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

Pope lands in Myanmar for difficult visit amid Rohingya crisis
Mount Agung: 100,000 told to evacuate as Bali volcano spews huge ash cloud
Zimbabwe activists fear post-Mugabe human rights crackdown
Pope's visit to Myanmar raises fears of violence if he mentions the Rohingya
Pelosi: Trump, not Weinstein, prompted flood of sexual misconduct claims
Britons among dozens hurt in Tenerife nightclub floor collapse
Macron visits Africa amid anger over human trafficking and slavery
‘Dead crawl’: Vegas gun shows said to slow in wake of Route 91 massacre
Spaniards face ham shortage as Chinese market gets taste for jamón ibérico
Inside Crackland: the open-air crack market that São Paulo just can’t kick
Revealed: fires in São Paulo favelas more likely on higher-value land
The future of São Paulo sleeps in an improvised shack
Living on the edge: São Paulo’s inequality mapped
What is Guardian São Paulo live – and how can you get involved?
O que é o Guardian São Paulo ao vivo e como você pode participar?
Temperatures of -10C could hit UK this week, Met Office warns
Balkan hydropower projects soar by 300% putting wildlife at risk, research shows
The Guardian view on terror in Egypt: airstrikes will not end the crisis | Editorial
Cyntoia Brown: celebrities call for victim of sex trafficking to be freed
Manus protest: Christian leaders chain themselves to Kirribilli House gate
Monday briefing: Junior doctors left to 'fend for themselves'
New Zealand's latest police recruitment ad goes viral – video
Bali's Mount Agung could erupt anytime – video
Fears for world's rarest penguin as population plummets
North Korea fortifies part of border where defector escaped
China: 'ruthless' campaign to evict Beijing's migrant workers condemned
Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov 'ready to step down'
Democrat John Conyers steps down from senior House judiciary role
Mount Agung: Bali airport closed as volcano alert raised to highest level
Don Burke accused of sexual harassment and indecent assault
Myanmar accused of wiping out secret network of Rohingya reporters
‘Their own media megaphone’: what do the Koch brothers want from Time?
Aftermath of dancefloor collapse in Tenerife nightclub – video

Pope lands in Myanmar for difficult visit amid Rohingya crisis

Posted: 27 Nov 2017 01:26 AM PST

Thousands of Catholics welcome Francis but there are fears of a firestorm if he even mentions the persecuted Muslim minority

Thousands of Catholics have welcomed Pope Francis to Yangon, where has begun a three-day visit to Myanmar.

The trip – fraught with sensitivity and trepidation over how he will deal with the plight of the Muslim Rohingya – could be the trickiest yet of his papacy.

Mount Agung: 100,000 told to evacuate as Bali volcano spews huge ash cloud

Posted: 27 Nov 2017 12:55 AM PST

Heightened seismic activity, mudflows and indications volcano is shifting into magmatic phase prompts warnings and airport closures

A large eruption of Bali's restless Mount Agung volcano could be imminent, Indonesian officials have warned, saying 100,000 people need to evacuate the area.

So far, 40,000 people have been moved away from the volcano and tens of thousands of travellers have been stranded due to airport closures.

Zimbabwe activists fear post-Mugabe human rights crackdown

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 08:41 AM PST

Concerns grow over track record of new president Mnangagwa, who has been accused of involvement in 1980s killings

Activists and human rights campaigners in Zimbabwe fear a new crackdown that could roll back gains made during the eight-day crisis that culminated in the resignation of President Robert Mugabe last week.

Relatives of victims of state-sponsored violence said they were concerned about the track record of the new leader, Emmerson Mnangagwa, who was Mugabe's righthand man and is blamed for the brutal suppression of political opposition parties during elections in 2008.

Pope's visit to Myanmar raises fears of violence if he mentions the Rohingya

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 06:40 AM PST

Monday is first visit of a pontiff to Myanmar, but as its leaders stand accused of ethnic cleansing of Rohingya people, some Catholics are afraid of a backlash

The signs are cropping up outside the churches: "A heartiest welcome to the Pope"; "Viva Papa Francesco". In the colonial-era cathedral, pews are being dusted off and fences painted.

