Trump China visit live: Xi Jinping warns US and China could ‘come into conflict’ if Taiwan issue mishandled, state media reports

Ahead of the crucial talks, security has been heightened in Beijing, with trade, AI and the war in Iran set to dominate the meeting between the two leaders

• Trump lands in China for high-stakes summit with Xi Jinping as Iran war looms over talks

• Explainer: five key issues on the table at summit
  

Donald Trump will drive through a Chinese capital that is smoggier than it was on his last visit in 2017, when the authorities launched emergency measures to clear the skies of pollution days before his first state visit to Beijing.

Factories were ordered to halt production and heavily polluting cars were banned from the roads in the days ahead of the US president’s trip nearly a decade ago, an era in which China had declared war on air pollution and made special efforts to clear the skies ahead of important political events such as visiting dignitaries and the Beijing Olympics.

Angela Rayner cleared by HMRC over tax affairs paving the way for potential leadership bid

Exclusive: former deputy prime minister says investigation ‘clipped my wings’ as she settles £40,000 in unpaid stamp duty

Angela Rayner has been cleared by HMRC of deliberate wrongdoing or carelessness over her tax affairs, the Guardian can reveal, paving the way for a potential leadership bid as Keir Starmer’s grip on power unravels.

The former deputy prime minister has settled £40,000 in unpaid stamp duty after initially paying the lower rate, but has not paid any penalty as a result of the investigation. HMRC was also satisfied there was no tax avoidance.

Australians from hantavirus cruise ship to fly out of Netherlands in full PPE after plane and crew secured

Health minister Mark Butler says six passengers who have tested negative for hantavirus will land in Western Australia on Friday

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Four Australian citizens who were aboard the MV Hondius, the cruise ship at the centre of the hantavirus outbreak, will soon be home after the government secured a suitable aircraft and crew for the journey.

The health minister, Mark Butler, said the citizens, along with a permanent resident and a New Zealand citizen, were due to take off from the Netherlands on Thursday evening local time and would land in Perth on Friday afternoon.

After a hard-fought victory to legalise medical cannabis in the UK, why is it still so hard to access?

Two mothers fought British bureaucracy to obtain lifesaving cannabis medicines for their children. But most patients are having to go private – at huge cost

In the summer of 2012, Britain was in a festive mood. It was the year of the queen’s diamond jubilee and the London Olympics, and the country was celebrating. But for former hairdresser Hannah Deacon and her young family in Warwickshire, it was a summer of ambulances, hospital wards and doctors rushing in and out of emergency rooms.

Eight months earlier, Deacon had given birth to a healthy baby boy named Alfie. The early months of his life had been challenging for her and her partner, Drew, as they are for any first-time parents, but by the summer, Alfie was sleeping and feeding well, and it felt like the family was settling into the new rhythm. However, one night the couple woke up to find their baby’s little body gripped by a paralysing seizure.

For three years I scoured the world for answers to Europe’s big problems – here’s what I found

Japan and Taiwan have enviable care systems because they had the courage to plan – some solutions are radical, most are hiding in plain sight

It’s mid-afternoon in Fujisawa. Schoolchildren, rucksacks on their backs, bound into a room where a group of pensioners welcome them boisterously, before sitting them down to help with their homework. This group of older people is looked after by some of the pupils’ parents. Up the road, a cluster of university students live above some over-75s. They get half-price rent in return for checking in on them on their way to and from studies.

This multigenerational community I visited in a small town not far from the port of Yokohama is one of 5,000 in Japan.

Choughs reappear at Tintagel Castle in Cornwall after decades of absence

King Arthur is said to have transformed into a chough when he died, its red feet and beak representing his bloody end

Decades after disappearing from the jagged cliffs around Tintagel Castle on the coast of north Cornwall, a bird with legendary connections to the area has returned.

The custodian of Tintagel, English Heritage, and local ornithologists have declared that choughs – charismatic corvids with red beaks and feet – are back.

‘A passion, but also a gamble’: why India’s gen Z are cashing in on the trend for secondhand fashion

Faced with rising costs and a lack of jobs, many young Indians are turning an online side hustle into an income

The work begins at sunrise, ahead of her first Instagram post. Astha Chhetri starts the day on her phone, combing through supplier lists, checking shipment updates and preparing stock for her online store.

The evenings find Chhetri, 26, with her mobile still in hand, photographing and posting reels of clothes for sale and replying to customer messages.

Canada court quashes bid by Alberta separatists for independence referendum

Alberta judge ruled provincial government must consult with First Nations before collecting signatures for a proposed referendum

A Canadian judge has quashed a petition for an independence referendum in Alberta after finding First Nations were not consulted, dealing a blow to separatist hopes in the country’s western province.

Justice Shaina Leonard of the Court of King’s Bench on Wednesday shut down the effort by a separatist group to hold a referendum on secession from Canada.

Survivors of plane crash off Florida coast were on raft for hours, military says

The nail-biting incident took place about 80 miles east off the coast of Melbourne, Florida, which is about 175 miles north of Miami.

Cuba has run out of diesel and fuel oil, energy minister says, as US blockade pushes island to brink

Minister Vicente de la O Levy says ‘Cuba is open to anyone that wants to sell us fuel’ as rolling power blackouts increase

Cuba has completely run out of diesel and fuel oil, the country’s energy minister said on Wednesday, as Havana faces its worst rolling blackouts in decades amid a US blockade that has strangled the island of fuel.

“We have absolutely no fuel (oil), and absolutely no diesel,” the energy minister, Vicente de la O Levy, said on state media, adding that the national grid was in a “critical” state. “We have no reserves.” Fuel oil is a product derived from crude oil distillation used to generate heat or power.

Rand Paul’s son apologizes for antisemitic and anti-gay rant after accosting lawmaker

In apology, William Paul said he had had ‘too much to drink’ and the things he said ‘don’t represent who I really am’

Republican senator Rand Paul’s son William apologized on Wednesday for a drunken tirade at a bar in Washington DC, in which he reportedly told a Republican congressman he “hates Jews and hates gays”.

