Man and woman arrested and dog seized by police in Nottinghamshire after reports dog had attacked peopleA man and woman have been taken to hospital with serious injuries after a suspected attack by an American XL bully dog.Nottinghamshire police seized a dog after reports it had attacked a number of people on Friday night. Continue reading...
Met Office issues yellow weather warning as heavy rain forecast to fall on already saturated groundHeavy rain is forecast across south and south-west of England, with 38 flood warnings and 160 flooding alerts in place days after Storm Ciaran hit the UK.Although Storm Ciaran has largely eased, the Met Office issued a yellow weather notice on Saturday to last until 11.59pm - stretching from Kent to Cornwall. Continue reading...
by Aaron Walawalkar, Harriet Clugston and Mark Townse on (#6G41N)
Investigation finds evidence that many calls received prior to 2021 Channel disaster were treated as less urgentUK coastguards downgraded 999 calls from refugees pleading for help as they headed to England days before the worst Channel disaster for decades, new internal documents reveal.HM Coastguard potentially breached its own policy by categorising 999 calls from distressed passengers on as many as four small boats carrying 155 people as not in need of urgent rescue, according to analysis of incident logs obtained by the Observer and Liberty Investigates. Continue reading...
Network's EU roaming package has risen from 10 to 25 in the space of a few monthsEE mobile phone customers have accused the company of ripping them off after the provider increased the cost of its EU roaming package from 10 to 25 a month in the space of only a few months.While Tesco, Giffgaff, O2 and Virgin have allowed their customers to carry on using their phones in mainland Europe at no extra cost, EE has pushed through a staggering 150% increase to its popular roaming package that has left customers furious, and threatening to leave. Continue reading...
Lawsuit brought in state court under New York's Adult Survivors Act is connected to alleged assault on set of 2011 film ArthurRussell Brand has been accused in a lawsuit of sexually assaulting a film extra on the New York City set of the 2011 romantic comedy Arthur.The lawsuit, filed on Friday, was brought in state court under New York's Adult Survivors Act, which gives accusers a one-year window to sue over alleged non-recent sexual abuse, even if statutes of limitations have expired. Continue reading...
Berglas, one of whose tricks was regarded as holy grail of magic effects, was first magician to have his own show on British TVDavid Berglas, one of the most influential magicians and mentalists of the 20th century, has died aged 97.The Magic Circle, touted as the most famous magic society in the world, confirmed Berglas had died in London on Friday night. Continue reading...
by Kiran Stacey Political correspondent on (#6G3ZH)
Exclusive: Measure in planned bill stopping sale of new properties under leasehold in England and Wales likely to only cover housesTory MPs are preparing to force the government to toughen up its planned leasehold reforms in England and Wales, with Downing Street expected to launch a bill that falls short of campaigners' demands.Conservative backbenchers say they are ready to bring amendments to the long-awaited leasehold reform bill, which will be one of the centrepieces of next week's king's speech but will not end leasehold on the majority of properties. Continue reading...
New series, Archie, screened in English hometown of Hollywood legend many think of as being wholly AmericanHe is better known as a debonaire habitue of sun-splashed Californian beauty spots and glamorous New York nightclubs, but a flurry of screenings and special events this month will focus attention on a sometimes overlooked aspect of Cary Grant's life - his very modest roots in Bristol, England.A preview of a biopic of Grant called Archie - with Jason Isaacs taking on the tough task of playing one of the most famous of all film stars - is being screened in Bristol ahead of its showing on ITVX, and a new guided walk through Grant's former haunts in the West Country city is being launched. Continue reading...
The former senior figures had been accused of leaking state secrets about intelligence partnership with the USDenmark's former defence minister and ex-spy chief have spoken of their relief after prosecutors dramatically dropped criminal charges accusing them of leaking state secrets.Prosecutors said this week they would withdraw the cases after Denmark's highest court made a series of rulings preventing the prosecution from holding the trials in secret. Continue reading...
