Town council in Canada at standstill over refusal to take King’s oath
The council has refused to take the oath due to the Crown’s history with Canada’s indigenous people.
Woman gets first double lung transplant done by robot
The surgical feat was performed on a New York medic who says she got her 'life back' because of the procedure.
UN chief calls for de-escalation after Russian strike on Ukraine – as it happened
UN secretary general António Guterres’s spokesperson says Russia’s use of a new ballistic missile is ‘yet another … worrying development’. This blog is now closed
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has issued a statement on X after Vladimir Putin said Russian forces had hit the Ukrainian city of Dnipro with a new experimental mid-range ballistic missile.
The Russian leader has “admitted” to taking a step “toward escalating and expanding this war” by using a new ballistic missile on Ukraine, Zelenskyy wrote.
Putin struck our city of Dnipro, one of Ukraine’s largest cities. This is a clear and severe escalation in the scale and brutality of this war — a cynical violation of the UN Charter by Russia.
Putin alone started this war—an entirely unprovoked war — and he is doing everything to prolong it, now for over a thousand days.
Continue reading...Tests for year 1 pupils in England should be dropped, headteachers urge
NAHT says early checks on phonics, arithmetic and English in primary schools are potential waste of time and funding
Primary school pupils in England should not face compulsory tests on phonics, times tables or grammar and punctuation, an influential headteachers’ union has advised the government.
The National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) told the government’s national curriculum and assessment review that there was an “urgent need” to reconsider the phonics check of reading ability, along with the multiplication check and tests of spelling, grammar and punctuation, as a potential waste of school time and funding.
Continue reading...Yvette Cooper to set out crackdown on antisocial behaviour including jail terms
Persistent offenders will face up to two years in prison under Respect orders, as police get powers to seize vehicles
People who persistently demonstrate antisocial behaviour will face up to two years in jail under Labour’s Respect orders, the home secretary will say on Friday.
Yvette Cooper will also announce that police will be given new powers to immediately seize off-road bikes, e-scooters on pavements and street-racing cars as part of the clampdown.
Continue reading...U.N. Watchdog Censures Iran Over Nuclear Program Secrecy – The New York Times
- U.N. Watchdog Censures Iran Over Nuclear Program Secrecy The New York Times
- Iran says it is activating new centrifuges after being condemned by UN nuclear watchdog CNN
- IAEA Board passes Iran resolution as West pushes Tehran towards talks Reuters
- Iran defies international pressure, increasing its stockpile of near weapons-grade uranium, UN says The Associated Press
- For second time in months, UN atomic watchdog censures Iran for failing to cooperate The Times of Israel
What are the ICC countries where Netanyahu and Gallant may face arrest?
More than 120 countries that are part of the International Criminal Court are obliged to enforce the arrest warrants.
US kayaker who faked own death thought to have fled to Europe
US police appeal for a missing man to come back home for Christmas with his family.
Brazil’s Bolsonaro and allies indicted in 2022 coup plot probe – CNN
- Brazil’s Bolsonaro and allies indicted in 2022 coup plot probe CNN
- Brazil’s former president Jair Bolsonaro charged with plotting coup d’état The Guardian
- Lula Was Target of Assassination Plot, Brazilian Police Say The New York Times
- Brazil police accuse Bolsonaro and ex-ministers of 2022 coup plot Reuters Canada
- Brazilian Police Accuse Former President Bolsonaro of Plotting Coup The Wall Street Journal
Russia gives N Korea million barrels of oil, breaking sanctions: report
Satellite image analysis shows several North Korean tankers visiting Russia dozens of times since March.
All to know about Man Utd’s manager Ruben Amorim before first EPL match
Al Jazeera takes a closer look at Portuguese coach as he takes charge of his first Manchester United match on Sunday.
Brazil police formally accuse Bolsonaro of alleged coup plot
Former President Bolsonaro says he will mount a legal "fight" against the accusations.
Can Colombia’s talks with the Comuneros del Sur help achieve ‘total peace’?
Government talks with armed groups have stalled. Experts say a smaller-scale ‘territorial’ approach might be the answer.
Those who try to emulate Teflon Trump often come unstuck – just ask Gaetz
The fall of the Florida congressman who was accused of sexual misconduct proves there is one rule for Trump and another for everyone else
When he ran for US president in 2016, Donald Trump boasted that he would “surround myself only with the best and most serious people”, adding: “We want top-of-the-line professionals.”
Second time around, Trump appears to have quality control issues. On Thursday Matt Gaetz, his pick to be attorney general, withdrew from consideration amid allegations including sexual misconduct with a 17-year-old girl, drug use and misappropriating campaign funds.
Continue reading...More than 40 killed in north-west Pakistan in gun attack on Shia convoy
Violence in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa follows killing of dozens of people in clashes between Sunnis and minority Shias
At least 42 people have been killed and 20 wounded after gunmen opened fire on vehicles carrying Shia Muslims in Pakistan’s restive north-west, in one of the region’s deadliest such attacks in recent years, police said.
The attack happened in Kurram, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province where sectarian clashes between majority Sunni Muslims and minority Shias have killed dozens of people in recent months.
Continue reading...How US politicians responded to Netanyahu’s ICC arrest warrant
Biden administration 'fundamentally rejects' decision as lawmakers issue threats and call for sanctions against court.
Matt Gaetz withdraws from consideration to be Trump’s attorney general
Gaetz’s withdrawal comes amid intense scrutiny of allegations of sexual misconduct against cabinet nominee
Matt Gaetz, the former Florida congressman, withdrew from consideration to serve as Donald Trump’s attorney general on Thursday, amid intense scrutiny of allegations of sexual misconduct, ending the brief nomination of one of Trump’s most controversial cabinet picks.
After meeting with senators on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, Gaetz determined that his nomination was “becoming a distraction to the critical work” of the new Trump administration, he explained on X.
Continue reading...In Gaza Organized Gangs Make a Bad Situation Even Worse – NPR
- In Gaza Organized Gangs Make a Bad Situation Even Worse NPR
- Israel stands by as aid convoys come under attack in Gaza CBS News
- Gangs looting Gaza aid operate in areas under Israeli control, aid groups say The Washington Post
- How was a UN aid convoy robbed near Israeli military positions? Al Jazeera English
- UNRWA Situation Report #148 on the Humanitarian Crisis in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem unrwa
Judge denies he was asked to give advice about Letby because he is a Freemason
Simon Medland KC told inquiry his membership of organisation was not the reason he was approached by hospital boss
A judge has denied he was asked to give legal advice to hospital bosses over concerns about nurse Lucy Letby because he is a Freemason, a public inquiry has heard.
The Thirlwall inquiry into events surrounding the crimes of Letby heard that both Judge Simon Medland KC and the Countess of Chester’s former director of corporate and legal services, Stephen Cross, are members of the organisation.
Continue reading...What are the implications of US’s UN Security Council veto, ICC warrants?
The United States vetoed a resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza at the United Nations Security Council.