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I had just put my knife and fork down, and almost didn't notice the booming sounds coming from somewhere in front of me in the direction of the main entrance to the ballroom at the Washington Hilton.

I did a kind of audio double take.

Within moments, I thought – that is the low thudding sound that semi-automatic weapons make.

As someone who is blind I focus on the sounds, and I heard the shattering of glass.

Then I felt the head of my colleague, Daniel, who I had just been speaking to, brush past and I realised he was diving for the floor.

So I followed him.

I was on my knees, under the table cloth, almost certain that here I was, another Saturday night, another presidential event, and in the midst of yet another shooting.

I was there in Butler, Pennsylvania in July 2024 when the president came within inches of losing his life.

The moments after that were filled with screaming and running people.

This time was different as within seconds, we were under the table.

Another colleague told me how, as the shots rang out, he saw dozens of people running into the ballroom from the corridor outside.

For the five or ten minutes we stayed under the table, all of us were waiting to see if a gunman had also run into the room and was about to start shooting at the two-and-a half thousand people in attendance at this dinner.

A colleague told me how she had seen the Secret Service on the stage behind us, rushing President Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, and Vice-President JD Vance away.

Other agents stood in their helmets and bulletproof vests, with their guns trained on the crowd, looking to see if there were more threats.

Just before the dinner, I had seen Health Secretary RFK Jr in a small room by the ballroom. I asked him if he was looking forward to the event, and he told me he was hungry and wanted to get on with it. He was seated at a table not far behind me.

And about 30m behind us towards the main doors, FBI Director Kash Patel was on the floor with the rest of us – shielding his girlfriend - as a Secret Service agent ran across the ballroom to his aid.

Immediately, your mind goes to the what, the why and - in this case - especially the how. How could a gunman have got close to the president, again?

All the roads had been closed around the Hilton for hours, blocked off by law enforcement. But the security at the venue itself wasn't particularly heavy.

The man on the door outside only took a cursory look at my ticket from what must have been six feet away.

We took the lift down to the ballroom, and an agent wanded me but wasn't particularly interested in the bleeps set off by the contents of my inside jacket pocket. They did not ask me to turn out my belongings.

In short, the security felt like a regular White House Correspondents Dinner- one without the sitting president in attendance.

As we were held in the ballroom after the shooting, we desperately tried to get phone signal to do some broadcasting and learn more

I tried not to think too much about the scale of what had just happened.

Nevertheless, there was that telltale pricking at the eyes when your mind begins to think about what might have been. And how many of these things you have to go through in this country before your luck runs out.

Netanyahu orders army to 'vigorously attack' Hezbollah in Lebanon

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5yv1nvd4gjo, today

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered his military to "vigorously attack Hezbollah targets" in Lebanon, two days after a ceasefire was extended by three weeks.

Fresh Israeli attacks followed the directive, which came after at least six people were killed in strikes on southern Lebanon on Saturday.

Further cross-border exchanges between the two sides have strained the truce agreement, highlighting the precarity of the ceasefire.

The agreement, which has seen a reduction in fire rather than a complete halt, was extended on Thursday after talks between the countries' envoys in Washington.

Earlier on Saturday, Israeli strikes on a truck and a motorbike in the town of Yohmor al-Shaqeef in the Nabatieh district killed four people, Lebanon's health ministry said, according to Agence-France-Presse.

Another two people were killed and 17 injured in an attack on the town of Safad al-Battikh, in the Bint Jbeil district, it said.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it had "eliminated" three Hezbollah members on Saturday who were driving "a vehicle loaded with weapons", as well as another one riding a motorcycle.

It said two more armed members of the group were killed in the Litani area, where Israel has kept soldiers in the self-declared buffer zone, saying they "posed a threat to the IDF soldiers operating in southern Lebanon".

The IDF later said a "suspicious aerial target was identified" in the area of Malkia, adding the "incident constitutes an additional violation of the ceasefire".

Hezbollah, meanwhile, said it targeted an Israeli army vehicle in south Lebanon in retaliation for the attack on Yohmor al-Shaqeef, AFP reported.

Following Netanyahu's order to attack the group, Lebanon's state-run National News Agency (NNA) reported a pair of strikes in quick succession in a town in Bint Jbeil district, another on a town in Tyre district, and strikes on two more towns in Nabatieh district.

The Israeli military said it "struck Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure used for military purposes across southern Lebanon".

It said it would "continue to operate decisively against threats directed at Israeli civilians and IDF soldiers, in accordance with directives from the political echelon".

Israel continues to occupy a much of southern Lebanon and has been carrying out large-scale demolitions there.

An international press advocacy group said on Saturday attacks on journalists in Lebanon were "unacceptable", after a journalist was among those killed in Israeli attacks on Wednesday.

The Media Freedom Coalition (MFC), a partnership of countries including the UK, urged all parties to allow members of the media to work freely and safely.

A statement from the co-chairs said: "The UK and Finland strongly condemn all violence directed against journalists and media workers."

An Israeli strike killed Amal Khalil, who worked for a Lebanese newspaper, and injured freelance photographer Zeinab Faraj.

Officials in Lebanon say they were deliberately targeted as they sought shelter in a home after an initial air strike hit the vehicle in front of them, killing two men.

The IDF said it did not target journalists.

Palestinians in West Bank and some in Gaza vote in local elections

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn4vej3x0wxo, today

Palestinians are voting in local elections on Saturday, including the first poll of any kind to be held in Gaza since 2006.

Elections are taking place across the occupied West Bank, as well as in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza where Hamas operates.

Hamas was not allowed to stand in the election and several other factions have boycotted it over a requirement that candidates commit to recognising the authority of the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO), which dominates the Palestinian Authority (PA) governing in parts of the occupied West Bank not under Israeli control.

Fatah, the faction led by President Mahmoud Abbas and which dominates the PLO, was violently ousted from Gaza by Hamas in the aftermath of the last elections there.

While Hamas was not on the ballot in Deir al-Balah, Reuters news agency reported that one slate of candidates was widely seen as being aligned with it.

The central city was chosen as the sole Gaza area where elections would take place as it was not as badly damaged as other places during the Israel-Hamas war. A fragile ceasefire is in place as part of President Trump's 20-point peace plan, which halted the fighting in October last year.

Hamas continues to operate in parts of Gaza where Israeli forces have withdrawn from, and Reuters reported that its police force was involved in security operations around polling stations.

More than a million voters across the Palestinian territories are eligible to take part, according to the Ramallah-based Central Elections Commission, including 70,000 in Deir al-Balah, where 12 polling stations were scheduled to operate.

Palestinians over the age of 18 who have lived in an area where an election is taking place for at least six months are allowed to vote.

Voting began at 07:00 local time (04:00 GMT) and polls close at 19:00 local time. The results are expected late on Saturday or on Sunday.

Fatah is the only major faction on the ballot across the Palestinian territories, and is guaranteed victory in some districts because no opposition candidates are running.

While elections are taking place for 90 municipal councils and 93 village councils, the result will be decided without a poll in a further 42 municipal councils and 155 villages councils as only one faction is standing - and in some other areas, no candidates have come forward at all.

The field narrowed after several groups objected to an election law which set the conditions under which candidates would be permitted to stand.

It said candidates could only run if they committed to recognising "the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO) as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, its political and national programme, and the relevant decisions of international legitimacy".

The Fatah-dominated PLO runs the Palestinian Authority, which governs parts of the West Bank not under Israeli control, and has formally claimed to be the legitimate government in Gaza despite exercising no effective control there.

Hamas and several other Palestinian factions oppose the PLO, including over its recognition of Israel.

Local elections have not been held in the West Bank since 2022, while the last poll of any kind in Gaza was two decades ago.

Hamas replaced Fatah as the largest Palestinian faction in the 2006 legislative council election, a result which raised tensions between the rivals and preceded violent clashes.

Fatah was forcibly ousted from Gaza the following year by Hamas, cementing a political divide between the territory and the occupied West Bank.

Earlier this week the United Nations deputy special coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Dr Ramiz Alakbarov, said the elections "represent an important opportunity for Palestinians to exercise their democratic rights during an exceptionally challenging period".

Speaking after voting in Deir al-Balah, Mohammed al-Hasayna told AFP that the election served as a sign of people's "will to live".

"We want the world to help us overcome the catastrophe of war. Enough wars - it is time to work towards rebuilding Gaza," he said.

In the northern West Bank city of Tulkarem, businessman Mahmud Bader told AFP he had little hope for meaningful change.

"The [Israeli] occupation is the one that rules Tulkarem. It would only be an image shown to the international media - as if we have elections, a state or independence," he said.

What we know about the shooting incident at the White House Correspondents' Dinner

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cdxd1x2qw2go, today

US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump were evacuated from the White House Correspondents' Dinner on Saturday night, after gunshots were reported on the premises.

The US Secret Service confirmed that no one was injured in the "shooting incident", and one person has been taken into custody.

In an address from the White House, the president said it was "always shocking when this happens, that never changes".

Immediately after the incident, Trump wrote on Truth Social: "The shooter has been apprehended, and I have recommended that we "LET THE SHOW GO ON" but, will entirely be guided by Law Enforcement."

He followed up with a second post, where he said law enforcement had requested that he and the first lady leave the premises.

What did Trump say in his address following the shooting?

Speaking from the White House an hour or so after the incident, the president said that a man had been taken into custody after he charged security at the Washington Hilton hotel with a "powerful" weapon".

Pointing reporters in the direction of Truth Social, where he said he had shared a video of the "thug" charging a security checkpoint as well as a photo of him in custody, Trump called the gunman a "very sick man".

Trump said one Secret Service agent was shot at very close range in the incident, but saved by his bullet-proof vest.

"I just spoke to the officer, and he's doing great," he said.

"He has very high spirits, and we told him we love him and respect him, and he's a very proud guy."

The president described a room that was "totally unified", with a "tremendous amount of love and coming together" in the aftermath of the gunfire.

Trump emphasised he wanted the event to resume following the apprehension of the suspect, but protocol prevented this.

The event will be rescheduled, Trump said, insisting he would make it "bigger and better and even nicer".

The president also made reference to the two previous attempts on his life, including at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, and another time while Trump was golfing in Palm Beach, Florida.

He said it was "always shocking when this happens, that never changes", noting that the first lady was "rather traumatised" by the incident.

The president also thanked the media, who he says were "very responsible" in their coverage of the unfolding situation.

What has Trump shared to social media?

Shortly before giving an address to the media, Trump shared images and a video of the alleged shooting suspect.

The close-up photo shows a shirtless man on the floor with his hands cuffed behind his back with Secret Service standing around him.

In the grainy video clip, a person is seen rushing past security officers, who then turn and chase him.

In his address to the media on Saturday evening, the president confirmed that he had given the direction for both the images and the video to be circulated.

Who is the suspect and what has he been charged with?

The alleged shooting suspect is reported to be Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, California, by the BBC's North American news partner, CBS.

Trump said the FBI and Secret Service were executing search warrants at a California address.

Washington DC's interim police chief Jeffery Carroll said he was a hotel guest where the event was taking place. He said there was no reason to believe anyone else was is in danger.

While law enforcement has confirmed that shots were fired, it is not clear how many. Security officials and the man exchanged fire, police said.

Carroll said the suspect was "armed with a shotgun, a handgun, and multiple knives".

Jeanine Pirro, US attorney for Washington, said the suspect is facing two counts for using firearm during crime of violence and assault on federal officers using dangerous weapon.

He will be formally charged on Monday, she said.

The motivation for the shooting remains unclear, but Trump has said he hopes to be able to give an update on Sunday.

What happened at the dinner?

The annual White House Correspondents' Dinner was being held at the Washington Hilton hotel, and the president was expected to make an address there later that evening, when gunshots were heard in the vicinity of the ballroom.

Several BBC correspondents, who were in attendance, reported scenes of widespread confusion following the sound of gunshots.

US Secret Service agents were seen escorting the president and the first lady from the room, while senior administration officials including Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth were "bundled" out by their security details.

Other attendees remained in the ballroom under lockdown - with many journalists in the room trying the report the news to their respective organisations.

The White House Correspondents' Dinner is an American press tradition that dates back to 1921, and is historically attended by the sitting president.

This was the first time Trump had attended the event as a sitting president; he was last in attendance in 2011.

Trump cancels US envoys' trip to Pakistan for talks on Iran war

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4g6nyvl29po, today

Donald Trump cancelled a planned trip by US officials to Pakistan for talks on the Iran war on Saturday, shortly after Tehran's delegation had left Islamabad.

The US president said special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner would be wasting "too much time", adding that if Iran wanted to talk "all they have to do is call".

Earlier, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi held talks with mediator Pakistan, saying afterwards he had shared Iran's position on ending the war but was yet to see whether the US was "truly serious about diplomacy".

Diplomatic efforts have stalled despite Trump's extension of a ceasefire that had been due to expire on 22 April to allow talks to continue.

Both sides have been locked in a standoff over the Strait of Hormuz, with Iran restricting passage through the key shipping route in the wake of the US and Israel commencing strikes in February, as well as over Tehran's nuclear ambitions.

The US has since increased its naval presence in the strait - through which roughly a fifth of the world's oil supply passes - to block Iranian oil exports.

The White House had said the Iranians "want to talk" when the trip was announced on Friday, but Iran said there were no plans for a direct meeting.

Trump said the ceasefire would hold on Saturday despite hopes of another round of face-to-face talks fading.

Asked whether the cancelled US trip meant the war would resume, he told news site Axios: "No, it doesn't mean that. We haven't thought about it yet."

Announcing the trip had been called off on Saturday, Trump said there was "tremendous infighting and confusion" within Iran's leadership and that "nobody knows who is in charge, including them".

He wrote on his Truth Social platform: "Also, we have all the cards, they have none! If they want to talk, all they have to do is call!!!"

The White House said on Friday that US Vice-President JD Vance had been "on standby" to join the talks had they proved successful.

He had led the US delegation in the first round of talks earlier this month and his absence from the initial planned delegation perhaps signalled that a major breakthrough was not expected.

Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian previously said Tehran remained open to talks but that "breach of commitments, blockade and threats are main obstacles to genuine negotiations".

Pakistan has mediated contact between the two sides in recent weeks, including talks between senior US and Iranian officials on 11 April that ended without agreement.

Araghchi, whose trip also includes visits to Oman and Russia, wrote in a post on X that his visit to Pakistan had been "fruitful".

He added that he had "shared Iran's position concerning [a] workable framework to permanently end the war on Iran", but said he had "yet to see if US is truly serious about diplomacy".

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shebaz Sharif said that the pair had shared "a most warm, cordial exchange of views on the current regional situation".

Araghchi is expected to return to Islamabad after visiting Oman, according to Iranian state media.

Washington's opposition to Iran gaining nuclear weapons was cited as a reason for instigating the current conflict, with the US and Israel suspecting Tehran of seeking to develop an atomic bomb.

Tehran has always denied any such intentions, saying its nuclear programme was intended for energy generation, despite having enriched uranium up to near weapons-grade level.

Elsewhere, at least four people were killed in Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon on Saturday, according to the country's state news agency. The Israeli military said Hezbollah had fired rockets at Israel.

Despite a ceasefire between Israel and the Iran-backed militant group, both sides have continued to exchange fire in recent weeks and have accused one another of violating the agreement.

On Saturday, a statement from the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the military had been ordered to "vigorously attack Hezbollah targets in Lebanon".

King's 'high stakes' visit with Trump will be toughest test yet of his reign

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce35xkgjqd5o, yesterday

"It's high risk, high stakes and high opportunity."

That's how a royal source describes next week's state visit by King Charles III and Queen Camilla to the United States.

There is genuine jeopardy in this US trip. It's not just a grip-and-grin photo opportunity, with some warm words and a few celebrities hitting the embassy prosecco.

"The visit comes in the biggest crisis in Anglo-American relations for a century," says Andrew Lownie, author of the best-selling biography of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.

"We're dealing with a very unpredictable president," says Lownie. But if anyone can influence Trump, he adds, it's King Charles.

Royal historian Ed Owens says this US state visit takes place at a time of "very unusual" political tensions and will be a "huge global event", where the King will have a chance to champion the "traditional values of democracy, liberty and freedom".

All the ingredients are there for the biggest diplomatic challenge of the King's reign: war, scandal and complicated personalities.

It's taking place against the volatile background of an ugly conflict in Iran and the wider Middle East, with a fragile ceasefire holding for now.

Thorny political relations

There's the host, President Donald Trump, who recently faced criticism for appearing to depict himself in an AI image as Jesus, in a biblical-style robe with light pouring from his palms.

The president said he had intended to look like a doctor, and later deleted the image. But it's a tricky look for the King, who is head of the Church of England.

While the US president is a self-avowed fan of the royals, he regularly criticises the UK Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, and dismissed UK aircraft carriers as "toys" compared with US equivalents. The King is, of course, the head of the British Armed Forces. And the political relations between the US and the UK, and other Nato allies, are at a perilously low ebb.

There will be nervous officials wondering what would happen if Trump holds forth about Starmer during the visit, even though the itinerary seems designed to avoid any unscripted public chit-chat.

"I don't know how disciplined he will be. The Trump show doesn't get turned off because the King is in town," cautions Max Bergmann, a former senior US State Department adviser under the Obama administration.

And there's personal pressure on the King too. After the scandal involving his brother Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, it's highly likely that survivors of the sex offender Jeffrey Epstein will be giving interviews complaining that the royal visitors are not meeting them during the visit.

Queen Camilla will however be meeting campaigners against domestic abuse during her engagements.

In terms of challenges on this trip, there's also the 77-year-old King's own health problems, undergoing a packed four-day schedule in the US when he's been living with cancer for more than two years.

'Delicate balancing act'

The trip will involve set-piece occasions in Washington - addressing Congress and a state dinner; a symbolic visit to the 9/11 Memorial and a glitzy reception in New York; then some natural beauty in a national park in Virginia.

State visits are carried out on behalf of the government, and royal sources recognise this trip is going to be a "delicate balancing act", but say there's a bigger picture of long-term US and UK friendship.

"Yes, we face current challenges, but the visit will also seek to celebrate our nations' historic ties and create the conditions for that partnership to continue long into the future," says a royal source.

Even in the seven months since President Trump's visit to Windsor Castle, the relationship between the UK and US has deteriorated. There have been political rows over the UK staying out of the Iran war, and the US president diminishing the UK armed forces' involvement in Afghanistan - which prompted a personal, if behind the scenes, intervention from the King.

Trump's admiration for the King

Despite these differences, Trump has been steadfast in his admiration for the monarchy and King Charles.

"I know him well, I've known him for years," the president told the BBC last week about the King. "He's a brave man, and he's a great man."

Whether or not that admiration is reciprocated is hard to say. Because when you ask insiders about how the King sees Trump, they tend to repeat how much Trump admires the King.

Having said that, it's not hard to discern the King's values. He is a flag bearer for post-war liberal democracy, a defender of the rules-based international order. In his tribute to his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II, he spoke of a better world based on "peace, justice, prosperity and security".

When the King and Trump met last autumn, the King pushed the message about the US needing to support Ukraine, which briefly at least seemed to have prompted action.

The King will be expected by the UK government once again to use that personal respect from Trump as leverage.

"He has that deep well of experience, insight and judgement about how to play it on a personal level," says a royal source.

Trump is a "complete antithesis of the King, but he's a pro and will find areas of common interest", says Lownie of the King's approach.

The King's biggest diplomatic moment will be his speech to both houses of the US Congress on Tuesday. He has to sweeten up the president, while at the same time keep enough savoury moments to defend his own values and to promote the interests of the UK government.

Like a diplomatic training camp, the King will be currently prepping for the trip, going through embassy briefs, reading histories and biographies, getting all the details of his engagements. The flight to the US on Monday will be used for more last-minute preparation.

Every nuance in his speech will be pored over by the Foreign Office. It will want to push buttons on supporting Nato, protecting Ukraine and signing UK-US trade agreements, probably washed down with wartime memories, references to Trump's Scottish mother and jokes about George III losing his colony.

It's the first such speech to Congress from a UK monarch since that of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, in 1991.

Showing more relaxed times, her speech began with the joke: "I do hope you can see me today". Because at the previous engagement her face had been hidden behind tall microphones, in a moment dubbed "the talking hat".

Her speech defending consensus politics would now sound like a rebuke to the wave of populism - and sits in contrast to Trump's threat to Iran that a "whole civilisation will die tonight".

"Some people believe that power grows from the barrel of a gun," she told Congress. "So it can. But history shows that it never grows well, nor for very long. Force, in the end, is sterile. We have gone a better way. Our societies rest on mutual agreement, on contract, and on consensus."

When King Charles speaks, historian Owens says that the "elephant in the room" will be the Epstein scandal, with members of Congress having called on Mountbatten-Windsor to testify and for the King to meet Epstein survivors.

Sky Roberts, the brother of the late Virginia Giuffre, who claimed she was sexually assaulted by Mountbatten-Windsor three times after being trafficked by Epstein, told the BBC's Newsnight programme he needed the King "to stand up and show his unity with survivors".

Roberts said he and his wife Amanda wanted to meet the King for 10 minutes, and would be "lobbying" for it by going to places they expected him to visit.

"This is a very big deal here in the United States, and it's a very big deal to survivors around the world that he set a precedent" for other world leaders to follow, Sky Roberts said.

Giuffre's sister-in-law, Amanda Roberts, said they did not have to go "deep into conversation" given the potential complications of impeding investigations.

"It's an olive branch that we're looking for. It's the symbolism of it. Acknowledgement, shaking the hand and looking us in the face and saying, 'I will continue on my promise to honour a fair trial. I will support the investigations. And I'm sorry that all these survivors have waited so long for justice.' I think it's that simple."

Mountbatten-Windsor, who has denied all claims against him, reached an out-of-court settlement with Giuffre in 2022 which contained no admission of liability or apology.

Trump might also not want any reminders of the Epstein scandal during the visit.

Lownie thinks there could be heckles or protests along the way about Epstein, but the King has the capacity to reach out to the US public and to revive a deeper partnership. "The roots of the tree are still there," he says of the UK and US alliance.

Royal visits are important in leaving an impression. Queen Elizabeth II's easy relationship with Ronald Reagan seemed to be summed up in pictures of them riding together in 1982. Or there was the diplomatic choreography of Princess Diana and John Travolta dancing together in 1985.

Lancaster University researcher Francesca Jackson has been trawling through the archives to see the impact of such state visits.

The late Queen's speech to both houses of Congress in 1991 was the first because her father George VI in 1939 had refused to make a speech, worrying about how his stammer might be perceived.

King Charles's visit will mark the 250th anniversary of US independence. The late Queen was there for the 200th in 1976, but Jackson's research suggests that the UK ambassador in Washington was among those opposed to her attending.

'Fraught' special relationship

Showing how sensitivities have changed, the trip was in wake of the Watergate scandal and Richard Nixon's resignation in 1974, and the ambassador warned of "a very real chance not only of embarrassment… but of impairment to the dignity of the monarchy".

There have also been invitations that have been regretted. When the Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceauşescu came to the UK in 1978, a memo from then-Foreign Secretary David Owen asked: "Who agreed to this visit? Did I? If I did, I regret it."

Bergmann suggests next week's state visit can't escape the reality that the special relationship is in difficulty.

"Frankly, it's a situation that is really fraught," he says.

The UK has been attempting to "act as a bridge between the US and Europe, trying to preserve Nato, sanding down the edges of the Trump administration, but it hasn't quite worked", says Bergmann.

Shannon Felton Spence, a director at the Harvard Kennedy School, helped to organise the 2015 visit by the then Prince Charles to the US.

She thinks next week's trip would have been even more "whizz-bang" if the Prince and Princess of Wales had come too, but emphasises how much the royals can influence opinion in the US.

The royals are "the UK's number one soft power tool and nowhere is that more evident than in the US", says Spence.

That's even more the case with Trump, when "the president respects the King, he's in awe of the monarchy".

With the political relationship in such a bad shape in recent months, she says this long-planned visit could prove to be a lucky break.

"This couldn't have come at a better moment for the UK. They're playing exactly the right card, at a time when they didn't even realise they'd be needing to play it," says Spence.

Additional reporting by Toby Mann, BBC News

Colombian president says rebels responsible for highway bombing killing 14 people

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckgx5kyyj8do, today

A bombing on a Colombian highway has left at least 14 people dead and dozens seriously injured, including minors, which authorities linked to guerrilla insurgents.

Videos shared from the scene showed damaged vehicles and debris strewn across the road in the southern Cauca region.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro blamed the attack on rebels linked to dissident factions of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc), one of the longest-running insurgency groups in Latin America.

Political violence has re-emerged in recent years after peace talks between Farc and the government in 2016 collapsed, despite the president's strategy of "total peace".

"Those who carried out this attack... are terrorists, fascists and drug traffickers," Petro said on X.

"I want our very best soldiers to confront them," he added.

Posting a video on X of upturned vehicles and craters littered along the highway in Cauca, local Governor Octavio Guzman described the bombing as "indiscriminate".

"Cauca cannot continue to face this barbarity alone," Guzman wrote.

Witnesses told the AFP news agency that the blast was so powerful they were knocked back several metres.

A spate of smaller attacks have also been reported in Cauca since Friday, the governor added, including one that targeted a military base in the city of Cali that injured two people.

Defence Minister Pedro Arnulfo Sánchez said a bus filled with explosives failed to detonate earlier in the day in the Cauca region, saying it was carried out by members of a drug-trafficking cartel.

The latest attacks come one month out from Colombia's presidential election on 31 May.

Petro, himself a former guerrilla fighter, has been pursuing a controversial peace strategy with various armed factions which has seen intermittent ceasefires and periods of relatively little violence. His term will end later this year.

Members of Farc who initially rejected the 2016 peace deal have attempted to stall negotiations with Petro's government over recent years.

Right-wing candidate Miguel Uribe Turbay assassinated by a 15-year-old boy in June at a rally in the capital Bogotá, dying two months later in hospital.

Leftist Senator Ivan Cepeda, a leading proponent Petro's policy of negotiating with armed groups, is currently ahead in opinion polls.

'We don't come to play': Is Gawdland's RuPaul win Asia's big drag moment?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gx4xj1e74o, today

Days before Gawdland was crowned the first South East Asian winner of RuPaul's Drag Race UK vs the World, she had posted a video of three Filipino boys dancing to her song Firecracker.

"Yaas, nakshie!" Gawdland cheers in the clip, using the Filipino gay slang word for daughter, as the boys - who were selling jasmine flower garlands - attempted jump-splits and somersaults outside a Manila nightclub.

Gawdland, who is from Thailand, hopes that she will be the first of many from the region to conquer the world stage, inspiring youth - like the three young flower sellers - to follow in her footsteps.

"For me to win this crown, to have this victory, it means the world. It means representation, it means taking up space. It means that we can dream big. We can dream an impossible dream," the 24-year-old, whose real name is Tharathep Thaweephon, tells BBC Thai.

"I am the proof of Asian drag excellence. When we do drag in Asia, in South East Asia, we're not here to play. We're here to win."

She's a winner, baby

Winning RuPaul's Drag Race UK vs the World is no easy feat.

Gawdland was up against some firm fan favourites from Drag Race editions in the UK, US, Canada, Mexico, Germany, Sweden and the Philippines.

She was determined to avoid the fate of some other South East Asian queens who crashed out of earlier seasons after impressive runs like Thailand's Pangina Heals in 2022 and the Philippines' Marina Summers in 2024.

Gawdland brought a distinctively Thai aesthetic to her runway looks, often wearing headpieces inspired by the ancient temples that her hometown, Lamphun is famous for.

She also sashayed as a Muay Thai kickboxer, a Siamese fighting fish and a Kinnaree, a Thai mythological character that is half-bird half-woman. The warrior theme in all her looks was inescapable.

When she was preparing for Drag Race, Gawdland says she was first unsure how much Thai culture to display in her outfits. But her stylist-friend, Art Arya, convinced her to go "all-out".

"She told me that this Thai-ness is exactly what would make me stand out. Our culture, this difference that sets us apart from everyone else. She told me, 'once you're standing on that main stage next to the others, you will be outstanding."

But it was Gawdland's performance of her song Firecracker, where she licked the flames blasting out of a fireworks gun, that really set her apart.

That performance went so viral that a random bunch of Filipino boys in Manila burst into the song when they saw her on the street.

"(It is) beyond crazy, the love, the support, the congratulatory words that you guys sent to me from all over Asia. I'm so honoured to be your pride. Like, I'm just a little kid, you know?" Gawdland gushes.

A rich Asian heritage

Before Gawdland, Asia was already well represented in the Drag Race universe.

Two Asian Americans have won the main Drag Race franchise in the US - Raja Gemini who has Indonesian roots and Nymphia Wind, originally from Taiwan.

There are also a number of breakout stars from Asia like Filipina Manila Luzon, Laotian queen Jujubee and Vietnam's Plastique Tiara.

But while South East Asian queens enjoy international attention, drag in their home countries is still largely underground - they are mostly restricted to nightclub performances and reality shows like the Drag Race franchise.

South East Asia, home to about 700 million people, is also largely conservative - especially in attutudes towards the LGBT community.

Malaysia has made homosexuality illegal, while in Indonesia's Aceh province, gay sex is punishable by public caning under Islamic law. Even in the relatively progressive Philippines, LGBT couples have no legal protections.

Thailand is the only country in the region that recognises same-sex unions.

And as the audience for drag expands in the region, performers find themselves under increasing scrutiny.

Gawdland, for instance, was criticised online for wearing an outfit with the colours of Thailand's flag. In 2023, Filipina drag queen Pura Luka Vega was arrested for performing in a Jesus Christ costume. She defended her act as art and the charges were dropped but she nonetheless stirred outrage in predominantly Catholic Philippines.

"Drag is political. It has always been," Gawdland says. "It's been that way for a long time. The origins of drag are protest, a refusal to submit to tradition. Society wants us to be men, but no, I'll be a woman."

"What is she doing? Why is she doing this? - That is the very core of drag. It leaves behind a conversation, dialogue, debate," she adds.

Shantay, you stay

Gawdland says she had to put together 1 million baht ($31,000; £23,000) to compete in Drag Race UK - and used her savings and money from show producers and senior drag queens.

"What the (drag) scene in Thailand is really lacking is money. We can't deny that the world revolves around money." Gawdland says.

While Thailand's government supports the arts, it is easier for traditional disciplines like dance to secure funding, not drag performances, says Sakol Sopitachasak, an assistant professor at Thammasat University who wrote a research paper on Thai drag.

"It's a profession that requires you to put everything into one person. You have to do your makeup, your costumes, be creative, and you have to be able to act, be a good speaker, be funny, be sarcastic... You need so much," Prof Sakol says.

Gawdland at least, won a £50,000 prize along with the title "Queen of the Mothertucking World".

She says booking one drag queen means enlisting the services of workers behind the scenes, keeping the industry going.

"Hiring one drag queen goes on and on. It includes the costume designer, nail technician, hairstylist, assistants, choreographer, dancers. Everyone gets paid because we're essentially a money distributor," she says.

And since winning, she has been busy with performances and appearances, including one at this week's Songkran (Thai New Year) festivities. The event, which involves water gun fights on the streets of Bangkok has become a favourite for LGBT tourists in the region.

It was a triumphant homecoming for Thailand's newly-crowned queen as burly bare-chested men carried her on a throne, through a sea of revelers under a train station.

Just a few months ago, as she waited for her flight to the UK at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi airport, Gawdland said she was worried about how Thai audiences would react to her on the show. But since the show premiered on streaming platforms, she said she had been overwhelmed with support.

"It's beyond the word worth it. Every exhaustion, every effort, every tear and drop of blood, every pain, every heartbreak — it all vanished instantly. It is so, so worth it for everything I have now," she said.

Giuffre family hold anniversary vigil ahead of King's US visit

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2w7z8zj54o, today

Family, friends and supporters of Virginia Giuffre held an emotional memorial vigil in Washington DC marking the first anniversary of her death.

With the White House in the background, her brother Sky Roberts spoke of how his sister, a prominent accuser of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, had turned "pain into purpose".

The event was held ahead of the arrival of the King and Queen in Washington DC on a state visit.

Giuffre's lawyer Sigrid McCawley repeated calls for the King to meet Epstein survivors, saying it was a "missed opportunity".

McCawley said she appreciated the concerns about the King not wanting to jeopardise any legal proceedings by holding a meeting, but she thought survivors would have understood if he listened without having to say anything.

There were more than 100 people gathered near to the Washington Monument, including Sydney Beasly, originally from Kentucky.

She also thought the royal visitors should have included a meeting with Epstein survivors during their US stay.

"If the monarchy wants to be relevant in the future, they have to meet all types of people, including survivors, so they can make informed decisions. It's about increasing awareness," she said.

Sky Roberts told the BBC's Newsnight on Friday: "We need the King of England to stand up and show his unity with survivors... And all we ask is for a 10-minute meeting with the King to show him that we're real people, with real feelings."

It's not expected that there will be any meeting with survivors during the state visit, because of worries about interfering with the legal process.

But Queen Camilla will meet representatives of campaigns against violence against women at engagements during the state visit.

The event was a mix of speeches, music and performance, with campaigners holding up posters saying "Survivors are powerful", at a memorial held a year after Giuffre had taken her own life.

She had written a memoir about being abused by Epstein and had been an accuser of the then-Prince Andrew, in a legal action that ended in a financial settlement. Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has always denied any wrongdoing.

Congressman Jamie Raskin said Giuffre inspired other survivors of Epstein's "nightmarish trafficking operation".

He said the process of holding people to account had become an "irreversible reckoning".

And the Democrat lawmaker blamed an "unequal and morally impoverished society, a legal and criminal justice system contaminated by corruption and privilege and our political system infected with complacency".

An Epstein survivor Wendy Pesante told the gathering: "Today serves as both a memorial and a reminder of the importance of us continuing to come together and speak out."

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Mali army says armed groups launch coordinated attacks across country

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clyx7nnrkqdo, today

Armed groups have launched coordinated attacks across Mali, including in the capital Bamako, the country's army says.

