General news

• Islamic State 'Beatles' duo: UK stance 'a rare decision'

  23-07-2018 22:19 via bbc.co.uk
  The UK will not demand that the US does not use the death penalty against two IS suspects.
  
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• Gatwick Airport parking scammer admits misleading people

  23-07-2018 21:32 via bbc.co.uk
  A woman admits misleading customers who paid for secured storage for their cars - which were left in fields.
  
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• UK ramps up powers to block foreign takeover deals

  23-07-2018 21:31 via bbc.co.uk
  Proposed new rules will mean any takeover deal could be investigated by the government.
  
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• Yorkshire’s Jonny Bairstow weighs in to put pressure on Lancashire

  23-07-2018 21:09
  • Bairstow scores 82 as Lancs chase 323
  • Ben Stokes claims rare county five-wicket haulJonny Bairstow’s combative 82 has been the standout contribution with the bat in a so far bowler-friendly Roses match, in which Lancashire are chasing an highly unlikely 323. The England wicketkeeper-batsman put a first‑innings golden duck out of his mind to help Yorkshire recover from 21 for three in their second innings having lost the Test captains Joe Root and Kane Williamson cheaply
  
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• Showdown averted as Labour defers decision on antisemitism rules

  23-07-2018 21:05
  Motion passed by Labour backbenchers means party’s MPs are all but certain to vote to adopt IHRA definition of antisemitismLabour averted a bitter showdown with MPs over its code of conduct on Monday, with a key vote on whether the party should adopt an international antisemitism definition deferred until parliament returns in September.Jeremy Corbyn was criticised by some MPs for not attending the crunch meeting of backbenchers of Monday, though the leader’s office said he had never
  
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• White House seeks to clarify Trump 'hoax' tweet on Russian interference

  23-07-2018 21:03
  Sarah Sanders says president was referring to ‘the collusion with his campaign – he’s been very clear there wasn’t any’Donald Trump was “obviously” referring to allegations of collusion between his campaign and Russia when he tweeted on Sunday night about “a big hoax”, the White House said, after critics said the president was yet again casting doubt on whether Russia interfered with the 2016 US election. Related: Trump-Russia: FBI believed C
  
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• UK public will blame EU for no-deal Brexit, says Jeremy Hunt

  23-07-2018 20:58
  New foreign secretary visits Berlin on his first overseas trip since replacing Boris JohnsonThe new foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, has warned there is a risk of the UK leaving the EU without a deal because of stalling by Brussels negotiators and cautioned that British views of Europe would sour as a result.On his first overseas trip since replacing Boris Johnson, he claimed there was now a “very real threat” of ending up with no deal “by accident” which could alter Briti
  
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• Number of women and children who joined Isis 'significantly underestimated'

  23-07-2018 20:56
  Report says women returning from fighting in Syria and Iraq pose specific security threatExperts have warned of the growing threat of women and minors linked to Islamic State, suggesting that the number returning to Britain from Syria and Iraq has been significantly underestimated.According to a new report from King’s College London, a combination of an absence of government data and a changing view within Isis of when women should take up arms means that the danger they pose is likely to
  
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• Loris Karius has homework to do to stay as Liverpool’s goalkeeper

  23-07-2018 20:49
  German can learn from his Everton counterpart Jordan Pickford if he is to improve and stay at AnfieldMaybe, just maybe, Loris Karius needs to stop seeing himself as an artist and start thinking like a scientist? Perhaps his faith in the powers of instinct could do with being underpinned with a few more specific details?Liverpool’s goalkeeper has been having a rough time of things at work – or at least rough by the standards of anyone commanding a basic wage of around £25,000 a
  
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• Bishop inquiry in exchanges with Prince of Wales’s solicitors over submission

  23-07-2018 20:45
  Prince’s legal team was provided with a witness statement format but responded with letterThe independent inquiry into child sexual abuse against the former bishop Peter Ball, an associate of the Prince of Wales, engaged in protracted exchanges with the prince’s solicitors about his written submission, the inquiry has been told. A five-day hearing this week is scrutinising the church’s response to claims of sexual abuse against Ball, a former bishop of Lewes and then Gloucester
  
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• UK heatwave: Met Office says stay out of the sun

  23-07-2018 20:39 via bbc.co.uk
  A heat health alert is issued for parts of England on the hottest day of the year so far.
  
