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- Trump says US will act alone on North Korea if China fails to help
- The grassroots 'guerilla army' powering Macron's French election battle
- Lithuania fears Russian propaganda is prelude to eventual invasion
- Ecuador election: Lenin Moreno headed for victory amid opposition fraud claims
- Israel's medical marijuana pioneers look to cash in on $20bn market
- Met police look at allegations of Saudi war crimes in Yemen
- 'Adios!': Mexican newspaper Norte closes after murder of journalist
- Paraguay's president calls for end to unrest after killing of activist
- Leading Democrat alleges joint effort to distract from Trump-Russia inquiry
- Chechen police 'have rounded up more than 100 suspected gay men'
- ‘I saw you on Sean Spicer’: Trump press briefings become hottest show in town
- 'Sapphire rush' threatens rainforests of Madagascar
- Jailed British-Iranian woman 'dreams of watching daughter play'
- UK travel firm becomes the first to drop zoos
- Churches and charities fill asylum vacuum left by 'lukewarm' state
- Small, green and open-air: Bangkok's new breed of 'community shopping malls'
- Three people wanted by police over Croydon asylum seeker attack
- Spain suggests UK needs to calm down over Gibraltar following Howard's war threat - Politics live
- South African politician investigated for tweet about benefits of colonialism
- Scott Morrison evasive over impact of smaller corporate tax cuts package
- Ayaan Hirsi Ali cancels Australian tour citing security concerns
- Brexit talks: EU will not go soft on Gibraltar issue, diplomats say
- Australian Hazaras protest visit of Afghan president Ashraf Ghani
- Monday briefing: welfare cuts for children and the bereaved
- Stellar Daisy: search for crew of huge cargo ship feared sunk in Atlantic Ocean
- Drone footage captures landslide destruction in Colombia – video report
- Ayaan Hirsi Ali: freedom fighter or just a help for Hanson? | Gay Alcorn
- Whatever happened in the San Serriffendum? | Brief letters
- French polling watchdog warns over Russian news agency's election report
- Use gender-sensitive language or lose marks, university students told
- Abu Hamza's son stripped of UK passport
- Carnival bonfire explodes in northern France – video
- Former Obama staffers run for office to protect the progressive policies they built
- Lottery scams prey on the vulnerable and help fuel violence in Jamaica
| Trump says US will act alone on North Korea if China fails to help Posted: 03 Apr 2017 02:12 AM PDT
Donald Trump has issued China with an ultimatum that if it fails to put pressure on North Korea to disable its nuclear programme, then the US is prepared to take action against Pyongyang on its own. "Well, if China is not going to solve North Korea, we will," the president said in an interview with the Financial Times that has alarmed experts on the region. Continue reading... |
| The grassroots 'guerilla army' powering Macron's French election battle Posted: 02 Apr 2017 11:00 PM PDT Presidential favourite Emmanuel Macron is running without a party so campaigners must convince voters they are building a viable political force Alain Garcia, an office worker in an energy company, unlocked his grey hatchback parked on a quiet street. "Welcome to the Macron-mobile," he said. Thousands of smiling election pictures of the centrist French presidential favourite beamed out from the backseat. At one point Garcia had 11,000 copies of Emmanuel Macron's manifesto leaflets crammed into his family car which he uses for his daily commute. "I do sometimes worry a bit about the car's suspension," he said, slowing to go over a speedbump in Villeurbanne, a town whose diverse ethnic mix of housing estates and gentrification nudges up against the south-eastern city of Lyon. Continue reading... |
| Lithuania fears Russian propaganda is prelude to eventual invasion Posted: 02 Apr 2017 11:00 PM PDT The Kremlin's attempts to rewrite history are seen as threats by Baltic states similar to its justification for annexing Crimea Russia is trying to create a false history that denies the Baltic states' right to exist, with alarming parallels to its justifications for the annexation of Crimea in March 2014, top Lithuanian officials have said. The country's defence minister and officials from the army's department of strategic communication have told the Guardian that they are taking very seriously the threat of disinformation campaigns orchestrated by Moscow that aim to destabilise the region. Continue reading... |
