Highest red alert issued in Shanghai as meteorological autumn does not give way to cooler temperature in FranceTyphoon Muifa made landfall in eastern China on Wednesday evening, shortly after affecting Japan in previous days, arriving as a Category 2 storm and billed as the strongest on record to hit Shanghai, China’s largest city.China’s central meteorological observatory issued its first highest typhoon red alert of the year. The tropical system brought sustained winds of 95mph, a threat of up to 200mm of rainfall and waves in excess of five metres. Continue reading...
by Fiona Harvey Environment correspondent on (#63PBW)
Charity says 19 million people facing starvation in report highlighting link with extreme weatherExtreme hunger is closely linked to the climate crisis, with many areas of the world most affected by extreme weather experiencing severe food shortages, research has shown.The development charity Oxfam examined 10 of the world’s worst climate hotspots, afflicted by drought, floods, severe storms and other extreme weather, and found their rates of extreme hunger had more than doubled in the past six years. Continue reading...
by Maya Yang (now); Vivian Ho, Martin Belam and Micha on (#63N6F)
Ursula von der Leyen tells EU member states it is the responsibility of all of them to ensure Ukraine can defend itselfRail services will resume between Kharkiv and Balakliia in Kharkiv oblast on Thursday, the Kyiv Independent reports, based on a Telegram post from Ukrainian Railways. Workers have already repaired bridges and dozens of damaged tracks after Balakliia was liberated on 8 September.Ukrainian forces shot down four Russian planes in the past 24 hours, the Kyiv Independent reports, based on an update from the General Staff of the Ukrainian armed forces. The update said three Russian Su-25 and one Su-24m were shot down while operating over Ukrainian territory, while the Russian forces’ primary tactic continued to be the targeting of civilian settlements, 30 of which were fired at with artillery, missiles, or a combination of both. Continue reading...
Wang Qishan to be at service despite banning of Conservative MPs due to complaints about Chinese repressionThe Chinese vice-president, Wang Qishan, is to attend the Queen’s funeral in a move that has prompted complaints from a group of British Conservative MPs that have been banned from travelling to China due to their campaigns against Chinese repression.Wang will be the most senior Asian political leader to attend the service at Westminster Abbey and among the representatives of authoritarian states, a grouping that also includes Abdel Fatah al-Sisi, the president of Egypt. The Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, is expected to lead a delegation to London, although his attendance at the funeral has not yet been confirmed. Continue reading...
The rapper has been sentenced to 15 days of community service as well as being instructed to pay court fees to her victimsCardi B has pleaded guilty to assault charges related to a fight at a New York strip club in 2018.The rapper was set to go to trial this week but accepted a plea deal which avoids prison time. It results in her being charged with third degree assault and second degree reckless endangerment while 10 other charges were dismissed. Continue reading...
Zelenskiy meets Von der Leyen in Kyiv as Russia steps up attacks on power and utilities providersRussia hit the Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih with cruise missiles again on Thursday, after a devastating strike the day before destroyed a reservoir dam and caused extensive flooding.The latest attack on the home city of Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, caused serious damage. Two missiles struck the same reservoir hit on Wednesday, which was being repaired, Kryvyi Rih’s military administrator, Oleksander Vilkul, said. He urged residents to stay in shelters. Continue reading...
Announcement expected of editor John Witherow’s departure and his deputy’s promotionTony Gallagher is being lined up as the new editor of the Times, according to sources at the newspaper, with its current boss, John Witherow, expected to leave the outlet.Witherow, 70, has been in charge of the newspaper since 2013 but has spent much of the last year off work due to illness. During this period, Gallagher, his deputy editor, has effectively been running the Rupert Murdoch-owned title. Continue reading...
Case continues into 2017 death in Bath of Celia Marsh, who had a severe allergy to cow’s milkThe founder of a company that made what was meant to be dairy-free yoghurt used in a Pret a Manger “vegan” wrap has tearfully told an inquest she had no idea a “secret ingredient” contained traces of milk protein.Bethany Eaton, the managing director of Planet Coconut, said she accepted the bags the ingredient arrived in stipulated that it was manufactured in a factory that also handled milk but believed it would have been made in a separate allergen-free area. Continue reading...
