Shavkat Mirziyoyev will be able to remain in power until 2040 after Uzbeks backed changes in tightly controlled pollVoters in Uzbekistan have overwhelmingly approved constitutional changes that will allow the president, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, to remain in power until 2040.Mirziyoyev, 65, became president in 2016 after the death of dictator Islam Karimov. Continue reading...
New UN envoy to the region warns that humanitarian situation is ‘reaching breaking point’Sudan’s rival military forces have accused each other of violating a fresh ceasefire as the deadly conflict rumbles on for a third week despite warnings of a slide towards civil war.Both sides said a formal ceasefire agreement that was due to expire at midnight would be extended for a further 72 hours. The army said it hoped what it called the “rebels” would abide by the deal but it believed they had intended to keep up attacks. The parties have kept fighting through a series of ceasefires over the past week. Continue reading...
Investors claim sportswear giant failed to minimise their exposure to risk after the rapper and designer’s antisemitic comments led to a sharp decline in the share priceAdidas shareholders have filed a class action lawsuit against the sportswear brand, claiming it knew about Kanye West’s problematic behaviour years before it ended their partnership over his antisemitic comments.The shareholders also allege that Adidas failed to mitigate their financial losses or take precautionary measures to minimise their exposure, after the designer and rapper’s erratic behaviour and offensive comments saw him and his Yeezy brand dropped by Adidas, which resulted in a sharp decline in the company’s stock. Continue reading...
by Hosted by Lanre Bakare with Prof Hakim Adi, Dr Dia on (#6BANF)
Guardian journalist and Cotton Capital special correspondent Lanre Bakare examines Black Mancunian history, beginning with the 1945 Pan-African Congress that took place in the city and shaped independence movements across AfricaThe Guardian journalist Lanre Bakare travels to Manchester, the city where the Guardian newspaper was founded, to learn more about Black Mancunian history.He hears from Hakim Adi, a professor of history at the University of Chichester, about the 1945 Pan-African Congress in the city. This historic event would come to shape the independence movements across Africa – but despite its critical importance, many feel it remains largely forgotten. Continue reading...
Turkish president says Abu Hussein al-Qurashi was killed after long pursuit while northern Syria residents report clashes and large explosionTurkish intelligence forces have killed Islamic State’s leader, Abu Hussein al-Qurashi, in Syria, Turkey’s president has said.“This individual was neutralised as part of an operation by the Turkish national intelligence organisation in Syria yesterday,” Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said in an interview with the broadcaster TRT Türk on Sunday. Continue reading...
Nurses union head clashes with Steve Barclay over plans to protect patients and RMT rows with Mark Harper about striking on eve of Eurovision finalThe Royal College of Nursing has clashed with the government over whether sufficient exemptions have been made to protect patient safety during the nurses’ strike in England that started on Sunday evening.The clash came as a row erupted between the leader of the train drivers’ union and the transport secretary, who had criticised a planned strike on the eve of the Eurovision song contest final for its impact on Ukraine. Continue reading...
Boat with 38 people onboard got into difficulty in Channel and left to drift back towards France, FOI request showsA boat carrying 38 people, including children, that got into difficulty crossing the Channel was not rescued when it reached UK waters but was instead allowed to drift back towards France, according to internal maritime logs.Ministry of Defence officials, who were managing small boats in the Channel at the time, told the Guardian in January that they disputed that the stricken dinghy had entered UK waters. Continue reading...
by Lorenzo Tondo and Marta Bellingreri in Sfax, Tunis on (#6BA5G)
Hospitals, morgues and burial grounds under pressure, with more than 300 bodies found this year in just one regionAuthorities in Tunisia are considering building new cemeteries, as the country runs out of space to bury the dozens of refugees washing up every day on its shores.The first three months of 2023 were the deadliest for people attempting to cross the central Mediterranean since 2017, according to the UN, with an increasing number of boats carrying asylum seekers wrecked at sea. Continue reading...
by Chaminda Jayanetti and Michael Savage on (#6BA37)
Conservative candidates in this week’s polls include several who were reinstated after accusations of racism and IslamophobiaFive Conservative councillors standing for the party in this week’s local elections in England, have been suspended for alleged racism and Islamophobia in recent years – including one who suggested banning mosques and another who accused Muslims of being on a “quest to turn the world Muslim”.They are among 13 councillors identified by the Observer, drawing on research by the anti-fascist group Hope Not Hate, who have been suspended over racist comments and social media posts in the past four years before being reinstated. Continue reading...
