General news

• Labour MP calls two-child benefit cap ‘heinous’ in latest call to scrap policy

  20-07-2024 23:09 via theguardian.com
  
  Keir Starmer under pressure to scrap limit as more than dozen MPs thought to support king’s speech amendmentKeir Starmer has come under further pressure to scrap the two-child benefit limit after another of his backbench MPs described the policy as “heinous”.Writing in The Sunday Times, Canterbury MP Rosie Duffield said the cap, which came into effect under then-chancellor George Osborne in 2017, was “sinister and overtly sexist” and had been the main reason driving
  
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• Labour makes working-class children key to schools reform

  20-07-2024 20:49 via theguardian.com
  
  Minister pledges more sports and drama in curriculum review as row deepens over two-child benefit cap• Interview Labour’s Bridget Phillipson: ‘I will help working-class pupils defy the odds to succeed’Expanding opportunities for working-class children by broadening the school curriculum to include more sport, drama, art and music alongside core academic subjects will be top priorities for the Labour government, the new education secretary says today.In her first newspaper
  
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• NHS England warns of disruption next week as global IT outage wreaks havoc

  20-07-2024 20:46 via theguardian.com
  
  Flights continue to be cancelled while GP surgeries and hospitals will be dealing with impact of backlogsThe aftershocks of the Microsoft IT outage continued to ripple across the UK on Saturday as holidaymakers and patients suffered the brunt of the computer systems failure.Customers experienced flight cancellations, faulty train ticket machines and failures in GPs’ prescription and appointment systems after a flawed security update from CrowdStrike, a US cybersecurity firm, crashed 8.5 mi
  
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• Slowly but surely, Israel tightens its grip on Gaza’s lifeline to Egypt

  20-07-2024 20:36 via theguardian.com
  
  Latest satellite imagery reveals new roads that appear designed to support the long-term presence of Israeli troops In the months before the Israeli invasion, Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah was a lifeline, a place where thousands sought shelter or scrabbled to raise funds to cross into neighbouring Egypt.Now satellite images and social media video uploaded by Israeli soldiers stationed around the city show roads widened for armoured vehicles surrounded by total destruction, including bu
  
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• South mourns and north rejoices as Cyprus marks 50 years of ethnic division

  20-07-2024 20:27 via theguardian.com
  
  Greek Cypriots in south wake to air raid sirens reminiscent of invasion while Turkish-occupied north celebratesCyprus has marked the landmark anniversary of 50 years of ethnic division amid markedly contrasting scenes: mourning in the south and celebration in the north.At 5.20am Greek Cypriots in the internationally recognised south awoke to air raid sirens reminding them of the arrival of thousands of invading Turkish troops on the eastern Mediterranean island five decades ago. In the Turkish-o
  
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• Trump to hold first public campaign event since assassination attempt

  20-07-2024 20:20 via theguardian.com
  
  The former president and his running mate, JD Vance, will hold a joint rally in Grand Rapids, MichiganRepublican nominee Donald Trump will hold his first public campaign rally since a shocking assassination attempt a week ago by appearing in a crucial rust belt battleground state alongside his new running mate, Ohio senator JD Vance.The return to the campaign trail by Trump comes after the attempted killing of the former US president at a Pennsylvania rally last Saturday when a 20-year-old gunma
  
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• Utah to use pentobarbital to execute man instead of three-drug combination

  20-07-2024 20:11 via theguardian.com
  
  Defense attorneys said the use of ketamine, fentanyl and potassium chloride could cause ‘excruciating suffering’Utah officials said on Saturday that they are scrapping plans to use an untested lethal drug combination in next month’s planned execution of a man in a 1998 murder case. They will instead seek out a drug that’s been used previously in executions in numerous states.Defense attorneys for Taberon Dave Honie, 49, had sued in state court to stop the use of the drug
  
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• Craig Revel Horwood says Strictly Come Dancing allegations are ‘shock’

  20-07-2024 19:54 via theguardian.com
  
  Accusations of abusive behaviour in rehearsal rooms ‘complete news’ to judge of the dance showStrictly Come Dancing judge Craig Revel Horwood has said allegations of abusive behaviour to past participants on the show have come as a “shock” to him.Last weekend professional dancer Graziano Di Prima said he was leaving the BBC show after claims about his treatment of reality star Zara McDermott when they competed together last year. Continue reading...
  
