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Israeli prime minister says country can ‘stand alone’ but later says he hopes US and Israel can overcome differencesBenjamin Netanyahu has vowed that Israel will stand alone and “fight with our fingernails” in defiance of US threats to further restrict arms deliveries if Israeli forces proceed with an offensive on the southern Gaza city of Rafah.Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, was speaking on Thursday...

The president is under pressure from Republicans and progressives as humanitarian crisis builds and immigration remains a key voter issueThe Biden administration has said its proposed changes to asylum standards, unveiled on Thursday, that would fast-track some deportation will enhance security and speed up a backlog of cases amid record numbers of arrivals at the US-Mexico border.The changes will also, by Biden’s own admission,...

Search team find man who dug himself out of the snow, and confirm two men, aged 23 and 32, died near Lone PeakTwo skiers have been killed in an avalanche in the mountains of Utah that occurred after several days of spring snowstorms, authorities said.The victims were two men aged 23 and 32, whose names have not been released. Continue reading...

Thompson was the last surviving member of the group after the death of guitarist Wayne Kramer in FebruaryDennis Thompson, the drummer for influential Detroit rock band MC5, has died at the age of 75.Thompson, who was the last surviving member of the group after the death of guitarist Wayne Kramer in February, died in a Michigan nursing home on Thursday. He had been recovering...

Troubled airline had earlier cancelled flights to Australia and New Zealand, citing ‘maintenance’ requirementsVanuatu has put its national carrier, Air Vanuatu, into voluntary liquidation, after it cancelled flights to Australia and New Zealand, leaving tourists stranded.The Pacific island’s government made the decisions after representatives from accounting firm EY arrived in Port Vila on Thursday and conducted initial assessments of the airline’s financials. Continue reading...

Relatives of Roger Fortson say deputies went to wrong unit and killed Fortson, as sheriff releases body-camera footageThe family of a Black US air force airman who was fatally shot by deputies who burst into his apartment in the Florida Panhandle said Thursday that they want to correct a false narrative put forth by authorities about the encounter that led to his death.Civil rights...

Leading cultural figures including Margaret Atwood sign statement in support of rapper who criticised Iranian regimeMore than 100 figures from the worlds of music, culture and human rights activism – including Coldplay and Sting – have signed a statement calling for the release of the Iranian rapper Toomaj Salehi who has been sentenced to death in Iran after protesting in support of women’s rights.The...

Agency chief says compound has suffered a number of attacks with the lives of UN staff ‘at a serious risk’The UN agency for Palestinian refugees has temporarily closed its East Jerusalem headquarters after “Israeli extremists” set fire to the perimeter following weeks of repeated attacks.“This evening, Israeli residents set fire twice to the perimeter of the Unrwa headquarters in occupied East Jerusalem,” the head...

Thousands had marched against the country’s inclusion in Saturday’s final but Eden Golan’s entry was voted throughIsrael has made it through to the final of the Eurovision song contest, setting the stage for a tense and politically charged event in Malmö on Saturday.At Thursday’s second semi-final in Sweden’s third largest city, viewers from the competing countries backed the Israeli singer Eden Golan as one...

Lawrence Hecker pleaded the fifth 117 times as he detailed how the Catholic church protected him for more than two decades after he admitted to molesting children‘We were encouraged to be with younger boys’: breaking down a child molester priest’s secret testimonyLongtime New Orleans Catholic priest Lawrence Hecker received a special honor from the Vatican nearly 25 years ago despite having confessed to molesting...

In unearthed deposition, Lawrence Hecker pleaded the fifth 117 times, but still provided damning details of decades-long predatory behavior‘It wasn’t a big deal’: secret deposition reveals how a child molester priest was shielded by his churchThe Guardian and CBS affiliate WWL Louisiana have obtained a long suppressed, eight-and-a-half-hour deposition of a 92-year-old Catholic priest charged with physically overpowering and raping a boy in a...

Pop star thrills Paris crowds with songs from newest album The Tortured Poets DepartmentTaylor Swift has added her newest album, The Tortured Poets Department, to an already packed setlist as she returned to The Eras Tour after a two-month break.Swift had described TTPD as “new works reflecting events, opinions and sentiments from a fleeting and fatalistic moment in time – one that was both...

