Coca-Cola is about to report earnings. Here's what to expect

Shares of Coke have risen just 6% over the last year, hurt by concerns about the broader economy.

Morgan McSweeney says advising Starmer to appoint Mandelson was ‘serious error of judgment’ – UK politics live

Keir Starmer’s former chief of staff, who advised PM on appointment, questioned by the foreign affairs committee

Q: Was there pressure on you to approve Mandelson’s vetting?

This is a reference to the claim that Keir Starmer misled MPs last week when he talked about no pressure being placed on the Foreign Office.

One is during my tenure. I was not aware of any pressure on the substance of the Mandelson DV case.

Question two was there pressure? Absolutely. And I’ve described it. And I also have seen what the Foreign Office said to you last night. [See 8.50am.]

I didn’t receive any direct calls from the chief of staff during my time as permanent undersecretary. So there was no call at all. My interactions were always when others were present in a general meeting, there weren’t very many of those either …

I’ve really racked my brains and I cannot recall Morgan McSweeney swearing in a meeting at me, or indeed just in general. So I don’t see any substance in that part of it and I think it’s important I say that this morning, given how many people have come to think that might be true.

Austrian man pleads guilty to plotting attack on Taylor Swift concert in Vienna

Defendant, 21, in court with second man over alleged scheme to kill music fans outside Vienna stadium

A man accused of accused of pledging allegiance to the Islamic State group and plotting to attack one of Taylor Swift’s concerts in Vienna nearly two years ago has pleaded guilty as his trial began.

The plot was thwarted, but Austrian authorities still cancelled the American superstar’s three performances in August 2024. The singer’s fans, who had flown to Austria from across the globe to attend a performance of her record-setting Eras Tour were devastated, but rallied to turn Vienna into a citywide trading post for friendship bracelets and singalongs .

Novartis CEO warns reality of Trump's drug pricing policy will set in over 'the next 18 months'

Novartis' CEO warned Tuesday that U.S. drug pricing policy under President Donald Trump poses a "very difficult situation."

LIV Golf to postpone New Orleans event amid reports of Saudi money drying up

• No LIV tournaments expected from mid-May to August

• CEO had promied season would continue ‘full throttle’

LIV Golf’s inaugural tournament in New Orleans scheduled for the end of June is likely to be postponed until the autumn, according to multiple local reports.

New Orleans television station WDSU and nola.com were among the first to report Monday that the Bayou Oaks event at City Park planned for late June was being moved to later in the year.

Finnish president plays down Tusk’s warnings about potential Russian attack but says Europe should ‘prepare for the worst’ – Europe live

Alexander Stubb says he does not see ‘an incentive for Russia to test Nato’s Article 5’

Separately, Finland’s Stubb confirms that Europe faces some delays in stock deliveries from the US as a result of the Middle East war.

He says:

“It is a public secret that some of the stocks and delivered systems in the US are either going elsewhere or being delayed. But I don’t see any need for alarm here in Finland.”

“We are in a same position in the sense I know that there is a delay – it is probably a question to our minister of defence what kind of missiles or ammunition we are missing – but as far as I know, its [tactical ballistic missiles] Himars.

But it’s a signal that in Estonia and in Europe in general, we should much much faster develop our defence industry, not relying on different countries in the world.”

Will the Fed cut rates? Here's what to expect at Wednesday's meeting.

The Federal Reserve is contending with rising inflation amid the war and a lackluster job market, along with the departure of Fed Chair Jerome Powell.

Wild Foxes review – animal-obsessed fighter at elite sports academy wonders if more to life than boxing

Valéry Carnoy’s striking film brims with unsynchronised ideas and images, but the physicality and performances of the young cast are undeniable

Valéry Carnoy’s fiercely acted but dramatically unfocused film is about a sudden, mysterious crisis of confidence that undermines everything a young man thinks he knows about himself. It’s a brick dislodged from a wall that brings everything crashing down.

The setting is a sports boarding school in France; evidently INSEP, the National Institute of Sport, Expertise and Performance, in the Bois de Vincennes just outside Paris. Camille (Samuel Kirchner) is a tough, troubled kid from a broken home – and a brilliant boxer on the verge of national greatness. His best mate is fellow boxer Matteo (Fayçal Anaflous), who has broken the rules so often he is on the verge of being kicked out.

Gen Z think old age begins at 53 – so I have only three months to go | Zoe Williams

Each generation has a different view on when old age gets under way, but if my kids’ generation is correct, time is about to catch up with me ...

For boomers, old age begins at 75, according to a new survey, while gen X considers the start date of decrepitude to be 70, and millennials are a little stricter, at 63. These are all reasonable positions, and then you get to gen Z, who know nothing about anything: they say it’s 53.

By coincidence, I’d been thinking about this anyway at the weekend, after dancing so exuberantly I ripped my own clothes. I didn’t think that was ideal: it did raise concerns about what I must have looked like in the moment. But I figured as long as I stopped doing it before I got old, it was probably fine – and thought (being gen X) that gave me about 17 years. It turns out that as far as the youngsters are concerned, I have just over three months.

The MAHA movement is mad about glyphosate and Trump's EPA

Some people in the MAHA movement are angry with the Trump administration's stance on environmental toxins — including its current support for the maker of the pesticide glyphosate.

'We don't know what will happen to us': U.S. deportees in limbo in DRC

15 South American migrants and asylum seekers deported from the U.S. to the DRC are now living in uncertainty in a country an with ongoing armed conflict, where they have no ties.

‘The folk scene is very middle class. The divide is huge’: Jim Ghedi, the Sheffield singer bringing his doomy music to the movies

Plucked from relative obscurity to score Hugh Jackman film The Death of Robin Hood, the skilled singer-songwriter explains how he conquered his impostor syndrome

Last year, Jim Ghedi was having a chicken dinner at his mother’s house in Sheffield when he checked his phone. “This director started following me on Instagram,” he recalls. “And there’s pictures of him with Nicolas Cage. As a joke, I said to my mam: ‘I might message him and say, let me do your next film score.’ As I said it, he messaged me, saying: ‘I want you to do my next film score.’”

