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US Senate passes Russia sanctions bill championed by Lindsey Graham
Late senator spent final days of his life working to advance bill that will now head to the House after 86-11 Senate vote By a large, bipartisan margin, the US Senate on Friday approved a bill intended to punish Russia and countries that buy its petroleum exports over the invasion of Ukraine, capping a legislative push that was spurred by the death of its champion, the Republican senator Lindsey Graham. The measure, renamed the Lindsey O Graham Sanctioning Russia Act in honor of the late senator’s work on the issue, was approved by an 86-11 vote. Continue reading...
Fenech was ‘preparing champagne’ to celebrate Caruana Galizia murder, court hears
A taxi driver says he acted as middleman between the Maltese businessman and three men already convicted of carrying out the €150,000 contract killing The businessman accused of paying for hitmen to murder journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia was impatient for the killing to take place, and once texted from his boat to say he was “preparing champagne” to celebrate, a jury in Malta has heard. Yorgen Fenech , the 44-year-old heir to a property empire that includes several Hilton hotels, is on trial in Malta for complicity in the murder of Caruana Galizia. She died in a car bombing in October 2017 after publishing a series of revelations about senior politicians that were so damaging they triggered a snap general election. Continue reading...
On the Nomination PN961-1 and PN937-5 and PN901-1 and PN730-38 and PN962-3 and PN931-6 and PN1022-25 and PN806-5 and PN1022-10 and PN1012 and PN931-5 and PN931-4 and PN937-2 and PN1022-22 and PN962-1 and PN961-4 and PN901-3 and PN806-7 and PN730-23 and PN1022-7 and PN1022-6 and PN961-3 and PN937-9 and PN937-8 and PN937-7 and PN1022-34 and PN1022-31 and PN1022-15 and PN1022-9 and PN1022-8 and PN1022-3 and PN961-9 and PN931-2 and PN1093-2 and PN1093-1 and PN1011 and PN961-2 and PN930-8 and PN930-6 and PN930-5 and PN930-1 and PN901-12 and PN901-2 and PN850 and PN787-2 and PN730-18 and PN730-2 and PN933 and PN852-3 and PN806-2 and PN961-7 and PN901-7 and PN901-6 and PN792 and PN786-10 and PN931-3 and PN730-59 and PN786-5 and PN937-1 and PN901-11 and PN859-5 and PN730-36 and PN901-5 and PN859-2 and PN859-1 and PN901-10 and PN852-11 and PN852-9 and PN859-6 and PN852-6 and PN852-5 and PN852-2 and PN806-9 and PN730-11: John Breslow, of Arizona, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Cyprus
Vote: Nomination Confirmed 51/47 Sen. Duckworth [D-IL]: Nay Sen. Durbin [D-IL]: Nay
A ‘Keminaissance’ for the Tories is wishful thinking – Badenoch’s Reform-lite summer will only end one way | Jonathan Freedland
Hiring a convicted antisemite as an adviser; rabble rousing at a time of violent unrest. She is still in a race to the bottom and making too many mistakes The Keminaissance will be delayed. For nearly a year, Conservative optimists and a clutch of supportive pundits have been forecasting an upturn in the fortunes of Kemi Badenoch, confident that her party will emerge from the crater it fell into in 2024, overtake Reform UK to become once again the main party of the right and, who knows, maybe, with a following wind, even push Labour aside and return to government. Every sign of strength from the Tory leader – a robust conference speech here, a viral clip on social media there – has been hailed as evidence of the coming Keminaissance. On the evidence of the past week or so, we will have to wait a little longer. It’s quite true that Badenoch’s personal ratings are better than those of her party. True, too, that she ended a long losing streak when the Tories won a Westminster seat at the Aberdeen South byelection in June. But there is a more recent election result that should temper the boosters’ enthusiasm, along with a series of decisions that confirm that, when it comes to both strategy and judgment, Badenoch is badly lacking. Jonathan Freedland is a Guardian columnist 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...
Cambridge academics reject university’s attempt to end row over Jason Arday
Group calls for ‘thorough and transparent investigation’ of hiring of professor who resigned after his claims came under scrutiny The University of Cambridge has announced a review into the way it vets and hires senior academic staff in an effort to fend off external and internal criticism of its appointment of Jason Arday as a professor. But a group of Cambridge academics quickly rejected the university’s response, saying: “We strongly believe that a thorough and transparent investigation into the wider circumstances of this damaging episode is essential.” Continue reading...
