Minimalist News

CBP Reports Historic Low In October Border Encounters Authored by Kimberley Hayek via The Epoch Times, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has reported its lowest number of encounters with illegal immigrants on record for October, while achieving six months of zero releases under current enforcement policies. As the Trump administration’s border enforcement has resulted in historic lows in illegal immigrant encounters, this October represents the lowest start to a fiscal year in CBP history. Preliminary Department of Homeland Security (DHS) data reports 30,561 total encounters nationwide—a 29 percent decrease from the prior October record low of 43,010 in fiscal year 2012, as well

Chief Justice Roberts Urged To Probe Lower Court Judges' Political Outbursts Via American Greatness, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) have sent a letter to Chief Justice John Roberts, calling for investigation of partisan statements by activist judges. Dozens of lower court judges are accused of making anonymous statements to the New York Times for an article it published titled “Federal Judges, Warning of ‘Judicial Crisis,’ Fault Supreme Court’s Emergency Orders.” The lawmakers point to remarks by lower court federal judges who called Supreme Court emergency orders “mystical” and “overly blunt” while describing tensions in the

Elon Musk's Trillion-Dollar Pay-Package Faces Shareholder Vote Today; Here's What To Know Elon Musk’s staggering $1 trillion pay package will dominate Tesla’s annual shareholder meeting today, setting up one of the most high-stakes corporate votes in years over the future of the world’s most visible CEO. The board has made the choice explicit. Tesla Chair Robyn Denholm warned that the decision is about whether shareholders still want to “retain Elon as Tesla’s CEO and motivate him” to make the company “the leading provider of autonomous solutions and the most valuable company” on Earth. After a Delaware judge struck down his previous $56 billion

Nancy Pelosi Finally Retiring From Congress At 85 After days of speculation, former House Speaker and legendary insider trader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) has formally announced that she out. In a Thursday morning video, Pelosi announced that she won't seek reelection after completing her current term. "There has been no greater honor for me than to stand on the House floor and say, ‘I speak for the people of San Francisco.’ I have truly loved serving as your voice in Congress, and I've always honored the soul of Saint Francisco — ‘Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace.' The anthem of our city," Pelosi said in

CarMax Shares Crater As Board Ousts CEO Amid Deepening Used-Car Market Cracks CarMax shares plunged in the early cash session after the struggling used-car retailer delivered weak preliminary third-quarter results that missed Wall Street expectations, and compounded the blow by announcing the abrupt termination of its chief executive officer. "We make car buying and selling simple, transparent, and personalized," Chair of the Board Tom Folliard stated in a press release, adding, "However, our recent results do not reflect that potential and change is needed." Folliard was referring to preliminary third-quarter results: earnings per share forecasted between .18 cents and .36 cents, missed the

France's Plans To Deploy Troops To Ukraine Risk Sparking A Major Crisis Authored by Andrew Korybko via Substack, Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) reported that France is plotting to deploy up to 2,000 soldiers, the core of which will be Latino assault troops from the Foreign Legion who are presently undergoing intensive training in Poland, to Central Ukraine in the near future. This follows Chief of Staff of the French Army Pierre Schill declaring that his country will be ready to deploy troops to Ukraine next year as part of “security guarantees”. Putin earlier warned that any foreign troops there would be legitimate targets. Nevertheless, SVR reported in late September that “the first group

Yields Plunge After Private Tracker Shows US Lost 9K Jobs In October, Driven By Government Collapse One month ago, when the market was freaking out by the lack of official government data (it has since realized again, that whether the government is open or closed, or what the jobs number is - certainly not until it is revised 3 or 4 times, does not matter), everyone scrambled to find private sources of economic data. That's when the jobs data compiled by Revelio Labs quickly emerging as one of the favorites. It also showed that contrary to fears prompted by ADP that

"There's A Plan": Group Of Centrist Democrats Want Colleagues To End Shutdown A group of eight centrist Democrats who want to end the government shutdown - now the longest in US history - have been approaching their colleagues about a deal to reopen the federal government this week or next week, however progressives within the party are pushing back hard, according to The Hill, citing people familiar with the discussions. To refresh your memory, the crux of the shutdown is that Democrats want to extend pandemic-era Obamacare enhancements, which include coverage for illegals - and they're unwilling to kick the can down the road with a

Mamdani Announces All-Female Transition Team, Including Lina Khan Authyored by Joseph Lord via The Epoch Times, New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani announced on Wednesday that his transition team would be all-female. “Last night we made history, and today we begin the work of making a new administration,” Mamdani said in a video posted to X. Following Mamdani’s substantial victory in the city’s mayoral election on Nov. 4, outgoing New York City Mayor Eric Adams will begin handing off power to the mayor-elect’s incoming administration. Mamdani said that during the transition period, his team would work to “build a City Hall that delivers on the

October Layoffs Surge Most Since 2003 Amid Cost-Cutting, AI Adoption, Challenger Data Shows  The U.S. labor market weakened considerably in October, with companies slashing 153,000 jobs, nearly triple last year's total and the highest for that month since 2003, according to a new report from outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. Technology and warehousing jobs led the layoffs, mostly because companies are slashing folks who were hired during the pandemic-era overhiring period. Also, slowing consumer demand and rising costs are other contributing factors. Year-to-date job cuts have surpassed 1 million, the highest since 2020, while announced hiring plans are at their lowest level

If Solar And Wind Are Now Cheaper Than Fossil Fuels, Why Don't We Have More? Authored by Mike Shedlock via Mish Talk, The answer is they aren’t cheaper... ENERGY TALKING POINTS Substack writer Alex Epstein has a great post on The “Levelized Cost of Energy” Scam. > If you ever hear anyone favorably compare solar and wind to coal, gas, or nuclear by citing a low LCOE—“Levelized Cost of Energy”—you are being scammed. > > You’ve heard it over and over: “Solar and wind are now cheaper than fossil fuels.” > > You might suspect something is wrong here, because if solar and wind were so cheap

