Republicans balk at Senate Democrats' DHS shutdown counteroffer

Congress and the White House are working to reach a funding deal before Congress leaves for a scheduled two-week recess on Friday.

Middle East crisis live: US insists Iran has not rejected proposal to end war amid mounting confusion

White House claims 15-point plan was ‘never confirmed’ and that talks are continuing as sources suggest Iran unhappy with US proposal

Iranian nationals with valid Australian tourist visas will be blocked from entering the country for six months, Australia’s home affairs minister said, citing concern some may decide to stay longer than they’re allowed.

Tony Burke said the direction was necessary as there was a risk Iranians on tourist visas visiting Australia may be unable or unlikely to leave when their visa expires.
The order only applies to people with a valid tourist visa outside of the country.
The government said “sympathetic consideration” would be given to citizens with Iranian parents.

The government said it would closely monitor global developments and adjust settings as required.

If you’re just joining us, here’s a quick recap of the day:

An Iranian military spokesperson mocked US attempts at a ceasefire deal, insisting Americans were only negotiating with themselves. Lt Col Ebrahim Zolfaghari’s statement came after the Trump administration reportedly sent a 15-point ceasefire plan to Iran through Pakistan.

Even as Donald Trump claimed productive negotiations to end the war were ongoing with Tehran, Iran’s relentless bombardment of the Gulf states showed no sign of relenting. Kuwait and Bahrain were both hit with damaging strikes on Tuesday night and into Wednesday morning, as the patience of the Gulf states after rebuffing constant attacks for almost a month began to wear thin.

The World Trade Organisation warned disruptions to international fertiliser supplies caused by the closing of the strait of Hormuz will cause food scarcity and high prices. A third of the world’s fertilisers normally transit the strait.

Oil prices fell nearly 6% and Asian shares gained, after reports Donald Trump had sent a peace plan to Iran fuelled optimism in the market. A barrel of Brent crude was down 5.92% at $98.30, while benchmark US oil contract, West Texas Intermediate, was down 5.01% at $87.72.

Israeli strikes on Lebanon killed nine people, state media reported. Citing the health ministry, Lebanon’s official National News Agency said strikes had killed people across towns and a Palestinian refugee camp.

News that Trump had approved the deployment of more than 1,000 soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division to the Middle East further undermined the US president’s repeated claims of successful peace talks. Iran has previously threatened to mine the gulf surrounding the island if the US appeared to be landing troops.

White House tries to blame Democrats for airport delays as TSA workers miss out on $1bn in pay – US politics live

Some airports advise travelers to arrive four hours before their scheduled flights as TSA staff, who have been working without pay for over a month, are not reporting for duty

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Top officials at agencies affected by the ongoing Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shutdown are testifying on Capitol Hill on Wednesday. The lapse in funding for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the Coast Guard and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), has lasted 40 days with little end in sight.

During opening remarks, the Republican chair of the House homeland security committee, Andrew Garbarino, said that the shutdown has caused “massive disruptions” across airports, “weakened our nation’s cybersecurity posture” and “left states unsupported with less than 100 days until the start of major events across the United States, such as FIFA World Cup”.

Jury in Los Angeles finds Meta, YouTube negligent in social media addiction trial

A jury reached a verdict in the LA trial focused on Meta and YouTube, a case that experts have characterized as social media's "Big Tobacco" moment.

Greetings from Turkey's border with Iran, where Iranians let loose on the dance floor

Iranians escaping hardship and war are shaking it off to Persian, Arabic and Turkish tunes in this disco in eastern Turkey.

Meta and YouTube found liable on all charges in social media trial

The verdict, which caps a weeks-long trial in Los Angeles, could set a legal precedent for similar allegations brought against social media companies.

Big tech reckoning: Meta fined $375m in landmark case – The Latest

A court in the US has ordered Meta to pay $375m after a jury found that the company, which owns Facebook and Instagram, enabled harm including child sexual exploitation on its platforms. The landmark victory marks the first time the social media corporation has been successfully sued by a US state over child safety issues. Could it set a new precedent for holding big tech to account? Lucy Hough speaks to the investigative reporter Katie McQue.

El Paso and LA among most polluted U.S. cities in 2025, report says

El Paso, Texas, and Los Angeles, California, had some of the worst air pollution in the U.S. last year, according to a new report.

How to survive our doomed times? Both the experts and I have the same advice | Emma Brockes

We have two choices: be paralysed by fear or just continue with what we are doing. I know what I choose

In the past, my response to any given large-scale world crisis has generally been to do nothing, which, as well as aligning with my personality, has the advantage of being exactly what the experts recommend.

During periods of intense market volatility, we are advised not to look at our investments, let alone touch them. If we are rushed at by a bear, we are supposed to stand stock still (unless it’s one of those bears you have to bang pots and pans at, but let’s leave them aside). The result of this is an avoidant philosophy hingeing on the motto “it’ll probably be fine”, that, this week, as Tehran mocked the US for pretending peace talks were under way, was accompanied by a cold, rival notion: what if this time it’s different?

Emma Brockes is a Guardian columnist

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

Trump waives summer gasoline regulations to ease fuel prices

Summer gasoline regulations will be waived for 20 days, and possibly longer to try to ease gas prices.

Supreme Court sides with internet provider in dispute over pirated music

The Supreme Court ruled that internet service provider Cox Communications cannot be held liable for copyright infringement by its subscribers.

Pretty Lethal review – Amazon’s ballerina action thriller puts on a decent enough show

A group of American dancers face off against Hungarian gangsters, and a hammy Uma Thurman, in a cheap and cheerful Friday night adventure

Last year’s Ballerina, or as Lionsgate’s marketing team would prefer us to say From the World of John Wick: Ballerina, failed as both proof that the Keanu Reeves-led franchise could support expansion and that “ballet action thriller” could be a worthy new genre. The title, in whichever format audiences came across it, was both confusing and misleading, the film ultimately featuring very little in the way of actual dance moves.

