Meta shares jump 10% on stronger-than-expected revenue forecast

Meta reported fourth-quarter earnings on Wednesday that topped estimates and issued stronger-than-expected sales guidance.

Microsoft shows gain on OpenAI investment after restructuring as cloud growth slows

Microsoft’s finances look more favorable after OpenAI completed a restructuring.

Southwest Airlines forecasts surge in 2026 profits after new seat, bag fees take hold

Napoli 2-3 Chelsea: Champions League – live reaction

⚽️ Updates from the 8pm (GMT) kick-off in Naples
⚽️ Live scores | Full table | Clockwatch | Mail John

Liam Rosenior spoke to TNT ahead of kick-off: ““It’s been a positive start. Firstly the players and their engagement and attitude and willingness to learn, I think they have enjoyed it as well. Tonight is another big test for us and if we manage to come through it , it gives us a great chance of being in the top eight.”

“They are very good on transition. They are very organised in their press. From what I’ve seen they will press us really, really high, whether that is from a 3-4-3 or a 5-4-1. They have outstanding players. They build well from the back. It is going to be a difficult game and we are prepared for it.”

Champions League: Benfica keeper earns playoff place; Liverpool, Spurs and City book top-eight spots – live

⚽️ Real Madrid, PSG and Newcastle head to playoffs
⚽️ Live scores | Table | Permutations | Napoli 2-3 Chelsea

Napoli Meret, Di Lorenzo, Juan Jesus, Buongiorno, Spinazzola, Lobotka, McTominay, Olivera, Vergara, Elmas, Hojlund.

Subs: Contini, Spinelli, Gutierrez, Lukaku, Beukema, De Chiara, Garofalo.

TikTok's new privacy policy is sparking a backlash. Here's what to know.

Some TikTok users are raising questions about the app's new terms and conditions after the social media platform's split from its China-based parent.

Immigrant released from detention after judge threatens ICE chief with contempt ruling

Minneapolis has become a focal point of immigration enforcement actions by the Trump administration, whose agents have killed two U.S. citizens there.

Carvana shares fall 14% following short-seller accusations

Carvana shares closed Wednesday at $410.04, down 14.2% following short-seller accusations of the online used retailer overstating earnings.

Gerber recalls some arrowroot biscuits over potential plastic, paper pieces

The recall affects several batches of the 5.5-ounce Gerber Arrowroot Biscuits, the FDA said.

Tesla to invest $2 billion in xAI, Elon Musk's OpenAI competitor

In its earnings report on Wednesday, Tesla said it invested $2 billion in xAI, Elon Musk's artificial intelligence startup.

Here are the five key takeaways from Wednesday's Fed rate decision

The Federal Reserve wrapped up a two-day policy meeting Wednesday, delivering pretty much what the market expected.

Two agents who shot Alex Pretti put on leave as Trump tries to quell backlash

Fallout from second fatal shooting amid immigration operation in city dogs White House, though raids continue

• US politics – live updates

The two agents who fatally shot a man in Minneapolis over the weekend have been on administrative leave since Saturday, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said on Wednesday, as Donald Trump tried to quell the backlash even while immigration raids in the city continued.

The move, which the DHS emphasized is standard protocol when agents are involved in fatal shootings, comes as the president suggested he would “de-escalate” his immigration enforcement crackdown in the state, but without offering details or whether tactics would change.

Microsoft shrugs off AI bubble fears again with strong financial results

Company reports second-quarter revenues of $81.27bn but posts slowing growth in key cloud computing business

Investor interest in Microsoft’s shares may have weakened in recent months, but the company posted strong financial results on Wednesday that yet again demonstrated that the AI boom is roaring on.

Microsoft reported earnings for the second quarter of fiscal year that are likely to keep the party going for Wall Street, despite slowing growth in its key cloud computing business.

Fed holds interest rates steady in first meeting of 2026

The Federal Open Market Committee kept the federal funds rate steady, following three rate cuts last year.

Tesla tops estimates for quarter, but wraps up first annual revenue drop on record

Tesla's earnings report comes weeks after Elon Musk's automaker reported another decline in vehicle deliveries.

Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase to contribute $1,000 to Trump Accounts

Two of the biggest U.S. banks said they would match a $1,000 federal contribution for employees who open a Trump Account, touting the plan as a way to save money.

Meta’s Reality Labs posts $6.02 billion loss in fourth quarter

Meta’s Reality Labs posts $6.02 billion loss in fourth quarter.

Bessent defends Powell probe: "Independence does not mean no accountability"

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent tells CBS News that Federal Reserve officials must be "beyond reproach" in communicating with the public.

ICE thwarted from entering Ecuador’s consulate in Minneapolis by employee

Action comes amid federal agencies’ campaign in the city, prompting an official complaint to US embassy in Quito

An Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent attempted to enter Ecuador’s consulate in Minneapolis, but was turned back by an employee, prompting an official complaint to the US embassy in Quito, the country’s foreign ministry said.

The Tuesday incident came as ICE and other federal agencies continue their aggressive campaign of arresting people in Minnesota’s largest city suspected of being in the United States illegally, despite outrage over the deaths of two US citizens in the operation dubbed “Metro Surge”.

