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IOC signs deal with kingdom to host gaming Olympics over 12-year period amid criticism of Saudi human rights recordSaudi Arabia and the International Olympic Committee have announced a 12-year agreement to host the new esports Olympics in the oil-rich kingdom starting next year.The partnership promises Olympic Esports Games held regularly", the International Olympic Committee said in a statement on Friday, beginning with the Esports Olympics in 2025. Saudi Arabia did not disclose how much it planned to spend on the competition. Continue reading...

Rapper is one of several Dutch The Voice stars accused of sexual misconduct, in high-profile case that gripped the countryA Dutch court has sentenced a former coach on talent show The Voice of Holland to two years in prison for rape, in a high-profile case that gripped the country.Ali B, 42, was found guilty of raping a woman known as Naomi" during a writer's room in 2018 - allegations he has denied.Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organisations. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 500 2222. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html Continue reading...

Officials in Mendoza say players met the victim at a nightclub and violently assaulted her in a hotel roomProsecutors in Argentina have charged two French rugby players with aggravated rape, in the grisly case of a woman who said she was repeatedly assaulted by the athletes after they took her back to their hotel room and prevented her from leaving.

Shabana Mahmood says Tories left country threatened with total breakdown of law and order

On his US visit, Keir Starmer took advantage of a well-timed chance to meet other Nato leaders - not all natural alliesAs Keir Starmer arrived at the Oval Office, Joe Biden was at the door to meet him. Come on in, man," the US president told him. The invitation was not simply to enter the heart of the White House, but also the major league of world leaders.The day before, on the flight to Washington DC for the Nato summit on Tuesday, Starmer admitted that the days since the Labour party pulled off its landslide election victory the week before had been a bit of a whirlwind. Continue reading...

Boy, 17, arrested after reports male attempted to attack people with bladed weapon at Sikh temple in GravesendA 17-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and a religiously aggravated public order offence after a sword attack near a gurdwara in Kent left two young females with injuries.Police are investigating the state of the teenager's mental health, the Guardian understands. The incident started inside the Guru Nanak Darbar gurdwara in Gravesend at 8.10pm on Thursday, Kent police said. Continue reading...

Party leadership is staying in campaign mode to make sure public is aware how much ex-government has tied its handsWhere the Conservatives had there is no money", Labour now has the things we shamefully left undone".The government has spent much of its first week in power pinning the blame for its politically sensitive decisions on the previous incumbents, much as the Conservatives did after 2010. Continue reading...

Michael McDaid pleaded guilty to murder of Rachel McDaid, 53, at her Nottinghamshire home in AprilA man who strangled his estranged wife with a bootlace has been sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 23 years and four months.Michael McDaid, 60, pleaded guilty to the murder of Rachel McDaid, 53, whose body was found by their son at her home in Eastwood, Nottinghamshire on 19 April. Continue reading...

Spanish PM hails a great day for Spain after party pulls out of coalitions with conservative People's partySpain's socialist prime minister, Pedro Sanchez, has hailed a great day for the country after the far-right Vox party relinquished its grip on power by abandoning its coalition governments with the conservative People's party (PP) in five key regions after disagreements over migration policy.Vox's leader, Santiago Abascal, announced the withdrawal on Thursday night, after days of arguments with the PP over its decision to support the central government's plans to bring about 400 unaccompanied minors from the Canary Islands and redistribute them around the mainland. Continue reading...

Independent inquiry into death of Ruth Perry after Ofsted inspection says public excoriation of individuals' must stopAn independent inquiry into the death of the Reading headteacher Ruth Perry has called for an end to England's macho culture" of inspections and school accountability.The review, commissioned by Reading borough council after Perry's suicide last year, said the tragedy should highlight the folly of the macho culture of high-stakes accountability" inflicted on England's schools. Continue reading...

Justice secretary's plan includes extra recruitment but head of service queries timings, with moves to bring forward releases starting in SeptemberRobert Buckland, the former secretary of state for justice and former MP, has appeared on Sky News to talk about the prison crisis.He said that only 6,000 of the 20,000 new places the Tories promised by the end of this year have been created, and that the prison building programme which I started with Rishi Sunak is coming forward, but not at a pace that is quick enough I think to meet demand".My advice to the new Justice Secretary - and I wish her well, she's just come into post - is to make sure that we aren't releasing people who could pose a risk, particularly domestic abusers, stalkers, those types of offenders. I think it would be wholly inappropriate to release them.I think we do need to be absolutely iron on our commitment to protect the public. And the new government would be best advised to make that clear from the outset. Because sending mixed messages about punishment is not a good way, frankly, to start a penal policy when you've just taken office. Continue reading...

