Middle East crisis live: Israeli military begins strikes on Beirut suburbs; Trump demands say in choosing Iran’s next supreme leader

IDF says it is striking Dahiya neighborhood in southern suburbs of Beirut after earlier issuing evacuation order; Trump dismisses idea of Khamenei’s son succeeding his father as leader

• Tell us: how have you been affected by the latest events in the Middle East?

Iran says it has targeted Kurdish groups in Iraq and warned “separatist groups” against action in the widening war.

Tehran said on Thursday it had hit Iraq-based Kurdish groups “opposed to the revolution”, as reports said the US was looking to arm Kurdish militias to infiltrate Iran.

We will not tolerate them in any way.

Man charged with aggravated murder in killings of three women in Utah

Suspect identified as Ivan Miller, 22, found after he was tracked in one of the victims’ vehicles, authorities say

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Authorities have charged a 22-year-old man with aggravated murder in the killings of three women found dead in Utah on Wednesday following a search that extended into three states.

The suspect has been identified as Ivan Miller of Blakesburg, Iowa.

The Associated Press contributed reporting

Noem firing doesn't break DHS funding impasse, Democrats say

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was fired by President Donald Trump on Thursday, as a DHS shutdown drags on.

Canadian backpacker Piper James died ‘as a result of drowning’ following a dingo attack at K’gari, coroner says

Cause of death of 19-year-old in January was drowning ‘in the setting of multiple injuries, due to, or as a consequence of a dingo attack’

Canadian backpacker Piper James died “as a result of drowning” following a dingo attack at K’gari , the Queensland coroners court says.

The court on Friday said Piper’s cause of death had been determined by a forensic pathologist and accepted by the investigating coroner.

Lowly Li snaps back at fans as Lowry endures another difficult day

• Chinese world No 71 swears at heckler after breaking club

• Lowry finishes with a bogey to compound weekend pain

“Snap another one!” You find brave people in hospitality areas at golf tournaments. The order came to Li Haotong, moments after his caddie had delivered a broken lob wedge to a bin at the back of the Bay Hill driving range. “Fuck off!” barked Li in immediate reply, with a gesticulation to match. What a scene.

Gaining entry to the Arnold Palmer Invitational at the last minute, as a reserve, was not sufficient to boost Li’s mood. He finished round one horribly, with a double bogey rounding off a 77. Li’s tugged approach to the last (a bad workman etc) was plugged in a greenside bunker, from where he opted to putt. The ball crawled out of the sand, which Li booted in anger. The ranting continued all the way to and on the practice area, much to the amusement of assembled guests. Li’s poor bag man was at the opposite end of a verbal tirade. It was pitiful, embarrassing petulance for which Li should be reprimanded by the PGA Tour.

‘I believe more’: Tudor insists Spurs going in right direction despite third loss

• Tottenham beaten 3-1 by Palace as Van de Ven sent off

• Interim manager admits the situation is ‘very difficult’

Igor Tudor insisted that the “boat is going in the direction I want to go” despite a shambolic 3-1 defeat to Crystal Palace, deepening Tottenham’s relegation fears.

Although the atmosphere was toxic on another grim night at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Tudor is confident that he can steer his new side to safety. Tottenham have lost each of their three games under their interim manager and are a point above the bottom three after Micky van de Ven’s red card kickstarted an implosion against Palace.

Pregnant women in ERs took less Tylenol after Trump autism warning

A study in The Lancet finds that pregnant women in emergency rooms used less Tylenol after President Trump said it could raise their babies' risk of autism. Scientists say there is no proven link.

Messi and Inter Miami were wallpaper for Trump’s whims in their White House visit

The US president welcomed the 2025 MLS Cup champions in a ceremony beset by tangents and awkward asides

Nine minutes and 43 seconds. As Inter Miami’s players stood behind the dais at the East Room in the White House with club owner Jorge Mas stood to the left and Lionel Messi to the right; with MLS commissioner Don Garber sat alongside Fifa World Cup 2026 task force executive director Andrew Giuliani in an audience replete with celebrities and sports stars, it took nine minutes and 43 seconds for US president Donald Trump to talk about why any of them were there.

Inter Miami won the 2025 MLS Cup; a solid win in an exciting final that merited this traditional visit for champions of US pro sports leagues. But in those minutes and seconds before it was acknowledged, Trump did as he did with Juventus players in an Oval Office appearance during last summer’s Club World Cup: he made sports figures the wallpaper for his political and cultural aims. Trump provided an update of sorts on his administration’s sudden and ongoing war against Iran, alluded to a potential conflict with Cuba and offered his own glowing assessment on the supposedly booming US economy. All the while, Luis Suárez, Messi and every other Miami player gazed blankly from behind him.

Labour MP resigns whip after husband arrested on suspicion of spying for China

Joani Reid steps back while internal inquiry takes place following freeing of husband David Taylor on bail until May

The MP whose husband was arrested this week on suspicion of spying for China has resigned the Labour whip while an internal investigation is carried out.

Joani Reid, the MP for East Kilbride and Strathaven, said on Thursday night she would temporarily stand down from the parliamentary party while the inquiry takes place.