For those who left the cinema enraged at Ana de Armas’s lack of arabesque kills, they can get their fill at home this week with Amazon’s fresh-from-SXSW actioner Pretty Lethal, a film all about ballet dancers actually using their skills to slaughter a string of eastern European bad guys. It’s a neat idea, positioning women who might be untrained fighters but who have grit and stamina learned from a gruelling form of dance many underestimate, and in an overcrowded field, it gives it a slight yet elegantly extended, leg up.

Microsoft's diversity chief is leaving as company continues 'AI-powered transformation'

Hiring and retaining top talent is becoming more critical as Microsoft seeks to develop top-class artificial intelligence models and products.

Prediction markets' new insider trading restrictions aren't enough, bipartisan senators say

Sens. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and John Curtis, R-Utah, said they are optimistic their bill has enough bipartisan support to pass in Congress.

Ella Baron on Keir Starmer’s task of turning round Labour’s fortunes – cartoon

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Trump says he could send National Guard to airports 'for more help'

President Donald Trump says he is considering sending the National Guard to airports where TSA officer absences have led to long lines.

Senate funding deal stalls as DHS shutdown grinds on

A potential deal to end the DHS shutdown has stalled on Capitol Hill after Senate Democrats made their latest counteroffer. Follow live updates.

Watchdog investigating how police handled Andrew Tate sexual abuse claims

Independent Office for Police Conduct examining how Hertfordshire police treated three women’s allegations

The police watchdog is investigating a force’s handling of sexual abuse allegations against social media influencer and self-described misogynist Andrew Tate.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said it was investigating Hertfordshire constabulary’s response to reports made by three women after their case was closed in 2019 following a four-year investigation.

Meta and YouTube designed addictive products that harmed young people, jury finds

Six-week trial including whistleblowers and top executives at Meta and YouTube was first of its kind to go to trial

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Meta and YouTube have been found liable for negligence for deliberately designing addictive products that hooked a young user and led to her being harmed, a jury ruled on Wednesday. The tech companies have also been found liable for failure to warn. The jury awarded the plaintiffs in the case compensatory damages of $3m.

It took nearly nine days of deliberations for the Los Angeles jury to reach its verdict. Jurors also awarded punitive damages, which will be decided during the next phase of the trial.

Melania Trump pitches robots as potential educators for schoolchildren

First lady Melania Trump argued that humanoids can help children develop critical thinking skills — and robots never get impatient.

I thought my cuckoo clock was amazing, but it’s got nothing on my statue of Bert the cheery chef | Adrian Chiles

Installed in my home, Bert is a conversation starter like no other. It usually begins with: ‘What on earth is that thing?’

I came across something that makes me happy every day. It’s a figurine of a cheery chef chap holding up a menu board in one hand and giving a big thumbs up with the other. I found it in a reclamation yard in Old Hill in the Black Country. It’s run by a bloke called Bert, who’s very funny in a bone-dry kind of way. The first time I met him he told me he was also a West Brom fan and asked me about our poor season. I told him I couldn’t face discussing them. Half an hour later, as I was negotiating a price for something, I asked him if there was a discount for West Brom fans. He looked at me and said, “You didn’t want to talk about them a minute ago.” There was no discount.

Anyway, I decided to name my chef statue after him. Technically I suppose it’s more of a statuette but that’s a bit feminine-sounding for Bert. I was charmed by Bert – both Berts, actually, but here I refer to the statue – the moment I saw him but, as is the way of these things, I didn’t buy him because, you know, where do you put such an object? A week or two passed, though, and his cheeky little face kept coming to mind. So I went back to buy Bert from Bert and he was mine. And mine he will remain until death doth us part.

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.

Jury orders Meta and Google to pay woman $3 million in social media addiction trial

The verdict marks the end of the first-ever jury trial over whether tech giants should be held accountable for social media addiction. It may influence the outcome of 2,000 other pending lawsuits.

Iran rejects U.S. ceasefire offer, demands sovereignty over Strait of Hormuz

President Donald Trump has claimed the U.S. and Iran are "in negotiations now." But the Islamic Republic denies any direct talks to end the war.

For the first time in more than 1,400 years, Church of England gets a woman leader

A new archbishop of Canterbury has been installed in a historic ceremony. Sarah Mullally is the 106th person to hold the job, and the first woman.

‘We want peace’: Iranians try to maintain semblance of normal life as conflict drags on

Explosions lit up Tehran skyline as Israel launched new airstrikes but by morning joggers were in the park

• Middle East crisis – live updates

The days after Nowruz, the Persian New Year, are usually a bustling time in Tehran, with spring arriving, trees blossoming, businesses reopening after the holidays, and people returning to work and school.

This year, however, Iranians are trying to maintain a semblance of ordinary life against the constant backdrop of explosions, airstrikes – and a conflict many fear may drag on for weeks or months.

Mormon Wives star being investigated for third domestic violence allegation

Latest allegation against Taylor Frankie Paul comes days after ABC pulled her upcoming season of the Bachelorette

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Authorities in Utah are investigating allegations of a third domestic violence incident involving The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives reality stars Taylor Frankie Paul and Dakota Mortensen.

The West Jordan police department told the Guardian in a statement on Wednesday that it was “currently investigating an incident involving Taylor Frankie Paul and Dakota Mortensen” and that the “allegations were reported at the end of February 2026, and detectives have reviewed video believed to have been recorded in early to mid-2024.

