World news | The Guardian

Experts talk of resit crisis' as number accounts for nearly a quarter of maths and English entries, an all-time highThis year's GCSE results in England delivered something that teachers and policymakers had craved in recent years: stability, at least for most 16-year-olds.Covid and its aftermath had sent GCSE results seesawing until this summer, when results were more similar to the previous year than at any time since the pandemic struck in 2020. Continue reading...

Netanyahu tells soldiers he has approved takeover plan as aid groups advised to prepare for forced displacementThe International Red Cross and UN have warned of an impending catastrophe in the Gaza Strip if Israel launches an offensive to take over Gaza City, as the Israeli military told medical and aid groups in the Palestinian territory to prepare for imminent forced displacement.At the same time a concerted campaign of international opposition to Israel's defiance of ceasefire calls and its approval of a huge new illegal settlement construction in the occupied West Bank gathered pace, with the UK summoning Israel's ambassador and joining 20 other countries in condemning the settlement plan as a violation of international law". Continue reading...

Israeli ambassador to UK summoned as joint statement says move will fuel further violence and break international lawDavid Lammy has joined 20 other foreign ministers around the world in condemning Israeli plans to build an illegal settlement on the West Bank, with the Foreign Office summoning the Israeli ambassador to communicate the government's displeasure.The foreign secretary co-signed a joint statement on Thursday criticising the so-called E1 plan, a 3,400-home settlement that critics say would divide the West Bank in half. Continue reading...

Chris Brain was found guilty on 17 charges of assault against women who attended Nine O'Clock Service in SheffieldThe Church of England has apologised unreservedly for its failings over a former priest who has been convicted of indecently assaulting young women who attended a groundbreaking evangelical church featuring rock music and rave culture.Christopher Brain was found guilty on 17 charges of indecent assault against women who attended the Nine O'Clock Service in Sheffield between 1986 and 1995 after a trial that lasted more than seven weeks. Continue reading...

MP predicts struggle under first past the post but understands why her longtime friend established partyDiane Abbott has said she advised her longtime friend Jeremy Corbyn not to launch a new political party because she believed it would struggle to make inroads under the first-past-the-post system.Abbott, the MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington, said last month she would not be leaving Labour in favour of Corbyn's as yet unnamed party, despite the pair having worked closely together in the past. Continue reading...

Exclusive: One NGO placed on an online hitlist had to temporarily close its office owing to harassing phone callsRefugee support organisations have been forced to install safe rooms in their premises, relocate to less visible sites and in some cases close their offices in response to the threat of far-right violence.Half of NGOs and charities supporting people seeking refuge have faced threats, a hostile environment" of protest and safety concerns since the riots of 2024, according to research documents seen by the Guardian. Continue reading...

RMT members to take industrial action for seven days from 5 September amid intensifying disputeTube workers are to stage a series of strikes next month in a dispute over pay and conditions amid an intensifying dispute with managers.The Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) said its members would take industrial action for seven days from 5 September amid a dispute over pay and workload, among other things. Continue reading...

Shannon Burns in line for compensation from software company that dismissed her two months after incidentAn executive with ADHD who was sacked after spending the night sleeping in a sauna when she lost her room keys during a team-building event has won a disability discrimination case.Shannon Burns had been drinking and her bosses told her that confidence in her had been eroded and she needed to set an example. Continue reading...

This live blog is now closed, you can read more on this story hereWe have just heard from the European Commission, confirming that the EU and the US have now agreed on the much-awaited joint statement" advancing the political commitments on trade agreed by Ursula von der Leyen and Donald Trump in Scotland last month.The commission's press release says the statement lays out in detail the new US tariff regime towards the EU, with a clear maximum, all-inclusive, tariff rate of 15% for the vast majority of EU exports, including strategic sectors such as cars, pharmaceuticals, semiconductors and lumber." Continue reading...

This blog is now closed, you can read more on this story hereIran was seeking to reassert an image of strength on Thursday after suffering heavy losses, when Israel largely destroyed Iran's air defences during the war and much of its stockpile of ballistic weapons is believed to have been damaged by Israeli strikes.The Iranian Defence Ministry said in a statement on Thursday: Any new adventure by the enemy will be faced with a strong slap." Continue reading...

