Former French president handed 5-year prison term over Gaddafi money – The Washington Post

  1. Former French president handed 5-year prison term over Gaddafi money  The Washington Post
  2. Nicolas Sarkozy sentenced to five years in Libya campaign financing case  BBC
  3. Sarkozy Guilty of Conspiracy to Use Libyan Money for 2007 Campaign  The New York Times
  4. Former French President Sarkozy handed 5-year jail term in stunning downfall  CNBC
  5. Sarkozy’s spectacular downfall marks turning point in France’s struggle against graft  The Guardian
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News live: Marles ‘confident’ about future of US relationship; Australian doctor joins Gaza flotilla

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Parents need boost to lift flagging vaccination rate

Parents need practical strategies such as easier access to appointments and bulk-billing to help reverse a concerning decline in childhood vaccination rates, research has found.

The top barriers were mostly around ability to get appointments easily, being able to prioritise their child’s vaccination over all of the other things that they have to get done, the cost of getting their child vaccinated.

We now know that that will be on the 20th of October. The point here is that they had spoken a number of times by phone. The relationship is conducted at many, many levels. It is going well.

We’ve got the lowest tariff rate. Aukus is happening at a pace. And so we’re really confident … about the progress of our relationship with the US.

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White low-income pupils ‘report lowest enthusiasm for school’ in England

Boys and girls in demographic start secondary school with weakest levels of engagement, research finds

White pupils from low-income families in England start secondary school with far lower levels of enthusiasm or effort than other ethnic groups, according to new research that may partly explain differences in academic results and behaviour.

Both girls and boys from lower-income white families reported weak levels of engagement from year 7 onwards. Girls were less likely to enjoy being at school while the boys made less effort with their school work.

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UK government backs return of international rail travel to Kent stations

Ashford and Ebbsfleet have been shut to cross-Channel services since 2020, with Eurostar calling them unviable

Hopes that international rail services could return to UK stations abandoned by Eurostar have grown, with the government backing new competitors who plan to serve stops in Kent.

Ministers have been leaning on the rail regulator to give crucial space on the railway to prospective entrants who pledge to bring cross-Channel services back to Ashford and Ebbsfleet stations – and possibly London’s Stratford International.

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Fighter jets purchase would put UK in breach of nuclear treaty, says CND

Legal opinion for campaign group says deal amounts to reversal of UK’s commitment to nuclear disarmament

Britain will violate its nuclear disarmament obligations if Labour presses ahead with the £1bn purchase of 12 F-35A fighter jets, according to a specialist legal opinion prepared on behalf of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND).

Two international lawyers argue that the government’s plan to reintroduce air-launched nuclear weapons for the RAF will break a key provision of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT) signed by the UK and 190 other countries.

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Former FBI director James Comey indicted for making false statement to Congress and obstruction of justice

Indictment comes after Trump instructed US attorney general to prosecute Comey and others he considers political foes

James Comey, the former FBI director and one of Donald Trump’s most frequent targets, was indicted on Thursday on one count of making a false statement to Congress and one count of obstruction of justice, according to a person familiar with the matter, in the latest move in the president’s expansive retribution campaign against his political adversaries.

“No one is above the law. Today’s indictment reflects this Department of Justice’s commitment to holding those who abuse positions of power accountable for misleading the American people. We will follow the facts in this case,” Pam Bondi, the US attorney general, tweeted on Thursday.

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Civilian injuries in Gaza similar to those of soldiers in war zones, study finds

Wounds such as burns or leg injuries more common in Gaza than among US soldiers who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan

Civilians in Gaza have sustained injuries of a type and on a scale more usually seen among professional soldiers involved in intense combat operations, research has found.

A study published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) found that some types of wounds – such as burns or injuries to legs – were more common among civilians in Gaza than among US soldiers fighting in recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

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Trump signs memo targeting ‘domestic terrorism’ amid fears of leftwing crackdown

US president criticizes ‘anarchists and agitators’ as he unveils memo expected to meet fierce legal pushback

Donald Trump issued a presidential memorandum on Thursday aimed at reining in what he has called a radical leftwing domestic “terror network” but which seemed likely to meet fierce legal pushback from critics depicting it as a licence for a broad crackdown on his political opponents.

At a signing ceremony in the Oval Office, the memorandum was presented as aimed at “establishing a comprehensive strategy to investigate, disrupt and dismantle all stages of organized political violence and domestic terrorism”.

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In largest strikes yet, IAF jets bomb Houthi military sites in Yemen after drone attack – The Times of Israel

  1. In largest strikes yet, IAF jets bomb Houthi military sites in Yemen after drone attack  The Times of Israel
  2. Israel Attacks Yemeni Capital, a Day After Houthi Drone Strike  The New York Times
  3. Israeli strike on Yemen's Houthis reportedly kills eight  BBC
  4. Israeli strikes pound Yemen’s capital as Houthi leader decries Gaza war  Al Jazeera
  5. At least 50 reported killed in Israeli attack on Yemen  The Irish Times
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Trump Says He Won’t Allow Israel to Annex the West Bank – The New York Times

  1. Trump Says He Won’t Allow Israel to Annex the West Bank  The New York Times
  2. WATCH LIVE: Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu addresses U.N. General Assembly  PBS
  3. Trump stakes Gaza peace hopes on 21-point plan as Israel, Houthis continue deadly fighting  Fox News
  4. Trump promises Arab, Muslim leaders he won’t let Israel annex the West Bank  Politico
  5. Trump says he won't let Netanyahu annex the West Bank  Axios
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White House tells agencies to prepare for firings if government shuts down

Democrats accuse Trump of intimidation tactics after memo outlines much more aggressive step than previous shutdowns

The White House is telling federal agencies to prepare large-scale firings of workers if the government shuts down next week in a partisan fight over spending plans – prompting the Democrats to accuse Donald Trump of intimidation tactics.

In a memo released on Wednesday night, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) said agencies should consider a reduction in force for federal programs whose funding would lapse next week, is not otherwise funded and is “not consistent with the president’s priorities”.

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