World news and comment from the Guardian | guardian.co.uk

French soldier opens fire on man outside Louvre in Paris
North Korea faces 'overwhelming' US response if it uses nuclear arms – Mattis
Nato must defend western democracy against Russian hacking, say Fallon
Uber CEO steps down from Trump advisory council after users boycott
European parliament leaders call on EU to reject Trump's likely ambassador pick
Pressure mounts on François Fillon as jobs inquiry widens to include children
Syrian refugee gives birth in Canada – after secretly entering labour en route
Oil spill near ExxonMobil drilling platform in Bass Strait to be investigated
French journalist thrown out of Marine Le Pen press conference
Republicans back off bill to sell 3.3m acres of public land after outcry
Kremlin critic Vladimir Kara-Murza in 'critical state' after organ failure
Anti-fascist activists take on Trump and the far right: 'Resistance is our only shot'
Nun receives death threats for suggesting Mary was not a virgin
Angelina Jolie on travel ban: 'Response should be based on facts, not fear'
May to pledge continued support for EU on Mediterranean migration crisis
Pregnant refugee to be flown from Nauru to Australia to give birth
Boost for African coastal states as EU parliament acts to curb illegal fishing
Devastating impact of meth in the womb exposed in South African schools
Last march of the Farc: Colombia's hardened fighters reach for a normal life
North Korean spy chief sacked in latest purge, says South Korea
Romanian protests continue as PM rejects corruption u-turn – video
May to discuss Trump visit and Brexit at EU migration summit
Penelopegate: my part in the François Fillon scandal
Heavy rain and 70mph winds to batter Britain
Fresh Brexit legal challenge launched over single market
Eyewitness: Damascus, Syria
Thousands of refugees fleeing conflict destitute in UK, says Red Cross
Ivanka Trump effect: new year wishes from president's daughter welcomed in China
Between two worlds: struggles of the Asmat people – in pictures
St Stanislaus chaplain targeted homesick boys for abuse, court hears
What are men to do in the age of Trump?
Melbourne anti-Trump rally: hundreds attend to voice 'unprecedented' anger
Argentina sees migration ban and border wall proposals in immigration row
Hitler states his 'moderation' at press interview - archive, 1933
South Pacific islands ban western junk food and go organic
Knights of Malta 'still loyal to pope' after clash over condoms
US warns North Korea of 'overwhelming' response if nuclear arms used – video
Romanian PM refuses to withdraw corruption pardon despite protests
Tigerair permanently halts all flights between Australia and Bali
Fennec fox cub noses around Taronga zoo enclosure for first time – video
Trump administration: Israeli settlements not impediment to peace
UN envoy Nikki Haley criticises Russian aggression in Ukraine
John Smyth: the go-to barrister for Mary Whitehouse
European leaders must respond to Trump | Letters
Brazil on high alert as yellow fever threatens major cities
Europe seeks new vision in face of 'global tectonic changes'
Journalist thrown out of Marine Le Pen press conference – video
Fiance of Tunisia attack victim tells inquest how he battled to save her
Quiz: guess the city from its skyline
Kashmir farmers caught in border crossfire hit hard by drought
Plan to move Rohingya to remote island prompts fears of human catastrophe
Senate Republicans breaking committee rules opens gate for partisan overrides
'Illegal immigrants in prisons': Trump questions refugee deal with Australia – video
Trump 'unbelievably disappointed' by refugee deal with Australia – video
Trump defends 'tough phone calls' with Australia - video
Trump v Arnie: president starts beef with movie star over ratings – video
Steve Bannon: the strategist behind Trump's travel ban – video profile
Trump takes swipe at media during black history month speech – video

French soldier opens fire on man outside Louvre in Paris

Posted: 03 Feb 2017 01:44 AM PST

Paris police prefect says man 'armed with a machete' shouted threats and 'Allahu Akbar' at soldiers

A major security operation is under way near the Louvre museum in Paris after a man attempted a knife attack on soldiers patrolling the area.

A man carrying a rucksack wounded one soldier with a knife and another in the patrol opened fire.

