Daycare owner charged with fraud tried to flee U.S. after closing center, prosecutors say

New fraud charges were unsealed Wednesday against a Minnesota daycare owner who federal prosecutors allege tried to flee the country just two days after shutting the center down.

Liberal U.S. mayors team up with European counterparts to fight authoritarianism

Ten U.S. mayors from cities such as Chicago and Cincinnati have joined a pact with European mayors to defend democracy and progressive values and fight right-wing populists and authoritarianism.

UN backs historic climate crisis ruling, despite US attempts to stop resolution

The US, Russia, Iran and Saudi Arabia – some of the highest oil-producing nations and major greenhouse gas emitters – opposed the measure

The UN has voted 141-8 to adopt a resolution backing a world court opinion that countries have a legal obligation to address climate change, with the US – which is the world’s biggest historical emitter – among the small group opposing it.

The UN secretary general, António Guterres, said Wednesday’s general assembly vote, in which 28 countries abstained, underscored that governments are responsible for protecting citizens from the “escalating climate crisis”.

Senate panel hears testimony on online sports betting, prediction markets

Senate lawmakers grilled sports betting industry officials during a hearing focused on recent cheating scandals, companies' marketing tactics and regulatory battles.

SpaceX files for IPO as rocket company preps for market debut

Elon Musk's SpaceX is moving ahead with plans to go public in what some expect will be the biggest IPO ever.

Detroit-bound flight diverted over passenger from Congo amid Ebola restrictions

An Air France flight from Paris to Detroit, Michigan, was forced to divert to Montreal, Canada, on Wednesday due to U.S. flight restrictions linked to the Ebola outbreak.

Trump claims he will speak to Taiwan’s president, departing from decades-long diplomatic norms

US and Taiwanese presidents have not spoken directly since Washington shifted diplomatic recognition to Beijing from Taipei in 1979

Donald Trump said on Wednesday he would speak to Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te, an unprecedented move for a US leader that could roil US relations with China.

“I’ll speak to him,” the US president told reporters at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland before boarding Air Force One when asked about Lai. “I speak to everybody … We’ll work on that, the Taiwan problem.”

DOJ veterans fear probe into ex-CIA director is being stacked with Trump loyalists

Former CIA Director John Brennan is the subject of two criminal probes being led by the Miami-area U.S. Attorney's Office.

Ukraine war briefing: Fresh threat of attack from Belarus front, warns Zelenskyy

Kyiv learns of five scenarios Russia has drawn up and will increase forces in the north, says Zelenskyy; Ukraine’s attacks heap pressure on Russian oil refining. What we know on day 1,548

Ukraine will send reinforcements to its northern regions and step up diplomatic pressure on Belarus to counter what Kyiv believes are Russian plans to launch a new offensive north of the capital, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said. Kyiv knew of five scenarios Russia had drawn up, Ukraine’s president added. “We analysed in detail the available data from our intelligence agencies on Russia’s planning of offensive operations in the Chernihiv-Kyiv direction,” Zelenskiy said. “Our forces in this sector will be increased.”

Oleksandr Syrskyi, Ukraine’s top army commander, said Kyiv had data that the Russian general staff was actively calculating and planning offensive operations from the north. The dictator Alexander Lukashenko allowed Russian troops to march on Ukraine from Belarus in 2022. Zelenskyy said it was “already tiresome that there is constantly such a threat to Ukraine that the Russians may at some point drag Belarus into an expansion of the war. They should understand there will be consequences for them and they will be significant.”

In the initial full-scale invasion in 2022, Ukraine successfully repelled a huge Russian armoured column that attempted to attack Kyiv from the north. Ukraine’s border guards spokesperson, Andriy Demchenko, told Ukrinform news agency on Wednesday: “As of now, we haven’t detected any movement of equipment or personnel directly at our border, but of course, we can see the pressure Russia is putting on Belarus.”

Virtually all major oil refineries in central Russia have been forced to halt or scale back fuel output following Ukrainian drone attacks in recent days, Reuters has reported, citing official data and its own sources. The combined capacity of refineries that have fully or partially shut down exceeds 83m tonnes per year, or about 238,000 tonnes per day, accounting for around a quarter of Russia’s total refining capacity. The share of the refineries in Russia’s fuel output is over 30% for gasoline and about 25% for diesel. Moscow has introduced a gasoline exports ban, while the Ukrainian strikes have reduced Russia’s crude oil exports – adding pressure to Moscow’s federal budget, where oil and gas accounts for roughly a quarter of revenue.

Keir Starmer, the British prime minister, spoke to Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday as the UK government scrambled to reverse a public relations disaster over its latest package of sanctions on Russian oil and gas. After a storm of negative publicity and a row in parliament, Starmer and ministers were forced to spend Wednesday explaining why the package initially exempts diesel and jet fuel made in other countries using Russian oil. Starmer insisted sanctions on those products would be phased in to keep the market stable.

However, Ukrainian officials expressed disappointment, write Peter Walker and Luke Harding. One former senior government figure described western sanctions policy against Russia as “too little too late”. They added: “I’m not sure I understand the logic behind this British decision. The only way Ukraine can stop the war is to put physical sanctions on Russia and destroy its infrastructure.”