It must be tricky for Nige to remember what’s what. It’s so hideously complicated | John Crace
I can’t pass up the moment the Reform leader celebrates his byelection victory against a man with a dustbin on his head You would have thought that after 35 years of writing for the Guardian I would have mastered some of the basics of holiday protocol by now. Apparently not. So while I had remembered to let the newsdesk know that I wouldn’t be writing the political sketch for two weeks, it had completely slipped my mind to inform the Saturday editor. So rather than leave her with the headache of an empty page, you’re getting an extra dose of me this week. And, in truth, I don’t mind because, for what is a usually empty August, there’s an awful lot still going on. I’ve even told the newsdesk that I’d like to write next Friday as I can’t pass up the moment Nigel Farage celebrates his byelection victory against the "establishment”, aka a comedian with a dustbin on his head. This summer has been quite the reckoning for Reform. First some excellent investigative reporting from the Guardian and the Sunday Times followed by even some of their most loyal followers in the Spectator and the Telegraph beginning to turn on them. We will know the game is up when GB News begins to have doubts about Nige. It can only be a matter of time. Continue reading...
H.R. 5334: SEED Act
Vote: Bill Passed 86/11 Sen. Duckworth [D-IL]: Yea Sen. Durbin [D-IL]: Yea
Mike Lindell faces legal complaint over pillow giveaway amid run for Minnesota governor
Judge finds probable cause to believe the MyPillow founder violated campaign law by handing out free pillows at event An administrative law judge in Minnesota has found probable cause to believe Mike Lindell, candidate for Minnesota governor and the MyPillow founder, violated campaign finance law by handing out free pillows at a public event last month. In a four-page ruling issued on Thursday, Judge Nicholas Lienesch found that a complaint against Lindell had enough to move on to an evidentiary hearing in front of a three-judge administrative panel. Continue reading...
S.Amdt. 6715 (Paul) to H.R. 5334
Vote: Amendment Rejected 32/64 Sen. Duckworth [D-IL]: Nay Sen. Durbin [D-IL]: Nay
Kemi Badenoch’s weird week: defence of ex-neo-Nazi raises questions over Tory direction
Some in party are delighted by leader’s tack rightwards but opponents have savoured latest Conservative controversy There was a moment in the middle of this week when a news alert raised eyebrows among the politically committed. It read: “Kemi Badenoch: Former neo-Nazi candidate would just be sorting out bins.” It was a collection of words that might prompt palpitations in the most sanguine of communications professionals, followed by panicked advice that retreat was necessary. But as a deeply weird week for the Conservative party came to a close on Friday, its leader appeared adamant she would hold the line. With Badenoch accused of aping Reform UK on policy and purging centrists from her party in recent weeks, her decision to stand by a man who was jailed after creating sexualised images of a Jewish MP and calling her a “rodent” has prompted concerns about the leader of the opposition’s political antennae and the Tories’ wider strategy. Continue reading...
ICE will not reveal body-camera footage unless in agency’s ‘best interests’
Much-delayed devices to be deployed by end of month after immigration agents involved in deaths or serious injuries Officers for Immigration and Customs Enforcement ( ICE ) will be equipped with much-delayed body cameras by the end of next month, it was reported on Friday. But experts have questioned the transparency of a policy that allows the ICE director to restrict the public release of footage unless “it is in the best interests of the agency”. Pressure has mounted on the Trump administration to provide body cameras after people caught up in encounters with federal immigration personnel suffered death or serious injuries. Continue reading...
With a little bravery and these big swings, AFLW can enjoy more magical crowd moments | Sarah Guiney
The AFL could borrow some of the gumption from a North American ice hockey league to grow Australian rules football’s elite women’s competition In Australia, it is called the Matildas effect. Elsewhere, it has increasingly become known by a different name: business as usual. The Professional Women’s Hockey League is one of several North American competitions making a habit of not only attracting spectacular women’s sports crowds, but doing so at a domestic level. Just three years into its existence, the ice hockey league is doing a mighty fine job of it too, with last season’s attendance up 71% on their inaugural campaign. Continue reading...
Russia-linked accounts spread far-right narrative online during Ceuta migration crisis, analysis finds
Counter-disinformation group says social media channels connected to Pravda network helped amplify message Accounts with links to the Russian military promoting far-right messages reached more than 500,000 people in the early days of the Ceuta migration crisis , according to an analysis done by 411, a counter-disinformation group. Russia-linked social media accounts frequently spread destabilising narratives in Europe, often promoting far-right talking points about immigration. Continue reading...