U.S. seeking to "raze or level" Iran's ballistic missile industry, Adm. Cooper says

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gave a press briefing with Admiral Brad Cooper, the commander of U.S. Central Command.

Inside the decision to remove Kristi Noem as DHS secretary

The timing of Trump's Truth Social post​ announcing Kristi Noem's removal as DHS secretary took DHS officials and the secretary herself by surprise.

Amazon online store suffers outage for some users

Amazon users reported trouble accessing checkout and account information, as well as viewing product detail pages.

House rejects war powers resolution to rein in Trump on Iran

The Senate rejected a similar war powers resolution on Wednesday, leaving President Donald Trump to pursue further action in Iran.

House votes down resolution to curb Trump's Iran war powers

The House resolution to constrain Trump's war powers failed in a 212 to 219 vote, with four Democrats joining all but two Republicans to kill it.

Saka responds to criticism of Arsenal by insisting ‘we don’t listen to that stuff’

• Forward says all that matters is they keep winning

• Saka unconcerned by lower goals and assist tally

Bukayo Saka says he is untroubled by the rising tide of criticism against Arsenal and wants to do one thing and one thing alone – win. The winger marked his 300th appearance for the club with the only goal in Wednesday’s 1-0 victory at Brighton, which moved Arsenal seven points clear of Manchester City at the top of the Premier League. City have a game in hand.

It was an emotional night at the Amex Stadium. Fabian Hürzeler had complained about Arsenal’s timewasting beforehand, the Brighton manager raged about it during the match – as did the home crowd – and he signed off with another blast, saying Arsenal had again taken advantage of the inability of referees to combat delaying tactics.

GOP leaders urge Gonzales to drop reelection bid over affair scandal

The Texas Republican admitted Wednesday that he had a relationship with the staffer, who later died by suicide.

Women’s Africa Cup of Nations postponed just 12 days before the start

• Caf reschedules tournament after weeks of speculation

• Decision due to ‘unforeseen circumstances’

The Confederation of African Football (Caf) has confirmed the postponement of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations to July and August, just 12 days before the tournament was due to start.

The decision ends weeks of speculation as to whether it would go ahead as scheduled this month but leaves teams without games to play during this international break.

Mark Zuckerberg says criminal behavior on Facebook inevitable

Meta CEO, grilled about children’s safety, says in taped deposition a user pool of billions will include bad actors

Harms to children, such as sexual exploitation and detriments to mental health, are inevitable on Meta’s platforms, the company’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Instagram leader Adam Mosseri said in taped depositions played at a trial in New Mexico on Tuesday and Wednesday.

“I just think if you’re serving billions of people, the unfortunate reality is that some very small percent of them are going to be criminals, and we should work as hard as we can to stop that activity from happening,” said Zuckerberg. “I don’t think that the standard for our platforms would be that you should assume that it will ever be perfect.”

Trump says he fired Anthropic ‘like dogs’ as Pentagon formally blacklists AI startup

Reports say talks have resumed between defense department and startup over military’s use of company’s AI, but

• US politics live – latest updates

• Trump ousts DHS secretary Kristi Noem

Donald Trump boasted about severing ties between the US military and Anthropic on Thursday, the same day multiple reports said that negotiations between the Department of Defense and the AI startup had resumed.

They’re among the latest developments in the twisting rift between the US government and the AI company.

Trump taps Sen. Markwayne Mullin after firing Kristi Noem as DHS secretary

Noem's chief adviser, Corey Lewandowski, will also leave his position at DHS, MS NOW reported.

Austin PD give update on probe of deadly mass shooting that killed 3

Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis played surveillance​ video​ and police​ body cam video​.

24 states sue Trump administration over new global tariffs

Two dozen states filed a lawsuit challenging President Trump's legal authority to impose new global tariffs.

Kristi Noem out as secretary of Homeland Security, Trump says

The announcement comes amid criticism of DHS spending under Noem, and as Congress has allowed the department's funding to lapse.

US House rejects war powers resolution to end Trump’s hostilities with Iran

Democratic-backed measure that would have forced US to withdraw troops failed by a vote of 212-219

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The US House of Representatives on Thursday voted down a Democratic-backed measure to halt hostilities with Iran, as Republicans cleared the way for Donald Trump to continue the conflict that has drawn in countries across the Middle East, but criticized as having unclear goals.

By a vote of 212-219, the House voted to reject a war powers resolution proposed by Thomas Massie, a Republican representative, and Ro Khanna, a Democratic representative, which would have forced the US to withdraw from the conflict until Congress authorized military action. The vote was largely along party lines, with two Republicans breaking with their party to support the resolution, and four Democrats voting against it.

House approves bill to fund DHS, but roadblocks remain in Senate

The House passed a measure to fund the Department of Homeland Security on Thursday, but Senate Democrats blocked similar legislation.

Iran war hits housing market as mortgage rates rise to 6%

Mortgage rates are rising as bond investors fret that rising oil prices could boost inflation.

What you need to know about Sen. Markwayne Mullin, Trump's new pick to lead DHS

President Trump announced Thursday that Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., is his pick to replace Kristi Noem as the head of the Department of Homeland Security.

