- A Dissident Escapes China by Rubber Boat and Lands in South Korea The New York Times
- Chinese dissident is detained in South Korea after fleeing by inflatable boat NBC News
- Dissident escapes China by inflatable boat in fourth attempt to reunite with family CNN
- Dissident detained in South Korea after fleeing China in rubber boat The Guardian
- South Korea detains dissident who fled China in rubber boat BBC
Aftermath of deadly Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon
New videos show widespread destruction in Maarakeh following deadly Israeli strikes across southern Lebanon.
UK’s ex-PM Blair calls on Labour to focus on policy, not personality – Reuters
- UK's ex-PM Blair calls on Labour to focus on policy, not personality Reuters
- Tony Blair tells Starmer and rivals: abandon net zero and move closer to Trump The Guardian
- Blair turns against Starmer, Burnham and Streeting in attack on ‘incoherent’ Labour politico.eu
- Tony Blair criticises Labour’s Andy Burnham for leftwing ‘delusion’ Financial Times
- Politics latest: Labour has 'no coherent plan', Blair tells Starmer Sky News
Four people killed after minibus collides with train in Belgium
The minibus, carrying nine people, drove through closed crossing barriers during the morning rush hour.
Tony Blair tells Starmer and rivals: abandon net zero and move closer to Trump
In highly unusual intervention, ex-PM says his party’s ‘almost infinite capacity for self-delusion’ makes it likely to lose next election
Tony Blair has accused Keir Starmer, Andy Burnham and Wes Streeting of putting Labour’s future at risk by abandoning the centre ground, warning that the party’s “almost infinite capacity for self-delusion” means it is likely to lose the next election.
In a scathing 5,700-word attack on the prime minister and his would-be successors published on Tuesday night, Blair argued for the government to crack down on welfare spending, abandon restrictions on oil and gas and smooth relations with Donald Trump.
Continue reading...Tony Blair’s essay on Labour failings gets full marks for being unhelpful
Intervention by former PM almost feels designed to inflict maximum annoyance on his party
Did Tony Blair ever mention he was quite good at winning elections? If you happened to miss it, then his 5,700-word opus on where Labour, Keir Starmer and the UK more generally have gone wrong is here to remind you. Several times.
“I led the Labour party for 13 years and through three general elections,” goes the second sentence. Further on, Blair laments that when the party tries to puzzle out how to win a second term, the one thing ruled out was “learning from the only time in the party’s 120-year history it has ever done so”.
Continue reading...Climber carries kite with Palestinian children’s dreams to Everest summit
Climber carries kite with Palestinian children’s dreams to Everest summit
Seven heat-related deaths in France as May records set in several countries
Extreme early summer event across western Europe also brings highest temperatures for month in UK and Ireland
Seven people have died in France in an extreme early summer heat event affecting a swathe of western Europe, with record high temperatures for May recorded for a second day in several countries.
In France, which logged its hottest ever May day on Monday and again on Tuesday, the weather agency Météo France said the heatwave could last through the week and predicted temperatures could reach 39C in some areas.
Continue reading...US picks potential partners for using Cold War-era plutonium as fuel
Trump gov't plans to make about 20 tonnes of plutonium from dismantled nuclear warheads available to US power firms.
Trump-led push to redraw Congress maps faces setbacks in Southern states
State lawmakers reject a new map in South Carolina as judges strike down newly drawn US House districts one in Alabama.
Nasa unveils next steps to build permanent Moon base
Nasa plans to send hopping drones and roving vehicles to the Moon as part of plans for a permanent Moon base.
US Senate confirms veteran naval officer Frank Garcia as top Africa envoy
The Senate confirmation ends a long vacancy and signals a trade-focused shift in US policy towards Africa.
Iran remains in peace talks despite ‘bad faith’ US bombings of Iranian targets
Tehran condemns ‘definitive violation’ but announces no specific reprisals as negotiations near decisive stage
A proposed peace agreement between Iran and the US seemed to remain on the table on Tuesday despite US bombings of Iranian targets.
The Iranian foreign ministry denounced the US attack – aimed at missile launchers and efforts to lay fresh mines in the strait of Hormuz – as “an act of bad faith” and “a definitive violation of the ceasefire” and said it would not leave aggression unanswered. But it did not pull out of the talks that were continuing under the joint mediation of Pakistan and Qatar.
Continue reading...Did Trump oversell a broken Iran ceasefire deal?
The US and Iran appear closer to a broader agreement, but disputes over sanctions relief remain.
Children perform ‘mini Hajj’ in Gaza as Israel blocks pilgrims
A Gaza City school taught children how to perform the entire Hajj, as Palestinians miss the pilgrimage for a third year.
White House proposes NDAs for all US federal workers
Trump administration threatens legal action against employees who leak, aiming to curb information flow to journalists.
US launches ‘self-defense’ strikes against Iran amid ongoing ceasefire – Navy Times
- US launches ‘self-defense’ strikes against Iran amid ongoing ceasefire Navy Times
- Iran War Updates: U.S. Saw Threats From Iran Before Renewing Strikes, Officials Said The New York Times
- US, Iran have launched multiple attacks during ceasefire: A timeline Al Jazeera
- Remaining military targets in Iran are more challenging and complicated to hit, sources say NBC News
- When Iran thumbs its nose at the ceasefire, the Trump administration shrugs CNN
Inquiry into Post Office Horizon scandal faces five-year delay without extra funding
Police officer in charge says budget could reach £19.3m and nearly 100 more investigators are needed
The police criminal inquiry into the Post Office Horizon IT scandal faces a five-year delay unless it is handed millions in extra funding and nearly 100 more staff, according to the chief officer in charge.
The Metropolitan police commander Stephen Clayman said he needed to nearly double the number of investigators to 210 to meet a deadline of late next year or early 2028 for submitting files to prosecutors.
Continue reading...Reform UK civil service plan ‘would sack more planning officers than exist’
Analysis of party’s proposed cuts also suggests it would get rid of two-thirds of psychologists who support prison staff
A Reform UK plan to cut the size of the civil service would involve sacking more planning officers than exist and getting rid of at least two-thirds of the psychologists who support prison officers’ welfare, it has emerged.
The policy paper, led by the Reform MP Danny Kruger and published in December, promises to save more than £5bn a year by cutting civil service roles, with the full-time-equivalent (FTE) headcount falling by 13%.
Continue reading...Trump still thinks he’s winning in Iran – vox.com
- Trump still thinks he’s winning in Iran vox.com
- How Trump Has Talked About Ending the Iran War The New York Times
- Any new Iran deal should be judged by results, not victory-lap rhetoric Fox News
- Opinion | Will Trump Bail Out Iran’s Regime? WSJ
- Analysis | The many hang-ups to a peace deal with Iran The Washington Post