The Guardian

Social media account for Palmerston, who retired in 2020, announces death of ‘Diplocat extraordinaire’ Palmerston, a rescue cat who became the chief mouser of the Foreign Office, has died in Bermuda. The cat, adopted from Battersea Dogs & Cats Home, retired in 2020 after four years of service in Whitehall. Continue reading...

Senators said repeal was ‘particularly troubling’ and was counter to EPA’s mandate to protect human health More than three dozen Democratic senators have begun an independent inquiry into the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) following a huge change in how the agency measures the health benefits of reducing air pollution that is widely seen as a major setback to US efforts to combat the cl…

Wall Street Journal says Claude used in operation via Anthropic’s partnership with Palantir Technologies Claude, the AI model developed by Anthropic, was used by the US military during its operation to kidnap Nicolás Maduro from Venezuela, the Wall Street Journal revealed on Saturday, a high-profile example of how the US defence department is using artificial intelligence in its operations. The U…

HMRC figures show 11% rise in young million-pound earners, with influencers and tech pay cited as key Their generation is often derided for being work-shy, self-centred and overly sensitive. But when it comes to making money, people under 30 are proving they are something else entirely: successful. A record 1,000 taxpayers under 30 earned more than £1m last year, an 11% increase on the year befor…

Clients including Chappell Roan and Abby Wambach cut ties to firm after communications came to light Casey Wasserman, a leading Hollywood talent agent whose clients include Chappell Roan, Coldplay, Ed Sheeran and Kendrick Lamar, is selling his business after communications with Ghislaine Maxwell were exposed as part of the US justice department’s recent dump of investigative documents relating to…

Norwegian-born skier storms to historic slalom gold ‘Your difference is your superpower,’ says 25-year-old As the snow fell in Bormio, and the fog settled in, Lucas Pinheiro Braathen made history by becoming the first South American to win a Winter Olympic medal. Then, as the realisation that he had won gold for Brazil in the men’s giant slalom, he collapsed to the floor and allowed the tears to …

Bouquets imported to Europe found to be heavily contaminated, often with chemicals banned in EU and UK Stay away from roses this Valentine’s Day, environmental campaigners have warned after testing revealed them to be heavily contaminated with pesticides. Laboratory testing on bouquets in the Netherlands, Europe’s flower import hub, found roses had the highest residues of neurological and reprodu…

Militant group’s infrastructure and weapons storage facilities were hit, as Washington praised Damascus for fresh coalition role The US military has conducted 10 strikes on more than 30 Islamic State targets in Syria between 3 and 12 February as part of a campaign against the extremist group in Iraq and Syria. US Central Command (Centcom) said in a statement on Saturday that the US had struck IS …

Museum’s revitalised galleries bring together 250 objects to show how design shapes modern life What do the first ever baby monitor, Nigeria’s 2018 World Cup kit, an 80s boombox, the smashed parts of Edward Snowden’s computer, a “Please offer me a seat” badge and a Labubu have in common? They are all included in the V&A’s Design 1990-Now galleries , which reopen to the public this week. The galle…

13% of federal civilian workforce is affected, although DHS – which spurred budget standoff – remains funded A limited US government shutdown came into effect on Saturday – the third of Donald Trump’s second term – after negotiations between the White House and Democrats in Congress failed to agree on new restrictions for federal immigration agents. The shutdown affects about 13% of the federal c…

Co-author George Cottrell is close aide to party leader Nigel Farage and served several months in US prison As a choice for a book title, How to Launder Money certainly caught the eye. But then again, its co-author George Cottrell claims to know what he’s talking about. A close aide to Nigel Farage , Cottrell served several months in a US prison after being convicted there in 2017 for wire fraud …

Sheriff’s, FBI and forensics vehicles passed through roadblocks 2 miles from missing 84-year-old woman’s home Law enforcement investigating the disappearance of Today show host Savannah Guthrie’s mother, Nancy, sealed off a road near her home in Arizona late Friday night. A parade of sheriff’s and FBI vehicles, including forensics vehicles, passed through the roadblock that was set up about 2 mil…

Former opposition leader’s death while in Arctic jail at age of 47 result of mixture of diseases, according to Moscow The Foreign Office has blamed the Russian state for the death of opposition leader Alexei Navalny, which it said was the result of poisoning from a dart containing frog toxin. The frog poison – called epibatidine – is said to have been used when Navalny, 47, died suddenly on 16 Fe…

Senior policing source says ‘tsunami’ of claims expected after US release of papers relating to disgraced financier British police have set up a new national group to deal with allegations that Jeffrey Epstein’s trafficking of women had ties to Britain, as well as claims against his associates, such as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. At least three British police forces are dealing with allegations t…

Luis Muñoz Pinto, 27, who was sent to notoriously brutal prison in El Salvador would like to clear his name after US judge’s ruling A US federal judge’s order that some of the Venezuelan men sent by the Trump administration to a notorious prison in El Salvador must be allowed to return to the United States to fight their cases has been greeted with hope and a sense of vindication – but also fear …