Zelenskyy said Ukraine had been in contact with Britain on Wednesday and said the issue of sanctions was “always very sensitive … We conveyed our signals on the matter to London. We expect that everything will be discussed this week on a bilateral level.” Zelenskyy later posted that he had spoken to Starmer by telephone and thanked him for the support provided for Ukraine. The two sides were “working to reinvigorate substantive diplomacy”. No 10 said Starmer had “reaffirmed the UK’s steadfast support for Ukraine”. A spokesperson added that “as a result of the UK’s actions to date, there will be less Russian oil on the market, with Russia weaker as a result”.

The EU is set to disburse €3.2bn to Ukraine next month, the first such payment under a giant loan approved in April, Brussels said on Wednesday.

Trump news at a glance: US indicts Raúl Castro, ratcheting up Cuba tensions

Former president, 94, faces multiple US felony charges, including four counts of murder – key US politics stories from Wednesday 20 May

The United States issued a federal criminal indictment against Raúl Castro, Cuba’s former president, and five others on Wednesday in a significant escalation of the Trump administration’s campaign to oust the country’s six-decades-old communist regime.

The 94-year-old political figurehead was charged in Miami, Florida, with conspiracy to kill US nationals, four counts of murder and two counts of destruction of aircraft.

Papua New Guinea warns against fishing in New Ireland after mystery deaths of marine life

Initial testing found evidence of metals in water samples, months after province’s residents began reporting unusual numbers of dead fish washing ashore

Papua New Guinea’s government has warned communities not to fish from parts of the New Ireland coastline as preliminary tests show evidence of metals in some water samples, after months of residents reporting dead marine life in the area.

On 7 May the fisheries minister, Jelta Wong, said initial testing conducted by an independent company detected various metals in water samples taken from affected areas around Kafkaf village and Larairu lagoon in New Ireland, an island in eastern PNG.

DHS to tighten Ebola-related flight restrictions for some foreign travelers

The Department of Homeland Security is set to implement new entry restrictions beginning Thursday for foreign travelers coming to the U.S. from countries at the center of the latest Ebola outbreak.

5/20: The Takeout with Major Garrett

Breaking down Tuesday's primaries as another Republican who broke with Trump falters; U.S. indicts Raúl Castro.

The Ebola and hantavirus outbreaks warn us we must be better prepared if we are to prevent the next pandemic | Helen Clark

Surveillance that misses a haemorrhagic fever or fails to consider endemic risks at a departure port will be blind to something far more dangerous

• Vaccine to tackle Ebola outbreak will take six to nine months, WHO says

Two rare disease outbreaks within two weeks – Andes hantavirus and Bundibugyo Ebola – have caused deaths and triggered costly international responses. Together they expose a gap not in our ability to respond, but in our willingness to anticipate, prevent and use precaution.

The hantavirus outbreak on a cruise expedition in the south Atlantic played out slowly. Three weeks passed between the death of one passenger on 11 April and the linkage to hantavirus on 2 May. In that time, passengers onboard the MV Hondius continued their itinerary, having been advised that the man had probably died of natural causes. They toured remote islands and ate together at the same tables. More than 30 passengers disembarked at St Helena and flew in different directions.

"Patriotic Kenny": The Navy vet who donated mobility scooters to other veterans (2022)

"Patriotic Kenny," the social media star known for spreading positivity and raising money for veterans, has died at 84. Kenny Jary joined Steve Hartman on Nov. 11, 2022, to discuss his mission.

‘If she didn’t have us, she would be toast’: a New Zealand mother’s fight to free her daughter from ICE detention

Everlee Wihongi was detained at Los Angeles airport on 10 April after she had returned to US from a family trip

There have been numerous disturbing moments during New Zealander Everlee Wihongi’s ongoing detention in US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), but there is one that stands out, her mother says.

When detainees are transferred between facilities they are required to remove their assigned uniforms and put on the clothes they wore the day they were detained, Betty Wihongi, tells the Guardian from Wisconsin, her home of nearly 30 years.

Trump envoy says it’s time for US to ‘put its footprint back on Greenland’, during visit to arctic territory

Jeff Landry’s visit has proved controversial, with the territory’s PM saying there was no sign ‘anything has changed’ in the US position

The US special envoy to Greenland has said it’s time for Washington “to put its footprint back” on the Arctic island, as he wound up his first visit to the island since his appointment in December 2025.

Donald Trump has repeatedly argued that the US needs to control Greenland – a Danish autonomous territory – because of national security concerns, claiming that if it does not, the island risks falling into the hands of China or Russia.

Relentless wind-fueled wildfires burn across Southern California

A series of relentless wildfires fueled by powerful winds and dry conditions impacted communities across Southern California for a third consecutive day on Wednesday. Matt Gutman reports from the fire zone near Simi Valley, north of Los Angeles, and Rob Marciano has the forecast.

High gas prices drive Georgia man to create a "mini car," costing about $3 to fill up

In response to high gas prices, 30-year-old Mali Hightower, a handyman near Atlanta, said he created a "mini car" that costs about $3 to fill up. Tony Dokoupil has the story.

Vanessa Trump announces breast cancer diagnosis

Vanessa Trump, 48, was married to Donald Trump Jr. for 12 years. They share five children together.

U.S. intel community analyzing how Cuba might respond to military action

These kinds of intelligence forecasts attempt not only to show the immediate consequences of an American action, but the chain of reactions that may follow.

Vanessa Trump announces breast cancer diagnosis

Vanessa Trump announced on Instagram that she has been diagnosed with breast cancer and is working with her doctors on a treatment plan.

