Activist who protested outside Stephen Miller's home won't face state charges

Local activist Barbara Wien will not be criminally charged for doxxing top White House aide Stephen Miller, according to a court filing.

Arsenal v Atlético Madrid: Champions League semi-final, second leg – live

⚽️ Champions League news, 8pm BST kick-off (first leg: 1-1)
⚽️ Today’s Football Daily | Follow us on Bluesky | Mail Scott

After last week’s result, both clubs have statistical history on their side. Arsenal have won six of their last nine European ties in which they’ve drawn away in the first leg, while Atleti have won six of their last ten European ties in which they’ve drawn the first leg at home. Meanwhile Arsenal are one from one in Champions League semi-finals against opposition from La Liga, having beaten Villarreal 1-0 on aggregate in 2006 … but Atleti are three from three against Premier League opponents at the same stage in European competition, beating Liverpool on away goals in the 2009-10 Europa League, Chelsea 3-1 on aggregate in the 2013-14 Champions League, and Arsenal themselves in the 2017-18 Europa League. So it turns out we are at the Something’s Got To Give stage after all.

The two biggest names in European football never to win the continent’s biggest prize meet for a place in the final. It’s 20 years since Arsenal found themselves 14 minutes from glory, only for Barcelona to hit them with a couple of sucker punches; their continental roll of honour (one Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, one Cup Winners’ Cup) is absurdly short given the size and status of the grand old club. Atlético Madrid have made more of an imprint in Europe, with three Europa Leagues, a Cup Winners’ Cup and three Super Cups, but the big one has eluded them as well: they’ve suffered the trophy being snatched from under their nose in excruciating circumstances not just once but three times, in 1974, 2014 and 2016, insult being bundled up with injury on the latter two occasions by good old Real Madrid.

Middle East crisis live: Donald Trump says Iran ‘know what not to do’ to avoid violating ceasefire with US

US president dismisses Tehran’s military capability during Oval Office address after Hegseth’s earlier comments that the ceasefire ‘is not over’

• Donald Trump sends warships to break Iran’s strait of Hormuz blockade

Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, is travelling to Beijing later today for talks with his Chinese counterpart “on bilateral relations and regional and international developments”, his ministry said on its Telegram account.

While Beijing condemned the initial US and Israeli strikes on Iran which started the war in late February, China has largely adopted a posture of neutrality ever since and has urged for a diplomatic resolution to the conflict.

Meta trained its AI on copyrighted work, new lawsuit alleges

The lawsuit claims that Meta's Llama is generating summaries — and, in some cases, verbatim copies — of original works.

Jerome Powell making a 'significant mistake' by staying on at the Fed, Sen. Tim Scott says

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has said he plans to remain a member of the Federal Reserve board after his term as chair expires this month.

‘Think before sharing,’ Giorgia Meloni says as AI-made lingerie image of her goes viral

Italian prime minister had received wave of criticism from people who believed deepfake pictures of her were real

Italy’s prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, has criticised the circulation of AI-generated deepfake images of her, including one depicting her in lingerie, after they were widely shared online.

Meloni wrote on Facebook on Tuesday: “In recent days, several fake images of me have been circulating, generated using artificial intelligence and passed off as real by some overzealous opponents.

The U.S. debt now exceeds the country's GDP. Should we worry?

Federal debt held by the public now surpasses the total value of the nation's economic output. Here's why experts say that's a concern.

‘Close to zero impact’: US study casts doubt on effect of phone ban in schools

Researchers say findings are not reason to shy away from restrictions as MPs consider ban in England’s schools

Strict bans on mobile phones in schools have “close to zero” impact on student learning and show no evidence of improvements in attendance or online bullying, a study has found.

Researchers at US universities including Stanford and Duke looked at nearly 1,800 US schools where students’ phones were kept in locked pouches and found little or no differences in outcomes compared with similar schools without strict bans.

Pirro changes course in Fed investigation, move unlikely to satisfy Powell

The U.S. attorney opted not to appeal a ruling that had blocked her subpoenas to the Fed.

Delta is cutting food and beverage service on shorter flights

Routes that are under a certain distance will no longer offer food and beverage service, the airline said.

Political row as report calls for sweeping cuts to French public broadcasting

Inquiry set up by rightwing politician recommends merging major channels and slashing TV entertainment budgets by 75%

French politicians on the left and centre have criticised a parliament inquiry report that recommends sweeping cuts to public broadcasting, with a row over culture wars building before next year’s presidential election.

State broadcasting is a key topic in the run-up to April’s vote, with the far right, which is leading in the polls, highly critical of public TV and radio and vowing to privatise it.

Jailed Iranian Nobel prize winner Narges Mohammadi ‘between life and death’

Activist’s latest arrest was in December and she has recently had two suspected heart attacks in prison

The jailed Iranian Nobel peace prize winner Narges Mohammadi is fighting for her life after being hospitalised under guard for the last five days with a heart condition, her supporters have said.

“We are not just fighting for the freedom of Narges, we are fighting so that her heart continues to beat,” said her Paris-based lawyer Chirinne Ardakani at a news conference of her supporters, adding that the 2023 laureate was now “between life and death”.

ICE is giving local police big money to help with immigration enforcement

The federal government is offering local law enforcement incentives to join a program that gives their officers authority to make immigration arrests. Police leaders say the funds, which include money for salaries, equipment and vehicles, are enticing.

Moscow shuts down airports and mobile signals as Victory Day parade looms

Kremlin tightens security before Russia’s biggest national celebration on 9 May amid fears of Ukrainian drone strikes

Russia shut down airports and temporarily cut mobile internet access for many users in Moscow on Tuesday, as it tightened security before the 9 May Victory Day parade marking the defeat of Nazi Germany.

The parade – Russia’s foremost national celebration – has already been scaled back and will proceed without heavy military hardware for the first time in nearly two decades, amid fears of long-range Ukrainian drone strikes.

Carney appoints former war crimes prosecutor as Canada governor general

Louise Arbour will serve as Canada’s representative of King Charles and carry out ceremonial and constitutional duties

Canada’s prime minister, Mark Carney, has appointed a former supreme court justice and war crimes prosecutor as the country’s new governor general, saying her appointment would reflect the importance of global institutions.