Savannah Guthrie's first interview since mother Nancy vanished: 'I imagine her terror'

Nearly two months after Nancy Guthrie disappeared, her daughter Savannah discusses the toll on her family in an emotional interview with her Today show colleague Hoda Kotb.

Duffy to tell story of her kidnapping and rape ordeal in new Disney+ documentary

Promising ‘unprecedented access’, the programme will recount the singer’s story, including full details of the harrowing attacks that drove her into hiding for a decade

It was a great music industry mystery: after becoming one of the biggest pop stars of the 2000s with her debut album, 2008’s Rockferry, the Welsh pop star Duffy vanished from the public eye. In 2020, she revealed what had happened to her: in 2010, she said, she had been drugged, kidnapped and taken to another country where she was subject to violent abuse and raped.

Duffy, real name Aimée Anne Duffy, 41, will tell that story in depth for the first time in a new documentary, produced by Disney+ and Hulu Original, with production set to begin soon. A press release promises “new, unprecedented access” to the Mercy singer, who will tell her entire life story, as well as interviews with friends, family and music industry associates.

Prosecutors examined whether Trump disclosed classified map on plane after leaving office

Susie Wiles was on plane and witnessed event, according to files shown to House judiciary committee

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Federal prosecutors examined whether Donald Trump showed a classified map to people on his plane after his first term, including to his now White House chief of staff, Susie Wiles, according to justice department materials produced to the House judiciary committee.

The incident was described in a 13 January 2023 briefing memo prepared for the then attorney general, Merrick Garland – roughly six months before special counsel Jack Smith charged Trump with retaining classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago club.

‘What’s your favourite thing about me?’ How to deal with a conversational narcissist

We all know a person who sees every chat as an opportunity to go on and on about themselves. And sometimes that person is us …

Name: Conversational narcissism.

Age: Christened in 1979.

At the Legacy Museum, facing America's racist past is a path, not a punishment

"There is an America that is more free — where there's more equality, where there is more justice, where there is less bigotry — and I think it's waiting for us," says lawyer Bryan Stevenson.

Swiss sneaker maker On Holding shakes up leadership amid slowing growth

Co-founders to become co-CEOs as On prepares to enter its "next growth phase," the company said in a statement Wednesday. 

A leadership vacuum adds to strains on the CDC

Low morale, staff turnover and budget issues have sapped the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The administration is expected to soon name a new director, who will have their hands full.

US has caused $10tn worth of climate damage since 1990, research finds

US, top carbon emitter in history, has ‘a lot of responsibility’ for causing ‘substantial’ harm globally, scientist says

The US has caused an eye-watering $10tn in global damages to the world over the past three decades through its vast planet-heating emissions, with a quarter of this economic pain inflicted upon itself, new research has found.

By being the largest carbon emitter in history, the US has caused greater harm to worldwide economic growth than any other country, ahead of China, now the world’s largest emitter that is responsible for $9tn in GDP damage since 1990, according to the findings of the paper.

Bond between dogs and humans dates back more than 15,000 years, study finds

Research suggests hunter-gatherers were feeding dogs and giving them ritual burials as early as the last ice age

They are humankind’s best friend, and now ancient DNA analysis has revealed that the enduring bond between dogs and humans dates back more than 15,000 years.

The groundbreaking research, published in the journal Nature, pushes back the oldest genetic evidence for domestic dogs by 5,000 years, revealing that hunter-gatherers were feeding the animals and giving them ritual burials long before the emergence of agriculture.

Skeleton of Three Musketeers hero d’Artagnan may have been found

Archaeologists believe remains found in Maastricht, Netherlands, may be of soldier who inspired novel character

More than three-and-a-half centuries after a musket ball to the throat put an end to decades of exemplary swashbuckling, the French soldier who inspired Alexandre Dumas and went on to be immortalised on the stage and screen – not to mention as a plucky cartoon dog – may rise again.

Workers repairing a church in the Dutch city of Maastricht have discovered a skeleton that could belong to the 17th-century Gascon nobleman Charles de Batz-Castelmore – better known as d’Artagnan – whose exploits led Dumas to make him the hero of the Three Musketeers.

Arm jumps 20% as company expects revenue windfall from new chip, a 'significant shift'

Arm said it expects its new chip to generate six times more revenue in 2031 than the $4 billion it made in 2025.

NBA expansion explained: teams in Vegas and Seattle, LeBron’s role and hungry billionaires

The NBA’s board of governors voted to move forward with the cities as targets for its first expansion since 2004. Here’s what it means for the future of the league

The NBA has moved a step closer to adding teams in Seattle and Las Vegas.

The league’s board of governors met this week and voted to explore bids and applicants for teams exclusively in those two cities, beginning the process for its first expansion in more than two decades. Bids are expected to be in the $7bn to $10bn range per franchise.

DHS funding deal on shaky ground as Trump and Democrats both decline to embrace it

After weeks of start and stop negotiations between Congressional Democrats and the White House, there's an emerging proposal to fund the majority of DHS and tackle ICE enforcement funding separately.

Trump voted by mail in Florida despite calling mail-in voting "cheating"

President Trump has long railed against mail-in voting, but used the method this month in a Florida election, public records indicate.

FedEx to offer same-day delivery as it battles with Amazon, other retailers

FedEx said it will give customers the option of two-hour or end-of-day delivery, including for large and oversized packages.

Denmark’s prime minister given first chance at forming government after election

Danish palace says it has asked Mette Frederiksen to try to form new majority with her Social Democrats and leftwing parties

Denmark’s outgoing prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, has been given the first shot at forming another coalition government after an election which saw her leftwing bloc and the opposing rightwing parties fail to win a parliamentary majority.

A statement released by the Danish palace on Wednesday said Frederiksen had been asked to see if she could pull together a new majority involving her Social Democrats, who had their worst general election since 1903 but remain the biggest force in parliament.

