Investment firm London Capital & Finance was Ponzi scheme, court rules

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Judge Robert Miles says former chief Michael Thomson and four others knowingly participated in fraud

Investment firm London Capital & Finance (LCF), whose failure in 2019 triggered one of Britain’s biggest retail investment scandals, operated as a Ponzi scheme, a London judge ruled on Thursday.

The high court said former chief executive Michael Thomson and four others had knowingly participated in the fraud, misled investors and misappropriated assets in a ruling welcomed by LCF’s joint administrators, which brought the case.

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Girl who died after leaving police vehicle on M5 named as Tamzin Hall

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Police say family of 17-year-old have asked for privacy after she was fatally struck by car on motorway in Somerset

A teenage girl who fled a stationary police vehicle on the M5 and was fatally struck by a car has been named as Tamzin Hall.

The 17-year-old from Wellington, Somerset, died after being struck by a vehicle travelling southbound on the motorway between Bridgwater and Taunton shortly after 11pm on Monday.

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Russian stuff blowing up: Ukraine carries out a textbook ambush in Kursk – Daily Kos

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  1. Russian stuff blowing up: Ukraine carries out a textbook ambush in Kursk  Daily Kos
  2. A Ukrainian Leopard 2 Tank Met A Russian Armored Column Head-On—And Wrecked It  Forbes
  3. National Guard soldiers destroy enemy IFV with its crew in Siversk sector  Ukrinform
  4. Frontline report: elite Ukrainian brigades obliterate Russian marines and North Koreans in counteroffensive with tanks and anti-tank mines  Euromaidan Press
  5. Video appears to show a Ukrainian Leopard tank taking out a column of Russian armored vehicles  Yahoo! Voices
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China opens huge port in Peru to extend its reach in Latin America – The Washington Post

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  1. China opens huge port in Peru to extend its reach in Latin America  The Washington Post
  2. Xi Jinping opens huge port in Peru funded by China  NBC News
  3. Xi Jinping brings the multi-billion-dollar charm in Peru, as Anthony Albanese calls for calm amongst leaders  ABC News
  4. China’s president unveils a megaport in Peru, but locals say they’re being left out  The Associated Press
  5. China's Xi says Chancay Port the start of a new maritime-land corridor between China and Latin America  Reuters
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Brazil authorities link bombing in the capital to extremist discourse – The Associated Press

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  1. Brazil authorities link bombing in the capital to extremist discourse  The Associated Press
  2. Explosions Outside Brazil’s Supreme Court Leave 1 Dead  The New York Times
  3. Brazil bomb attack hurts Bolsonaro comeback efforts, deepening political divide  Reuters Canada
  4. Bombings in Brazil’s capital revive fears over fate of democracy  The Washington Post
  5. Explosives and timer found on suspect’s body after attack on Brazil’s top court  CNN
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Elizabeth Warren denounces Biden administration over Gaza humanitarian situation

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Massachusetts senator now joins Bernie Sanders in endorsing joint resolution of disapproval against Joe Biden

Elizabeth Warren, a leading progressive voice in the US Senate, has denounced the Biden administration’s failure to punish Israel over the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza and endorsed a joint resolution of disapproval in Congress.

The amount of aid reaching the territory has dropped to the lowest level in 11 months, official Israeli figures show. The White House last month gave Israel an ultimatum of 30 days to improve conditions or risk losing military support. As the deadline expired on Tuesday, international aid groups said Israel had fallen far short.

But the US state department announced it would not take any punitive action, insisting that Israel was making limited progress and was not blocking aid and therefore not violating US law. Warren condemned the Biden administration’s decision to continue supplying arms to its ally.

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Fifteen killed in Israeli strikes on Damascus, Syrian state media say – CNN

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  1. Fifteen killed in Israeli strikes on Damascus, Syrian state media say  CNN
  2. Israel Bombs Targets in Syria, and Keeps Up Strikes in Lebanon  The New York Times
  3. Middle East crisis live: Israeli strike kills six in southern Lebanon, health ministry says  The Guardian
  4. 2 Israeli airstrikes hit Syria’s capital and a suburb, killing 15 people, Syrian state media says  The Associated Press
  5. Hagari: IDF will not permit weapons trafficking to Hezbollah from Syria  The Jerusalem Post
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UK charity declares ‘refugee homelessness emergency’ as numbers hit record high

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Naccom report says gaps in state support have led to more than 1,940 refugees having no accommodation

Homelessness among refugees has doubled in the last year to reach record levels as charities hand out tents and sleeping bags to those forced to live on the streets for the first time, according to research.

