Rotherham abuse survivors welcome police climbdown over internal inquiry

South Yorkshire police will no longer lead investigation into alleged crimes of former officers after move caused outcry

Lawyers representing victims of sexual abuse in Rotherham have welcomed a climbdown that means South Yorkshire police will no longer lead an investigation into alleged crimes of former officers.

The force came under fire last month after it emerged that it was to lead an investigation into the actions of its own officers, to be overseen by the police watchdog, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

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Kristi Noem responds to South Park’s crude takedown of her in episode targeting Ice

Cartoon series highlighted homeland security chief’s repeated animal killings and poked fun at her looks

South Park’s recent satirical depiction of Kristi Noem as having undergone a defective cosmetic procedure and shooting dogs has rankled the US homeland security secretary, she said in a new interview.

“It’s so lazy to just constantly make fun of women for how they look,” Noem remarked on Thursday’s episode of the Glenn Beck Program podcast – a little more than a year after her disclosure in a memoir that she shot and killed her family’s dog on a farm.

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Madrid cultural diversity festival ban is ideological, its organisers claim

Kúpula se Mueve, which celebrates African and Latin culture, has been held without problems since 2013

Madrid city council has banned a festival celebrating cultural diversity, claiming that it may lead to public disorder and complaints about noise from residents.

The Kúpula se Mueve (Kúpula Moves) festival has been held without incident since 2013. Josias Ndanga, president of the association, insists the claims are an excuse, saying: “We’re convinced we’re being discriminated against on ideological grounds.”

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Putin calls Xi, Modi and other foreign leaders ahead of planned meeting with Trump – Reuters

  1. Putin calls Xi, Modi and other foreign leaders ahead of planned meeting with Trump  Reuters
  2. Putin Briefs Leaders of China and India on Talks With U.S. on Ukraine  The New York Times
  3. Putin flexes India, China ties ahead of planned Trump meeting  The Hill
  4. China welcomes new US-Russia contact as Trump seeks end to Ukraine war  Al Jazeera
  5. Putin keeps Xi in loop on Trump summit but little hope for Ukraine ceasefire  South China Morning Post
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Keir Starmer condemns Israel’s plan to take over Gaza City – BBC

  1. Keir Starmer condemns Israel's plan to take over Gaza City  BBC
  2. Live updates: World leaders criticize Israel’s plan to take over Gaza City  CNN
  3. Israel rejects international criticism of Gaza City takeover plan  BBC
  4. Israel’s plan to take over Gaza City stirs fears for civilians and hostages  AP News
  5. Even some Republicans are questioning Netanyahu's plan to have Israel occupy Gaza City  Axios
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In major shift, Germany suspends arms exports to Israel over Gaza City takeover plan – The Times of Israel

  1. In major shift, Germany suspends arms exports to Israel over Gaza City takeover plan  The Times of Israel
  2. As Gaza faces starvation, reluctant Germany starts to curb support for Israel  Reuters
  3. Germany Says It Will Suspend Military Exports to Israel for Use in Gaza  The New York Times
  4. Germany imposes partial arms embargo on Israel over Gaza City occupation plan  Axios
  5. 'We'll beg for the Iron Dome’: Germany’s Merz faces backlash over Israel arms embargo  Ynetnews
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India’s Modi Invites Russia’s Putin to Visit Amid US Tensions – Bloomberg.com

  1. India’s Modi Invites Russia’s Putin to Visit Amid US Tensions  Bloomberg.com
  2. Modi vows to "deepen partnership" with Putin after Trump's tariffs  Axios
  3. India’s Modi shares ‘good call’ with ‘my friend’ Putin after Trump tariffs  The Hill
  4. PM Modi, Putin Talk On Phone On Deepening Ties Amid Trump Tariff Row  NDTV
  5. Putin to visit India at the end of 2025, Ifax reports  Reuters
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Vance says UK and US have ‘disagreements’ over Gaza, as he confirms Trump does not back Palestinian state recognition – as it happened

David Lammy is hosting the US vice-president at Chevening, his grace-and-favour residence in Kent, where they will discuss the Middle East

The SNP is calling for the recall of parliament so that MPs can approve sanctions against Benjamin Netanyahu in the light of his decision to extend the occupation of Gaza. In a statement Stephen Flynn, the SNP leader at Westminster, said:

A genocide is happening before our eyes in Gaza. Words of condemnation aren’t anywhere near enough - if we have any hope of stopping this genocide strong actions are desperately needed, now.

That means Keir Starmer needs to recall Westminster and take concrete steps to sanction the Israeli government.

Those sanctions must include ending all arms sales to the Israeli military, stopping all training, logistical and military support to the IDF, directly and personally sanctioning Netanyahu and his ministers and finally and immediately recognising the state of Palestine before it is brutally wiped off the map.

