The Guardian

Powerful storm brings destruction, while temperatures soar in Vietnam and torrential rain lashes South Korea Severe Tropical Cyclone Maila, currently in the Solomon Sea, is expected to continue moving south-westwards over the coming days. According to the Australian Bureau of Meteorology, Maila had peak sustained winds of 115mph (185k/ph), with gusts up to 160mph on Thursday, making it the strong…

Cheng Li-wun’s visit to Beijing has sparked controversy in Taiwan, with critics accusing her of being too close to China In a rare meeting with Taiwan’s opposition leader, China’s president, Xi Jinping, declared that people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait were Chinese and wanted peace. The meeting in Beijing between Xi and Cheng Li-wun, the chair of Taiwan’s Kuomintang (KMT), is the first such…

Woman tells court ‘I lost my teenage self’ from abuse by teacher William ‘Rob’ Gilfillan, already in prison for offences against daughter Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A woman who was repeatedly sexually assaulted in the 1980s by her high school PE teacher has told a court how the man’s actions resulted in her life being changed “negatively for decades”. In December…

Residents of Fleetwood say continuous foul smell from Transwaste site is making life hell and making them sick In the week that many families went to the coast for the fresh sea air or the tang of fish and chips, visitors to one Lancashire resort inhaled a rather more unpleasant aroma. “Welcome to Fleetwood,” read the local newspaper headline. “The town that smells of bin juice.” Continue reading…

Stars including Sabrina Carpenter, Karol G, David Byrne and Addison Rae also head to the desert for the first of two sold-out weekends of live music Justin Bieber is set for a major live performance comeback at this year’s sold-out Coachella with rainy weather set to be a possible spoiler. The Canadian singer will face his biggest live stage since he abandoned his 2022 tour over health concerns. …

Australia and Singapore will ‘make maximum efforts to meet each other’s energy security needs’ in refined fuels and LNG, according to new agreement Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Australia’s largest petrol source has pledged not to cut supplies, with Singapore’s prime minister telling Anthony Albanese that fuel will keep flowing despite the international crisis. Alba…

Opposition candidate Péter Magyar warns supporters against complacency as some voters undecided ahead of Sunday in Budapest We talked to a few Budapest residents this morning in the city centre at Jászai Mari Square . Continue reading...

Prime minister explicitly blames US president for British consumers’ higher bills as he concludes tour of Gulf states Keir Starmer has spoken to Donald Trump about the need for a “practical plan” to get shipping going through the Strait of Hormuz in the wake of the Middle East ceasefire, the Press Association reports. Starmer spoke to Trump from Qatar, where he arrived last night ahead of talks t…

Reports say Fed chair Jerome Powell among attenders at meeting in Washington The US Treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, summoned major American bank chiefs to a meeting in Washington this week amid concerns over the cyber risks posed by Anthropic’s latest AI model, according to reports. Bosses including the Federal Reserve chair, Jerome Powell, were said to have gathered at the Treasury headquarte…

PM appears to draw comparison between Russian and US leaders and calls for plan to restore shipping through strait of Hormuz Keir Starmer has said he is “fed up” with the effect that Donald Trump’s actions in the Middle East are having on the British public, while appearing to draw a comparison between the US president to Vladimir Putin. Speaking to ITV’s Robert Peston on Thursday, the prime mini…

Text on plaque in Hall of Valour updated to include references to war crime – murder charges and the ongoing legal process Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The Australian War Memorial has updated the display dedicated to Ben Roberts-Smith after the former Special Air Service (SAS) corporal was officially charged with five counts of the war crime of murder. The changes,…

The four astronauts are set to touch down on Earth and conclude the 10-day mission after completing moon flyby The number of human beings who have travelled to the moon and returned safely to Earth will grow to 28 on Friday night when Nasa’s Orion capsule containing four Artemis II astronauts will glide gently to a Pacific Ocean splashdown beneath three giant parachutes. The scheduled 5.07pm PT l…

Whatever outcome of ceasefire talks, the region will have to live with a continuing threat from the regime in Tehran Gulf nations will seek to add security partners as they rebuild battered economies after the US and Israel’s war on Iran and deal with an emboldened Tehran. The Gulf will have to live with a continuing threat from the Islamic regime in Tehran and its remaining missile arsenal. Amer…

Experts warn lapse could sharply reduce reports of abuse, echoing a 58% drop during a similar legal gap in 2021 Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox The European parliament has blocked the extension of a law that permits big tech firms to scan for child sexual exploitation on their platforms, creating a legal gap that child safety experts say will lead to …

Texas city believes loose rules and low taxes will make the US’s biggest banks come running – can it pull it off? As the warm sun rises over the Dallas skyline, SUVs and pickup trucks whiz past an unassuming construction site that is helping cement the city’s Texas-sized financial ambitions. Nestled between towers claimed by Bank of America and JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs has cordoned off 800,000 sq…