| Ecuador election: Lenin Moreno headed for victory amid opposition fraud claims Posted: 02 Apr 2017 10:17 PM PDT Leftwing candidate begins celebrations after presidential run-off with implications for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange Ecuador's ruling party candidate appeared to be heading for victory in a presidential run-off that would cement the country's reputation as a bastion of the Latin American left and provide breathing space for Wikileaks founder Julian Assange. However, the narrow 51% to 49% lead for Lenin Moreno was contested by the opposition candidate Guillermo Lasso, prompting fears for heightened political tension in the days ahead. Continue reading... |
| Israel's medical marijuana pioneers look to cash in on $20bn market Posted: 02 Apr 2017 11:00 PM PDT Country has seen 500 companies apply to join 'green rush' in cannabis products after more than 100 studies in pharmaceutical use In a small pharmaceutical lab in Jerusalem, a complex construction of rubber tubes, pumps and a brass pipe sits on a worktop. A prototype device, its purpose is to "smoke" cannabis to remove its active constituents and turn them into powder, with the hope that the resulting product can be used for pain relief in young cancer patients. The Izun lab offers a glimpse of the ambition by Israeli researchers to corner the rapidly burgeoning new global market in medical marijuana, a market its proponents argue soon could be worth almost $20bn (£16bn) annually by 2020 in the US alone. Continue reading... |
| Met police look at allegations of Saudi war crimes in Yemen Posted: 02 Apr 2017 02:30 PM PDT Scotland Yard's move risks sparking diplomatic row as Theresa May prepares to visit Arab state to talk up closer trade links Scotland Yard is examining allegations of war crimes by Saudi Arabia in Yemen, the Guardian can reveal, triggering a possible diplomatic row with Britain on the eve of Theresa May's visit to the Arab state. The Metropolitan police confirmed that their war crimes unit was assessing whether criminal prosecutions could be brought over Saudi Arabia's devastating aerial campaign in Yemen. Continue reading... |
| 'Adios!': Mexican newspaper Norte closes after murder of journalist Posted: 02 Apr 2017 09:09 PM PDT Norte editor tells readers the paper is closing because the safety of reporters cannot be guaranteed A newspaper in the Mexican border city of Juárez has announced that it is shutting down because the unpunished killings of journalists in the country have made it too dangerous to go on. Oscar Cantu Murguia, the editor of Norte, informed readers of his decision in a farewell letter titled "Adios!" that was published on the paper's front page and online. Continue reading... |
| Paraguay's president calls for end to unrest after killing of activist Posted: 02 Apr 2017 11:44 AM PDT Horacio Cartes promises justice for 25-year-old shot by police during protests against his attempt to seek second term in office Paraguay's president has appealed for calm in a video published on his official Facebook page , after protests erupted this weekend over behind-the-scenes constitutional wrangling to enable him to run for office again in 2018. Protesters stormed and set fire to Paraguay's congress on Friday, with subsequent confrontations in the streets of the capital ending in the fatal shooting by police of a 25-year-old activist in an opposition party headquarters. Continue reading... |
| Leading Democrat alleges joint effort to distract from Trump-Russia inquiry Posted: 02 Apr 2017 12:48 PM PDT Intelligence chair Devin Nunes helped White House sideline claims he is meant to be investigating, says Adam Schiff, as Trump claims surveillance 'scandal' Donald Trump's White House and a Republican congressman who is supposed to be investigating Russian interference in the US election conspired to divert attention from Moscow's actions, a senior Democrat alleged on Sunday. Related: 'I saw you on Sean Spicer': Trump press briefings become hottest show in town Continue reading... |