In a statement released on Saturday morning, the military said "fighting is ongoing", adding "our defence and security forces are currently engaged in repelling the attackers".

Witnesses have told the Reuters news agency of explosions and sustained gunfire early on Saturday morning around the Kati military base, a major installation outside the capital. Soldiers have been deployed to block off roads in the area.

There are also reports of attacks in Gao in the north-east and Sevare in central Mali.

One resident, who was travelling back to Bamako from Ethiopia, told the BBC that all flights into the city were cancelled early on Saturday. It is not yet clear whether the reported attacks have affected the airport.

It is also unclear who is behind the attacks.

Mali is currently ruled by a military junta led by Gen Assimi Goïta, who first seized power in a coup in 2020, promising to restore security and push back armed groups.

The junta had popular support when it took power, promising to deal with the long-running security crisis prompted by a separatist rebellion in the north by ethnic Tuaregs, which was then hijacked by Islamist militants.

The UN peacekeeping mission and French forces had been deployed in 2013 to deal with the escalating insurgency.

Both have left since the junta took over, and the military government has hired Russian mercenaries to tackle the insecurity.

However, the jihadist insurgency has continued and large parts of the north and east of the country remain outside government control.

This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version.

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'I know what I saw' - Scotland's history of big cat sightings

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cdxk5525792o, today

John Kirk is clear about what he saw while driving into Grantown-on-Spey with his wife on the evening of Friday 17 April.

"We were going to pick up the grandchildren from a friend's house," he says.

"We came off the roundabout, heading into Grantown, just coming up to the cemetery. And something flashed across the road at a great rate of knots.

"And I thought: 'That's a cat'.

"I turned to my wife and I said: 'Did you see something there?'

"She said: 'Yeah but that was no deer. It was like a cat.'

"It was bigger than my collie. It would have been sitting about two feet high, long tail. It was definitely a cat."

John's not the type who's prone to fanciful notions.

He farmed the Cairngorms for more than 50 years. He knows the landscape, its secrets, and its wildlife.

And - as he says - he knows a cat when he sees one. He believes they saw a black panther that night. He has good reason to be confident about this, because it's not his first.

"I seen one about 25 years ago. It was on the road, and it was a panther. It was a black panther crossing the road in front of me."

When John got to the top of a nearby hill the road was covered in rabbits, running away from the spot where he had seen the big cat.

"It was one of the most amazing sights I've ever seen. I actually had to stop the vehicle to let the rabbits cross the road," he said.

"They had obviously smelt it coming up through the wood and they were heading towards the forest. I had never seen nature do something like that before."

This time, John is not alone. In the past week, five or six others have been in contact to say they too have seen the cat.

"I put it on Facebook just to see what sort of crack would be with it and to see if anybody else had seen it.

"And the response has been absolutely unbelievable. The amount of folk that have seen it around the town, and I know folk personally who have seen it."

Such sightings are nothing new, nor even that rare.

There's a long history in Britain of people encountering big felines that are not native to these islands.

Paul Macdonald runs the Scottish Big Cat Research Team, a network of volunteers dedicated to reporting sightings and protecting the creatures.

He founded the group in 2017, after hearing of an encounter near his home in the Borders. But his interest in the subject was sparked more than 30 years earlier.

Back in the 1980s, Paul was travelling to school on the West Highland rail line when he had his own close encounter.

"Both myself and my friend saw - at very close quarters, in broad morning daylight - a black leopard, casually moving away from the train. It was quite undeniable as to what we were looking at," he says.

"It left us both in a bit of shock. But I think that kind of captured my imagination at the time, to at least understand there was one big cat out there somewhere."

Paul began following big cat reports in the media, reading about livestock kills and sightings across the UK. He realised there was a "bigger picture", which eventually led to him founding the research team.

"I decided to focus on Midlothian and Peeblesshire sightings and realised there were quite a lot. Soon after, I met another fellow who was keen to research and we decided just to go all out and cover all of Scotland."

In nine years, the team has mapped 1,800 sightings dating back as far as 1947. If that's true, there are a lot of big cats out there in Scotland's hills and glens.

So what are they and how did they get there?

Tales of wild big cats have been a staple of the UK media for decades. Some - the Beast of Exmoor, the Surrey Puma - have achieved an almost mythic status.

Scotland has more than its share of cases. In 2025, four lynx - a species which has been extinct in Scotland for at least 1,300 years - were captured near Kingussie in the Highlands.

They had been illegally released into the wild.

After being captured, the three female animals were moved to the Highland Wildlife Park, near Kincraig, where they are said to be thriving. A fourth, male, cat died.

Who released them remains a mystery. But it's widely believed that private owners releasing cats into the wild are behind the modern big cat phenomenon.

"Some of the older origin stories go back to 19th Century, relating to private menageries and collections of exotic species," says Paul Macdonald.

"That never fully went away when it came to large estates and those that had the money and means.

"But there was a flashpoint for this activity throughout the whole UK, in 1976, and that was the introduction of the Dangerous Wild Animals Act."

Prior to this, it was possible to buy a pet puma, lynx or leopard.

Today, these are the three species most commonly identified in sightings.

Paul says: "The act only offered owners two options. Either buy the licence and then have your animal kept within a minimum size enclosure, and obviously there's significant cost with that.

"Or bring your animal in and have it put down. So many took a third option of taking them somewhere green enough and releasing them."

Paul believes a "significant" number of animals were released at the time, enough to establish breeding groups across the moors, hills and forests of what is still a sparsely populated country.

A few years after the law changed, a puma was caught in the Highlands. Subsequently named Felicity, she was trapped in 1980 by a farmer frustrated by a series of attacks on livestock.

She went on to live contentedly in captivity. Her condition and relative tameness suggested she had been released into the wild from a private collection. After her death in 1985 she was stuffed and displayed in Inverness Museum, where she remains on show.

Paul Macdonald believes Scotland, with its relatively temperate climate, vast areas of remote countryside and an abundance of wild prey such as deer, is a good breeding environment for big cats.

He believes the cats people claim to see today are descended from the animals released in the wake of the 1976 act.

Sceptics ask why we don't see more of them, and why the photos of big cats cited as evidence are often blurry and ambiguous.

"There are understandable reasons for a relative lack of images when it comes to sightings," Paul says.

"Most sightings are typically five seconds or less. It typically takes around seven seconds or more to deploy a phone or camera from a pocket, switch it on and take a clear image.

"In any case, every encounter is completely unexpected. And the witness invariably is left in a state of shock, awe or fear from what they've just seen."

He says the bones, prints, photos and testimony they've collected leave him in no doubt that big cats are out there.

It's clear many people are having encounters with animals which, at the very least, do not appear to be native species.

NatureScot, the Scottish government's conservation and natural heritage body, defines evidence as "photographs, footprints, hair or tissue samples or freshly killed prey" and publishes instructions on how the public can report any encounters or discoveries.

A statement given to BBC Scotland News on the subject strikes a sceptical note.

"While we receive one or two sightings of big cats a year, none of the reports submitted over the past 34 years have provided sufficient evidence to conclude that big cats were present.

"The last verified sighting of a big cat in the wild in Scotland was in 1980."

That cat was - of course - Felicity the Highland puma.

Paul Macdonald understands public scepticism but he believes the evidence for big cats is clear and we should not be surprised at the thought of them thriving here.

"Leopards and pumas are non-native species that are not supposed to be in our environment. But then, we're not the only country in the world that has non-native big cats," he says.

"Every country in the world has non-native species of some sorts, and cats happen to be the most adaptable creatures. It shouldn't be a surprise that if there was a cause for them being there in the first place - which we can establish there was - then they would naturally thrive."

Back in the Cairngorms, John Kirk is certain of what happened last week. Certain of what he saw. Certain there's a big cat out there near his home.

"There has to be something there because, you know, it's not something you'd exaggerate on. If you do, you're a fool.

"It did cross the road in front of me. I know what I saw, that's for sure."

Noah Kahan was crowned a superstar. It messed with his head

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwyjdlq9k0go, today

A couple of hours before we meet Noah Kahan in a vacant suite of his fancy West End hotel, he posts a video of a new song, called Porchlight.

Nothing unusual in that, you might think. But the video features the 29-year-old Vermonter singing from the lavatory of his hotel bathroom; with a hashtag reading "explosive diarrhoea".

So it's with a little trepidation that we greet him a couple of hours later. Is there a safe exit route if he's caught short? Should we ensure a plentiful supply of bananas?

Luckily, it turns out Kahan was just teasing his fans.

"The bathroom has really good acoustics," he laughs, "and I always think it's funny to be sitting on the toilet playing music. My fans seem to like it when I talk about poop and stuff, so it's a good way to mix music and bathroom humour."

Good grief.

But if there's a better first introduction to Kahan, I can't imagine one.

He's an unlikely music sensation, whose rootsy songs of restlessness and belonging captured TikTok's Gen Z romantics.

Exploring themes like heartache, alienation and the uncertainty of early adulthood, his lyrics are both funny and profound.

"Time moves so damn slow I swear I feel my organs failing," he sings on 2022's Homesick, perfectly capturing the tedium of small-town America.

"He brings us closer to our humanity in the same way some of the great '60s folk songwriters did," enthused Marcus Mumford in an essay for Time magazine.

In 2022, Olivia Rodrigo covered the title track to his third album, Stick Season, in Radio 1's Live Lounge, putting a rocket under his career. Within a year, he was headlining arenas. Last summer, he graduated to festival headliner.

Behind the music was a man whose musical talent was matched by a devilish sense of self-deprecating humour – referring to himself as "Hairy Styles" and clapping back at his critics.

"Oh no, a guy holding a fish in his profile picture just called me 'cringe'," he wrote in one sarcasm-laden post. "But I wanted to be his friend so bad."

Kahan's success didn't come overnight – he signed his record deal in 2017 – but it was sudden and disorientating. On tour last year, he couldn't escape the feeling that it might all disappear.

"I was always on stage thinking 'When is this going to end? How am I going to do this again?' instead of the thousands of people that were there - and that was really sad and lonely."

It didn't help that he was struggling to write new music.

OCD diagnosis

"Usually when things are hard, I can write a song to navigate out of it, but every time I sat down to write, I would think, 'What's this going to sound like when it's released? Are people going to like this?'"

Dozens of songs were started, only to be abandoned as his confidence faltered.

"It was hard, because my biggest song, Stick Season, was written so quickly. I felt like I was failing because the process wasn't the same," he recalls.

In an effort to jump-start his muse last March, he took a trip to California's Joshua Tree National Park.

"It was so clichéd," he laughs. "I was like, 'The desert will help me understand myself'. Then I got out there and I felt even worse than before.

"It wasn't working at home in comfort, and it wasn't working out there in this new place. I felt like I had run out of options."

Returning home, he was diagnosed with OCD, and quit writing for a month – a decision he calls "horrifying".

"I got too attached to this idea that my value came from what I created. So when you're not creating, it feels like you have no value.

"And, along with the diagnosis of OCD, this obsession of being successful and talented and having everything be perfect became really, really impossible for me to contend with."

It was undoubtedly a dark time. Kahan calls it "an ego death". But it also persuaded the musician, who'd previously written a song about the effects of quitting Prozac, to go back on medication – in this case, the antidepressant Lexapro.

"I tortured myself for years not going on medication because I didn't know if I could make music if I'm happier, if I don't have that darkness within me," he says.

"But the medication gives you a break from those obsessive feelings and lets you live in reality for a second. It helped me realise I don't need to be in pain to make music."

With his mind settled, Kahan was able to re-evaluate the demos he'd accumulated. To his surprise, the writer's block was an illusion. There were, he estimates, 35 to 40 songs to choose from.

Many were on what he calls the "poppier" side, eschewing the foot-stomping, banjo-forward sound of Stick Season. Others ventured into the sort of heartland rock that'll earn him a hearty man-hug from Bruce Springsteen.

In a neat bit of circularity - and proof that fans weren't misled by that hotel video - many of them were finished in the bathroom.

"I get really stuck in my head when I'm making music – but if I sit in a chair and look in the mirror, it almost feels like I'm writing with someone else in the room. It's kind of weird."

Red carpets and hometown resentment

Lyrically, Kahan is reckoning with his newfound fame – without recycling hoary old clichés where "every hotel room looks the same" and "nobody understands the real me".

Instead, he's interested in what happens when someone returns from the city and tries to fit back into their old life.

On Porchlight, he imagines the resentful reaction of a relative who thinks he's grown too big for his boots.

"You act like we just sit up here and wait for you to reappear/But, baby, there are bills to pay and your dad's road needs salt."

"I come from this place that's so special to me and I felt like I'd sullied that somehow by singing about it and by making merch with my town on it," he says.

"I felt like I no longer had that place as a refuge… so the song is all of my biggest fears said back to me.

Several songs, including Dan and the title track The Great Divide, address the emotional distance between old friends who don't see each other often enough, but want to try harder.

American Cars, meanwhile, tells an achingly familiar story for anyone who's had to dash across the country to attend a family emergency.

Kahan says he's grateful that fame allowed him to reassess his relationships.

"Success fundamentally changed everything about my life, but it's also opened the door to conversations I never would have had without it," he says.

"It forced me to reflect on whether I took care of my relationships. Have I been a good friend, or a good son? A lot of these songs are reflecting on those things."

When he does return to his hometown of Strafford, Vermont (population 4,200), Kahan gets a refreshing dose of reality.

"The people there have their own stuff to be getting on with," he laughs. "Like, 'I've got to go chop wood, I don't have time to worry about your feelings'.

"Some people do recognise me, but a lot of times it's because I played soccer with their kid, or I worked at the valet stop in town. So I'm able to go home and feel like I did when I was 17."

His depiction of home sounds idyllic. When he's not entertaining stadiums, he spends endless summer days camping at Bow Lake, fishing and swigging beers with his buddies.

It makes you wonder whether he'd be better off if his new album didn't do so well.

"It's a really good question," he says. "You obviously want it to go well, but on another level, I don't think that's the healthiest thing, you know?

"But I think I have a better perspective on success now, and I think it's going to allow me to enjoy these moments more."

I didn't tell my boyfriend my age when we started dating. I worried he might end things

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz67vwd63wwo, today

Their dates were going well - really well, in fact. But Lena feared the new man she was seeing might end things when he discovered her age.

The pair, from Norway, had been going out for a few weeks after matching on a dating app. But Lena hadn't listed her age on her profile because she didn't want suitors to make assumptions or discount her.

"When our relationship became more serious, my worries got worse," says the 45-year-old. The man she was seeing, Kjetil, had already made it clear he was looking for love rather than a fling.

On their first date, Lena told him she had a teenage daughter, but that didn't put Kjetil off. He just assumed she'd had her when she was young.

"I actually thought she was maybe only a couple of years older than me," says 30-year-old Kjetil.

When Lena did tell him her age - a few weeks after first meeting - Kjetil was undeterred. He made a point of meeting Lena's daughter, who is 11 years younger than he is, to ask if it was OK for him to date her mum.

No such approval was needed from Kjetil's family or friends, but Lena was still concerned about what they would think of her.

'Why are you dating an old lady?'

"I told Kjetil that I might look younger, but please don't tell them my age because I'm so worried they will say, 'Why are you dating an old lady?'"

As it turned out, Kjetil's friends were totally accepting - "they're chill people" - and his parents welcomed Lena and her daughter into their family with open arms.

But what if someone had made fun of them, or implied the age gap was inappropriate?

"I would say something back," says Kjetil, who says he was prepared to end friendships with anyone who mocked or criticised his partner.

And Lena's daughter? She told her mother: "[Kjetil] is grown up and you're grown up, so as long as he treats you well, that's OK."

She's even helped bridge the couple's age gap by explaining the meaning of some of the slang used by Kjetil and his friends to her mother.

Lena and Kjetil have now been together for two years. She says his calm sensibility tempers her impulsiveness and stress.

"Sometimes I feel he is more grown-up and I'm more childish," she says, "though I can be quite bossy."

The couple are planning for the future and recently bought a house near Stavanger, a coastal city in Norway's southwest. They're moving in next week.

But there are issues Lena and Kjetil need to consider beyond social stigma.

Given Lena has more life experience than Kjetil these include potential power imbalances, whether or not to have children, and the implications of one partner needing elderly care before the other.

There has been renewed discussion of these topics on social media following the release of Age of Attraction on Netflix - a dating show in which 40 singles fall in love before discovering their massive age gaps.

Lena and Kjetil say they too have talked about many of these same issues.

Long-term plans

Something they have taken seriously is financial planning.

When they purchased their new home, they agreed Lena would invest more into the property in the short-term as she will retire sooner than Kjetil.

He will initially make smaller mortgage contributions, but by the time he retires they will have contributed equally to the property overall.

Such planning can be difficult but is important to figure out for couples with an age gap, according to relationship therapist, Sarah Louise Ryan.

"In the early stages of age-gap relationships there can be a lot of fire in the belly," Ryan says. "It's quite vibrant, it's exciting… But then when both people get older, and life differences can't be ignored, it puts a lot of pressure on the relationship."

Such couples need a retirement plan that makes sense in terms of money and timings, she advises. They should also figure out what caregiving might look like in later years.

As far as aging is concerned, Lena hopes for good health and trusts Kjetil won't have to "come visit me in my elderly home" anytime soon.

'We balance each other very well'

Long-term plans haven't featured in Kseniia's conversations with her husband Mikhail, beyond a few jokes he's made about growing old. He's 41 and she is 23.

"We're enjoying life in the moment and aren't thinking about what will happen in 20 years," Kseniia tells me from their home in Germany.

The couple met, also via a dating app, in their native Russia.

Both were initially worried about their difference in age, but soon bonded over their shared love of art, culture and detective movies.

Kseniia wasn't interested in dating people her age, whom she says spent their time clubbing, drinking and smoking. "I liked going to a museum, discussing politics and social issues, learning something new, and travelling to new cities and countries."

The more she got to know Mikhail, the more Kseniia realised they shared life goals and interests that "went much deeper than going to a museum and watching a movie together".

That became "the starting point for our family", she says. The pair married in 2022 before eventually settling in Germany.

Kseniia doesn't feel a power imbalance in their relationship but appreciates Mikhail has more experience of how the world works and feels she can learn from him.

But Kseniia does notice a generational difference in how they both communicate. She texts incessantly - sometimes sending more than 100 messages a day - while he prefers to speak on the phone, or in person.

Kseniia's friends and family have all been very accepting of Mikhail but she hasn't had much contact with his family because he doesn't have many close relatives left.

There are no imminent plans to have children, but the couple do want them in the future, and Kseniia isn't concerned about Mikhail's ability to keep up if he becomes an older father.

"Even though I'm younger, I think he has more energy. He's very active and doesn't like to sit still," she says. "We balance each other very well."

Women should 'stop feeling ashamed'

That sense of emotional balance is something Lena feels she has also found in Kjetil.

When she signed up to dating apps a few years ago, she had no specific intention to find a younger partner. On the dating apps she set her age preferences from 26-60.

"I was 42," Lena says, "at a place in life where I could date a man with grandkids or a man without kids - either was OK."

But the fact she and Kjetil clicked so well prompted her to encourage other women to consider dating outside their immediate age range too.

She began posting on social media about their life together and, despite a few negative comments, most responses have been positive.

Lena believes women should "stop feeling ashamed" and judging each other over personal decisions. She's had these feelings herself, she says, and overcome them.

She wants women to know they can find meaningful and lasting relationships with men they might have once discounted because of their youth.

Before her career in counselling and education, Lena used to work in an elderly care home and remembers a woman there who had a husband 17 years younger than her.

"He came to her with flowers everyday. He loved her still and I thought to myself: that is real love… I believe that age cannot take away love."

I brought my husband back for his funeral as a hologram

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cm29qj3e294o, today

When Pam Cronrath's husband Bill died last year, after nearly 60 years of marriage, she knew what she wanted to do, but not exactly how.

"I promised him a super wake," she told the BBC.

What she didn't expect was that keeping the promise would lead her into the world of holograms, technology more commonly associated with celebrities than memorial services in rural America.

Pam, 78, lives in Wenatchee, Washington, an agricultural community on the eastern edge of the Cascade Mountains.

A self-confessed tech enthusiast, she says her outlook was shaped by a career that stretched back to the early days of the internet.

Several years ago, while speaking at a medical conference, she watched a doctor appear as a full-body hologram broadcast live across the United States.

"I was completely impressed," she said. "It stayed with me."

After Bill died, the memory returned. Pam began wondering whether the same technology could be used for remembrance.

Finding help was challenging. Pam wanted to act quickly, but many companies she contacted were either too expensive or not interested.

Eventually, she was put in touch with Proto Hologram and Hyperreal, two companies which work with hologram and avatar technology. Pam told them about her concerns.

"When you hear they're working with Michael Jackson's estate, and then it's me - Pam from Wenatchee - you do wonder how it's going to work," she said.

She had promised Bill she would spend $2,000 (£1,480) on his "super wake", but the figure quickly escalated as the work became more ambitious.

Pam said the final sum was probably "at least 10 to 15 times" her original plan.

"But I still think [Bill] would be very much inspired by all of this, and thankful that it happened," she said.

In recent years, several technologies have emerged that allow people to appear to speak after death, by recording answers to questions in advance, with software later selecting the most relevant clips to respond.

Hyperreal's founder, Remington Scott, says his company's approach is different.

"Those systems are meaningful, but they're constructed," he said. "They're selecting from pre-recorded material or generating an approximation."

Scott said what his company does is "comprehensive capture - likeness, voice, motion, performance - to create... something people who knew the person recognise immediately".

For Pam's project, because Bill had already died, there could be no live recordings.

Instead, Pam would write the script herself, drawing on six decades of shared life.

"I knew him for 60 years, so I wrote it the way I believed he would speak."

The most challenging part, Pam says, was the voice.

Bill was a quiet, reserved man, and there were few recent recordings of him. Older audio sounded stronger; later recordings reflected his poorer health.

Engineers worked to find a balance, something family members would recognise, even if it wasn't perfect.

At the memorial service, around 200 people gathered. Most had no idea what was coming.

When Bill's hologram appeared, life-size and from the waist up, on a screen and speaking directly to the room, the reaction was immediate.

"Now, before anyone gets confused, I'm not actually here in Valhalla today," explained the hologram of Bill. "Is this going to be fun?"

"People were aghast," Pam said. "Some genuinely couldn't understand how it was happening."

The hologram did not just deliver a prepared speech. It also took part in a staged Q&A, with Bill's nephew acting as host.

The hologram even joked how marrying Pam despite his nerves had been the "best decision I ever didn't make".

Several attendees believed the exchange was happening live.

One of Pam's sons noticed only one small detail. "His voice is just a little bit off," he said. For Pam, that reaction confirmed how close they had come to getting the likeness perfect.

Pam is careful to stress that the hologram has not replaced her husband nor her grief.

"It's like looking at photos, or old videos. It doesn't get boring," she said. "When you're hurting, it helps to feel like that person is still right there with you."

Seven months on, she still watches the recording. One moment, in particular, stays with her - when the hologram says, "I love you."

"That means a lot to me," she reflected.

Scott believes the Cronrath project stood out because it was entirely family-led.

"Pam initiated it. The family was involved at every step," he said.

"What we created was something they could return to - not once, but for generations," he added.

"It's closer to commissioning a portrait or a memoir than anything else."

He is keen to stress that the company does not see its work as replacing the dead.

"We don't think of this as grief tech. It's about digital human performance, and the standard of craft has to be extremely high."

Degree of caution

Experts point to ethical concerns with such technology - including exploitation of grieving people, consent and our ability to deal with difficult emotions.

There is a risk "it positions grief as a problem to be solved, and furthermore as a problem with a technological solution," said Dr Elaine Kasket, cyberpsychologist and visiting professor at the Centre for Death and Society at Bath University.

"If an individual griever wishes to use digital remains to remember their loved one, that is their grief, and we should not question or criticise other people's needs and preferences in mourning," she added.

"The problem today, in my view, is the platformisation of grief - datafying our dead, commodifying them, curating their presence in our lives, and making mourners financially and psychologically dependent upon the platforms that reanimate and house them."

These practices "call for a degree of caution - particularly in recognising how grief and longing can make people vulnerable," according to Dr Jennifer Cearns, of the Centre for Digital Trust and Society at Manchester University.

"What matters, then, is how these technologies are used - as forms of memorialisation rather than replacement, and ideally with the consent of the person whose likeness or data is being mobilised."

Pam understands the idea of a hologram of a deceased loved one may feel unsettling to some. For her, it was never about spectacle or novelty.

"It was about Bill," she said. "About honouring his humour, his kindness, and the way he made people feel."

As technology continues to reshape how we communicate, Pam's story raises difficult questions not just about what is possible, but about what feels right.

For her, the answer was simple.

"It's part of our life story," she said. "Bill and Pam."

The crime that never happened - but sparked a rage bait frenzy anyway

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c9370jqxy18o, today

Epsom is usually a fairly quiet suburb in Surrey, but over the last couple of weeks it's been at the centre of violent disorder.

Protesters took to the streets, many demanding answers from Surrey Police about the suspects in an alleged gang rape and some suggesting asylum seekers or immigrants were involved.

Vandalism took hold and arrests were made, with protesters even entering a local hotel they mistakenly believed was housing migrants.

Except police now say the alleged gang rape never happened.

Following a "thorough investigation", Surrey Police believes the woman who made the report of rape "sustained an accidental head injury" following a night out and made "a confused report". She had given officers permission to share that information - and the force says it takes every report of sexual offending seriously.

How did this happen, and could it happen again? All evidence points towards online misinformation and then a real-world frenzy - and I've been investigating it for the BBC's Top Comment podcast.

Information vacuum

Surrey Police issued a public appeal for witnesses on 12 April, saying that an alleged rape had taken place outside a church in the historic market town, south west of London, in the early hours of the previous day.

The force said it had received reports a woman in her 20s had been attacked on her way back from a nightclub.

Last year, new guidance was issued by the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) encouraging forces to consider disclosing the ethnicity and nationality of suspects in high-profile cases in a bid to reduce the spread of misinformation.

Surrey Police says its initial appeal about alleged suspects lacked this information "because the descriptions given were vague and limited".

The force simply didn't seem to have the details to follow the NPCC guidance.

But since that guidance was released, some people have come to expect these kinds of details to be released immediately. So what happens when they aren't?

Misinformation about the Epsom incident began to circulate online, with many accounts on social media making false suggestions the suspects were asylum seekers or migrants. Others commented that they were distressed by reports of such a serious crime taking place in their local area, and expressed support for the alleged victim.

But these conversations were eclipsed by posts on X from influential accounts - those which pay for blue ticks to give their posts greater prominence in the platform's algorithm - alleging police cover-ups and suggesting they had intel about the suspects' identities.

Sander Van Der Linden, a professor of social psychology at the University of Cambridge, uses the term "stochastic terrorism" to describe events like this.

"[This] is basically the likelihood that online ideologically-driven misinformation results in offline harm and violence. Anti-immigration misinformation in particular has an increasingly high chance of turning violent," he says.

Online outrage and protests

In the week that followed the police appeal, a protest took place. Some locals attended and asked questions about what had happened. Others taking part seemed to have arrived from outside Epsom. People demanded descriptions of the suspects.

One popular X account, Inevitable West - which I've investigated before and appears to be based outside the UK - shared clips of the protest and claimed "ALL of Britain backs these patriots". That post reached more than half a million users - showing how rage bait posts are prioritised by some algorithims.

Several days after the initial appeal for witnesses, Surrey Police said it had not found evidence that the offence happened "as reported," and explicitly said there was "no evidence" asylum seekers or immigrants were involved.

But that did little to quell the online outrage.

One local Facebook group was so overwhelmed by content that its admins were forced to issue a warning that the forum "was never intended to become a place for hatred, hostility and deeply unpleasant behaviour to reside".

Another viral post with almost half a million views claimed, without any evidence, that the parents of the young woman at the centre of the allegations were being silenced - and had been told they were "not allowed to talk to the media" and "will be arrested if they do".

It went on to ask: "Is this country finished?"

Unrest escalated once again this week, with group of protesters descending on Epsom a second time. Clips show several shouting "get them out" and entering a local hotel, which did not house immigrants. The arrival of riot police led to posts suggesting protesters were being treated unfairly.

Five people, aged between 15 and 23 from across Surrey and London, have now been arrested on suspicion of public order offences and criminal damage after "missiles" were thrown at officers.

Yet more videos of protests went viral, prompting questions about what was real and what was AI-generated.

Without having any real facts about the case, people shared emotive speculation and mistruths playing into fears about immigration - which Surrey Police said had caused "concern" within the community.

The online chatter only calmed down when the force eventually revealed this week that "no sexual offence had occurred" and its investigation was closed.

Power of algorithms

Police and Crime Commissioner Lisa Townsend said it would "not have been appropriate to provide a running commentary on the investigation at such a delicate stage until all enquiries had been completed".

But she acknowledged "there are, of course, always lessons to be learnt" when it comes to what the police put in the public domain.

"Sadly, this situation was exploited by some who used legitimate concerns local residents may have had around the safety of women and girls in our communities to push a far more sinister narrative," she said.

"Instead of exercising some degree of patience and restraint and letting the police do their job to establish the facts, we had numerous social media commentators, politicians and 'experts' lining up to give their theories on a case they had limited knowledge of. Many of them quite frankly should know better."

The sequence of events in Epsom demonstrates the power of social media algorithms.

When algorithms are designed to reward rage bait content - by regularly pushing it onto other users' feeds - it can have the real-world impact of shaping and distorting people's beliefs. X did not respond to the BBC's request for comment for this article.

There are parallels here with the violent disorder that unfolded in Southport in 2024 after Bebe King, Elsie Dot Stancombe and Alice da Silva Aguiar were murdered at a dance class.

Some seized upon the sparse details about who had committed that horrific attack, to falsely claim the perpetrator was a Muslim asylum seeker - sparking even more rage in the process.

Following the furore in Epsom over a crime that did not happen, it appears neither the police nor social media giants know what to do when there's insufficient verified information to satiate a public hunger to know the details of serious crimes immediately.

A 17th Century 'supercomputer' once owned by Indian royalty heads for auction

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8x7kw9lp8do, today

A spectacular brass astrolabe - or a hand-held astronomical computer - from the 17th Century, once part of the royal collection of Jaipur city in western India, will go under the hammer at Sotheby's in London on 29 April.

The object is "perhaps the largest in existence" and has never been exhibited before, Benedict Carter, head of the department of Islamic and Indian Art at Sotheby's, told the BBC.

Known to be part of the royal collection of Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II of Jaipur, it was passed on to his wife Maharani Gayatri Devi, one of the most glamorous women of her time, after his death. It then moved to a private collection during her lifetime.

Astrolabes are metallic disks with multi-layered, interlocking components that were historically used to tell the time, map the stars, the direction of Mecca and the motion of the sky.

"They are essentially a two-dimensional projection of a three-dimensional universe. I compare them to modern-day smartphones because you can do so many things with them," says Dr Federica Gigante of the Oxford Centre for History of Science, Medicine and Technology.

"You can calculate the time of sunset, sunrise, the height of a building, the depth of a well, distance and even use them to predict the future. Along with an almanac they were once used to cast horoscopes."

Astrolabes were first developed in ancient Greece in the 2nd Century BCE and spread to the Islamic world by the 8th Century. Over the following centuries, centres of production flourished across Iraq, Iran, North Africa and al-Andalus (in present-day Spain).

This particular instrument was made in the early 17th Century in Lahore, now in Pakistan, at a time when the city had become a leading hub of astrolabe-making in the Mughal world. It was created by two brothers, Qa'im Muhammad and Muhammad Muqim, for a Mughal nobleman.

The pair were part of the so-called "Lahore School", one of the most renowned centres of astrolabe production of its time. The craft itself was kept within a single family and passed down generations.

Only two astrolabes are known to have been jointly made by the brothers; the other, a much smaller one, is kept in a museum in Iraq.

This one was commissioned by Aqa Afzal, a nobleman who administered Lahore during this period. Originally from Isfahan in Iran, he held several senior posts under the Mughal emperors Jahangir and Shah Jahan. The object's massive size and opulence reflect the patron's stature.

"It weighs 8.2kg, measures nearly 30cm in diameter and stands about 46cm tall - almost four times the size of a typical astrolabe from 17th Century India," said Carter.

"It also has a striking cross-cultural element. The star pointers carry their standard names in Persian, alongside Sanskrit equivalents etched in the Devanagari script."

According to Sotheby's, the piece contains 94 cities inscribed within it, each marked with their respective longitudes and latitudes, along with 38 star pointers linked by intricate floral tracery. It also features five precision-calibrated plates and degree divisions "so fine they are subdivided down to a third of a degree".

This level of detail reflects the extraordinary craftsmanship of the Lahore School, which at the time was "at its most refined", Carter says. Here, technical precision, functionality and artistic beauty converged in a way that set it apart from earlier astrolabes produced in parts of the Middle East, which might have only been functional.

The object also speaks to the broader scientific impulse of the Mughal court, where rulers and courtiers showed a heightened interest in the advances in astronomy and astrology.

"It is not only big, beautiful and heavy, it is so incredibly accurate that it will give you the exact degree of altitude [of a celestial body]," said Gigante.

She added that the only comparable instrument was likely one made for Abbas II of Persia.

Sotheby's says the piece's pristine condition and royal provenance is expected to attract keen interest from museums and collectors, with the piece coming to the market at an estimate of £1.5-2.5m.

The current record is held by a Ottoman astrolabe made for Sultan Bayezid II, which was a much smaller piece sold in 2014 for just under £1m.

The astrolabe will be exhibited in Sotheby's London galleries from 24–29 April.

Follow BBC News India on Instagram, YouTube, X and Facebook.

I own 20 axolotls - people need to know they're not easy to look after

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq59v23vy0xo, today

When Emma Honeyfield's daughter Amber asked for an axolotl for her birthday, Emma never imagined it would lead to a collection of 20.

