Minimalist News

Brave New Autonomous World Takes Shape On America's Highways Wall Street remains hyper-focused on whether the hyperscalers' AI-driven data center buildout, now approaching $700 billion and roughly 10 times 2020 levels, will ultimately generate enough returns to justify the massive spending boom. Goldman analysts, led by Mark Delaney, focused on the "impact of AI on profit pools" and, more specifically, on the incremental profit AI-enabled initiatives in the transportation space could ultimately generate. The good news is that nearly a year after Delaney's June 2025 note to clients, his team found that the "pace of autonomous technology commercialization has accelerateProfits of Autonomous Mobility,"

"Depraved Evil": Gay Couple Mocks Baby's Cry For 'Mama' In Viral Surrogacy Video Authored by Steve Watson via modernity.news, Two gay men in Nashville recorded themselves taunting the baby they obtained through surrogacy as he cried desperately for his mother. The now viral clip has ignited fury across X. The clip opens with one man asking the infant, “Who do you want, Dada or Pop?” The baby responds, “Mama.” The man replies, “No, there is no mama,” and the baby cries. > Two gay men in Nashville are sparking nationwide outrage after recording a video of themselves mocking the baby they had via surrogacy

Xi Jinping Refocuses On Taiwan With Renewed Political Outreach China hosted a high-profile meeting between Xi Jinping and a senior Taiwanese opposition figure from the Kuomintang (KMT), marking a notable resumption of party-to-party engagement after years of limited direct contact, according to Nikkei Asia. The meeting was tightly choreographed, featuring an extended handshake, formal seating arrangements, and controlled media coverage. These elements were designed to convey parity and legitimacy, signaling that Beijing views engagement with Taiwan’s opposition as politically substantive. The KMT has historically supported closer economic and political ties with mainland China under the framework of the “1992 Consensus,” which Beijing interprets

More Young Men Than Young Women Now Say Religion Is 'Very Important' To Them, Gallup Finds Authored by Mark A. Kellner via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), Young men in the United States are more religious than young women for the first time in 25 years, according to a Gallup poll released on Thursday. A man reads scripture while viewing the casket of Reverend Billy Graham in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda in Washington, DC, on Feb. 28, 2018. Alex Edelman/AFP via Getty Images The data show that 42 percent of men aged 18 to 29 say religion is “very important” in their lives. That

Trump Turns The Screws On Israel In Biggest Pressure Move To Reign In Bibi Yet The Lebanon ceasefire appears to be legitimate and holding, and the biggest evidence of this is that Lebanese citizens themselves are pouring back into the war-ravaged south of the country, seeking to recover to their homes which are in some cases 'unlivable'. "Thousands of families displaced by weeks of fighting filled the main highway to southern Lebanon on Friday in hopes of returning to their homes, as a 10-day cease-fire in Israel’s military campaign against Hezbollah went into effect," writes NY Times on Friday. via Reuters This comes after

Is America On The Verge Of A Nuclear Renaissance? Authored by Duggan Flanakin via WattsUpWithThat.com, It has been more than seven years since President Donald Trump signed the Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act (NEIMA) into law – and it has taken all seven years (including four during the Biden Administration) for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to issue a final rule implementing its provisions. Even the Washington Post admits that the new Part 53 rules, intended to reduce review times from decades to 18 months or less, will make President Trump’s goal of revitalizing the U.S. nuclear energy industry more competitive – “to everyone’s benefit,” says the Post. The

Google's Stake In SpaceX Could Be Worth $122 Billion At IPO A long-held investment by Alphabet Inc. in SpaceX could become one of its most valuable bets if the rocket company moves ahead with a public listing, according to Bloomberg. Regulatory filings indicate Google owned about 6.11% of SpaceX at the end of 2025. At a projected $2 trillion IPO valuation, that stake would be worth roughly $122 billion. After SpaceX’s merger with xAI, the holding is estimated to have diluted to around 5%, or about $100 billion at the same valuation. The figures offer a clearer picture of Google’s position in SpaceX,

The Latest On The Redistricting Battles Authored by Jackson Richman & Joseph Lord via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), Despite the midterm season underway, the lines of congressional maps have not been finalized as redistricting battles continue nationwide. Voters fill out their ballots at a polling station in the Hillsboro Old Stone School in Hillsboro, Va., on Nov. 4, 2025 Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images Since Texas’s opening salvo, lawmakers in both parties from Florida to California have pushed for partisan redistricting in their states as a high-stakes midterm election season approaches. Here is the latest on states redrawing their congressional maps. VIRGINIA The Democratic-led General Assembly passed in

Unpaid Trash Company Empties Dumpster Rental Load On Customer's Front Lawn A Bay Area dumpster company decided to skip collections and go straight to… lawn delivery. Express Rental Dumpster said a San Pablo customer rented a bin while moving out, but the payment situation was, generously, fictional. The owner, Martin Perez, said the card kept getting declined while the customer kept promising “later”, according to Fox News. So instead of eating the cost, the driver showed up and made a statement. Ring camera footage shows him briefly talking to someone off-screen, cracking open the truck so some trash spills out, then backing up

"F**k It…Just Do It": Carville Lays Out Democratic Plan To Add States And Pack The Court To Retain Power Authored by Jonathan Turley via jonathanturley.org, Various Democrats have been openly discussing their plans after retaking power to change the system so they never lose power again. Democratic strategist James Carville has been one of the most vocal and returned to the subject this week in laying out how they will make D.C. and Puerto Rico states and pack the Supreme Court with a liberal majority. On his podcast with Al Hunt, Carville explained, “If the Democrats win the presidency and both houses of Congress,

Meta To Unleash First Wave Of Mass Layoffs May 20 As It Eliminates 10% Of Its Workers The FaceBook currently known as Meta for one failed venture that incinerated nearly $100 billion in cash for its failed transformation to a virtual reality hub while laying off thousands, is at it again. As we previewed a few weeks ago, Meta - which inexplicably hasn't changed its name to AIbook yet - will proceed with the first wave of mass layoffs planned for this year on May 20, with more ‌coming later, Reuters reported citing sources. The Facebook and Instagram owner will lay off about