The shot that shows the absurdity of war: Peter van Agtmael’s best photograph

‘US soldiers would look for “suspected terrorists” in Iraqi homes and usually find nothing. This could be my grandma’s living room – it shows that insane violence can continue amid normal life’

I took this picture during my first time in Iraq, 20 years ago. It was the first entry in a body of work about the US post-9/11, at home and at war, which has occupied a good chunk of my professional life for the last two decades. I had turned 25 the week before and it was a formative journey on a personal level. It was the first time I experienced war, and my understanding of my country and its relationship to the world developed in the crucible of this extremely violent situation, which was descending into civil war while I was there.

I had been embedded in Iraq with the US military for six weeks or so at this point, and had taken some good pictures. But this one was different and it still means something to me today. It was the first I had taken that wasn’t overtly channelling the history of war photography – which largely focusses on violence, horror and victims. Those are important things to show, but I wanted to understand this particular conflict, and how my position as an American of the same generation as those fighting could help me interpret it for the public. I guess the image crystallised something I had seen – this vast machine of military might mobilised in the Middle East; the momentum of all these young men with powerful weapons patrolling cities in search of people identified as enemies of America, enemies of democracy.

Could the continent’s far right be suffering from a Trumplash?

France’s National Rally missed key targets in local elections ahead of next year’s seismic presidential vote – and the mainstream is doing OK elsewhere, too

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The Rassemblement National is not invincible. A year out from a make-or-break presidential vote, that might be the main lesson (though there are others, which may prove more significant) from last weekend’s local elections in France. What’s more, news elsewhere – Giorgia Meloni’s referendum defeat in Italy, Janez Janša beaten in Slovenia, Hungary’s Viktor Orbán in trouble, the left bloc largest in Denmark – might suggest the rest of Europe’s far right are not having it all their own way, either.

But let’s focus first on France – if only because while local elections are rarely a wholly accurate guide to future national outcomes, these ones seem to provide some pointers – and the stakes in the country’s next major election are vertiginously high.

Former Google executive Matt Brittin selected to be next BBC director general

Former Olympic rower to lead corporation as it hammers out future funding model with government

The BBC has turned to a former tech executive to steer it through a critical period in its history, as it attempts to navigate government talks over its future and huge changes in media consumption.

Matt Brittin, who stepped down as Google’s president in Europe, the Middle East and Africa last year, will replace Tim Davie as the corporation hammers out its crucial future funding model with the government.

Iran war threatens to delay large offshore wind projects in EU and UK

Industry fears strait of Hormuz closure could disrupt shipping of crucial parts for UK and German North Sea projects

• Business live – latest updates

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A string of large offshore wind projects in Europe are facing potential delays as the Iran war threatens to disrupt shipping of crucial parts manufactured in the Gulf.

Football Daily | Will the Mohamed Salah show go out with a bang at Liverpool?

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With ratings declining, it was inevitable ties needed to be severed without commissioning a new season of a cherished Liverpudlian mainstay. This is what happens when things get tired, they can never replicate what they were in their prime. It is no great shame to have such a long run, collect plenty of awards on the way and finally realise the industry has moved on and there is nothing fresh you can bring to compete with the elite rivals. Plenty of drama and joy was provided, testing the boundaries of what was possible and changing a nation in the process by challenging the establishment. But in the end, time caught up with Brookside and it had to go.

Emily Gregory projected to win Florida special election to represent Trump, Mar-a-Lago

President Donald Trump had endorsed fellow Republican Jon Maples in the special election against Emily Gregory, the Democratic nominee.

A timeline of Nancy Guthrie's disappearance as search stretches on

Savannah Guthrie's mom, Nancy Guthrie, was reported missing Feb. 1.

Edge-walking and musical robots: photos of the day – Wednesday

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

‘It’s like flowers on steroids’: what happened when scientists heated a Rocky Mountain wildlife meadow by 2C?

A long-running experiment in Colorado provides an ‘alarming’ view of how rapidly unchecked global heating could transform fragile ecosystems

Every summer, people descend on the wildflower capital of Colorado to see grasslands flush with corn lilies, aspen sunflowers and sub-alpine larkspur. In January 1991, scientists set up a unique experiment in these Rocky Mountain meadows. It was one of the first (and longest running) to work out how the changing climate would affect an ecosystem.

At the time, it was believed a temperature increase could lead to longer, lusher grasses. But instead of flourishing, the grasses and wildflowers started to disappear, replaced by sage brush. The experimental meadows morphed into a desert-like scrubland. Even the fungi in the soils were transformed by heat.

Can Bluey save classical music? Cartoon puppy’s all-encompassing soundtrack plays Bach and Beethoven to billions

In the hugely popular pre-school animation, composer Joff Bush references and rearranges classical tunes in all the right places – and never plays it for cheap laughs. Plus, the Wigmore Hall sees the writing on the wall

Classical music’s continued battle for relevance and impact continues to find new nadirs, from tired experiments with formats to bathetic look-at-me clickbait. But what if there was an answer – a joyous, creative and positive one – staring at us with irresistibly big eyes?

There really might be, in the shape of a blue heeler puppy. I’m talking, of course, about Bluey, the Australian cartoon for children of all ages. The numbers are huge: it was the most streamed show in the US last year, with more than 45bn minutes watched, and a billion streams and counting across the world for Bluey’s albums and soundtracks, all written by Joff Bush, the Australian musician who has led the composition of the music for each of the 154 episodes so far.

It’s not just oil and gas. The Strait of Hormuz blockage is rattling another vital commodity

“I'm a lot more concerned about the current crisis than I was when Russia-Ukraine happened four years ago,” one fund manager told CNBC.