The director was Michael Sarnoski and the film is the forthcoming A24 production The Death of Robin Hood, starring Hugh Jackman and Jodie Comer. Sarnoski had heard Ghedi’s excellent 2025 album, Wasteland, a stirring and brooding album of apocalyptic folk that was a reflection of societal rot and collapse in England. Released on the small Calder Valley label Basin Rock, the album was critically acclaimed – and his most successful and ambitious to date – but it had not turned Ghedi into a household name. He thought that the film opportunity “would all blow away and they’d find out who I am”, he says. “Some top producer would put up the red flag.”

‘Street culture is about revolution’: Brazilian ‘hip-hop’ painter Paulo Nimer Pjota

The artist started with graffiti at 13 in São Paulo. Now, he samples motifs from mythology and his vast, fantastical paintings have taken over the walls of the South London Gallery

Paulo Nimer Pjota was 15 when he sold his first painting and already a three-year veteran. “I don’t really know what life is like without painting,” the 37-year-old Brazilian artist tells me. “It is in everything I do, the movies that I watch, the books that I read. They might not have anything to do with art, but I can find something in them that I might be able to use.”

Pjota’s studio, which once served as his bedsit before he got married and had a son, is in a quiet neighbourhood of São Paulo: there are shelves lined with gourds, skulls, postcards and other trinkets, a pair of skateboards hang on the wall and a desk overflows with tubes of paint. A pile of sketches he made when he was a teenager, discovered at his parents’ house, sit among this productive clutter.

Millions of homes in the U.S. are uninsured. NPR wants to hear your story

Millions of home in the U.S. are uninsured, partly because insurance costs have soared in recent years. NPR wants to hear about the coverage decisions you're making as premiums rise.

Lawsuits accuse State Farm of secretly working to cut insurance payouts

Lawsuits allege that State Farm tries to avoid paying what it owes for hail damage. The litigation is happening as homeowners face soaring insurance costs, partly due to threats from climate change.

The Breakdown | Celebrating elite speed machines who can send rugby into the stratosphere

Aerial ability of Saracens’ Noah Caluori helps to make him another dream player for rugby union’s marketers

As Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe crossed the line to complete his world-record London Marathon sprint on Sunday the BBC’s commentator Steve Cram almost swallowed his microphone. “Absolutely incredible. I’ve never seen anything like that. What a finish.” Running 26.2 miles in under two hours is certainly spectacular but – sorry, Steve – it only ranked as the second-best finish seen in the capital at the weekend.

That honour, yet again, was claimed by the Saracens winger Noah Caluori in his side’s home win over Leicester. Chip and chase tries are rarely straightforward but this one was from another planet: a deft dink over the top just outside the Tigers’ 22, searing acceleration around the stranded cover, a balletic leap to regather the ball while somehow staying infield and an irresistible touchdown in the right corner. Over to you, Sabastian.

Houseplant hacks: is activated charcoal good for pot plants?

It promises to filter toxins, absorb odours, prevent mould and keep roots healthy, but does it deliver?

The problem
Once you have graduated from novice plant parent, how can you take your level of care to the next level, helping your houseplant not only survive but thrive? Is activated charcoal the answer? You will find it listed in terrarium recipes and soil amendments. It promises to filter toxins, absorb odours, prevent mould and keep roots healthy. The bag looks purposeful, and the price suggests it is doing something important. The question is whether any of that holds up in an ordinary pot on an ordinary windowsill.

The hack
Activated charcoal works by adsorption, trapping impurities on its porous surface. In a closed terrarium or bottle garden, where water recycles and there is no drainage, a charcoal layer can slow the buildup of gases and bacteria. But does that translate to standard houseplant pots?

Read a book, flip off a Nazi: when reading meant resistance – in pictures

In the early 20th century, books became a meaningful symbol of freedom and democracy for the US, UK and their allies. A new exhibition in New York showcases colorful posters encouraging the public to donate and help supply soldiers with reading material. Reading Under Fire: Arming Minds & Hearts During Wartime is on display until 1 November at Poster House. All words and images from Poster House and curator Molly Guptill Manning

Shrugging at calamity: America is reacting in strange ways to our chaotic times | Francine Prose

The reaction to the Washington DC shooting shows that Americans are swinging between outrage, exhaustion and numbness

In the early hours of Sunday, I awoke to check the time on my phone and learned that there had been a shooting – apparently, an assassination attempt – at this year’s White House correspondents’ dinner, an event held annually to honor the journalists who cover presidential politics.

I stayed awake just long enough to read that the attack had been thwarted and that no one had been killed, and then I went back to sleep.

Francine Prose is a former president of PEN American Center and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences

Beyond crisis lines: How broader suicide prevention helps people in need

A new approach to suicide prevention shifts the focus from stopping harm in moments of crisis to upstream policies that give people reasons to live.

Should schools get rid of homework? Some educators are saying yes

Some experts worry that less homework could be a problem for math achievement, at a time when test scores nationwide are already at a dismal low.

Trump's embrace of King Charles comes at a fraught time for U.S.-UK relations

Trump seems to be looking forward to hosting, in recent weeks bringing up the royal visit multiple times.

BP profits more than double, beating expectations as Iran war boosts oil prices

The results come shortly after BP's board suffered a shareholder revolt at its annual general meeting.

Mexican special forces arrest top commander of powerful cartel

Audias Flores, known as ‘El Jardinero’, of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, captured in western state of Nayarit

Mexican special forces have arrested one of the top commanders of the powerful Jalisco New Generation Cartel in the western state of Nayarit.

Audias Flores, known as “El Jardinero”, is a regional commander in control of swathes of CJNG territory along Mexico’s Pacific coast. He was considered a potential successor to Nemesio Oseguera, alias “El Mencho”, who ran the cartel and was killed in a security operation in February.

‘Shortcomings and failures’ could sink Aukus nuclear submarines plan, UK inquiry warns

Australia is dependent upon UK’s ability to deliver new submarines but report says ‘cracks are already beginning to show’

“Cracks are already beginning to show” in the UK’s funding for the Aukus agreement that could derail the ambitious nuclear submarine plan, a British parliamentary inquiry has found, highlighting a threat to Australia’s security.

UK shipbuilding has been under-funded for decades and the country’s submarine availability is “critically low”, the House of Commons defence committee’s report found.