North Korea faces 'overwhelming' US response if it uses nuclear arms – Mattis

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 09:17 PM PST

Donald Trump's defence secretary warns Pyongyang that any attack on the South will be defeated

Donald Trump's defence secretary has warned North Korea it would face an "effective and overwhelming" response from the US if it used nuclear weapons.

Speaking in South Korea on Friday, James Mattis reassured the government in Seoul that the US would retaliate should its northern neighbour launch any attack.

Nato must defend western democracy against Russian hacking, say Fallon

Posted: 03 Feb 2017 12:12 AM PST

UK defence secretary accuses Moscow of 'weaponising misinformation' to disable democratic machinery

Nato must begin to compete on the cyber-battlefield to counter Russian hacking, which is "weaponising misinformation" to create a post-truth age, the defence secretary, Sir Michael Fallon, has said.

In his hardest-hitting comments yet about Russia, Fallon said that in the past two years it had targeted the US, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Bulgaria and Montenegro, which becomes a full Nato member this year. He blamed Russia for helping create the fake information age.

Uber CEO steps down from Trump advisory council after users boycott

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 11:25 PM PST

Travis Kalanick says participation in president's strategic and policy forum has been 'misinterpreted' as endorsement of Donald Trump's agenda

Uber CEO Travis Kalanick is stepping down from Donald Trump's economic advisory council following intense criticism and an online boycott of the company over its ties to the new administration, the company confirmed Thursday.

European parliament leaders call on EU to reject Trump's likely ambassador pick

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 08:57 AM PST

Exclusive: Heads of parliament's main political parties issue unprecedented call opposing Ted Malloch, who likened his goal to 'bringing down the Soviet Union'

The European parliament's main political parties are making an unprecedented attempt to block Donald Trump's likely choice as ambassador to the European Union from EU buildings, describing him as hostile and malevolent.

In a startling move that threatens a major diplomatic row, the leaders of the conservative, socialist and liberal groups in Brussels have written to the European commission and the European council, whose members represent the 28 EU states, to reject the appointment of Ted Malloch.

Pressure mounts on François Fillon as jobs inquiry widens to include children

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 08:22 AM PST

French rightwing candidate under fire as it emerges the children he employed 'for legal expertise' were not qualified lawyers

French presidential candidate François Fillon is fighting for his political life after an anti-fraud investigation into payments made to his wife for an alleged fake job as a parliamentary assistant was extended to look at roles he gave his children.

Pressure on Fillon intensified after video footage emerged of his wife denying she had ever been his parliamentary assistant – contradicting his defence.

Syrian refugee gives birth in Canada – after secretly entering labour en route

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 11:52 AM PST

Pastor of Fort McMurray church sponsoring Ibtesam Alkarnake's arrival describes her 'brute determination' after she had a healthy baby

Ibtesam Alkarnake had already started the arduous 24-hour journey from a temporary home in Jordan to asylum in Canada when her waters broke.

Nearly six years after they fled the war in Syria, safety seemed finally in reach, as the family made their way to the northern Alberta city of Fort McMurray to begin new lives as privately sponsored refugees.

Oil spill near ExxonMobil drilling platform in Bass Strait to be investigated

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 03:03 PM PST

Spill comes less than 18 months after a fire on the same oil rig and prompts warning from environmentalists over dangers of offshore drilling

An oil spill at an ExxonMobil platform in the Bass Strait is being investigated by the federal regulator, after the discovery of an oily sheen on waters around the rig.

The spill comes less than 18 months after a fire raged on the same platform for nine hours before it could be controlled. And in 2013, Exxon was responsible for a spill from another rig in the Bass Strait.

French journalist thrown out of Marine Le Pen press conference

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 06:05 AM PST

Paul Larrouturou forced out after trying to question Front National presidential candidate over 'misspent' EU funds

A French broadcast journalist has complained of being violently thrown out of a press conference after he tried to question the far-right Front National presidential candidate, Marine Le Pen.

Paul Larrouturou was with a crew from the TF1 news programme Quotidien at the conference in Paris, when he attempted to ask Le Pen about allegations that she used European parliament funds to pay staff of her political party.

