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Politics
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Triple-double king Russell Westbrook calls time on 18-year NBA career
2017 MVP announces retirement after 18 seasons Westbrook holds NBA record with 209 triple-doubles Guard spent first 11 seasons with Oklahoma City Russell Westbrook, the NBA’s career leader in triple-doubles and the 2017 MVP, announced Wednesday he’s retiring after 18 seasons during which he was selected to the league’s 75th anniversary team. The two-time scoring champion shared his decision on social media in a post featuring a video narrated by actor Michael B Jordan in which the Westbrook stays silent. Continue reading...
Nick Reiner indicted for murders of parents Rob and Michele Reiner
Reiner, 32, charged with first-degree murder in deaths of Hollywood towering figures Rob Reiner and Michele Reiner A grand jury has indicted Nick Reiner with first-degree murder in the deaths of his parents, the renowned director and actor Rob Reiner and photographer Michele Singer Reiner, the Los Angeles county district attorney’s office announced on Wednesday. Prosecutors accuse Reiner, 32, of stabbing the couple to death in December in their Brentwood home, before fleeing the scene. He was arrested shortly after and charged with murder. Reiner has since been held in custody without bail. Continue reading...
Cruise ships, quiet towns and an all-day festival: millions flock to eclipse viewing spots across Europe
Beginning in Russia’s remote Arctic north, the eclipse traced an arc over much of western Europe – with the best views in Spain, Iceland and Greenland It was a moment of awe shared by millions across Europe: an eclipse that blocked out the sun, plunging parts of the continent into a daytime darkness in which temperatures dropped and birds suddenly went quiet. Wednesday’s eclipse began in Russia’s remote Arctic north, going on to trace an arc over much of western Europe. From the UK to northern Italy, tens of millions of people turned to the sky as the light of the setting sun was almost completley blocked out. Continue reading...
‘A magical eeriness’: Cornwall comes together for communal moment during solar eclipse
People came from far and wide to witness phenomenon that has thrilled humans for thousands of years At 6pm the beach and village began to empty, and those in the know headed up the hill towards the old granite coastguard station on the headland. “This is the best spot,” said Sennen Cove resident Lisa Redfern, who had built a pinhole camera for the eclipse out of an old Ryvita Thins box. Continue reading...
Karoline Leavitt will step down as White House press secretary, Trump says
US president announced departure on social media, saying Leavitt was leaving to ‘spend more time’ with family Karoline Leavitt will step down as White House press secretary at the end of August, Donald Trump announced. The US president announced her departure on social media, saying Leavitt was leaving “so she can spend more time” with her family. She gave birth to a daughter, Viviana, in May, and returned from maternity leave last month. Continue reading...
Trump’s justice department arrests expert on far right as part of SPLC crackdown
Prosecutors charge Heidi Beirich with financial crimes as part of case against the Southern Poverty Law Center The justice department on Wednesday arrested a leading expert on far-right extremism, charging her with financial crimes as part of the government’s ongoing case against the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). Federal prosecutors charged Heidi Beirich, who formerly served as the group’s chief financial officer, with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to submit false statements to a federally insured bank and conspiracy to commit concealment money laundering. Continue reading...
Former Mexican governor charged in case of 43 students who vanished in 2014
Ángel Aguirre indicted in case that rocked Mexico and became symbol of its brutal cartel violence The former governor of Guerrero state in Mexico has been formally charged over his alleged involvement in the disappearance of 43 students in 2014, a case that has become a symbol of the country’s brutal cartel violence and government impunity. Ángel Aguirre, who was arrested last week , is accused of forced disappearance and obstruction of justice for ordering the destruction of surveillance tapes that may have shed light on what happened to the students from the Ayotzinapa teacher training college on the night of 26 September 2014. Continue reading...
Broadcasters to be barred from Eurovision song contest if state involved in ‘armed conflict’
Organisers says new rule will ensure contest provides ‘safe and welcoming environment’ for participants Broadcasters will no longer be eligible to host the Eurovision song contest if their state is involved in an “armed conflict” or “sensitive geopolitical situation”. Eurovision is traditionally hosted by the previous year’s winning broadcaster, with the next show due to take place in Bulgaria in 2027 after singer Dara’s victory for the country in May. Continue reading...