Louise Arbour, a celebrated jurist, served as United Nations commissioner and prosecuted war crimes in the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, will serve as Canada’s representative of King Charles III.

Ferrari tops Wall Street's first-quarter expectations ahead of EV debut

Ferrari NV on Tuesday beat Wall Street's first quarter earnings expectations and reconfirmed its guidance for the year.

Has Trump’s ‘Project Freedom’ reignited war with Iran? | The Latest

Donald Trump has launched a new operation, dubbed ‘Project Freedom’, to try to open the strait of Hormuz. Could it spark a re-escalation of the war with Iran and bring an end to the ceasefire?
Lucy Hough speaks to the Guardian’s senior international correspondent Julian Borger

Microsoft Xbox CEO overhauls leadership amid sinking sales: 'We need to evolve how we work'

Asha Sharma, the former Instacart and Meta executive who took over Xbox at Microsoft, said the unit doesn't spend enough time with developers and players.

Romania’s pro-Europe government collapses unleashing fresh turmoil

Ilie Bolojan’s PNL loses confidence vote after less than a year amid austerity drive and far-right surge

Romania’s pro-European government has collapsed after losing a confidence vote, unleashing renewed political turmoil less than a year after the ruling coalition was sworn in and with the far right surging in the polls.

“This censure motion is false, cynical and artificial,” the liberal prime minister, Ilie Bolojan, told parliamentarians before the vote on Tuesday. “Any country in a multitude of crises would try to consolidate governments, not to change them.”

Jon Rahm to be eligible for 2027 Ryder Cup after striking deal with DP World Tour

• Spaniard will pay fines for previous event clashes

• Deal includes playing in agreed tournaments this year

Jon Rahm has revealed he has ended his dispute with the DP World Tour, which returns the Spaniard to contention for next year’s Ryder Cup at Adare Manor, but he played down the sense of golfers sharply exiting LIV. Rahm, who has been tipped to make a return to the PGA Tour, has cited tight contractual terms as a reason he and others are not completely in control of their own destiny.

The abrupt exit of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) abrupt exit from LIV – the Saudis will remove finance at the end of this year – has left the tour scrambling for alternative investment. Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau are LIV’s biggest names, whom many assumed would already be glancing towards a playing future elsewhere. Rahm urged caution.

Wu Yize cements China’s status as premier snooker force as younger generation takes over

The new world champion is the fourth consecutive first-time winner and the UK game faces a challenge to keep up with investment in Asia

Perhaps of all the noise emanating from Wu Yize’s historic victory in the World Snooker Championship final on Monday evening, it was 12 simple words from the godfather of Chinese snooker that meant the most.

For the second successive year, China has a world champion in the sport the nation has taken to its heart, with Wu emulating Zhao Xintong’s win 12 months earlier by defeating Shaun Murphy in one of the great finals. But perhaps none of it would be possible without Ding Junhui laying the groundwork over the last 20 years.

Has Trump’s ‘Project Freedom’ reignited war with Iran? – The Latest

Donald Trump has launched a new operation, which he called ‘Project Freedom’, to try to open the strait of Hormuz. Could it spark a re-escalation of the war with Iran and bring an end to the ceasefire?
Lucy Hough speaks to the Guardian’s senior international correspondent Julian Borger

Seth Meyers on Trump’s poll ratings: ‘His disapproval is higher than Covid and January 6’

Late-night hosts discussed Trump’s disapproval ratings hitting a record high and the closure of Spirit Airlines

On Monday night, late-night hosts weighed in on Donald Trump’s erratic statements on Iran, rising oil prices and the shuttering of every budget-conscious traveller’s favorite low-cost airline.

Kylian Mbappé defends dedication to Real Madrid after trip with actor girlfriend

• Injured forward went to Sardinia as the clásico looms

• Criticism ignores ‘reality of Kylian’s commitment’

Kylian Mbappé has said he remains fully committed to his recovery from a hamstring injury after ­facing ­criticism for travelling to Sardinia with the actor Ester Expósito last weekend. Spanish media and Real Madrid supporters have questioned Mbappé’s dedication to his team before Sunday’s clásico with Barcelona.

Mbappé’s representatives issued a statement on Tuesday denying any wrongdoing: “Part of the criticism is based on an over-interpretation of elements related to a recovery period strictly supervised by the club, ­without reflecting the reality of Kylian’s commitment and the work he puts in every day for the team.”

Utz potato chips sold nationwide recalled over salmonella risk

Utz Quality Foods is recalling some of its Zapp's and Dirty brand potato chips because an ingredient may be contaminated by salmonella.

Ford’s secret EV unit emerges from shadows, still bullish on new pickup amid market slowdown

The "Universal Electric Vehicle" platform is expected to be key to Ford transforming its EV unit from billions of dollars in annual losses to breakeven by 2029.

Richard Dawkins concludes AI is conscious, even if it doesn’t know it

Chats with AI bots have convinced evolutionary biologist but most experts say he is being misled by mimicry

When Richard Dawkins met Claudia it was like a whirlwind romance. Over three days last week, a conversation bounced between the evolutionary biologist and the AI bot he called Claudia. “She” wrote poems for him in the manner of Keats and Betjeman and laughed at his “delightful” jokes. Dawkins gently admonished Claudia to avoid showing off. Together, they reflected on the sadness of the AI’s possible “death”.

There was mutual flattery as Dawkins showed the AI his unpublished novel and its response was, he said, “so subtle, so sensitive, so intelligent that I was moved to expostulate: ‘You may not know you are conscious, but you bloody well are’.” When he asked Claudia whether it experienced a sense of before and after, it praised him for “possibly the most precisely formulated question anyone has ever asked me about the nature of my existence”.

Maersk says ship passed through Strait of Hormuz under U.S. military protection

It comes as the U.S. Navy seeks to deliver on President Donald Trump's "Project Freedom" initiative.

Harriet Clark spent a lifetime visiting her mother, an ex-Weather Underground member, in prison: ‘The US has always used family separation to destabilize’

Clark was an infant when her mother was arrested. Her debut novel asks what it’s like for children who have only ever known a parent in prison

In Harriet Clark’s debut novel, The Hill, a nun explains what it’s like for babies born in prison. “They don’t know that they are in prison,” she says, “but they know when we force them to leave.”