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• Martin Rowson on Theresa May's Brexit roadshow – cartoon

  23-07-2018 20:39
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• The Maybot has another wheat field moment | John Crace

  23-07-2018 20:37
  During a rare Q&A the PM is asked how she relaxes. Oh no. Anything but the personal questionIt was more than a year ago, during the general election campaign, that Theresa May last met a member of the public. A blessing for all concerned. The prime minister can’t do touchy-feely. She can barely manage basic personal interactions with her own cabinet, let alone with people she has never set eyes on.Yet for reasons best known to themselves, the prime minister’s minders decided the
  
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• Mexico: homicides up 16% in 2018, breaking own records for violence

  23-07-2018 20:17
  Country saw 15,973 killings in the first half of the year, the highest since records began in 1997Homicides in Mexico rose by 16% in the first half of 2018, as the country again broke its own records for violence.The interior department said over the weekend there were 15,973 homicides in the first six months of the year, compared with 13,751 killings in the same period in 2017. Continue reading...
  
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• Brexit broke parliament. Now, only the people can fix it | Vernon Bogdanor

  23-07-2018 20:01
  With MPs divided we could be heading for a no-deal that only a minority want. A new prime minister or general election won’t solve this dilemmaThe hung parliament elected in 2017 has turned into the fragmented parliament of 2018, as last week’s votes on the trade bill show only too well. There are two reasons for this. The first is that there is a gap between the aspirations of the people and those of parliament. The majority of MPs are remainers; most feel required to vote for
  
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• Why it’s time to ban Love Island diet adverts

  23-07-2018 20:00
  The popular ITV show has come under fire for showing ads for cosmetic surgery and a weight-loss supplement – and research shows just how toxic they can be to young womenWatch an episode of Love Island and you will likely a) be gripped, b) look into flights to Mallorca and c) feel more tempted than before to get plastic surgery. On c), at least, so say the results of a poll that has found that female viewers aged between 18 and 34 are 11% more likely to consider getting lip fillers after wa
  
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• Trump calls Washington Post ‘expensive lobbyist', reigniting war with Bezos

  23-07-2018 19:46
  President tweeted that the newspaper had ‘gone crazy’ against him and claimed it lobbies on behalf of the Bezos-owned AmazonDonald Trump has renewed his attacks on the world’s richest man and his arch nemesis, Jeff Bezos, railing against the Bezos-owned Washington Post and Amazon, the original source of the entrepreneur’s $150bn fortune. Related: Why does Trump hate Jeff Bezos: is it about power or money?Continue reading...
  
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• Theresa May woos north-east England with powerhouse talk

  23-07-2018 19:43
  Prime minister uses Gateshead trip to reaffirm commitment to promoting growth in northTheresa May has reaffirmed her plans to bolster the northern powerhouse as she kicked off a summer campaign intended to win support for her much-criticised Chequers plan for Brexit at home and abroad.The prime minister chaired a cabinet meeting in Gateshead on Monday before meeting factory workers for a rare town hall-style event, while her ministers fanned out across the region on a series of visits to busines
  
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• Met Office issues UK heatwave alert on hottest day of the year

  23-07-2018 19:41
  People told to stay out of the sun as temperatures reach 33CThe Met Office has issued a heatwave warning and advised people to stay out of the sun for the rest of the week as it confirmed that Monday was the hottest day of the year so far.The level three, amber heat health watch warning acts as an alert to health providers that extreme temperatures are on the way, which may affect the wellbeing of people in the UK. Continue reading...
  
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• The Guardian view on Trump’s trade wars: making a bad situation worse | Editorial

  23-07-2018 19:40
  Donald Trump has channelled the anger felt by globalisation’s discontents to serve an agenda in line with elite interestsDonald Trump’s decision to launch trade wars against all five of the United States’ closest commercial partners has brought depressingly predictable responses. China, Canada, Mexico and the European Union have all countered with tariffs on US products. The US economy is the biggest in the world and can deal with many of the responses, which are a pinprick on
  
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• The Guardian view on the death penalty: barbarism by jihadists is no justification | Editorial

  23-07-2018 19:38
  Sajid Javid’s decision to reverse decades of British government policy is wrongheaded and recklessNearly all western democracies, as well as dozens of other countries, have abandoned capital punishment. There is good reason for this: none of the arguments made in its favour stand up to scrutiny. It does not deter others, nor save innocent lives by ensuring that murderers cannot kill again. It is wrong to suggest there is a moral claim for retribution. The United States is an exception, wro
  
