World news and comment from the Guardian | guardian.co.uk |
- Donald Trump’s alleged ties with Russia overshadow confirmation hearings
- Trump risks 'war' with Beijing if US blocks access to South China Sea, state media warns
- Star of Spanish crime fiction returns years after creator's death
- Cyprus reunification talks stall over question of security
- Banker caught up in Malaysian 1MDB scandal went on $8.2m Gold Coast property splurge
- Russia says US troops arriving in Poland pose threat to its security
- California lawmakers propose bills to teach students to identify 'fake news'
- Barack Obama surprises Joe Biden with Presidential Medal of Freedom
- Syrian who took Merkel selfie sues Facebook over 'defamatory' posts
- Sudanese men arrested in Saudi Arabia for supporting 'stay-at-home' strikes
- Obama ends 'wet foot, dry foot' policy for Cuban immigrants
- Most marijuana medicinal benefits are inconclusive, wide-ranging study finds
- Hungarian filmed tripping up fleeing refugees is convicted
- Utah dating homework tells girls: be 'feminine' and 'don't waste his money'
- Human rights abuses in Bahrain cast shadow over £2m UK aid support
- Obama gives US intelligence greater access to warrantless data on foreigners
- ILO warns of rise in social unrest and migration as inequality widens
- A day without murder: no one is killed in El Salvador for first time in two years
- Justice department to review FBI's conduct in Clinton email inquiry
- Rwanda's new king named – a father of two living on an estate near Manchester
- Sweden rejects quotas for women on boards of listed companies
- Give robots 'personhood' status, EU committee argues
- Kim Kardashian robbery: Paris police charge four over jewellery heist
- Food firm Dr Oetker returns artwork sold by woman fleeing Nazis
- The aftermath of Chile's Valparaíso fire – in pictures
- Former UK ambassador to Moscow says McCain asked him about Trump dossier
- Al-Nusra hostage: 'extremism in Syria will not disappear' – video
- Bruce Springsteen tribute band say Trump inauguration gala is 'non-political'
- Crying 'fake news' is handy for politicians but toxic for democracy | Lenore Taylor
- Kim Kardashian and the fashionistas: drop the hammer and sickle
- Donald Trump dossier: intelligence sources vouch for author's credibility
- Snow, high winds and flooding bring travel chaos to Britain - live updates
- Only a two-state solution will bring peace to the Middle East. Let’s help to realise it | Vincent Fean
- Chinese school allows students to borrow marks from 'grade bank' to pass tests
- Hungary defends planned crackdown on foreign-backed NGOs
- Paul Keating castigates Rex Tillerson over comments on China
- Justin Trudeau under fire again after using Aga Khan's helicopter
- Syrian army blames Israel after explosions at military airport near Damascus
- UK failing Syrian refugees who survived torture, say MPs
- Snow hits Britain as it faces winter storms – video
- Israeli official who plotted to 'take down' British MPs resigns
- France's far-right leader Marine Le Pen seen at Trump Tower
- Cyprus deal close but don't expect miracles, says UN chief
- Bangladesh cafe reopens six months after brutal terrorist attack
- US says 33 Afghanistan civilians died in special forces raid last year
- UK urged to transfer child refugees from freezing Europe camps
- Rise in numbers of Jews leaving for Israel from some European countries
- Southbank Centre programme to debate life and faith
- Netanyahu: Middle East peace talks are a rigged move against Israel
- Derek Parfit obituary
- How have you been affected by flooding and snow in the UK?
