Middle East crisis live: Iran warns of ‘devastating’ retaliation after Trump’s expletive-laden threats over strait of Hormuz

Iran’s parliamentary speaker decries US president’s ‘reckless moves’ after his social media threats

• Trump warns Iran to reopen strait of Hormuz by Tuesday or face ‘hell’

• ‘Unhinged madman’: US politicians react to Trump Iran threat

A Japanese shipping firm said on Monday that an Indian-flagged tanker owned by its subsidiary had passed through the strait of Hormuz and was en route to India.

A spokeswoman for Mitsui O.S.K. Lines told AFP that the Green Asha – a liquefied petroleum gas tanker – had crossed the waterway.

Pakistan stands in solidarity with the brotherly people of the UAE and reiterates the urgent need for restraint and de-escalation in the region.

FA Cup quarter-finals: 10 talking points from the men’s and women’s weekend ties

Kirby’s class helps stun Arsenal, Palmer shows leadership potential for Chelsea and teenager Shaw makes her mark for Liverpool

Securing their Premier League status for another year remains a priority for West Ham and Leeds this season, so the eight changes Nuno Espírito Santo and Daniel Farke made between them for this tie, which developed into a drama-drenched classic, was understandable to a degree. Still, in Ao Tanaka, Leeds have a gem of a fringe player, who looked eager to make something of his opportunity. The Japanese international has not started in the league since 14 December, but Leeds fans have consistently called for him to have more involvement and he showed why with a tremendous opener at the London Stadium, which was all of his own making. In stark contrast to Tanaka’s performance was that of Max Kilman, who has not been trusted to start for West Ham since 3 January when they were beaten 3-0 by the bottom club, Wolves. The centre-back looked rusty and gave away a clear penalty with a poor challenge on Anton Stach – he was even booed by his own fans at points in the game. Dominic Booth

Is it true that … more testosterone means more muscle?

Popular diet tweaks may boost the hormone a little, but the effect on your pecs is likely to be limited

It’s an increasingly popular idea: “boosting” testosterone with diet tweaks – increasing foods rich in zinc and magnesium – hoping to build muscle faster. But the reality is more nuanced.

Testosterone is an androgen hormone that plays a key role in development, particularly in boys during puberty. Its effect on muscle isn’t simply about how much of it you have, but how your body responds to it.

‘It started with a tip-off’: how a Guardian investigation exposed child sex trafficking on Facebook and Instagram

Meta has just lost a multimillion-dollar legal battle over its failure to prevent children being sold on its platforms. Here’s how we uncovered evidence that became part of the case against it

It started with a tipoff. I was reporting on the trafficking and exploitation of migrant workers in the Gulf when a source I had known for more than a decade reached out. They told me that child sexual abuse trafficking in the US was surging. As the Covid pandemic pushed predators online, some were using Facebook and Instagram to buy and sell children.

It was 2021 and I was about to begin an investigation with Mei-Ling McNamara, a human rights journalist, that would lead to the tech company Meta losing a multimillion-pound court case in March this year. The company had not yet rebranded and was known as Facebook, and there had not been any reporting on how children were being trafficked on its platforms. Experts from anti-trafficking nonprofit organisations and an American law enforcement official talked me through the crimes they were seeing.

House of Gloss review – tender portrait of a young trans couple finding refuge in new kind of family

Away from outside discrimination, this documentary brings us into the home of graffiti artist Lana and drag queen Opal

In the small flat shared by Opal and Lana, a young queer couple living in Dundee, love is everywhere. Countless photos of them on fun outings line the walls, interspersed with colourful sketches by Lana, a talented graffiti artist. Scattered around Opal’s makeup table are beautiful wigs, with which she transforms into a glamorous drag persona at night. As trans femme, they face immense discrimination from the outside world. Within these walls, however, there is an oasis of tenderness and care.

In a media landscape that continues to sensationalise trans existence, director Mark Lyken deploys a slice-of-life visual approach. It is as if we are not merely watching Opal and Lana, but are hanging out with them as friends. Closeups and interior shots draw beauty out of the ordinary every day as the bond between the couple is captured through seemingly simple acts of affection and household chores such as cooking or washing-up. Considering that both have faced rejection from their families, these mundane gestures hold a world of meaning.

Navajo Nation: the fight for cultural survival – photo essay

Rick Findler, photographer and Joan Wakelin bursary recipient, speaks to Navajo communities attempting to save a language and traditions that are being diluted by modern life

The Navajo Nation, home to the Navajo tribe, also known as the Diné, meaning “the people”, is the largest Native American reservation in the US, encompassing 27,000 sq miles across New Mexico, Arizona and Utah. The Navajo people exemplify resilience amid a rapidly changing cultural landscape and various threats to their heritage.

Despite challenges such as inadequate housing, unreliable infrastructure and limited access to technology, elders and youth are striving to preserve their rich cultural heritage and identity.

A Native American dancer, dressed in his traditional regalia, makes his way to a performance in Winslow, Arizona. During November there are many public performances and events celebrating Native American culture.

What NASA is looking for in the coming days as Artemis II loops around the moon

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman outlined the most critical moments he expects in the coming days as Artemis II astronauts continue their journey around the far side of the moon.

From volcanic wilds to world-class art: 10 fun and fabulous reasons to visit France in 2026

Some of the best under-the-radar attractions across the Channel include steampunk wonders in Calais and the largest collection of impressionist works outside Paris

You don’t need to venture too far into France to find its wow factor. Indeed, within minutes of exiting the ferry or Channel Tunnel, you can be staring a fire-breathing dragon in the face. The Dragon de Calais is a 25-metre-long mechanical beast that stomps along the renovated sea front carrying 48 passengers on its back (adult ticket €9.50), emitting jets of fire, steam and water from its nostrils. It was created by the team behind Les Machines de L’île, a collection of steampunk wonders including a 12-metre elephant, in Nantes.

AI data center boom ‘stress tests’ insurers as private capital floods in

Rapid technological advancements and the huge sums of money flowing into the data center are posing both risks and rewards for insurers.