No SAVE Act? Congress Still Holds The Trump Card Authored by Scott Yenor via American Greatness, The failure of the United States Senate to pass the SAVE America Act is as regrettable as it is predictable. Noncitizen voting is already a federal crime in America. SAVE would have required voters to provide documentary proof of citizenship when registering to vote. States would have to purge noncitizens from voting rolls, too. Perhaps reliance on hostile state officials to implement the law would have rendered the SAVE America Act ineffective. We will never know. The cause of election integrity is not dead. Congress has the constitutional power to

Former Congressman Blows The Whistle On Blackmail And Honeypots In Congress In a candid interview with Human Events editor Jack Posobiec, former Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-NC) alleged that blackmail and sexual honeypot operations are far more prevalent than the American public is aware of. Cawthorn, who was elected to represent North Carolina's 11th congressional district at just 25 years old in 2020, described the typical path these lurrid situations take. It often begins at donor dinners or late-night votes, when members unwind with drinks or head back toward Capitol Hill. While many lawmakers prefer socializing with fellow congressmen to avoid complications with

"Overwhelming Puke-Stream": It's All Going To Come Out Now... Authored by James Howard Kunstler, SHOWDOWN > “Everything that’s wrong is staring us right in the face, and half this country simply will not join us in fighting and fixing it. It’s infuriating and depressing and maddening.” > > - James Woods on X The closer this Iran war comes to a favorable resolution, the more garishly negative the puling Lefty-left gets, wishing fervently for the enemy to prevail. Why? Because the Lefty-left is also an enemy of our country. They want the operation to fail so they can reclaim power and resume wrecking and looting

Does Trump Know Something We Don't About Potential SCOTUS Vacancies? Authored by Matt Margolis via PJMedia,com, The midterm elections are coming up in November, and Democrats are generally favored to win the House, while the Senate is kind of a coin flip. While it would suck for Democrats to win the House because they’ll almost certainly find some bogus pretext to impeach President Donald Trump, there’s potentially more at stake regarding control of the Senate, including implications for confirming judges and potentially filling any potential Supreme Court vacancies. No retirements have been announced, but speculation is mounting, and I’m starting to wonder if

A "Bulging Lobe" Of Polar Vortex Madness Headed For U.S. East Mother Nature across the Mid-Atlantic can only be described by the Katy Perry lyric, “You’re hot, then you’re cold,” as a meteorologist warns that a "tropospheric polar vortex" will sweep across the Lower 48 this weekend into early next week, abruptly ending the summer-like conditions in Washington, D.C. "A bulging lobe of the tropospheric 'polar vortex' will be tracking through the Lower 48, bringing a cold front and much cooler air to the Eastern U.S.," meteorologist Ryan Maue wrote on X. He added, "We'll wave goodbye to the nearly unprecedented mid-April heat

The End Of Oil Volatility As A Weapon Authored by Tom Luongo via Gold, Goats, 'n Guns blog, This is the only chart that matters right now…not borrowing costs (@lukegromen). It’s the weekly chart of Brent Crude. I’ve been telling my patrons for three weeks in the Market Reports that the Brent Crude chart has all the earmarks of a market being manipulated UP to support a narrative… That narrative is Donald Trump is a madman who broke the world and is losing in Iran. Look at the chart carefully, you see big gaps between weekly closes and opens. Also, note the tails to the downside versus

Tanker Armada Races For Hormuz After Iran Says Strait Is Open An armada of at least eight oil tankers set off toward the Strait of Hormuz immediately after Iran’s foreign minister said the vital waterway was fully open to shipping. Five of the carriers, which had been anchored north of Dubai, were moving into the waterway on Friday afternoon, soon after Iran’s foreign minister said it was completely open, vessel tracking data compiled by Bloomberg show. Three more, which were waiting about 70 miles west, have also begun moving in the direction of the strait. Source: Bloomberg The tankers moved despite reports in Iranian media that

Charles Schwab To Launch Spot Bitcoin Trading For Retail Clients Authored by Micah Zimmerman via Bitcoin Magazine, Charles Schwab announced further details and plans in their attempt to launch direct spot bitcoin trading through its new platform, Schwab Crypto™, signaling a major step by one of the country’s largest brokerage firms into the digital asset market.  The feature will roll out in phases over the coming weeks and will allow retail clients to buy and sell bitcoin and ethereum through existing Schwab platforms, the bank said.  The move gives millions of Schwab clients the ability to trade bitcoin alongside traditional holdings such as stocks, ETFs, and mutual

Record Share Of Home Sellers Cut Listing Prices In February: Report A record share of home sellers cut their listing prices in February as competition for homebuyers necessitated steep price reductions, an April 9 report by real estate platform Redfin said. About 34.2 percent of sellers reduced their listing prices in February, up from 31.5 percent in the same month a year earlier, according to Redfin’s analysis of MLS data. That was the highest February share since the firm began tracking MLS records in 2012. The sellers who cut their listing prices reduced them by an average of $40,915, said Redfin. That amounts to a

Spirit Airlines reportedly seeks emergency US government funding as war against Iran keeps aviation fuel costs high * Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox Air Canada has announced a temporary suspension of flights from Toronto and Montreal to New York’s John F Kennedy airport, citing rising fuel prices. The move comes amid growing concerns that airlines worldwide may scale back services as aviation fuel costs climb in the wake of the US and Israel’s ongoing war with Iran, which entered a fragile ceasefire earlier in April. Although Iran announced on Friday that the

Pedro Piscal pisco is latest Chilean brand to resemble a Hollywood name – and others have fought off the lawsuits The actor Pedro Pascal is waging a legal battle against a Chilean pisco merchant who has chosen a cheeky name for his brand of the country’s national spirit: Pedro Piscal. David Herrera registered the brand name with a Chilean commercial regulator in 2023 and began selling his pisco in off-licences and restaurants. Continue reading...

Wednesday’s strike brings the total of those killed in US military strikes on alleged drug boats to at least 177 Three people were killed in a US strike on another alleged drug-trafficking boat, the fifth such deadly attack in as many days, military officials have announced. US southern command said it conducted “a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations” in the eastern Pacific, without naming the alleged group, in an X post. Continue reading...