- Art dynasty heir Guy Wildenstein cleared of €550m French tax fraud
- Never built New York: the city that might have been – in pictures
- Egypt court ruling upholds decision to freeze assets of women's rights activists
- Number of Nigerian women trafficked to Italy for sex almost doubled in 2016
- Fictional or not, the Trump dossier affair is another win for Putin
- Joe Biden surprised with Presidential Medal of Freedom – video
- Mike Pompeo rules out use of torture under Trump presidency – video
- James Mattis addresses concerns over Russia at confirmation hearing – video
- German foreign minister ‘perplexed’ by Trump’s ‘Nazi Germany’ remarks - video
- Ben Carson reflects on growing up poor at confirmation hearing – video
- Michelle Obama serenaded by Stevie Wonder during farewell on Jimmy Fallon show – video
- Pardoned by Obama: how a first-time offender was granted freedom – video
| Donald Trump’s alleged ties with Russia overshadow confirmation hearings Posted: 12 Jan 2017 11:36 AM PST At confirmation hearings, Mike Pompeo and James Mattis both sounded warnings over Russia's growing global ambitions in light of the leaked dossier Donald Trump's nominee to head the Central Intelligence Agency sided with intelligence officials who accuse Moscow of attempting to skew the US election on Thursday, as the rift between Trump and his spy chiefs intensified barely a week before the president-elect takes office. Mike Pompeo's comments to the Senate intelligence committee came amid an increasingly bitter row between Trump and the American spying agencies, which he has accused of leaking a dossier of salacious allegations against him. Continue reading... |
| Trump risks 'war' with Beijing if US blocks access to South China Sea, state media warns Posted: 12 Jan 2017 07:59 PM PST Threats by Rex Tillerson, would-be secretary of state, to stop access to islands are 'mish-mash of naivety and shortsightedness', says China Daily The US risks a "large-scale war" with China if it attempts to blockade islands in the South China Sea, Chinese state media has said, adding that if recent statements become policy when Donald Trump takes over as president "the two sides had better prepare for a military clash". China has controversially built fortifications and artificial islands across the South China Sea. Rex Tillerson, Trump's nominee for secretary of state, said China's "access to those islands … is not going to be allowed". Continue reading... |
| Star of Spanish crime fiction returns years after creator's death Posted: 12 Jan 2017 10:30 PM PST Manuel Vázquez Montalbán's gourmand private eye Pepe Carvalho gets another case in new novel by Carlos Zanón Like any good private eye, Pepe Carvalho refuses to let a little death get in the way of his inquiries. More than 13 years after the demise of his creator, Manuel Vázquez Montalbán, Spain's most famous fictional detective is to rise again to walk the mean streets of Barcelona at the fingertips of another renowned writer. Continue reading... |
| Cyprus reunification talks stall over question of security Posted: 12 Jan 2017 04:28 PM PST UN-led negotiations to resume within days with hope remaining for 'last effort' to reach deal between Greek and Turkish sides UN-led talks in Geneva hoping to create a reunified Cyprus after decades of bitter division ended without a breakthrough on Thursday, leaving officials to reconvene later this month to readdress the issue of how any agreement could be militarily secured. The two sides will meet again on 18 January to look again at the security question, before a fresh attempt to forge a complete political deal. Continue reading... |
| Banker caught up in Malaysian 1MDB scandal went on $8.2m Gold Coast property splurge Posted: 12 Jan 2017 03:50 PM PST Exclusive: Yeo Jiawei, accused of money laundering, used a Seychelles-based company for a series of purchases in the Australian tourist town • 1MDB: the inside story of the world's biggest financial scandal A former banker from Singapore accused of laundering money linked to Malaysia's 1MDB scandal used a tax haven company as part of an $8.2m-plus splurge on Gold Coast property over little more than a year. Yeo Jiawei's foray into Australian property began with a $1.3m luxury oceanfront apartment in Surfers Paradise, which he bought in 2014 direct from a collapsed developer. Continue reading... |
| Russia says US troops arriving in Poland pose threat to its security Posted: 12 Jan 2017 10:54 AM PST Early deployment of biggest American force in Europe since cold war may be attempt to lock Trump into strategy The Kremlin has hit out at the biggest deployment of US troops in Europe since the end of the cold war, branding the arrival of troops and tanks in Poland as a threat to Russia's national security. The deployment, intended to counter what Nato portrays as Russian aggression in eastern Europe, will see US troops permanently stationed along Russia's western border for the first time. Continue reading... |
| California lawmakers propose bills to teach students to identify 'fake news' Posted: 12 Jan 2017 04:44 PM PST The bills aim to teach high school students how to detect misleading, fabricated or inaccurate reports in the wake of the 2016 US election Two California lawmakers have proposed bills to fight "fake news" by teaching high school students how to detect misleading, fabricated or inaccurate reports in the waves of information flooding into their daily lives. Related: What is fake news? How to spot it and what you can do to stop it Continue reading... |
| Barack Obama surprises Joe Biden with Presidential Medal of Freedom Posted: 12 Jan 2017 01:37 PM PST Obama awarded the vice-president the highest civilian honor at the White House on Thursday, days before they both leave office Related: Joe Biden hints at 2020 presidential run: 'Fate has a strange way of intervening' Barack Obama surprised the vice-president, Joe Biden, with the Presidential Medal of Freedom on Thursday. Continue reading... |
