Minimalist News

Iran Counter-Blockade Bites As No Tankers Load At Kharg For 10th Day Earlier today, in response to news that the number of tankers anchored at Iran's Kharg Island oil terminal had hit a post-blockade peak, we wondered if this means that Iran is running out of tankers to store oil, i.e., Trump' blockade of the blockade is working. In any case, it certainly means that Iran is no longer able to sell any of the oil, depriving it of much needed oil export revenues which it has found itself forced to shut in as there is no open downstream path

Russian Drone Hits Chinese Ship In Black Sea, Less Than 24-Hours Before Xi-Putin Summit Just 24 hours before Presidents Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping are set to meet for their planned summit in Beijing, soon on the heels of Trump's visit, and a geopolitical wrench may have just been thrown into the works. According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Russian forces have attacked a Chinese ship heading toward a Ukrainian port - a provocative move that threatens to seriously anger Beijing at the worst possible diplomatic moment. via Ukraine Navy Early Monday morning, a Russian drone reportedly struck the KSL

DoJ Establishes "Anti-Weaponization" Fund After Trump Drops $10 Billion Lawsuit Against IRS Update (1130ET) : The DOJ announces that as a part of the settlement agreement in President Donald Trump v. the IRS, the Attorney General established “The Anti-Weaponization Fund” to provide a systematic process to hear and redress claims of others who suffered weaponization and lawfare. “The machinery of government should never be weaponized against any American, and it is this Department’s intention to make right the wrongs that were previously done while ensuring this never happens again,” said Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche. “As part of this settlement,

Cuban Foreign Minister Says US Is Building 'Fraudulent Case' For Military Action Authored by Chris Summers via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez on May 17 said the United States is building a “fraudulent case” ​to justify economic war and eventual military intervention against the Caribbean island nation. Cuban troops participate in a military parade in honor of former Cuban leader Fidel Castro at Revolution Square in Havana on Jan. 2, 2017. Yamil Lage/AFP via Getty Images His comments were a direct response to a report by Axios, which cited classified U.S. intelligence reports saying Cuba

"Scale Matters": NextEra, Dominion To Merge In Utility Megadeal Aimed At Grid Expansion To Power AI Boom As power demand surges on the back of data-center buildouts, with hyperscalers expected to unleash about $700 billion in capex this year to expand AI infrastructure and maintain an edge over China in the AI compute race, NextEra Energy and Dominion Energy are moving to scale up. The utilities agreed to a $67 billion all-stock merger that would create the world's largest regulated electric utility network . Dominion shareholders will receive .8138 NextEra shares for each Dominion share, leaving NextEra investors with about

"Shockingly Bad" Chinese Econ Data Stuns Wall Street, Sparks Hard Landing Concerns Confirming our Sunday preview , overnight China reported growth data which slowed across the board in April with investment resuming declines, retail sales missing sales and growing at the weakest rate in 4 years while industrial production rose at the slowest pace in three years, calling into question Beijing's reluctance to add stimulus to the economy as a global energy crisis hits factories and consumers across the world. China's Monday data dump of official data on Monday painted a picture of an economy where booming exports no longer

Ukraine's Odesa Heavily Attacked In 'Retaliation' For Deadly Drone Raids On Moscow The Russian Defense Ministry (MoD) announced Monday that its forces executed a massive missile and drone barrage across Ukraine, which is clearly the expected big retaliatory response following Ukraine's large-scale drone wave attack on Moscow over the weekend. Kremlin officials specifically described the new assault as indeed direct retaliation for "terrorist attacks" carried out by Kiev, which killed at least three in the Russian capital, injured dozens, hit a refinery, and unleashed havoc and fear among the population. The MoD said it targeted military and defense industrial sites,

Cars Are Fast Becoming Dystopian Prison Pods... Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news, The surveillance state has found its newest frontier: your car’s dashboard. What used to be a symbol of American freedom and independence is rapidly morphing into a high-tech cage that watches your every move and can override your decisions at will. In a widely shared post on X, users detailed complaints pouring in about Subaru’s upgraded AI ‘EyeSight’ system now featured on the latest models. Drivers report the system pouncing on brief glances away from the road – while Biden-era federal mandates prepare to make this level

Key Events This Week: Nvidia Earnings, FOMC Minutes And Global PMIs Looking at the week ahead, Nvidia’s earnings on Wednesday, with a market capitalisation now of $5.46tn, will be the main event. In economics, we have the global flash PMIs on Thursday, along with inflation data from Canada tomorrow, the UK on Wednesday, and Japan on Friday. From central banks, the highlight will be the FOMC minutes on Wednesday. Those flash PMIs will be important, as they’re one of the first indicators on how the global economy has performed this month, so will be scrutinized for any signs of how

Switzerland To Vote On Capping Population At 10 Million In less than four weeks, on June 14, Swiss voters will decide on a proposal that, if passed, would mark a constitutional first: enshrining a hard limit on the country’s total permanent resident population. The " No to a Switzerland with 10 Million" initiative , backed by the right-wing Swiss People’s Party (SVP), seeks to amend the Federal Constitution to keep the population below 10 million until 2050. If thresholds are approached or breached, the government would be required to tighten asylum and family reunification rules and renegotiate or terminate international

The Question This Week Is "Does Trump Go Back To The Well On Bombing Iran?" By Benjamin Picton, Senior Market Strategist at Rabobank Hormuz diary, day 79 . The strait remains functionally closed and global crude and refined product stocks are rapidly drawing down. President Trump has returned from Beijing after much bonhomie with no concrete commitments from China to help get shipping moving again, though the American side has claimed that China wants the strait to re-open with no tolls imposed and has committed to buy at least $17bn of US agricultural products annually. Trump is running out of

Space Stocks Take-Off On Musk's SpaceX IPO Comments AST SpaceMobile, EchoStar, and Rocket Lab moved higher in premarket trading in New York after Elon Musk, speaking by video at the Samson International Smart Mobility Summit on Monday, said a SpaceX IPO is coming "pretty soon," adding to investor hype around the publicly traded space industry. " We've got to get the SpaceX IPO stuff going here pretty soon ," Musk told the summit, which was taking place in Tel Aviv, via video call. Elon: "I would be there in person, but we gotta get this @SpaceX IPO going pretty soon."