Sheinbaum has recently been taking a firmer stance with the US, defying pressures where other countries have caved The Mexican government has voiced concern about the deaths of its citizens in US custody, with Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum also pushing back against the Trump administration’s decision to impose an energy blockade on Cuba. The progressive Mexican leader has walked a careful line with Trump for more than a year, addressing provocations with a measured tone and meeting US requests to crack down on cartels more so than her predecessors, in an effort to offset threats of tariffs and US military action against

Byelection wins and defections push Canada’s Liberals into majority government under the prime minister Mark Carney has said he will govern with “humility, determination and a clear understanding of what this moment demands” after his Liberals swept three byelections Monday evening, forging a parliamentary majority just more than a year after he took power. Carney has achieved only the third majority government in two decades – and has done so in a highly unusual fashion, cobbling together both ballot box wins and defections from rival parties. Continue reading...

Growing numbers in the capital Honiara are playing the street card game Pass for a chance of a big payout, while risking big losses As the school day ends in Honiara, *Irene, a 43-year-old teacher in a floral dress with a yellow daisy in her bun, steps on to a minibus. After 10 minutes, Irene gets off the bus, walks down an alley, and enters a damp, smoky shelter. Plastic tables fill the space and playing cards are scattered on the floor. Irene has stopped by a hidden gambling table in a western suburb of Honiara to play Pass, a street card

Nine-day search for two-year-old Neukgu gripped nation and sparked safety concerns for animal and public The internet in South Korea erupted in celebration as a two-year-old wolf that escaped from a zoo was captured safely after a nine-day search that had gripped the nation and made the animal a national celebrity. The male wolf, named Neukgu, burrowed out of his enclosure at the O-World zoo in Daejeon on 8 April. Animal rights activists questioned whether the wolf could survive outside the zoo and also worried he might be killed during capture, something that happened to a puma that escaped from the same

Elderly people take advantage of courses on how to navigate mobile devices and avoid ‘analogue isolation’ It’s not only young people whose gaze is fixed on tiny screens. But for these users in Tokyo, clicking and scrolling is anything but second nature. “I can’t deal with all of the apps that jump out at me,” says one. “How do I know if I’ve definitely ended a call?” asks another. Continue reading...

Energy crisis unfolding in Middle East has added political urgency, and more funding, to transform South Korea’s solar industry In Guyang-ri, a farming village of 70 households about 90 minutes south-east of Seoul, people gather for communal free lunches six days a week. The meals are funded by the village’s one-megawatt solar installation, which generates roughly 10m won ($6,800) in net profit each month. “Residents eat lunch together every day, so we see each other’s faces, talk together,” says Jeon Joo-young, the village chief. “Bonds and solidarity between residents become much stronger. Life becomes more enjoyable.” Continue reading...

More than 1,000 people were in shelters across Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands as Sinlaku moved away * Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox Super Typhoon Sinlaku hammered the Northern Mariana Islands, flipping over cars, toppling utility poles and ripping away tin roofs. Authorities were just beginning to assess the damage left behind by the typhoon, which first hit the islands on Tuesday night local time and continued with a barrage of fierce winds and relentless rains for hours on Wednesday. So far, there have been no reports of deaths. Continue reading...

Another lawyer says ruling ‘puts brakes on the Minns government’s ability to use executive power to minimise people’s rights to protest’ * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast The Minns government should think twice before imposing an outright ban on the phrase “globalise the intifada” in the wake of a landmark finding that could limit attempts to control speech and protests, a leading constitutional expert has said. New South Wales’ highest court ruled in favour of the Palestine Action Group and Blak Caucus on Thursday, striking down an anti-protest law introduced after the Bondi beach terror attack

With a reshuffled cabinet, the premier is hoping to quell leadership rumblings as her party seeks an unprecedented fourth term * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast As the Victorian premier, Jacinta Allan, stood alongside the fresh faces in her reshuffled cabinet on Wednesday, she attempted to send her increasingly jaded electorate a blunt message: despite its 12 years in power, her government is – apparently – new. In her opening four-minute preamble to reporters, Allan - whose Labor government will in November seek an unprecedented fourth term - repeated the word 17 times. In one sentence

One insider estimates Australians pay A$10 in fees per ticket, with fans bearing the burden of monopolised music tour schedules and inflated artist values * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Australia is being urged to improve ticketing transparency after a US federal court found Live Nation Entertainment had a harmful monopoly over big concert venues. This week, a New York jury found the global entertainment giant and its subsidiary Ticketmaster liable for systematically stifling competition to extract excessive profits from concertgoers. The jury identified a baseline overcharge of US$1.72 for every ticket sold by Live Nation

Former SAS corporal allegedly placed man on his knees and ordered fellow soldier to shoot him, according to statement of facts Australian soldiers have told prosecutors they executed unarmed civilians at the orders of Ben Roberts-Smith or in complicity with him, according to a statement of facts tendered to the New South Wales local court. Roberts-Smith, a Victoria Cross recipient and once one of Australia’s most lionised soldiers, faces five charges of the war crime of murder, allegedly committed while he served in the Australian SAS in Afghanistan. Each victim was unarmed and present in a location where Roberts-Smith could reasonably have suspected

Former SAS corporal granted bail ahead of potential trial on charges relating to alleged killing of civilians in Afghanistan * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Ben Roberts-Smith has been granted bail under strict conditions while he awaits a potential trial on alleged war crimes. The Victoria Cross recipient, once Australia’s most lionised soldier, faces five charges of war crime murder over allegations he killed unarmed civilians during his service with the Australian SAS in Afghanistan. Continue reading...

Bottlenecks in the system and parent’s suspicions mean doctors expect another serious outbreak soon By 10am on a spring day, the corridor of the clinic in the Transylvanian town of Săcele was already crowded with parents and children. They were all waiting to see Dr Mirela Csabai, one of just seven general practitioners serving a population of more than 30,000. Most of the cases that morning were routine: colds, checkups, chronic conditions. The calm, however, is recent. In 2024, a measles epidemic tore through this community and left one unvaccinated toddler dead. Continue reading...