Trump administration pulls support for annual Arctic environmental report
Move by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is latest government rollback of climate science activity The Trump administration has pulled its support for an annual report on the environmental changes across the Arctic, a region that is already heating up four times faster than the global average due to the climate crisis. On Tuesday, Kim Doster, the communications director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa), said the federal agency was withdrawing its support for the Arctic Report Card, which has provided environmental updates on the region to scientists and the public since 2006. Continue reading...
Ella Baron on Nigel Farage and the Clacton byelection – cartoon
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Ex-Myanmar ambassador to UK on trial for trespassing in diplomatic residence
Kyaw Zwar Minn was ousted for declaring loyalty to Aung San Suu Kyi after 2021 coup but refused to leave his home Myanmar’s ousted ambassador to the UK has gone on trial on trespassing charges for refusing to leave a diplomatic residence after being unceremoniously locked out of the embassy in 2021 . Shortly after Myanmar’s military seized power in 2021, triggering mass protests that spiralled into a civil war, Kyaw Zwar Minn was locked out of the embassy for declaring his loyalty to the deposed civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Continue reading...
Greenland forces Trump-linked US oil firm to delay drilling
Move defies US envoy’s claim that Americans could be extracting crude by as early as next year The Greenland authorities have forced a US oil company connected to Donald Trump to postpone drilling wells in the Arctic territory, defying claims by the US president’s envoy that Americans could be extracting crude by next year. Amid Trump’s imperialist threats, tensions have been rising on Greenland’s eastern coast after the oil company brought drilling equipment ashore in July without permission, drawing a “strong warning” from the government. Continue reading...
What can we learn from Francesca Hong’s loss in Wisconsin? | Ben Davis
A fairly overtly radical socialist winning around 40% in a primary like this was unthinkable even a few years ago The left’s insurgency against the Democratic party establishment has hit its first serious bump in the road in Wisconsin. Democratic socialist Francesca Hong entered Tuesday up by big margins in the polls, the huge betting favorite. She left it just a few thousand votes short of the Democratic nomination. What happened, and how, offers extremely important lessons for both the left and the Democratic establishment. The first is that the party still matters. Its institutions and leaders matter. We saw that power in Democratic primaries in 2020. After Bernie Sanders won the Nevada caucuses and emerged as the frontrunner, party leaders rapidly consolidated around Joe Biden. Ben Davis works in political data in Washington DC. He worked on the data team for the Bernie Sanders 2020 campaign and is an active member of the Democratic Socialists of America Continue reading...
Judge awards $252,480 to musician who canceled Kennedy Center performance
Kennedy Center had sued Chuck Redd for canceling Christmas Eve concert after Trump renamed institution A superior court judge in Washington DC has ordered the Kennedy Center to pay more than $250,000 to a musician who canceled a performance at the arts center after the White House announced that Donald Trump’s name would be added to the venue. Judge Tanya Jones Bosier ordered the Kennedy Center on Monday to pay $252,479.70 in legal fees and costs to attorneys for musician Chuck Redd within 45 days. Continue reading...
Perez Hilton’s mother files for temporary custody of his three children
Celebrity blogger was hospitalized for a mental health crisis after he harmed himself during live stream The mother of celebrity blogger Perez Hilton is seeking temporary custody of his three children after he was hospitalized during a mental health crisis at his south Florida home last week. Court documents filed in Miami-Dade county and seen by multiple news outlets, including Miami’s NBC 6 , show the request for custody was made by 48-year-old Hilton’s mother. Continue reading...
The Guardian view on Japan’s yen: Trump wants to keep the easy-money machine running | Editorial
A cheap currency helps finance the US tech boom. Washington is intervening because allies matter only when they are useful Japan’s yen has slid back towards 160 to the dollar, despite last month’s extraordinary US-Japanese intervention. Traders are betting that its role as a cheap funding pipeline for global finance will continue. Earlier this month the Trump administration stepped in to help Tokyo stabilise its currency. “Japan’s been very good to us, with the exception, of course, of Pearl Harbor,” Donald Trump explained . More help is likely to be on its way. But this is less a rescue of the yen than an attempt by Scott Bessent, the US treasury secretary, to preserve a cash spigot that benefits the US. Japan’s ultra-cheap money has become a global funding utility: bankers borrow yen, sell them for dollars and buy higher-returning US assets, notably tech shares. Rising American stock markets support collateral and investment. Japan’s “carry trade” is one of the reasons Wall Street can lever hundreds of billions into AI. Research suggests AI sucks up more than 1% of US GDP. Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here . Continue reading...