D-Day For "Huuuge" Meta Layoffs Looms As AI Job Apocalypse Accelerates 'D-Day' for Meta layoffs is quickly approaching, as the Facebook and Instagram owner will slash 10% of its global headcount - or about 8,000 employees - in the initial round as it swaps headcount for GPUs. Former Meta employee Adel Wu described the current situation on X, saying her millennial and Gen Z friends still at the tech company are currently "either just waiting, hoping to get laid off or extremely anxious because the job is their lifeline." Welcome to the accelerating AI job apocalypse, affecting white-collar youngsters with

"Taiwan Loses Its Strategic Importance In 18 Months," Says Chamath Palihapitiya In an interview with Fox News' Bret Baier that aired Friday, President Trump said that he doesn't want "to travel 9,500 miles to fight a war" over Taiwan. "I'm not looking to have somebody to go independent and, you know, we're supposed to travel 9,500 miles to fight a war," Trump told Baier. "I'm not looking for that. I want them to cool down. I want China to cool down." Taiwan has been a major point of friction between Washington and Beijing. Last week, Secretary of State Marco Rubio

"Please Work Remote": NYC Braces For Commuter Chaos With Ongoing LIRR Strike Welcome to day three of the Long Island Rail Road strike, which is set to cause commuter chaos this morning in the New York City area, as more than 3,500 workers across five unions walked off the job Saturday after contract talks with the MTA collapsed . Negotiations between the MTA and unions resumed Sunday and are set to continue Monday morning. LIRR service remains suspended due to the strike. Please work from home if you can. If you must travel today, travel alternatives include: • Limited shuttle

Futures Slide After Bond Yields, Oil Prices Jump Around The Globe Futures are lower, but off their overnight lows as markets focus on soaring global yields after US/Iran talk progress remains stalled (but at least armed hostilities did not resume contrary to some speculation). Yields also spiked on rising oil prices, concerns of an extra budget in Japan and continued political chaos in the UK. As of 7:00am ET, S&P futures are -0.5%, while Nasdaq futures drop 0.3%; semis are bid, Mag7 are mostly lower ex-NVDA which reports earnings this week. Semis / AI are the bullish story pre-mkt with

EPA Unwinds Massive Biden-Era Auto Emissions Regulations That Had 2027 Deadline Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times (Emphasis ours), The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed a deregulatory action to delay compliance deadlines for Biden-era emission standards, in a bid to make vehicles more affordable for Americans while ensuring greater consumer choice, the agency said in a May 14 statement. Ford Motor Company's electric F-150 Lightning on the production line at their Rouge Electric Vehicle Center in Dearborn, Mich., on Sept. 8, 2022. Jeff Kowalsky/AFP via Getty Images In March 2024, the Biden-administered EPA issued new rules regarding

Samsung, Union Resume Talks After Labor Action Scare; Goldman Says "Korea: Buy" Downward momentum in South Korean stocks was halted on Monday as optimism returned to Samsung Electronics after the company and its union reopened talks to resolve contract disputes and avert a strike that could begin as soon as Thursday. Bloomberg reported that the union's leader would "sincerely engage" with Samsung executives. The world's most important memory chip maker was also granted several requests by a Korean court, including orders to block the union from occupying company facilities. The union is still threatening an 18-day walkout beginning Thursday unless

Canada Rethinks Selling Its Crown Jewel Pipeline Authored by Charles Kennedy via OilPrice.com, The Canadian federal government may reconsider a plan to privatize the Trans Mountain oil pipeline. Since the expanded TMX pipeline launched in 2024, exports to Asia—especially China—have surged, with up to 70% of shipments from British Columbia heading to Asian buyers by late 2025. Officials now see TMX as a highly profitable “strategically important asset,” with potential for further expansion The Canadian federal government may reconsider a plan to privatize the Trans Mountain oil pipeline and keep it state-owned amid a surge in appetite for Canadian crude

Behind Turkey's Gold Sales: The Biggest Ever Plunge In Foreign Reserves Shortly after the Iran war started, with gold unexpectedly tumbling, we showed that the reason behind gold's paradoxical move - after all, the precious metal has traditionally been a store of value in times of geopolitical stress - was the furious liquidation of gold by emerging markets, in this case Turkey, scrambling to obtain reserve dry powder so Ankara could cover soaring costs of energy imports. And indeed, the latest central bank data showed that Turkey’s foreign reserves had their biggest monthly decline on record in March, as the

Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum denies any links between her Morena party and organized crime Pressure is mounting on Claudia Sheinbaum, Mexico’s president, after two former top officials from the country’s Sinaloa state – both members of her Morena party – gave themselves up to US authorities over alleged ties to the Sinaloa cartel. The state’s former security minister, Gerardo Mérida Sánchez, crossed the border into Arizona last week and was taken into custody by US marshals, Mexico’s security ministry said. Sinaloa’s former finance minister, Enrique Díaz Vega, was taken into custody in New York. Continue reading...

Cuba’s president, Miguel Díaz-Canel, says any US strike would be catastrophic after reports of 300+ drones Cuba’s president, Miguel Díaz-Canel, has warned that any US military action against his country would lead to a “bloodbath” with incalculable consequences for regional peace and stability. “Cuba does not represent a threat,” Díaz-Canel said in a post on X. Continue reading...

Mayor’s attempt to beautify the city with murals of mascot and plum paint jobs criticised as waste of resources The giant purple axolotl peered up at Manuel Martínez from the black bitumen of the street. It was the second such painting of the rare amphibian he had walked past that morning. In recent weeks he had seen axolotl murals pop up in neighbourhoods across Mexico City. “It’s a waste of money,” he said. “You could use that budget for fixing potholes, traffic lights, security cameras. They’re spending on something that doesn’t benefit us at all – it’s just for tourists.”