Home secretary responds to statistics showing rise in number of people housed in hotels in UK, saying Labour has overseen increased numbers of returns of asylum seekersDespite a good month for the public finances, the Treasury won't be putting in any champagne orders, writes the Guardian's senior economics writer, Phillip Inman.You can read his analysis, on why radical tax reform may be only way for chancellor Rachel Reeves to balance the books, at the link below:Everyone deserves dignity and security in retirement, but too many retired women have been left without enough to get by.We must make sure that these inequalities are addressed for future generations. That's why reviving the pensions commission - bringing together unions, employers and independent experts - is a vital step forward.We're determined to close the gender pensions gap, and the new state pension has already reduced historic inequalities faced by women and low earners. Alongside this, the pensions commission will tackle barriers to close the gender pensions gap in private pensions to ensure women have the dignity and security they deserve in retirement. Continue reading...

Brazilian supreme court judge sets ultimatum after police claim far-right populist sought to flee to avoid punishment over failed coupA supreme court judge has given Brazil's ex-president, Jair Bolsonaro, 48 hours to explain police claims he was planning to flee to Argentina to avoid punishment for allegedly masterminding a failed coup after losing the 2022 election.Bolsonaro's trial for the alleged attempt to seize power is scheduled to conclude early next month. The far-right populist faces more than four decades in prison if found guilty. Continue reading...

Wales's overpass rate of 62.5% is behind England's 67.1% - although there were many success stories at the Llynfi valley secondary

African country's foreign ministry says the two states are working on the details of a deal over deporteesUganda has reached an agreement with the US to take in deportees from third countries who may not get asylum but are reluctant" to go back to their own countries, according to Uganda's foreign ministry.The country will not accept people with criminal records or unaccompanied minors under the temporary arrangement, the Ugandan foreign ministry's permanent secretary said in a statement. He did not say whether Uganda was receiving any payment or other benefits and how many deportees it would accept. Continue reading...

Caterham was born in Hampshire in August 1909, when Edward VII reigned, and now lives in care home in SurreyEthel Caterham, the last surviving Edwardian and the world's oldest living person, celebrated her 116th birthday on Thursday.She was born on 21 August 1909 in Shipton Bellinger, Hampshire, when Herbert Asquith was prime minister, Beatrix Potter had just published The Tale of the Flopsy Bunnies and one of the bestselling songs was Shine on Harvest Moon.Herbert Henry Asquith was the UK's Liberal prime minister and Edward VII was king.The first state pensions were being paid after the introduction of the Old Age Pensions Act.Claude Monet's Water Lilies series had just gone on show for the first time at an exhibition in Paris.General Electric patented the electric toaster invented by Frank Shailor.Bulgaria was about to declare independence from the Ottoman empire.Manchester United had won the first of their FA Cup victories by beating Bristol City.Arthur Gore was the reigning men's Wimbledon champion aged 41 - he remains the men's singles tournament's oldest winner.The future matinee idol Errol Flynn was two months old.The first international flying show occurred in Reims, France.Selfridges had just opened on Oxford Street in London. Continue reading...

Applications being processed much quicker than two years ago, as councils threaten legal action to stop use of hotels

Zali Burrows told she has had plenty' of opportunity to consider issue in case despite repeated requests to adjourn earlyAppeal judges have struggled to understand" the case made by Bruce Lehrmann's lawyer, who says the federal court judgment that her client raped Brittany Higgins in Parliament House in 2019 found the action was a soft rape" but was characterised in a Network Ten broadcast as a violent" assault.Sydney criminal solicitor Zali Burrows - representing Lehrmann because, as the court heard Wednesday, he couldn't afford" his chosen barrister - submitted that her client was not given an opportunity to be questioned about the type of rape found by Justice Michael Lee. Continue reading...

CEO of Australian Recording Industry Association says tech companies should simply comply with existing copyright law

Labour MP says she and Reform MP want a committee set up, after news of UK's post-Brexit environmental rollbacksStella Creasy and Richard Tice are pushing for Labour to allow a Brexit scrutiny committee to be formed in parliament, after the Guardian revealed environmental protections had been eroded since the UK left the EU.The Labour and Reform UK MPs argue that there is no scrutiny or accountability over how Brexit is being implemented. Creasy, the MP for Walthamstow and chair of the Labour Movement for Europe, said the UK needed a salvage operation" to clear up the environmental and regulatory havoc caused by Brexit. Continue reading...

The shifting loyalties of the White House have inadvertently bound Europe closer together, how long can that unity last?It was dubbed the Great European Charm Offensive".Hours before Volodymyr Zelenskyy headed to Washington for a Monday meeting with Donald Trump, announcements came pouring in from across Europe, making it clear that the president of Ukraine would not be going alone. Continue reading...

Government says country will buy five Seahawk helicopters and two Airbus A321XLR aircraftNew Zealand will spend nearly NZ$3bn ($1.7bn) upgrading its ageing defence fleet, including replacing its embarrassing" planes that have left multiple prime ministers grounded during international travel, the government has announced.The defence minister, Judith Collins, said NZ$2bn would be spent buying five MH-60R Seahawk helicopters and another NZ$700m to buy two Airbus A321XLR aircraft. Continue reading...