“Last night, I had too much to drink and said some things that don’t represent who I really am. I’m sorry and today I am seeking help for my drinking problem,” William Paul posted on social media under the handle TastyBrew1776.

What we know about hantavirus cases tied to deadly cruise ship outbreak

Health officials have identified at least 11 confirmed or suspected cases of hantavirus tied to an outbreak on the M/V Hondius cruise ship.

Denise Powell wins Democratic primary for Nebraska's 2nd congressional district

Political organizer Denise Powell has defeated State Sen. John Cavanaugh to win the Democratic primary in the closely watched race for Nebraska's second congressional district.

Federal judge blocks US sanctions against UN expert on occupied Palestinian territories

Trump officials likely violated Francesca Albanese’s rights by imposing measures after she criticized Israel, says judge

A federal judge on Wednesday temporarily blocked US sanctions against Francesca Albanese, a UN expert on the Palestinian territories, finding that the Trump administration likely violated her free speech rights by imposing the measures after she criticized US ally Israel’s war on Gaza.

The sanctions barred her from entering the US and banking there. Albanese, an Italian lawyer who is UN special rapporteur on the Israel-occupied Palestinian territories, recommended the international criminal court pursue war crimes prosecutions against Israeli and US nationals.

Remains of 2nd U.S. soldier who went missing in Morocco have been recovered

Spc. Mariyah Symone Collington, 19, of Taveres, Florida, is the second U.S. soldier who fell off a cliff during a recreational hike in Morocco. The remains of 1st Lt. Kendrick Lamont Key Jr. were recovered last week.

Cerebras prices IPO above expected range, as Wall Street braces for AI tsunami

Cerebras raised $5.55 billion in its IPO, and with the chipmaker's offering, investors are gearing up for some even bigger AI deals later this year.

5/13: The Takeout with Major Garrett

President Trump's trip to China gets underway; DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin details what ICE agents will be doing at World Cup games.

Denise Powell projected to win Democratic primary in key Nebraska district

The state's electoral system was a key issue in the 2nd Congressional District primary to replace GOP Rep. Don Bacon.

Why Taiwan is a major flashpoint between the U.S. and China

For decades, U.S. presidents have remained steadfast in their defense of the tiny Asian ally from its neighboring giant.

Court overturns Alex Murdaugh's murder convictions, orders new trial

Alex Murdaugh was convicted of his killing his wife and his son at the family's home in 2021.

Trump arrives in Beijing to meet with Xi Jinping

President Trump said before he left that he and President Xi Jinping "have a lot of things to discuss."

New York man found guilty of acting as an unregistered agent of China

Lu Jianwang was accused of operating a ‘secret police station’ in Manhattan’s Chinatown at the behest of Beijing

A New York man was found guilty on Wednesday of acting as an unregistered agent of the Chinese government after he was accused of operating a “secret police station” on behalf of Beijing in Manhattan’s Chinatown neighborhood.

Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn said Lu Jianwang, 64, should have alerted the US attorney general that he was a Chinese agent when he helped open the so-called police station in 2022. They also said he helped China’s government locate a pro-democracy activist living in California.

Body of second U.S. soldier who went missing in Morocco recovered

The Army identified the soldier as Spc. Mariyah Collington.

Iheanacho’s late VAR penalty hands Celtic a dramatic comeback victory at Motherwell

Kelechi Iheanacho scored a penalty winner nine minutes into stoppage time after a video review, boosting Celtic’s Premiership defence thanks to a comeback win at Motherwell as the most dramatic title race in decades took another sensational twist.

Iheanacho slotted in a spot-kick after the former Hearts midfielder Sam Nicholson was penalised for handball after jumping to head the ball away. The ball appeared to hit his raised hand right in front of his head.

Is the rise of a powerful new China a true narrative?

As President Trump and China's Xi Jinping prepare to meet, Americans will hear a lot about American decline and the rise of a powerful new China. The Chinese certainly believe it - but is it true? Tony Dokoupil has more.

New video shows dramatic Air Force rescue after plane crash off Florida coast

The U.S. military rescued a small plane that crashed off Florida's East Coast on Tuesday. The passengers were stranded at sea for hours. Cristian Benavides reports.

Ukraine war briefing: New Hungary PM signals shift away from Kremlin after massive drone attack on Ukraine

Péter Magyar says his government has summoned Russian ambassador over drone attack near Hungary’s border to ask when Vladimir Putin plans ‘to finally end this bloody war’. What we know on day 1,541

Hungarian prime minister Péter Magyar says his new government has summoned the Russian ambassador over a massive drone attack near Hungary’s border in a significant shift from his predecessor’s friendly relations with Moscow. “The Hungarian government strongly condemns the Russian attack on Transcarpathia,” Magyar told journalists. He said the Hungarian foreign minister will speak with the Russian ambassador Thursday morning. Under the outgoing government voted out of office this month, Hungary blocked aid for Ukraine and tried to slow its efforts to join the EU.

Magyar said his foreign minister will ask “when Russia and Vladimir Putin plan to finally end this bloody war”. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy replied on X: “Thank you for your compassion and strong position!”

Russia fired at least 800 drones in a massive daytime barrage on about 20 regions of Ukraine on Wednesday, Peter Beaumont writes. The strikes came as Kyiv and Moscow traded long-range attacks after a brief ceasefire. Ukrainian monitors detected at least eight salvoes of Russian drones, including some entering from Belarus, with the apparent target being Kyiv’s critical infrastructure. Poland scrambled fighter jets as a preventive measure due to the Russian airstrikes on Ukraine, the Polish army said.

Moscow doubled down and launched a fresh wave of attacks on Kyiv early on Thursday morning, mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram. He said loud explosions were being reported across the city. Ukraine’s air force said Russian missiles were targeting Ukraine’s capital in a sustained assault.