Civilians left increasingly exposed as a dangerous new front opens up in the country’s decades-old conflict As night fell over southern Colombia , and a group of children began their weekly Tuesday football match, a drone appeared overhead. The children looked up, and the drone dropped a grenade, its blast killing a 10-year-old boy and injuring 12 more civilians. The child’s death, in southern Cauca in 2024, marked the first known time a person in the country had been killed in a weaponised drone attack. Continue reading...

Four months after Trump’s surprise raid, a political thaw has descended – but mingled with hope is trepidation for what comes next When Ángel Linares heard a strange buzz followed by an explosion, his first thought was that neighbours were setting off fireworks to celebrate the new year. Then his windows shattered, the building’s walls shook and its facade was ripped off, sending him flying on to the ground of an apartment suddenly reduced to rubble. His 85-year-old mother, Jesucita, feared Venezuela’s northern coast had been devastated by an earthquake, like the one she remembers from 1967. Continue reading...

‘Tank Day’ event causes outrage with ‘malicious mockery’ of deadly crackdown during dictatorship era The chief executive of Starbucks in South Korea has been fired after the company ran a promotional event using slogans that evoked a massacre of pro-democracy protesters during the country’s dictatorship era, sparking outrage and boycott calls. The coffee chain launched a “Tank Day” campaign on 18 May for its “Tank” tumbler series. The date coincides with one of the most politically sensitive days in South Korea’s calendar, when citizens commemorate the 1980 democratisation movement in Gwangju, 167 miles (270km) south-west of Seoul. Continue reading...

Chinese state media say Beijing emerging as ‘focal point of global diplomacy’ with Russian leader arriving on Tuesday Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin exchanged “congratulatory letters” on Sunday ahead of the Russian president’s visit to Beijing this week, four days after Donald Trump left China after a high-stakes summit . Xi said bilateral cooperation between Russia and China had “continuously deepened and solidified”, Chinese state media reported, with this year marking the 30th anniversary of the two countries’ strategic partnership. Continue reading...

Naegohyang FC due to play Suwon FC in semi-final of Asian Women’s Champions League on Wednesday A North Korean women’s football club has arrived in South Korea for an AFC Women’s Champions League semi-final, marking the first visit by athletes from the isolated state to the South in eight years. The delegation of 27 players and 12 staff entered the country on Sunday before Wednesday’s match between Naegohyang FC and South Korea’s Suwon FC Women in Suwon. Continue reading...

Thai authorities say 32 others injured near Makkasan station after freight train strikes bus and fire breaks out At least eight people were killed and 32 others were injured in Thailand after a freight train struck a bus at a rail crossing in Bangkok, rescue officials and a deputy transport minister said. Firefighters and rescue crews were dispatched as flames engulfed the bus and nearby vehicles close to the airport rail link’s Makkasan station, officials said, adding that the collision also involved cars and motorcycles. Continue reading...

Family and supporters had hoped the US president could help free the 78-year-old British citizen during summit talks in Beijing Donald Trump raised the case of jailed Hong Kong democracy campaigner Jimmy Lai in talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping but was told it “is a tough one”. Family and supporters of the 78-year-old British citizen had hoped the US president could help secure his release. Continue reading...

Police will be able to question children without an adult present and hold them after being charged under draft laws introduced by the CLP Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The Northern Territory government has been accused of “funnelling Aboriginal children into prisons” over draft youth justice laws that would give police the power to charge, detain and question young people for up to 48 hours without a legal guardian. Under the proposed amendments to the NT Youth Justice Act, introduced by the corrections minister, Gerard Maley, young people charged with an offence would

Registration form informs patients that if they do not wish AI to be used, they will need their referring doctor to refer them to a different service provider Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A Melbourne psychiatrist has refused new patients unless they agree to allow her to use an AI scribe to transcribe the conversations in their sessions. AI-driven note taking tools are becoming popular within the medical industry – with two in five general practitioners now using such scribes , according to the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP). Continue reading...

Half of the teens who have been blocked say they are seeing less news than before – but they are not necessarily going back to traditional sources Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Australia’s social media ban is preventing teens from accessing news, a new study has found, with half of the teens who have been blocked saying they’re seeing less news than before. Two-thirds of under-16s have remained on social media platforms since the ban came into effect in December. But for those who were kicked off, the change has meant seeing less

Never documented archaeologically before, evidence points to First Nations people caring for and nursing the animal Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The discovery of a millennium-old dingo burial site in western New South Wales, including evidence of a “feeding” ritual never before documented archaeologically, has shed new light on the longstanding relationship between the canines and First Nations people. The dingo was buried along the Baaka, or Darling River, in Kinchega national park near the Menindee Lakes. Continue reading...

The historian won $50,000 for her nonfiction book Näku Dhäruk: The Bark Petitions, which judges praised as deeply researched, ‘highly original’ and ‘vividly alive’ A “highly original” nonfiction by Melbourne historian Clare Wright, charting the creation of the Yirrkala Bark Petitions – a seminal moment in Australia’s history of land rights – has won book of the year at the NSW literary awards. The Petitions were landmark documents presented by Yolŋu elders to the Australian parliament in 1963 on painted bark frames, which sought government intervention after a portion of Arnhem Land Reserve was licensed to a French mining company.

The former German chancellor added that diplomacy alongside military deterrence is crucial when dealing with Russia. Elsewhere, we are getting a line from Rome, with the Italian foreign ministry confirming that rescuers have located the bodies of four Italian divers believed to be deep inside an underwater cave in a Maldive atoll, AP reported. Five Italian divers are believed to have died while exploring a cave at a depth of about 50 meters in Vaavu Atoll on Thursday, according to Italy’s foreign ministry, way below the recreational diving limit of 30 meters. Continue reading...

Spokesperson for Indian Ocean island nation says they will try to recover explorers in next couple of days Rescuers have located the bodies of four Italian divers deep inside an underwater cave in an atoll in the Maldives, four days after they were reported missing. Searches had resumed after being suspended following the death of a local military diver during a perilous mission to try to reach them. Continue reading...