Outdoor pianos, celebrity names and free tuition videos combine to get Britons tickling the ivories once moreFor years, it seemed like the piano was disappearing from British public life. The bulky instruments were cast out of homes and schools and offered for free online.But now – despite all the digital entertainment alternatives and conductor Simon Rattle’s stark warning last week that UK classical music was fighting for its life amid funding cuts – the piano seems to be making a 21st-century comeback in homes, on streets and online. Continue reading...
by Hayden Vernon, Nadeem Badshah and Danya Hajjaji on (#6B9DC)
MP questions police response that troll who tried to have her children removed was ‘entitled’ to call her an ‘extremist’The Labour MP Stella Creasy believes police have given online trolls “the green light to target the children of politicians” after she was subject to a baseless complaint to social services.Creasy was investigated by her local council after it received a report from a troll who was trying to have her children taken away from her. Continue reading...
by Aaron Walawalkar , Eleanor Rose and Mark Townsend on (#6B9N1)
Investigation reveals that understaffed Dover control room was overwhelmed by calls from people in trouble before 27 died at sea• Read more: UK coastguard ‘left Channel migrants adrift’On the afternoon of 3 November 2021, a woman called Hampshire police. Her brother was crossing the Channel in a small boat that day, she said via a translator. But something awful had just happened. Twenty minutes earlier he’d texted to say that smugglers had begun shoving passengers overboard. “Loads had been kicked off and were in the water”, fighting for their lives in the treacherous currents of the world’s busiest shipping lane.Police passed the details to HM Coastguard and at 4.57pm an operator flagged the incident, according to internal logs obtained by the Observer and Liberty Investigates. Continue reading...
Instead of using colour-coded system focusing on spread of virus by county the CDC will track hospitalisation ratesThe US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reportedly plans to stop tracking the spread of Covid-19 on the community level across the country, signalling what could be the federal government’s readiness to reconsider priorities in its approach to the pandemic despite the World Health Organization’s declaration that it is still ongoing.Instead of using its colour-coded Covid-19 tracking system that focuses on the spread of the virus by counties, the CDC will pivot its tracking focus mostly to hospitalisation rates, CNN first reported on Friday. Continue reading...
Health ministry gives green light for two-step treatment to end pregnancies up to nine weeksThe abortion pill is to become available in Japan for the first time after the health ministry approved a drug used to terminate early-stage pregnancies.Abortion is legal in Japan up to 22 weeks, but consent is usually required from a spouse or partner, and until now a surgical procedure had been the only option. Continue reading...
Two trusts and one children’s hospital to receive emergency nursing staff after RCN had said there would be no derogationsThe Royal College of Nurses appears to have U-turned on its decision to allow no exemptions to hospitals during this weekend’s strike action, with nurses now due to work in an emergency capacity in dozens of hospitals across England.Nurses will be working across several NHS trusts – including Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS foundation trust, in London, and University Hospitals Birmingham NHS foundation trust – in wards including intensive care and A&E. This is despite the RCN vowing when strike action was announced that exemptions would not be made for any hospitals. Continue reading...
Move is apparently designed to isolate the Royal College of Nursing, which is due to begin another strikeMinisters plan to impose a pay deal on NHS workers even as nurses continue to reject it, the Observer understands, as health service unions prepare to hold crunch talks on the package this week.Both the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) and the Unite unions continue to oppose the deal offered to NHS workers, after protracted negotiations that have led to strikes and hampered attempts to shorten waiting lists. All 12 unions involved in the talks will gather on Tuesday to vote on whether to accept an improved deal covering the last two years. Continue reading...
by Denis Campbell Health policy editor on (#6B97Z)
Health service bosses say patient safety could be at risk when nurses in England stage 28-hour stoppage from Sunday eveningAn NHS leader has urged the Royal College of Nursing to let striking nurses leave picket lines and go back to work in their hospital if emergencies occur during their strike this weekend.Matthew Taylor made the appeal as the NHS braced itself for renewed disruption to services as a result of the first strike by nurses since they rejected the government’s improved pay offer. Continue reading...
Julia Waters criticises ‘fatally destructive’ inspections and calls on school leaders to refuse to cooperate with watchdogHeadteachers should undermine Ofsted’s “culture of fear” by refusing to cooperate with the schools inspectorate or work as inspectors, the sister of headteacher Ruth Perry has told a conference of school leaders.Prof Julia Waters said her sister had been “destroyed” by Ofsted’s critical inspection of her school late last year, which downgraded it from outstanding to inadequate, and that her family had been left with an “intense, painful, overwhelming” sense of loss after her death. Continue reading...