The governors of two Russian regions bordering Ukraine, both frequent targets of Ukrainian attacks, have stepped down and their replacements met with President Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin said on Wednesday. Vyacheslav Gladkov, governor of the Belgorod Region, and Alexander Bogomaz, governor of the Bryansk Region, both stepped down at their own request, the Kremlin said. Russian media said Alexander Shuvaev, a highly decorated veteran, is the new governor of Belgorod, and Yegor Kovalchuk, a banking, legal and administrative specialist, has become governor of Bryansk.

The governor of the border region of Kursk, another Russian border region, Alexei Smirnov, was dismissed after a mass incursion by Ukrainian forces in 2024 and jailed earlier this year on corruption charges. There was no word on any future duties for the two outgoing governors.

Supporters of a bill in the US to aid Ukraine and sanction Russia have reached a critical threshold that allows them to bypass Republican leadership and force a vote on the House floor in the coming weeks. The legislation seeks to cement US assistance for Ukraine by approving more than $1bn in security aid and making another $8bn available in loans. Lawmakers on Wednesday gained 218 signatures on a petition that will force a House vote. While the measure is unlikely to become law, the vote will put lawmakers on record concerning their support for Ukraine. Supporters have called on Donald Trump to act more forcefully to deter Russia and boost Ukraine.

Moscow authorities have imposed restrictions on the publication of photos and videos showing the aftermath of “terrorist attacks”, including drone strikes, the mayor’s office said. The directive was aimed at “preventing the dissemination of unreliable information”, a government website said. It prevents media, as well as individuals and emergency services, from publishing any pictures or videos of “terrorist acts, including drone attacks” until they appear on websites of the Defence Ministry or city government.

Russia’s repeated airspace violations of countries on the eastern flank of Nato underline the urgent need to consolidate the alliance’s air defences against missiles and drones, the leaders of 14 allies said on Wednesday. They also called for greater cooperation in building up defence industry capacity in a joint statement, issued after a meeting of eastern flank allies in Bucharest hosted by Romania’s president Nicusor Dan and Polish president Karol Nawrocki. Romania, Poland and Baltic states have had their airspace repeatedly breached by Russian drones. Russia has denied targeting Nato states.

American monitored for hantavirus: "I'm just ready to cope" with quarantine

Jake Rosmarin is one of the 16 Americans at the University of Nebraska Medical Center being monitored for signs of hantavirus. Ian Lee spoke with him and has more details.

Alex Murdaugh's lawyers say they "look forward to a new trial"

Alex Murdaugh's double murder trial drew national attention, but three years later, South Carolina's Supreme Court tossed aside his conviction. Mark Strassmann reports on the new developments.

Inflation is getting worse, Americans are feeling the impact

Wholesale prices in the U.S. jumped 6% last month compared to a year ago, the highest annual increase in more than three years. Gas prices are driving the increase, and Americans are feeling the impact. Jo Ling Kent reports.

China's most critical issue is Taiwan, also central to America's economy

Chinese President Xi Jinping has called Taiwan "the most important issue" between his country and the U.S. About 10% of the population in Taiwan wants to reunify with mainland China, and there are real fears that it will fall under communist control. Tony Dokoupil and Anna Coren break down its importance to China and the U.S.

Kevin Warsh wins Senate confirmation as the next Federal Reserve chair

In the most divisive vote ever for a Fed chair, Warsh, 56, won confirmation to take over for Jerome Powell.

Utah woman's hopes of flipping mansion flop after murder charge

Utah woman accused of murdering husband loses $12 million real estate deal after his death.

Trump given red carpet welcome in Beijing

President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping will meet face-to-face for the first time on this trip at an elaborate welcome ceremony. The two-day visit is meant to signal stability to the world, showing that the competition between the U.S. and China is not escalating into confrontation. Weijia Jiang has more from Beijing.

Did Utah mom poison her husband, then write a children's book on grief?

When her husband Eric died in March of 2022, Kouri Richins wrote a children's book to help her sons cope with the loss of their father – then she was charged in his death. Follow the timeline for a deep dive into the history of Eric and Kouri's relationship.

Did Utah mom charged in husband's death poison him with a cocktail?

A medical examiner ruled Eric Richins, a Utah father of three, died of a lethal dose of fentanyl. His wife Kouri was charged in his death.

Cisco's stock pops 17% on surging AI orders, as company says it's cutting almost 4,000 jobs

Cisco's AI story has finally started resonating with Wall Street, with the stock hitting a record late last year and continuing to rally in 2026.

Sen. Rand Paul's son confronted Rep. Mike Lawler in drunken, antisemitic rant

The senator's son apologized Wednesday, saying he was seeking help for his drinking problem.

Typical English roast dinner potentially ‘drenched’ in 102 pesticides, says report

Greenpeace finds cocktail of pesticides including seven banned in EU may have been used on seven categories of vegetables and soft fruit

It is a beautiful early summer Sunday afternoon and you have stopped for a pub lunch. A waiter sets down a roast served with carrots, peas, parsnips, potatoes and onion gravy, and then for pudding, strawberries and cream. It feels like the perfect rustic meal to accompany a day in the country.

However, a report by Greenpeace, published on Thursday, has found that the ingredients of the traditional Sunday roast have potentially been treated with a cocktail of more than 100 pesticides. Data from the Fera pesticide usage survey for 2024, showed 102 – including seven banned in the EU – were used on seven vegetable and soft fruit categories.

Housing market in England and Wales weakening due to Iran war, say estate agents

Homebuyers more cautious due to possible mortgage rate rises and higher inflation as sellers sit on properties

Fears of higher mortgage rates and rising inflation as a result of the Middle East conflict are leading to a subdued and downbeat housing market, according to estate agents.

Demand from potential homebuyers across England and Wales has shown a “noticeable softening” recently, according to a monthly survey of estate agents by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).