Yangon, the commercial capital of Myanmar, is preparing for Pope Francis, whose arrival on Monday will mark the first visit of a pontiff to the Buddhist-majority nation.

Pelosi: Trump, not Weinstein, prompted flood of sexual misconduct claims

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 12:04 PM PST

House minority leader says president's election, following revelations he boasted about groping women, led to airing of allegations against film mogul

The House minority leader, Nancy Pelosi, has said Donald Trump, not Harvey Weinstein, inspired the recent and continuing wave of sexual misconduct allegations against powerful men in Hollywood, politics and other sections of society.

Britons among dozens hurt in Tenerife nightclub floor collapse

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 09:39 AM PST

Foreign Office says UK nationals among 40 reportedly injured when floor gave way at the Butterfly club in the Canaries

Several Britons are among the injured after the floor of a nightclub collapsed in Tenerife, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has confirmed.

Forty people are reported to have been hurt in the incident at the packed Butterfly club in Adeje on the island in the Canaries at about 2.30am on Sunday. Revellers were sent tumbling into an empty basement after an area of floor about 4 metres by 4 metres gave way, according to reports.

Macron visits Africa amid anger over human trafficking and slavery

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 08:01 AM PST

Fears that French president's trip this week will be overshadowed by CNN's revelations of apparent slave auctions in Libya

The French president, Emmanuel Macron, will start a four-day visit to Africa on Monday amid growing anger across the continent about politicians' collective failure to do more to clamp down on human trafficking, and even slave auctions, in Libya.

The revelations by CNN of apparent slave auctions in Libya a fortnight ago led to widespread condemnation, but also claims that European politicians had been repeatedly warned about the dire state of Libyan migrant detention centres, including systematic abuse, amounting to slavery.

‘Dead crawl’: Vegas gun shows said to slow in wake of Route 91 massacre

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 08:35 AM PST

Two months after 58 people died and nearly 500 were injured in the deadliest mass shooting in modern US history, a pillar of tourism is wobbling – maybe

This weekend saw the return of the Great Las Vegas Gun Show, one of the first firearms shows in the city since it saw the deadliest mass shooting in modern American history.

On 1 October, Stephen Paddock holed up inside the Mandalay Bay hotel with nearly 50 weapons and more than 4,000 rounds of ammunition. Shooting down on the Route 91 Harvest festival, he killed 58 people and injured 489.

Spaniards face ham shortage as Chinese market gets taste for jamón ibérico

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 09:05 AM PST

Iberian ham has become the latest sought-after luxury from the west in China, but demand is outstripping supply

Having discovered the joys of French wine, caviar and truffles, China's new rich are turning to a new gourmet delicacy to satisfy their demand for luxury goods from the west: Spain's jamón ibérico, or Iberian ham. But demand is now threatening to outstrip supply, leaving Spaniards facing steep price rises in their most prized Christmas delicacy.

The recent lifting of import restrictions has allowed top-of-the-range ham to find its "rightful place in the market, alongside caviar and truffles", René Lemée, the head of exports for the famous Cinco Jotas brand, told El País newspaper.

Inside Crackland: the open-air crack market that São Paulo just can’t kick

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 11:30 PM PST

The brazen drug scene of Cracolândia is unlike nearly anything in any city in the world – hundreds and sometimes thousands of addicts, congregating openly in the city's bustling downtown core. Every mayor thinks they have a solution

"It's a horrible life. You don't eat. You don't sleep. Any money you can get goes on crack," says Felipa Drumont.

Drumont is 26, trans, homeless and addicted to crack. For the last four years, she has lived on the streets of an area of central São Paulo that has become infamous: Cracolândia, literally "Crackland".

Revealed: fires in São Paulo favelas more likely on higher-value land

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 11:30 PM PST

Exclusive: Analysis finds favelas hit by fire in São Paulo have land values 76% higher than average, casting new doubt on official explanation of poor housing

A spate of fires in the favelas of São Paulo in recent years appears to be concentrated on more expensive land, a Guardian Cities and Agência Pública investigation can reveal.

The finding is likely to further concerns that many fires are being started deliberately, despite a controversial parliamentary commission in 2012 on the matter which ended inconclusively.

