General news

• Qantas is cutting 6,000 jobs as the coronavirus pandemic takes its toll

  25-06-2020 07:43 via cnn.com
  
  Qantas is cutting 6,000 jobs and looking to raise up to 1.9 billion Australian dollars ($1.3 billion) as the carrier fights to survive the coronavirus pandemic.
  
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• Justice department won’t pursue criminal contempt charge against Merrick Garland – as it happened

  14-06-2024 22:04 via theguardian.com
  
  This live blog is now closed. For more on this story, you can read our full report:Justice department declines to pursue Merrick Garland contempt chargesJoe Biden released a statement in light of the supreme court’s latest decision on bump stocks, saying:“Today’s decision strikes down an important gun safety regulation. Americans should not have to live in fear of this mass devastation.”“I have used every tool in my administration to stamp out gun violence. I nomina
  
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• Rishi Sunak pledges to serve as MP for full term if Tory party loses election

  14-06-2024 22:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Prime minister says he intends to continue in parliament for next five years regardless of overall result on 4 JulyRishi Sunak has committed to staying on as an MP for the full five-year term if the Conservative party loses the general election.Speaking to journalists in Puglia, Italy, where he is attending the G7 summit, the prime minister said he intended to serve a full parliamentary term regardless of the overall result on 4 July. Continue reading...
  
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• Sunak praises ‘fantastic’ Meloni as G7 launches bid to halt people-smuggling

  14-06-2024 21:59 via theguardian.com
  
  UK prime minister says he sees ‘eye-to-eye’ with his Italian counterpart on the issue of migrationRishi Sunak has praised his “fantastic” Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni as he announced the launch of a G7 coalition to tackle people-smuggling.The prime minister, who is in Puglia in Italy for the G7 summit, said he and Meloni saw “eye to eye” on the issue and had spearheaded efforts to tackle it since they were elected. Continue reading...
  
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• US designates Scandinavian neo-Nazi group and three leaders as terrorists

  14-06-2024 21:49 via theguardian.com
  
  State department says Nordic Resistance Movement, known by Swedish acronym NMR, is threat to AmericansThe United States on Friday designated a Scandinavian neo-Nazi group and three of its leaders as terrorists, saying the Nordic Resistance Movement poses a threat to Americans.NMR, known by its Swedish acronym, is the largest neo-Nazi group in Sweden and has branches in Norway, Denmark, Iceland and Finland, where it has been banned since 2020. Continue reading...
  
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• Justice department declines to pursue Merrick Garland contempt charges

  14-06-2024 21:20 via theguardian.com
  
  DoJ tells Republicans it will not pursue prosecution of attorney general after House votes to hold him in contemptThe US Department of Justice on Friday told the Republican House of Representatives speaker, Mike Johnson, that it would decline to pursue criminal contempt of Congress charges against the attorney general, Merrick Garland, according to a letter seen by Reuters.The Republican-controlled House had voted on Wednesday to hold Garland, in contempt of Congress for refusing to turn over au
  
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• General election live: Starmer tells Nick Robinson he is not ‘not complacent’ about becoming PM – as it happened

  14-06-2024 21:13 via theguardian.com
  
  BBC presenter will sit down with Labour leader after interview with PM aired earlier this weekSign up for Election Edition, our UK election newsletterIntroducing a cap on adult social care costs by October next year is part of Labour’s plan if they win the election, Wes Streeting has insisted, although the pledge did not appear in the party’s manifesto.Asked whether he could make a firm commitment to bringing in the cap in October 2025, PA Media reports he told BBC Radio 4’s To
  
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• Italy denies removing LGBTQ and abortion references from G7 declaration

  14-06-2024 21:03 via theguardian.com
  
  Final communique omits references to protection of gender identity and sexual orientation, and to safe abortion accessItaly’s far-right government has denied that it removed references to abortion and LGBTQ rights in the final declaration of the G7 summit in Puglia.In the declaration, published late on Friday, a reference to the protection of the “gender identity and sexual orientation” of the LGBTQ community did not appear, although reference had been included in the final dec
  