Microsoft feared being too dependent on OpenAI, Musk-Altman trial testimony reveals

Top Microsoft executives testified in Musk v. Altman this week, spelling out concerns they had in the early days of the partnership with OpenAI.

DHS Secretary Mullin says ICE won't "round up" people at World Cup

Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin told CBS News that ICE arrests at the FIFA World Cup are not off the table, but the agency will not be at the global sporting event for the purpose of immigration arrests.

Lutnick testified he knew little about Epstein, his next-door neighbor

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said he was unaware for years that Jeffrey Epstein was a registered sex offender, according to a transcript of testimony released Wednesday.

Howard Lutnick said he had three ‘inconsequential’ meetings with Epstein

In House committee transcript, commerce secretary denied any further contact with disgraced financier

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The US commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, told lawmakers in a closed-door interview earlier this month that he met Jeffrey Epstein only three times and had no “personal or professional relationship” with the disgraced financier, according to a newly released transcript of the meeting.

“I unequivocally condemn the conduct attributed to Jeffrey Epstein and everyone who participated in his illegal activities,” Lutnick said in his opening statement before the House oversight and reform committee.

House leaders to take action on process for sexual misconduct claims

Speaker Mike Johnson and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries are launching a bipartisan task force aimed at addressing how sexual misconduct claims are handled within the House of Representatives, multiple sources confirm to CBS News.

5/13: CBS Evening News

President Trump in China amid economic pressure at home caused by Iran war; Alex Murdaugh to be tried again after court overturns murder convictions.

Weight gain as adult increases cancer risk by up to five times, research shows

Swedish study of 600,000 patients between 17 and 60 years old suggests there is no safe age to get heavier

Gaining weight as an adult increases the risk of cancer by up to five times, according to research involving more than 600,000 patients.

Obesity can cause 13 different cancers and is thought to be linked to another eight. But less is known about the impact on cancer risk of the amount of weight put on – and when in life it is gained.

European football: Kvaratskhelia powers PSG to Ligue 1 title at Lens

• Georgian opens the scoring as PSG beat rivals 2-0

• Inter victorious over Lazio in Coppa Italia final

Paris Saint-Germain secured a fifth successive Ligue 1 title by beating their nearest challengers, Lens, 2-0 in their penultimate match of the league season on Wednesday.

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia scored after 29 minutes and the substitute Ibrahim Mbaye grabbed a stoppage-time goal to put PSG on 76 points, out of the reach of Lens, who are assured of second place on 67 points.

Louisiana lawmakers advance new 5-1 congressional map that favors Republicans

The new map will eliminate one of the state's majority Black, Democratic-leaning districts while keeping one Democratic-leaning district.

Cartel corruption claims push US-Mexico relations to breaking point

With Mexico under pressure from Trump to tackle drug trafficking groups, analysts say ‘it’s the most tense situation since the 1980s’

Relations between Mexico and the United States are being pushed to breaking point amid accusations by Washington that Mexican officials have been “in bed for years” with drug traffickers, and reports of CIA agents freely operating south of the border.

“There are many who are betting on the defeat and failure of the Mexican government,” said Claudia Sheinbaum tersely on Wednesday, when asked about the allegations at a news conference. ”We want a good relationship with the United States government. What are our limits? The defence of sovereignty and respect for the Mexican people and their dignity.”

Kouri Richins sentenced in husband's fentanyl-laced cocktail murder

Utah mom Kouri Richins was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole on Wednesday, after a jury convicted her of murder and other charges in her husband's 2022 death.

‘Disgusting’: Hearts see off Falkirk but McInnes fumes as late Celtic penalty tilts title race

Hearts players and supporters had this much in common; they did not have a clue how to act or react. For eight minutes, with this game already at an end, the scene promised to be a euphoric one. Hearts, having swept Falkirk aside, were staring at the prospect of travelling to Celtic Park on Saturday needing only to avoid a three-goal defeat to win the league.

A twist lay in store. Deep in stoppage time at Motherwell, the controversial awarding of a penalty to Celtic and subsequent conversion materially altered the Hearts position. The whiff of cordite has been added to the mix. Derek McInnes, the Hearts manager, was so enraged by the Celtic call as to label it “disgusting”. He added: “I heard there was a 96th-minute penalty. I didn’t need to ask who for.

AI is fabricating citations in biomedical studies, researchers find

"Your doctor could be making decisions around treatment based on studies that never existed," one expert said.

Republican redistricting effort is ‘evil incarnate’, Stacey Abrams tells new Guardian podcast

In interview with Stateside with Kai and Carter, Abrams says Republicans have raised the stakes beyond party lines

Former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams has slammed Republican-led states’ efforts to redraw their congressional maps to favor their party as “evil incarnate”.

In an interview with the Guardian’s new podcast, Stateside with Kai and Carter, Abrams argued that what she said amounted to intentional “cheating” to suppress racial minority voting power must be fought in the courts and on the ballot.

Foden inspires Manchester City’s win against Crystal Palace to close gap at top

No Erling Haaland, no Rayan Cherki and no Jérémy Doku from the start. The result: a canter to victory against Crystal Palace that takes Manchester City back to within two points of Arsenal after 36 games each.

The good news for Pep Guardiola is that a much-changed team before Saturday’s FA Cup final did the business, with Phil Foden displaying the magic that can make him a force. The poorer tidings are that Arsenal host Burnley on Monday and the chances of them dropping points to the relegated visitors are slim.

Allegiant CEO makes case for low-cost airline model as Sun Country acquisition closes

Allegiant CEO Greg Anderson said leisure travel demand is still strong despite higher fuel prices.

Foreign ticket holders from World Cup teams' countries won't have to pay bonds to enter U.S.

The Trump administration is suspending a requirement that visitors from countries that have qualified for the World Cup and bought tickets for the tournament pay as much as $15,000 in bonds to enter the U.S.