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• As an NHS doctor this ‘hostile environment' has made me reject my medal | Neal Russell

  23-07-2018 19:37
  The mistreatment of migrants is hurting the health service, and although I was honoured to get the Ebola award, I can’t keep itI was so proud to be a part of the Ebola response in west Africa after the outbreak in 2014. It was the best thing I ever did. I would go again tomorrow, and I hope Britain would send help too. To me, receiving the special Ebola medal symbolised the value placed on humanitarian work by our government, so I was happy to accept it.The real heroes, of course, were the
  
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• Richard Bacon gives up alcohol after mystery illness

  23-07-2018 19:34
  TV host, who was in induced coma, wants to ‘embrace health from here on in’Richard Bacon has said he has given up alcohol after recovering from a mystery illness that resulted in him being put into a medically induced coma.The former Blue Peter host said he nearly died after falling ill while flying to Britain from the US this month, and was taken off the plane in a wheelchair. Continue reading...
  
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• Sky News man asks mourners at wife’s funeral to wear black

  23-07-2018 19:30
  Colin Brazier, who wife Jo died earlier this month, said he feels ‘ill at ease’ with modern conventionsThe Sky News presenter Colin Brazier has asked those attending his wife’s funeral not to wear bright colours, requesting that they “leave their Hawaiian shirts and pink helium balloons at home” and come in black.The journalist, whose wife died from breast cancer earlier this month, wrote in a piece for the Spectator magazine that he was “ill at ease” wi
  
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• Canvey teenager jailed for crashing BMW into five men

  23-07-2018 19:27 via bbc.co.uk
  The 18-year-old had taken his dad's car without permission to put a bet on when he hit the victims.
  
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• Greeks urged to leave homes as wildfires near Athens rage out of control

  23-07-2018 19:19
  Firefighters from across the country have been deployed to Kineta resort regionForest fires raged uncontrolled in several parts of Greece on Monday, destroying homes, disrupting major transport links and sending people fleeing for their lives. Greek authorities urged residents of a coastal region near Athens to abandon their homes as a wildfire spread on Monday, closing one of Greece’s busiest motorways, halting trains and sending plumes of smoke over the capital. Continue reading...
  
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• Tories will not repeat vote pairing 'errors', says May's deputy

  23-07-2018 19:18
  David Lidington responds to urgent question after Tory chairman broke voting pactTheresa May’s deputy, David Lidington, has said the Conservatives will not repeat the mistakes that led the party’s chairman to break a voting agreement he had with a Liberal Democrat MP on maternity leave.The Cabinet Office minister was responding to an urgent question over the pairing incident, which caused a bitter row with opposition parties after the Tory chief whip, Julian Smith, told MPs to breach
  
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• Ebola heroes to protest over migrants being denied NHS healthcare

  23-07-2018 19:11
  Around 20 medical staff plan to hand back their decorations and deliver a letter to Downing StreetBritish doctors, nurses and midwives hailed as heroes for tackling Ebola are handing back the medals they received from the government in protest at undocumented migrants being denied free NHS care.Around 20 NHS staff will on Tuesday return their medals to the Cabinet Office and hand in a letter to Downing Street, telling Theresa May of their “great sorrow and shame” that “hostile
  
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• Toronto shooting leaves three dead and 13 injured

  23-07-2018 19:04
  Police have yet to identify the gunman, who is among the dead, or to suggest a motive for the shootingThree people – including the suspected gunman – have died and 13 others have been injured after a lone gunman opened fire along a lively avenue in the Canadian city of Toronto, seemingly shooting at random at pedestrians and into crowded restaurants.Police said an 18-year old woman and a 10-year-old girl, both of them from the Toronto area, were killed in the attack. Another 13 peopl
  
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• Teenager 'heartbroken' after school banned his talent show drag act

  23-07-2018 18:55
  Lewis Bailey, 14, from Dudley, was told on eve of event his act was not ‘age appropriate’A school has been criticised by a teenager and his family for blocking his participation in its end-of-term talent show because he wanted to perform in drag.Lewis Bailey, 14, said that he was left distraught after spending weeks perfecting a lip-sync dance routine only to be told on the eve of last Tuesday’s event that he could not take part. Continue reading...
  
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• Three-year-old boy in police protection after Worcester acid attack

  23-07-2018 18:40
  Four men arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harmA three-year-old boy is under police protection after being “deliberately targeted” in a suspected acid attack at a shop in Worcester.Four men aged between 22 and 39 have been arrested over the incident on Saturday afternoon that left the boy with burns to his face and arm.Continue reading...
  