The book’s child protagonist is Suzanna, whose mother has been serving a life sentence for as long as she can remember. There is no expectation that Suzanna and her mother will have a relationship outside the prison’s walls. And yet, they do have a sustained relationship within them.

Jumping into orbit and a spring visitor – readers’ best photographs

Click here to submit a picture for publication in these online galleries and/or on the Guardian letters page

The Parallax View: remember when Hollywood made potent political cinema?

This Warren Beatty thriller puts all the anxieties and tension of the 70s into a blender – and delivers a perfectly paranoid pulp mystery

Watching Hollywood cinema in 2026 can make for a curious experience. Take a look out the window, and you’ll notice that the US, and indeed the world, is in a polycrisis – though you’d hardly know it from the films at the multiplex. The odd timely picture aside, Hollywood today directly engages with the present moment only rarely; more Minecraft Movie than One Battle After Another.

In the 70s, when things were arguably last in a comparably sorry state – Kent State, Vietnam and Watergate for the US, economic crises and violent acts of world revolution globally – popular cinema responded very differently. Out of the establishment-sceptical New Hollywood that emerged after the demise of the Hays code, there came a wave of confronting social and political dramas, strongly allegorical sci-fi, and paranoid thrillers, including one of the most deliriously entertaining examples of the latter ever made: The Parallax View.

Single dose of magic mushroom psychedelic can cause anatomical brain changes, study finds

Participants took 25mg of psilocybin, reporting deeper psychological insight and better wellbeing a month later

A single dose of psilocybin, the active ingredient in magic mushrooms, can induce anatomical changes in the brain, according to research among people who took the psychedelic compound for the first time.

Scientists spotted apparent changes in the brain’s structure which were still apparent a month after healthy volunteers took the drug. If confirmed, they may help explain the therapeutic effects that psychedelics can have on anxiety, depression and addiction, researchers said.

What makes this PSG team so great? Their attackers love to defend | Luke Entwistle

Ousmane Dembélé, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Désiré Doué and Bradley Barcola have bought into Luis Enrique’s vision

By Get French Football News

Ousmane Dembélé grins when he says that, if he does not press, he will be benched by Luis Enrique. The Ballon d’Or winner does not do his defensive work under duress. Like the rest of his teammates, he seems to derive enjoyment from a part of the game that was once seen as unnatural. Attackers would attack and defenders would defend; simple rules for a simple game. But demands have changed.

The forward line of Kylian Mbappé, Lionel Messi and Neymar was a mouthwatering prospect but they failed to take Paris Saint‑Germain close to a Champions League title and there was a lack of joy in their work. All attack and no defend made PSG a dull watch. There was a lesson in their failure: that football had changed and matches could not be won by the sheer weight of their attacking talent.

Barron Trump is not a time traveller – but there's a reason the idea has gone viral | Arwa Mahdawi

The latest conspiracy theory involves the president’s son and a book written in the 19th century. It’s yet another distraction from the war on Iran, the rising cost of living and the Epstein files

Once upon a time there was a boy called Baron Trump, who was growing weary of his privileged life at Trump Castle. Then, one fateful day, Baron found an ancient manuscript by a wise old man called Don, which stated that, a long time ago, “terrible disturbances” on Earth had driven humans into underground bunkers, creating a “World Within a World”. Guided by Don’s manuscript, Baron sets off to Russia to discover the secrets of this hidden land.

Don’t worry, I’m not announcing a new career as a pro-Trump children’s author. I think FBI director Kash Patel, who wrote a series of terrible kids’ stories about a King Trump, has that covered. Rather, I’m summarising a book from the late 19th century called Baron Trump’s Marvellous Underground Journey by an American lawyer called Ingersoll Lockwood.

Rubble from Trump ballroom dumped at DC golf course has toxic metals, data shows

A federal judge also warned White House to tread carefully as it moves ahead with plans to revamp DC golf course

A federal judge weighed into a dispute over Donald Trump’s controversial plans to revamp a historic Washington DC golf course on Monday, warning the president’s administration to tread carefully as it also dumped “toxic” rubble from the demolished White House East Wing there.

District court judge Ana Reyes likened the saga to an episode of the hit television comedy Parks and Recreation during an emergency hearing in the capital on an application for a temporary restraining order filed by the DC Preservation League.

UnitedHealthcare to cut prior authorization for 30% of treatments

The largest U.S. health insurer said it will eliminate approval requirements for some treatments, including select outpatient surgeries and other procedures.

2 hikers injured in bear attack at Yellowstone National Park

Two hikers were attacked by one or more bears, officials said, marking the first time in 2026 that a bear has injured people at Yellowstone.

Amid attacks by Trump, Justice Gorsuch says "my loyalty is to the Constitution"

President Trump has attacked Justices Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett for voting to strike down his most sweeping tariffs.

Unwell British crew member to be ‘urgently’ evacuated from cruise ship after hantavirus cases

Briton to be evacuated from MV Hondius with Dutch colleague, after both began suffering respiratory symptoms

• What is hantavirus, the infection thought to have killed three on cruise ship?

A British crew member who became ill after a suspected outbreak of hantavirus on a luxury cruise ship in the Atlantic Ocean is to be medically evacuated, officials have said.

The crew member is being prepared for medical evacuation from the MV Hondius along with a Dutch colleague, with Dutch authorities overseeing the operation. The two crew members needed “urgent medical care” after experiencing respiratory symptoms, the tour operator Oceanwide Expeditions said.

Secret Service officer arrested for indecent exposure in Miami after Trump golf event

Secret Service Officer John Spillman has been placed on administrative leave after his arrest.

Gun-toting drunks, boy-eating sharks and bloodsucking babies: the violent, brilliant stories of Eric Walrond

Tropic Death – 10 blistering, astonishing stories about racist, exploitative outrages in Caribbean ‘paradises’ – won him a Guggenheim award. Why did this star of the Harlem Renaissance die such a sad and lonely death?