Flooring retailer files notice of intention to appoint administrators as it works to secure fresh investmentCarpetright, one of the UK's biggest flooring retailers, has filed a notice of intention to appoint an administrator, putting 1,800 jobs at risk as it races to secure extra funding.The company filed the notice with the high court to appoint administrators while it works to finalise new investment to protect its long-term future. Continue reading...

Ukraine has been pushing its western allies to allow use of their weapons further into RussiaDonald Trump will make peace" in Ukraine, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said after visiting the former president at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.Orban posted photos of himself and Trump, who is running for re-election in November, each giving a thumbs up in a room at the resort. Continue reading...

218 MPs reject bill while 215 vote for draft law that would have decriminalised act of facilitating abortionsHungary's presidency of the Council of the EU has already caused damage, the German foreign ministry said today, Reuters reported.Budapest took over the rotating presidency on July 1. The Hungarian far right prime minister, Viktor Orban, fuelled controversy over the past days by travelling to Russia and China without backing from his EU counterparts. Continue reading...

In his Nato news conference, the US president acknowledged concerns about Israeli actions despite his overall support

Remarkable survival of structure triggers debate in religious St Vincent and the Grenadines about how it is still standingOn the island of Union in St Vincent and the Grenadines, where the category 4 Hurricane Beryl caused Armageddon-like" destruction, demolishing more than 90% of the buildings, there is a solitary wooden house standing defiantly among the wreckage.A picture of the quaint yellow building with a mauve roof, bafflingly out of place among an array of debris and roofless structures, has been shared more than 500 times on Facebook. In a deeply religious country where more than 80% of the population are Christians, it has triggered a debate about whether its survival is a miraculous message from God. Continue reading...

Claim part of inquiry into conduct of secretive undercover Met unit that spied on political groups over decadesAn undercover police officer has accused a colleague of fathering a child with a campaigner who was part of a leftwing group, a public inquiry has heard.Malcolm Shearing, an undercover officer who infiltrated revolutionary communist groups, has blown the whistle on his colleague, saying he is certain" that he is telling the truth. Continue reading...

New justice secretary is preparing to announce further emergency measures to ease overcrowding crisis in jails

After UK justice minister praised the system in the Netherlands, experts there say the reality is more complexEarlier this year, before he became the UK justice minister, James Timpson described how Britain should follow the Dutch example of mild sentencing to help solve the prisons crisis.They have shut half their prisons not because people are less naughty in Holland," he told Channel 4. It's because they have a different way of sentencing, which is community sentencing so people can stay at home, keep their jobs, keep their homes, keep reading their children bedtime stories, and it means they are far less likely to commit crime again. A custodial sentence is not always the right thing." Continue reading...

Network Rail route directors will also attend next week as UK government aims to reform railways quicklyLabour has summoned the bosses of some of the worst-performing train operators, including Avanti West Coast and TransPennine, for meetings next week as it seeks to rapidly reform the railways and reset industrial relations.The transport secretary, Louise Haigh, will bring in Network Rail route directors to attend all talks with the train companies, signalling the move towards an integrated railway. Continue reading...

International Committee of the Red Cross takes between 500 and 2,500 calls a week, mostly from family members

Deaths are first to happen since election of Keir Starmer who has pledged to stop the criminal gangs' Europe live - latest updatesFour people have died overnight trying to cross the Channel, according to reports in French media.A rescue operation took place off Boulogne-sur-Mer on France's northern coast after reports of people in the sea trying to cross to Britain. Four of those pulled from the sea had already drowned. Continue reading...

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Peak medical groups say the decision aligns with current evidence. The device is the longest-acting hormonal contraceptive available in Australia

Brendan Luke Stevens tells Queensland supreme court we have chosen to walk with God' and have no intention of fighting case by using law

Australian National University cites change in community sentiment around deriving revenue from weapons manufacturers

Vessels have been rammed, punctured with knives, damaged by water cannon and targeted by military-grade lasers. Now the Philippines' US ambassador has warned the aggression must be reduced to avoid conflictReports of aggressive and dangerous conduct by Chinese vessels in the fiercely contested South China Sea have surged over the past 17 months, as tensions mount in one of Asia's biggest flashpoints.Since February 2023, the Philippines has accused China of unsafe behaviour on at least 12 occasions, often within the water of its exclusive economic zone (EEZ), according to Philippine government data compiled by the thinktank the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), which tracks incidents as part of its regional Asia-Pacific Regional Security Assessment. Continue reading...