The 37-year-old bought her daughter's first axolotl, Stitch, in September and has since fallen in love with their "calming" nature.

Emma said Amber, eight, had always been difficult to buy for, so when she asked for one for her birthday, she couldn't say no.

And the family, from Tredegar, Blaenau Gwent, are far from alone in seeking out the amphibians, which are critically endangered and only found in lakes and wetlands in southern Mexico City.

The animal's cute, smiling face and appearance in the hugely popular Minecraft and Roblox games has seen an increase in the number of people keeping them as pets.

With as few as 50 to 1,000 left globally in the wild, experts want people to know how to care for these creatures properly before rushing out to buy one as they can live for up to 20 years.

Tara Costellow, who runs the Axolotl and Reptile Rescue Centre in Evesham, Worcestershire, said they were "majestic animals" but could be "overwhelming".

Despite their scarcity in the wild, a 10-year-old girl found a nine-inch Mexican axolotl under a bridge near the River Ogmore in Bridgend, the only documented sighting of an axolotl in the wild in the UK.

This has prompted experts to warn people against rushing out and buying an animal that has specific needs without a good understanding of how to care for them.

Although not a big fan of Minecraft herself, Emma believes the game may have influenced Amber's desire to own one and she bought Stitch from an aquatic shop for £55.

Her subsequent axolotls were purchased from a specialist breeder, making them more expensive, and she also cares for four rescued axolotls that were not been properly looked after by previous owners.

The mum-of-three has named all 20 and can recognise each one by their shape and size: "They're spunky little creatures."

Emma said she had done her research before getting the animals and now has four tanks - but caring for axolotls has actually been much more complicated than she anticipated.

"I went into it thinking it would be quite easy - and it's really not," she said.

"Make sure you set everything up properly and do your research first."

The tanks need what is called a "fishless cycle" where good bacteria is built up in aquariums before the axolotls are introduced, which involves "dosing with ammonia, proper water testing, and you have to make sure everything is spot on".

Fellow axolotl owner, Kerry Allen, 40, from Dorset, has had Kev for several years.

"I kept seeing them on social media and just loved them," she said, describing them as "an absolutely wonderful pet".

"They're just great - fascinating to watch. They come across quite silly - they always look like they're smiling."

A lifelong animal lover, Kerry also has dogs, cats and a Siamese fighting fish called Gomez - but warned axolotls require careful upkeep.

"Unfortunately, there's a lot of misinformation given to new owners about looking after them," she said.

"Lots become quite poorly because pet shops aren't always up to scratch on their care."

Kerry said she did extensive research before getting Kev, including joining online groups and the pet shop she bought him from ensured her tank was properly tested.

Now living in a clean, cold-water tank and fed on earthworms, Kev has grown from two inches to 12.

"Touch wood I've never had a problem with him - he's in great condition," she said.

"But there's so many been sold with wrong information and they die."

Chris Newman, director of the National Centre for Reptile Welfare, said people often underestimated the level of commitment required to own an axolotl, including not realising they can live for up to 20 years.

He said there were many reasons why the animals got re-homed, including children losing interest, leaving home for college or university, and the cost of living crisis.

Tara's axolotl rescue centre has about 160 of the amphibians, as well as ferrets, snakes and lizards.

She said demand surged after axolotls appeared in Minecraft, with breeders "going absolutely crazy" producing them in large numbers.

"Everyone's kids wanted one - it was seen as such a big money-maker," she said.

But now, some owners are giving them up and the centre received 160 axolotl from one overwhelmed owner.

Young axolotls must be kept separately for months due to cannibalistic behaviour and therefore not yet ready to be re-homed, she said.

Tara said a key part of her role was "vetting new homes", ensuring tanks are properly set up and water conditions are correct - something that can take up to 12 weeks - putting the animals at risk.

"It's quite in-depth and can be overwhelming, but we try to make sure they go to the best possible homes," she said.

Tara said the creatures were a "big dedication" and were not "a big interactive pet".

"You can feed and watch them, but if you want something hands-on, they're not the right choice," she added.

"They are majestic animals, but they're critically endangered and losing their habitat in Mexico.

"In a decade's time the only ones you're going to be able to see are the ones that are domestically owned."

The RSPCA urged anyone considering an axolotl, or any exotic pet, to think carefully before taking one on, and to thoroughly research the animals' needs.

"Exotic pets often end up in our care, or others in the animal welfare sector, later down the line when people realise they're not easy to care for, or once the novelty wears off," a statement said.

"Potential owners need to make sure they can give their animal the environment they need and they have the facilities, time, financial means and long-term commitment to maintain a good standard of care.

"These amphibians need care and attention for their entire lives, which can be 15 years," it added.

The detained anti-colonial activist grabbing attention in West Africa: Who is Kemi Seba?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cm2562jd54vo, today

The controversial anti-colonial pan-African activist Kemi Seba is currently in detention in South Africa, days after his arrest while allegedly attempting to flee to Europe via Zimbabwe.

The 45-year-old is currently wanted in Benin for "inciting rebellion" after allegedly supporting the country's foiled coup in December 2025.

Known for his staunch opposition to French influence in Africa, backing of West African military leaders and pro-Russian propaganda, Seba has had multiple skirmishes with the law in several different countries.

Born in the French city of Strasbourg to Beninese parents in 1981, Seba - whose real name is Stellio Gilles Robert Capo Chichi - has made a name for himself as a radical activist, who has been arrested many times, including for inciting racial hatred and antisemitism.

In his youth, he travelled to the US, where he was influenced by the black nationalist movement, Nation of Islam (NOI), as he listened to sermons from the organisation where Malcolm X was once a prominent figure.

On his return to France as an 18-year-old, he became an ambassador for NOI.

Shortly afterwards, a trip to Egypt made him a follower of kemetism, a belief system based on ancient Egyptian theology.

Inspired by his travels, in 2004 he founded Tribu Ka, a radical black segregationist movement through which he platformed antisemitic sentiments. Two years later, it was banned by the French government and dissolved, and he was sentenced to one month in prison.

On 28 May, 2007, Seba and some of his followers marched through a predominantly Jewish area of Paris to "defend the interests of Black people", French daily newspaper Le Figaro reported at the time.

The following year, French courts sentenced him again, this time to six months in prison - four of which were suspended - for relaunching his Tribu Ka movement under a new name, Generation Kemi Seba, the paper added.

Faced with mounting pressure both from civil society activists and law enforcement, he left France for Senegal after his release.

According to French media, he also joined a new group, Movement of the Damned by Imperialism (MDI), and was president when he resigned in 2010. The group described itself as anti-imperialist and focused heavily on online activism.

Paul Melly, a researcher for the Chatham House Africa Programme, said Seba has attracted a lot of attention in recent years with his "very critical" remarks on France and its role in Africa.

"His agenda is very much now focused on this anti-French, what he would call 'anti-colonial pitch', and the resentment of the continued French influence in West Africa," Melly told the BBC, in contrast to his early career 20 years ago, when there were a lot of accusations of antisemitism.

In December 2015, Seba launched the NGO Pan-Africanist Emergency, which he still leads.

The group describes itself as a "black rights organisation with a geopolitical and humanitarian focus, specialising in issues related to sovereignty, neocolonialism, and the promotion of social justice".

As someone who opposes French influence in Africa, he is also critical of African nations which retain close ties with the former colonial power, such as those that continue using the CFA franc as legal tender.

One of Pan-Africanist Emergency's goals is to end the use of the currency.

France created the CFA franc in the late 1940s to serve as a currency in its then African empire and is one of the most prominent signs of continued French influence over its former colonies.

Fourteen African nations including Senegal, Benin and Ivory Coast still use the currency, which is pegged to the euro with financial backing from the French treasury.

Seba is among many activists calling for the CFA to be abandoned, saying it is a way for France to retain economic control.

In August 2017, he burned a 5,000 CFA franc note (£6.60; $8.90) during a protest in Senegal, to denounce "Francafrique," a term used to describe France's post-colonial influence in Africa.

He was arrested but acquitted days later on a technicality, according to reports.

In an interview with the Ivory Coast-based news website Yeclo in 2019, he named seven reasons for "his fight" against the CFA, including the Bank of France having the "right of veto in your banks".

"With regard to economic orientations," he explained, "the adage clearly states that whoever controls you economically will control you politically."

Criticism of the CFA franc on economic grounds is growing, particularly among "younger urban West Africans", according to Melly. "Kemi Seba is pretty popular, especially in the social media age with lots of young followers in West Africa."

A month after the incident, the self-styled "Afrocentrist" was deported from Senegal to France for posing a "serious threat to public order", French newspaper Le Monde reported, citing the Ministry of the Interior and Public Security in Dakar.

He has also faced trouble with the authorities in other Francophone nations.

"He's perceived by West African governments - that have good, close relations with France - as a hostile figure," Melly explained.

In August 2018, Seba was expelled from Togo, months after being kicked out of Guinea, where he was to address a conference.

The following year, he was deported from Ivory Coast to Benin for attempting to hold a rally against French colonialism which the authorities said posed a risk of unrest, and his criticism of the president's defence of the CFA franc.

He is also a staunch critic of outgoing Beninese President Patrice Talon. Upon his arrival in Benin he was briefly arrested. A separate visit to the country in 2023 also saw him arrested and released.

In July 2024, France stripped Seba of his citizenship, to which he responded by burning his passport in public, saying he had been "freed from the burden of French nationality".

A month later, Niger granted him a diplomatic passport, and made him a "special adviser" to junta leader Brig Gen Abdourahmane Tchiani.

Seba has become "very, very prominent in West Africa since the wave of military coups" struck the region, Melly told the BBC.

Niger, and neighbouring Mali and Burkina Faso, have all been taken over by military regimes that are "very hostile" to France, halting their military co-operation with the French in the fight against Islamist militants, and starting to work with Russia instead.

"The Russians have taken advantage of the fact that France is unpopular" in these countries, Melly explained.

In 2023, Thomas Gassilloud, who was the chairman of the French National Assembly's defence committee at the time, accused Seba of acting as a mouthpiece for "Russian propaganda" and serving "a foreign power that fuels anti-French sentiment".

A year later, the activist was detained by French authorities on suspicion of "links" to the Russian paramilitary group Wagner, but later released. At the time, Russia was two years into its war in Ukraine.

After so many brushes with the law, he is once again in court, this time in South Africa.

Citing his lawyers, AFP news agency said the arrest was made for breaching immigration laws. He and his 18-year-old son, Khonsou Seba Capo Chichi were arrested during a sting operation in Pretoria last week.

A source close to him told AFP he had been living in the country for around five months, overstaying his visa by around two months.

Following the arrest, South African police said: "[Seba] is allegedly a wanted fugitive in France and Benin for criminal activities relating to crimes against the state."

South African authorities said an extradition process was under way but did not specify which country had filed the request.

Benin's special prosecutor Elonmario Metonou said the country was "currently preparing" an extradition request for him.

Benin issued two international warrants for the anti-colonial influencer on 12 December, 2025, after he allegedly supported a coup attempt against the outgoing president. Hours after the attempt, Seba declared it a "day of liberation" for the country in an online video. He is also wanted in the country for "money laundering".

He has not commented on the allegations against him.

However, Hery Djehuty, Pan-Africanist Emergency's international coordinator and second-in-command, told Anadolu news agency that Benin's accusations would not "stand up to scrutiny".

The second-in-command also called the money laundering charges - which he first heard of during the prosecutor's briefing - a set-up aimed at strengthening the request.

Djehuty also denied reports that Seba had applied for asylum in South Africa.

Meanwhile, Pan-Africanist Emergency urged its followers to "remain calm" in the face of what it called "numerous fake news stories and other disinformation campaigns spread by the French-African media outlets".

"Far from weakening him, these manoeuvres only strengthen the legitimacy and scope of his commitment to social justice, sovereignty, and African dignity," the group said in a statement.

"History teaches an immutable truth: you cannot silence a people by breaking its bravest voices. There is an eternal Benin, just as there remains an African DNA of insubordination," it added.

South African national Francois van der Merwe - who is the leader of Afrikaner nationalist group Bittereinders - was also taken into custody for helping them.

Seba's bail hearing has been set for 29 April.

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

Trump said RFK Jr could run 'wild' with health policy. Instead he's reined him in

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce8lrn65lvzo, today

A year ago, US President Donald Trump pledged to let Robert Kennedy Jr "go wild" on health after tapping him to lead the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Kennedy and Trump had forged a unique coalition during the 2024 presidential campaign. As the face of the "Make America Healthy Again" (MAHA) movement - a riff on Trump's slogan "Make America Great Again" - Kennedy brought in a diverse slice of the American electorate, including mothers, tree-huggers and health enthusiasts, who felt passionately about issues like vaccine hesitancy, nutrition, environmental safety and chronic disease.

But cracks in this relationship have begun to show, especially this week after Kennedy was grilled in Congress for several days by lawmakers from both sides of the aisle.

Several raised a statement from Kennedy supporting Trump's executive order to increase domestic production of glyphosate, an herbicide that Kennedy's health-conscious base has long fought, arguing it causes cancer.

"This seemed like an opportunity for you to really stand up for your agenda," Brian Schatz, a Democratic senator from Hawaii, prodded.

"I've got a lot of friends back in Hawaii who supported you because of issues such as this, and they were hurt, shocked, confused when you were explicitly in favour of Trump's executive order," Schatz said. "What do you say to those folks?"

"I was very clear with the president about my own displeasure with the executive order," he responded. "The president felt it was necessary for national security."

The tense exchange came as Kennedy tries to make progress with his own, oftentimes controversial, agenda amid several setbacks – including some from the White House itself.

A year into his post, some of Kennedy's allies and supporters say he has not been given the free rein he expected, leading to fewer concrete accomplishments. Some Republican strategists, meanwhile, believe Trump is missing an opportunity to connect with Kennedy's base on less controversial policy goals while the president's favourability rating is at a low.

"Kennedy only has so much authority at HHS," said Jeff Hutt, a former national field director for the MAHA Institute.

"He himself is more of a spokesperson at the end of the day more than anything else," Hutt added, meaning "the change is going to come much slower".

In a statement responding to a question from the BBC about frustrations from MAHA voters, HHS said Kennedy's team remained "focused on the priorities Americans consistently say matter most to them, including chronic disease prevention, childhood nutrition, food quality, and affordable health care".

A pivot from vaccine politics

During his nomination hearing, Kennedy was circumspect about whether he would try to change US vaccine policy. But once he was in office, he quickly turned to dismantling what public health experts say was decades of research-backed vaccine policy.

He fired the members of a committee that makes recommendations on shots, replacing them with several vaccine sceptics. The panel stopped recommending the Hepatitis B vaccine to all newborns, while the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) slashed the number of recommended childhood immunisations.

Kennedy also ousted the leader of the CDC, Susan Monarez, after she refused to rubberstamp the panel's vaccine recommendations, Monarez said, leaving the agency without a leader for months.

The changes came as the US faced its worst outbreak of measles in decades, with over 4,000 cases reported in 2025 and 2026, killing two children in Texas.

Kennedy's vaccine changes were seen as a win by some in his MAHA base.

"It just gives people a little more choice or time to make those decisions on their own," said Jacqueline Capriotti, who worked on social media for Kennedy's campaign and runs a Facebook group for MAHA moms. "I think that's a very healthy conversation for us all to have - informed consent, to really fully understand what you're putting into your body."

But those early wins for vaccine-hesitant MAHA voters have increasingly faced resistance, from the courts and even Kennedy's boss, Trump.

In March, a judge halted much of Kennedy's vaccine policies, ruling that members of the vaccine panel lacked credentials, a decision HHS indicated it would appeal, but hasn't yet.

At the same time, Kennedy was told by the Trump administration to pivot away from vaccine politics before the midterm elections, Kennedy allies confirmed to the BBC.

Whit Ayres, a longtime Republican pollster, said it was clear Trump's team had decided promoting vaccine scepticism was "political poison" because the overwhelming majority of Americans support vaccines.

The judge's March ruling was something of a blessing, said Abby McCloskey, an advisor to Republican campaigns.

"It almost takes it off of RFK Jr's plate and gives him reason to not talk about it."

The pivot from vaccines was evident during Kennedy's appearances before Congress in April, when he also said every child should be vaccinated against measles.

'We were outraged': MAHA policy tensions with Trump

While his vaccine campaign has languished, Kennedy has turned back to other issues central to his MAHA base - chronic disease, and food and environmental safety.

He has remade the American food pyramid - with mixed reviews from public health experts - and has attempted to persuade corporations to voluntarily phase out synthetic food dyes.

But some of these policies have clashed with Trump, a longtime lover of fast food whose glyphosate order also angered many in the MAHA base. In the end, Kennedy released a statement publicly supporting Trump's order, saying the agricultural sector was reliant on it.

"I don't think he had a choice," Hutt said. "I wish he had not done it. I think that's the way that most people felt."

Zen Honeycutt, founder of the MAHA-aligned advocacy group Moms Across America, said many like-minded moms were "outraged" by the decision.

"It's seemed to us like the chemical companies were sitting there, that they wrote [the order] for them," she said.

She said Kennedy has been restricted because of outside pressures from big pharmaceutical, chemical and food corporations.

"But I do not doubt his commitment to the health and safety of our children," she said.

Others may feel differently. A Politico poll suggests that 47% of voters who self-identify as MAHA do not believe Trump and Kennedy have done enough - as opposed to 44% who say they have.

An HHS official told the BBC that the economic security impacts of the agricultural sector losing access to pesticides would be "severe". The official added that the agency's new dietary guidelines focus on whole fruits and vegetables, in an attempt to reduce reliance on "chemical-intensive" agricultural production.

A swing state tour and a podcast: What's next for Kennedy?

Despite these conflicts, Trump seems to believe Kennedy has power as a messenger, Republican strategists said.

In the autumn, the health secretary is expected to travel to several swing states as a political surrogate ahead of the midterm elections in November, Politico reported.

He is also launching his own podcast to have "fearless conversations with critical thinkers, including independent doctors".

He has announced a new initiative to research the effects of microplastics, and a renewed focus on tackling chronic disease.

Ayres said it's unclear whether this new pivot will convince Americans to get on board with MAHA and Trump.

"Kennedy is so widely associated with anti-vaccine advocacy that it's going to be difficult for him to redefine himself in any other way," he said.

McCloskey said Kennedy's public messaging efforts on their own only go so far. The Trump administration, she said, has been ignoring an opportunity to reach "a large constituency" of MAHA parent voters - those who care about nutrition and other children's health issues.

"What's really missing is what the next suite of concrete policy items or agenda items are like," she said.

Hutt said that even with these challenges, Kennedy could still count on his supporters to stand by him, simply for bringing MAHA issues to the forefront.

"People who supported Bobby [Kennedy] understand that his ability to be a change agent is really limited by how much rope the president gives him," he said.

But, he added, Kennedy and his team, "don't understand how strong they could be politically".

Rights groups critical as Venezuela prisoner release scheme 'coming to an end'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0kr62z7z6lo, today

Human rights groups in Venezuela have criticised interim President Delcy Rodríguez for saying a scheme to release political prisoners was "coming to an end", having been in place for just nine weeks.

Nearly 500 political prisoners have been released under the amnesty law brought in by the country's National Assembly, prisoner rights group Foro Penal says, but many more are thought to still be in jail.

The group said Rodríguez lacked the power to end the releases, while watchdog Provea called the move "arbitrary and unconstitutional".

Despite being a lieutenant of former President Nicolás Maduro, Rodríguez has enjoyed the support of Donald Trump since US forces seized Maduro in January.

The US president surprised many by backing Rodríguez over opposition leader María Corina Machado, and the release of political prisoners - including Machado's colleagues - was a key concession to the US by the interim administration.

The president of the National Assembly Jorge Rodríguez - Delcy's brother - who initially announced the law, had said 1,557 political prisoners had applied for amnesty, noting the legislation would eventually cover 11,000 people.

Foro Penal said that, as of 20 April, 473 people it classifies as political prisoners had been released, while more than 500 are thought to remain incarcerated.

In a meeting of justice officials in the capital, Caracas, on Friday, Delcy Rodríguez said 8,616 people had been freed under the amnesty law, which she credited as being "very successful in terms of its scope and the number of beneficiaries".

She added that for cases that had not been covered by the law, "there are other avenues through which they can be addressed".

Following Rodríguez's remarks, Foro Penal vice-president Gonzalo Himiob said only another legislative act or referendum could undo the amnesty law, which had no expiration date.

"The bodies of the administration of justice, which are part of the same repressive system that made an amnesty necessary, never truly had either the willingness or the capacity to apply the amnesty law while respecting its purpose or principles," he added.

His sentiments were echoed by Provea, which said ending the release of political prisoners "does not contribute to the process of co-existence and peace that has been announced".

"We have stated that, despite its limitations, the Amnesty Law is a first step toward dismantling the repressive framework that has gripped the rights of the Venezuelan population in recent years," it said.

Meanwhile, the Justice, Encounter and Pardon group said the announcement was "a grave assault on the rule of law".

"Unfortunately, this outcome confirms our initial concern: the law ended up being an exercise in political rhetoric rather than a genuine instrument to restore freedom to political prisoners," it said.

Maduro's government used the detention of political prisoners to stamp out dissent and silence critics for years.

Rodríguez, who previously served as Maduro's vice-president, has sought to frame her interim administration as more permissive of political dissent while currying favour with the US.

Earlier this month, Washington lifted sanctions on her, citing progress made "to promote stability, support economic recovery and advance political reconciliation".

Trump's decision to sideline opposition leader Machado in favour of Rodríguez has been cast by analysts as choosing stability over democracy in the short term.

Recently, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio characterised the current situation in Venezuela as a "transition phase" before "free and fair" elections.

Machado herself said she would lead the South American country "when the right time comes".

However, critics of the interim administration have bemoaned the fact there has been little talk of democratic elections in the months since Maduro was seized by US forces and taken with his wife to New York to stand trial on drug trafficking charges.

Georgia declares state of emergency as wildfires destroy dozens of homes

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1mkdvpzzpno, today

Wildfires in Georgia have burned more than 39,500 acres and destroyed more than 120 homes, officials have said.

Two major fires in the southeast of the state – the Pineland Road Fire and the Highway 82 fire – prompted Georgia Governor Brian Kemp to declare a 30-day state of emergency in 91 of the state's 159 counties.

"Right now conditions are so dry that even one small spark can quickly turn into a dangerous wildfire," Georgia Forestry Commission Director Johnny Sabo said in a video statement.

Emergency officials are also battling a range of smaller blazes, reporting 32 new wildfires that consumed 50 acres on Saturday.

"We are in extreme drought conditions, and wildfire activity has already surpassed our five year average," Sabo added.

The fires began sprouting up on 18 April, and Kemp declared a state of emergency four days later.

A foil balloon that came into contact with a power line is believed to have sparked the Highway 82 fire, which has consumed about 7,500 acres so far, according to the Georgia Forestry Commission (GFC). The blaze was about 10% contained, they said.

A stray spark from a welding operation is believed to be the source of the Pineland Road Fire which has scorched 32,000 acres, the GFC said.

In an update posted online on Friday, officials said at least 35 "minor structures" had been lost in Pineland fire and 187 homes remained threatened.

Ninety-one counties in the state have been placed under an outdoor burn ban, which prohibits the burning of rubbish and agricultural materials.

The Dudek family watched the flames reach their property line as they started to gather belongings, they told CBS News, the BBC's US media partner.

As they evacuated their children and pets, Anna Dudek watched through her phone's security camera feed as the flames engulfed their home.

"When both of my devices were offline, and it was black and I couldn't see no more, it was so gut-wrenching because then I knew, like, they got... what I call home," she told CBS News.

Katya Adler: Europe's Nato allies push back at reported US threat to Spain

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj40r2gw24wo, yesterday

It's become a joke - through gritted teeth - these days in EU circles, that whenever leaders meet, as they did these last two days in Cyprus - expecting to discuss practicalities, such as the new EU budget - they get railroaded by yet another crisis.

There is the ongoing energy crisis provoked by the US-Israel war on Iran, Russia's aggression in neighbouring Ukraine, now in its fifth year. And this Friday morning, souring relations between Europe and the United States, along with a potentially devastating defence impact, reared its Medusa-like head. Again.

"No worries," Spain's determined-to-appear-calm Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said to waiting journalists as he arrived at the leaders' summit. "We are fulfilling our obligations toward Nato."

What did he feel compelled to say he wasn't fretting about?

An email, originating from the US Pentagon and first reported by Reuters on Friday had leaked, suggesting measures for the US to punish allies it believed had failed to support the US-Israel campaign against Iran. The email said the US could seek to suspend Spain from Nato over its stance.

There is actually no provision in the Nato treaties to expel a member country. And any action to bar Spain from filling key civilian or military roles in Nato, also alluded to in the email as possible punitive action, would have to be taken unanimously amongst all Nato members .

Fellow EU leaders at the Cyprus summit, who are also in Nato, leapt to Spain's defence. Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten said he wanted to be "crystal clear" that Spain was and would remain a full Nato member. He said European countries were currently "doing a great deal to strengthen Nato". That, he said, was also in America's interest.

A high-ranking German official said: "Spain is a member of Nato. And I see no reason why that should change."

While Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni – who was once seen as so close to Donald Trump as to be viewed as a "Trump whisperer" or go-between between Europe and an increasingly irritated, or seemingly irritable, US – criticised the tensions between Washington and Madrid as "not at all positive".

Growing public opinion in Italy as across Europe has turned against Donald Trump. Meloni feels forced to take a stance against her erstwhile best buddy, drawing his ire at Rome too.

The Italian prime minister has denied the US permission to use the Sigonella airbase in Sicily for military operations against Iran. As the head of government of a country that considers itself culturally Catholic, she also described Donald Trump's recent derogatory remarks about the Pope as "unacceptable". The US president, who previously considered Meloni "one of the real leaders of the world", lashed out and told an Italian newspaper that "she's the one who's unacceptable" and "no longer the same person".

The leaked Pentagon email also suggested a possible potshot at former "special ally", and fellow Nato member, the United Kingdom – reviewing the US position on the UK's claim to the Falkland Islands in the south Atlantic, which are also claimed by Argentina.

Why?

Donald Trump has remained furious with UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer ever since he initially denied a request to use British military bases ahead of launching attacks on Iran in February. The UK has now allowed the US to use bases to launch strikes on Iranian sites targeting the effectively blocked Strait of Hormuz. RAF planes have also taken part in missions to shoot down Iranian drones.

But Sir Keir insists that greater involvement in the war and the current US blockade of Iran's ports are not in the UK's interest. Trump has repeatedly lashed out at him verbally as a result.

When it comes to Spain, though, Trump appears particularly incandescent.

Sanchez was outspoken in his opposition to the US-Israeli strikes on Iran from the get-go, describing them as illegal under international law. He immediately denied US forces permission to use joint US-Spanish military bases in Spain for operations against Iran. This led to threats (not as yet enacted upon) of trade sanctions from Trump. The Spanish prime minister had previously already grievously irritated Washington by being the only member of Nato to refuse the US president's demand to boost defence spending by 5% of GDP.

Spain has been dismissive of the leaked Pentagon email. Sanchez commented that "We do not work based on emails. We work with official documents and official positions taken, in this case, by the government of the United States."

The mail betrays a "fundamental misunderstanding" in the Trump administration about what Nato does and what Nato is, says Camille Grande, the former Nato assistant secretary general for Defence Investment and current secretary general of ASD Europe (Aerospace, Security, and Defence Industries Association for Europe).

"Are Europeans sufficiently aligned with the US, according to Trump's tastes?" That is the wrong question for Washington to be asking, according to Grande. The defence alliance is based on consensus, not run by the United States.

Grande compares Trump to a landlord seeking to expel tenants from his building if they don't pay sufficient rent in his opinion. But Nato is not Trump's building, he emphasises.

Even more damningly, French President Emmanuel Macron has accused Trump of "hollowing out" Nato by repeatedly undermining the alliance in public.

Trump likes to call Nato a "paper tiger". He's threatened to leave the defence alliance on a number of occasions, recently posting on social media that he had always considered Nato to be a "one-way street".

"We will protect them, but they will do nothing for us," he has written.

These public displays of disunity are corrosive and potentially deeply damaging in defence terms for Europe.

Countries in the east of the continent feel threatened by an expansionist Russia. Its war economy is being buoyed by cash Moscow is hoovering up as a result of being able to export oil at a high price worldwide now, thanks to the energy crisis provoked by Iran's effective blockade of the Strait of Hormuz – and the US counter-blockade.

Traditionally an arch trans-Atlanticist, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk openly questioned this week whether the US would actually come to its allies' aid militarily in case of an attack, as envisaged in Article 5 of Nato's founding treaty.

Nato reckons Russia would be ready to attack a Nato nation in three years' time. The Dutch military intelligence service MIVD noted this week that in its assessment, after the war against Ukraine ends, Moscow would be ready to initiate a regional conflict against Nato within the year.

"The Russian objective of such a conflict would not be to defeat Nato militarily, but to politically divide Nato through limited territorial gains. If necessary, under the threat of nuclear armament," said MIVD in its annual report.

Tiny, high defence-spending EU and Nato member Estonia, which neighbours and fears Russia, experienced a slap in the face by the US this week regarding defence capabilities. Because of its own needs in the war with Iran, the Pentagon told Estonia it would have to delay delivery of six units of a high-tech weapons system (the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System) that Estonia had contracted to buy from the US government.

The US Embassy in Tallinn had called the purchase "one of the most significant capability upgrades in Estonian military history". Estonia is now left feeling exposed. This despite Estonia, along with its neighbouring Baltic states ostensibly being in Trump's "good books".

Late last year, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth seemed to suggest the Trump administration was essentially dividing up its allies into "good guys" and "bad guys".

In his address to the Reagan National Defense Forum on 6 December, Hegseth said: "Model allies that step up like Israel, South Korea, Poland, increasingly Germany, the Baltics and others will receive our special favour. Allies that do not, allies that still fail to do their part for collective defence will face consequences."

"The president is obviously upset by Europeans that failed to fully support the US war in Iran. But punitive measures like removing force posture in Spain seem over-reactive in light of the fact that allies were never asked to assist the US and Trump has frequently denied that the US actually needed European support," Julianne Smith, former US ambassador to Nato and president of Clarion Strategies, told me.

"Furthermore, in a moment when the transatlantic relationship is still reeling from a stated US policy to 'get' Greenland (a territory belonging to Nato ally, Denmark), pursuing these types of punitive measures could very well issue another devastating blow to the relationship and cast a long, dark shadow over the upcoming Nato summit in July."

At the EU summit in Cyprus this week, leaders were sufficiently spooked as to want to explore a once little-known clause of the EU treaty - the mutual defence article 42.7. Could it be used if Nato's Article 5 proved to be redundant, at least as long as Trump is president, some leaders wondered?

Unfortunately for them, the head of the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, that is regarded as the guardian of the treaties, said she was flummoxed.

"The treaty is very clear about the what," said Ursula von der Leyen, explaining that EU member countries are obliged to come to each other's aid under article 42.7. But "the treaty is not clear about what happens when, and who does what", she added, rather unhelpfully.

Stuck between public opinion hostile to the Trump administration, and the economic and defence capability necessities of trying to keep Washington onside as much as possible, many of Europe's Nato (and EU) nations, led by France and the UK, are preparing along with other nations, an international maritime patrol and mine-sweeping capabilities for the Strait of Hormuz after hostilities have ended. In the hope, amongst other things, of somewhat placating Trump.

The US is not part of the maritime discussions – as France has indicated it would prefer, though the UK is reported to think otherwise.

Reacting to a comment, by the German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, that the war on Iran was not Nato's war, the Trump administration responded that it had been involved in trying to resolve the war in Ukraine (though that was not Washington's war).

Former Nato Secretary Jens Stoltenberg warned this week in a number of media interviews, that bearing all these tensions in mind, Nato's continued existence was not guaranteed ten years from now.

But the alliance's survival is in the US interest, he insists. In contrast to other global powers, like China, the US has allies and therefore global military and economic structures it can (normally) depend on.

"The United States is 25% of the global economy. But together with Nato allies, we are 50% of the global economy and 50% of the world's military might. So it makes the United States safer to have friends and allies – something that Russia and China don't have at all," according to Stoltenberg.

The former head of Nato has pushed back on the idea that Europe has broadly abandoned the United States over Iran, arguing most allies have still provided logistical support behind the scenes.

"There are some exceptions, but most have contributed."

Referring back to Trump's description of Nato as a paper tiger, Stoltenberg says such alliances become far less useful once set on fire by their own critics.

Europe's Nato members have said over and again in recent weeks that theirs is a defence alliance, not designed (or requested by Trump) to formally endorse offensive action over Iran. The US-Israel attacks are viewed in Europe as a war of choice.

The disagreement between European powers and the US is not over whether Tehran poses a threat but rather how to deal with that threat.

Governments in Europe favour diplomacy and sanctions, not unilateral military action.

Influencer dies days after being hit by car in Soho

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx29w1z1lkzo, today

A social media influencer has died six days after a car hit her and other pedestrians outside a nightclub in central London.

Klaudia Zakrzewska, from Essex, was involved in the incident on Argyll Street in Soho at 04:30 BST on 19 April. She was taken to hospital but died on Saturday.

Det Ch Insp Alison Foxwell said: "We would like to express our deepest sympathies to Klaudia's family and friends in light of this tragic update. Our thoughts are also with everyone impacted by this."

Gabrielle Carrington, 29, of Broadfield Road, Manchester, was previously charged with attempted murder. The Met Police said following Zakrzewska's death, the charge of attempted murder would be amended to murder.

A fundraiser launched in the name of Zakrzewska's mother described the 32-year-old as having a "pure heart".

"This is the most devastating time our family has ever faced.

"Those who know me understand how much I love my daughter and what a special bond we have."

Carrington, who has over 365,000 followers on Instagram under the handle RIELLEUK, starred in the X Factor live finals in 2013 as one of the three members of Miss Dynamix.

