World news | The Guardian

Special commission of inquiry into hate crimes begins hearings after 88 men were killed between 1976 and 2000

Abuse appears to be a response to Armstrong’s criticism of Gina Rinehart for not disavowing her father’s racism towards Indigenous people

UK intelligence agencies to broaden pool of talent by accepting anyone with British citizenshipThe selection criteria for spies are, perhaps unsurprisingly, quite opaque and presumed to be fairly stringent. But there is one thing that will no longer be required of would-be British agents: British parentage.The UK’s three intelligence agencies are seeking to broaden the pool of talent they can recruit from by accepting anyone who has British citizenship – regardless of where their parents are from. Continue reading...

ASA rules that UK Facebook ad showing white officer with black prisoner showed an ‘imbalanced power dynamic’An advertising campaign run by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) featuring a white prison officer and a black prisoner has been banned for perpetuating negative stereotypes linking race with criminal activity.The Facebook ad promoting jobs at HMP Wormwood Scrubs in London featured a prison officer talking to an inmate wearing an afro comb in his hair, alongside the caption: “We’re key workers, problem solvers, life changers.” Continue reading...

Inspectorate uncovers widespread vetting failures with officers cleared to join after committing serious crimesDefective vetting and failures by police leaders have allowed a “prevalent” culture of potentially thousands of officers who are “predatory” towards women to join and stay in the ranks, a damning official report has concluded.Officers staged unwarranted stops of women in an abuse of power known as “booty patrols”, with crimes such as sexual assault covered up and ignored along with large-scale harassment of female officers and members of the public.A special constable cleared to join despite a past conviction for indecent exposure seven times over a two-week period as a juvenile, when he had masturbated at his bedroom window, coughing to attract the attention of a woman. He also had a caution for threats to commit criminal damage.A support officer cleared to join after slapping his partner in the face.A police officer allowed to join despite robbing an 80-year-old woman, who was knocked to the ground and had her handbag stolen.A police officer cleared to join despite concerns he had a theft conviction and potential criminal links.A police officer arrested twice for assaults on women who were left with marks on their necks, and witness intimidation, as well as having a historical drink-driving conviction.An officer cleared to join despite an arrest for rape while a juvenile, about 20 years earlier.An officer, who still works with vulnerable people, given a final written warning for sending extremely sexually explicit and racist messages to a female colleague. Continue reading...

New mandatory advertising taglines based on new behavioural research come alongside a rise in rates of problem gambling in online punters

Turnout for fifth general election in just four years reaches 23-year high as voters attempted to break political deadlockThe former Israeli prime minster, Benjamin Netanyahu, may have scraped a razor-thin election win with the help of new far-right allies, according to exit polls in the country’s fifth vote in four years.His Likud party is projected to win 30 or 31 seats, Israel’s public broadcaster and two private channels said when polls closed at 10pm (8pm GMT) on Tuesday. The longtime leader’s rightwing religious bloc is set to win 61 or 62 seats overall – just clinching a majority in the 120-seat Knesset. Continue reading...

Defeated president speaks after two days but fails to congratulate opponent and does not explicitly say he respects result

Exclusive: Whitehall officials have ‘war gamed’ Programme Yarrow, a blueprint for coping with outages for up to a weekThe government has “war gamed” emergency plans to cope with energy blackouts lasting up to seven days in the event of a national power outage amid growing fears over security of supply this winter.The Guardian has seen documents, marked “official sensitive”, which warn that in a “reasonable worst-case scenario” all sectors including transport, food and water supply, communications and energy could be “severely disrupted” for up to a week. Continue reading...

Allison Fluke-Ekren’s children told the court that their mother had a ‘lust for control and power’ and deserved the maximum sentenceA Kansas woman who led an all-female Islamic State battalion when she lived in Syria has been sentenced to 20 years in prison – the maximum possible sentence – after her own children denounced her in court and detailed the horrific circumstances and abuse she heaped on them.Allison Fluke-Ekren, 42, admitted that she led the Khatiba Nusaybah, a battalion in which roughly 100 women and girls – some as young as 10 years old – learned how to use automatic weapons and detonate grenades and suicide belts. Continue reading...

The civil rights activist and his wife paid the hospital bill for the birth of the actor because her parents couldn’t afford itAn astounding but little-known fact about Julia Roberts has resurfaced after her recent 55th birthday prompted a consultant to call attention to a link between the actor’s birth and revered civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr.Roberts, whose birthday was 28 October, first shared the story about the day she was born with journalist Gayle King this September in Washington DC during a HISTORYTalks live event for the History Channel. That day, she said during the talk, the activist known to many simply as MLK – as well as his fellow civil rights champion and wife Coretta Scott King – paid off the hospital bill for her birth because Roberts’s parents were poor and couldn’t afford it. Continue reading...