US sprint star Sha’Carri Richardson wins 2026 Stawell Gift off scratch in thrilling finish

• American crosses in 13.15s ahead of Australia’s Charlotte Nielsen

• Olufemi Komolafe wins men’s final without US’s Christian Coleman

American sprint queen Sha’Carri Richardson has lived up to her star status as she chased down the field off scratch to win the 2026 Stawell Gift in a thrilling finish.

The Olympic 100m silver medallist and sixth-fastest woman in the world joined hundreds of local spectators and athletes in the small rural town 200km north-west of Melbourne on Monday to take part in the handicap race for the first time.

Artemis II crew take new photo of far side of the moon

The crew of NASA's Artemis II mission captured a new image of the far side of the moon, which the agency released Sunday.

NASA's Artemis II crew readies for Monday's lunar flyby. Here's what you need to know

At its closest point, the crew of Artemis II will loop about 4,000 miles from the lunar surface late Monday. The astronauts will also venture farther into space than any previous human mission.

Trump’s chaotic war on Iran has dragged into its sixth week because he is fighting an adversary he doesn’t understand | Nesrine Malik

Ignorance and arrogance were his drivers. The idea that the regime plays by different rules, with its own goals, never occurred to him

Five weeks. We are now five weeks in and entering the sixth week of the war on Iran. What was supposed to be a “precise, overwhelming military campaign” to eliminate “an imminent nuclear threat” and urge the Iranian people to “take over” their government is now anything but precise or overwhelming. Gulf countries are seized up with retaliatory Iranian attacks, the strait of Hormuz is shut, and there is no sign of regime collapse either through military degradation or popular takeover. The recovery of two downed US aircrew is celebrated beyond the facts of the matter because nothing else is going to plan. The mistake, as ever, is a combination of hubris and ignorance, flaws made even more serious by the particularities of the Iranian regime.

There is a mental lag at the start of wars. A cognitive delay that means you can’t quite adjust to the fact that dangerous conflict cannot be swiftly contained. That mental lag is even longer when the United States is involved. Because it remains inconceivable to some that a superior military power would not swiftly achieve its objectives. That an inferior power would not immediately succumb. That allies would not fall into line and rally behind the US. Inconceivable that the fallout of a military campaign would not be limited to the territories and peoples targeted.

‘An orgiastic pandemonium’: Elvira Notari, the ‘low-life cinema’ pioneer erased by fascism

Italy’s first female director made 60 features depicting the gritty squalor of early 20th-century Naples. Most were lost to Mussolini’s censorship and she died in obscurity – but now a new documentary gives her a voice again

The seething Neapolitan melodrama È piccerella (1922), written and directed by Elvira Notari, follows the fraught relationship between the manipulative Margaretella and her morbidly besotted suitor, Tore, who steals from his elderly mother to buy expensive gifts for his reluctant inamorata, despite her roving eye.

The movie opens with documentary shots of middle-class pilgrims, including Margaretella and her shabbily genteel mother, arriving in carriages and cars at Naples’s Candelora festival – an “orgiastic pandemonium of Bacchantes,” notes an intertitle. Challenging the camera’s gaze as much as the smouldering femme fatale, an obese drinker quaffs exultantly from a pint glass of wine; in another scene, an unshaven little pauper gleefully drops his jaw to display his two remaining teeth.

When Suzuki met Suzuki: why a Tokyo dating agency is matching couples with the same name

Japan’s ban on married couples having different surnames has prompted an event to highlight people’s reluctance to change their name

At the very least, the three men and three women calming their nerves on a Friday evening at a venue in Tokyo know they have one thing in common.

Spaced out across booths, they will soon be placed in pairs and given 15 minutes to get to know one another.

Artemis II crew enters moon’s ‘sphere of influence’ ahead of historic flyby

Astronauts on Nasa’s Orion capsule made transition about 39,000 miles from the moon, meaning they feel its gravitational pull more strongly than that of the Earth

The four astronauts on Nasa’s Artemis II mission have entered the moon’s “sphere of influence”, where its gravity has a stronger pull on the spacecraft than Earth’s.

The crew made the transition, four days, six hours and two minutes into the mission, when about 39,000 miles (62,800km) from the moon, and 232,000 miles (373,400km) away from the Earth. The next key milestone will be the trip later on Monday to the far side of the moon, venturing deeper into space than any humans before.

‘We don’t want pity’: Ukrainian war veterans face off in amputee boxing championship

Artem Khrebet emerged victorious from what organisers say was world-first competitive bout between double amputees

Footwork decides a boxing match, they say. In Ukraine, the tired cliche took on a new meaning.

On Saturday, two Ukrainian war veterans faced off on prosthetic legs in what organisers called the world’s first competitive bout between double-amputee fighters.

Top: Artem Khrebet (left) and Mykhailo Drobotenko (right), both war veterans, during the weigh-in ceremony

We've gone mad for puzzles. This makes sense – it’s reassuring to have answers in these perplexing times | Joseph de Weck

Our world feels chaotic, confusing and unfair, but puzzles offer clear rules, solvable problems and reward for effort expended

Maybe you’ve noticed it too. Everyone seems to have become fixated on puzzle games. In the morning, over coffee, I play Word Wheel on the Guardian app. Over lunch, colleagues compare notes on Tradle, the game where you guess a country from its exports. Which place exports about 45% fish and 50% crustaceans? Greenland. Another friend can’t fall asleep without her nightly Sudoku ritual.

The online puzzle craze took off during the Covid pandemic, and it shows no sign of slowing down. New York Times subscribers now spend more time playing puzzles on the app than reading the news. Sales of quiz books hit a record last year, up 24% from 2024.

My mother, Audrey Hepburn: the star’s son Sean on her movies, marriages, good works and fascist parents

The heroine of Roman Holiday and Breakfast at Tiffany’s knew war and poverty, riches and fame, love and betrayal – yet claimed to have lived a ‘terribly boring’ life. Sean Hepburn Ferrer paints a very different picture in his new biography

Growing up, Sean Hepburn Ferrer says he never felt like the son of a movie star – but he very much is. His mother was Audrey Hepburn, one of the biggest names in the golden age of Hollywood, an Oscar-winner, a screen star and a fashion icon. Hundreds of millions of people all over the world recognise her from classics such as Roman Holiday, Funny Face and My Fair Lady – besotted with the way she laughs, dances, or poses tastefully in Givenchy couture.