| Syrian who took Merkel selfie sues Facebook over 'defamatory' posts Posted: 12 Jan 2017 12:10 PM PST High-profile refugee accuses social network of failing to take action against posts falsely linking him to crimes A Syrian refugee famous for taking a selfie with Angela Merkel in autumn 2015 is taking Facebook to court for allegedly taking insufficient action against what the man says are defamatory "fake news" posts using his picture. Facebook has been summoned to a district court in the southern German city of Würzburg in what could prove to be a landmark case as the government looks for ways to make internet companies more accountable for the content published on their platforms. Continue reading... |
| Sudanese men arrested in Saudi Arabia for supporting 'stay-at-home' strikes Posted: 12 Jan 2017 11:30 PM PST Two men could face torture if extradited to Sudan for posting about civil disobedience on Facebook, as Bashir and Saudi kingdom seem to grow closer Two Sudanese men have been arrested in Saudi Arabia after posting their support for protests in their home country on Facebook, amid signs that ties between the two states are growing stronger following years of tension. The men, Qasim Mohamed Sid-Ahmed and Al-Waleed Imam Hassan Taha, were allegedly detained while leaving work in Riyadh on 21 December. Their families were told they were being held for a secret investigation but did not explain to them the reason for their arrest. Continue reading... |
| Obama ends 'wet foot, dry foot' policy for Cuban immigrants Posted: 12 Jan 2017 02:55 PM PST Cubans will no longer be allowed to stay and become legal residents if they enter US illegally, as Obama administration negotiates with Cuba to send people back President Barack Obama is ending a longstanding immigration policy that allows any Cuban who makes it to US soil to stay and become a legal resident, a senior administration official said Thursday. The repeal of the "wet foot, dry foot" policy is effective immediately, according the official. The decision follows months of negotiations focused in part on getting Cuba to agree to take back people who had arrived in the US. Continue reading... |
| Most marijuana medicinal benefits are inconclusive, wide-ranging study finds Posted: 12 Jan 2017 02:29 PM PST Study of 10,000 reports into cannabis finds only enough evidence to support therapeutic use for chemotherapy patients, chronic pain and multiple sclerosis There is not enough research to reach conclusive judgments on whether marijuana can effectively treat most of the symptoms and diseases it is advertised as helping, according to a wide-ranging US government study. The same is also true of many of the risks said to be associated with using cannabis, the study finds. Continue reading... |
| Hungarian filmed tripping up fleeing refugees is convicted Posted: 12 Jan 2017 01:01 PM PST Camerawoman Petra László caused outrage when she kicked child running from disturbance close to Serbian border in 2015 A Hungarian television camerawoman who was filmed tripping and kicking migrants fleeing police has been found guilty of breaching the peace. A judge in Szeged, southern Hungary, said the actions of Petra László triggered "indignation and outrage", and rejected her defence lawyer's argument that she was trying to protect herself. Continue reading... |
| Utah dating homework tells girls: be 'feminine' and 'don't waste his money' Posted: 12 Jan 2017 01:20 PM PST Assignment outlining guidelines for '$5 Date' providing separate instructions for boys and girls is example of misogynistic lessons common in the state, critics say A Utah high school homework assignment directing students to "go on a date" and telling girls to be "feminine and lady-like" and not to "waste" a boy's money has caused an uproar over what some said was an example of misogynistic lessons common in the state. The handouts from Highland high school in Salt Lake City, copies of which spread on Facebook this week, outlined guidelines for a "$5 Date" and provided separate instructions for boys and girls. Continue reading... |
| Human rights abuses in Bahrain cast shadow over £2m UK aid support Posted: 12 Jan 2017 04:01 PM PST Aid drawn partly from obscure tranche devoted to conflict, stability and security sparks concerns about transparency and Bahrain's poor human rights record The government is facing fresh questions about Britain's aid strategy after it emerged that a controversial multi-million pound programme of support for Bahrain's security and justice system is being bolstered this year, even as the Gulf state reverses reforms to a key intelligence agency accused of torture. Data provided under the Freedom of Information Act reveals that Bahraini authorities will this year receive a further £2m of British funding, including aid money drawn from the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund, a pot of aid money currently the focus of an investigation by UK MPs. Continue reading... |
| Obama gives US intelligence greater access to warrantless data on foreigners Posted: 12 Jan 2017 01:26 PM PST CIA, FBI and other agencies will be able to access surveillance on foreigners abroad, including information identifying Americans they may be in contact with Barack Obama, in one of his final acts on national security, has permitted US intelligence and law enforcement agencies far greater access to raw communications data warrantlessly collected on foreign targets, a move that has alarmed privacy advocates. Under an executive order, the CIA, FBI and other security agencies will be able to access unfiltered surveillance aimed at foreigners abroad, before information identifying or revealing Americans they may be in contact with gets censored out. Continue reading... |
