Former world’s tallest man calls for more compassion for vulnerable in UK

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Hussain Bisad, who has had health problems, says government should do more for people with physical or mental illness

When Hussain Bisad first settled in north London as an asylum seeker after fleeing from war in Somalia 23 years ago, he did so in the hope of a new and more settled life. Little did he know that shortly after arriving he would be at the centre of the media spotlight, not for his story of escaping conflict but for something altogether different: his height.

Bisad had been in the UK for five months when Guinness World Records measured his height as 2.3 metres (7ft 6.5in), making him then the world’s tallest living man.

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India mourns former PM Manmohan Singh with Delhi state funeral

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Coffin flanked by honour guard and carried to Congress party headquarters in capital as Modi hails one of country’s ‘most distinguished leaders’

Mourners in India’s capital gathered on Saturday to pay their respects to former prime minister Manmohan Singh ahead of a state funeral for a leader who was key to the country’s economic liberalisation.

Singh, who held office from 2004 to 2014, died at the age of 92 on Thursday, after which seven days of state mourning were declared.

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Blair proposed SDLP Irish nationalists support England at World Cup, papers show

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Unsealed documents show British PM’s idea in 2002 did not go down well with Northern Ireland politician

The 2002 World Cup had been a gruelling rollercoaster for the Republic of Ireland. Nine days before the team’s first match in the tournament, hosted by Japan and South Korea, its captain and talisman Roy Keane was on his way home before a ball had been kicked, after publicly berating his manager, Mick McCarthy.

Two draws and a victory against Saudi Arabia had taken Ireland through the group stages, but after a dramatic penalty shootout against Spain, they were knocked out of the competition.

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‘Illegally smuggled’ cannon at Tower of London subject of dispute with Ireland

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Newly released documents show Irish officials sought return of cannon sold by ‘gang of British treasure hunters’

Rare cannon allegedly smuggled out of Irish waters by a gang of British treasure hunters and acquired for a knockdown price by a Tower of London official were at the centre of a decades-long dispute between British and Irish officials, according to newly released records.

Irish officials made extensive efforts to convince UK authorities to return the bronze cannon after claiming they were “illegally smuggled” from a Waterford shipwreck and sold to the Tower of London.

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