Housing asylum seekers in former army barracks ruled unlawful for victims of torture

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Judgment outlawing forcing of survivors of trafficking, torture and other forms of violence to share rooms is blow to Shabana Mahmood’s asylum plans

Shabana Mahmood’s plan to house more asylum seekers in former army barracks is facing a major hurdle after the high court ruled on Thursday that a policy change forcing torture victims to share rooms was unlawful.

According to a judgment seen by the Guardian, the government failed in its duties when it forced survivors of trafficking, torture and other serious forms of violence to share rooms with strangers.

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Bondi to face closed-door questioning from House committee over Epstein files – US politics

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Lawmakers to have fresh chance to dig for information on Trump’s administration’s handling of issue by grilling former attorney-general

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Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog.

Former attorney-general Pam Bondi is testifying before the US House oversight and reform committee, a long-awaited appearance that brings fresh scrutiny of the administration’s release of the Epstein files.

A jury in Spokane, Washington found an Afghanistan War veteran and two others guilty of federal conspiracy charges on Thursday for their part in a protest last June outside the city’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility.

New Jersey’s governor, Mikie Sherrill, said that state health inspectors were denied full access to the privately run Delaney Hall immigration detention center in Newark, where detainees are staging a hunger and labor strike over health and sanitary conditions, and protesters rallying outside have been tased, pepper-sprayed and detained.

At least six of the nine featured musical acts recruited to play on the National Mall in Washington DC this summer, in a concert series planned by the Trump administration to mark the nation’s 250th anniversary, have dropped out of the concert series, just one day after the lineup was announced.

US vice-president JD Vance on Thursday told reporters that Washington was “not there yet” with Iran but he said the parties were close, adding that the US was in a position where it could substantially set back Tehran’s nuclear program. Earlier, Iran’s Tasnim news agency, citing a source close to the negotiating team, said the text of a potential memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the two countries had not yet been finalised or confirmed.

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Swiss ‘terrorist’ who shouted ‘Allahu Akbar’ before train station stabbing ‘needs help,’ dad says – New York Post

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  1. Swiss ‘terrorist’ who shouted ‘Allahu Akbar’ before train station stabbing ‘needs help,’ dad says  New York Post
  2. Switzerland stabbing: Attacker injures three with knife at Swiss train station  CNN
  3. 'Terrorist' knife attack wounds three at Swiss train station  Le Monde.fr
  4. Man arrested after three injured in stabbing at Swiss train station  BBC
  5. Man stabs 3 people at Swiss train station in what authorities call an ‘act of terror’  NBC News
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Labour faces union backlash after minister says living wage extension to over-18s not certain before election – as it happened

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Ministers are proposing new laws to crack down on damage to undersea cables amid “hostile activity by Russia”, the Press Association reports. PA says:

Tougher penalties for ship owners and operators who recklessly damage underwater infrastructure will be set out in a white paper later this year, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology said.

Acts of sabotage linked to a hostile state already carries life imprisonment for the most serious cases but undersea malicious activity sometimes operates in a “grey zone” which is difficult to prosecute, DSIT said.

It’s astonishing that Reform have admitted they knew about Kenyon’s social media accounts. Nigel Farage needs to urgently explain to the public why, if his party was aware of his online history, he was happy to put forward a candidate who has made vile degrading comments about women, multiple homophobic posts and spread dangerous false narratives about the Manchester Arena bombing.

I am rough around the edges. I have made mistakes in my life. I’m not perfect. Nobody is. Not a single person in the world is perfect. I think everybody does say things that eventually they regret.

It was a crude attempt at a joke to probably about 50 followers.

No offence was meant, and it’s not something I’d do now.

I think I’ve addressed the issue. I think that no offence was meant and it wasn’t a direct comment to her. If you go into any building site in the area or any public barracks, I think you’d hear a hundred times worse said.

