prime minister's allies have been trying to prevent Burnham's return as a candidate in the Greater Manchester seat of Gorton and Denton, amid fears he could challenge the leadership. Continue reading...

Much-anticipated trial scheduled in New York over killing of United Healthcare CEO Brian ThompsonLuigi Mangione's federal murder trial in the killing of the United HealthCare CEO Brian Thompson is scheduled to start with jury selection on 8 September, a judge said on Friday, triggering one of the most eagerly anticipated criminal trials in recent US history.Judge Margaret Garnett announced the trial date to a packed Manhattan federal courtroom shortly before an evidence-related hearing in his case. Continue reading...

Preliminary report suggests fracture could have existed before high-speed train derailed in AndaluciaExperts investigating the deadly rail collision in southern Spain, which killed 45 people and left dozens more injured, believe the accident may have happened after one of the trains passed over a damaged section of rail.The disaster occurred near the Andalucian town of Adamuz on Sunday, when a high-speed train operated by Iryo, a private company, derailed and collided with an oncoming high-speed train operated by the state rail company, Renfe. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Blueprints describe a case study' community where residents submit biometric data to gain entryThe United Arab Emirates plans to fund Gaza's first planned community" on the ruined outskirts of Rafah, Gaza's southernmost city. Palestinian residents there will have access to basic services like education, healthcare and running water, as long as they submit to biometric data collection and security vetting, according to planning documents and people familiar with the latest round of talks at the US-led Civil Military Coordination Center in Israel.The planned city would mark the UAE's first investment in a post-war reconstruction project located in the part of Gaza currently held by Israel. The wealthy Gulf state has contributed more than $1.8bn of humanitarian assistance to Gaza since 7 October 2023, according to UAE state media, making it Gaza's largest humanitarian donor. Continue reading...

Trust says Reform UK leader was invited to WEF event by London-based venture capitalist as an honorary adviserNigel Farage's trip to Davos this week was hosted and paid for by the $10bn family trust of an Iranian-born billionaire, the Guardian has learned.The leader of Reform UK has been touring Davos this week, giving speeches in which he pledged to tax banks and fight the globalists". Continue reading...

Philip Young, who served on Swindon borough council, pleads guilty to offences against ex-spouse Joanne YoungA former Conservative councillor has admitted nearly 50 offences of drugging, raping and sexually assaulting his former wife over a period of 14 years.Philip Young, 49, pleaded guilty at Winchester crown court to 11 counts of rape and 11 counts of administering a substance with intent to stupefy his former spouse Joanne Young, 48, who can be named as she has waived her right to anonymity Continue reading...

President's assertion that Nato troops were not on the front line in Afghanistan has sparked widespread angerKeir Starmer's allies have launched a Stop Andy Burnham" campaign to prevent the Labour mayor from returning to parliament after the resignation of a Manchester MP triggered a byelection, Pippa Crerar, Jessica Elgot and Josh Halliday report in their overnight story.In a good analysis, Jess explains why, if Burnham does decide that he wants to return to the Commons as MP for Gorton and Denton in Manchester, he faces a colossal challenge. Continue reading...

Moscow says prior talks with Washington useful in every respect' and repeats call for Ukraine to exit Donbas

After Andrew Gwynne's exit, voters in Gorton and Denton are fractured - and increasingly willing to look elsewhereWhen leaked WhatsApp messages sent by former minister Andrew Gwynne were published last year, Stuart Beard was astonished at the scenes outside his office in Denton town square.There must have been about 60 pensioners with placards," he said, referring to local anger over Gwynne's derogatory texts, which included one saying he hoped an elderly woman who didn't vote Labour croaked it" before the next election. Continue reading...

Two days of rare trilateral discussions have begun but hopes are low amid continued territorial demands by RussiaThe European Commission has offered a bit more detail on the deployment of 447 emergency generators from EU reserves to Ukraine, mentioned in the earlier post (12:33).The generators - mobilised from rescEU strategic reserves hosted in Poland - will be distributed by the Ministry for Development of Communities and Territories of Ukraine in cooperation with the Ukrainian Red Cross to the most affected communities.The EU will not let Russia freeze Ukraine into submission and will continue helping Ukrainians get through this winter."They are designed to break Ukrainian spirit. They will fail.We won't let Russia freeze Ukraine. We bring light and warmth where Russia sends darkness. Continue reading...

