Group of 40 trapped underground for 72 hours with rescue efforts hampered by boulder falls and machinery faults
Fears are mounting for 40 construction workers in India who have been stuck in a collapsed tunnel for more than 72 hours, as rescue efforts are hampered by fresh debris and those inside begin reporting illness.
The road tunnel, which was under construction in the mountainous state of Uttarakhand, collapsed in the early hours of Sunday after a landslide.
Continue reading...In today’s newsletter: Attack on alleged Hamas command centre beneath hospital is a key test for Israel’s military and its ability to protect civilians
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Good morning. In the last few hours, Israeli soldiers have stormed Gaza’s Al-Shifa hospital. Israel says that the raid, which is still underway, is a “precise and targeted operation against Hamas”, which it accuses of operating a command centre beneath the medical facility, a claim Hamas denies.
The attack at al-Shifa is militarily significant – but it is also taking place in the arena of an unfolding humanitarian catastrophe that has drawn huge global attention, with conditions rapidly deteriorating on the site since the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) surrounded it last week. And so whether Israel is able to carry out the pinpoint attack it has promised is likely to be a critical test of the international community’s view of its conduct of the war.
Conservatives | Suella Braverman has launched an astonishing attack on Rishi Sunak the day after he sacked her as home secretary, claiming he had “betrayed” the country by failing to deliver on secret promises he made her last year. Braverman indicated she will spearhead a Tory rebellion over the government’s Rwanda asylum plan, which faces a crucial legal test on Wednesday.
Cyprus confidential | Chelsea FC is facing questions over how its former owner Roman Abramovich funded the club’s success, after leaked files revealed a string of secret payments that may have breached football’s strict “financial fair play” rules. The disclosures are part of an international investigation into a cache of 3.6m leaked offshore records in Cyprus.
Cost of living | The UK inflation rate has dropped to 4.6%, down from 6.7% in September, it has just been announced. That is an even larger fall than was expected. Head to the business live blog for more.
Ukraine | The Ukrainian president’s chief of staff has said for the first time that Ukraine’s forces in the Kherson region have a foothold on the eastern bank of the Dnipro river, potentially opening a new line of attack towards Crimea. Andriy Yermak claimed that the advance was part of a developing counteroffensive.
Health | A vaccine to protect against chickenpox should become a routine childhood jab in the UK, government advisers have said, adding that it would not only reduce the number of children who become sick from the virus, but also cut the number of cases that can become fatal.
Continue reading...Announcement fuels hope rivals can use Apec summit as a chance to reduce tensions
China and the US have pledged to work together more closely to fight global heating, declaring the climate crisis “one of the greatest challenges of our time”, hours before a key meeting in San Francisco between Joe Biden and Xi Jinping.
The announcement further fuels hopes that the two nations can mend relations after years of turmoil over issues including trade, human rights and the future of Taiwan.
Continue reading...The blog is now closed, but read about the House vote here:
Donald Trump’s disdain for Letitia James, the New York attorney general who brought a $250m fraud case against the former president, and Arthur Engoron, the judge adjudicating it, is pretty well known. Trump was fined twice last month for breaching a gag order.
On Tuesday, Trump ramped up the rhetoric further, promoting a post on his Truth Social network calling for a citizen’s arrest of the pair “for blatant election interference and harassment”.
Continue reading...Annual competition inundated with a record number of votes after comedian took the Australasian crested grebe under his wing
New Zealand has crowned a bird that grunts, pukes and has a highly unusual repertoire of mating rituals as its bird of the century.
The threatened Australasian crested grebe, or pūteketeke, was thrown into the global spotlight by a powerful backer, British-American comedian and talkshow host John Oliver.
Continue reading...Research in 21 countries suggests a growing ‘a la carte’ approach where states ‘mix and match’ partners on different issues
As the US and Chinese presidents meet on Wednesday in high-stakes diplomacy intended to reduce tensions between the world’s two superpowers, a survey of 21 countries shows that geopolitical alliances no longer fit a “west v the rest” frame.
