Kyiv hit by barrage of drone strikes as Putin rejects Trump’s truce bid
Almost every district in the capital sustained damage after Russia fired a record 550 drones, Ukraine says.
‘It’s Groundhog Day’: Ukraine’s sky defenders stuck in relentless battle
Under fire of 100 drones a night, there's little talk of a ceasefire in the front-line city of Sumy.
Russia’s friends: Taliban and Pyongyang in, Azerbaijan and Armenia out – Euronews.com
- Russia's friends: Taliban and Pyongyang in, Azerbaijan and Armenia out Euronews.com
- Russia becomes first state to recognise Afghanistan's Taliban government BBC
- Taliban praise Russia’s ‘brave decision’ to recognise their rule in Afghanistan The Guardian
- Experts: Russia Recognizing Taliban Rule in Afghanistan Largely a Symbolic Move The Moscow Times
- Russia becomes first nation to recognize Taliban government of Afghanistan since 2021 takeover CNN
Egypt says Ethiopia’s completed power-generating dam lacks a legally binding agreement – AP News
- Egypt says Ethiopia’s completed power-generating dam lacks a legally binding agreement AP News
- Gerd: Ethiopia has finished building mega-dam, Abiy Ahmed says BBC
- Ethiopia’s PM Abiy Ahmed says mega dam GERD on the Nile ‘now complete’ Al Jazeera
- GERD Inauguration Scheduled For September 2025 The Reporter Ethiopia
- Ethiopia completes controversial Nile dam, escalating dispute with Egypt France 24
Review body refuses to refer Jeremy Bamber case back to court of appeal
CCRC says the four grounds his lawyers argue undermine safety of conviction for 1985 murders fail to meet threshold
The Criminal Cases Review Commission has refused to refer the case of Jeremy Bamber, who was convicted of murdering five members of his family in 1985, back to the court of appeal.
The CCRC, whose chair Helen Pitcher resigned in January and whose chief executive resigned this week after successive justice secretaries declared the miscarriage of justice review body unfit for purpose, has spent four years examining just four of the 10 grounds Bamber’s lawyers identified as undermining the safety of his conviction. It will continue to examine the other six.
Continue reading...Exclusive: EU to offer five options over Israeli human rights breaches – Euronews.com
- Exclusive: EU to offer five options over Israeli human rights breaches Euronews.com
- From sanctions to embargo: The options Europe is considering against Israel Ynetnews
- Gaza war and Trump tariffs on EU agenda This WEEK EUobserver
- Prime Minister Golob expects EU action against Israel for human rights violations European Newsroom
- EU to propose options paper on Israel over Gaza next week Euractiv
Creative Australia chief executive facing mounting pressure to resign after Khaled Sabsabi controversy
Senior arts figure says board and CEO ‘didn’t seem to understand or at least trust the power and complexity of the visual arts’
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Creative Australia chief executive Adrian Collette is facing mounting pressure to resign after the body’s decision to reinstate Khaled Sabsabi as Australia’s 2026 Venice Biennale representative.
Senior arts figures have also criticised the Creative Australia board, as a former chair of the selection panel for the biennale said the board and Collette did not “understand or at least trust the power and complexity of the visual arts”.
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Continue reading...Trump has ‘good conversation’ with Zelenskyy after heavy bombardment of Ukraine by Russia
US munitions slated for Ukraine held up over shortage as Trump ‘disappointed’ by Putin’s refusal to make concessions
Donald Trump spoke with Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, on Friday as the US president appears increasingly disheartened over his chances of fulfilling a campaign pledge to end the war between Russia and Ukraine.
The call with Zelenskyy comes as Washington has halted its latest shipment of military aid to Ukraine including Patriot air defense missiles and other crucial munitions meant to support the country’s defenses.
Continue reading...Namibia halts all state funerals amid criticism of the high cost
There will be no state funerals until April 2026 - unless the president decides to make an exception.
Oasis in row with photo agencies over pictures from reunion shows
Exclusive: Band’s management tell agencies and publishers they can only use shots of first gig in Cardiff for a year
A row has broken out over restrictions imposed on how newspapers, magazines, TV broadcasters and digital publishers can use pictures taken at Oasis reunion gigs, as the band prepare to play the first night of what is expected to be the most profitable tour in UK history.
Photo agencies and publishers have been told they can use shots of the first concert, which takes place in Cardiff on Friday, for one year and then the rights revert back to the band and management.