by Zeinab Mohammed Salih in Khartoum and Ruth Michael on (#6B9DD)
Hundreds of people told to make own way through ongoing fighting to airbase north of KhartoumNHS doctors and British nationals are facing a treacherous route to reach an airbase north of Khartoum before a deadline for evacuations, amid ongoing airstrikes and artillery fire in the Sudanese capital.Hundreds of people were told to find their own way to an evacuation centre at the Wadi Seidna airbase, about 14 miles (20km) north of Khartoum and its twin city, Omdurman. They had to navigate ongoing fighting as the Sudanese Armed Forces continued to attack positions across the two cities, while members of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces hid among civilian buildings. Continue reading...
by Tobi Thomas, Zeinab Mohammed Salih and agency on (#6B98J)
Deputy PM to chair Cobra meeting on security situation in Khartoum as UK government prepares to end flightsThe deadline for British nationals to reach the evacuation airfield in Sudan has passed as the government prepares to cease flights out of the country within hours.The deputy prime minister, Oliver Dowden, will chair a Cobra meeting on Saturday afternoon to discuss the security situation in Khartoum in advance of the final flight taking off at 6pm UK time. Continue reading...
Current system gives too much power to prime ministers says broadcaster – but rules himself out of runningThe veteran broadcaster David Dimbleby has said a cross-party public commission should appoint the BBC chair, in the wake of Richard Sharp’s resignation after breaking rules over dealings with Boris Johnson – but ruled himself out of the running for the job.Sharp resigned after being found to have breached public appointment rules for failing to declare a connection to a secret £800,000 loan for the UK’s former prime minister. Continue reading...
Dismayed locals and Liberal Democrat MP Munira Wilson are calling on palace to reconsider large feesFor those living in south London, a stroll next to the colourful flowerbeds in the grounds of Hampton Court Palace was until recently a free weekend activity all could enjoy.But 18 months ago, locals were horrified to find the gates shut, as they were told they would have to pay up to £29 to visit the gardens in future. Continue reading...
Temperatures may reach 21C but heavy showers expected in Northern Ireland, Wales and central EnglandWarmer weather and sunshine are forecast across much of the UK for the bank holiday weekend, but the threat of rain remains in parts of the country.The Met Office said many people would experience dry, bright and warm conditions, with temperatures reaching 21C in southern areas. Continue reading...
Experts say it is vital to check you meet EU requirements, or you could risk losing your holidayTravellers who have not used their passport for a while were this week being urged to dig it out and check it conforms to the post-Brexit rules for entering the EU – because if it doesn’t, you will almost certainly be denied boarding this summer.Despite previous warnings in Guardian Money and some other publicity, UK travellers trying to enter the Schengen zone are being turned away on a daily basis by airline staff at boarding gates – in most cases because their UK passport was issued more than 10 years ago. Continue reading...
Food writer is backing the Big Help Out and says volunteering saved her in the past – see her quiche recipe hereRoyalists and republicans alike can enjoy a cut-price coronation quiche as the food writer and campaigner Jack Monroe has revealed her own twist on the official recipe served up by Buckingham Palace chefs.Monroe, the Boot Strap Cook, famous for her low-budget and store cupboard dishes, has dived into the Big Help Out, which is encouraging people to sign up for volunteering opportunities over the coronation weekend, to inspire the next generation of food bank, surplus food and community kitchen volunteers. Continue reading...
Brands jump on the coronation bandwagon to shower those who share a name with the royal couple with host of freebies and dealsWhat’s in a name? Well, if you’re called Charles or Camilla and you live in the UK, maybe a lot of tedious one-liners and questions about whether your parents were royalists.But with the official ascension of your namesakes to the role of king and queen comes some long overdue benefits, which may make up for the arched eyebrows when your present your ID. The boon is thanks to the opportunistic cynicism of marketing bigwigs who are trying everything in their power to cash in on next weekend’s festivities by doling out a string of freebies and deals to anyone who shares a name with the royal couple. Continue reading...
Kim Yo-jong’s broadside came after US and South Korea enhance nuclear cooperation and Biden warns Pyongyang an attack would end the regimeThe powerful sister of North Korea’s leader has said her country will stage more displays of military might in response to a new US-South Korean nuclear deterrence agreement and compared Joe Biden’s comments about it as a “nonsensical remark from the person in his dotage”.Kim Yo-jong’s broadside came after Biden attended a summit with the South Korean president, Yoon Suk-yeol, on Wednesday. The US president said later that any North Korean nuclear attack on the US or its allies would “result in the end of whatever regime” took such action. Continue reading...
Navy investigating after report emerges that documents about the workings of HMS Anson were found in a Wetherspoons pub in CumbriaThe Royal Navy is set to investigate after official documents about one of its £1.3bn “hunter killer” submarines were reportedly found in the toilets of a Wetherspoons pub.Files carrying details about the HMS Anson were left in the Furness Railway in Cumbria, the Sun reported. The documents showed the inner workings of the nuclear-powered submarine and were used by submariners learning how to isolate and depressurise elements of its system. Continue reading...