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• Tory leadership hopefuls ‘already lobbying’ to replace Sunak

  14-06-2024 21:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Sources say contenders jostling for support amid fears of historic wipeout in election• UK general election live – latest updatesConservative leadership hopefuls are already lobbying for support to take over from Rishi Sunak amid widespread fears the party is heading for a disastrous defeat on 4 July, the Guardian has learned.With three weeks to go before the general election, candidates and advisers had begun lining up behind their preferred contenders, sources said, with some Tory c
  
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• Russian ties and cheap tech: G7 leaders unequivocal in criticism of China

  14-06-2024 20:51 via theguardian.com
  
  Concerns set out over supply of materials with military applications, and impact of subsidies on global marketChina’s role in providing assistance to Russia in its war against Ukraine, and its “harmful overcapacity” in the production of cheap goods, have been targeted by G7 leaders despite misgivings from Germany.On the second day of the annual summit, being held in Puglia under the Italian chair, the US drove home a 36-page communique that condemned Chinese subsidies for produ
  
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• US imposes sanctions on ‘extremist Israeli group’ for blocking Gaza aid

  14-06-2024 20:49 via theguardian.com
  
  US says Tsav 9 activists have blockaded key crossing, set trucks on fire and injured drivers as hunger spreads inside GazaIsrael-Gaza war – live updatesThe US state department has imposed sanctions on Tsav 9, “a violent, extremist Israeli group”, for blocking convoys taking humanitarian aid to Gaza, and attacking trucks.The US said Tsav 9 activists began blockading a key crossing, Kerem Shalom, at the start of the year, and later set trucks on fire and injured drivers and Israe
  
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• Watchdog says expense claims by Scottish Tory leader ‘within rules’

  14-06-2024 20:15 via theguardian.com
  
  Douglas Ross was investigated over allegations he filed for travel to third job as part-time match officialExpenses claims by Douglas Ross, the leader of the Scottish Conservatives, were within the rules and no further action is required, the parliamentary standards watchdog has said.The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (Ipsa) investigated Ross over allegations that he may have claimed expenses to facilitate travel to his third job as a part-time match official for the Scottish Foot
  
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• Tory party CEO is director at cancer care firm benefiting from NHS waiting lists

  14-06-2024 20:05 via theguardian.com
  
  Stephen Massey has taken on role at GenesisCare, which reports increased demand ‘as a result of NHS backlogs’The Conservative party’s chief executive has taken on a senior role at a private cancer care firm that said in its annual report it had benefited from soaring NHS waiting times.Stephen Massey was appointed CEO of the party in November 2022, months after he donated £25,000 of his personal wealth to support Rishi Sunak’s first, and unsuccessful, bid to become T
  
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• London hospitals cancel nearly 1,600 operations and appointments in one week due to hack

  14-06-2024 19:47 via theguardian.com
  
  King’s College and Guy’s and St Thomas’ trusts have been worst affected by ransomware attack by Russian gang QilinHospitals in London had to cancel almost 1,600 operations and outpatient appointments in the first week after being hit by a Russian cyber-attack, the NHS has disclosed.The two major acute hospital trusts in the capital that were worst affected postponed 832 surgical procedures between Monday 3 June, when the hack began, and Sunday 9 June. Continue reading...
  