Senate confirms Kevin Warsh as next chair of the Federal Reserve

Warsh has argued there's room for the central bank to lower interest rates, but that could be challenging at a time of rising inflation.

Benjamin Netanyahu says he made secret trip to UAE at height of Iran war

Emirates’ foreign ministry rejects claims that Netanyahu visited the country describing them as ‘baseless’

Benjamin Netanyahu has claimed he made a secret trip to the United Arab Emirates at the height of the Iran war to meet the president, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

“This visit has led to a historic breakthrough in relations between Israel and the UAE,” the Israeli prime minister’s office said on Wednesday night.

A Woman’s Life review – a breezy comedy of midlife crisis and same-sex affair

Cannes film festival: Léa Drucker gives a bravura performance as a brilliant surgeon whose already chaotic life is further complicated by a same-sex affair with a journalist

Charline Bourgeois-Tacquet’s new film is a hectic, garrulous, breezily agreeable comedy of midlife emotional upheaval, unencumbered by any serious or permanent concern about any of the passion and heartache that it briefly encounters. It’s also a movie that declines to allow its characters to be changed in any way by the excitements and disappointments that life has to throw at them. Léa Drucker carries off the lead with terrifically competent elan; there’s hardly a scene in which she is not interrupted by a call on her mobile, going into bravura walk-and-talk acting on the phone while on the street, arriving at the office or getting into or out of her car.

She plays Gabrielle, a brilliant surgeon – what other sort is there in the movies? – who specialises in maxillofacial reconstruction. Gabrielle is battling budget cuts, scolding her idle interns, doing outstanding work and is heavily reliant on her assistant Kamyar (Laurent Capelluto). At home, she has a tricky relationship with her partner Henri (Charles Berling), whose teen children from his previous marriage she has raised while resenting his ingratitude for this, as well as for his somewhat semi-detached attitude to their relationship. She is also deeply concerned by her elderly mother Arlette (tenderly played by Marie-Christine Barrault) who is entering the twilight of dementia.

Neanderthals may have drilled out a cavity 59,000 years ago

Scientists dug up a Paleolithic tooth that shows signs that these hominins may have been capable of executing a precise dental procedure.

Mortgage rates jump to highest level since March on hotter inflation reports

Mortgage rates surged to the highest level since March in reaction to two hotter-than-expected inflation reports.

Neanderthals used stone drills to treat cavities 59,000 years ago, tooth suggests

Molar found in Siberia features deep hole that appears to show earliest known evidence of dental treatment

Neanderthals used stone drills to treat cavities almost 60,000 years ago in what is the earliest known evidence of dental treatment.

The single molar, which was unearthed in a cave in southern Siberia, features a deep hole that appears to have been created using a sharp, thin stone tool during the lifetime of the tooth’s owner.

Streeting set to fire starting gun in leadership battle with Starmer - The Latest

Wes Streeting is expected to launch a leadership challenge against Keir Starmer as soon as Thursday. News of the health secretary’s plans came during the king’s speech, derailing what was supposed to be another chance for the prime minister to reset the political agenda. Lucy Hough speaks to head of national news Archie Bland

As Westminster rages, and Labour sinks into civil war: what about the people? | Aditya Chakrabortty

Voters are desperate for a turnaround in living standards. The runners and riders for the Labour leadership must address this

“Westminster is a cocoon. Lots of people in lovely jobs, so it becomes easy to forget the world outside.” Catherine West should know. She’s been an MP for 11 years, even if you hadn’t heard of her until this weekend when the Labour backbencher threatened Keir Starmer for the leadership, firing the first shots in the civil war that now engulfs the government. Before Wes Streeting broke cover, before Andy Burnham boarded that train to Euston, there was Catherine West.

Ever since, she has been pelted with insults. But, when we spoke this weekend, she was not only self-aware, it was one of the few times this week that I’ve heard a Labour politician grasp that what’s at stake goes beyond who sits where at the cabinet table, or how their party is polling: it’s about who leads the UK into the 2030s.

Aditya Chakrabortty 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.

Camden Highline, London’s answer to New York park, is scrapped

Project organisers say high costs and energy crisis have scuppered green route from Camden to King’s Cross

The Camden Highline, a multimillion-pound effort to transform a disused rail line into a greenery-filled walking and cycling paradise, has been all but scrapped.

Nearly a decade since it was conceived as London’s answer to New York’s fabled High Line, the project has fallen victim to high costs and the energy crisis.

The Guardian view on the king’s speech: an agenda for a government that lacks conviction | Editorial

Keir Starmer’s programme is fatally limited by the timidity of an election manifesto that shied away from hard arguments

Ending 14 years of Conservative rule was supposed to bring an end to dysfunctional government. In the speech that launched his 2024 general election campaign, Sir Keir Starmer said that “a vote for Labour is a vote for stability … a vote to stop the chaos”. Less than two years later, Sir Keir’s government looks no sturdier than its predecessors. The prime minister’s chances of serving a full term in office look slim.

There are as many reasons for this precipitous decline as there are Labour MPs calling for a change of direction. The common analysis is that a project branded by the single word “change” has neither transformed people’s lives for the better nor given them confidence that a transformation is coming. For many voters, the prime minister is the embodiment of a miserable status quo.

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 Iran’s repression: political prisoners such as Narges Mohammadi need freedom not bombs | Editorial

The critically ill Nobel peace laureate should be released. Iranians’ human rights are under attack from both the regime and the US-Israel war

“Authoritarian regimes do not always need an executioner’s rope,” the Iranian Nobel peace laureate Narges Mohammadi observes in a forthcoming memoir smuggled from her cell. “Sometimes, they simply wait for the human body to fail – and then make sure no help arrives, or they create conditions in which death can come easily, helping it along by standing in the way of life-saving care.”