Advocates call for federal government to provide urgent funding for culturally safe legal services to prevent worsening Indigenous incarceration crisis
Colombian author’s En Agosto Now Vemos (We’ll See Each Other in August) had been just a rumour but now fans will get to read itRumours had long circulated that an entire literary masterpiece, never seen by the public, could still be lying in a dusty safe held by the late author’s family or under lock and key at his archive at the University of Texas.On Friday Penguin Random House confirmed that an unpublished Gabriel García Márquez novel – titled En Agosto Nos Vemos, (We’ll See Each Other in August) – not only exists, but will be on shelves across Latin America in 2024. Continue reading...
Tree design includes names of Commonwealth nations, and poles are made from tree from Windsor estateThe king and the queen consort will be anointed behind a specially created screen of fine embroidery, held by poles hewn from an ancient windblown Windsor oak and mounted with eagles cast in bronze and gilded in gold leaf, Buckingham Palace has announced.The anointing screen has been blessed at a special service at the Chapel Royal at St James’s Palace, and will be used at what historically has been viewed as the most sacred moment of the coronation. Continue reading...
Different reports fly around while Fox News declines to comment on the cancellation of top TV host’s showThe exact reason behind the rightwing TV host Tucker Carlson’s abrupt firing from Fox News remains unclear, days after the star’s show was suddenly cancelled.The New York Times and Wall Street Journal reported Carlson was fired after executives discovered vulgar text messages, including one in which he called a top executive the C-word. There were also concerns among Fox management that Carlson was acting as if he was above the network, the Journal reported. Continue reading...
Largest strike in decades enters 10th day with workers enjoying public support despite disruption to government servicesStriking federal workers in Canada are calling for the prime minister, Justin Trudeau, to get involved in stalled negotiations, as the largest job action in decades enters its 10th day and key government services grind to a halt.More than 100,000 employees with Canada’s largest public sector union have been on strike since last week in a battle over wages and the ability to work remotely. Continue reading...
by Dan Sabbagh and Helena Smith in Larnaca on (#6B8MK)
Government announces end to airlifts amid calls for NHS doctors without UK passports to be rescuedBritish nationals trapped in Sudan have until midday on Saturday local time to get on a flight before they stop, ministers have announced, as a doctors’ union called for NHS medics without UK passports to also be airlifted.Oliver Dowden, the deputy prime minister, said on Friday night more than 1,500 people had been flown out, and there had been a “significant decline in British nationals coming forward”, meaning it was time to end the operation. Continue reading...
Conservative party accused of undermining broadcaster by flooding it with cronies after chair’s resignationRishi Sunak is under pressure to stop appointing Conservatives to key positions at the BBC after Richard Sharp’s resignation prompted criticism the party had undermined the broadcaster by flooding it with cronies.Sharp quit as BBC chair on Friday morning after an investigation concluded he had failed to disclose key information about his relationship with the former prime minister Boris Johnson when applying for the job in 2021. Sharp helped facilitate an £800,000 loan guarantee for Johnson when he was in the running to take over the broadcaster but did not tell the appointments panel. Continue reading...
The 1599 author on the difference between historians and novelists, looking at Shakespeare differently and hitchhiking to the Edinburgh festival to immerse himself in the bard’s work• James Shapiro wins Baillie Gifford anniversary prize with ‘extraordinary’ Shakespeare biography 1599Serendipity dictated that the American writer and academic James Shapiro received the Baillie Gifford prize for nonfiction’s Winner of Winners award, given to celebrate its 25th year, at a ceremony in Edinburgh. In his teens and early 20s, Shapiro tells me as we talk over Zoom the morning after his victory, he would often hitchhike from London to the Edinburgh festival as part of his immersion in the plays of Shakespeare. This period in his life sowed the ground for his acclaimed book, 1599: A Year in the Life of William Shakespeare, first published in 2006. He was, he explains, recovering from the “awful experience” of studying the playwright in middle school; every summer for several years, he would save up enough money to come to the UK on a Freddie Laker plane, “where you could fly from New York to London for $100 round trip and sleep in church basements and for 50p see spectacular productions”.In London, Stratford and Edinburgh, he’d see 25 plays in as many days, “and they’re all tattooed inside my skull to this day. The greatest one I saw was Richard Eyre’s Hamlet at the Royal Court in 1980 or so. Richard wrote me a note this morning, and it was so moving to me because that’s where it came from, seeing productions like his.” Continue reading...
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