Russo rounds off Arsenal rout of AS Far in Women’s Champions Cup semi-final

• Arsenal 6-0 AS Far (Blackstenius 8, Maanum 12, Caldentey 21pen, Smith 41, Russo 66 76)

• Arsenal play Corinthians of Brazil in Sunday’s final

A businesslike performance against AS Far earned Arsenal a place in Sunday’s final of the inaugural Fifa Women’s Champions Cup against Corinthians.

Four goals in the first half – from Stina Blackstenius, Frida Maanum, Mariona Caldentey and Olivia Smith – allowed Renée Slegers to rotate players and rest some legs and the substitute Alessia Russo added two after the break to complete the rout.

Michael Mayo's 'Fly' is a soaring testament to his artistry and creative vision

 Vocalist Michael Mayo reached new heights through his latest album Fly, with the project earning the crooner his first Grammy nominations of his career.

Senate Democrats release demands as clock ticks toward partial government shutdown

Senate Democrats released their list of demands to reform immigration enforcement and fund the government Wednesday, with little time to avert a partial government shutdown.

Federal Reserve holds interest rates as Trump piles on pressure

Fed voted to pause cuts to interest rate, which currently sits between 3.5% and 3.75%, after slashing it three times in fall

The US Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged after its first rate-setting meeting of the year on Wednesday, resisting enormous pressure from the White House to lower rates.

A majority of members in the Fed’s federal open market committee (FOMC) voted to pause interest rate cuts after slashing rates three times in the fall. Rates currently sit at a range of 3.5% to 3.75%.

‘I was violated and put in extreme danger’: women denied abortions sue over Arkansas ban

Suit filed by Amplify Legal says laws violate constitutional right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness

As Emily Waldorf languished in an Arkansas hospital, she felt like “a ticking time bomb”. It was 2024, and the physical therapist was in the midst of miscarrying a much-wanted pregnancy. But because her fetus still had a heartbeat, hospital officials said Arkansas’s near-total abortion ban blocked them from taking steps to induce labor and end her pregnancy.

Instead, Waldorf had to wait and hope that she didn’t develop a deadly infection.

Fed holds key interest rate steady as economic view improves

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday released its decision on interest rates.

Fed has not yet complied with subpoenas as Powell probe continues: Source

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell says the criminal investigation resulted from frustration by President Donald Trump over interest rate decisions.

Crypto PAC Fairshake touts $193 million war chest as regulatory bill faces first vote

"With the midterms approaching, we are united behind our mission with Fairshake continuing to oppose anti-crypto politicians," the PAC's spokesperson said.

ICE agents expected to be deployed for Super Bowl in California, officials say

Local officials confirmed that ICE will conduct immigration operations during 8 February game in Santa Clara

US Customs and Immigration Enforcement (ICE) agents are expected to conduct immigration enforcement operations during next month’s Super Bowl game in Santa Clara, California.

Local officials confirmed to media that ICE is expected to deploy for the game between the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots. ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations team has long worked the Super Bowl and other major sporting events, largely focused on preventing human trafficking and stopping the sale of counterfeit goods, but immigration operations would be unusual.

The FBI conducts a search at the Fulton County election office in Georgia

The FBI would not clarify whether the action is tied to the 2020 election, but last month the Department of Justice announced it's suing Fulton County for records related to the election.

Federal agents involved in Pretti shooting placed on administrative leave, source says

The federal agents who were involved in Saturday's deadly shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis have been placed on administrative leave, a federal law enforcement official confirmed to CBS News.

Le scoop! France’s last newspaper hawker celebrated with prestigious award

Ali Akbar, 73, honoured by Emmanuel Macron with National Order of Merit for dedication he pours into work

For more than five decades he’s pounded the pavements of Paris, becoming part of the city’s cultural fabric as he strikes up conversations, greets longtime friends and offers parodies of daily news headlines.

On Wednesday, the efforts of the man believed to be France’s last newspaper hawker were recognised, as Ali Akbar, a 73-year-old originally from Pakistan, received one of France’s most prestigious honours.

Threat of US-Iran war escalates as Trump warns time running out for deal

US president says armada heading towards Iran is ‘prepared to fulfil its missions with violence if necessary’

The threat of war between the US and Iran appeared to loom closer after Donald Trump told Tehran time was running out and that a huge US armada was moving quickly towards the country “with great power, enthusiasm and purpose”.

Writing on social media, the US president said on Wednesday that the fleet headed by the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln was larger than the one sent to Venezuela before the removal of Nicolás Maduro earlier this month and was “prepared to rapidly fulfil its missions with speed and violence if necessary”.

Here's what changed in the new Fed statement

This is a comparison of Wednesday's Federal Open Market Committee statement with the one issued after the Fed's previous policymaking meeting in December.

Fed holds interest rates steady, taking a pause from rate cuts to assess the economy

The central bank cut rates at its three previous meetings in an effort to support the job market. But with inflation still elevated, the Fed is cautious about additional rate cuts.

Trump's National Guard deployments could cost over $1 billion this year, CBO projects

The operation in Washington, D.C. alone is projected to cost upwards of $660 million if it runs through the end of this year as expected, according to new data released by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.

The Fed releases its latest interest rate decision Wednesday. Here's what to expect

This week's meeting offers little suspense and probably not much action, even as massive changes loom over the Fed's longer-term direction.

‘If you want to nuke your life, do crack’: raw Courtney Love documentary hits Sundance

Antiheroine, a new film about the musician’s tumultuous life and career, premiered at the festival with some frank admissions but the star not present

A new documentary about the gen X icon and “queen of grunge” Courtney Love caused a stir at the Sundance film festival – without the legendary Hole frontwoman in attendance.