3/4: CBS Evening News

U.S. submarine sinks Iranian warship as Tehran widens ring of retaliation; CBS News producer George Osterkamp dies at 82

Epstein files: DOJ plans to release new batch of documents 'fairly soon,' MS Now reports

Bill Gates, Leon Black, Goldman Sachs' top lawyer, and others are expected to testify soon to a House panel about their dealings with Jeffrey Epstein.

Dow tumbles almost 800 points amid concerns about surging oil prices

Stocks fell sharply on Wall Street on Thursday as oil prices rose further because of the war with Iran.

USL emails players about union resignation procedures as strike looms

• Email includes ‘FAQ’ on crossing picket line

• Active player calls letter ‘a bunch of bullshit’

• USL declines to comment

On Wednesday night, the United Soccer League (USL) emailed every player contracted in the second-division Championship with information about the procedures for crossing a potential picket line and resigning their membership in the USL Players’ Association, multiple sources have confirmed to the Guardian.

The USL, which runs the second-division Championship and the third-division League One as its professional US men’s leagues, has been locked in labor talks with Championship players for more than a year, with tensions recently spilling into the public. The previous agreement between the league and the USL Players Association (USLPA) expired on 31 December 2025.

With the advance of AI, I feel my work as an artist is no longer respected. Should I just give up? | Leading questions

Think back to the reason you started making art, advice columnist Eleanor Gordon-Smith writes, then separate this from the money or acclaim

• Read more Leading questions

I’m an artist in my 30s without any major success. Before the pandemic I had quite a lot of opportunities. Unfortunately Covid and then political and personal matters beyond my control shattered my work and social circles. I lost contacts and had no time for networking.

My art evolved with me and has become less conceptual, more narrative and accessible. The most fulfilling moment in the last few months was when I surprised a local cashier by giving her an illustration. Nevertheless, I’ve started to doubt that I can move people with my art.

U.S. contractor who allegedly stole $46 million of crypto arrested, FBI says

John Daghita was arrested on the island of Saint Martin, FBI Director Kash Patel said.

Record share of Americans are tapping 401(k)s for hardship withdrawals

More Americans are digging into their retirement savings for emergency expenses, research from Vanguard shows.

Iran foreign minister: Not seeking ceasefire, warns U.S. invasion would be 'big disaster for them'

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told NBC News that the U.S. "has failed to achieve its main goal" by attacking Iran, "which was a clean, rapid victory."

Trump fires homeland security secretary Kristi Noem

Markwayne Mullin, Republican senator and Maga ally, to replace Noem as Democrats cheer departure of ‘disaster’

• US politics live – latest updates

Donald Trump on Thursday announced he was replacing Kristi Noem as the homeland security secretary, capping weeks of bipartisan complaints about her leadership after immigration agents killed two US citizens and reports emerged that she was involved in a personal relationship with a top deputy.

Noem’s firing was the first major personnel shake-up of Trump’s second term. The president made it public in a post on Truth Social, in which he said Markwayne Mullin, a Republican Oklahoma senator, would take over from Noem starting on 31 March.

Savannah Guthrie visits "Today" studio, says she intends to return to show

Savannah Guthrie thanked her colleagues for "caring about my mom as much as I do" in her visit to the studio since Nancy Guthrie's disappearance.

Travel industry pushes Congress to end DHS shutdown and pay federal security workers

With the busy spring break travel season looming, travel and aviation industry leaders urged Congress to end the stalemate over DHS funding before workers at TSA and ports miss a full paycheck.

Mitski review – pop meets performance art in a masterful spectacle

The Shed, New York City
At a six-night residency, the singer creates an immersive world filled with wry humor and big emotions

Mitski was one of the great social media posters before the internet tried to swallow her whole. “I used to rebel by destroying myself, but realized that’s awfully convenient to the world,” went a 2016 tweet from the musician, who long ago nuked that account. “For some of us, our best revolt is self-preservation.”

As her career has skyrocketed with multiple TikTok-powered streaming juggernauts following the 2018 viral hit Nobody, Mitski has gradually withdrawn from the public eye and declined most interviews. Over her last few albums, she has adopted a mode of performance that contrasts with the emotion of her lyrics: on the tour to support 2018’s Be the Cowboy, she used plain folding chairs and tables as props in a performance that felt almost robotic in its precision.

New York and other US states sue Trump over ‘illegal and reckless’ tariffs

Lawsuit says president does not have authority to impose levies and demands refunds from federal government

A coalition of Democratic attorneys general and governors across 24 US states are suing Donald Trump to block his latest round of tariffs.

The White House is planning to enact a new 15% tariff on all imports after the supreme court declared Trump’s “liberation day” tariffs illegal. The tariffs have yet to go into effect, though the White House said the new rate would start this week.

Dismay as Hegseth urges Latin American allies to join ‘offense’ against cartels

Critics sceptical Pentagon chief’s plan for increased military force – amid rising US intervention – will stop drug gangs

Pete Hegseth, the US defence secretary, has urged Latin American countries to adopt a more aggressive approach against drug cartels, warning that the Trump administration may otherwise act unilaterally in the region.

Hegseth’s remarks come in a context of escalating US intervention in the region, both militarily and in elections, which culminated in the capture of Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro – the first US ground military attack on a South American country.