Stocks Rebound To Session Highs After Soaring Corporate Layoffs Raise Rate Cut Odds US equity futures are higher, rebounding from session lows for the second day in a row, amid headlines that layoffs are surging due to AI which in turn is raising odds of a Dec rate cut, with JPM saying that "the market is weighing a weaker labor market and potential spending vs. evidence on the efficacy (and ROI) of AI plus productivity gains." Challenger job cuts jumped to over 150K in October, nearly triple the year-earlier period and the most in more than two decades. As of 8:00am

Pirates Attack Tanker Off Somalia Coast  Maritime journal Lloyd's List reported early Thursday that the Malta-flagged tanker Hellas Aphrodite was boarded by suspected pirates off the Somali coast. This maritime incident comes just days after another attempted hijacking of a commercial vessel in the region.  > Pirates have boarded Malta-flagged Hellas Aphrodite, a product tanker, off the Somali coast just days after a near miss in the same region pic.twitter.com/PEeuTbIrUO > > — Lloyd's List (@LloydsList) November 6, 2025 UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) confirmed a small vessel "fired small arms and RPGs" and "unauthorised personnel" boarded the tanker hauling gasoline about 560 nautical miles

Judge Orders Prosecutors To Turn Over Evidence Against James Comey Authored by Stacy Robinson via The Epoch Times, A federal judge on Nov. 5 ordered prosecutors from the Department of Justice (DOJ) to hand over evidence in its case against former FBI Director James Comey. Magistrate Judge William Fitzpatrick gave the DOJ until the end of Thursday to provide Comey’s attorneys with grand jury materials, along with other evidence related to the case. Comey’s attorneys told the court that they had no access to relevant evidence that had been collected years ago as part of an FBI probe into media leaks. The DOJ alleges

Deeply-Divided Bank Of England Leaves Rates Unchanged, Warns Of "AI Bubble" The Bank of England kept its key interest rate at 4.0% this morning, opting against a cut (as the market expected) ahead of the UK government's annual budget this month (which is expected to feature tax hikes). > "We still think rates are on a gradual path downwards, but we need to be sure that inflation is on track to return to our two-percent target before we cut them again," BoE governor Andrew Bailey said in a statement following the widely-expected decision. The decision was very tight as policymakers including Bailey voted

Silicon Valley's Growing Anti-Woke, Pro-Abundance Rebellion Authored by Edward Ring via American Greatness, To paraphrase and utterly subvert one of Karl Marx’s best-known quotes, a “spectre” is haunting Silicon Valley—the spectre of authentic abundance. All the powers of woke California have entered into an unholy alliance to exorcise this spectre: public sector unions, the environmentalist lobby, the crony capitalists, Antifa radicals, and Reddit trolls. They’re going to lose. For all the power the state’s ruling unholy alliance still wields with its “No Kings” populism, its partisan Prop. 50 redistricting, and its absolute grip on state and local governance, it is now in conflict

Snap Shares Soar On $400 Million Perplexity Deal To Embed AI-Powered Search The AI application wave is being driven by the rapid integration of these intelligent systems into products people already use, from messaging and search to productivity, entertainment, commerce, and even transportation. The latest example: Snap's $400 million partnership with Perplexity to integrate its AI-powered answer engine directly into Snapchat, signaling how conversational AI is becoming a core layer directly within some apps.  This new collaboration gives Perplexity access to nearly 1 billion monthly active users, mainly Gen Z and millennial audiences. Perplexity plans to compensate Snap through a mix of cash and equity, with revenue recognition starting

Germany Submits To Islam: Christmas Market In Overath Cancelled Submitted by Thomas Kolbe In the German town of Overath (North Rhine-Westphalia), this year’s Christmas market has been cancelled. The cost of protecting visitors from potential terrorist attacks exceeds the organizer’s budget. The city refuses to cover the expenses. A capitulation to Islamism. It wasn’t long ago that Christmas markets were among the social highlights of the year. Whether in small towns or major cities – they were meeting points for friends and family, for mulled wine, sausages, and quiet conversations wrapped in winter’s cold and early darkness. Places of Togetherness  There was this special peaceful

Diageo Lowers Outlook On Dismal Drinking Demand As Shares Hit Decade Low  British spirits giant Diageo Plc, one of the world's largest drink makers, tumbled to a 10-year low on Thursday after lowered guidance overshadowed better-than-expected first-quarter sales. Wall Street analysts noted mounting frustration over the lack of detail regarding the company's search for a new chief executive. The maker of Don Julio, Johnnie Walker, Casamigos, Smirnoff, and many other popular bar beverages now expect organic net sales to be flat to slightly lower, compared to prior guidance for growth. This dismal outlook overshadowed stronger-than-expected first-quarter sales.  Diageo shares in London fell 6% to

What's The Real Reason Why The Economist Wants Europe To Spend $400 Billion More On Ukraine? Authored by Andrew Korybko via Substack, Federalizing the EU, not the political fantasy of defeating Russia, is the real goal, which requires another four years of proxy warfare and at least another $400 billion to complete. The Economist argued that the EU and the UK should meet Ukraine’s estimated $390 billion financing needs over the next four years. In their words, “Another half-decade of [Russia’s supposedly worsening economic-financial situation] would probably trigger an economic and banking crisis in Russia”, while “Any long-term financing solution for Ukraine would help Europe

President notes such a ruling would be ‘somewhat catastrophic’ for the US It’s now day 37 of the ongoing government shutdown, the longest on record, with both parties continuing to blame the other for the lapse in funding. For his part, Donald Trump has turned his attention to the filibuster – the procedural mechanism that requires 60 votes in the Senate to end debate on a piece of legislation and bring it to the floor for a vote. He’s hammered home his wishes on Truth Social, and in front of lawmakers at a White House breakfast on Tuesday. Continue reading...

Empress Zita brought stone to Canada as Nazis took over Europe in 1940s and it remained in bank vault ever since At the height of the Battle of Britain, when the UK government needed a secret location to store 186,332 gold bars, it turned to Canada. Shipped across the Atlantic and stored beneath a hastily constructed vault in Montreal, Operation Fish became known both for the vast amounts of gold involved – and the immense secrecy that followed. Continue reading...