Science minister Michelle Donelan requests UKRI cuts links with two members of panel she accuses of promoting extremist viewsThe UK's independent research funding body has become embroiled in a fight with ministers over free speech and diversity initiatives, with the body's chief executive saying she is fully committed" to defending her organisation.Prof Ottoline Leyser, the chief executive of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), has been criticised for her response to demands by the science minister, Michelle Donelan, that UKRI cut its links with two academics that Donelan accused of promoting extremist views" on the Israel-Gaza war. Continue reading...
Ex-PM in written evidence to Covid inquiry admits being torn over first lockdown due to the economic harm it would cause the UKBoris Johnson has defended himself against accusations of indecision during the pandemic, telling the Covid inquiry in evidence that it was his duty to consider whether lockdown did more harm than good.In his written submission to the inquiry, Johnson explains how torn he was in March 2020 about forcing people to stay at home to save lives. Continue reading...
by Vikram Dodd Police and crime correspondent on (#6G3J7)
Pair accused of terrorism offences after incident at protest on 14 October in WhitehallTwo women pictured at a pro-Palestinian march in London with photos of paragliders have been charged with terrorism offences.The incident happened on 14 October, in Whitehall, and the march came after the 7 October attack on Israel when Hamas used paragliders to cross the border between Gaza and Israel. Continue reading...
Heavy rain falling on saturated ground is expected to lead to swollen rivers over weekendThe clear-up is under way after the record-breaking Storm Ciaran caused widespread damage in parts of the UK, with a conservation charity estimating the combination of wind, rain and powerful waves caused five years' worth of erosion in one day at cliffs on the south coast of England.Householders and businesses were warned to prepare for possible flooding after heavy rain fell on already saturated ground, which is expected to lead to river levels rising rapidly in some areas in the coming days. Continue reading...
by Angela Giuffrida in Rome and Jon Henley on (#6G368)
Tuscany is in a state of emergency and three people died when their sailing boat capsized off PortugalAt least six people have died in severe flooding in Tuscany, central Italy and three in Portugal, bringing to 15 the provisional death toll across western Europe from the torrential rain and record winds brought by Storm Ciaran.Eugenio Giani, the president of Tuscany, announced a state of emergency on Friday, describing the situation as really very serious". It had been a long and complex night for the entire regional civil protection system", he said. Continue reading...
Exhibition features objects never before seen in Europe and draws lessons from Mongol empire relevant to todayIt was a major cultural row between France and China, prompting a history museum to pull the plug on one of its most important exhibitions of the decade accusing the Beijing authorities of interference and trying to rewrite history.But now the Chateau des ducs de Bretagne history museum in Nantes has finally opened its blockbuster exhibition on Genghis Khan and the Mongol empire, with large crowds queueing to see hundreds of objects that have never been shown in Europe, some dug up by archaeologists only three years ago. It is part of a new modern reading of the geopolitical importance of the vast continental empire. Continue reading...
Joshua Hunt, 32, receives sexual risk order after police linked him to 25 Somerset gimp' incidentsA man has been banned for five years from wearing a mask and dressing in an all-black suit in public at night and crawling, wriggling or writhing on the ground" after police linked him to 25 incidents committed by the so-called Somerset gimp".Joshua Hunt, 32, has been given a sexual risk order after police argued there was a sexual motivation to the incidents.Wearing any type of mask or face covering, including improvised mask or face coverings that cover all or part of the face, in any public place, including whilst in a vehicle in a public place, unless officially required for medical purposes or by law.Being in possession of any type of mask or face covering, including improvised masks or face coverings that cover all or part of the face, in a public place, including whilst in a vehicle in a public place, between the hours of 9pm and 6am unless officially required for medical purposes or by law.Wearing or being in possession of black all-in-one garments or any combination of full-length black-coloured top and black-coloured bottom clothing which has the appearance of an all-in-one garment, in a public place, including in a vehicle in a public place between the hours of 9pm and 6am.Crawling, wriggling or writhing on the ground in a public place whilst wearing a full-body covering, clothing that appears like a full-body covering and/or mask/full-face covering. Continue reading...
