General news

• Facing Islamist threats, Bangladesh girls forced to cancel football matches

  18-02-2025 23:16 via bbc.com
  
  There are concerns that extremist groups, which had been pushed to the fringes, have become emboldened again.
  
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• Russia won't accept Nato troops in Ukraine, Lavrov says after talks with US

  18-02-2025 23:04 via bbc.com
  
  The meeting was the first time since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine that Russian and American delegations are known to have met face-to-face.
  
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• British Army 'absolutely ready' if ordered to deploy to Ukraine

  18-02-2025 23:00 via bbc.com
  
  It comes as 2,500 UK troops take part in Nato's largest exercise this year near Ukraine's border.
  
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• All spin & no pace - USA and Oman make ODI history after 4,671 games

  18-02-2025 22:45 via bbc.com
  
  USA and Oman make history by not bowling a single ball of pace during their ICC Men's Cricket World Cup League 2 match in Al Amerat on Tuesday.
  
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• Pope Francis remains hospitalized with pneumonia in both lungs, Vatican says

  18-02-2025 22:43 via nbcnews.com
  
  Pope Francis has pneumonia in both lungs and remains hospitalized in Rome after a respiratory tract infection, painting a "complex picture" of his health, the Vatican said Tuesday.
  
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• Djokovic loses in Qatar after Murray coaching announcement

  18-02-2025 22:30 via bbc.com
  
  Novak Djokovic says the partnership with Andy Murray as his coach will continue "indefinitely".
  
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• The Jam drummer Rick Buckler dies aged 69

  18-02-2025 21:49 via bbc.com
  
  His death was confirmed by his bandmates Paul Weller and Bruce Foxton on social media.
  
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• Raducanu loses to Muchova in Dubai second round

  18-02-2025 21:43 via bbc.com
  
  Emma Raducanu suffers a hard-fought defeat by Karolina Muchova in the second round of the Dubai Tennis Championships.
  
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• Jeremy Bowen: No sign of a quick peace dividend for Trump in Ukraine

  18-02-2025 21:24 via bbc.com
  
  Ukrainian soldiers are paying little attention to US diplomacy and civilians doubt good will come of it.
  
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• F1 drivers gather in London to launch 75th anniversary season

  18-02-2025 21:16 via nbcnews.com
  
  The F1 75 Live event at London’s O2 arena is the first time the sport is hosting its own large-scale launch event.
  
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• Sudan paramilitary group kills more than 200 people in three-day attack, activists say

  18-02-2025 21:03 via theguardian.com
  The Emergency Lawyers network said the RSF killed civilians south of Khartoum, with hundreds more either wounded or missingSudanese paramilitaries have killed more than 200 people in a three-day assault south of Khartoum, according to a lawyers’ network, while the army-backed government put the death toll at more than double that figure.The Emergency Lawyers network, which has documented human rights abuses during 22 months of fighting between the rival security forces, said hundreds more
  
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• Moscow back at the table - and appearing to call the shots

  18-02-2025 21:01 via bbc.com
  
  Team Trump clearly wants to cut a deal with Moscow and move on, says the BBC's Sarah Rainsford.
  
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• Russia US Talks - The Room Where it Happened

  18-02-2025 21:00 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Russia and the US agree to appoint teams to start negotiating the end of the war.
  
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• Pope Francis has pneumonia in both lungs, Vatican says

  18-02-2025 20:55 via bbc.com
  
  It said lab tests, a chest X-ray and the Pope's clinical condition "continue to present a complex picture".
  
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• Hamas says it will return bodies of four hostages including Bibas family

  18-02-2025 20:21 via bbc.com
  
  The Palestinian group claims that Shiri and her children Kfir and Ariel were killed in Israeli bombardment. Israel has not confirmed this.
  
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• Why did a plane crash in Toronto, and how did everyone survive?

  18-02-2025 20:01 via bbc.com
  
  The plane's safety features have been praised, as have the response from the crew and emergency teams.
  
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• Kabul evacuation whistleblower wins case against UK government

  18-02-2025 19:42 via theguardian.com
  Civil servant Josie Stewart found to have been unlawfully dismissed in 2022 after she told BBC about failures‘Pursue this urgently’: whistleblower case reveals Whitehall focus on Kabul animal airliftA civil servant who blew the whistle about the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan and Boris Johnson’s involvement in a decision to evacuate a pet charity from Kabul has won her case for unfair dismissal against the government in a legal first.An employment panel of three judges una
  
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• UN rights body accuses Rwanda-backed militia of killing children in eastern DRC

  18-02-2025 19:41 via theguardian.com
  
  OHCHR says Tutsi-led M23 group killed three boys in Bukavu last week after capturing the cityThe UN human rights office accused the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels of killing three children in Bukavu, the Democratic Republic of the Congo city they captured last week, expressing alarm at human rights violations by the militia.“Our office has confirmed cases of summary execution of children by M23 after they entered the city of Bukavu last week. We are also aware that children were in possession of
  
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• Pub shooting suspect rang friend and said 'she's dead'

  18-02-2025 19:31 via bbc.com
  
  The man thought to have shot Lisa Smith on Valentine's Day is Edvard Stockings, the BBC understands.
  
