Minimalist News

Mapping The Global Cost Of Living In 2026 How does the cost of living vary across countries in 2026? To find out, this graphic, via Visual Capitalist's Dorothy Neufeld, visualizes Numbeo’s Global Cost of Living Index, which measures the price of everyday expenses, including rent, relative to New York City (baseline of 100). If a country has an index score of 80, prices are 20% lower than in New York. Scores above 100 indicate higher everyday costs. While inflation has eased in many regions, the cost of living remains a major global challenge. Across 28 countries, home prices have risen more than 50% since 2020, and

Germany's "Recovery" Is Just Debt-Fueled Military Orders Submitted by Thomas Kolbe Friedrich Merz finally has a positive headline. In December, industrial orders surged. But behind the costly statistical recovery lies nothing more than the buildup of a debt-financed defense sector. It took some lead time, but the Chancellor now finally has a success story. For December 2025, Germany’s Federal Statistics Office reported a 7.6% month-on-month jump in industrial orders. November had already provided a first boost with a rise of over 5%—right in the midst of a severe economic crisis. Industrial production, meanwhile, fell 1.9% in December, sliding back into negative territory—a fact largely

France Has The Most Paid Vacation Days In Europe Europe is widely known for its generous work-life balance policies, and paid time off is a major part of that reputation. Across the continent, employees are legally entitled to a combination of paid vacation days and public holidays, with totals varying widely by country. This map, via Visual Capitalist's Niccolo Conte, shows the minimum total number of paid leave days in Europe in 2025. The data for this visualization comes from World Population Review. EUROPE’S MOST GENEROUS LEAVE POLICIES Several countries stand out for offering more than 40 days of paid leave annually. Andorra tops the ranking with

On Washington's Reported Plans To Once Again Store Tactical Nukes In The UK Authored by Andrew Korybko, It’s possible that the US – whether under Trump 2.0 or whichever administration, including a possible Democrat one, comes afterwards – might agree to transfer its tactical nukes to Estonia in parallel with a possible British F-35A deployment to the latter’s base there. The Daily Mail cited Pentagon funding proposals to report in late December that the US plans to once again store tactical nukes in the UK upon renovating Lakenheath Airbase. The project is expected to cost $264 million and be completed by 2031. They added

Israel Imposes 'De Facto Annexation' With Sweeping West Bank Policy Change Via Middle East Eye The Israeli government on Sunday approved sweeping changes to land registration and civil control in the occupied West Bank, a move Palestinians say breaches the Oslo Accords and advances de facto annexation. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Defense Minister Israel Katz said the changes would "dramatically" alter West Bank policy, paving the way for expanded settlements and land seizure. In a joint statement, they said the measures would remove legal barriers on Israeli settlers and accelerate settlement development. A drone view of the Ibrahimi Mosque, which Jews call the Tomb of the Patriarchs,

Record 9.5 Billion Passenger-Trips Expected During China's Spring Festival A record 9.5 billion passenger trips are expected during this year’s Chinese New Year or Spring Festival travel surge, according to the National Development and Reform Commission. The 40 day period between February 2 and March 13 is expected to see record highs in terms of passenger volumes for both rail trips (exceeding 540 million passengers) and civil aviation trips (exceeding 95 million passengers). However, as Statista's Katharina Buchholz reports, despite rail and air travel for the Chinese New Year gaining popularity, travel by road is still the most popular mode of transport for the holiday. You will

The Man Who Always Has Proof Tomorrow: Adam Schiff Cries Election Fraud Again Authored by David Manney via PJ Media, THE WARNING THAT NEVER CHANGES Remember Adam Schiff? The California Democratic senator returned to familiar ground, while sounding another dire warning about President Donald Trump and the upcoming midterm elections. AP Photo/Patrick Semansky Schiff insists Trump plans on subverting the midterms by suppressing votes and overturning results if Republicans lose. > Schiff said, “I think he fully intends to try to subvert the elections. He will do everything he can to suppress the vote. And if he loses the vote, and I think the Republicans do now