The future of São Paulo sleeps in an improvised shack

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 11:30 PM PST

Defying the city's staggering inequality, occupations by the homeless and a buzzing activist network are dragging it closer to prosperity for all

Soon after the foundation of São Paulo, in 1554, Jesuit priest José de Anchieta, with the help of some friendly indigenous people, erected a mud and stick wall to help keep it "safe from attack". The undesirables were other natives who did not want to convert to the Christian faith, and who had tried to take over the camp several times before.

Over the years, the village expanded beyond the mud fence, which eventually collapsed. It was from São Paulo that the so-called Bandeirantes – prospectors who hunted, killed and enslaved thousands across the land, and who extended the Brazilian territory in search of wealth – set off.

Living on the edge: São Paulo’s inequality mapped

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 11:30 PM PST

Life in South America's largest metropolis is anything but uniform – the city's core and its periphery are worlds apart

Less than 10 miles of concrete sprawl separates the São Paulo neighbourhoods of Jardim Paulista and Jardim Ângela, but that gap grows to almost 24 years in the life expectancy of people living there.

While residents of the central Paulista area can expect to live beyond their 79^th birthday on average, people from Jardim Ângela on the south-western periphery will likely be dead before they are 56.

What is Guardian São Paulo live – and how can you get involved?

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 07:20 AM PST

The great megacity of South America is our home for a week of reports, films, photography, exposés and live events. We hope you'll join us

O que é o Guardian São Paulo ao vivo e como você pode participar?

Guardian Cities is in São Paulo for a week of live reporting and special events, discussing every aspect of this fascinating Brazilian metropolis. While its flashy yet much smaller sibling Rio de Janeiro does its best to hog the spotlight, it is São Paulo that is now flexing its muscles as South America's first true megacity – a bustling metropolis of nearly 20 million people, home to incredible creativity and thriving commerce, but also some uniquely eye-opening social problems.

From the open-air drug market known as "Crackland" to the 8,000-strong tent city for homeless people, this is a city with open wounds. Meanwhile, the rich skip the legendarily bad traffic in helicopters to and from their wealthy gated communities, closed off from the poorer communities of the suburban periferia.

O que é o Guardian São Paulo ao vivo e como você pode participar?

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 07:19 AM PST

A megalópole da América do Sul recebe nossa equipe para uma semana de reportagens, eventos e revelações. Gostaríamos que você participasse

What is Guardian São Paulo live – and how can you get involved?

O Guardian Cities está em São Paulo para uma semana de reportagens ao vivo e eventos especiais, discutindo todos os aspectos desta fascinante metrópole brasileira. Sabemos que o Rio de Janeiro, cidade-irmã mais estrepitosa do que São Paulo, faz de tudo para chamar a atenção. Mas foi São Paulo que labutou para chegar ao posto de primeira megalópole da América do Sul, com criatividade ímpar e um comércio florescente, além de seus próprios e elucidativos problemas sociais.

Seja no mercado de drogas ao ar livre da Cracolândia ou no acampamento de sem-teto com 8 mil barracas, é uma cidade que exibe suas feridas abertamente. Enquanto isso, os ricos fogem do famoso trânsito da cidade em helicópteros que saem de condomínios luxuosos, isolados das comunidades mais pobres da periferia.

Temperatures of -10C could hit UK this week, Met Office warns

Posted: 27 Nov 2017 12:36 AM PST

Possibility of snow across hills with the coldest weather expected in Scotland and lows of -8C in England and Wales

Temperatures could drop as low as -10C (14F) in Britain later this week, with snow in some parts, forecasters have warned.

Over the weekend, some areas woke to icy mornings, with the mercury dipping to -2C.

Balkan hydropower projects soar by 300% putting wildlife at risk, research shows

Posted: 27 Nov 2017 12:00 AM PST

More than a third of about 2,800 planned new dams are in protected areas, threatening rivers and biodiversity

Hydropower constructions have rocketed by 300% across the western Balkans in the last two years, according to a new analysis, sparking fears of disappearing mountain rivers and biodiversity loss.

About 2,800 new dams are now in the pipeline across a zone stretching from Slovenia to Greece, 37% of which are set to be built in protected areas such as national parks or Natura 2000 sites.

