Artemis II crew splashes down safely off California coast, capping historic Nasa moon mission – live updates

Nasa confirms ‘textbook splashdown’ at 5.07pm PT; Reid Wiseman, the Artemis II commander, reports ‘four green crew members’

• Artemis II crew splashes down in Pacific Ocean, ending record-breaking moon flyby

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The scheduled splashdown of Artemis II in the Pacific Ocean, at 8.07pm ET (5.07pm PT; 12.07am GMT), is now just under three hours away.

The Orion spacecraft has completed its third and final return trajectory correction burn (RTC), a nine-second, precise firing of its thrusters to maintain a correct course for Earth.

Calls mount for California governor candidate Eric Swalwell to quit after multiple women accuse him of sexual assault – live

An ex-staffer of Swalwell and three other women allege sexual assault or misconduct in news reports as the US representative’s gubernatorial campaign implodes

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On Truth Social, Donald Trump issued a cryptic message this morning that appeared to be in reference to the upcoming negotiations in Islamabad, but remains unclear.

“WORLD’S MOST POWERFUL RESET!!!” he wrote.

Ukraine war briefing: doubts linger in Kyiv over Moscow’s promise to uphold Orthodox Easter ceasefire

Kremlin orders temporary truce from Saturday afternoon until Sunday, a 32-hour period during which Russia would stop fighting ‘in all directions’. What we know on day 1,508

Ukrainians on Friday were wary of Russia’s pledge to pause fighting for an Orthodox Easter ceasefire – first proposed by Kyiv – this weekend. The Kremlin said it had ordered a temporary truce to be in effect from Saturday afternoon until the end of Sunday, a 32-hour period during which Russia would stop fighting “in all directions”. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy – who has repeatedly called for a ceasefire in the four-year war – said Kyiv was willing to reciprocate.

But in Kyiv there was scepticism over whether Moscow would keep to its promise. “No one believes in these fairytales anymore,” Yevgeniy Lamakh, an IT specialist, told AFP in central Kyiv. “The Russian military lie a lot, usually, as history shows. And in general, they say one thing, but in fact do something completely different,” the 29-year-old said. “Even today... Shaheds, missiles are flying at Ukraine. Well, come on then, start the ceasefire,” Dmytro Sova, a 42-year-old actor, told AFP in Kyiv on Friday.

Just hours before the Orthodox Easter truce, two night-time Russian attacks in Ukraine left one dead and 15 injured, authorities said. The fatal attacks included an “enemy drone attack” on a store and a cafe in the central town of Poltava, killing one person and injuring another, the regional head of the military administration, Vitalii Diakivnych, posted on Telegram. In the north-eastern region of Sumy, bordering Russia, drone strikes on residential areas wounded 14 people including a 14-year-old boy and an 87-year-old woman, according to Oleg Grygorov, head of the regional military administration there, via Telegram.

Moscow has rejected calls for a longer-term unconditional ceasefire, something that Kyiv has called for, saying it is instead pushing for a final peace settlement. Negotiations between the two sides, brokered by the United States, have stalled over the fate of Ukraine’s eastern regions, partly occupied by Russia and that Moscow wants Kyiv to cede. The two sides also held a ceasefire for the Orthodox Easter last year. But the respite comes amid deadlocked efforts to halt Russia’s invasion, with US attention now focused on the Middle East war.

US president Donald Trump’s administration is likely to extend as soon as Friday a waiver allowing countries to buy some sanctioned Russian oil and petroleum products, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. The US treasury department has allowed purchases of Russian oil and products at sea since mid-March with a 30-day waiver that expires on 11 April, part of efforts to control global energy prices during the US-Israeli war with Iran. The waivers have been criticised by politicians in the US and abroad as they could complicate the West’s efforts to deprive Russia of revenue for its war in Ukraine and put Washington at odds with its allies.

A Russian court on Friday placed a journalist from the independent Novaya Gazeta newspaper in pre-trial detention until 10 May, a day after police raided the paper’s Moscow headquarters. Oleg Roldugin was arrested on Thursday. He had reported on alleged corruption among top Russian officials including former president Dmitry Medvedev and Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov. Russia has waged a crackdown on independent news outlets since launching its offensive on Ukraine in February 2022.

Nato member Estonia will refrain from detaining Russia’s “shadow fleet” vessels in the Baltic Sea, worried that seizing oil tankers and other ships sanctioned by the West could lead Moscow to defend them militarily, a senior commander said on Friday. Britain and other European nations, including France, Belgium and Sweden, have stepped up efforts to detain ageing tankers used by Moscow to secure vital funding for its four-year war against Ukraine. But Estonia, the northernmost Baltic state located close to Russia’s main oil and fuel export facilities in the Gulf of Finland, is practicing restraint after an unsuccessful attempt to board a Russian vessel last year.

Artemis II crew splashes down to end historic moon mission

NASA's Artemis II astronauts return to Earth with a splashdown landing in the Pacific Ocean after making a high-speed reentry through the atmosphere.

Multiple people face charges, including murder, in California fireworks blast

Massive fire followed explosion at 5,000-sq-ft warehouse near Esparto, an hour from Sacramento, on 1 July

Multiple people have been charged with murder in connection to a fatal fireworks-warehouse explosion in California that killed seven people and injured two others in July.

The explosion at the 5,000-sq-ft warehouse sparked a massive fire near the small town of Esparto, about an hour outside Sacramento. The explosion took place on 1 July; local celebrations to commemorate the Fourth of July holiday were cancelled that year.

Planned "Arc de Trump" would be over twice as high as Lincoln Memorial

Plans submitted by the Interior Department show the triumphal arch would be 250 feet tall, the tallest triumphal arch in the world.

First lady Melania Trump slams "baseless lies" tying her to Jeffrey Epstein

First lady Melania Trump delivered a televised statement denying a relationship with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Inflation surged in March as Iran war drove up energy costs

Inflation rose at an annual rate of 3.3% in March, driven by the sharpest monthly increase in gas prices since 1967.

Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell denies sexually assaulting former staffer

The woman alleged the California gubernatorial candidate sexually assaulted her twice when she was too drunk to consent.

New audio emerges of husband's call to friend after woman's disappearance in the Bahamas

A new recording has emerged in the case of Lynette Hooker, a U.S. woman who went missing last weekend while on a boat ride with her husband in the Bahamas. Hooker's husband has been detained in connection with her disappearance, but he has not yet been criminally charged. Cristian Benavides explains.

DHS investigates deadly hammer attack of Florida gas station clerk

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has been drawn into the case of a woman who was killed in a hammer attack last week at a gas station in Fort Myers, Florida, after a Haitian immigrant was taken into custody on homicide charges in connection with the attack. Nicole Valdes has the latest.

Melania Trump's surprise statement on Epstein raises new questions

Questions are still swirling about why first lady Melania Trump decided to make a surprise statement Thursday denying any ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Caitlin Huey-Burns has more on the reaction to the first lady's comments.

Inflation rises to its highest mark in nearly 2 years, fueled by Iran war

Inflation rose by 3.3% in March compared to one year ago, the Labor Department reported Friday, the highest such increase since May 2024. That rise was driven by a 21% spike in gas prices in March from the previous month. Jo Ling Kent has details.

Ichiro Suzuki statue unveiling goes awry as bronze bat snaps during ceremony

• Mariners unveil Ichiro statue at Seattle ballpark

• Bronze bat snaps as curtain drops at ceremony

• Suzuki laughs off mishap with Mariano joke

Oh, snap.

The unveiling of Hall of Famer Ichiro Suzuki’s statue had an unforced error on Friday – a broken bat.

Elon Musk’s xAI faces fresh opposition after landing permit for Mississippi power plant

Musk's xAI, now owned by SpaceX, faces a legal challenge from environmental groups opposed to a massive power plant in Mississippi.

Rory McIlroy surges into six-shot Masters lead with stunning second-round flourish

• Six birdies in final seven holes for defending champion

• Burns and Reed at -6, Rose, Lowry and Fleetwood at -5

After spending 16 years as the hunter, Rory McIlroy is relishing his position as the hunted. The defending Masters champion has reached the halfway point of the 2026 staging in a style that asserts his desperation to hang on to the Green Jacket. Elk, served as sliders in the 36-year-old’s champions dinner on Tuesday evening, were seen diving for cover in mountainous regions as McIlroy placed daylight between himself and pretenders to his throne.

McIlroy won at Augusta National in 2025 and eventually discovered that was not his final career destination after all. He is now 36 holes from becoming only the fourth man in history to back up a Masters win with a Masters win. McIlroy’s distinctly relaxed state of mind means only the bold will back against him from here. Even the prospect of falling short is unlikely to perturb McIlroy. He did quite enough of that in earlier years before rebounding in ferocious fashion. A grand slam winner has a mindset to match.

Survivors of Epstein’s abuse accuse Melania Trump of ‘shifting burden’ on to victims

Outrage from survivors follows first lady’s statement calling on Congress to hold public hearings with victims of Epstein’s abuse

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More than a dozen survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse have accused Melania Trump of “shifting the burden” on to them after she called on Congress to hold public hearings with victims of Epstein’s abuse.

“Survivors of Jeffrey Epstein have already shown extraordinary courage by coming forward, filing reports, and giving testimony,” said a group of 13 people and the brother and sister of the late Virginia Giuffre, who was one of the most vocal Epstein accusers, in a statement. “Asking more of them now is a deflection of responsibility not justice.”

WATCH LIVE: Artemis II astronauts have splashed down on Earth

The four astronauts aboard NASA's Artemis II mission are about to plunge through the atmosphere toward Earth, after a successful visit to the moon.

Anthropic's Mythos AI can spot flaws in almost every computer on earth. Uh-oh.

Could powerful AI models like Anthropic's Mythos give cybercriminals and other bad actors a roadmap for exploiting tech systems?

European football: Real Madrid held at home by Girona to extend winless run

• Fans jeer as draw follows losses to Mallorca and Bayern

• Marseille go third in Ligue 1 as Paris FC stun Monaco

Real Madrid had to settle for a 1-1 draw against mid-table Girona in La Liga on Friday, extending the hosts’ winless run to three games in all competitions and giving leaders Barcelona the chance to stretch their advantage at the top.

Federico Valverde put Madrid ahead six minutes after half-time but Girona levelled in the 62nd minute through Thomas Lemar. Álvaro Arbeloa’s side are six points behind with league leaders Barça, who have a game in hand against Espanyol on Saturday and could move nine clear with seven games to play.

Trump's 250-foot 'triumphal arch' would loom over Potomac, new renderings show

Rep. Don Beyer said "President Trump is focused on a taxpayer-funded vanity project that would choke traffic, block our skyline, and tower over sacred ground."

‘That’ll be the end’: actor Sam Neill joins fight to stop controversial goldmine near his New Zealand vineyard

Neill says ‘one of the most beautiful and remote places in the world’ will be permanently changed if Bendigo-Ophir wins fast-track approval

The grapevines in Sam Neill’s vineyard in Central Otago – a picturesque region known for its undulating hills and wines – are pregnant with pinot noir grapes, almost ripe for picking as autumn arrives.

“My family has been here for over 150 years. I’m connected to this land like nowhere else on earth,” the 78-year-old actor and winemaker says. “It’s perfect for wine. It’s great for tourism. And it’s one of the most beautiful and strange, remote places in the world.”

Kamala Harris says she might run for president in 2028: "I'm thinking about it"

Former Vice President Kamala Harris said that she might run for president in 2028, telling a gathering in New York that she is considering mounting a third bid for the White House.

The debate over what's considered middle class in the U.S.

A recent article about a family of three making $500,000 in New York City has sparked a debate over what's considered middle class in the U.S. CBS News contributor Roland Fryer reacts to the article and explains how the middle class has changed.