| Chechen police 'have rounded up more than 100 suspected gay men' Posted: 02 Apr 2017 04:47 AM PDT Russian newspaper says it has evidence that at least three men have been killed in 'prophylactic sweep' in Chechnya Authorities in the Russian republic of Chechnya have launched an anti-gay campaign that has led to authorities rounding up dozens of men suspected of being homosexual, according to the Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta and human rights activists. The newspaper's report, by an author regarded as a leading authority on Chechnya, claimed that more than 100 people had been detained and three men killed in the roundup. It claimed that among those detained were well-known local television personalities and religious figures. Continue reading... |
| ‘I saw you on Sean Spicer’: Trump press briefings become hottest show in town Posted: 02 Apr 2017 06:45 AM PDT The White House press secretary is aggressive, antagonistic and flustered. And, in the spotlight of live TV, he can appear to be channeling his pugnacious master Every visitor says it's smaller than they expected. The modest James S Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House fills with about a hundred journalists, half in the fixed seats, half standing in the aisles or at the back. Each lunchtime there is an expectant murmur, like a theatre audience before curtain up. TV reporters stand at the front, each speaking directly to camera and contriving to ignore the others standing inches away. Seconds after they sign off, in walks the star of the show: Sean Spicer, the White House press secretary. The thickset 45-year-old will often begin with a genial pleasantry – "Hope everyone had a great weekend, seriously," he said last Monday – that belies the vituperative fusillades set to follow. Many men and women have stood at the podium but there has never quite been anything like this for event television. Continue reading... |
| 'Sapphire rush' threatens rainforests of Madagascar Posted: 02 Apr 2017 08:47 AM PDT The influx of thousands of gem hunters is disfiguring a protected environment and prompting calls for military intervention A "sapphire rush" has brought tens of thousands of people into the remote rainforests of eastern Madagascar, disfiguring a protected environmental area and prompting calls for military intervention. More high-quality sapphires have been found in the biodiverse area known as Corridor Ankeniheny-Zahamena in the past six months than were found in the entire country over the past 20 years, according to Vincent Pardieu, a French gemologist who has been visiting mines there for more than a decade. Continue reading... |
| Jailed British-Iranian woman 'dreams of watching daughter play' Posted: 02 Apr 2017 08:48 AM PDT Family of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, jailed in Tehran for part in alleged plot to topple the government, mark 365 days since her arrest A British-Iranian woman jailed in Tehran for allegedly plotting to topple the government has said she dreams of watching her husband playing with their two-year-old daughter. As the first anniversary of her detention dawned, Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe described her wish to see her family dancing to Michael Jackson in in the sitting room of their home. The 38-year-old was arrested at Tehran airport on 3 April 2016 while visiting relatives in Iran with her daughter, Gabriella. She was imprisoned for five years in September and lost an appeal against her sentence in January, but maintains her innocence. Her husband, Richard, said it had been a "long year of separation, a year of our lives interrupted". Continue reading... |
| UK travel firm becomes the first to drop zoos Posted: 03 Apr 2017 02:00 AM PDT Responsible Travel withdraws trips that include visits to zoos but will continue to work with sanctuaries and rescue centres A UK travel company has pledged to stop promoting zoos and laid down guidelines for the kinds of animal facilities it will continue to work with. Responsible Travel said there was "no justifiable reason" to keep animals in captivity, in an announcement backed by the Born Free Foundation and actor and animal welfare campaigner Joanna Lumley. Continue reading... |
| Churches and charities fill asylum vacuum left by 'lukewarm' state Posted: 03 Apr 2017 01:22 AM PDT Government support for refugees is scant, but charities and faith groups around the UK are working hard to provide a safety net In what was once a vicar's living room, tucked behind a church in Newcastle upon Tyne, three-year-old Farah Alhrahshi chose from a crate of plastic toys while her mother, Kafa, picked through racks of secondhand clothing for anything warm and roughly the right size. "All the clothes we have come from here," she said, gesturing at her outfit. Continue reading... |
