The Guardian

Bezalel Zini accused of role in taking goods into the occupied Palestinian territory during an Israeli blockade The brother of Israel’s internal security chief has been charged with “assisting the enemy in wartime” for his alleged role in a smuggling network taking cigarettes and other goods into Gaza during an Israeli blockade of the occupied Palestinian territory. Bezalel Zini was one of more t…

President condemns ‘environmental and health crime’ as critics say Israel seeks to make southern Lebanon uninhabitable Lebanon has accused Israel of spraying a herbicide linked to cancer on farmland in the south of the country as a “health crime” that would threaten food security and farmers’ livelihoods. The country’s president, Joseph Aoun, condemned what he called “an environmental and health …

PM clings on to power amid damaging fallout from Mandelson row on a day Commons mutiny filled the air The most dangerous moment of Keir Starmer’s premiership came just after lunchtime on Wednesday, when mutiny was the talk of the Commons tea room. Anger is widespread across Labour – but it was at its most palpable amongst the party’s new MPs, as the Conservatives used a humble address to force th…

New report also suggests renovations may take up to 61 years, as critics say project lacks accountability Plans to restore the crumbling Palace of Westminster could cost £40bn and take up to 61 years, a report by the body set up to investigate how the project should be handled has found. Critics labelled the cost as “eye-watering” and said the project lacked accountability. Continue reading...

Polymarket, the cryptocurrency-based prediction market, announced it would open store in apparent nod to mayor’s signature policy Zohran Mamdani made city-operated grocery stores a key pledge of his campaign for mayor of New York City. So when one company seemed to muscle in on the idea this week, apparently as a PR stunt, Mamdani was quick to reply. Polymarket, the cryptocurrency-based predictio…

State culled a number of the non-native reptiles after thousands were ‘cold-stunned’ and dropped from trees Wildlife officials in Florida say they euthanized more than 5,000 non-native iguanas in the state after hordes of the reptiles froze and fell from trees in this week’s cold snap. The Florida fish and wildlife commission (FWC) authorized the first officially sanctioned cull of “cold-stunned”…

Investigation exposes ‘corrosive’ reach of organized crime in Canada, with links to bribes, drug trade and a murder plot At least eight current and former Toronto police officers have been arrested following a sweeping investigation that officials say exposed the “corrosive” reach of organized crime into Canada’s largest municipal police service. Police allege fellow officers accepted bribes, aid…

Diocese holds consultation on future of long-closed city centre site thought to be enslaver’s burial place Work is about to begin repairing an unused city centre church in Bristol that is believed to be the burial place of the enslaver Edward Colston. After the work on the roof of All Saints is completed, the building may be deconsecrated, turned into a community resource and the remains of Colst…

Furnish says he and his husband felt ‘violated’ by the Daily Mail, who allegedly used information gained unlawfully David Furnish has said it is “an abomination” that the publisher of the Daily Mail was able to write “narrow-minded” stories about him and his husband, Elton John, using information allegedly secured by unlawful means. In evidence submitted to the high court, Furnish said he and Joh…

Exclusive: Luxury aircraft owned by property tycoon close to US president’s family has twice flown Palestinian men from Arizona to Tel Aviv On the morning of 21 January, Israeli authorities left eight Palestinian men at a West Bank checkpoint. Disoriented and cold, they were dressed in prison-issued tracksuits and carried their few belongings in plastic bags. Hours earlier, they had been sitting …

Donald Trump’s former adviser told Epstein in 2019 that he was ‘focused on raising money for Le Pen and Salvini’ before European elections Dozens of messages contained in the latest tranche of Epstein files lay bare the attempts by Donald Trump’s former chief strategist Steve Bannon to tap Jeffrey Epstein for support and funding to bolster European far-right parties. The messages mostly date to 2…

Exclusive: Campaigners say proposed cut from £11.9bn over past five years to £9bn over next five years will cost lives and livelihoods The UK plans to slash its aid to poor countries stricken by the climate crisis by more than a fifth, the Guardian has learned, despite promises to increase assistance and warnings from campaigners that the move will cost lives and livelihoods. Ministers plan to cu…

Former truck driver, now 80, allegedly one of many ‘sniper tourists’ who paid Bosnian Serb soldiers to be allowed fire on city An elderly Italian man is under investigation as part of an investigation by prosecutors in Milan into individuals who allegedly paid members of the Bosnian Serb army for trips to Sarajevo so they could kill citizens during the four-year siege of the city in the 1990s. Th…

US federal judge issued a preliminary injunction barring warrantless arrests unless there is a likelihood of escape US immigration agents in Oregon must stop arresting people without warrants unless there is a likelihood of escape, a federal judge ruled on Wednesday. US district judge Mustafa Kasubhai issued a preliminary injunction in a proposed class-action lawsuit targeting the Department of H…

EU urged to tell authorities to stand down EES controls if needed to avert delays at airports and border crossings Travel industry leaders have called on the European Commission to tell all border authorities to stand down the new entry-exit system (EES) if needed, as fears increase of summer disruption. European airports have warned of a potentially “disastrous” experience for passengers and hug…