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• Hamas says it will return bodies of four Israelis on Thursday and release six living hostages on Saturday – as it happened

  18-02-2025 19:13 via theguardian.com
  
  Militant group has said it will release six hostages from Gaza this week and hand over the bodies of four othersHamas says it will hand over bodies of Bibas family and free six hostagesGeneva Abdul is a reporter for the GuardianMore than 200 organisations worldwide have called on nations involved in producing F-35 fighter jets to “immediately halt all arms transfers to Israel” amid fears they have failed to prevent the planes from being used to violate international law. Continue rea
  
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• Scottish government accused of 'cowardice' in gender row

  18-02-2025 19:06 via bbc.com
  
  Conservatives clashed with the government after their calls for a statement on single-sex spaces were rejected.
  
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• Who was at the table at US-Russia talks in Saudi Arabia?

  18-02-2025 18:40 via bbc.com
  
  Three Americans and two Russians took part in the negotiations and agreed to reset diplomatic relations.
  
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• Hamas says it will hand over bodies of Bibas family and free six hostages

  18-02-2025 18:40 via theguardian.com
  
  Remains of Shiri Bibas and young sons Kfir and Ariel, whose deaths had not been confirmed, to be returned on ThursdayHamas has said it will release six hostages from Gaza this week and hand over the bodies of four others, including the remains of two young children from the same family whose deaths had not previously been confirmed.Khalil al-Hayya, a Hamas negotiator, said the four bodies to be handed over on Thursday would include those of 32-year-old Shiri Bibas and her sons, Kfir and Ariel, w
  
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• What does new Jaguars deal mean for Rees-Zammit?

  18-02-2025 18:39 via bbc.com
  
  Louis Rees-Zammit has re-signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars, but what does the deal mean for the former Wales rugby star?
  
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• Watch: Toronto plane crash footage analysed by aviation experts

  18-02-2025 18:17 via bbc.com
  
  Two aviation experts have analysed footage of the plane crash and explored what might have caused it.
  
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• Detained Britons charged with espionage in Iran

  18-02-2025 18:08 via bbc.com
  
  Craig and Lindsay Foreman had been on a motorbike trip across the world but were arrested in January.
  
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• 'He was just an innocent wee boy on his holidays'

  18-02-2025 18:01 via bbc.com
  
  Supt Norman Haslett says the death of a 12-year-old Spanish boy in the Omagh bomb had "the most profound" effect on him.
  
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• Woman charged over 1978 death of five-year-old girl

  18-02-2025 18:00 via bbc.com
  
  Five-year-old Andrea Bernard went to hospital after she was assaulted in Thornton Heath, in 1978.
  
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• Ukraine and Europe made to sit outside as US and Russia sharpen their carving knives

  18-02-2025 17:47 via theguardian.com
  
  In this back-to-the-future world, Russia is fully restored to the top table, while the US envoys outdo each other to praise TrumpEurope live – latest on Ukraine talksUkraine was laid out on the glossy conference table in Riyadh on Tuesday, not to be dissected on this occasion, but rather for an initial inspection by the Americans and Russians, who have reserved the carving knives for future use.No Ukrainians were present for these opening discussions on the country’s fate, or for the
  
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• Driver killed cyclist to 'teach him wheelies lesson'

  18-02-2025 17:27 via bbc.com
  
  Liam Jones was pursued by Abdirahman Ibrahim who deliberately drove into him twice, West Midlands Police say.
  
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• City's derelict Debenhams to become a park

  18-02-2025 17:10 via bbc.com
  
  Plans have been confirmed to turn the former Debenhams store in the city centre into a park.
  
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• Europe's leaders divided over their tactics with Trump

  18-02-2025 16:29 via bbc.com
  
  Several European countries are furious at feeling they have to dance to the US tune on Ukraine, says Katya Adler.
  
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• Middle East crisis live: Israel to begin negotiations on second phase of Gaza ceasefire deal, says minister

  18-02-2025 13:29 via theguardian.com
  Mediators hope second phase of deal will agree release of remaining hostages as well as full withdrawal of Israeli troops from GazaGeneva Abdul is a reporter for the GuardianMore than 200 organisations worldwide have called on nations involved in producing F-35 fighter jets to “immediately halt all arms transfers to Israel” amid fears they have failed to prevent the planes from being used to violate international law. Continue reading...
  