| Small, green and open-air: Bangkok's new breed of 'community shopping malls' Posted: 02 Apr 2017 11:15 PM PDT In a city dominated by air-conditioned complexes and where street life is being destroyed, a new style of mall seeks to recapture a neighbourhood charm In Bangkok's most desirable neighbourhood, Thong Lor, children have just one communal spot where they can run around with soft grass under their feet and the sky above their heads. It's a lawn, it's about the size of a swimming pool – and it's on the fourth floor of a mall. Continue reading... |
| Three people wanted by police over Croydon asylum seeker attack Posted: 03 Apr 2017 12:21 AM PDT Two men and a woman sought in connection with assault on 17-year-old Kurdish Iranian boy in south London Detectives investigating a suspected hate crime that left a teenage asylum seeker with a fractured skull and blood clot on the brain have released the images of three people wanted in connection with the "brutal attack". Two men and a woman are being sought in connection with the assault on a 17-year-old Kurdish Iranian boy, who was attacked at a bus stop opposite the Goat pub in Croydon, south-east London, on Friday night. Continue reading... |
| Spain suggests UK needs to calm down over Gibraltar following Howard's war threat - Politics live Posted: 03 Apr 2017 02:18 AM PDT Rolling coverage of the day's political developments as they happen
In the comments Europeancontributor says Spanish papers do not seem too bothered by the Lord Howard comments. @Andrew The Spanish press doesn´t make that much of a fuss about Howard´s comments, the major papers just see it as another example of nationalist hype in the UK within the general Brexit conundrum...
The Spanish paper El Pais has more on what Alfonso Dastis, the Spanish foreign minister, has been saying this morning. Dastis said that someone in the UK was "losing their nerve" over Gibraltar and that there was no need for this. Here is the El Pais headline: Dastis: "No hay ninguna base para perder los nervios con Gibraltar" Continue reading... |
| South African politician investigated for tweet about benefits of colonialism Posted: 02 Apr 2017 05:13 PM PDT Helen Zille wrote colonialism had given the country 'independent judiciary, transport infrastructure, piped water' South Africa's main opposition party said on Sunday that it has charged a provincial leader with misconduct after she tweeted that colonialism had brought benefits including clean water. Helen Zille, former leader of the Democratic Alliance (DA) and the current premier of the Western Cape, could be expelled for the tweet which unleashed fierce criticism from her own party and opponents. She will remain the leader of the Western Cape during the internal party investigation. Continue reading... |
| Scott Morrison evasive over impact of smaller corporate tax cuts package Posted: 03 Apr 2017 02:08 AM PDT Treasurer will only say Treasury modelled full package and found it would lift the size of the economy by 1% The treasurer, Scott Morrison, has refused to be drawn on the economic impact of the government's downsized corporate tax cut package. In an interview on Sky News on Monday, Morrison cited the government's commitment to implement the full $48bn tax package in repeatedly refusing to nominate the economic impact of the tax cuts for businesses with a turnover of up to $50m a year. Continue reading... |
| Ayaan Hirsi Ali cancels Australian tour citing security concerns Posted: 03 Apr 2017 12:25 AM PDT Controversial speaker blames cancellation on 'a succession of organisational lapses' by the event organiser The controversial speaker and vocal critic of Islam Ayaan Hirsi Ali has blamed the last-minute cancellation of her speaking tour of Australia and New Zealand on "a succession of organisational lapses" by the event organiser. The news of Hirsi Ali's cancellation was publicised on Twitter by the ABC's Q&A, on which she was due to be a panellist on Monday night. Continue reading... |
