World news | The Guardian

Authorities warn there could be more deaths as strong winds and heavy snowfall continuesAn avalanche at the top Swiss ski resort of Zermatt has killed three people and injured one, as authorities warned of the risk of more disasters due to heavy winds and snowfall.Video images on social media showed a wall of snow crossing an off-piste sector of the Riffelberg sector of Zermatt, one of the most luxurious ski resorts in the Alps. A major rescue operation was launched despite the bad weather. Continue reading...

Several people killed in airstrike, including Revolutionary Guards Corps commander Mohammad Reza Zahedi and his deputyIran has vowed revenge after Israeli war planes destroyed the Iranian consulate in Damascus, killing at least 11 people, including a senior commander in the al-Quds force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC).Iran's leaders in Tehran described the targeting of a diplomatic mission late on Monday as unprecedented and promised a harsh response. Continue reading...

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Patient who is being treated with an antiviral drug had been in contact with dairy cows presumed to be infectedA person in Texas has been diagnosed with bird flu, an infection tied to the recent discovery of the virus in dairy cows, health officials said Monday.The patient is being treated with an antiviral drug and their only reported symptom was eye redness, Texas health officials said. The person had been contact with dairy cows presumed to be infected, officials reported. Continue reading...

US diplomats may have been targeted by Russian sonic weaponry, say the Insider, Der Spiegel and CBS's 60 MinutesA Russian intelligence unit is probably the origin of mysterious so-called Havana syndrome symptoms - including brain injuries and hearing loss - experienced by US diplomats in recent years, according to a joint media investigation released on Sunday.The findings directly contradict the conclusion of US officials a year ago that anomalous health incidents" (AHIs) among embassy staff in Cuba, China and various locations in Europe were not caused by an energy weapon or foreign adversary. Continue reading...

Deaths, including those of two children, occured in three separate incidents, two in Zakopane and one in Rabka-ZdrojFive people have been killed by falling trees as strong winds battered southern Poland on Monday, reaching a speed of 96mph (155km/h) in the highest parts of the Tatra mountains.In the town of Rabka-Zdroj, two women and a six-year-old died after a tree crushed them, firefighters said. Continue reading...

Hotel owner in Mazatlan had suggested limiting the time or places where the bands could play after complaints from foreign touristsBands who play the thumping tuba-and-drums songs of northern Mexico on beaches in the resort city of Mazatlan appear to have emerged victorious this week after noise complaints had threatened to silence them.But anybody who planned to witness the 8 April eclipse in a moment of awed silence will likely be disappointed. Mazatlan, on the Pacific coast, will be first place in North America where the path of totality will be visible. Continue reading...

Leader's ejection of far-left members has changed composition of party since 2020, as belief in general election win growsFour in five Labour members back Keir Starmer and believe he will win a majority at the next election, according to private polling that shows the transformation of the party's grassroots.Two polls shared with the Guardian demonstrate how the composition of Labour's membership has changed since Starmer was elected leader in April 2020. Continue reading...

Crunch talks expected after investors refuse to secure short-term cashflow and parent company due to repay 190m loanThames Water has assembled a team of City experts to lead urgent restructuring talks this week amid fears that its parent company may collapse by the end of the month.The crunch talks are expected to take place days after Thames Water's investors signalled they would not put further funds into the company to secure its short-term cashflow, according to a source. Continue reading...

Police union chief says enforcing law will lessen public trust in policing, while JK Rowling dares force to arrest herScotland's first minister has described his new hate crime law as absolutely balanced" on the day the controversial legislation came into force amid a barrage of criticism.Humza Yousaf's comments came as David Kennedy, the general secretary of the Scottish Police Federation, said enforcing the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021 would reduce public trust in policing and the author JK Rowling, a prominent critic of the legislation, dared the police to arrest her for misgendering. Continue reading...

Detention of influencer Oscar Alejandro Perez at Caracas airport en route to southern national park raises free speech concernsA popular Venezuelan YouTuber has been arrested in Caracas on terrorism charges as President Nicolas Maduro's government steps up its crackdown on free speech ahead of upcoming elections.Oscar Alejandro Perez was detained in the capital's main airport on Sunday by police on accusations of terrorism, his family said. Continue reading...