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• Nigel Farage says Tories ‘not on the right in any measurable way’ and calls Labour government ‘miserable’ – UK politics live

  18-02-2025 13:25 via theguardian.com
  
  Leader of Reform UK criticises Conservatives and ‘declinist’ Labour government in new attacksGood morning, defence secretary John Healey has finished speaking, so I can take a quick pause and actually welcome you to our rolling coverage of UK politics for Tuesday. Here are the headlines …Defence secretary John Healey has announced what he described as the most significant defence reform for 50 years, in which reporting lines and budgets will be simplified, and a new “qua
  
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• Ukraine war: Russia-US talks ‘went well’ with early discussions on Ukraine, says Russian adviser – Europe live

  18-02-2025 13:14 via theguardian.com
  
  Discussions included conditions needed for a Putin-Trump summit, says Russia’s Yuri Ushakov, as Zelesnkyy says he will not recognise peace deals without participationSee all our Ukraine war coverageBack when Europe was still looking to America with hope, and not despair and confusion, a US musical perfectly captured the nature of the conversations we are going to see today:No one really knows how the game is played The art of the trade How the sausage gets made We just assume that it happe
  
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• Fetterman flight: from Sanders-style progressive to Trump-adjacent senator

  18-02-2025 13:06 via theguardian.com
  Fellow Democrats are riled by the Pennsylvania maverick who now denounces the sort of politician he once was“You can’t ‘work’ with crazy,” John Fetterman wrote. “You must call it what it is. Anything less is spineless appeasement.”It was mid-2016, and Fetterman, then running in the Democratic primary for a US Senate seat in Pennsylvania, was responding to a Politico article about how Democrats may work with Donald Trump. Continue reading...
  
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• UnitedHealth Group resists shareholder proposal on delayed and denied care

  18-02-2025 13:00 via theguardian.com
  Proposal calls on company to prepare reports on ‘macroeconomic costs’ of health insurer’s practicesUnitedHealth Group is attempting to swat down a non-binding shareholder proposal that asked the company to prepare reports on the costs of delayed and denied healthcare.The proposal, filed by members of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR), represents a new frontier in seeking to hold insurance companies accountable for the “macroeconomic costs” of
  
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• Trump immigration dragnet ensnares people at check-ins and court hearings

  18-02-2025 13:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Ice’s pursuit of ‘low-hanging fruit’ by allegedly tricking people complying with rules could be counterproductivePeople attending recent mandatory immigration check-ins or court appearances have been escorted out in federal custody after the Trump administration allegedly tricked, lied to, or otherwise deceived them as part of its mass deportation campaign.Amid a blitz of immigration-related policy changes over the last few weeks, Donald Trump and his subordinates have greenlit
  
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• US politics live: four deputies to New York’s mayor resign over chaos surrounding corruption charges

  18-02-2025 12:33 via theguardian.com
  Justice department has requested corruption charges against Eric Adams be dropped, widely seen as reward for his help with Trump’s immigration agendaThe newly elected chair of the Democratic National Committee, Ken Martin, has warned his party that the Republicans are now seen as the party of the working class and vowed to win back the trust of American workers as the Democrats seek to rebuild after their losses in the 2024 presidential election.In his first memo in the role, seen by the G
  
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• Two water companies appeal against Ofwat’s ‘unacceptable’ curb on bill increases

  18-02-2025 12:18 via theguardian.com
  
  Anglian Water and Southern Water ask Ofwat to let them raise bills by even higher percentage than previously mandatedBusiness live – latest updatesTwo water companies have asked the UK’s competition watchdog to allow them to raise bills even higher than they have been allowed over the next five years, as the industry regulator’s recent ruling was called “unacceptable”.Anglian Water and South East Water said on Tuesday that they had asked Ofwat to refer its ruling on
  
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• Russian and US officials meet in Riyadh – without Ukrainians | First Thing

  18-02-2025 12:17 via theguardian.com
  
  Negotiations get under way, with Kyiv and other European powers sidelined. Plus, why gen Z has ditched capitalizationDon’t already get First Thing in your inbox? Sign up hereGood morning.The negotiations over a ceasefire in Ukraine between the US and Russia, with Kyiv and other European powers sidelined, have begun in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia.What was said in Paris? There were calls for boosts in defence spending – but some, notably Germany, wanted to stymie discussion of
  
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• Thames Water wins court backing for £3bn debt package