Release follows supreme court ruling that overturned Jeanine Áñez’s conviction for allegedly staging coup to seize power The former interim president who oversaw a bloody crackdown on protesters in Bolivia has been freed from prison after almost five years, following a supreme court ruling that overturned her conviction for allegedly staging a coup to seize power. Jeanine Áñez, 58, left the Miraflores Women’s Orientation Centre in La Paz on Thursday, saying that “the monster had to go” for her to walk free – a reference to the end of nearly two decades of rule by the leftwing Movimiento al Socialismo (Mas) party. Continue

Winds of Melissa’s strength are now five times more frequent due to the climate crisis, research says Every aspect of Hurricane Melissa, the most powerful storm ever to hit Jamaica, was worsened by the climate crisis, a team of scientists has found. Melissa caused widespread devastation when it crunched into Jamaica as a category 5 hurricane on October 28, with winds up up to 185mph (298km/h). Continue reading...

Man tries to kiss and embrace Claudia Sheinbaum, highlighting security risk and harassment women face in Mexico The Mexican president, Claudia Sheinbaum, has been groped by a man as she mingled with citizens on the streets of Mexico City, raising questions about the lack of presidential security and the level of sexual harassment the country’s women face. A video of the incident on Tuesday shows a visibly drunk man trying to kiss the president on the neck and embrace her from behind, as she removes his hands and turns to face him, before a government official steps in and places himself between

Namewee detained after Hsieh Yu-hsin found dead in a Kuala Lumpur hotel room on 22 October A well-known Malaysian rapper and film-maker, Namewee, has been arrested in relation to the alleged murder of a Taiwanese woman in Kuala Lumpur. Hsieh Yu-hsin, 31, a former nurse turned internet celebrity who posted under the name Nurse Goddess, was found dead in a hotel room on 22 October. Police this week reclassified her death as murder, after unspecified new evidence emerged. Continue reading...

Reliance on overseas students’ tuition fees under scrutiny as scholars describe chilling effect of being targeted UK academics whose research is critical of China say they have been targeted and their universities subjected to “extremely heavy” pressure from Beijing, prompting calls for a fresh look at the sector’s dependence on tuition fee income from Chinese students. The academics spoke out after the Guardian revealed this week that Sheffield Hallam University had complied with a demand from Beijing to halt research about human rights abuses in China, which had led to a big project being dropped. Continue reading...

The deaths were mostly from drowning in flash floods, with 127 people still missing, many in the hard-hit central province of Cebu Philippine president Ferdinand Marcos Jr has declared a state of emergency after typhoon Kalmaegi left at least 114 people dead and nearly 130 missing in central provinces in the deadliest natural disaster to hit the country this year. The deaths were mostly from drowning in flash floods, and 127 people were still missing, many in the hard-hit central province of Cebu. The tropical cyclone blew out of the archipelago on Wednesday into the South China Sea. Continue reading...

Members of the public have pleaded for a reprieve for the remaining lions, while former staff members hope the sanctuary will reconsider putting them down A troubled New Zealand wildlife park says it has been forced to euthanise two of its elderly lions, with the fate of its remaining five lions unclear, after it ran into financial difficulties. The privately owned Kamo Wildlife Sanctuary in the northern city of Whangārei closed its doors on the weekend. Continue reading...

Report by consultants Deloitte undermines Labor’s public claims that WA’s gas exports help reduce emissions overseas * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Exports of Australian gas carry “substantial risks” of slowing the move to cleaner energy in Asian countries, according to a confidential report for the Western Australian government that undermines the government’s own narrative that the industry helps cut global emissions. The warning in the 2024 report by consultants Deloitte challenges the claim made by the Western Australian premier, Roger Cook, in 2023 that his

Pressure mounts on Labor in wake of Guardian Australia report documenting reporter’s week of virtual sexual harassment and violence while posing as a child avatar * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast There are growing calls for the federal government to address the risks posed to children on the popular gaming platform Roblox after Guardian Australia published a report that documented a week of virtual sexual harassment and violence. While playing as an eight-year-old girl, the reporter was given a sexualised avatar, cyberbullied, aggressively killed, sexually assaulted and shat on – all with parental control settings in

Those paying discounted rent at Watermans Residences can’t use pool or gym, either. Critics say segregation ‘a dystopian microcosm of housing inequality’ * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Affordable housing tenants on discounted rent in the Watermans Residences at Barangaroo are not permitted to use the swimming pool or the gym and are required to use a separate entrance from other residents, who pass through a grand glass foyer with a concierge desk. Although they live in an enviable location just steps from the harbour and

ACIC report says total impact of illicit trade on economy amounted to $4bn in a year amid debate over cigarette excise * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast The illegal tobacco market has left a $3.3bn hole in the federal government’s finances, with Australia’s national criminal intelligence agency warning organised crime’s dominance of the market is continuing to grow. The Australian Taxation Office believes the illegal trade now accounts for one in five tobacco sales, which has led to reduced tax revenues despite the government’s excise on legal cigarettes reaching almost $30 for a pack of 20

Latest inquest rejects previously found ‘very strong suspicion’ that a member of Strobel’s traveling party was involved in her death near a Lismore campground * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast An inquest has found German backpacker Simone Strobel died by homicide in northern New South Wales, but was unable to say who killed her. It has recommended police undertake further analysis of two unmatched DNA samples recovered during the original investigation. The NSW state coroner, Teresa O’Sullivan, delivered her findings on Thursday into Strobel’s 2005 death in Lismore in the state’s northern rivers. Continue reading...

This blog is now closed * Pauline Hanson skips parliament to speak at conservative conference at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Jane Hume plays down divisions in the Liberal party The Liberal party is in damage control, trying to hold itself together as it forms a position on energy and net zero. The Nationals have a position and the Liberal party will develop its position and we’ll announce it soon. The most important thing soon is that as a coalition, we then come up with a joint policy we can take to the next

This blog is now closed EU’s digital spokesperson Thomas Regnier said the European Commission “takes note of the decision taken in France” regarding the Chinese online retailer Shein (10:42), noting that the EU had already expressed similar concerns before. “We are in touch with Shein, but we will also be in touch today with the French authorities. I can confirm now, as we speak, that in the next two hours, [executive vice-president] Virkkunen will meet with the digital minister of France Anne le Henanff. Continue reading...