NEWSBRIEF: WHCA SUSPECT IN COURT, TRUMP-KING RELATIONSHIP, LEBANON CEASEFIRE FRAYS

Suspect charged with trying to assassinate President Trump, Trump hosts King Charles at critical point in U.S.-Britain relations, ceasefire in south Lebanon fraying.

Correspondents' dinner suspect charged with trying to assassinate President Trump

The Justice Department announced the first formal charges against the gunman at the White House Correspondents' Dinner.

I’ve Seen All I Need to See review – murky indie thriller follows woman home after her sister is murdered

An actor returns after the death of a family member, but there’s not much more of depth in this noirish tale with a painfully pretentious voiceover

Peel back the layers and sadly there is nothing much going on inside this American indie drama from director Zeshaan Younus; it’s a movie that’s aiming for noir, but ends up more of a shade of drab grey. It’s contrived and frustrating, with a painfully pretentious voiceover by its lead character Parker (Renee Gagner). She’s an actor in Los Angeles who returns to her home town after her sister Indiana (Rosie McDonald) is killed. “Sister, you were right.” muses Parker. “I am never fully anything or anyone. Instead, I am practically everyone and everything.”

It’s film in which actors shot in closeup deliver lines looking pensive, with an air of meaning and depth, while not actually saying anything meaningful. Before her death, we watch Indiana brokering some kind of dodgy deal with a biker. She leaves a voicemail for Parker: “I’m in pretty deep out here … If anything happens to me don’t come looking.” Which is advice promptly ignored by her sister after Indiana is killed. Instead, Parker searches for answers, although this is a film with loftier intentions than solving a murder.

‘If your wife asks you to change diapers, change your wife’: Lebanon’s hit show parodying the patriarchy

The female-created YouTube sketch series Smatouha Minni (You Heard It From Me) uses satire to confront misogynistic attitudes

In Beirut’s Gemmayzeh neighbourhood a rented flat has been transformed into a film set: bright studio lights in a cosy living room. At its centre is Maria Elayan – though she is barely recognisable. Filming for the third season of Smatouha Minni (You Heard It From Me), a feminist series in Arabic, the actor is in a padded muscle suit, wearing a slicked-back black wig and beard.

“If your wife asks you to change the diapers, you should change her,” the Palestinian-Jordanian barks, mimicking an aggrieved self-help podcaster. An hour later, she is slouched in a hoodie, shisha pipe in one hand and a gaming console in the other, shouting: “Mama, I’m hungry. Can you make me a sandwich?”

Meta, Google, OpenAI among Big Tech firms seeing top staff leaving to launch AI startups

Former employees at AI giants are raising hundreds of millions of dollars from investors months on from launching.

UK and US always find ways to come together, King Charles to tell Congress

Monarch to allude to recent strains in special relationship in speech to both houses during four-day state visit

King Charles is expected to allude to recent strains between the UK and US in a rare address by a monarch to the US Congress as he will underline that “time and again our two countries have always found ways to come together”.

The king’s remarks in a speech to both houses on Tuesday will come after Donald Trump has threatened to tear up a trade deal signed by the UK and US, mocked the Royal Navy and insulted the UK prime minister.

‘An uprising against loneliness’: why have football ultras become a cultural obsession?

A new documentary travels around the world to identify the roots of ultra-mania – the fan movement that’s part progressive and sometimes criminal

‘Ultras” – hardcore football fans renowned for their stunning stadium displays and gang-like loyalty – were once a subculture confined to Italian stadiums. But since the late 1960s the movement has spread through global football terraces and become a more elevated cultural obsession.

Books on the subject include my own Ultra and James Montague’s 1312 (the numbers stand for ACAB, an abbreviation of “all cops are bastards”). Netflix has not only commissioned one film, Ultras, about a Neapolitan gang, but also three longer series: Puerta 7 (based in Argentina), Furioza and The Hooligan (both set in Poland).

AFC Champions League gets finale fitting of fundamentally flawed tournament | John Duerden

Al-Ahli won for the second successive year, but few outside Jeddah will remember proceedings fondly

As far as head-butts in major finals go, it wasn’t quite Zinedine Zidane in 2006, but Zakaria Hawsawi’s lunge forwards in Saturday’s AFC Champions League Elite final connected with Tete Yengi’s jaw and dropped the stunned Australian, almost a foot taller, to the ground.

With the score 0-0 between Saudi Arabia’s Al-Ahli and Machida Zelvia of Japan midway through the second half, it all took place on the touchline of the King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Jeddah, right in front of the referee and the shocked Al-Ahli fans who feared their team’s chances of a second successive continental title had gone.

It’s time MPs levelled with us: Britain is already at war, and we’ll need to do two things to survive it | Gaby Hinsliff

Cyber-attacks, disinformation and blockading of supplies. This is what living in a war zone can look like now

We are at war. Four words that sound ludicrously melodramatic on a sunny spring day, when all may not be exactly right with the world – but when you can still shut your eyes to a lot of it just by switching off the news and cracking on with life. No bombs are falling, no bullets flying, no sirens sounding. Though the idea that Britain is already under a form of hybrid attack is commonplace in defence circles, politicians still mostly skirt around it; and it was jolting at first to hear the Labour MP (and former RAF wing commander) Calvin Bailey make the case for conflict being our new reality at a conference hosted by the Good Growth Foundation thinktank last week in London. But then he started to unpack his reasoning for why war is no longer what you think it is.

If war can be considered an assault on five fronts – against a country’s political leadership, critical infrastructure, essentials such as food or fuel supplies, civilian population and armed forces – then Britain is arguably now being attacked on the first four without a shot being fired. Think of rampant, Russian-generated political disinformation on social media and attempts to bribe British politicians; of Russian submarine surveillance of the British undersea cables carrying most of our internet traffic, or the four “nationally significant” cyber-attacks recorded every week; of the blockading of food and fuel supplies through the strait of Hormuz. Think, too, of Keir Starmer’s warning in the Sunday Times last week of conflict with Iran coming home to British civilians via “the use of proxies in this country”. He didn’t elaborate, but counter-terrorism police say they are investigating whether a spate of arson attacks on synagogues, Jewish-owned businesses and Iranians living in Britain may have been sponsored by Tehran – a thugs-for-hire tactic familiar from the Russian playbook for sowing division and hate.