Airline’s CEO says uncertainty is making travellers book later, keeping summer holiday fares down Business live – latest updates Ryanair said it has “almost zero concerns” about its jet fuel supplies this summer amid fears over widespread cancellations linked to the Iran war but warned that holidaymakers booking their flights later this year could face higher fares. The budget airline’s chief executive, Michael O’Leary, said Europe had now found plenty of alternative sources of jet fuel, but persistent consumer uncertainty had led to lower summer bookings than usual, keeping fares down. Continue reading...

Singer says she has faced ‘years of public shaming’, as court rules tax agency made mistake over her 2011 status A court in Madrid has ordered Spain’s tax authority to pay Shakira back more than €55m (£48m) after ruling that it had wrongly imposed huge fines on the Colombian singer and philanthropist because it had made mistakes over her tax status. In a statement released on Monday, the Audiencia Nacional said it had accepted an appeal from Shakira against the fine she was handed five years ago after the Agencia Tributaria claimed she had not paid the necessary tax in

Temperatures in France and England could rise by 15C, while hot air could to give way to snow in parts of US After a prolonged spell of cool conditions across much of Europe, a dramatic swing in temperatures is expected in the coming days as warmer air surges north into western and central parts of the continent. A large blocking high over the North Atlantic and slow-moving low pressure across southern Scandinavia dragged Arctic air southwards last week, sending temperatures 10-15C below the seasonal average for more than a week. Continue reading...

Tehran is said to have made or reiterated some concessions but source in mediator Pakistan appears pessimistic Middle East crisis – live updates Iran has made a new proposal for a deal to definitively end the war in the Middle East, officials in the region said on Monday, though there was no sign of any immediate breakthrough in the stalled peace negotiations. A ceasefire has paused most violence after six weeks of US-Israeli airstrikes and Iranian retaliation, but there has been little progress since Donald Trump said the ceasefire was “on life support” , and reports in Israeli media suggest

US president says there ‘won’t be anything left’ of country if it doesn’t come to an agreement UAE blames Iran or its proxies for drone strike fire near nuclear plant Friedrich Merz has been embroiled in a row with Donald Trump over his war on Iran ever since the German chancellor suggested the Trump team was being outplayed in its negotiations with Tehran and said he would not advise his children to study or work in the US in the current climate. The Guardian’s Berlin correspondent, Deborah Cole, has looked at the declining relationship between the two leaders in this

Abu Dhabi denounces ‘dangerous escalation’ as Iran war ceasefire grows more precarious, and US president voices impatience at stalemate The United Arab Emirates has blamed a fire near its nuclear power plant on a drone launched by Iran or one of its proxies in what the UAE called a “dangerous escalation”. The fire was just outside the Barakah nuclear plant and caused no injuries or radiation alerts, with the emirate’s nuclear regulator saying there was no radioactive leak or risk to the public. Continue reading...

Three paramedics at health centre among dead, while Hamas military chief Izz al-Din al-Haddad killed in Gaza strike Israel carried out airstrikes in southern Lebanon, killing at least six people, including three paramedics working at a health centre, just hours after its envoys had agreed with the Lebanese government to extend a ceasefire . Israel also said it had killed the Hamas military chief, Izz al-Din al-Haddad, in a targeted strike in Gaza on Friday. Continue reading...

Statement following ‘productive’ talks in Washington comes as Israel launches strikes on southern city of Tyre Israel and Lebanon have agreed to a 45-day extension of their ceasefire after another round of talks in Washington, the US state department has said. It came after two “productive” days of talks, and more negotiations would be held from 2-3 June, the department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said. Continue reading...

Gautam Adani, richest man in Asia, was accused of conspiring to pay $250m in bribes to Indian government officials The US Department of Justice is dropping its fraud charges against the Indian billionaire Gautam Adani, the richest man in Asia, after he hired a new legal team led by Donald Trump’s personal lawyer, according to new reports. In an undisclosed April meeting at the justice department, Trump’s personal lawyer, Robert J Giuffra Jr, said that Adani would invest $10bn in the US economy and create 15,000 jobs if prosecutors dropped the charges against him, according to the New York Times

Stone being paid $50,000 a month to ‘rebuild’ relations between Washington and Myanmar’s military-backed government The US lobbyist Roger Stone, a longtime friend and ally of Donald Trump, has been condemned for accepting $50,000 a month to “rebuild” relations between Washington and Myanmar’s military-backed government. Myanmar’s leaders have been internationally isolated since seizing power in a coup in 2021 , and have repeatedly been accused of atrocities that may amount to war crimes . Activists say the military rulers, which recently held widely condemned “sham” elections , are now trying to reassert themselves abroad. Continue reading...

Turmoil and violence rocks state after prime minister Narendra Modi’s party claimed victory in legislative election Tensions have been high in the Indian state of West Bengal after a top political aide from Narendra Modi’s party was shot dead in the street and hundreds were arrested as violence broke out following elections this week. The prime minister’s Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) claimed victory in the West Bengal elections on Monday , defeating Trinamool Congress (TMC), which had ruled over the state legislature for 15 years. Continue reading...

Mamata Banerjee says Narendra Modi’s party ‘forcefully captured’ election that ended her party’s 15 years in power A political showdown is taking place in the Indian state of West Bengal as the chief minister, Mamata Banerjee, India’s most powerful female politician, has refused to resign after she lost elections to the prime minister’s party this week. Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) won an overwhelming victory on Monday in state elections in West Bengal, where Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress party (TMC) have been in power for 15 years. Continue reading...

Result in key Indian state is set to have significant implications for the country’s political landscape Narendra Modi’s party has won a resounding election victory in West Bengal, a state which had been a rare opposition stronghold, expanding his unrivalled consolidation of power across the country. It is the first time that the Indian prime minister’s Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) has won assembly elections in West Bengal, a large and politically significant state in eastern India. Continue reading...

Train operator says passenger demand will still be met as it trims summer timetable at government’s behest Avanti West Coast is to cut about one in seven trains on its busiest intercity routes this summer to reduce costs. The train operator said it was reducing its timetable between London Euston and Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester in response to a government request to lower spending. Continue reading...