The musician and actor, now 61, was supposed to attend the premiere of Antiheroine, a new retrospective documentary by Edward Lovelace and James Hall that traces her storied life and career, but did not make it for undisclosed reasons. “We’re really gutted that Courtney couldn’t make it tonight to celebrate this moment with us all,” said Lovelace in his introduction for the film’s premiere in Park City, Utah, calling Love “so unfiltered, so truthful”.

Pete Songi on Keir Starmer’s trip to China – cartoon

Continue reading...

The Guardian view on Keir Starmer in China: engagement is necessary, caution is vital | Editorial

The prime minister cannot wish away the contradictions between upholding democratic values and pursuing commercial interests with Beijing

It has been clear for many years that China’s status as a second global superpower poses challenges to the world’s democracies. Donald Trump’s marauding behaviour as president of the first-placed superpower makes those challenges more acute. In the past, the UK’s relationship with Beijing has been anchored, and sometimes dictated, by the alliance with Washington. Mr Trump’s contempt for former allies, expressed as sabotage of Nato and a scattergun imposition of tariffs, scrambles the old strategic calculus.

This is an ominous backdrop for Sir Keir Starmer’s visit to Beijing. The prime minister is trying to perform a difficult balancing act, looking for commercial opportunity in a growing powerhouse while protecting national security from an authoritarian behemoth.

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.

Rubio: U.S. doesn't expect to take further military action in Venezuela "at any time"

Secretary of State Marco Rubio testified before Congress about Nicolás Maduro's capture and the future of Venezuela, and also fielded questions about Iran and Greenland.

Starmer thaws China relations: what’s at stake? - The Latest

Keir Starmer has landed in China to meet Xi Jinping, in the first trip to the country by a British prime minister in eight years. But Starmer is facing myriad issues, including pressure to try to secure the release of Jimmy Lai, the jailed former media tycoon and one of Hong Kong’s most significant pro-democracy voices, as well as raising other human rights concerns.

On top of that he has the difficult task of trying to boost trade with China without triggering the fury of Donald Trump.

Nosheen Iqbal speaks to the Guardian’s political editor, Pippa Crerar, who joins from Beijing.

Dozens confirmed dead as extreme cold continues to grip much of U.S.

The death toll continues to rise from a massive winter storm that left an ongoing spell of freezing weather in its wake.

See You When I See You review – familar Sundance-y grief comedy drama has its moments

Sundance film festival: Jay Duplass recruits David Duchovny, Hope Davis and Kaitlyn Dever for a patchy, poignant tale

If anyone can speak to the “end of an era” nostalgia coursing through the legacy-minded 2026 Sundance film festival, its final edition in Park City and its first without founder Robert Redford, it would be Jay Duplass. The film-maker first attended the indie festival along with his brother, Mark, in 2003, with a self-proclaimed “$3 film”, then went on to premiere three projects – The Puffy Chair, Baghead and Cyrus – that epitomized the much-debated, very indie mumblecore movement of yore. For the Duplass brothers, the festival was, as it has been for many a small-budget artist trying to break out, the difference between a career and another $3 film. Without Sundance, he recently joked: “I’d probably be a psychologist right now.”

Psychologist sympathies peek through See You When I See You, Duplass’s feature film return to the festival after 16 years largely focused on acting and directing episodic television, notably for Togetherness, Search Party and the criminally underseen Somebody, Somewhere. An earnest adaptation of comedian Adam Cayton-Holland’s memoir, Tragedy Plus Time, the 102-minute film is both a straightforward tribute to psychotherapy and a tightrope walk of tone, attempting to balance profound grief with breezy comedy for a family reeling from a shocking loss.

See You When I See You is screening at the Sundance film festival and is seeking distribution

The potato bed: is this the ultimate sleep solution?

It requires copious pillows and duvets, and has gone viral on social media. Will this elaborate new sleeping set-up give you a cosy night’s rest – or just exacerbate your back pain?

Name: The potato bed.

Age: About two months.

Live TV report on cougar capture in San Francisco neighborhood interrupted by coyote

‘Your eyes do not deceive you,’ ABC7 told viewers about unexpected turn during report from Pacific Heights

Live television reporting about an incident where a young mountain lion was safely tranquilized and captured in San Francisco’s Pacific Heights neighborhood took an unexpected turn on Tuesday when a coyote wandered into the background during the broadcast.

During live coverage of the feline’s capture, the ABC7 News reporter Frances Wang was on camera when an unexpected urban resident passed behind her. A coyote calmly walked through the shot, unnoticed as she continued reporting. Video of the moment quickly gained attention for the visual irony of one wild predator being removed as another freely roamed the city streets.

First female archbishop of Canterbury vows to call out misogyny

Sarah Mullally confirmed as 106th person to take up post as some African church leaders express dismay at appointment

The first female archbishop of Canterbury has marked her confirmation in the role with a vow to speak out about misogyny while questions continue about her record on safeguarding.

Sarah Mullally took part in a service at St Paul’s Cathedral which legally confirmed her as the 106th person to take up the post and the first woman in the role. Some African church leaders have expressed dismay at the appointment.