If the international community fails to act - we are consciously and complicitly standing idly by - allowing Benjamin Netanyahu to plan, implement and inflict an ongoing genocide in Gaza.

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Three more victims of 9/11 terrorist attacks identified in New York City

Barbara Keating, Ryan Fitzgerald and an unnamed woman were identified by DNA testing nearly 24 years after attacks

Advances in DNA testing have allowed forensic scientists to identify three more victims of the terrorist attacks in New York City on 11 September 2001, authorities in Manhattan have confirmed.

The development brings to 1,653 the number of individuals who have been positively identified from the 2,753 who died after al-Qaida terrorists flew two hijacked commercial aircraft into the twin towers of the World Trade Center on that morning.

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Eight bat researchers mostly from Asia and Africa refused entry into Australia to attend global scientific event

Organisers say move will damage nation’s scientific standing as government refuses to comment on why group of scientists were refused entry

Organisers of an international research conference have criticised a last-minute Australian government decision to deny visas to eight invited researchers, mostly from Asia and Africa.

Prof Justin Welbergen, chair of the 20th International Bat Research Conference in Cairns, said the decision to deny the researchers entry without option to appeal had disrupted the event, which is a key forum for global collaboration on bat research and conservation.

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Timetables, tricky tickets and high prices: the problems with European cross-border rail travel

For all the fanfare over new routes, fast and efficient rail services between major cities remain a rarity

At 9.55am every day since December, a German ICE high-speed train has left the Gare de l’Est in Paris headed, via Strasbourg, Karlsruhe and Frankfurt, for Berlin Hauptbahnhof, where – all being well – it pulls in just over eight hours later.

Remarkably, the service is the first direct, high-speed, centre-to-centre rail link between the capitals of the EU’s two biggest countries. Run by Deutsche Bahn (DB) and France’s SNCF, it has been hailed as a milestone in European train travel.

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‘Freeze’ in Ukraine war may be close, says Tusk, as US and Russia plan talks

Polish PM makes remarks after speaking with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, amid White House efforts to end the conflict

A “freeze” in the war in Ukraine may be close, the Polish prime minister said on Friday, as the White House and the Kremlin push forward with discussions for a high-level summit between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in the coming days.

Donald Tusk’s remarks came after he spoke with the Ukrainian leader, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who has communicated with Trump and European leaders in recent days as the White House continues to try to broker an end to the three-and-a-half-year war.

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Bidding battle for NHS landlord Assura intensifies as watchdog steps up investigation

US suitor KKR lobbies board to accept offer to take Assura private as CMA looks into £1.79bn offer by rival UK investor

The bidding battle for the NHS landlord Assura has heated up after its US suitor KKR lobbied the board to accept its offer, while the competition watchdog stepped up its investigation of Assura’s £1.7bn takeover by a rival UK healthcare investor.

Primary Health Properties (PHP), which invests in buildings housing GP practices, has been blocked from fully integrating Assura by the Competition and Markets Authority while it looks into the takeover.

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River Island gets green light for rescue that saves more than 4,000 jobs

Restructure by family-owned fashion chain involves 33 store closures but leaves more than 1,000 jobs at risk

River Island has got the green light for a rescue restructure that saves more than 4,000 jobs but will shut 33 of the clothing chain’s 230 stores as people shift to buying online.

The plan to reduce costs, which still puts more than 1,000 jobs and a further 70 sites at risk, won approval from a high court judge on Friday after a majority of creditors gave their backing earlier in the week.

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New Tariff on ‘Transshipped’ Goods Mystifies Importers – The New York Times

  1. New Tariff on ‘Transshipped’ Goods Mystifies Importers  The New York Times
  2. Tougher transshipment penalties on US imports not immediate: Report  Al Jazeera
  3. Why a Product’s Country of Origin Matters in Trump’s Trade War  Bloomberg.com
  4. Trump's threatened 40% tariff on 'transshipped' goods tries to target China and its manufacturing strength  Fortune
  5. Chinese manufacturers rethink south-east Asia pivot after Donald Trump’s tariffs  Financial Times
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Kyiv holds farewell for journalist tortured, killed in Russian captivity – The Kyiv Independent

  1. Kyiv holds farewell for journalist tortured, killed in Russian captivity  The Kyiv Independent
  2. Ukrainian journalist who died in Russian captivity buried in Kyiv  The Guardian
  3. Questions Remain As Kyiv Holds Ceremony For Journalist Tortured Before Dying In Russian Detention  Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
  4. Ukraine buries reporter who died in Russian captivity, urges release of others  Reuters
  5. Russia Killed Ukrainian Journalist Viktoriia Roshchyna, Yet Her Memory Lives On  UNITED24 Media
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