Israel Spends By Far The Most Per Capita On Defense Global military spending is often measured in massive national budgets, where the United States and China dominate the conversation. But looking at defense spending on a per-person basis tells a very different story, one where smaller countries rise to the top. This visualization, via Visual Capitalist's Bruno Venditti, ranks major countries by how much they spent on defense per citizen in 2024, revealing which nations invest the most in military power relative to their population - and how countries like the U.S. compare when spending is measured per person rather than in total dollars. Data comes

Algerian Boxer Admits To Having XY Chromosomes And Commits To Hormonal Treatments Authored by Jonathan Turley, With the start of the Winter Games, a story this week resurrected a controversy from the last Summer Olympics. Previously, Olympic officials and pundits denounced those who objected to Algerian boxer Imane Khelif competing as a woman, saying that she was born a female. Female boxers withdrew from the competition rather than fight Khelif. Now, the boxer has admitted to having XY chromosomes and is taking hormone treatments to lower testosterone levels for the next Olympics. At the time, IOC chief Thomas Bach said: “We have two boxers…

Rubio Slams 'Unjust' Jimmy Lai Sentence After Hong Kong Court Issues 20 Years The high profile trial of Hong Kong's foremost pro-democracy media tycoon wrapped up in December, whereupon Jimmy Lai was found guilty of sedition. He had long spearheaded huge protests and local Hong Kong media criticism of Beijing, but came under legal hot water and scrutiny with the passage of the notorious China-imposed national security law. Finally, on Monday he was handed a very harsh 20-year prison sentence, resulting in outrage and condemnations aimed at China from across the globe. This is effectively life in prison, or even a death sentence,

Breaking Down California's Insane "Super Bowl Tax" Sam Darnold just WON the Super Bowl...and LOST $71k because it was in California Watch as Boomer Esiason explains why the players should block any future Super Bowls in California... > 🚨 ABSOLUTELY INSANE: Sam Darnold just WON the Super Bowl.. and LOST $71k because it was in California > > California's jock tax bills him $249K > > Boomer Esiason: The NFLPA should shut down ANY future Super Bowls in California! > > Super Bowl is in LA Next Year > > pic.twitter.com/9VWqSWmOse > > — Alec Lace (@AlecLace) February 9, 2026 Here's SchiffSovereign's James Hickman to explain the farce... Yesterday, the

Downward Bitch: Irate Yoga Wokes Demand 'Complicit' Instructors Condemn ICE A Sunday yoga class at Minneapolis CorePower Yoga studio turned into an unscripted protest earlier this month, as a group of enraged customers berated front-desk staff for not condemning federal immigration enforcement, prompting the Denver-based chain to ban one regular and agree to post anti-ICE signage in its studios. Caught on camera and subsequently gone viral, the confrontation unfolded inside the CorePower studio lobby after a class let out. The video, posted by regular yogi Heather Anderson, 51, shows more than a dozen spandex-clad patrons “spontaneously” demanding answers from two visibly uncomfortable

Gun Owner Denied Firearm By ATF For Claiming "God Given Rights" Via Gun Owners of America, A member of Gun Owners of America was recently denied a firearm by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) for writing "exercise my God given right" as their reason for manufacturing the firearm. Our member wasn’t doing anything illegal; they were not attempting to manufacture something that was banned in their state of residence. They weren’t building anything that is banned federally, and they were complying with all regulations set forth by ATF during the registration process. Even though no statute or regulation requires it, ATF’s

Toyota Taps Kenta Kon As New CEO In Leadership Shake-Up Toyota is reshaping its leadership once again, naming Kenta Kon as its next chief executive, with the transition set for April 1. Kon, currently the company’s chief financial officer, will step into the top role as part of a broader management realignment, according to Car & Driver. The move shifts current CEO Koji Sato into a dual position as vice chairman and chief industry officer. Toyota says the change is designed to reduce Sato’s workload, especially after he took on the chairmanship of Japan’s main auto industry group earlier this year. Under

Google Versus China's Cyber Weapon Authored by Anders Corr via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), Commentary Google has sacked a Chinese company’s global proxy network, which constitutes part of a Chinese cyber weapon aimed at U.S. and allied critical infrastructure and telecommunications. In this photo illustration, the Google logo is projected onto a man in London, England, on Aug. 9, 2017. Leon Neal/Getty Images The company, Ipidea, allegedly has proxy malware that silently piggybacked on millions of legitimate software downloads by regular U.S. consumers to their phones, tablets, computers, televisions, and projectors. The internet bandwidth of these and other victims is then rented by such