‘I wasn’t going to be diverted,’ says King Charles about campaign on the environment

Monarch says he has remained focused despite early criticisms of his beliefs, in new film Finding Harmony: A King’s Vision

King Charles has revealed he “wasn’t going to be diverted” from his environmental campaigning despite criticism in the past in a new documentary showcasing his philosophy of “Harmony”.

In the Amazon Prime Video film, his first project with a streaming platform, Charles recalls past attacks on his outspokenness on the environment, saying: “I just felt this was the approach that I was going to stick to. A course I set and I wasn’t going to be diverted from.”

Patrick Reed quits rebel LIV Golf tour in latest blow to Saudi-backed breakaway

• American becomes latest major winner to exit

• 2018 Masters champion will be eligible for PGA Tour

Patrick Reed has delivered the ­latest high-profile blow to LIV Golf by announcing he will leave the circuit before the start of its 2026 season.

The 35-year-old American former Masters champion joins Brooks Koepka by instead focusing on the PGA Tour. Reed will spend his immediate time on the DP World Tour, where he won the Dubai Desert Classic on Sunday. Reed tees up in Bahrain from Thursday.

Apple's Tim Cook calls for "de-escalation" after Alex Pretti's killing

Cook is joining other CEOs in weighing in on federal immigration enforcement following Pretti's killing on Jan. 24.

Ian McEwan calls for assisted dying rights to extend to dementia sufferers

The author, whose family has been impacted by dementia, says provision in living wills could clarify intentions when a person declines to the point they are ‘alive and dead all at once’

Legalised assisted dying should “gradually” be extended to dementia sufferers, the author Ian McEwan has said.

McEwan was “shocked by the snow-drilling attempts” by those opposed to the UK’s assisted dying bill, he told a public book event in London, citing its more than 1,000 amendments. MPs and peers backing the bill now believe it is “near impossible” for it to pass the House of Lords before the end of the session in May due to alleged filibustering.

Rubio declines to rule out further US military action in Venezuela at Senate hearing

Secretary of state says administration does not intend to take such action but Trump ‘does reserve the option’

Marco Rubio has declined to rule out future US military action in Venezuela but insisted the Trump administration did not intend to take such steps, as he faced questions from lawmakers over Washington’s unprecedented intervention.

The US secretary of state appeared before the Senate foreign relations committee on Wednesday to defend the removal of Nicolás Maduro, which has left Venezuela under the control of interim president Delcy Rodríguez while the US seizes and sells its oil.

Man sprays Rep. Ilhan Omar with unknown substance at town hall

Rep. Ilhan Omar was calling for the abolishment of ICE and for Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to resign when a man sitting in the front row rushed up and sprayed her. He was arrested and Omar was not injured, police said.

Zanotti fires Corinthians to shock semi-final win over Gotham in Women’s Champions Cup

• Gotham FC 0-1 Corinthians (Zanotti 83)

• Corinthians’ 40-year-old captain scores late winner

Corinthians earned a stunning victory against Gotham FC in the first semi-final of the inaugural Fifa Women’s Champions Cup, a goal from the 40-year-old Corinthians captain Gabi Zanotti in the 83rd minute the difference.

“Everyone was talking about maybe Gotham and Arsenal in the final but Corinthians are here and we played a very good game to beat the NWSL champions,” their manager, Lucas Piccinato, said. “We know what we can do.”

Are people really going to see Amazon’s $75m Melania documentary?

This weekend sees the release of a controversially funded film about the first lady, directed by a disgraced film-maker

It’s not often that a presidential administration faces a direct referendum at the box office. Sure, there was more than a hint of rebuke in Michael Moore’s 2004 documentary Fahrenheit 9/11 unexpectedly becoming the biggest-grossing non-music-or-nature documentary of all time (and highest full stop in North America) while taking re-election-year shots at George W Bush (who went on to squeak out another victory anyway). But that movie was also sold on Moore himself, a recent Oscar winner and fixture in both film and television by that point. Bush was excoriated, but he wasn’t exactly getting top billing. The unambiguous star of this weekend’s Trump-approved documentary is right there in the title: Melania. It’s coming to 1,500 theaters this weekend from Amazon/MGM.

Relatively few documentaries receive a wide release (though Melania is going out in about half as many theaters as last weekend’s Amazon release, the Chris Pratt vehicle Mercy), so comparison points are relatively few. Box office predictions generally place the movie well under Moore’s unlikely high-water mark for the form. Some are guessing the opening weekend will pull in about $1m, which would comfortably keep it off the list of the worst wide openings of all time (the record low for a new release in around 1,500 theaters is about $330,000) but would nonetheless qualify it as a bomb. Others estimate that it will go as high as $5m, putting it in line with rightwing docs like Am I Racist?, the highest-grossing documentary of 2024, which ended its run with $12m. As the Hollywood Reporter points out, technically inching ahead of Am I Racist? and the recent faith-based After Death would boast the biggest non-music launch for a documentary of the past decade.

The federal agents deployed in Trump’s immigration crackdown – visualized

These are the agencies detaining people across the US – mostly, but not all, under the umbrella of the Department of Homeland Security

When the Trump administration ordered a surge of armed federal immigration enforcement personnel on to the streets of Minneapolis, the Department of Homeland Security declared it the largest operation in its history and the liberal midwestern city became Donald Trump’s latest chosen hotspot.

