- Miscalculation by Spanish power grid operator REE contributed to massive blackout, report finds Reuters
- Cause of massive power cut that plunged Spain and Portugal into chaos revealed Sky News
- Spain's government blames huge blackout on grid regulator and private firms BBC
- Full-scale power failure that shut down Iberian peninsula had no single cause but was not cyber-attack, Spain says – as it happened The Guardian
- Spain reveals cause of massive blackout that cancelled flights and left 80,000 stranded The Independent
Trump brushes off US intel reports on Iran to align himself with Israel
President has dismissed verdict by handpicked spy chief, Tulsi Gabbard, that Iran is not developing nuclear weapons
Tulsi Gabbard, the US director of national intelligence, delivered a concise verdict during congressional testimony this March: the intelligence community “continues to assess that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon and Supreme leader Khomeini has not authorized the nuclear weapons program that he suspended in 2003”.
As he rushed back to Washington on Tuesday morning, Donald Trump swatted aside the assessment from the official that he handpicked to deliver him information from 18 US intelligence agencies. “I don’t care what she said,” said Trump. “I think they were very close to having one.”
Continue reading...New York City comptroller arrested by ICE agents outside immigration court
Official and mayoral candidate Brad Lander is handcuffed by masked US federal agents.
Elon Musk’s X sues New York to block social media hate speech law
In its complaint X said the law forces firms to disclose 'highly sensitive and controversial speech' that is protected.
Lawmakers Vote to Decriminalize Abortions for Women in England and Wales – The New York Times
- Lawmakers Vote to Decriminalize Abortions for Women in England and Wales The New York Times
- MPs vote to decriminalise abortion for women in England and Wales BBC
- U.K. parliament votes to bar prosecution for abortions in England and Wales The Washington Post
- UK parliament votes to decriminalise abortion, repeal Victorian-era law Reuters
- UK lawmakers consider decriminalizing abortion amid concern about increasing prosecution of women ABC News
‘Not our war’: bipartisan US lawmakers back resolution to block involvement in Iran
Republican Thomas Massie joins with Democrats in effort to require Congress approval before Trump attacks Iran
As Donald Trump publicly threatens to join Israel in attacking Iran, an unlikely coalition of lawmakers has moved to prevent the president from involving US forces in the conflict without Congress’s approval.
On Tuesday, Republican congressman Thomas Massie, whose libertarian-tinged politics have often put him at odds with Trump, joined with several progressive Democrats to introduce in the House of Representatives a war powers resolution that would require a vote by Congress before Trump could attack Iran. Democrat Tim Kaine has introduced companion legislation in the Senate.
Continue reading...Trump says no plans to kill Iran’s leader ‘for now’, before calling for ‘unconditional surrender’ – BBC
- Trump says no plans to kill Iran's leader 'for now', before calling for 'unconditional surrender' BBC
- Trump convenes Israel-Iran Situation Room meeting at White House to weigh US response Fox News
- Why Trump Ditched the G-7 Before It Was Over Bloomberg.com
- Israel Iran conflict live: Trump leaves G7 early and calls for Tehran evacuation Reuters
- G7 leaders try to salvage their summit after Trump’s early exit effectively makes it the ‘G6' AP News
Gaza journalist mourns 38 family members killed in Israeli attack
Palestinian photojournalist Abdel Raheem Khader has been describing the shock of losing 38 members of his family.
Government officials brace for up to 50 Labour MPs rebelling against welfare bill
Sources say party should have focused on the moral case for reforming the benefits system
Government officials have admitted they made a mistake by making the financial case for cutting benefits as they steel themselves for as many as 50 Labour MPs rebelling against the welfare bill that is being published on Wednesday.
Sources told the Guardian that they now believed the party should have focused on the moral case for reforming the welfare system, arguing that it was letting down millions of people who could be supported into work.
Continue reading...Anti-Tourism Protests In Spain: Locals Fire Water Pistols, Chant “Go Home” – One Mile at a Time
- Anti-Tourism Protests In Spain: Locals Fire Water Pistols, Chant "Go Home" One Mile at a Time
- Anti-Tourism Protests in Italy, Portugal and Spain Draw Attention to Quality of Life Issues The New York Times
- Protesters in Spain shoot water guns at tourists in demonstration against mass tourism, housing costs CBS News
- Spain tourism: The protesters and residents pushing back on tourism in Barcelona BBC
- What US travelers need to know amid anti-tourism protests in Europe ABC News
Trump threatens to keep 25% tariff on UK steel imports over Port Talbot concerns
Exclusive: Sources say US wants information on when importing of raw materials from abroad at Port Talbot site will stop
Donald Trump is threatening to keep 25% tariffs on some or all of its steel imports from the UK unless it gives specific guarantees over the Indian-owned steelmaking plant at Port Talbot in south Wales, sources have told the Guardian.