This live blog has now closed, you can read more on this story hereIn its response to the legal proceedings launched by the EU over the Northern Ireland protocol (see 11.54am), the UK government has said that it has unilaterally decided to continue suspending border checks on farm produce and other goods entering NI from Great Britain, my colleague Lisa O’Carroll reports.The European Union is considering its next steps after receiving the UK’s response to legal threats over the failure to comply with the post-Brexit Northern Ireland protocol, PA Media reports. PA says:Despite politics as normal being paused while the nation mourns the Queen’s death, the government responded to the action ahead of today’s deadline.The bloc had requested a response to its raft of infringement proceedings over the UK’s failure to comply with the rules before the end of the day. Continue reading...
by Gwyn Topham Transport correspondent on (#63NRR)
Flights will be halted for half an hour so aircraft noise does not disrupt two minutes’ silenceFlights to and from Heathrow will be halted for half an hour on Monday to ensure the two minutes’ silence at the end of Queen Elizabeth’s funeral is not disrupted by aircraft noise over London.Britain’s main airport will also halt arrivals in the early afternoon to avoid planes coming in to land over the west of the capital during the procession of the Queen’s hearse, and stop take-offs later to not disturb the ceremonial procession to Windsor.11.40am–12.10pm: no take-offs or landings from Heathrow, around the two-minute silence at the end of Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral.1.45–2.20pm: no arrivals to support the procession of the Queen’s hearse.3.05–4.45pm: no departures.4.45–9pm: reduced departure rate during the service. Continue reading...
Prince Edward and Sophie chat to crowds in Manchester, as Princess Anne views condolence book in GlasgowCrowds broke out into appreciative applause as Princess Anne visited Glasgow and Prince Edward travelled to Manchester to view floral tributes and books of condolence.In a sunny Manchester, Edward and his wife, Sophie, the Earl and Countess of Wessex, charmed the crowds of people who had gathered in St Ann’s Square, many only just finding out that the visit was being made. Continue reading...
MEPs back resolution stating country led by Viktor Orbán has become ‘hybrid regime of electoral autocracy’Hungary can no longer be considered a full democracy, the European parliament has said in a powerful symbolic vote against Viktor Orbán’s government.In a resolution backed by 81% of MEPs present to vote, the parliament stated that Hungary had become a “hybrid regime of electoral autocracy”, citing a breakdown in democracy, fundamental rights and the rule of law. Continue reading...
by Donna Ferguson, Jedidajah Otte and Guardian reader on (#63NNY)
Events are disrupted and coverage of the Queen’s death continues to dominate the media. Nine readers share thoughts on the days leading up to her funeralThe UK is in the middle of a period of national mourning following the death of Queen Elizabeth II.The day of the Queen’s state funeral, Monday 19 September, has been declared a bank holiday and schools and offices will close. Continue reading...
Books and other belongings of 19th-century PM on show during festival at Hawarden estate in north WalesThe room reveals itself gradually as the visitor lingers. The books, the papers and carefully ordered desks tell of a hard-working statesman with a thirst for knowledge and a deep love of culture.But it is in the personal objects and features that a warmer side of the man emerges: the axes in the fireplace that he used for chopping wood as he cleared his mind; a hedgehog paperweight, the prominence of which must mean it has long-forgotten value; pencil marks on the wall recording the heights of his children as they grew. Continue reading...
Mourners wears favourite colour of nine-year-old, killed when gunman burst into Liverpool homeHundreds of people have gathered in Liverpool to pay their respects at the funeral nine-year-old Olivia Pratt-Korbel, a girl “loved and adored by everyone”, who was shot dead in her own home.Family, friends and many members of the community wore black and various shades of pink – Olivia’s favourite colour – as they paid tribute to Olivia, who was killed when a masked gunman burst into her home in the Dovecot area of Liverpool on 22 August. Continue reading...
Chancellor to bring in winter tax cuts and announce further energy support at end of mourning periodKwasi Kwarteng will deliver his emergency mini-budget to bring in winter tax cuts for millions of people and set out more detail on energy support next Friday, according to sources.Although normal politics has been paralysed by the death of the Queen, the chancellor and his team have been putting the final touches to the budget with the aim of announcing it once the country emerges from national mourning. Continue reading...
by Martin Pengelly in New York and agencies on (#63NE1)
Announcement in early hours comes a day before deadline for deal as freight strike threatened widespread disruptionA tentative agreement has been reached to avert a freight rail strike that could have disrupted commuter rail services across the US, Joe Biden said on Thursday.A strike would also have dealt a major blow to Democrats two months before midterm elections in which they will try to keep control of the Senate and the House. Continue reading...