Husband of U.S. soldier killed in Kuwait on what her service meant

The Minnesota mom of two and U.S. soldier was days from returning home from her tour in Kuwait when she was killed in an Iranian strike.

Savannah Guthrie gives first interview since mom vanished: "It is unbearable"

Savannah Guthrie said her family is in agony as she made a tearful plea for someone "to do the right thing" nearly two months after Nancy Guthrie disappeared.

FA resists Manchester United lobbying for rebuilt Old Trafford to host 2035 World Cup final

• Home nations frontrunners to host Women’s World Cup

• United’s New Stadium Development wants showpiece

The FA is resisting lobbying from Manchester United to nominate a rebuilt Old Trafford as the venue for the 2035 Women’s World Cup final.

The chief executive of United’s New Stadium Development, Collette Roche, went public with the club’s aspirations to host the 2035 final for the first time on Tuesday but the FA is committed to staging the showpiece occasion at Wembley.

‘It’s going to give us closure’: could there finally be justice for the murder of Patrice Lumumba?

The assassination of the Congo’s first prime minister has been shrouded in mystery – but the impending trial of a Belgian diplomat may provide answers

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Patrice Lumumba was assassinated more than 60 years ago, but his killing still hangs over the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Even for non-Congolese Africans, some born years after Lumumba’s death, his killing symbolises something traumatic – the suffocation of the pan-African liberation dream by western colonial forces.

Last week, after decades of avoidance and denial, there was an extraordinary development. A Belgian court ruled that a former Belgian diplomat, 93-year-old Étienne Davignon, will stand trial in connection with the killing.

Oil trades surged before Trump's Iran post. Some experts are suspicious.

Trading in crude oil futures spiked only minutes before President Trump postponed an ultimatum on Iran, causing oil prices to drop and stocks to surge.

US runners led off course in chaotic half-marathon given entry to world championships

• Lead runners were led off course by guide vehicle

• World Athletics gives runners special entry

Three runners who were led off course in a race that served as a qualifier for the World Road Running Championships have been given entry into the upcoming competition.

Jessica McClain, Emma Grace Hurley and Ednah Kurgat were leading the USA Track & Field Half Marathon Championships in Atlanta earlier this month when the guide vehicle took the trio off course. Molly Born, who had been more than a minute behind the leaders, came through to win the race, with Carrie Ellwood and Annie Rodenfels in second and third. McClain, Hurley and Kurgat finished in ninth, 12th and 13th respectively, around two minutes behind Born.

A 92-year-old judge will take on the Maduro case. What do we know about him?

Former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro heads to court again this week. The judge overseeing this case is longtime federal Judge Alvin Hellerstein. At 92 years old, Hellerstein is older than the average age of a federal judge by more than 20 years.

Coleman tells Ireland they have a duty to lift country in World Cup playoff

• Ireland face Czech Republic in playoff semi-final

• Coleman: ‘We are just riding the wave of confidence’

Séamus Coleman believes the Republic of Ireland have “a duty” to lift the country by completing the job of qualifying for a World Cup finals for the first time since 2002.

Ireland visit the Czech ­Republic on Thursday in a World Cup playoff semi‑final that few would have imagined possible after collecting one point from their opening three qualifiers. Having reignited their campaign with two Troy Parrott-inspired wins against Portugal and Hungary in November, however, Heimir Hallgrímsson’s side will take confidence and momentum into their bid to end a 24-year absence from the World Cup.

Taliban releases detained U.S. citizen Dennis Coyle

The foreign ministry said in a statement it agreed after a letter from his family that Dennis Coyle "would be pardoned and released" for Eid.

Oil giants raise the alarm over energy shortages as Iran war drags on

Shell CEO Wael Sawan warns Europe will be next to face an energy supply crunch.

Lily James, Andy Murray and a million Britons: padel’s rise nears milestone

• UK participation levels more than doubled in 2025

• 860,000 Britons played padel at least once last year

It was once seen as a quirky upstart or continental fad. But padel now has nearly a million players across the UK after participation levels more than doubled in 2025.

According to LTA figures seen by the Guardian, 860,000 Britons played padel at least once last year – up from 400,000 in 2024 and 129,000 in 2023 – as the racket sport’s dizzying rise continued.

Israel used white phosphorus to scorch earth in south Lebanon, researcher says

Human Rights Watch and others say they have documented use of weapon in civilian areas during war on Gaza

When the M825-series 155mm artillery projectile bursts, expelling its felt wedges containing white phosphorus, it leaves a distinctive knuckle-shaped plume. That is how Human Rights Watch (HRW) researchers said they were able to verify that Israel was again using the notorious weapon over south Lebanon, reigniting accusations that it is breaking the laws of war.

The New York-based rights group said it had verified and geolocated eight images showing airburst white phosphorus munitions exploding over residential areas in the southern Lebanese town of Yohmor in the opening days of Israel’s assault during the war on Gaza.

Jess Cartner-Morley on fashion: there may be 50 shades, but there’s only one Correct Grey

The true quality of a fabric is revealed by a neutral tone – one that beautifully offsets the brighter tones of 2026. Just don’t mention John Major

Sometimes a colour name is a whole mood. Rouge Noir: the stamp of cult 1990s glamour. Millennial pink: the colour of overthinking and oversharing. Elephant’s Breath by Farrow & Ball: the imperial age of the gastro pub.

I have a new favourite. Pairs is a lovely little Scottish brand which makes great quality socks at good prices. There are many cute names – Frosting Pink, Milky Tea Beige – but the one I just had to click on was Correct Grey, “a warm grey with nods to a classic British school sock”, according to the website.