Continue reading...Mourners gather in Portugal for Diogo Jota’s wake as Salah and Robertson pay tribute
Mourners gathered on Friday morning to honour Liverpool footballer Diogo Jota at a wake in Portugal
Mourners have gathered at a wake in Portugal to commemorate Diogo Jota and his brother, André Silva, following their deaths in a car accident.
Jota and his 25-year-old sibling died when the Lamborghini they were travelling in careered off a road in north-western Spain in the early hours of Thursday. The bodies of the two professional footballers were returned to Portugal later that day. Jota was 28 and had married his long-term partner, Rute Cardoso, 11 days before his death. They had three young children.
Continue reading...Ukraine accuses Putin of humiliating Trump with devastating attack on Kyiv
Russia launches record number of drones and ballistic missiles in seven-hour assault shortly after its leader spoke to US president
Ukraine has accused Vladimir Putin of “publicly humiliating” Donald Trump after Russia launched a devastating attack with a record number of drones and ballistic missiles on Kyiv, hours after the two leaders spoke by phone.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the seven-hour raid as a “deliberate act of terror” which “immediately followed the call between Washington and Moscow”. It was one of the most severe assaults of the entire war and a “clear interpretation of how Moscow interprets diplomacy”, he added.
Continue reading...A ceasefire in Gaza appears to be close. Here’s why it could happen now
A weakened Hamas plus Israel’s war with Iran have given Netanyahu a boost, raising hopes of a pause in fighting
After nearly 21 months of bloody war, it now appears a question of when rather than if a new ceasefire brings a pause to the fighting that has devastated Gaza, destabilised the region and horrified onlookers across the world.
On Friday, Donald Trump said he expected Hamas to agree within 24 hours to a deal that Israel has already accepted. Analysts predict a formal announcement after Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, arrives in Washington on Monday on his third visit to the White House since Trump began his current term.
Continue reading...El Salvador’s president denies that Kilmar Ábrego García was abused in notorious prison
Nayib Bukele disputed claims of Ábrego García’s lawyers that he was tortured and deprived of sleep while in custody
The president of El Salvador has denied claims that Kilmar Ábrego García was subjected to beatings and deprivation while he was held in the country before being returned to the US to face human-smuggling charges.
Nayib Bukele said in a social media post that Ábrego García, the Salvadorian national who was wrongly extradited from the US to El Salvador in March before being returned in June, “wasn’t tortured, nor did he lose weight”.
Continue reading...Israel’s strike on Gaza cafe killed Hamas operative – but dozens more died
The attack raises more questions over whether Israel’s use of force is proportionate, as required by international law.
Israel’s strike on bustling Gaza cafe killed a Hamas operative – but dozens more people were killed
The attack raises more questions over whether Israel’s use of force is proportionate, as required by international law.
Fictional K-pop bands beat BTS and Blackpink in US charts
Songs from the film KPop Demon Hunter have surpassed the success of real-life K-pop bands BTS and Blackpink.
Jeremy Corbyn says ‘discussions are ongoing’ after Zarah Sultana claimed she would ‘co-lead new party’ with him – as it happened
This blog is now closed, you can read more on this story here
My colleague Lauren Almeida, who is running the Guardian’s business live blog, has shared the following:
Rachel Reeves has not given herself enough fiscal headroom to manage public finances, Charlie Bean, the former deputy of the Bank of England has said, and has to “neurotically fine tune taxes”.
About £10bn – that’s a very small number in the context of overall public spending. Government spending is about one and a quarter trillion so £10bn is a small number … and it is a small number in the context of typical forecasting errors.
You can’t forecast the future perfectly both because you can’t forecast the economy and you can’t forecast all the elements of public finances …. The forecasts are imprecise and there is no way you can avoid that. That is a fact of life.
In light of reports of atrocities committed by the Israeli government in Gaza and reports of the UK’s collaboration with Israeli military operations, it is increasingly urgent to confirm whether the UK has contributed to any violations of international humanitarian law through economic or political cooperation with the Israeli government since October 2023, including the sale, supply or use of weapons, surveillance aircraft and Royal Air Force bases.
Continue reading...Hamas says it delivered ‘positive response’ on US Gaza ceasefire plan
The group says it is ready to begin negotiations immediately, as Donald Trump says there can possibly be a deal next week.
BBC on French beach as police slash migrant ‘taxi-boat’ heading to UK
Watch video of French police destroying a boat in the English Channel in a rare and unusual intervention, which police have made clear is not a new tactic.