Critics of New York City’s mayor-elect have said his pledges of free bus service and universal childcare are unrealistic, but in Europe it’s a given After New York City’s race for mayor catapulted Zohran Mamdani from state assembly member into one of the world’s most prominent progressive voices, intense debate swirled over the ideas at the heart of his campaign. His critics and opponents painted pledges such as free bus service, universal childcare and rent freezes as unworkable, unrealistic and exorbitantly expensive. Continue reading...

Report says Paris museum prioritised ‘visible and attractive’ projects over security in run-up to robbery * Europe live – latest updates The spectacular theft of an estimated €88m (£77m) of crown jewels from the Louvre last month was “a deafening wake-up call” for the “wholly inadequate pace” of security upgrades at the Paris museum, the head of France’s state auditor has said. Presenting the report, which was completed before the dramatic heist at the world’s most-visited museum, Pierre Moscovici said the Louvre had sufficient funds for the improvements and “must now implement them without fail”. Continue reading...

Anders Fogh Rasmussen calls for air shield on Nato territory and deployment of European protection force for Ukraine Ukraine is facing a “forever war” and a slow erosion of territory unless Europe dramatically increases pressure on Russia, including by deploying troops and establishing a missile and drone shield on Nato territory to protect Ukraine from Russian attacks on its infrastructure, a former Nato secretary general has said. Anders Fogh Rasmussen, who held the Nato post from 2009 to 2014 and was the prime minister of Denmark from 2001 to 2009, said in an interview with the Guardian that if countries such as

YouGov study of six countries finds those in Denmark most likely to approve of nudism and have been naked in public Germans may have a hard-won reputation for being Europe’s most enthusiastic nudists, but a survey suggests Danes are not only more accepting of stripping off in public, but more likely to have actually done so. The YouGov survey of six western European countries – the UK, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy and Spain – found that Danes were the most likely to say it was perfectly OK to bare all in public places – and to have followed through. Continue reading...

Cheney, who served under presidents from Nixon to George W Bush, will be remembered for controversial role after 9/11 * Dick Cheney created the ground for Trump’s excesses, despite their differences Dick Cheney, the divisive US vice-president under George W Bush who helped lead the country into a disastrous invasion of Iraq, died on Monday, his family has said. He was 84. Cheney at various times held the roles of member of Congress, White House chief of staff and secretary of defense, but it was as one of the country’s most powerful vice-presidents that he had the biggest impact, wielding great influence

Nasser Abu Srour says prisons became like ‘another front’ in Gaza conflict and tells of struggle to adjust to life outside A celebrated Palestinian author who was freed last month after more than 32 years in Israeli prisons has said the use of torture increased dramatically during his last two years of captivity as Israel came to treat its jails as another front in the Gaza war. Nasser Abu Srour, whose prison memoir has been translated into seven languages and is tipped to win a major international literary prize this month, was among more than 150 Palestinians serving life sentences who were

Resolution may be delayed without agreement over the force’s mandate and a timetable for Israeli withdrawal A UN security council resolution mandating the introduction of an international stabilisation force into Gaza is likely to be ready within two weeks, but may be delayed if disputes cannot be resolved over the force’s mandate, including the question of US military leadership, its relationship with the Palestinian civil police force and a timetable for Israeli military withdrawal. At a meeting in Istanbul of Muslim countries considering offering troops on Monday, the Turkish foreign minister, Hakan Fidan, said: “The countries will shape their decisions based on

Rightwing politicians and pundits have called the soldiers accused of attack on Palestinian detainee ‘heroes’ and military investigators traitors Police in Israel have arrested and detained the military’s top legal officer after she admitted leaking footage of soldiers allegedly attacking a Palestinian detainee and then in effect lying about her actions to Israel’s high court. The military advocate general, Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi, said in a resignation letter last week that she had authorised publication of the video to defuse attacks on military investigators and prosecutors working on the case. Continue reading...

Hamas hands remains of three soldiers to Israel and bodies of 45 Palestinians are returned to Gaza amid fragile ceasefire Israel has announced that the remains of three soldiers killed by Hamas during its raid into Israel on 7 October 2023 have been handed over by the militant group. The transfer is the latest since the precarious ceasefire in Gaza came into effect just over three weeks ago. Continue reading...

Bad weather hampering rescue efforts after avalanche that swept through Mount Yalung Ri base camp on Monday An avalanche has swept through a camp on Mount Yalung Ri in Nepal, killing five foreign climbers and two Nepali guides, officials said. Shailendra Thapa, an armed police force spokesperson, said five other people had been hurt at the base camp, located at 4,900 metres (16,070ft). Continue reading...

Northern provinces of Balkh and Samangan worst hit by magnitude 6.3 quake, which also damaged Mazar-i-Sharif’s Blue Mosque A powerful 6.3 magnitude earthquake shook northern Afghanistan before dawn on Monday, killing at least 20 people and injuring more than 640 others, 25 critically, a disaster management official said. Health officials said the numbers could rise. The US Geological Survey said the quake’s epicentre was located 22km (14 miles) south-west of the town of Khulm, and that it struck at 12.59am at a depth of 28km (17 miles). Continue reading...

* Two players were walking to a cafe from their Indore hotel * A man has been arrested after being identified on CCTV A man has been arrested for approaching two of Australia’s women cricketers and allegedly touching them inappropriately in Indore, Indian police said on Saturday. The incident occurred on Thursday in Indore, a day off for the team after their six-wicket victory over England. Continue reading...

Bharatiya Janata party launches first test flight as brown haze blankets city after Diwali – but experts decry ‘gimmick’ The Delhi regional government is trialling a cloud-seeding experiment to induce artificial rain, in an effort to clean the air in the world’s most polluted city. The Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) has been proposing the use of cloud seeding as a way to bring Delhi’s air pollution under control since it was elected to lead the regional government this year. Continue reading...

The move, welcomed by UN, will allow thousands of people living in camps to support themselves and their families Thailand is setting a regional precedent this month by giving refugees permission to work in the country in an effort to tackle aid cuts and its own labour shortages. More than 87,000 refugees living in nine refugee camps along Thailand’s border with Myanmar have been totally reliant on handouts of food and foreign aid. Continue reading...