Gaby Hinsliff is a Guardian columnist

What, Howe and why: big questions Saudi owners may ask under-fire Newcastle manager | Louise Taylor

Run of five defeats could lead to awkward queries this week, including why £124m of attacking talent is being underused

Eddie Howe is braced for forensic questioning by Newcastle’s Saudi Arabian owners at a Northumberland country house hotel in the middle of this week. Matfen Hall sells itself as a venue for rest and relaxation but Newcastle’s struggling manager knows that, with his future at St James’ Park in the balance, a scheduled “summit meeting” with the club’s chair, Yasir al-Rumayyan, and other key figures from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) could prove stressful.

“It’s something we do every year,” says Howe, referring to the annual spring event at which the ownership quiz departmental heads. “But obviously things will be slightly harder for me this time.”

The Return of Arinzo review – families who hate each other clash in noirish Nollywood thriller

Nigerian actor and director Iyabo Ojo’s entertaining but imperfect tale about warring clans unfolds across Nigeria, Ghana and Tanzania

This Nigerian thriller unfolds mostly in the bustling city of Lagos but it makes excursions to Ghana and Tanzania and casts actors from all three countries, making for a diverse, textured tale that is thoroughly entertaining. That said, there are still plenty of imperfections, especially in the editing, and the acting ranges from professional and polished to amateur and awkward, so it’s a bit of a bumpy ride. Still, it is yet more evidence that the increasingly well-financed Nollywood industry can hold its own internationally, and grow audiences beyond Africa.

Even if a male character’s run for president is a major engine of the story, this is very much a female-centric film, encompassing women across several generations in an assortment of configurations, often far from harmonious. That comes across very clearly in an early scene in which we see bossy matriarch Aisha Williams (Mercy Aigbe), wife of aspiring politician Marcus Williams (William Benson), having a screaming match with her sister-in-law as members of the household look on aghast. A complicated character to say the least, Aisha can turn on the charm when she needs to, for example when her son, aspiring actor Mandla (Enioluwa Adeoluwa), brings home his fiancee Simisola (Prisca Lyimo) to meet the family. But as soon as Aisha meets Simisola’s aunt Bridget (Bimbo Akintola), a devout preacher, the hospitality spigot is abruptly turned off. By degrees, we learn that there’s a long history between the two older women who are connected through familiarity with Simisola’s birth mother Arinzo (played by director Iyabo Ojo) who everyone thought had died years ago.

Taking power in Mali might be a stretch but insurgents can force hand of weakened regime

Coordinated attack by JNIM and the Tuareg minority inflicted significant casualties on government forces and Russian auxiliaries

When al-Qaida-affiliated Islamic militants launched a series of attacks on military bases and raids into major towns in Mali and neighbouring Burkina Faso last summer, observers suggested they had been inspired by their counterparts in Syria, who had overthrown the regime of Bashar al-Assad and taken power six months or so earlier.

Despite the tactical successes that earned them the fearful title of the “Ghost Army”, seizing swathes of territory and denying cities and the military of fuel and other essentials, the chances of Jama’at Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM) definitively defeating Mali’s military regime and the thousand or so Russian mercenaries hired to defend it looked poor.

Lebanon accuses Israel of committing ‘ecocide’ in country since 2023

Claim by environment minister opens new report into profound ecological damage allegedly done by IDF forces

Lebanon’s minister for the environment has accused Israel’s military of committing “an act of ecocide” in the foreword to a report detailing the harm done to the country’s natural resources during the invasion of 2023 to 2024.

Israeli military aggression “reshaped both the physical and ecological landscape” of southern Lebanon, according to the report, which does not consider the impacts of Israel’s latest barrage of attacks this spring.

Damaged 5,000 hectares (12,350 acres) of forest cover, including broadleaf, pine and stone pine stands, destroying habitats, disregulating local climates and causing soil erosion.

Destroyed $118m (£87m) of physical agriculture assets, including crops, livestock facilities, forestry resources, fisheries and aquaculture infrastructure.

Caused further losses of $586m (£433m) in lost agricultural production as a result of disrupted harvests and reduced yields.

Destroyed 2,154 hectares (5,320 acres) of orchards, including 814 hectares of olive groves and 637 hectares of citrus plantations, and caused extensive damage to banana plantations.

Contaminated soils with phosphorus concentrations up to 1,858 parts a million, with particular contamination hotspots in south Lebanon and Bekaa valley in the east.

Caused widespread air pollution episodes extending well beyond immediate strike zones and releasing particulates; sulphur and nitrogen oxides; and toxic compounds such as dioxins and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.

‘A constant quiet terror’: Getting lost in Irish folklore – in pictures

Maria Lax’s images are inspired by the phenomenon of ‘stray sod’, in which patches of enchanted land are said to lead astray anyone who steps on them

Trump fires independent board overseeing National Science Foundation

Positions ‘terminated, effective immediately’, says email to scientists sent on president’s behalf, in move labelled ‘dangerous attack’ on US innovation

The Trump administration has fired members of an independent board that oversees the National Science Foundation (NSF).

Members of the National Science Board received an email on Friday sent from the Presidential Personnel Office “on behalf of President Donald J Trump” stating that their position was “terminated, effective immediately”.

Rebel Wilson tells defamation trial she was not behind websites that attacked producer

Hollywood actor says she would not have been horrified by sites because Amanda Ghost was allegedly bullying her at time

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Hollywood star Rebel Wilson has denied lying as she maintains she had no involvement in websites that attacked a producer with whom she is feuding.

The Pitch Perfect star is being sued by Charlotte MacInnes, the Australian lead actor of the musical comedy The Deb.

China blocks Meta's $2 billion takeover of AI startup Manus

China said Monday it has decided to block Meta's $2 billion acquisition of Manus, a Singaporean AI startup with Chinese roots.

