Taliban order all Afghan women to cover their faces in public

Decree forces male relatives to police law by making them liable to fines or prison for breaches

The Taliban have ordered all women to cover their faces in public in Afghanistan, the latest sweeping restriction by a government that has taken away women’s right to travel long distances alone, work outside healthcare or education, and receive a secondary education.

In a cruel twist, the decree makes women’s relatives and employers the enforcers. If their faces are seen in public, their male “guardian” will be fined, then jailed. If the woman who goes out uncovered or her relative work for the government, they must be fired.

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Macron hails ‘democratic renaissance’ as he is sworn in for second term

French president promises inclusive education system, accessible health service and stronger military at Elysée Palace ceremony

Emmanuel Macron said that his reelection marked a “fundamental democratic renaissance” as he was sworn in for a second term of office as president of France at a ceremony at the Elysée Palace.

Macron, who defeated his far right rival, Marine Le Pen, in the second round vote two weeks ago, entered on Saturday to the strains of Handel played by the Garde Républicaine’s string quartet and listened as the official results were read.

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Sinn Féin celebrates victory but DUP warns over Northern Ireland protocol

DUP will refuse to join new administration until UK government addresses post-Brexit trade border deal

Sinn Féin was celebrating a historic victory in the Stormont assembly election on Saturday despite warnings from the Democratic Unionist party that it would block the formation of a new power-sharing executive until the Northern Ireland protocol was changed.

As counting resumed ahead of the allocation of final seats, it was clear that Sinn Féin, with 29% first preference votes, had overtaken the DUP, which won 21.3%. It meant the all-Ireland republican party would be entitled to nominate its deputy leader, Michelle O’Neill, as the Northern Ireland’s first nationalist first minister.

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Indian climber dies in summit bid on Mount Kanchenjunga

The 52-year-old man collapsed in the final stages of climbing the world’s third highest mountain

An Indian climber died has during a summit push on Mount Kanchenjunga, the world’s third highest mountain, an official said.

The death is the third to be reported on Nepal Himalayas during the current climbing season which started in March.

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US intelligence told to keep quiet over role in Ukraine military triumphs

CIA veterans advise successors against ‘unwise’ intelligence boasts that could trigger escalation from Russia

Former US intelligence officers are advising their successors currently in office to shut up and stop boasting about their role in Ukraine’s military successes.

Two stories surfaced in as many days in the American press this week, citing unnamed officials as saying that US intelligence was instrumental in the targeting of Russian generals on the battlefield and in the sinking of the Moskva flagship cruiser on the Black Sea.

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From India’s highs to Thailand’s lows, Asia’s weather is hitting extremes

Analysis: As the heatwave in India and Pakistan starts to intensify again, Thailand and China are recording strangely cold May days

The final days of April saw further unbearable temperatures recorded in India and Pakistan. Temperatures peaked at 49C in Jacobabad, Pakistan on 30 April, with a high of 47.2C observed in Banda, India. The Indian Meteorological Department confirmed that average temperatures in April were the highest for northern and central parts of the country since records began over 100 years ago.

Heatwaves are a common occurrence at this time of year in India and Pakistan, but scientists believe the intensity, duration and arrival time of the conditions witnessed so far this year are caused by rising global temperatures. Despite a slight respite in the extreme heat over the past few days, temperatures are set to intensify once more this weekend and into next week with maximum temperatures expected to approach 50C in parts of north-west India and Pakistan.

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‘Record after record’: Brazil’s Amazon deforestation hits April high, nearly double previous peak

Climate analysts are astounded by such a high reading during the rainy season, and is the third monthly record this year

Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon surged to record levels for the month of April, nearly doubling the area of forest removed in that month last year – the previous April record – preliminary government data has shown, alarming environmental campaigners.

In the first 29 days of April, deforestation in the region totalled 1,012.5 square km (390 square miles), according to data from national space research agency Inpe on Friday. The agency, which has compiled the monthly data series since 2015/2016, will report data for the final day of April next week.

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Marjorie Taylor Greene is qualified to run for re-election, Georgia official says

Secretary of state Brad Raffensperger accepts judge’s findings and says far-right congresswoman, a Trump ally, is eligible to run

The Georgia secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, has accepted a judge’s findings and said the far-right Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene is qualified to run for re-election.

A group of voters filed a challenge saying Greene should be barred under a seldom-invoked provision of the 14th amendment concerning insurrection, over her links to the January 6 attack on the US Capitol by supporters of Donald Trump.

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Havana explosion: 26 killed and 74 treated in hospital after hotel blast

Cuban president Miguel Díaz-Canel says explosion at Hotel Saratoga appears to have been caused by a gas leak

At least 26 people have been killed and a further 74 have been treated in hospital after a powerful explosion tore the façade from a hotel in the Cuban capital, sending plumes of dust into the air and leaving rubble strewn across the street in the historic centre of Havana.

Speaking at the scene soon afterwards, the Cuban president, Miguel Díaz-Canel, ruled out a bomb and said the blast at the Hotel Saratoga appeared to have been caused by a gas leak.