New deputy leader also calls on government to lift two-child benefit cap urgently and in full Labour should stand by its manifesto commitment not to raise income tax, national insurance or VAT, its deputy leader, Lucy Powell, has said in a direct challenge to her own party. With the Treasury examining whether to raise income tax to plug a £30bn fiscal hole, Powell said it was “really important we stand by the promises we were elected on and do what we said we would do”. Continue reading...

Family pays tribute to actor who was ‘bright, sparky, witty presence on stage and screen’ The Shirley Valentine actor Pauline Collins has died aged 85, her family has announced. She died peacefully, surrounded by her family, in her care home in Highgate, north London, having had Parkinson’s disease for several years, they said. Continue reading...

Hassan Jhangur sentenced to life after killing Chris Marriott when he drove car into a crowd during wedding brawl A man who murdered a “good Samaritan” by running him over as he helped an injured woman has been jailed for a minimum of 26 years. Hassan Jhangur, 25, killed Chris Marriott in December 2023 when he deliberately ran his car into a group of people after a fight broke out between his family and the family of the groom at a wedding in Sheffield. He was found guilty of murder in July, a year after another set of jurors failed to reach

Call comes after Alphonse Rudakubana tearfully apologised for failing to alert police to the danger posed by his son The parents of three girls murdered in the Southport attack have called for the killer’s parents to be “held to account for what they allowed to happen” after they gave dramatic testimony to a public inquiry. The bereaved families told Axel Rudakubana’s father they had “complete disdain for your excuses” after he tearfully apologised for failing to alert police to his son’s weapons and another attempted attack days earlier. Continue reading...

Isabella Kemp’s departure means party has lost nine of 57 councillors elected in May, including four after video leak Nigel Farage’s Reform UK has suspended another member of its “flagship” county council in Kent as it held its first full meeting since the party’s councillors were thrown into crisis by a leaked meeting revealing bitter internal tensions. The departure of Isabella Kemp, who had also worked as a data protection officer at Reform’s HQ, means the party has lost nine of the 57 councillors elected during the local elections in May. Continue reading...

Injectable versions of GLP-1s from Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk will see reduced prices and broader coverage Donald Trump announced a plan on Thursday to reduce the costs of some weight loss drugs for certain patients and expand access to them for people on public health insurance. The agreement will make oral version of GLP-1s, which aren’t yet to market but are expected to be approved in the coming months, available at $150 per month for starting doses. Continue reading...

Abigail Zwerner alleged that assistant principal at Newport News elementary school ignored reports that a firearm was on school property A Virginia school teacher who was shot by her six-year-old student in 2023 was awarded $10m in damages by a jury on Thursday, concluding a negligence lawsuit she brought against a school administrator. Abigail Zwerner alleged that an assistant principal at the Newport News elementary school where she used to teach ignored multiple reports that a firearm was on school property and likely in the possession of the boy who shot her in January 2023. Continue reading...

Former speaker, 85, hailed as a ‘legendary’ leader who helped usher in new generation of women in politics Democrats praised Nancy Pelosi as a “heroic, trailblazing” member of the US House of Representatives, an “icon” and the “greatest speaker in American history”, following her announcement that after 20 terms in Congress she plans to retire. The 85-year-old, the first woman to serve as speaker of the House and one of the most influential leaders in the party, said on Thursday that she would not be seeking re-election in 2026. Continue reading...

The S&P 500 index fell 1% as the government shutdown left investors ‘groping around in the dark’ for up-to-date data Fears that the US economy is slowing, with firms shedding jobs and imposing hiring freezes, sent Wall Street tumbling on Thursday. The S&P 500 index of leading firms was down 1% as investors also highlighted concerns about the potential for a slump in the value of businesses that have benefited from huge investments in artificial intelligence. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 1.5%. Continue reading...

Judge says agents’ practices amid immigration crackdown violate constitutional rights of protesters and journalists A judge said on Thursday she will order federal agents in Chicago to restrict using force against peaceful protesters and media, saying current practices violate their constitutional rights. The preliminary injunction came in response to a lawsuit alleging federal agents have used excessive force in their immigration crackdown in the Chicago area. Continue reading...

In recent months, the European Union has been more Trumpian on China, renouncing part of its free-trade DNA in favour of increasingly protectionist policies. Just like its role model in Washington, the EU has tried to exact geopolitical and economic concessions from Beijing by escalating to de-escalate – a brinkmanship approach that seems to come straight from US President Donald Trump’s playbook in his trade war against China. But the recent trade detente reached by Trump and Chinese President...

Poland and Romania are deploying a new weapons system to defend against Russian drones, following a spate of incursions into Nato airspace in recent months that exposed the alliance’s vulnerabilities and put Europe on edge. The American Merops system, which is small enough to fit in the back of a midsize pickup truck, can identify drones and close in on them, using artificial intelligence to navigate when satellite and electronic communications are jammed. As well as being deployed in Poland and...

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) will add the yuan to the settlement currencies available to airlines and aviation suppliers through the industry association’s clearing house, a move bolstering China’s efforts to promote the internationalisation of its currency. Yuan settlements will be available from next month following the completion of a trial period, the association said in a statement issued on Wednesday, with domestic carriers China Southern Airlines and Xiamen Airlines...

Fallout from lethal police raids in Rio de Janeiro and mounting regional fears about US military intervention in Venezuela are threatening to overshadow the major United Nations climate summit set to begin in Brazil. The Cop30 gathering in the northern city of Belem was supposed to provide President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva a chance to showcase the environmental challenges facing the Amazon rainforest while spurring an aggressive response to climate change. Instead, the pair of crises sparked...

Satellite images analysed on Wednesday appear to show mass burials being conducted in El-Fasher in Sudan’s Darfur region after the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces seized it, further raising concerns about the scale of the violence that descended on the city. The images of El-Fasher come as the two-year war grinds on in Sudan despite growing international outrage, with local media and the United Nations reporting a drone strike targeting a funeral in another city called El-Obeid, killing at...