Moussaka, a chickpea soup/stew and homemade vienetta: Georgina Hayden’s Mediterranean party – recipes

A fun, shareable Tunisian chickpea soup for a party, a one-pan moussaka, and a fragrant, layered, chocolate viennetta

Traditionally, this would be a Tunisian breakfast, and it’s not a million miles from one of my favourites, Egyptian ful medames. But here I’m proposing it as an evening offering: make a big pot of delicious flavourful chickpeas, then lay out a spread of accompaniments (pickles, olives, capers, boiled eggs). Second, a good traditional moussaka is a wholesome but time-consuming process, but that’s not the case with this simplified version, which you can easily make on a weeknight. Finally, you might not be surprised to learn that this basil viennetta was one of the most popular recipes when we were testing dishes for my new book, MEDesque. First, of course, because it tastes unreal. Second, because everyone got a huge tug of nostalgia, and third, because everyone became giddy with excitement, trying to figure out what the flavour was.

Welsh Labour faces ‘existential’ change as party braces for May election defeat

‘Critical debate’ about party’s identity and direction looms if it loses control of Senedd next month after 27 years in power

Welsh Labour is the democratic world’s most successful election-winning machine, coming first in Wales in every general election since 1922 and every devolved election since 1999. Come next month’s Senedd election, however, this history-making run is expected to end.

Labour’s collapse has left a vacuum, and former Labour voters are going to opposite ends of the political spectrum. Plaid Cymru and Nigel Farage’s Reform UK are neck and neck in the latest poll, although coalition maths make it highly unlikely Reform would be able to form a government.

Country diary: Urban peregrines are not fussy eaters | Nic Wilson

Stevenage, Hertfordshire: Thanks to Andy, who scrabbles around on the pavement, we know that pigeons are just for starters

Andy and I meet by the trolleys in Asda car park. As we head towards Vista Tower in the town centre, he tells me about the new peregrines: VDT, a male born in Hemel Hempstead in 2023, and his mate, VSR, a female born in Andover in 2024, both named for their Darvic ring codes. It’s an encouraging development as they are the first pair to establish a territory here during the breeding season, though Stevenage does have resident peregrines in winter.

We start poking about in pavement cracks and drain grates under the 50-metre-high tower block where the peregrines often feed. I spot scurvy grass, buck’s-horn plantain and some matted clumps of fluff; thankfully, Andy’s an expert at reading the remains. He pulls out cinnamon and white scapular and secondary wing feathers of an ash-red feral pigeon; then a cluster of ivory feathers with dark brown barring, plucked from the vermiculated flank of a male teal – evidence of the peregrines hunting waterbirds by night.

General Motors is set to report earnings before the bell. Here's what Wall Street expects

Aside from earnings and any change to GM's 2026 guidance, investors are monitoring impact from the Iran war, tariffs and EV write-downs.

Giorgia Meloni clung to her relationship with Trump – now it’s starting to look like a liability | Riccardo Alcaro

The Italian PM has walked a tightrope between Europe and the US. But the Iran war – and Trump’s attacks on her – have changed everything

The news last week that the Trump administration sounded out Fifa, world football’s governing body, about replacing Iran with Italy at this year’s World Cup jolted insiders and pundits on the beautiful game. It has also cast fresh light on the unusual and evolving relationship between Donald Trump and Giorgia Meloni.

In recent weeks, the Italian prime minister’s standing as the darling of the US right has been imperilled by an unexpected rift with the Oval Office. Trump dramatically distanced himself from his Italian ally over her refusal to join US attacks on Iran in an interview. “I’m shocked at her. I thought she had courage, but I was wrong,” the US president told the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera.

Riccardo Alcaro is head of research at IAI, Istituto Affari Internazionali in Rome

Asian mothers, bad feelings: notes on an all-conquering stereotype

A certain image of the tiger mom – strict, cold and demanding – is ubiquitous in popular culture. Why?

In January 2011, the English-speaking world was introduced to a new kind of villain. She arrived in the form of a viral Wall Street Journal article with the headline “Why Chinese mothers are superior”. The author, a relatively unknown Yale law professor named Amy Chua, outlined her strict rules for her two daughters: no sleepovers, playdates or school plays – and no complaining about not being in the school play, either. They were expected to be the top students in all subjects at school (except gym and drama). When her seven-year-old refused to play a song on the piano, Chua threatened her with no lunch, no dinner and no birthday parties for four years until she complied. Another time, after the same daughter misbehaved, Chua branded her “garbage”.

The backlash was swift and vicious. Chua was called an abuser, a stereotype peddler, a shock jock. The article was an extract from her memoir, Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, and Chua did her best to explain that, in the book, she reckons with the limits of her parenting. But it was too late: the controversy had taken on a life of its own. Many Asian American writers responded by sharing their ambivalence or anger about having been raised in this way. “I grew up with a tiger parent and all I got was this lousy psychological trauma” declared one such blog post. Suddenly a ubiquitous but private dynamic was being held up for public debate. There were endless letters, op-eds, blogs, tweets, Facebook posts. My grandparents in China, who are as removed from the American commentariat as one could possibly be, asked me about the American lady boasting about getting her kids into Harvard and giving Chinese people a bad name.

Sudan paramilitary leaders acquired £17.7m property portfolio in Dubai, investigation reveals

The RSF leadership, accused of committing genocide, used UAE as a ‘safe haven’ for family members and their wealth, records show

A network linked to the leadership of a militia accused of genocide has amassed a vast property portfolio in Dubai as part of a sprawling “paramilitary-industrial complex” across Africa and the Middle East, an investigation has revealed.

Family members, sanctioned individuals, and entities linked to the leader of Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF), Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, have acquired more than 20 luxury properties, worth £17.7m, in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), according to the Sentry, a US investigative group.

‘I don’t want to be part of a dictatorship’: the Americans queueing up to renounce their citizenship

Severing ties with the US can take more than a year and cost thousands of dollars. But Paul, Ella, Margot and thousands of others feel they have no choice

When Margot went to renounce her US citizenship earlier this year, she wasn’t able to do it in the UK, her home of 30 years. The waiting list to renounce US citizenship at the London consulate is more than 14 months. It’s a similar story in Sydney and most major Canadian cities. Many European cities currently have six-month waiting lists.

So Margot found herself in the lobby of the consulate in Ghent, Belgium. One wall was covered by a picture of Boston Harbour, where she was born. The other had three portraits: Donald Trump, JD Vance and Marco Rubio, their faces glistening – to her mind, with sadistic triumph (the lighting may have been a factor). Momentarily, she felt caught in a vice: everything she loved about her nation; everything she hated. Then she went in, swore under oath that she knew what she was doing, wasn’t being coerced, and wasn’t renouncing her citizenship for the purposes of tax avoidance. The official’s tone was neutral, slightly bored.