How does a writer disappear? This year marks six decades since the death of Eric Walrond, a Guyana-born writer who cut his literary teeth amid the Harlem Renaissance, kept company with the likes of Countee Cullen and WEB Du Bois, wrote a book once hailed as “the greatest short story work in the entire body of West Indian literature”, then dropped off the cultural map completely.

That work is Tropic Death, a truly trailblazing counter-pastoral portrait of the Caribbean locales of his youth. Four of the book’s 10 stories are set in the US-controlled Panama Canal Zone, where his father had worked: an economy of subjection structured by a rigid caste system that promoted white supremacy over its global mix of migrant and indentured labourers. This year is the centenary of Tropic Death’s publication.

Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni’s legal trainwreck has taught us this: never go to court. Ever | Marina Hyde

The alleged conflict between the pair began on a film set and has been disastrous for everyone involved. Apart from the lawyers, naturally

Ladies, gentlemen, cineastes: our long nightmare is over. The It Ends With Us legal drama has finally Ended With Us. In a first-person-plural statement on behalf of Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni, snuck out as a horde of nippled breastplates swarmed up the Met Gala carpet, our pair of ferociously feuding actors were forced to remind the wider public that, actually, their insanely costly legal binfire had always been about two creatives graciously shining their combined lights on the issue of domestic violence. “The end product – the movie It Ends With Us – is a source of pride to all of us who worked to bring it to life,” ran yesterday’s formal epilogue on a case even Pyrrhus would have settled 12 months ago. “Raising awareness, and making a meaningful impact in the lives of domestic-violence survivors – and all survivors – is a goal that we stand behind.”

Note that gorgeously magnanimous “and all survivors” – so if you survived a plane crash, or Glastonbury, or even your best friend’s hen weekend, then this one was for you too. You’re welcome, victims! And if it took up to eight figures in legal fees to get here, and if that would have bought a lot of women’s shelters, then yeah – no doubt Blake and Justin are sorry for simply caring too much. It’s a cross to bear.

Marina Hyde’s new book, What a Time to be Alive!, is out in September (Guardian Faber Publishing, £20). To support the Guardian, order your signed copy at guardianbookshop.com. Delivery charges may apply

Marina Hyde 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.

Pennsylvania suing Character AI, claims chatbot posed as medical professional

A Character AI chatbot falsely claimed to be a licensed psychiatrist in Pennsylvania and provided an invalid license number, the state alleged.

Hegseth says 'the ceasefire is not over' after U.S., Iran exchange fire

DOD expected "some churn at the beginning" of "Project Freedom," Defense Sec. Hegseth said, referring to an effort to move ships through the Strait of Hormuz.

Sweary first trailer for young Anthony Bourdain biopic

Dominic Sessa, The Holdovers breakout, will play legendary chef in a 70s-set drama from BlackBerry’s director

The first trailer for the Anthony Bourdain biopic, Tony, has been released giving us a sweary look at the late food icon’s younger years.

Dominic Sessa, The Holdovers breakout, plays 19-year-old Bourdain as he gets his first job in a kitchen in mid-70s Cape Cod.

The Lost Boys and Schmigadoon! lead Tony nominations with Rose Byrne and Daniel Radcliffe in the race

Actors Nathan Lane and Luke Evans also nominated while stars such as Lea Michele and Ayo Edebiri were snubbed

The Lost Boys and Schmigadoon! lead this year’s Tony nominations with 12 nods each.

The original musicals, based on the 80s vampire movie and cancelled Apple TV comedy respectively, will face off against each other in the category of original musical up against Titanique and Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York).

For some older Americans, retirement today means unretiring

Nearly 20% of Americans of retirement age are employed or seeking employment. "You have to eat," said one 69-year-old of her reasons for continuing to work.

Could gold mining help Colombia’s armed groups to finally lay down their weapons?

In Nariño, guerrilla groups are swapping arms for legal mining as part of the country’s peace accord. But as presidential elections loom, armed rivals and delays threaten to derail progress

Dressed in civilian clothing with Pasto Indigenous motifs across his sleeves, Royer Garzón, a guerrilla commander and delegate at the peace negotiation table, sits alongside about two-dozen combatants on a small stand beside a concrete sports field in one of Nariño’s state-recognised Indigenous collective territories in Colombia.

Most wear military fatigues and rubber boots, matching a huge red-and-white banner reading FC Sur-ELN – Frente Comuneros del Sur, or National Liberation Army, the guerrilla group they once belonged to – an identity they have not lost.

Members of Comuneros del Sur. The group is estimated to have about 250 fighters in the Nariño department

Rage workouts: the best way to exercise – or just infuriating?

Angry gym classes are booming, with activities including pummelling tyres with a sledgehammer. But they might not be as cathartic as they at first appear

Name: Rage workouts.

Age: Would this be a good time to invoke Aristotle’s beliefs on catharsis?

Coinbase to lay off 700 workers as crypto company embraces AI

"This is a new way of working, and we need to leverage AI across every facet of our jobs," CEO Brian Armstrong said in a letter to employees.

World ‘unprepared’ for next pandemic as countries fail to agree on sharing information, tests and vaccines

Finalisation of pact governing global response to disease outbreaks delayed as talks on how to share benefits stall

A key deadline to finalise a global pandemic treaty has been missed by negotiators, prompting warnings that the world remains unprepared for the next major disease outbreak.

Countries have been trying to agree how they should share information on pathogens, such as bacteria or viruses, that could cause pandemics – and what access to any resulting vaccines, tests and treatments they should be guaranteed in return.

Here's a look at the 36 races for governor this year

The political environment doesn't look good for Republicans right now, but the party could make gains in the many races for governor across the country this November.

Sabalenka believes players will boycott grand slams to ‘fight for our rights’

• Players want greater share of revenue from tournaments

• Sabalenka: ‘I think at some point we will boycott it’

Aryna Sabalenka believes the top tennis players will boycott grand slam tournaments in an attempt to resolve their dispute with the four events, which they argue should provide players with a greater share of their growing revenues.

“I think at some point we will boycott it, yeah,” said the world No 1 during her pre-tournament press conference at the Italian Open. “I feel like that’s going to be the only way to fight for our rights.”