Republicans back off bill to sell 3.3m acres of public land after outcry

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 11:24 AM PST

Congressman Jason Chaffetz withdraws House bill 621 as conservationists and outdoorsmen vow to continue fight over similar legislation

In the small hours of Thursday morning, US congressman Jason Chaffetz announced that he would withdraw a bill he introduced last week that would have ordered the incoming secretary of the interior to immediately sell off 3.3m acres of national land.

Chaffetz, a representative from Utah, wrote on Instagram that he had a change of heart in the face of strong opposition from "groups I support and care about" who, he said, "fear it sends the wrong message".

Kremlin critic Vladimir Kara-Murza in 'critical state' after organ failure

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 12:47 PM PST

Russian opposition politician, who suffered suspected poisoning two years ago, is on ventilator in intensive care

A Russian opposition politician and well-known Kremlin critic is in intensive care following organ failure in a sudden illness, two years after suffering a suspected poisoning, supporters said.

Vladimir Kara-Murza was on a ventilator and undergoing renal dialysis and other intensive care procedures, lawyer Vadim Prokhorov wrote on Facebook late on Thursday. Kara-Murza was in a critical state, he said.

Anti-fascist activists take on Trump and the far right: 'Resistance is our only shot'

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 11:45 AM PST

For a small but growing band of activists, any public appearance by a member of white-supremacist movement is met with resistance by any means

More than 1,000 people were shouting "Shut it down" outside the University of California, Berkeley venue where Milo Yiannopoulos planned to speak on Wednesday when a group of black-clad, masked protesters carryings flags and shields arrived to put those words into action.

The band of about 150 anti-fascist activists – or antifas – quickly and efficiently stormed the multilayered police barricades that kept the crowd away from the entrances of the Martin Luther King Jr student union.

Nun receives death threats for suggesting Mary was not a virgin

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 07:33 AM PST

Lucía Caram sparks anger in Spain after appearing to contradict Catholic teaching on perpetual virginity of mother of Jesus

A nun in Spain who says she received death threats for suggesting that Mary probably had sex with her husband, Joseph, has apologised for any offence caused but accused her critics of deliberately misunderstanding her point.

Sister Lucía Caram, a well-known Dominican nun with more than 183,000 Twitter followers, appeared to contradict church teaching when she appeared on Spanish TV on Sunday to discuss sex and faith.

Angelina Jolie on travel ban: 'Response should be based on facts, not fear'

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 02:55 PM PST

In an op-ed for the New York Times, the actor and humanitarian criticized Donald Trump's strict executive order surrounding immigration

Angelina Jolie has spoken out against Donald Trump's controversial travel ban, criticizing his restrictions as a response based on fear.

In an op-ed penned for the New York Times, the actor, director and UN ambassador expressed her anger at the recent decision to limit travellers from certain countries.

May to pledge continued support for EU on Mediterranean migration crisis

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 02:30 PM PST

British PM will also urge leaders at Malta summit to spend more on defence after Donald Trump's Nato scepticism

The UK will remain a "reliable" partner for the EU in helping to tackle the Mediterranean migration crisis even after Brexit, Theresa May is to tell her fellow European leaders at a summit in Malta on Friday.

The prime minister will use the meeting to reassure the remaining 27 EU members that Britain will not step back from such international obligations, Downing Street said, while also urging them to spend more on defence in the era of Donald Trump's scepticism about Nato.

Pregnant refugee to be flown from Nauru to Australia to give birth

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 12:00 PM PST

Doctors lobbied on behalf of 37-year-old woman, who faces a complex and potentially life-threatening delivery

A heavily pregnant Kuwaiti refugee – facing a potentially life-threatening, complex delivery on Nauru – will be flown to Australia on Friday morning to give birth, Nauru's government has said.

The decision ends more than a month of lobbying by doctors, lawyers and advocates to bring her to Australia.

Boost for African coastal states as EU parliament acts to curb illegal fishing

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 08:55 AM PST

Decisive vote for legislative overhaul could deter illegal commercial operations in African waters that threaten the livelihoods of local fishing communities

The European parliament has voted overwhelmingly to bring in new rules cracking down on illegal fishing, which could help coastal states in heavily fished African waters confront criminal activity.