The February jobs numbers are coming out Friday. Here's what to expect

Economists surveyed by Dow Jones expect payroll growth of 50,000, following January's surprisingly high 130,000.

EU agrees to chop meaty names from vegetarian and vegan food products

Lawmakers will outlaw use of 31 meat-related names as part of efforts to help livestock farmers in food supply markets

EU lawmakers have agreed to ban meaty names such as steak and bacon for vegetarian and vegan foods, but “veggie burgers” and “meat-free sausages” will remain on the table.

Negotiators from the European parliament and EU council of ministers found a recipe for compromise on rules for food names on Thursday, although critics said they were creating needless complexity.

Trump vowed to revive manufacturing. Factory jobs are still vanishing.

Job cuts at a Whirlpool factory in Iowa underscore the challenges in reviving American manufacturing. "Every day, workers' jobs are still in jeopardy," a union official said.

RFK Jr urges medical schools to increase nutrition education training

As part of his Maha agenda, health secretary wants schools to incorporate 40 hours of instruction

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Health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr unveiled a new effort on Thursday aimed at increasing the amount of nutrition education taught in medical schools.

For months, Kennedy has urged medical schools to expand their nutrition curriculum and warned that institutions refusing to do so could face cuts to federal funding, while those that adopt the changes may receive public acknowledgment.

Trump fires Kristi Noem as DHS chief, names Sen. Markwayne Mullin to replace her

President Trump has fired his homeland security secretary, Kristi Noem, and said Markwayne Mullin, a senator from Oklahoma, would replace her.

Can a digital tablet cut back a country's overuse of antibiotics?

Overprescribing antibiotics breeds antibiotic resistance. A new tool aims to lower a notably high rate of such prescriptions in Rwanda.

Home sellers are relisting properties at fastest pace in a decade, but spring supply is still low

Frustrated sellers who pulled homes off the market last fall are now relisting them at a quick pace, thanks to lower mortgage rates, but supply is still low.

Suspect identified and in custody after 3 women's bodies found in Utah

A suspect is in custody and has been identified after authorities in Utah found three women's bodies in two locations.

Germany moves to legalise wolf hunting in response to livestock ‘bloodlust’

Lower house votes in favour of polarising law after rapid increase in population and attack on grazing farm animals

Wolf hunting will be allowed in Germany under legislation passed by the lower house of parliament in response to a rapidly growing population and a sharp rise in attacks on livestock.

The return and growth of the wolf population in the last three decades has emerged as a wedge issue in Germany, the land of the Brothers Grimm who popularised the spectre of the Big Bad Wolf.

Senators demand investigation after ninth American killed by Israeli settlers or soldiers in West Bank

Lawmakers cite ‘consistent pattern’ in which Americans are being killed ‘without justice or accountability’

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More than 30 US senators have signed a letter demanding that the Trump administration open an independent investigation into the February killing of a 19-year-old American in the occupied West Bank, the ninth US citizen killed by Israeli soldiers or settlers since 2022.

The letter, led by Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland and addressed to the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio; the US attorney general, Pam Bondi; and the US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, asks for a US-led investigation and a full accounting of where all nine cases stand, and for the administration to brief Congress on the killing by 5 April. None of the cases have resulted in a criminal conviction.

House Speaker Johnson calls on Texas Rep. Gonzales to drop reelection bid

Rep. Tony Gonzales is the subject of an Ethics Committee investigation over a sexual relationship he had with a staffer who died last year.

The Guardian view on the expanding Iran crisis: no clear aim and no end in sight | Editorial

The US and Israel started a war that is escalating rapidly, with repercussions beyond the region too

There will be no quick or easy wins – even on US and Israeli terms. They have celebrated assassinating Iran’s supreme leader; their offensive has also killed more than 1,000 civilians so far, including scores of children, according to a US-based rights group. As Iran retaliates, hoping America’s allies will try to rein it back, it is targeting US bases and civilian sites across the region – even in Oman, which was at the forefront of efforts to stave off the war. Gulf powers are increasingly irate, though wary of acting on threats to go beyond defensive action. Israel has ordered hundreds of thousands of civilians to leave a vast swathe of southern Lebanon, blaming Hezbollah’s retaliation for the killing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Those who warned that the US-Israeli attack on Iran would lead to war engulfing the Middle East have proved, if anything, conservative in their predictions. A Hezbollah-launched drone hit an RAF airbase in Cyprus at the weekend. On Wednesday, Azerbaijan reported strikes on an airbase (though Iran denied responsibility, as it did over a missile fired towards Turkey). The day before, the US sank an Iranian warship 2,000 miles away, in waters close to Sri Lanka, as it returned from multilateral exercises with India – killing at least 87 people. And governments around the world face soaring energy prices and rattled markets thanks to Iran’s chokehold on the strait of Hormuz.

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.

New York sex-trafficking case against high-end real estate broker brothers goes to jury

Lawyers for Oren, Alon and Tal Alexander argued that the brothers were womanizers but not rapists

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Oren, Alon and Tal Alexander surrounded themselves with beautiful women. Young and wealthy, they enjoyed sex and the pursuit of it. They flirted at nightclubs and on dating apps, and partied with potential hookups in the Hamptons, Aspen and other ritzy locales.