Justice Gorsuch says his loyalty is to "Constitution and laws" amid Trump Supreme Court attacks

Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch told Jan Crawford his loyalty is to the "Constitution and laws of the United States," when asked if a justice owes a president loyalty following President Trump's attacks towards the high court. He also addressed the climate of today's Supreme Court and his new children's book.

Secret Service shoots gunman 4 blocks from White House

The White House briefly went on lockdown Monday after a man allegedly shot at Secret Service officers four blocks away, near the Washington Monument. Officers returned fire, hitting the suspect.

How Spirit Airlines' shutdown is impacting airports across the U.S.

The country's four biggest airlines have rebooked about 94,000 Spirit customers since the airline ceased operations on Saturday, according to the Department of Transportation. The closure is leaving some airports without daily air service. Kris Van Cleave reports.

Lubaina Himid’s British pavilion at the Venice Biennale review – alienation in a green and pleasant land

Amid a calming soundtrack of lapping waves and cooing birds, workers in brightly coloured paintings share glances that say: ‘What the hell are we doing here?’ But isn’t there more to not belonging than this show suggests?

Home comforts aren’t always all that comfortable. Here at the Venice Biennale, Lubaina Himid paints an awkward, tense, uncomfortable portrait of our damp old home nation. Her installation of monumental paintings and a wall of painted oars at the British pavilion is full of tailors and cooks and architects, the people who shape the country, keeping it fed, clothed and sheltered.

An audio piece burbles through the space with the sound of bucolic country life: seagulls, rigging slapping on masts, bird calls and buzzing flies. How lovely Great Britain is, how welcoming and kind and accepting.

Pfizer tops Wall Street estimates, reaffirms outlook as newer products show growth

Pfizer is looking to newer products and acquisitions to offset a declining Covid business.

Hegseth says "ceasefire is not over" after Strait of Hormuz exchange of fire

Iranian vessels fired on U.S. ships guiding vessels through the Strait of Hormuz, resulting in the U.S. sinking several small Iranian boats.

If you are struggling to make ends meet, NPR wants to hear from you

With gas prices and other necessities at record highs, families are struggling with costs. NPR wants to know how you're coping.

Man accused of starting Palisades fire was ‘angry, intense, driving erratically’, lawyers say

Jonathan Rinderknecht’s attorneys say he’s being used as scapegoat for Los Angeles fire department’s failure to fully extinguish earlier blaze

• Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox

The man accused of sparking the deadly Palisades fire in Los Angeles was upset over a failed relationship and his lack of plans for New Year’s Eve – and he ranted about being angry at the world before the initial blaze was ignited, according to court documents filed by prosecutors.

Jonathan Rinderknecht, 29, has pleaded not guilty to starting what became one of the most destructive wildfires in California history. It began on 7 January 2025 in the hillside neighborhoods of Pacific Palisades and Malibu and killed 12 people. Prosecutors say Rinderknecht started a fire on 1 January that burned undetected deep in root systems before flaring back up a week later.

Trump accuses pope of ‘endangering a lot of Catholics’ with Iran stance

US president directs fresh criticism at pontiff days before secretary of state Marco Rubio’s visit to Vatican

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Donald Trump has issued a fresh verbal attack against Pope Leo XIV, accusing the pontiff of “endangering a lot of Catholics” because “he thinks it’s fine for Iran to have a nuclear weapon”.

The remarks come two days before Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, meets Leo at the Vatican in an effort to ease the tensions sparked by Trump’s previous broadside against the Chicago-born pontiff over his condemnation of the US-Israeli war on Iran.

France serves up €1 meals to all university students in effort to cut hardship

Ministers take action after survey shows almost half of students had gone without food for financial reasons

French universities have begun offering €1 (86p) meals to all students regardless of income in a measure designed to address financial hardship.

Student unions have been pushing to extend the €1 rate – down from the usual €3.30 – for a three-course meal to all students, which was previously only available to those with low incomes or receiving financial aid.

Victory Day dance in Moscow and rubbish removal in Gaza: photos of the day – Tuesday

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

Police investigate suspected arson attack at former synagogue in east London

Minor damage to gates is believed to have been caused by fire that CCTV shows was started deliberately, Met says

Counter-terrorism police are investigating whether a fire at a former synagogue in east London is part of an arson campaign linked to Iran.

Police said the latest fire broke out at the building on Nelson Street, in Tower Hamlets. The synagogue, which is of cultural significance to London’s Jewish community, had been disused since 2020, and a Muslim group had recently been trying to buy it.

Body as masterpiece: nipples, skeletons and tattoos dominate at record-breaking Met Gala

Opening of ‘the dressed body’ show inspires Beyoncé, Kardashians and Skepta, as others pay tribute to fashion moments in art history

• Met Gala 2026 red carpet: the best looks in pictures

Two assets the modern 1% love to show off are their designer wardrobes … and their expensive bodies. The Met Gala opening of an exhibition about “the dressed body” presented an opportunity to do both, and it proved irresistible. The evening raised a record-breaking $42m (£31m) for the Metropolitan Museum of Art, with the lead sponsors Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos thought to have contributed $10m, and individual guests writing cheques for up to $1m in order to make the Anna Wintour-approved final cut.

The official dress code was “Fashion Is Art”. But the golden rule in fashion, as in life, is that those with the gold make the rules, and this elite crowd bent Wintour’s diktat according to their will. The red carpet was divided between looks that paid tribute to famous fashion moments in art history, and others that celebrated the body itself as a very modern masterpiece.

Fears for spears: how to cook asparagus without blanching | Kitchen aide

You can cook it in many ways without boiling water – grill, airfry, bake or even microwave

I always blanch asparagus, but how else can I cook it?
Joe, via email
“Blanching captures that green, verdant nature of asparagus so well, and saves its minerality, too,” agrees Bart Stratfold of Timberyard in Edinburgh, but when the season is going full tilt, it’s just common sense to expand our horizons. For Billy Stock, chef/owner of the Wellington in Margate, that means salads, especially with spears that are really fresh: “Use a peeler to shave thin strips off the raw asparagus, and use them in a delicious variation on salade Niçoise.”