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• John Bolton backs Trump's Iran threat: 'They will pay a price'

  23-07-2018 18:37
  National security adviser doubled down on the tweet, upping pressure on Iran, while Trump’s tone was criticised in EuropeDonald Trump plans to make Iran pay a price few countries have ever paid before, according to the US national security adviser, John Bolton, who doubled down on a late-night tweet in which the US president threatened Tehran. Related: Trump says Iran will 'suffer consequences' after speech by President RouhaniContinue reading...
  
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• Acid attack on three-year-old boy: Three men arrested

  23-07-2018 18:33 via bbc.co.uk
  The three-year-old, who was attacked at a Home Bargains store, suffered burns to his arm and face.
  
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• Blazing a trail: as legal cannabis goes global, will Britain be next?

  23-07-2018 18:32
  New laws in California and Canada, plus a high-profile UK medical case, have made it safer for nations to come out of the green closet
  Three major developments in June, including the case of a British boy with severe epilepsy, are likely to accelerate international acceptance of marijuana.On 11 June, Charlotte Caldwell landed at Heathrow airport with her 12-year-old son, Billy, with a six-month supply of cannabis oil, the most effective medicine she’d found for her young child’s epil
  
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• Santa cruise and wild horses: Monday's best photos

  23-07-2018 18:31
  The Guardian’s picture editors bring you photo highlights from around the world, including heatwaves and wildfires Continue reading...
  
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• Macron under pressure to say why aide's brutality went unreported

  23-07-2018 18:29
  French president has offered no reason why Alexandre Benalla remained in Élysée role after attackEmmanuel Macron is under growing pressure to explain why his office did not report allegations that one of his closest aides had criminally assaulted May Day protesters to police.The French president has so far made no public statement over the political and personal scandal except to let it be known he considers the behaviour of the security officer Alexandre Benalla, a deputy chief of
  
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• New York Daily News announces 50% cut to newsroom staff

  23-07-2018 18:27
  The newspaper will shrink its editorial team to just 40 full-time employees and transform to ‘digitally focused’ breaking newsThe New York Daily News announced a 50% cut to its editorial staff early on Monday, marking a tremendous blow to one of the most popular papers in New York City and in the US as a whole. Related: Tronc to change name back to Tribune Publishing after two years of ridiculeContinue reading...
  
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• Ryan Lochte banned 14 months for doping violation revealed on Instagram

  23-07-2018 18:26
  Lochte faces lengthy ban for illegal IV use posted on Instagram12-time Olympic medalist will be sidelined through June 2019Incident casts doubt on Lochte’s plans to swim in 2020 GamesRyan Lochte, the second most decorated male Olympic swimmer of all time, has been banned 14 months for receiving an intravenous infusion without a therapeutic use exemption, the US Anti-Doping Agency (Usada) announced on Monday.Usada said it became aware of the potential violation when the 33-year-old American
  
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• Offshore owners of British property to be forced to reveal names

  23-07-2018 18:25
  Hiding identity to be punished with up to five years’ jail in money-laundering crackdown Offshore owners of British property will be forced to reveal their true identities or face jail sentences and unlimited fines under draft laws that aim to end the UK’s reputation as a high-risk jurisdiction for money laundering.The legislation follows years of scandals involving the acquisition of high-value UK property by offshore companies, and concerns that a lack of regulation was allowing co
  
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• The Everywhere Bear review – Julia Donaldson's little hero captivates its tiny audience

  23-07-2018 18:23
  Polka, London
  Rebecca Cobb’s original illustrations are elegantly woven into the design of this thoughtful yet unshowy adaptationThe Everywhere Bear sits on a shelf in Class One. He’s so tiny you could easily miss him. At first, three-year old Ceci – who’s joining me for this show – barely notices the Everywhere Bear. She’s far too busy jostling with other kids or scanning the set. But this production has been created by the same team behind the gently captiva
  
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• Özil's resignation sparks recriminations across German politics

  23-07-2018 18:18
  Turkish-German footballer’s resignation from national team leads to arguments over integration and racismAngela Merkel has insisted that Germany is “a cosmopolitan country” and praised Mesut Özil’s achievements for the national side, after the Arsenal midfielder’s resignation from the German national team over alleged racism and lack of respect kicked football deep into the country’s political arena.“Özil is a great footballer who has done a lo
  