A 58-year-old man also suffered life-changing injuries following the incident, and another woman received a minor wrist injury.

Carrington was also charged with grievous bodily harm with intent, actual bodily harm, dangerous driving and drink driving.

She appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court on 21 April and was remanded into custody to appear at the Old Bailey on 19 May.

Det Ch Isp Foxwell added: "We recognise that this case has generated significant interest and discussion on social media; however, we would urge the public to refrain from further speculation."

Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to hello.bbclondon@bbc.co.uk

Mexico says US agents killed in crash weren't permitted to operate there

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2491we011o, today

The Mexican government says two US agents who died last weekend in a car crash had not been authorised to operate in the country.

The officials, who reportedly worked for the CIA, had taken part in a raid on suspected drug labs in the northern state of Chihuahua before their vehicle skidded off a mountain road and exploded.

Following an investigation ordered by President Claudia Sheinbaum, Mexico's security ministry said that "neither had formal accreditation to participate in operational activities" and that federal authorities had not been informed of their presence.

The incident comes amid at-times fraught relations between Mexico and the US on a number of issues including counter-narcotics.

Sheinbaum has come under intensifying pressure from US President Donald Trump to crack down on drug trafficking, but has repeatedly declined offers of US-led counter-narcotics operations in the country.

She has been adamand that foreign officials can only operate on Mexican soil if given prior clearance by the federal government, and has insisted the Central American nation's sovereignty should not be breached.

Mexico's security ministry said on Saturday that immigration records showed one of the agents had entered the country as a "visitor", while the other had travelled on a diplomatic passport.

"Neither had formal accreditation to participate in operational activities within national territory," the ministry said in a statement, noting that Mexican law prohibits foreign agents from taking part in operations without federal approval.

US media previously reported that the two individuals, who have not been named, had worked for the CIA as part of an expanded effort to combat narcotics trafficking in the region - a key focus of the Trump administration.

The crash occurred on 19 April, when a convoy returning from an operation targeting suspected methamphetamine labs in a remote, mountainous area veered off the road and plunged into a ravine. Two members of the Chihuahua State Investigation Agency were also killed, officials said.

Chihuahua State Attorney General César Jáuregui told a news conference that the US officials were "instructor officers" from the US embassy engaged in "training work as part of the general and normal exchange we have with the US authorities".

However, Sheinbaum said last week that, while intelligence-sharing with Washington was ongoing, there were "no joint operations on land or in the air".

Last September, a Reuters investigation found the CIA had been running covert operations in Mexico for years to track down the country's most-wanted drug traffickers.

With the Mexican government's approval, the CIA has provided select Mexican units with training, equipment and financial support for operations, including travel, according to Reuters.

Sheinbaum has repeatedly said that her government would work with Washington on security issues, while resisting US threats to put boots on the ground.

Her government has recently pursued an aggressive crackdown on drug trafficking to assuage Trump, who has also repeatedly criticised Mexico for undocumented migration across the two's shared border.

Orbán steps down from Hungarian parliament after landslide defeat

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd9v1wll8qqo, today

Hungary's outgoing Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has said he will not take up his seat in parliament after his party was defeated in a landslide that ended his 16-year rule.

"I am now needed not in parliament, but in the reorganisation of the patriotic movement," he said in a video statement released on social media on Saturday evening.

Despite his nationalist party Fidesz going from 135 seats to 52 in the 12 April vote, Orbán was re-elected as an MP on its proportional representation list.

Tisza, led by former Fidesz insider Péter Magyar, won more than a two-thirds majority in the 199-seat parliament, paving the way for a reset of both Hungary's domestic policies and its global relationships.

Following a meeting of Fidesz officials, Orbán, 62, said the party's parliamentary bloc would be led from Monday by Gulyás Gergely, who until now has served as the minister overseeing the prime minister's office.

"The mandate I obtained as the lead candidate of the Fidesz-KDNP list is, in fact, a parliamentary mandate of Fidesz. For this reason, I have decided to return it," Orbán said.

About half of Hungary's parliamentary seats are divided among political parties according to their national vote share, while the other half represent individual constituencies.

Orbán has held a seat through one electoral format or the other since 1990, and has led Fidesz throughout that period. He has served as Hungary's prime minister since 2010, becoming the predominant figure in Hungarian politics.

However, voters abandoned him in their droves amid brewing public unhappiness over allegations of corruption and graft while living standards slipped.

Hungary's incoming PM has promised to reverse Orbán-era changes to education and health, tackle corruption, restore the independence of the judiciary and kill off the widely loathed system of patronage known as NER that helped enrich party loyalists and squander state resources.

While Orbán aligned himself with US President Donald Trump and Russia's Vladimir Putin, "Russians go home" was an oft-heard chant of Tisza supporters during the campaign.

Instead of being a stumbling block for the EU and Ukraine, Magyar has pledged to seek more cordial ties with Brussels and Kyiv.

The Tisza leader has urged a swift handover of power, and Hungary's new parliament is due to hold its first session on 9 May.

Orbán's fate as Fidesz leader, meanwhile, will be decided at a party conference in June, he said as he vowed to continue shaping the nationalist movement.

China car giant BYD says it can thrive without US

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy01ele412yo, yesterday

The recent surge in fuel prices due to the war in Iran has spurred demand for electric vehicles around the world, and Chinese car makers are making the most of the opportunity.

China is the world's top producer of EVs, and while its manufacturers remain largely shut out of the major car market of the United States, they are benefiting from an uptick in interest and orders via dealerships across Asia and elsewhere.

BYD, which overtook Tesla as the world's largest seller of electric vehicles last year and is expanding aggressively overseas, is at the centre of this shift in focus.

"We survive and are successful without the US market today," BYD executive vice president Stella Li told the BBC at the Beijing Auto Show.

Instead of aiming for US customers, the company says its challenge is meeting increased demand in other regions, including Brazil, the UK and Europe.

"Consumers feel the daily savings when oil prices increase. EVs help them save money every day," Li said.

"Actually, we are now suffering [insufficient] capacity. Our demand is much higher than what we can supply."

BYD is betting on its new "flash charging" technology which Li describes as a "game-changer" to help overcome one of the biggest barriers to EV adoption - concern over charging speeds.

Flash charging can add hundreds of kilometres of range in minutes – a development Li said could persuade previously reluctant customers to consider an EV and allow BYD to compete more widely.

At this year's Beijing Auto Show, now the largest industry event in the world, more than 1,400 vehicles from hundreds of Chinese and foreign companies were on display with Chinese carmakers centre stage.

BYD's global push is unfolding against a complex geopolitical backdrop.

Chinese EV-makers face tariffs and regulatory scrutiny in global markets, particularly in the world's largest consumer market, the US.

The US has criticised Chinese government subsidies and voiced concerns over data protection and national security.

But Li said the firm was winning greater brand recognition in other markets, including the UK.

While they were once known for undercutting rivals on price, Chinese firms are increasingly competing on technology - particularly in batteries, charging infrastructure and software integration.

"We are not just a car company. We produce one-third of global smartphone components, we are a leading player in battery storage, solar panels, buses, and trucks. So BYD is an ecosystem," said Li.

Robots and flying cars

The Auto Show displayed examples of innovation from other firms, going far beyond the cars themselves.

China's X-Peng unveiled a new six-seater electric SUV, which chief executive He Xiapoeng said would soon be followed by humanoid robots this year. The company has plans to begin manufacturing flying cars in 2027.

Foreign carmakers like Volkswagen, Toyota and Ford, which once dominated China's car market, are struggling to keep pace and some are choosing to collaborate with local firms.

BMW has partnered with battery maker CATL, while Audi is using Huawei's driving assistance systems and Volkswagen is co-developing EVs with XPeng.

Competition within China is intense, with dozens of manufacturers engaged in aggressive price wars and rapid product cycles.

Even for market leaders like BYD, the domestic market is presenting ongoing challenges. Price competition has squeezed margins, and lower prices have hit demand.

BYD's domestic sales have been falling for seven straight months, in contrast to sales in Europe which were up 156% in the first three months of this year.

Li said the pressure from competition would make consolidation inevitable.

"History suggests not all will survive," she said, referring to past cycles, with the rise of Japanese car manufacturers in the 90s and South Korean brands more recently.

Additional reporting by Jaltson Akkanath Chummar

The viral manifesto of 'anti-woke' tech boss with NHS and defence contracts

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gjkj7975po, yesterday

It's not often a thousand-word social media post from a US tech firm goes viral.

But the post from Palantir - a 22-point manifesto of sorts - currently has over 30 million views on X.

It is the work of the controversial company's co-founder and chief executive, who has criticised the belief that all cultures are equal and called for universal national service.

Alex Karp also called the disarmament of Germany and Japan after World War Two an "overcorrection", backed AI weapons and condemned "ruthless exposure" of the private lives of public figures.

Karp's views matter - his company's growing roster of UK government contracts include the NHS, the Ministry of Defence (MoD), the Financial Conduct Authority and 11 police forces.

Not to mention its multimillion dollar deals with the US and other powerful governments.

But as the firm increasingly embeds itself in public bodies, the opinions and influence of its leaders leave some fearful.

"Every alarm bell for democracy must ring," Prof Shannon Vallor, chair of ethics of data and AI at Edinburgh University, told the BBC.

Palantir insiders compare what they do to "plumbing" - joining together scattered stores of information.

They say their products allow large, often incompatible sets of data to be analysed and searched easily, including through the use of commercial AI systems.

To this end, the firm won a £300m contract to create a data platform for the NHS - a role that has been opposed by the British Medical Association (BMA) and provokes continuing intense debate.

In the last few days, Palantir's UK boss Louis Mosley turned to X to attack a critical cover story in the BMA's British Medical Journal.

But consultant Tom Bartlett, who previously led the NHS team responsible for delivering the Federated Data Platform - built on Palantir software - told the BBC Palantir was "uniquely suited to the messy NHS data problems that have been accumulating over the last 25 years".

The $400bn (£297bn) firm is also a major military contractor. Its AI-enabled "war-fighting" technology is used by Nato, Ukraine and by the US, including in its conflict with Iran.

In the UK, the MoD has signed a similarly controversial three-year contract worth £240m for tech that it said would support the so-called "kill-chain", fusing together data provide to produce faster options for attacking an enemy target.

Palantir says it employs around 950 people in the UK, making up 17% of its global workforce.

But some critics argue its work with US immigration enforcement and with Israel's military should disqualify it.

Others cite the opinions of Palantir co-founder and chairman Peter Thiel, a libertarian backer of Donald Trump, and Karp, as reasons to exclude it.

What has Karp said?

The 22-point post is a summary from a 2025 book by Karp and Nicholas Zamiska, a Palantir lawyer, titled The Technological Republic: Hard Power, Soft Belief, and the Future of the West.

In its review the New Yorker wrote the book's central claim was that "the survival of the American experiment depends on the technological revitalization of the military-industrial complex".

Karp's politics are complex: he reportedly donated to the presidential campaigns of Democrats Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, but he is also proudly calls his company "anti-woke" and his views will be unpalatable to many on the left.

In the X post, Karp wrote that some cultures have produced "wonders" while others are "regressive and harmful", and said the lack of criticism of other cultures has created a "hollow pluralism".

He criticised the West for having "resisted defining national cultures in the name of inclusivity".

Protecting democracies required "hard power", he said, while "theatrical debates about the merits of developing technologies with critical military and national security applications" would see the US lose ground to its adversaries.

The age of nuclear deterrence is ending, he argued, to be replaced with deterrence built on AI.

Karp said defending democracy was a shared obligation, and national service should be "a universal duty" - a claim which has already drawn criticism in the US, where Palantir holds billions of dollars of military contracts.

He also criticised the post-war "neutering" of Germany and Japan, calling the "defanging" of Germany "an overcorrection for which Europe is now paying a heavy price" - presumably a reference to Europe's efforts to counter the threat from Russia.

Karp, who has a doctorate in social theory, is one of a number of wealthy tech leaders - also including Elon Musk - to promote political and ideological theories.

In point 16 of the X post, Karp wrote: "The culture almost snickers at Musk's interest in grand narrative, as if billionaires ought to simply stay in their lane of enriching themselves."

Others disagree.

Vallor said "unelected men" like Karp were "imposing their own 'grand narratives' of cultural superiority, militarised control, and public power without public accountability".

Dr Rhiannon Mihranian Osborne of the health campaign group Medact told the BBC: "Every day that the NHS continues this contract with Palantir makes our health system complicit in Palantir's violent operations, such as AI warfare, and deeply alarming ideology, which includes powering America and its allies to their 'innate superiority'."

Medact runs a campaign called No Palantir in the NHS. Osborne was the writer of the BMJ cover story criticised by Palantir UK boss Mosley.

In a statement to the BBC, Palantir said it was "deeply proud to be helping the UK government to deliver more NHS operations, speed up cancer diagnosis, keep Royal Navy ships at sea for longer and tackle domestic violence".

The Department of Health pointed us to remarks in April by Health Secretary Wes Streeting in which he defended the use of their technology but said he was "not a fan" of the people who run Palantir and described some of the things said by them in the US as "abominable".

Additional reporting by Tamzin Kraftman and Richard Irvine-Brown

US justice department drops probe into Fed chairman Jerome Powell

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cdxd1v0028vo, yesterday

The US justice department is dropping its investigation into the Federal Reserve chairman, Jerome Powell, over alleged building cost overruns.

US Attorney Jeanine Pirro said instead there would be an internal investigation led by the central bank's inspector general.

President Donald Trump has said the cost of the Fed's building renovations were too high, as part of a long-standing feud with Powell.

Powell's term is nearing its end and the US Senate is considering Trump's nominee for his replacement, Kevin Warsh. A key Republican, Thom Tillis, has withheld his support for Warsh unless the Trump administration would drop its investigation into Powell.

"American taxpayers deserve answers about the Federal Reserve's fiscal mismanagement, and the Office of the Inspector General's more powerful authorities best position it to get to the bottom of the matter," said White House spokesman Kush Desai in a statement.

"The White House remains as confident as before that the Senate will swiftly confirm Kevin Warsh as the next Federal Reserve Chairman to finally restore competence and confidence in Fed decision-making."

In her post on X, Pirro said she would not "hesitate to restart a criminal investigation should the facts warrant doing so".

The Fed declined to comment.

The inspector general's office said it was "actively working to complete our review, and look forward to making the results available to the public and Congress upon completion", declining to comment on a timeline.

Trump called for the Fed to lower interest rates after returning to office last year, and then began floating the idea of firing Powell - a step some said could be illegal.

Amid months of attacks, he branded Powell a "knucklehead" and claimed he was "doing a lousy job" after his repeated calls for rate cuts were ignored.

Last summer, Trump criticised the ballooning costs of the renovations, arguing it will cost $3.1bn (£2.3bn), much higher than the Fed's $2.5bn forecast. The Fed has said the renovations will reduce its costs over time.

Powell took the highly unusual step of releasing a video in January disclosing that the justice department had served the Fed with subpoenas and threatened a criminal indictment over testimony he gave to a Senate committee about renovations to Federal Reserve buildings.

Calling the investigation "unprecedented", Powell said he believed it was opened due to Trump's anger over the Fed's refusal to cut interest rates despite repeated public pressure from the president. Trump said he did not "know anything" about the investigation.

It marked the first time Powell had publicly and robustly pushed back against the US president, as he warned that the independence of the US central bank was at stake.

"This is about whether the Fed will be able to continue to set interest rates based on evidence and economic conditions, or whether instead monetary policy will be directed by political pressure or intimidation," Powell said.

Lower interest rates make it cheaper to borrow, while higher rates dampen spending activity, helping to keep prices stable.

Trump, who cut his teeth professionally taking out loans as a property developer, has long confessed to liking a low interest rate policy.

He objected when the Fed raised rates in his first term, and has argued keeping rates too high could do unnecessary economic damage.

The Fed buildings being renovated are the Eccles and 1951 Constitution Avenue. The "overhaul and modernisation" will be the first works since they were constructed in the 1930s, and includes removal of asbestos and lead contamination.

Powell was nominated by Trump for the role as Fed chair in 2017 during his first term as president.

Last week, Trump threatened to fire Powell if he does not step aside at the end of his term next month.

Powell's term expires on 15 May, but he is planning to remain in post until his successor, Warsh, is confirmed by the Senate.

From scientist to silk farmer: India's silk industry renewal

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0e7le127v5o, 2 days ago

Six years ago Dr Jolapuram Umamaheswari walked away from her career as a scientist in Singapore.

"When I came back to India, I was jobless but I wanted to be my own boss," she says.

After some research she hit on silk farming, or sericulture. It involves feeding mulberry leaves to silkworms, harvesting their cocoons and extracting the silk fibres.

"Silk farming sits at a rare intersection of biology, precision, and business. It didn't feel like I was leaving science, it felt like I was applying it differently," she says.

However, raising silkworms on her farm in the eastern state of Andhra Pradesh proved to be a challenge.

"The early days were not easy. There were disease outbreaks, inconsistent yields, and the steep learning curve that comes with managing living systems," she remembers.

Her scientific background helped to keep her going.

"Over time, small improvements in hygiene, feeding practices, and environmental control began to compound into better survival rates and higher-quality cocoons."

The work paid off, today Umamaheswari produces 10 crops of raw silk a year, with the growth cycle of each batch of silkworms taking 25 to 30 days.

She makes around $1,000 (£760) a month.

"The result is like a steady, almost salary-like income. That's what makes sericulture unique, If managed well, it gives you regular returns, not just seasonal income," Umamaheswari says.

"Modern sericulture is currently undergoing a massive digital and biotechnological shift," says Krishna Tomala, the founder of Asho Farms.

From producing silkworm eggs to supplying larvae and rearing cocoons, Asho Farms has integrated the latest technology.

"A silkworm grows nearly a thousand times in just 25 days. But its success depends completely on temperature, humidity and good-quality leaves," Tomala says.

Silkworms are "extremely sensitive" to changes in their environment, he points out. Temperature and humidity used to be monitored manually, but today sensors and automated systems automatically adjust an array of fans, heaters, and humidifiers.

At Asho, AI is used to identify any problems with the crops.

"I use computer vision and machine learning. Cameras can detect early signs of diseases in silkworm larvae with over 99% accuracy, which helps remove the infected worm immediately before the entire lot is infected," Tomala says.

India is the world's second-biggest silk producer, behind China which dominates the market.

But India can boast an unrivalled range of products, as well as some unique silk.

"India is the only country in the world where all four commercial varieties of silk - Mulberry, Tasar, Eri, and Muga - are available.

"Muga silk, in particular, is unique to India, primarily found in Assam and Meghalaya," says Manthira Moorthy, a director at the government's Central Silk Board.

So what's next for India's industry?

Manipulating the DNA of silkworm gene is helping create more robust varieties.

"We have entered a new era of research focusing on genome editing. In collaboration with international partners like Japan, we have developed disease-resistant silkworm varieties," says Moorthy.

The Central Silk Board is also looking at how to use the by-products of silk making.

For example, for every kilo of raw silk produced around 2kg of dried silkworm pupae are left over.

Comprising more than 50% protein, it's a nutrient dense foodstuff, and is being used as food for poultry and fish.

Satheesh Kannur runs a company in the final stage of sericulture - turning cocoons into raw silk yarn - a process known as reeling.

Most of the work is done by machines, which tease out silk fibres from the cocoons and then combine the fibres to make one strong thread.

One machine can produce between 50kg and 60kg of raw silk a day.

"Technology is transforming silk reeling from a slow, manual craft into a fast, precision-driven industry, while solar power is quietly making it more sustainable," says Kannur.

But he is worried about the outlook for the industry. He thinks Indian farmers will not be able to produce sufficient silk cocoons to meet the demand from reelers like him.

"Without cocoons, there is no silk. The entire industry depends on farmers. Many second-generation farmers are not willing to continue silk framing and the landholdings are spread in small sections. For this industry to grow we need huge lands," Kannur says.

However, the Silk Board does not see this as a problem. Although the numbers of farmers are falling, production of cocoons is rising due to more modern techniques.

"With advancements in rearing techniques, disease control, and scientific support to farmers, yield per acre has gone up significantly," the Silk Board said in a statement.

Back in Andhra Pradesh, Umamaheswari is planning a low tech addition to her farm.

She is building a cow shed and when that's populated there will be an extra stream of income from milk plus the cows' manure will be used to fertilise the mulberry plants.

"Even small improvements in technique can significantly increase yield and quality, making it a rewarding field for someone who likes to apply knowledge practically."

UK steps up plans for potential shortages caused by Iran war

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cm29m98md2do, today

The government has said it is stepping up plans to offset potential food and fuel shortages caused by the Iran war.

Sir Keir Starmer will chair another meeting of a Cabinet committee on Tuesday set up to deal with any shortfalls and a group of ministers is meeting twice a week to monitor stock levels and any disruptions to the supply chain.

The closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping channel through which 20% of the world's oil and liquid natural gas usually passes, has sent oil prices soaring since the conflict began.

Earlier this month, government officials drew up a worst case scenario of food shortages, including chicken and pork, by the summer if the war continues.

The government has also been seeking to calm the public, urging drivers to keep filling up with petrol and using cars as usual and not to change their travel plans amid fears over potential jet fuel shortages.

Twice weekly meetings of the contingency planning group of ministers are being led by Darren Jones, Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister, who said: "This is not our war. The government made the right call to stay out of the conflict and only take defensive action to protect Britain's interests.

"We're acting now to prepare for, and mitigate where possible, the impact on our economy and domestic security as a result of the conflict."

Last week, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) predicted the energy shock from the Iran war would hit the UK the hardest of the world's advanced economies, and cut its estimate for UK growth this year to 0.8% from its previous prediction of 1.3%.

Jones said that while the government will do everything in its power to find a permanent solution to the crisis and offset its impact, "what happens abroad will still affect us here at home".

A government source previously told the BBC it was planning for a scenario which would involve breakdowns in the supply of carbon dioxide (CO2), which is used in the slaughter of some animals and in food preservation, if the strait remains closed.

The government has provided funding to reactivate the Ensus bioethanol plant, which makes CO2 as a by-product, in order to shore up supplies of the gas.

A spokesperson for the plant told the BBC they were "confident we can continue to produce CO2 for the country's needs for the foreseeable future".

Jones said: "People should carry on filling up and using their cars as normal, shipments of jet fuel are continuing to arrive in the UK and the UK's critical supply of CO2 has been shored up."

The majority of the UK's CO2 is imported from Europe but it is often produced as a by-product when companies make fertiliser, which needs natural gas.

Supermarkets have said they are working with the government to help plan for a worst-case scenario.

And, last month, the National Farmers' Union said cucumber and tomato prices could rise over the next six weeks, with the cost of other crops and milk increasing in the next three to six months.

UK airlines have insisted they are "not currently seeing a shortage of jet fuel" as they buy it in advance and airports maintain stocks.

The Liberal Democrats have urged the government to include a bill in the next King's Speech which puts food security at the top of the government's agenda.

The party's Cabinet Office spokeswoman Lisa Smart said "the government also needs to wake up and provide more support to people who simply cannot afford the sky-high cost of getting around".

She added that the Lib Dems have proposed a 10p cut on fuel duty as well as reducing public transport costs.

Iran's top negotiator said earlier this week that reopening the Strait of Hormuz is "impossible" if the US continue their naval blockade of Iranian ports.

US President Donald Trump hopes to put pressure on Iran by targeting two economic drivers - the tolls the country was demanding ships pay to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, and Iran's oil revenue.

Iran has responded by calling the blockade "piracy". Negotiators from the country were in Islamabad, Pakistan, on Saturday for talks on ending the conflict.

White House memo claims mass AI theft by Chinese firms

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cpqxgxx9nrqo, 2 days ago

The White House has said it will work more closely with US artificial intelligence (AI) firms to combat "industrial-scale campaigns" by foreign actors to steal advances in the technology.

Michael Kratsios, Director of Science and Technology Policy, wrote in an internal memo that the administration had new information indicating "foreign entities, principally based in China" were exploiting American firms.

Through a process called "distilling", such firms are essentially copying AI technology developed by US companies, he said.

A representative of China's US embassy in Washington DC said its development was "the result of its own dedication and effort as well as international cooperation".

In the memo, Kratsios said the aim was to "systematically undermine American research and development and access proprietary information".

In an attempt avoid and halt "malicious exploitation," he said the White House will be doing four things:

* sharing more information with US AI companies about "tactics employed and actors involved" in distillation campaigns

* working to "better coordinate" with companies to fight the attacks

* develop a set of "best practices to identify, mitigate, and remediate" them

* "explore" how the White House can hold foreign actors accountable for such distillation

The memo did not detail any specific plans for action against foreign entities found to be undertaking distillation of US AI technology.

A White House spokesperson declined to comment beyond the memo.

A representative of China's US embassy in Washington DC took issue with "the unjustified suppression of Chinese companies by the US" in response to the memo

"China is not only the world's factory but is also becoming the world's innovation lab," the representative added.

"China's development is the result of its own dedication and effort as well as international cooperation that delivers mutual benefits."

Distillation campaigns are carried out by firms that usually operate many thousands of individual accounts for a given AI chatbot or tool, allowing them to appear as normal users.

Those accounts then undertake more coordinated attempts to "jailbreak" or otherwise expose information about AI models that is not supposed to be made public, which is saved and applied to their own AI model building and training.

"As methods to detect and mitigate industrial-scale distillation grow more sophisticated, foreign entities who build their AI capabilities on such fragile foundations should have little confidence in the integrity and reliability of the models they produce," Kratsios said.

While Kratsios did not name any foreign entities, leading AI companies like OpenAI and Anthropic have said they are dealing with such distillation activity.

Earlier this year, Anthropic described distillation "attacks" by three AI laboratories, DeepSeek, Moonshot, and MiniMax, saying it had found them all to be working to copy Anthropic models through distillation campaigns. All three of the labs are based in China.

OpenAI has also accused DeepSeek of copying its technology.

DeepSeek, Moonshot, and MiniMax did not immediately respond to BBC requests for comment.

DeepSeek was initially released last year and quickly became one of the most popular AI models and chatbots among users.

The firm said at the time that the model cost only a few million dollars to create, a fraction of the hundreds of billions of dollars being spent by other AI firms to build their models and tools.

Last month, the DeepSeek chatbot suffered a major outage. It is expected to soon release a new version of its AI model.

US President Donald Trump is expected to visit China in May.

US soldier charged after winning $400,000 betting on removal of Maduro

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c20832yg5p2o, 2 days ago

A US special forces soldier involved in the military operation that captured Nicolas Maduro has been arrested after he allegedly bet on the removal of Venezuela's former leader before the information was publicly available.

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has charged Gannon Ken Van Dyke after he allegedly made trades on Polymarket, a crypto-powered platform, on the basis of classified information.

"That is clear insider trading and is illegal under federal law," justice department officials said.

Van Dyke, an active-duty soldier in the US Army stationed at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, won more than $409,000 (£303,702) as a result of his bets.

US forces seized Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores from their compound in Caracas in a dramatic, night-time raid on 3 January, and brought them to New York to face allegations of weapon and drug offences, which they deny.

Van Dyke allegedly placed bets on the timing and outcome of the operation, known as Operation Absolute Resolve, "all to turn a profit", the justice department said in a statement on Thursday.

The DOJ alleges that on or about 26 December 2025, Van Dyke created a Polymarket account and began trading on Maduro and Venezuela-related markets. He is accused of making bets of more than $33,000 (£24,500) while in possession of classified nonpublic information about Operation Absolute Resolve.

In a statement posted on social media on Thursday, Polymarket said: "When we identified a user trading on classified government information, we referred the matter to the DOJ & cooperated with their investigation."

The company added: "Insider trading has no place on Polymarket. Today's arrest is proof the system works."

Van Dyke has been charged with unlawful use of confidential government information for personal gain, theft of nonpublic government information, commodities fraud, wire fraud and making an unlawful monetary transaction, according to an indictment unsealed on Thursday.

"Our men and women in uniform are trusted with classified information in order to accomplish their mission as safely and effectively as possible, and are prohibited from using this highly sensitive information for personal financial gain," said acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche.

"Widespread access to prediction markets is a relatively new phenomenon, but federal laws protecting national security information fully apply."

US Attorney Jay Clayton for the Southern District of New York, where the case will proceed, added that prediction markets "are not a haven for using misappropriated confidential or classified information for personal gain".

The justice department officials said that as a soldier Van Dyke signed nondisclosure agreements in which he promised to "'never divulge, publish, or reveal by writing, words, conduct, or otherwise . . . any classified or sensitive information' relating to military operations".

Federal prosecutors allege that starting from 8 December 2025 until at least 6 January 2026, Van Dyke was involved in the planning and execution of Operation Absolute Resolve and had access to sensitive, nonpublic, classified information about that operation.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), an independent US federal agency, said it had also filed a complaint against Van Dyke accusing him of engaging in insider trading.

Asked about the alleged betting during an unrelated event on Thursday, US President Donald Trump said he had not heard about it but would look into it.

When asked about concerns that prediction markets could lead to insider trading, the president said he is "not happy with any of that stuff".

"The whole world, unfortunately, has become somewhat of a casino, and you look at what's going on all over the world, in Europe and every place, they're doing these betting things," he said. "I was never much in favour of it."

How a pivot to hair accessories led to business success

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c23992zv9rko, 3 days ago

"I tell people, 'I make food-themed accessories' and boom – they get it," says Jennie Lennick.

For the San Francisco-based artist and entrepreneur that niche underpins a thriving retail business.

The 39-year-old runs a small Californian accessories brand called Jenny Lemons. It is best known for its quirky, colourful hair claw clips, made from a plant-based alternative to conventional, petroleum plastic.

She designs the products, selling them directly on her website, and wholesale to around 1,500 independent retail stores in the US and internationally. And all the hair clips are themed around food.

If you want to wear rainbow chard, a sardine tin, or a TV dinner in your hair, Lennick has a clip for that, though the company's bestseller is a strawberry.

"They are small, affordable luxuries that add a little bit of flair and fun," says Lennick.

The company, which takes its name from Lennick's college DJ moniker, didn't begin as an accessories brand.

Originally from Minnesota, and with more than six years at art school, Lennick launched the business in 2015 as a food-themed, hand-printed clothing line, based in San Francisco's trendy Mission district.

She expanded the venture, opening a physical shop in the neighborhood in 2018, selling her clothes along with products made by other artists.

But the store proved punishing - staffing costs were high, rent kept rising, and foot traffic never recovered after the pandemic. She closed it at the end of 2023, $90,000 (£66,000) in debt.

The pivot to hair accessories began the year before when, selling her clothes at a craft fair, Lennick met a hair claw vendor who shared a contact for a factory in China. Lennick started to produce her own - food-themed, naturally - and sales online quickly outpaced that of her clothing.

"They [the hair clips] were keeping the store open," she says, and the obvious future.

Lennick's studio today is a downstairs room in her home in one of San Francisco's outer neighborhoods. Lennick draws her clips on her tablet, chooses their colors from a library of samples and sends the designs to her long-time Chinese factory, which produces a prototype.

Her style, she explains, pares food down to its essentials, and she rarely uses more than three colours to aid wearability. She also watches food trends - the sardine tin claw clip is because tinned fish is having a moment.

And she is adding designs inspired by seasons and festive occasions, including a pumpkin spice latte hair clip that debuted this past autumn.

Jenny Lemons now has three full-time staff - Lennick, her husband as director of operations, and an operations manager, plus contractors who help with everything from inventory forecasting to social media, where Instagram is crucial.

Revenue reached $2m last year, up from $1.7m in 2024. And the business, she says, is profitable.

A shipment of 31,000 clips – the company's largest yet – recently crossed the Pacific to a fulfilment centre in Missouri which handles orders for her. About 60% of sales are wholesale, with the rest online.

A recent survey of her customers found most were aged 25 to 45, with about 30% in teaching or healthcare. Some wear the clips to glam up medical uniforms, she says.

Food-inspired fashion has filtered down from luxury designers like Dolce & Gabbana which embraced it late last decade, says Lorynn Divita, an associate professor of apparel design and merchandising at Baylor University in Texas.

She adds that Jenny Lemons clips hit a "sweet spot" – giving people a way to dabble in the fashion trend at a giftable price point (a large hair claw is $24 on the website).

Divita also says that Lennick has made some smart moves with videos showing how to wear and style the clips, as well as promoting them as sustainably and ethically made in China. "It appeals to the demographic that likes to show their values through purchases," she says.

Across the Atlantic, Beki Gowing, a lecturer in fashion entrepreneurship at the University of the Arts London, says Lennick has "built a very strong business".

"She really understands her brand and it shows in how it's presented," adds Gowing.

But she would like to see the business be more transparent regarding its environmental claims.

Cellulose acetate, from which the clips are made, comes from cellulose sourced from wood pulp or cotton. But it is still semi-synthetic, and a type of plastic, because of the way the natural material is chemically modified.

Lennick notes that cellulose acetate does have environmental benefits over conventional plastic, such as being biodegradable under certain conditions. And she says that the company is in the process of doing more to highlight the labour standards the clips are made to.

Lennick's business also faces its share of headwinds.

She's been trying to absorb Trump's tariffs on Chinese goods rather than pass costs on to customers, squeezing her margins and forcing her to be more strategic about shipping and inventory.

"It is a numbers game…if we raise up our prices, we're not going to be able to sell as many hair clips, which eats into our profit too," says Lennick.

Onshoring isn't an option - she hasn't found a high-volume cellulose acetate factory in the US, and it would likely raise prices too much anyway.

Then there are the knockoffs made by Chinese companies. While competitors are free to make food-themed hair clips, copying her specific designs - which are patented - is another matter.

After her mother spotted what appeared to be exact replicas in a Minnesota department store chain, Lennick sued. She's already settled one case for $45,000 against another large retailer.

And she pays someone to patrol online and send cease-and-desist letters. "We play whack-a-mole as much as we can," she says.

Fashion fads fizzle too. Every year Lennick is relieved when she sees hair claws are still trending.