TikTok star accused of plotting to murder former boy band singer amid custody battle

A social media influencer and her father are accused of plotting to kill her famous singer ex, amid a bitter years-long custody dispute, court documents show. Jonathan Vigliotti is following the case.

Hybrid car explodes, catches fire in New York City

A car near Wall Street in New York City burst into flames on Tuesday night. Tom Hanson has an update from lower Manhattan.

Israeli security minister stirs diplomatic outrage with flotilla activist abuse video

Far-right figure Itamar Ben-Gvir shares footage of himself taunting bound international detainees

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Israel’s far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, has sparked a diplomatic crisis by publishing footage of Israeli security forces abusing international activists who were detained as they tried to sail to Gaza with aid.

Three activists were taken to hospital as result of Israeli violence, lawyers representing the group said. They were subsequently discharged. Dozens of others have suspected broken ribs, resulting in breathing problems.

Trump flexes political muscle in Republican primary races

President Trump's favored candidates won their primaries on Tuesday night and his Republican critics did not. But the president's approval ratings continue to slip, now just six months out from the midterm elections. Weijia Jiang reports.

Justice Department indicts Raúl Castro as Trump threatens a "friendly takeover" of Cuba

President Trump said that the U.S. is "freeing up Cuba" after the Justice Department indicted its former leader, Raúl Castro, on charges including murder. Margaret Brennan has the details.

Sinkhole opens near LaGuardia runway ahead of Memorial Day weekend

A record 45 million Americans are preparing to travel over Memorial Day weekend. Kris Van Cleave reports on dramatic incidents creating headaches for people at airports and on the rails ahead of the travel weekend.

Congress is best chance to stop Trump 'lawfare' fund, attorneys say

The Department of Justice has set up a $1.8 billion fund that will purportedly compensate victims of prosecutorial overreach under the Biden administration.

Voters across parties believe UK net migration is rising despite sharp drop

Study, published as latest migration figures are released, shows incorrect perceptions driving immigration debate

People mistakenly believe net migration is rising in Britain despite figures dropping to their lowest level in years, a leading thinktank has found.

New research from British Future, published ahead of latest government figures on migration, has revealed a chasm between reality and public perception of net migration, with a substantial portion of the public believing it has increased, despite figures showing a sharp fall.

SpaceX reveals plan for $1.75tn stock market debut that could make Musk a trillionaire

Elon Musk’s rocket and satellite operations company, with extensive contracts with US, to go public next month

SpaceX unveiled its plans to list publicly on the US stock market Wednesday, disclosing its investor prospectus and revealing details about its financials for the first time. Elon Musk’s rocket and satellite operations company will go public on the Nasdaq exchange at a valuation of about $1.75tn under the symbol SPCX, likely on 12 June. It is seeking up to $80bn in investment.

The company, which is the world’s most prominent rocket maker and which has extensive contracts with the US government, confidentially filed for an IPO last month. The filing allowed for a period of regulatory review before the details became public.

Nvidia’s revenue blows past Wall Street expectations as AI boom accelerates

Many analysts view company’s financial performance as a broader referendum on AI buildout

Nvidia continued its years-long streak of beating Wall Street’s expectations for growth on Wednesday, reassuring most investors that the AI boom, particularly the global explosion of datacenters, will continue apace.

“The buildout of AI factories – the largest infrastructure expansion in human history – is accelerating at extraordinary speed,” said Nvidia’s CEO, Jensen Huang, in a statement. “Agentic AI has arrived, doing productive work, generating real value, and scaling rapidly across companies and industries.”

US indicts former Cuban president Raúl Castro as it seeks to oust regime

Charges filed in Miami against 94-year-old for allegedly shooting down exiles’ planes in 1996

The United States issued a federal criminal indictment against Raúl Castro, Cuba’s former president, and five others on Wednesday in a significant escalation of the Trump administration’s campaign to oust the country’s six-decades-old communist regime.

The 94-year-old political figurehead was charged in Miami, Florida, with conspiracy to kill US nationals, four counts of murder and two counts of destruction of aircraft.

GOP Sen. Bill Cassidy takes digs at Trump, urging renewed unity in politics

Cassidy, who lost his reelection bid last week, called for leaders who are "steady, not erratic" and "thoughtful, not impulsive."

Intuit plans to cut workforce by about 17% as tax software maker reckons with slowing growth

Intuit's stock has been hammered this year as investors worry that generative artificial intelligence models could threaten software companies.

5/20: CBS Evening News

Sinkhole opens near LaGuardia runway ahead of Memorial Day weekend; Relentless wind-fueled wildfires burn across Southern California.

Bezos defends billionaires, hypes AI, talks taxes and praises Trump in CNBC interview

Jeff Bezos rejected accusations that Amazon's decision to release a documentary on first lady Melania Trump was an effort to curry favor with the president.

Advice for 2026 commencement speakers: Don't bring up AI

Commencement speakers who bring up the sweeping changes that artificial intelligence is driving are facing boos from the Class of 2026.

Elon Musk's SpaceX IPO plans reveal blockbuster spending on rockets and AI

The company is on track to pull off the largest IPO in history — making CEO Elon Musk even wealthier.

Byron Allen on "Comics Unleashed" as it moves to new time slot on CBS

Comedian and media mogul Byron Allen brings "Comics Unleashed" to CBS's late night slot, replacing "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert."

Jan. 6 police officers sue Trump to block $1.8B 'lawfare' fund

The Department of Justice agreed to create the fund to settle a $10 billion lawsuit by President Trump over the leak of his tax records by an IRS employee.