  18-02-2025 12:15 via theguardian.com
  
  Deal approved at high court gives company £1.5bn in upfront cash to stave off collapseBusiness live – latest updatesThames Water has won court approval for an emergency debt package worth up to £3bn that should stave off the collapse of Britain’s biggest water company for at least another few months.London’s high court said on Tuesday that the deal could proceed, after hearing four days of complex arguments earlier this month over whether it should go ahead. The dea
  
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• Placebo frontman Brian Molko charged with calling Meloni ‘fascist’ and ‘racist’

  18-02-2025 12:04 via theguardian.com
  
  The singer is being charged with defamation of the far-right Italian prime minister leader while performing at a festival in Turin in 2023Placebo frontman Brian Molko is being charged with defamation after appearing to call the Italian prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, a “piece of shit, fascist, racist” in Italian while performing at a festival in Turin in 2023.In August 2023, Meloni sued Molko over the comments. Prosecutors subsequently opened an investigation into the claims and have
  
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• UK pay growth rises 6% despite job loss warnings after Reeves’s budget

  18-02-2025 12:02 via theguardian.com
  
  Unemployment rate unchanged in three months to December, while vacancies increased in JanuaryAnalysis: Strong wage growth gives Bank of England interest rate dilemmaBusiness live – latest updatesUK workers’ pay grew sharply in the final quarter of last year and unemployment remained unchanged despite warnings from business that Rachel Reeves’s autumn budget would lead to job losses.Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show annual growth in total average weekly
  
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• DNC chair outlines pro-worker, union focus in first memo in fight against Trump

  18-02-2025 12:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Ken Martin decries Republican party’s anti-union actions and pledges to fight on behalf of American working peopleThe newly elected chair of the Democratic National Committee, Ken Martin, has warned his party that the Republicans are now seen as the party of the working class and vowed to win back the trust of American workers as the Democrats seek to rebuild after their losses in the 2024 presidential election.In his first memo in the role, seen by the Guardian, Martin said, after the ele
  
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• Sadiq Khan says ‘Brexit was a mistake’ and closer EU ties could counter Trump tariffs

  18-02-2025 11:58 via theguardian.com
  
  London mayor to tell meeting that mobility scheme would benefit young people and economyUK politics live – latest updatesSadiq Khan will tell EU diplomats “Brexit was a mistake” and renew his backing for a youth mobility scheme as he argues strengthened ties with the bloc would help offset Donald Trump’s threatened tariff regime.At a meeting on Tuesday, the mayor of London will tell delegates that Britain’s withdrawal from the trading bloc “continues to have a
  
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• Strong wage growth gives Bank of England interest rate dilemma

  18-02-2025 11:42 via theguardian.com
  
  Quick cuts unlikely because persistently high pay rises will probably be deemed inflationaryUK pay growth rises 6% despite job loss warnings after Reeves’s budgetBusiness live – latest updatesThere was a brief period when the Bank of England was poised to cut interest rates and cut them quickly. Official figures showing strong wage growth appear to have ruled that out, at least for the time being.That is because policymakers at the central bank are likely to consider persistently hig
  
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• Architects warn post-Brexit visa rules hindering recruitment

  18-02-2025 11:38 via theguardian.com
  Firms want review of decision to remove architecture from shortage occupation list and raise salary thresholdArchitecture firms are calling on the home secretary, Yvette Cooper, to urgently review the post-Brexit visa salary rules, claiming they are choking an industry that is trying to help meet Labour’s housing targets.They say there were hit by a double recruitment whammy when the rules changed last April, with architecture removed from the shortage occupation list and the minimum salar
  
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• US citizen detained on drug smuggling charges in Russia released ahead of talks between Moscow, Washington

  18-02-2025 10:13 via foxnews.com
  
  A U.S. citizen arrested in Russia earlier this month on drug smuggling charges has been released from Russian custody.Kalob Wayne Byers, 28, was detained on Feb. 7 at the Vnukovo airport in Moscow after cannabis-laced marmalade was allegedly found in his luggage by customs officials. Byers was traveling from Istanbul with his Russian fiancée, who was also taken into custody.It was not immediately clear whether Byers' fiancée, identified by Russian media as Naida Mambetova, was also
  
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• Top Russian, US officials meet in Saudi Arabia to begin talks on Ukraine war without officials from Kyiv

  18-02-2025 09:59 via foxnews.com
  
  Senior Russian and U.S. officials met in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday to discuss improving relations and an end to Moscow's war in Ukraine – without representatives from Kyiv.Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov led the delegations that met at the Diriyah Palace in Saudi Arabia's capital of Riyadh.Rubio was accompanied by National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, while Lavrov brought along the Kremlin's foreign affairs advisor, Yu
  
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