The publisher's $10,000 Freedom of Expression prize invites teens to write about a banned book that changed their life, against a backdrop of rising censorshipPublisher Penguin Random House has launched a new writing award in the US celebrating freedom of expression in response to a rise in book bans across the country.The Freedom of Expression award invites applicants to write about one banned book that changed their life and why. The $10,000 (8,168) prize will be awarded to a high-school student planning to attend university in 2024. Continue reading...
Ex-president says decision threatens to worsen humanitarian crisis, undermine peace effort and erode global support for IsraelSome of Israel's decisions in its war against Hamas - including cutting off food and water for Gaza - could harden Palestinian attitudes for generations" and weaken international support for Israel, Barack Obama said Monday.In rare comments on an active foreign policy crisis, the ex-US president said any Israeli military strategy that ignores the human costs of the war could ultimately backfire". Continue reading...
Labor MP who quit the party room in August strenuously denies the assault allegationDetectives from Victoria's sex crime squad arrested and interviewed the state MP Will Fowles over a serious" assault allegation before releasing him without charge earlier this month, police have confirmed.In August, Fowles had resigned from the parliamentary Labor party over the alleged incident at the request of the then premier, Daniel Andrews. Andrews had described the allegation - which Fowles strenuously denies - as a serious assault".Sign up for Guardian Australia's free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup Continue reading...
Sweden says external force or tampering' broke cable to Estonia; US seeks forfeiture of Russian-owned yacht worth $300mDamage to a telecommunications cable between Sweden and Estonia this month was caused by external force or tampering", the Swedish government said.Three residents of Kherson oblast were arrested for allegedly helping Russian forces target locations for strikes in the city of Kherson, the regional prosecutor's office announced on Monday, according to the Kyiv Independent.In an intelligence update, the UK's Ministry of Defence said Russian government spending had become increasingly focused on the costs of its war on Ukraine.Ukraine's foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, said Vladimir Putin's Russia is the most heinous evil the world has witnessed since WWII" and that the Russian president and other Russian perpetrators must face justice for their crimes".Kuleba cited Forbes as reporting that Russia has spent around $167bn (137bn) on the war between February 2022 and August 2023, with which it could have built almost 24,000 kindergartens across Russia, or more than 4,500 maternity wards, or about 17,000 schools. Instead, Russian war criminals have bombed Ukrainian kindergartens, maternity wards, schools, and hospitals, destroying almost 120,000 civilian structures in all."Turkey's president, Recep Tayyip Erdoan, has submitted a bill for Sweden's Nato membership to parliament for ratification, the Turkish presidency said. Turkey and Hungary are the only Nato members yet to ratify Sweden's membership request.Trade between Russia and India in the first eight months of 2023 more than doubled from the previous year, reaching a record high of almost $44bn, the Kyiv Independent cited Russian state-run media RIA Novosti as having reported.The US has sought forfeiture of a $300m superyacht, Amadea, that it says is controlled by sanctioned billionaire Russian oligarch Suleiman Kerimov. The yacht was seized in Fiji and is docked in San Diego. The case is before court in Manhattan. Kerimov and his family are worth $10.7bn, according to Forbes.A lioness rescued from a zoo in Ukraine could be rehomed in the UK with her cubs. BBC News reported that Aysa was pregnant when she was abandoned at a private zoo in the Donetsk region at the start of Russia's invasion. She was moved to another facility and gave birth to cubs Teddi, Emi and Santa. All four are temporarily homed at Poznan zoo in Poland. Continue reading...
by Sally Weale Education correspondent on (#6FT6T)
Education secretary's letter emphasises copyright cannot be used as excuse' to withhold RSHE teaching resourcesGillian Keegan has written to schools in England ordering them to make the materials used in children's sex education available to be seen by parents, warning headteachers there can be no ifs, no buts, no more excuses".It is the second letter the education secretary has sent to schools on the issue, which has been seized upon by some backbench Conservative MPs amid claims that children are being exposed to inappropriate material during relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) at school. Continue reading...
Damien Bendall killed his pregnant partner Terri Harris, her two children and one of their friendsSeveral very stark" failures by probation services led to a dangerous man being categorised as low risk before murdering an entire family, an inquest has found.Damien Bendall was found to be responsible for the brutal and savage" murders of Terri Harris, 35, his pregnant partner, her children John Paul Bennett, 13, Lacey Bennett, 11, and Lacey's friend Connie Gent, 11, in September 2021. Continue reading...