Andy Burnham may already be facing a tricky obstacle in his push to return to Westminster. Past comments about rejoining the EU have come back to haunt him, particularly given that the Makerfield constituency voted overwhelmingly to leave in the Brexit referendum. Plus, Wes Streeting has confirmed he will stand in any leadership contest, raising fresh questions about where all this leaves Keir Starmer Continue reading...

The prime minister said he wouldn’t be setting out a timetable to stand down if Andy Burnham wins the Makerfield byelection Jakub Krupa writes the Guardian’s Europe live blog. The European Commission has been asked about its response to the renewed talk about Britain’s potential future attempt to rejoin the European Union – but did not take a bait. At this stage, there are discussions on closer cooperation in a number of areas, that’s where we are, and that’s what we are doing precisely in preparation for the next summit rather than speculating about big or renewed issues. We are

Bookies’ favourite to replace Keir Starmer tones down stance on government borrowing to assuage City investors UK politics live – latest updates Andy Burnham has always faced a narrow path to replace Keir Starmer as prime minister: a tricky byelection, a leadership contest that is yet to be declared, and a far from constructive bond market backdrop. In making his pitch, assuaging City investors in particular has led the Greater Manchester mayor to dance on a pin. Continue reading...

Transport secretary to give budget details of troubled high-speed line, which backers hope will stay well below £100bn The latest estimate of the cost of HS2 and a timetable to complete construction of the high-speed railway will be set out by the government on Tuesday, including plans to run trains slower to trim costs. The transport secretary, Heidi Alexander, is expected to give the first official reckoning of the troubled project’s budget in 2026 prices, which HS2’s backers hope will remain substantially below £100bn. Continue reading...

Health minister issues stern rebuke, saying Greenlanders are not ‘experimental subjects’ of geopolitical interest Greenland’s government has criticised the arrival of a US doctor in Nuuk alongside Donald Trump’s special envoy, Jeff Landry, saying that Greenlanders are not “experimental subjects”. Joseph Griffin said he had joined the delegation as a volunteer to “assess the medical needs” of the Arctic island, which the US president has repeatedly threatened to invade. Continue reading...

Democrats criticize fund to compensate for supposed persecution as ‘slush fund’ for president’s allies after Trump ends lawsuit against IRS Trump dismisses $10bn suit against IRS and creates $1.7bn ‘anti-weaponization’ fund Sign up for the Breaking News US email Democratic reactions to the news about Trump moving to withdraw his lawsuit against the IRS are coming in. Ron Wyden, a top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, said Trump deserved no credit for dropping the lawsuit, regardless of his reasons. “Even by his standards the move he’s trying to get away with now is a stunning act of corruption,” said

Deal would create largest regulated US utility, serving 10 million customers as AI-driven demand for power surges NextEra, a US energy giant, announced on Monday that it will buy Dominion Energy in a $67bn deal, creating what the companies say will be the world’s largest regulated utility business. The deal comes as the appetite for energy sources has swelled with the construction of massive datacenters across the country, built largely to supply rising demand for AI. Continue reading...

Democrats criticize deal as a slush fund that ‘funnels taxpayer dollars’ to Trump’s political allies Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Donald Trump moved to dismiss a $10bn lawsuit against the IRS on Monday and his administration created a $1.776bn “anti-weaponization” fund to compensate allies for supposed persecution by the government. The fund will be overseen by five commissioners – four of whom would be appointed by the attorney general and removable by Trump – who would oversee the body’s work. A fifth commissioner will be appointed “in consultation” with congressional leadership. The fund also has the

Other evidence found backpack must be suppressed, says judge, because McDonald’s search was warrantless Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email The judge overseeing Luigi Mangione ’s Manhattan state court trial ruled Monday that some evidence gathered during his arrest would be barred from court. “The evidence found during the search of the backpack at the McDonald’s must be suppressed, including the magazine, cellphone, passport, wallet and computer chip,” Judge Gregory Carro said in his 18 May decision. Continue reading...

A Spanish court acquitted Shakira in a tax fraud case, ordering the government to return more than 55 million euros (US$64 million) in wrongly imposed fines, according to a court document. The decision follows years of tax troubles in Spain for the Colombian superstar. The ruling relates to a dispute over the 2011 tax year in which Spanish authorities failed to prove that the singer was a resident of Spain, the Madrid-based court said in its decision. For a person to be considered a tax resident...

China is stepping up economic engagement with Russia by hosting the 10th edition of a major bilateral expo ahead of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s expected trip to Beijing this week – just days after his American counterpart, Donald Trump, visited there last week. The back-to-back visits to the Chinese capital by two of the world’s most influential leaders highlight an uptick in diplomatic activity as Beijing seeks to stabilise relations with Washington while deepening coordination with...

The US ⁠Africa Command (Africom) said on Monday ⁠it had carried out additional air strikes against Islamic State targets in northeastern Nigeria on Sunday, in coordination with the Nigerian government, as joint operations against militant groups intensify. Nigeria’s ‌Defence Headquarters said the latest strikes were conducted in the Metele area of Borno State, following intelligence that fighters had converged there. Multiple air strikes killed more than 20 Islamic State West Africa Province...

Protests erupted in Kenya’s capital Nairobi on Monday as a nationwide public transport strike kicked off in protest at rising fuel prices. Commuters were stranded in various suburbs and the city centre remained deserted as motorists with private vehicles opted to stay home as protesters burned tyres on major roads. The Kenya Association of Private Schools had advised its members to assess and determine the safety of learners going to school, and most schools opted for online learning. Kenya’s...

The liquidators of China Evergrande Group are seeking 57 billion yuan (US$8.4 billion) from three PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) entities in one of the largest corporate lawsuit claims in Hong Kong, arguing the firm’s global coordinating arm assumed responsibility for audits linked to the collapsed developer’s accounting scandal. Evergrande’s liquidators, Tiffany Wong and Eddie Middleton of Alvarez & Marsal, were pursuing the claim against PwC International, PwC Hong Kong and PwC China jointly,...