The No Accommodation Network (Naccom), an umbrella organisation for 140 frontline organisations working with asylum seekers, refugees and other migrants across the UK, has collated the data and shared it with the Guardian.

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Man suspected of supplying boats to people smugglers arrested in Amsterdam

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Turkish national accused of supplying engines and boats to cross-Channel smugglers in Belgium and northern France

A suspected supplier of “hundreds” of small boat engines used by people smugglers to transport asylum seekers across the Channel has been arrested in Amsterdam, officials said.

A 44-year-old Turkish national was arrested on Wednesday after arriving at Schiphol airport, the UK’s National Crime Agency said. The suspect was due to be extradited to Belgium to face charges of being involved in human trafficking as part of a criminal organisation.

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Typhoon Usagi Slams Into the Philippines – The New York Times

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  1. Typhoon Usagi Slams Into the Philippines  The New York Times
  2. Storm-plagued Philippines evacuates 24,000 ahead of super typhoon  Reuters
  3. Highest alert level raised as Philippines braces for Super Typhoon Usagi  Al Jazeera English
  4. Strong typhoon prompts more evacuations in Philippines, the fifth major storm to hit in three weeks  The Associated Press
  5. Typhoon Usagi rapidly intensifies to Category 4, on track toward Philippines  The Washington Post
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Cabinet minister Liz Kendall says she will vote for assisted dying

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Work and pensions secretary confirms stance, as Wes Streeting faces criticism for saying law could bring NHS cuts

Liz Kendall has become the first cabinet minister to confirm she will vote for the assisted dying bill since it was published, as the row intensified over the proposed law change.

Some supporters of assisted dying have expressed anger after Wes Streeting, the health secretary and an opponent of the plan, warned it could be a potential drain on NHS resources.

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Global plastic production must be cut to curb pollution, study says

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Analysis lays bare huge challenge of mismanaged waste on eve of UN plastic treaty talks in Busan

Global plastic production must be reduced to tackle the immense challenge of plastic pollution, according to an analysis published on the eve of crucial talks to hammer out the world’s first legally binding treaty on plastic waste.

Mismanaged plastic waste, which leaches into the environment and can be harmful to health, will double to 121m tonnes by 2050 if limits are not placed on the production of plastic, according to Samuel Pottinger, the lead author of the research.

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Biden’s Swan Song: A Diplomatic Trip Overshadowed by Trump’s Victory – The New York Times

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  1. Biden’s Swan Song: A Diplomatic Trip Overshadowed by Trump’s Victory  The New York Times
  2. Biden's trip to Peru will include last meeting with China's president  ABC News
  3. Biden heads to international summits in Peru and Brazil as world leaders brace for Trump presidency  The Associated Press
  4. Trump is back: how Biden will tweak his 'America's back' message at APEC and the G20  NPR
  5. Biden to make history in South America  FOX 32 Chicago
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IAEA Chief: Despite Iran attacks on Israel, no one should hit Tehran nuke facilities – The Jerusalem Post

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  1. IAEA Chief: Despite Iran attacks on Israel, no one should hit Tehran nuke facilities  The Jerusalem Post
  2. Iran military heads vow 'crushing' response to Israel as UN atomic chief says nuke sites shouldn't be attacked  Fox News
  3. Head of UN's nuclear watchdog visits Iran as Mideast wars and Trump's return raise worries  ABC News
  4. Iran tells IAEA chief it will negotiate but not under pressure  Reuters
  5. Head of UN nuclear watchdog: 'Dire straits dynamic' with Iran's nuclear program amid Mideast wars  The Associated Press
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Jailed Bosnian Serb general says he aided and abetted Srebrenica genocide

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Confession met with scepticism after other war criminals made similar statements to win early release from prison

A Bosnian Serb general jailed by the war crimes tribunal in The Hague for the 1995 Srebrenica massacre has confessed to having “aided and abetted the genocide”.

Survivors and families of the more than 8,300 people who died in the mass killing reacted with scepticism to the confession by Radislav Krstić, a corps commander who led the assault on the Muslim enclave of Srebrenica and oversaw the execution of captured men and boys.

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