Rishi Sunak’s cabinet hears variation of service across NHS will be ‘particular area of focus’Health spending will not be cut in the autumn statement, the Guardian understands, but cabinet ministers have been told there would be a programme of reform for underperforming trusts.Jeremy Hunt, the chancellor and a former health secretary, has warned against complacency and said the government expects the NHS and Department of Health and Social Care to find new efficiencies. Continue reading...

Rijksmuseum to display Girl With a Flute at exhibition despite National Gallery of Art, Washington, saying it is an imitationFrom the identity of the young woman in Johannes Vermeer’s most famous painting, the Girl With a Pearl Earring, to the techniques he employed, much about the Dutch master remains a mystery.The lack of certainty about the life and works of the Sphinx of Delft, as he was known, has now injected a little controversy – and perhaps even some inter-institutional tension, albeit politely denied – ahead of what is being billed as the biggest ever exhibition of his paintings, in Amsterdams’ Rijksmuseum, next February. Continue reading...

Mette Frederiksen’s party predicted to have about 23% of vote, which could make former PM Løkke Rasmussen kingmakerPrime minister Mette Frederiksen’s Social Democrats remained the largest party after Denmark’s election, exit polls suggested, but neither the ruling left or rival right bloc were set for a majority – leaving her predecessor and his new party as kingmakers.An exit poll by public broadcaster DR on Tuesday predicted that Frederiksen, who was forced to call the vote when an allied party withdrew support, had led the Social Democrats to a score of about 23%, nearly twice that of the second-placed Liberals. Continue reading...

Inquiry found ‘significant breaches’ of policy, thought to refer to past comments made by Shaima DallaliThe National Union of Students has ousted its president after a long-running independent inquiry into allegations of antisemitism found “significant breaches” of the organisation’s policies.The allegations of misconduct are thought to centre around past comments by Shaima Dallali, in some cases dating back 10 years before her election as NUS president in March this year. Continue reading...

Budget cuts would be ‘catastrophic’, warns Max Hill, director of public prosecutions for England and WalesThe head of the Crown Prosecution Service has warned that cutting its budget would have a “catastrophic” impact on the backlog in the crown courts, which he revealed had reached almost 75,000 cases at the end of last month.Max Hill, the director of public prosecutions (DPP) for England and Wales, told the House of Commons justice committee that the backlog was above the 70,200 recorded in August 2020, after court closures because of Covid. Continue reading...

Policy to be redrawn after just 18 months but critics point to ministers’ own failures to take their security seriouslyMinisters have announced plans to redraw the UK’s national security and foreign policy plan for the 2020s just 18 months after it was published, with plans to include a new taskforce to protect parliament against the “growing threat from hostile states”.MPs were warned by security minister Tom Tugendhat that Britain had become “more vulnerable” as countries seeking to do it harm had “levelled the field” by investing time and money in new technologies. Continue reading...

Discovery of Iranian kamikaze drones last month stirred huge outcry over Iran’s involvement in the conflict

The 15- and 17-year-old both pleaded not guilty to murder and possession of a knife at Leeds crown courtTwo teenagers have denied murdering a 15-year-old boy who was stabbed outside his school gates in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire.Khayri McLean was attacked on 21 September outside North Huddersfield trust school and died later in hospital. Continue reading...

Israel should not join visa waiver scheme until it stops targeting Arab and Muslim US citizens ‘based on their ethnicity’, letter saysTwenty members of Congress have asked the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, to demand Israel end “discriminatory” travel restrictions against Palestinian Americans visiting their families in the occupied territories and US citizens critical of Israeli government policies.The letter comes as Israel is attempting to negotiate entry to the US visa waiver program, which would allow its citizens to join those of 40 other countries in traveling to the US with only online approval and without requiring an interview. Continue reading...

Bolsonaro gained support in deforested areas while municipalities with high Indigenous population voted overwhelmingly for LulaA Guardian analysis shows how votes in big cities such as São Paulo and Fortaleza were key to Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s tight victory in the second round of Brazil’s presidential election.The leftist president-elect, better known as Lula, came out on top with 50.9% of the vote, winning in 13 states in the north and north-east of the country. The rightwing incumbent, Jair Bolsonaro, with 49.1% of the vote, won the remaining 14 in the centre and south, making for a much better election than anticipated by the polls. Continue reading...