| ILO warns of rise in social unrest and migration as inequality widens Posted: 12 Jan 2017 01:00 PM PST UN agency records rising discontent in all regions and calls on policymakers to tackle unemployment and inequality urgently Rising unemployment, inequality and a lack of decent jobs have helped fuel a rise in social unrest that threatens to intensify unless policymakers take swift action, the UN's labour agency has warned. The International Labour Organization said its measure of protest activities around the world had ticked higher in the last year against a backdrop of economic and political uncertainty. In a downbeat report into global labour market prospects, the agency also predicted migration could rise over the next decade as frustrated jobseekers leave their countries in search of better prospects. Continue reading... |
| A day without murder: no one is killed in El Salvador for first time in two years Posted: 12 Jan 2017 12:52 PM PST One of the world's deadliest countries recorded Thursday as the first day without a single homicide since January 2015 El Salvador, one of the world's deadliest countries, has recorded a rare day without a single homicide. Related: Central America's rampant violence fuels an invisible refugee crisis Continue reading... |
| Justice department to review FBI's conduct in Clinton email inquiry Posted: 12 Jan 2017 11:09 AM PST The independent auditor will also look into whether James Comey notifying Congress of new information 11 days before election was a policy violation The justice department's Office of the Inspector General announced on Thursday that it would conduct a review of the handling of the FBI investigation into Hillary Clinton's use of a personal email server during her time as secretary of state. Related: James Comey refuses to tell Senate if FBI is investigating Trump-Russia links Continue reading... |
| Rwanda's new king named – a father of two living on an estate near Manchester Posted: 12 Jan 2017 10:47 AM PST Emmanuel Bushayija, the nephew of the late exiled King Kigeli, named as king Yuhi VI by Kigeli's chief courtier It is not a typical royal residence but a terraced house on a quiet and slightly dishevelled housing estate in Sale, Greater Manchester, is now the home of the new king of Rwanda. Three months after the country's previous exiled monarch King Kigeli died in relative poverty in the US aged 80, an official decree by his chief courtier has declared his nephew Emmanuel Bushayija – a naturalised British citizen – as his successor. Continue reading... |
| Sweden rejects quotas for women on boards of listed companies Posted: 12 Jan 2017 10:00 AM PST Leftwing government thwarted by opposition in parliament, despite country's good record on boardroom gender equality Sweden's parliament has rejected plans to introduce legislation that would fine listed companies who fail to appoint women to at least 40% of board seats. The leftwing government announced in September that it was drafting the legislation, but the centre-right opposition and a far-right party, which together hold a majority in parliament, told parliament's law review committee on Thursday that they would not support the project. Continue reading... |
| Give robots 'personhood' status, EU committee argues Posted: 12 Jan 2017 07:52 AM PST Proposed rules for robots and AI in Europe include a push for a general basic income for humans, and 'human rights' for robots The European parliament has urged the drafting of a set of regulations to govern the use and creation of robots and artificial intelligence, including a form of "electronic personhood" to ensure rights and responsibilities for the most capable AI. In a 17-2 vote, with two abstentions, the parliament's legal affairs committee passed the report, which outlines one possible framework for regulation. Continue reading...This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Kim Kardashian robbery: Paris police charge four over jewellery heist Posted: 12 Jan 2017 04:30 PM PST Suspect referred to as Yunice A, 63, is accused of armed robbery in a gang and kidnapping, while three others are charged with being involved French authorities have filed the first charges against four suspects in the armed jewellery robbery of Kim Kardashian West, with more charges expected to follow. Robbers are believed to have forced their way into the private apartment where Kardashian West was staying during Paris Fashion Week in October 2016, tied up the reality TV star and stolen more than $10m worth of jewellery. Authorities said they suspected an inside job. Continue reading... |
| Food firm Dr Oetker returns artwork sold by woman fleeing Nazis Posted: 12 Jan 2017 08:03 AM PST German company praised for giving work by Hans Thoma back to heirs of Hedwig Ullmann, who was forced to sell it in 1938 The German food company Dr Oetker, best known for its baking powders, cake mixes and pizzas, has said it will return an artwork to the heirs of the former Jewish owner who was forced to flee Nazi Germany. The decision to restitute the work, a lithograph by Hans Thoma called Spring in the Mountains (Frühling im Gebirge/Kinderreigen) follows an audit of the company's art collection which aimed to discover whether any of the works were looted by the Nazis. Continue reading... |
| The aftermath of Chile's Valparaíso fire – in pictures Posted: 13 Jan 2017 02:21 AM PST Hundreds were evacuated as flames raged across Chile's port city on 2 January. The fires hit poorer communities in wooden houses worst and left many without homes Continue reading... |