Iran Offers To Dilute Enriched Uranium If US Lifts All The Sanctions Iran has just made a significant overture amid the US pressure campaign, and as the two sides are set for a next round of indirect negotiations in the coming days. "Iran could agree to dilute its most highly enriched uranium in exchange for all financial sanctions being lifted, its atomic chief said on Monday, one of the most direct indications so far of its position at talks with Washington," Reuters reports. Tehran has rejected White House demands that the country's ballistic missile arsenal also be subject of the talks, but

Leftists Lose It As Pro-ICE Ad Plays During Super Bowl Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news, A powerful pro-ICE advertisement aired during Super Bowl 60, spotlighting the everyday heroes in Immigration and Customs Enforcement who risk their lives to protect communities from violent criminals. The spot, which ran right after Bad Bunny’s trash halftime performance, portrayed ICE agents as friends, neighbors, fathers, veterans, and Little League coaches dedicated to making America safer. Sponsored by the conservative group American Sovereignty, it struck a nerve with leftists already seething over recent ICE operations. The 30-second spot opens with aerial views of American neighborhoods at sunset, cutting to scenes of ICE

LA Taxpayers Spent $418 Million On Homeless Programs In 2025 Los Angeles spent about $418 million on homelessness programs in 2025, yet only a small share went toward helping people leave the streets for good, according to the New York Post. A recent City Hall report suggests most of the money supports short-term services that manage homelessness rather than resolve it. The review, released as the city prepares major budget cuts, shows that hundreds of millions were directed to hygiene facilities, outreach teams, temporary housing, and vehicle-living programs with limited long-term success. These efforts often keep people in transitional situations instead of

Jump Trading Eyes Kalshi, Polymarket Stakes As Institutional Interest Grows: Report Authored by Sam Bourgi via CoinTelegraph.com, Jump Trading, a Chicago-based quantitative trading company, is reportedly set to acquire minority stakes in prediction market platforms Polymarket and Kalshi, underscoring growing institutional interest in the rapidly expanding sector. The equity stakes would be obtained in exchange for providing trading liquidity on both platforms, Bloomberg reported Monday, citing people familiar with the discussions. While the report did not disclose specific ownership percentages, Bloomberg said Jump’s stake in Polymarket would scale based on the liquidity the company ultimately provides. Founded more than two decades ago, Jump Trading has long been

"Italian Job" Style Armored Truck Heist Caught On Video In Italy In a scene straight out of The Italian Job movie, local Italian broadcaster Sky TG24 posted a dramatic video on X on Monday that appears to show at least one "armed commando" carrying out a brazen armored truck heist in broad daylight on an Italian highway. "Moments of fear this morning on the 613 Brindisi-Lecce superstrada, at the Tuturano exit, where an armed commando attacked an armoured cash-in-transit van," the local outlet said. > Momenti di paura questa mattina sulla superstrada 613 Brindisi-Lecce, all'altezza dello svincolo di Tuturano, dove un commando armato

President says Gordie Howe Bridge will open only when US is ‘fully compensated’ – and makes bizarre hockey claim As Democrats prepare to force a vote in the US House this week on Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canada, the president posted a lengthy diatribe on his social media platform in which he threatened to block a bridge connecting the US and Canada and made a bizarre false claim that increased trade between Canada and China would include a ban on Canadians playing ice hockey. Trump began his latest screed against the US’s second-largest trading partner by claiming that “everyone knows, the Country

Officials say rescuers searching for lone survivor after latest attack on what Pentagon says are suspected drug smugglers The US military’s Southern Command, which oversee operations in Latin America and the Caribbean, announced that it carried out another deadly strike on Monday, killing two suspected drug smugglers in the eastern Pacific. The statement said that the latest in what legal experts have called a series of extrajudicial killings by the Pentagon was carried out “at the direction of” the Florida-based combat unit’s new commander, Gen Francis L Donovan, who was sworn in at a Pentagon ceremony last Thursday. Donovan takes over after

Airlines from as far away as Russia, China and Spain have also been affected as island nation warns of fuel shortage Air Canada has cancelled all flights to Cuba after the island’s authorities said they were running out of aviation fuel, as a consequence of the US oil blockade on the Caribbean country. The airline, one of a dozen who serve the island, said it would begin repatriating 3,000 customers. Cuba’s beaches are a major holiday draw for Canadian tourists in winter, and one of the government’s most important sources of hard currency. Continue reading...