As Orbán is rejected, there is cautious optimism new leader can restore ties – but issues such as EU accession loom large Like many Ukrainians, Oleh Kupchak was delighted when Péter Magyar won Hungary’s election last weekend, ending Viktor Orbán’s 16-year grip on power. “We were euphoric. Everyone was following the results closely. There were toasts,” said Kupchak, who has visited Budapest several times. “We didn’t love Orbán,” he added. Ukraine celebrated Orbán’s landslide defeat in a series of jokes and memes. Several likened him to the Star Wars character Jabba the Hut, and shared an image of Orbán fleeing from a

Experts say Labour’s ‘halfway house’ approach risks losing support from progressives and ‘red wall’ voters Support for rejoining the EU rather than simply rejoining the single market is growing among British voters, with more than 80% of Labour, Liberal Democrat and Green party supporters favouring this option, according to research mapping voter attitudes 10 years after the Brexit referendum. Labour’s “muted” approach to the issue means it risks losing support among progressive voters and in “red wall” constituencies, experts have said as part of research by Best for Britain. Continue reading...

Departing PM Viktor Orbán admits ‘political era has ended’ as EU says ‘clock is ticking’ to resolve important issues EU officials have arrived in Budapest for high-stakes talks aimed at reshaping the bloc’s strained relationship with Hungary, weeks before the new government takes office, as the country’s departing prime minister, Viktor Orbán, admitted a “political era has ended” and suggested he would stay on as leader of his party in his first interview since the election. Speaking to the pro-government outlet Patrióta, Orbán described Sunday’s election as an “emotional rollercoaster” after the opposition Tisza party won a landslide victory, bringing an end

Legally questionable confidentiality clause adopted almost word for word from demands of Microsoft and trade groups Microsoft and other US tech companies successfully lobbied the EU to hide the environmental toll of their datacentres, an investigation has found, with demands to block a database of green metrics from public view written almost word for word into EU rules. The secrecy provision, which the European Commission added to its proposal almost verbatim after industry lobbying in 2024, hinders scrutiny of the pollution that individual datacentres emit. It leaves researchers with just national-level summaries of their energy footprints. Continue reading...

Iranian parliamentary speaker also says passage through waterway will depend on Iranian authorisation and accuses Donald Trump of multiple falsehoods * Iran says strait of Hormuz ‘completely open’ to commercial vessels as oil prices fall Britain will make “a wide-ranging military contribution” to an international mission to protect shipping in the strait of Hormuz trade waterway, the UK ambassador to the US has said. Christian Turner’s commitment comes amid long-running concerns over the state of Britain’s armed forces and warnings of under-funding. Continue reading...

Need something brilliant to read this weekend? Here are six of our favourite pieces from the last seven days Continue reading...

Iran’s parliamentary speaker says strait could close again if US blockade continues, but Trump says it will remain in place until ‘transaction’ with Tehran is complete Iran’s foreign minister has said that the strait of Hormuz is now fully open to commercial vessels, reinforcing hopes for an eventual end to the war in the Middle East and sending oil prices tumbling despite analysts’ warnings that there will be no immediate widespread resumption of passage through the vital waterway. In a barrage of social media posts, Donald Trump claimed on Friday that Iran had agreed never to close the strategic waterway again, hailing

This blog is now closed – follow live coverage on our new blog In case you’re just joining us, here are the latest developments in the Middle East to bring you up to speed. It’s 9am in Beirut and Jerusalem, 9.30am in Tehran and 2am in Washington DC. A 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon has come into effect, pausing fighting between Israel and Hezbollah that has killed more than 2,100 Lebanese people and displaced more than 2.1 million. The agreement was announced earlier by Donald Trump, who said he had spoken with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese president Joseph

Lasting peace depends on resolving a border dispute dating back to 2000 and dealing with Hezbollah’s weapons * Middle East crisis – live updates Israel’s security cabinet first heard about the ceasefire with Lebanon from a social media post by Donald Trump. Hezbollah first heard about the ceasefire from the Iranian ambassador to Lebanon. Each side shot off as many bombs, drones and rockets as they could before the ceasefire – imposed from above – came into effect. Despite the US president claiming it is the 10th war he has ended, the situation on the ground in Lebanon looks anything but stable. Continue

Opposition accuses Narendra Modi government of using quotas as cover for redrawing electoral map The Indian government has failed to pass a bill to increase female representation in parliament after being accused of using the plan as a guise to redraw the country’s electoral map. It was the first time in 12 years in power that a constitutional amendment proposed by Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) government was not passed by parliament. Continue reading...

Two-time Grammy nominee was one of Bollywood’s most versatile and celebrated voices The Indian singer Asha Bhosle, whose voice defined Bollywood cinema and whose career spanned almost eight decades, has died in Mumbai at the age of 92. Bhosle, who recorded more than 12,000 songs, became her country’s pre-eminent exponent of playback singing – recording tracks that were then lip-synced on film by actors. She also boldly embraced cabaret and western-influenced melodies to forge a distinctive musical identity. Continue reading...

In Pakistan’s capital, the army has been deployed, a public holiday has been declared and the streets are eerily empty * Middle East crisis – live updates The streets of Islamabad were on strict lockdown as Pakistan’s capital prepared to play host to historic negotiations between Iran and the US that have dangled the promise of an end to war that has devastated the Middle East. Even as the US-Iran ceasefire looked increasingly precarious, amid Israel’s continued bombardment of Lebanon and disputes over the terms of the talks, Pakistani officials insisted that the make-or-break peace negotiations would be going ahead over the

Israeli PM says he will continue to attack Hezbollah ‘with full force’ after attacks that killed more than 300 people * Middle East crisis – live updates Benjamin Netanyahu has said there is “no ceasefire in Lebanon” and Israel would continue “to strike Hezbollah with full force” as the country’s military launched fresh strikes. The Israeli prime minister’s remarks and latest attacks on what the IDF called “Hezbollah launch sites” came shortly after Donald Trump said he had asked Netanyahu to be more “low-key” in Lebanon. Later on Friday, a US state department official said Israel and Lebanon will hold talks in Washington

Analysts say Pakistani officials’ efforts led to breakthrough that has helped avert catastrophe, at least for now * Middle East crisis – live updates Pakistan’s leaders had almost lost hope. After more than two weeks of frantic negotiations, phonecalls and diplomatic summits to try to end the US-Israeli war with Iran, it looked like the conflict might instead be escalating into Islamabad’s worst nightmare. In a cabinet meeting held at about 5pm on Tuesday, Pakistan’s prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, was morose. “We should brace ourselves for the impact of the war,” he told his cabinet ministers. “The situation has really become very

The Plaza Prizes offered 10 awards in 2025 but some judges say they were not paid, while a number of winners hit back over AI accusations A competition for new writers that promised a £20,000 prize fund appears to have shut down, leaving winners and judges, including a Booker prize-winning novelist, out of pocket. Established in 2022, the Plaza Prizes last year offered 10 awards that were judged by the “finest poets and writers in the world”. Continue reading...