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• Israel strikes Iran-backed Houthis after Tehran proxy attacked Jewish state: 'Significance is clear'

  20-07-2024 19:49 via foxnews.com
  
  JERUSALEM - Israel’s air force on Saturday launched surgical strikes against the Islamic Republic of Iran-sponsored Houthi terrorist regime in Yemen.According to an Israel Defense Forces statement, "A short while ago, IDF fighter jets struck military targets of the Houthi terrorist regime in the area of the Al Hudaydah Port in Yemen in response to the hundreds of attacks carried out against the State of Israel in recent months."In a video statement posted on X, Prime Minister Benjamin Neta
  
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• CrowdStrike IT outage affected 8.5 million Windows devices, Microsoft says

  20-07-2024 19:46 via bbc.com
  
  It’s the first time that a number has been put on the glitch that is still causing problems around the world.
  
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• Israel strikes Yemen port after Houthi rebels attack Tel Aviv

  20-07-2024 19:30 via theguardian.com
  Three reported killed and 87 wounded after oil depot and electrical installations hitPowerful airstrikes rocked the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah a day after Israeli officials vowed revenge for a drone that struck Tel Aviv.Airstrikes hit a refinery and electricity infrastructure, sparking a huge blaze. The Almasirah television channel, run by Yemen’s Houthi movement, reported late on Saturday that three people had been killed and 87 wounded in the strikes on the oil facilities. Continue re
  
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• Biden continues to resist Democratic calls to end re-election campaign

  20-07-2024 19:12 via theguardian.com
  
  Latest high-profile name to call on president to step aside is Sherrod Brown, the embattled senator from OhioDemocrats were caught in an apparent stalemate on Saturday as a dug-in Joe Biden continued to endure high-profile calls to end his re-election campaign after a week of astonishing party moves to unseat the president in favor of a candidate many hope will be more likely to beat Donald Trump.In the weeks since his disastrous debate performance against Trump, the 81-year-old Biden has attemp
  
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• Disneyland workers in Anaheim, California, vote to authorize strike

  20-07-2024 18:50 via theguardian.com
  
  Largest US strike so far this year could take place if negotiations, including over wages, fail next weekMembers of four unions representing 14,000 workers at the Disneyland in Anaheim, California, have voted to authorize a strike amid contract negotiations.The vote does not mean the workers will go on strike yet, but that the unions can call a strike at any point. If a strike takes place, it will be the largest strike so far in 2024. Continue reading...
  
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• Gunman at Trump rally flew drone over fairgrounds earlier on day of shootings

  20-07-2024 18:37 via theguardian.com
  Latest disclosure about security lapses comes as larger picture of Thomas Matthew Crooks’ preparations emergesThomas Matthew Crooks, the gunman who tried to assassinate Donald Trump a week ago, was able to fly a camera-equipped drone over the fairgrounds near Butler, Pennsylvania, shortly before the former president was set to speak there, according to news reports.The latest disclosure about security lapses that preceded the shooting comes as a more complete picture of Crooks’ prepa
  
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• Five protesters and one police officer hurt in French reservoir demonstration

  20-07-2024 18:37 via theguardian.com
  
  Violence erupts after about 4,000 gather in La Rochelle amid heightened tensions over water resourcesA police officer and five protesters were injured when violence erupted after about 4,000 people turned out for a demonstration in La Rochelle over the use of reservoirs to supply large-scale agriculture, local officials said.Police fired teargas and brought in water cannon trucks and reinforcements to disperse the demonstrators after the unrest broke out on Saturday afternoon, with several shop
  
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• Jewish groups call for action against radical anti-Israel organization: 'openly embraces Hamas'