The brothers – two of them high-end real estate brokers known as “the A Team”, the other a private security executive – were certainly womanizers, their lawyer told jurors. But they aren’t the drink-spiking rapists and sex traffickers that federal prosecutors allege.

Wales can fly against Ireland if they dump their Six Nations baggage

Thinking only of winning may have a detrimental effect on Tandy’s side, says sports psychologist Stephen McIvor

It’s unlikely Steve Tandy got to this point in his coaching career without ever alluding to the joy of playing with no baggage. Between club and country over the years he must have reminded his players that the lads down the corridor would be bearing the load, so that’s one thing less to worry about. And with that realisation comes a certain lightness. We’re not talking about the freedom of skipping around the park, picking out faces in the crowd and drinking in the atmosphere of a Six Nations tie, rather getting some value from being spared the burden of expectation.

For Wales this has come at a price. When you dip into your emotional bank for a run of 14 Championship fixtures, all of which end with getting your face slapped, it’s expensive. That kind of price makes you wonder about the value of it all. In which case the power of togetherness is critical if you hope to tip the scales, even slightly.

FBI confirms its networks were targeted by "suspicious" cyber activities

The FBI said it "identified and addressed suspicious activities on FBI networks" and that it was responding but did not elaborate.

They were led off course in a big race. But a fix is more complicated than prize money

Top finishers in the Atlanta half marathon are calling for U.S. track officials to ensure that Jess McClain and two other athletes aren't excluded from the world championships because of an error.

Gas prices are up 26 cents since last week, GasBuddy finds

Americans are now paying an average of $3.246 per gallon, up 26 cents since last week and the highest level since April 2025.

‘That person has gone’: Lewis Hamilton ditches despair for feelgood Ferrari reboot

Seven-time world champion admits he ‘lost sight of who I was’ but has optimism as new campaign begins on Sunday

In the dying embers of the 2025 Formula One season there was a period when Lewis Hamilton, one of the greatest drivers of all time, seemed cut from an almost unrecognisable cloth. The confidence, humour and calm assurance in his own abilities had been stripped away, replaced by an almost despairing bewilderment.

It was so alien to his usual character that many considered it a wonder that he was managing to drag himself on to see the year out. In the buildup to this weekend’s season-opening Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, Hamilton was typically forthright in acknowledging it had been something of a psychological break.

Why does Trump want Kurdish fighters to join the war in Iran? - The Latest

Intense waves of airstrikes have hit dozens of military positions, frontier posts and police stations along northern parts of Iran’s border with Iraq in what appears to be preparation by the US and Israel for a new front in their war. Iran has warned ‘separatist groups’ in this region against joining the widening conflict and launched strikes against Iraq-based Kurdish groups it described as ‘opposed to the revolution’. Could the involvement of these militant groups increase the risk of a civil war in Iran if the regime collapses? Nosheen Iqbal speaks to deputy head of international news Devika Bhat.

Ben Jennings on the ‘end times’ and the US war on Iran – cartoon

Continue reading...

Pushing the Limits: Army veteran finds new purpose after cancer diagnosis

During a routine physical before his deployment to Afghanistan, doctors found a tumor in Michael Collins' leg. With advice from doctors, the then 26-year-old had his leg amputated to stop the cancer from spreading and save his life. In the "CBS Mornings" series "Pushing the Limits," Omar Villafranca shows how the Army veteran found new purpose in life.

Sen. Merkley proposes prediction market ban for government officials after Maduro, Iran bets

After a series of dubious bets placed on the ouster of Venezuela's Maduro and Iran strikes, lawmakers are looking to ban insider trading on prediction markets.

‘A space of their own’: how cancer centres designed by top architects can offer hope

Exhibition at the V&A Dundee celebrates Maggie’s Centres created by Zaha Hadid, Richard Rogers, Norman Foster and others

Maggie Keswick Jencks received her weekly breast cancer treatment in a windowless neon-lit room in Edinburgh’s Western general hospital. Her husband, the renowned landscape designer Charles, later described it as a kind of “architectural aversion therapy”.

It was then, in the early 1990s, that the Scottish artist and garden designer imagined her own blueprint that would allow cancer patients “a space of their own” within the alienating, clinical confines of the hospital estate, one where they might “not lose the joy of living in the fear of dying”.

Donald Trump insists there are no wind farms in China. Here are 20 of them – in pictures

The US president has made the easily debunked claim that there are no wind farms in China

A Jan. 6 rioter pardoned by Trump was sentenced to life in prison for child sex abuse

Since receiving presidential pardons, dozens of former Capitol rioters have gotten into more legal trouble. In Florida, Andrew Paul Johnson was sentenced to life in prison for child sex abuse.

UK government ‘effectively allowed’ child sexual abuse, campaigners say

Maggie Oliver Foundation taking action over government’s alleged failure to adopt changes recommended by inquiry

Campaigners have accused the UK government of in effect allowing child abuse to continue by having an “inconsistent and arbitrary” approach to implementing recommendations from a seven-year statutory inquiry.

The claim was made at the high court in London, where a judge said a legal action against the Home Office could continue.