Many in the west think it is in decline, many outside it want China to be more active in their economies and believe Russia will win its war against Ukraine, and many beyond Europe reckon the EU will not last another 20 years, according to the research, which concludes that global relations are becoming increasingly “a la carte”.
Continue reading...Oleksandr Dubinsky accused of spreading disinformation about Ukrainian interference in US politics while in pay of Russian intelligence
Ukrainian authorities have arrested a controversial MP who was at the heart of efforts by Rudy Giuliani to dig up compromising material about Joe Biden, and placed him in pre-trial detention.
Oleksandr Dubinsky, 42, is accused of collusion with Russia and of spreading “fake” information about Ukraine’s political and military leadership, in particular related to his claims about supposed Ukrainian interference in US political processes.
Continue reading...Setback for challengers who say Trump should be barred from presidential run under ‘insurrection’ clause of 14th amendment
Donald Trump can appear on the ballot for the Republican primary in Michigan, a state judge ruled on Tuesday, a setback to challengers who argue he is constitutionally disqualified from being president because of his actions on 6 January 2021.
The lawsuit is one of several that left-leaning groups have filed across the country arguing that section 3 of the 14th amendment bars Trump from holding office. The provision says anyone who takes an oath to the United States and then engages in “insurrection” or “rebellion” against the nation cannot hold office unless Congress votes by two-thirds majority to allow them. The measure was adopted after the civil war and has not been tested.
Continue reading...Bethany Alhaidari granted permission to defy custody order because of serious risk of death if she returned to Saudi Arabia
A US court has ruled that an American activist who fled Saudi Arabia with her daughter in 2019 will be allowed to defy a Saudi custody order and remain in the country with her child because she would face a serious risk of being put to death if she returned to the kingdom.
The case represents the first time that Saudi rules governing child custody and its use of the death penalty against female activists have faced judgment in a US court.
Continue reading...Queer activists protest after first non-binary magistrate in nation Jesús Ociel Baena and partner found dead in home
Against the bland, beige backdrop of Mexico’s electoral courtrooms, Jesús Ociel Baena was radiant. The non-binary magistrate paired a shirt and tie with colorful skirts, high heels and bright red lipstick. In the heat of Aguascalientes state, Baena, who used they/their pronouns, would theatrically brandish a rainbow fan to cool down.
Proudly out in the courtroom, the classroom and on social media, Baena was a beacon for Mexico’s queer population, and their death this week has sent shock waves through an embattled community.
Continue reading...Government appears to withdraw from past assertion by Boris Johnson amid shift to more pointed criticism of Israeli campaign in Gaza
The British government appears to have withdrawn an assertion made by the former prime minister, Boris Johnson, that the international criminal court has no jurisdiction in Israel, amid a wider western shift to more pointed criticism of the way Israel is conducting its campaign to remove Hamas from Gaza.
In a statement to MPs on Tuesday, the Foreign Office minister, Andrew Mitchell, said: “It is not for ministers to seek to state where the ICC has jurisdiction; that is for the chief prosecutor. The chief prosecutor has not been silent on this matter, and I am sure he will continue to express his views.”
Continue reading...Another 200,000 people flee northern Gaza as fighting rages around territory’s biggest health facility
Palestinians trapped inside Gaza’s biggest hospital are digging mass graves, with no means of keeping corpses from decomposing due to Israel’s siege, an official there says.
“We are planning to bury them today in a mass grave inside al-Shifa medical complex,” said a health ministry spokesperson, Ashraf al-Qidra. “The men are digging right now as we speak.”
Continue reading...Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s chief of staff says Ukraine’s forces established on Dnipro’s east bank in Kherson region. This live blog is closed
Here are some of images from the wires of leaders at a meeting of EU foreign and defence ministers at the European Council in Brussels today.
The head of Russia’s state nuclear energy company, Rosatom, said on Tuesday that it had agreed a timetable for the construction of two new reactors at the Paks-2 nuclear plant in Hungary, Reuters reports.