| Former UK ambassador to Moscow says McCain asked him about Trump dossier Posted: 13 Jan 2017 02:08 AM PST Sir Andrew Wood told US senator that Christopher Steele's report 'might be true, might be untrue' but that author was credible A former British ambassador to Moscow has revealed the role he played in bringing the explosive dossier about Donald Trump's alleged links to Russia to the attention of the US intelligence agencies. Sir Andrew Wood was consulted about the claims by Senator John McCain at a security conference in Canada shortly after the US election. Continue reading... |
| Al-Nusra hostage: 'extremism in Syria will not disappear' – video Posted: 13 Jan 2017 01:44 AM PST Theo Padnos, an American journalist, was captured in Syria by the formerly al-Qaida affiliated Jabhat al-Nusra in 2012. He tells the Guardian's Owen Jones about his time in captivity, the physical and psychological torture he endured and his eventual release. Padnos says he believes western military intervention in Syria would only fuel support for groups like al-Nusra and Isis, and puts his views about Donald Trump in power |
| Bruce Springsteen tribute band say Trump inauguration gala is 'non-political' Posted: 13 Jan 2017 01:14 AM PST The B Street Band, who are set to play Garden State Gala on 20 January, appeared at both of Obama's inaugurations and were booked for this year's event in 2013 No celebration associated with Donald Trump's inauguration was ever going to be able to secure the services of Bruce Springsteen to provide the entertainment. But a Springsteen covers band? More doable. And so the Garden State Presidential Inaugural Gala – New Jersey State Society's bash for a new president, held in Washington DC at every inauguration – booked the B-Street Band, exactly as it had done for the Obama inaugurations in 2009 and 2013. This time, though, given Springsteen's own denouncement of the incoming president, the response to the booking was swift and condemnatory. Even E Street Band bassist Garry Tallent was angered, tweeting: "Please tell me this is more fake news. Or at least a joke." Continue reading... |
| Crying 'fake news' is handy for politicians but toxic for democracy | Lenore Taylor Posted: 13 Jan 2017 12:17 AM PST Instead of helping efforts to keep fact and fiction clearly separate, the claim is now being used to blur the delineation between them even further For a moment, I thought the ascent of fake news might shock, maybe even shame, political debate back to facts and reality. Silly me. Crying "fake news" has become just another tactic to avoid a fact-based argument. |
| Kim Kardashian and the fashionistas: drop the hammer and sickle Posted: 12 Jan 2017 11:00 PM PST People should not wear communist symbols without real understanding of their history, argues Anastasiia Fedorova for the Calvert Journal The hammer and sickle have made a stellar return to the fashion world in the form of a voluminous red hoodie, adorned with the Soviet symbol and worn by Kim Kardashian. Setting aside the irony that two weeks earlier her husband had cosied up to the US president-elect, Donald Trump – one of the world's most staunch capitalists whose relationship with Russia has been under intense scrutiny this week – Kardashian's fashion choice raises some ethical questions about appropriating communist symbols. Continue reading... |
| Donald Trump dossier: intelligence sources vouch for author's credibility Posted: 12 Jan 2017 03:48 PM PST Ex-MI6 officer Christopher Steele, named as writer of Donald Trump memo, is 'highly regarded professional' His denials – at least some of them – were emphatic, even by the standards that Donald Trump has come to be judged by. The dossier, he said, was a confection of lies; he compared it to Nazi propaganda; it was fake news spread by sick people. At his press briefing on Wednesday, the president-elect dared the world's media to scrutinise the 35 pages of claims, before throwing down a challenge – where's the proof? Nobody had any. Case closed. Continue reading... |
| Snow, high winds and flooding bring travel chaos to Britain - live updates Posted: 13 Jan 2017 02:23 AM PST
WEATHER UPDATE: The morning high tide passed without incident. @East_Riding is now preparing for this evening's tide https://t.co/4rAVQUpleV
More from Alexandra Topping on the situation in Jaywick. I've spoken to other officers who have told me they are in a "holding pattern" after the weather threat in #jaywick has been downgraded. After being told the evacuation in #jaywick is off by a police officer, have not yet got office confirmation of that from Essex police. Another officer told me a final decision on #Jaywick evacuation will be made public "hopefully within half an hour" Continue reading... |
| Posted: 13 Jan 2017 02:00 AM PST Quiet diplomacy hasn't worked. Britain needs to push for international recognition of Israel and Palestine – and then robustly defend the rights of both It's time that a decision was made as to whether Israel and Palestine can live side by side. Without change soon, the option will not be there. Israel's 50-year military occupation of Palestinian territory harms us all. The British minister for the Middle East, Tobias Ellwood, has deemed it "unacceptable and unsustainable". Related: US abstention allows UN to demand end to Israeli settlements Continue reading... |
| Chinese school allows students to borrow marks from 'grade bank' to pass tests Posted: 12 Jan 2017 09:15 PM PST Students must repay their borrowed marks with even higher scores on a future exams or earn credits with extra work Many of us have been there: hopelessly unprepared for an exam, wishing we had studied more and certain of a failing mark. Now for students at one school in China, success is guaranteed, but it comes at a price. A high school in eastern China has set up a "grade bank", where students who would normally fail a test can borrow points to push them over the line into a passing mark. Continue reading... |