Thursday's vote to overhaul Europe's external fleet legislation could deter commercial operators from encroaching on waters relied upon by local fishing communities.

Devastating impact of meth in the womb exposed in South African schools

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 01:46 AM PST

Extent of crisis becomes clear as children of women caught up in tik epidemic struggle with hyperactivity and aggression

Justin Summers has a mop of curly brown hair and enjoys playing marbles. Aged seven, he is on the cusp of starting his 12-year journey through South Africa's education system.

But before he's even started, the outlook for his education is dire. His ability to learn has been severely compromised because his mother, Agnes, used methamphetamine while pregnant with him. She is now expecting her fifth child, and is still using the narcotic.

Last march of the Farc: Colombia's hardened fighters reach for a normal life

Posted: 03 Feb 2017 02:00 AM PST

Latin America's most formidable guerilla group is transitioning to civilian life following a historic peace deal. But that doesn't mean their struggles are over

Over his 18 years as a member of the revolutionary armed forces of Colombia, German became accustomed trekking for days through jungles and over mountains with a heavy pack on his back and an AK-47 strapped across his chest.

But, this week, as he and thousands of other rebels began to make the final journey of their 52-year war, the hardened guerrilla fighter was filled with equal measures of expectation and trepidation.

North Korean spy chief sacked in latest purge, says South Korea

Posted: 03 Feb 2017 01:39 AM PST

State security minister Kim Won-hong was accused of corruption and human rights abuses, Seoul reports

The head of North Korea's spy agency has become the most senior victim of another round of apparent purges ordered by the country's leader, Kim Jong-un, South Korean officials have said.

Kim Won-hong, the state security minister and a close aide to the leader, was sacked in mid-January after being accused of corruption, abuse of power and human rights abuses, according to the unification ministry in Seoul, which handles cross-border issues.

Romanian protests continue as PM rejects corruption u-turn – video

Posted: 03 Feb 2017 01:31 AM PST

Thousands demonstrate in Romania for the third night running on Thursday after the government rejected calls to withdraw a decree that would decriminalise abuse-of-power offences. Social Democrat party leader Liviu Dragnea, who has a corruption conviction, defends the decree

Romanian PM refuses to withdraw corruption pardon despite protests

May to discuss Trump visit and Brexit at EU migration summit

Posted: 03 Feb 2017 01:21 AM PST

Prime minister arrives in Malta where European leaders led by German chancellor will seek reassurance on UK exit strategy

Theresa May has arrived at an EU summit in Malta where European leaders led by Angela Merkel will seek reassurance over Brexit and a briefing on Donald Trump.

The summit is officially focused on helping to tackle the Mediterranean migration crisis. But a day after the government revealed its most detailed plans yet for leaving the EU, in the form a 77-page white paper, fellow leaders will be looking to the prime minister for reassurance that the UK will not drop international cooperation in after Brexit.

Penelopegate: my part in the François Fillon scandal

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 09:51 AM PST

A seemingly inoffensive interview in 2007 has provided the smoking gun that could ultimately kill a top French political career

The interview in 2007 with Penelope Fillon, the Welsh-born wife of the then newly appointed French prime minister, was a gentle affair.

Sitting in her local cafe in a chic Paris arrondissement, we talked about family, including her five children, and how she preferred being in the country with her horses and studying Shakespeare than being part of the Parisian beau monde. She told of how she met her husband, François, discussed Welsh nationalism, and we laughed at how clumsy her name sounded with its French pronunciation: Pen-eh-loppe to rhyme with mop.

Heavy rain and 70mph winds to batter Britain

Posted: 03 Feb 2017 12:26 AM PST

Met Office issues yellow warnings for wind and rain across parts of the country – but it's not Storm Doris

Winds of up to 70mph are expected to batter parts of the UK and nearly half a month's rainfall is expected in some areas.

Yellow warnings for wind covering the south and south-east of England and southern Wales have been issued by the Met Office from 11am on Friday to 3am on Saturday.