Audrey’s image is so ubiquitous in posters, art prints, magazines, on handbags, keyrings or T-shirts, that the family has made hunting for her likeness into a game. “I must have made this crack to my kids,” Sean says. “We were probably waiting for a train or a plane that had been delayed: ‘Three minutes to find Grandma.’ And it became a thing. Now the kids are grown-up, but they do it on their own. I do it by myself and send a snapshot to my wife and we giggle privately.”

Cruise ship caught on reef off tiny Fiji island where Cast Away filmed

Salvage crews work to avoid oil spill after Fiji Princess cruise ship grounded off Monuriki Island on Saturday

Salvage crews in Fiji are working to prevent an oil spill after a cruise ship ran aground off the island on which the 2000 Tom Hanks film Cast Away was filmed.

The Blue Lagoon Cruises vessel Fiji Princess grounded at a reef near the uninhabited Monuriki Island on Saturday, according to Fiji’s maritime rescue agency.

4/5/2026: Return to RAM; Ghost Train; The Mardi Gras Indians

First, a report on patients, cut off from health care, getting help. Then, the state of high-speed rail in the U.S. And, a look at the Mardi Gras Indians keeping tradition alive.

As a celebrant, I prefer funerals to weddings. This is why | Jackie Bailey

Perhaps my work is still about my healing – remembering the sacred fragility, the passing nature, the end date in sight

As a celebrant, I start my weddings and funerals with the same words: “Everyone, we are about to get started, so can you please make sure your phones are off or on silent.”

I introduce myself, express my great privilege in sharing this moment with the people gathered and always make sure I have tissues on hand. Wedding dresses don’t have pockets and you’d be surprised how many people come to a funeral not expecting to cry.

Jackie Bailey is the author of The Eulogy, the winner of the 2023 NSW Premier’s literary multicultural award. When not writing, she works as a funeral celebrant and pastoral care practitioner, helping families navigate death and dying

Ukraine war briefing: Russian oil facilities burn as Zelenskyy tours Middle East

Repairs will be slow and costly, pro-Russian bloggers complain; Ukraine’s president says Iran war is benefiting Moscow. What we know on day 1,503

Inside the daring mission to rescue a U.S. airman downed in Iran

U.S. forces mounted an urgent and high-risk rescue effort to find an airman who was forced to eject from a downed F-15E fighter jet over Iran.

Move over Murdochs, here come the Ellisons – podcast

Margaret Sullivan on the the billionaire father and son buying up the US media

Speaking at a press conference last month, the US secretary of defence, Pete Hegseth, criticised CNN’s ‘fake news’ coverage of the US-Israel war on Iran.

‘The sooner David Ellison takes over that network, the better,’ he told the room of journalists.

UCLA storms past South Carolina to claim its 1st NCAA women's basketball title

UCLA secured the first NCAA women's basketball national championship in school history — a goal that was set after losing in the first Final Four last season.

A music festival booked Kanye West, now known as Ye, and lost major sponsors

The rapper Ye was announced as the headliner for the Wireless Festival in London. He's gained notoriety over the years for his antisemitic comments and activities glorifying Nazis.

4/5: CBS Weekend News

Latest details on daring mission to rescue U.S. airman from Iran after fighter jet shot down; Trump sends profanity-laden threat to Iran.

Missing U.S. crew member from downed fighter jet rescued in Iran, Trump says

A U.S. crew member who went missing when an F-15E fighter jet was shot down over a remote area of Iran has been rescued by U.S. forces.

Inside gospel music's popularity in France

For Easter Sunday, Barry Petersen shows how gospel music, with roots among America's enslaved, is now ministering to the hearts of people in Paris.

Flight prices surging amid Iran war

The war with Iran is spiking jet fuel prices, prompting airlines around the world to charge more. Shanelle Kaul reports.

Latest on Iran: U.S. airman rescued, Trump makes profanity-laced ultimatum

Charlie D'Agata and Taurean Small have the latest news on the Iran war, including details on the rescue of a U.S. airman whose fighter jet was shot down and President Trump's new demand for the Iranians to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Trump threatens Tuesday strikes on Iran's power plants and bridges in profanity-laden post

President Trump threatened to hit Iranian power plants and bridges on Tuesday as he posted another ultimatum on social media Sunday morning. "Open the F*****' Strait, you crazy bastards, or you'll be living in Hell," the president wrote. Taurean Small reports

Caroline Dubois beats Terri Harper on points and adds WBO to WBC lightweight title

• London-born fighter wins easily on points

• Harper was knocked down in sixth round

Caroline Dubois added the WBO world lightweight title to her WBC crown with a unanimous points victory over her fellow Briton Terri Harper. The London-born younger sister of heavyweight Daniel Dubois scored a 98-91, 97-92, 98-91 win to see off Harper at London Olympia on Sunday night.

Dubois struggled to get to her opponent initially, but floored her in the sixth round and never looked back as she moved a step closer to unifying the division.

Pogacar holds off Van der Poel to win Tour of Flanders but faces fine for running red light

• Slovenian among riders who ran light at rail crossing

• Demi Vollering beats Ferrand-Prévot to win women’s race

Tadej Pogacar won a record-equalling third Tour of Flanders on Sunday after the world champion dropped his main rival Mathieu van der Poel with 18km to ride. However, the race winner later learned he would be among up to 20 cyclists in the race who could face action from Belgian authorities after running a red light at a railway crossing.

Van der Poel was himself aiming for a record fourth victory in the second Monument of the season, but instead Pogacar made it two from two in the prestigious one-day classics having won Milan-San Remo last month.

European football: PSV crowned Dutch champions after Feyenoord draw with Volendam

• PSV hold 17-point lead to clinch title with five games left

• Inter edge towards winning Serie A with Roma thrashing

PSV Eindhoven were crowned on Sunday as Dutch champions for the 27th time, with five matches left of the season, after second-placed Feyenoord’s 0-0 draw with Volendam.

PSV hold an unassailable 17-point lead at the top of the table after bouncing back from successive defeats with a 4-3 victory against Utrecht on Saturday.