Alice Capsey finds swagger to give England T20 series lead against New Zealand

• 1st T20i: England, 140-3, bt New Zealand, 136-7, by 7wkts

• Capsey finishes unbeaten on 74 with 16 balls remaining

England got off to a winning start in their T20 series against New Zealand at Derby, after Alice Capsey struck an unbeaten 74 from 51 balls – her highest score for England and her first T20i half-century since July 2024.

Capsey has generally batted at No 3 for England but was promoted to open in place of Danni Wyatt-Hodge, who is missing this series because of the imminent birth of her first child. Capsey made full use of the extra time, smoking three sixes and seven fours as England chased down their 137-run target with seven wickets and 16 balls to spare.

Southampton appeal against expulsion from playoffs for spying is dismissed

• Saints believe penalty is ‘manifestly disproportionate’

• Hull and Middlesbrough will meet in final on Saturday

Southampton’s appeal against their expulsion from the Championship playoff final for spying on opponents’ training sessions has been dismissed by an English Football League arbitration panel, leaving Middlesbrough to contest Saturday’s Wembley showpiece with Hull. The panel also confirmed the original decision of an independent disciplinary commission to deduct four Championship points from Southampton next season.

It is a verdict that leaves the position of Tonda Eckert, the south coast club’s manager, seemingly untenable. While the 33-year-old German faces the sack, Southampton directors are facing the wrath of players furious at missing out on potential promotion bonuses and wage hikes.

Tielemans starts party as Aston Villa outclass Freiburg to claim Europa League glory

Where would you like your statue, Mr Emery? Even before this emphatic Europa League triumph, Aston Villa supporters could hardly have held their manager in greater esteem. But now Emery, in winning the competition for a record fifth time, has delivered the thing he always wanted, a trophy to show for his transformative body of work.

Those who were not around for Rotterdam in 1982 will always cherish Istanbul in 2026. Thomas Tuchel had it right a few years ago when he suggested Uefa might as well rename the Europa League the Unai Emery trophy.

Highest gas prices in years expected to continue rising this summer

U.S. motorists are likely to face even hotter gas prices as the summer driving season kicks off, according to a new analysis.

Supreme Court voting rights ruling could play a big role at the local level

The Supreme Court's recent ruling threatens the power of racial-minority voters in Voting Rights Act cases about not just Congress, but also at least 17 state and local governments, NPR finds.

Bolivia rocked by protests as US warns of ‘coup d’état’

Clashes between demonstrators and police in La Paz have entered second week, shaking centre-right president

Protests blocking roads across Bolivia and turning the centre of the capital, La Paz, into a battleground between demonstrators and police have entered a second week.

It is the most turbulent moment of the centre-right president Rodrigo Paz Pereira’s mere six months in office since he ended nearly two decades of rule by the leftwing Movimiento al Socialismo (Mas).

How to help children cope after shootings like the San Diego mosque killings

Children closest to an incident of gun violence have the most risk of lasting psychological effects. Here's what all parents should know about how to buffer trauma.

Murder inquiry launched after fatal assault on London bus driver

Police say 64-year-old was attacked after confrontation near Battersea Bridge

A murder investigation has been launched after a bus driver died after an assault on Battersea Bridge in London, police said.

Sergei Krajev, 64, died in hospital on Tuesday after the incident in the early hours of Monday morning.

Zuckerberg's Meta layoffs memo: 'Success isn't a given' in the AI era

Meta on Wednesday commenced its latest round of layoffs, which affect about 10% of the company's workforce or roughly 8,000 jobs.

Sinkhole shuts down runway at New York LaGuardia airport

Officials say sinkhole discovered at about 11am as emergency crews rush to complete repairs

A sinkhole was discovered at New York’s LaGuardia airport on Wednesday, shutting down a runway while emergency crews sought to determine its cause and how to fix it.

In a post on X, LaGuardia, which handles domestic travel, said the sinkhole had been discovered at about 11am “near runway 4/22” while the airport’s operator was conducting its daily morning inspection.

Judge orders White House staff to comply with presidential records law

A federal judge ordered White House staff and President Trump's top advisers to comply with a law that requires certain presidential records to be preserved.

Aaron Rodgers says 2026 will be his final NFL season: ‘This is it’

• Four-time MVP agreed to one-year deal with Steelers

• Rodgers is reuniting with ex-Packers coach McCarthy

Aaron Rodgers has said that the 2026 season will be the final one of his NFL career.

“Yes. This is it,” the Steelers quarterback told reporters in Pittsburgh on Wednesday when asked if the upcoming campaign would be his last.

DOJ charges ex-prosecutor with stealing Trump documents case report prepared by Jack Smith

Carmen Mercedes Lineberger allegedy emailed herself a copy of Volume II of special counsel Jack Smith's report on Trump's criminal case.

Canada faces calls for investigation into death of woman after plasma donation

International student Rodiyat Alabede, 22, died due to a ‘perfect storm’ of lax safety protocols, advocates say

Patient advocates in Canada have called for a new investigation into the death of a young woman who was donating blood plasma, describing a “perfect storm” of lax safety protocols and poorly trained staff and warning of “systemic issues” at plasma donation sites across the country.

Rodiyat Alabede, an international student at the University of Winnipeg, died of cardiac arrest shortly after a plasma donation in October 2025 at a facility operated by the Spanish healthcare company Grifols. An initial investigation by Health Canada found no links between the plasma donation and her death.