Major cleanup operations get under way in worst-hit areas after storm that left four people deadFresh danger-to-life flood warnings have been issued as water levels continued to rise in the wake of Storm Babet, while cleanup operations got under way in some of the worst-hit areas.Flooding was expected to last for days and two severe flood warnings, signalling danger to life, were later issued for Retford in Nottinghamshire. Continue reading...
China's Jingye Group said to be considering move as part of switch to using greener electric arc furnacesBritish Steel's Chinese owner is preparing to cut as many as 2,000 jobs as it battles losses believed to be running at 30m a month, according to reports.The potential cuts, which amount to almost half of the Scunthorpe-based firm's 4,500 workforce, are part of a switch to greener steel production using electric arc furnaces instead of polluting blast furnaces, which use coke to melt iron ore. Continue reading...
Update on condition of Armita Geravand, 16, could revive protests that followed death last year of Mahsa AminiAn Iranian teenager who fell into a coma this month after an alleged encounter with officers over violating the country's hijab law is said to be brain dead, Iranian state media reported on Sunday.Follow-ups on the latest health condition of Armita Geravand indicate that her health condition as brain dead seems certain despite the efforts of the medical staff," the Islamic Republic of Iran News Network said. Continue reading...
Met police say no offence took place but immigration minister says chanting was completely reprehensible'People chanting jihad" on the streets of London are inciting terrorist violence and should be tackled with the full force of the law, Robert Jenrick, the immigration minister, has said.Jenrick's comments appear to be at odds with the position of the Metropolitan police, which suggested this weekend that officers did not consider it to be against the law. Continue reading...
by Emma Graham-Harrison, Julian Borger and Ruth Micha on (#6FRY1)
Israel's dilemma is that destroying Hamas would leave a power vacuumFor two weeks Israel has pounded Gaza with missiles, as it gathers tanks and troops for a ground invasion with one stated goal, to destroy Hamas.It is a deceptively simple target, one which sounds urgent and necessary to many in a nation profoundly traumatised by the massacres of 7 October, hoping to reclaim their sense of security, and a military determined to restore its damaged authority. Continue reading...
Successor to the Brexit party is gaining support in red wall seats, senior Conservatives warn as they demand more radical policiesConservative MPs are warning that their party risks being wiped out in the red wall by an emerging threat on its right flank, amid alarm after two disastrous byelection losses.The right of the party is seizing on the dire results in Mid Bedfordshire and Tamworth - two supposedly safe Tory seats - to demand a harder line on immigration and tax cuts designed to nullify the threat posed by Reform UK, the successor to the Brexit party. Continue reading...
Pubs in south-west London, where many of the UK's 200,000-plus South Africans live, are hosting viewing partiesExcited fans of England and South Africa are gathering in bars, pubs and community centres around the UK to watch the tense Rugby World Cup semi-final between the two nations.England secured their spot in the final four after overcoming Fiji 30-24 in a close-run quarter-final in Marseille, while South Africa narrowly defeated the hosts - and erstwhile favourites - France last weekend, 29-28. Continue reading...
Georgia Harrison says she has had conversations with a couple of Labour MPs' about standing in EssexThe former Love Island contestant Georgia Harrison has said she has had serious conversations with a couple of Labour MPs" about representing an Essex constituency.The Only Way Is Essex star, 28, has in recent years become a campaigner on tackling violence against women and girls following a revenge pornography court case. Continue reading...
Police say car carrying six people crashed into wall in village of Shelf, near Halifax, on Friday nightA 19-year-old man has died and an 18-year-old man was critically injured after a car carrying six people crashed into a wall in Calderdale, West Yorkshire.Police were called to reports of a crash on Brow Lane in Shelf at 11.17pm on Friday. Continue reading...
Noam Alon, whose partner Inbar Haiman was abducted by Hamas in the October 7 attack in Israel, is calling on international leaders to make the safe return of hostages their priorityTwo weeks on, Noam Alon still isn't ready to watch the video that shows his girlfriend, Inbar Haiman, being dragged towards Gaza as a hostage.My parents prefer that I don't see it," says the 24-year-old art student. They've described every bit of it to me - and they haven't made it any better or worse than it really is - but I still haven't watched it. I don't want it scarred in my mind. I'm trying to keep my mind as positive as I can and to do everything I can to bring her back." Continue reading...
by Adam Fulton and (earlier) Léonie Chao-Fong, Richa on (#6FQBH)
White House says US president was only commenting on whether he wanted to see more hostages released; schools told to evacuate are in Gaza City close to the Al-Ahli Baptist hospital. This blog is now closed
Tories may also reduce stamp duty in bid to win back voters and reduce pressure on PM, reports sayRishi Sunak is considering a tax cut for the 5 million highest earners and reducing stamp duty in an attempt to ease the pressure on his leadership after two historic byelection defeats, it has been reported.The Conservatives may raise the 40% income tax threshold after Labour's victory in Mid Bedfordshire, Nadine Dorries' former seat. It was the largest majority to be overturned at a byelection. Continue reading...