But she knows she'll need more than novelty clips to survive long-term, which is why she's added other food-themed goods including hats, socks and earrings. But clothing is a hard-no - sizing is too complicated.

She's reticent to stray too far from food. Other artist-led hair clip brands already focus on cute animals and chequerboard patterns. "The name we've carved out for ourselves is the funky food ones," she says.

Lennick aims to grow revenues 30% this year, which is ambitious says Divita. The company is in talks with a national home-goods chain about stocking its clips – it has previously appeared in other chains such as Urban Outfitters.

Such wholesale deals often have strict requirements and require deep discounts which can be challenging for small businesses, says Lennick, but the larger reach is enticing.

Alongside this, brand collaborations - where Jenny Lemons might create a special-edition hair clip for another company's promotional campaign - are a growing area.

Reopening a physical shop anytime soon is not on the cards.

Reflecting on her success, Lennick notes she's put in the work – the only financial help she's ever had is bank loans.

And while she admits she may have sold out somewhat as an artist by commercialising, she supports her family and gets to be creative. "And that is fine," she says.

The 'dumb machine' promising a clean energy breakthrough

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5yvm11xrn6o, 5 days ago

"I remember a few people said that the place where Proxima is today was impossible," says Francesco Sciortino, the co-founder and CEO of Proxima Fusion.

Being accused of attempting the impossible is not unusual for the scientists and engineers working on nuclear fusion projects around the world.

After all, they are attempting to capture, on Earth, the reaction that powers the Sun.

Success could mean abundant, cheap and emission-free electricity. But the challenges are daunting and a working power station remains a long way off.

Fusion is the process of fusing hydrogen nuclei together, which releases immense amounts of energy.

On the Sun huge gravitational forces help keep the reaction going.

To maintain fusion here on Earth, extremely high temperatures - many times those found on the Sun - are needed.

So, a fuel (usually a combination of the hydrogen isotopes tritium and deuterium) is heated until it becomes a burning hot plasma, which then has to be controlled and manipulated to spark fusion.

There are a number of ways to do this, and Germany's Proxima Fusion is attempting one that is considered difficult, even by the extreme standards of the fusion industry.

A common approach to fusion is to build a tokamak. It's a doughnut-shaped device, which uses powerful magnets to contain the plasma.

But Munich-based Proxima is working on a stellarator. It also uses magnets to manipulate the plasma but the reaction container has a more complicated shape, with twists and turn, making it much more difficult and expensive to build.

So why go down this tortuous path?

Well, if the design works, the twists and turns of a stellarator make the burning hot plasma easier to control than in the rival tokamak design, says Sciortino.

When comparing the two systems, he says a tokamak is a "beast" while the stellarator is a "little cat".

"A stellarator is a thing that is objectively very difficult to design, objectively very difficult to build. But if you do it, it is a dumb machine... just like a microwave oven," says Sciortino.

Proxima's "dumb machine" will be a stellarator called Alpha. It will draw on decades of work done by Germany's Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics and its stellarator the W7-X.

The aim of Alpha is to produce more energy than it uses to operate, and the lessons learned are helping to design an even more advanced device - a fusion power plant, called Stellaris.

But first, Alpha will need a lot of investment, which is being gathered at the moment. Proxima recently won €400m (£340m; $460m) from the state of Bavaria and is bidding for more than a billion dollars of funding from the federal government - a decision is expected next year.

Proxima is racing other groups developing fusion technology - 53 according to the Fusion Industry Association (FIA) which represents the fusion industry and tracks developments.

One project using the tokamak approach is UK-based Step (Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production).

Backed by the UK government, the plan is to build a prototype powerplant on the site of a former coal-fired power station in West Burton, Yorkshire.

"Tokamaks have the advantage of a deep experimental foundation built over decades. They have demonstrated plasma performance closer to what's required for a fusion power plant, including operation with fusion fuel," says Ryan Ramsey, the director of Organisational Performance at Step and formerly captain of the nuclear submarine HMS Turbulent.

And in this kind of fusion, the expensive and powerful magnets should be relatively simple to build.

"They [tokamaks] benefit from comparatively simpler magnetic geometry, with fewer and more regular coils. That has real implications for manufacturability, maintainability, and cost," Ramsey says.

Sciortino is well aware of the challenges ahead for Proxima. He "loses sleep" over whether Proxima will be able to build the magnets, with their intricate shapes, at a speed and cost that will make the stellarator an economic proposition.

"The first magnet that we make will be very complicated and very expensive. But can we make it faster than people would expect, and can we drive down the cost?" Sciortini asks.

In their favour is Germany's expertise in manufacturing. For example, Sciortino cites the impressive number of workers who can operate CNC machines - a type of computer-controlled machine tool which can cut, carve, or shape materials including wood, metal, or plastic.

Sciortino estimates that there are 550,000 CNC machinists in Germany, compared with 350,000 in the whole of the US.

This matters for Proxima which uses a very expensive type of steel in its magnets, which needs machining to a high level of accuracy.

While maintaining high levels of precision, keeping up the pace of development is crucial for Sciortino.

The W7-X took more than a decade to get running - he wants to get Alpha operational in a third of that time.

So a prototype magnetic coil is under construction and the plan is to test it next year.

Its twisted geometry makes it one of the most complex magnets in the world, according to Proxima.

Once the testing is complete, Proxima will build 40 more magnetic coils that will go into its Alpha machine.

To do that, a magnet factory is in the early stages of construction.

"In, 2028, 2029 we need to be able to make magnets at a crazy, crazy speed," says Sciortino.

The work is not just in Germany. Sciortino says that across Europe, there are key suppliers, which means Europe might well be at the forefront of a future fusion industry.

"We [Europeans] missed the digital wave, didn't we? But it turns out that we still have people being trained in manufacturing," he says.

At Step, Ramsey stresses that the fusion industry is well beyond a physics experiment now.

"There's real momentum across fusion right now, and that should be seen as a strength rather than something to divide. This isn't a single-path race, it's a set of approaches exploring different trade-offs. The real question now is not which concept is most interesting, but which can credibly deliver a power plant."

Which airlines are cancelling flights to the UK - and what can you do?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cr41yel6v4eo, yesterday

The price of flights has been rising since the start of the conflict in the Middle East, a worry for anyone planning a summer holiday.

Some airlines are also cutting back the number of flights they are operating, which could mean travellers facing changes to their plans.

Which airlines are cancelling flights?

Many airlines that serve the UK have said they plan to operate fewer flights.

They include:

* KLM

* Air Canada

* Asiana Airlines

* Delta Airlines

* Lufthansa

* SAS

The following companies have said they don't plan to change their schedules:

* British Airways owner IAG

* EasyJet

* Jet2Holidays

What is happening to flight prices?

While some airlines have cut back on the number of flights to save money, others have said they will start charging more or will put up charges for luggage.

These include:

* Air France-KLM

* Indigo

* British Airways-owner IAG

* Pakistan International Airlines

* Thai Airways

* Turkish Airlines-Sun Express

* Virgin Atlantic

Can airlines change the price or cancel my flight after I have booked?

Overall cancellations will be a very small proportion of the millions of flights in and out of the UK, says Rory Boland, travel editor at consumer publication Which?. Airlines are likely to target cancellations on routes where there are multiple flights a day to make it easier to put passengers on a different flight.

Low-cost Spanish regional airline Volotea has come under fire for saying it will add a surcharge to tickets it has already sold and is being challenged by local consumer rights groups.

An airline or tour operator could only raise the price post-sale if they had a specific caveat written into the terms and conditions, says independent consumer commentator Jane Hawkes, but it is not standard practice.

However, when it comes to package holidays, tour operators can add up to 8% to the cost of your deal after you've booked, based on a "significant rise in fuel costs", says Boland. But Which? found most operators were promising not to add surcharges this year.

Why are airlines raising prices?

A lot of the industry's jet fuel supplies pass through the Strait of Hormuz, which has effectively been closed to shipping since the start of March.

Airlines are not physically running short of fuel currently, but there have been warnings of potential shortages by the summer if the conflict continues.

In the meantime the squeeze on supply has pushed up the price of jet fuel sharply - it roughly doubled during March and the first half of April.

Airlines agree deals in advance that help them lock in a lower price, but longer term they will be paying more for fuel.

The biggest rises in fares have been on long-haul routes via Asia, that have been forced to adapt their flight paths to avoid flying over the Gulf.

Flights from London to Melbourne in June now cost 76% more than last year and a flights to Hong Kong are up 72%, according to consultancy Teneo.

Should I book my summer holiday now or wait?

"There's no right or wrong," says Jane Hawkes. It could pay to wait for last-minute deals, or you might want to seize the moment now. She doesn't expect prices to fall over the rest of the year, however, because airlines still need to cover the increased costs.

She suggests being flexible over where and when you travel, including considering switching to road or rail or holidaying in the UK.

Book insurance and check your policy covers you for travel disruption, she adds.

And make sure you have a "contingency pot". Even if your holiday operator or airline is supposed to cover any disruption, you may need to pay upfront and claim it back later, which can take months, she warns.

What are my rights if my flight is cancelled?

If your flight is cancelled the airline must get you to your destination or offer a refund.

If you are delayed more than a couple of hours the airline is required to provide food and hotel accommodation.

That is in ordinary circumstances. In cases of war, weather, or other situations that are beyond an airline's control, they do not have to offer extra compensation.

Airlines are currently pushing for more clarity over whether fuel shortages caused by the current conflict would count as "extraordinary circumstances".

If you have booked your accommodation separately the airline is not required to compensate you for any days you have missed out on.

But if your package holiday travel is disrupted your tour operator should extend your stay, offer you an alternative holiday, or refund you for the holiday, says Boland.

Correction: this article has been amended to remove references to Air Asia and Vietjet as they do not currently fly to the UK. References to Air New Zealand have also been removed as it does not fly directly to the UK, but offers connections through its partners.

How does it affect me if share prices fall?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c33zdz2m1e2o, yesterday

The deputy governor of the Bank of England is the latest high-profile figure to question whether share prices are illogically high.

Sarah Breedon said she expected share prices to fall to reflect the many risks facing the global economy.

As companies grow, they may issue shares. Many of the largest companies in the UK have shares which are bought and sold on the London Stock Exchange.

Their collective performance is often quoted amid a blizzard of numbers that may feel confusing and irrelevant.

Booms or falls in the stock market make the news, but rarely does anyone mention the FTSE 100 during a coffee with friends.

Yet, there are good reasons why this performance affects your life and finances.

'I don't invest' - actually, you probably do

Many people's initial reaction to "the markets" is that they are not directly affected, because they do not invest money.

Yet there are millions of people with a pension - either private or through work - who will see their savings (in what is known as a defined contribution pension) invested by pension schemes. The value of their savings pot is influenced by the performance of these investments.

Pension savers mostly let experts choose where to invest this money to help it grow. Widespread falls in share prices are likely to be bad news for pension savers.

Hundreds of billions of pounds are held in defined contribution pensions at the moment.

So big rises or falls can affect your pension, but the advice is to remember that pension savings, like any investments, are usually a long-term bet.

Experts say that investors have always had to ride economic shocks. Investments, by definition, require a long-term outlook and strategy. So, they are urging people not to panic in such circumstances or make knee-jerk decisions.

Is my specific pension affected?

Some people have a pension which promises a specific value, depending on their salary. Others have no pension at all.

Millions of people have been automatically enrolled into a pension and may have not really noticed. Those schemes see employers divert wages into a pension and contribute some money themselves. The government adds a little in tax relief.

In every case, the value of these pension savings is affected by investment performance. So "the markets" matter - maybe not as much as everyday wages, but for future pensions.

What happens if I'm just about to retire?

Timing is more critical for those at retirement age, as this may be when a retiree uses their pension pot to buy a retirement income, or annuity. The bigger the pot, the more income they will get in retirement.

As you approach retirement age, pension pots tend to be moved to less risky investments, such as government bonds. When stock markets fall, these bonds can do better.

Anyone who has a pension pot invested and is taking an income from it will again see their investment go up and down with the stock markets.

That could mean getting less than you expected if you cash in too much after stock markets have fallen, making it important to plan how to make up any of this shortfall, experts say.

Is my job at risk?

If share prices fall for an extended period then that could have an effect on jobs.

That's because investors in the company expect a return on that investment.

When it falls for a while, then they would expect the business to address issues, for example by cutting costs, and therefore jobs.

There is a huge element of the unknown here though. Companies have to consider lots of factors when making decisions on investment and employment.

Are stock market falls always bad?

In purely investment terms, lower share prices can offer an opportunity to buy, in the hope that over the long term, they recover and rise. Many people will do this initially through a stocks and shares Individual Savings Account (Isa).

Experts and regulators are at pains to point out that investments can go down as well as up, and urge people not to put everything into one investment, but to diversify.

Some people invest money in what are known as tracker funds. These go up and down in line with the performance of a certain index, such as the FTSE 100.

So if the index falls, so does the value of their investments and vice versa. One advantage of these funds is that they often cost relatively little to sign up to.

Can anyone invest their money?

Yes, and millions of people do, but experts stress that a long-term strategy is required to ride out short-term falls. It is also important to ensure cash savings are held too, so unexpected expenses - like the need for a replacement boiler - can be covered.

The government is keen to get people in the UK to invest more, partly because it says that will help UK economic growth and partly because it is much more popular among individuals in the US and some parts of Europe.

The chancellor argues that some people would be better off investing rather than leaving cash in savings accounts for years. Rachel Reeves has announced reforms of Isas in 2027 as part of the government plan.

She is also backing an advertising campaign to encourage people to invest, funded by some of the UK's biggest financial services firms.

But the choice of "Savvy the Squirrel" to front the campaign has raised some eyebrows. Some question whether the push could get anywhere close to the success of the Tell Sid adverts of the 1980s, which encouraged people to invest in the newly privatised British Gas.

Will things get more expensive?

When we see big shifts in the stock markets there can also be fluctuations in the value of currencies and exchange rates.

As a result, prices could go up, but could also go down.

Upheaval to economies across the world, to oil prices and so on, have a big impact on what we pay at home for goods and services, so there are lots of factors in play.

Clarification 19 December: This article was amended to provide more context around how companies issue shares.

Stock markets are too high and set to fall, says Bank of England deputy

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c75kp1y43lgo, yesterday

The Bank of England expects stock markets around the world to fall as share prices do not reflect the many risks facing the global economy, its deputy governor has told the BBC.

Sarah Breeden said: "There's a lot of risk out there and yet asset prices are at all-time highs. We expect there will be an adjustment at some point."

It is unusual for a senior figure at the Bank to be so forthright on market movements.

Breeden, who is also the Bank's head of financial stability, declined to say when she expected markets to fall or by how much, but pointed to a number of factors that markets seemed complacent about.

"The thing that really keeps me awake at night is the likelihood of a number of risks crystallising at the same time – a major macroeconomic shock, confidence in private credit goes, AI and other risky valuations readjust - what happens in that environment and are we prepared for it?" she said.

A sharp fall in stock markets can have a number of effects on the economy. If households own shares, a fall in their value can make people feel poorer which might make them cut back on spending.

It can also make it harder for businesses to raise funds, which means they might reduce or delay investment. Falling markets can also hit confidence, which might lead to companies cutting back on hiring.

The US stock market is home to the world's biggest companies and has set a series of all-time highs recently despite warnings from the International Energy Agency that the global economy is facing the biggest energy shock in history.

Technology firms have poured hundreds of billions of dollars into AI infrastructure. The amount of cash going into the sector has been called "a frenzy" by Microsoft founder Bill Gates, and some have compared it to the dotcom bubble of the late 1990s when investors threw money at unproven start-ups that quickly went bust or had billions wiped off their value.

Nvidia boss Jensen Huang, the biggest supplier of chips to AI companies, is among those to dismiss these concerns.

Another area of concern is the growth in a number of funds that mimic the role of banks and lend privately to businesses. These have seen losses recently and have had to restrict the amount of money that investors can withdraw, sparking concerns of weaknesses in the financial system.

Breeden said the enormous growth in this so-called "shadow banking" system has yet to face the challenge of a market downturn.

"Private credit has gone from nothing to two-and-a-half trillion dollars in the last 15 to 20 years. It hasn't been tested at this scale with the degree of complexity and interconnections it has with the rest of the financial system so far," she said.

"It's a private credit crunch, rather than a banking-driven credit crunch, that we're worried about."

The UK stock market does not contain the kind or size of AI companies that have helped drive US markets to records but the FTSE 100 index is also within 5% of its own all-time high.

Breeden said her job was not to predict when and how much the markets fall but to ensure the financial system is ready if it does.

"What we are watching for: is how might those prices fall? Will there be a sharp adjustment downwards? And if there is such an adjustment, how will that affect the economy? I'm not saying it will happen today, tomorrow, in 12 months' time. It's ensuring that if it happens the system is resilient."

Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said it was "unusual for a Bank of England official to explicitly warn about a potential stock market pullback".

The areas of concern raised by Breeden have all been "worry points" for the market in recent months, he said, but despite these concerns "markets have wobbled and then regained their poise".

"That suggests investors aren't blind to potential problem areas, instead it implies they're comfortable with the risks and that they believe any problems can be contained."

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What are my rights if my flight is cancelled or delayed?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c9qxnyengdjo, 3 days ago

Uncertainty over the conflict in the Middle East has caused widespread disruption to flights.

Some airlines have cut flights from their summer schedules and others have hiked fares as airspace closures and jet fuel prices have pushed up their operating costs.

Some major UK package holiday providers are cancelling holidays to the Middle East, including trips where the flights pass through affected areas in transit.

Passengers affected have various rights – primarily a refund. However, these can vary depending on which carrier you are flying with and from where.

Only when an airline is at fault is extra compensation payable, which is not the case with travel difficulties caused by the current conflict.

What do airlines have to offer passengers?

When flights are delayed or cancelled, UK and EU airlines, and other carriers when you are departing a UK or EU airport, have a duty to look after you.

That includes providing meals and accommodation, if necessary, and getting you to your destination. The airline should organise putting you on an alternative flight, at no extra cost.

Additional losses, such as unused accommodation, might require a claim to a credit card provider, if that was the payment option used.

After that, a claim may need to go to your travel insurance provider. But there is no standard definition of what is covered.

It may require a close look at the details of the policy to see what is covered, in which circumstances.

Passengers are also being urged to heed travel advice from the UK government, as this can also affect travel insurance rights.

If my flight is cancelled, can I get a refund or another flight?

If your flight is covered by UK law, your airline must let you choose between either getting a refund or being booked on to an alternative flight.

That's regardless of how far in advance the cancellation was made.

You can get your money back for any part of the ticket you have not used.

So, if you booked a return flight and the outbound leg is cancelled, you can get the full cost of the return ticket refunded.

If you still want to travel, your airline must find you an alternative flight.

If another airline is flying to your destination significantly sooner, or there are other suitable modes of transport, then you have a right to be booked on to that alternative transport instead.

But the widespread disruption caused by the Iran conflict may mean relatively few seats are available immediately.

If your flight was coming into the UK on a non-UK or EU airline, then you should check the terms and conditions of your booking.

Will the airline pay for food and accommodation?

If you are stuck abroad or at the airport because of a flight cancellation, airlines covered by UK legislation must also provide you with other assistance.

This includes:

* a reasonable amount of food and drink (often in the form of vouchers)

* a way for you to communicate (often by refunding the cost of calls)

* free accommodation, if you have to stay overnight to fly the next day

* transport to and from the accommodation

If your airline is unable to arrange assistance, you have the right to organise this yourself and claim back the cost later.

The Civil Aviation Authority advises people to keep receipts and not spend more than necessary.

You are entitled to the same assistance as for a cancellation if your flight is delayed by more than two hours for a short-haul flight, three hours for a medium-haul, or four hours for a long-haul.

If you are delayed by more than five hours and no longer want to travel, you can get a full refund.

What are my rights if I have booked a package holiday?

If you booked a package holiday with a company that is an ABTA member and your flight is cancelled, you are entitled to a suitable alternative flight or a full refund.

Can I claim extra compensation for disruption?

Disruption caused by things like conflict – but also bad weather, strikes by airport or air traffic control staff, or other "extraordinary circumstances" – does not entitle you to extra compensation.

However, in other circumstances, when it is considered to be the airline's fault, you have a number of rights under UK law.

These apply as long as you are flying from a UK airport on any airline, arriving at a UK airport on an EU or UK airline, or arriving at an airport in the EU on a UK airline.

What you are entitled to depends on what caused the cancellation and how much notice you are given.

If your flight is cancelled with less than two weeks' notice, you may be able to claim compensation based on the timings of the alternative flight you are offered.

The amount you are entitled to also depends on how far you were travelling:

* for flights under 1,500km, such as Glasgow to Amsterdam, you can claim up to £220 per person

* for flights of 1,500km to 3,500km, such as East Midlands to Marrakesh, you can claim up to £350 per person

* for flights over 3,500km, such as London to New York, you can claim up to £520 per person

What if flight delays mean I am late for work?

Airlines will not refund you for loss of earnings. Travel insurance policies will not usually cover loss of earnings either.

If you think you're going to be late back at work because of flight delays, you have a responsibility to let your employer know, legal experts say.

You should agree with your employer how to deal with the absence – for example, by using annual leave or taking unpaid leave.

Employers have no legal obligation to pay employees who are absent in this situation, experts say, unless it is stated in their contract.

Warner Bros shareholders approve Paramount's $111bn takeover

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgj09ny0dq6o, 3 days ago

Warner Bros Discovery shareholders have approved the company's $111bn (£82bn) takeover by Paramount in a deal which could drastically alter the media landscape.

The deal would see Paramount Skydance take control of all of Warner Bros' titles and channels, which include Harry Potter, Game of Thrones and news network CNN.

"With Paramount, we look forward to creating an exceptional combined company that will expand consumer choice and benefit the global creative talent community," Warner Bros chair Samuel DiPiazza said.

The deal still needs approval from the US Department of Justice and European competition regulators.

The shareholders' backing of the deal follows a dramatic months-long saga, following an earlier takeover bid for Warner Bros by Netflix, which the streaming service later withdrew after Paramount submitted a rival, higher offer.

Paramount, which is looking to transform itself into a Hollywood heavyweight, is backed by tech billionaire Larry Ellison and led by his son David.

Ellison, chief executive and chairman of Paramount and a major Republican donor, is hosting a dinner with Trump on Thursday at the U.S. Institute of Peace in Washington DC.

Hulk actor Mark Ruffalo is expected to join protesters outside the building to demonstrate against what organisers have described as a "corruption gala", given the regulatory hurdles still facing the companies. The protesters have also raised concerns about how the Ellisons' ownership of CNN will impact the news network.

Trump has frequently attacked CNN over its reporting of his policies. He said in December that he believed the news network should be sold as part of any Warner Bros takeover.

He called CNN's bosses "corrupt or incompetent" and said they should not be entrusted to run the network.

As well as concerns over CNN's future, a slew of actors, directors and filmmakers have opposed the takeover on the grounds it could further harm an already struggling industry.

In April, more than 1,400, including Emma Thompson, Ben Stiller and Javier Bardem, signed a letter warning of its impact.

"The result will be fewer opportunities for creators, fewer jobs across the production ecosystem, higher costs, and less choice for audiences in the United States and around the world," the letter said.

Paramount responded by pledging its commitment to talent and "ensuring creators have more avenues for their work, not fewer".

Democrat Senator Elizabeth Warren said the deal would be "an anti-trust disaster" and state attorneys general would try to stop it.

"The Paramount-Warner Bros merger isn't a done deal… we need to keep up this fight," she said after the announcement.

But Mike Proulx, of market research firm Forrester, said Washington "is likely to rubber stamp the deal".

"The real regulatory pressure sits overseas, where European authorities will focus on structural market impact. A process that is likely to shape the timing and terms of this deal," he added.

The Warner Bros shareholders on Thursday voted to approve the deal with Paramount, which DiPiazza said will "unlock the full value of our world-class entertainment portfolio".

If the deal is approved by regulators, Paramount will fold Warner Bros' HBO Max streaming customers into its portfolio. It would also take ownership of the Food Network, the Discovery Channel and a range of sports offerings.

Paramount's traditional networks already include brands such as Nickelodeon, CBS and Comedy Central.

The company said it expects the takeover to be finalised by September, pending regulatory clearances.

What the Warner Bros deal could mean for streaming, cinemas and news

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c20j5n2w4q6o, 3 days ago

The takeover of Warner Bros by Paramount Skydance could significantly reshape Hollywood and the wider media landscape.

It has received shareholder approval but is not yet a done deal - requiring the green light from regulators.

If it does go ahead, here's how it could shake up things for viewers.

Streaming costs could change

Paramount is planning to merge its Paramount+ service with Warner Bros' HBO Max to create what it hopes would be a must-have streaming service that can hold its own against competitors Netflix, Amazon and Disney.

Viewers would be able to enjoy a broader range of content with one single subscription, from current hits such as The Pitt, to classics like Casablanca, Star Trek, Friends and the Sopranos.

What it would mean for prices is less clear.

Initially, analysts say it is likely that people who currently pay for both services could get a cheaper overall deal.

But over time having a more compelling offer could allow Paramount to raise prices, while less competition between streamers could mean people pay more overall for their streaming subscriptions.

"There'd be just less competition," says Tom Harrington, a TV analyst from Enders. "The ability there would be to charge a bit more."

However, Ben Barringer, head of technology research at Quilter Cheviot, says any increased costs would be limited by the rate charged by Netflix, which he calls the "price-setter in the market".

But none of those changes are on the immediate horizon.

Under US President Donald Trump it is expected to be "full speed ahead" for regulatory approval, says Scott Wagner, head of the antitrust practice at the law firm Bilzin Sumberg.

However concern over consumer prices and harm to workers could lead state attorneys general to try to block the deal further down the line, he adds. California's attorney general has already vowed a "vigorous" investigation.

So given the regulatory timeline and existing distribution deals, we are years away from any major change to the services currently offered to viewers.

A reprieve for cinemas but less content

Movie theatre operators and others in Hollywood had feared a Netflix takeover. It could have meant one of the last major studios - behind titles last year such as Ryan Coogler's Sinners, The Minecraft Movie and One Battle After Another - deserting the cinema.

But unlike Netflix, Paramount and Warner Bros still rely on ticket sales to bolster the returns on their movies, points out Hargreaves Lansdown's Matt Britzman "which should mean fewer films being rushed straight to streaming".

"That won't reverse long-term trends in cinema attendance, but it may reduce the disruption that filmmakers feared under a Netflix-led model," he says.

Enders' Tom Harrington agrees a Paramount takeover is probably a "better outcome" for cinema.

But he warns that consolidation will likely lead to fewer films getting made, as happened after Disney bought Fox.

Indeed, Paramount is already in cost-cutting mode, after boss David Ellison merged it with his film studio Skydance last year. Many analysts are expecting further cuts, especially since Paramount took on debt to finance the deal.

"That will need to be paid off at some point," says Quilter Cheviot's Ben Barringer. "Having more debt means you've got more burden, and that means you've got less to spend on content."

A Trump-friendly CNN?

If the deal moves forward, it would put another of America's flagship news networks - CNN - under the control of the Ellison family, which has a friendly relationship with the White House.

That has already sparked alarm in the US among Democrats and media advocates, who fear it will lead to more cautious coverage of the Trump administration.

They point to the changes Ellison has made in recent months at the news network CBS, which he took over as part of the Paramount merger, such as naming someone to police bias at the network. His tenure has also included workforce reductions, naming of a new editor-in-chief known for opinion writing, and clashes with journalists over issues of editorial independence.

The Ellison family is already reported to have discussed changes to the network with President Donald Trump, who is known for his attacks on CNN. In December, he called for the channel to be sold, saying its leaders were either "corrupt or incompetent".

"I don't think CNN would become Fox News overnight," says Seth Stern, chief advocate at the Freedom of the Press Foundation, noting that there are already several popular news outlets serving right-wing audiences. "But coverage could be softened, critiques of the Trump administration could be reduced, hosts that are known for being particularly critical... could be fired."

Rodney Benson, a media professor at New York University, called the deal "concerning", would leave America's largest media companies further concentrated in the hands of conservatives. Many of those owners, including the Ellison family, have separate, non news-related business interests that depend on government contracts or regulation and are therefore particularly vulnerable to pressure, he adds.

"This is not just an ideological shift, it's a threat to democracy and the rule of law," he says.

One of the most important changes will be whom Ellison names editor-in-chief, he adds, a selection that will set the tone for what follows.

"He is going to make this choice knowing that Donald Trump is watching," he says.

But YouTube remains the biggest disruptor

Just how successful the merger of two legacy media outlets that are both facing financial pressures would be, remains an open question.

That's because the "overriding" threat to streaming services isn't one another - it's YouTube, says Harrington of Enders.

Half of the platform's top-trending videos now more closely resemble traditional TV, including long-form interviews and game shows, positioning it as a direct competitor to ad-supported TV services.

At the same time that short-form video has eroded audiences for traditional media.

Staying competitive is "not just about being competitive with one another, it's being competitive with short-form video and that's sort of the direction you'll see them going towards," Harrington says.

Reporting contributed by Danielle Kaye

How much money does the UK government borrow, and why does it matter?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4g2rky498wo, 3 days ago

The UK government generally spends more than it raises in tax.

To fill this gap it borrows money, but that has to be paid back - with interest.

Why does the government borrow money?

The government gets most of its income from taxes. For example, workers pay income tax and National Insurance, everyone pays VAT on certain goods, and companies pay tax on profits.

It could, in theory, cover all of its spending from taxes and that sometimes happens.

But, if it can't, the government covers the gap by raising taxes, cutting spending, or borrowing money.

Higher taxes mean people have less money to spend, so businesses make less profit, which can be bad for jobs and wages. Lower profits also mean companies pay less tax.

So, governments often decide to borrow to boost the economy. They also borrow to pay for big projects, like new railways and roads.

How does the government borrow money?

The government borrows money by selling financial products called bonds.

A bond is a promise to pay money in the future. Most require the borrower - in this case, the government - to make regular interest payments.

UK government bonds - known as "gilts" - are normally considered very safe, with little risk the money will not be repaid.

Gilts are mainly bought by financial institutions in the UK and abroad, such as pension funds, investment funds, banks and insurance companies.

The government sells short and long-term gilts to allow it to borrow money over different time periods, with varying interest rates.

How much is the UK government borrowing?

Government borrowing was £12.6bn in March 2026, according to the latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

This was £1.4bn less than in March 2025 and was the lowest borrowing figure for the month of March since 2022.

The amount the government borrows fluctuates from month to month.

For instance, it tends to borrow less in January, when many people pay a large chunk of their annual tax bill.

So, it can be more helpful to look across a whole year, or the year-to-date.

In the full financial year to March 2026, the government borrowed £132bn.

The total amount the government owes is called the national debt. It is currently about £2.9 trillion.

That is almost as much as the value of all the goods and services produced in the UK in a year, known as the gross domestic product, or GDP.

The current level is more than double that seen from the 1980s through to the financial crisis of 2008.

The combination of the financial crash and the Covid pandemic pushed the UK's debt up.

But, in relation to the size of the economy, UK debt figures are still low compared with much of the last century. They are also less than the equivalent figures for some other leading economies.

How much money does the government pay in interest?

The larger the national debt, the more interest the government pays.

That cost was not as great when interest rates were low during the 2010s, but became more noticeable after the Bank of England started raising interest rates in 2021.

After peaking at 5.25%, the Bank began cutting rates in 2024 and they now stand at 3.75%.

However, further rate cuts in 2026 are now seen as unlikely because of the impact of the Iran war, and there has been some speculation that rates may even rise.

The amount of interest the government pays on national debt varies from month to month.

In March 2026, the interest payments on government debt were £3.2bn.

Why does it matter if governments borrow more and pay more interest?

If the government has to set aside more cash for paying debts and interest, it may have less to spend on public services.

Some economists fear the government is borrowing too much, at too great a cost. Others argue extra borrowing helps the economy grow faster - generating more tax in the long run.

The amount of borrowing is also very important if the government wants to keep meeting its so-called "fiscal rules".

When Labour came into power in 2024, it decided to stick to a pledge by the previous government that the total amount of money owed must have fallen as a proportion of the UK economy in five years' time.

In the October 2024 Budget, Chancellor Rachel Reeves changed the definition of debt that the government would use in the target to enable her to raise more money for investment.

It now tracks a different, broader measure of debt called public sector net financial liabilities (PSNFL).

This includes, for example, the money the government gets from people repaying their student loans.

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) think tank has criticised Reeves for being "fixated" on the borrowing rules, which it says contribute to "dysfunctional policymaking".

It wants the chancellor to be guided by a broader set of economic measures instead.

What is the difference between debt and deficit?

Debt is the total amount of money owed by the government that has built up over years.

The deficit is the gap between the government's income and the amount it spends.

When a government spends less than its income, it has what is known as a surplus.

Debt rises when there is a deficit, and falls in those years when there is a surplus.

Knife killings down by 21%, figures show

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c30re70lqn1o, 3 days ago

Killings involving a knife or sharp instrument fell by 21% last year, according to figures from police forces in England and Wales.

It comes after official data previously showed that homicides had fallen to their lowest level in nearly 50 years.

Crime statistics published on Thursday by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed 172 homicides involving a knife or sharp instrument were recorded by police forces in 2025, compared with 217 in 2024.

Last year's number of knife-related killings is also the lowest since comparable data was first collected in 2010-11.

The dataset also shows that the total number of homicide offences last year - when there were 503 offences - fell by 6% compared with 2024, when there were 534.

Homicide offences includes murder, manslaughter, infanticide and causing or allowing the death or serious injury of a child or vulnerable adult, according to the Crown Prosecution Service.

Overall recorded knife-related crime also fell by 10% in 2025, compared to 2024, with 49,151 offences.

More than a quarter (28%) of knife-related offences were recorded by the Metropolitan Police, although it saw a 17% fall in recorded knife crime compared with the previous year.

