Australian Agricultural Company tells stock exchange its board members did not share confidential information with Tottenham Hotspur owner, who has been charged with securities fraud in the US
by Rebecca Ratcliffe in Bangkok and Min Ye Kyaw on (#6DEMZ)
Ousted leader granted clemency on five charges as part of amnesty but faces a further 14 casesMyanmar's junta will pardon Aung San Suu Kyi on five legal charges, military-controlled TV has announced, although the deposed leader remains saddled with more than a dozen other cases.Aung San Suu Kyi has been held in detention by the military since 1 February 2021 when it ousted her democratically elected government. The 76-year-old has since been sentenced for multiple charges - including incitement, electoral fraud and corruption - which add up to more than three decades in prison. Continue reading...
Oil and gas company to return another $1.5bn to investors through a share buybackBP has angered climate campaigners by reporting profits of $2.6bn (2bn) for the second quarter of the year as the climate crisis triggers extreme heatwaves.The company blamed falling oil and gas markets for the fall in profits from $8.5bn in the same period last year when Russia's invasion of Ukraine ignited a surge in global energy markets. Continue reading...
An impulsive decision to collectively buy a single lottery ticket resulted in the friends from Kerala collectively hitting the jackpotThe 11 women had never felt luck was on their side. The friends, some in their 20s and others over 70, all struggled to make ends meet, earning only a small salary as they collected and segregated rubbish in their town of Parappanangadi, in the south Indian state of Kerala.Yet this week, their fortunes changed. An impulsive decision to pool their small resources to collectively buy a single lottery ticket, at a cost of 250 rupees (2.50) - the equivalent of a day's wages - resulted in them collectively hitting the jackpot. This week, they found out they had won the monsoon bumper prize, worth 100m rupees (1.2m). Continue reading...
Defamation trial hears Mark Willacy criticised Murdoch's people' in email to confidential source after Daily Telegraph questioned reports on ex-commando
In today's newsletter: The country has been considered stable in an unstable region. So what sparked a coup - and what effects will it have? Sign up here for our daily newsletter, First EditionGood morning.Just a few months ago, the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, visited Niger and called it a model of democracy" in the region. Last week those words seemed rather foolhardy, as reports began to emerge of a military coup under way. On Wednesday morning, the country's presidential guard, a group who were supposed to protect democratically elected leader President Mohamed Bazoum, blockaded the presidential palace. Soldiers appeared on state TV to announce they had removed the president from power, seized control of the government and suspended the constitution. And on Friday, the commander of the guard, Gen Abdourahmane Tchiani, declared himself the leader of Niger in a televised address.Climate crisis | Rishi Sunak has pledged to max out" the UK's oil and gas reserves as he revealed a new round of intensive North Sea drilling, which experts said could be catastrophic for global heating.War on Ukraine | Within the last few hours Russian air defences shot down several" drones again targeting the Moscow region, mayor Sergei Sobyanin said, with one hitting a tower that had also been struck on Sunday.Asylum | The Home Office has been forced to delay moving people seeking asylum on to a controversial giant barge in order to carry out last-minute fire safety checks amid concerns the vessel has not received approval from inspectors.Land rights | Wild camping is once again allowed on Dartmoor after the national park won a successful appeal against a ruling in a case brought by a wealthy landowner.Television | Angus Cloud, the actor best known for his role on HBO's teen drama Euphoria, has died aged 25, his family confirmed on Monday. Cloud died on Monday at his family home in Oakland, California. No cause of death was given. His father had recently died, the statement said, and the actor intensely struggled with the loss". Continue reading...
Some urgent cases waiting more than 12 weeks for treatment, according to children's commissioner for EnglandChildren with serious and potentially life-threatening" eating disorders are not being given timely access to care, the children's commissioner for England has warned, as analysis shows the number starting treatment has more than doubled in six years.According to the charity Beat, about 1.25 million people in the UK have an eating disorder such as anorexia or bulimia, of whom 25% are male. Continue reading...
Warner Bros Japan has publicly criticised their US counterparts over inappropriate' reactions to art combining playful Barbie imagery with mushroom cloudsWarner Bros Japan has criticised what it called extremely regrettable" Barbenheimer tweets shared by their US counterparts.It joins a growing backlash in Japan against the conflation of Greta Gerwig's playfully marketed film with Oppenheimer, a biopic of the scientist behind the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Continue reading...