Police appeal for witnesses after Hector Eccles came off the road in his Polaris Ranger on Saturday nightA family have paid tribute to their beautiful, kind and lovely" 16-year-old boy who was killed after crashing into a field on his farm buggy.

Ukrainian president says officials discussed project to build integrated electronic warfare control system to protect against Russian attacksRussia has attacked the town of Vovchansk in Kharkiv Oblast, injuring a 27-year-old woman, according to The Kyiv Independent.President Volodymyr Zelenskiy tweeted on X that he met with military and government officials to discuss drone production plans and a project to build an integrated electronic warfare control system, to protect Ukraine and its soldiers from Russian attacks. Continue reading...

Palestinian residents say IDF has destroyed all sense of life' as it leaves area after two week raid

Company founded in China and promoted on social media is thought to be considering London listingShein, the online fast fashion retailer founded in China, has more than doubled its profits to more than $2bn (1.6bn) as it awaits approval for a stock market listing in New York or London.The company, which is growing rapidly around the world by using social media to promote its goods, recorded sales of about $45bn last year, according to a report in the Financial Times based on information from sources close to the company. Continue reading...

Group working with Labour and Lib Dem MPs oppose government's move to introduce harsher measuresRough sleeping could be fully decriminalised after 200 years under proposals from rebel Conservative MPs to repeal legislation dating from the aftermath of the Napoleonic wars.A group of Tories working with Labour and Liberal Democrat MPs want to strip out proposed and existing legislation that criminalises homelessness. Continue reading...

Company behind app says no personal information is collected but experts warn of how easily' data can be hacked

CoreLogic data shows prices rose 0.6% in March while separate index from PropTrack produces similar results

Director of the organisation Rabbis for Human Rights, Avi Dabush, sees a ceasefire as consistent with values of peace and human rights

Bones were discovered near the hamlet of Le Vernet, close to where the boy went missing in 2023French police are searching for clues to how a boy who disappeared eight months ago died after the discovery this weekend of his partial remains.In a case that shocked France, Emile Soleil, aged two and a half, vanished in July while staying with his grandparents in a hamlet in the French Alps. A massive air and land search at the time found no trace of the child. Continue reading...

Independent venues struggle to survive amid low footfall as disposable incomes fallIndependent nightlife venues across the UK are struggling to survive amid a cocktail of high costs, low footfall and oppressive regulation that is squeezing them out of city centres.Last week, the Night & Day bar in Manchester won a partial victory in a legal battle over a noise abatement notice that began when a neighbouring flat complained about gigs and DJ sets going on late into the night. Continue reading...

Inherent flaws and political churn doomed Boris Johnson's signature policy - and it was hobbled through bureaucracy and high inflation

Boris Johnson's winning manifesto said it would level up' deprived parts of the UK by making the most of Brexit. Our writers drill down into the numbers to judge whether the party is making good on this promise

Guardian analysis shows situation has deteriorated in three areas that Michael Gove promised to improve

RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire is one of Home Office's three main accommodation sites, with first arrivals due within weeksA UK military base due to accommodate up to 2,000 asylum seekers under controversial plans has been found to be contaminated with ground gases and unexploded ordnance, according to government documents.RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire is one of three mass accommodation sites earmarked by the Home Office to house asylum seekers as a supposedly cheaper alternative to hotels. Continue reading...

Opposition parties accuse government of match fixing' for elections over Arvind Kejriwal treatmentDelhi's chief minister, a key opposition leader, must remain in custody for a further two weeks, a court has ruled, with India's opposition parties accusing the government of match fixing" before the country's elections later this month.On Monday, a court ruled that Arvind Kejriwal, the chief minister of Delhi, could remain in judicial custody till 15 April and will be sent to Delhi's infamous Tihar jail. Continue reading...

Despite pushback from CEO James Daunt, employees are organizing for better pay, dignity' and working conditionsWorkers at America's largest chain of bookstores are gearing up for a nationwide union drive after six Barnes & Noble outlets voted to organize over the past year.Many more" stores will unionize, according to booksellers demanding better pay and conditions. Continue reading...

Police in England and Wales to be given powers to fine homeless people deemed to be causing a nuisance'Ministers are facing a revolt from their own MPs over plans to criminalise homelessness in upcoming legislation.Under proposals that form part of the UK government's flagship crime bill, police in England and Wales are to be given powers to fine or move on rough sleepers deemed to be causing a nuisance". Continue reading...