Katie Kempen, chief executive of charity Victim Support, said the overall fall in knife killings was welcome "but every case is one too many".

She added: "Behind every statistic is a person deprived of their life, and countless friends and family trying to come to terms with the horror of losing their loved one."

Offences involving firearms also decreased by 9% in 2025 compared to the previous year, with 4,753 offences compared to 5,241.

To build a bigger picture of crime in England and Wales, the ONS also referred to estimates from its annual crime survey in the new dataset.

The Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW) is a face-to-face survey which asks people aged 16 and over about their experiences of crime in the past year.

It found there were an estimated 2.6 million theft incidents in 2025, an 11% fall compared to the previous year.

Actual police data included in the ONS dataset also showed a 1% fall in recorded shoplifting offences to 509,566 in 2025, compared with 2024, despite recent surges in the crime.

But the ONS notes that the Home Office recently clarified to police forces that they should record shoplifting where violence or threats of violence are used as robbery of business property.

It said this had likely had a "small effect" on the number of shoplifting offences recorded since April last year.

This change could also account for the increase in offences classed as robbery of businesses, which rose 78% from 14,691 in 2024 to 26,158 last year.

UK borrowing lowest for three years but Iran war clouds outlook

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckge5291152o, 3 days ago

Annual UK government borrowing has fallen to a three-year low, but analysts do not expect the improvement to last because of the impact of the Iran war.

Borrowing, the difference between spending and income from taxes, fell £19.8bn to £132bn in the year to March, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said, the lowest since 2022-23.

The total was slightly below the £132.7bn that had been predicted by the government's independent forecaster, the Office for Budget Responsibility.

However, analysts say borrowing could worsen this year if inflation picks up and if the government offers to support to some households to cope with higher energy bills.

Ruth Gregory, deputy chief UK economist at Capital Economics, said the full impact from the energy price shock caused by the conflict "is still to come".

Since the outbreak of the US-Israeli war with Iran, energy prices have surged due to the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz - a key waterway with usually carries about 20% of the world's oil and liquid natural gas supplies.

This has already pushed up petrol and diesel costs, and has started to increase the rate of inflation - the pace at which prices rise.

While the government might gain extra revenues from taxes on petrol and North Sea oil and gas, weaker economic growth is likely to lead to a slower increase in overall revenues from taxes.

In addition, the government has been facing higher borrowing costs since the start of the Iran war, and there is the possibility of future support for household energy bills, although Chancellor Rachel Reeves has said this would target those on lower incomes.

Capital Economics' Gregory said: "We continue to think that the combination of some targeted energy price support, totalling about £20bn, high interest rates and the weakening economy will mean borrowing rises from £132bn in 2025/26 to about £145bn this year."

Elliott Jordan-Doak, senior UK economist at Pantheon Economics, said the chancellor was facing "a more daunting 2026/27 ahead".

He estimated that government is facing an increase of about £12bn in interest payments this year, and "any further fiscal support for households or businesses will require additional borrowing".

The ONS said borrowing in the month of March was £12.6bn, which was higher than analysts had been expecting. However, the figure was £1.4bn less than a year earlier, and the lowest March borrowing since 2022.

For the year to March, the ONS said borrowing as a proportion of GDP was 4.3% - the lowest since 2019-20, just before the Covid pandemic.

"Although spending has risen this financial year, this was more than offset by increased receipts," said ONS senior statistician Tom Davies.

Nabil Taleb, an economist at PwC UK, said the outlook for the UK was "set to become more challenging" and speculation was "already building" about the impact of weaker growth on the headroom, or buffer, that the chancellor has to meet her financial rules.

In last month's Spring Statement, the OBR forecast that the headroom Reeves has against her rule not to borrow to fund day-to-day spending in five years' time was £23.6bn.

Earlier this week, the Resolution Foundation think tank said that in a "severe but plausible scenario", where the conflict intensifies, could mean borrowing increases by £16bn a year by 2029-30.

Reacting to the latest borrowing figures, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, James Murray, said: "Our deficit is down £19.8bn because of our plan to cut borrowing. In a volatile world the decisions we are taking are the right ones to keep costs down, take back our energy security and cut borrowing and debt."

Shadow chancellor Mel Stride said the annual deficit was "70% higher than was forecast when they [Labour] came to office".

"Labour have left Britain dangerously exposed to economic shocks," he added.

Reform UK's Treasury spokesperson Robert Jenrick said the chancellor was "wasting money" and added: "We should cut the waste and spend money on bringing down people's bills instead."

Equality watchdog says work 'ongoing' with McDonald's on sexual harassment prevention

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq6jn883vyeo, 3 days ago

The head of the equality watchdog has said work with McDonald's to ensure it is protecting its staff from sexual harassment is "still ongoing".

It comes after the firm's UK and Ireland boss, Lauren Schultz, said on Wednesday "we have drawn a line under it".

Equality and Human Rights Commission chair, Dr Mary-Ann Stephenson, told the BBC its legal agreement to continue monitoring McDonald's was extended in November "because of further issues that came to light".

In 2023, the BBC heard from more than 100 McDonald's UK workers claiming they faced a toxic culture of sexual assault, harassment, racism, and bullying. At the time McDonald's said it had "fallen short" and it "deeply apologised".

McDonald's signed the voluntary, legal agreement with the EHRC more than three years ago.

Stephenson was asked on the BBC's Today programme whether the watchdog had seen evidence that there had been significant improvement in the way staff were being treated.

She said she could not provide a ''running commentary'' on whether progress had been made because of the way the agreement works.

"We are still monitoring that programme with McDonald's and we will continue to do that,'' she said.

The EHRC is responsible for ensuring the law regarding sexual harassment is implemented. Ann-Stephenson said it was important that organisations whether "large or small" follow the law and they ''have a responsibility under the Equality Act to take proactive steps to prevent their staff from being harassed''.

More than 700 current and former junior staff are taking legal action against McDonald's. Law firm Leigh Day, which is representing the workers, says their clients accuse the company of failing to protect them.

Jessica Hunt, senior associate at Leigh Day, told BBC the extension by the equality regulator of its agreement with McDonald's "suggests that sexual harassment continues to be an ongoing issue in their restaurants".

"The new action plan requires McDonald's and its franchises to introduce new safeguarding policies to protect its vulnerable young workers," she said.

"The fact that the equality regulator has had to intervene further over recent months suggests that more still needs to be done by McDonald's and its franchisees to protect a young and vulnerable workforce. Serious allegations raised have yet to be resolved.''

The BBC's investigation in July 2023 heard from workers, some as young as 17, who said they had been groped and harassed at work almost routinely.

After the report, McDonald's apologised and set up a new unit to deal with complaints.

On Wednesday, Schulz, who replaced Alistair Macrow as chief executive of McDonald's UK and Ireland in September 2025, told the BBC "a ton of work" had taken place to improve things since then.

"What happened in recent years is unacceptable," she said. "A safe and respectful workplace is a non-negotiable in our restaurants."

Schulz addded: "We have zero tolerance for this behaviour and we have strong accountability measures in place."

But when asked what had gone wrong previously, and whether there had been a cultural problem at the firm, Schultz responded: "I can't speak to what went on before."

"I am here today to push us forward into the future and develop a culture."

She also did not respond to questions about McDonald's franchise model, which some have pointed to as part of the problem, saying: "I don't want to speak about the past. What I'm here [for] is to build the future."

One former McDonald's employee, who previously spoke up as part of the BBC's initial investigation, said she felt the company needed to talk about what had happened.

"I understand that she doesn't want to talk about the past. However, McDonald's has an infamous reputation for being a toxic workplace," she said.

"So, as much as they don't want to talk about the past, it is key to understanding that in order to be able to rewrite the narrative and draw the line, in my opinion."

Four arrested over suspected home insulation scheme fraud

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgmermvppp8o, 3 days ago

Four people have been arrested during a dawn raid on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud following an investigation into the government's botched home insulation scheme.

In the early hours of Wednesday morning, 100 investigators entered homes and offices across three counties and removed computers, hard drives and crypto assets.

The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) is examining what it said is a "sophisticated conspiracy" to fraudulently claim £44m in public money through the scheme.

The BBC has, for years, reported on the poor quality of insulation work carried out under the government programme, which has led to damp and mould and put some people's health at risk.

The BBC joined a team from the SFO as they put on stab vests and raided a company office at a business park in Cannock.

Lead investigator Ross Corrigan said the SFO suspected this was a ''sophisticated and systemic fraud within the government's Energy Company Obligation 4 (ECO4) scheme which was designed to help people in fuel poverty".

"And yet here we have suspected criminality which might have exploited that good cause," he said.

The ECO4 programe began in 2022 and involved the installation of heat pumps, solar panels and insulation in more than 300,000 homes.

It was targeted at elderly or vulnerable people living on low incomes.

The scheme, which has since closed, was funded through a levy on household energy bills and has cost £4bn.

The SFO said that three companies were involved in the fraud: JJ Crump of Sheffield, South Coast Insulation Services in Fareham and Cannock-based Warmfront.

In a statement JJCrump said it ''completely refutes the allegations'' made by the Serious Fraud Office. It said no-one from the company had been arrested and added ''we are fully co-operating with the SFO investigation. All the work we installed has been carried out in good faith.''

South Coast Insulation Services went into administration in February.

The SFO alleged the three businesses claimed money for insulation work on 5,000 properties they never installed.

The SFO said it wants installers and assessors who worked on these contracts to contact them at confidential@sfo.go.uk.

Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown MP, chair of the Public Accounts Committee, said the SFO investigation showed that the ECO4 scheme was looking increasingly like a ''charlatan's charter".

He said the "sheer amount of money" that may have been fraudulently claimed, estimated at £44m, "serves only to underline further that the known levels of fraud in the scheme, as our committee warned earlier in the year, must be being significantly underestimated".

Almost all of the external wall insulations delivered under the scheme – 98% – required repairs, according to the a report by the National Audit Office.

'Appalling'

The BBC has spoken to homeowners across the UK over many years who said their properties have been ruined by poorly installed insulation under ECO4.

In one case in Luton, the dry rot was so extensive that the house has been gutted and is costing more than £250,000 to fix.

The repairs are being paid for by the installer's insurer.

The government said it is implementing a find-and-fix programme to help homeowners and said more than 3,000 out of 30,000 affected homes have been repaired.

Energy minister Martin McCluskey, said: "It is appalling that people have allegedly tried to line their own pockets with funding intended to help families lower their energy bills and live in a warm, comfortable home.

"For some unscrupulous people to try to take advantage of that is totally unacceptable and I'm pleased to see action is being taken to bring those responsible to justice."

Asos demands £7m from US as firms rush to claim tariff refunds

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd0r9d5zrkno, 3 days ago

Online fashion retailer Asos is seeking refunds from the US for the £7m worth of tariffs it paid in the first half of its financial year.

In February, the US Supreme Court struck down the so-called "Liberation Day" tariffs Donald Trump imposed last year, saying the president had overstepped his powers, and paving the way for the biggest repayment programme in history.

Asos said it had begun the process of pursuing refunds, which businesses have been able to do since Monday when an online portal opened for them to apply through. Some reported a smooth experience while others received error messages.

Hundreds of thousands of firms could potentially win back some money.

Asos made the announcement while reporting a narrowing in losses as it continues with its turnaround plan.

It made a pre-tax loss of £137.9m in the six months to 1 March, compared with a £241.5m loss a year earlier.

The company was widely considered a "pandemic darling" as it benefited from a boom in online shopping during Covid lockdowns.

It has since experienced a downturn as consumer demand weakened and in the face of greater competition from cheap Chinese rivals such as Shein.

Asos added it had taken "proactive actions to help mitigate inflationary impacts and supply chain issues arising from the conflict in the Middle East", and said it continued to monitor developments closely.

Refund system begins

In March, the US Court of International Trade ordered customs officials to refund the more than $160bn (£121bn) the government had collected in tariffs, putting roughly 330,000 importers in line for potential reimbursements.

The refunds relate to levies charged under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).

As of early April, more than 56,000 importers had completed the necessary steps to apply for refunds online when the portal opened, with their claims worth $127bn.

On Monday, one small business owner told the BBC he was able to find his way through the portal just minutes after it opened.

However, another told the BBC's US partner CBS News that when he tried to file a claim he received a message saying: "The system is currently experiencing high volume, please try again later."

He said the system appeared to be "overwhelmed".

US Customs and Border Protection has said successful applicants can expect refunds, as well as any applicable interest, to be paid in 60 to 90 days.

However, some individual consumers, who were hit by the tariffs indirectly through higher prices, are not expected to be compensated.

AI is already leading to fewer jobs for young people, says Sunak

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg07x4rejdo, 3 days ago

Artificial intelligence (AI) is flattening the jobs market for young people and governments should eliminate National Insurance to make hiring workers more attractive, former prime minister Rishi Sunak has told the BBC.

Sunak, now an adviser to AI firm Anthropic and Microsoft, said while he is an enthusiast for the transformative impact of AI, he said concerns from graduates looking for entry level jobs were justified.

He said company bosses were privately acknowledging to him that recruitment of young people is flattening because of the technology.

"There are reasons to be worried and think about the future. But we are able to do something about this," he said.

Sunak suggested rebalancing the tax system by abolishing National Insurance "over time" and replacing with it with taxes on corporate profits.

These, he said, would be boosted by productivity and efficiencies in deploying AI.

Sunak said it is becoming tougher for young people to get jobs in service sectors such as law, accountancy and the creative industries.

Meanwhile, he said chief executives are telling him that "flat is the new up".

"They're talking about this concept that they think they can continue to grow their businesses without having to significantly increase employment because they're starting to see how they can deploy AI," said Sunak.

"That's why I think we do have to look at this issue very seriously and with purpose."

The former chancellor told BBC Newsnight: "We should be thinking about, well, how do we tip the balance in favour of AI being used in that positive way… to help people do their jobs better [rather than replacing them]."

Sunak said that lots of countries will have to examine how to rebalance their systems as they face raising less revenue from employment taxes and have to find that money elsewhere.

He said the impact on employment by AI "may be different to previous technology cycles, and we want to do what we can to tip the scales in a more positive direction".

Sunak was appointed as an advisor to both Anthropic and tech giant Microsoft last year.

During his time as prime minister, he made tech regulation a significant priority, setting up an AI safety summit in 2023.

Earlier this month, Anthropic announced its new AI model, called Claude Mythos.

The company said it found that the tool can outperform humans at some hacking and cyber-security tasks, prompting discussions by regulators, legislators and financial institutions about the dangers it could pose to digital services.

Sunak, who is also a senior adviser at investment bank Goldman Sachs, said concerns about the development of Mythos showed "we shouldn't rely on companies to mark their own homework".

He said it was to Anthropic's credit and to the UK's benefit, that Britain's AI Security Institute, established under his premiership, had become the first to test Mythos' capabilities.

The Conservative MP also revealed that he had joined forces with Labour's deputy prime minister David Lammy to promote investment in the UK tech sector at a recent AI summit.

Sunak said he was a "big believer" in "Londonmaxxing" and "Britmaxxing" which was how some in the tech industry are describing a wave of recent multi-billion pound investments in the sector.

"I know people like to talk us down...or say that things aren't working but in this area there are huge reasons for us to feel confident and proud," he said. "We are an AI superpower any which way you look at it."

He said the UK had the opportunity to be the world's foremost productive user of AI in the world, on top of now significant presence of companies such as Deepmind, Anthropic and OpenAI in Britain.

High Street mini-marts selling cocaine, cannabis and prescription drugs, BBC secret filming reveals

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c62l429w2pko, 3 days ago

Cocaine, cannabis, laughing gas and prescription pills are being offered for sale in mini-marts on UK High Streets, a BBC investigation can reveal.

They were readily offered to our undercover researchers who secretly filmed in shops across four neighbouring West Midlands towns.

One street we visited was described as "lawless" by an anonymous law enforcement source.

Just a few miles away, in a town where we found illegal drugs being sold in shops, legitimate businesses told us they had been intimidated by gangs - and witnessed knife and gun violence.

Across the country, shopfronts are being exploited by organised criminal gangs that have gained a foothold pushing illegal drugs, say both the National Crime Agency (NCA) and the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI).

We analysed dozens of recent local news reports as part of our ongoing investigation into criminal activity on UK High Streets. From Bideford in Devon, to Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, to Belfast in Northern Ireland - we found that drugs, including crystal meth and heroin, had been found in more than 70 shops and linked premises.

Responding to our findings in the West Midlands and more widely, a senior Labour MP is now calling on the government to act urgently. "We can't restore our High Streets unless we take out the cancer of organised crime," says Liam Byrne, chair of the Business and Trade Committee.

The government is working with police, the NCA and Trading Standards to "take the strongest possible action against these criminal businesses", a spokesperson for the Home Office said. West Midlands Police said it would always work with partners "to act on complaints about illegal drugs sales, anti-social behaviour, and crime and disorder".

"I've got weed, coke, everything. Whatever you want, I can sort you out," said a man behind the counter at a mini-mart in Cradley Heath.

We had come to the Black Country town as part of our year-long investigation. A law enforcement whistleblower had told us that drug gangs were out of control along its 300m stretch of High Street.

When asked, it took just seconds for the man behind the counter of the shop - called Cradley Market - to supply our researcher with 3.5g of cannabis for £30.

Handing money over to criminals is not something we do lightly - but in this instance we decided there was a public interest in carrying out the test purchases.

Our researcher was able to buy cannabis from the shop on two separate visits.

Past shelves of fizzy drinks, sweets and nappies, he was taken to the back of the shop and handed a small bag of cannabis from a rucksack by the man, who said his name was Akwa.

When our researcher asked if he could buy cocaine, Akwa immediately made a call to get some. A couple of hours later, a gram of cocaine was delivered to the shop which Akwa sold for £95.

While we were in the shop, Akwa showed us a selection of pictures of prescription drugs on his phone for sale - inviting our researcher to take photos in case he knew anyone who might be interested.

The offer included pregabalin, a prescription drug used to treat anxiety, nerve pain and epilepsy. Its misuse has been linked to a sharp increase in deaths.

Akwa denied any wrongdoing when we later confronted him. When asked about selling drugs, he said he did not know what we were talking about, before asking us to leave.

We put our findings to the local authority. A spokesperson said Sandwell Council was working with police to tackle illegal activity.

Less than three miles away, in the neighbouring borough of Dudley, organised crime gangs have taken hold of some of its High Streets, the Trading Standards lead there says.

The sale of illegal drugs, alongside counterfeit cigarettes and illegal vapes, is the worst it has been in 20 years, Kuldeep Maan told us.

During our research in the borough, we observed so-called "spotters" outside mini-marts - on the lookout, we were told, for potential law enforcement raids. Our team was also followed and photographed by mini-mart workers on Dudley High Street.

Maan says he shut down 39 shops for selling illegal cigarettes in Dudley in 12 months, but during raids he also repeatedly found cannabis, cocaine, nitrous oxide, and fake and foreign prescription drugs.

Visits to shops in two towns in the borough, Lye and Brierley Hill, filmed by our undercover researchers, resulted in offers of cannabis, cannabis vapes and nitrous oxide.

A class C drug commonly known as laughing gas, nitrous oxide can cause brain damage when inhaled. It is used legally in the catering industry and other sectors, but is illegal to possess or supply with the intent to inhale it for recreational use.

In Lye, four shops offered us illegal cigarettes and laughing gas. A 10-minute drive away in Brierley Hill we were twice offered cannabis at IK Convenience. A shop worker showed us illegal cannabis vapes costing £20 each.

The shop did not respond to the BBC's request for comment.

When we asked about cannabis in another Brierley Hill shop, called Best Choice, the man behind the counter directed us to a flat above where we were twice able to buy the drug, from a man and woman.

The flat and the shop have the same landlord, we discovered. He told us he was "shocked" to hear from the BBC, had "no prior knowledge of any alleged sale of cannabis" and had notified the police.

The BBC was poised to confront the cannabis sellers in the flat but withdrew for safety reasons when two large pitbull-type dogs without collars or leads appeared.

We approached the tenants for comment and were contacted by someone on their behalf, who denied the allegations.

Laughing gas sold to children

Maan told us he is investigating increasing numbers of reports of laughing gas being sold to children, across the borough of Dudley.

We found nitrous oxide readily available in the heart of Dudley town centre.

Inside Dawood Grocery store, the shopkeeper asked our undercover researcher how many bottles of gas he wanted, before handing over a plastic bag with some balloons in and being told to wait outside on a nearby street corner. Balloons are filled with the gas, which is then inhaled.

A few minutes later, a hooded man arrived, took our £25 in cash and handed over a nitrous oxide canister without saying a word. We were twice able to buy the gas in this way from the shop.

Another local business owner, who did not want to be named, told us they regularly witnessed people inhaling laughing gas, having bought it from Dawood.

Dawood Grocery denies all the allegations made by the BBC.

'Scared to come to Dudley'

"People are scared to come here," says Romanian national Marius Boros, who moved to the UK 13 years ago and now runs a grocery shop on Dudley High Street.

There are "a lot of fights, knives, guns" outside, he says.

Mini-marts selling cut-price, illegal goods - including drugs - are destroying his business, says Boros. "I work really hard, everything I had, I invested here... I'm very close to losing everything."

Meanwhile, hair salon owner Diane Shawe believes local criminals are trying to push her out. Her shop windows have been smashed four times, she says, each time in the middle of the night.

CCTV footage showed how men in hoodies threw bricks at her shop windows in the early hours, shortly after the glass had been replaced.

"They want the shop. They're going to make it expensive for me until they get their own way," says Shawe, whose customers include people with cancer and alopecia

After one of the attacks, she explains, two men called into the shop and tried to intimidate her, saying they wanted the premises to set up a barber shop.

"One guy asked me, am I ready to sell now?"

Dudley Council says it has been working with local police, landlords and businesses "to rid the borough of businesses run by organised crime" through its Operation Clearance campaign, launched in August 2024.

"The council has delivered some of the strongest enforcement outcomes in the country and, to date, 42 shops have been successfully closed," said Michael Brereton, director for development and regulation.

Over the past 12 months, Trading Standards officers across the UK have consistently shared their frustrations with us about how difficult it is to permanently close shops selling illegal goods.

Shops can be closed for three months under anti-social behaviour legislation, but statements from other businesses and members of the public are often needed.

After some shops shut down, criminals simply reopen nearby, the BBC has been told.

The Trading Standards Institute wants closure orders to increase to 12 months, with an option of permanent closures for persistent offenders, John Herriman, CTSI chief executive, confirmed.

We showed the illegal drugs we found for sale on West Midlands High Streets to one of the region's MPs, Liam Byrne, who leads the Business and Trade Committee.

"The scale of it is horrifying and the ease of it is just terrifying," said the Labour MP.

He is calling on his own government to put new resources into enforcement and create tougher laws, as a matter of urgency.

"It means a zero-tolerance approach to the kind of organised crime that is now doing business under our noses," he told the BBC.

Additional reporting by Phill Edwards

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Billionaire backer sues Trump family's crypto firm over alleged extortion

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8x7kxjgq9xo, 4 days ago

The Trump family's World Liberty Financial crypto venture is being sued by one of its billionaire backers over allegations of extortion.

Justin Sun has accused World Liberty of an "illegal scheme" to seize his WLFI tokens, a cryptocurrency issued by the company.

Sun alleges the firm, co-founded by US President Donald Trump and his son Eric Trump, has "frozen" all of his tokens and stripped him of his right to vote on governance issues.

World Liberty has denied wrongdoing and accused Sun of "playing the victim while making baseless allegations to cover up his own misconduct".

Sun is an ardent supporter of Trump and his stance on cryptocurrencies, but accused "certain individuals" associated with World Liberty of acting against the president's values.

"They wrongfully froze all of my tokens, stripped me of my right to vote on governance proposals, and have threatened to permanently destroy my tokens by 'burning' them - all without any proper justification," he said in a social media post announcing the lawsuit.

Sun is the founder of a separate multi-billion dollar crypto project, TRON. He initially invested $45m (£33m) in World Liberty and said that, at times, his WLFI tokens have been valued at more than $1bn.

Since September, the price of a single WLFI token has plunged from 31 cents to just under 8 cents.

Sun said his backing was driven by the Trump family's association with the project and his long-standing support for cryptocurrencies.

He also bought $100m of Trump's meme coins in July 2025, as well.

But Sun alleged that those running World Liberty, including another co-founder, Chase Herro, are using it as a "golden opportunity to leverage the Trump brand to profit through fraud".

In his complaint, filed on Tuesday in a San Francisco federal court, Sun argued that initial promises to give token-holders the option to trade the currency in future "were false and misleading".

While the tokens at large became tradeable, Sun said World Liberty has blocked him from being able to sell a single one, and is now threatening to "burn" his - deleting them entirely.

Zach Witkoff, another co-founder of World Liberty and the son of President Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, said Sun's lawsuit is a "desperate attempt to deflect attention from Sun's own misconduct".

"His claims are entirely meritless, and World Liberty looks forward to getting the case thrown out promptly," Witkoff said, and claimed that Sun has engaged in "misconduct that required World Liberty to take action to protect itself and its users".

Eric Trump added: "The only thing more ridiculous than this lawsuit is spending $6m on a banana duct-taped to a wall."

In 2024 Sun bought, then ate, an artwork by Maurizio Cattelan which consisted of a banana duct-taped to a wall.

Investors have also grown concerned about World Liberty borrowing against the value of its tokens.

Meanwhile, the Securities and Exchange Commission has dropped its investigation into Sun, with Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat, questioning if it was tied to his investments in Trump's crypto ventures.

Sun had been accused of paying high-profile influencers to promote his companies on social media, without disclosing the payments.

Elsewhere, the Trump business behind his Truth Social platform replaced its chief executive Devin Nunes after a sharp fall in its share price.

Kevin McGurn, who has worked at Hulu, Vevo and T-Mobile, will temporarily take over from the former California congressman.

In the past year, shares in Trump Media & Technology have fallen in value by almost two thirds as it struggles to attract users beyond the US president, who frequently uses it to make announcements.

Lufthansa cuts 20,000 summer flights as fuel prices surge

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cre1r4n5j5wo, 4 days ago

German airline Lufthansa will cut 20,000 European short-haul flights over the summer, saying soaring fuel prices have made many journeys "unprofitable" for the firm.

Jet fuel has doubled in price since the start of the US-Israel war with Iran as the conflict has slowed its production and transportation across the Middle East.

Several airlines, including KLM-France and Delta, have also temporarily cut some flights while others have raised ticket prices as they pass on expenses to customers.

Analysts have warned that travellers should expect further ticket price rises and more cancelled flights as the conflict continues.

The Gulf is a major source of aviation fuel, accounting for about 50% of Europe's imports. The bulk of it comes through the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has effectively closed in response to US and Israeli attacks.

Lufthansa said on Tuesday it would save roughly 40,000 metric tons of jet fuel through its flight cuts, the majority of which will come from the closure of its CityLine service.

It said this means it will temporarily stop flying to and from Heringsdorf, Cork, Gdańsk, Ljubljana, Rijeka, Sibiu, Stuttgart, Trondheim, Tivat, and Wrocław.

The firm will either refund affected passengers or book them on to alternative flights with one of its other airlines – SWISS, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, and ITA Airways – where possible.

Some of the flight cuts could become permanent. Lufthansa said it was reviewing its whole European schedule and would release more details later in April.

Shortage concerns

The International Energy Agency warned last week that Europe could run out of jet fuel in weeks, though the UK government and airlines say they are not seeing a disruption in supply.

The EU said on Wednesday it will set up a fuel observatory to track EU production, imports, exports and stock levels of transport fuels to identify potential shortages.

It said it hoped this would "mitigate the impact of high fuel prices and possible fuel shortages on the EU aviation sector".

Lufthansa said on Tuesday it was cutting down its European network, but that passengers will "continue to have access to the global route network, particularly long-haul connections".

"However, due to the increase in jet fuel prices, this will be achieved significantly more efficiently than before."

Tuesday's announcement comes after it said last week it was accelerating the closure of CityLine, retiring 27 aircraft, due to "significantly increased" fuel prices and "additional burdens from labour disputes".

How will car finance compensation payments work?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2l9vvj097lo, 4 days ago

Millions of drivers who were mis-sold car finance agreements should receive compensation this year, under plans by the regulator.

Average payments of about £829 are expected under the rules published by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

However, there is a legal challenge to the scheme which could delay payouts.

Who could receive car finance compensation?

The vast majority of new cars, and many second-hand ones, are bought with finance agreements. Customers pay an initial deposit to secure the vehicle, then a monthly fee with interest.

Compensation could be given to many of those who took out a car loan between April 2007 and November 2024.

The decision by the FCA, the financial regulator, applies to about 12 million car loans - just over 40% of the total number during the period.

In 2021, the FCA banned deals where car dealers received commission from lenders, based on the interest rate charged to the customer. These were known as discretionary commission arrangements (DCAs) and customers were often not told about them.

The FCA said this provided an incentive for a buyer to be charged a higher-than-necessary interest rate, leaving them paying too much.

Other car buyers were also judged to have signed unfair contracts because the commission paid to the dealer was so high - accounting for at least 35% of the total cost of credit and 10% of the loan.

Some customers were not given accurate information about the best finance deal because of exclusive arrangements between car dealers and lenders.

How much compensation could victims receive?

Under the latest proposals, the FCA expects average payouts of £829 per mis-sold agreement.

The total cost of the compensation, including administrative costs, could hit £9.1bn.

How much individual consumers receive will depend on the degree of harm suffered.

For some customers - especially if their contact details have changed - it could be many months before compensation is paid.

What do victims need to do to claim compensation?

Complaints have already been made about four million finance agreements. Those people do not need to do anything.

The regulator urged anyone who has not yet complained to contact their car loan provider directly, rather than using a third-party claims management company.

The regulator's central compensation scheme allows people to complain and potentially receive compensation for mis-sold deals without the need for a lawyer or to go through the courts.

Motorists have also been warned to be on the alert for scammers posing as car finance lenders offering fake compensation.

The FCA has published this guidance on how to complain.

Under its plans:

* lenders will contact those who have already complained, following an implementation period of the scheme

* those who complain before the scheme gets up and running are likely to receive compensation faster

* those who have not complained will be contacted by their lender by the end of the year for agreements made after 2014, or by the end of February 2027 for older cases. People will be asked if they want to opt in to the scheme to have their case reviewed

* those motor finance borrowers who do not receive a letter - for example because lenders no longer have their details and cannot trace them - can make a claim until the end of August 2027

Regulators have warned claims management companies and law firms involved in motor finance commission claims to make sure consumers do not have multiple representatives for the same claim and are not charged excessive termination fees.

FCA boss Nikhil Rathi told the BBC's Today programme there are "many law firms out there who would like to get 30% of any compensation", stressing that the regulator's scheme was "free to use" for consumers.

When will drivers receive compensation and who will pay?

Millions of drivers should receive compensation this year, and most of the remainder should get compensation by the end of 2027.

But compensation could be delayed further owing to a legal challenge to the scheme by a consumer group.

Consumer Voice said the scheme left "too many people short-changed" and so it was applying to the Upper Tribunal - part of the court service - to review the way the scheme has been designed.

Ultimately, the industry is expected to cover the full costs of any compensation scheme, including any administrative costs.

Lenders - including some of the UK's biggest banks and specialist motor finance firms - have already set aside billions of pounds for potential payouts.

However, the director of the body that represents the lending industry said before the final ruling that it thought the FCA was "overcompensating".

"We don't recognise losses on that scale," said Adrian Dally from the Finance and Leasing Association, adding that the number of people the regulator said lost out "seems implausibly high".

There were some concessions made to lenders in a scaled-down final compensation plan from the FCA, but lenders are still unpacking the details.

The Supreme Court considered three test cases which influenced the FCA's decision and, ultimately, limited how broad the compensation programme could have been.

It focused on whether the car dealers had a duty to act on behalf of their customers, rather than in their own interests. The test case which was upheld was that of Marcus Johnson, who bought his first car - a Suzuki Swift - in 2017.

In his case, the Supreme Court said the terms of his finance deal were unfair due of the size of the commission payment, and the fact he appeared to have been misled over the relationship between the finance firm and the dealer.

Three ways the latest inflation figures affect you

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c75k002qkzno, 4 days ago

It's becoming clearer how a war thousands of miles away is hitting pockets here in the UK, with the latest figures showing inflation has risen to 3.3% largely due to higher fuel prices.

With warnings of higher food costs and travel fares also looming, how high could inflation get? And what could it mean for borrowers and savers around the country?

Here are three things you need to know.

1. It's not only up from here

It may feel like the only way for is up for the rate of prices rises, otherwise known as inflation. But that's not necessarily true, especially in the short run.

The domestic energy price cap fell this month, as that is fixed several months behind the moves in global energy markets, so the cap reflects what was happening some time ago.

That means the average energy bill for a household using a typical amount of gas and electricity will be about £10 a month lower from this month, which will put some downward pressure on inflation.

However, it's worth noting that energy bills are expected to rise again with the next price cap from July, thanks largely to the war.

Then there are fuel prices themselves. Petrol prices have started to inch down in recent days, as the wholesale oil price has calmed, although they remain about 25p above what they were before the war per litre and diesel remains more than 40p higher.

And then there's the jump in airfares in March's figures. They actually reflect the relatively early timing of Easter.

This year, the return leg of the long-haul flights they monitor had a return date of the Tuesday after Easter Sunday, at the height of peak season. And, as we tend to book in advance, the ONS collected the info on fares in February, so there was no impact from the war.

When that happens, the inflation figures tend to record airfares easing the following month.

Those factors have led analysts to think inflation could potentially dip below 3% in April.

After that, analysts think inflation could peak near 4% this year, a fraction of the 11% we saw in 2022 at the start of the war in Ukraine.

2. Food prices could have a way to go

There appears to have been a seasonal bump behind the rise in food inflation, given it was concentrated in Easter-related items such as confectionery and meat.

Despite that, you shouldn't get too relaxed as other price pressures will emerge, just much more gradually.