Continue reading...Under deal, China will go after chemical companies to halt flow of fentanyl while US will lift restrictions on forensic police institute
Joe Biden and Xi Jinping are set to announce an agreement for China to crack down on the manufacture and export of fentanyl, the primary culprit in a synthetic drug epidemic blamed as the leading killer of Americans between 18 and 49.
Bloomberg reported that under the deal – which the US and Chinese presidents are still finalizing – China would go after chemical companies to halt the flow of fentanyl and the source material used to make it.
Continue reading...In-development film comes after controversy around the re-creation of late stars’ voices, such as Anthony Bourdain
Sixty years after her death, Édith Piaf’s voice will be re-created using AI to narrate her biopic.
As reported by Variety, Warner Music Group (WMG) has partnered with the Piaf estate to produce the feature-length film Edith. Artificial intelligence has been trained to replicate Piaf’s voice by feeding it hundreds of voice clips, with WMG promising the resultant re-creation will “further enhance the authenticity and emotional impact of her story”.
Continue reading...Rain and cold will lead to further increase in waterborne diseases, bacterial infections and diarrhoea in children, says WHO
The winter rains have finally arrived in Gaza, bringing new challenges for the besieged exclave’s 2.3 million people who have already suffered through six weeks of war between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
After a warm and dry autumn, a Mediterranean thunderstorm broke across the 25-mile by 7-mile (41km x 12km) strip early on Tuesday morning. The rain washed away the grey rubble dust from airstrikes that clings to buildings in every neighbourhood, and dispersed the smoke and fire from the most recent overnight bombings. Water consumption in Gaza has fallen by 90% since the conflict started, according to the latest data from the UN, and many families rushed outside to enjoy the respite from the unseasonable humidity.
Continue reading...Officials confirm ‘lifelong advocate for peace’ Vivian Silver, 74, killed after initial reports suggested she had been taken hostage
Vivian Silver, a Canadian-born activist who spent decades working to foster peace between Israelis and Palestinians, has been confirmed killed after initial reports suggested she had been kidnapped during the 7 October Hamas attacks.
In a statement on Tuesday, Idit Shamir, Toronto’s Israeli consul general, confirmed the 74-year-old had been killed by Hamas during the assault on Kibbutz Be’eri in southern Israel.
Continue reading...The longtime chief of Positif film magazine started working there in 1968, and was a passionate advocate of cinema until his death
Michel Ciment, the celebrated French film critic and longtime editor of Positif magazine, has died aged 85. The magazine reported the news on social media, describing him as Positif’s “master architect” after a 60-year career.
Born in Paris in 1938, Ciment fell in love with cinema as a student, and joined Positif in 1968, becoming editorial director in 1973; he said he admired Positif over Cahiers du Cinéma because the magazine was “left wing” and influenced by surrealism. Ciment published a string of books about prominent film directors, including Kazan by Kazan (1973), Conversations with Losey (1979) and Stanley Kubrick (1980).
Continue reading...Biggest ever leak of financial data from Cyprus raises concerns over EU state’s role in managing Russian fortunes
Cyprus has vowed to tighten controls on its financial sector as an investigation published by the Guardian and its reporting partners reveals oligarchs transferred hundreds of millions in assets while sanctions loomed after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The role of the blue-chip accountants PwC Cyprus and other advisers in managing transactions as Vladimir Putin’s forces launched their assault has emerged from Cyprus Confidential, a cache of 3.6m files leaked by an anonymous source to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and Germany’s Paper Trail Media, which shared access with the Guardian and other reporting partners.
Continue reading...PP says clemency offer for separatists demands similar action to that taken over rule-of-law concerns elsewhere in the bloc
Spain’s conservative People’s party (PP) has urged the EU to weigh in on the controversial Catalan amnesty law tabled by the ruling socialists, claiming it demands the kind of action the bloc has previously taken when concerns over the rule of law have arisen in Poland, Hungary and Romania.
The Spanish Socialist Workers’ party (PSOE), which was narrowly beaten by the PP in July’s inconclusive general election, agreed to the amnesty after the two main Catalan pro-independence parties made it a condition for supporting the formation of a new, socialist-led government with the support of a majority in parliament.
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