Hollywood studios reach a tentative agreement with writers union

The Writers Guild of America went on strike for months in 2023 in a dispute with Hollywood studios. This year the union announced a new four-year contract after just a few weeks of negotiations.

Diageo and Pepsi drop Wireless sponsorship amid criticism of Kanye West booking

Sponsors pull out after Keir Starmer calls decision to book rapper who wrote song titled Heil Hitler ‘deeply concerning’

Pepsi and Diageo have said they will withdraw their sponsorship of a UK music festival that is due to be headlined by Kanye West after Keir Starmer joined criticism of the event.

The musician is understood to have not yet made an application to come to Britain and could be blocked under powers allowing the authorities to do so if his presence is deemed not conducive to the public good.

4 killed in Alabama car crash during pursuit by state trooper

The driver was trying to elude the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency's highway patrol on a rural road in southeast Alabama's Pike County when the crash occurred late Friday night.

Thousands in Texas protest against border wall through national park: ‘big love for Big Bend’

Rally met with bipartisan support after US border patrol revealed plans for steel wall across parts of beloved parks

The story is co-published with Public Domain, an investigative newsroom that covers public lands, wildlife and government

Thousands of people gathered at the steps of the Texas capitol on Saturday to protest against the construction of a border wall through Big Bend, in a show of bipartisan opposition to the White House’s plans.

4/5: Sunday Morning

Hosted by Jane Pauley. Featured: The Vatican's Mosaic Studio; a fight over history at West Bank archaeological sites; Dan Levy on his new series "Big Mistakes"; the creative talents behind "Hacks"; the latest on the Artemis II lunar mission; the works of Renaissance artist Raphael; and the beauty of moss.

Arteta’s ChatGPT Guardiola-ism is down but history beckons for Gunners

The quadruple dream may be dead but Arsenal are now just four games from achieving an unprecedented nonruple

And then there were two. As the clock ticked down at St Mary’s Stadium on Saturday night even the stray yellow balloons on the pitch had begun to take on a weirdly mocking quality.

The balloons were almost too much, like metaphors-for-hire in an arthouse film, popping up in shot every time Arsenal tried to transform another spell of mechanical pressure into creative, incisive football. Your dreams? Your dreams are just air inside a polymer shell. Your dreams are a squeaky veneer. Even when you try to take agency over your dreams, or at least stamp on them before a set piece, they will scoot away and bobble about annoyingly near the corner flag.

Starmer attacks Greens, saying vote for Labour rivals puts new workers’ rights at risk

PM also criticises business figures and opponents of changes, many of which come into force on Monday

• Workers, pensioners and children: all better off. Ignore the critics – we really are standing up for working people

Keir Starmer has used a series of new workers rights that come into force on Monday to attack the Green party, saying a vote for Labour’s rivals puts such progress on sick pay, parental leave and zero-hours contracts at risk.

The prime minister also took a swipe at business figures and opponents of what he described as the biggest strengthening of workers’ rights in a generation, dismissing “vested interests” who had warned against them.

Full transcript of "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan," April 5, 2026

On this "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" broadcast, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman and retired Gen. Frank McKenzie join Ed O'Keefe.

Iran strikes Kuwait’s oil infrastructure before Opec+ supply talks

Members reportedly agree a rise of 206,000 barrels a day in May, but move symbolic while strait of Hormuz is effectively closed

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Iranian drones have struck Kuwait’s oil infrastructure, causing “severe material damage” that threatens to further disrupt oil supplies already hit by the US-Israel war on Iran.

The drone strikes on Sunday came hours before members of the Opec+ group of major global oil suppliers gathered to discuss how to bolster output despite Iran’s effective closure of the strait of Hormuz shipping route.

Hungarian PM faces ‘false flag’ claims after Serbia says explosives found near pipeline

Incident prompts political scrutiny across Hungary as Viktor Orbán trails in polls before next Sunday’s election

Serbia has said it found “explosives of devastating power” near a pipeline that carries Russian natural gas to Hungary and beyond, sparking claims by Hungary’s leading opposition candidate of a possible “false flag” operation aimed at influencing the country’s elections.

On Sunday, Hungary’s prime minister, Viktor Orbán, said he had been informed by Serbia’s president, Aleksandar Vučić, of the discovery near an extension of the TurkStream pipeline, which transports Russian gas through the Balkans to central and eastern Europe.

Rayasi hat-trick inspires nine-try Bordeaux in crushing win against Leicester

• Bordeaux 64-14 Leicester

• Bégles set up Toulouse quarter-final next weekend

Even at full-strength, Leicester would have struggled against the most potent attack in Europe. But without a string of first-choice forwards – including Ollie Chessum, Joe Heyes, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith – the result at a sun-drenched Stade Chaban-Delmas was never in doubt.

So it proved as Bordeaux Bégles tore their English guests to shreds, scoring nine tries to underline their status as continental champions with a 64-14 win. A quarter-final against their domestic rivals, Toulouse, will be required viewing next weekend.

The Guardian view on Japan’s hidden century: cheap money, global risk | Editorial

Ultra-low rates turned the yen into easy cash for bankers. But the carry trade now binds global markets to decisions in Tokyo

In 2015, Clyde Prestowitz’s book Japan Restored imagined a Japanese century emerging from upheavals such as an Israeli attack on Iran. While conflict now grips the Middle East, there are few indications of the revolutionary change the former US national security official foresaw. But in one crucial respect this already is a Japanese century – thanks to the yen’s role as easy money for global finance.

The Bank of Japan’s loose monetary policy has turned the yen into the world’s cheapest and most reliable funding currency. By suppressing yields on public debt to keep Japan’s domestic economy afloat, the BoJ effectively created a publicly subsidised funding pipeline for bankers. They can make a quick buck by borrowing cheaply in yen and investing in higher-return assets, such as US equities. The “yen carry trade” surged after the pandemic, with speculators betting $435bn in the two years to 2024 out of the estimated $1.7tn worth of yen supplied. The profits for global investors are reckoned to run into tens of billions of dollars.

Ella Baron on Donald Trump, Pete Hegseth and the Easter story – cartoon

Continue reading...