Prosecutor claims Juan Pablo Guanipa was re-arrested due to non-compliance with terms of release One of Venezuela’s most prominent opposition politicians, Juan Pablo Guanipa, has been detained by security forces just hours after being released from prison, as the South American country’s leaders sent mixed signals about their commitment to political reform after Nicolás Maduro’s downfall. Guanipa, who is a close ally of the Nobel laureate María Corina Machado, emerged from nearly nine months’ detention on Sunday – one of at least 35 political prisoners to be freed over the course of the day. Continue reading...

Faber-Castell says it was unaware its facility was being used to detain asylum seekers deported by the Trump administration The world’s largest pencil maker has accused the Costa Rican government of misusing an old factory that the German manufacturer donated for humanitarian purposes – by detaining asylum seekers there who were deported from the US by the Trump administration last year. Faber-Castell produces more than 2bn wooden pencils a year worldwide and used to have a factory in the southern part of Costa Rica, bordering Panama and supplied by trees cultivated in the region. Continue reading...

Fathers of Bianca Jones and Holly Morton-Bowles, both 19, who died after a night out at the Nana backpackers hostel in 2024, say court decision is ‘absolute injustice’ * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast The families of two Melbourne teenagers who died after drinking methanol-laced alcohol in Laos say they have been blindsided by news the workers responsible for serving the drinks received fines of just $185. Bianca Jones and Holly Morton-Bowles, both 19, were killed by methanol poisoning along with four other tourists after a

Former nanny Scarlett Pavlovich filed suit in three US states alleging author assaulted her in New Zealand in 2022 Federal judges have dismissed three lawsuits accusing the bestselling fantasy author Neil Gaiman of sexually assaulting his children’s nanny in New Zealand four years ago. Scarlett Pavlovich filed a lawsuit against Gaiman and his wife, Amanda Palmer, in Wisconsin in February 2025, accusing Gaiman of multiple sexual assaults while she worked as the family’s nanny in 2022. She filed lawsuits against Palmer in Massachusetts and in New York on the same day she filed the Wisconsin action. Continue reading...

The media mogul and prominent pro-democracy activist Jimmy Lai has been sentenced to 20 years in prison in Hong Kong for national security offences. His family has described the sentence as ‘heartbreakingly cruel’, given the 78-year-old’s declining health. Lai was convicted in December on charges of sedition and conspiracy to collude with foreign forces, after pleading not guilty to all charges. Lucy Hough speaks to the Guardian’s senior China correspondent, Amy Hawkins – watch on YouTube Continue reading...

Family of media tycoon say he will ‘die a martyr behind bars’ amid widespread criticism from press freedom groups Jimmy Lai, the media mogul and prominent pro-democracy activist, has been sentenced to 20 years in prison in Hong Kong for national security offences, a punishment his daughter said could mean “he will die a martyr behind bars”. Claire Lai said the sentence was “heartbreakingly cruel” given her 78-year-old father’s declining health, while her brother Sebastien Lai called the sentence “draconian” and “devastating”. Continue reading...

Prime minister’s Liberal Democratic party to be pressed on promised tax cuts and fiscal stimulus plans * Business live – latest updates Japan’s stock market has hit a record high after Sanae Takaichi’s Liberal Democratic party (LDP) secured a comprehensive victory in Sunday’s election. The LDP won 316 of the 465 seats in the country’s lower house – the first time a single party has secured two-thirds of the chamber since the establishment of Japan’s parliament in 1947. Continue reading...

Some jobs will be moved offshore in wake of telco’s $700m partnership with tech consultancy Accenture * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast More than 200 Telstra jobs are expected to be cut, as the telco rolls out AI capabilities and sends some jobs to India. Telstra and the technology consultancy Accenture announced a $700m joint venture (JV) in 2025 to drive efficiency, modernisation and productivity. Continue reading...