After more than 9 days in flight, NASA's Artemis II is set to return to Earth

The four astronauts on NASA's Artemis II lunar mission are set to return to Earth Friday evening. The crew is wrapping up a journey around the moon with a planned splashdown off San Diego, Calif.

Arne Slot insists he is ‘aligned’ with Liverpool board and fans as squad is rebuilt

• Last year’s title ‘postponed’ overhaul says manager

• Slot insists he ‘can feel that support’ from fanbase

Arne Slot has said last season’s title triumph “postponed” the end of an era at Liverpool but that the club were under no illusions a rebuild was required when appointing him as Jürgen Klopp’s successor.

Two more links to the Klopp era will be removed this summer when Andy Robertson and Mohamed Salah leave on free transfers. Virgil van Dijk, Alisson and Joe Gomez, the remaining players from the squad that delivered Premier League and Champions League success to Anfield under Klopp, will then enter the final years of their contracts.

Roberto De Zerbi targets ‘Ange-ball’ revival to save Spurs from relegation

• De Zerbi wants to replicate former manager’s style

• ‘I want to see the Spurs I watched with Postecoglou’

Roberto De Zerbi intends to bring back “Ange-ball” as he attempts to prevent Tottenham’s first relegation in 49 years.

De Zerbi has only seven games in which to impart his complex football philosophy to his players and wants to replicate the rampant, marauding style of the former manager Ange Postecoglou, who won Tottenham’s first trophy in 17 years but was dismissed after finishing 17th in the Premier League last season.

Kamala Harris ‘thinking about’ running for president again in 2028

Former vice-president teases White House bid while Pete Buttigieg also suggests he may launch campaign

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Kamala Harris said she is “thinking about” running in the 2028 presidential election.

“I might, I might. I’m thinking about it,” the former vice-president and 2024 candidate told the crowd at a gathering of the National Action Network (NAN), a civil rights organization founded by Al Sharpton, on Friday in New York City.

JD Vance warns Iran against trying to ‘play’ the US in peace talks

US vice-president flies to Islamabad for negotiations as Iranians insists Israel end its offensive in Lebanon

• Middle East crisis – live updates

JD Vance has warned Iran not to “try and play” the US at talks planned for Saturday in Islamabad, while Tehran said it would not take part until Israel stopped bombing of Lebanon.

The US vice-president made the comments as he boarded a plane to Pakistan for negotiations that could determine whether a ceasefire holds or the war on Iran resumes with grave implications for the global economy.

West Ham double up twice to thrash Wolves and put Spurs in relegation zone

The moment when West Ham really felt their survival bid pick up pace was when the jab from Taty Castellanos rolled beyond the reach of José Sá and crawled towards the Wolves goal.

Two-nil up in a must-win game, Nuno Espírito Santo’s side looked unrecognisable from the doomed bunch who dropped seven points off 17th place in early January. This is a different West Ham. This is a West Ham with a punch in attack and, if this daring escape act does end with Premier League football secured for another season, a key part of the story will be how Nuno strengthened his squad in January .

Jeffrey Epstein victims will get House committee hearing, James Comer says

Rep. James Comer's promise came a day after first lady Melania Trump urged Congress to give victims of Jeffrey Epstein a public hearing so "we have the truth."

Epstein survivors have mixed feelings on Melania Trump's call for hearing in Congress

The first lady made a public statement on Thursday saying she was not friends with Epstein, and calling for further action in Congress. Survivors of the late sex offender's abuse differ on her proposal.

This week on "Sunday Morning": The Money Issue (April 12)

This week Jane Pauley hosts "The Money Issue," our annual special broadcast dedicated to the many ways in which money underscores the way we live.

Months after the ICE shootings in Minnesota, a federal probe remains elusive

Officials in Minnesota have sued the Trump administration, saying federal officials are withholding evidence in the killings of U.S. citizens Alex Pretti and Renee Macklin Good by immigration agents in Minneapolis, as well as the non-fatal shooting of a Venezuelan man.

Repurposed drug may extend survival in aggressive ovarian cancer, trial shows

Relacorilant, typically used to treat Cushing’s syndrome, could improve outcomes in platinum-resistant cases

A drug originally used to treat a rare disease could extend the lives of patients with an aggressive form of ovarian cancer, according to a clinical trial.

Platinum-resistant ovarian cancer occurs when the disease progresses within six months of starting platinum-based chemotherapy. This form of chemotherapy is different from other types because it uses compounds that contain platinum to destroy cancer cells by preventing them from dividing.

Bessent, Fed's Powell met with bank CEOs over potent new Anthropic AI

Financial industry leaders met to discuss potential cyber risks posed by Anthropic's latest AI model, which has found weaknesses in every major computer operating system.

‘This is as important as your teeth’: are you skipping this key part of mouth hygiene?

Dentists say ‘everyone needs to be educated about cleaning the tongue’. Here’s how it’s done

It’s drilled into us from a young age: brush your teeth twice a day. But when it comes to oral health, experts say we’re leaving out something important.

“Everyone needs to be educated about cleaning the tongue,” says Dr Maria Figueroa, a dentist and program director at NYC Health + Hospitals/Lincoln. “This is as important as your teeth.”

NASA drops Artemis II moon mission playlist with astronauts' wake-up songs

The moon music tradition started more than 50 years ago, NASA said as it shared the Artemis II crew's playlist this week.

One dead and 27 injured after bus with British passengers crashes in Canary Islands

Vehicle veered into a ravine on island of La Gomera while transporting a tour group for a boat excursion

A man has died and 27 people are in hospital after a bus carrying British passengers crashed in the Canary Islands, local officials have said.

The incident happened at 1.15pm local time on Friday when the vehicle veered into a ravine on the GM-2 highway near the town of San Sebastián de La Gomera.

White House warned staff against Iran war bets on prediction markets

The warning came after a flurry of unusual activity on oil and stock futures markets shortly before Trump said he would pause attacks on Iran.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s home targeted with molotov cocktail

Suspect arrested but not identified and has allegedly made similar threats to OpenAI’s San Francisco headquarters

A 20-year-old man allegedly tossed a molotov cocktail at the home of Sam Altman, OpenAI’s CEO, before the sun rose on Friday, according to statements from San Francisco police.