Long denied adequate treatment, Ms Mohammadi is now in a critical condition. She was found unconscious in her cell after a suspected heart attack in March and had been experiencing chest pain, loss of consciousness and extreme weight loss. She was finally moved to hospital this month, with authorities approving her transfer to specialist care in Tehran only this week. Supporters fear that she will be sent back to prison if her condition improves.

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.

Butterfly Jam review – Barry Keoghan can’t save this New Jersey misstep

Cannes film festival: The Irish actor plays a disillusioned Circassian chef with a knack with animals in Kantemir Balagov’s clunky third film

All talented directors are allowed an off moment in their careers – and this is the stage arrived at by Kantemir Balagov, whose earlier film Beanpole was such a triumph. This follow-up – his third feature in fact – is his first English language movie, set among the expat Circassian community in New Jersey; it features star names and one colossally self-conscious icon cameo unsubtly signalling cinephile importance. Butterfly Jam is contrived, tonally uncertain, implausible and frankly plain silly in its underpowered kind of magic-unrealism, with some clunky secondhand Mean Streets mob-fraternal dialogue and pedantic ethnic-foodie cred, and elliptically positioning key scenes off camera for no obviously satisfying reason.

Barry Keoghan plays Azik, a widower who with his longsuffering pregnant sister Zalda (Riley Keough) runs a Circassian food diner in Newark; as chef he cooks a sublime delens a delicious cheese and potato dish to his own (secret) recipe, accessorised with delicious jams, one of which, he whimsically announces, is made of butterflies. (He is presumably kidding but he has an amazing touch with the natural world, as we will see.) His teen son Temir (Talga Akdogan) is a talented wrestler who dreams of Olympic glory and he has a sweet crush on fellow wrestler Alika (Jaliyah Richards).

Greetings from Seville, where springtime means caracoles

Spring is snail season in Seville. Caracoles in southern Spain differ from the well-known French escargot — they're smaller and eaten directly from the shell. And everyone has a favorite tapas bar that serves them.

Gas tax holiday as Trump promises? Not so fast, trucking, construction industries say

President Donald Trump and lawmakers are eyeing federal gas tax relief, but opponents contend a pause wouldn't help consumers and could harm roads.

Rebecca Hendin on Labour’s leadership crisis – cartoon

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Roots of resilience: the experts working to bolster apples against the climate crisis

Scientists are focusing on improving apples’ resilience after stressors like wild temperature swings and drought

Terence Robinson still remembers the Valentine’s Day Massacre – of 2015, not 1929.

For the Cornell University horticulture professor, the term doesn’t conjure up Tommy guns and Al Capone’s Chicago. Instead of a gangster, the culprit in Robinson’s massacre was the weather. And its victims were the apple orchards of the north-eastern United States.

It’s 10pm, do you know where Donald Trump is?

The US president’s late-night Truth Social vitriol riddled with erratic capitalization and spelling? That’s leadership

• This was originally published in This Week in Trumpland. Sign up to receive it in your inbox every Wednesday

Gas prices are soaring because of blockages in the strait of Hormuz as part of the unauthorized war in Iran. There’s a highly consequential meeting with the president of China on the books for this week. The FDA director just stepped down over a disagreement over fruit-flavored vapes. Southern states are redrawing maps at breakneck pace to gerrymander Black voters out of their electoral voices.

You know what that means: it’s time for some conspiracy-laden, high-speed Truth Social posting.

Manchester United set for talks to make Michael Carrick permanent head coach

• Carrick has accrued 33 points from 15 league matches

• United hierarchy unconcerned by relative inexperience

Manchester United will open ­formal discussions with Michael Carrick with a view to appointing him as permanent head coach.

The 44-year-old’s success since taking the role on an interim basis in early January has impressed Jason Wilcox, the director of football, and the chief executive, Omar Berrada. After replacing Ruben Amorim, who was sacked on 5 January, Carrick has earned 33 points from 15 Premier League matches, the most of any team in the division.

King’s speech might be the last word on Starmer as reluctant monarch does his duty | John Crace

With the PM’s future numbered in days, no wonder Charles might have felt reading out the government’s agenda was not the best use of his time

The king looked fed up. His attempts to throw a sickie had come to nothing. Did the government really want to go ahead with the state opening? Apparently it did. Would it be OK if he phoned it in? He fancied a day working from palace. It wouldn’t be OK. It was a three-line whip. One of the few occasions a monarch was obliged to attend.

“My lords. Pray be seated,” Charles said. He sounded exhausted already. Where was everyone, he wondered. The Labour benches had plenty of gaps on them. The chronicle of a death foretold. Over on the Tory side of the Lords, there were fewer tiaras on display than usual. Must be because Claire’s Accessories has closed down. But at least he could see Chris Grayling. Always good to see someone being rewarded for abject failure. It’s what makes Britain great.

CEOs worth nearly $1 trillion accompany Trump to China

The delegation of business leaders underscores the deep ties many major U.S. companies maintain with China despite years of trade tensions.

Giro d’Italia: Arrieta wins stage despite wrong turn and fall as Eulálio takes lead

• Spanish rider prevails in Potenza on chaotic fifth stage

• Eulálio denied but takes the maglia rosa from Ciccone

Portugal’s Afonso Eulálio seized the overall lead in the Giro d’Italia despite having victory snatched away by Spain’s Igor Arrieta in the final metres of a rain-drenched stage five on Wednesday.

The Bahrain Victorious rider joined Arrieta (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) at the front near the summit of the Montagna Grande di Viggiano climb and when Arrieta took a wrong turn he looked certain to take the win. But Arrieta, banging his handlebars in anger, had other ideas and reeled in Eulálio along the finishing straight to win his first Grand Tour stage.

Jim Furyk tells US players they need to make Ryder Cup more of a priority

• ‘My job is to create a culture,’ he says

• Captain may ask Tiger Woods for his input

Jim Furyk has admitted the United States need to make the Ryder Cup more of a priority as the 56-year-old plots a reversal of fortunes at Adare Manor in September 2027.