Ram unveils lineup of Hemi V-8 engine-powered 'muscle trucks' despite high gas prices

Stellantis plans to launch a new lineup of what it's calling "muscle trucks" for its Ram brand despite elevated U.S. gas prices due to the war in Iran.

The U.S. threatens to revoke the Palestinian U.N. ambassador's visa

A leaked State Department memo shows the U.S. threatened to revoke Palestinian visas if they pushed for a senior United Nations post.

UK struggles to reassure Ukraine after easing new sanctions on Russian oil

Diplomats mount salvage operation after ‘clumsy’ announcement upsets Kyiv

The UK was last night desperately trying to reassure Kyiv its new sanctions policy on Russia did not weaken restrictions, after Ukrainian officials warned the change could help Moscow fund its war efforts.

While Downing Street insisted the decision to allow the temporary import of Russian oil and jet fuel was only one element of a tougher overall sanctions package, a British minister conceded that the matter had been handled “clumsily”.

‘He sacrificed his life’: security guard killed in San Diego mosque attack hailed as hero

Security guard Amin Abdullah, Mansour Kaziha and Nadir Awad were killed in shooting at Islamic Center of San Diego

A security guard who was killed during the shooting at a San Diego mosque on Monday is being hailed as a hero after police said that his actions “undoubtedly” saved lives.

On Monday, two teenagers opened fire at the Islamic Center of San Diego, California, shooting and killing three men. The two attackers, aged 17 and 18, were found dead several blocks away, from apparent self-inflicted gunshot wounds, officials said.

San Francisco turns to AI to save whales from ship strikes as deaths soar

Climate change is pushing starving grey whales to San Francisco Bay, where ship strikes led to 40% of 21 deaths

Ferries, cargo ships and tankers cut through choppy waters in the San Francisco Bay on Tuesday as a whale surfaced nearby, its spout barely visible against the white caps. Until now, whales could easily go unnoticed by mariners, but an AI-powered detection network launched this week is designed to track them day and night.

The system, called WhaleSpotter, scans the bay around the clock for whale blows and heat signatures up to 2 nautical miles away, alerting mariners to slow down or reroute when whales are nearby.

DRC cancel World Cup training camp and fan event due to Ebola outbreak

• Friendlies against Denmark and Chile still going ahead

• Team staff who are based in DRC ‘leaving in next hours’

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have cancelled their three-day World Cup preparation training camp and a planned farewell to fans in the capital, Kinshasa, because of an outbreak of Ebola in the east of the country.

Preparations will take place elsewhere after an outbreak of a rare type of Ebola known as Bundibugyo, which is thought to have killed more than 130 people and caused nearly 600 suspected cases. The World Health Organization has declared it a public health emergency of international concern.

Wendy's taps former Potbelly CEO to lead struggling burger chain

Nelson Peltz's Trian Fund Management is seeking funding to take Wendy's private, according to a Financial Times report.

Meta slashes 8,000 jobs as it pivots towards AI

Facebook and Instagram's parent company has been investing huge sums of money in AI, but it lags behind competitors.

Teen attackers in mosque shooting were wallowing in nihilistic hate

"These subjects did not discriminate in who they hated," said Mark Remily, special agent in charge of the FBI's San Diego Field Office.

After the Kars4Kids ad is banned in California, we check in on nostalgic jingles past

A California judge has given Kars4Kids 30 days to either take its ads off the air or update them to disclose its affiliations to a Jewish charity based in the Northeast.

Summer travelers face "vacation inflation" as airfare, gas prices rise

Gas prices, airfares, accommodations and other vacation essentials are more expensive this year compared to last year.

Guardiola leaves Manchester City as one of the game’s greats – and someone who knows its dark heart | Barney Ronay

While there is no denying the magnitude of his achievements, his legacy is also tied up in politics, propaganda and hard power

Well, that’s that then. Put out more flags. Mount the iconic Jedi‑style woollen cardigan in the club museum. He really does seem to be done this time.

In the absence of formal denials, it now seems highly likely the scheduled final year of Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City contract will be spent trawling the high-concept food ateliers of the Iberian peninsula, debating spatial architecture with a Slovenian Cluedo grandmaster over hummingbird martinis, and generally recharging after a decade of unceasing devotion to victory.

Trump's face doesn't belong on U.S. passport, senators tell Rubio

The State Department announced a special edition U.S. passport that will feature President Donald Trump's likeness.

U.S. grand jury indicts Raúl Castro, former Cuban president

The 94-year-old former leader of Cuba faces several charges, including four counts of murder for an attack on a humanitarian group more than 30 years ago.

The Guardian view on Britain and Europe: a changing world demands new terms of debate | Editorial

The world has changed dramatically since the Brexit referendum and politics needs to catch up

The spectacle of a prime minister clinging to power while his party grows increasingly desperate for a replacement is painfully familiar from the end of the last Tory government. British politics feels trapped in a loop. This condition is not wholly a result of Brexit, but the failure of that project is a significant part of it. None of the benefits promised in the referendum by the leave campaign have materialised. It is all downside, but political discussion of any significant rewriting of the terms of departure is taboo. Sir Keir Starmer’s “reset” of European relations is mostly tinkering at the margins.

Meanwhile, the strategic calculus has changed entirely since 2016. Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine exposed European complacency about continental defence and energy security. Donald Trump’s aggressive contempt for old allies makes it clear that they cannot depend on the US for protection.

Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here

The Guardian view on tackling Ebola: pathogens aren’t the only things that kill | Editorial

Conflict and aid cuts are hampering the fight against an outbreak of the deadly virus centred in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

The Democratic Republic of the Congo has faced the deadly threat of Ebola 16 times since the virus was discovered there in 1976, with a 2018-20 outbreak killing almost 2,300 people. On Sunday, the World Health Organization declared the 17th outbreak to be a public health emergency of international concern. So far, 139 suspected deaths and almost 600 suspected cases of the haemorrhagic fever virus have been identified, nearly all in the DRC’s north-eastern provinces of Ituri and North Kivu, with two cases in Uganda of people who had travelled from the DRC.

There is also anxiety about neighbouring South Sudan. The WHO fears the disease has been spreading for a couple of months and, given the highly mobile population, warns that it could take months more to bring it under control. While it judges the risk of global spread to be low, it thinks the regional risk is high.

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

Cheap AI could derail OpenAI and Anthropic's IPOs

Chinese AI labs are matching American frontier capability at a fraction of the cost.

Meghan Markle’s anniversary candle: who wouldn’t want to pay $64 to celebrate someone else’s marriage?

It smells like sunshine, blue skies and love and laughter, apparently. And it’s all in aid of her and Harry’s eight years together

Name: Anniversary candle.

Appearance: A “modern and elegant” candle, “housed in a beautiful ceramic vessel”.

‘If you keep looking we will kill you’: death stalks those searching for Mexico’s disappeared

Organised crime groups are targeting some of the only people looking for victims of the country’s cartel wars – their relatives

Beneath the cooling towers of Mazatlán’s power plant, in the Mexican state of Sinaloa, a dozen women pick through the marshland, looking for the upturned soil – and the scent – that betrays the location of a buried body.

They are part of Hearts United for One Cause, one of hundreds of collectives scattered across Mexico looking for the members’ missing relatives. But these searchers have been marked out by another layer of tragedy: one of them was murdered in February, and another disappeared in October.

Bezos says bottom half of U.S. earners should pay no federal income tax

The Amazon founder said eliminating taxes for lower-income Americans could ease financial pressure and encourage entrepreneurship.

Are Xi and Putin still ‘best friends’? - The Latest

Xi Jinping welcomed Vladimir Putin to Beijing with pomp and pageantry, just days after hosting Donald Trump. But as Russia’s war in Ukraine makes Moscow increasingly dependent on China, and western leaders thaw relations with Beijing, what does the power imbalance mean for Xi and Putin’s relationship? Lucy Hough speaks to the Guardian’s deputy head of international news, Devika Bhat

Russian jet causes ‘dangerous’ near miss after flying close to RAF spy plane

UK calls incident ‘unacceptable’ after Su-27 jet comes within six metres of unarmed RAF plane over Black Sea

A Russian jet flew within six metres of an RAF spy plane flying at 500mph over the Black Sea, one of two mid-air incidents last month described as “dangerous and unacceptable” by the defence secretary, John Healey.

An Su-27 jet conducted six passes in front of an unarmed RAF Rivet Joint flying close to its nose in mid April, risking a collision that could have caused a diplomatic crisis between the two countries.

Another Trump victory: Republican Rep. Thomas Massie loses Kentucky primary

President Donald Trump had targeted Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., for opposing GOP priorities.

I didn’t think it was possible to love Kylie Minogue any more – her new Netflix series changed that | Emma Brockes

After the glut of brand-building shows from other celebrities, the Kylie documentary is radical for simply allowing the star to come across as human

Kylie, the new three-part documentary that launched on Netflix on Wednesday and has been making me verklempt ever since, is great in every way it’s possible for TV to be. But on the basis of the first two and a half episodes, a couple of things jump out: Kylie’s almost superhuman ability to stay cheerful in the face of intense provocation, and the extraordinary rudeness she had to tolerate from interviewers back in the day.

Here’s Michael Parkinson in 2004, grinning like an alligator and asking her a question considered totally fine at the time: “What about children? You’re 35 now, leaving it a bit late aren’t you?” And a few years later, Cat Deeley, asking roughly the same question, albeit slightly more diplomatically, right after Kylie had emerged from chemotherapy for breast cancer. Nice work, guys!

Emma Brockes is a Guardian columnist

January 6 officers sue Trump over $1.8bn fund, alleging ‘presidential corruption’

Retired Capitol police officer and DC officer allege Trump’s $1.8bn fund unlawfully rewards January 6 rioters and allies

• US politics live – latest updates

Two police officers who clashed with rioters at the US Capitol during the January 6 insurrection in 2021 have sued Donald Trump over plans to create a $1.776bn “anti-weaponization” fund.

The fund, which critics have argued is essentially a slush fund, is set to compensate allies of the US president who he claims were victims of prosecutorial overreach.

UK strikes £3.7bn trade deal with six Gulf states

Keir Starmer describes the agreement, worth double original estimates, as a ‘huge win’ for British businesses

Keir Starmer has struck a trade deal with six Gulf states in what he described as a huge win for British business, ending four years of talks led by four different prime ministers.

The deal will offer £3.7bn worth of opportunities for exporters – double the original estimates – particularly in the food and luxury car sectors but also defence, aerospace, hospitality and other services, the government said.

