Jaysley Beck inquest prompts flood of testimonies of abuse in UK military

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Ministry of Defence says lessons learned from death will make military safer, but victims and families say they have heard it all before

A soldier left suicidal after complaints about a senior officer were ignored. Two women told they needed to grow up or their heads would be banged together after they complained about sexual harassment by their major. A servicewoman raped and left with post-traumatic stress disorder while her attacker was given a slap on the wrist.

Online army forums have been flooded this week with testimonies of abuse – and the military’s failure to tackle it – sparked by the inquest into the death of 19-year-old gunner Jaysley Beck. The head of the army, Gen Sir Roly Walker, has expressed his disgust and suggested senior ranks may even be “actively complicit” in abusive behaviour. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has promised that lessons will be learned.

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Exclusive: Russia could concede $300 billion in frozen assets as part of Ukraine war settlement, sources say – Reuters

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  1. Exclusive: Russia could concede $300 billion in frozen assets as part of Ukraine war settlement, sources say  Reuters
  2. Risch has long supported Ukraine. Silence on Trump’s betrayal is abetting its fall | Opinion  Idaho Statesman
  3. Tusk calls for EU to confiscate Russian assets to finance Ukraine  Euronews
  4. Russia may offer frozen assets for Ukraine's reconstruction, demand funds for occupied territories, Reuters reports  Kyiv Independent
  5. Russia May Tap $300B in Frozen Assets to Rebuild Ukraine – With a Catch  Kyiv Post
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Anthony Albanese under pressure on salmon farming from both conservationists and industry

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The future of Tasmanian salmon farms has become a political issue centred on whether they can coexist with the endangered Maugean skate

Anthony Albanese is caught in a pincer movement over a pre-election pledge that he will protect salmon farming in Tasmania’s Macquarie Harbour, with conservationists and industry leaders both urging him to rethink the commitment.

The future of salmon farming in the harbour on the state’s west coast has become a sharp political issue centred on whether it can coexist with the endangered Maugean skate, an endemic ray-like species that has survived since the age of the dinosaurs.

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‘This could have all been avoided’: how Creative Australia allowed itself to be blind-sided over its Venice Biennale pick

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High-profile artists and curators stunned by Creative Australia’s swift abandonment of Khaled Sabsabi, the art community, and the complex nature of art itself

A week after Creative Australia controversially dumped artist Khaled Sabsabi as Australia’s representative for the 2026 Venice Biennale, Richard Bell still can’t understand the decision.

The Kamilaroi, Kooma, Jiman and Gurang Gurang artist has a long history with the Venice Biennale and Australia’s peak arts funding body – in 2019, he crashed the prestigious showcase after being passed over to officially represent Australia. He’s shocked that Creative Australia would allow itself to be blind-sided by criticism of Sabsabi’s past work, and its refusal to answer predictable attacks with a nuanced conversation.

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Albanese’s appearance on Abbie Chatfield’s podcast was a calculated move in a tight ‘influencer election’

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The real clincher in a tight election may be a few votes shifted here and there through chat about wedding plans and favourite TV shows

“I understand people have issues with Anthony Albanese and the Labor government,” podcast host and influencer Abbie Chatfield tells her hundreds of thousands of listeners at the top of a 90-minute interview with the prime minister.

One of the most popular podcasters in the country, the Sydney-based media personality and former Bachelor reality TV star is a gateway to the eardrums and Instagram feeds of young Australian women.

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Mass firings hamstring federal land agencies and wildfire response

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Concerns are mounting that depleting already thinned ranks will only hamper extreme weather response efforts

Federal agencies that play crucial roles in administering conservation, recreation and resource development across roughly than 640m acres of the nation’s public lands were thrust into a state of chaos this week after the Trump administration fired thousands of federal workers, leaving key operational gaps in its wake.

The agencies are also on the frontline of mitigating the escalating effects from the climate crisis and concerns are mounting that the depletion of already thinned ranks will only hamper efforts to respond and recover from extreme weather events.

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Share of €500,000 jackpot offered to men who bought scratchcard with stolen credit card

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Winnings as yet unclaimed by thieves in Toulouse who bought scratchcard amid legal debate over who gets payout

Two homeless men who bought a winning lottery scratchcard with a stolen credit card have been offered a potentially lifechanging deal by their victim: a share of the €500,000 jackpot if they can produce the ticket.

The situation has left legal experts scratching their heads over who is the rightful owner of the so far unclaimed winnings: the person who bought the scratchcard, or the person who paid for it? And will the lottery operator pay out?

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BBC pulls Gaza documentary featuring child whose father was Hamas minister

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Show removed from iPlayer as ‘further due diligence’ carried out and critics ask if any Hamas members were paid for filming

A BBC documentary about Gaza has been pulled from its iPlayer service while the broadcaster deals with intensifying accusations that the film was biased because it failed to make clear the father of its child narrator was a Hamas deputy minister.

BBC sources indicated the intention was to make the documentary available to watch again once a “due diligence” exercise had taken place, but the decision reflects a frustration that the filmmakers did not inform the broadcaster of the situation before transmission.

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Sweden investigates suspected sabotage of undersea telecoms cable – BBC.com

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  1. Sweden investigates suspected sabotage of undersea telecoms cable  BBC.com
  2. Europe Vows to Step Up Baltic Sea Security After a New Cable Break  The New York Times
  3. Video: Map shows extent of deep-sea cables, powering your internet  CNN
  4. Putin’s secret weapon: The threat to the UK lurking on our sea beds  BBC
  5. EU to spend nearly a billion euros to protect undersea cables  Reuters
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As Russia Talks Peace, Moscow Threatens New Ukraine Region – The New York Times

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  1. As Russia Talks Peace, Moscow Threatens New Ukraine Region  The New York Times
  2. Russian forces push south of Pokrovsk, approaching previously untouched Dnipropetrovsk Oblast  Euromaidan Press
  3. Residents Flee Villages In Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk Region As Front Line Approaches  Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty
  4. The Russians try to break through to Dnipropetrovsk region border - Ukrainian soldier reports  ТСН English
  5. Russian troops advance, closing in on new Ukrainian province as peace talks get underway  Báo Hải Dương
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First Thing: Shiri Bibas not among bodies returned from Gaza, Israel says

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Benjamin Netanyahu accuses Hamas of a ‘serious violation’ and vows it will pay. Plus, Germans share their concerns about the far right’s rise before this weekend’s election

Good morning.

Shiri Bibas is not among the four bodies returned by Hamas to Israel during Thursday’s hostage handover, Israel’s military has said, calling it a “violation of utmost severity” of the already fragile ceasefire agreement.

What impact could this have? It risks upending the precarious truce. Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would “ensure Hamas pays the full price” for the ceasefire violation.

Have the bodies of hostages been released before? No, Thursday’s release was the first time Hamas has returned the remains of dead hostages.

What did the unions state in their lawsuit? That White House efforts to purge the federal workforce violated separation-of-powers principles by undermining Congress’s authority to fund federal agencies.

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