Labor commits to final stage of Metro City and Southwest driverless train project as separate report flags eastern line possibly to Randwick and Maroubra
Supporters say string of charges are intended to prevent Ousmane Sonko and his Pastef party challenging President Macky SallSenegal's government has dissolved a major opposition party within hours of the party's popular president and opposition leader saying a judge had ordered his arrest.Ousmane Sonko, a charismatic opposition figure widely supported by Senegal's youth, was in prison on Monday as he awaited trial on new criminal charges, said his party's communications director, El Malick Ndiaye. Continue reading...
Monitoring boards chief warns of poor conditions at four young offender institutions in EnglandA prisons watchdog has warned that poor conditions are endemic" at four young offender institutions in England and urged ministers to take urgent action to improve them.In her new role as the national chair of the Independent Monitoring Boards (IMBs), Elisabeth Davies has taken the unusual step of writing a letter to the prisons minister, Damian Hinds, to raise serious concerns about the welfare of children in YOIs in England. Continue reading...
Australian athlete says the news is a dream come true and no one should experience what he has gone throughAustralian athlete Peter Bol says he has been exonerated" after Sport Integrity Australia decided to close its anti-doping case against him.On social media, Bol said it was a false positive like I have said all along" and the news was a dream come true". Continue reading...
Abdellatif remains in Australian immigration detention, where he has been held for a decade thanks to security assessments tainted by evidence obtained under torture
British-Russian dissident Vladimir Kara-Murza lost his appeal against a 25-year prison term on MondayThe UK government has imposed sanctions on those involved in the deplorable" sentencing of the dual-national dissident Vladimir Kara-Murza after a Russian court dismissed his appeal against a 25-year sentence.Six figures - three judges, two prosecutors and an expert witness - will face sanctions for their role in a politically motivated conviction". Continue reading...
The actor died on Sunday night, years after he had been diagnosed with cancer, according to his teamThe actor Paul Reubens - best known for his 1980s portrayal of the children's film character Pee-wee Herman - died on Sunday night at the age of 70, years after he had been diagnosed with cancer, according to his team.A statement on Monday on a Facebook page for the Herman character said: Last night we said farewell to Paul Reubens." Continue reading...
by Sally Weale Education correspondent on (#6DE7Y)
While many welcome the end of strike action, the campaign for fair pay and better funding for state schools looks set to continueMinisters will have heaved a huge sigh of relief to see teachers and school leaders in England vote to accept a 6.5% pay offer and end strike action in state schools in England.After months of disruption as a result of strikes by members of the National Education Union (NEU), there were real fears in government of an escalation of the dispute, with coordinated strike action in the autumn term by four unions. Continue reading...
by Kalyeena Makortoff Banking correspondent on (#6DE7Z)
Former Ukip leader is still taking legal action against bank demanding compensation and apologyNigel Farage has said that the newly installed boss of Coutts has offered to keep his accounts there open, reversing a decision that triggered a scandal and the resignation of the private bank's previous chief executive.The former Ukip leader said he welcomed the offer but was still taking legal action against NatWest, which owns Coutts, demanding compensation, a full apology and a face-to-face meeting with the banking group's bosses. Continue reading...