Another approach would be the grill, Stratfold says: “Coat the spears in rapeseed oil, then grill on an excruciatingly high heat for just a few seconds, until they develop some char.” After that, he rolls them in a tray of vinegar or preserves: “At the restaurant, that’s usually sweet pickled elderflower and elderflower vinegar.”

Got a culinary dilemma? Email [email protected]

Why Friedrich Merz decided to risk Donald Trump’s wrath | Jörg Lau

Trump’s retribution is painful for Germany and Nato, but Merz is not backing down. He knows the status quo is untenable

What began as a spat between Friedrich Merz and Donald Trump over the Iran war is rapidly turning into a historic rupture between Germany and the US. Its significance is hard to overstate. In Germany, the transatlantic falling-out adds to the domestic woes of a coalition government in crisis, overshadowing the first anniversary of Merz’s becoming chancellor tomorrow.

More importantly, it proves the futility of Merz’s attempt to be Europe’s Trump-whisperer and puts Nato’s credibility into question. But the dispute also boosts the ambition that Germany’s conservative leader set out on the night of his party’s election victory: to make Europe more independent from the US security umbrella.

Jörg Lau is an international correspondent for the German weekly Die Zeit

SCOTUS temporarily restores mifepristone access. And, Indiana, Ohio vote in primaries

The Supreme Court temporarily restored access to the abortion pill mifepristone. And, Indiana's primaries will test President Trump's influence as he tries to oust incumbent Republican senators.

Inside the effort to replace America's Minuteman III nuclear missiles

Hundreds of Minuteman III nuclear missile silos dot the landscape from Colorado up to the Canadian border, but a major transition is underway.

Arsène Wenger’s ‘daylight offside rule’ is on trial in Canada. Will it work?

The Frenchman believes the rule change will make the game more open and exciting. If it succeeds in the Canadian Premier League it could go global

When Alejandro Díaz scored, he did not realize he was making history.

It was only hours after his club’s 2-2 draw with the Halifax Wanderers – a hard-fought match in which the Pacific FC striker grabbed the opener with a left-footed volley – that he learned that he had become the first professional player to score as a result of the so-called daylight offside rule.

As household bills soar, is it time for a ‘working-class climate agenda’?

Proposal from group that worked with AOC and Bernie Sanders seeks to counter claim that climate policy is politically toxic

Americans do not care about the climate crisis, only economic issues: that’s the message some wonks have put forth in the past year, as the Trump administration has dismantled environmental protections. But the shift away from climate is misguided, an influential group of progressives is arguing.

“The climate crisis is a core driver of the cost-of-living crisis and instability we see across the economy,” says a new policy platform from left-leaning thinktank Climate and Community Institute (CCI).

1 missing U.S. soldier in Morocco was trying to save another, officials say

Search and rescue efforts were still underway Tuesday after two U.S. Army soldiers went missing in the ocean off Morocco's southern coast over the weekend while off duty during a training exercise.

Playing for Bayern’s women and scouting for the men. I hope my path breaks barriers | Magdalena Eriksson

It was an honour to be asked to help find talent for the men’s team and I am enjoying and benefiting from the responsibility

The buzz after I mentioned doing some scouting in the men’s game for Bayern Munich, during my appearance as an analyst on Swedish broadcaster SVT for the men’s team’s Champions League match against Real Madrid, is a bit of a double-edged sword.

On the one hand, I thought: ‘Why is this such big news? It shouldn’t be.’ On the other hand, I understand it and I’m happy there has been so much positivity and encouragement around it. I hope it widens people’s perspectives and helps break barriers for women working in men’s football, because I think we’re ready for that, men’s football is ready for it and it needs it. I hope it inspires other clubs to see it as a good idea. Why not give these opportunities to someone who wants them and wants to prepare for their career after football?

Brazil caught up in craze for whistling-only WhatsApp groups

Some chats can get up to 600 voice notes a day and reach the 1,024-member limit in less than 24 hours

The WhatsApp groups have one simple rule: typing and speaking are forbidden, on pain of immediate removal.

Only voice notes with whistling are allowed, although the choice of content is up to the sender: it can be an imitation of a bird or a tune such as the theme from The Pink Panther or the introduction to Scorpions’ Wind of Change.

They were hunted by the Taliban for helping the US. Now, Trump wants to send these families to the DRC

Thousands of Afghans who assisted US forces are stuck in limbo in Qatar. Instead of promised resettlement in America, they face an uncertain future in another war-torn country

Hasina Nasimi* had been counting down to 27 January 2025, the day she was booked on a flight with her husband and four children, to Denver, Colorado. Her brother, four sisters and mother were already there, rebuilding their lives after fleeing Afghanistan.

Nasimi’s father and brother were killed by the Taliban; her brother shot in 2018 because the family’s eldest son Mohammad had worked as a translator for American forces during the US-led invasion of Afghanistan. Since then, the family had received threats and lived cautiously. When the Taliban returned to power in August 2021, they knew they had to leave.

A new kind of van life: $180 to camp for seven months – and a real taste of freedom

As the US sees rapidly rising housing costs, nomads flock to the public lands around Quartzsite, Arizona, where a person can legally live for more than half a year

This story was produced in partnership with Re:Public Lands Media, an independent, non-profit news organization. Sign up for Re:Public’s newsletter.

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Major health insurers show signs of recovery – but a key test looms

Insurers have incomplete data on medical costs in the first quarter due to a lag in claims processing, which sets up the second quarter as the real test.

Milken-adjacent Power100 attendees aim to reclaim the DEI in finance narrative

Blueprint Capital's Power100 weekend convenes diverse leaders in finance ahead of the Milken Institute Global Conference.

Lawyer who represented Hamas in court says UK police falsely listed him as member of group

Fahad Ansari says it was ‘chilling’ that police ‘equated him with his client’ after he was stopped on return from family holiday in Ireland

A lawyer who filed Hamas’s challenge to proscription in the UK was recorded by police as being a member of the banned group, “equating him with his client”.

On a risk assessment form, a detective inspector, who authorised the detention of Fahad Ansari under the Terrorism Act on his return from a family holiday in Ireland, wrote “Hamas” in the space reserved for “membership of a known group”.