Iran's Shahed drone: How 'the poor man’s cruise missile’ is shaping Tehran’s retaliation

After years on the front lines of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the Iranian Shahed-136 drone is at the center of Tehran's retaliation against recent U.S. strikes.

Seven countries to boycott Paralympics ceremony over flag-flying Russians

• No ParalympicsGB athletes will be present in Verona

• IPC says Russian presence ‘determined by members’

Seven countries and the British government will boycott the opening ceremony of the Winter Paralympics in protest at the inclusion of Russian and Belarusian athletes.

The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) said the Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine would not be sending athletes or officials to the ceremony on Friday night.

The US and Israel are waging war on an Iran they think they know. The reality is very different | Ali Vaez

Is the Islamic Republic a messianic theocracy or a brittle dictatorship? It’s neither – as those attacking it are finding out

When the US and Israel launched coordinated strikes against Iran on 28 February, the campaign was structured like a textbook air war: destroy defences, degrade retaliatory capabilities and decapitate leadership. Iranian air defences – already battered in last summer’s war – were further dismantled to secure uncontested skies. Missile factories, drone infrastructure and naval assets were hit to erode Iran’s ability to retaliate. And a steady cadence of precision strikes removed senior commanders in what amounted to a sustained attempt to disorient Tehran’s decision-making.

From a purely operational perspective, the advantages have been stark. Once skies are open, the war becomes cheaper: plentiful, relatively inexpensive munitions can replace the long-range systems that defended airspace typically demands.

Ali Vaez is Iran project director and senior adviser to the president at the International Crisis Group

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.

Could Iran attack on U.S. soil? Be "extra vigilant right now," security analyst says

A former national security official says Iran has "surrogate networks here in the United States" and urges Americans to be "extra vigilant right now."

Rep. Tony Gonzales admits to affair with former staffer, calling it a "mistake"

Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales of Texas acknowledged for the first time Wednesday that he had a relationship with a former staffer, but alleged the controversy that has engulfed the situation is "about power and money."

Amazon's Bahrain data center targeted by Iran for support of U.S. military, state media says

Amazon said the Bahrain facility was damaged due to a nearby drone strike, and two data centers in the UAE were directly hit by drones.

South Africa’s president calls Trump’s policy to offer refuge to white Afrikaners ‘racist’

US president is ‘truly uninformed’ for spreading claims of ‘white genocide’ in South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa tells New York Times

South Africa’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa, has called Donald Trump’s policy of allowing white Afrikaners to apply for refugee status in the US “racist”, saying the US president was “truly uninformed” in a rare instance of direct criticism.

Ramaphosa told the New York Times that last year’s Oval Office meeting with the US leader, when Trump turned down the lights and played a video that he falsely claimed showed there was a “white genocide” in South Africa, was a “spectacle” and an “ambush”.

Savannah Guthrie ‘plans to return’ to Today show as mother remains missing

NBC confirmed the host will return but ‘remains focused’ on the search for her missing mother, Nancy Guthrie

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Savannah Guthrie, the Today show host whose elderly mother has been missing from her Arizona home for more than a month, visited NBC’s studios in New York on Thursday and the network confirmed, for the first time, that she plans to return to her presenting duties.

NBC confirmed the visit to CNN’s Brian Stelter, but gave no timeline for when Guthrie, who has recorded a succession of emotional video appeals for information about her mother, Nancy Guthrie, will be back at work.

Probe into Biden autopen closed by D.C. U.S. Attorney's Office, source says

Federal prosecutors are dropping their probe into whether Biden and his aides unlawfully used an autopen for pardons, a source said.

President Trump, Pam Bondi sued over sale of TikTok assets

The case accuses the Trump administration of ignoring legislation designed to stop the spread of Chinese propaganda — and instead helping to broker a partial sale to businessmen close to Trump.

5 unresolved questions hanging over the Anthropic–Pentagon fracas: 'It's all very puzzling'

Plenty of unknowns remain after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth designated Anthropic a "Supply-Chain Risk to National Security" on Friday.

‘What happened in Texas is a warning’: advocates say Republicans suppressed votes in the primaries

In Dallas and Williamson counties, voters faced long lines, extended wait times and confusion about voting location

On Tuesday, Texas held its Democratic and Republican primaries ahead of the upcoming November midterms. Democratic voters chose between Jasmine Crockett, the anti-Trump firebrand congresswoman, and James Talarico, the populist state representative, in an election that attracted national attention. Crockett conceded the race and endorsed Talarico on Wednesday, but only after claiming late on election night that she wasn’t ready to concede because of a voting issue in Dallas.

“We don’t have any of the results because there was a lot of confusion today,” Crockett told supporters at her election-night party. “We were able to keep the polls open, but I can tell you now that people have been disenfranchised.” Crockett received 45.6% of the vote, compared with Talarico’s 53.1%.

Squeeze: Trixies review – finally completed first album proves teenage dreams are hard to beat

(Love/BMG)

Squeeze’s first new album in nearly a decade is based on material written when they were teenagers. It’s endearing but callow

In interviews to promote their 16th album, Chris Difford and Glenn Tilbrook have been upfront about the reason for its existence. After the world shrugged at The Knowledge in 2017, someone told Tilbrook: “‘Nobody is interested in a Squeeze record. What matters is Squeeze’s story.’ That stayed with me,” he says.