Australia’s longest-serving editor credited with transforming a fledgling news organisation into the fourth most-read news website * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Guardian Australia’s editor-in-chief, Lenore Taylor, has resigned after 10 years in the role, credited with taking the fledgling news organisation from a tiny startup to the fourth most-read news website in the country. Taylor joined the global media organisation Guardian News and Media in 2013 as founding political editor of the new Australian venture, rising to editor-in-chief in 2016. Continue reading...

This blog is now closed * Woman, 69, in hospital with four broken vertebrae after interaction with police at Sydney Herzog protest * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast The NSW premier, Chris Minns, is making the first of multiple appearances across the media this morning following the violent clashes between police and protesters yesterday evening. He has told Channel Nine’s Today program that police were “put in an impossible situation last night”: It’s worth remembering they did everything possible to avoid that confrontation, starting last week when they begged protest organisers to have it in Hyde Park,

Jann Alhafny says she feared there could be a stampede or that she might suffocate after she was allegedly pushed to the ground * Punched, pepper sprayed, charged: police accused of brutality at Sydney protests – Full Story podcast * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast A 69-year-old woman is recovering in hospital with four broken vertebrae after a police officer allegedly pushed her down “very violently” and “without warning” at Sydney’s protest against a visit by the Israeli president. “I straight away knew I’d hurt my back,” Jann Alhafny told Guardian Australia over the phone from

Push discussed in private talks and echoes tactic of then-Liberal prime minister Malcolm Turnbull used against Peter Dutton * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Sussan Ley’s allies want the Liberal leader to demand her rivals put their names to a petition calling for a spill, forcing Angus Taylor’s backers to publicly reveal themselves as plotting to oust her. The push was discussed in private talks on Tuesday and has echoes of the tactic then-Liberal prime minister Malcolm Turnbull used to stall Peter Dutton’s ultimately failed leadership

“It is time for Europe to wake up … If we do not decide for ourselves, we will be swept away,” the French president said Just a reminder that our Europe Live blog will be coming to you from Munich this weekend too, so make sure to follow all the key events with us. Ahead of this week’s Munich Security Conference, we are now getting a bit more detail on who is expected to attend. Continue reading...

Seamus Culleton describes conditions as ‘torture’ as he pleads with taoiseach to raise his case with Donald Trump An Irish man who has been held by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement for five months despite having a valid work permit and no criminal record says he fears for his life and has appealed for help from Ireland’s government. Seamus Culleton said conditions at his detention centre in Texas were akin to “torture” and that the atmosphere was volatile. “I’m not in fear of the other inmates. I’m afraid of the staff. They’re capable of anything.” Continue reading...

Teacher who ran school outside Paris was a formative influence on generations of comedians and actors including Helena Bonham Carter and Emma Thompson Master clown Philippe Gaulier, the influential founder of France’s École Philippe Gaulier, has died aged 82. Gaulier taught the art of clowning for decades and his students included Sacha Baron Cohen, Helena Bonham Carter, Emma Thompson, Rachel Weisz and Geoffrey Rush. Gaulier died on Monday due to complications from a lung infection. He had a stroke in 2023 and, since then, had “received warm words of encouragement from all over the world”, according to a statement made by his

Travel company reports lower demand for US amid signs Trump immigration crackdown is deterring travellers * Business live – latest updates Europeans are booking fewer trips to the US, Europe’s biggest travel operator has said, as appetite for long-haul travel wanes and concerns linger around Donald Trump’s immigration policies. Tui, which receives most of its bookings from customers in Europe, has seen “significantly lower demand” for travel into the US, according to its chief executive, Sebastian Ebel. Continue reading...

Countries’ drop in scores in annual table comes amid ‘worrying trend’ of backsliding in established democracies The UK and US have sunk to new lows in a global index of corruption, amid a “worrying trend” of democratic institutions being eroded by political donations, cash for access and state targeting of campaigners and journalists. Experts and businesspeople rated 182 countries based on their perception of corruption levels in the public sector to compile a league table that was bookended by Denmark at the top with the lowest levels of corruption and South Sudan at the bottom. Continue reading...