The suspect, who allegedly threw the fire bomb at the $27m North Beach residence around 4.12am, has been arrested but not identified. The same person allegedly threatened to torch OpenAI’s headquarters in the city. No injuries were reported.

Trump proposes painting executive office building white

The building sits across a driveway from the West Wing and was completed in 1888.

The upper middle class is now the largest income group in the U.S.

America's middle class is shrinking, but not because people are getting poorer. Instead, more households are climbing the ladder, new research suggests.

See messages Brian Hooker sent his friend after wife's disappearance

Brian Hooker exchanged Facebook messages with a friend, which CBS News exclusively reviewed, after his wife vanished in the Bahamas over the weekend.

The week around the world in 20 pictures

Crisis in the Middle East, Russian shelling in Ukraine, Artemis’s lunar flyby and World Press Photo winners – the past seven days as captured by the world’s leading photojournalists

Warning: this gallery contains images some readers may find distressing

Iran's speaker says negotiations with U.S. can't start without Lebanon ceasefire, asset release

President Trump is frustrated by Iran continuing to throttle most shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, the world's most important oil route.

Prince Harry sued for defamation by charity he co-founded

Legal action follows war of words with Sentebale chair after Duke of Sussex’s resignation as patron

The Duke of Sussex is being sued by Sentebale in the latest twist in the bitter fallout over the African charity he co-founded.

The charity has lodged papers in London’s high court over defamation claims naming Prince Harry and the former Sentebale trustee Mark Dyer as defendants.

Meta must face Massachusetts lawsuit over youth social media addiction, court rules

Ruling by state’s top court comes as 34 other states are pursuing similar cases against Meta in federal court

Meta Platforms must face a lawsuit by the Massachusetts attorney general alleging that as the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, it deliberately designed social media features to addict young users, the state’s top court ruled on Friday.

The ruling by the Massachusetts supreme judicial court marked the first time a state high court has considered whether a federal law that generally shields internet companies from lawsuits over content posted by their users would also bar claims that companies like Meta knowingly addicted young users.

Anthropic’s new AI tool has implications for us all – whether we can use it or not | Shakeel Hashim

Claude Mythos’s apparent superhuman hacking abilities are alarming experts as the Trump administration remains blinded by hostility

In June 2024, a cyber-attack on a pathology services company caused chaos across London’s hospitals. More than 10,000 appointments were cancelled. Blood shortages followed and delays to blood tests led to a patient’s death.

Lethal cyber-attacks like this are thankfully rare. But a new AI release could change that – plunging us into a terrifying new world of chaos and disruption to the digital systems that we rely on.

Shakeel Hashim is the editor of Transformer, a publication about the power and politics of transformative AI

Trump calls Artemis II astronauts "modern-day pioneers" in live conversation

President Trump praised the crew of NASA's Artemis II mission in a brief chat late Monday, saying they had "inspired the entire world" after they looped around the moon in a record-breaking voyage.

Man arrested after four die trying to cross Channel in small boat

Two men and two women were swept away by currents while attempting to board dinghy off French coast

A man has been arrested on suspicion of endangering life after four people died in a small boat Channel crossing on Thursday.

The man, described by prosecutors as a 27-year-old Sudanese national, was arrested by National Crime Agency investigators on Friday.

Shortlisted for an Oscar, 'Homebound' is a daring movie about two dear friends

The movie, now streaming on Netflix, defied current trends in Indian cinema to tell the true story of a friendship between a Muslim and a Hindu Dalit. Martin Scorsese was secretly involved.

Concerns raised about motorbike tourist trail after death of British teenager in Vietnam

Local people say road conditions are rugged and weather unpredictable, while some say it has become too congested

The recent death of a British gap-year student on the Ha Giang loop, a popular motorcycle tour through the mountains in north Vietnam, has heightened concerns about a trail reputed to be one of the most dangerous in the country.

Orla Wates, 19, from Surrey, was riding as a pillion passenger when she fell off and was hit by an oncoming truck, according to local media. She was taken to hospital in Hanoi, where she died from her injuries last week.

The Guardian view on Trump’s civilisational threats: the words that fuel war must be condemned | Editorial

Military euphemisms can be deadly. Yet the brutal rhetoric of the US and Israel is proving still more lethal

“Metaphors can kill,” the linguist George Lakoff wrote in an influential essay on the Gulf war. “The use of a metaphor with a set of definitions becomes pernicious when it hides realities in a harmful way.” He described the effects of the US employment of business cost-and-benefit analogies, sporting comparisons and the fairytale of the just war with heroes and villains.

All veiled the reality of conflict. Euphemism was long the preferred choice for the US military. Spokespeople discussed “collateral damage” rather than civilian deaths and “surgical strikes”, framing destruction as both precise and part of a necessary and ultimately healing process. Donald Trump chooses naked menace instead. This week he issued a genocidal threat against Iran, having previously threatened to bomb it “back to the stone age” and destroy bridges and power plants – schools and medical facilities having already been pulverised. He said that he was “not at all” concerned about potential war crimes.

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.

The Guardian view on dystopias for our times: the American nightmare | Editorial

Margaret Atwood’s The Testaments and the Oscar-winning film One Battle After Another are grim parables of today. But they are not without hope

As Margaret Atwood has said, all dystopian fiction is “really about now”. No wonder the genre is flourishing. This week Atwood’s bleak vision of a future America as a patriarchal theocracy returned to TV screens with the adaptation of her prize-winning 2019 novel The Testaments, the long-awaited sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale. Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another, set in a chillingly recognisable militarised America, swept the Oscars last month.