A rare Ebola outbreak that may have circulated undetected in northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for several weeks has exposed the difficulty of detecting deadly viruses in regions where malaria, typhoid and other fever-causing illnesses are common and health systems are stretched thin. The World Health Organization (WHO) on Sunday declared the Ebola disease outbreak a public health emergency of international concern. As of Monday, there were over 390 suspected cases and 105 deaths...

The thorny question of whether Britain should unwind a decade of estrangement from the European Union is resurfacing as the Labour Party starts to imagine a future beyond Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Two key figures have emerged as potential challengers after a series of political body blows that have left Starmer’s leadership in crisis, and the spectre of rejoining the EU was creeping back into the debate. Wes Streeting, who resigned from Starmer’s government as health secretary last week,...

We have put together stories from our coverage last weekend to help you stay informed about news across Asia and beyond. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Trump leaves China after much pomp and pageantry, but little to show for it 2. Trump and his CEOs want China’s business – but has Asia moved on? 3. What do travellers need to know when Hong Kong airport’s Terminal 2 opens? 4. Reality deficit: how South Korea lost the plot on AI 5. Have Chinese...

No country on Earth has adopted artificial intelligence faster than the United Arab Emirates – and the Middle Eastern cultural crossroad’s ambitions to become an AI bridge to the Global South just got another major leg up with the delivery of the latest, cutting-edge US-designed chips. But those ambitions are taking shape in a hostile environment. Amid the US-Israel war on Iran, Tehran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps has repeatedly taken aim at major Emirati data centres, developed in...

US President Donald Trump and top cabinet officials addressed thousands of Americans at a mass prayer rally in Washington on Sunday – an event critics saw as an overt display of Christian nationalism undermining the separation of church and state. The gathering was organised by the White House as part of a programme of celebrations for America’s 250th anniversary and billed as an opportunity to revive the idea of a country founded on Christian principles. During the outdoor event on the National...

Israeli strikes killed seven people in Lebanon on Sunday, including an Islamic Jihad commander, Lebanese authorities and state media said, despite a fragile ceasefire as Hezbollah called US-brokered talks between the two countries a “dead end”. The health ministry published a “preliminary toll” for Israel’s strikes on Sunday, with three people killed in the town of Tayr Felsay, including a child, and two killed in the town of Tayr Debba, including another child. It said 11 people were wounded in...

A ⁠number ⁠of ⁠Americans currently in the Democratic Republic of Congo are believed to ‌have had exposure to suspected cases in the country’s latest Ebola outbreak, with several deemed to ⁠have had high-risk exposures, US health news website STAT ‌News reported on Sunday. At least one of ‌these individuals may have ⁠developed symptoms, ⁠the report said. Reuters could ‌not immediately verify the report. The ‌Ebola outbreak ‌in DR Congo ⁠and Uganda has been declared a ⁠public health emergency of...

All four crew members ejected safely after two US Navy jets collided on Sunday during an air show at the Mountain Home Air Force Base in western Idaho, officials said. The collision and subsequent crash involved two US Navy EA-18G Growlers from the Electronic Attack Squadron 129 in Whidbey Island, Washington, said Commander Amelia Umayam, spokesperson for Naval Air Forces, US Pacific Fleet. The aircraft were performing an aerial demonstration when the collision occurred, Umayam said in a...

Hong Kong should not limit the number of vehicles licensed to provide ride-hailing services. In particular, every owner of an electric vehicle that complies with the regulations should, in principle, be able to obtain one on demand by paying the required fee. Normal market forces, together with fees and other licensing requirements, will be sufficient to strike the right balance. I have used ride-hailing services a lot recently. Knee replacement surgery has restricted my mobility, and I have a...

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Sunday visited people wounded by a driver with a history of mental health problems who ran over several pedestrians in northern city of Modena. Hundreds gathered in the evening at the call of the city’s mayor to “unite against those who want to divide and sow hatred” after some far-right politicians tried to tie the incident to immigration. The driver, a 31-year-old Italian man of Moroccan heritage, hit several people in central Modena before crashing...

A 67-year-old hiker has died after being attacked by a herd of cows in Austria, authorities said, in the latest fatal incident involving livestock in the Alps. The woman was attacked by what police described as a “mid-double-digit number” of cows in a pasture in the alpine district of Lienz in East Tyrol on Sunday afternoon. Her 65-year-old husband was also seriously injured. Authorities said the reasons for the animals’ aggressive behaviour remain unclear. The couple were not accompanied by a...

Norway’s interior security service, PST, said on Sunday a Chinese man had been arrested in the country’s north for spying, just weeks after a Chinese woman was arrested suspected of spying on satellite data. The suspect was arrested on Friday by the Nordland police district, Eirik Veum, PST’s media spokesman, told Agence France-Presse. Veum said the man was suspected of “attempted illegal intelligence activities in Nordland”, but declined to provide further details on the nature of the...

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that Israel had almost completed a key goal of the war in Gaza – eliminating all those responsible for orchestrating the attack on October 7, 2023. His remarks followed the Israeli military’s announcement that Ezzedine al-Haddad, commander of Hamas’ armed wing, had been killed in an air strike in Gaza on Friday. In the aftermath of the October 7 assault, Netanyahu pledged to target and eliminate the masterminds behind the attacks, which, according...

German police shot dead a tiger that escaped from a private facility near the eastern city of Leipzig, with a 73-year-old man seriously injured in the incident, authorities said on Sunday. Police said the man was inside the enclosure when the animal broke free in Schkeuditz, on the outskirts of Leipzig. He was described as a volunteer authorised to be on the premises and was taken to hospital with serious injuries. “The tiger left its enclosure. It was then found by police officers near a garden...

Around 10 “new” suspected victims have come forward in a French investigation into the network of the late US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a prosecutor said on Sunday. France opened a human trafficking investigation after the US Justice Department in January released the latest cache of files from the investigation into the disgraced financier, who died in prison in 2019 while facing charges of trafficking underage girls for sex. French magistrates are seeking to investigate possible offences...

A drone strike sparked a fire on the edge of the United Arab Emirates’ sole nuclear power plant on Sunday in what authorities called an “unprovoked terrorist attack”. No one was blamed, but it highlighted the risk of renewed war as the United States and Iran signalled they were ready to fight again. There were no reported injuries or radiological release. The UAE, which has hosted air defences and personnel from Israel, recently accused Iran of launching drone and missile attacks. Tensions have...