Exclusive: ‘Growth visas’ policy leak could have influenced markets and breached market abuse laws, letter to FCA arguesSuella Braverman has been referred to the financial service watchdog by Labour over claims she may have breached market abuse laws, as the home secretary also came under growing fire for her “car crash” handling of a migrant processing facility in Kent.Fresh questions were raised about the “growth visas” announcement Braverman sent to several figures outside the government that led to her sacking nearly two weeks ago, with one Conservative MP openly saying they did not “accept or trust this home secretary’s word”. Continue reading...

Roger Gale says home secretary is only really interested in playing to the right wing of the Conservative party

Use of boat drone appeared to demonstrate how effective these nimble and relatively cheap weapons can be

Wagner Group fighters linked to attack that killed at least 13 following major military operationRussian mercenaries in Mali have been accused of a new massacre of civilians following a major military operation in the centre of the unstable country.At least 13 civilians were killed on Sunday in the region of Mopti by Malian troops supported by “white soldiers”, local elected officials and an official of a community association told the Agence France-Presse. Continue reading...

Implementation of Brexit withdrawal agreement threatens rights of those with ‘pre-settled status’, watchdog arguesThe government is putting 2.6 million EU citizens at risk of detention or removal from the country by the Home Office, the high court has heard.The claim was made at a judicial review of the Home Office’s implementation of the part of the withdrawal agreement guaranteeing the rights of about 6 million EU citizens living in the country before Brexit. Continue reading...

Far-right president remains silent as supporters protest against his election defeat by Luiz Inácio Lula da SilvaBrazilian police have begun breaking up hundreds of demonstrations by far-right supporters of Jair Bolsonaro, freeing up highways and roads that were blocked across the country in protest at the president’s defeat in a landmark general election.Bolsonaro lost a tightly fought ballot to Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva but has yet to concede defeat or make any statements about the loss or transition. Continue reading...

Lamar Scott, 27, also known as Perm, and Guilherme Messias da Silva, 21, died in Brixton on SundayThe drill rapper and son of the boxer Dillian Whyte’s promoter has been named as the latest victim of a shooting in south London.Lamar Scott, 27, a drill rapper who performed under the name Perm, was shot after a car chase in Brixton, south London on Sunday. Continue reading...

Other signatories of Warner Music’s open letter, Art on Trial: Protect Black Art, include Alicia Keys, 50 Cent and Post MaloneMegan Thee Stallion, Coldplay and Future are among a group of artists and music industry figures calling for restrictions on the use of rap lyrics as criminal evidence in US court.A new open letter titled Art on Trial: Protect Black Art includes signatories such as Post Malone, Alicia Keys and 50 Cent, alongside the three major record labels, Warner, Sony and Universal, and companies such as Spotify, TikTok and YouTube Music. Continue reading...

Company under pressure after reporting £7bn profit in third quarter as Ukraine war drives up gas pricesJeremy Hunt faced renewed calls for an extension to the windfall tax on oil and gas companies as BP posted “eye-watering” profits of $8.2bn (£7bn) in the third quarter.BP’s profits have soared this year as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has pushed up wholesale gas prices. It said the performance of its gas business had been “exceptional”. Continue reading...

Review acknowledges shouting and ‘intemperate language’ but says chaotic scenes due to confusion over nature of vote

Brothers of Italy politician Galeazzo Bignami says he feels ‘profound shame’ over wearing swastika in 2005A Brothers of Italy politician who was once photographed wearing a Nazi swastika armband is among the junior ministers appointed in Giorgia Meloni’s government.Galeazzo Bignami, named undersecretary at the infrastructure ministry, caused controversy after a photograph of him wearing the armband was published by an Italian newspaper in 2016. The photo dated back to his stag party in 2005, and after it initially emerged in the press he shrugged the gesture off as “lighthearted” fun. Continue reading...

Polls and pundits have Labor winning in a canter, but strategists from both sides expect the margin to narrow as 26 November approaches

New report finds ACT has biggest shortfall in rebate claims, while research centre says concession system is far too complex to navigate

Action taken by party against former minister after it emerges he is to appear on reality TV show

Boy recorded telling guard he was told he could move from Manston holding centre more quickly if he said he was over 18

Erdoğan demands action against ‘terrorist’ Kurdish militants as Nordic pair maintain united frontThe prime ministers of Finland and Sweden have urged Hungary and Turkey to approve their countries’ applications to join Nato, but Ankara insisted it would not lift its objections without further extraditions of suspects it considers terrorists.The two Nordic nations applied to join the US-led defence alliance in May, jettisoning decades of military non-alignment in a historic policy shift triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Continue reading...