  20-07-2024 17:15 via foxnews.com
  
  Within Our Lifetime (WOL), a radical anti-Israel group based in New York City, is among numerous organizations making headlines for open support of terrorist groups in the aftermath of Hamas’ Oct. 7 terror attacks. WOL’s online messaging outlines the radical beliefs uniting its members since the group’s founding in 2015. "We are anti-zionists (sic)," WOL states, elaborating that the "liberation of Palestine requires the abolition of zionism (sic)."  WOL also supports
  
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• Israel-Gaza war: ceasefire ‘close to the goalline’, says US – as it happened

  20-07-2024 16:37 via theguardian.com
  
  This live blog is now closed, you can read more of our Israel-Gaza war coverage hereSven Koopmans, the EU’s special representative for the Middle East peace process, has said he still believes a two-state solution – a Palestinian state in the occupied West Bank and in Gaza alongside Israel - is achievable despite opposition to it from Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister.In an interview with Agence France-Presse (AFP), he said Netanyahu’s government cannot indefini
  
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• Iran 'one to two weeks away' from weapons-grade nuclear material as US continues sanctions relief

  20-07-2024 16:22 via foxnews.com
  
  U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned on Friday that Iran could produce fissile nuclear material in "one or two weeks" as the State Department renews a sanctions waiver for Iraq to buy Iranian energy.Critics were quick to blame the Biden administration for enabling Iran to pursue nuclear weapons by allowing the rogue nation to sell its oil. Biden reversed many of former President Trump's tough sanctions against Tehran."What's breathtaking is the complete lack of self-awareness that it wa
  
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• Bangladesh police given ‘shoot-on-sight’ orders amid national curfew

  20-07-2024 15:34 via theguardian.com
  
  Citizens confined to homes with no internet access as student-led protests lead to deadly clashes with authoritiesPolice in Bangladesh have been granted “shoot-on-sight” orders and a nationwide curfew has been imposed as student-led protests continue to roil the country, leaving more than 100 people dead.The curfew, imposed at midnight on Friday, was expected to last until Sunday morning as police tried to bring the swiftly deteriorating security situation under control, with militar
  
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• Unfathomable errors and 'cinnamon bun' strategy: Political end-of-term report cards

  20-07-2024 15:04 via bbc.com
  
  As Parliament approaches summer recess, Laura Kuenssberg reflects on how they've performed over a dizzying few months.
  
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• Life returns to Ukrainian reservoir drained by Russian strike on dam

  20-07-2024 14:00 via theguardian.com
  
  A year later, animals, birds and saplings are populating a new landscape of ponds and lagoonsStanding in a scene of shimmering green, Vadym Maniuk pointed to a young white willow tree. “What happened here is a miracle,” he said. “Some of the saplings are already 4 metres tall. There is nowhere else like this on the planet. Not even the Amazon comes close.”Maniuk, an ecologist, picked his way through a jungle of new branches. The sky above was scarcely visible. In the mud
  
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• Chinese artefacts in repatriation row were ‘given willingly’ to British Museum

  20-07-2024 14:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Amid calls to return antiquities, historian finds documents that reveal many were not result of imperial plunderThe British Museum boasts one of the biggest collections of Chinese antiquities in the west, but it has faced repeated calls to return them to China. Now historical documents reveal that many of the antiquities were acquired with the full cooperation of Chinese officials in the last century.US historian Justin M Jacobs has unearthed evidence that shows the Chinese government “wil
  
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• Wrestler Kennedy Blades has been dreaming of Olympic gold since she was 8 years old

  20-07-2024 12:21 via nbcnews.com
  
  Kennedy Blades defeated an Olympic silver medalist to win the wrestling Olympic trials and punch her ticket to Paris.
  
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• Cop29 host Azerbaijan seeks $1bn from fossil fuel producers for climate fund

  20-07-2024 11:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Countries and companies involved in oil and gas extraction to be asked to join scheme aimed at tackling global heatingFossil-fuel producing countries and companies are being asked to pay into a new international fund to help poor countries cope with the effects of the climate crisis.The climate investment fund is being set up by the Azerbaijan government, host country of the Cop29 UN climate summit in November. Continue reading...
  