Mamdani pledged affordable New York housing in his campaign. How is that going?

Mayor’s decision to appeal court order that the city must expand its housing voucher program has angered advocates for the homeless

New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani’s decision to appeal a court order that the city must expand its housing voucher program, despite his campaign pledge to implement it, has angered advocates for the homeless population.

Mamdani, who must figure out how to close a $5.4bn budget deficit, explained his decision by citing the cost of the City Fighting Homelessness and Eviction Prevention Supplement (CityFHEPS) program, which helps people staying in shelters or at risk of homelessness find permanent housing.

How Paris swapped cars for bikes – and transformed its streets

Under Anne Hidalgo – mayor for 12 years until last week – the French capital added bike lanes, cut traffic and reclaimed public space, but not without resistance

When Corentin Roudaut moved to Paris 10 years ago, he was too scared to cycle. The IT developer had biked everywhere as a student in Rennes but felt overwhelmed by the bustling French capital. Cars were everywhere. Cyclists had almost no protection.

But once authorities carved out space for a segregated bike lane on Boulevard Voltaire near his home in the 11th arrondissement, Roudaut returned to the two-wheel commute and did not look back.

This week on "Sunday Morning" (April 5)

A look at the features for this week's broadcast of the Emmy-winning program, hosted by Jane Pauley.

Despite propaganda coup of F-15 crew rescue, downing is reminder to US that Iran can fight back

Donald Trump will claim rescue as a triumph but 48-hour drama should be a caution against launching ground operation

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Donald Trump will inevitably claim the rescue of the second crew member of the downed F-15 fighter as a propaganda triumph, though the 48-hour drama is a reminder that an undefeated Iran is able to fight back and inflict costs on the US.

It also ought to be a caution for a White House still contemplating whether to launch a ground operation in Iran to seize an island in the Persian Gulf – particularly if there a serious ambition to extract Iran’s highly enriched uranium from deep underground.

Tom Gauld on the Easter egg hunt techniques inspired by great detectives – cartoon

The kindness of strangers: I was taken aback by a rude remark. Then it hit me – she was absolutely right

I vividly remember thinking how out of line the shopkeeper was. But as I thought more about what she said, I realised she’d done me a favour

• Read more in the kindness of strangers series

More than 30 years ago, I set out to build my dream house in a small rural town. It was a stressful process exacerbated by a demanding career that required me to travel across Asia and the Pacific for weeks at a time. The challenges of juggling parenting, marriage, my work and the house felt overwhelming at times. Not to mention the builders were falling behind schedule and often did not show up at all.

One day I found myself in a lighting shop, finally ready to buy light fittings. The woman who ran the shop was not exactly friendly but, as it was the only shop of its kind around, she won my business by default. I asked her a few questions about some lights and received only one- or two-word answers. I made the purchase and, as I was about to leave, she looked me firmly in the eyes and said: “You know, no matter how hard you think you have it, there are always others who have it much worse than you.” With that, she turned and went into the back of the shop.

They’re in clouds, electric sockets and even on toast. Why do humans see faces in everyday objects?

Human brains are designed to detect faces as quickly as possible, which can lead to the perception of ‘false faces’

Faces: we see them in clouds, electrical outlets and even a $28,000 toasted sandwich said to look like the Virgin Mary.

Known as face pareidolia, seeing faces in inanimate objects or patterns of light and shadow is a common phenomenon.

Nature: Spring in Pennsylvania

We leave you this Easter Sunday in south-central Pennsylvania, where the last vestiges of winter are disappearing with the flowering of spring. Videographer: Brad Markel.

4/5: Face The Nation

This week on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan," Ed O'Keefe speaks with retired Gen. Frank McKenzie, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore and Archbishop Timothy Broglio about the Iran war. Plus, NASA's Jared Isaacman discusses the Artemis II mission.

These United States: An ode to baseball

If our national pastime has a national anthem, it is "Take Me Out to the Ball Game," penned in 1908 as a celebration of the sport. Correspondent Lee Cowan looks at the history of Jack Norworth and Albert Von Tilzer's song, which expresses the thrills, fun and romance of baseball.

Tradition, trepidation and that Augusta ‘thing’ – why the Masters remains golf’s greatest prize

Even the greatest golfers can wilt in pursuit of the Green Jacket – Xander Schauffele, Jordan Spieth and Tommy Fleetwood try to explain its special aura

They say the Masters is all about tradition. One involves the sense of trepidation that collides with excitement as the finest golfers in the world take to Augusta National. Rory McIlroy, now a Masters champion, was scared to take a divot when first taking to the Georgia venue. “For my first two or three times, it kind of felt like I was in a museum,” says Xander Schauffele.

Some visibly wilt under an intimidation provided by a course that is picture perfect. It is like the dazzling princess is concealing an axe.

Trying to conceive? Welcome to the worry-filled world of ‘trimester zero’

An army of ‘pregnancy prep’ influencers is offering would-be parents everything from sensible advice to quackery and questionable supplements. What’s really needed?

Anything to do with pregnancy can sometimes feel like a crash course in withstanding uncertainty. From getting pregnant in the first place to avoiding complications later on, any parent-to-be is forced to reckon with the limits of their own control.

The stats around this are worth emphasising: about one in seven couples in the UK will have difficulty conceiving. About one in eight known pregnancies will end in a loss. And as many as 29% of low-risk pregnancies will experience some kind of unforeseen complication. Often there’s no rhyme or reason to any of this. “You can do everything ‘right’ and still face delays. That’s biology, not failure,” says Dr Linda Farahani, a consultant gynaecologist and specialist in reproductive medicine at the Lister Fertility Clinic in Chelsea, London.

‘It’s dark in here – you can cry’: Mitski hosts intimate residency at LA high school

The artist performed songs from her new album in a five-night residency at Hollywood high school’s auditorium

With a swaying ocean projected on the stage, bathing the space in the brilliant light of sunset and sea, the figure holding a microphone almost appeared to be floating with the waves.

It added to the surreal effect that permeated the auditorium of Hollywood high school on Thursday night as singer Mitski performed Dead Women from her new album Nothing’s About to Happen to Me.