Russia’s capital and the surrounding Moscow region came under record drone attacks overnight, leaving at least three people killed and over a dozen wounded. Residential buildings were damaged across several suburbs and Moscow’s oil refinery was targeted in a rare strike, according to local authorities. Operations at all four Moscow airports faced rolling disruptions from late on Saturday but have resumed operations after dozens of flight cancellations and delays. Attacks on other Russian regions...

US President Donald Trump’s visit to Beijing with a delegation of leading American tech executives should not be read as a throwback to transactional diplomacy. It points to something more consequential. After years of rhetoric about economic separation, the reality is becoming harder to ignore: the United States and China are not decoupling. They are learning how to compete while remaining deeply entangled. For much of the past decade, Washington has framed its China policy around technological...

The World Health Organization declared an international health emergency on Sunday over an outbreak of an Ebola strain in the Democratic Republic of Congo that has killed more than 80 and for which there is no vaccine. Fears of further spread grew when a laboratory on Sunday confirmed a case in the major eastern DRC city of Goma, which is controlled by the Rwanda-backed M23 militia. A total of 88 deaths and 336 suspected cases of the highly contagious haemorrhagic fever have so far been...

US President Donald Trump and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jnr succeeded in their efforts to defeat Senator Bill Cassidy in Louisiana’s Republican primary, a signal of the enduring strength of the president’s hold on his party despite an unpopular war and soaring fuel prices. Cassidy was one of seven Republican senators in 2021 who voted to convict Trump on the charge of inciting an insurrection on January 6 that year. He placed last in a three-way race on Saturday against Representative...

The launch of limited edition Swatch watches descended into chaos on Saturday in several European cities and New York, with French police firing tear gas to restore order at one store near Paris. Hundreds of people waited through the night – and in some cases for several days – hoping to get their hands on the “Royal Pop” timepieces, made in collaboration with luxury watchmaker Audemars Piguet. In France, lines of hundreds of people formed through the night in several cities and a police source...

Three polls firmly caught my attention over the past month or so. Each was conducted by a different outlet and addressed different questions. However, taken together, they tell one overarching story – implicitly, but unmistakably. Beyond an assortment of data, the story is about direction. The first was a CNN poll. It showed that 76 per cent of Americans now see high prices and the cost of living as their country’s most serious economic problem. Even more striking, nearly seven in 10 expect a...

Bulgaria won the Eurovision Song Contest for the first time on Saturday in a final overshadowed by five countries’ boycott over Gaza, claiming a dramatic ‌victory despite another big public vote for Israel that secured it second place. The garish and usually good-natured competition involving pop acts from countries across Europe and beyond, now in its 70th year, has been plunged into crisis by a dispute over Israel’s military offensive in Gaza, a response to ⁠the Hamas-led attack on October 7,...

One of four Canadians who returned home from a cruise ship where there was a hantavirus outbreak received a “presumptive positive” test result for the virus, Canadian officials said on Saturday. Results from the National Microbiology Lab in Winnipeg to confirm the case are expected to come over the weekend, said Bonnie Henry, the public health officer for the province of British Columbia. “Clearly this is not what we hoped for, but it is what we planned for,” Henry said. The person, one member...

A Rwandan suspect charged in connection with the 1994 genocide died in a hospital while in custody in The Hague, Netherlands, a UN court said on Saturday, three years after the court declared him unfit to continue standing trial. Felicien Kabuga, 91, was accused of encouraging and bankrolling the mass killing of Rwanda’s Tutsi minority. His trial began in 2022, nearly three decades after the 100-day massacre that left 800,000 dead. In 2023, the judges declared him unfit to continue standing...

A humpback whale that underwent a rescue operation in Germany two weeks ago after beaching itself there has been found dead near a Danish island, officials said on Saturday. “It can now be confirmed that the stranded humpback whale near Anholt is the same whale that was previously stranded in Germany and was the subject of rescue attempts,” said Jane Hansen, division head at the Danish Environmental Protection Agency. The whale, dubbed “Timmy” in German media, was initially spotted stuck on a...

⁠A man drove a car into a crowd in the northern Italian city of Modena, injuring at least eight people, four of whom are in serious condition, police said. The driver – a 30-year-old born ‌in Bergamo and of North African origin, who had moved to the province that includes Modena – attempted to flee after the car crashed into a shop window, Modena’s mayor told broadcaster RaiNews24. The fleeing driver was stopped by some pedestrians, one of whom he attacked with a knife and slightly ⁠injured. The...

Israel’s military on Saturday said it had killed the chief of Hamas’ military wing in an air strike on Gaza the previous day, the most senior Hamas official killed by Israel since ‌an October US-backed ceasefire agreement that was meant to halt fighting. A senior Hamas official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, confirmed Izz al-Din al-Haddad, who was born in 1970, was killed in the attack. Hamas Gaza spokesperson Hazem Qassem later said in a video statement published on Facebook that...

China and the United States have agreed to establish trade and investment councils, committing in principle to match each other’s tariff cuts on a reciprocal basis. “The two sides will use the Trade Council as a forum to discuss issues such as tariff reductions on specific products,” China’s Ministry of Commerce said in a statement on Saturday, without providing further details. The world’s two largest economies also made progress on agricultural trade and aircraft, the statement added. The two...

China’s purchase of “double-digit billions” in American agricultural products touted by US officials following President Donald Trump’s state visit to Beijing appears to be a marginal addition after factoring in previous commitments, analysts said, adding that new orders could reduce the country’s reliance on Brazil for soybeans and other items. US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said on ‌Friday that he expects to see China buy a 10-figure sum in agricultural products annually over the next...

At least 80 deaths have been reported in Congo’s new Ebola disease outbreak in the eastern Ituri province, authorities said, as health workers raced to intensify screening and contact tracing to contain the disease on Saturday. Officials first announced the outbreak on Friday, with 65 deaths and 246 suspected cases. In Ituri’s capital, Bunia, locals recounted their fears amid constant burials. “Every day, people are dying … and this has been going on for about a week. In a single day, we bury...