| Brexit talks: EU will not go soft on Gibraltar issue, diplomats say Posted: 02 Apr 2017 10:57 PM PDT Spain has cultivated support among bloc members over control of the Rock, senior EU diplomats tell the Guardian Spain suggests UK needs to calm down over Gibraltar - Politics live The EU will not back down in its support for Spain's demands when it comes to the Rock of Gibraltar in Brexit negotiations, senior European diplomats have said. The European council, whose members comprise the EU member states, shocked Downing Street by saying the British overseas territory could be included in a trade deal between London and Brussels only with Spain's agreement. Early on Sunday, a former Conservative leader waded into the row by claiming that Theresa May would be prepared to go to war to protect the territory as Margaret Thatcher once did for the Falklands. In comments that were immediately criticised by Labour and the Lib Dems as inflammatory, Michael Howard said there was "no question" of Britain weakening its stance with regards to the sovereignty of one of its overseas territories. Continue reading... |
| Australian Hazaras protest visit of Afghan president Ashraf Ghani Posted: 02 Apr 2017 10:48 PM PDT Ghani draws Canberra crowd of several thousand Hazaras and supporters outside Yarralumla and parliament Thousands of Australian Hazaras, many of whom fled persecution in Afghanistan, have taken to the streets of Canberra to protest the state visit of the Afghan president, Ashraf Ghani. Ghani's presence in Australia drew a crowd of protestors to Yarralumla and on to the streets of Canberra where Hazaras – an ethnic and religious minority in Afghanistan who have been subject to generations of persecution – protested his three-day state visit, which began with a meeting with the governor general, Sir Peter Cosgrove. |
| Monday briefing: welfare cuts for children and the bereaved Posted: 02 Apr 2017 10:32 PM PDT Outcry over Osborne-era two-child policy ... Donald Trump says he will 'solve North Korea' … and Doris Day gets three birthdays Good Monday morning to you, Graham Russell here bringing you the news to start your week. Continue reading... |
| Stellar Daisy: search for crew of huge cargo ship feared sunk in Atlantic Ocean Posted: 02 Apr 2017 07:14 PM PDT Only two out of 24 crew rescued after bulk carrier, which is roughly the same size as 100 tennis courts, disappears carrying iron ore from Brazil to China A South Korean cargo vessel is missing after making its last contact in the South Atlantic about 2,500km (1,500 miles) from shore and 22 crew members are unaccounted for. Two Filipino crew members have been rescued floating in a life raft on Saturday, but other lifeboats and rafts found in the area were empty, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported on Sunday. Continue reading... |
| Drone footage captures landslide destruction in Colombia – video report Posted: 02 Apr 2017 03:08 PM PDT Torrential overnight rainfall causing a landslide in Mocoa, Colombia claims the lives of more than 200 people. Flooding and mudslides sent debris and fast flowing water into houses as residents of Putumayo province's capital city slept. Over a 1000 army and police personnel have been drafted in to aid the relief effort as the search for hundreds of missing people continues Continue reading... |
| Ayaan Hirsi Ali: freedom fighter or just a help for Hanson? | Gay Alcorn Posted: 02 Apr 2017 01:09 PM PDT Interview: The author condemns radical Islam – and accuses liberals and the left of helping it flourish. Her critics say her views are simplistic and straight out of the One Nation playbook • Ayaan Hirsi Ali cancels Australian tour citing security concerns Ayaan Hirsi Ali has visited Australia at least five times as far as she can remember. But this time, her lecture tour starting this week to discuss the dangers of what she calls radical Islam, or political Islam, is receiving far more scrutiny. A group of prominent Muslim women, from playwrights to human rights campaigners, from conservative Muslims to the most progressive, don't want this tour to proceed unchallenged. They have organised a petition expressing their "utmost disappointment" that Hirsi Ali was invited by Think Inc to Australia, due to what they say is the "hatemongering and bigotry" she espouses. Her views, they argue, serve to "increase hostility and hatred towards Muslims", and ignore the day-to-day work of many to improve social cohesion and to champion women's rights within their faith. Continue reading... |