Security guard attacked by Matthew White in 2015 said he told him there had been no consequences for killing Stephen', BBC reportsA man unmasked earlier this year as the sixth suspect in the racist murder of Stephen Lawrence reportedly claimed he had killed before as he attempted to stab a black security guard, according to a report.Lawrence was murdered by a group of five or six racist attackers in south-east London in 1993, but only two of his killers have faced justice - Gary Dobson and David Norris were jailed for life in 2012. Continue reading...
by Martin Belam, Guardian staff and agencies on (#6G31P)
Ukraine claims to have shot down 24 drones but in Kharkiv, Odesa, Kherson, Ivano-Frankivsk and Lviv are struck; Russia dismisses latest US sanctions as in vain'
Academics express unease over government ambition to replace once-a-decade snapshot with other sources of data'The first official census in Britain was conducted at a time of great national insecurity. Amid failing harvests and a war with France, MPs were concerned that the country could run out of bread to feed its population. The problem was, nobody knew how big that population actually was.And so, on 10 March 1801, the first census of England and Wales was held (it counted 8.9 million people, roughly equivalent to the current population of London). Census questions may have changed somewhat in the interim - no longer are respondents asked if they are a lunatic, imbecile or idiot", as was the case in 1871 - but every 10 years since, with only one wartime interruption in 1941, a similar survey has been conducted to take a snapshot of the nation. Continue reading...
Teacher now travelling by boat to educate children at two different school sites on either side of impasseBusinesses in a remote peninsula of Scotland are fighting to survive and children are unable to attend their local school nearly a month after record-breaking rainfall caused a severe landslip, which cut off a vital road link to the wider peninsula.The Craignish peninsula in Argyll was battered by heavy rain in early October, causing a landslip on the A816 near Ardfern which left 6,000 tonnes of debris covering the road and rendered it impassable. Continue reading...
Fortunately this horrible dilemma never crystallised,' former NHS England head Simon Stevens tells inquiryFormer health secretary Matt Hancock told officials that he - rather than the medical profession - should ultimately decide who should live or die" if the NHS was overwhelmed during the pandemic, the Covid inquiry heard.Fortunately this horrible dilemma never crystalised," the former head of the NHS, Lord Simon Stevens, said in his evidence to the inquiry on Thursday. Continue reading...
Suella Braverman signs migration and security agreement' with Austrian counterpart in move to work more closely togetherAustria is seeking to adopt a Rwanda-style deal to deport asylum seekers to a third country, having agreed a deal to work with the UK on migration.Suella Braverman signed a migration and security agreement" with her Austrian counterpart, Gerhard Karner, in which the two countries agreed to work more closely together. Continue reading...
by Tobi Thomas (now); Caroline Davies and Alexandra T on (#6G28B)
This live blog is now closed, see all our Ukraine coverage hereIn response to the evacuations of Ukrainian civilians from Kupiansk were announced, Igor Bodnia, the Internation Rescue Committee's field manager in Kharkiv, said:The situation in Kupiansk is dire, and the impact on children is particularly devastating. Many of them have seen violence and displacement more than once, and they are in urgent need of protection and support. The IRC is working in a reception hub and dormitories in Kharkiv, focusing on providing primary health care to evacuated families, as well as psychological first aid to children to help them cope with the trauma they have experienced."Ukraine's commander-in-chief of the armed forces, Gen Valery Zaluzhny, has said that the war in Ukraine in at a stalemate", warning that there is likely to be no deep and beautiful breakthrough" soon in the counteroffensive against Russia.Ukraine's army should have been able to push back at a pace of 18 miles a day as it breached Russian defensive lines, the general said.The UK's Ministry of Defence (MOD) has issued its latest defence intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine as of today, that Russian air defence has suffered significant loses.Russia is preparing to attack Ukraine's critical infrastructure once the temperatures drop, according to Ukraine's national security and defence council secretary, Oleksiy Danilov. Continue reading...
Torrential rain and 200km/h winds force schools to close and airlines and train companies to halt servicesAt least seven people were killed and dozens injured as Storm Ciaran battered north-west Europe with torrential rain and winds of up to 200km/h (124mph), damaging homes and forcing schools to close and airlines and train companies to halt services.A truck driver was killed by a falling tree in the Aisne departement of northern France, authorities said on Thursday, while more than 1.2 million people lost their electricity supply including about half the population of Brittany. Continue reading...