Ipswich West's LNP representative informed of his microvascular ischemic disease the day he was sworn in

High winds and heavy rainfall have moved inland towards Houston and other cities, with at least eight reported deadAt the start of this week, Hurricane Beryl crashed on to the shore of the Texas coastline. Sweeping across the coast, Beryl brought sustained winds of 80mph to coastal settlements in Texas, creating a deadly storm surge reaching 4-7ft (1.2m to 2.1m) in places and wreaking havoc in local areas, before moving inland towards Houston and other big cities.Heavy rainfall was also recorded across some of the upper Texas coast and eastern Texas, with locally close to 15 inches (380mm) recorded in places. At least eight people have died in Texas and Louisiana, which followed at least 10 deaths across the Caribbean. Continue reading...

Analysis by Dutch researchers shows coordinated activity in France, Germany and Italy in run-up to ballotCoordinated networks of accounts spreading disinformation flooded" social media in France, Germany and Italy before the elections to the European parliament, Dutch researchers have found.After an in-depth analysis of disinformation on the platform X in four EU countries, the researchers concluded that many of the accounts had been set up after Russia's invasion of Ukraine but were cranked up in the weeks and days before the vote, with growth in their numbers of followers rocketing. Continue reading...

Marine Tondelier, whose party forms part of the election-winning New Popular Front, says politics must change to regain voters' trustThe French Green leader, Marine Tondelier, has said the risk of the far right rising to power in France has not disappeared after the snap election, and politics must urgently change to regain voters' trust.It was a warning," Tondelier said of this month's election, where a spectacular rush of tactical voting in the final round held back Marine Le Pen's far-right, anti-immigration National Rally. The RN's first-round surge had brought it the closest it had ever been to a parliament majority and entering government. Continue reading...

Report from former chief vet alleges Greyhound Welfare and Integrity Commission failed to enforce industry rules and was obfuscating the facts'

Exclusive: Figures show housing associations started just 33,000 social homes last year, a fall of 30%Labour will miss its target of delivering 1.5m new homes this parliament without an emergency cash injection into the affordable housing sector, providers have warned.Housing associations and councils have written to deputy prime minister, Angela Rayner, saying her promise to deliver the biggest boost to affordable housing in a generation" will be impossible unless there are urgent interventions to fix the financial pressures providers face. Continue reading...

Crown prince criticised bad laws' for Mohammed al-Ghamdi's death sentence months before second convictionFresh questions have been raised about the suppression of free speech in Saudi Arabia after the brother of a man facing the death penalty for tweeting to 10 followers was handed a 20-year sentence for largely innocuous tweets.The Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, had said Mohammed al-Ghamdi was a victim of bad laws" after being sentenced to death, yet the crown prince permitted the same laws to be used to sentence Ghamdi's younger brother, Asaad al-Ghamdi. Continue reading...

IPPR thinktank finds that only 52% of the British adult population cast their ballots on 4 JulyJust over half of the British adults voted at the 2024 general election, making it the lowest turnout by share of population since universal suffrage, according to a report.The Institute for Public Policy Research thinktank found that just 52% of UK adults cast their ballots on 4 July, which is the lowest since the vote was extended to all adults over 21 in 1928. Continue reading...

Chris Minns says there will be two days of forums in regional NSW in October and two days in Sydney in December

Sydney man David Fisk, his Philippine-born partner Lucita Cortez and her relative discovered with hands and feet tied at Lake Hotel in TagaytayThe family of two Australians found dead at a luxury hotel in the Philippines alongside a Filipina relative say they are praying for answers and the truth in this horrific matter".The bodies were discovered with their hands and feet tied in a room at the Lake Hotel in Tagaytay, a resort city south of the nation's capital. Continue reading...

