US veterans decry arrest of ex-army sergeant after Ice protest pred 2 urama in 34 minutami Bajun Mavalwalla, an advocate for Afghans who supported US military in Afghanistan, faces up to six years in prisonVeterans who helped the US’s Afghan allies find refuge in the US say they are outraged that a fellow veteran and advocate now faces federal conspiracy charges for his role in a protest against the Trump administration’s immigration policies.Some call the arrest of former US army sergeant Bajun Mavalwalla II “shameful” and “un-American”. Mavalwalla is part of a community of American military veterans who, in the wake of Kabul’s fall to the Taliban in 2021, worked to rescue Afghans who supported the US military operations in their home country. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Crisis engulfs Labour as deputy PM Angela Rayner is forced to step down pred 2 urama in 46 minutami Starmer brings forward cabinet reshuffle to restore order but fallout likely to further damage party’s reputationKeir Starmer is battling to get a grip on the crisis that has engulfed his government, with his deputy prime minister Angela Rayner forced to step down after breaching the ministerial code over her tax arrangements.The prime minister brought forward a major cabinet reshuffle in an attempt to restore order and get back on the front foot after a damaging few days, with Yvette Cooper, David Lammy and Shabana Mahmood all moved to prominent new roles. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Nigel Farage says ‘there’s every chance of general election in 2027’ pred 3 urami in 23 minutami Reform UK leader says party needs to be ready for early election and vows to ‘stop the boats’ within two weeks if electedUK politics live – latest updatesNigel Farage has said there is every chance of a general election in 2027 and declared he will run on a pledge to “stop the boats” within two weeks of entering No 10.Speaking at the Reform UK conference in Birmingham, he said the chaos in government and Angela Rayner’s resignation as deputy prime minister meant the party needed to be ready to fight a contest two years early. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Man arrested on suspicion of murdering two women five months apart, Met police say pred 3 urami in 39 minutami Man, 40, arrested over death of Sheryl Wilkins in August and rearrested over death of Carmenza Trujillo in MarchA man has been arrested on suspicion of committing two murders more than five months apart – with the second allegedly committed while he was being investigated over the first, police have said.Scotland Yard detectives said Carmenza Trujillo was found dead in south London on 17 March. The man was arrested a little more than a fortnight later, but then released while officers investigated. Police said Sheryl Wilkins died in north London on 24 August. The same man, aged 40, was arrested over both deaths on Thursday. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
EU fines Google nearly €3bn for ‘abusing’ dominant position in ad tech pred 3 urami in 49 minutami Regulators ordered the tech giant to end ‘self-preferencing practices’ in advertising services but declined to force saleEuropean Union regulators on Friday hit Google with a €2.95bn ($3.5bn) fine for breaching the bloc’s competition rules by favoring its own digital advertising services, marking the fourth such antitrust penalty for the company as well as a retreat from previous threats to break up the tech giant.The European Commission, the 27-nation bloc’s executive branch and top antitrust enforcer, also ordered the US company to end its “self-preferencing practices” and take steps to stop “conflicts of interest” along the advertising technology supply chain. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Crowds gather outside Giorgio Armani’s Milan HQ to pay respects before funeral pred 4 urami in 46 minutami Funeral chamber to be set up at Teatro Armani where people can view casket before a private service on MondayGiorgio Armani obituaryElegant, determined, a little unknowable: Giorgio Armani is gone but will never be forgottenA life in picturesTwice a year, the usually calm Via Bergognone in Milan shuts down due to excited fashion week crowds descending on Teatro Armani. Home to the Giorgio Armani headquarters since 2000, the sprawling space includes a purpose-built theatre where each show season a catwalk is constructed.On Friday, crowds again began to gather outside, but this time the mood was much more sombre. They had come to pay their final respects to the visionary Italian fashion designer Giorgio Armani, who died on Thursday at the age of 91. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Kennedy Center ticket sales take a nosedive after Trump takeover pred 5 urami in 22 minutami Prestigious Stuttgart Ballet likely to face 80% empty seats at DC’s premier arts venue as audiences ‘vote with their feet’Ticket sales at the Kennedy Center have continued to plummet following Donald Trump’s takeover of Washington DC’s premier performing arts venue, with the prestigious Stuttgart Ballet expected to dance next month to houses less than 20% full.Audiences are “voting with their feet to skip out” on shows that would once have been packed, in protest at the US president inserting himself into the center’s management and operations as its new chairman, amid discussions around the notion of renaming it after Trump, according to an analysis by the Washingtonian magazine. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Yvette Cooper to become foreign secretary and David Lammy deputy PM, say No 10 sources pred 5 urami in 28 minutami Shabana Mahmood expected to take over at Home Office as Angela Rayner’s departure hastens sweeping reshuffleUK politics live – latest updatesYvette Cooper is to become the UK’s new foreign secretary, Downing Street sources have said, as Keir Starmer embarks on a sweeping reshuffle after the damaging departure of his deputy, Angela Rayner, from government.David Lammy was to become justice secretary, they added, but would also be appointed deputy prime minister, meaning the move is a promotion for the veteran Labour figure. Government insiders said that Shabana Mahmood, the justice secretary, would take over at the Home Office. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Angela Rayner resigns – Today in Focus Extra pred 5 urami in 33 minutami Guardian columnist Gaby Hinsliff talks through the tax row that brought down the now former deputy prime ministerAngela Rayner’s political stock had never been higher.After a difficult summer for the government, Rayner was more popular than ever with Labour’s backbench MPs. She was winning over the grassroots with her workers’ rights bill, about to pass through parliament. And after she was pictured vaping on an inflatable kayak in late August, even rightwing outlets were describing her as ‘iconic’. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Former Grange Hill actor John Alford found guilty of sexually assaulting teenage girls pred 5 urami in 45 minutami One of the victims said she felt ‘absolutely sick’ after the assault and later had a ‘mental breakdown’John Alford, the actor who appeared in TV series including London’s Burning and Grange Hill, has been found guilty of sexually assaulting girls aged 14 and 15.The 53-year-old, who was tried under his real name, John Shannon, was charged with four counts of sexual activity with the younger girl and charges of sexual assault and assault by penetration relating to the second teenager at a property in Hertfordshire on 9 April 2022. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