Injunction to remove people from Essex hotel leads to government considering other housing optionsLabour-run councils are considering legal challenges to close hotels housing asylum seekers after a landmark ruling prompted officials to consider increasing the use of former military sites as emergency accommodation.Wirral and Tamworth councils said they are exploring high court injunctions to remove claimants after the Conservative-run authority in Epping Forest won a temporary high court injunction to remove people from the Bell Hotel. Continue reading...

Shazad Khan, 41, was well known in Monks Park, Wembley after starting to operate van about a year agoTwo people have been arrested after an ice-cream man was fatally stabbed in broad daylight in north-west London.The Metropolitan police said they received reports of a stabbing in Monks Park, Wembley shortly after 6pm on Tuesday. Continue reading...

Exclusive: All pupils, including those with learning difficulties, made big improvements in tests when using word processorsStudents who use keyboards in exams get better test scores, according to new research, raising questions about how schools will be affected when digital GCSE and A-level exams become widespread.The research carried out at University College London tested state school pupils, comparing their scores in essays using handwriting and word processors under mock exam conditions. All pupils, including those with learning difficulties, made big improvements in tests when using word processors. Continue reading...

Over the last 20 years, the number of Americans who read daily for pleasure has seen a considerable declineThe amount of Americans who read for pleasure has fallen by 40%, according to a new study.Researchers at the University of Florida and University College London have found that between 2003 and 2023, daily reading for reasons other than work and study fell by about 3% each year. Continue reading...

Scottish Labour suspends Smyth after arrest in connection with possession of indecent imagesA Scottish MSP has been arrested and charged in connection with possession of indecent images.Colin Smyth, who has represented South Scotland since 2016, was arrested on Tuesday, resulting in his immediate suspension from Scottish Labour. He is due to appear in court at a later date. Continue reading...

French president responds to Israeli PM's erroneous' allegations in relation to decision to recognise state of PalestineEmmanuel Macron has hit out at Benjamin Netanyahu for his abject" and erroneous" remarks after Israel's prime minister claimed that antisemitism had surged" in France after the country's decision to recognise a Palestinian state in September.In a statement released late on Tuesday, the office of the French president pushed back against Netanyahu's claim. The analysis suggesting that France's decision to recognise the state of Palestine in September is behind the rise in antisemitic violence in France is erroneous, abject, and will not go unanswered," it said. The current period calls for seriousness and responsibility, not generalisation and manipulation." Continue reading...

Law temporarily blocked after group sought preliminary injunction, saying it violated first amendment protectionsTexas cannot require public schools to display the Ten Commandments in every classroom, a judge said on Wednesday in a temporary ruling against the state's new requirement, making it the third such state law to be blocked by a court.A group of Dallas-area families and faith leaders sought a preliminary injunction against the law, which goes into effect on 1 September. They say the requirement violates the first amendment's protections for the separation of church and state and the right to free religious exercise. Continue reading...

Administrator was appointed after parent company State Oil was given new information about 783m loanThe Prax Lindsey oil refinery collapsed after material irregularities" were discovered in a complex 783m loan facility that funded the wider group, it has emerged.The refinery on the Humber estuary in northern England - one of just five left in the UK, - was suddenly plunged into administration in late June, prompting calls from furious government ministers for an investigation into Winston Soosaipillai, Prax Group's oil tycoon owner. Continue reading...

Call-up notices sent as Israeli plans to increase its offensive; Israel studies Hamas' response to proposal for 60-day ceasefireIsrael is killing all prospects" for peace in the Middle East, Jordan's foreign minister has said amid escalating international outrage over Israel's plans for a new large-scale offensive in Gaza City and plans to massively expand Jewish settlements in the West Bank.Ayman Safadi made his remarks during a visit to Moscow on the same day that the Israeli defence minister, Israel Katz, approved a plan to conquer Gaza City, an urban area home to hundreds of thousands of people in the north of the Palestinian territory. Continue reading...

Kelvingrove Park is site of Scotland's first skatepark, Kelvin Wheelies, which has been covered in rubble for decadesScotland's first outdoor skatepark - currently buried beneath rubble in Glasgow's Kelvingrove Park - will be excavated next week in an attempt to preserve its legacy.Archaeologists at the University of Glasgow are inviting volunteers to join them as they begin their excavation and survey work at the former Kelvin Wheelies park, which has been underground for more than three decades. Continue reading...