How Arteta overcame setbacks, crises and boos to defy doubters at Arsenal

Manager’s early seasons were far from plain sailing but insiders credit club’s owners for staying the course

It didn’t start well for Mikel Arteta and Arsenal. On a crisp December night in 2019 at about 1am in a Manchester suburb, Vinai Venkatesham stepped out of Arteta’s home. The Arsenal managing director looked around, satisfied with his meeting. Arteta had just outlined a “hugely impressive” five-year plan to rebuild a club reeling from Arsène Wenger’s departure and Unai Emery’s failed succession. Venkatesham stepped into his car and was driven away with his colleague Huss Fahmy.

The club were about to take a huge gamble, but one with which they were increasingly comfortable. For many Arsenal executives, Arteta had won the interview round in 2018 when Wenger left. Yet it seemed too much to ask a 36-year-old rookie to manage a seismic transition and Emery had pedigree and experience; Arteta had charisma and a strong playing record.

Giro d’Italia: Narváez storms past Mas for third win as Eulálio keeps pink jersey

• Ecuadorean collects stage victory No 3 of this edition

• Favourite Vingegaard stays 27 seconds behind leader

Ecuador’s Jhonatan Narváez edged out the Spaniard Enric Mas at the end of Wednesday’s stage 11 to win his third stage of this year’s Giro d’Italia as Afonso Eulálio retained the leader’s pink jersey.

Narváez (UAE Team Emirates XRG) and Mas (Movistar) were left to battle for the win after leaving the breakaway group on the final climb and Mas made the first move, only for the Ecuadorian to overtake him before the line. The Italian Diego Ulissi (XDS Astana) won the race for third place at the end of the entertaining 195km ride from Porcari to Chiavari.

Jeff Bezos calls Amazon’s $40m Melania film ‘a good business decision’

The Amazon founder has denied any personal involvement in the film, which failed to recoup its budget on release

Jeff Bezos has defended Amazon’s controversial Melania documentary as “a good business decision” while denying any personal involvement.

The Amazon founder and executive chairman was asked about the film during an interview on CNBC this week. The film, which followed the first lady in the period before Donald Trump’s second inauguration, was purchased by the company for $40m with Melania herself making a reported $28m. Amazon also spent about $35m on marketing.

2 officers in Jan. 6 riot sue to block DOJ "anti-weaponization" fund

The $1.776 billion fund, which is part of the agreement to settle Trump's lawsuit against the IRS and Treasury Dept., is to be used to compensate those who claim that the government weaponized the legal system against them.

Immunotherapy could be used to treat depression, early trial suggests

UK scientists find tocilizumab, used for rheumatoid arthritis, may help antidepressant-resistant patients

Immunotherapy could be used to treat depression among patients who have not responded to conventional antidepressants, according to the results of an early clinical trial.

Researchers at the University of Bristol investigated whether tocilizumab, an anti-inflammatory drug commonly used for immune conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, could improve symptoms of difficult-to-treat depression.

Open plan is not the answer: design professionals on the dos and don’ts of small space living

From furniture with ‘skinny legs’ to making sure spaces work for multiple purposes, three experts who live in tiny homes share their best lessons

In 2010 Colin Chee picked up the keys to his 37 square metre off-the-plan apartment in Melbourne’s city centre. “It was only then that I realised how shit it was.”

With no design experience and a limited budget, his quest to find inspiration eventually led to the birth of Never Too Small, a YouTube channel showcasing clever designs for small spaces from around the world. Launched in 2017, it now has more than 3 million subscribers.

Plastic food and drink packaging ‘world’s most common coastal litter’

Global study finds wrappers, bottles and lids on shorelines of 93% of countries analysed as UN talks to tackle issue in turmoil

Plastic food wrappers, bottles, lids and caps are by far the most common items of litter found on the world’s shorelines, a study has found.

Researchers looked at data from more than 5,300 surveys of coastal litter to produce the first global analysis of its kind. They found the data in 355 existing studies on the subject.

US and Israel ‘hoped to install Ahmadinejad as Iran’s leader’

Airstrike at the start of the war was aimed at freeing populist ex-president from house arrest, US newspaper claims

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Fresh questions have been raised over the US and Israeli effort to depose the Iranian regime after it was claimed that Israel wanted to put the populist Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in power.

Ahmadinejad’s turbulent presidency, from 2005 to 2013, was marked by incendiary attacks on Israel but he recast himself as a critic of the regime and champion of the poor after falling out with the supreme leader Ali Khamenei.

Pedro Almodóvar says film-makers have a ‘moral duty’ to speak out against the far right

‘Europe must never be subjected to Trump’ says Spanish film-maker at a Cannes press conference for his new film, Bitter Christmas

Pedro Almodóvar has argued that film-makers have a “moral duty” to speak up about politics or they will enable the kind of stifling of free speech taking place in the US, warning that “Europe must never be subjected to Trump”.

Speaking at the Cannes premiere of his new film Bitter Christmas, the veteran Spanish director was responding to questions about previous comments in which he had remarked on a lack of protests at the Oscars earlier this year.

Iran threatens to extend conflict ‘beyond the region’ if U.S. and Israel resume attacks

Iran's Revolutionary Guard on Wednesday threatened to extend the Middle East conflict "beyond the region" if the U.S. and Israel resume attacks against Tehran.