Head of army says potential ‘peacemakers’ being trained, in what would be first outside force in Gaza since 1967 Indonesia has said it is preparing to send up to 8,000 troops to Gaza to be part of a peacekeeping force under Donald Trump’s Middle East plan. The announcement by the army chief of staff, Gen Maruli Simanjuntak, makes Indonesia the first country to deliver a specific commitment to the international stabilisation force (ISF) envisaged as part of the second phase of the Trump plan. Continue reading...

Exclusive: only matter of time until decrepit ships cause spill bigger than Exxon Valdez disaster, analysts say Decrepit oil tankers in Iran’s sanctions-busting shadow fleet are a “ticking time bomb”, with a catastrophic environmental disaster only a “matter of time”, maritime intelligence analysts have warned. Such an oil spill could be far bigger than the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster that released 37,000 tonnes of crude oil into the sea, they said. Continue reading...

Palestinian boy has been in the West Bank since 2022 but is still registered as a resident in the strip where ban applies An Israeli court has rejected an appeal to allow a five-year-old Palestinian boy with an aggressive form of cancer to enter Israel for life-saving treatment, citing a government policy that bars residents registered in Gaza from crossing the border, even when they no longer live there. In a ruling issued on Sunday, the Jerusalem district court dismissed a petition seeking permission to transfer the child from Ramallah to Tel HaShomer hospital near Tel Aviv for a bone marrow transplant

Israel’s security cabinet has approved plans that pave the way for more settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory A White House official has reiterated Donald Trump’s opposition towards Israel annexing the West Bank, after Israeli plans were announced that would pave the way for more settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory. The measures, announced on Sunday, included allowing Jewish Israelis to buy West Bank land directly, and extending greater Israeli control over areas where the Palestinian Authority exercises power. It was unclear when the new rules, approved by Israel’s security cabinet, would take effect but they do not require further approval. Continue reading...

Detentions of senior Reformists Front figures follow criticism of the authorities’ handling of recent protests The head of Iran’s Reformists Front, the organisation instrumental in securing the election of the country’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian, has been arrested by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) in a move that is likely to exacerbate tensions over the handling of recent street protests. Azar Mansouri, the secretary general of the Islamic Iran People party, had expressed deep sorrow at protesters’ deaths, and said nothing could justify such a catastrophe. She had not in public called for the supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, to resign. Continue reading...

With medication largely unaffordable in the country, experts hope community support and a change in diet could reduce soaring type 2 diabetes rates A return to the traditional lentil and rice dishes that have nourished generations of Nepalis could save them from a diabetes epidemic prompted by the influx of western junk foods, doctors have said. In a country where one in five of those over 40 has type 2 diabetes, the foods enjoyed by their grandparents have showed remarkable results in reversing the condition. Continue reading...

The case in Bangladesh, where Nipah cases are reported almost every year, follows two Nipah virus cases identified in neighbouring India The World Health Organization said on Friday that a woman had died in northern Bangladesh in January after contracting the deadly Nipah virus infection. The case in Bangladesh, where Nipah cases are reported almost every year, follows two Nipah virus cases identified in neighbouring India, which has already prompted stepped-up airport screenings across Asia. Continue reading...

Police investigating whether blast that injured at least 169 at Friday prayers in Islamabad was suicide attack An explosion has ripped through a Shia mosque on the outskirts of Pakistan’s capital during Friday prayers, killing 31 people and injuring at least 169 others, according to officials. Police said they were investigating whether the attack was carried out by a suicide bomber. There were fears the death toll from the blast at the Khadija al-Kubra mosque in Islamabad could rise as some of the injured were reported to be in a critical condition. Television footage and social media images showed police and residents

Officials say calm restored to province day after dozens killed in suicide and gun attacks in at least 10 cities Pakistan’s security forces have intensified their operations against separatist militants in Balochistan province who launched a large-scale assault on Saturday in which at least 31 civilians and 17 security personnel were killed. A day after the militants carried out suicide attacks in the heart of the province’s capital, Quetta, the chief minister of the south-western region, Sarfraz Bugti, said 145 people he described as militants had been killed in 40 hours and that their bodies were in the custody of the authorities. Continue