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• Democrats seize on Trump’s ‘horrible city’ remark about Milwaukee for ads

  14-06-2024 19:16 via theguardian.com
  
  Wisconsin city will host Republican national convention next month, a key swing state Biden won in 2020US Democrats have seized on Donald Trump’s dismissal of Milwaukee as “a horrible city” by trumpeting the unflattering description on advertising hoardings – a month before the city in the swing state of Wisconsin hosts the Republican national convention, where the former president is set to be the party’s presidential nominee this November.Trump reportedly made the
  
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• Heatwave expected to spread to 250m Americans in midwest and north-east

  14-06-2024 19:11 via theguardian.com
  
  Scorching temperatures have already swept south-east where Florida is now grappling with severe floodingThe scorching heatwave that has swept the US south-east in recent weeks will soon spread to the country’s midwest and north-east regions, affecting nearly 250 million Americans.Temperatures are stuck at 90F (32C) or above for at least the next week in much of the US, the National Weather Service (NWS) predicted. The NWS defines a heatwave as a period of temperatures exceeding 90F for two
  
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• French stock market plummets amid fears of far right election win

  14-06-2024 18:31 via theguardian.com
  
  CAC 40 index has its worst week since March 2022 after Macron’s decision to call snap electionsFrance’s stock market is heading for its biggest weekly fall in more than two years, amid fears that the country’s far-right party could win the upcoming parliamentary elections.French bonds were also hammered this week, as analysts warned of the risk of a Liz Truss-style market panic following Emmanuel Macron’s shock decision last Sunday to call snap national assembly elections
  
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• Elon Musk’s $45bn Tesla pay package not a done deal, say legal experts

  14-06-2024 17:20 via theguardian.com
  
  Although shareholders have backed chief executive’s remuneration deal, doubts remain over whether he will be able to access share-based packageTesla’s battle to reinstate Elon Musk’s $45bn (£35bn) pay package is far from over, according to legal experts, despite shareholders backing the chief executive’s remuneration deal.Investors in the electric carmaker re-ratified the pay deal on Thursday after it had been struck down by a judge in the US state of Delaware. The
  
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• ‘No one has any idea’ how many Israeli hostages are alive, says Hamas official

  14-06-2024 17:14 via theguardian.com
  
  Osama Hamdan’s comments signal group’s position on ceasefire proposalremains largely unchangedIsrael-Gaza war – live updatesA senior Hamas official has said the group does not know how many of the Israeli hostages it is holding in Gaza are still alive, as Israeli and Hamas sources set out positions that could undermine the possibility of an imminent ceasefire deal.The Lebanon-based Hamas official Osama Hamdan said in an interview with CNN that “no one has any idea”
  
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• Germany’s top climate envoy says ‘this is the critical decade’ after Dutton ditches 2030 target

  14-06-2024 17:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Representative from Europe’s biggest economy and key player in global climate talks says deep emissions cuts by 2030 ‘essential’ to limit climate heating to 1.5CGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastGermany’s climate envoy has dismissed claims the Paris agreement is only about reaching net zero emissions by 2050, warning that deep cuts by 2030 are “essential” and scientific evidence shows “this is the critical decade&rd
  
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• Electoral shake-up leaves awkward questions for the teals – and headaches for the major parties

  14-06-2024 17:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Liberal party now has candidates preselected for seats that no longer exist while Labor dealt a blow in the seat of BennelongGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastNew South Wales was due to lose a federal seat, and yesterday the axe fell on Liberal turned teal North Sydney with the Australian Electoral Commission’s proposal of new electoral boundaries.The blue ribbon seat of North Sydney has existed since 1901, and had been held by the Liberal party and i
  
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• Middle East: Hamas official says nobody knows how many of the remaining hostages are alive – as it happened

  14-06-2024 16:34 via theguardian.com
  
  Speaking to CNN, Hamas spokesperson says any deal to release the hostages would need to include a permanent ceasefireSee all our Israel-Gaza war coverage and the wider Middle East crisisFuel shortages are pushing hospitals in Gaza to the “brink of collapse”, with people facing dehydration, disease and starvation, the charity ActionAid has warned.Dr Mohammad Salha, acting director of al-Awda hospital in northern Gaza, said a lot of services at the hospital were affected by the lack of
  
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• Colorado was built on stolen tribal land worth $1.7tn, report finds