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Russia summons UK ambassador over new sanctions on media outlets

Russian foreign ministry says it will continue to react ‘harshly and decisively’ to all sanctions imposed by London

The British ambassador to Moscow, Deborah Bronnert, has been summoned to the Russian foreign ministry to be warned over new UK sanctions imposed on Russian media outlets, in a move seen as likely to presage reprisals on British press operations in Russia.

In a statement late on Friday, the ministry said Russia would continue react “harshly and decisively” to all sanctions imposed by London.

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What happened in the Russia-Ukraine war this week? Catch up with the must-read news and analysis

Evacuees share horror of months in Avozstal steelworks bunker; why Putin’s shift to the east could lengthen the war; and tattoos of Ukraine resistance

Every week we wrap up the must-reads from our coverage of the Ukraine war, from news and features to analysis, visual guides and opinion.

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Evacuation operations continue from Mariupol with 40 civilians rescued on Friday – as it happened

This blog has now closed. You can find our latest coverage of the Russia-Ukraine war in our new live blog

Russia’s defence ministry said that its missiles destroyed a large ammunition depot in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk.

Reuters reports it also said its air defences shot down two Ukrainian warplanes, an Su-25 and a MiG-29, in the eastern Luhansk region.

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New York judge’s son who stormed US Capitol gets prison sentence

Aaron Mostofsky sentenced to eight months in prison and a year under federal supervision with 200 hours of community service

A New York state judge’s son who dressed like a caveman and helped a pro-Donald Trump mob storm the US Capitol has received a prison sentence for his role in the 6 January 2021 attack.

Aaron Mostofsky, 35, must spend eight months in prison – and after his release, he must spend a year under federal supervision while also performing 200 hours of community service, a US district court judge in Washington DC ruled Friday.

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Sri Lankan president calls second state of emergency in five weeks

Police disperse students with teargas and water cannon as national strike over economic crisis takes place

Sri Lanka’s president has declared a state of emergency for the second time in five weeks, giving security forces sweeping powers as a nationwide strike demanding his resignation brought the country to standstill.

A spokesperson for Gotabaya Rajapaksa said he invoked the tough laws to “ensure public order” after shops closed and public transport was halted on Friday by unions blaming him for the unprecedented economic crisis, which has ignited weeks of unrest.

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Man charged with wife’s murder wins Republican town primary from jail

Andrew Wilhoite, 40, of Lebanon, Indiana, accused of killing Nikki Wilhoite with flower pot and dumping her body in nearby creek

A central Indiana man accused of murdering his wife and dumping her body in a creek in March has won a Republican primary election for township board in the state – from jail.

Andrew Wilhoite, 40, of Lebanon received 60 of the 276 total votes on Tuesday for Republicans for three positions on the Clinton township board, Boone county election results showed.

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Ukraine’s wheat harvest may fall by 35%, raising fears of global shortage

Satellite imagery ‘illustrates spectre of rising food prices and hunger’ due to invasion of world’s sixth-largest wheat exporter

Wheat production in Ukraine is likely to be at least a third lower than in normal years, according to analysis of satellite images of the country.

Ukraine is one of the world’s biggest exporters of wheat, but the war is taking a toll on the country’s agriculture and food supplies, sparking fears of shortages or higher prices around the world.

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Trump sought strike on top Iran military figure for political reasons – Esper book

Robert O’Brien told top general shortly before 2020 election that Trump wanted to kill unnamed official, according to Esper memoir

Shortly before the 2020 election, Donald Trump’s national security adviser, Robert O’Brien, “stunned” the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff by saying the president wanted to kill a senior Iranian military officer operating outside the Islamic Republic.

“This was a really bad idea with very big consequences,” Mark Esper, Trump’s second and last secretary of defense, writes in his new memoir, adding that Gen Mark Milley suspected O’Brien saw the strike purely in terms of Trump’s political interests.

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US shared location of cruiser Moskva with Ukraine prior to sinking

Sinking of the flagship of Russia’s Black Sea fleet was seen as a high-profile loss for its military

US officials have said they shared information about the location of the Russian warship Moskva with Ukraine prior to its sinking last month, a fresh demonstration of the close intelligence support Kyiv is receiving from Washington.

It is unclear how far the US intelligence helped Ukraine launch an accurate double missile strike on the Moskva, and the US officials briefing the information insisted the targeting decision was a matter for the Ukrainians alone.

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Filipino inquiry finds big polluters ‘morally and legally liable’ for climate damage

Report on effects of Typhoon Haiyan says fossil and cement firms engaged in ‘wilful obfuscation’ of science

The world’s most polluting companies have a moral and legal obligation to address the harms of climate change because of their role in spreading misinformation, according to an inquiry brought about by Filipino typhoon survivors.

Experts say the long-awaited report published on Friday, which concludes that coal, oil, mining and cement firms engaged in “wilful obfuscation” of climate science and obstructed efforts towards a global transition to clean energy, could add fuel to climate lawsuits around the world.

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Ukraine’s entry is favourite to win Eurovision song contest

Kalush Orchestra say they ‘represent every Ukrainian’ and song Stefania has become an anthem in the country

War-torn Ukraine is the favourite to win next week’s Eurovision song contest, which is being hosted by Italy for the first time in more than 30 years.

Kalush Orchestra, a band that blends traditional folk and hip-hop, is competing in the event with the song Stefania, which has become an anthem at home.

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