In the case of food, producers tend to buy the items most affected by this war such as energy and fertiliser months in advance, so it can be up to a year or more until we notice changes in prices in the supermarket aisles.

The food industry and supermarkets are energy-intensive industries, which means they face risks from higher energy costs.

While the Food and Drink Federation is warning that their members could be increasing prices by 9 or 10% by the end of the year, that might not come to pass.

Customers are more stretched than they were in 2022, more cautious after years of climbing prices. They are also wary of spending as the jobs markets remains challenging.

Many have already traded down to more affordable options as far as they can in spending habits, so retailers may find it harder to pass on higher costs on as price rises, without damaging custom.

And the prices of foodstuffs such as wheat have not rocketed as they did in 2022 as there isn't the risk to supplies. Ukraine is a key source of stables including wheat and sunflower seeds.

3. Where does that leave interest rates?

The Bank of England's job is to get inflation down to its 2% target and keep it there. Ahead of the war, with inflation set to dwindle, rate cuts seemed to be on the cards.

But, as we know, a lot has changed. The outlook for inflation, especially in the early weeks of the war, had some predicting rates would rise, perhaps several times.

The Bank has suggested it would take a more cautious and pragmatic approach. It knows higher rates can't influence global energy prices. And an energy price shock can knock the winds out of spending and so growth; rate rises could just make that worse.

So, particularly as oil and gas prices have calmed recently, economists are increasingly thinking that the Bank will try to gauge how fleeting the impact on inflation is likely to be before deciding whether or not to raise rates. That means a change at its meeting next week looks unlikely.

As these expectations of rate rises have eased a bit, the rates for fixed rate mortgages have also started to ease, after climbing rapidly over the last month or so.

And that cost of borrowing is ultimately of course, a cost-of-living pressure for not just homeowners but also landlords and their tenants.

However, no interest rate rises this year would mean no change to rates for savers.

There is, of course, much that remains uncertain as this war continues, but there is one silver lining: for most households, incomes have been rising faster than prices in recent times.

It may not feel like it, but the squeeze for many has eased. Although there too, the outlook is not entirely clear.

Car finance compensation scheme faces challenge and delay

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj0v63v027lo, 4 days ago

A consumer group is planning a legal challenge to a scheme designed to compensate millions of drivers who were mis-sold motor finance agreements.

Consumer Voice said the City regulator's scheme, which is expected to cost lenders a total of £9.1bn, left "too many people short-changed".

Payouts averaging £829 per person were due to begin this summer, under the Financial Conduct Authority's (FCA's) plans.

But the latest development, which could be one of several legal challenges, may delay those compensation payments.

Alex Neill, co-founder of Consumer Voice, said: "Millions of drivers were overcharged through hidden and unfair commission, yet the FCA's scheme risks leaving many of them missing out on hundreds of pounds they're owed.

"People have already been let down once by lenders. They should not now be let down again by the regulator that is supposed to protect them. The FCA needs to fix the scheme to ensure it delivers fair and lawful compensation for drivers."

The FCA refused to say whether it had been notified of any other legal challenges to the scheme.

"Our scheme is the quickest, fairest way to compensate consumers. It seems contradictory that organisations claiming to represent consumers would seek to delay payouts for millions of people," a spokeswoman for the regulator said.

The vast majority of new cars, and many second-hand ones, are bought with finance agreements.

The FCA said this provided an incentive for a buyer to be charged higher interest rates than necessary, leaving them paying too much.

The regulator's central compensation scheme allows people to complain and potentially receive compensation for mis-sold deals, without the need for a lawyer or to go through the courts.

Consumer Voice said it would challenge the scheme, arguing that the FCA had decided on too narrow an approach to calculating losses. It said that although 12.1 million agreements would be covered by the compensation scheme, some "4.7 million mis-sold agreements will not be included at all".

It is working alongside lawyers at Courmacs, which is representing more than a million drivers currently seeking payouts via the courts, rather than through the FCA scheme.

Technically, the consumer group would apply to the Upper Tribunal, which is part of the judicial system and is designated to settle legal disputes. Paperwork is expected to be filed to the court on Friday.

The application will ask the tribunal to review the way the scheme has been designed, particularly how compensation was calculated.

Consumer Voice argued that there was no need to delay payouts.

"The [FCA compensation] scheme should still be able to get up and running, while the Tribunal looks urgently at the parts of the rules dealing with redress," it said.

"The aim is to fix the flaws, not to stop compensation."

There has been widespread speculation that others affected by the compensation scheme could challenge it, such as lenders. This would not immediately be made public, and the deadline for any legal challenges is on Monday.

Kevin Durkin, from HD Law, which represented Marcus Johnson, who won his case in the Supreme Court, said: "The current scheme simply does not have the general public's needs at the forefront. While a judicial review may result in a short-term delay, we hope it can deliver a fairer, more equitable outcome for consumers overall.

"Let's hope that any potential delay results in more money in the public's pockets. Short-term pain for long-term gain."

However, not all consumer groups believe a challenge is the best way forward.

"Dragging this through the courts again to try and increase [payouts] will only delay payouts for consumers at a time when many households would welcome the cash," said James Daley, managing director of Fairer Finance.

"Of course, while the end result may be better for consumers, there's no certainty of that."

Oil prices fluctuate as Trump extends Iran war ceasefire

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c995dkl4dvvo, 4 days ago

Global oil prices fell and rose again on Wednesday after US President Donald Trump said he would extend a ceasefire with Iran until peace talks between the two countries have progressed.

He added that the US will continue to blockade Iran's ports until Tehran presents a "unified proposal".

After opening higher in Asia, the global benchmark wholesale oil price dipped to $97.60 (£72.14) a barrel.

But the price rose again as reports of ships being attacked in the Strait of Hormuz emerged, with the price briefly hitting $100 a barrel before falling back slightly.

Energy markets have been volatile since the US and Israel attacked Iran on 28 February and Tehran responded with threats to target vessels in the key Strait of Hormuz waterway.

The initial two-week ceasefire had been due to expire on Wednesday evening Washington time. Trump did not give a new deadline for the ceasefire extension.

Trump said on Truth Social that the Iranian government has been "seriously fractured" and that the US will hold off from launching new attacks after Pakistan called for more time for Tehran to agree a deal.

Vice President JD Vance, who is leading the US negotiations, had been expected to fly to Islamabad in Pakistan for talks on Tuesday. The White House has now said he will not be going.

Iran has also not decided whether to send a delegation to Pakistan for talks with the US, a foreign ministry spokesperson told the BBC.

Traders remain cautious about what wil happen next in the war, said associate professor Jiajia Yang from Australia's James Cook University.

"This is less about barrels [of oil] and more about expectations," Yang said.

The cost of crude has soared since the start of the conflict due to the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's energy usually passes, being effectively closed by Iran.

Earlier this month, the US also said it would intercept ships headed to or from Iranian ports.

How will Apple change under 'product guy' John Ternus?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn4vkye71ypo, 5 days ago

Apple will have been planning this succession for a long time.

Rumours were circulating for a while that 65-year-old Tim Cook was thinking about stepping down, and while a few potential replacements popped up, the name which stuck was the firm's vice president of hardware, 51-year-old John Ternus.

I had an informal meeting with him in the UK recently and I asked him then whether he really was heir apparent to the Apple throne.

He laughed and very smoothly gave me what's known in the newsroom as a "politician's answer" - that is, he didn't actually answer the question at all.

Instead, he enthused about Tim Cook's leadership. But there was no other obvious reason why I was suddenly invited to have coffee with him at that moment, some 25 years after he joined the firm.

I found Ternus polite, friendly, and everything he told me was perfectly delivered, if a bit bland.

I wish I could tell you I got some good gossip, but there wasn't a single unguarded moment. Apple is frustratingly good at curating to the letter what it chooses to say, even in private.

He may have been able to bat off my questions, but Apple - despite its colossal success - faces some serious challenges.

How Ternus responds to them will go a long way to deciding the tech giant's future.

Hardware focus

You could say Apple has chosen a replacement for Cook in his own mould: calm, steady, reliable.

While co-founder Steve Jobs was legendary for being brilliant, but also difficult to work with and prone to tantrums, it's hard to imagine either Tim Cook or John Ternus really kicking off. Neither are the kind of fiery characters which currently dominate US public life.

Between them, Cook and Jobs ran the show for around 30 of Apple's 50-year history.

And, despite telling me a few years ago that there was "no good excuse" for the lack of women in the tech sector, Apple - like many big tech firms - is yet to appoint a woman in charge.

John Ternus is affectionately described as "a product guy". He told me he likes to be hands-on with the development teams.

Tim Cook was originally known as "the operations guy" but he also has a very keen interest in hardware.

The first time I met him, he was fascinated by my rather vintage BBC-issued audio recorder, turning it over and over in his hands and admiring the buttons and dials (which I was rather hoping he wouldn't start moving around).

I told him I'd had to borrow some wired headphones from his team as mine had broken, and jokingly expressed surprise that they were still allowed at Apple HQ in the AirPod era. He told me very seriously that they still sold them.

A while later, a member of his team told me Cook was visiting an Apple Store in Europe and saw wired headphones on the wall - and asked his colleague to pass on a message to me that they were still in demand.

It's unfortunate for Cook that his last big product launch, Apple's VR headset, the Vision Pro - which arrived years after VR got going and cost ten times more than its rivals - does not appear to have been a success.

New boss, new challenges

The big challenge for Ternus is AI.

Apple is renowned for moving slowly and strategically - and this has paid vast dividends so far when it comes to its gadgets. The iPhone wasn't the first smartphone on the market when it launched in 2007 but it was the one which redefined the landscape.

At the same time, the company has faced criticism for being slow to jump on soaring AI demand, eventually choosing to incorporate OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google's Gemini technology into its operating systems, unusually choosing partnerships over proprietary AI in this booming area of the industry.

That said, AI is also still proving quite hit and miss despite all the hype, with reports of disappointing adoption rates among businesses and mutterings that it has been over-sold.

"Apple hasn't thrown the kitchen sink at AI opportunities," comments Susannah Streeter, chief investment strategist at Wealth Club.

"There's an expectation that John Ternus will continue this defensive strategy, without over-deploying capital, which seems sensible given concerns about an AI bubble potentially bursting."

Don't mention that to the other tech giants, who have very much thrown the kitchen sink and everything else at AI.

One of the next stages in the broader AI landscape is its physical embodiment - essentially meaning robots.

Should Ternus be thinking about Apple's next big unveiling being a humanoid? Can the firm make that pivot from small screen to large bot?

Apple's personal consumer products are renowned for their small, sleek design, but AI doesn't have to look and feel nice in your hands. It needs to work.

There's another more diplomatic challenge which Ternus will have to navigate: how to get on with a US president who is notoriously fickle.

Tim Cook has made a point of describing himself as politically neutral. He did, however, donate to Donald Trump's inauguration fund and he also gave him a rather elaborate statue with a 24 karat gold base as a gift.

Apple still got knocked about in Trump's tariff frenzy though, because despite moving manufacturing away from China where it can, it hasn't been able to completely disentangle itself completely from the production powerhouse of the east.

But in a long social media post on Tuesday, Trump wrote that he had "always been a big fan of Tim Cook" and that Cook would occasionally call him to ask for help on issues relating to the business.

He ended it by saying: "Quite simply, Tim Cook is an incredible guy!!!"

Finally, in an age of personality power, it will be interesting to see how much of his private life the former swimming champion John Ternus is willing to share.

Cook announced he was gay in 2014 but other than that he has never shared much about his life outside of work.

I suspect Apple is his life, inside and outside of work. He once admitted to me that he was "not much of a role model" for work-life balance.

Cook always chose to pre-record his big announcements, and while Jobs leapt around on stage, Cook's delivery style was probably more pitch-perfect, but also less passionate.

Ternus will have to decide whether to open up more in an authenticity-hungry culture where we want to see the world's most powerful figures being themselves - or at least doing a good job of playing the part.

'We have no sleep': What it's like to run a round-the-clock celebrity fan page

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy41xj53v07o, today

"I feel like we have no sleep - we're at this 24 hours a day, seven days a week," says 25-year-old Canadian, Jay. "We're always posting."

He's a researcher for the social media account Buzzing Pop, which has 250,000 followers on X and posts round-the-clock news and gossip about the biggest celebrities in the world.

A quick scroll through Buzzing Pop's page reveals a video of Lady Gaga checking on a photographer who's fallen over on the red carpet, a list of Justin Bieber albums that have suddenly returned to the chart, and a snippet from Zara Larsson's viral appearance on podcast Call Her Daddy.

"We're always keeping up - it's crazy but we love it," says Jay. "We are so passionate".

Jay is part of a new generation of social media creators whose job it is to provide constant updates on fans' favourite film, TV and music stars. These pages cover everything from glam red carpet appearances to micro-updates on who stars have unfollowed or how many people have streamed their new single.

"We don't see ourselves as traditional journalists," says Jay, "but there's a responsibility once you have a large audience."

He says the team sources updates from reputable media publications such as Billboard and The Hollywood Reporter but does also receive anonymous tip-offs.

"We have to check the source to see if there's credibility behind it," he adds, "because people do send in random things."

Accounts such as Buzzing Pop and Pop Crave, which has more than three million followers on X, aggregate showbiz news updates, while another popular page, Deux Moi, provides almost hourly celebrity gossip to more than two million followers on Instagram.

There are pages dedicated to providing updates on individual celebrities, TV shows, films or music artists, with pages for stars like Zendaya, Selena Gomez or BTS sometimes racking up millions of followers.

Andrei Ciprian, 28, runs a Taylor Swift updates page, which has nearly two million followers across X, Instagram and TikTok.

He started the page to document the nightly goings-on of Taylor Swift's Eras Tour and tells the BBC he would spend six hours a day writing posts from his home in Romania "waking up in the morning when there were shows in the US to make sure I could announce to all my followers the surprise songs [she would perform] and any special guests".

Andrei says he also kept fans updated on which celebrities were watching the show in the VIP area and the variations he noticed in Taylor Swift's costumes during each show.

Even now the tour is over, he still posts every day, fitting this around shifts at the hotel where he works.

"I love her," he says, "and I like to make sure her fans are updated with everything."

'Nothing seems private now'

Engagement numbers on accounts providing celeb news updates are huge - with posts attracting thousands or even millions of views, likes and comments.

While the majority of posts use information that is already out there, like interview clips, photoshoots and social media screenshots, some accounts are intruding on stars' private lives too.

"Social media update accounts have taken what was once quite niche behaviour and made it very public, very mainstream and very intense at scale," says Dr Georgia Carroll, an expert in fandom and fan engagement.

In years gone by she says "a small community of fans would go and hang outside individuals' houses or places they frequented" but now, speculation about stars' whereabouts "is blasted to everybody".

In some cases, interest in the lives of famous people has bled into intrusion, according to Claire Powell, a celebrity publicist who has spent more than 30 years in the industry.

"It's really hard for the [celebrity] because there's no let up," she says.

Some update accounts will post videos of celebrities walking down the street, browsing shops or sitting in restaurants, while others will share selfies with fans and information on that person's location.

Powell says clients will often tell her: "I step out my front door and everyone's following me".

The publicist believes relationships between celebrities and traditional paparazzi photographers are more mutual and transactional, compared to some of the newer forms of fan surveillance.

"[The media] want the picture, they want the coverage," she says, "but then also the celebrity needs that as well."

Powell believes the appetite for constant updates on celebrities' lives comes from the lack of "personal connection" fans now feel with the stars they adore.

She started her career on the road with Take That in the 1990s and says "you had to go and meet people, do signings and have the physicality of seeing, touching and being with your fans".

But now, she says, "signings or intimate shows don't happen so much, so fans don't have the closeness they used to have years ago".

'For the love of the game'

But what's in it for the people who work long hours maintaining these accounts?

Platforms such as X and TikTok do offer financial renumeration to verified accounts who receive a lot of engagement. But Andrei says he doesn't earn anything from his posts and that his main hope is to one day work for Taylor Swift.

He says he started his fan account to "feel a bit closer" to the star, adding "I got likes from Taylor Swift, follows from her dancers and her team".

Jay says the Buzzing Pop team, which consists of five people, "do get paid", but he says they mostly do it "for the love of the game" and juggle the work with other jobs.

And while Buzzing Pop is not dedicated to a single celebrity or music artist, Jay says his team works hard to keep their posts "neutral and informative".

He also shares his pride in revealing that artists such as Tate McRae, SZA and Ariana Grande have interacted with the account.

Carroll says running accounts like this gives creators "status", especially if they get "access to celebrities".

"[It's a way for] fans to be in their space and have their fandom acknowledged," she adds.

Are fans any more obsessed with their idols now than they were in the past, thanks to social media? Long-time publicist Powell isn't convinced.

"With some of my clients, fans would hang onto cars, lay in front of you, find out what hotels [we were staying at] and have groups on their phones.

"They are still the same but they've just got this way of interacting in a much quicker way."

Parties target specific postcodes on social media ahead of Senedd election

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cly6e903093o, today

Welsh Labour spent more than double any other party on Facebook and Instagram adverts in a one-month period ahead of the upcoming Senedd election, figures show.

The party spent £33,572 for advertising on Meta between 20 March and 18 April, followed by Plaid Cymru, which spent £15,360.

The Welsh Conservatives spent £7,448, Reform UK £3,831, the Welsh Liberal Democrats £959 and the Wales Green Party £182, according to Meta data.

Many of the parties' most-viewed adverts were targeted towards individual towns, constituencies or even postcodes, the BBC found.

Facebook and Instagram, run by Meta, give enough detail for useful comparisons. Google publishes some data, X does not share any, and TikTok does not allow political ads.

BBC Wales looked at the amounts spent by political parties that specifically targeted people in Wales.

The totals provided by Meta include money spent by local branches and candidates, but only if they have spent more than £100 across the month. Many have spent less so the actual figures for each party will be higher.

They also include party-run campaign pages, for instance the Liberal Democrats run some adverts through a page called Stop Reform UK.

The figures do not include spending on campaigns visible across the entire United Kingdom, which could also crop up on social media feeds in Wales.

Some smaller parties and independent candidates running in various constituencies also spent money on adverts.

The adverts themselves varied from attacks on rival parties and leaders to a focus on specific policies. Many of the parties' most-viewed adverts were targeted towards individual towns, constituencies or even postcodes.

Some were aimed at older or younger voters, or at men or women, while local candidates also used adverts to boost their profiles. Some ads also used petitions and clickable links as a call to action.

Often parties ran multiple versions of the same advert but paid for them to be served to different demographics.

Dr Emma Connolly, from University College London's department of political science, who specialises in how political narratives spread on social media, said spending on paid advertising online by political parties has been growing.

She said: "When you use paid ads, you've got more control over thinking, okay, who are you going to target geographically? Are you going to target demographically? And you can kind of be a bit more specific about when you might do that in the election cycle."

The adverts from political parties have been seen by three of the six BBC Wales undercover voters, as part of a project which tracks what a group of fictional voters are seeing online - their profiles are based on data from the National Centre for Social Research.

What our undercover voters are served by the algorithm is not a complete picture of what real Welsh voters are seeing online, but their profiles have been designed to reflect a range of views and backgrounds in the electorate - we will keep monitoring their feeds until the election to get a sense of how the campaign plays out on social media and sharing what we find.

It only gives us a broad indication of what might be out there, but the undercover voters have seen both official paid-for adverts from political parties and misinformation from independent pages on their feeds.

BBC Wales contacted Welsh Labour, Plaid Cymru, Reform UK Wales, the Welsh Conservatives, the Welsh Liberal Democrats and the Wales Green Party to ask them about their spending.

Welsh Labour said they would not comment, while a Plaid Cymru spokesperson said social media was a "vital, cost-effective way to connect directly with voters across Wales".

"More people, particularly, younger audiences consume news online," they added.

Reform UK Wales said: "Only Reform can stop another Labour and Plaid coalition and deliver real change for Wales."

The Welsh Conservatives said they had spent money on leaflets and social media posts to highlight their policies on "getting Wales working again".

Heated Rivalry, The Housemaid and Fourth Wing: TikTok launches BookTok bestseller list

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5yxmy5gnd0o, yesterday

If you've picked up a book recently, there's a good chance it's because someone on TikTok told you to.

What we read is no longer driven by bookshops or bestseller charts alone, but by a constant stream of fast, highly personal recommendations.

From rapid-fire reviews to emotional reactions, creators are shaping reading habits at scale and #BookTok has more than 77 million posts.

Now, this influence is being formalised with the launch of the UK's first official #BookTok bestseller list.

The new chart, compiled by Media Control and NielsenIQ BookData - which also provides data for traditional charts such as the Sunday Times bestseller list - combines UK sales data with analysis of the #BookTok hashtag.

The inaugural top 20, which will be updated monthly, is entirely made up of female authors, with Irish writer Chloe Walsh appearing most frequently.

All six books in her Boys of Tommen series - which follow a group of teenagers navigating love, friendship and trauma at a private school - feature on the list.

The chart also reflects how BookTok is reshaping the lifecycle of books - Donna Tartt's The Secret History, first published in 1992, appears on the list after finding a new audience decades later through TikTok.

Many of the titles on the list are also either recent or upcoming screen adaptations including Colleen Hoover's It Ends With Us, Rebecca Yarros's Fourth Wing and Chloe Walsh's Boys of Tommen series.

Dominating the list are titles linked to the platform's biggest genre, romantasy, with books by Sarah J Maas and Rebecca Yarros making it into the chart.

BookTok influencers Kris and Mads say it's no surprise romantasy dominates the list as these authors have built highly engaged fanbases online, with readers sharing reactions, theories and recommendations that sustain long-term interest.

"It's such an accessible genre and allows readers to get passionate about something light and fun with other people".

For them, the new list reflects how younger readers are discovering books.

They say audiences are "more likely to scroll their social media feeds than read prominent news outlets", with readers "highly motivated to read what their friends or favourite creators are recommending".

The influence of these creators can have a swift impact. After they shared the self-published series The Unselected Journals of Emma M Lion, they say it "completely sold out on Amazon".

BookTok has the potential to highlight titles that might otherwise go unnoticed.

"Plenty of independent titles have caught fire with no budget and that's down to readers who champion them."

Championing overlooked genres

Lucy Stewart, deputy publishing director at Hodder & Stoughton, says TikTok is giving some genres greater visibility.

Romance, in particular, has seen "a huge rise in unabashed public appreciation, sales and respect thanks to the power of BookTok and its creators".

She adds she is "in favour of more accessible celebrations of reading and book-buying".

For readers like Amy, 32, from Hampshire, it's the mix of discovery and discussion that makes her turn to TikTok "all the time for recommendations".

She says BookTok has helped her "explore genres I never would have known about otherwise" and calls it a "great tool when you're in a reading slump and want to get back into it or try a new genre".

Do traditional bestseller lists still matter?

The rise of a BookTok chart does not necessarily mean traditional lists are disappearing, but it may suggest a shift in the literary landscape.

NielsenIQ BookData says 11 million UK book sales in 2025 were attributed to BookTok - around 6% of all book sales.

Young adult author Abiola Bello says the influence of BookTok is increasingly visible beyond the app, with retailers responding directly to online trends.

"WH Smith have a 'TikTok made me buy it' section in store and I've seen my book on the shelves there."

Sara Roberts, senior marketing manager at Transworld, says BookTok is now "one of the most powerful forces in publishing" and acts as "an amazing trend spotter" for what readers are looking for.

But she adds traditional marketing still matters, noting that while BookTok reaches a highly engaged audience, many readers still rely on reviews and traditional media to guide their reading choices.

Ultimately, she says, the approach depends on the book, with some titles thriving on BookTok, while others "rely much more heavily on traditional review coverage to reach the right person".

Publishing director at Evermore, Claire Simmonds, agrees and says the platform has been "a real game changer" for sales and discovery, but stresses it is part of a wider ecosystem.

"BookTok can be the spark," she says, "but everything else needs to be in place to catch that momentum."

Meet the men calling out 'masculinity' trends

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4grw1rnynxo, yesterday

"Hammer your facial bones to chisel your jawlines."

"The only real goal is to get better looking – no matter what it takes."

"Your body is your billboard."

These are suggestions shared online by so-called "masculinity influencers": men who promote what they say are ways to become more masculine.

Some call themselves healthmaxxers – sharing tips on what to eat and working out, while others identify as looksmaxxers, a portmanteau for 'looks maximising', where the aim is to totally "optimise" one's physical appearance.

Many of them share a common vocabulary. "Mogging", for example, means being better looking than another man, and "ascending" is becoming better looking. What counts as good looking is narrowly defined: chiselled facial features and visible muscles are non-negotiables.

Though this may seem like something of an internet niche, young men are paying attention. Almost two-thirds of boys and men aged 16-25 in the UK, US, and Australia regularly watch and read masculinity influencer content, research from the men's mental health charity Movember shows. Some of the most popular UK-based masculinity influencers boast millions of followers online.

But in recent months, a counter-movement has emerged on social media, with health-focused men with expertise and qualifications in nutrition or exercise using their platforms to critique what they describe as "extreme" masculinity trends, like looksmaxxing.

Speaking to the BBC, these counter-influencers admit that fact-checked, evidence-based information can be difficult to make "sexy" on social media.

Here is how they are trying.

After spending 15 years as a sports physician and rural doctor, Dr Michael Mrozinski noticed the looksmaxxing phenomenon emerging in the masculinity influencer sphere.

Mrozinski uses his platform to caution his 180,000 followers about the trend, comparing it to a "monster" that has grown "arms and legs".

"It might have started as 'here's my gym routine, here's my skincare routine,'" Mrozinski says. "But now it's turned into 'Here's how I make my cheekbones bigger – by smashing them with a hammer.'"

Bleeding, bruising and soft tissue damage can occur from intentionally causing blunt facial trauma, Mrozinski says, which he calls an "extreme" version of self-improvement.

Looksmaxxing's most influential influencer, who calls himself Clavicular, has half a million followers on Instagram and almost 900,000 on TikTok. His real name is Braden Peters and he's aged 20.

He's promoted bone-smashing as "legit", and claims to have used crystal methamphetamine to lose body fat and steroids to build muscle mass – likening these methods in an interview with Channel 5's Andrew Callaghan to "video game cheat codes" for boosting attractiveness.

He made headlines this month after he appeared to collapse during a video live stream. He was taken to hospital in Miami and has since returned home, sharing in a post on X: "The worst part of tonight was my face descending from the life support mask."

While the search term "bone smashing" is banned on TikTok, 18-24-year-old men are the most common demographic searching variant phrases. TikTok insight data shows they are also the most popular group searching looksmaxxing hacks on the platform, with more than 300,000 searches per day in February and rising to a peak of 1.9 million in late March.

The content that masculinity influencers share can target boys as young as 13, he says, some of whom may not yet have gone through puberty, when their faces and bodies would naturally tend to become more like those of grown men.

'Influencer overreach'

James Brash, a registered nutritionist and content creator, tells the BBC that fitness and diet advice are not innately bad – and he isn't discouraging people from trying to be healthier.

"Physical activity is one of the best things that people can do to improve their health, if they are able to," he says.

What he objects to is what he terms "influencer overreach", where those with mass followings share advice backed up by dodgy evidence - or no evidence at all.

Brash does not consider himself an influencer, because he is guided by professional medical standards, rather than clicks, to call out "misinformation".

"It's not sexy because it does not rely on fear or urgency," he says.

Brash has spent the past year posting videos calling out nutrition misinformation largely promoted by wellness influencers.

One influencer he calls out is a man who says "our grandads would be turning in their graves if they had seen what men were like today". He also claims that in the past, men had higher levels of testosterone and were more fertile.

Brash says the video promotes "sexism and homophobia", pushing a very narrow version of "acceptable" masculinity.

In response to the BBC's questions, the influencer says his "comments were not intended to be homophobic".

"They were focused on male endocrine health, not sexuality or identity."

'Society is turning men weaker'

Some masculinity influencers see themselves as helping young men who feel lost and are looking for practical guidance on how to feel better about themselves.

Self-proclaimed "healthmaxxer" influencer Steven Abelman says masculinity, rather than looks alone, is the focus of his content, which promotes strict diet, sleep schedules and exercise regimes.

Overstimulation from fast-paced technologies and online gaming is contributing to poor mental and physical health, Abelman believes.

His content largely centres on reaction reels responding to other people's actions and diets – casting judgement over whether they are "optimal" or not.

"Society is turning men weaker and weaker, but what I'm promoting can really strengthen men," the influencer says. "I want to promote more of the primal lifestyles."

Community in health and fitness

Ben Hurst from Beyond Equality, a UK-based organisation focused on "rethinking masculinities", speaks to young men in schools. He knows they live online, and says it is important he uses his platform to "flood" those spaces with content that could shake up perceptions of mainstream masculinity.

"The beautiful thing about the internet is that there is actually space for everything, right?" Hurst says. "I'd love to see versions of masculinity that are caring, and kind and confident and gentle and loving, and passionate and powerful and strong and dynamic."

He points to personalities such as Rory Bradshaw, who shares videos about teaching yoga in men's prisons as part of his broader mission to combat violence against women and girls.

"These men are pushing the idea of community in health and fitness," says Hurst, "rather than just an individual pursuit of perfection."

Information and support is available from these organisations for eating disorders and mental health issues.

OpenAI boss 'deeply sorry' for not telling police of mass shooting suspect's account

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq6je7e80r7o, yesterday

The leader of OpenAI has apologised for the company not going to police with information on a ChatGPT account that belonged to the person accused of a mass shooting in the Canadian community of Tumbler Ridge in January.

In a letter sent on Thursday to the community of the small town, Sam Altman, OpenAI's co-founder and chief executive, said he was "deeply sorry that we did not alert law enforcement to the account that was banned in June".

The account belonged to an 18-year-old who shot and killed eight people and injured nearly 30 others, marking one of the province of British Columbia's deadliest mass shootings.

"The pain your community has endured is unimaginable," Altman wrote.

In the aftermath of the January shootings, carried out by Jesse Van Rootselaar - who died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound during the attack - OpenAI said it had identified and banned Van Rootselaar's ChatGPT account because of problematic usage.

The company did not alert or refer the matter to police at the time because it did not meet its threshold of a credible or imminent plan for serious physical harm to others.

In his letter, Altman said he had held off on a public apology to the people of Tumbler Ridge because "time was also needed to respect the community as you grieved".

"While I know that words can never be enough, I believe an apology is necessary to recognize the harm and irreversible loss your community has suffered."

"I cannot imagine anything worse in this world than losing a child," he added.

A number of those murdered in the shooting were young children at a secondary school. Altman has a young child with his husband.

A representative of OpenAI confirmed the letter was written by Altman, but declined to comment further.

The parents of one child who was shot and severely injured during Van Rootselaar's attack on the school have sued OpenAI, claiming the company "had specific knowledge of the shooter's long-range planning of a mass casualty event," but "took no steps to act upon this knowledge".

OpenAI has said it will strengthen its safety measures.

Altman wrote in his letter that the company will continue to focus on "working with all levels of government to help ensure something like this never happens again".

OpenAI is also now facing a criminal probe in Florida related to the use of ChatGPT by a man who is accused of carrying out last year a shooting at Florida State University. Two people were killed and several others were injured in the attack.

UK cyber chiefs say it's time to ditch passwords for passkeys - what are they?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq8wnzly5j5o, yesterday

People in the UK have been urged to start ditching passwords in favour of passkeys, where available, as a way to secure their accounts online.

Passwords have long been the default way many people set up and log in to accounts for digital services.

However, the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) said on Thursday it was "overhauling decades of security practice" to instead recommend passkeys as the most secure option.

Platforms including Apple, Google and X already let people use them instead of passwords, but what are passkeys, and how do they work?

The advice comes after years of warning people against using simple codes which can easily be guessed, like "123456", as well as pet names, as passwords.

Against a backdrop of rising data breaches, the NCSC has also repeated warnings against reusing the same password for different sites.

Password managers and multi-factor authentication (MFA) methods have grown in usage as a way to help strengthen and save log-in credentials.

The NCSC believes passkeys may be less vulnerable to hacks and human error, but some experts say they are still "not a silver bullet".

What are passkeys?

Like passwords, passkeys are a form of authentication to make sure it is you trying to access an account.

But unlike passwords, they do not require you to remember a code or combination of letters, numbers and symbols.

Passkeys are a piece of digital information which is tied to a user's account and unique to each site or app they use.

They use cryptography to perform checks at device-level.

And they usually work alongside tech already baked into devices like smartphones, such as Face ID and Touch ID on iPhones, and Face Unlock on Google Pixel phones.

Google and iPhone-maker Apple are among operating system developers offering them as an alternative way users can sign into accounts.

According to the NCSC, passkeys can offer more protection because they are unique to each website you register to use them with, and there is no secret bit of information shared.

The NCSC's director for national resilience Jonathan Ellison called them "a user-friendly alternative which provide stronger overall resilience".

He added they could also help relieve "the headaches that remembering passwords have caused us for decades".

How do they work?

Passkeys are enabled by something called public key cryptography.

"Instead of you creating and remembering a shared secret, like a password, your device generates a secure key pair - one part stays on your device, and the other sits with the service you're logging into," says Daniel Card of BCS, the Chartered Institute for IT.

The process most often involves doing what you do to unlock your device - such as using built-in biometric sensors to scan your fingerprint or face, or using a pin code.

Only the fact you have completed the check - not the information itself - is exchanged.

"These physical security keys are totally resistant to phishing attempts and can't be intercepted or stolen by remote attackers, meaning only the key holder can gain access to their accounts," says Niall McConachie, regional director at cyber-security firm Yubico.

'Not a silver bullet'

The NCSC and many cyber experts believe passkeys may be at least as, if not more secure, than MFA methods such as pairing a strong password with checks to make sure it is you trying to log into an account on another device.

But Card notes, as others have previously, passkeys are "not a silver bullet".

Losing your device or access to it entirely can also make it tricky to configure passkeys.

The NCSC says it did not advocate switching to them in the past due to "implementation challenges" such as their slowed adoption and patchy support.