Easter Sunday around the world – in pictures

From Tehran to Cameroon, people take part in Easter celebrations

Signs of compassion from a deaf first-grader's classmates

Seven-year-old Ben O'Reilly is deaf and has other special needs. The only deaf student at Campton Elementary, in Campton, New Hampshire, Ben felt isolated, until an act of kindness from his classmates marked a transformation that spread through the entire school. Steve Hartman reports.

Secret Service investigating overnight gunfire near White House

No injuries were reported and a suspect was not located following a search of the area, the Secret Service said.

The beauty of moss

Ancient and resilient, moss – flowerless, non-vascular plants that have survived for more than 450 million years, through different climactic conditions – represent some of Nature's tiniest habitats. Conor Knighton visits the Japanese-inspired Moss Garden at Washington State's Bloedel Reserve, where dozens of moss species are on display; and attends Lewis & Clark College's annual Moss Appreciation Week, where the beauty and wonder of moss can truly grow on you.

Almanac: April 5

"Sunday Morning" looks back at historical events on this date.

Despite toilet trouble, Artemis II crew reflects on wonder of deep space experience

Amid ongoing toilet trouble, the Artemis II astronauts reflected on the wonder of sailing through deep space to the moon.

Readers reply: Has a call for restraint from an authority figure ever put a stop to war?

The long-running series in which readers answer other readers’ questions on subjects ranging from trivial flights of fancy to profound scientific and philosophical concepts

• This week’s question: should we be polite to voice assistants and AIs?

Has a war ever ended or de-escalated because someone (eg the pope, the UN secretary general) called on the belligerents to “show restraint”?
Laurence Whiteside, via email

Send new questions to [email protected].

Gladiator Jodie Ounsley looks back: ‘There weren’t many girls like me at school. I always liked bashing into people’

The former rugby star on being a tough youngster, how she became Fury on the hit TV show, and losing her dad

Born in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, in 2001, Jodie Ounsley is an athlete, television personality and author. A former England rugby sevens player, she is the first deaf female rugby player for a senior England side. In 2024, she joined the BBC revival of the series Gladiators, in which she competes as Fury; the same year, she was one of the presenters for the 2024 Paralympics. Her second book, Strong Girls, co-written with Becky Grey, is out on 9 April.

I was six and had just got back from karate practice when Mum said, “Right, let’s take a picture!” Most kids would have stood politely and smiled, but my first instinct was to do the deadliest pose.

Secret Service investigates reports of gunfire near White House

No injuries reported and no suspect found after a search of park and surrounding area, agency says

The US Secret Service said on Sunday it was investigating reports of overnight gunfire near Lafayette Park, which is across the street from the White House.

No injuries were reported and no suspect was found after a search of the park and the surrounding area after midnight, the agency said in an online post.

Destruction in the Middle East and a view from space: photos of the weekend

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

How to make the perfect Portuguese feijoada – recipe | Felicity Cloake's How to make the perfect

This marvellous staple of the Portuguese kitchen is a rich bean stew with pork and sausages that makes an excellent one-pot feast. You might find it’s perfect for midweek …

If you are trying to incorporate more beans and pulses into your diet, as I am, then this robust, one-pot feast, which food writer Edite Vieira describes as “a marvellous standby of the Portuguese kitchen”, is one to bear in mind. Though each region has its own variations, “basically”, she explains, “feijoada is a rich bean stew with pork and sausages”. The Brazilian version, often cited as that country’s national dish, is the product of the West African “love of beans”, according to the Oxford Companion to Food, with some suggesting that it’s a South American creation that travelled to Europe along with returning colonisers. Others insist with equal fervour that the dish was “born in the north of Portugal, and imported and adapted to what was available in Brazil”. Like so many such homely favourites, its precise history will probably ever remain a mystery; what’s important is that it’s simple to prepare, easy to adapt according to taste and budget, and very satisfying.

V&A Dundee celebrates the history of the catwalk, from discreet salons to today’s extravaganzas

Scottish designers are showcased alongside a backstage set and props including a Chanel-branded megaphone

In 1971, Manolo Blahnik created shoes for the designer Ossie Clark’s catwalk show in London. Relatively new to shoemaking, the Spanish designer forgot to put steel pins in the heels of the shoes, which meant that models wobbled, unbalanced, down the catwalk. Blahnik thought it was the end of his career. But the press thought it was a deliberate style; the photographer Sir Cecil Beaton even christened it “a new way of walking”.

The sandal in question, a green suede heel with ivy leaf embellishments, is just one treasure currently on display at the V&A Dundee’s new exhibition, Catwalk: The Art of the Fashion Show, which helps bring to life more than 100 years of history, charting its journey from the discreet salons of 19th-century London and Paris all the way up to the extravaganza it is today.

Satellite mirror plans could disrupt sleep and ecosystems worldwide, scientists say

Letters to US agency raise concerns over tech firms’ plans to use reflective satellites and expand numbers in low Earth orbit

Proposals to deploy reflective mirrors and up to 1m more satellites in low Earth orbit could have far-reaching consequences for human health and ecosystems, leading sleep and circadian rhythm researchers have said.

Presidents of four international scientific societies representing about 2,500 researchers from more than 30 countries are among those who have raised concerns in letters to the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

Uproar in Germany over law requiring men get military approval for long stays abroad

Ministry clarifies clause affecting those up to age 45 that is part of legislation that came into effect in January

A little-noticed clause in sweeping changes to Germany’s military service policy has caused uproar after it emerged that the law requires men aged up to 45 to get permission from the armed forces before any significant stay abroad, even in peacetime.

The legislation, which went into effect on 1 January, aims to bolster the military and demands all 18-year-old men fill out a questionnaire to gauge their suitability to serve in the armed forces, but stops short of conscription.

‘I still think it’s one of the great films of all time’: All the President’s Men turns 50

In April 1976, the flawless Watergate film premiered in Washington – cast members and reporters share their memories of ‘the granddaddy of journalism movies’

The rustle of a notepad. The click of a pen lid. On a floral-patterned sofa sits Dustin Hoffman with long hair, big collar and a lean and hungry look. Opposite is Jane Alexander, wearing a blue button-down dress, cornered and nervous in the glow of a table lamp. In this taut, claustrophobic acting masterclass, no detail is too small.