New rule would restrict access sooner for people deemed to pose ‘national security or public safety risk’The Biden administration on Thursday proposed a new rule that it said would streamline asylum processing at the southern border by quickly denying certain migrants deemed to “pose a national security or public safety risk”.The proposed rule would allow immigration officials to reject and deport migrants who are...

Animal dubbed ‘Caramelo’ was trapped for days, balancing on two strips of slippery asbestos after flooding hit the Porto Alegre areaEmergency workers have rescued a horse that had been trapped for days on a rooftop after severe floods in southern Brazil, as the death toll from the disaster rose to 107 people.The animal, dubbed Caramelo on social media, had been balancing on two narrow...

Warm welcome for Chinese president contrasts with rest of EU, with up to 18 cooperation agreements expected Hungary has rolled out the red carpet for Xi Jinping in a show of warmth that contrasts with wariness in the rest of the EU about China’s stance on trade, global politics and human rights.On the third and final stop of his first European tour in five...

Deep concern displaced people will return to rubble of former homes without ‘basic essentials necessary for life’Biden Israel weapons comments – latest updatesMore than 100,000 people have fled Rafah after Israel intensified its bombardment, UN officials have said, in the largest movement of population in Gaza for many months.Humanitarian officials are tracking the number of people fleeing Rafah, the southernmost city in Gaza, where...

Court says irregularities in Colombian singer’s 2018 tax return did not indicate intent to defraud A Spanish court has shelved an investigation into an alleged tax fraud by the Colombian pop star Shakira, putting an end to her legal woes in the country where she once lived.Prosecutors had opened the case in July, alleging she had used a network of companies, some in tax...

Victory Day event commemorating second world war highlights drain of Ukraine war on Russia’s militaryA solitary, symbolic tank has featured in Russia’s annual 9 May military parade for the second year in a row as the country was forced to pare down its normal display of military might during a full-scale war in which it has suffered unprecedented losses over the last two years.The...

Biden’s threat to halt shipments seems to leave some weapon types available to Israel as well as stockpiles and an unaffected air forceBiden Israel weapons comments – latest updatesThe volume of US military aid to Israel since 7 October last year suggests the intensity of the assault on Gaza would not have been possible without the continued supply of American bombs, shells and other...

In a crisis of her own making, Qu Jing also threatened Baidu staff who dared to question her management styleThe head of public relations at China’s biggest search engine, Baidu, has apologised after creating her own PR crisis with a series of videos glorifying the country’s work-till-you-drop culture.Qu Jing, who is also vice-president at the company, said she would not take responsibility for her...

The US president tells CNN he has made it clear to Benjamin Netanyahu that a major offensive on the Gaza city would mean a halt to more weapons shipmentsAnalysis: Biden seeks to pull rank in US-Israel relationshipAt least 34,844 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli offensive in Gaza and 78,404 Palestinians injured, according to the territory’s health ministry. Thousands more are believed to...

Vladimir Putin marks second world war Victory Day as relations with west spiral towards crisisSouth Korea’s position remains it will not supply lethal weapons to any country, president Yoon Suk Yeol said on Thursday, when asked if Seoul was prepared to help Ukraine defend itself against Russia.Yoon also said his government intended to continue managing relations with Moscow to “pursue economic cooperation and mutual...

Anneliese Dodds says she believes Elphicke is a good fit for Labour after criticism from across the political spectrumBen Houchen, who was the Conservative to win a metro mayor electoral contest last week (he was re-elected as Tees Valley mayor), has said that the route to Tory electoral recovery is “getting narrower by the day”.In an interview with BBC Radio Tees, he said:Things don’t...

Resource minister Madeleine King released the party’s future gas strategy which says new sources will be needed ‘to 2050 and beyond’Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastThe prime minister, Anthony Albanese, is facing an internal revolt with Labor backbenchers pushing back against the government’s support for new gas production.Five inner-city MPs have criticised the government’s gas strategy, arguing...