China’s key trade negotiator, Li Chenggang, has called on the US to create “a favourable atmosphere” for agricultural cooperation between the two countries. “We hope the US will work together with China, with a focus on the broader picture, to create a favourable atmosphere for practical cooperation in areas such as agriculture,” Li told a visiting US agricultural trade delegation in Beijing on Tuesday, according to a statement published by the Ministry of Commerce on Wednesday. Li said there...

The death toll from a cargo plane crash in the southern US state of Kentucky rose to 12 on Wednesday, with investigators saying the accident was caused by one of the engines catching fire and detaching during take-off. The McDonnell Douglas MD-11, operated by package delivery giant UPS and bound for Hawaii, crashed at 5.15pm Tuesday, shortly after departing from Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport. It exploded into flames as it slammed into businesses adjacent to the airport, killing...

The US Federal Aviation Administration said on Wednesday that it was taking the extraordinary step of reducing air traffic by 10 per cent across 40 “high-volume” markets beginning Friday morning to maintain travel safety as air traffic controllers exhibit signs of strain during the ongoing government shutdown. The cutback could impact thousands of flights nationwide because the FAA directs more than 44,000 flights daily, including commercial passenger flights, cargo planes and private...

With US President Donald Trump’s unabashed claim of ending eight wars in eight months hogging the limelight, China’s handling of both intrusions along its border with Myanmar and the Cambodia-Thailand border dispute has gone relatively unnoticed. In stark contrast to America’s dramatic and forceful brokering of peace deals, Beijing has adopted a calibrated and generally reactive response to Myanmar’s border intrusions and supports Asean taking the lead on the Cambodia-Thailand border dispute...

Fresh off winning New York’s mayoral election, Zohran Mamdani announced on Wednesday that a team including former city and federal officials – all women – would steer his transition to City Hall, and that he would “work every day to honour the trust that I now hold”. “I and my team will build a City Hall capable of delivering on the promises of this campaign,” the mayor-elect said at a news conference, vowing that his administration would be both compassionate and capable. He named political...

British police have seized more than £12 million (US$15.6 million) of dinosaur skeletons after agreeing to a settlement with a Chinese national suspected of being part of a huge money-laundering scandal. Su Binghai agreed to forfeit three complete fossilised skeletons, along with nine London apartments, bought for around £15 million, but he will be able to keep 25 per cent of all the sale proceeds, a lawyer for the National Crime Agency said at a court hearing on Tuesday. Su was previously...

A leading Norwegian public transport operator has said it will introduce stricter security requirements and step up anti-hacking measures after a test on new Chinese-made electric buses showed the manufacturer could remotely turn them off. Transport operator Ruter said test results published last week showed that Chinese bus maker Yutong Group had access to their control systems for software updates and diagnostics. “In theory, this could be exploited to affect the bus,” it said. The tests –...

Chinese ultra-fast fashion giant Shein is seeking dialogue with French authorities after Paris suspended the platform in a shock move on Wednesday. “Shein takes note of the government’s announcement today,” a spokesperson for the group told the Post. “We are committed to working with the French authorities to address any concerns swiftly, as we have always done, and we are seeking dialogue with the authorities and government bodies on this issue.” The announcement came as Shein opened its first...

What should have been a five-minute time-saving walk from Mexico’s National Palace to the Education Ministry for President Claudia Sheinbaum has become a symbol of what Mexican women face every day after a video captured a drunk man groping the country’s first woman president. On Wednesday, gender violence catapulted to the highest-profile platform, and Sheinbaum used her daily press briefing to say that she had pressed charges against the man. She also called on states to scrutinise their laws...

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday ordered his top officials to draft proposals for a possible test of nuclear weapons, something Moscow has not done since the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union. Defence Minister Andrei Belousov told Putin that recent remarks and actions by the United States meant that it was “advisable to prepare for full-scale nuclear tests” immediately. Belousov said Russia’s Arctic testing site at Novaya Zemlya could host such tests at short notice. Putin said: “I...

The opposition leader in Uganda’s Parliament sees Zohran Mamdani’s victory in the New York mayoral race as inspiring but somehow too distant. “It’s a big encouragement even to us here in Uganda that it’s possible,” said Joel Ssenyonyi, who represents an area of the Ugandan capital of Kampala. “But we have a long way to get there.” There was some excitement at Makerere University in Kampala, where Mamdani’s father was a senior academic until a few years ago. “Seeing Zohran up there, I feel like I...

US President Donald Trump accused “kamikaze” Democrats of being prepared to destroy the country as the government shutdown became the longest in history on Wednesday, eclipsing the 35-day record set during the Republican leader’s first term. Federal agencies have been grinding to a halt since Congress failed to approve funding past September 30, and the pain has been mounting as welfare programmes – including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or Snap, that helps millions of...

A driver rammed into pedestrians and cyclists on France’s Oleron island off its Atlantic coast on Wednesday, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said, and at least nine people were injured before he was arrested, according to local officials. The 35-year-old suspect shouted “Allahu akbar” [Arabic for God is Greatest] when arrested by police, the local prosecutor, Arnaud Laraize, told Sud Ouest newspaper. French media said the motive for the attack remained unclear and that the anti-terrorism...

Russia said on Wednesday that its forces were advancing north inside the Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk and clearing out Kyiv’s troops in a drive to take full control of what has been an important transport and logistics hub for the Ukrainian army. Ukraine has acknowledged its troops face a difficult position in the strategic eastern city, which Russia has been trying to capture for more than a year, but denies they are surrounded and says reinforcements are on their way. Russia sees the city as the...

A swift resolution of the Sino-Dutch row over the control of Chinese-owned, Netherlands-based chipmaker Nexperia is not likely, according to analysts, which means semiconductor supplies for the global car industry remain uncertain. That assessment comes a day after China’s Ministry of Commerce accused The Hague of “going its own way, without taking concrete steps to resolve the issue”, even as the mainland regulator considered exempting some Nexperia orders from an export ban that it imposed...

Recently a video went viral of a plain clothes Hong Kong police officer aboard a minibus counting how many passengers had not fastened their seat belts. The police said summons would be issued to commuters who had been found to be not wearing seat belts. Social media lit up with surprise, amusement and debate. Some wondered if undercover policing could soon spread to buses or taxis. The law itself is hardly new. Minibus passengers have been required to buckle up for more than 20 years. What...