Speaking expansively for the first time since being handed the US captaincy for a second time, Furyk pointed towards an overhaul of approach to the biennial event. He also suggested he will be keen to involve Tiger Woods on his backroom team.

Nigel Farage faces inquiry over £5m gift from crypto billionaire

Watchdog to examine whether Reform UK leader should have declared sum he received before entering parliament

Nigel Farage is facing a formal investigation by the parliamentary standards watchdog over a £5m gift from the crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne.

The Reform UK leader received the money weeks before announcing he would stand as a candidate in the 2024 general election.

Les Simpson: return of Québécois show spares viewers from ‘European French’

Beloved animated series will return for 36th season in the fall after telecoms giant Bell Media reaches deal with Disney

Fans of Les Simpson have a message for anyone who doubted the future of the beloved and long-running Québécois version of the animated satirical show: Mange de la crotte.

Les Simpson will return for its 36th season in the fall after telecoms giant Bell Media said it had reached an agreement with Disney for the rights to air and dub the show. The deal caps nearly a year of uncertainty surrounding the adaptation, which is beloved in Canada’s lone francophone province.

NFL will play record nine games abroad, including Paris and Melbourne debuts

• Niners-Rams open in September at MCG

• London will stage three games in October

• Munich, Madrid, Mexico City and Rio also to host

The NFL revealed the matchups for all nine international games on Wednesday, with the Jacksonville Jaguars and San Francisco 49ers each playing two contests.

The league’s most ambitious global schedule to date spans seven countries and four continents, including its Australia debut (Week 1 in Melbourne) and its first game in France (Week 7 in Paris).

Obesity rates in some countries levelling off or potentially falling, study finds

Researchers say rise not inevitable and it is important to unpick what is behind differences in obesity trends

A continuing rise in obesity around the world is not inevitable, research suggests, with rates in some countries levelling off or potentially in decline.

Researchers say focusing on what has been described as a global epidemic of obesity hides large variations in trends across different countries, sexes and age groups.

Gunshots fired in Philippines senate in standoff with senator wanted by ICC

Ronald dela Rosa, accused of crimes against humanity by international criminal court, has holed up in building to evade arrest

Gunshots have been fired in the Philippines senate as a senator who is wanted by the international criminal court (ICC) remained holed up in the building to evade arrest.

Ronald dela Rosa, a Philippine senator accused of crimes against humanity for his role in overseeing the former president Rodrigo Duterte’s “war on drugs”, has spent two nights in the country’s senate in a standoff with the authorities.

Vape sommeliers: the next frontier in fine dining?

Caramel vape with your latte? ‘Banana ice’ with your curry? The perfect pairing is out there – and vapeologists are keen to help you find it

Name: Vape sommelier.

Age: Emerging.

Nagi Notes review – clear, calm light shed on criss-crossed family passions

Cannes film festival
Set in a beautifully filmed provincial Japanese town, what could have been a soapy drama is told with poetic restraint and subtlety by Kôji Fukada

Japanese film-maker Kôji Fukada has created a film of great lucidity and calm, a walking-pace drama set in the quiet town of Nagi in the south of the country; this is a provincial place of seclusion and restraint, notable for its military base but also an interesting contemporary art gallery. The movie is less overtly sensational and emotional than Fukada’s previous pictures such as Love Life or Goodbye Summer, though it has the same Rohmeresque gentleness, the same considerate and caring mien, the same palate-cleansing wash of cool daylight. These are factors which do not however preclude intensity, even passion and a feeling that a dreamlife of yearning is taking place underneath innocuous waking reality.

At the centre of the film is an enigma: Yoriko (Takako Matsu) is a single woman who runs a dairy farm in Nagi, but her real passion is art. She draws and sculpts, but entirely for her own pleasure. None of her pieces get exhibited or sold. One warm spring day – the movie is elegantly interspersed with chapter-heading closeups in which different kinds of calendar get the days torn off – Yoriko is visited by her good friend Yuri (Shizuka Ishibashi), an architect who after some time in Tokyo, moved to Taiwan to start a practice there with her husband Masato but returned to Japan after her divorce. What makes their friendship interesting is that they are sisters-in-law, or perhaps ex-sisters-in-law. Masato is Yoriko’s brother. So how exactly has their friendship survived and thrived for so long?

A woman with a bull costume exuding masculine energy: Marisol Mendez’s best photograph

‘This is part of my series Mother. I would ask my subjects: Do you feel more like a Mary Magdalene or a Virgin Mary? It’s always a fun question to ask’

Paul McCartney famously says that he got the melody for Yesterday in a dream. I used to think that was artistic licence, but then it happened to me with this image. I had a dream about a half woman-half animal, standing alone in the middle of a field, with trees surrounding her.

I was working on a series of images, called Madre, about the depiction of womanhood. The media in Bolivia always present women in a traditionally feminine way. It is rare to see a woman who displays more masculine attributes and her not be immediately labelled as a lesbian – there is no nuance.

‘Sung by a silver robot from 1984!’ The 11 biggest bangers in Eurovision 2026

Delta Goodrem, rappers on scooters and a Lion spray-painted silver from head to toe … as Europe’s pop circus returns amid protests and pyrotechnics, we pick the songs set to dominate this year’s grand final. Bangaranga!

Oh, Vienna. The buildup to Eurovision 2026 in Austria has been beset by controversy. Five nations – including Spain, the Netherlands and seven-time winners Ireland – have boycotted the event in protest at Israel’s participation. The first semi-final on Tuesday saw chants of “free Palestine” echoing around the Wiener Stadthalle venue. The song contest’s slogan, “United by music”, feels increasingly ironic. Hardly ideal preparation for the annual pop party’s 70th anniversary.

Still, the cheesy Euro-pop show must go on and Saturday night’s grand final is primed to be as compelling as ever. In fact, surprises have already been sprung. Rather randomly, Boy George co-wrote San Marino’s entry and provided guest vocals, but failed to make it through Tuesday’s semi-final. Do you really want to hurt me? For voting viewers, it seemed the answer was yes. Nul points for you, former Culture Club frontman.