Overseas political funding capped and crypto donations blocked in blow to Reform UK

Legislation subject to MPs’ approval but will be backdated due to urgency of threat to UK democracy, says minister

Political donations from British citizens living abroad are to be capped at £100,000 a year from Wednesday, in a move that is likely to limit further funding from Reform UK’s Thailand-based mega-donor, Christopher Harborne.

In a hugely significant move, the government said it would introduce the strict cap, as well as a temporary ban on donations in cryptocurrency, in its new representation of the people bill.

Requiring third-party campaigners to declare donations all year round, not just election periods, and allowing funding only from permissible donors.

More stringent checks on the source of funds from political donors, bringing it more into line with know-your-customer checks in the financial services industry.

Preventing donations from shell companies by ensuring funding is from post-tax profits rather than revenue.

Requiring foreign consultant lobbyists to join the official register, from which they are currently exempt because they do not charge VAT.

Banning foreign-funded political adverts outright.

Bear cubs taken into care after mom is euthanized for attacking people

The orphaned bear cubs will receive intensive care even as their exposure to humans is limited, the San Diego Humane Society said.

Pentagon has no plan to stop Trump sons profiting from defense contracts: Warren, Blumenthal

Democrats have been hotly critical of the Trump family's business dealings while President Donald Trump serves in the White House.

Shock, disbelief at Houston airport as 36% of TSA officers call out: "Insane"

"This is the first time I've experienced something like this in my entire life," one traveler said as TSA lines snaked through George Bush Intercontinental Airport.

Teenager in Wales handed life sentence after killing his mother with a hammer

Tristan Roberts, who expressed misogynistic views and had fascination with American Psycho, carefully planned attack

An 18-year-old man who expressed misogynistic views and had a fascination with the horror film American Psycho has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 22 years and six months for killing his mother with a hammer.

Tristan Roberts carefully planned the crime, researching methods of killing and how to avoid being caught before buying potential weapons such as knives, hammers and an axe.

‘They can reach me wherever’: China using financial tactics to coerce people who flee, says report

UK urged to tackle transnational repression, as dissidents say Beijing has targeted them with tax bills and other threats

“I didn’t feel safe, even though I’m not based in Hong Kong any more,” said Christopher Mung Siu-tat after getting tax bills from Hong Kong authorities. “The regime can reach me by their long arms wherever I am.”

Siu-tat, the executive director at the Hong Kong Labour Rights Monitor, a UK-based NGO, fled Beijing’s sweeping national security laws years ago. The letters are the latest example of a series of transnational repression (TNR) tactics the 54-year-old has faced in recent years.

Morgan McSweeney did not disclose his No 10 job in phone theft 999 call, transcript shows

In highly unusual move, Metropolitan police have released full transcript of call made by PM’s then chief of staff

Morgan McSweeney did not disclose that he was Keir Starmer’s chief of staff when he reported the theft of his phone, according to a transcript released by the Metropolitan police.

McSweeney, who left the No 10 role in February, told police it was a government phone when he reported it had been snatched, minutes after the theft in central London. He told police the iPhone had a tracker on it, according to the transcript of the emergency call minutes after it happened. But he did not explain the sensitivity of the phone’s contents, records of the call suggest.

Liverpool and Wales legend John Toshack diagnosed with dementia

• Son Cameron confirms 77-year-old has the disease

• Toshack managed Swansea and Madrid among many

The Liverpool and Wales great John Toshack has been diagnosed with dementia, according to his son ­Cameron.

Toshack had a celebrated playing career with the Merseyside club, scoring 96 goals and winning nine trophies between 1970 and 1978, and earning 40 caps for Wales before turning to management, including roles with Real Sociedad, Real Madrid and his national team.

Record-high temperatures possible in 17 states as heat wave expands

Seventeen states could break daily temperature records on Wednesday, as the heat wave that has been scorching the West expands into the central U.S.

United CEO says "get the deal done soon" as lawmakers negotiate DHS funding

United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby told CBS News he hopes the stalemate in Washington over DHS funding can be resolved soon, saying, "it's unconscionable that our politicians haven't gotten this done." He also said higher oil prices as a result of the Iran war are forcing his airline to cut flights 5% this summer. Kris Van Cleave has more.

US left without functioning vaccine panel as adviser says ‘drama distracts’

Move comes after judge voided Kennedy’s ACIP picks, leaving key flu, Covid and RSV vaccines in limbo

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Amid upheaval to the US vaccine advisory committee Robert Malone, the former co-chair and controversial figure who has opposed vaccines, says he has been pushed out and will not be involved in any future decisions. The move comes after a federal judge stayed the appointment of 13 members of the advisory committee on immunization practices (ACIP), essentially invalidating their roles on the committee and the decisions they have made.

Those new advisers were all hand-picked by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) secretary, Robert F Kennedy Jr, after he fired the previous 17 members of the ACIP in June – but the judge ruled they were unqualified and not selected properly.

Israel’s death penalty bill for Palestinian prisoners moves to final vote

Legislation initiated by far-right Otzma Yehudit party drew mounting criticism from opponents and rights groups as it moved through the Knesset

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Israel’s parliament has advanced a contentious bill to impose the death penalty on Palestinians convicted of terrorism to its final vote, after the Knesset’s national security committee approved the measure on Tuesday.

The legislation, initiated by the far-right Otzma Yehudit party led by the national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, has drawn sharp criticism from opponents who warn it would mark a significant escalation in Israel’s penal policy. Members of Otzma Yehudit have worn noose-shaped pins in support of the bill.

Recession odds climb on Wall Street as economy shows cracks beneath the surface

Economists have pulled up their risk assessments of a contraction amid heightened uncertainty over geopolitical risk and a labor market slump.