Such escalations mark the US president’s agenda of mass arrests and deportations from the US interior. The highest-profile efforts involve officers from multiple agencies rushing to prominent Democratic-led US cities, against local leaders’ wishes. But coast to coast, federal officers have been raiding homes, businesses, commercial parking lots – even schools, hospitals and courthouses. The efforts have delighted the president’s hardcore Make America Great Again voter base, but are also tearing families apart and spreading fear and even death on the streets and in detention.

Can you become ugly if you have ugly thoughts?

Our perception of a person’s physical beauty is colored by our perception of their behavior – but what if we divorced inner and outer beauty?

Hey Ugly,

They say we end up with the face we deserve. When we think “ugly” (hurtful, spiteful, non-constructive) thoughts, our faces tense and harden. Similarly, when I ignore my needs, my face shows me signs of it.

Infinite Icon: A Visual Memoir review – Paris Hilton’s act of self-love shows there’s nothing behind the mask

A look behind the scenes of the star’s second album turns out to reveal exactly what you’d expect, at arduous length

Paris Hilton here presents us with an unbearable act of docu-self-love, avowedly a behind-the-scenes study of her second studio album, Infinite Icon, and where she’s at as a musician, survivor and mom. But maybe there is, in fact, nothing behind the scenes; judging by this, the scenes are all there is: Insta-exhibitionism, empty phrases and show.

Hilton’s second album no doubt has its admirers and detractors, and her fans are perfectly happy with it. But this film, for which she is executive producer, is an indiscriminate non-curation of narcissism and torpid self-importance that seems to go on and on and on for ever; the longest two hours of anyone’s life, finally signing off with a splodge of uninteresting and unedited concert footage.

Dutch government discriminated against Bonaire islanders over climate adaptation, court rules

Judgment in The Hague orders Netherlands to do more to protect Caribbean people in its territory from impacts of climate crisis

The Dutch government discriminated against people in one of its most vulnerable territories by not helping them adapt to climate change, a court has found.

The judgment, announced on Wednesday in The Hague, chastises the Netherlands for treating people on the island of Bonaire, in the Caribbean, differently to inhabitants of the European part of the country and for not doing its fair share to cut national emissions.

Two are dead in Minneapolis. Trump is to blame | Kenneth Roth

The US president bears political responsibility for having greenlighted ICE agents’ regularly lawless conduct

As public outrage grows over the killing of two protesters by Donald Trump’s deportation agents in Minneapolis, the White House is going into damage-control mode. It has its work cut out for it. Trump didn’t pull the triggers that killed Renee Good and Alex Pretti, but he bears political responsibility for having greenlighted the agents’ regularly lawless conduct.

Good and Pretti should not have been killed. As far as can be seen in the ample video evidence that has emerged, neither posed a threat to the agents at the scene or anyone else. Their sole “offense” was to take a stand against the deportation raids. Yet trigger-happy agents needlessly shot them – Good as she was turning her car away from the agents, Pretti while he was restrained by agents on the ground. There was no plausible self-defense to justify these killings.

‘Do you want to say I’m dated?’ Artist Anne Imhof on her S&M Venice shocker – and the show that earned a mauling

She was the art world’s hottest ticket after her confrontational goths-and-dobermans show at the Venice Biennale. But did she get too cosy with the worlds of fashion and advertising?

‘I don’t know what you want to know,” says Anne Imhof, three-quarters of the way into our interview. Her cautious smile, between curtains of jet black hair, changes into a sceptical pout. I have just quoted a headline at Imhof, one of Germany’s most important contemporary artists, that described her 2025 New York show as “a bad Balenciaga ad”.

Just a few years ago, Imhof was the hottest ticket on the international art circuit: a Golden Lion winner at the 2017 Venice Biennale, whose transformation of the German pavilion into a sinister, S&M-flavoured “catwalk show from hell” had masses scrambling to join the queue. Imhof was a cultural polymath whose shows combined etchings, paintings, dance, live music and film; a muse to fashion designers whose sporty goth aesthetic – Adidas tracksuit bottoms, chunky trainers, black leather – beseiged the clubs of Berlin and beyond.

Badenoch shoots herself in the foot on the Tories’ long march to the right | John Crace

Not content with haemorrhaging MPs to Reform, Kemi decides to drive others into the arms of the Lib Dems

A minute’s silence for Kemi Badenoch. Thoughts and prayers welcome. The Tory party leader just can’t help herself. Every time you think that, just maybe, she is beginning to get the hang of the job, she comes up with something so deranged, so batshit that you can only sit back and admire the self-destruction. Almost as if she can’t bear any idea of success. Bewilderingly, sabotaging herself seems to be her default coping mechanism. Someone who can only find satisfaction in annihilating her own party. Sometimes you even wonder if she has ever been a Tory.

Like so much of Kemi’s behaviour, this was all totally avoidable. There was no need for her to do or say anything. With Keir Starmer away in China, this was a week off for her from prime minister’s questions. A slot she would delegate to the even more useless Andrew Griffith. Clearly Badenoch does not welcome any competition so Griffith might get the deputy leader job for good.

Inside the Trump administration's effort to reverse climate change policies

President Trump calls global warming "a hoax." As the U.S. faces more severe storms and extreme weather events, the New York Times' David Gelles describes what this means for climate change policy. 

Till DVD release do us part: how far will Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi take their Wuthering Heights showmance?

We’ve had declarations of obsession, we’ve had notification of their matching rings … can someone please throw some cold water over this press tour love-fest?