| Hungary defends planned crackdown on foreign-backed NGOs Posted: 12 Jan 2017 10:00 PM PST PM's spokesman says Trump inauguration in US will herald new era more favourable to marginalising civil activists Hungary's populist rightwing government has offered a robust defence of its plans to curtail foreign-backed civil society groups and suggested the change in the US administration means a new era is at hand. In comments that will alarm many non-government organisations, an official spokesman for Hungary's prime minister, Viktor Orbán, confirmed there would be changes to the rules governing civil activists, many of whom he accused of behaving like de facto politicians. Continue reading... |
| Paul Keating castigates Rex Tillerson over comments on China Posted: 12 Jan 2017 08:48 PM PST Australia's former prime minister says claims by US secretary of state nominee threaten to involve the country in war Former prime minister Paul Keating has lambasted Donald Trump's nominee for secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, saying his claim that China should be denied access to artificial islands it has built in the South China Sea threatens to involve Australia in war. He says Australia must tell the Trump administration "from the get-go" that we will not be part of such adventurism, "just as we should have done on Iraq 15 years ago". Continue reading... |
| Justin Trudeau under fire again after using Aga Khan's helicopter Posted: 12 Jan 2017 05:46 PM PST Canadian prime minister, already facing cash-for access inquiry, criticised over Caribbean holiday where he accepted private flights without ethics clearance Justin Trudeau, under fire for holidaying on a Caribbean island owned by the Aga Khan, has revealed he flew there by private helicopter – an apparent breach of official ethics rules. Related: Trudeau to be questioned by ethics watchdog over reports of cash for access Continue reading... |
| Syrian army blames Israel after explosions at military airport near Damascus Posted: 12 Jan 2017 05:15 PM PST State TV says rockets fired from northern Israel landed in compound of the airport which houses Republican Guards Syrian army command has said that Israel fired rockets at a military airport west of Damascus, the capital, and warned Tel Aviv of repercussions after what it called a "flagrant" attack. State television quoted the army as saying several rockets were fired from an area near Lake Tiberias in northern Israel just after midnight which landed in the compound of the airport, a base for Republican Guards. Continue reading... |
| UK failing Syrian refugees who survived torture, say MPs Posted: 12 Jan 2017 04:01 PM PST Few receive specialist help they need, report finds, while aim of resettling 20,000 vulnerable refugees by 2020 remains a challenge Only a handful of the 1,000 survivors of torture or violence who have arrived in Britain under the government's Syrian vulnerable refugee resettlement programme have received specialist help, charities have told MPs. Related: Tortured Syrian refugees need specialist help | Letters Continue reading... |
| Snow hits Britain as it faces winter storms – video Posted: 12 Jan 2017 02:11 PM PST Winter storms have battered Britain, bringing driving snow, high winds, and coastal flood warnings. As heavy snow settled across Scotland, Northern Ireland and parts of England on Thursday, travel was disrupted and some schools closed Continue reading... |
| Israeli official who plotted to 'take down' British MPs resigns Posted: 12 Jan 2017 09:50 AM PST London embassy officer Shai Masot leaves service as UK Labour calls for investigation into 'improper interference by foreign state' The Israeli embassy official who was caught on camera plotting to "take down" British MPs has resigned from government service. Shai Masot, a senior political officer at the embassy in London, resigned several days ago when he was sent back to Israel. The UK Foreign Office and the Israeli ministry of foreign affairs both said that they regarded the matter as closed. Continue reading... |
| France's far-right leader Marine Le Pen seen at Trump Tower Posted: 12 Jan 2017 09:07 AM PST Le Pen's Front National party had refused to say whether the politician planned to meet Trump during a visit to New York Marine Le Pen, the leader of France's far-right Front National, has been seen drinking coffee in the basement of Trump Tower in New York after her party had refused to say whether or not she was meeting Donald Trump. Le Pen, who polls show could make it to the final round of the French presidential election in May, broke off from a busy campaign schedule to fly unannounced to New York for what her party said was a "private visit". Party officials refused to comment on whether or not she might meet Trump. Continue reading... |
| Cyprus deal close but don't expect miracles, says UN chief Posted: 12 Jan 2017 09:04 AM PST António Guterres says enormous progress made on day four of reunification talks, but that security guarantees still needed Talks to resolve the division of Cyprus are close to a settlement, the UN secretary general, António Guterres, has said, but he cautioned against expectations of a miracle. Progress has been described as fast, but not so dramatic that it would warrant the attendance on Friday of the leaders of Cyprus' guarantor countries – Greece, Turkey and former colonial power the UK – at the talks in Geneva. Continue reading... |
| Bangladesh cafe reopens six months after brutal terrorist attack Posted: 12 Jan 2017 07:56 AM PST Holey Artisan Bakery in Dhaka opens a few blocks away from old site where 20 hostages were killed last July The Bangladesh cafe besieged by militants who killed 20 hostages last year has quietly reopened a few blocks away from its old site, which remains taped off by investigating police. For Shahriar Ahmed and the 16 other staff, some of whom were working during the horrifying siege, the reopening of Holey Artisan Bakery represents hope and a new beginning. Continue reading... |