The US government shutdown became the longest ever on Wednesday, topping the 35-day record set during Donald Trump’s first term, as his administration warned of holiday air travel chaos and threatened Americans’ benefits in a bid to force a resolution. Federal agencies have been grinding to a halt since Congress failed to approve funding past September 30, and the pain has been mounting as welfare programmes - including aid that helps millions of Americans afford groceries - hang in limbo. There...

California voters have approved a ballot measure intended to shift as many as five congressional seats to Democrats from Republicans, handing Governor Gavin Newsom a major political victory in his fight against President Donald Trump. The victory for Proposition 50 was called by the Associated Press within a minute of polls closing. Newsom championed the controversial ballot measure as a way to neutralise a Trump-backed initiative in Texas in which the state redrew congressional districts to...

Zohran Mamdani was elected mayor of New York City on Tuesday, capping a stunning ascent for the 34-year-old state lawmaker, who was set to become the city’s most liberal mayor in generations. In a victory for the Democratic Party’s progressive wing, Mamdani defeated former governor Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa. Mamdani must now navigate the unending demands of America’s biggest city and deliver on ambitious - sceptics say unrealistic - campaign promises. With the victory, the...

Moderate Democrats Abigail Spanberger and Mikie Sherrill cruised to comfortable victories in the Virginia and New Jersey governors’ elections on Tuesday, on an election night seen as a referendum on Donald Trump’s second presidential term. Pitting centrist Democrats against Trump-aligned Republicans, both elections were seen as signaling whether middle-of-the-road voters had made peace with the president’s radical cost-slashing agenda - or plan to give his party a bloody nose in 2026. Trump...

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth announced yet another deadly strike on a boat accused of ferrying drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean, coming the same day an aircraft carrier began heading to the region in a new expansion of military firepower. The attack on Tuesday killed two people aboard the vessel, Hegseth said, bringing the death toll from the Trump administration’s campaign in South American waters up to at least 66 people in at least 16 strikes. US President Donald Trump has justified...

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday nominated billionaire entrepreneur and private astronaut Jared Isaacman to head Nasa, again tapping the close associate of Elon Musk to lead the US space agency. The nomination, announced by Trump on Truth Social, came six months after the president withdrew his initial nomination of Isaacman to lead Nasa amid a bitter row with Musk. If confirmed by the Senate, Isaacman would replace Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who has served as interim administrator...

Uzbekistan’s first tech unicorn, Uzum, is seeking a final pre-initial public offering (IPO) funding round next year in Hong Kong, after raising a US$70 million investment from Tencent Holdings months ago. Uzum co-founder Nikolay Seleznev said on Tuesday that Tencent’s investment in August bolstered the company’s plans to go public in 2027, with a potential listing in Hong Kong, London, Abu Dhabi or Nasdaq in the US. The Tencent-led funding lifted Uzum’s valuation to US$1.5 billion, while opening...

The death toll from the crash of a UPS cargo plane that erupted into a fireball moments after takeoff in Louisville, Kentucky on Tuesday has risen to nine, city and state officials said on Wednesday. The plane crashed about 5.15pm on Tuesday as it was departing for Honolulu from UPS Worldport at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport. Video showed flames on the plane’s left wing and a trail of smoke. The plane then lifted slightly off the ground before crashing and exploding in a huge...

Voters in New Jersey and Virginia will choose their next governors on Tuesday in a pair of races that will serve as an early gauge of the American electorate’s mood after US President Donald Trump’s norm-shattering nine months in office. In New York’s mayoral race, Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani, a 34-year-old democratic socialist, faces 67-year-old Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat running as a more centrist independent after losing to Mamdani in the primary, four years after resigning as New York...

Less than a week after a high-profile summit between President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump – a meeting that cooled the trade conflict between Beijing and Washington after months of heated recriminations – American exhibitors are expected to be more visible at this year’s China International Import Expo (CIIE). More than a dozen agricultural producers from US breadbasket regions will display their wares at a special pavilion at the high-profile trade show, and several of the...

When US President Donald Trump fired the opening salvoes of his country’s trade war with China in his first term, Beijing’s currency was on the front lines. By 2019, the yuan had tumbled past the benchmark value of seven per US dollar for the first time in over a decade, rattling investors and fuelling speculation that Beijing was allowing depreciation to mitigate the effects of tariffs. As Washington and Beijing began to lock horns once again, with Trump’s second White House foray bringing with...

At last month’s Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) summit, China and the bloc upgraded their free trade pact in the areas of environmental protection, product quality and support for small businesses. Premier Li Qiang contextualised the agreement in light of “greater development challenges” facing Asean nations, as they are “unfairly subjected to steep tariffs”, an indirect criticism of the erratic measures unleashed across the region by US President Donald Trump. Another noteworthy...

US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned on Tuesday that if the federal government shutdown continues another week it could lead to “mass chaos” and could force him to close some of the national airspace to air traffic, a drastic move that could upend American aviation. “If you bring us to a week from today, Democrats, you will see mass chaos, you will see mass flight delays. You’ll see mass cancellations, and you may see us close certain parts of the airspace, because we just cannot manage...

US President Donald Trump further muddied the fate of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programme with a social media post on Tuesday suggesting he would not provide benefits until after the government reopened. The aid, which reaches 42 million Americans, “will be given only when the Radical Left Democrats open up government, which they can easily do, and not before”, Trump posted. For the past two days, the administration has said in public statements and court filings that it will at...

The US Treasury Department on Tuesday sanctioned eight individuals and two entities who it said were involved in a variety of North Korean cyber-related money-laundering schemes. The Treasury said the move was aimed at cutting off funding for North Korea’s weapons programmes. “By generating revenue for Pyongyang’s weapons development, these actors directly threaten US and global security,” John Hurley, Treasury’s undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said in a...

When it came time to receive his knighthood, soccer great David Beckham knew what to do. He bent his knee like, well, Beckham. King Charles tapped his shoulders with the blade of a sword and “Becks” was transformed to Sir David Beckham. “This is without doubt my proudest moment,” Beckham said after Tuesday’s ceremony at Windsor Castle. “I’ve been very obviously lucky in my career to have won what I’ve won and done what I’ve done, but to receive an honour like this, of a knight, is beyond...

