British Steel to keep Scunthorpe blast furnaces operating past Christmas

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Confirmation follows progress at talks over government support for switch to less polluting technology

The owners of British Steel are to keep the blast furnaces at its Scunthorpe site running past Christmas amid talks over government support for a switch to less polluting technology.

The government is thought to be considering aid for British Steel at the same level or even higher than the £500m pledged to Tata Steel, which closed its two blast furnaces in Port Talbot in September. However, no decisions on the shape of a package have been made.

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Haiti has lost its prime minister. Gangs aren’t going anywhere – The Economist

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  1. Haiti has lost its prime minister. Gangs aren’t going anywhere  The Economist
  2. Gunfire closes Haiti’s main airport as new prime minister is sworn in  The Washington Post
  3. New leader takes helm in Haiti pledging to stem spiraling violence  Reuters
  4. Haiti swears in new PM as gunfire at airport hits flight from US  Al Jazeera English
  5. Firefights break out in Haiti’s capital amid democratic turmoil after prime minister replaced  The Associated Press
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Asthma linked to memory problems in children, research suggests

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Condition appears to affect episodic memory but researchers did not assess how it caused deficits

Children who have asthma can experience memory problems, according to research in the USthat is the first to link the two conditions.

The research also found that the earlier a child developed asthma, the greater the damage to their memory. The findings highlight the need to view asthma as a potential source of cognitive difficulty in children, the study’s lead author said.

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Trump demands Senate allow him to circumvent hearings to appoint cabinet

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Trump urges support from Rick Scott, John Thune and John Cornyn for ‘recess appointments’ while US Senate is paused

Donald Trump has demanded that the three frontrunners to lead the Senate allow him to appoint officials to his new administration without confirmation hearings on Capitol Hill, as a future Republican government began to take shape the week after his election victory.

In a demonstration of his political muscle, the US president-elect urged support for “recess appointments”, which allow the president to make appointments while the Senate is temporarily paused, and can be used to circumvent the confirmation process, which can result in appointments being delayed or blocked.

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Rays’ Wander Franco arrested in DR over incident in which ‘guns were drawn’

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  • Shortstop held by police over incident on Sunday
  • Player facing separate charges over sexual abuse claims

Police in the Dominican Republic have arrested Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Wander Franco after an altercation involving firearms.

ESPN reported that authorities held Franco and an unnamed woman for questioning on Monday after an incident in the parking lot of an apartment complex on Sunday “in which guns were drawn.”

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Live Briefing: Nations gather for U.N. climate talks in Baku, Azerbaijan – The Washington Post

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  1. Live Briefing: Nations gather for U.N. climate talks in Baku, Azerbaijan  The Washington Post
  2. COP29 Kicks Off Under Trump’s Shadow  Foreign Policy
  3. Cop29: which climate finance ideas are most likely to work?  The Guardian
  4. The people cracking the world's toughest climate words  BBC.com
  5. Who will play climate good cop to Trump's bad cop?  Sky News
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Middle East crisis: Iran says ‘world is waiting’ for Trump administration to stop wars in Lebanon and Gaza – as it happened

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This live blog is closed.

Lebanon’s National News Agency reports Israeli planes carried out airstrikes again overnight on locations in the south of the country. There are, as yet, no reports of any casualties.

Here are some of the latest images sent to us over the news wires from the Kerem Shalom crossing between Gaza and Israel.

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Macron to attend ‘high-risk’ France-Israel football match

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French president offers ‘fraternity and solidarity’ as Israel discourages wearing of ‘Jewish symbols’ abroad

Emmanuel Macron will attend the France-Israel football match at the Stade de France on Thursday in a gesture of “fraternity and solidarity” after attacks on Jewish fans in Amsterdam last week.

Thousands of extra police will be on duty for the game taking place against a backdrop of high tension caused by the conflict in Gaza.

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Huge crime network forging Banksy, Warhol and Picasso uncovered in Italy

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Art police and Pisa prosecutor say 38 people being investigated, with about 2,100 fake artworks seized

Italian police have dismantled a Europe-wide forgery network suspected of producing sophisticated replicas of works by some of the world’s most famous artists, including Banksy, Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol and Gustav Klimt.

Thirty-eight people had been placed under investigation in Italy, Spain, France and Belgium on suspicion of conspiracy to handle stolen goods, forgery and illegal sale of artworks, Italy’s art police and Pisa’s prosecutor’s office said in a joint statement on Monday.

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Case of doctor’s brutal rape and murder opens in India as suspect claims he was framed – CBS News

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  1. Case of doctor's brutal rape and murder opens in India as suspect claims he was framed  CBS News
  2. Trial over rape and murder of doctor in India begins  Al Jazeera English
  3. Trial in R.G. Kar rape-murder case begins at Kolkata court  The Hindu
  4. Accused in Kolkata doctor rape, murder case says he was framed by former top cop  Deccan Herald
  5. As trial begins, RG Kar victim’s father deposes  The Times of India
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Man who allegedly disguised killing as bear attack captured in South Carolina

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Nicholas Wayne Hamlett arrested almost one month after police found body of Steven Lloyd of Tennessee

Authorities in South Carolina have captured a man who allegedly murdered a hiker in woodlands in Tennessee then attempted to disguise the killing as a bear attack.

Nicholas Wayne Hamlett was arrested in Columbia on Sunday night almost one month after police found the body of the hiker, Steven Lloyd of Knoxville, Tennessee, close to the Cherahola Skyway in Monroe county, 80 miles north-east of Chattanooga.

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LED lights on underside of surfboards may deter great white shark attacks

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An Australian-led study using seal-shaped decoys found underside lighting disrupted ability of great whites to see silhouettes against sunlight above

Using LED lighting on the underside of surfboards or kayaks could deter great white shark attacks, new research suggests.

In an Australian-led study using seal-shaped decoys, underside lighting disrupted the ability of great whites to see silhouettes against the sunlight above, reducing the rates at which the sharks followed and attacked the artificial prey. The brighter the lights, the more effective the deterrent was.

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War update: Ukrainian forces repel 8 attacks in Kurakhove sector, 13 battles still ongoing – Ukrinform

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  1. War update: Ukrainian forces repel 8 attacks in Kurakhove sector, 13 battles still ongoing  Ukrinform
  2. Russia Says Street Battles Start in Strategic East Ukraine City  Bloomberg
  3. As Russian forces close in on Kurakhove, hundreds of residents remain in the front-line city  The Associated Press
  4. Frontline update: 185 combat engagements, Russians intensifying activity in Vremivka sector  Ukrinform
  5. Ukraine commander says challenges increase in war with Russia  Reuters
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Haiti appoints new prime minister as security crisis mounts

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Entrepreneur Alix Didier Fils-Aimé replaces Garry Conille as country rocked by worsening gang violence

Haiti’s transitional presidential council has appointed the entrepreneur and former senate candidate Alix Didier Fils-Aimé as the new prime minister, according to the official gazette in the country.

The businessman replaces Garry Conille, who was named prime minister in May. The shake-up is the latest blow to political stability amid soaring levels of gang violence.

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