Fresh Brexit legal challenge launched over single market

Posted: 03 Feb 2017 02:11 AM PST

Campaigners say parliament must legislate separately to remove UK from European Economic Area and single market

The government's Brexit strategy faces a fresh legal challenge in the high court on Friday when campaigners argue that parliament must separately legislate to remove the UK from the European Economic Area (EEA) and the single market.

After months of resisting – and ultimately losing – a series of courtroom battles over ministers' use of their executive powers to trigger article 50 and leave the EU, government lawyers may be forced to launch a renewed defence of the royal prerogative.

Eyewitness: Damascus, Syria

Posted: 03 Feb 2017 01:54 AM PST

Photographs from the Eyewitness series

Thousands of refugees fleeing conflict destitute in UK, says Red Cross

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 10:39 AM PST

Almost 15,000 people sought charity's help with food, housing or money in 2016 – up from 11,000 in 2014

Thousands of refugees and asylum seekers who have fled conflict zones such as Syria, Eritrea and Sudan are being left destitute in Britain, according to a report from the Red Cross. The figure has increased by 10% in the last year.

The charity, the largest provider of services to asylum seekers and refugees in the UK, with centres in more than 50 towns and cities, expressed concern about the increase in the numbers of vulnerable and destitute people who have fled war and conflict being helped by its staff and volunteers in 2016.

Ivanka Trump effect: new year wishes from president's daughter welcomed in China

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 11:43 PM PST

Beijing media says visit to embassy in US could help 'balance president's harsh posture' but relationship with Washington remains strained

Donald Trump's ascension to the presidency has been marked with tough talk on China and he has surrounded himself with a clique of China-bashing advisers. Now China sees a glimmer that the relationship is not entirely lost and is pinning hopes on a new tool to balance Trump's bombast: the Ivanka effect.

Between two worlds: struggles of the Asmat people – in pictures

Posted: 03 Feb 2017 02:02 AM PST

Facing deforestation on their lands and marginalisation by foreigners, the Asmat people of West Papua, Indonesia, often suffer a crisis of identity. Joshua Irwandi's photography project, Not A Blank Canvas, documents the tribe and its struggles

St Stanislaus chaplain targeted homesick boys for abuse, court hears

Posted: 03 Feb 2017 12:34 AM PST

Brian Spillane used 'all sorts of emotional blackmail' to silence sex assault victims at college in Bathurst, sentencing hearing told

Former priest Brian Spillane took advantage of homesick young boarding school students, then used emotional blackmail to ensure his victims kept quiet, a court has heard.

The paedophile told the boys no one would believe them if they spoke out – even telling one victim the news would have a serious effect on his ill mother's health, crown prosecutor Elizabeth Wilkins SC told the New South Wales district court on Friday. "All sorts of emotional blackmail was used," Wilkins told the court.

What are men to do in the age of Trump?

Posted: 03 Feb 2017 02:00 AM PST

Donald Trump represents far more than a setback for women. He also represents the failure of men to deal with their own questions of gender

"Men: Time to Listen". So read a sign on the National Mall in Washington during the Women's March protesting Donald Trump the day after his inauguration.

Now that the women's movement has become the spearhead of resistance to the Trump administration, a pressing question has emerged for half the population: what role, if any, are men to play in the crisis of gender politics that is inevitable over the course of the next four years?

Melbourne anti-Trump rally: hundreds attend to voice 'unprecedented' anger

Posted: 03 Feb 2017 12:05 AM PST

Greens leader Richard Di Natale tells crowd people feel shocked and let down by the political establishment

The groundswell of anger created around the world by the actions of the US president is "unprecedented", Greens leader Richard Di Natale told a few hundred protesters at an anti-Trump rally in Melbourne on Friday evening.

Many gathered outside the State Library in the city as a range of speakers including Di Natale addressed the crowd. They chanted "Down Trump down!" and "No hate, no fear, Muslims are welcome here". Similar protests will follow in Canberra, Sydney, Newcastle and Hobart on Saturday.

Argentina sees migration ban and border wall proposals in immigration row

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 11:00 PM PST

President Mauricio Macri triggers backlash from Bolivia after banning entry for foreign citizens with criminal convictions – as legislator proposes border wall

Amid a racially charged national debate on immigration, a real estate tycoon-turned-president signs an executive order to stop foreign migrants entering his country and to deport foreign residents with criminal records.