Alex Murdaugh will get a new murder trial. Here's a timeline of his case

Alex Murdaugh — the disgraced former lawyer serving a life term for the murders of his wife and son — will get a new trial in South Carolina, the state Supreme Court said on Wednesday.

‘It takes an entire museum to do it justice’: the Smithsonian celebrates America in 250 objects

As the US gears up for a major anniversary, a new expansive exhibition looks at history in a range of objects, from an 18th-century gunboat to a Maga hat

To paraphrase the musical Rent, 131,487,300 minutes – how do you measure, measure 250 years? Especially in a country navigating an election year fraught with divisions and disagreements over basic facts?

That is the challenge facing the Smithsonian National Museum of American History in Washington DC as it marks the semiquincentennial of US independence.

Ditch fabric softener and give jumpers a good steam: how to make your clothes last longer

From rinsing wool in a colander to deep cleaning your washing machine, here are 15 expert tips to help your clothes last and last

• How to make your leather last a lifetime

It’s a common problem: you buy something new and start wearing and washing it regularly, only to find that it has developed a slightly grey tinge or faded colours after just a few months. Most clothes aren’t fragile, but they’re not indestructible either – and the way we wear, wash and store them makes more of a difference than we think.

Looking after your clothes properly can mean they last longer, hold their shape and don’t need replacing nearly as often, which is better for both your bank balance and the planet. And while investing in well-made pieces is important, what you do afterwards matters just as much.

US appeals court pauses Trump’s $83m payment to E Jean Carroll in defamation case

Appeals court rules US president will not have to pay award until the US supreme court reviews case or rejects an appeal

A federal appeals court has ruled that Donald Trump will not have to pay the $83.3m defamation award to writer E Jean Carroll until the US supreme court either reviews the case or rejects an appeal.

The second US circuit court of appeals in New York issued the order on Monday, granting a request by the president’s lawyers to delay the payment while he seeks supreme court review.

Star Fox 64, a game I loved in my childhood, is returning – but I have mixed feelings

Why are Nintendo releasing a straight-up remake of the space-flight shooter – with many of its original limitations – rather than a fresh new take?

The Nintendo 64 was not my first video game console, but it was my formative one. Getting to grips with 3D movement in Super Mario 64 with that weird three-pronged controller is one of my most visceral childhood memories; the long, long wait for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time was the background noise to a huge chunk of my youth. But back in the 1990s (in the UK at least), it felt as if nobody had an N64. When everybody had a PlayStation instead, I felt I was the only kid in my whole city who cared more about Banjo-Kazooie than Crash Bandicoot.

If even Zelda seemed comparatively niche in Europe in the 90s, Lylat Wars (known elsewhere as Star Fox 64) was a real deep cut. It’s a 1997 space-flight shooter starring Fox McCloud and his squad of animal pilots laser-blasting across different planets in nimble crafts called Arwings. I played this game to absolute death in 1998, when I got it for my birthday alongside the fabled Rumble Pak, which made your controller vibrate and shudder whenever something cool was happening on screen (fun fact: Lylat Wars was the first console game to feature controller rumble). But I really hadn’t thought about it much since. Then, last week, Nintendo announced a Switch 2 remake.

A ‘lost’ Vaughan Williams song is exciting news but what else remains to be ‘found’?

All kinds of musical riches by formerly overlooked composers may be languishing in lofts and dusty archives.

The discovery of a new work by Ralph Vaughan Williams has set the world alight this week. Well, not quite, but it’s a great story. In a box in the archives of London’s Morley College Elaine Andrews came across a previously unknown Vaughan Williams song. Titled Before the Mirror, it sets a Swinburne poem that itself was inspired by a Whistler painting.

Hearing it played on Radio 4’s PM on Monday [58 mins in] reveals music of surprising tonal adventure and expressive ambiguity, written shortly after Vaughan Williams married Adeline Fisher in 1897. And the manuscript’s workings, its crossings-out and corrections, are a fascinating insight into Vaughan Williams’s creative process.

The UAE tries hard to keep its reputation spotless. But with the war in Sudan, how can it? | Nesrine Malik

Outrage is mounting about the Gulf country’s complicity in Sudan’s catastrophic civil war – and it might be starting to hit them where it hurts

There are certain states whose reputations in the global community are tainted. For habitual violations of international law, they are shunned, boycotted or slammed with economic sanctions. Reading these words, perhaps you’re thinking of Russia, Israel, Iran or North Korea. But there is one country that is rarely considered an outlaw, even if its actions increasingly fit the bill.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is belatedly starting to draw some scrutiny over mounting evidence that it is backing the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) that have been terrorising Sudan for years. Since the beginning of the civil war in 2023, which was triggered by a contest for power between the RSF militia and the Sudanese army, the RSF has been accused of ethnic cleansing and sexual violence. A United Nations fact-finding mission concluded that its assault on non-Arab populations in the west of the country carried “the hallmarks of genocide”.

Gunfire breaks out in Philippine Senate as police try to arrest senator

Witnesses say a burst of gunfire has rung out in the Philippine Senate where authorities have tried to arrest a senator who is wanted by the ICC.

Beefeaters on patrol and Trump in China: photos of the day – Wednesday

The Guardian’s picture editors select photographs from around the world

Wholesale inflation jumps 6% in April on annual basis, biggest increase since 2022

The producer price index was expected to increase 0.5% in April, according to the Dow Jones consensus.

Amazon ditches Rufus chatbot, launches Alexa shopping agent in AI strategy pivot

Amazon introduced Alexa for Shopping, an e-commerce bot that can answer queries and take actions on behalf of users

The 100 best novels of all time

A countdown of the greatest literature published in English, as voted for by authors, critics and academics worldwide. How many have you read?