Kanaan, a symbol of dining across religious and political divides, will shut its doors probably in March', say ownersAn Israeli-Palestinian restaurant in Berlin conceived as an island of peace" will close in the spring, but its Jewish and Arab owners say their dream will live on in a television series based on their unlikely partnership.Kanaan, a decade-old casual eatery in the Prenzlauer Berg district of the German capital, gained an international profile for its message of unity over hate" after the 7 October attacks on Israel by Hamas and the outbreak of the Gaza war. Continue reading...

Ryan Wedding allegedly ran a drug-trafficking organisation that moved 60 tons of cocaine a year into Los AngelesRyan Wedding, the Canadian Olympic snowboarder turned alleged drug kingpin, has been arrested, US law enforcement officials announced on Friday.Wedding, 44, has been sought by the FBI and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) for his role in overseeing what the US attorney general, Pam Bondi, called the one of the most prolific and violent drug-trafficking organizations" in the world. Continue reading...

Scottish Labour leader calls for transparency after worst scandal in the history of the Scottish parliament'The Scottish government must publish up-to-date patient safety reviews for every ward at the super-hospital at the heart of the worst scandal in the history of the Scottish parliament", Anas Sarwar has said.The Scottish Labour leader was speaking alongside families of children and adults who died after contracting infections while undergoing cancer treatment at the Queen Elizabeth university hospital (QEUH) campus in Glasgow. Continue reading...

Avatar director, who moved to New Zealand after the Covid pandemic says he will soon be a citizen of a country where people are, for the most part, sane'James Cameron has said that New Zealand's handling of the Covid-19 pandemic is the reason behind his decision to relocate there from the US.Speaking to Stuff, Cameron - who shot much of the most recent Avatar feature in the southern hemisphere - described being the US under Donald Trump as like watching a car crash over and over" and said his New Zealand citizenship was imminent". Continue reading...

Marcus Fakana, 19, spent about a year in a UAE jail serving sentence for having sex with 17-year-old girlA driver has admitted killing a British teenager in a car crash shortly after the 19-year-old had been released from a Dubai prison sentence for having sex with a 17-year-old girl.Marwaan Mohamed Huseen, 20, was attempting to get away from pursuing Metropolitan police officers when he crashed a BMW into a lorry, killing 19-year-old Marcus Fakana who was one of the vehicle's passengers. Continue reading...

Charlie Simpson, 15, is part of new generation of self-styled rightwing independent journalists' and has sources in the [Reform] party'

Scottish social justice secretary says pledge for the city shows shared commitment to tackling child poverty'New York's new mayor, Zohran Mamdani, has received a baby box from the Scottish government after modelling part of his election campaign on Edinburgh's example of providing each expectant mother with a set of essentials.Scotland's social justice secretary, Shirley-Anne Somerville, said it would help the city's leader develop his own plans for a baby basket". Continue reading...

Discounter relaunches Pep & Co clothing brand after a switch to ranges supplied by former parent group hit salesPoundland has shut 149 stores with the loss of 2,200 jobs under a rescue shake-up launched after challenging trading conditions and unpopular clothing ranges sent it into the red.The company, which was itself bought for 1 from Pepco Group by US restructuring specialist Gordon Brothers in June last year, said it had refocused on 1 items - with 60% of its stock now at that price. Continue reading...

Unison's Andrea Egan among several figures to speak out against any moves to rig selection for Gorton and Denton byelectionThe boss of Britain's biggest union has warned Labour to ensure a democratic process in the Gorton byelection, amid signs a Stop Andy Burnham" campaign is under way to prevent him posing a threat to Keir Starmer.Andrea Egan, the general secretary of Unison, who started in the job on Thursday, appeared to stand against the prospect of a stitch-up in the contest as she warned against control-freakery" in the party. Continue reading...