Tate brothers’ lawyers urge US judge to release the two from Miami jail on bail
Andrew and Tristan Tate remain in jail as they fight extradition to UK to face charges of rape, assault and more Lawyers for Andrew and Tristan Tate urged a US judge on Friday to release the brothers from a Miami jail as they fight the British government’s efforts to extradite them to face charges of rape, assault and facilitating trafficking for sexual exploitation. In a filing in Miami federal court, the Tate brothers’ lawyers said their “extraordinary public visibility” would make it impractical for them to try to flee, meaning there was no need to keep them behind bars until the extradition proceedings end. Continue reading...
Simon Levy murders: has anything changed in policing since Sarah Everard’s killing?
Experts say the attackers’ behaviour, and the handling of their cases, have striking similarities About 40 metres off Tottenham High Street, up a slip road for deliveries to a B&M homewares store, is a stretch of concrete paving behind a 2-metre wall topped with spikes. This is the patch of ground that Simon Levy tried to turn into his personal killing field. Continue reading...
Police and prosecution errors left proven sex offender free to murder two women in London
Delays to sexual assault charges and failures to report past convictions in court hearings gave Simon Levy chance to attack more women Catastrophic errors left a prolific and proven sex offender free before he murdered two women in London, it can be revealed. On Friday an Old Bailey jury found Simon Levy, 40, guilty of murdering Carmenza Valencia-Trujillo in March 2025 and Sheryl Wilkins five months later. The CPS admitted errors at three court hearings in May, June and August 2025, which ended in Levy remaining free. It would not specify publicly what those were, but a source authorised to speak for the organisation said they included failing to mention he had been arrested for Valencia-Trujillo’s murder, and that it could find no record or mention of Levy’s past sexual assault convictions, nor that he was a suspect in a 2024 rape. The CPS said: “We accept there was relevant information regarding bail that was not provided to the court when bail applications were being considered. Our actions fell short of the standards that victims, families and the public are entitled to expect … We could and should have taken a more robust approach to representations about bail.” By May 2025, police wanted Levy remanded, fearing he posed a “high risk of reoffending” with his crimes “escalating”. Levy failed to attend three crown court hearings for the train attacks, and the CPS accepts there is no evidence of a warrant being sought for his detention. For two he claimed illness, for the other that he was not informed. His final non-appearance in crown court was on 11 August 2025. A fortnight later he murdered Wilkins. A CPS source said individuals involved in the Levy case had been disciplined. The assaults on the London tube network and trains were investigated by BTP. Officers arrested Levy, who was travelling on a stolen Oyster travel card, but handed it back to him, unaware it was stolen. With it he travelled to south London to commit his first murder, and carried out further sexual assaults on trains. BTP admitted the charging of Levy for his sexual assaults on trains in November 2024 was held up because of a delay in holding an identification parade after his arrest. It meant his bail was extended and during this delay he attacked and raped another woman and murdered Valencia-Trujillo, a mother of two. BTP identified him as a suspect and charged him but never searched his home. Peter Fulton, BTP’s head of crime, said: “There’s a fine line between going fishing and breaching someone’s human rights.” He said that every woman who reported Levy for attacking them on a train saw him charged and convicted. When the Met, which investigated the murders, searched Levy’s home, evidence was found about his attack on the prison officer. The police watchdog has placed two Met officers under investigation over whether Levy was supervised correctly as a person on the sex offender register. A constable is under investigation for gross misconduct, meaning he could be dismissed. The other officer, under investigation for misconduct, is a detective sergeant. BTP said it had not referred its errors to the police watchdog. Instead it has moved one officer, who it says delayed the holding of the ID parade, out of investigations, and given a supervisor words of advice. Continue reading...
‘Not afraid of controversy’: Edinburgh fringe rejects calls to cancel Amanda Knox comedy
Festival organisers defend show after criticism from sister of Meredith Kercher, Knox’s murdered former flatmate The Edinburgh festival fringe said it was “not afraid of controversy” after calls to cancel a sold-out show by Amanda Knox , who was falsely imprisoned for the 2007 murder of her flatmate Meredith Kercher in Italy. Knox’s comedy show, Cartwheel, has been condemned by Kercher’s family, with her sister, Stephanie, saying it “normalises and trivialises violence against women”. A petition calling for it to be cancelled has been signed by more than 6,000 people. Continue reading...
‘It didn’t need to end this way’: mother of US teen trafficked and killed decries police failures
Robyn Cory says daughter Kristen was not protected, amid questions about why it took six years to identify remains The family of Kristen Galvan, a 15-year-old Houston girl who was sex trafficked and murdered, says law enforcement failed her twice by not protecting her after she gave forensic interviews about her traffickers, and later by taking more than six years to identify her remains. The Texas attorney general’s office announced on 28 July that Kristen’s remains had been positively identified using advanced DNA testing conducted over the past year. Parts of her skull, clothing and an earring were found beneath a bridge beside a jogging trail in Missouri City, about 10 miles outside Houston. Continue reading...