  14-06-2024 16:24 via theguardian.com
  
  Report published by Native American-led non-profit identifies 10 tribal nations tied to land and how it was takenA report published this week by a Native American-led non-profit examines in detail the dispossession of $1.7tn worth of Indigenous homelands in Colorado by the state and the US – and the more than $546m the state has reaped in mineral extraction from them.The report, shared first with the Associated Press, identifies 10 tribal nations that have “aboriginal title, congress
  
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• South Africa’s ANC strikes coalition deal with free-market DA

  14-06-2024 16:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Country’s second-largest party agrees to support re-election of Cyril Ramaphosa as presidentSouth Africa’s African National Congress and the Democratic Alliance have agreed to form a coalition in which the former liberation movement and the pro-business party will set aside their rivalry in an historic governance pact.President Cyril Ramaphosa’s centrist preferences ultimately won out over more leftwing factions of the ANC that wanted to strike a deal with breakaway parties tha
  
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• Vladimir Putin issues fresh demands to Ukraine to end war

  14-06-2024 15:35 via theguardian.com
  
  Russian president’s new ultimatum comes as foreign envoys meet in Switzerland to discuss western-led peace planVladimir Putin has demanded that Kyiv cede more land, withdraw troops deeper inside its own country and drop its Nato bid in order for him to end his war in Ukraine.Putin’s fresh ceasefire demands were issued as envoys from more than 90 countries, including Ukraine, convene in Switzerland this weekend to discuss a western-led peace plan. Russia is not invited to the conferen
  
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• Italian activist freed from Budapest house arrest after being elected MEP

  14-06-2024 15:01 via theguardian.com
  
  Case of teacher Ilaria Salis sparked diplomatic protestsafter she appeared in court in Hungary in chainsAn Italian anti-fascist activist has been released from house arrest in Budapest after being elected to the European parliament, which meant she gained immunity from charges relating to an alleged attack on neo-Nazis.The case of Ilaria Salis, 39, a teacher from Monza, near Milan, sparked diplomatic protests and anger in Italy after she was brought to court in Hungary in chains, her hands cuffe
  
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• World leaders gather in Switzerland for Ukraine peace summit, excluding Russia

  14-06-2024 13:33 via foxnews.com
  
  Switzerland will host scores of world leaders this weekend to try to map out first steps toward peace in Ukraine even though Russia, which launched the ongoing war, won’t take part.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s government didn’t want Russia involved, and the Swiss — aware of Moscow’s reservations about the talks — didn’t invite Russia. The Swiss insist Russia must be involved at some point, and hope it will join the process one day. Ukrainian
  
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• Here's what Russia's warships in Cuba are capable of

  14-06-2024 12:00 via foxnews.com
  
  Russia's fleet of warships in Cuba poses a "limited threat" to the U.S. mainland and its Navy, an expert said, but the move by Russian President Vladimir Putin is far from unprecedented.Rear Adm. Mark Montgomery (ret.) told Fox News Digital that U.S. assets in the area are more than capable of outmaneuvering the three warships and lone nuclear submarine that arrived in Cuba on Wednesday. "There have been three of these incidents in the past 20 years, so it's a traditional, normal-sized depl
  
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• Australia’s south-east to endure more wintry weather after Melbourne records coldest day in five years

  14-06-2024 11:41 via theguardian.com
  
  BoM says south-east can expect cold days and frosty nights with below-average temperatures continuing into the coming week Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastWintry conditions across south eastern Australia will continue into the weekend, with rain expected in parts of Victoria, New South Wales, and Western Australia.Melbourne recovered slightly from a high of only 10.1C on Thursday, its coldest day in fi
  
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• Australian War Memorial allegedly defaced with pro-Palestine graffiti, police say

  14-06-2024 11:30 via theguardian.com
  
  ACT police say man allegedly graffitied the outside of building and the ground with ‘pro-Palestine slogans’Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastThe Australian War Memorial has been allegedly defaced with pro-Palestine graffiti, ACT police have said.The police said a man allegedly graffitied three areas on the outside of the Canberra building and on the ground in a publicly accessible area about 1am on Friday morning. Police would not say what the g
  
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