So not only does Trixies contain a story – it’s a concept-album-cum-musical about a fictional nightclub – but there’s also a great tale around the album. It was written when Difford and Tilbrook were teenagers in 1974 but left unrecorded because they couldn’t properly play the songs they had written. It’s both a new record and something for the fans who always want the old stuff.

Obama calls on voters to help Democrats' Virginia redistricting ahead of midterms

A special election is being held on April 21 on whether to amend Virginia's constitution to enable redistricting that could help Democrats in the midterm elections.

A rift between Spain and Trump widens over Spanish opposition to the Iran war

The Spanish government reiterated it would not let U.S. forces use two joint military bases in Spain as the U.S.-Israeli war in Iran escalates, widening a rift with the Trump administration.

Why Iran war oil price shock won't stop Trump's Fed pick Warsh from cutting interest rates

President Donald Trump's choice to lead the Federal Reserve sees inflation risk very differently than Chairman Jerome Powell.

Pakistani man on trial in Brooklyn for Trump assassination plot says he was recruited by Iran

Asif Merchant testified that Revolutionary Guards coerced him into scheme by threatening his family in Tehran

A Pakistani businessman accused of plotting to kill Donald Trump told a federal jury on Wednesday that he was coerced into the scheme by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, which he said had threatened his family to secure his participation.

Asif Merchant, 47, took the unusual step of testifying in his own defense at Brooklyn federal court, where he faces terrorism and murder-for-hire charges. Speaking through an Urdu translator, he told jurors he went along with the plot only out of fear for his wife and adopted daughter in Tehran.

Paddington and Into the Woods up for 11 Olivier awards each

Two musicals dominate nominations while Tom Hiddleston and Bryan Cranston vie for best actor, with Cate Blanchett and Rosamund Pike up for best actress
• Olivier awards 2026: full list of nominations

Michael Bond’s marmalade-loving bear will go up against a band of fairytale characters at the Olivier awards next month, as two musicals dominated the nominations announced on Thursday.

The frontrunners for London’s biggest theatre awards are Paddington: The Musical and Into the Woods, which each received 11 nominations. Paddington, which opened to five-star reviews at the Savoy theatre, is up for best new musical, best director (Luke Sheppard), best theatre choreographer (Ellen Kane) and best actor in a musical for the duo who play the lovable ursine hero. James Hameed provides the bear’s voice and is the remote puppeteer while Arti Shah dons the furry costume. Their co-stars Tom Edden, Amy Booth-Steel and Victoria Hamilton-Barritt are also nominated for their supporting roles. Gabriella Slade’s costumes, Tahra Zafar’s puppet designs, Tom Pye’s set, Ash J Woodward’s video, Gareth Owen’s sound and Matt Brind’s orchestrations and arrangements were all recognised.

From Mulder and Scully to Marge and Homer: your favourite TV couples

Slow-burn office crushes that left you weeping, sitcoms that made you fall in love and vampire shows that changed you for ever: Guardian readers pick their ultimate television romances

A mark of a true romance is that the couple are closer than anyone else in the world. As Emily Brontë said, “whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same.” This is true for Miss Piggy and Kermit. They’ve had a longer relationship than most TV couples (since 1976), although it has been tumultuous. No matter what universe, from Dickensian London to Treasure Island to their various TV shows and movies over the years, they find each other – even after their official separation in 2015. Did Ross ever say to Rachel: “You don’t need the whole world to love you, you just need one person”? I don’t think so. Michelle, 19, Manchester

Britney Spears arrested in California for DUI

Singer was handcuffed by highway patrol on Wednesday night and has since deleted her Instagram profile

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Britney Spears was arrested in Ventura county, California, on Wednesday night for driving under the influence.

The singer was stopped and handcuffed by the California highway patrol at about 9.28pm local time, as first reported by TMZ and confirmed by Variety.

Eli Lilly launches program to help boost employer coverage of obesity drugs in U.S.

Employers can use Lilly's platform to connect with different third-party program administrators that help manage obesity treatment benefits and costs. 

Lise Davidsen and James Baillieu: Live at the Met album review – electrifying renditions make the momentous intimate

(Decca)
Davidsen/Baillieu
Recorded in New York in 2023, the soprano sings Strauss, Wagner, Grieg and more to thrilling effect, her sincerity and passion matched perfectly on piano

Lise Davidsen and James Baillieu made this live recording on stage at the Metropolitan Opera, New York, in September 2023. While there’s a sense of occasion – being asked to give a solo recital at the Met is a reasonably big deal – what it really represents is simply nearly an hour of outstanding singing.

Davidsen’s soprano sounds fresh, gleaming and direct, her top-most notes silvery. She knows how to ensure nothing gets overblown – and how to get so close to the edge that the effect is thrilling, especially in her four Strauss songs. In Schubert, she fills out long lines into phrases full of sincere expression; four Sibelius songs unleash a passionate way with the text.

Exclusive discounts from CBS Mornings Deals

On this edition of CBS Mornings Deals, we show you items that might just become essentials in your everyday life. Visit cbsdeals.com to take advantage of these exclusive deals today. CBS earns commissions on purchases made through cbsdeals.com.