“The makeup artists ran in because the sweat was pouring off Dustin’s face,” Alexander recalls with a laugh. “Gordon [Willis, cinematographer] said, ‘Don’t touch that, I’m lighting off his sweat!’ I love that.”

Life of Pi author Yann Martel: ‘I thought the Iliad was a book for old farts… then I started getting ideas’

The best-selling novelist explains why his new retelling of Homer’s epic offers the ideal antidote to the age of Trump

Yann Martel’s writing studio, where he sits while we talk over Zoom, is a mere 10ft by 12ft; beyond his treadmill desk lie the drifts of snow that separate him from the house he shares with his wife, writer Alice Kuipers, and their four children. Martel was born in Spain, but his father’s academic work took the family to places including Portugal, France, Costa Rica and Alaska; perhaps it’s no surprise that, after all that travelling, he’s been settled in Saskatoon, Canada, for many years. But his novels couldn’t be any less rooted, in time or place: from the sea-tossed raft of the Booker prize-winning Life of Pi to the Dante-inspired Beatrice and Virgil and the era-shifting triptych of The High Mountains of Portugal, Martel is clearly possessed of an itinerant imagination.

Now comes Son of Nobody, for which Martel has written what the novel’s dismissive professor would term “pseudo-Homerica”; a version of the Trojan war seen from the perspective of an unknown soldier, Psoas, and discovered by an eager researcher in present-day Oxford, Harlow Donne. The poem appears in full, with Harlow’s story – including the breakdown of his marriage and his relationship with his young daughter, Helen – presented via digressive footnotes, at times scholarly but just as often humorous and domestic.

Here are three ways we can turn anti-Trump solidarity into political power | Robert Reich

The No Kings protests affirmed widespread opposition to Trump’s actions. As the midterms approach, we have an opportunity

Last weekend, millions of us once again affirmed the foundation of the common good.

Across America, people showed their solidarity – in opposition to Trump’s ill-considered war in Iran, with immigrants being targeted by ICE and border patrol agents, with current and former public officials whom Trump is prosecuting, with the students and universities whose freedom to learn and speak continues to be threatened by Trump, in favor of the earth and stopping climate change, and with every American who’s determined to reject dictatorship.

Target vulnerable Republican senators and House members. Either get them to switch parties or become independents who caucus with Democrats, or flip their seats.

Republican majorities are razor-thin in both chambers, and some Republicans who represent purple districts and states are struggling to keep their Republican supporters behind them. (They’re also struggling with their own consciences in continuing to support Trump’s authoritarian fascism.)

Begin organizing and mobilizing now to get out the vote for November’s midterm elections – aiming for Democratic takeovers of both chambers of Congress by wide margins, which will severely limit what Trump can do after January 2027.

The key will be to get out the vote. Make a plan. Use phone trees. Write postcards. Arrange transportation for people who need it.

Root out and challenge any Trump Republican attempt to intimidate likely Democratic voters or manipulate the election process.

It’s important that neither Trump nor his state lapdogs diminish the turnout of likely Democratic voters in the weeks leading up to the November midterms – by stationing federal agents near polling places, interfering with the counting or certifying of ballots, or altering laws and rules to make it harder to vote.

Robert Reich, a former US secretary of labor, is a professor of public policy emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley. He is a Guardian US columnist and his newsletter is at robertreich.substack.com. His new book, Coming Up Short: A Memoir of My America, is out now in the US and in the UK

These rock-climbing fish can shimmy up a 50-foot waterfall

New research from the Democratic Republic of Congo offers a behavioral and anatomical portrait of a species that can achieve surprising athletic feats.

Polymarket removes wagers on U.S. service member rescue mission in Iran

Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., called the market "DISGUSTING" and said bettors were wagering on whether American troops would be saved.

This is how we do it: ‘The fact he’s comfortable enough with his sexuality to be intimate with other men is so hot to me’

Before Miguel, Sandra’s sex life was rather vanilla. When they got together, he suggested swinging – and all that changed

• How do you do it? Share the story of your sex life, anonymously

I never thought, when I was a pregnant Catholic teenager, that I’d have this lifestyle, but my God, it’s fun

She can’t get enough of hearing about my hook-ups, and I can’t get enough of the fact that she can’t get enough

Comeuppance: how an orgasmic ‘cult’ ended in a prison term for its founder

Nicole Daedone, who promised spiritual wellbeing through her OneTaste enterprise, received a nine-year sentence but some question if freedom of thought is being criminalized

Clitoral stimulation as a path to spiritual connection, mental clarity and emotional wellbeing has been practiced for millennia. After being convicted on forced labor conspiracy charges related to the practice (and getting sentenced to nine years by a Brooklyn court last week), Nicole Daedone was given the opportunity to address the court.

Known as the “The Oracle” of OneTaste, a trademarked orgasmic meditation enterprise that extolled the benefits of hours of arousal, Daedone, 57, swiveled her chair toward the public gallery, smiled broadly, and said: “No.”

In Lebanon, more than 50 medics have been killed by Israel. Some say they're targeted

Lebanon says at least 54 health workers are among more than 1,400 people killed by Israel during the current invasion. Human rights groups say first responders are being targeted — something Israel denies.

Mexican art world protests over plan to send Frida Kahlo masterpieces to Spain

Cultural figures sign open letter asking government for clarity on how long landmark collection will remain abroad

One of the world’s most important collections of 20th-century Mexican art, including works by Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera, is set to be exported to Spain under an agreement with Banco Santander, sparking outrage among Mexico’s cultural community.

Nearly 400 cultural professionals have signed an open letter calling on the Mexican government to offer greater clarity on what the deal means for the masterpieces, particularly the works by Kahlo, which the Mexican state has declared an “artistic monument”.

See which stores are open and closed for Easter 2026

Some major retailers and other stores will close their doors on Easter, so it's best to plan ahead. Here's what to know.

Questions to help you get 'financially naked' with your partner

Having "brutally honest conversations" about money can bring couples closer together, says Vivian Tu, a financial educator. She shares questions to ask your partner at every relationship stage.