The Guardian view on terror in Egypt: airstrikes will not end the crisis | Editorial

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 11:58 AM PST

The devastating attack on the al-Radwa mosque in northern Sinai marks a dramatic escalation in the threat from Islamist radicalism in the peninsula. President Sisi's vow of 'brute force' cannot solve it

To describe Friday's horrific gun and bomb assault on a Sufi mosque in the northern Sinai peninsula as the deadliest attack by armed militants (rather than the state) in Egypt's modern history understates it. It is one of the worst to happen anywhere in recent years. Officials say more than 300 worshippers, including 27 children, were killed. As in Manchester, Paris or Barcelona, families are devastated and a wider community left fearful – as its perpetrators desired.

It is also unprecedented, despite the area's troubled and bloody recent history. The escalation was not only in its scale and the ruthlessness of its organisation, but also in its target. Militants in the peninsula have killed hundreds of police and soldiers; the last year has seen them strike Coptic churches and pilgrims further afield in mainland Egypt. Sufi shrines and a 100-year-old cleric have been attacked. But this attack is the first time a mosque there has been targeted (though, like the Mogadishu truck bombing which killed more than 300 people last month, it is a powerful reminder that Muslims are the main victims of attacks by radical Islamist groups).

Cyntoia Brown: celebrities call for victim of sex trafficking to be freed

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 09:59 PM PST

Rihanna, Cara Delevingne and Kim Kardashian West join campaign to free Brown, who was convicted of murdering a man who hired her as a sex worker

Celebrities including Rihanna, Cara Delevingne and Kim Kardashian West are calling for freedom from prison for a woman who was 16 years old when she killed a man who hired her as a sex worker.

In Tennessee in August 2004, Cyntoia Brown shot and killed Johnny Mitchell Allen, 43, who had paid to have sex with her. At the time, Brown was living with her abusive boyfriend who sold her for sex.

Manus protest: Christian leaders chain themselves to Kirribilli House gate

Posted: 27 Nov 2017 01:04 AM PST

Five people chain themselves by the neck to the gates of Malcolm Turnbull's Sydney residence calling for those on Manus Island to be brought to Australia

Christian leaders have chained themselves to the front gates of the prime minister's official Sydney residence to protest against Australia's treatment of refugees and asylum seekers on Manus Island.

Gosford Anglican priest Father Rod Bower shared an image on Twitter of himself and four others with chains around their necks locked to the gates of Kirribilli House.

Monday briefing: Junior doctors left to 'fend for themselves'

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 10:30 PM PST

Medical watchdog warns that trainees are given too much responsibility … Brexit imbroglio deepens over Irish question … England slump to Test defeat

Good morning and welcome to the Guardian briefing. I'm Martin Farrer and here are the top stories this Monday morning (warning: the news for cricket fans is not good).

New Zealand's latest police recruitment ad goes viral – video

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 09:59 PM PST

An advertisement that shows the diversity of the force – and a cheeky sense of humour – has been released by New Zealand police. The video features 70 staff members from a range of ethnic backgrounds and is designed to boost law enforcement numbers. It has been viewed more than 1.7m times

Bali's Mount Agung could erupt anytime – video

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 09:35 PM PST

Indonesian authorities have raised the alert for a Bali volcano to the highest level. Magma and ash emitting from Mount Agung has resulted in the closure of the island's airport and prompted authorities to order people within 10km to evacuate.

Fears for world's rarest penguin as population plummets

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 08:06 PM PST

Commercial fishing blamed for the crash in numbers of yellow-eyed penguin on a sanctuary island in New Zealand

Almost half the breeding population of the world's most endangered penguin species, the yellow-eyed penguin, has disappeared in one part of New Zealand and conservation groups believe commercial fishing is to blame.

The yellow-eyed penguin is endemic to New Zealand's South Island and sub-Antarctic islands, where there are just 1,600 to 1,800 left in the wild, down from nearly 7,000 in 2000.

North Korea fortifies part of border where defector escaped

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 07:43 PM PST

Soldiers dig a deep trench and erect gates on a bridge used by the defector in his daring escape from the regime

North Korea has fortified its border with the South at what appears to be the location where one of its soldiers made a dramatic bid for freedom earlier this month.

A photograph posted on Twitter by the acting US ambassador to South Korea, Marc Knapper, showed a small group of civilian workers, watched by North Korean soldiers, digging a deep trench at the point the defector abandoned his vehicle and ran across the demarcation line separating the two countries on 13 November.