The US military is close to fielding two new weapons designed to temporally jam Chinese and Russian intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance satellites, giving the Pentagon three counter-space capabilities, according to new Space Force data. The weapons, called Meadowlands and Remote Sensing Terminals, will join a larger and less mobile “Counter Communications System” jammer – an upgraded big dish that was declared operational in 2020. The fresh systems will be dispersed worldwide and...

The Trump administration is not planning to allow Nvidia to sell its most advanced AI chip, known as the Blackwell, to China right now, the White House said on Tuesday. “As for the most advanced chips, the Blackwell chip, that’s not something we’re interested in selling to China at this time,” White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said during a press conference at the White House. The remarks echoed comments made by US President Donald Trump on Sunday, when he declared that the most advanced...

Dick Cheney, the hard-charging conservative who became one of the most powerful and polarising vice-presidents in US history and a leading advocate for the invasion of Iraq, has died at age 84. “The former vice-president died due to complications of pneumonia and cardiac and vascular disease,” according to a family statement released early on Tuesday. The quietly forceful Cheney served father and son presidents, leading the armed forces as defence chief during the Persian Gulf War under George...

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday ordered the Russian cabinet to draw up by December 1 a road map for the extraction of rare earth minerals. In a list of tasks for ministers published on the Kremlin website, Putin also ordered the cabinet to take measures to develop transport links at Russia’s borders with China and North Korea. Rare earths – used in smartphones, electric vehicles and weapons systems – have taken on vital strategic importance in international trade. In April, US...

French luxury giant LVMH has expressed full confidence in the Chinese market despite sluggish consumption in the world’s second-largest economy, promising continued investment in what it calls “the beating heart of global luxury”. “The future of luxury is being shaped here, in China, with China and with our Chinese clients,” said Marc-Antoine Jamet, LVMH’s secretary general, in Paris before heading to the annual China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai. China is a top market for the...

Nigeria reeled on Monday from US President Donald Trump’s claim over the weekend that Christians were being systematically killed in the West African country, with blanket coverage across local media. “They’re killing the Christians and killing them in very large numbers,” Trump said in comments while travelling on Air Force One on Saturday. “We’re not going to allow that to happen.” The false idea of a genocide against Christians in Nigeria has been floating around right-wing circles in the...

Peru’s government on Monday announced the country was severing diplomatic relations with Mexico over the asylum claim of former Peruvian prime minister Betssy Chavez, who was under investigation for rebellion. Peruvian Foreign Minister Hugo de Zela told reporters that Mexico’s decision to grant Chavez asylum at its embassy in Peru’s capital, Lima, constituted an “unfriendly act” that added to the existing tensions between the two countries. The office of Peru’s President Jose Jeri in a statement...

An artificial intelligence model developed by Alibaba Group Holding has emerged as the top performer in a high-profile “real money, real market” experiment that pitted six leading US and Chinese systems against one another in cryptocurrency trading. In the first round of testing on US research firm Nof1’s Alpha Arena, which concluded on Tuesday, Alibaba Cloud’s Qwen3-Max model generated a 22.32 per cent return on an initial investment of US$10,000 over two weeks. Alibaba owns the South China...

A new industry group wants to set aside the piecemeal state-by-state approach imposing food dye and labeling laws in favor of federal control. The opposition has roiled the MAHA coalition.

Psychologists and technologists see them as the future of therapy. The Food and Drug Administration is exploring whether to regulate them as medical devices.

A.I. search tools, chatbots and social media are associated with lower cognitive performance, studies say. What to do?

A legendary jewel of the Hapsburg dynasty — not seen since 1919 and thought lost, stolen or recut — has actually been safe in a Canadian bank for decades.

The rise of New York City’s mayor-elect comes at a complicated moment in the career of Senator Chuck Schumer, who is in danger of looking out of touch with the prevailing energy back home.

It wasn’t just about superior turnout. Party switchers played a significant role in Virginia and New Jersey.

After Mr. Fuentes’s interview with Tucker Carlson, Republicans are considering just how far his views are from the nationalism embraced by President Trump’s followers.

Round-the-clock fetal monitoring leads to unnecessary C-sections. But it’s used in nearly every birth because of business and legal concerns, The Times found.

Placenta accreta is a life-threatening condition in which the placenta attaches to scar tissue left by a C-section. It used to be extremely rare.

She wore it at Carnegie Hall on “the greatest evening in show-business history.” Now the jacket that got away is coming home.

The Kremlin is focusing its fire on Pokrovsk, a gateway to the Donetsk region, which Russia’s president, Vladimir V. Putin, has long coveted.

Drones, missiles and other crucial components of Europe’s rush to rearm itself rely on an increasingly unsteady supply of minerals from China.

At least some of the fighters are believed to be in the enclave’s vast tunnel network, marooned behind the “yellow line” that Israeli forces withdrew to as part of the cease-fire.

Popular AR-15 ammunition made at an Army-owned facility was far more likely than any other to turn up in a government database tracking evidence from gun crimes, new data shows.

World leaders, gathering in Brazil, will try to agree on new, more ambitious plans to cut greenhouse gases.

Diplomats and leaders from around the world are gathering on the edge of the Amazon rainforest for annual talks on how to limit global warming.

Oh my God, OK, it’s happening! From social-media posters to the F.C.C. chair, we are all living in Michael Scott’s world.

And if so, can conservative feminism fix it?

A photographer spends 15 years documenting an Appalachian family and the constant pressure of poverty in their lives.

We explain a California vote to flip as many as five House seats for Democrats next year.

The teacher, Abigail Zwerner, was shot in the hand and chest by a first grade student who brought his mother’s gun to class in 2023.

Villagers in Hellesdon, England, are pushing to change the name, but local bureaucracy makes it difficult.

A video of a man touching Mexico’s first female president, Claudia Sheinbaum, shocked many Mexicans but did not surprise them. “It’s so common,” one woman said.

From Saturday through the start of next week, a cold snap is expected to spread from the Midwest to the East Coast.