The former Secretary of Public Security for Mexico’s Sinaloa state appeared in a US court on Friday, days after his arrest in Arizona on charges he and other officials took bribes to help the Sinaloa Cartel smuggle vast quantities of drugs into the US. Gerardo Mérida Sánchez, 66, was not required to enter a plea during his initial appearance in federal court in Manhattan. He was ordered jailed but could request bail at a later date. He is due back in court on June 1. A message seeking comment...

Two major protests are taking place on Saturday in London, with the Metropolitan Police warning it may be one of its busiest days in recent years. Tens of thousands of people are expected to march for Unite the Kingdom, an event arranged by far-right activist Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, better known as Tommy Robinson, and the annual pro-Palestine Nakba Day march. London’s Metropolitan Police is drafting more than 4,000 officers to police the two events, a scale of operation it said was “unprecedented...

US and Nigerian forces killed a leader of Islamic State in Nigeria in a mission carried out on Friday, US President Donald Trump said. Trump announced the joint operation in Africa’s most populous country in a late-night social media post that offered few details. He said Abu Bakr al-Mainuki was second in command of Isis globally and “thought he could hide in Africa, but little did he know we had sources who kept us informed on what he was doing.” Al-Mainuki was viewed as a key figure in IS...

Czech police have arrested a man suspected of stealing an almost 800-year-old religious relic from a Catholic church and encasing it in concrete. According to a police spokeswoman on Friday, the suspect admitted taking the skull, which is revered by believers as a relic of Saint Zdislava of Lemberk, from the Church of St Lawrence in the northern Czech town of Jablonne v Podjestedi on Tuesday. Investigators used special equipment to confirm the skull was hidden inside a solid concrete block...

Clavicular, the “looksmaxxing” influencer and streamer whose real name is Braden Eric Peters, has reached a resolution in the misdemeanour case filed after a video posted online apparently showed him repeatedly shooting an alligator while on an airboat in the US Everglades. On March 26 in the Everglades and Francis S. Taylor Wildlife Management Area, Peters was among a group of men on an airboat that had stopped near an alligator that did not appear to be moving, according to videos posted on...

Google’s YouTube and Snap reached agreements to settle the first lawsuit headed to trial over claims that addiction to top social media platforms has disrupted learning and pushed public schools to spend massive sums fighting a mental health crisis, according to court filings. TikTok and Meta Platforms were also sued by the rural Kentucky school district that brought the case, which is set to go to trial on June 12 in federal court in Oakland, California. The trial will serve as a test case for...

US President Donald Trump’s landmark visit to China comes as the US-Iran war disrupts global energy supplies, fuels economic uncertainty and adds fresh strain to Washington-Beijing ties. In the latest instalment of a series examining how rivalry, interdependence and geopolitical crises are reshaping the relationship between the two powers, we explore the massive upswing in capital expenditures across Asia that is driving a broad shift in economic power. When US President Donald Trump made his...

Hollywood star John Travolta was given a surprise lifetime achievement award at the Cannes Film Festival Friday as he premiered the first movie he has ever directed. The man who became an icon overnight with Saturday Night Fever was visibly moved as he accepted the honorary Palme d’Or before the screening of Propeller One-Way Night Coach, which is based on a book about his first experience in an airliner. “I just can’t believe it. This is beyond the Oscar, really,” he said as he accepted the...

What comes to mind when you think of China, Japan and South Korea? This was a question posed in a second-year sociology seminar during my time at Bristol, and it has stayed with me ever since. We were split into three groups and given 10 minutes to create posters capturing our immediate associations. Japan came first. Sketches of anime, sushi platters and temples appeared. My classmates spoke with enthusiasm, drawing on travel memories or aspirations to visit. A country that, less than a century...

Our chief theater critic looks at this year’s nominees and makes some predictions (and recommendations).

The composer Cinco Paul discusses the clever references to classic musicals everywhere you look (and hear) in his new Broadway show.

The fate of Ken Paxton, the conservative Texas firebrand, could decide whether Republicans keep control of the Senate.

Greenlandic officials worry about the direction of the negotiations aimed at defusing President Trump’s threats to seize their island. But they have little leverage.

President Trump’s open willingness to hold up a $14 billion Taiwan arms package is a win for Beijing. Now China could be weighing how to keep the weapons on ice for as long as it can.

The humanitarian relief system, decimated by cuts, faces a grave challenge as the Middle East war causes soaring costs for food, fuel and fertilizer.

New research sheds light on how mediocre employees help would-be authoritarians maintain power.

The president has sought to force Iran to accept his terms on its nuclear program or else face renewed war. An emboldened Iran has rebuffed Trump’s demands.

The latest war in the Middle East has created new economic opportunities for Syria thanks to its geography.

The ruling was a partial victory for prosecutors in the murder trial of Luigi Mangione. A state judge ruled that some other material and statements could not be used.

The World Health Organization declared a global health emergency after about 80 people died from the virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

A small number of U.S. citizens have been directly affected by the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, the C.D.C. said on Sunday.

A firebrand governor aims to transform his region into a laboratory for the Kremlin’s reactionary ideals.

Yana Lantratova was instrumental in helping the chairman of her party to illegally adopt an infant girl from Russian-occupied Ukraine, the Ukrainian authorities say.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani said that the store will open in the Hunts Point neighborhood next year. Some merchants are pushing back.

The war has revealed the true puniness of Trump’s power

We look at what happens when countries say they’re going to stop shooting at each other.

Gautam Adani had been accused of lying to American investors about payoffs in India. The end of the case came as President Trump has signaled a transactional approach to justice.

Video shared on social media showed the jets striking each other and spinning toward the ground. Four crew members safely ejected before the planes crashed, officials said.

Ahead of the World Cup, the head of South American soccer faces an ethics complaint he received payments recovered from a 2015 investigation that shook global soccer.

Doctor’s visits for children’s anxiety rose by more than 250 percent over 10 years, according to a study of nearly two million children.