Even though it isn’t released for another fortnight, you may already have formed strong opinions about Emerald Fennell’s Wuthering Heights. Perhaps you hold the position that the novel is a text so sacred that any adaptation whatsoever is equivalent to sacrilege. Or maybe you are excited to see what a noted iconoclast such as Fennell will do with something as fusty as a 179-year-old book.

Either way, it is likely that your key takeaway from the Wuthering Heights press tour so far is that it’s getting a bit much. It has now been revealed that Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi have matching rings decorated with two hugging skeletons and the phrase “Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same”.

Southwest ends open seating after 54 years. Here's what the last flight was like

Southwest Airlines replaced open seating with assigned seats after more than 50 years.

‘Fascists threatened us but we always took them on’: the anarchic Bradford club still fighting after 45 years

A new book and podcast tell the story of a 1 in 12, a venue that used community and artistic passion as bulwarks against poverty and grim politics. Its founders and key acts recall gigs, plays and pranks on the NME

“Things were getting grim,” says Gary Cavanagh, reflecting on Bradford in the early 1980s. “There was a hell of a lot of unemployment, and people were thrown on the scrap heap.”

Cavanagh was working for Bradford’s claimants union in 1981, helping the city’s poor and unemployed get benefits, when a government report stated that one in 12 dole recipients were defrauding the state. So he and some friends reclaimed this statistic – which they thought was ludicrous – as an identity. “We became the 1 in 12 Club,” he says.

Here's what to know about the $50 billion states are getting for rural health

To satisfy Republicans opposed to last summer's cuts to health care, the Trump administration launched an ambitious 5-year initiative known as the Rural Health Transformation Program.

Imran Khan’s health in ‘grave danger’ after eye blockage diagnosis, party says

PTI reports Pakistan’s jailed former PM being denied proper medical treatment and visits from family and lawyers

Pakistan’s incarcerated former prime minister Imran Khan is facing severe eye damage and is being denied proper access to medical treatment while in solitary confinement, officials from his political party say.

Khan, 73, considered Pakistan’s most high-profile political prisoner, has been in jail since August 2023. He is serving sentences for corruption and leaking state secrets, which he has claimed are part of a state-sponsored campaign to keep him out of power.

Tax season is here — don't fall for these common scams

The FTC is warning taxpayers to keep an eye out for phishing and smishing scams aimed at stealing tax refunds and personal data.

Leon Goretzka says Donald Trump ‘makes us feel not only German but European’

• Midfielder speaks out on politics before World Cup

• Goretzka open to summer move to England from Bayern

The Germany international Leon Goretzka has said Donald Trump’s actions have left him feeling “not only German but also European”. The US president has recently threatened to take Greenland by force and called Europe “weak” and “decaying”.

Goretzka, who hopes to make the Germany squad for the World Cup in the US, Canada and Mexico this summer, told Die Zeit: “Of course, I’m aware of the political debates. I still expect it to be a great tournament – it will promote football there, and show many people want an incredibly exciting game. Donald Trump makes us feel not only German but also European.”

BBC names Rhodri Talfan Davies as interim director general

BBC’s director of nations will take over Tim Davie’s role while corporation seeks permanent replacement

The BBC has named senior executive Rhodri Talfan Davies as its interim director general, as the corporation continues the search for a permanent replacement for Tim Davie.

Davie, who resigned in November after the row over the BBC’s editing of a Donald Trump speech, will remain in the role until the start of April. Talfan Davies will then take over.

Exclusive discounts from CBS Mornings Deals

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Ben Crump says ICE actions in Minneapolis are an "assault on our constitution"

While speaking with "CBS Mornings" about his debut novel, "Worse Than a Lie," attorney Ben Crump addressed the federal response in Minneapolis and said ICE's actions have been an "assault on our constitution." Crump also commented on what advice he would give the families of Alex Pretti and Renee Good.

Qatari plane hits Milan airport lights during arrival of Winter Olympics staff

Aircraft carrying 104 personnel damaged lighting tower while making ‘wrong manoeuvre’ after landing

A Qatari military cargo plane carrying security staff in Italy to assist with law enforcement for the Winter Olympics struck a lighting tower on Sunday as it manoeuvred upon landing at Milan’s Malpensa airport, it has emerged.

The aircraft was carrying 104 personnel from the Gulf state’s elite security forces, plus huge jeeps and snowmobiles, as part of an agreement made with the Italian government, despite Qatar not competing in the games.

Texas man slated to be first person executed in U.S. this year, for double murder

A Texas man is slated to be first person executed in U.S. this year, for killing his ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend. At one point he escaped for three days.

The last man left in a Moldovan village: Laetitia Vançon’s best photograph

‘Dobrușa once had a population of 200. Grisa now lived there alone with his 120 ducks and other animals. The two other remaining residents were murdered by a farmer from a neighbouring village’

This was taken in a village in rural Moldova that no longer exists. Thirty years ago, Dobrușa had a population of 200, and was typical of settlements found across the country after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. When this man Grisa moved there in 2000 to start a sheep farm, the population had declined to 70. When this was taken, in July 2019, he was the sole resident of the village. He was 65.

A few months before I took it, the only other remaining residents – a couple in their 40s – were murdered by a farmer from a neighbouring village. Their half-naked bodies were found on the ground. They’d been beaten to death. It was a very dark story and, after this terrible incident, Grisa told me he no longer felt safe living alone there. He was thinking about moving to a bigger village.

