Politics — Pete

The Guardian — US News Jul 9 · 4 min read

World Cup 2026: France v Morocco quarter-final buildup, Collina defends refereeing – live

⚽ All the latest as we look ahead to the quarter-finals ⚽ Player guide | Bracketology | Golden Boot | Email us Fifa refereeing chief Pierluigi Collina defended the officiating in Argentina’s 3-2 victory over Egypt in the World Cup ⁠round of 16, dismissing allegations of bias and saying match officials operated with complete independence. In an interview published on inside.fifa.com on Thursday, Collina said criticism ⁠of referees was part ⁠of football but he condemned the questioning of the officials’ integrity after Egypt complained about the officiating following the defeat. Continue reading...

The Guardian — World Jul 9 · 2 min read

Trump says Iran truce is ‘over’ as US hits 170 targets over two nights – Middle East crisis live

Interim truce looks increasingly precarious as Iran carried out retaliatory strikes on US bases in Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar Hello and welcome to the Guardian’s coverage of the continuing crisis in the Middle East. Iran was pummelled with a volley of missiles for a second consecutive night, with the US military claiming to have struck 170 Iranian targets in the last 48 hours. Continue reading...

The Guardian — Politics Jul 9 · 6 min read

Britain’s dysfunctional dynamic: the public wants change, but those in power always tell them it’s not possible | Andy Beckett

Whenever major reform is proposed the media, big business and Westminster quickly conclude it’s too expensive and disruptive. This doesn’t bode well for Andy Burnham In an old, often anxious and conservative country, the perception of risk is a potent political weapon. If a policy or a project for reforming the UK seems too risky, or can be made to seem so by its opponents, then it can usually be quickly killed off. It can be added to the pile of possible futures that never occurred. In politics as in life, riskiness is sometimes real. To see that Brexit or Britain’s involvement in the 2003 invasion of Iraq might not end well did not require huge foresight. Yet often the perception of risk is politically constructed: a reflection of powerful forces, their self-interest, and what they do or don’t want to happen. Andy Beckett is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

The Guardian — World Jul 9 · 5 min read

As the Telstra crisis unfolded, the Coalition fell victim to another communications failure

He should be upping pressure on the government over the second major telco breakdown in 12 months, but Angus Taylor can’t stop scoring own goals Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast As the government was being questioned over the regulation of telcos and the latest massive Telstra outage, the opposition leader, Angus Taylor, was being asked about communications failures of a different kind: his own, and those of his ministerial team. Millions of phone connections around the country went out for hours on Wednesday. Trains ground to a halt, Eftpos transactions went blank, hundreds of triple zero calls failed and welfare checks were being urgently carried out. The bulk of the fault lies with Telstra. But there are important questions to answer about whether the critical telecommunications sector is being appropriately regulated, and whether the government has learned from last year’s devastating Optus outage and made the necessary changes. Continue reading...

The Guardian — World Jul 9 · 5 min read

Goodbye frump, hello TikTok: M&S to celebrate 100 years with London fashion week show

Reputation for frumpiness is over as M&S wins over younger audience with shows at Silverstone, Ibiza and now LFW This autumn’s London fashion week boasts plenty of familiar labels, from Burberry to Alexander McQueen, ready to show off their wares. But on Wednesday there was an unexpected addition: Marks & Spencer is joining the luxury lineup. The British high-street retailer will celebrate its 100th anniversary in the fashion industry by staging a catwalk show in September highlighting its latest women’s and menswear collections. Continue reading...

The Guardian — World Jul 9 · 7 min read

‘They said: wear angelic white’: British women who accused US airman of rape tell of American military trial

Two women who alleged they were raped by Tyrion Davis in Suffolk had to testify at an invasive court martial on a US base Minutes after fleeing the home of an American airman, Rebecca called 999 in tears to report that he had raped her. She recalls vomiting at a police station in Suffolk as she described being repeatedly and violently attacked. Officers took her to a sexual assault referral centre for an intimate examination. There, a nurse measured and photographed her injuries, including bruises and bite marks on her neck. Continue reading...

The Guardian — World Jul 9 · 4 min read

No evidence for ‘witches’ marks’ claims at old English buildings, historian says

Author argues symbols such as daisy wheels are no more than the working marks of stonemasons Over the years, English Heritage and Historic England have claimed to have identified large numbers of “witches’ marks” or “ritual protection symbols” on the walls of historic buildings, including medieval churches and houses. Now a leading architectural historian has said there is “absolutely no evidence” that these marks have anything to do with witches or any “mystical meanings”. Continue reading...

The Guardian — World Jul 9 · 3 min read

Modi and Albanese to ink major uranium deal as Indian leader’s visit expected to draw 30,000-strong crowd

Ahead of Modi’s Marvel Stadium event, Anthony Albanese credits Indian PM’s ‘leadership and personal engagement with Australia’ for strength of bilateral relationship Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Anthony Albanese is poised to sign a major uranium deal with India, praising counterpart Narendra Modi and the nation’s diaspora for deepening economic ties. It could end more than a decade of delays to regular shipments of the fuel despite the two countries signing a historic nuclear cooperation pact. Continue reading...

The Guardian — World Jul 9 · 3 min read

Taylor defends Sarah Henderson’s triple-zero calls amid questions about claimed Telstra-outage death in SA

South Australian police say they’re unaware of death despite claim by Liberal senator Kerrynne Liddle Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Angus Taylor says his shadow communications minister Sarah Henderson was “doing her job” when she “tested” the triple-zero system by making unnecessary calls to it during Telstra’s nationwide outage . The opposition leader has also dismissed concerns about Liberal senator Kerrynne Liddle’s claim that an elderly person died as a result of the outage, after South Australian police said they were unaware of any such death. Continue reading...

The Guardian — World Jul 9 · 5 min read

Western Europe records hottest-ever June as heatwaves intensify

Temperatures across ravaged region 3C above average as scientists warn of risks for people, ecosystems and infrastructure Record wildfires in Europe show failure to adapt carries a mounting cost Western Europe has been scorched by its hottest June on record, scientists have said, as the UK enters its third heatwave of the year and wildfires ravage France and Spain. Inflamed by carbon pollution , the deadly June heatwave helped push surface air temperatures for the region 3.06C above their average from recent decades, according to the EU’s Copernicus climate monitoring service. Continue reading...