| US says 33 Afghanistan civilians died in special forces raid last year Posted: 12 Jan 2017 07:52 AM PST Military says US troops were acting in self-defense amid clash with Taliban as Kunduz province official says civilian death toll was higher The US military in Afghanistan has confirmed that dozens of civilians were killed during a special forces raid near the northern city of Kunduz last year, but ruled that the US troops had acted in self-defense. The investigation followed claims that civilian deaths resulted from airstrikes called in to support Afghan and US forces who came under fire in the province's village of Buz-e Kandahari. The strikes targeted two senior Taliban commanders. Continue reading... |
| UK urged to transfer child refugees from freezing Europe camps Posted: 12 Jan 2017 07:18 AM PST Calls for children housed in flimsy tents to be transferred as soon as possible as temperatures plummet across continent The British government has been urged to step up efforts to transfer lone child refugees from other parts of Europe, as temperatures plunged below freezing across the south of the continent. Thousands of refugees are still housed in flimsy tents, without proper flooring, at risk of freezing to death from the arctic blast across Europe that has brought temperatures to -15C (5F) in Greece and as low as -20C in Serbia and Hungary. Continue reading... |
| Rise in numbers of Jews leaving for Israel from some European countries Posted: 12 Jan 2017 07:05 AM PST Institute of Jewish Policy Research says Jews are leaving some European countries in large numbers but says no parallels with 1930s can be drawn Some European countries have seen an increase in the number of Jews leaving to live in Israel but the numbers fall short of an "exodus", according to a new study. The Institute of Jewish Policy Research compared recent trends of Jewish migration with cases of mass migration in response to persecution or major political upheavals in the past. |
| Southbank Centre programme to debate life and faith Posted: 12 Jan 2017 05:49 AM PST Stephen Hawking to open Belief and Beyond Belief, a year-long festival of events and performances at London arts complex An ambitious year-long programme of lectures, debates, music and performances examining the meaning of life and death will be launched at the Southbank Centre in London on Monday with a talk by the renowned physicist Stephen Hawking. The Belief and Beyond Belief festival is intended to explore what it means to be human in the 21st century with a wide range of participants from faith communities as well as those of no faith. |
| Netanyahu: Middle East peace talks are a rigged move against Israel Posted: 12 Jan 2017 05:49 AM PST Condemnation of Paris gathering suggests Israeli PM is betting future diplomacy on Trump presidency being fiercely pro-Israel The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has denounced this Sunday's Middle East peace conference in Paris as a "rigged" move against Israel. The increasingly embattled Netanyahu, who is the subject of two police corruption investigations, described the conference – at which about 70 countries will take part – as "a relic of the past … before the future sets in" in an apparent reference to Donald Trump's inauguration as president of the US next week. Continue reading... |
| Posted: 12 Jan 2017 05:08 AM PST Philosopher whose books inspired his academic peers all over the world Your body is destroyed, but only after it has been scanned and the blueprint beamed to Mars, where an organic replica of you is created. Is that replica you? It is physically and psychologically indistinguishable from what you were – yet suppose several such replicas are made? Invoking this and other ingenious thought experiments, the philosopher Derek Parfit, who has died aged 74, transformed the centuries-old question of personal identity – what makes some future person me? – by subtly sabotaging and resetting it. He also reframed the agenda in moral philosophy, helped to replace the ideal of equality with the principle of prioritising the worst-off, and established a new philosophical discipline, population ethics. Continue reading... |
| How have you been affected by flooding and snow in the UK? Posted: 12 Jan 2017 04:34 AM PST Britain is experiencing widespread snow and frost, as well as high winds and warnings of flooding. Share your photos and experiences with us Blizzards, high winds and snow hit Britain on Thursday, as transport networks saw disruption caused by the wintry weather. Europe has already been impacted by snow and freezing temperatures. Related: Flights cancelled as UK battered by blizzard Continue reading... |
| Art dynasty heir Guy Wildenstein cleared of €550m French tax fraud Posted: 12 Jan 2017 04:12 AM PST Paris judge says scion to art fortune made 'clear attempt' to hide assets but failings by French investigators ruled out guilty verdict The French-American art dynasty scion Guy Wildenstein has been cleared of hiding paintings and properties worth hundreds of millions of euros from the French authorities after one of the biggest tax fraud trials ever held in the country. State prosecutors had wanted the 71-year-old to be sentenced to two years in prison and given a €250m (£217m) fine over what they called "the longest and most sophisticated" tax fraud scheme in modern-day France. But judges in Paris cleared him and seven other defendants of all charges. Continue reading... |
| Never built New York: the city that might have been – in pictures Posted: 12 Jan 2017 04:48 AM PST From an elevated 19th-century pneumatic railway to a skyscraper cathedral and a Native American alternative to the Statue of Liberty, Never Built New York chronicles ambitious plans for the city which never saw the light of day