Backlash mounts over twist in Robert Pattinson Zendaya romcom The Drama

Disquiet aired over the subject matter of film about a couple whose engagement is upended after they reveal to each other ‘the worst thing you’ve ever done’

• This article contains major spoilers for The Drama

The father of a child murdered in the Columbine school shootings has expressed his unhappiness at the film-makers behind forthcoming movie The Drama.

The film, which is written and directed by Norwegian director Kristoffer Borgli, is a dark romantic comedy starring Robert Pattinson and Zendaya as a couple whose upcoming wedding is cast in doubt after she reveals that she once planned a school shooting, but backed out at the last moment.

Record share of Americans carry credit card debt, can't pay off bills

About 111 million Americans are carrying credit card balances, a 17% increase in five years, new research shows.

Wife of Hawaii doctor testifies at his trial 1 year after he allegedly tried to kill her

Arielle Konig testified that her husband, anesthesiologist Gerhardt Konig, attempted to stab her with a syringe, and when that failed she said he repeatedly bashed her head with a rock during a birthday hike one year ago. Gerhardt Konig has pleaded not guilty to the attempted murder of his wife. Matt Gutman reports.

Hugo Barra's return to Meta 5 years after exit underscores Zuckerberg's AI urgency

During Hugo Barra's first stint at Meta, the company was pushing heavily into VR. Now, he's back and the focus is AI agents.

Mortgage demand drops more than 10% as rates hit the highest level since October

Mortgage demand continued to tumble last week, as mortgage rates surged higher and affordability weakened further.

Mikaela Shiffrin ties record as she clinches her sixth overall World Cup skiing title

• Shiffrin holds off challenge from Germany’s Emma Aicher

• US star ties record set by Annemarie Moser-Pröll in 1970s

Mikaela Shiffrin secured a record-tying sixth women’s overall World Cup skiing title by holding off a challenge from Germany’s Emma Aicher in the final race of the season.

Shiffrin needed only to finish in the top 15 of Wednesday’s giant slalom in Lillehammer, and the American secured that before Aicher had even began her second run. Shiffrin finished 11th and Aicher – who needed to win the race and hope that Shiffrin finished 16th or worse to clinch her first title – finished 12th.

“It’s quite emotional,” Shiffrin said. “This thing sums up a whole season of work and fighting with the whole team and I have to say to Emma that her skiing has been just outstanding and today it was just so cool to watch her, especially on the first run.

“I think the outcome of this day is that she can do this. And I think that’s the coolest thing about ski racing – that anything is possible,” Shiffrin added.

Heroism, horror and the ‘pits of hell’: inside the last days of El Fasher

Over two days in October 2025, up to 10,000 people are believed to have been massacred; a further 40,000 civilians from the Sudanese city are still unaccounted for. This is the story of what happened

In the pistachio green Toyota Land Cruiser rattling over the desert plain, Aboud Khater pressed his foot to the floor. Behind, the sun rose above El Fasher. Smoke belched from the stricken city. Khater was driving the last vehicle of the final evacuation convoy from El Fasher.

It was 5:45am on 27 October 2025. He couldn’t have waited any longer. The historic capital of Sudan’s sprawling region of Darfur would capitulate in the next two hours.

Baltimore is first U.S. city to sue over Grok deepfake porn as legal pressure mounts on Musk's xAI

Following international regulatory probes, lawsuits are piling up in the U.S. against Elon Musk's xAI and its Grok chatbot.

Billy Idol Should Be Dead review – nostalgic docu-tribute to British postpunk’s rebel

The self-destructive bad boy, now 70, looks back on his life with a humorous shrug in Jonas Åkerlund’s warmly sympathetic film

Swedish film-maker Jonas Åkerlund has been attracted to the wilder edge of rock’n’roll and I found myself grudgingly admiring his gruesome true-life death-metal horror thriller Lords of Chaos. So he was probably the right choice to direct this lavish docu-tribute to British postpunk legend Billy Idol, which combines a kind of humorous shrug at his outrageous excesses with something warmly sympathetic.

With that certain type of luck indistinguishable from talent, Billy Idol rode the tide of punk to new wave in the late 70s and early 80s, and then gambled on a move to the US; there he found fledgling 24-hour music video channel MTV, avid for content and always turned on by a self-destructive bad boy, which made him a big name. The film compares Idol to Elvis Presley, but there is something in that reflexive snarl-sneer that he used to do that has something of Eddie Cochran.

How to turn old sourdough into a classic pudding – recipe | Waste not

Bread-and-butter pudding us the ultimate zero-waste recipe, transforming everyday off-cuts into a decadent dish

Bread-and-butter pudding is a zero-waste recipe that has stood the test of time, not least because it’s so practical, comforting and thrifty. Like the best no-waste dishes, it transforms something worthless such as old bread into something truly indulgent. This version is based on Raymond Blanc’s classic, with a few of my own simplifications and adaptations over the years.

Epstein accountant and lawyer say federal agents never questioned them

In House depositions, disgraced financier’s associates say they were not contacted after his 2008 plea deal

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Jeffrey Epstein’s accountant and his attorney have both said that federal government investigators never interviewed them about the late financier’s crimes and their work with him, according to deposition videos released by the House of Representatives’ oversight committee.

Richard Kahn, Epstein’s accountant, and Darren Indyke, Epstein’s lawyer, said in hours of closed-door interviews with the committee that they did not witness, nor were involved in, any wrongdoing relating to Epstein, who died in 2019 after being charged with child sex trafficking.

Meta must pay $375 million for violating New Mexico law in child exploitation case, jury rules

Jury reaches a verdict in New Mexico trial in which the state's attorney general alleged that Meta failed to safeguard its family of apps from child predators.

Warning system failed to activate before deadly LaGuardia Airport collision, NTSB says

The National Transportation Safety Board says critical runway surveillance technology failed to activate before the deadly collision at LaGuardia Airport on Sunday between a plane and a fire-rescue truck. Tom Hanson reports.