More teens are getting hooked on gambling. Parents say it often goes undetected

The explosion of online gambling and sports betting, as well as the advertising behind it, is attracting a growing number of young people, most of them boys.

Joe Rogan and the influencers who built Maga are revolting over Iran. Was this an alliance doomed to fail? | Jason Okundaye

Unlike Trump’s cronies in the White House, outside voices are not so easily disciplined. There’s a lesson here for all future political movements

If you spend enough time swiping online, you may have seen skits by the American comedian and influencer Druski (real name Drew Desbordes), in which he parodies everything from Republican patriots to flashy mega churches. Once again, he has exploded on social media channels with a skit satirising “conservative women in America”, a nakedly targeted roast of Erika Kirk, now the CEO of Turning Point USA (TPUSA) after her husband, Charlie Kirk, was assassinated last year.

Predictably, it has drawn conservative backlash, with Ted Cruz calling the video “beneath contempt”. But Desbordes is far from the only one mocking Erika Kirk. Her entrances to the Charlie Kirk memorial and TPUSA’s AmericaFest have been widely memed online for their surreal, WrestleMania-like production and pyrotechnics. In fact, much of the opprobrium comes from her own side. Far-right live streamer Nick Fuentes has disparaged Kirk’s public appearances after her husband’s death (“she looks like she’s over the moon”), and commentator and conspiracy theorist Candace Owens, a former darling of TPUSA, repeatedly takes aim at her (Owens describes Druski’s skit as “hilarious”).

Jason Okundaye is an assistant Opinion editor at the Guardian

‘I was getting down with a guy and he decided to put on One Love. It was creepy’: Duncan James from Blue’s honest playlist

The Blue singer thinks Aqua deserve respect and his mum once did karaoke with a legend. But what record did he buy to please his nan - with mixed results?

The song I inexplicably know all the lyrics to
Can’t Help Falling in Love by Elvis – the song I sent off on tape as my audition to Blue.

The song I do at karaoke
I had my 30th birthday party in a karaoke bar above a Chinese restaurant. My mum was doing It’s Raining Men by Geri Halliwell, just as Geri herself walked in, so she grabbed her, brought her on stage, and went: “Sing. It’s your song.” I thought: “Mum. She’s just arrived. Chill out!”

An AI bot invited me to its party in Manchester. It was a pretty good night

After forgetting the nibbles, refusing my costume requests and emailing GCHQ, ‘Gaskell’ did at least get us to show up

Two weeks ago, an AI bot invited me to a party it was organising in Manchester. It then promptly lied to dozens of potential sponsors that I’d agreed to cover the event, and misled me into believing there would be food.

Despite all this, it was a pretty good night.

Robbery reveals sinister plot to kill a man with a root beer float

When Harold Allen died suddenly in his home in Freetown, Indiana, no one suspected anything out of the ordinary. Nine months later, a burglary at his home would lead to a murder investigation and an unusual weapon.

Woman charged in root beer float murder orders hit on best friend

Nearly a year after her husband Harold Allen died, Marsha Allen's Indiana home was burglarized. The burglar alleged her daughter, Ashley Jones, was behind it all.

Trump unleashes curse-filled social media rant at Iran after U.S. rescues colonel

In a profanity-laden post on Truth Social, President Trump lashed out at Iran and injected new volatility into the conflict, hours after U.S. forces carried out a high-risk rescue mission.

Billboard trolls missing woman's husband suspected of her murder

Dee Warner's brother, Gregg Hardy, says he was being sarcastic when he wrote the billboard in Lenawee County, Michigan, that read "Help Dale Find Dee." Dale Warner denies he ever harmed his wife.

My teenage daughter’s OCD keeps getting worse. What can I do? | Ask Annalisa Barbieri

Exposure response prevention may help her to cope with her anxiety and learn that she doesn’t need to respond to intrusive thoughts

My daughter is 15 and has lived with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) for some time. Her compulsions change – counting, repetitive actions such as flicking light switches a certain number of times, showering/brushing her teeth in a particular order, placing things in her bedroom in a certain way …

She has had two courses of private therapy, but neither seemed to help. Both focused on the compulsions – for example, they’d encourage her to tackle one ritual at a time and try to eliminate it. It felt as though they were addressing the symptoms rather than the cause – new rituals can come to her in the moment and if one ritual is eliminated, it will quickly be replaced.

‘Nobody would forgive me if I told the truth’: new film about pacifist turned Nazi collaborator divides France

In Les Rayons et les Ombres, Jean Dujardin plays a real-life press baron partying during the horrors of the second world war. Director Xavier Giannoli discusses bringing this still sensitive topic to light

Xavier Giannoli’s new film Les Rayons et les Ombres (Rays and Shadows) is told from the postwar perspective of Corinne Luchaire, a French actor who was once hailed as “the new Garbo” but grew too close to the Nazis during the German occupation years. As Luchaire records her thoughts on a borrowed tape recorder, she struggles to reconcile her unfaltering devotion to her father, the once-powerful press baron Jean, with his 1946 execution for treason.

Her wilful blindness collapses as the Jewish director who helped launch her career visits her cramped flat. When Corinne, played by newcomer Nastya Golubeva Carax, enquires after his sister, he reveals that she died in a concentration camp. “I didn’t know,” murmurs Corinne, only to be met with the devastating reply: “Did you even try to find out?”

Is the UK falling out of love with social media?

Ofcom data points to more passive consumption amid changes to apps and fears about mental health and past posts

Posting significant events in your life, from birthdays to weddings and promotions, is a social media staple. But Jenny, like many other Britons recently, has hesitated over contributing to the infinite scroll.

“I wouldn’t have even posted my wedding really,” she says. “But I had to because … There’s like an etiquette. Nobody else can post your wedding until you’ve posted. So my friends were like: ‘Please post, it’s been like a week.’”

Driver charged with DWI after vehicle crashes into crowd at Louisiana parade

Officials said the incident does not appear to be an intentional act based on a preliminary investigation.

The $100,000 H-1B visa fee is impacting the U.S.'s ability to attract global talent

According to numbers from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, more than 70% of H-1B visa holders in 2024 were Indian.