by Mabel Banfield-Nwachi and Martin Belam on (#6DDFT)
At least six people have been killed in Kryvyi Rih, and two people killed in occupied Donetsk, after multiple strikes across UkraineAt least six people, including a 10-year-old child, have been killed and more than 50 people injured when Russia struck a high-rise apartment in Kryvyi Rih. Authorities said people were trapped under rubble. Oleksiy Kuleba, the deputy head of Volodymyr Zelenskiy's office, called for revenge, saying: Every day, Ukrainian cities are under fire from Russian terrorists. Sumy, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipro, Kharkiv. This is only for the last few days." He said targeting civilians was a sign of the despair and defeat of the Russian Federation at the front".Ukraine's first lady, Olena Zelenska, said This is how the week begins in a Ukrainian city that just wants a quiet, normal life. Russia wants to take peace and life away", and offered condolences to the victims and their families. The city is the home town of both Zelenska and her husband.On Telegram, the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said more than 350 people are working on the rescue mission in Kryvyi Rih after what he said were two Russian ballistic missiles hit the city.Russian opposition politician Vladimir Kara-Murza on Monday lost an appeal against his 25-year jail sentence, the RIA state news agency reported. Kara-Murza, who holds Russian and British citizenship, was jailed for 25 years in April for treason and spreading false information" about Russia's war in Ukraine, Reuters reports. Britain added six new designations to its Russia sanctions list, an update to the government website showed on Monday, targeting judges and officials involved in the trial of Kara-Murza.According to Reuters, Ukraine and Croatia have agreed on the possibility of using Croatian ports on the Danube and the Adriatic Sea for the export of Ukrainian grain, Ukraine's foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba said after talks with his Croatian counterpart on Monday.Russian airstrikes destroyed an estimated 180,000 metric tonnes of grain crops in the space of nine days this month, the Ukrainian foreign ministry said on Monday, Reuters reports.Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine's minister of digital transformation, said Russia lost 87 units of equipment last week, including 33 strongholds, 26 armored combat vehicles and 15 tanks. These claims have not been independently verified.The Kremlin on Monday described a recent drone attack on Moscow as an act of desperation" by Ukraine after setbacks on the battlefield. AFP reports that Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, said it has been very difficult" for Ukrainian forces on the frontline since it launched its counteroffensive in June. He added: It is obvious that the counteroffensive is not a success. In an act of desperation, the regime in Kyiv is turning to such terrorist attacks. All possible measures have been taken to defend civil infrastructure [against Ukrainian strikes]."Ukrainian forces have recaptured nearly 15 sq km (5.8 sq miles) of land from Russian troops in the east and south over the past week during their counteroffensive, a senior defence official said on Monday. Kyiv's forces have now retaken 204.7 sq km in the south since they launched a major push back against Russian forces early last month, deputy defence minister Hanna Maliar said on Telegram.The Kremlin said on Monday that Ukraine's counteroffensive is not working out as planned" and that Nato resources supplied to Kyiv had been wasted", during the course of a two month-long operation that has seen limited gains for Ukraine. Continue reading...
by Mabel Banfield-Nwachi (now); Martin Belam and Adam on (#6DDK7)
Ukraine defence minister says Moscow has intensified strikes on military infrastructure; Kremlin says Ukraine counteroffensive not working out as planned'
by Sally Weale Education correspondent on (#6DE4H)
Members accepted 6.5% pay rise, but said it was not enough to correct decade of real-terms pay cutsSchool strikes in England have been called off after teachers and school leaders in four education unions voted to accept the government's 6.5% pay offer, ending fears of widespread disruption in the autumn term.Members of the National Education Union (NEU), the NASUWT teachers' union, the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) and the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) were considering staging coordinated strike action if there was no progress on pay. Continue reading...
by Peter Walker Deputy political editor on (#6DE18)
Emily Thornberry says PM must explain why he did not use available scheduled flightsLabour has asked Rishi Sunak to explain why he used an RAF jet to fly to Scotland on Monday when scheduled flights were available, given the ministerial code says private planes should only be used when there is no alternative.Sunak, a habitual user of helicopters and private jets even for other, relatively short UK journeys, travelled to Aberdeen on Monday morning in connection with an announcement on new North Sea drilling licences. Continue reading...
Case of Briton who killed ill wife puts taboo subject in spotlight of socially conservative society British man who killed sick wife freed due to time servedA little after daybreak, a police van carrying an elderly Briton pulled out of the high-walled, colonial-era complex that is Nicosia's central prison.As on so many other occasions, it was the start of a journey David Hunter knew well: a near 100-mile road trip that would take the septuagenarian to the only other building he has been permitted to visit over the past 19 months - the district court in the coastal town of Paphos. Continue reading...
Center for Countering Digital Hate claims publication of hateful material on Twitter has risen since Musk took overAn anti-hate speech campaign group has accused Elon Musk's X Corp of intimidation after the owner of the rebranded social media site X, formerly known as Twitter, threatened legal action over the organisation's research into hate speech on the platform.The Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) has regularly conducted research into the platform's content since it was bought last year by Musk and has produced work claiming publication of hateful material on the site has risen since the $44bn (34.2bn) deal was completed. Continue reading...