There is even talk of building a border wall, while intemperate language prompts a backlash from a neighbouring country.

Hitler states his 'moderation' at press interview - archive, 1933

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 09:00 PM PST

3 February 1933: 'I have been represented as having made bloodthirsty and firebrand speeches against foreign countries, and now the world is surprised at my moderation'

BERLIN, THURSDAY
"I only ask for four years; after that the nation can do what it will with me – crucify me if it likes," said Hitler during an interview which he gave this afternoon to a small group of British and American journalists. There was no middle course left for Germany, he said. Either the Bolshevik standard would fly over Germany or she would recover herself.

Appealing for no premature judgment of the press of the world on his Government, he asked that its deeds should be awaited.

South Pacific islands ban western junk food and go organic

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 08:37 PM PST

Leaders of Vanuatu province want to turn local people and tourists away from unhealthy imports in favour of locally grown crops and seafood

A group of south Pacific islands are banning foreign junk food imports in favour of an all-local, organic diet as a way to combat future health problems.

Torba province, part of Vanuatu, aims to impose restrictions on the import of western foodstuffs and instead take advantage of its productive agricultural land and rich natural resources.

Knights of Malta 'still loyal to pope' after clash over condoms

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 07:44 PM PST

Official at centre of feud says Catholic order 'grateful to holy father for guidance' after its British head, Matthew Festing, was fired for challenging Vatican

The Knights of Malta has reaffirmed its allegiance to the pope while acknowledging damage was done by a clash with the Vatican that stemmed from an aid project distributing condoms in the developing world.

Matthew Festing was effectively fired as grand master of the Catholic order by Pope Francis as a result of the dispute. Festing had sacked another high-ranked official, Albrecht Freiherr von Boeselager, over the aid project.

US warns North Korea of 'overwhelming' response if nuclear arms used – video

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 07:37 PM PST

President Donald Trump's defence secretary, James Mattis, warns North Korea of an 'effective and overwhelming' response if Pyongyang uses nuclear weapons. He also reassures South Korea of steadfast US support at the end of a two-day visit to the country

Romanian PM refuses to withdraw corruption pardon despite protests

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 07:01 PM PST

Political crisis deepens as cabinet minister resigns and hundreds of thousands take to the streets for the third night

Romania's government has rejected calls to withdraw a decree that critics say marks a major retreat on anti-corruption reforms, standing its ground as huge nationwide protests entered a third day.

As hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets across the country to protest about the decree for the third night running on Thursday, cracks in government unity emerged with the resignation of a cabinet minister and a call from a vice-president of the ruling party for the decree to be rescinded.

Tigerair permanently halts all flights between Australia and Bali

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 06:53 PM PST

Low-cost airline offers refunds and help to passengers stranded by sudden decision to scrap Indonesian route

Tigerair has immediately cancelled all flights between Australia and Bali and says it will no longer offer the route after encountering regulatory problems in Indonesia.

The low-cost airline said it had been told by Indonesian authorities to find an "alternative regulatory solution" for its Bali operations, which the carrier said would take at least six months and raise costs.

Fennec fox cub noses around Taronga zoo enclosure for first time – video

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 06:50 PM PST

A new member of the world's smallest fox species excitably explores its enclosure in Sydney. The Fennec fox kit was born in December last year but has only just started to venture outside its nest box. It is the first Fennec Fox born at Taronga Zoo since 2013 and keepers are yet to name or confirm the sex of the kit

Trump administration: Israeli settlements not impediment to peace

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 06:33 PM PST

White House breaks with longstanding US policy but warns further expansion 'may not be helpful' to ending conflict

The Trump administration has broken with longstanding US policy by saying Israeli settlements in Palestinian territory are not "an impediment to peace" but cautioning that a further expansion "may not be helpful" to ending the conflict.

The comments came after the new US secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, spoke to the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. Donald Trump is due to meet Netanyahu on 15 February.

UN envoy Nikki Haley criticises Russian aggression in Ukraine

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 04:39 PM PST

New ambassador uses maiden speech to the security council to deliver the Trump administration's first rebuke to Moscow

The Trump administration has severely criticised Russia for the first time with its newly appointed ambassador to the United Nations lambasting Moscow for its military intervention in Ukraine.