Amazon laying off about 16,000 corporate workers in latest anti-bureaucracy push

The layoffs mark the second round of mass cuts at Amazon since last October, when the company laid off roughly 14,000 employees across its corporate workforce.

China lags behind US at AI frontier but could quickly catch up, say experts

Beijing’s AI policy is focused on real-life applications but Chinese companies are beginning to articulate their own grand visions

Standing on stage in the eastern China tech hub of Hangzhou, Alibaba’s normally media-shy CEO made an attention-grabbing announcement. “The world today is witnessing the dawn of an AI-driven intelligent revolution,” Eddie Wu told a developer conference in September. “Artificial general intelligence (AGI) will not only amplify human intelligence but also unlock human potential, paving the way for the arrival of artificial superintelligence (ASI).”

ASI, Wu said, “could produce a generation of ‘super scientists’ and ‘full-stack super engineers’”, who would “tackle unsolved scientific and engineering problems at unimaginable speeds”.

The womanosphere urges dubious followers to back ICE: ‘Don’t let compassion cloud you’

Conservative figures such as Riley Gaines and Allie Beth Stuckey are urging their followers to ward off empathy for victims of ICE’s crackdown

Riley Gaines, the former collegiate swimmer turned anti-transgender activist, makes motherhood and femininity a core part of her brand. Her husband, Louis Barker, is a naturalized US citizen who moved to this country from the UK. The couple welcomed their first child, a daughter named Margot, in September; Gaines said there was “nothing” she would not do to protect her baby. But do not think that Gaines is at all sympathetic to families targeted by ICE.

This weekend, Gaines spoke on her podcast about Liam Ramos, the five-year-old boy taken by ICE agents from his driveway in Minneapolis. Images of Liam, clad in snowpants and wearing a blue hat with bunny ears, being held by a federal agent prompted widespread disgust in the US. How could a preschooler be considered one of the “dangerous” criminals Trump’s administration rails against?

Greetings from Mumbai, where residents take breathing space where they can find it

Far-Flung Postcards is a weekly series in which NPR's international team shares moments from their lives and work around the world.

Intel says it will match government's 'Trump accounts' contribution to kids of employees

The 530A program, often called "Trump accounts," passed last year as part of the administration's "big beautiful bill."

The government is barreling toward a partial shutdown over DHS funding. Here's what to expect

The U.S. government may partially shutdown on Saturday months after a record 43-day closure in 2025.

CBS Boise chief meteorologist Roland Steadham killed in plane crash

Roland Steadham and one other person were aboard a small plane that crashed into the icy Payette River on Tuesday.

Starbucks stock jumps as coffee chain's traffic grows for the first time in two years

Shares of Starbucks have fallen more than 3% over the last year.

Sinner set for ‘toughest challenge’ in semi-final against Djokovic after swatting Shelton

• No 1 seed eases past American 6-3, 6-4, 6-4

• ‘It’s a grand slam, it’s always very difficult against Novak’

Jannik Sinner is under no illusion about the difficulty of his semi-final meeting with Novak Djokovic after defeating Ben Shelton on Wednesday. “It’s one of the toughest challenges we have in our sport,” he said. “It’s great to have Novak playing at this very, very high level. It’s a grand slam, it’s always very difficult against Novak. Let’s see what’s coming.”

Sinner’s 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 quarter-final victory over the seventh seed extended his commanding record against Shelton to 9-1, with Sinner winning 22 consecutive sets since the 23-year-old American won their first meeting. Such dominance over one of the best young players indicates just how far ahead Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz are of the rest of the field.

Kim Keon Hee, wife of South Korea’s ousted president, jailed for corruption

Ex-first lady sentenced to 20 months for receiving gifts for political favours, as Yoon Suk Yeol awaits rebellion verdict

The wife of South Korea’s ousted president Yoon Suk Yeol has been sentenced to 20 months in prison for corruption, as her husband awaits a verdict on a high-stakes rebellion charge that could result in the death penalty or life imprisonment.

Kim Keon Hee was sentenced for receiving luxury gifts including a Graff diamond necklace and a Chanel bag from the Unification Church in return for promises of political favours.

Details emerge about victims killed in private jet crash in Maine

The victims in a private jet crash in Bangor, Maine, include a Texas mother who had been planning her daughter's wedding and a chef from Hawaii.

Mortgage demand drops 8.5%, as interest rates swell to the highest level in 3 weeks

Mortgage rates rose last week, causing a large drop in demand for refinances. Homebuyer demand was essentially flat.

‘A catalyst for change’: how sustainable Copenhagen became fashion’s ‘fifth city’

In 20 years, Danish capital’s fashion week has pushed for greener standards and catapulted homegrown talent to global success

When it comes to fashion weeks, there used to be four key cities: New York, London, Milan and Paris. While they remain titleholders, a host of other cities from Berlin to Seoul and Lagos have been vying for the same recognition to become “the fifth fashion week”. But so far only one real winner has emerged: Copenhagen fashion week.

On Tuesday, the Danish showcase, which has helped catapult homegrown brands including Ganni into the international spotlight while spearheading sustainability initiatives, kicked off the start of its 20th-anniversary celebrations.

‘It’s not too late to fix it’: web inventor Tim Berners-Lee says he is in a ‘battle for the soul’ of the internet

Founder of the world wide web says commercialisation means the net has been ‘optimised for nastiness’, but collaboration and compassion can prevail

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When Sir Tim Berners-Lee invented the world wide web in 1989, his vision was clear: it would used by everyone, filled with everything and, crucially, it would be free.