Five years after the junta’s coup, the civil war devastating Myanmar has reached a turning point. The military is carrying out large-scale counter-offensives across the country to reclaim territory seized by pro-democracy rebels of various ethnic and religious backgrounds In Tanintharyi, the southernmost region of Myanmar, the local resistance has managed to contain the military. After five years of guerrilla warfare, the revolutionary youth there remain determined to restore democracy through armed struggle. A long, narrow stretch of land at the southern tip of Myanmar, between the Andaman Sea to the west and Thailand to the east, Tanintharyi region is one of

The prime minister Keir Starmer is hoping to push forward on policy following a bruising week for his leadership Kemi Badenoch has said that Keir Starmer just received a “stay of execution” yesterday. Speaking to reporters on a visit this morning, she said: [Starmer] is in a very dangerous place. The Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar said the quiet bit out loud. Labour MPs and the Labour party have lost confidence in their leader, but the MPs are too scared of losing their jobs, so they’re not going to call an election, and they’ve given him a stay of execution. The sad thing

As trust in Russia and China’s state broadcasters grows, director general warns of the dangers of cutting back the service The BBC World Service will run out of funding in just seven weeks with no future deal with the government currently in place, the corporation’s director general, Tim Davie, has warned. In a last-minute pitch to the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), Davie said the uncertainty came as news organisations were cutting their international reporting and disinformation was “flooding the digital sphere at an incredible speed”. Continue reading...

Pascal Soriot suggests UK-US agreement will not be enough to revive plan to expand Cambridge site * Business live – latest updates The boss of Britain’s biggest pharmaceutical company has said the government’s recent drug pricing deal is a “very positive step” but is unlikely to unfreeze a paused £200m investment in Cambridge. AstraZeneca’s chief executive, Pascal Soriot, suggested that a UK-US deal on NHS pricing agreed in December would not be “sufficient” to restart the project to build a research site in the east of England, which was paused in September. Continue reading...

The 12-year-old was stabbed by a stranger as he walked home from school in January 2025 Justice Choudhury KC is back from his deliberation and will make a decision about whether or not he will lift the reporting restriction shortly. Leo Ross’s foster family is in court this morning to hear the judge pass his sentence, due this afternoon. Continue reading...

CS Venkatakrishnan dismayed by ‘depravity and corruption’ revealed in Epstein files as he announces profits * Business live – latest updates The chief executive of Barclays has said he is “deeply dismayed and shocked” at the “depravity and the corruption” revealed in the Epstein files, as the bank deals with the fallout of its ex-boss Jes Staley’s ties to the convicted child sex offender. In his first public comments on the matter since the US Department of Justice began publishing documents related to Jeffrey Epstein in December, CS Venkatakrishnan said his thoughts went out to the victims of Epstein, who died in

Schumer and Jeffries says White House proposal is ‘incomplete and insufficient’ as prospect of deal recedes The heads of the agencies carrying out president Donald Trump’s mass deportation agenda will testify in Congress on Tuesday and face questions over how they are prosecuting immigration enforcement inside American cities. Trump’s immigration campaign has been heavily scrutinized in recent weeks, after the shooting deaths in Minneapolis of two protesters at the hands of Homeland Security officers, AP reports. The agencies have also faced criticism for a wave of policies that critics say trample on the rights of both immigrants facing arrest and Americans protesting

Local police assisted federal immigration agents by repeatedly searching school cameras that record license plate numbers, data show Police departments across the US are quietly leveraging school district security cameras to assist Donald Trump’s mass immigration enforcement campaign, an investigation by the 74 reveals. Hundreds of thousands of audit logs spanning a month show police are searching a national database of automated license plate reader data, including from school cameras, for immigration-related investigations. Continue reading...