Casey Bloys responds to report alleging he used employees to respond to critics under fake accounts, calling it a dumb idea'The HBO CEO and chairman, Casey Bloys, has apologised for tasking employees with creating fake Twitter accounts to attack TV critics.Bloys was responding to a bombshell Rolling Stone report that referenced alleged text messages between himself and Kathleen McCaffrey, HBO's senior vice-president of drama programming. In six conversations, the pair discussed a secret army" that could respond to TV critics who gave HBO shows a negative review. Continue reading...
Lt Col Salman Habaka was among first Israeli troops to arrive in Israel's south after attack on 7 OctoberAn Israeli tank commander who was hailed as a hero for his actions during Hamas's attack on Be'eri kibbutz, the scene of one of the worst massacres on 7 October, has been killed while commanding his tank battalion in northern Gaza.Lt Col Salman Habaka, 33, a member of Israel's Druze minority, had rushed to Be'eri with his troops when news of the Hamas attack broke on the morning of 7 October, bringing two tanks to the kibbutz, which engaged members of the militant Islamist group in houses where they were hiding. Continue reading...
Rights groups repeat calls for apology while President William Ruto says much remains to be done to achieve full reparations'King Charles's expression of greatest sorrow and deepest regret" over colonial atrocities committed by British forces in Kenya has been criticised as a miss" in the east African country.Reactions to the king's statement were mixed, with the president, William Ruto, diplomatically welcoming Charles's courage and readiness to shed light on uncomfortable truths that reside in the darker regions of our shared experience", but calling Britain's colonial suppression of Kenya's freedom movement monstrous in its cruelty". Continue reading...
Judge accuses local authority of a lackadaisical' attitude to the 16-year-old's care after regulated providers refused to give him a placeA teenage boy who has been accused of multiple rapes was housed in Airbnbs by a local authority after regulated accommodation providers said it would be too risky for them to house him.Airbnbs and other temporary accommodation have been deployed because no secure placement can be found anywhere in England that is prepared to accommodate the child, who self-harms, makes weapons, assaults staff members, damages property and has been taken to hospital after expressing suicidal thoughts. He has been arrested on numerous occasions. Continue reading...
In today's newsletter: More than 30 councillors have resigned from the party in protest against Starmer's position - here's why, in their own words Sign up here for our daily newsletter, First EditionGood morning. Today, we're going to Bradford to meet city councillor and bus driver Taj Salam. He is one more than 30 Labour councillors who have resigned from the party in anger at Sir Keir Starmer's refusal to call for a ceasefire in Gaza.They are part of a growing rebellion within the party over Starmer's refusal to publicly advocate for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war. Instead, he has called for humanitarian pauses" to allow the urgent alleviation of Palestinian suffering".Israel-Hamas war | Joe Biden has said there should be a pause" in the fighting in Gaza to enable the release of hostages, as Hamas said nearly 200 people had been killed in two days of Israeli airstrikes on the enclave's Jabalia refugee camp.AI | The UK, US, EU and China have all agreed that artificial intelligence poses a potentially catastrophic risk to humanity, in the first international declaration to deal with the fast-emerging technology.UK news | Northumbria police have said that two more people have been arrested over the deliberate felling of the Sycamore Gap tree in Northumberland.Media | Noel Clarke's legal action against the Guardian has suffered a setback after a high court judge rejected his lawyers' arguments on the meaning of eight articles that he says unfairly defamed him.Covid-19 | The pandemic has caused sustained harm to the brain health of people aged 50 or over, rapidly speeding up cognitive decline regardless of whether or not they caught Covid, researchers have discovered. Continue reading...
Mahsa Yazdani convicted of blasphemy and insulting supreme leader' as Iran regime targets families of those killed in protestsA mother in Iran, whose son was reportedly killed after being shot repeatedly at close range by security forces, has been sentenced to 13 years in prison by an Iranian court after she demanded justice for her child on social media.Mahsa Yazdani, whose 20-year-old son Mohammad Javad Zahedi was killed at an anti-regime protest in September 2022, was convicted on charges of blasphemy, incitement, insulting the supreme leader, and spreading anti-regime propaganda, according to human rights groups and family members. They say she will serve the first five years with no chance of parole. Continue reading...
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