Labour must not rubber-stamp torture policy, say campaigners

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Policy review of intelligence-sharing with foreign countries risks leaving ‘very serious flaws’, say NGOs and MPs

Labour has been accused of rubber-stamping torture policy it criticised while in opposition for enabling UK complicity in serious human rights abuses overseas.

The policies regulating British support for foreign security and intelligence services were blamed for facilitating injustices in cases such as those of Jagtar Singh Johal and Ali Kololo, and it was hoped Labour would strengthen them in government.

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Doctor criticises ‘lightweight’ assessment of impact of assisted dying

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Palliative care consultant says insufficient consideration given to how disadvantaged communities may be affected

Ministers have not adequately considered how assisted dying would affect disadvantaged communities, a palliative care doctor and clinical academic has said.

Bradford-based Jamilla Hussain said the equality impact assessment for the assisted dying bill was “lightweight”, and her own research had highlighted concerns that had not been reflected in the document.

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Foreign office supporting British woman after reports of drug-smuggling arrest in Sri Lanka

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Former cabin crew member Charlotte May Lee, 21, reportedly accused of trying to bring 46kg of cannabis strain kush into country

UK officials have said they are supporting a British woman arrested in Sri Lanka amid reports a former cabin crew member has been accused of smuggling cannabis into the South Asian country.

MailOnline and the Sun reported that Charlotte May Lee, 21, from Coulsdon, south London, was detained at the main airport in the country’s capital, Colombo, on Monday after arriving on a flight from Bangkok.

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World leaders descend on Rome for Pope Leo’s inauguration – politico.eu

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  1. World leaders descend on Rome for Pope Leo’s inauguration  politico.eu
  2. Pope Leo Snubs JD Vance After Inaugural Mass  The Daily Beast
  3. Pope Leo, Taking Helm of a Divided Church, Urges Unity  The New York Times
  4. JD Vance's Vatican visits center his Catholicism in his vice presidency  NBC News
  5. Pope Leo XIV calls for unity and 'missionary spirit' during inaugural mass at Vatican  ABC News
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Gaza ceasefire talks continue as Israel carries out fresh wave of strikes

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Netanyahu signals openness to deal but lays out conditions while territory’s hospitals ‘overwhelmed’ with casualties

Ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas have been continuing in Qatar for a second day as Israeli warplanes and artillery launched a fresh wave of strikes across Gaza, killing at least 130 people, according to health officials in the Palestinian territory.

The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, signalled on Sunday that Israel was open to a deal with Hamas that would include “ending the fighting” in Gaza, but laid out conditions that have been repeatedly refused by the militant Islamist organisation.

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Dramatic dip in baby hospitalizations for RSV linked to vaccine and treatment

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But older children, who had no access to the shots, had higher rates this winter compared with last

New vaccines and treatments are linked to a dramatic decline in RSV hospitalizations for babies, according to a new study from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

This past winter was the first RSV season with widespread availability of a vaccine given during pregnancy and a monoclonal antibody treatment given in the first eight months of life to prevent RSV (respiratory syncytial virus).

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Hamas leader Muhammad Sinwar’s body said found in Gaza tunnel hit by IDF last week – The Times of Israel

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  1. Hamas leader Muhammad Sinwar’s body said found in Gaza tunnel hit by IDF last week  The Times of Israel
  2. LIVE: Israeli forces kill 151 in Gaza, lay siege to Indonesian Hospital  Al Jazeera
  3. Militant’s Death Would Be Blow to Hamas, but May Have Limited Long-Term Consequences  The New York Times
  4. Report: Mohammed Sinwar's Body Found In Tunnel Near Rafah Crossing  i24NEWS
  5. If Mohammed Sinwar is gone, why not replace Hamas in Gaza? - analysis  The Jerusalem Post
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‘We will pay a huge price’: Ukraine fears war could drag on for years

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Kyiv officials believe Moscow is not interested in peace despite talks in Istanbul and Trump’s intervention

Ukrainian officials believe a largely stalemated war of attrition with Russia is likely to continue for several more years, despite international efforts pushed by Donald Trump to end the fighting.

After the inconclusive breakup of the first direct talks between Kyiv and Moscow in Istanbul on Friday, and despite the US president’s planned calls with Russia’s Vladimir Putin and Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy, they see no evidence that Moscow is serious about peace.

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