Back in 1984 when Atwood wrote The Handmaid’s Tale, she feared that its central premise – that the US could be transformed from a liberal democracy into Gilead, a theocratic dictatorship after a coup – was too outrageous to convince readers. She need not have worried. By the time the novel was made into the award-winning TV series in 2017, it was all too believable. Arriving just after Donald Trump’s election in 2016 and the rollback of women’s rights, the show felt made for the moment. Atwood was hailed as a prophet. The red-and-white handmaid robes became a symbol of female defiance across the globe. “For a long time we were going away from Gilead and then we turned around and started going back,” Atwood said of her decision to write a follow-up more than 30 years later.

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.

Doctors’ leader claims new reduced pay offer killed chances of ending strikes in England

Exclusive: Deal for resident doctors was in sight when sudden change by ministers forced latest action, says Jack Fletcher

Ministers killed the chance to end strikes by resident doctors when they suddenly reduced the amount of money they were offering to secure the peace deal, the doctors’ leader claims.

Dr Jack Fletcher accused the government of “playing games” and forcing resident doctors to embark on their 15th strike over pay and jobs, which is disrupting the NHS this week.

Netanyahu-ism has achieved nothing for Israelis – and come at a monstrously high price | Jonathan Freedland

It is the voting public in Israel that will settle their PM’s fate later this year. But all they have heard are promises of ‘total victory’ that prove to be hollow

It is a record of abject failure. I am not speaking of Donald Trump, though I could be. Instead, I am talking about his partner in this terrible war.

Naturally, Trump has been the star of the show. He has been the face of the 40-day war on Iran, whether dialling up the threats against the country in foul, bloodthirsty language – “a whole civilisation will die tonight” – or announcing on his own social media platform a two-week ceasefire and the talks that are supposed to begin this weekend in Islamabad. But Trump has had an ally at his side, who only now is entering the spotlight. That ally is Benjamin Netanyahu.

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.

How I Shop with Michelle Ogundehin: ‘We grownups have enough stuff already’

Always wondered what everyday stuff celebrities buy, where they shop for food, and the basic they scrimp on? The interiors guru talks museum shops, sake and loft insulation with the Filter

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Michelle Ogundehin, former editor-in-chief of Elle Decoration magazine, is the head judge on the BBC’s Interior Design Masters and co-host of Grand Designs: House of the Year. She trained as an architect and also works as a commentator and consultant, as well as being a trustee of the Design Museum.

Her bestselling first book, Happy Inside, explores how home shapes health and happiness; her forthcoming book (spring 2027), Your Powerful Home: 4 Steps to a Home that Heals, looks at your home as a partner in your wellbeing, an ethos she shares through her Happy Insiders Club, which offers guided monthly coaching.

‘Butter Birkin’: popcorn plastic It bag in demand by Devil Wears Prada fans

Coveted £20 accessory to be marketed as part of sequel’s ticket deal – and is already being touted for resale from £130

In a recent trailer for the highly anticipated The Devil Wears Prada sequel, the cast are seen parading through the streets of New York City carrying an array of designer handbags, including clutches and satchels from Chanel and Valentino.

But among fans of the film there is a very different type of It bag in demand: a popcorn bucket shaped to resemble a structured tote bag is quickly becoming a coveted accessory.

Trump’s war and Melania’s Epstein statement, with US editor Betsy Reed – The Latest

Melania Trump made a surprise appearance at the White House on Thursday to announce that she ‘never had a relationship’ with the late child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell. Her address has seemingly put Epstein back on the political agenda when focus had been firmly on the US and Israel’s war in Iran. The intervention came at a difficult time for her husband, Donald Trump, as the fragile ceasefire agreed between the US and Iran seemed to be at risk of falling apart, and as US lawmakers are raising the alarm over the president’s mental stability. Lucy Hough speaks to the Guardian US editor, Betsy Reed

U.S. faces an air traffic controller shortage. It's turning to gamers for help.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy pointed out that gamers "have many of the hard skills it takes to be a successful controller."

James Gadson obituary

Drummer who brought an irresistible melting pot of styles to hits by Marvin Gaye, Gloria Gaynor and the Jackson 5

In R&B, soul, funk, disco and other forms of African-American popular music, no performer is more valuable than the drummer who can find “the pocket”: the name given by musicians to that elusive place where the rhythm propelling a song is both profound and irresistible. James Gadson, who has died aged 86, seemed to live his entire working life deep in that pocket, giving momentum to such 1970s hits as Bill Withers’ Lean on Me, Marvin Gaye’s I Want You, Diana Ross’s Love Hangover, the Jackson 5’s Dancing Machine, Gloria Gaynor’s I Will Survive, Smokey Robinson’s Cruisin’, Peaches & Herb’s Reunited and many more in future decades during his career in the recording studios of Los Angeles.

Other artists in related fields also made grateful use of his gifts. He played on Boz Scaggs’ Slow Dancer (1974) and Elkie Brooks’s Live and Learn (1979), Leonard Cohen’s The Future (1992) and, in this century, Rickie Lee Jones’s The Evening of My Best Day, Paul McCartney’s Chaos and Creation in the Backyard, Lana Del Rey’s Paradise, and several albums by Beck, among others.

Orbán and Magyar trade accusations in last days of Hungary election campaign

Polls suggest lead for opposition candidate before vote on Sunday as both allege enlistment of foreign interference

• Hungary elections: what is at stake and who is likely to win?

Viktor Orbán and his centre-right rival, Péter Magyar, have traded accusations of enlisting foreign interference in a high-stakes election that polls suggest could mark the end of the nationalist Hungarian prime minister’s 16 years in power.

As the two leaders’ campaigns entered their final stages before this weekend’s vote, which is being watched as keenly in Brussels, Moscow and Washington as in Budapest, Orbán said on social media on Friday that his opponent would “stop at nothing to seize power”.

Martin Rowson on Middle East peace talks – cartoon

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Why a Strait of Hormuz "toll" would pose economic and geopolitical risks

Energy industry experts warn that allowing Iran to charge ships to ensure safe passage through the strait would raise energy costs.