Humanoid robots to become baggage handlers in Japan airport experiment

Japan Airlines will introduce the robots for trial run at a Tokyo airport amid country’s surge in inbound tourism and worsening labour shortages

Japan’s famously conscientious but overburdened baggage handlers will soon be joined by extra staff at Tokyo’s Haneda airport – although their new colleagues will need to take regular recharging breaks.

Japan Airlines will introduce humanoid robots on a trial basis from the beginning of May, with a view to deploying them permanently as a solution to the country’s chronic labour shortage.

4/27: CBS Evening News

Correspondents' dinner shooting suspect charged with trying to assassinate the president; Georgia wildfire battle enters second week.

Correspondents' dinner suspect charged with trying to assassinate Trump

Cole Allen, the man accused of opening fire at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, was charged with trying to assassinate President Trump.

Ashes and memories: one family’s return to the site of Hong Kong’s worst fire in decades

Yip Shun-Ting Carbon returns for the first time to his apartment to salvage belongings after last year’s fire that killed 168 people, including his mother

The Yip family once imagined moving to a country house, all three generations under the same roof, with their own vegetable garden and away from Hong Kong’s dense high-rises. A devastating fire, Hong Kong’s worst since 1948, took that future from them, leaving behind little but rubble and blackened walls.

“Whatever we can retrieve is a bonus,” says Yip Shun-Ting Carbon, aged 36, who lost his mother, Pak Shui-lin, in the inferno in November last year that killed 168 people at a large residential complex under renovation.

Train collision in Indonesia kills 14 as rescuers work to reach survivors

Efforts continue to free two trapped passengers in wreckage after long-distance train collides with commuter train outside Jakarta, injuring 81

The death toll from a train collision near the Indonesian capital Jakarta has risen to 14 with another 84 injured, the train operator said on Tuesday, as rescuers worked to extract survivors still trapped in the wreckage.

The collision between a commuter train and a long-distance train happened late on Monday in Bekasi, just outside Jakarta.

Congressional Republicans rally around Trump's White House ballroom project

A group of Senate Republicans is proposing a bill to authorize $400 million in federal funds for the construction of a White House ballroom.

4/27: The Takeout with Major Garrett

Suspect in White House Correspondents' Dinner shooting appears in court; King Charles and Queen Camilla arrive in U.S. for state visit.

CBS News poll on California governor's race: What are primary voters looking for?

Ahead of Tuesday's debate in the California governor's race, it's still a wide-open contest, CBS News' latest poll finds.

Human remains found in search for missing Florida doctoral student

Hisham Abugharbieh, 26, has been charged with the murders of Nahida Bristy and Zamil Limon, whose body was found Friday.

Brother of suspect in deaths of 2 Tampa students: "We tried to warn police in the past"

Ahmad Abugharbieh, the younger brother of the man suspected of killing two University of South Florida doctoral students, told CBS News, "My entire family feels so much shame and guilt."

New evidence on suspect's search history in apparent murders of South Florida students

Investigators are looking into the apparent murder of two University of South Florida doctoral students, and are now revealing evidence from the suspect's bedroom and his search history. Cristian Benavides reports.

Nathan Chasing Horse sentenced to life in prison for sexual assault

Dances With Wolves actor assaulted Indigenous women and girls, exploiting his position as a spiritual leader

Nathan Chasing Horse has been sentenced to life in prison for sexually assaulting Indigenous women and girls.

A Nevada judge gave the Dances With Wolves actor his sentence Monday. A jury had previously convicted him of 13 charges, mostly related to sexual assault. He was accused by three women, including one who was 14 when the assaults began. He was acquitted on some charges.

Storm chasers capture twin tornadoes as severe weather moves through central U.S.

Severe storms are moving through the Midwest on Monday after parts of Texas, Arkansas and Oklahoma saw tornadoes over the weekend. Rob Marciano has a look at the forecast.

Afghanistan says Pakistani strikes kill seven and wound 85 in first attack since peace talks

Pakistan officials dismiss Afghan media reports and official statements about strikes on university in Kunar province as ‘blatant lie’

Mortars and missiles fired from Pakistan on Monday struck a university and civilian homes in north-eastern Afghanistan, killing seven people and wounding at least 85, Afghan officials said.

Pakistan denied the accusation of targeting a university.

Firefighters from across U.S. joining Georgia wildfire battle with blazes entering second week

Record-breaking wildfires in Georgia are still burning, now in their second week. Skyler Henry reports on the reinforcements coming to the state from around the country.

Secret Service director questioned by lawmakers about security after correspondents' dinner attack

In the wake of Saturday's shooting at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, the Trump administration has ordered a review of security procedures. Meanwhile, Republicans and Democrats are blaming each other for rhetoric leading up to the attack. Ed O'Keefe reports.

Actor Nathan Chasing Horse sentenced to life in prison for sexual assault

The "Dances With Wolves" actor was accused by three Indigenous women and girls, including one who was 14 when the assaults began. He was convicted in January on 13 of the 21 charges he faced.

Court document reveals new details about correspondents' dinner shooting

An FBI affidavit filed in federal court lays out more details about Cole Allen's alleged actions before and during the shooting at the White House Correspondents' Dinner.

The security apparatus at the "Hinckley" Hilton where correspondents' dinner is held

On March 31, 1981, when President Reagan was shot by John Hinckley, Jr., the Washington Hilton ceased to be just another venue for the Secret Service.

What we know about the suspect in shooting at White House Correspondents' Dinner

The suspect was identified to CBS News by law enforcement sources as 31-year-old Cole Allen of Torrance, California.

Suspect charged with assassination attempt in correspondents' dinner shooting

Cole Allen was charged Monday in federal court with three counts including attempt to assassinate the president.

82nd Airborne soldiers train on drone-countering maneuvers used in Ukraine

Soldiers are training for drone-on-drone combat using Bumblebee drones, which have been used in Ukraine and are being sent to U.S. training centers in the Middle East.

Trump asked about conspiracy theory that shooting was staged

Even as the Justice Department gathers evidence, some corners of the internet are brewing with conspiracies about the attack at the White House Correspondents' Dinner. In her interview Sunday with President Trump, "60 Minutes" contributing correspondent Norah O'Donnell asked the president about those theories.