Court is shown proposal to secure operations of SSUK, which employs 1,450 people

Children among dead after bus carrying Afghans deported from Iran crashed and caught fire in Herat province78 people have died in western Afghanistan in a collision between a bus carrying Afghans who had recently been deported from Iran and two other vehicles.The passenger bus hit a motorcycle and a truck transporting fuel on Tuesday night, causing an explosive fire in Herat province's Guzara district, officials and witnesses said. Continue reading...

Unite says stoppages at Broughton and Filton factories could disrupt production of wings and delay deliveries

Prime minister says strengthened partnership with Iraq will secure our borders' as more councils in England plan to challenge asylum hotelsTrain fares in England are now expected to rise by a higher-than-expected 5.8% next year, causing concern among passenger groups.Rail ticket increases are usually calculated by adding one percentage point to July's inflation reading on the retail prices index (RPI), which came in 0.2 points above forecasts on Wednesday at 4.8%. Continue reading...

Foreign minister Sergei Lavrov dismisses European diplomacy as clumsy effort to sway Trump'

Jean Pormanove featured regularly in videos in which he appeared to be assaulted or humiliated as viewers watchedFrench authorities are investigating the death of a man during a live video stream on the Kick platform, where he had regularly been shown enduring violence and humiliation.Prosecutors ordered an autopsy and opened an investigation into the death of the man, 46, in the village of Contes, north of Nice, on Monday. Continue reading...

RMT action over pay and conditions means no services on Saturday and reduced rail timetable on Monday

Broxbourne council leader hopes to go down same path' as Epping, which has blocked people being housed in hotel

Executive Council of Australian Jewry says Australian and Israeli governments should use diplomacy rather than public posturing'

State's Crime and Corruption Commission investigated fewer than 1% of complaints referred to it

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The Israeli prime minister has launched a diplomatic broadside against Albanese, adopting a similar playbook to his approach to UK, Canada and France

Chris Minns says he will seek to meet victims' families after agreeing police sketch of cold case suspect incredibly similar' to serial killerThe premier of New South Wales, Chris Minns, has said he is open to a parliamentary inquiry into Ivan Milat, after a state MP questioned whether the backpacker murderer could be responsible for many more deaths.Legalise Cannabis party MLC Jeremy Buckingham is pursuing whether Milat was responsible for dozens of unsolved murders throughout Australia, mainly of young women. Continue reading...

Near Dobropillia new trenches are visible, drone attacks continue and there is no sign of the fighting easingOver dinner on Monday, a simple barbecue of meat and roasted vegetables, the soldiers of Ukraine's 150th reconnaissance and strike battalion have other things on their mind. Volodymyr Zelenskyy is in the White House and Donald Trump has just promised to give Ukraine very good protection".When this development is passed on to the group around, one of the soldiers pipes up From who?" and laughs, such is the uncertainty about who the US really supports. But in reality the troops are not following the news closely. After three and half years, the war has its own momentum, technology and schedule. Continue reading...

Watchdog says television advert for Sanex fed negative stereotypes and was likely to cause serious offenceA television advert for Sanex shower gel has been banned in the UK for appearing to suggest that black skin is problematic" and white skin is superior".The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) acted after investigating two complaints that the Sanex fed negative stereotypes about people with darker skin tones. Continue reading...

The annual event, which promotes literacy, is celebrating 80 years as part of Australian school lifeBook Week is in full swing, marking it's 80th year celebrating all things reading and literacy for Australia's schoolchildren.The theme for the week, which runs from Saturday 16 to Saturday 23 August, is Book an Adventure", encouraging children to explore new worlds through stories. Continue reading...

In a New Zealand television interview, relatives spoke of their anguish since Tom Phillips disappeared with his three children in late 2021The family of a fugitive father who has been hiding for more than three years in New Zealand's rugged wilderness with his three children has pleaded with the man to come home, in some of their first public comments since he vanished.Just before Christmas 2021, Tom Phillips fled into the Waikato wilderness with his children Ember, now 9, Maverick, 1o, and Jayda, 12, following a dispute with their mother. Phillips does not have legal custody of his children. Continue reading...

Australian home affairs minister's criticism comes after Israeli prime minister calls Anthony Albanese a weak politician who betrayed Israel'

Mixed classes would widen children's understanding and reduce stigma and disinformation about periods, researchers sayBoys and girls should be taught together in mixed classes about menstruation to help reduce the stigma, secrecy and disinformation which still surrounds periods, according to researchers.A new study by University College London (UCL) claims schoolchildren are being given insufficient information about periods, with many receiving just two lessons during their entire school career: one at primary level and one in secondary school. Continue reading...