Hannah Spencer says minister ‘continuously offends people by saying working-class people don’t care about dogs’ Labour is “offensively caricaturing” working-class people by saying they do not want a greyhound racing ban in England, the Green party MP Hannah Spencer has said. The sport has traditionally been associated with working-class culture and has historically been popular in so-called red wall areas, which Labour insiders suggest is part of the reason why there are no plans for England to follow bans announced last month in Scotland and Wales. Continue reading...

Reports of alleged crime led to protests in the Surrey town this week, after claims woman in her 20s attacked Police investigating a rape incident in Epsom have said they have “not found any evidence” of the offence as reported. The reports prompted protests in the Surrey town this week. Sarah Grahame, assistant chief constable at Surrey police, said the force was continuing to investigate a report that a woman in her 20s had been raped by a group of men on 11 April in Epsom after she left the Labyrinth Epsom nightclub. The alleged attack is said to have happened between

Chancellor aims to curb rising household bills as she consults on reforms to weaken link between gas and electricity prices Rachel Reeves is poised to raise the government’s windfall tax on low-carbon electricity generators to help limit UK household energy bills, the Guardian understands. The chancellor is ready to hike the levy introduced in 2022 to target the excess profits made by the owners of older renewable energy and nuclear plants as electricity market prices soared after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Officials have spent weeks debating whether or not to release highly sensitive information about the affair Keir Starmer was left in the dark about sensitive information relating to Peter Mandelson’s security vetting by two other top civil servants, including the head of the civil service, the Guardian can reveal. The prime minister said on Friday that it was “unforgivable” and “staggering” that senior officials did not tell him that Mandelson failed a security vetting process weeks before he took up his role as ambassador to Washington. Continue reading...

The president has opened fissures in his base by starting a war he couldn’t finish with Iran, stoking inflation and offending Christians. Barred from running again, he may feel he has nothing to lose Lance Johnson voted for Donald Trump three times. Now he is feeling buyer’s remorse. “I haven’t been too happy with the third time around,” said the 47-year-old contractor, sitting at a bar in Crescent Springs, Kentucky. “We’re supposed to not start any new wars. Prices were supposed to come down. We were promised a lot of things and we’re not getting them.” Johnson is not the only Trump

About 26 million people are under tornado watches from Wisconsin to Oklahoma, according to one report A stretch of the midwestern states is at risk of severe weather, forecasters warned on Friday, as tornadoes battered towns across the central US region, leaving behind debris and destroyed property. According to the National Weather Service, severe thunderstorms may be seen in north-west Oklahoma through western Missouri during Friday afternoon and evening. Continue reading...

This live blog is now closed. * US Congress passes 10-day extension of surveillance law amid Republican infighting * What is Fisa, and why does it allow no-warrant survellance? * Sign up for the Breaking News US email In more CDC news, Donald Trump has selected Erica Schwartz to lead the troubled health agency, bringing to an end a months-long search for a permanent director. Schwartz served as the deputy surgeon general during Trump’s first term. But before she can officially take over, the president’s pick will require confirmation by the Senate. IRAN HAS JUST ANNOUNCED THAT THE STRAIT OF IRAN IS FULLY

Charles Adair’s relatives urge video to be made public after Kansas officer charged with second-degree murder Relatives of a man whom investigators determined died after a Kansas sheriff’s deputy shoved his knee into the cuffed man’s back for a minute and 26 seconds have filed a federal lawsuit. Attorneys for the family of Charles Adair renewed their demand on Friday that video of what happened be released publicly in announcing the wrongful death lawsuit. Continue reading...

Dianna Russini, who was photographed with Patriots coach Mike Vrabel, climbed on to Jeep to pull out man and dog A day after resigning from the Athletic amid an internal investigation into photos of her and New England Patriots coach Mike Vrabel, the NFL reporter Dianna Russini rescued an older man and a dog from an overturned car in New Jersey. Russini’s actions in the aftermath of a car crash on Wednesday in Wyckoff, New Jersey, were confirmed by a source with direct knowledge of the matter. Page Six on Friday first reported on the wreck and Russini’s intervention, 10 days after

Congress passed a short extension to a high-profile surveillance law on Friday after failing to secure the long-term reauthorisation pushed by US President Donald Trump. The brief pause comes after a late-night attempt to reauthorise the law for ‌five years failed in the House. It sets up another round of wrangling over whether and how to reform what is known as Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which allows the National Security Agency to surveil foreigners using data...

France and Britain said on Friday that they would lead a multinational mission to ensure freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, while emphasising the force would be entirely defensive and only deployed once lasting peace in the region was agreed. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron confirmed the force was being set up as they co-chaired international talks in Paris focused on ensuring free-flowing trade through the critical shipping corridor. The...

Pope Leo called on Cameroonians on Friday to reject violence and be generous with their neighbours during an event billed as the biggest of his four-nation Africa tour, with roughly 120,000 people flocking to a mass he led in the port city of Douala. Amid heavy security, some believers had made their way on Thursday to the city’s Japoma ‌Stadium, venue of the mass, and slept overnight outside on mats to hear Friday’s address from the pontiff, who has become outspoken on war and inequality and...

Scores of Chinese women were brought to Germany without valid residency permits for sex work across the country, prosecutors in Frankfurt alleged on Friday. Five suspects are accused of organised smuggling of foreigners for their roles in operating the prostitution ring over the past three years, according to prosecutors. Prostitution is legal in Germany but is strictly regulated. A 43-year-old Chinese man and a 35-year-old Chinese woman allegedly ran the illegal business, using a network of...