Moscow using spy network, state-run media and social media to shake confidence in democracy, report sent to 100 countries claimsRussia is using its spy network, state-run media and social media to undermine public trust in elections around the world, according to a US intelligence report that has been shared with about 100 countries.Russia is focused on carrying out operations to degrade public confidence in election integrity," said the report released on Friday, citing findings from the US intelligence community. Continue reading...
Vincent Van Quickenborne stands down after it emerged Islamic extremist had been denied asylum and was sought for extraditionBelgium's justice minister has resigned after it emerged that the Islamic extremist who shot dead two Swedes in Brussels this week had been denied asylum and was sought for extradition by Tunisia.Justice minister Vincent Van Quickenborne said late on Friday that he and other officials had been searching for details to understand how Abdesalem Lassoued had disappeared off the map two years ago after being denied asylum. Continue reading...
Singer says on social media that she didn't mean to offend anyone' with her new tell-all book The Woman in MeBritney Spears has criticised press coverage of her upcoming memoir and played down any bad blood, stating that it is not her purpose to offend anyone".The singer's tell-all book The Woman in Me is released on 24 October and pre-release coverage has highlighted some of the book's bigger revelations, including the details of her relationship with Justin Timberlake and her conservatorship. Continue reading...
by Vikram Dodd Police and crime correspondent on (#6FR1C)
Watchdog to investigate why child with water pistol was knocked off bike by armed police in HackneyThe family of the black boy rammed off his bike by police who mistook his water pistol for a real gun have won their fight to have an independent investigation into the incident.The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) today reversed a decision it had made twice to let the Metropolitan police investigate the actions of its own officers. Continue reading...
by Peter Walker, Kiran Stacey and Ben Quinn on (#6FR1D)
Sunak appears safe but divisions widening on strategy, as MP bemoans lack of support in TamworthSenior Conservatives have dismissed the idea of any attempt to unseat Rishi Sunak, even after two disastrous byelection defeats, but warned that the prime minister might instead be facing the equally grim prospect of a party on the verge of giving up.One Tory MP who campaigned in Tamworth, where the Conservatives lost to Labour by just 1,300 votes, said they were dismayed at the lack of top-level support, with one cabinet minister calling off a campaign trip the day they were meant to arrive. Continue reading...
by Kevin Rawlinson and Sammy Gecsoyler on (#6FR1E)
On the streets of Labour's new constituencies, there was anti-Tory feeling - but also much apathyIt was a stunning pair of victories - and among the most damaging byelection nights any government has suffered in living memory, according to the celebrated psephologist John Curtice.The question in the newly minted Labour constituencies of Mid Bedfordshire and Tamworth the morning after was whether the opposition party can repeat the success at a general election. Continue reading...
Labour wins Tamworth with swing of 23.9 percentage points from Tories, then Mid Bedfordshire in largest ever turnaround of majority in UK byelectionProf Sir John Curtice told the Today programme that there were two points in this parliament when Tory support rapidly switched to Labour: when the first Partygate revelations came out, and Liz Truss's mini-budget. He said you could reasonably argue" that those two events were more important in explaining why Labour is now doing so well than Keir Starmer's changes to the Labour party. But if Starmer had not changed Labour, then the party might not have benefited to the extent it has, he said.Curtice ended his interview with a big what if?'Let us say those Partygate happenings had never happened, or at least we had never heard of them. And as a result Boris Johnson was still in 10 Downing Street today. Would Labour be doing as well in the polls as they are at present?These were always going to be challenging by-elections and the rule of thumb is that governments don't win them. We have seen little to no enthusiasm for Sir Keir Starmer who voters can see stands for nothing and always puts short term political gain first.The truth is these were not ordinary government losses. The swing in Tamworth, at just below 24%, is the second biggest swing from Conservative to Labour in postwar electoral history. And at just over 20% the swing in Mid Bedfordshire is also in the top 10.No government has previously lost to the principal opposition party a seat as safe as Tamworth. You have to go back to 1977 and the Ashfield byelection to find an equivalent.You can argue maybe there isn't as much enthusiasm for Labour as there is discontent with the conservatives. But, nevertheless, when Labour have been challenged, they still managed to win that challenge. Continue reading...