Giorgia Meloni’s Brothers of Italy draw on a vein of fascism in a country that – unlike Germany – has never had to confront its pastA hundred years after the rise of Italian fascism was heralded by Mussolini’s 1922 march on Rome, the country is on the verge of electing a party with its roots in neo-fascism.With just over a week to go until polling day, the smiling face of Giorgia Meloni, the leader of the Brothers of Italy, is emblazoned on thousands of posters from the heel in the south to the Alps in the north. Continue reading...
The former school principal was abducted during a medical mission in Bukina Faso in a case that drew international attentionA Catholic nun from New Orleans who was kidnapped while working in western Africa, contracted malaria as she was held for nearly five months and was ultimately freed, said reciting prayers helped her survive her ordeal.“Prayer sustained me,” Suellen Tennyson, 83 and a former principal of a Catholic elementary school, told the in-house newspaper of the New Orleans archdiocese. “That was the thing that kept me going because I had nothing.” Continue reading...
NGOs want investigation into border counter-terrorism operation that allegedly ended up bombing suspected smugglersTwo international NGOs have asked French prosecutors and the UN to investigate the French state’s involvement in Egypt allegedly committing crimes against humanity in a secret military operation on the Egyptian-Libyan border.A 2021 leak appeared to show how French officers complained they were being asked to facilitate Egyptian airstrikes, codenamed Operation Sirli, on the Egyptian-Libyan border, even though the original counter-terrorism purpose had been subverted by the Egyptian military into taking out vehicles containing nothing more than contraband. Dozens are estimated to have been killed or injured. Continue reading...
by Presented by John Harris with Rafael Behr and Soni on (#63N41)
It’s been a week of wall-to-wall coverage of the death of Queen Elizabeth II. Meanwhile anti-monarchy protesters have been arrested, food banks closed and hospital appointments cancelled in her honour. The Guardian’s John Harris is joined by the Observer’s Sonia Sodha and Guardian columnist Rafael Behr to look at what this all tells us about the UK’s media, the monarchy and democracy. Continue reading...
Loose coalition of far-right Sweden Democrats and centre-right parties wins majority of three in parliamentThe leader of Sweden’s incumbent Social Democrats has resigned as prime minister after conceding defeat in the country’s knife-edge election, handing victory to a loose bloc of rightwing parties that includes the far-right Sweden Democrats (SD).The PM, Magdalena Andersson, called a press conference at which she accepted defeat, while pointing out that her Social Democrats remained Sweden’s largest party with more than 30% of the vote – and that the majority in parliament for the right bloc was very slim. Continue reading...
Police in Auckland request extradition of 42-year-old woman to face two charges of murderA 42-year-old woman has been arrested in South Korea for the alleged murder of two children whose bodies were discovered in suitcases bought at an auction in New Zealand.South Korean authorities arrested the woman today on a Korean arrest warrant for two charges of murder.A previous version of this story said the woman had been arrested in Seoul. Korean police said on Thursday that she was arrested in the southern city of Ulsan. Continue reading...
by Nadeem Badshah (now); Christy Cooney , Léonie Cha on (#63KTG)
Thousands queue on streets of London to file past Queen after procession from Buckingham PalaceGuardian columnist Andy Beckett has written today about how there is no single “national mood” in the aftermath of the Queen’s death, in a country where support for the monarchy has fallen significantly over the last decade.The idea that the whole country is mourning the Queen and welcoming her successor is a fiction: energetically disseminated, seductive for many in a time of division, but a fiction nonetheless. There is no single ‘national mood’ about the royal family, and there never has been, whatever most journalists and politicians say. Instead there is an assortment of feelings, even right outside Buckingham Palace.But over the longer term, the reign of her more divisive, less historically resonant son may cause that surge to fade, and the decline in royal popularity to resume, even accelerate. With Charles, known for his impatience with staff and extravagant lifestyle, the sense of entitlement, which is as fundamental to the royal family as a sense of duty, is more obvious.The poorer country that the UK is likely to become over the next few years may also be less tolerant of one of the world’s most lavish monarchies. The Queen’s old-fashioned, relatively plain public persona, and the length of her reign – to an extent, she continued to be judged by rather deferential, mid-20th century standards – means that modern Britain’s appetite for a less self-effacing ruler has not yet been tested. Continue reading...
by Emily Dugan, Emine Sinmaz, Matthew Weaver and Gene on (#63MSQ)
People travel from across the country to see procession from Buckingham Palace and attend lying-in-state at Westminster HallJoyce Dawson, 54, from Middlesbrough, was watching the news on Tuesday night when she decided to make her first ever visit to London to see the Queen lying in state.“I texted my daughter and said: ‘We have to go to London tonight,’” she said. “It was a spur of the moment thing.” Continue reading...