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Russian Supply Route To Crimea Under Fire Control, Ukraine Says – Kyiv Post

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  1. Russian Supply Route To Crimea Under Fire Control, Ukraine Says  Kyiv Post
  2. Ukraine using AI drones to strike vital convoys supplying Russian troops  BBC
  3. Ukraine war reaches 'a new phase', where Kyiv has the advantage  Australian Broadcasting Corporation
  4. Ukrainian AI Drones Are Tearing Into Russian Logistics  Forbes
  5. Ukraine hammers Russia’s land corridor to Crimea  politico.eu
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WHO puts Ebola outbreak death rate at ‘huge’ 30-50% as chief arrives in DRC

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Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus calls for ceasefire among armed groups to help avoid deaths from preventable disease

The death rate of the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is between 30% and 50%, the World Health Organization has said, as its head arrived in the country to support efforts to contain the disease.

Anaïs Legand, from the WHO’s high threat pathogens team, said the revised death rate estimate is based on confirmed cases. “It’s huge. It means that up to five out of 10 people are likely to die,” Legand told reporters in Geneva.

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Pope Leo calls for ‘openness’ to church reform that respects tradition – National Catholic Reporter

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  1. Pope Leo calls for 'openness' to church reform that respects tradition  National Catholic Reporter
  2. Pope urges priests to respect ‘norms of the liturgy’ to avoid confusion at Mass  EWTN News
  3. Pope at Audience: Liturgical tradition and renewal drive evangelization  Vatican News
  4. The liturgy sustains the faithful, renewing them in their faith, mission, pope says  The Catholic Sun
  5. Full text: Pope Leo XIV’s general audience given May 27, 2026  The Catholic Times
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A visual guide to Ethiopia’s ethnic groups and conflict areas – Al Jazeera

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  1. A visual guide to Ethiopia’s ethnic groups and conflict areas  Al Jazeera
  2. The imperial vision of Ethiopia’s Abiy Ahmed  The Economist
  3. Ethiopia: International community must act to safeguard press freedom ahead of national election  Amnesty International
  4. Crises in Amhara, Tigray cloud Ethiopia's election 2026  dw.com
  5. Ethiopian leader Abiy's party set to dominate elections despite insecurity  Reuters
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Ukraine Hits Russian Refineries, Oil Depots and Port in Massive 208-Drone Overnight Assault – Kyiv Post

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  1. Ukraine Hits Russian Refineries, Oil Depots and Port in Massive 208-Drone Overnight Assault  Kyiv Post
  2. One killed, two injured in Ukrainian drone attack on Russia's Volgograd region, governor says  Reuters
  3. Ukrainian drone attack triggers fire at a Russian oil terminal  AP News
  4. A new Meduza analysis finds Ukraine’s long-range strikes are reaching twice as deep but not surging in 2026. Russia’s refineries, meanwhile, keep bouncing back.  Meduza
  5. Ukraine confirms strike on oil refinery in Russia's Volgograd region  Ukrinform - Ukrainian National News Agency
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Brisbane teenager accused of using a police car as a BMX ramp in viral stunt at Scientology church

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Zeppelin Witheridge charged with public nuisance over ‘Scientology speedrun’ social media trend

A social media stunt that treats churches like video games has gone from TikTok to the dock, landing an alleged teenage “speedrunner” in court.

Zeppelin Witheridge, 18, has been accused of using a police car as a BMX ramp after a viral challenge went awry at the Church of Scientology in Brisbane’s CBD.

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‘Essentially diving in coffee’: Australian diver among team rushing to rescue people trapped in flooded Laos cave

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Josh Richards joins international mission to help five found alive and search for missing divers, with one person extracted successfully

An Australian cave diver is part of an international team that has brought one man out alive from a remote flooded cave in Laos, with the rescue operation continuing for six more men still trapped underground.

One man was brought alive from the labyrinthine cave complex late on Friday. Four remain stranded on a rocky ledge about 300m from the cave entrance, while two men are still unaccounted for.

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Man and woman charged over Sheffield bystander shooting

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Shanice Brookes, 30, was shot dead outside bar in city centre during early hours of bank holiday Monday

A man and a woman have been charged in connection with the fatal shooting of a 30-year-old woman outside a bar in Sheffield in the early hours of bank holiday Monday.

Shanice Brookes was shot near the One Four One bar in West Street shortly before 2.45am on Monday. Detectives have described her as “simply an innocent bystander”.

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