PM's much-criticised Future Fund, set up during the pandemic, gave 2m to companies co-owned by Akshata MurtyLabour has written to the standards watchdog to ask whether Rishi Sunak should have declared that companies co-owned by his wife were given 2m through his government scheme to help startups in the pandemic.Lucy Powell, the shadow leader of the House of Commons, wrote to the commissioner for standards to ask whether they should have been declared in parliamentary proceedings, after the Guardian reported that four companies linked to Akshata Murty had received investments from the Future Fund. Continue reading...
Sixth formers said tests displayed incorrect questions, repeatedly crashed or failed to record answersOxford University says it will not use results from its botched online admissions tests to award places on next year's English courses, after students and schools across the UK described multiple crashes, freezes and other frustrations using the new system.Sixth formers applying to Oxford said the online tests being used for the first time were plagued with difficulties, displaying incorrect questions and repeatedly crashing or failing to record answers, raising concerns it would damage their chances of admission as undergraduates. Continue reading...
After the voice referendum, John Pesutto appears non-committal on treaty - but it's unclear whether an about-face will be well-received in the Massachusetts of Australia'
Celebrated actor was nominated for multiple Olivier awards in her theatrical roles and best known for Drop the Dead Donkey and The Windsors on TVThe actor Haydn Gwynne has died of cancer at the age of 66. In a statement on Friday, her agent said that Gwynne had died in hospital surrounded by her beloved sons, close family and friends. We would like to thank the staff and teams at the Royal Marsden and Brompton hospitals for their wonderful care over the last few weeks."Gwynne, who played the sardonic assistant editor Alex Pates in Channel 4's newsroom satire Drop the Dead Donkey, had a celebrated career on stage. She received Olivier and Tony award nominations as the dance teacher in Billy Elliot the Musical (in London and New York) and three other Olivier nominations for the musical productions City of Angels, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (based on Pedro Almodovar's film) and The Threepenny Opera. Continue reading...
Actor says she hopes her children will feel free to pursue exactly what they want to do'Gwyneth Paltrow has hit out at the term nepo baby", calling it an ugly moniker" and saying children of famous people should not be judged negatively.Short for nepotism baby, the term refers to the children of celebrities who have succeeded in careers similar to those of their parents. Continue reading...
Despite being nowhere to be seen over a month of fashion shows, designer was name on everyone's lipsThe most talked about designer of this season did not have a fashion show at all. She was nowhere to be seen over a month of shows in New York, London, Paris or Milan. Yet despite not having made a single coat, dress or shirt for six years, and never once posting on Instagram, Phoebe Philo was the name on everyone's lips on every front row.Finally, on the last weekend of Paris fashion week, Philo made a fashionably late entrance, announcing that she would make her long-awaited return on 30 October. Continue reading...
Seat used during state opening of parliament takes centre stage in exhibition about royal powerThe Dutch throne has been moved for the first time from the 13th-century Ridderzaal in The Hague to be displayed in an exhibition, as the Netherlands' monarchy seeks to further open up to the public amid growing republican sentiment.The wooden chair, upholstered in red velvet, takes centre stage in the Power of the Throne exhibition at Paleis Het Loo, a summer retreat for the House of Orange-Nassau that continued to be used deep into the 20th century. Continue reading...
by Angelique Chrisafis in Sarcelles, Ashifa Kassam, K on (#6FQMP)
Protection of Jewish sites increased in towns and cities across continent after outbreak of war between Israel and HamasIn the usually bustling Little Jerusalem" area of Sarcelles, north of Paris, the popular falafel and grill restaurant was eerily quiet. People are not going out," said Jeremy, the 33-year-old restaurant owner.Lunchtime and evening crowds are common in one of the largest Jewish communities on the Paris outskirts. But many thought it wiser to stay home, fearing a growing number of antisemitic incidents in France and across Europe since the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October and the ensuing bombardment of Gaza. Continue reading...
TV journalist Andrea Giambruno was recorded making suggestive comments towards a female colleagueItaly's far-right prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, has split from her partner, Andrea Giambruno, a television journalist who has made several embarrassing, sexist comments.My relationship with Andrea Giambruno, which lasted almost 10 years, ends here," Meloni wrote on social media, two days after two off-air recordings emerged of Giambruno, a presenter on Mediaset's news talkshow Diario Del Giorno, making foul remarks and suggestive comments towards a female colleague. Continue reading...
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