Making her maiden address to a session of the UN security council on Thursday, Nikki Haley said: "Eastern Ukraine of course is not the only part of the country suffering because of Russia's aggressive actions. The United States continues to condemn and call for an immediate end to the Russian occupation of Crimea."

John Smyth: the go-to barrister for Mary Whitehouse

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 12:09 PM PST

Smyth won blasphemy case against Gay News and initially took on prosecution of the National's production of The Romans in Britain

Church 'could have done more' over John Smyth abuse claims

At the height of his legal career, John Smyth QC was the go-to barrister for morality campaigner Mary Whitehouse.

When Whitehouse took a private prosecution against Gay News and its editor in the 1970s, it was Smyth – whom she described as an evangelical Christian – who won the case for her. Whitehouse objected to a poem in the newspaper about a centurion's love for Christ, and the newspaper and its editor were found guilty of blasphemous libel.

European leaders must respond to Trump | Letters

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 08:54 AM PST

President Trump's executive order on immigration is an assault on Europe's interests and values. It condemns entire nations and prevents refugees who have committed no crime from finding safety, making an international response to the refugee crisis all the harder. It also risks setting back co-operation on terrorism while stimulating Isis's recruitment. We call on the European leaders in Malta to respond in three ways:

• The EU should speak with one voice in defence of international agreements and basic human rights, including the right of refuge. Seeking special deals on a country-by-country basis will simply weaken everyone.

Brazil on high alert as yellow fever threatens major cities

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 07:35 AM PST

Health ministry ramps up vaccination campaign but cautions against 'disinformation', as disease spreads to areas where it is not normally found

Brazil has ramped up an emergency yellow fever vaccination campaign as the worst outbreak in decades spreads towards major population centres, killing dozens of people and decimating wild monkey populations.

The uptick comes exactly a year after the Zika virus – another mosquito-borne disease – was declared a global health emergency, and as during the previous epidemic Brazilian authorities are struggling to calibrate an appropriate response.

Europe seeks new vision in face of 'global tectonic changes'

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 07:30 AM PST

EU summit will emphasise foreign policy and defence amid concerns about the challenges posed by Trump and Putin

Europe's leaders, shaken by the rise of Donald Trump and the continued belligerence of Vladimir Putin, will seek to forge a new vision for the EU with greater unity on foreign policy and higher spending on defence, during a summit in Malta on Friday.

A leaked "concept paper" drawn up by the European council, whose members comprise the 28 EU states, warns that the union is at "a historical turning point, experiencing dramatic challenges both from within and outside".

Journalist thrown out of Marine Le Pen press conference – video

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 07:27 AM PST

A French journalist is thrown out of a press conference after he tried to ask the far-right Front National presidential candidate, Marine Le Pen, about allegations that she used European parliament funds to pay staff of her political party. Paul Larrouturou was with a crew from the TF1 news programme Quotidien at the conference in Paris

French journalist thrown out of Marine Le Pen press conference

Fiance of Tunisia attack victim tells inquest how he battled to save her

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 07:19 AM PST

Liam Moore tried to resuscitate Carly Lovett, 24, after she was shot during attack on Sousse beachfront hotel in June 2015

The fiance of a woman killed in the Sousse terror attack in Tunisia battled to save her life after she was shot in the chest, an inquest has heard.

Carly Lovett, 24, told Liam Moore she loved him as she slipped in and out of consciousness in a first-floor corridor of the Imperial Marhaba hotel.

Quiz: guess the city from its skyline

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 11:15 PM PST

A city's skyline can be its defining feature – from Sydney's Opera House to New York's skyscrapers – but can you identify places based on their skylines alone?