DOJ argues D.C. pipe bomb defendant not covered by Trump's Jan. 6 pardons

The DOJ said in a court filing that the D.C. pipe bomb defendant's case should not be dismissed and that his actions were not covered by Trump's sweeping pardons of the Jan. 6 rioters.

MoneyWatch price tracker shows how much food, utility, housing costs are rising

These charts track prices consumers pay for groceries and other goods now compared to five years ago.

Consumer sentiment hits record low, inflation fears rise amid Iran war

The university's headline index of consumer sentiment tumbled to 47.6, down 10.7% from March to its lowest on record.

Reform’s temper tantrum about slavery reparations shows it doesn’t understand Britain’s place in the modern world | Kojo Koram

The party’s talk of visa bans for countries seeking reparative justice is not just undemocratic – it displays staggering ignorance about geopolitics

On 29 November 1781, Capt Luke Collingwood faced a decision. He was in command of a ship called the Zong, which departed Accra with 442 Africans to be sold into slavery. However, the crew of the Zong kept getting lost on the way to Jamaica. Now their overcrowded “cargo” was ridden with disease and dehydration. Closing in on their destination, they realised that if these Africans died onshore, this would be a loss for the shipowners. But if they were “lost at sea”, the insurers would cover the cost. Soon, more than 130 people were thrown overboard, starting with the less commercially valuable women and children. At the resulting court case two years later, the main area of dispute was whether this action invalidated the financial payout. None of the city of London’s legal and financial institutions involved considered whether the mass drowning constituted a crime.

This episode from Britain’s inhumane and inglorious history of slavery came to mind this week when I read that in response to a recent, well-supported UN resolution recognising the historic crime of slavery, Nigel Farage’s Reform UK said it would deny all UK visas to people from countries seeking slavery reparations from Britain. Countries such as Nigeria, Jamaica and Ghana, from where Zong set sail all those years ago.

Dr Kojo Koram is professor of law and political economy at Loughborough University. His latest book, The Next Fix, is out on 4 June

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Peers vote to ban pornography depicting sex acts between stepfamily members

Amendment calling for step-incest to be included in ban on harmful content passes by just one vote

The government has agreed to ban the production of pornography depicting sex acts between stepfamily members following a vote in the House of Lords.

The government tabled an amendment calling for step-incest to be included in a ban on harmful content, with the support of the Conservative peer Gabby Bertin, who led a review into pornography regulation that was published last year.

How an 8-year-old designed a zero-gravity indicator for Artemis II

The development of the mission mascot and viral sensation Rise began over a year before Artemis II blasted off.

Preview of UFC 327

UFC reporter and host Megan Olivi breaks down what to know about UFC 327 on Saturday. The title fight features former champion Jiří Procházka, who is taking on fast-rising star Carlos Ulberg.

Airports could face a jet fuel crunch within 3 weeks as airlines weigh flight cancellations

Europe's Airport Industry said if the Strait of Hormuz doesn't reopen "systemic jet fuel shortage is set to become a reality for the EU."

Arrest of national war hero Ben Roberts-Smith cuts deeply to core of Australian psyche

Criminal charges against the Victoria Cross recipient now on remand has deeply divided a nation whose identity is often entwined with the exploits of young men on foreign fields

The former Australian prime minister, John Howard, this week described Victoria Cross recipient and accused war criminal Ben Roberts-Smith as the “modern personification of the Anzac tradition”.

The broad-shouldered, blue-eyed Roberts-Smith was the hero of the battle of Tizak in Afghanistan, for which his actions earned Australia’s highest military honour.

The sheila is returning to Australian culture, riding on a new wave of ‘bogan feminism’ | Maria Lewis

Amy Taylor, Margot Robbie and Barkaa are among the Australian pop cultural figures helping to reclaim the sheila archetype

“Security, will you let me in your pub?” pleads Amy Taylor in the opening lines of the song Security. “I’m not looking for trouble, I’m looking for love.” The request is made in her signature Aussie drawl, something that musicians attempting to break into the international market would attempt to disguise in decades previous. Yet for the Amyl and the Sniffers frontwoman, everything from her peroxide mullet to proudly “bogan” background has become an important hallmark.

And she’s not the only one. Although Taylor is singular in her tendency to chuck a squat in promotional art or declare that “the dole’s going up and every pub gets a million dollars” in Aria acceptance speeches, she’s just one of a wave of Australian pop cultural figures helping to reclaim the sheila archetype. Think world champion surfer Molly Picklum, the queen of stoke, who drops f-bombs as frequently as she drops into the gnarliest waves on the planet. Or groundbreaking Indigenous rapper Barkaa, whose line “I ain’t cryin’ over budoo unless that budoo makes me money” from King Brown is now shouted like a battle cry at her sold-out shows.

Parents are saying this name to help stop their toddler's meltdowns

Videos circulating on social media showing parents saying the name "Jessica" to calm their toddler are going viral. Developmental psychologist Aliza Pressman breaks down the trend and what parents need to know before trying it.

Afrika Bambaataa, hip-hop pioneer, dies at 68

Afrika Bambaataa, a rapper and producer, was best known for breakthrough tracks like 1982's "Planet Rock" and for founding the Universal Zulu Nation art collective.

‘You come back different’: how rugby players change after motherhood

Four England players will miss the Six Nations as they are pregnant. What do they have in store when they return?

By No Helmets Required

When England begin their defence of the Women’s Six Nations against Ireland on Saturday at Twickenham they will be without Zoe Stratford, Lark Atkin-Davies and Rosie Galligan as they prepare to become mothers for the first time. The England rugby league player Kelsey Gentles – who has returned to her sport as a different player and person – says the World Cup winners should embrace the imminent metamorphosis.

Gentles left the Women’s Super League as a sparkling outside back in 2023; when she returned the following year, having given birth to her daughter Maia, she was a prop who blasted holes in defensive lines. She enjoyed a glorious comeback, scoring the winning try as York Valkyrie clinched the Grand Final, but there were challenges along the way.