The prince has not inherited his father's enthusiasm for traditional Highland dressHe has donned plumes of ostrich feathers, embraced bows and ribbons and even worn a cap with an embroidered leek.Such are the elaborate sartorial demands on the Prince of Wales, who away from royal and military ceremonials tends to be a blue-shirt-and-chinos man. Continue reading...
76-year-old man was threatened with court action and turned to food handouts after E.ON mistakeA 76-year-old widower was forced to ration his electricity for a year and rely on charity food handouts after a clerical error by his supplier left him facing a bill of nearly 13,000.John*, who has a serious heart condition, has paid in advance for his electricity via a prepayment meter for 10 years. However, his supplier, E.ON, began sending unexplained bills several years ago and subsequently threatened court action if he failed to pay. It also withheld his 400 energy bill support scheme payment from the government to help with last winter's heating bills. Continue reading...
David Hunter, 76, given two-year sentence for manslaughter but had already spent 19 months in custodyA British retired miner, David Hunter, has been sentenced to two years in prison for the manslaughter of his seriously ill wife in Cyprus but has been released from custody due to time already served.The 76-year-old had admitted suffocating Janice, his wife of 52 years, who had blood cancer, at their home on the island after she begged him" to end her life.In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counselor. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org Continue reading...
Bafta-winner wrote theme music for shows including Ground Force and made albums with poet laureateThe celebrated composer Jim Parker, who won four Baftas during a 60-year music career, has died aged 88 after a long illness, his family have said.Parker was behind some of television's most recognisable theme music, including the BBC's Tom Jones period drama, as well as the intros to Ground Force, Changing Rooms and ITV's Midsomer Murders, among others. Continue reading...
Former boss of Swedish telecoms firm Telia to continue outgoing Philip Jansen's cost-cutting driveBT has appointed board member Allison Kirkby as its first female chief executive, to take over from Philip Jansen after he set a course for significant job cuts at the telecoms provider.Kirkby will leave her job as chief executive of Swedish telecoms company Telia at the end of January 2024. She has been a non-executive director at BT since 2019. Continue reading...
Huge hailstones pummelled continent before expected cooling down across much of central and southern EuropeTemperatures were not the only weather-related record to be broken over the past couple of weeks. The European hail record has been breached too. Twice.On 19 July 2023, there were several very large hailstones, more than 10cm in diameter measured along their longest axis, recorded across parts of Italy and Croatia. One of these stones, measuring 16cm in diameter, was recorded in Carmignano di Brenta, Italy, and broke the previous largest hail record in Europe, which was previously held by a 15cm stone found in Romania in 2016. Continue reading...
Rodney Lee is destined to die in jail after a Victorian supreme court judge sentenced him to 30 years behind barsAngry with his neighbours for turning off the hose he used to water the communal garden in their apartment complex, Rodney Lee turned to murder.Lee was jailed for 30 years on Monday, having pleaded guilty to murdering Saumotu Gasio, 62, and Tibor Laszlo, 57 at their Melbourne public housing complex in January last year.Sign up for Guardian Australia's free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup Continue reading...
Exclusive: Many exhausted relatives asking for help as health and social care services stretched beyond limitSoaring numbers of families struggling to care for someone with dementia have hit a crisis point" with nowhere to turn for help when their loved one puts themselves or others at risk of harm, a charity has said.More than 700,000 people in the UK look after a relative with dementia. Many feel they can no longer cope with alarming situations where they or their relative are at immediate risk of being harmed, according to Dementia UK. Continue reading...
Exclusive: Survivors and witnesses bring case to human rights council over 2021 attack killing eight peopleTurkish airstrikes that allegedly targeted a civilian hospital and killed eight people in Iraq have been made the subject of a formal complaint to the UN human rights council.It is the first case to be brought on the issue of Turkish airstrikes against the Yazidi people. The attack on 17 August 2021 destroyed the Sikeniye medical clinic in Sinjar and left more than 20 people injured. Continue reading...