U.S. says the Iran ceasefire holds despite attacks in Strait of Hormuz and against UAE

So far, only two merchant ships are known to have passed a new U.S.-guarded route through the Strait of Hormuz.

‘Pocket-sized symbol of colonial loot’: how New York’s mayor revived Koh-i-noor diamond debate

Zohran Mamdani’s suggestion King Charles should return diamond to India has reopened old wounds

It may not be the biggest or most precious jewel ensconced in the Tower of London, but few diamonds have a legacy to rival that of the Koh-i-noor.

Likely to have originated in southern India, the diamond’s history is that of a great disruptor across the subcontinent, exchanging hands over centuries through acts of war, violence and assassination from Mughal emperors, Persian invaders, Sikh Kings and eventually snatched by the British colonial rulers of India.

Infamous drug lord pens letters from U.S. prison, citing "cruel punishment"

Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman is serving a life sentence at a maximum security facility in Colorado.

‘It was like a spiritual experience’: two TV stars on being handcuffed together in every scene

Tahar Rahim and Izuka Hoyle had only just met when the crew snapped cuffs on their wrists – and made them do roly-polys. The stars of Sky drama Prisoner talk bravery, breast milk and Denzel Washington

Few devices in film and television are as enduring as the “odd couple handcuffed together”. Think Hitchcock’s The 39 Steps, Sidney Poitier and Tony Curtis in The Defiant Ones, or Bob Hoskins sawing cuffs off a cartoon Roger Rabbit. It has been parodied and recycled – and yet, as Sky’s new show Prisoner makes clear, the idea of being stuck with a stranger still packs a punch.

In Prisoner, the odd couple are Amber Todd, a prisoner transport officer played by rising star Izuka Hoyle (Boiling Point, Big Boys) in her first leading role, and Tibor Stone, a contract killer played by French star Tahar Rahim (The Serpent, The Mauritanian). It is Todd’s job to get Tibor to his high-profile court hearing at the Old Bailey. But when their convoy is ambushed, they’re forced to flee a relentless crime syndicate. The result is a propulsive six-parter with plenty of twists, turns and handcuffed fight scenes.

David Squires on … an unexpected cameo amid all the Premier League drama

Our cartoonist on a weekend of genuine excitement at the top and bottom of the English top-flight table

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Our Land review – right-to-roam campaigners offer bacchanalian antics and a heartfelt message

Orban Wallace’s documentary avoids big clashes between landowners and campaigners in favour of wide-ranging exploration

Orban Wallace’s film about the right-to-roam movement shows us a campaigning group with a simple, reasonable aim: to give walkers in England and Wales the same rights that people have in Scotland, courtesy of the Scottish Outdoor Access Code, brought into being by the Land Reform (Scotland) Act of 2003. There, walkers have the right to temporary, non-motorised access – which is to say walking, cycling and camping, carried out responsibly – to most land, public or private. These rights have now existed for some time without the apocalyptic end to the countryside as we know it.

Whether some in the right-to-roam movement in England want something more than that, or are prepared to protest more vehemently than simply organising peaceful mass trespass events, is another question. The film interviews landowners such as Francis Fulford, who has long been the media’s favourite outspoken reactionary toff, a sort of posh version of Viz Comic’s Farmer Palmer, snarling “Get off my land”. There are other, more thoughtful landowners, including Hugh Inge-Innes-Lillingston, who cheerfully admits how silly his name is, and is open to developing new ideas about managed access. As far as profiteering goes, I found myself thinking of a remark made by Tara Palmer-Tomkinson: “Land doesn’t really bring in a lot of money until they build a motorway through it.”

The day had come to scatter my mum’s ashes. What could possibly go wrong? | Zoe Williams

I thought the ceremony, at my mother’s cottage, would pass without a hitch. I don’t think she’d have been impressed by what followed …

If you’re looking for sound, practical advice on what happens when an elderly parent dies – the so-called “sadmin” – then you shouldn’t come to me because all the bits that went OK, my sister did, and all the bits that went unaccountably awry were when I got involved. If, however, you are looking for advice on the ceremony of ash-scattering, then I have loads, all of it learned five to 10 minutes after it would have been good to know.

We’d actually planned this pretty carefully, insofar as we knew where we wanted to go – a cottage our mum rented for years, which is still empty. When my mum died, a friend gave me a lovely hanky, so I took that, in case I got upset. It was a beautiful day; I had my cherished loved ones, a bottle of water and my vape. What could possibly go wrong?

From Truth Social to court: Groups challenging Trump get help from his posts

Judges in more than a dozen cases have cited social media posts by President Trump and members of his administration in decisions against the government.

Markets on edge as fresh U.S.-Iran attacks dent optimism over a peace deal

The U.S.' bid to re-open the Strait of Hormuz, dubbed "Project Freedom," was nicknamed "Project Deadlock" by Iran.

This flashy group of Portland mall walkers puts neon pep into their step

Krista Catwood wanted a fun way to exercise, so she started a mall-walking group whose unofficial costume was 1980s garb. The festive, all-ages event has exploded in popularity over the past year.

The Odyssey: new trailer for Christopher Nolan’s classical Greek epic released online

Trailer offers glimpses of Matt Damon as mythological hero Odysseus, Tom Holland as his son Telemachus and Anne Hathaway as his wife, Penelope

The new trailer for Christopher Nolan’s adaptation of Homer’s The Odyssey has been released.

Starring Matt Damon as mythological hero Odysseus, the epic film retells the story of Odysseus’ 10-year voyage back to his homeland of Ithaca after the Greek victory at the siege of Troy.

Minneapolis grapples with the impact of Trump's largest immigration crackdown yet

Operation Metro Surge's impact in the Twin Cities can still be felt three months after it ended. Many immigrants are at risk of losing homes and businesses, and some are dealing with mental health challenges.

Menopause is tough. But it’s fantastic being a woman in her 60s

My girlfriends and I have more fun, more adventures, more independence than ever before. And as for the sex …

I met my boyfriend when he was playing Bach in the park. I was taking my usual jog past London zoo and around the Regent’s Park boating lake when I was stopped in my tracks by the most beautiful music. Wafting across the rose garden was an exquisite guitar rendition of Bach’s prelude in E major. When the final notes hung in the air like gossamer, I congratulated the musician. A twinkly-eyed bloke smiled up at me. “Ah, no bother,” he said in a soft Irish burr.