‘Messy, chaotic, funny’: inside the hilarious comedy about teen Muslim schoolgirls

Proper Ladies is being compared to Derry Girls for its portrayal of a wild but relatable girl gang. Its creator opens up about trying to reshape the way Black and Muslim characters are used in TV

It’s not every comedy that dares to feature a character trying to strangle herself with her own hijab. Yet the BBC’s Proper Ladies has caused a storm on social media thanks to its chaotic energy and sharply observed teenage dynamics, drawing comparisons to shows such as Derry Girls and Some Girls. “We saw our first fan edit and it had 100,000 likes,” says writer Sabrina Ali. “It feels like we made it.”

Set in a faith school, Proper Ladies is a 10-minute short that follows four schoolgirls in detention, where friendships, rivalries and acts of rebellion unfold. Absurd, quick-witted and fast, it leans into the heightened logic of teenage life – where the smallest things escalate quickly and everything feels urgent. In one scene, a student delivers a dramatic monologue about setting off the fire alarm to conceal the fact that she used the staff toilets to defecate.

Lithuanian leaders rushed to bunkers as drone violates country’s airspace

Vilnius residents urged to take shelter during alert, after Nato and EU warn that Russia is diverting Ukraine’s drones

• Europe live – latest updates

Lithuania’s president and prime minister were rushed to underground bunkers and residents of the capital, Vilnius, urged to take shelter during a warning issued after a drone violated the country’s airspace.

Air and train traffic in and around the city was suspended after the mobile phone “take shelter” alert, the first issued in an EU and Nato country since the start of Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

‘Brits are not as groovy as us – but they’re less square than Europeans’: how drum’n’bass united Brazil and the UK

When drum’n’bass grew stale in the 90s, it got a samba-splicing Brazilian twist. As that style returns, the scene’s legends and newcomers celebrate a cross-cultural triumph

Wagner Ribeiro de Souza wasn’t carrying much in his backpack. A local compilation of techno, house and jungle hits, a couple of news clippings and a VHS tape with footage from the club where he played weekly: small fragments of a music scene that he, under the moniker DJ Patife, and some friends were building in São Paulo, Brazil.

It was 1998. He had travelled to London to talk his way into the office of Movement, one of Britain’s most important drum’n’bass nights, with a single goal: pitching an edition of the party in Brazil. “I played that tape recorded at the club,” Patife remembers. “And when Bryan Gee saw like 2,000 people singing, he said: ‘Let’s go to Brazil right now!’”

College career path ‘over’ as skilled trade get 30% pay bump, recruitment giant says

"I would say you can make a good career and good money in skilled trade. That's definitely a career track," CEO of world's largest recruitment firm told CNBC.

Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa is about to unveil his plan to turn the company around as the automaker's stock lags

Shares of Stellantis are off nearly 30% since Antonio Filosa, a veteran who climbed through the company ranks, was named CEO nearly a year ago.

Jess Cartner-Morley on fashion: Posh Grandpa is fashion’s new main character

The latest character dressing trend may be a little silly but there’s an off-kilter pleasure in its mellow, vintage vibe

Welcome to the season of the Posh Grandpa, fashion’s newest main character. We’ve had Brat, we did Coastal Grandma, we loved Tomato Girl Summer. The world is pretty heavy right now, as you’ll have noticed, so any opportunity to lighten up is precious. The nonsense is the point.

Character dressing is style that makes you smile, but it’s not just that. There is infinitely more joy in these looks, however silly they are, than there is in aspiring to look rich and pretty, which is where the aesthetic centre of gravity of our culture swings back to again and again. The esoteric sides of fashion’s personality capture something important about style, which is that it needs a bit of friction to make it interesting. The pebble in the boot, the surprise to snag the eye. This is where the magic happens.

Eva v Goliath: the 20-year-old climate activist taking on Trump and the fossil fuel industry

Young Americans are suing the president for violating rights with executive orders that fuel the climate crisis

• Young Americans demand court halt Trump’s biggest rollbacks of pollution protections

Eva Lighthiser was at a dorm party on her Colorado college campus last month when she had to call it an early night.

“I said, ‘Hey, I’ve got to go to bed, I’m flying out to Portland tomorrow,’ and then of course follow-up questions get raised,” she said. “I’m like, ‘Well, it’s a lot to explain.’”

Tennis players plan ‘work-to-rule’ French Open media protest over prize money

• Walkouts to take place at Friday’s press conferences

• Dispute with grand slams has lasted more than a year

The world’s top tennis players are planning to protest over prize money by reducing their media appearances at the French Open as their public battle with the grand slams intensifies.

Players selected to take part in Friday’s opening press conference at Roland Garros will walk out after 15 minutes, symbolising the fact that the slams allocate an average of 15% of their revenues to prize money. The rest of the draw will refuse to conduct additional interviews with the tournament’s main media rights partners, TNT Sports and Eurosport.

Fantastic visions and cosmic rhythms: how Whistler is making me see – and hear – differently

A new exhibition at Tate Britain includes canvases titled after symphonies and nocturnes, but the inspiration flows in both directions. Plus, how Felicity Lott led me to an epiphany

Comparisons between music, painting and sculpture have never quite rung true for me because you’re talking about fundamentally opposed ideas of what the experience of art is all about. A painting can be experienced in a second’s contemplation or an hour’s, but a piece of music, be it symphony or sonata, has to be journeyed through for just as long as the performance lasts.

And yet, the week the James McNeill Whistler exhibition opens at the Tate in London (here’s Jonathan Jones’s five-star review), I’m having to reconsider. Whistler was profoundly influenced by music, a connection that goes so deep that the results aren’t only aesthetic but visceral, in the fabric of the form and expression of his pictures and his philosophy of painting.