Trump sued over $100,000-a-month early-access offer to Truth Social posts
Suit alleges subscription offer aims to sell privileged access to information generated in president’s official capacity Donald Trump has been sued after a subscription service charging up to $100,000 a month for early access to his posts on his Truth Social platform sparked allegations of corruption. The lawsuit, filed in the US district court for the southern district of New York , was brought by the Intercept and the Freedom of the Press Foundation against Trump, two of his aides and the executive office of the president. Continue reading...
Politicians among mourners gathered for funeral service of Ann Widdecombe
Family, friends and colleagues attend service at Buckfast Abbey in Buckfastleigh, which former MP described as her ‘safe haven’ Around 100 family, friends and colleagues have attended the funeral service of the former Conservative minister Ann Widdecombe, who was killed in her home in Devon last month. Politicians and broadcasters were among the mourners at Buckfast Abbey in Buckfastleigh, a Catholic abbey where Widdecombe regularly worshipped, and which she described as her “safe haven”. Continue reading...
Trump officials again urge US supreme court intervention on mail ballots
Justice department asks justices to pause decision that blocked Trump’s order to tighten voting by mail rules Donald Trump ’s administration again asked the US supreme court on Wednesday to intervene to fully implement the president’s executive order restricting the use of mail-in ballots ahead of the November midterm elections that will decide control of US Congress. The US Department of Justice filed a request asking the justices to put on hold a decision made on Tuesday by US district judge Indira Talwani in Boston that blocks the US Postal Service from nationwide enforcement of the directive’s tighter rules for voting by mail. Continue reading...
Honk if your barn is burning: pet goose alerts sleeping Texas family to blaze
Family ‘extremely grateful’ to four-month-old ‘Goosey’ who ran out of fire-billowing building and repeatedly squawked A pet goose is being credited with helping save a Texas family’s animals after sounding a honking alarm as a fire tore through their barn. The dramatic moment unfolded on the morning of 4 August in Fort Bend county, where four-month-old Goosey repeatedly squawked outside the burning barn, alerting his owners, the Gerber family, to the danger. Continue reading...
Unexpected hearing scheduled for Luigi Mangione sparks plea deal speculation
Rumors of plea deal in federal case have been circulating since June for suspect accused of killing Brian Thompson An unexpected hearing in the federal stalking case against Luigi Mangione has been scheduled, leading to speculation that the alleged United Healthcare CEO assassin was seeking a plea deal that would in turn end a murder prosecution in New York state court beginning next month. Prosecutors and Mangione’s lawyers filed a joint letter requesting the hearing at 11am on Friday in Manhattan federal court. Continue reading...
Tennessee set to execute man despite botched attempt on another prisoner
Darrell Hines’s lawyers ask supreme court to intervene, arguing he could face fate similar to failed execution in May Tennessee is scheduled to execute a man this week despite bipartisan backlash after the state botched its previous lethal injection, which dragged on for more than an hour before it was canceled. Darrell Hines, who was convicted of the 1985 murder of Catherine Jean Jackson Jenkins, a motel maid and mother of four, is due to be put to death on Thursday. Continue reading...
WhatsApp ‘drops’, price hikes and queues in scramble for solar eclipse specs
Amid doubling prices and fraying tempers, shoppers hunt for elusive eyewear to prepare for rare eclipse of sun • Europe solar eclipse – latest updates A secretive WhatsApp group was pinging with notifications throughout Wednesday, letting its members know where in London the latest “drop” would take place. The group’s focus, rather than being for an illicit substance, was for the much coveted eclipse glasses, which have prompted a frantic rush on shops before the celestial event. Continue reading...
Patriot Games: Trump’s ‘freedom finale’ to celebrate 250 is … a school sports day
‘Outstanding young Americans’ came together to catch a tennis ball for freedom The Patriot Games, held this week in Ohio, was intended to be a “national athletic competition celebrating the character, determination, and excellence that define the American spirit”, according to a press release. The competition, which organizers insisted would be nothing like the Hunger Games, was to bring together “outstanding young Americans” from across the country, “to compete, inspire, and showcase the values that have shaped the United States for nearly 250 years”. ESPN, hosting the games, said it would “test excellence in skillsets of beloved American sports”. Continue reading...