An agreement to reduce tariffs on UK car exports to the US and scrap them for the aerospace sector was signed off by the US president and Keir Starmer on Monday, on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Canada.
Continue reading...796 dead babies expected to be found hidden in septic tank at unwed mothers’ home run by nuns – New York Post
- 796 dead babies expected to be found hidden in septic tank at unwed mothers' home run by nuns New York Post
- Dig for remains of 800 infants at former 'mother and baby home' in Ireland begins Sky News
- Preparatory work to identify remains of 800 infants at Irish mother and baby home begins The Guardian
- Tuam: Works to enable excavation of mass burial site starts BBC
- Work to seal off part of former Tuam mother-and-baby home RTE.ie
“Nothing to say to Zelenskyy”: Trump retreats from G7 as Russia launches biggest terrorist attacks on Kyiv yet – Euromaidan Press
Calls for abortion law change grew louder as number of prosecutions rose
While parliament was moving towards more liberal abortion laws more women were being arrested or investigated
Calls for decriminalisation of abortions have been growing louder in recent years – in line with a growing number of women being prosecuted for terminating their pregnancies.
Until 2022, it is believed that only three women had ever been convicted of having an illegal abortion in the 150 years since 1861, when the procedure was made illegal under the Offences Against the Person Act.
Continue reading...MPs vote to decriminalise abortion in step forward for reproductive rights
Amendment to crime and policing bill will change law to end prosecution of women who terminate pregnancies
British MPs have voted to decriminalise abortion, marking the biggest step forward in reproductive rights in almost 60 years.
In an amendment to the government’s crime and policing bill, parliament voted to change the criminal laws that govern abortion in England and Wales so that women procuring a termination outside the legal framework cannot be prosecuted.
Continue reading...At least 51 Palestinians killed while waiting for aid trucks in Gaza, health officials say – AP News
- At least 51 Palestinians killed while waiting for aid trucks in Gaza, health officials say AP News
- Israeli tanks kill 59 people in Gaza crowd trying to get food aid, medics say Reuters
- As Israel turns its focus to Iran, the death toll mounts in Gaza — and hunger deepens NPR
- Israeli forces kill 51 Palestinians waiting for flour at Gaza aid site, witnesses and rescuers say BBC
- 51 Gazans killed waiting for aid, Health Ministry says; IDF reviewing incident The Washington Post
What is the Casey report on UK grooming gangs – and why did Labour U-turn?
The report addressed the UK's institutional failure to protect children and teenage girls from sexual exploitation.
Ex-senator Bob Menendez arrives at prison to begin serving 11-year sentence
The New Jersey Democrat will be held in Pennsylvania facility after his conviction on bribery charges
Bob Menendez arrived at a federal prison on Tuesday to begin serving an 11-year sentence for accepting bribes of gold and cash and acting as an agent of Egypt. The New Jersey Democrat and former US senator has been mocked for the crimes as “Gold Bar Bob”, according to his own lawyer.
The Federal Bureau of Prisons confirmed that Menendez was in custody at the Schuylkill federal correctional institution in Minersville, Pennsylvania. The facility has a medium-security prison and a minimum-security prison camp. Given the white-collar nature of his crimes, it is likely he will end up in the camp.
Continue reading...Exclusive | Israel Built Its Case for War With Iran on New Intelligence. The U.S. Didn’t Buy It. – WSJ
- Exclusive | Israel Built Its Case for War With Iran on New Intelligence. The U.S. Didn’t Buy It. WSJ
- What to Know About Israel’s Secretive Nuclear Weapons Program The New York Times
- Israel's smaller, sophisticated military opposes larger Iran BBC
- 4 things to know as the war between Israel and Iran intensifies NPR
- Israel says Iran was racing toward a nuclear weapon. US intel says it was years away CNN
Hezbollah watches on as Iran and Israel battle, for now
The Lebanese group is depleted after fighting Israel last year, but may intervene if the Israel-Iran conflict continues.