| Whatever happened in the San Serriffendum? | Brief letters Posted: 02 Apr 2017 11:10 AM PDT Aung San Suu Kyi | HSBC's gender neutral titles | Classifying exercise | Bristol University | April Fools' Day Aung San, father of Suu Kyi, recognised the divergent aspirations of the Shans, Mons, Karens, Chins, Burmans and a myriad of other national groups, including those like the Muslim Rohingyas who arrived and settled more recently (Report, 31 March). Independence from British rule was not just that, it was a challenge to form an inclusive Burmese identity not dominated by the majority Buddhist Burmans. Aung San Suu Kyi has never shown an understanding of the need to channel the contested idea of Myanmar identity into a constructive force. Instead, her view of Myanmar politics has been shaped by a single-minded focus on replacing the military rulers by elected rulers. • Why the retrograde step (HSBC to offer customers choice of gender-neutral titles, 31 March)? My current bank cards from HSBC carry no title, nor do letters in the Guardian. Unless it truly is optional, of course, and people wish to use such titles. Just please don't say "the computer needs it". I changed one bank account after it refused to accept creation of an account without a title. |
| French polling watchdog warns over Russian news agency's election report Posted: 02 Apr 2017 09:59 AM PDT Russian firm's survey puts François Fillon in lead in presidential race, contradicting mainstream opinion polls France's polling commission has issued a warning over a Russian news report suggesting conservative candidate François Fillon leads the race for the presidency, contradicting the findings of mainstream opinion polls. The cautionary note from the watchdog followed allegations in February by aides of centrist candidate Emmanuel Macron that he was a target of "fake news" put out by Russian media, including the Sputnik news agency. Continue reading... |
| Use gender-sensitive language or lose marks, university students told Posted: 02 Apr 2017 09:55 AM PDT Hull University accused of 'linguistic policing' after issuing advice to undergraduates studying religious activism Students at Hull University face losing marks on essays unless they employ "gender-sensitive" language. Documents obtained under freedom of information legislation show undergraduates at the university have been advised that "language is important and highly symbolic" and informed they should be "aware of the powerful and symbolic nature of language and use gender-sensitive formulations", while "failure to use gender-sensitive language will impact your mark". Continue reading... |
| Abu Hamza's son stripped of UK passport Posted: 02 Apr 2017 04:52 AM PDT Sufiyan Mustafa, 22, travelled to Syria to fight against Bashar al-Assad's forces The son of the radical cleric Abu Hamza has been stripped of his UK passport after he travelled to Syria to fight against Bashar al-Assad's forces, according to reports. Sufiyan Mustafa, 22, whose father is in jail in the US after being convicted of a series of terrorism charges, told the Arabic newspaper al-Quds of his surprise at his passport being revoked, according to the Telegraph. Continue reading... |
| Carnival bonfire explodes in northern France – video Posted: 02 Apr 2017 04:23 AM PDT A bonfire at a spring carnival near Paris, France explodes injuring at least 18 people. The blast occurred on Saturday afternoon and sent debris flying into the crowd at the annual Yellow Carnaval in Villepinte. The cause of the explosion is not yet known Continue reading... |
| Former Obama staffers run for office to protect the progressive policies they built Posted: 02 Apr 2017 04:00 AM PDT Obama alums who started as college kids on his campaign or his administration are running for office or helping others run in the aftermath of Trump's election Ronnie Cho got the name nickname "Chobama" while knocking on doors in Iowa in 2007, and then followed the president to the White House as a youth affairs aide call-to-arms from his commander in chief is not something he can ignore. "Barack Obama, I never want to disappoint," Cho said. |
| Lottery scams prey on the vulnerable and help fuel violence in Jamaica Posted: 02 Apr 2017 02:15 AM PDT The fraud is believed to have been worth an estimated $1bn each year, overtaking the drugs trade in terms of illicit contributions to the economy Shirley thought she had made a new friend. The elderly Maine resident would don a dress and jewels and wait at the back door for the charming young Jamaican man she had met over the phone. The couple had developed a long-distance relationship after he called to say she had won $24m US and a new car in a lottery. He appeared untroubled by Shirley's dementia and asked for a picture of her. Continue reading... |
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