New York

Dubai

Cairo

Delhi

Shanghai

Toronto

Singapore

Seoul

Dublin

Edinburgh

London

Oxford

Bangkok

Dubai

Cairo

Singapore

Paris

Cairo

Moscow

Milan

Vancouver

Beijing

Chicago

Perth

Toronto

Mumbai

Seattle

Sydney

Frankfurt

Seoul

Cincinnati

Melbourne

Moscow

Istanbul

Sao Paulo

Shanghai

Frankfurt

Toronto

Ankara

Seattle

Kashmir farmers caught in border crossfire hit hard by drought

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 11:00 PM PST

Villagers on the disputed India-Pakistan border used to coping with stray bullets and shells now fear being forced out by a prolonged drought

The past three decades have not been kind to the residents of Keerni in the foothills of the Himalayas. The village in India's Poonch district, in Jammu and Kashmir state, sits on the disputed line of control between India and Pakistan, and people and cattle have often been maimed or killed in crossfire or by landmines.

Residents of Keerni's 750 mud-built homes have also had to deal with intensifying border conflict following India's strikes against purported terrorist camps in Pakistan-administered Kashmir in September.

Plan to move Rohingya to remote island prompts fears of human catastrophe

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 06:12 AM PST

Rights groups have warned that a Bangladesh government proposal to move Rohingya refugees to a flood-prone island could have fatal consequences

The Bangladeshi government's revised proposals to relocate tens of thousands of Rohingya refugees to a remote island that appeared only eight years ago, and floods at high tide, threaten to trigger a humanitarian catastrophe, rights groups have warned.

Members of the Rohingya Muslim community, who fled from Myanmar to neighbouring Bangladesh to escape persecution, said they were so fearful of the planned relocation they would consider returning to their homeland.

Senate Republicans breaking committee rules opens gate for partisan overrides

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 06:30 AM PST

'Unprecedented' move to advance cabinet nominees could be first in series of revisions to circumvent Democratic pushback on supreme court and legislation

As a presidential candidate, Donald Trump skipped a debate, refused to release his tax returns, hesitated to divest from his businesses and otherwise demonstrated little regard for the supposed rules of national politics.

'Illegal immigrants in prisons': Trump questions refugee deal with Australia – video

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 03:20 PM PST

President Donald Trump sounds off about the refugee resettlement deal between the US and Australia during a lunch with Harley-Davidson executives at the White House on Thursday. 'I love Australia as a country but we have a problem where – for whatever reason – President Obama said that they were going to take probably well over a thousand illegal immigrants in prisons,' he says, referring to refugees held in offshore detention

Trump 'unbelievably disappointed' by refugee deal with Australia – video

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 03:06 PM PST

President Donald Trump believes the Obama administration's decision to accept refugees held in Australia's offshore detention centres is 'a threat to national security', the White House spokesman says on Thursday. But Sean Spicer adds: 'He has tremendous respect for the prime minister and for the Australian people and he's going to continue to review that deal'

Trump defends 'tough phone calls' with Australia - video

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 09:02 AM PST

Donald Trump told an audience at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington not to worry about his 'tough phone calls', in an apparent reference to his diplomatic row with Australia. 'They're tough, we have to be tough … We're taken advantage of by every nation in the world, virtually,' he said on Thursday. The comments came after a public row with the Australian prime minister, Malcolm Turnbull, over a refugee resettlement agreement

Trump v Arnie: president starts beef with movie star over ratings – video

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 08:16 AM PST

President Trump took a swipe at Arnold Schwarzenegger and what he says are sinking ratings on his former show The Apprentice on Thursday morning. Speaking at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington DC, Trump said Schwarzenegger, who took over as host of the show, has been a 'total disaster'

Steve Bannon: the strategist behind Trump's travel ban – video profile

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 07:08 AM PST

Steve Bannon has been a naval officer, an investment banker, a film producer and an executive at Breitbart News. Now he's Donald Trump's chief strategist and arguably the most influential man in the White House. He was reportedly behind the chaotic move to restrict immigration from certain majority Muslim countries and has called on the media to 'keep its mouth shut' about Trump.

Steve Bannon: 'We're going to war in the South China Sea ... no doubt'

Trump takes swipe at media during black history month speech – video

Posted: 02 Feb 2017 05:22 AM PST

The US president holds a so-called listening session to mark the first day of black history month. He uses his speech to say that a report he removed a bust of Martin Luther King Jr from the Oval Office was 'fake news'