China: 'ruthless' campaign to evict Beijing's migrant workers condemned

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 07:37 PM PST

City officials have declared a campaign against 'illegal structures' that house millions of migrant workers who run the city's restaurants and shops

More than a hundred Chinese intellectuals and scholars have decried a "ruthless" campaign to evict thousands of migrant workers from Beijing.

The latest round of evictions began in the wake of a fire on 18 November that killed 19 people in an industrial neighbourhood in south Beijing, and 17 of the victims were migrants. City officials have declared a 40-day campaign against "illegal structures", which for years have housed the millions of migrant workers who run Beijing's restaurants, delivery companies, construction sites, retail shops and a host of small factories.

Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov 'ready to step down'

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 06:39 PM PST

Russia to choose successor to former Islamist rebel who has been accused by human rights bodies of arbitrary arrests and torture of opponents

Ramzan Kadyrov, the outspoken leader of Russia's Chechnya republic, said he was ready to step down, leaving it for the Kremlin to choose his successor.

Kadyrov, a 41-year-old father of 12 whose interests vary from thoroughbred horses to wrestling and boxing, has been accused by human rights bodies of arbitrary arrests and torture of opponents, zero tolerance of sexual minorities and tough political declarations that have embarrassed the Kremlin.

Democrat John Conyers steps down from senior House judiciary role

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 05:57 PM PST

Committee member denies allegations he used tax dollars to settle alleged cases of sexual misconduct, as Nancy Pelosi faces criticism for praising his work

The Democratic congressman John Conyers stepped down as ranking Democrat on the House judiciary committee on Sunday, amid allegations he used taxpayers' money to settle cases with women who accused him of sexual misconduct.

Mount Agung: Bali airport closed as volcano alert raised to highest level

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 05:12 PM PST

People within 10km told to evacuate as explosive eruptions send ash 4,000 metres into atmosphere

Indonesian authorities have raised the alert for a Bali volcano to the highest level, closed the island's airport and ordered people within 10km (six miles) to evacuate.

Mount Agung erupted on Saturday evening and three times early Sunday, lighting its cone with an orange glow and sending ash 4,000 metres into the atmosphere.

Don Burke accused of sexual harassment and indecent assault

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 12:25 PM PST

Burke's Backyard presenter says he is 'deeply hurt and outraged' by claims from several women he harassed, bullied and assaulted them

Numerous women have accused Don Burke of indecent assault, sexual harassment and bullying during the 1980s and 1990s, when he starred in the top-rating gardening show Burke's Backyard.

Burke, who hosted the show for almost 17 years, has strenuously denied the allegations, saying he is "deeply hurt and outraged". In a statement released on Sunday, he said the claims were baseless.

Myanmar accused of wiping out secret network of Rohingya reporters

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 05:33 PM PST

Human rights groups fear military has disappeared or killed undercover journalists to starve the world of news about persecution in Rakhine state

Reporters working inside Myanmar's Rakhine state to document atrocities against Rohingya have gone missing, raising fears that they have been deliberately targeted by the military.

Young Rohingya volunteers had been secretly reporting on persecution of the Muslim minority in Myanmar since 2012, sending photos, videos and audio clips out of the country using smartphones.

‘Their own media megaphone’: what do the Koch brothers want from Time?

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 09:29 PM PST

The company's decline is readily apparent – but if the billionaire brothers' other interests are a guide, their investment will be about more than money

That Charles and David Koch are putting $650m into Meredith Corp's purchase of Time would ordinarily be cause for great soul-searching in media. But then, these are not ordinary times.

Meredith's Koch-backed deal with Time – which owns, in addition to Time magazine, titles including People, Fortune and Sports Illustrated – was sealed Sunday night. Meredith said in a statement announcing the deal that they are building "a premier media company serving nearly 200 million American consumers."

Aftermath of dancefloor collapse in Tenerife nightclub – video

Posted: 26 Nov 2017 04:35 AM PST

Twenty-two people were taken to hospital, two in a serious condition, after floor gave way, plunging them into the basement. Emergency services were called at about 2.30am on Sunday to the club in Adeje in south-west of Spanish island