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Friday urged the United States and Iran to guard against any provocations by Israel and use their current ceasefire to push for lasting peace. “We must not allow weapons to again replace words,” he told the fifth Antalya Diplomacy Forum in Turkey. “Let it not be forgotten, the shortest path to peace is dialogue and diplomacy. Peace is not a one-winged bird.” His remarks came as Washington and Tehran weighed the next steps after a temporary halt in fighting,...

China’s leading LED chipmaker and its Malaysian partner have abandoned their US$239 million cash offer to purchase Dutch technology company Lumileds Holding after opposition from US authorities, marking the latest setback for Chinese tech investment overseas following the high-profile Nexperia saga. Sanan Optoelectronics, listed in Shanghai, said in a disclosure announcement on Friday that despite multiple rounds of discussions, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS)...

In an apparent sign that Tehran blinked first in the blockade showdown between Iran and the US, the two sides announced on Friday that the Strait of Hormuz was open and operational after nearly seven weeks that have seen hundreds of ships blocked and sent energy prices soaring worldwide. “IRAN HAS JUST ANNOUNCED THAT THE STRAIT OF IRAN IS FULLY OPEN AND READY FOR FULL PASSAGE. THANK YOU!” US President Donald Trump said on social media, using an unofficial name for the strategic waterway. Iranian...

Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip killed more than 38,000 women and girls between October 2023 and the end of 2025, a UN report published on Friday showed. Palestinian health authorities put the estimated total death toll by the end of 2025 at just over 71,000, rising to more than 72,000 by mid-April as Israel continued sporadic attacks despite a ceasefire with the Islamist group Hamas. According to the analysis by UN Women, this means over half of all the victims in Gaza by the end of 2025 were...

Some exporters at the Canton Fair in Guangzhou report a modest return of orders to China from Southeast Asia, as energy-market volatility linked to the US-Israeli war in Iran prompts some Western buyers to prioritise supply chain stability. The shift is visible in buyer patterns on the exhibition floor, where the number from Europe and the United States appears to have recovered from last year’s levels, according to Chinese exporters, with more inquiries for home appliances, new energy products...

A temporary ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon unveiled by US President Donald Trump on Thursday was the final turn in the diplomatic maze leading to a breakthrough in Pakistan-mediated peace talks between Washington and Tehran, analysts say. Arranged by Pakistan with help from Saudi Arabia, the 10-day cessation of hostilities in Lebanon was a key Iranian condition for a second and potentially conclusive round of talks in Islamabad on a date yet to be set. Marathon talks between high-powered...

The Kremlin on Friday denied that ⁠President Vladimir ⁠Putin was insulated from ⁠bad news after a celebrity blogger accused unidentified top officials of not telling Russia’s paramount leader the truth about the country’s problems. Viktoria Bonya, a social media influencer who ‌is well known inside Russia for her appearances on reality TV shows, said this week that she supported Putin and listed five problems which she said officials were not briefing him on honestly. Her video was watched more...

To sharpen its competitive edge in the world’s next-generation vehicle market, China has pledged to fast track automotive technical standards to build its status as a global rule-setter. The carmaking powerhouse would drive high-quality development of the auto sector through the formulation and enhancement of core standards during the next five years, officials from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) told state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) in Beijing on...

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer faced mounting pressure to quit on Friday over his appointment of Peter Mandelson as envoy to Washington, after it emerged the veteran politician had failed security vetting. The affair has haunted Starmer for months amid growing anger over Mandelson’s 2024 nomination to the top diplomatic post despite his close ties to late US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Mandelson, a long-time insider with Starmer’s ruling Labour Party, has held multiple ministerial posts since...

A Pakistan-flagged tanker that entered the Persian Gulf over the weekend has become the first carrier to exit through the Strait of Hormuz with a crude cargo since a US blockade began on Monday, underscoring just how limited traffic through the vital chokepoint remains. The Shalamar sailed just south of Iran’s Larak Island and out into the Gulf of Oman late Thursday with around 450,000 barrels of crude loaded at Das Island in the United Arab Emirates, according to ship-tracking data. The Aframax...

We have selected seven stories from this week’s news across Hong Kong, mainland China, the wider Asia region and beyond that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. 3 satellites to track all? Chinese radar images confirm US military fears Last month, China released a series of undated radar images of the Towa Maru. It marked the first time ever that a geosynchronous orbit (GEO) synthetic aperture...

South African opposition party leader Julius Malema was sentenced to five years in prison Thursday after he was convicted of breaking firearm laws by firing a rifle at a political rally in 2018. He was released pending an appeal, which will be heard at a later date. If the verdict and sentence are upheld, Malema will be disqualified as a lawmaker. South African law bars anyone from serving in Parliament if they have been convicted of an offence and sentenced to more than 12 months in prison...

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel said Thursday that while Cuba does not want military aggression from the United States, his country is prepared to fight should it happen. Diaz-Canel spoke during a rally that drew hundreds of people to commemorate the 65th anniversary of the declaration of the Cuban Revolution’s socialist essence. “The moment is extremely challenging and calls upon us once again, as on April 16, 1961, to be ready to confront serious threats, including military aggression. We do...

Asian refiners have grown increasingly reliant on US crude as oil-starved fuel makers scour the globe to replace Middle Eastern supply and stave off shortages that could ripple through the broader economy. Buyers in Japan led the charge to purchase May-loading cargoes from the US early in the month, with South Korean, Singaporean and Thai processors also among customers, said traders familiar with the matter. At least 60 million barrels of grades from the US Gulf were bought for loading next...

The International Monetary Fund and ⁠the World Bank said on ⁠Thursday they had resumed dealings with Venezuela, which had been paused since 2019. The move paves the way for a full IMF assessment of Venezuela’s economy for the first time in some 20 years and could eventually unlock billions of dollars in ‌funding via frozen special drawing rights. IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said in a statement that the Fund, guided by the views of a majority of its members, was now dealing with...