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• Tesla shares drop after embarrassing memo leaks

  23-07-2018 18:03
  Shares dropped almost 5% after the automaker was reported to have asked US suppliers for refunds, unnerving some investorsTelsa took another financial hit on Monday, with shares in the company dropping almost 5% after the electric automaker was reported to have asked some US suppliers to return payments to the money-losing company.The disclosure was contained in a memo sent last week by a global supply manager and obtained by the Wall Street Journal. In it, the manager described the payments as
  
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• The woke sound of musicals: why Mamma Mia! isn't the first to rewrite its lyrics

  23-07-2018 17:56
  Words to Abba’s When I Kissed the Teacher were rewritten for the latest film release – but it’s not the first time a musical has been adapted for modern tastesMamma Mia! Here We Go Again is being embraced this summer as the perfect film to warm the cockles of a news-weary audience. From the Greek sunshine to the nostalgic Abba soundtrack, and Cher’s camp swagger, everything about the film has been engineered to make the audience feel cosy.But could the Abba tracks themsel
  
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• More historic Italian clubs go bust ... while Juventus sign Cristiano Ronaldo

  23-07-2018 17:55
  Juventus agreed to pay Cristiano Ronaldo €500,000 a week in wages while Bari had their water cut off over a €6,000 billBy Neil Morris for The Gentleman Ultra of the Sport NetworkWhile Juventus and Real Madrid finessed the details of Cristiano Ronaldo’s transfer, a distant funeral bell tolled for three historic Italian clubs – a scenario that accentuated the disparity between those at the top of Italian football and those a few rungs down the ladder. Ronaldo’s arrival
  
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• Dangerous liaisons: why syphilis and gonorrhoea have returned to haunt Britain

  23-07-2018 17:54
  Clinic appointments fill up in minutes and babies are once again being born with syphilis – what is behind Britain’s sexual health crisis?Tucked down a backstreet, Patrick French’s workplace is identified only by a generic blue NHS sign. Nobody would know why the men and women entering the building off Tottenham Court Road in central London were here. Even inside, it’s not obvious. With its blond wood floors and potted plants, all that distinguishes the Mortimer Market se
  
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• As National Album Day launches, here's why 'albums need protecting'

  23-07-2018 17:48 via bbc.co.uk
  As BBC Music announces National Album Day fans, musicians and industry experts explain what they love about them.
  
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• Barefaced cheek: Rubens nudes fall foul of Facebook censors

  23-07-2018 17:31
  Flanders tourist board chides firm for removing ads featuring the Flemish master’s worksRubens nudes have entranced those visiting the world’s great art galleries for some 400 years. Contemporaries on whom the Flemish master is said to have had a profound impact include Van Dyck and Rembrandt … but none of this has passed muster with Facebook’s censors.In a move that has prompted a semi-playful complaint to the company’s chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, it has tak
  
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• BBCNOW/Thomas Søndergård review – bowing out in style

  23-07-2018 17:25
  Royal Albert Hall, London
  The BBC National Orchestra of Wales’s principal conductor signs off with a performance of heady abandonThis was Thomas Søndergård’s last concert as the BBC National Orchestra of Wales’s principal conductor and he bowed out in style with Mahler’s Eighth Symphony, in a performance of cogency and splendour. Many would consider the Albert Hall to be the ideal venue for this work, with the size of the building matching the immensity of th
  
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• Anti-military protests rock Pakistan in run-up to fiercely contested election

  23-07-2018 17:14
  PML-N claims state security agencies are hobbling the party’s re-election campaignProtesters have lined the streets outside the headquarters of Pakistan’s powerful military in an unprecedented show of defiance ahead of a delicately poised election on Wednesday that the armed forces and its ISI spy agency are accused of manipulating.Local media avoided details of the weekend demonstration in Rawalpindi but footage circulated rapidly via WhatsApp of the protests in a traditionally pro-
  
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• Ex-football coach Bob Higgins found guilty of indecent assault

  23-07-2018 17:12
  Higgins, 65, guilty of one count and faces retrial on 48 others after jury fails to reach verdictsThe former football coach Bob Higgins is to face a retrial after a jury found him guilty of one count of indecent assault and not guilty of another, but failed to reach verdicts on the remaining 48 charges. Higgins, 65, from Southampton, Hampshire, was convicted of the single charge by the jurors after an eight-week trial at Winchester crown court.Continue reading...
  
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