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• Republicans divided on Russia's security threat as Vance joins Trump presidential ticket

  20-07-2024 10:00 via foxnews.com
  
  There is an increasing sense of division in the Republican Party when it comes to the U.S. posture abroad, particularly when it comes to countering Russia, as Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, joins Donald Trump as his running mate in the race for the White House.The calls to stop military aid to Ukraine reflect a fundamental break in the party and a reversal to the long-held GOP neoconservative approach to foreign policy, which previously leaned heavily on an interventionist strategy.Ronald Reagan famousl
  
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• At least 11 killed and dozens missing as Chinese bridge collapses amid floods

  20-07-2024 09:32 via theguardian.com
  
  President Xi Jinping calls for ‘all-out efforts’ to find more than 30 people after incident in Shaanxi provinceTorrential rain has caused a bridge to collapse in northern China, killing 11 people and leaving more than 30 missing, state media has said.The bridge over a river in Shangluo, Shaanxi province, buckled at about 8.40pm on Friday “due to a sudden downpour and flash floods”, the Xinhua agency said, citing the provincial public relations department. Continue reading
  
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• European divisions risk incoherent response to any second Trump term

  20-07-2024 08:32 via theguardian.com
  
  Optimists say administration would be open to persuasion while sceptics say it is beyond time to Trump-proof EuropeTo be a foreign diplomat serving in the US, charged with interpreting the country’s politics so it appears predictable and explicable to your political masters in Europe, is currently no easy job.In a week where Donald Trump purported to address the nation as a self-aware, reflective and thoughtful Christian, before reverting to type with a slew of diatribes, and where he anno
  
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• ‘Magical wintry scenes’: snow ‘just keeps coming’ at Australian ski resorts

  20-07-2024 08:24 via theguardian.com
  
  A massive dump of snow on Friday night has continued into Saturday, bringing ‘super thick fresh powder snow’ to alpine areasFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastChristmas in July has finally arrived for ski resorts this weekend as the first widespread snowfall of the season blankets parts of Australia’s south-east, bringing more than 50cm falls in popular tourist destinations.David Clark,
  
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• The line of fire: Analyzing the Trump assassination attempt

  20-07-2024 07:01 via nbcnews.com
  NBC News Digital analyzes the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump by recreating the perspective of witnesses and tracking the movements of the shooter and security.
  
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• Myanmar junta ‘bombing schools’, with 170 sites hit in past three years – report

  20-07-2024 06:01 via theguardian.com
  
  Analysis of imagery from conflict zones shows evidence of burned-out and flattened buildings, with long-term impacts on educationAirstrikes, arson, shelling and ground fighting between the military and armed rebel groups have damaged at least 174 schools and universities in Myanmar since a military coup in 2021, according to a new report.Open source investigator, the Centre for Information Resilience (CIR), said analysis of imagery from conflict zones showed burned and collapsed buildings. Conti
  
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• WATCH: Would-be thieves fail in attempt to steal cash from Florida ATM

  20-07-2024 04:56
  
  An attempted ATM heist was caught on camera as thieves in Florida used an SUV to smash through the front door of a CVS.
  
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• WATCH: Timelapse shows drop in US air travel amid wave of early morning IT outages

  20-07-2024 04:31
  
  A timelapse shows passenger flights across the U.S. from midnight to 10 a.m. ET on Friday as a wave of IT outages swept the globe, causing thousands of flight cancellations.
  
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• Two Australians and three Indonesians survive helicopter crash in Bali, officials say

  20-07-2024 02:09 via theguardian.com
  
  Bell 505 Jet Ranger X helicopter came down in Pecatu village on the southern side of Bali after it was entangled in a kite stringTwo Australians and three Indonesians have survived a tourist helicopter crash in Bali after it became entangled in a kite string, officials say.The Bell 505 Jet Ranger X helicopter, owned by PT Whitesky Aviation, came down in Pecatu village in the coastal area on the southern side of Bali, a statement from Indonesia’s transportation ministry said. Continue readi
  
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• How bodies of frozen climbers were finally recovered from Everest 'death zone'

  20-07-2024 01:06 via bbc.com
  
  A clean-up team removed four bodies from the Himalayas in this year's operation.
  
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