A senior US lawmaker called on Peru’s next government to reclaim the Chinese-controlled port of Chancay, describing the deepwater facility as a direct military threat to the western hemisphere. Congresswoman Maria Elvira Salazar, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, said during a hearing on Thursday that Washington would help Peru wrest the megaport from Chinese hands. “The new Peruvian government, which will be elected next June, must take it back, that...

Dubai has completed its first flying taxi station, with commercial operations expected to begin by the end of the year, authorities in the Gulf emirate announced on Thursday. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, crown prince of Dubai and United Arab Emirates deputy prime minister, visited Dubai’s “first purpose-built electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) Air Taxi Station”, the emirate’s media office said in a statement. The facility, described by the emirate’s authorities as the “first of its...

Britain’s top foreign ministry official will leave his post after Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Foreign Minister Yvette Cooper lost confidence in him, a source said on Thursday, following a row over the security vetting of Peter Mandelson. The disclosure of the vetting failure has intensified pressure on Starmer over his appointment of Mandelson, Britain’s former US ‌ambassador, who is under police investigation for allegedly leaking government documents to the sex offender Jeffrey Epstein,...

For the first time, scientists have measured the instantaneous mind-blowing power of jets blasting from a black hole. The jet power from this relatively close black hole-star system is equivalent to 10,000 suns, an international research team reported on Thursday. They also tracked the jet speed: roughly 540 million km/h (355 million mph) – half the speed of light. Located 7,200 light-years away, Cygnus X-1 features not only a black hole – the first one ever identified more than a half-century...

A 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon appeared to be holding on Friday, a breakthrough that could provide critical relief to Washington’s strained temporary truce with Tehran Announcing the ceasefire, which came into effect at 5pm EST Thursday (5am Friday Hong Kong time), US President Donald Trump said it followed what he described as “excellent conversations” with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun. “These two Leaders have agreed that in order...

China has assured the United States that it will not supply weapons to Iran during the current ceasefire in the Middle East conflict, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Thursday, as Washington stepped up pressure on Tehran to agree to a broader peace deal brokered by Pakistan. Speaking at a Pentagon briefing, Hegseth said Beijing had conveyed the assurance directly, amid heightened concerns in Washington about external support for Iran during the fragile pause in fighting. “Trump has a...

Trade tensions between the US and China have made companies around the world less keen to invest in either country, with the United States almost twice as unpopular, according to a new report from Allianz Trade. The report, based on an annual survey by the Paris-based international insurance company, said US-China decoupling had not materialised, but investment intention towards China had dropped “significantly” to 24 per cent of survey respondents, down from 53 per cent a year ago. The survey...

Pope Leo blasted leaders who spend billions on wars and said the world was “being ravaged by a handful of tyrants”, in unusually forceful remarks in Cameroon on Thursday after US President Donald Trump attacked him again on social media. Leo, the first US pope, also decried leaders who used religious language to justify wars and urged a “decisive change of course” in a meeting in the biggest city ‌in Cameroon’s anglophone regions, where a simmering conflict going back nearly a decade has left...

The quiet conclusion of US and Iranian backchannel engagements in Islamabad left more than diplomatic ambiguity. It crystallised a striking image: a financially strained, politically volatile Pakistan briefly positioning itself as a facilitator in one of the world’s most combustible rivalries. Substantive or symbolic, the episode underscores a deeper churn in West Asian geopolitics – one in which agility trumps credibility. Pakistan’s role was not incidental. Islamabad offered itself as a...

Europe has “maybe 6 weeks or so [of] jet fuel left”, the head of the International Energy Agency said on Thursday in a wide-ranging interview, warning of possible flight cancellations “soon” if oil supplies remain blocked by the Iran war. IEA executive director Fatih Birol painted a sobering picture of the global repercussions of what he called “the largest energy crisis we have ever faced”, stemming from the pinch-off of oil, gas and other vital supplies through the Strait of Hormuz. “In the...

Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva delivered a blunt critique of US President Donald Trump in an interview with Spanish newspaper El Pais published on Thursday, saying world leaders should seek respect rather than ‌rule by fear. “Trump has no right to wake up in the morning and threaten a country,” Lula told El Pais, referring to the president’s public threat on April 7 to wipe out Iranian civilisation as part of the US-Israeli war on Iran. “He wasn’t elected for that, and his...

Russia unleashed its deadliest attack so far this year on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv and other cities overnight, killing 17 people, including a 12-year-old child, and wounding scores, in drone and missile strikes, officials said on Thursday. In Russia, a major Ukrainian drone attack on the Black Sea port of Tuapse killed two people, including a 14-year-old girl, injured seven, and sparked a large fire, Russian ‌officials and media reported. The port is home to a major oil refinery as well as an...

With the rise of social media and generative AI, how much of what we see online is true? In this series, SCMP Fact-Check, the South China Morning Post investigates claims circulating online and debunks viral misinformation impacting the daily lives of Hongkongers. A video circulating online amid the US-Israel war on Iran falsely claims to show a downed American pilot captured alive by Iranians. “Iranians Captured F35 Pilot alive,” read the caption of a Facebook reel. The video appeared to show a...

Lebanon’s president will not speak to Israel’s prime minister in the near future, Lebanese officials said on Thursday, dealing a blow to US efforts to expand contacts between the enemy states as Pakistan said peace in Lebanon was vital to ending the Iran war. The US-Israeli war with Iran spilt into Lebanon on March 2, when Iran-backed Hezbollah opened fire in support of Tehran, prompting an Israeli offensive in Lebanon just 15 months after the last major conflict. “Peace in Lebanon is essential...

The health of jailed Iranian Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi is critical after she suffered a heart attack last month, supporters warned on Wednesday. Her Iran-based family and legal team were on Saturday allowed a second in-person visit with Mohammadi in her prison in northern Iran where “clear signs of a deterioration in her general condition were observed, and her physical state was described as critical”, her foundation said in a statement. The latest meeting came after an earlier...

The BBC said on Wednesday that the British broadcasting corporation is set to cut up to 2,000 jobs amid a challenging media landscape. The BBC’s interim director general Rhodri Talfan Davies said in a statement to staff that “while we still have to work through the detail, we anticipate the overall number of jobs will fall by 1,800-2,000”. The BBC reported the cuts on Wednesday afternoon, saying they amount to “almost one in 10” jobs, since it has about 21,500 employees. The acting director...