The phrase is part of harm reduction 101', which has led to significant declines in overdose fatalities in the USOfficials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggested overdose-prevention funding recipients may no longer be allowed to promote the message to never use alone", according to details of a meeting held this month the Guardian obtained.The purpose of the meeting was to bring recipients of Overdose Data to Action (OD2A) CDC funding into compliance with Trump's executive orders, according to a grant note the Guardian reviewed. The most salient is the July order Ending Crime and Disorder on America's Streets". Continue reading...

Interim leader Delcy Rodriguez told influencers of US threat to kill leaders if they did cooperate after capture of MaduroThe communications minister holds a phone up to a microphone before a gathering of regime-friendly influencers.On speakerphone is Venezuela's acting president, Delcy Rodriguez, who claims that when US forces captured the dictator Nicolas Maduro, she and other members of his cabinet were given 15 minutes to decide whether to comply with Washington's demands - or they would kill us." Continue reading...

Town of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky gets 6 feet of snow in places, burying cars and cutting off roads and buildingsA record-breaking snowfall event unfolded in far eastern Russia last week when the town of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, located on the Kamchatka peninsula's east coast, received more than 6 feet (1.8 metres) of lying snow in places.Strong winds accompanying the snowfall caused extreme drifting of more than 10 feet against buildings and cars. Two key ingredients combined to cause such an extreme snowfall event. Strong Pacific low pressures dragged moist air from the tropics northwards, which clashed with cold Arctic air already over the region. Continue reading...

Judge shelves inquiry into use of Israeli-made software to target ministers' phones citing chronic lack of cooperationSpain's highest criminal court has again shelved its investigation into the use of Israeli-made Pegasus software to target the mobile phones of senior Spanish ministers, including the prime minister, citing a chronic lack of cooperation from the Israeli authorities that has violated the principle of good faith" between countries.The investigation began in May 2022 after the Spanish government revealed that the phones of the prime minister, Pedro Sanchez, and the defence minister, Margarita Robles, had both been infected the previous year with the spyware, which, according to its manufacturers, NSO Group, is available only to state agencies. It was later established the phones of the interior minister and the agriculture minister had also been targeted. Continue reading...

Kaja Kallas's comments came at emergency EU meeting called after weeks of escalating threats from Donald Trump over GreenlandTransatlantic relations have taken a big blow over the last week" the EU's foreign policy chief said, as leaders from the bloc gathered for an emergency summit after weeks of escalating threats from Donald Trump over Greenland that were suddenly rescinded with a vague deal on Arctic security.Summing up the mood, the EU's foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, said the EU was living through a lot of unpredictability: One day, one way; the other day, again, everything could change." Continue reading...

Colleagues encourage former soldier to run as Sussan Ley declares she will remain opposition leader after Coalition split

High to extreme fire danger expected across several states as inland parts of SA, Victoria, NSW and Queensland may have more than five days above 40C

Millions of graduates are trapped by ballooning debts, as their repayments are dwarfed by the interest addedHelen Lambert borrowed 57,000 to go to university and began repaying her student loan in 2021 after starting work as an NHS nurse.Since then she has repaid more than 5,000, typically having about 145 a month taken from her pay packet. But everything she hands over is dwarfed by the 400-plus of interest that is added to her debt every month, thanks to rates that have been as high as 8%. Continue reading...

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James Daley says anti-competitive behaviour led to additional charges that have pushed up costs for millionsThe financial campaigner James Daley has launched a 1.5bn class action lawsuit against Apple over its mobile phone wallet, claiming the US tech company blocked competition and charged hidden fees that ultimately harmed 50 million UK consumers.The lawsuit takes aim at Apple Pay, which they say has been the only contactless payment service available for iPhone users in Britain over the past decade. Continue reading...

Exclusive: victims in hiding after attacks involving physical assault, attempted arson and the use of firearmsScotland Yard's counter-terrorism command is investigating a series of highly targeted" attacks on two Pakistani dissidents living in Britain which may bear the hallmarks of states using criminal proxies to silence their critics.One person has been arrested after a series of four attacks which began on Christmas Eve. One of the attacks involved a firearm. Continue reading...