The Washington musician and queer rights activist recorded some of the first openly gay country songsPatrick Haggerty, the pioneering gay country musician who led Seattle band Lavender Country, has died aged 78. His social media channels report that the late singer and songwriter suffered a stroke earlier this year, leading to complications that caused his death.Paradise of Bachelors, the label that reissued Lavender Country’s self-titled debut album in 2014, confirmed the news on Twitter: “We are heartbroken to confirm that Patrick Haggerty, the visionary songwriter, dauntless activist, and irrepressible raconteur of Lavender Country, passed away at home early this morning, surrounded by family and friends.” Continue reading...

Death toll rises to 156, as authorities admit crowd control measures were inadequate ahead of Halloween disaster in district of ItaewonSouth Korea’s prime minister, Han Duck-soo, has called Saturday’s deadly Halloween crush in Seoul a “disastrous accident that should not have happened”, as the first memorial services were held amid growing public anger.Expressing sorrow to bereaved families, he admitted that institutional failures in managing crowds played a role in the disaster, and said the government would work with all ministries, agencies and medical institutions to ensure such problems during spontaneous events never happened again. Continue reading...

Homes of several editors of the Wire also raided after complaint about story based on falsified documentsPolice in Delhi have raided the premises of a news website known for its fierce criticism of the Indian government, over a retracted article about a politician in charge of the ruling party’s social media campaigns.Officers arrived at the homes of several editors of the Wire in the middle of the night and seized their laptops and phones. They also searched the website’s office in the capital. Continue reading...

Minister says remark referred to ‘sheer scale of the challenge’ of dealing with people arriving in small boats

Reserve Bank governor Philip Lowe says half percentage point increases to cash rate possible if economic conditions do not improve

RBA governor Philip Lowe says ‘monarch has been on at least one banknote since 1923’ but decision won’t be made until talks with Labor are complete

Unable to afford the drug, an increasing number of uninsured and Black Americans ration diabetes drugs, putting their lives at riskInsulin rights activists and those who live with diabetes are calling for meaningful action to address the high costs of insulin in the United States as a new study shows the widespread habit of rationing the life-saving medicine.Diabetes is currently the seventh-leading cause of death in the US, though a 2017 study suggests the number of Americans dying from diabetes is much higher due to diabetes frequently being overlooked in causes of death. Humans require insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas to regulate glucose in the blood, to live. Continue reading...

Video from Rolfe’s body-worn camera shows him approach wheelie bin with 14-year-old hiding inside before slamming lid and pulling bin to ground

Dominic West, who plays then Prince of Wales in new series of the drama, says his views on incident changed after filming storylineThe Crown actor Dominic West has described the infamous “tampongate” phone call between the then Prince of Wales and Camilla Parker Bowles as “two middle-aged lovers being sweet to each other”.West, who portrays Charles in the fifth series of the Netflix show, said his understanding of the saga changed after filming the storyline. Continue reading...

IPPR says cap for longer than six months would aid growth and allow more to be spent on public servicesJeremy Hunt should allow the energy price cap to run beyond the existing six-month deadline to act as a “shock absorber” that would reduce inflation and give consumers £90bn of extra spending power, a leading thinktank has argued.The left-leaning IPPR said the energy price cap could repay the exchequer in lower wage demands and lower interest rates, boosting economic growth and raising tax receipts. Continue reading...

Former prime minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen could be in the position of kingmakerMette Frederiksen’s Social Democrats are on course to win Denmark’s general election, but whether they stay in government – and she keeps her job as prime minister – could depend on a new party led by one of her predecessors.Frederiksen was forced to call Tuesday’s election when a leftist party backing her minority government withdrew support, and has said she wants “a broad coalition with parties on both sides of the political centre” to pilot the country through tough times. Continue reading...

Partnership certificates allow same-sex couples to be treated as married couples in areas like housing, health and welfareTokyo’s metropolitan government began issuing partnership certificates to same-sex couples who live and work in the capital on Tuesday, a move that’s been long-awaited in a country that still does not allow equal marriage.The status does not carry the same rights as marriage, but allows LGBTQ partners to be treated as married couples for some public services in areas such as housing, health and welfare. Continue reading...

Reserve Bank raises rates for seventh time in attempt to bring inflation under controlAustralia’s borrowers have been slugged with a record seventh rate rise from the Reserve Bank in as many months, as the central bank tries to quell the nation’s strongest burst of inflation in 32 years.The RBA on Tuesday lifted the cash rate by 25 basis points to 2.85%, the highest since early May 2013. The increase was in line with most economists’ expectations. Continue reading...