A US jury on Wednesday found that entertainment giant Live Nation wielded monopoly power at its Ticketmaster business, violating federal and state antitrust laws, according to California’s attorney general. A verdict that could have profound repercussions in the concert world came after four days of deliberations, and remedies could include breaking up Live Nation and Ticketmaster. The jury found Live Nation and Ticketmaster liable for anticompetitive conduct that harmed the music industry and...

Having invested significant diplomatic capital into ties with Russia in recent years, North Korea now seems to be pivoting back to China. Leader Kim Jong-un said his country places “the greatest value” on improving ties with Beijing. This shift came during Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s two-day visit to North Korea last week, where he met Kim and North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui. Notably, Wang’s visit marked his first to North Korea since 2019. In the intervening years of the...

A Ukrainian unit said on Wednesday that it has carried out more than 100 attacks on the front using ground robots, after President Volodymyr Zelensky recently hailed the capture of a Russian position thanks to this new method. “In total, there have already been over 100 such operations,” said a source within the NC-13 company, which specialises in the use of these combat machines and is part of Ukraine’s 3rd Assault Brigade. “These operations include the elimination of enemy personnel, the...

Newly released video shows a high school principal in Oklahoma tackling and disarming a former student who entered the lobby of the school and began firing a pistol. Pauls Valley High School Principal Kirk Moore was shot in the leg during the April 7 attack but managed to wrestle the suspect onto a bench, disarm him and remain on top of him until law enforcement officers arrived, according to court records. The video, released by the school district in response to an Open Records Act request,...

The White House on Wednesday dismissed as untrue reports that the US had sought to extend a ceasefire with Iran, while confirming that discussions over a second round of in-person negotiations were under way after marathon talks in Islamabad last week ended without a breakthrough. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that discussions were under way about a further round of talks with Tehran but “nothing is official”, adding that the negotiations would “very likely” be held...

US President Donald Trump posted an image of Jesus embracing him on Wednesday, as a war of words between his administration and the pope showed little sign of abating. The image, reposted to Trump’s Truth Social account, shows Trump with his eyes closed, touching temple-to-temple with a similarly posed Jesus. Trump is standing behind a microphone, and behind him is an American flag. The original post ‌had a caption that included the words: “God might be playing his Trump card!” Trump’s repost...

Israel’s security cabinet ⁠will convene on Wednesday to discuss a possible Lebanon ceasefire, a senior Israeli official has said, more than five weeks into a war with Hezbollah that spiralled out of the US-Israeli conflict with Iran. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s security cabinet would meet ‌at 8pm local time, the official said. Senior Hezbollah official Ibrahim al-Moussawi told Reuters that diplomatic efforts by Iran and other regional states could produce a ceasefire soon, saying...

Pope Leo has said the world needs to hear a message of peace and coexistence, after US President Donald Trump attacked him for a second time this week on social media. Speaking on Wednesday during his flight from Algeria to Cameroon for the second leg of a whirlwind 10-day ‌Africa tour, the first US pontiff urged respect for all people and said his travels so far had shown the importance of pursuing dialogue between different communities. “Although we have different beliefs, we have different...

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Wednesday said he would not “yield” to pressure to join the Iran war after US President Donald Trump threatened to scrap a UK trade deal. “We’re not going to get dragged into this war. It is not our war,” Starmer told parliament. “I’m not going to change my mind. I’m not going to yield. It is not in our national interest to join this war,” the Labour leader added. In a phone interview with Sky News, Trump threatened to alter an agreement struck with Britain...

US President Donald Trump has said he will fire Jerome Powell if the Federal Reserve chair does not step down “in time”, adding that he will not drop the Justice Department investigation into the central bank leader. “I’ll have to fire him, OK, if he’s not leaving on time. I’ve held back firing him. I’ve wanted to fire him, but I hate to be controversial,” Trump said in an interview with Fox Business. “I want to be uncontroversial. But he will be fired,” he said in the interview taped on...

He will read a passage from the Old Testament that his Christian supporters cite as a call to national repentance and divine blessing.

His visit includes a trip to a shrine where enslaved Africans were baptized before being forced into the treacherous voyage across the Atlantic Ocean.

After his election last year, Leo XIV developed a reputation as a mild-mannered mediator. President Trump’s attacks have made him more combative.

A career Justice Department lawyer, Maria Medetis Long, in Miami is said to have raised concerns about whether the evidence justified moving forward with a bid to prosecute John O. Brennan.

Several moves suggest Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. could revive his campaign to question the safety and effectiveness of the shots after the midterm elections.

Friday’s meeting at the White House followed the introduction of Anthropic’s powerful new artificial intelligence model, Mythos, which U.S. officials believe could be critical for security.

To leftists abroad, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez of Spain is a hero for standing up to President Trump. At home, Mr. Trump is seen as Mr. Sánchez’s political savior from thorny domestic challenges.

The remarkable catalog of dates is one of the longest-running records of climate change. Its creator died, setting off a search for a successor.

Prime Minister Mark Carney has set up a meeting and a new office to speed project approvals and make Canada more attractive to investors.

Howard Lutnick, President Trump’s commerce secretary, derided Canada’s trade strategy and said a North American deal needed to be reworked.

The companies had asked the justices to clear the way to move environmental lawsuits out of state courts, to friendlier federal venues.

San Diego County is shopping a surplus of desalinated seawater to Western states that are facing increasingly urgent drought and short supplies.

A month of efforts to help a stranded humpback escape the Baltic Sea have culminated in a tourist and media spectacle, with no guarantee of success.

The tax expert Ray Madoff explains why the American tax system is broken, and how to make it fairer.

The profit motive was on trial. The verdict was scathing.

One reported tornado downed trees and damaged cars in Lena, Ill., an official said.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer appears to have been kept in the dark repeatedly over Peter Mandelson, the Jeffrey Epstein associate — fueling an image of weakness.

A blast on Thursday night turned out to be for a video shoot, but it unnerved residents who had lived through a propane plant explosion in 2008.