Jamie Raskin, House judiciary ranking member, says ‘mysterious redactions’ obscure abusers’ names. Plus, RFK Jr accused of misleading Senate * Don’t already get First Thing in your inbox? Sign up here Good morning. A top House Democrat on Monday accused the justice department of making “mysterious redactions” to documents related to Jeffrey Epstein that obscured the names of abusers, while also allowing the identities of the disgraced financier’s victims to become public. What did Raskin say? He told reporters “there were tons of completely unnecessary redactions, in addition to the failure to redact the names of victims, and so that was troubling to

Wasserman has apologised for communicating with Ghislaine Maxwell after flirtatious emails they exchanged more than 20 years ago were released in the Epstein files Pop star Chappell Roan said on Monday she was no longer represented by the talent agency led by Los Angeles 2028 Olympics chief Casey Wasserman, who has faced criticism for flirtatious email exchanges with convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell more than 20 years ago. Wasserman has apologised for communicating with Maxwell, after the publication of a series of personal emails between the two. Continue reading...

This live blog is now closed. * Trump threatens to block new bridge in latest tirade against Canada * Trump news at a glance: Europe must stand up to Trump and his ‘demolition men’, new report says Ghislaine Maxwell, the convicted sex trafficker and longtime accomplice of Jeffrey Epstein, is set to attend a virtual deposition for the House oversight committee at 10am ET today. This is part of the committee’s ongoing investigation into the handling of Epstein’s case, Continue reading...

Before the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, allegations against four others shot at by federal immigration agents failed to withstand scrutiny.

Two months after federal agents began operations in the Twin Cities, residents say they have found strength in their sense of community.

Russian troops have advanced at a glacial pace in recent months, but gains in southern and eastern Ukraine could give Moscow an edge in U.S.-mediated peace talks.

Our Kyiv bureau chief, Andrew E. Kramer, describes how Kyiv residents are coping with Russia’s unrelenting assaults on their country’s heating and electrical systems and finding ways to stay warm in a cruel winter.

With defiant ingenuity, Kyiv residents are trying to find ways to stay warm in a cruel winter.

The longstanding alliance between Cuba and Mexico is under mounting pressure from the United States, forcing President Claudia Sheinbaum into a precarious balancing act.

The Trump administration has criticized Nicaragua for serving as an illegal immigration pathway to the United States.

The Trump administration’s crackdown on oil shipments to Cuba is beginning to wreak havoc on the Caribbean island’s travel industry.

Ilia Malinin, who led the United States to a team gold medal at the Winter Olympics and will now vie for his own, is testing the physical limits of what is possible on the ice.

Ghislaine Maxwell, the longtime companion of the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, invoked her right against self-incrimination in an Oversight Committee deposition.

Leon Botstein, Bard’s president, also invited Jeffrey Epstein to visit a high school linked to Bard College and sent him well wishes after stories were published about his sexual abuse of minors.

Republican politicians and strategists in Texas are amping up anti-Muslim rhetoric as a way to energize Republican voters after several elections when the border was the animating force.

In the post-Assad era, more Jews are visiting a country that some fled decades ago. One hotel restaurant offers a corner where religious dietary requirements are melded with the local cuisine.

The television host pleaded for the public’s help in finding her mother, Nancy, who disappeared from her Arizona home last week. “We are at an hour of desperation,” she said.

Malaysian durian farmers saw immense profits over the last decade as China snapped up their produce. But tastes have shifted.

In their first joint interview, Ms. Malle spoke about filling the shoes of Ms. Wintour, who urged people to “get over comparisons.”

TikTok is the new home for musical theater fans who want to put themselves in the action. Viral re-enactments of four big numbers show why.

The president wants to change the public landscape to honor himself. It’s not the worst thing he’s done, but it will require fixing.

Even longtime admirers see the writing on the wall for Keir Starmer.

We look at how world superpowers are approaching nuclear weapons.

“The Daily Show” host said it shouldn’t be a performer’s job to unify the country: “Isn’t there another person whose job description is much more along those lines?”

The former New York mayor paid a Conflicts of Interest Board fine for having City Hall employees assist in attacking former Gov. Andrew Cuomo over sexual harassment allegations.

Isaac Herzog’s trip led to widespread rallies and tested the restrictions on protests that Australia installed after a deadly attack on a Jewish celebration.

The move involving Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, who hosted a popular midcentury radio and TV show and died in 1979, ends a six-year delay.

A death certificate released on Monday also said rectal cancer was an underlying cause for the comedic actress’s death on Jan. 30 at 71.