Meme-worthy content appears in short supply, at least initially, as world's oldest royal family embarks on its social media journeyThe rarefied world of Japan's imperial family has entered the age of social media, but fans expecting selfies, emojis and casual shots of the emperor and empress, or princes and princesses away from the limelight may be disappointed.Far from photographs of sunrises, sunsets or moments of mindfulness that form the stock in trade of many Instagram profiles, the initial images released followed a steady course favoured by other royal families around the world. They featured a dignified attendance at a medical awards ceremony, a bonsai exhibition and a meeting with the president and first lady of Kenya. Another post features them with the crown prince and princess of Brunei. Continue reading...

Five people rescued while dozens remained stranded at campsite in northern Queensland. This blog is now closedSupport for Labor drops in WA as Coalition gains ground among the youngVoters in Western Australia are shifting away from Labor towards the Coalition, as the opposition gains ground among young people. Continue reading...

Two men, aged 38 and 65, leapt into water after child fell into deep end on Sunday night

Aid officials and people in territory describe erosion of civil order and gangs filling power vacuum after months of warGaza is facing deepening anarchy as the last remnants of civil order break down, leaving a vacuum increasingly filled by armed gangs, clans, powerful families and criminals, dozens of interviews with senior aid officials, experts and people in the territory reveal.The interviewees described the continuing threat of famine and bombardment by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) but also a brutal new world in which guns, knives and intimidation often determine who gets desperately needed humanitarian assistance. Continue reading...

Energy minister says air force advised the runway at Scone, near Liddell power station, would not accommodate Albanese's larger plane

Rates for phone, broadband and water will increase from Monday and other rises are in the pipelineConsumers are braced for huge rises in their household bills on everything from water to broadband, as the cost of living crisis continues to bite.Despite inflation easing, Monday will see the cost of a host of bills and taxes increasing, adding further pressure to household finances more than two years after bills began to rise significantly. Continue reading...

Victims of Pegasus hacking will be notified and criminal proceedings could be brought against former officialsPoland has launched an investigation into its previous government's use of the controversial spyware Pegasus, with a parliamentary inquiry under way and the possibility of criminal charges being brought against former government officials in future.Adam Bodnar, Poland's new justice minister, told the Guardian that in coming months the government would notify people who were targeted with Pegasus. Under Polish law, they would then have the possibility of seeking financial compensation, and becoming party to potential criminal proceedings. Continue reading...

RCEM calculates 268 people are likely to have died each week in 2023 while waiting up to 12 hours for a bedAlmost 14,000 people died needlessly last year in England while waiting in A&E for up to 12 hours for a hospital bed, a new estimate suggests.Calculations by the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) based on a large study of excess deaths and waiting times show that 268 people are likely to have died each week in 2023 because of excessive waits in emergency departments. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Visas created hastily to solve labour shortages expose people to hyper-precarity' and exploitationVisas created hastily to solve labour shortages as a result of Brexit have put workers at greater risk of modern slavery and exploitation, research has found.Strict conditions on agricultural and care visas created after Britain left the EU expose workers to hyper-precarity" and increase their vulnerability to exploitation, a study by a coalition of leading universities and charities has concluded. Since Brexit, farm workers and care home workers have had a route to Britain on time-limited visas with stringent conditions. Continue reading...

Demonstrators join families of hostages in cities across country and vow to persist until he is ousted as PMTens of thousands of people across Israel joined the families of hostages this weekend to protest against the government and call for the removal of Benjamin Netanyahu, as the Israeli prime minister grappled with one of the most serious threats yet to his coalition.The protesters in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa, Be'er Sheva, Caesarea and other cities on Saturday - and at a further demonstration outside the Knesset in Jerusalem on Sunday - demanded the release of those still held captive in Gaza after close to six months, and labelled Netanyahu an obstacle to the deal", vowing to persist until he leaves power. Continue reading...

Alex Lidagovsky was forced to leave Ukraine with his family when his studio was bombed during the Russian invasionA Ukrainian sculptor who fled to the UK when his studio was destroyed has been accepted into the Royal Society of British Artists.Alex Lidagovsky was forced to leave Kyiv with his wife, Dasha Nepochatova, and 16-year-old stepdaughter after the Russian invasion began on 24 February 2022. Continue reading...