‘There’s no shortage of terrifying technology’: how AI became TV drama’s new go-to villain

Will artificial intelligence save us or destroy us? According to a growing band of thriller scriptwriters, we should be very afraid indeed

Maybe the “H” in Line Of Duty will turn out to stand for “hard drive”? After all, AI has become TV’s go-to villain, as proven once again in last week’s penultimate episode of BBC stablemate The Capture. Sinister puppet-master Simon was unmasked at long last and – spoiler – he wasn’t a person.

“Wait, Simon’s a computer?” asked a baffled agent. “He’s a bit more than that,” replied a smug army bigwig. “We’re using AI to support, map, execute and command ops. Simon factors in more risks and variables than you lot on the ground are capable of knowing. Tell him your objective and he’ll calculate your mission and recalibrate it for you in real time. The stats don’t lie. Simon saves lives.”

Texas court overturns sentence for man on death row for nearly 50 years

Clarence Curtis Jordan was convicted in 1978 but hadn’t had a lawyer for over 30 years

The Texas court of criminal appeals has overturned the death sentence of Clarence Curtis Jordan, a 70-year-old man with intellectual disabilities, who spent nearly 50 years on death row – much of that time without a lawyer.

Jordan was convicted in 1978 for the murder of Joe L Williams, a 40-year-old grocer in Houston, and was sentenced to death. In the years that followed, courts determined that Jordan, who has intellectual disabilities, was “incompetent”, making him ineligible for execution under constitutional standards.

Five things to know about Hungary's election

Hungary votes Sunday in a pivotal test of Viktor Orbán's "illiberal democracy," as challenger Péter Magyar taps voter frustration, with stakes for Europe, NATO and the U.S.

Human rights groups decry US plan for Guantánamo camp for Cuban migrants

Exclusive: Dozens of organizations write to Congress after general announced plan to ‘deal with’ those fleeing any humanitarian crisis on the island

Dozens of US and international human rights organizations are decrying the Trump administration’s plans to establish a migrant “camp” for fleeing Cubans at the Guantánamo Bay military base if the island nation’s crisis worsens under pressure from the US, according to a letter to members of Congress on Friday.

The 85 groups plan to submit the joint letter, exclusively shared with the Guardian, to US senators and House representatives, expressing their “profound concern” with comments made last month by a top Department of Defense commander, and describing any prospect of further migrant detention at the base as “deeply troubling and unacceptable”.

Power up! Could force be the secret to supercharging your fitness?

Mobility, cardio and strength are important, but power – generating force quickly – is the workout element that will help you stay active for longer, say health and fitness experts

Chasing after your dog, catching yourself before you fall, jumping over a big puddle. These activities all have something in common, and it’s not just that they’re the makings of a very bad day. They rely on power: the ability to generate force quickly. It’s an often overlooked part of the fitness menu that experts think deserves more attention.

Mobility, cardio and strength all help us stay active and healthy as we get older. Strength training in particular has boomed in recent years, as the importance of building muscle mass to keep us strong, protect our bones and help us stay mobile as we age becomes more widely recognised. But when it comes to activities such as pushing yourself up from a chair or moving your arms quickly to break a fall, the size of your muscles will only get you so far. You also need power.

Defense's Silicon Valley pivot: Ukraine, Iran wars challenge the legacy playbook

Companies are betting on a new type of warfare, based on shorter lead times that allow for rapid deployments and more cost-effective solutions.

Potential US host cities for 2031 Women’s World Cup games mull withdrawal over Fifa concerns

• Chicago and Pittsburgh decline to enter running

• Some cities opt to focus on men’s Rugby World Cup

• Bid approval delayed by reported government holdups

A number of American cities named in the running to host games at the 2031 Women’s World Cup are considering withdrawing over concerns related to Fifa’s handling of this summer’s World Cup.

The Guardian has learned that several cities are exploring whether to focus solely on winning the right to host matches at the men’s 2031 Rugby World Cup. The US will also stage the women’s rugby tournament two years later.

Consumer prices rose 3.3% in March, as energy prices spiked due to Iran conflict

The consumer price index was expected to show a 3.3% year-over-year gain in March, according to the Dow Jones consensus.

'How are you using AI?' Your therapist should ask you that question, experts argue

A paper in JAMA Psychiatry says mental health providers should ask if patients are using artificial intelligence chatbots, just as they would ask patients about sleep habits and substance use.

Inflation surges to highest level in nearly 2 years as energy costs spike

Consumer prices in March were up 3.3% from a year ago, the biggest annual increase in nearly two years. Higher gasoline prices tied to the war with Iran accounted for much of the surge.

Who was Hilma? Af Klint exhibition to highlight exclusion of women from abstract art

Swedish artist, now regarded as predecessor to Kandinsky and Mondrian, died thinking world was not ready for her work

The Swedish artist Hilma af Klint died believing the world was not ready for the mystical paintings that would shock the art world half a century later.

The painter, now credited with pioneering the abstract art movement, did not seek recognition after peers rejected her avant garde works. Instead, she ordered that they be hidden for 20 years after her death and never sold.

Critics assemble! Here’s my list of the greatest superhero movies of all time

Creating a definitive Top 10 list never fails to spark endless debate – but who doesn’t want to give it a shot? Don your capes and shields, and let the arguments begin …

Putting together a Top 10 list of the best superhero movies of all time may just be the critical equivalent of trying to herd thunder through a spreadsheet. Are we rating the best-made movie, the most influential or the most emotionally ruinous? The genre has exploded over the past 20 years to the point where it long ago swallowed cinema whole: we have crime sagas (most Batman flicks), family comedies (The Incredibles, Guardians of the Galaxy), cultural and political allegories (Captain America: The Winter Soldier, X-Men, Black Panther), pop-art fever dreams (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse) and even tales of Wagnerian apocalypse (Watchmen, Avengers: Infinity War).