US airfares expected to stay high even if Iran ceasefire drops oil prices, experts say
Domestic flights cost 26.5% more than last year, data shows, amid demand for travel and reduced oil refining capacity Even if a lasting ceasefire between the US and Iran lowers oil prices , travelers hoping to snag cheaper airfare should buckle their seatbelts and expect continued turbulence . US domestic airfares are 26.5% higher than a year ago, according to June’s consumer price index data, and analysts say prices globally are up 25-30% compared with 2025. Continue reading...
US lost 23,000 jobs in July as slump in growth continues amid Middle East conflict
Estimates for previous two months were revised down sharply but unemployment rate held steady at 4.1% Business live – latest updates US employers unexpectedly lost 23,000 jobs in July and job gains for the previous two months were revised down sharply, as the summer slump in job growth continued amid ongoing conflict in the Middle East. The unemployment rate, however, held steady at 4.1%. Economists had projected an unchanged unemployment rate and 83,000 new jobs for the month. Continue reading...
Scramble to house hundreds camping in Rome heatwave after squat eviction
Officials try to find homes for residents as talks to save social assistance hub collapse amid government crackdown Rome authorities are scrambling to find homes for hundreds of people sleeping in tents in extreme heat after talks aimed at saving Italy’s most high-profile centre for housing and social assistance collapsed amid a crackdown by Giorgia Meloni’s government on squatted buildings. The approximately 400 evicted residents of Spin Time Labs, located in a 10-floor building in Rome’s Esquilino district occupied by grassroots groups since 2013, will not be allowed to move back in after its private owner refused Rome council’s offer to buy the property. The residents were forced out at the end of last month. Continue reading...
First Thing: Soaring oil profits from US-Iran conflict drive calls for windfall tax
Environmentalists and activists furious as Trump’s policies raise costs for US families. Plus, the undiscovered masterpiece that was left lying in museum storage Good morning. Donald Trump’s statement that oil companies have made “too much money” from the Iran war has angered environmentalists , who say his policies were designed to benefit those very corporations. American families have paid more than $78bn more at the pump since the start of the Iran war, according to a Brown University tracker. And a recent analysis from the environmental advocacy group Climate Power and the Center for American Progress Action Fund, a liberal thinktank, found that Trump’s policies had cost the average American family $285 more when filling up their cars. What policies has Trump enacted to help the oil industry? Since re-entering the White House last year, he has eased dozens of restrictions and regulations on fossil fuel expansion, exempted fossil fuel producers from environmental rules, and signed an executive order last year directing the attorney general to prioritize blocking climate lawsuits targeting oil majors. Trump has also personally invested in major oil companies. What did the supreme court previously rule? In the court’s June decision, the chief justice, John Roberts, said Trump’s first order violated the 14th amendment of the US constitution. “Citizenship, then and now, was the right to have rights – to freely participate in our political community,” he wrote. “The framers of the 14th amendment extended that promise to ‘every free-born person in this land’. We keep that promise today.” Continue reading...
William Orbit, pop producer for Madonna, All Saints and more, dies aged 69
Musician’s projects included Madonna’s Ray of Light, Blur’s 13 and All Saints’ chart-topping singles Pure Shores and Black Coffee William Orbit, the British music producer whose dreamy yet propulsive style invigorated work by Madonna, Blur, All Saints, U2 and more, has died aged 69. A statement on his social media, attributed to family and friends, said he died at home on 23 July. “He will be greatly missed by us and by so many whose lives he touched through his music, friendship and kindness,” the statement read. No cause of death was given. Continue reading...
Murkowski won’t vote for Trump’s nomination of Blanche as attorney general
Alaska Republican is concerned that proposed fund to compensate January 6 rioters will proceed even though Blanche confirmed it was dead US politics live – latest updates Lisa Murkowski, Alaska’s moderate Republican senator, announced early on Friday that she will not vote for Donald Trump’s nomination of Todd Blanche as US attorney general, leaving his elevation from “acting” to official confirmation in the post even narrower. Murkowski issued a statement expressing her concerns that the Trump administration could proceed with its proposed fund to compensate rioters who invaded the US Capitol on January 6 in a failed attempt to overturn Joe Biden’s defeat of Trump in the 2020 presidential election. Continue reading...