Neighbour worried about 85-year-old asked NSW police to check on him at 5.45pm but officers didn't enter Bankstown home until midday next day

A 40-year-old woman on long-term leave from the Australian defence force and her 62-year-old husband were charged with preparing for an espionage offence, federal police said

US president says Ladies and gentleman, President Putin', before realising mistake and correcting himself

Cal Fire head Joe Tyler urges residents to be extra cautious' and reveals fires have scorched nearly 220,000 acresCalifornia's wildfire season is off to a ferocious start, with the state's top wildfire official saying that fires have already burned through five times the average amount of land for this time of year.Speaking at a news conference on Wednesday, Joe Tyler, the director of the California department of forestry and fire protection (Cal Fire), said the state has responded to more than 3,500 wildfires so far this year. Together, those fires have scorched nearly 220,000 acres - more than five times above what is typical for mid-July, which is considered fairly early in the state's wildfire season. Continue reading...

Actor on trial in New Mexico for involuntary manslaughter after shot from gun he was holding killed cinematographerIn a tense cross-examination in Alec Baldwin's involuntary manslaughter trial, the actor's defense attorney suggested that New Mexico authorities were focused on pinning blame on the star rather than properly investigating what had led to the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.Alex Spiro, one of Baldwin's defense attorneys, grilled the crime scene technician Marissa Poppell about a search police conducted on the prop house that provided the Colt .45 used in the shooting. He highlighted the fact that police had not collected surveillance footage from the site, pressed Poppell on precisely how thoroughly the facility was searched and alleged that law enforcement had withheld evidence from the defense. Continue reading...

Warning comes as justice secretary prepares to set out emergency measures to free up space in prisonsJails becoming too full to accept new inmates would spark a breakdown in law and order on UK streets within days, senior police sources have said.Police cells would be filled with arrested suspects and convicted prisoners, the source claimed, a situation that could be exploited by looters and criminals. Continue reading...

Reports come as Biden mistakenly refers to Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskiy as President Putin' at Nato summitJoe Biden's position appeared shaky on Thursday, amid reports that his aides and advisers were discussing how to persuade him to leave the presidential race while his own campaign was secretly testing Kamala Harris's popularity, suggesting it was preparing for that very scenario.Then just before the US president was scheduled to face journalists at a potentially pivotal news conference marking the end of Nato's 75th anniversary summit, he spoke to reporters there and mistakenly referred to Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, as President Putin". Continue reading...

Parole Board apologises to families of child killer's victims after unspecified unforeseeable developments'The parole hearing for Colin Pitchfork, who was convicted of raping and murdering two teenagers, will no longer be held in public due to unforeseeable developments including fresh allegations".The Parole Board said on Thursday the allegations were in respect of relatively recent conduct" and apologised for the increased stress" on the families of the victims. It is unclear what the allegations refer to. Continue reading...

Five arrested in investigation of claims Abin monitored and harassed top public figures and politiciansBrazil's intelligence agency was illegally weaponised during Jair Bolsonaro's far-right administration to monitor and harass some of the country's most important politicians, journalists, judges and environmental officials, federal police have alleged.Five people were arrested on Thursday as part of a long-running investigation into suspicions that during Bolsonaro's 2019-22 government the Agencia Brasileira de Inteligencia (Abin) was used to spy on the president's political foes. Continue reading...

Ben Crump demands killing not be swept under rug' after D'Vontaye Mitchell was held down outside Milwaukee hotelAfter the killing of a Wisconsin man who was held down outside a hotel by multiple security officers during a mental health emergency, leading civil rights attorney Ben Crump joined the family of the slain man in calling on authorities to deliver justice.D'vontaye Mitchell, 43, was killed on 30 June during an encounter with security personnel at the Hyatt Regency hotel in downtown Milwaukee, NBC News reported. Continue reading...

Family of Taylor Casey, missing since 19 June, say Bahamian officials left them with more questions than answers'The family of Taylor Casey, a 42-year-old transgender woman who went missing in the Bahamas, said they initially shielded the media from her gender identity because they feared it would undermine efforts to find her.Casey, who lives in Chicago, went missing on 19 June while on a month-long yoga retreat on Paradise Island in the Bahamas.

Exclusive: Programme to include devolution, housebuilding, crime, transport, AI and green energyThe government is preparing a packed king's speech containing at least 30 bills, including sweeping plans on housebuilding, green energy, crime and voter registration, the Guardian has learned.Labour ministers have drawn up plans for a busy legislative programme focused on delivering the priorities set up in the party's manifesto. Continue reading...

Politicians and campaigners condemn charging proposals, as regulator also puts Thames Water into special measures