36% of TSA officers call out at Houston's airport as lawmakers try to negotiate a deal

Senate Republicans on Tuesday sent a proposal to Democrats that would fund most of the Department of Homeland Security except for ICE's deportation division. So far, Democrats have refused to strike a deal without reforms to the agency's immigration enfor

My ​quest to ​preserve VHS-​era ​gaming ​culture​, one eBay bid at a time

As physical media makes an unlikely comebac​k​ among younger gamers, the humble VHS emerges as an unexpected archive of gaming’s messy, magical evolution​ that I saw first time around

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As I am nostalgic and of a certain age, I recently bought a VHS video recorder, just for the retrospective thrill of it; then I won a 32-inch CRT television at an auction in Shepton Mallet. Partly, this was to play a few old videos I had found in my loft, including one of me appearing in a 1990s youth TV show talking about sexism and Tomb Raider. (I was against the sexism, to be clear). But it was also because I wanted a new way of spending my money on fragile video-game nostalgia.

The rise of the games industry in the 1980s and 90s coincided with the explosion of the home-video business, and the two crossed paths in lots of interesting ways. There are the obvious treasures I want to get hold of: VHS copies of Street Fighter: The Movie and the 1993 Super Mario Bros. movie, naturally, as well as early games-inspired hits such as The Last Starfighter, The Wizard and WarGames. I rented most of these from my local video shop in the 80s – which, like many others, also sold computer games by the budget publisher Mastertronic, another interesting (at least to me) crossover between these two entertainment formats.

The creator of Fortnite has laid off more than 1,000 staff – despite billions in revenue

Huge cuts announced this week show that truly no developer working in games is safe from corporate whims

The video game industry is currently experiencing a seemingly endless bout of ruinous deja vu. Every month, another publisher posts an all too familiar statement about job losses in its development studios. There will be airy expressions of regret and platitudes praising the skill and contribution of the imminently jobless; it is all filtered through layers of corporate doublespeak intended to disguise the human cost of downsizing.

On Tuesday, it was the turn of Epic Games, creator of Fortnite, one of the most successful titles on the planet. In a note posted online, CEO Tim Sweeney announced that more than 1,000 jobs would be lost – this followed the cutting of 830 staff in September 2023.

Revealed: secret plans for two-day London Marathon with 100,000 runners

• ‘Double London Marathon’ plans backed by mayor’s office

• 2027 event would raise tens of millions more for charity

The London Marathon is in advanced talks about staging a two-day event in 2027, allowing tens of thousands more runners to take part in the iconic race and to raise tens of ­millions more for charity.

While the Double London Marathon, as it is being called internally, has not been granted formal approval it is believed to have the backing of the mayor’s office for it to be staged on Saturday and Sunday 24-25 April next year.

Husband of soldier killed in Iran war reflects on her service

In an exclusive interview with CBS News, the husband of Army Sgt. 1st Class Nicole Amor reflects on his final moments with his wife and how he wants her to be remembered. Amor was one of six soldiers killed in a drone attack at a command center in Kuwait a day after the Iran war started.

Yep, a mom's COVID shot during pregnancy protects her baby, a large study finds

A 3-year study published in Pediatrics examined newborns in Norway. It found a clear benefit for the baby when mom gets a COVID vaccination during pregnancy.

US traveller recounts brutal detention in Venezuela’s feared prisons: ‘They beat me, chained me up’

James Luckey’s ordeal sheds light on the mistreatment political prisoners faced under Nicolás Maduro

There were few countries James Luckey didn’t see during three years backpacking across the Americas, from Haiti and Honduras to Bolivia and Uruguay. Early last December, he set off from a budget hotel in the Brazilian Amazon hoping to fill in one of the final gaps.

Luckey’s intended destination was the two-billion-year-old tabletop mountain Mount Roraima, one of the most spectacular corners of South America’s most troubled nation, Venezuela. But within hours of crossing into the border town of Santa Elena de Uairén, that plan went up in smoke.

Fresh start: Hetty Lui McKinnon’s recipes to celebrate spring

Vegetables take centre stage in this relaxed menu of cheesy asparagus loaf, mushroomy filo tart with a chilli crisp crust, punchy feta salad, and a no-bake strawberry matchamisu

Vegetables are in my blood. I grew up surrounded by them; boxes upon boxes scattered around my childhood home, a perk from my father’s job as a wholesale purveyor (of bananas, specifically) at Sydney’s Flemington Markets (now known as Sydney Markets). Our family enjoyed an embarrassment of nature’s riches; an endless supply of succulent Asian greens, rotund cauliflowers, glossy aubergine, perky spring onions, and bulging cabbages that overflowed from crates in and around the kitchen and dining room. We needed to step over trays of stone fruit and cartons of oranges to get to the bathroom.

In the summer, I gorged on apricots and cherries until I was sick (true story) – I had no self-control when it came to the fresh stuff. This overindulgence ended abruptly when my father died when I was 15. The endless parade of fresh vegetables and fruits ceased but my deep connection with vegetables lives on. Today, chopping a head of broccoli, peeling a carrot or charring a wedge of cabbage makes me feel closer to my dad. It is a daily ritual that keeps his memory alive.

The sense of feeling alive is never more present than during the transition from winter. Spring, or chūn as it’s called in Cantonese, is actually the first season of the Chinese Lunar Year and somehow, that feels fitting for how we should approach eating during this time of year. As the brisk air thaws and the skies lift, the feeling of renewal and new beginnings punctuates my approach to cooking and feeding others. Bright acidity, twists on classic dishes, and pantry staples used in unexpected ways. Spring is the time to be bold, take risks in the kitchen and reawaken your tastebuds.