Correspondents' dinner shooting suspect charged with trying to assassinate the president

Two days after allegedly attempting to charge into the White House Correspondents' Dinner with a gun on Saturday night, Cole Allen was in a federal courtroom Monday facing formal Department of Justice charges of the attempted assassination of a president. Matt Gutman reports.

Guardian Sport and Jonathan Liew win top prizes at SJA Awards

• The Guardian named as sports publisher of the year

• Jonathan Liew wins columnist of the year for fifth time

Guardian Sport won two top prizes at the prestigious Sports Journalists’ Association’s awards evening on Monday.

The Guardian won sports publisher of the year at the SJA British Sports Journalism Awards night while Jonathan Liew was named columnist of the year for the fifth time in eight years, as well as winning bronze in the football journalist of the year category. Suzanne Wrack won bronze in the women’s football journalist of the year and Andy Bull won bronze in the sports feature writer of the year (long form) category.

UK has wealthy Europe’s ‘third-highest’ rate of young adults not in work or study

Resolution Foundation report says ‘crisis’ stems from rising ill-health and a failing system of benefits and job support

Britain has the third-highest rate of young people not in work or education among Europe’s richest countries because of rising ill-health and a failing system of benefits and job support, a report has warned.

The Resolution Foundation thinktank said the UK was facing a “crisis” in youth jobs amid a dramatic rise in the number of 16- to 24-year-olds who are not in education, employment or training (Neets) to almost 1 million – the highest level in more than a decade.

Domino's Pizza stock falls on disappointing sales — and CEO thinks more chains will follow

CEO Russell Weiner said he expects more fast-food chains will report that winter weather and weak consumer sentiment hurt their quarterly sales.

Casemiro’s decision to leave Manchester United is final, insists Michael Carrick

• Brazilian going in the summer after four years

• Interim manager says the situation is ‘pretty clear’

Michael Carrick ruled out any ­reversal of Casemiro’s departure from Manchester United in the summer after the Brazilian scored in Monday’s 2-1 win against Brentford.

The midfielder’s header on 11 ­minutes was his ninth goal in the ­Premier League, second only for United to Benjamin Sesko, who ­registered just before half-time to seal victory. Casemiro has impressed all season, but previously announced he will leave in June after four years at the club. Carrick stated the decision will not be changed.

Cole Allen charged with trying to assassinate Trump at WHCD event

The Secret Service is facing scrutiny over security at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, where President Donald Trump was evacuated Saturday.

Number of executions in North Korea rose dramatically during Covid – report

Regime used its isolation after closing borders to escalate killings when global scrutiny disappeared, NGO claims

North Korea dramatically increased its use of the death penalty after closing its borders during the Covid-19 pandemic, using its isolation to escalate killings when international scrutiny disappeared, according to a report mapping 13 years of executions under the country’s leader, Kim Jong-un.

The number of documented cases of executions and death sentences increased by 117% in the nearly five years after North Korea sealed its borders in January 2020 compared with an equal period before the closure, according to a report by the Transitional Justice Working Group (TJWG), a human rights NGO in Seoul.

Google workers urge CEO to refuse classified AI work with Pentagon

In an open letter, Google workers say doing a deal with the Department of Defense would hurt the tech giant's reputation.

The two-hour marathon is done – but other records remain to be broken

World-firsts still up for grabs include swimming the Pacific, leaping 9 metres and holding your breath for 30 minutes

Bad news for anyone who secretly fancies themselves every time they lace up their trainers: the two-hour marathon record has gone. Sabastian Sawe’s astonishing effort at the London marathon on Sunday – cruising across the finish line on the Mall in 1hr 59m 30s like a man who has just jogged a parkrun – shattered a record long seen as beyond human capability.

“They said it couldn’t be done!” roared BBC commentator Steve Cram. And then, 11 seconds later, Yomif Kejelcha did it too – and he’d never even run a marathon before.

US is being ‘humiliated’ by Iran’s leadership, says Friedrich Merz

German chancellor suggests Trump administration is being outwitted at negotiating table by Tehran

The US is being “humiliated” by Iran’s leadership, according to Friedrich Merz, Germany’s chancellor, who suggested the Trump administration was being outwitted at the negotiating table by Tehran.

Two days ago Donald Trump cancelled a trip by US negotiators to Islamabad for indirect talks with an Iranian delegation. A previous round in the Pakistani capital two weeks earlier, when JD Vance, the American vice-president, led the US delegation, broke up without progress.

Trump discussed Iran's Hormuz Strait proposal with top aides, White House says

The Trump administration has repeatedly insisted that the central goal of the conflict is keeping Iran from ever obtaining a nuclear weapon.

World Cup will be ‘bonanza of sportswashing’ under Trump, say human rights groups

• Fans warned of uncertainty around protests and policing

• Lise Klaveness set to raise concerns over ICE with Fifa

This summer’s World Cup will be a “bonanza of sportswashing” according to human rights organisations, who claim the Trump administration is using sport as a political tool to “cover up abuses”.

With supporter groups warning they have “absolutely no clue” what will happen to fans if they do “stupid stuff” in the US during the tournament, the Sport and Rights Alliance (SRA), which includes Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Amnesty International, has called for more to be done to ensure the protection of individual rights at the World Cup, which begins in six weeks.

California billionaire tax secures enough signatures to make ballot

The measure would impose a one-time, 5% tax on the state's roughly 200 billionaires to fund public programs.

The Guardian view on King Charles’s state visit: a regal exercise in damage limitation | Editorial

The monarch must do his best to wrest some diplomatic advantage from an ill-timed trip, which Donald Trump will treat as a personal tribute

When King Charles’s mother became the first British monarch to address the United States Congress in 1991, she spoke in the aftermath of the US-led response to Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait, in which more than 50,000 UK troops participated. Queen Elizabeth II used the occasion to celebrate the role of the transatlantic alliance in upholding the rule of international law: “Some people believe that power grows out of the barrel of a gun,” she told her Capitol Hill audience. “So it can, but history shows that it never grows well nor for very long.”