Anthropic and the Pentagon are back at the negotiating table, FT reports

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei is reportedly back at the negotiating table with the U.S. Department of Defense after the breakdown of talks on Friday.

Massachusetts governor pushes back after RFK Jr. calls out popular coffee chains

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is challenging Starbucks and Dunkin' over the safety of high sugar drinks for teenagers as part of his Make America Healthy Again campaign. Now, the governor of Massachusetts, where Dunkin' is based, is responding. Tom Hanson reports.

Even in these depressing times, Love is Blind is profoundly bleak television

The 10th season of Netflix’s reality TV show has given us old-fashioned gender roles, bad behavior and a dark look at what dating looks like in 2026

In this rotted year that is 2026, there is no shortage of things to depress us: domestic terrorism by federal agents, war, the predominance of AI and sports-betting ads at the Super Bowl. The Epstein files. The Fifa peace prize. Six more weeks of winter. The need for escapism, or catharsis, or both, is as pressing as ever. And yet the thing that has depressed me most, in the low-stakes “I can actually wrap my brain around this” way is the pinnacle of smooth-brained, escapist entertainment: the new season of Netflix’s Love Is Blind, set in Ohio.

To be clear, Love Is Blind has never been a good show, even by reality TV standards. The first season of the series, in which young, generally attractive singles form emotional connections in “pods” and then get engaged sight unseen, had the good(ish) fortune of premiering just before a pandemic that gave “pod” a terribly relatable new valence; even still, it was described as “toxic”, “revolting” and, of course, “totally addictive”. At its best, the show can voyeuristically poke at our judgments and vocalize uncomfortable feelings, bringing up issues of race, politics, weight, attractiveness and age on top of the usual alcohol-aided drama, idealized romance and classic reality TV victim and villainy. At worst, it’s boring. Generally, it’s pleasantly baffling – modern dating sucks, for sure, but getting married after six weeks? That’s unrelatable content, perfect second-screen fare. But the Ohio version, and I say this with much love and ardent loyalty for my home state, has reached new lows, both on the level of production and in the spectacle itself.

Companies are entitled to Trump tariff refunds, trade court rules

A federal court in New York ruled Wednesday that businesses that paid emergency tariffs invalidated by the Supreme Court are eligible for refunds.

Immigrant entrepreneurs share journeys to U.S. and building their businesses

In the series "USA to Z," "CBS Mornings" spoke to three immigrant entrepreneurs who shared their stories about how their families came to the U.S. and built their businesses.

Defense experts back Anthropic in letter to Congress, slam DOD for setting 'dangerous precedent'

Former defense and intelligence officials and policy experts are urging Congress to investigate the Pentagon's labeling of Anthropic as a supply chain risk.

The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley audiobook review – a topical time-hopping romance

Actor Katie Leung narrates this genre-bending debut in which an Victorian Arctic explorer is catapulted into our brave new world

The Ministry of Time opens in the middle of a job interview. The applicant, a nameless British Cambodian civil servant, is in line for a role that involves working with expats of “high-interest status and particular needs”. When she asks where these expats come from, she is told: “History.” The interviewer adds, casually, “We have time travel.”

Listeners concerned about the practicalities of this time-hopping tale will be reassured by our protagonist’s observation that contemplating the physics leads to a “crock of shit”, so it is best not dwelled upon. “All you need to know is that in your near future, the British government developed the means to travel through time but had not yet experimented with doing it.” Her job, then, is to act as minder or “bridge” to individuals removed from their eras and bounced into the present.

‘Our consciousness is under siege’: Michael Pollan on chatbots, social media and mental freedom

In his new book, the celebrated author explains why we need ‘consciousness hygiene’ to defend ourselves from AI and dopamine-driven algorithms

Each day when you wake up, you come back to yourself. You see the room around you, feel your body brush against your clothes and think about your plans, worries and hopes for the day. This daily internal experience is miraculous and mysterious, and the subject of Michael Pollan’s new book, A World Appears.

It also may be under siege, Pollan said. He recently suggested that people need a “consciousness hygiene” to defend our internal world against invaders that are trying to move in. Our ability to sit with our thoughts and perceive the world, he argues, is increasingly disrupted by algorithms engineered to tickle our dopamine receptors and capture our attention. Meanwhile, people are forming attachments to non-human chatbots, projecting consciousness on to entities that do not possess it.

How the Iran conflict is spreading — in pictures

Images published Thursday showed destruction across Tehran after nearly a week of strikes on Iran's capital.

‘There’s no safe place any more’: inside Tehran under attack – photo essay

Photojournalist Stefanie Glinski speaks to Iranian photographer Mohammad Mohsenifar, who has been documenting the attacks on the Iranian capital over the past week

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Iranians woke up on Thursday to a new round of explosions in Tehran, on the sixth day of war since the US and Israel launched attacks that have so far killed more than 1,200 people, including the country’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei.

The casualties include 168 children who were killed at a school in the southern province of Hormozgan; thousands more people have been injured.

People mourn the killing of Ali Khamenei along Enghelab Street in Tehran on Sunday