The sense is that these movies are too varied, the emotional criteria too slippery, the personal attachments some of us have to them too embarrassingly primal, to be placed in a clear hierarchy. Is the No 1 comic book movie of all time the film that made fangirls and boys whimper into their crumpled copies of Amazing Fantasy #15? In which case we might be looking at Spider-Man: No Way Home. Or is it the picture that’s so good it appeals to filmgoers who don’t actually like superhero flicks? That would be The Dark Knight. Is Matt Reeves’ gloriously offbeat, Fincher-esque The Batman too weird and languid to make the list? And does Patty Jenkins’ breezily old-fashioned Wonder Woman get downgraded because it was part of a superhero universe that ultimately tanked?

Amazon to finally launch Leo satellite internet in ‘mid-2026’, says CEO

Andy Jassy tells shareholders that long-awaited rival to Elon Musk’s Starlink is ‘on the verge’ of going live

Amazon has said its long-awaited satellite internet rival to Elon Musk’s Starlink will finally go live in “mid-2026”.

The chief executive, Andy Jassy, said in a letter to shareholders that the technology company was “on the verge of launching Amazon Leo” and had secured “revenue commitments from enterprises and governments” for the scheme.

Bafta apologises for events surrounding John Davidson’s Tourette’s outburst

An independent review found ‘weaknesses’ in the organisation’s planning and crisis procedures

Bafta has apologised “unreservedly” for the events surrounding John Davidson’s Tourette’s outburst at this year’s ceremony, after an independent review found “weaknesses” in the organisation’s planning and crisis procedures.

Davidson, an executive producer on the Bafta-winning film I Swear, dominated headlines for weeks after involuntarily shouting the N-word as Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo were on stage.

VP Vance to lead U.S. team in Iran peace talks. And, Artemis II to return to Earth

Vice President Vance is heading to Pakistan to lead a U.S. team in talks aimed at ending the war in Iran. And, Artemis II is set to return to Earth today.

Toxic putdowns, brutal zingers ... and an unexpected love story – inside the joyful climax to brilliant sitcom Hacks

Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder are TV’s funniest and nastiest odd-couple in this Emmy-winning smash hit. But co-creator and star Paul W Downs discusses why things are a lot sunnier and sillier for the pair in its final series

It hit the Vegas Strip running. Since it crashed on to our screens in 2021, Hacks has been a critical darling. This tale of a pair of extremely different comics who end up working together takes the classic sitcom set up, injects it with some HBO gloss, and gives us a grippingly watchable central relationship that is frequently adorable – while also featuring some of TV’s most venomous putdowns. It has a 99% Rotten Tomatoes score, 12 Emmy wins, including outstanding comedy series in 2024, and has propelled its cast into the stratosphere. And it’s about to enter its final season ever.

There’s nothing new about its ending, though. “The concept came to us in 20 … 15?” says Paul W Downs, who created the show with his wife, Lucia Aniello, and their creative partner Jen Statsky. They even had the ending in mind at the first meeting at which they pitched the show to HBO in 2019. “We really had it fully fleshed out, including the final episode, which we pitched to most networks.”

Cocktail of the week: Bar Shrimp’s la rosita – recipe

An upmarket, smoky ‘tegroni’ that is simplicity itself to make

All you need to make this is a glass and a spoon. We’ve switched out the tequila from the original noughties twist on the negroni and instead brought forward our favourite spirit, mezcal, to bring a lightly smoky profile to proceedings. The perfect pairing for this drink is a campfire, so it’s an especially good one to premix in a flask and chuck in your backpack for a spring camping trip.

Daniel Craig Martin, co-founder, Bar Shrimp, Manchester

Kevin Warsh Fed chair confirmation plan hits snag as nomination hearing is delayed

President Trump's nomination of Kevin Warsh as Federal Reserve chair already faced a hurdle by Sen. Thom Tillis over a probe of current Chair Jerome Powell.

China's Xi meets Taiwan opposition leader ahead of key summit with Trump

Xi Jinping and the KMT's Cheng Li-wun agreed to pursue peace, but Taiwan's ruling party worries it will enable Beijing to undermine its democracy.

Add to playlist: the beautifully dazed, countrified indie-rock of Tracey Nelson and the week’s best new tracks

Pushing his winsome songwriting into rootsier territory with a little help from co-producer MJ Lenderman, the New Yorker’s debut album is primed to soundtrack your summer

From New York City, New York
Recommended if you like The Clean, This is Lorelei, The Feelies
Up next Debut album Hercules out 10 July

Tracey Nelson’s self-titled 2025 debut EP was one of the year’s best lesser-heard gems: Five tracks of sparkling, winsome indie-rock that recalled classic antipodean jangle bands the Clean, Twerps and Dick Diver. Tracks such as New Years Flowers and Just Shoot Me Now suggested that Austin Noll – the NYC-based singer-songwriter behind the project – was a classicist with a keen sense for bright melodies and self-deprecating one-liners.

‘A story that needs to be told’: the Manacillos festival of Colombia – photo essay

Ever Andrés Mercado won a World Press Photo award for his work on the Manacillos festival, which takes place among the Afro-descendant community of Yurumanguí. Here he talks about the ancestral ritual and why it’s so important

Every year, hundreds of Afro-Colombians climb into wooden boats and set sail down the Yurumanguí River. They navigate dense rainforest, scramble through mangroves, and battle charging river currents, to disembark about 12 hours later in the remote village of Juntas.

It is here that they reunite and gather for an ancestral ritual: the Manacillos festival.

People living in the Juntas village of Yurumanguí use the festival as a way to unite and attract more people who, for years, had to flee the territory.

Alarm as acting CDC director delays report showing Covid vaccine benefits

Study that reportedly found reduction in ER visits and hospitalizations being reviewed by Jay Bhattacharya

A Trump administration appointee has delayed publication of a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report that shows benefits related to the Covid vaccine, leading to concerns that the administration is engaging in behind-the-scenes tactics to undermine vaccines.

Research by CDC scientists found that the Covid vaccine cut the likelihood of emergency room visits and hospitalizations for healthy adults last winter by about half, according to reporting from the Washington Post. The acting CDC director, Jay Bhattacharya, reportedly delayed the report’s publication due to concerns surrounding the research’s methodology.