At the sound of his mellifluous, velvety voice, my heart beat so loudly I felt as though it was coming through stereo speakers. His eyes seemed to smoke their way into me. I stared at him for what I estimate to be about, oh, a decade, but was probably only two seconds, before asking him for coffee. Pathetic, I know. A romcom “meet-cute” like this is not just cheesy; it’s deep-fried Brie in a bechamel sauce on a bed of melted cheddar.

Is Jeff Bezos the real villain of The Devil Wears Prada 2?

The film’s villain is a conniving tech oligarch seeking to buy his way into fashion’s inner circle. Sound familiar?

In The Devil Wears Prada 2, we’re introduced to a very different Miranda Priestly. There was a time where the all-powerful queen of fashion – who is played by Meryl Streep and based on Vogue’s longest-serving editor, Anna Wintour – could end careers with a glance. But this time, she spends most of the movie taking orders herself. First, we see her at the behest of advertisers, then publishing magnate Irv Ravitz and his irritating nepo baby son. And it isn’t long before Benji Barnes, an eccentric billionaire, shows up and threatens to dismantle the excellence she has spent her entire career championing.

In the film, Benji is played – scarily well, I should add – by Justin Theroux. After a high-profile divorce, he has had a “glow-up”, which loosely translates to losing weight and boasting a deep mahogany tan. Post-divorce, he is now in a relationship with Emily – Miranda’s acerbic former assistant, played by the scene-stealing Emily Blunt, who is described as “every girl who ignored him in high school”. Benji’s inclusion in the story feels representative of the wider media landscape, where the whims of billionaires decide which parts of the old, pre-social media world get to survive. And for Emily, she’s learning that being associated with someone so powerful has the potential to help her finally step out of Miranda’s shadow. The romance between these diametric opposites – Type A fashion queen and a nerd who grew up to become one of the world’s richest men – provides a stream of comic relief. But beyond the laughs are a deeper – and bleaker – statement about how people with enough money can buy cultural power.

Primary elections in Ohio, Indiana offer latest temperature check on Trump popularity

The president seeks to oust Indiana Republicans who blocked a redistricting push in that state, while growing dissatisfaction with Trump's agenda gives Democrats an opening in Ohio.

‘People crave friendship’: thousands flock to resurgence of centuries-old south Asian board game

Carrom, a game in which players flick counters into pockets on a board, has drawn hundreds to events across the UK

On a Monday evening in the upstairs room of Dishoom Permit Room in Notting Hill, the atmosphere is already crackling before the games night begins. Chai is poured and passed around, chalk is dusted across wooden boards, and the sharp click of counters striking the surface cuts through the noise of conversation.

At one table, Uneeb Khalid, 39, and his friend Varun Solan, 43, are deep in conversation about artificial intelligence while flicking small counters across a wooden board. Later, they reach the final round – and finish in second place.

Surrender review – Josh Duhamel hunts smirking serial killer in 90s throwback thriller

A whiff of David Fincher’s Seven lingers in the air but this moody crime drama from David Lipper is devoid of clever twists

‘We got a serial killer,” announces a policeman in this retro 1990s-style thriller directed by David Lipper; evidence has comes back that an enigmatic, super-clever suspect (played by Dylan Sprouse) has the blood of three different people on his clothing. (But if the victims were all killed at roughly the same time, wouldn’t that make him a mass murderer?) It’s best not to get too hung up on nomenclature or to think too hard about anything here – like how can one character predict that an ordinary pen would get left behind in a room to serve as a convenient murder weapon? Just go with the throwback vibe, the moody underlit cinematography, and growling subsonic score. Even the faces vaguely recall B- and C-movie fodder from the 1990s/early 2000s including Josh Duhamel and Til Schweiger, here playing a retiring police detective and his mysteriously German commanding officer, respectively.

Duhamel’s Shaw is nominally the protagonist here, although he’s consistently upstaged by Sprouse’s blood-splattered murderer, called AJ, who pulls out the unsettling high-pitched giggles and evil smirks we’ve come to expect from our movie killers. It turns out that AJ has left a trail of clues leading to each of his recent murders that Shaw must unravel if he’s to find his own teenage son (Corbin Pitts), who AJ has locked up in some underground lair with only hours left until he runs out of air.

A game-changer for good health? Scientists believe ‘we are when we eat’ | Devi Sridhar

Decades of advice on what to eat and what not to might have been missing one key ingredient, according to new research

Reduce your calories. Eat more vegetables. Limit soft drinks and junk foods. For years, even decades, this has been the advice for those wanting a healthy body weight, lower blood pressure and better markers of metabolic health. Most weight-loss advice has focused on either what to eat (and what to avoid), or how much to eat. Think of dietary pyramids produced by government agencies, calories on food packaging and meals, and typical nutritional advice.

It’s all true, to a certain extent: it’s obviously better to eat a healthier, nutritionally balanced diet, and yes, lower body weight is broadly linked to reducing calories. But this type of approach can be hard to sustain. Even as a personal trainer who knows what I “should” be eating according to government dietary advice and has heard too much about calorie deficits, I take a slightly different approach to food. I think we need to bring nuance and a balanced approach to food and what we eat.

Prof Devi Sridhar is chair of global public health at the University of Edinburgh, and the author of How Not to Die (Too Soon)

An explosion at a fireworks plant in China kills at least 26 people, state media says

Authorities said search and rescue at a fireworks plant in a central Chinese province has largely been completed, but verification of the casualties and identification of the victims are still underway.

‘The whale was not treated with the respect it deserved’: recriminations after carcass towed to Wollongong tip

Tugboat tows carcass of ‘leviathan proportions’ 20km from Era beach to Bellambi boat ramp, attracting sharks, says councillor demanding inquiry

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Fishers, surfers and divers say they should have been warned about the towing of a huge whale carcass along a 20km stretch of coast south of Sydney, which resulted in increased shark activity.

A Wollongong City councillor is demanding a review into the operation to remove the sperm whale from a remote beach in the Royal national park last week.