Different monarch, different times and a very different America. As the king embarks on a four‑day state visit to the United States, a foiled assault by a gunman believed to be targeting members of the Trump administration illustrated the extent to which political violence has become endemic in a deeply polarised country. Globally, Donald Trump’s illegal war in Iran (and prior to that the abduction by US special forces of Venezuela’s president, Nicolás Maduro) underlines that in the view of the present White House, the possessors of military might have the right to set their own rules.

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 screens in schools: big tech is finally under the microscope | Editorial

Scrutiny of the impact of technology on children’s lives and education should be welcomed

A new law banning mobile phone use in schools in England, which ministers reluctantly agreed to last week, is on one level the result of political manoeuvring by Liberal Democrat and Conservative peers – who forced their hand by threatening to derail the schools bill. Until now, the government’s position has been that advice to headteachers was sufficient. But whether or not a ban turns out to be helpful, the campaign reflects deepening public concern about the degree to which powerful tech companies can be trusted.

From messaging platforms where pupils and teachers interact, to appointment-booking systems and research carried out in lessons and at home, digital technology is deeply embedded in education. This should not be expected to change. Classrooms rightly reflect the wider world that they are part of. But the current push towards stronger scrutiny of screens in schools – and in young people’s lives more broadly – is justified by accruing evidence about their impacts.

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.

Trump reacts to alleged gunman's "manifesto," and more interview highlights

The day after a gunman attempted to storm​ the White House Correspondents' Dinner, President Trump sat down with CBS News' Norah O'Donnell for a "60 Minutes" interview​ to talk about his experience.

Trump ballroom lawsuit plaintiff rejects DOJ demand to drop case after 'assassination attempt'

Trump and others say the proposed White House ballroom would be much more secure than the Washington Hilton Hotel, where Saturday's shooting occurred.

Heavy rain not ‘nearly enough’ to tame two wildfires in drought-stricken Georgia

Pineland Road fire and Highway 82 fire have destroyed over 100 homes, and are part of large number of wildfires this spring in the US south

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Heavy rain slowed the progress of two sprawling southern Georgia wildfires over the weekend, allowing crews to make some progress in containing the blazes that have destroyed more than 100 homes.

Although the rain helped the firefighting efforts, it wasn’t “nearly enough to put the fires out” and crews responded to 10 new blazes throughout the drought-stricken state Sunday, the Georgia Forestry Commission said on Monday.

Doubts persist about whether Fed chair nominee Warsh will be independent, CNBC survey finds

Just 50% of respondents believe Warsh will conduct monetary policy mostly or very independently.

Musk and Altman face off in federal court. Here's what to know.

The trial comes at a pivotal moment for AI, a technology poised to bring advancement that could also drastically reshape humanity.

Taylor Swift files trademarks for voice and image amid concern over AI misuse

The singer’s company filed three applications on Friday after Matthew McConaughey launched similar strategy

Taylor Swift has filed applications to trademark her voice and image in a move seemingly designed to protect against AI misuse.

On 24 April, Swift’s company TAS Rights Management filed three trademark applications, Variety reports. Two of these are sound trademarks that cover Swift saying the phrases “Hey, it’s Taylor Swift” and “Hey, it’s Taylor.”

MAHA is mad. Its alliance with Trump is about to face its biggest test

Supreme Court arguments Monday and the farm bill put MAHA squarely at odds with President Donald Trump and the majority of Republicans in Congress.

‘Subtle but powerful form of self-validation’: how to start journaling

There is no wrong way to journal, say experts, and putting pen to paper can help with mental health and clarify thoughts and feelings

• How to start … anything: expert tips for trying something new

Humans have been jotting down their feelings and experiences for millennia. The earliest example of a diary is over 4,500 years old, written on papyrus by a mid-level official who helped in constructing the Great Pyramid of Giza.

Since then, other noteworthy diarists have included Lord Byron, Virginia Woolf, Albert Einstein, Audre Lorde and also me. (One guess as to which of those intellectual powerhouses recently journaled about getting a tummy ache after eating too many Swedish Fish.)

Ben Jennings on political violence in the US – cartoon

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My beloved grandfather is dying. I’m so grateful for the intergenerational joy we’ve shared | Hannah Bambra

Pa is a cheeky and playful person. He taught me how to joke, negotiate, heckle. His warmth is his immeasurable wealth

My grandfather, who I have always called Pa, is dying. He grew up working class in the north of England and went on to have a spectacular career, life and family.

Many of my friends have inherited tens of thousands of dollars when their grandparents have died, often tied up in big suburban houses. This is part of the new phenomenon of intergenerational wealth. Rather than the “bank of mum and dad”, the “bank of grandma and grandpa” is how many young couples are now getting into housing. But many of the same friends seldom saw their grandparents or felt they couldn’t fully be themselves in front of them. And the spectacle of inheritance feels meaningless alongside real connection.

‘I was super horny when I made my early work’: Loie Hollowell’s abstract paintings of breasts and vaginas

Equally inspired by childbirth manuals, Georgia O’Keeffe and her own hormones, pregnancy and motherhood, Hollowell paints beautiful anatomical abstractions. She opens up about her cosmic birth and out-of-body experience

‘It’s magical,” says Loie Hollowell. “It’s such good timing!” The artist, speaking via Zoom from her studio in Queens, New York, is referring to the Artemis II moon mission. Little did she know, when she named her latest painting series Overview Effect, after the term used by astronauts to describe the experience of seeing Earth from space and the profound feelings of awe and interconnectedness it provokes, that she’d be coinciding with this space odyssey. But she is not surprised anyone would want to leave Earth for a while. “We’re having so many problems here,” she says.

Overview Effect, currently at London’s Pace Gallery, features large-scale canvases combining twin concave and convex sculpted circles. If you folded the canvasses in half vertically, the halves would fit perfectly together. The works, which radiate outwards in rings of glorious colour that are both vibrant and soothing, are a continuation of earlier works focusing on pregnancy and birth through abstraction. Her Split Orb paintings and Dilation Stage series of pastel drawings responded to the difficult birth of her son in a New York hospital. Overview Effect is a result of her daughter’s easier arrival: a “cosmic” home birth that she found far more empowering.

United Airlines CEO confirms he approached American Airlines about merger

United CEO Scott Kirby said American rejected the idea, "and without a willing partner, something this big simply can't get done."