Five years after payment scheme launched, a former soldier says delays mean plan should be run independentlyA former soldier who was a victim of the Windrush scandal has said he fears the government is waiting for us to die off" before it pays compensation.Conroy Downie, 67, and his daughter Katie Wilson-Downie have helped advise thousands of people affected by the Windrush scandal and have called for the compensation scheme to be run independently instead of by the Home Office. Continue reading...

Labour says places have fallen by almost 40,000 since the Tories came to power in 2010, forcing parents to leave the workforceChildcare places in England have fallen by nearly 40,000 since the Tories came to power in 2010, Labour research has found.This includes a drop of 1,000 places between March and December last year, at a time when demand was anticipated to rise before new entitlements became available. Continue reading...

Justice Michael Lee will hear an urgent application from Network Ten at 5pm on Tuesday

Ekrem Imamolu secures unexpected second term as Istanbul's mayor, propelling the CHP to the centre of national politicsTurkey's main opposition party dealt an unexpected blow to Recep Tayyip Erdoan's rule on Sunday with a sweeping victory in Turkey's local elections, maintaining control of major cities including the capital, Ankara, and Istanbul, where Ekrem Imamolu secured a second term as mayor.My dear Istanbulites, you opened the door to a new future today," Imamolu told overjoyed supporters of his opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) while declaring victory. Starting from tomorrow, Turkey will be a different Turkey. You opened the door to the rise of democracy, equality and freedom ... You ignited hope at the ballot box." Continue reading...

Questions surround ownership of demo tapes reportedly left by soul artist as a thank-you to his Ostend hostsA collection of cassette tapes containing a host of unreleased Marvin Gaye songs has been found in the Belgian city of Ostend.It has potentially lain hidden in Belgium for over 40 years, according to the BBC. Continue reading...

SBU dismisses demand as pointless and hypocritical, coming from the terrorist state itself'Russia has demanded that Ukraine extradite a number of people, including the head of the country's SBU security service, over claims they are connected with terrorist" acts.The SBU immediately dismissed the Russian demand as pointless" and said the Russian foreign ministry had forgotten" that Vladimir Putin was the subject of an international arrest warrant. Continue reading...

Police Service of Northern Ireland seeks to end unhelpful speculation' after DUP leader charged with alleged sexual offencesThe Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) has said it received a complaint in early March that led them to arrest and charge Sir Jeffrey Donaldson with alleged sexual offences.In a statement aimed at ending what they described as unhelpful speculation" over the case, the PSNI said it immediately commenced an investigation into this matter" after the complaint was received. Continue reading...

Analysis suggests wealthiest would save millions and Sunak's own family could benefit to tune of 250mConservative plans to abolish non-dom status are riddled with loopholes worth hundreds of millions of pounds for the wealthiest people in the country, Labour has claimed.Analysis by the party found that the policy, announced by Jeremy Hunt in this month's budget, could theoretically see Rishi Sunak's family benefit from tax savings of nearly 250m. Continue reading...

Flammable material found in more than one in 10 blocks over 11 metres tall, and action is urged on smaller buildings, government figures showNearly 2,000 social housing blocks in England have life-critical" problems with their external cladding, government figures show.The data released earlier this month showed that 1,911 social housing blocks above 11 metres in height had been assessed as having life-critical fire safety defects" linked to the materials in their external walls. Continue reading...

Number of arrivals via small boats was 4,993 as of Saturday, exceeding previous record for equivalent period of 4,548Almost 5,000 people have arrived in the UK after crossing the Channel in small boats so far this year, according to government figures.The Home Office data shows 349 people attempted the journey in seven boats on Saturday, taking the total number of arrivals to 4,993 since the start of 2024 - a record high for this time of year. The previous record over an equivalent period was 4,548 in 2022. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Aid officials warn that transferring Unrwa's functions to other bodies with famine looming would be disastrousIsrael has given the UN a proposal to dismantle Unrwa, its relief agency in the Palestinian territories, and transfer its staff to a replacement agency to make large-scale food deliveries into Gaza, according to UN sources.The proposal was presented late last week by the Israeli chief of the general staff, Lt Gen Herzi Halevi, to UN officials in Israel, who forwarded it to the organisation's secretary general, Antonio Guterres, on Saturday, sources familiar with the discussions said. Continue reading...