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| Egypt court ruling upholds decision to freeze assets of women's rights activists Posted: 12 Jan 2017 05:01 AM PST Clampdown on civil rights groups continues as government pursues case against campaigners accused of using overseas funds to destabilise Egypt An Egyptian court has upheld an earlier ruling to freeze the assets of three prominent rights activists, the latest chapter in a widening government crackdown against civil society groups. The verdict targeted Mozn Hassan and her organisation, Nazra for Feminist Studies, as well as Mohammed Zaraa and Atef Hafez, both of the Arab Organisation for Criminal Reform. Continue reading... |
| Number of Nigerian women trafficked to Italy for sex almost doubled in 2016 Posted: 12 Jan 2017 04:35 AM PST Life of forced prostitution awaits majority of the 11,009 Nigerian women who arrived on Italy's shores last year, says International Organisation for Migration The number of Nigerian women travelling by boat from Libya to Italy almost doubled last year, with the vast majority of new arrivals victims of sex trafficking and exploitation, according to the International Organisation for Migration. The IOM believes approximately 80% of the 11,009 Nigerian women registered at landing points in Sicily in 2016 were trafficked, and will go on to live a life of forced prostitution in Italy and other countries in Europe. Continue reading... |
| Fictional or not, the Trump dossier affair is another win for Putin Posted: 12 Jan 2017 03:49 AM PST Even if Moscow is not involved, the US has been weakened and its new leader compromised before he even takes power Russia insists it had nothing to do with what it has described as the "pulp fiction" scandal swirling around Donald Trump. But for Vladimir Putin, the dossier affair, following allegations of a compromised presidential election, has the effect, deliberately planned or not, of advancing Moscow's long-held aim of weakening the US, paralysing its political decision-making process, and avenging Russia's humiliation at the close of the cold war. It may be that Putin is entirely innocent, as the Russian president's spokesmen claim. Or the opposite may be the case. In a sense it does not matter. The damage has been done, and for the Kremlin, it's a no-lose. The unprecedented confusion and disarray in the US is what old KGB agents like Putin could only dream of. Continue reading... |
| Joe Biden surprised with Presidential Medal of Freedom – video Posted: 12 Jan 2017 02:24 PM PST A teary-eyed Joe Biden accepted the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Barack Obama on Thursday. The vice-president received the medal – the highest US civilian honor – at a ceremony at the White House. Obama said he was bestowing the honor on Biden for 'faith in your fellow Americans, for your love of country and a lifetime of service that will endure through the generations' Continue reading... |
| Mike Pompeo rules out use of torture under Trump presidency – video Posted: 12 Jan 2017 11:02 AM PST Representative Mike Pompeo outlined what he sees as the multiple challenges facing the United States, including aggressions from Russia, China and Iran, during his Senate confirmation hearing to become CIA director. Pompeo also ruled out the use of 'enhanced interrogation' techniques by the US under a Trump presidency, saying he would refuse to implement such strategies if ordered to Continue reading... |
| James Mattis addresses concerns over Russia at confirmation hearing – video Posted: 12 Jan 2017 10:51 AM PST The former marine general James Mattis said during his Senate confirmation hearing on Thursday that the US must be prepared to confront Russian aggression, if necessary. The remarks by Mattis appeared likely to endear him to Russia-wary Republicans and Democrats on the Senate armed services committee, which is expected to back his nomination Continue reading... |
| German foreign minister ‘perplexed’ by Trump’s ‘Nazi Germany’ remarks - video Posted: 12 Jan 2017 10:42 AM PST Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the German foreign minister, says he is at a loss over Donald Trump's remarks comparing the Russia dossier leak to something that could have happened in Nazi Germany. Speaking in Berlin on Thursday, Steinmeier says he thinks Trump will ease off communicating through Twitter Continue reading... |
| Ben Carson reflects on growing up poor at confirmation hearing – video Posted: 12 Jan 2017 10:13 AM PST Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson on Thursday testified at his Senate confirmation hearing to lead the US Department of Housing and Urban Development. Carson spoke of his experience impoverished childhood and how that has helped him understand housing insecurity in America Continue reading... |
| Michelle Obama serenaded by Stevie Wonder during farewell on Jimmy Fallon show – video Posted: 12 Jan 2017 03:16 AM PST The first lady, Michelle Obama, makes a final appearance on NBC's The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Wednesday before leaving the White House. She takes part in a sketch writing thank-you notes to her husband Barack and surprises audience members who were in the middle of recording farewell messages, before being serenaded by Stevie Wonder Continue reading... |
| Pardoned by Obama: how a first-time offender was granted freedom – video Posted: 12 Jan 2017 03:00 AM PST Barack Obama has issued a record number of pardons, commuting the sentences of more men and women than the past nine presidents combined. Ramona Brant, a clemency recipient who was serving a life sentence, describes the president's gift of a second chance Continue reading... |
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