Today, the British computer scientist’s creation is regularly used by 5.5 billion people – and bears little resemblance to the democratic force for humanity he intended.

The place that stayed with me: after a treacherous route through open desert, at Mina Mina I saw holiness

‘One day, Nangala,’ Aunty Agnes would say. ‘We’ll dance together at Mina Mina.’ And one day, for no good reason, I answered her: ‘Let’s do this thing’

• Read more summer essentials

There are places on this Earth that still belong to themselves, places where very few people have stood. And some of those places are holy.

It was the summer of 2018 when we packed my old Hilux and a Troopie and set off from Lajamanu to Mina Mina. It had been Aunty Agnes’s idea. Although she’d painted this place for decades, she’d never set foot on Mina Mina, on her grandfather’s Country, in the jaws of Lake Mackay, Northern Great Sandy Desert.

Jess Cartner-Morley on fashion: Still wearing a cross-body bag and French-tucking your shirt? Sorry to say, your wardrobe is cringe

If you’re wearing tight clothes and flashing your ankles, you may want to make some bold changes

Is your wardrobe cringe? Does it make you look out-of-touch and cause younger and cooler people to look upon you with pity? Do you really want me to answer that? Never mind, I’m going to anyway, so buckle up. Brutal honesty is very January, so I will give it to you straight. But before we get down to dissecting your wardrobe, two quick questions for you. Do you put full stops in text messages? Were you baffled by Labubus? If the answer to those two questions is yes, then I’m afraid the signs are that your wardrobe is almost certainly cringe.

Being cringe is essentially being old-fashioned, but worse. Being old-fashioned is what happens when you grow older with grace and dignity. Cringe is when you lose your touch while convincing yourself you are still down with the kids.

Snap establishes Specs subsidiary for its AR glasses

Snap on Wednesday said its unit working on the development of augmented reality glasses is now housed under a wholly owned subsidiary named Specs Inc.

Centrist ideas no longer wanted in Conservative party, says Kemi Badenoch

Party leader tells MPs that one-nation Tories doubting her rightward direction ‘need to get out of the way’

• UK politics live – latest updates

Centrist ideas are no longer wanted in the Conservative party, Kemi Badenoch has said, arguing that one nation-type Tories or others who have qualms about her rightward direction for the party “need to get out of the way”.

Making a speech in Westminster intended to set out her vision for the party after a spate of recent defections to Reform UK, the Conservative leader hit out at what she called the “tantrum” of Robert Jenrick and others.

Budapest mayor charged over his calls for people to defy Hungary’s Pride ban

Gergely Karácsony urged people to take to streets in June in pushback against Orbán government’s attack on rights

Prosecutors in Hungary have filed charges against the progressive mayor of Budapest, seeking to fine him months after hundreds of thousands of people heeded his call to take to the streets in defiance of the government’s ban on Pride.

The June march made headlines around the world after the ruling Fidesz party, led by the rightwing populist prime minister, Viktor Orbán, backed legislation that created a legal basis for Pride to be banned, citing a widely criticised need to protect children.

U.S.-India trade talks could get a boost as America sees life going on without it

There could be a renewed push to conclude a U.S.-India trade deal, analysts say, as the White House sees other countries signing trade deals.

Autonomous trucking startup Waabi raises $750 million to expand into robotaxis

Khosla Ventures, G2 Venture Partners, Uber, Nvidia and Volvo are all investing in the Toronto-based, driverless tech startup.

Why Max Richter’s Hamnet needle-drop left me cold | Tom Service on music

In a new weekly column about the world of classical music, Tom Service bemoans Hollywood turning pieces into slop through overuse. Plus: Philip Glass withdraws his symphony from the Kennedy Center

Back in 2008, Transport for London came up with a ruse to dispel antisocial behaviour: it piped classical music into supposedly problematic stations in the crime hotspots of south London. I think that was when I realised just how far the association of classical music with relaxing affect instead of real emotion had gone. Once an entire genre has become associated with relaxification, it’s enough for you to hear the sound of an orchestra and think, “This isn’t for me”. Whatever its BPM, classical music will only be a backdrop, the sound of luxury goods, the sound of cultural anaesthetic.

The playlist included the finale of Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony – music that is obsessive and wild, the sound of barely controlled hysteria, full of harmonic grind and rhythmic assault. This radical and Dionysian music, that was literally made to push communities of orchestras and listeners to their extremes in the early 19th century, was being reduced to calming and inoffensive aural wallpaper.

Greenland will not give in, PM says, as Denmark warns world order as we know it is over

Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen on Wednesday issued a defiant message on the Arctic island's future.

Iraq’s former prime minister denounces ‘blatant American interference’ in election

Nouri al-Maliki responds to Donald Trump’s threat to withdraw US support for Iraq if he is returned to power

• US politics live – latest updates

Iraq’s former prime minister Nouri al-Maliki has angrily denounced “blatant American interference” in the country’s election after Donald Trump threatened to withdraw US support if he was returned to power.

“We reject the blatant American interference in Iraq’s internal affairs and consider it a violation of its sovereignty,” al-Maliki, who is nominated by the country’s dominant political bloc to return to the premiership, said in a statement on Wednesday.

An artist’s tent in Gaza and Starmer in China: photos of the day – Wednesday

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