Lots of platforms still do not allow users to use passkeys instead of or as well as passwords.

But according to Fido Alliance, an industry association advancing passkeys as a way to unlock a "password-less future", the tech is now supported across all major operating systems, internet browsers and by third-party providers.

And McConachie says growing support for the passkey - including with the UK Government's adoption of them across digital services last year - shows "this isn't just a niche trend".

"Moving from passwords to password managers, app-based MFA, and now passkeys is a step change in reducing risk," Card adds.

"That's why organisations like the NCSC are backing them, and why many in the security community are already adopting them wherever they're available."

Doctor to stand trial over alleged pro-Hamas posts

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5y91dvn7g1o, yesterday

An NHS doctor will go on trial in 2027 for allegedly posting on social media in support of Hamas.

Dr Rahmeh Aladwan, 31, appeared at the Old Bailey earlier charged with four counts of inviting support for the proscribed group by posting comments online between 23 July and 31 December 2025.

It is alleged she wrote: "I don't condemn Hamas. I don't condemn October 7," and "I condemn the existence of Israel" in a post on 23 July.

Aladwan, from Pilning near Bristol, is also accused of using threatening or abusive insulting words at a protest in London on 21 July, and stirring up racial hatred in written material on 19 November.

Aladwan was arrested at her home and charged with the six offences on 26 March.

In an appearance at the Old Bailey earlier she spoke only to confirm her identity, and a trial was set for 15 March 2027 at Bristol Crown Court.

Aladwan was granted bail, with a plea hearing on a date to be fixed in August.

Follow BBC Bristol on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630.

Go-ahead for data centre on power station site

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cjd8mdvd07po, yesterday

Microsoft has been given the go-ahead to build a major data centre complex at the site of a former power station.

Plans to redevelop the Skelton Grange site in Stourton, south-east of Leeds, were unanimously approved by Leeds City Council on Thursday.

The scheme includes three data centre buildings housing computer servers, as well as a warehouse with up to 161,000 sq ft (15,000 sq m), of floorspace.

Power connections, back-up generators and cooling chimneys are also set to be installed as part of the development.

A report to councillors, said: "Data centres host and support the digital infrastructure that underpins modern life, from patient records and emails to product data and financial systems."

The government classified data centres as critical national infrastructure in 2024, placing them "on an equal footing as water, energy and emergency services systems," the report added.

Full planning permission was granted for the data centre buildings on the site, which is close to an existing Amazon warehouse, with outline permission – which establishes consent in principle – approved for the warehouse.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service said conditions attached to the approval included the production of an employment and skills plan to provide jobs, apprenticeships and work experience opportunities.

The decision by the planning panel means final approval will now be delegated to the council's chief planning officer.

Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.

Meta to cut one in 10 jobs after spending billions on AI

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/crm1y89vek8o, yesterday

Meta will cut thousands of jobs next month as it spends more than ever on artificial intelligence (AI) projects.

The company told employees in a memo on Thursday that it planned to cut 10% of its workforce - roughly 8,000 staff. It said it would also not fill thousands more open jobs it had been hiring for.

A key reason for the layoffs is Meta's increased spending in other areas of the company, including AI, for which it will this year spend $135bn (£100bn). This is roughly equal to the amount it has spent on AI in the previous three years combined, according to a person who viewed the memo.

A spokesman for Meta confirmed the planned job cuts but declined to comment further.

Mark Zuckerberg, Meta's co-founder and chief executive, made public comments in January that essentially telegraphed the company would be cutting jobs again this year.

The Meta boss said he had seen how much more productive workers who relied heavily on AI tools had become, noting a single person could now complete projects that would have previously required a large team.

"I think that 2026 is going to be the year that AI starts to dramatically change the way that we work," Zuckerberg said.

Last week Reuters news agency reported that Meta was planning to cut potentially more than 10,000 employees this year. The memo to employees on Thursday was first reported by Bloomberg.

While Meta has already cut around 2,000 workers in two smaller rounds of layoffs already this year, employees had been braced for weeks for a much deeper cut, as the BBC previously reported.

Meta's spending and internal focus had shifted heavily in recent months toward catching up on the development of AI models and tools.

The company just this week informed employees that it would begin tracking and logging their interactions with work computers in order to help train and improve its AI models, a move one employee called "dystopian" given the looming layoffs.

"This company has become obsessed with AI," they told the BBC.

Since 2022, Meta has enacted several rounds of job cuts, shedding tens of thousands of workers.

But it had started hiring again, and last year its overall number of employees looked to be at around the same level it had been at before its initial layoff.

The upcoming jobs cuts will be Meta's largest layoff since 2023.

A number of other tech firms, most of which are also spending huge sums on building tools and infrastructure for AI technology, have also enacted swathes of job cuts this year.

Amazon has laid off more than 30,000 workers. Oracle laid off more than 10,000 workers.

Block, which is among the smaller tech companies, laid off nearly half of its staff totaling more than 4,000 workers. And Snap, another smaller tech company, has laid off around 1,000.

Also on Thursday, Microsoft told employees that it would offer thousands of workers with longer tenure at the firm voluntary buyouts.

Nearly all of the companies have cited the growing capabilities of, or increased investment in, AI technology as a factor in executives' perceived need for fewer employees.

India condemns remarks shared by Trump calling it a 'hellhole'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c05d4r1zgngo, yesterday

Delhi has criticised "inappropriate" remarks about Indians and India shared by US President Donald Trump on his Truth Social account.

Trump shared a four-page transcript of remarks made by podcaster Michael Savage on America's birthright citizenship where he accused people from India and China of abusing the privilege.

"A baby here becomes an instant citizen, and then they bring the entire family in from China or India or some other hellhole on the planet," the transcript documents Savage as saying.

India's foreign ministry reacted to the remarks without naming Trump or Savage but said they were "uninformed, inappropriate and in poor taste".

"They certainly do not reflect the reality of the India-US relationship, which has long been based on mutual respect and shared interests," the ministry said in its statement.

The remarks created a furore in India, with the main opposition Congress party calling them "extremely insulting and anti-Indian".

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi should take up this matter with the US President and register a strong objection," the party said in a post on X.

Trump's post comes at a time when Delhi's once-smooth relationship with Washington has turned rocky. Trump has put pressure on India to stop buying Russian oil, saying that the money was helping fund the Ukraine war.

But in March, the US temporarily eased sanctions to allow India to buy Russian oil that was stranded at sea to stave off a crisis triggered by the war on Iran.

Trump has also waged a tariff battle on India, slapping 50% duties on its goods last year, 25% of which was a penalty for buying Russian oil.

In February, however, he cut these tariffs to 18% as part of a trade agreement with India, the contours of which are still being negotiated. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to visit India next month in what is being seen as a significant step to reset strained relations.

Since returning to power, Trump's administration has cracked down sharply on illegal immigration and the president has made remarks accusing immigrants of taking away jobs from Americans.

He has also taken aim at the H-1B visa programme, which brings skilled foreign workers to the US and is dominated by Indian nationals. The programme has been praised for attracting global talent to the US but critics say it undercuts American workers.

The comments by Savage that Trump shared on Truth Social echo some of these views.

"I used to be a great supporter of Indians in India until I opened my eyes up to what's going on here. White men need not apply to jobs in the state of California. Nevermind in high tech. I don't care what your qualifications are. You're not getting a job at High Tech in California," he said without offering evidence to support these allegations.

He goes on to say that white people don't stand a chance to get these jobs because "almost all the internal mechanisms are set up to run by Indians and Chinese."

Savage said his remarks were sparked by arguments made in the US Supreme Court, which is hearing a challenge to Trump's executive order that aims to end birthright citizenship for children born in the US to undocumented immigrants and some temporary visitors.

Follow BBC News India on Instagram, YouTube, X and Facebook.

'Can we see the cows?' - dad and daughter bike ride videos melt hearts online

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8dl8r1rv7qo, 2 days ago

A father and daughter duo have captured the hearts of millions after sharing their bike rides with the world.

Gareth Williams, 33, described how toddler Indie loved "scooting around the house" on her little bike, so decided to buy a child's seat and handlebar to attach to his own bicycle.

Videos of their adventures on the mountains above their Blaenau Gwent home have gone viral, reaching more than three million views in total.

Adrenaline-chaser Gareth never thought he would be sharing his mountain biking passion with Indie so soon - but her love of their trips has seen their 'daddydaughterrides' Instagram account gain more than 10,000 followers in a week.

"For me, it's the best thing when she comes and asks, 'can we go and ride the bike?' It is amazing," he said.

"She just loved it instantly and she doesn't want to get off it since."

"She loves seeing all the animals... she's just got a real interest in the outdoors."

Drainage technician Gareth had not planned to post footage on social media, but he was so thrilled by a 20-minute ride around their local woodland and mountain, he filmed it.

The joyous response from loved ones to Indie's cute interactions with animals and nature led him to share it more widely.

"We sent it to friends and family and everyone had the same reaction, so we just decided to post her online," he said.

Out on the bike ride, Indie can often be seen in the videos asking to "see the cows".

Gareth explained: "The cows came down off the mountain one day, they were the big Highland cattle, with the massive horns, and they actually came in our garden."

Little Indie thought it was "hilarious" and ever since, she has been convinced they are going to appear again.

Speaking about the snippets he shares online of his nearly two-year-old, he said: "Believe it or not, she's really shy.

"I think it's the fact that it's only because it's me and her out, she just she doesn't think about it and she doesn't really notice the camera.

"She's just being herself, which is lovely to see."

Gareth said going viral with his daughter on social media was "mental", adding: "I can't believe that it just went as big as it did."

He thinks the family are lucky to live in an area where they can be out on the mountain within five minutes of leaving their home.

Especially because Indie loves the outdoors, and being in the garden, even when it's raining.

Gareth is grateful that the reaction he's had online has been positive.

People have posted saying the videos make them "smile so much" and to "keep them coming".

Another said: "One of the best things I've seen today! Properly uplifting!"

But there has been one thing that has melted people's hearts that surprised Gareth.

And that is Indie's "little Welsh accent".

"Loads of people love that - they think it's brilliant, but again that was something that we don't notice," he laughed.

"Obviously we're Welsh ourselves, but we see her all the time and I don't even notice if she's got an accent.

"Then everyone's picking up on it and I'm thinking, 'it must be really strong'."

Steve Rosenberg: Kremlin's tightening grip on internet fuels Russian discontent

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cr510de17jlo, 2 days ago

Near the Kremlin several dozen people are queuing outside the presidential administration office.

They've come to submit petitions calling on President Vladimir Putin to end a crackdown on the internet.

Russian authorities have been tightening control of the country's cyber space. Access to global messaging apps has been restricted and there are widespread disruptions to, even shutdowns of, mobile internet.

Petitioning the president is legal. But in an authoritarian state this is putting your head above the parapet.

And people are being made to feel that.

From across the street security officers are filming the petitioners – and us.

"Aren't you scared?" I ask Yulia in the queue.

"Very scared," she replies. "I'm shaking."

Putin has acknowledged the disruption, describing it as related to "operational work to prevent terrorist attacks", although he says he has instructed officials to allow for the "uninterrupted operation" of essential internet services.

Yulia, who owns a catering company, explains how attempts to censor the internet have affected her business.

"There were times recently when our website was not accessible. We couldn't generate revenue," she says.

"We are losing money every time there is a blocking of the internet, a blocking of [messengers] Telegram and WhatsApp. My business is entirely on the internet. Without internet access, in this form it will not exist."

Russian officials insist that curbs on communication are in the interests of public safety. They claim that mobile internet blackouts disorient Ukrainian attack drones, although such attacks have continued even in areas where the internet has been switched off.

The authorities accuse global messengers of ignoring Russian data laws. Access to WhatsApp and Telegram has been heavily restricted. Meanwhile, state regulators are targeting VPNs - virtual private networks used to circumvent restrictions.

As part of the push for a "sovereign internet", the government is promoting a state-backed Russian messenger called MAX.

The public is wary.

"Many people think that this messenger is made especially by the government to check our messages," says former MP Boris Nadezhdin, who once tried to stand against Putin in a presidential election.

What's more, in many parts of Russia now the only sites and services that open on a mobile phone are those approved by the government.

It feels like a digital "Iron Curtain" is being constructed.

WATCH: Steve Rosenberg's Inside Putin's Russia: "We're cut off from the outside world"

"The idea is to divide Russia from the outside world," says columnist Andrei Kolesnikov, from opposition outlet Novaya Gazeta, because of the belief that "this world is poisonous to the brains of Russians".

"Russia was always blocked, primarily from the West, which was the source of 'bad, revolutionary, liberal ideas'. It was always like this."

Yet Russians embraced the digital age and the internet to such an extent that cyber restrictions and disruptions have come as a shock.

"It's less to do with freedom of speech and more about habit," activist Yulia Grekova explains.

"People have got used to paying for things and ordering taxis with their mobiles. They sit in the bus messaging friends. There are very few people who don't use mobile internet for work, public services and to keep in touch with family. That's why there's such an angry reaction. Everyone's affected."

I'm speaking to Yulia Grekova in the town of Vladimir, 120 miles (190km) from Moscow. She recently tried to hold a rally here against internet restrictions.

"We applied to the local authorities and suggested several options for a venue. They replied that this wasn't possible, since on the date we'd requested they would be cleaning the streets at all 11 of our proposed locations.

"City Hall offered an alternative venue and time. But later they said this wasn't possible either, due to the danger of [Ukrainian] drone attack."

Then Yulia received a visit from the police and a warning not to protest.

"They came to where I work. A police car and three people. They filmed me signing the official warning from the prosecutor. I felt like some kind of terrorist."

Similar applications for public protests were rejected in dozens of Russian towns and cities. In the Moscow region local authorities cited coronavirus concerns. Officials in Penza claimed that a rally couldn't go ahead due to a roller-skating masterclass at the requested location.

In the centre of Vladimir I check my phone. The taxi booking app is functioning and I can access state media. But Google searches aren't working. And independent news sites aren't loading.

"It's much harder to communicate," says Maria, who is out strolling with her baby. "We want to keep across the latest news and trends. Instead, we're lagging behind."

The longer we chat, though, the less Maria seems to want up-to-date information.

"In the past, when there was no internet, the world seemed a brighter place, because we knew less," she tells me.

As for Russia's war on Ukraine: "I try to avoid this kind of news," Maria says. "I don't want to fill my head with it. We're tired of news about people being killed."

"[Internet restrictions] create daily problems," says Denis. "Today I couldn't pay for petrol. And my satnav is glitching."

"People are annoyed," Alexander tells me. "Especially those with small businesses. They lose customers when they can't access the internet."

"It feels like we're going backwards," says Yulia Grekova, "sliding back to the past."

Is Russia's internet crackdown a road to the past?

"No, it's not," Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov assures me back in Moscow.

"In the current situation, security considerations dictate the need for certain measures," Peskov continues. "These are being taken and most of our citizens understand the need for them.

"It's clear that internet restrictions inconvenience many people. But this is the period we're in. Once the need for such measures disappears, services will be fully restored and return to normal."

But restrictions and repression are beginning to feel like the new normal.

"I don't think that this regime is ready to go back," concludes journalist Andrei Kolesnikov. "They can only go forward in terms of more repressions.

"What is bad for the authorities is an accumulation of discontent and it could play out in the future. We don't know in what shape. But it's evident that irritation and discontent are accumulating."

And bubbling to the surface.

Recently Russian celebrity blogger Victoria Bonya posted an "address to Russia's president" on Instagram. She slammed the internet crackdown and other controversies in Russia.

The video went viral with tens of millions of views. In her monologue Victoria Bonya didn't blame Putin directly. But addressing him she declared: "There is a huge, thick wall between you and us, the ordinary people."

On Thursday the Kremlin leader claimed he could not help but "pay attention" to the problems Russians have been experiencing as a result of internet disruption.

He instructed law enforcement bodies to show "ingenuity and professionalism" and to "accommodate the vital interests of citizens".

This was no U-turn from Putin. There was no hint of an end to the restrictions.

Recent surveys in Russia suggest that his ratings have fallen to their lowest level since the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

It's not just internet restrictions fuelling public unease. Russians are worried about the economy and there is growing fatigue with the war on Ukraine.

"People begin to understand there is a direct connection between their everyday problems, like healthcare, food prices, problems with internet, and the politics of Vladimir Putin," Boris Nadezhdin tells me.

"And this is a new situation in Russia."

Having submitted her petition to the presidential administration, Yulia is back at work, baking bread at her catering company.

She has taken a stand but is far from certain it will make a difference. She is already thinking about how to adapt to the online restrictions. Russians, she tells me, have much experience adapting to major change.

"My great-grandfather was wealthier than average. In a Soviet village that was considered a sin. His property was taken away from him and he was moved to Siberia. But his family adapted.

"My parents went through the collapse of the Soviet Union: they adapted to a market economy. Now it's my turn to adapt. Then it will be my daughter's turn."

How does Yulia see the situation developing in Russia?

"The future is not even mentioned in day-to-day conversations with friends and relatives," she explains. "It's like: what are we doing in three days, in a week, in a month?

"Nothing more than a month."

Like the bread I see expanding in the oven, rising across Russia is a deep sense of uncertainty.

'My living nightmare' - Rob Reiner's son bares soul on how he found out parents were dead

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c74v2enw8l7o, yesterday

The eldest son of the late Hollywood director Rob Reiner has told how his world "collapsed" after his parents were stabbed to death, and his own brother was charged with their murders.

Jake Reiner, 34, wrote in a blog post that "nothing compares to losing both of them at the same time and, on top of that, having your brother be at the center of it".

"My world, as I knew it, had collapsed," the actor wrote of the moment his sister phoned him with the devastating news. "I was in a trance."

Rob and Michele Reiner were found stabbed to death in their Los Angeles home in December. Their youngest son, Nick Reiner, 32, has pleaded not guilty to murder. He is due back in court next week.

In a lengthy Substack post published on Friday, Jake Reiner wrote: "We lost more than half of our family that night in the most violent way imaginable."

"Sure, any loss of a parent is devastating, but nothing compares to losing both of them at the same time and, on top of that, having your brother be at the center of it. It's almost too impossible to process.

He continued: "I understand that people have questions about what happened. Some of those answers will come in time. But some parts of this belong only to our family, and keeping them private is the only way to protect what little remains of something that was taken from us."

Rob Reiner, 78, directed films including This Is Spinal Tap, the Princess Bride, When Harry Met Sally and Stand By Me.

Michele Singer Reiner, 70, was an actress, photographer and producer, and the founder of Reiner Light, a photography agency and production company.

The Reiners were found dead in their Brentwood home by their daughter Romy on 14 December.

The couple died from "multiple sharp force injuries", according to the Los Angeles County medical examiner.

Nick Reiner was arrested in Los Angeles the same day, as US outlets reported that he and his father had attended a party the previous night and had a row.

Prosecutors allege that Nick Reiner fatally stabbed his father and mother inside a bedroom of their home before fleeing.

He faces two counts of first-degree murder, with a special circumstance alleging multiple murders.

He remains in custody and is next due in court on 29 April.

Jake Reiner said he keeps thinking about how frightened his parents must have been the night they died and that they were "the last people in the world to deserve what happened to them".

"They deserved to be loved, they deserved to be respected, and above all they deserved to be appreciated for how much they gave to all three of us and to the world," he wrote.

His 1,625-word essay follows a statement released jointly with his sister in December in which they did not directly address the allegations against their brother.

Jake Reiner wrote on Friday that Romy will tell her story separately from him, "in her own way and in her time".

He said that his goal in writing the essay "is to offer some insight. Not only to what I lost but also to celebrate what my parents meant to me".

The actor and former broadcaster describes every day since their deaths as "horrendous".

"Every meeting we take, every person we talk to, every tear we shed, every movement we make is connected to our parents being murdered," he wrote.

He continued: "In the middle of trying to process the most devastating moment of your life, the world demands meetings, paperwork, decisions, and explanations; as if documentation must come before mourning."

Ringo Starr: 'I made all my mistakes on stage'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cp8645d9lvyo, 2 days ago

"Call me Ringo." That's what the former Beatles drummer says when asked if we should call him Sir.

He joins us at the swanky Sunset Marquis hotel in West Hollywood where rock stars have gathered for decades in a luxury oasis behind the Sunset Strip.

We're here to talk music – specifically Ringo Starr's new country album, Long Long Road.

But first we deal with the honorifics because although he was knighted in 2018 for his services to music, technically, he says, it's wrong to call him Sir Ringo because he's actually "Sir Richard."

Sir Richard laughs. He just wants to talk music, and he's not worried about formalities or titles. His new album is more Nashville than Los Angeles and he seems more LA than Liverpool as he encourages an American interviewing a British national treasure for the BBC to just relax.

"Peace and love," he says, a soothing catchphrase often used by the 85-year-old music legend who looks, moves and sings like a much younger man.

"I've always loved the attitude of LA," he says, adding that he's had a home here since the 1970s.

"Besides, I love the heat and the light, it's just been a good place for me."

On his new country album, Starr collaborates with the likes of Sheryl Crow, Billy Strings and St Vincent.

And he says that's the way he likes it. He never plays music alone, not even to practise.

"That's how I did it. I made all my mistakes on stage," he says.

Before joining The Beatles, he says he was practising drums alone as a kid, and the neighbours complained, yelling at him to shut up.

"I think that's what did it," he says laughing, adding that he tells all his grandchildren to stop practising music alone and to get together and join a band.

"If you play piano, bass, saxophone, I will play with you all night," he says. "Get with people."

For Long Long Road, Starr teamed up with legendary producer T Bone Burnett who played guitar for Bob Dylan in the 1970s. It's their second collaboration in less than two years. This time, they co-wrote the album and recorded in Los Angeles and Nashville.

Starr says T Bone knows all the great musicians in Nashville.

"And because they're recording in Nashville, they just pop in to play. It's great."

Country music now is very cool, of course. Even Beyoncé's making country music. Her album Cowboy Carter won the top prize at the Grammys last year, rare for country music.

"She made a great album," Starr says, whose love for the genre goes way back.

So how did he first get into country music in the 1950s and 60s?

Liverpool was "the capital of country music in England," he says, noting that merchant navy workers were bringing in records to the port city from every genre from all around the world, including plenty of country music from Texas.

"Liverpool loved country. I know I loved it," he says.

After finishing school, Starr says he was expected to go to work in a factory. Instead, when he was 18, he and a friend decided to move to Texas to be near the American blues singer and guitarist Lightnin' Hopkins. But he got bored with the paperwork required to emigrate and changed his mind.

"He was the blues guy that got to me," he says of Hopkins, laughing at the thought of how life could have been different had he moved to Texas in 1959.

A prolific songwriter now, he only wrote two songs when he was with The Beatles; one of them, 1968's Don't Pass Me By, is a little bit country.

"We did it in a country fashion," he says, singing a few bars.

"I think it would be more country now if we did it with T Bone."

He says McCartney, Lennon and Harrison laughed at his early writing attempts.

"They'd all be just laughing hysterically because all I'd done is rewritten another song," he said.

"So it took me a while to get through that moment into writing my songs, you know, and in the end they started turning out really good."

McCartney is clearly more impressed with his former bandmate's songwriting these days.

The pair recently collaborated on a duet for McCartney's forthcoming album, The Boys Of Dungeon Lane, which is out next month. The song is called Home to US.

Starr is taking his own new album on tour of the western US in May and June. But now that he's the lead singer, who is the drummer?

"No, I am the drummer," he says, laughing.

They keep two drum sets on stage – for him and drummer Gregg Bissonette, "who takes over" when Starr moves to the front of the stage to sing.

I imagine it's a hard job being Ringo Starr's drummer.

"No, we have a lot of fun. We play together, which is great," Starr says. "So it gives the band a bit of meat."

Starr has been making headlines for decades. I ask him about some of them and whether or not they were really true.

Did he coin the phrase "A Hard Day's Night" - which later became the title of their first movie, a song and album? He sure did.

Was he the first member of the Beatles to smoke pot? "Yes," he says.

"I took the first puff," he adds with a laugh.

Has he really never eaten pizza or curry?

"I never have," he says.

His life has also been covered extensively in films and documentaries. Director Sam Mendes is due to release four Beatles movies about each of the band members in 2028. Barry Keoghan is playing Starr and has been spotted around town with an iconic Beatles-style mop top hairstyle.

The actor came to Los Angeles to meet Starr "to hang out" - not to study his movements.

"It wasn't like one of those in-depth things," Starr says, noting the actor didn't question him on things like "which hand do you use to pick your nose".

"It was none of that. It was just hanging out and saying 'hi'."

He adds that he also visited the film set.

"I had a bit of trouble because I was thinking documentary. They are not documentaries, they are films and I had to get used to that."

He wouldn't elaborate about any poetic licence being taken in the movie.

Is he worried about how it will perform at the box office and which Beatle will be most popular at the cinema?

"No."

He thinks the four films should be viewed in one long marathon day of movie-watching.

"Put us all on," he says. "That would be cool to sit there. Bring sandwiches."

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Tensions flare in heated I'm A Celebrity live final

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy8138z5zn7o, today

Spoiler warning: This article reveals details about the final of I'm A Celebrity... South Africa.

Tensions flared during the live final of I'm A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! on Friday after a drama-packed series.

A heated argument broke out among the all-star cast over what was said when actor Adam Thomas launched a tirade at footballer Jimmy Bullard for almost causing his elimination from camp.

Hosts Ant and Dec raised their voices to control the row - which also saw singer Sinitta and TV personality Gemma Collins walk off set - before Thomas was crowned the public's king of the jungle.

Olympic athlete Sir Mo Farah, TV and radio star Craig Charles, and former football manager Harry Redknapp rounded out the cast of finalists.

Thomas posted on Instagram on Saturday: "I have realised that when people try to dim your light, it says more about them than it ever will about you."

"There were moments that could have broken me, but I stayed true to myself and that is something I will always be proud of," he said of his time in the jungle.

It was the second series of the South Africa-set spin-off starring past contestants.

Thomas had finished third on the regular show in 2016. This time, the Waterloo Road actor's eventful jungle stay included being on the receiving end of jibes from boxer David Haye, who later called him "weak" and "brittle-spirited".

His row with Bullard came after the pair teamed up for a trial in which the losing duo would be eliminated. Bullard did not join in and said "I'm a celebrity get me out of here", to forfeit the challenge.

Thomas responded by launching an expletive-laden rant at his partner, telling him he should have quit on his own or not done the show at all.

However, Thomas was saved when hosts Ant and Dec let the other campmates decide whether he be allowed to stay - and they unanimously agreed he should.

Producers did not show Thomas's full outburst. "They watered it down," Charles revealed.

"It was unbroadcastable as it was. It was deeply traumatic and it was really upsetting. Adam was so wound up. He was so aggressive. It looked like he was going to attack Jimmy."

Bullard called his reaction "pathetic" and explained that he had quit because he wanted to go home.

"I know a lot of my time in camp which has been aired recently has been drama," Thomas wrote on Instagram on this week, "but there was so much more... so many laughs and so much love and warmth." He also wrote about the physical toll of the experience due to living with psoriatic arthritis.

The action in the South African camp was filmed several months ago but the winner was not chosen until the live final in London.

And it was an eventful series in other ways.

Former Coronation Street star Beverley Callard was forced to withdraw after passing out in the show's Bush Telegraph.

In February, she revealed she had been diagnosed with breast cancer, and said filming I'm A Celebrity "was the start of everything" in terms of feeling unwell.

She was unable to travel to attend Friday's final on medical advice - saying she was "absolutely gutted", but that "resting up and getting well is more important at the moment".

Haye also faced controversy for his remarks about women, including saying his girlfriend has "the personality of a proper ugly bird".

After being picked to leave in Monday's episode, Haye was asked to choose one other celebrity to depart, and selected Collins.

Collins, a fan favourite, was taking part 12 years after quitting the regular show when she failed to adapt to jungle life.

Charles also made an emotional return to I'm A Celebrity after being forced to withdraw from the same series following the sudden death of his brother.

This year's other contestants were TV star Scarlett Moffatt, singer Ashley Roberts and comedian Seann Walsh.

Touring is a costly struggle for bands like us. Now Harry Styles is helping

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2lwy12j2j8o, yesterday

At the end of their gigs, up-and-coming Norwich country-rock band Brown Horse jump from the stage to their merchandise stall.

Selling T-shirts often earns them more money than the show itself.

That income is crucial to keeping them afloat on the road. Like many musicians who aren't established names, the rising cost of touring means it's "a constant struggle" to afford to keep going, they say.

"We joke about basically being travelling T-shirt salesmen," singer Patrick Turner says. "A lot of the time that's how it feels - with a soundtrack."

After a tour date, the five band members usually sleep on friends' floors or drive their 30-year-old van for hours to save on accommodation.

Following a show in Oxford last week, they arrived back in Norwich at 3.30am before starting their day jobs the next morning, then went back on the road a few days later.

"In order to break even, you have to make a lot of sacrifices for your wellbeing and comfort - which we do - and all the bands we know do, and it's just culturally accepted that that's what you have to do," Brown Horse bassist Emma Tovell says.

Their next UK tour in October will be slightly easier, however.

A £1 levy has been added to tickets for arena and stadium shows by stars including Harry Styles, Olivia Dean, Lily Allen, Take That, Foo Fighters, Florence and the Machine, Lorde and My Chemical Romance.

That has raised £5m for UK-based charity the Live Trust. The first £500,000 of that is now being distributed - £125,000 for musicians and the other £375,000 for grassroots venues, promoters, festivals and producers.

Brown Horse have been given almost £5,000 from the fund.

They are among 26 bands, singers and rappers who have been chosen to share the first instalment of cash.

The band, whose third album was recently described as "stellar" in a 9/10 review by Uncut, say they will use the grant to pay for accommodation, keep their ticket prices affordable, and pay themselves for the first time in a year.

"We talk to our friends in bands a lot, and it is a constant struggle to make the decision to keep sacrificing aspects of your life and wellbeing to keep going," Tovell says.

"There's a lot of money at the top and basically nothing at the bottom, so we're really grateful that those people have been willing to engage in [the fund], and hopefully it'll be a fruitful thing for the whole music scene if this can keep going."

Cost of gigging crisis

Blur drummer David Rowntree, chair of the Featured Artists Coalition (FAC), which is distributing a share of the Live Trust fund to musicians, says the combination of Brexit, Covid and the cost of living crisis has contributed to a "cost of touring crisis".

"Things have conspired against grassroot artists," he tells BBC News, "and without grassroots artists, there are no big artists."

New bands have found it increasingly difficult to build audiences and sustain careers in recent years, he warns.

"It's virtually impossible now to make touring pay for itself. So either artists aren't able to tour, which is terminal for their careers, or if they do they have to cut back on something else," he says.

Blur started out playing in "small venues to a small number of people" in the late 1980s and early 90s, before becoming stadium-fillers.

"I do wonder whether if a band like us started now, if it would actually be able to get anywhere," Rowntree adds.

Other acts to receive money from the first pot from the FAC's UK Artist Touring Fund include Southampton rapper VIC, London soul singer Ego Ella May, and Manchester psych noise group Wax Head.

West London reggae artist Hollie Cook has received about £5,000 to help cover the estimated £5,500 loss she would have made on her current tour - thanks to band fees, travel and accommodation.

"As exciting and fulfilling as touring can be, the financial element of it has become really quite stressful," she says.

Cook was a teenager when she was asked to join reformed punk band The Slits as a backing vocalist back in 2005, just as the dawn of the digital age was eroding earnings from recorded music.

She's noticed that since Covid it has become increasingly difficult to get audiences back into medium-sized venues and sell tickets in advance.

She says that makes it hard to plan a show that feels "worthy enough of showcasing my records in the most high quality way possible".

Extra £1 to become law?

The extra £1 on ticket prices has government backing, but not everyone in the music industry is on board.

It is currently voluntary and fewer than a third of arena and stadium concerts took part, according to the last figure given by the Live Trust in December.

Ministers have pledged to make it a legal requirement if it isn't more widely adopted.

Other projects being funded include schemes to improve the running of small venues and provide equipment, renewable energy and accommodation, administered by the Music Venue Trust.

For Elephant Sessions, a four-piece from the Scottish Highlands who blend traditional Celtic music with upbeat funk and electronica, the money will help to cover rising touring costs including van hire, fuel, accommodation and merchandise.

It will also let them take the "risk" of playing venues "off the beaten track", Mandolin player Alasdair Taylor says.

Their next tour will take in places like Stromness in Orkney, Carlisle and Settle. "The overheads are still high but your potential earnings are, of course, lower," he notes of staging a tour outside the UK's major cities.

Taylor emphasises the importance of live music as a form of escapism.

"Punters don't have the expendable income they once had," he says. "Being able to go to a gig on a Wednesday night, and buy a more expensive gig ticket than it used to be, a T-shirt or a vinyl, a couple of drinks, maybe a taxi fare, is going to cost you a hell of a lot more now than it ever cost you."

With that in mind, he says his band want their audiences to "jump around, make noise and just have a big night".

"Enjoy yourself - because there's lots of things to not enjoy right now."

Loud eaters and phones nearly spoiled my cinema trip - and it's not just me

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2482ql0zp4o, yesterday

The cinema lights are low and you're cocooned in your seat, ready for the film to transport you to another world. But just as you settle in, you're jolted back to reality.

Audience members around you are scrolling on their phones, talking and munching loudly.

Cinemas do clearly ask everyone not to disturb those around them - through the use of adverts, announcements and signs - but is behaviour getting worse?

I experienced disruption a few weeks ago while watching Ryan Gosling's sci-fi movie, Project Hail Mary, at a cinema in London.

Behind me, someone was translating the film's dialogue in real-time to the person next to them. Elsewhere, a couple of people scrolled on their mobiles, seemingly incapable of focusing on the big screen.

Meanwhile, a family were unwrapping an entire picnic at their seats.

And at a Valentine's Day viewing of Wuthering Heights earlier this year, a woman nearby in the auditorium was eating a huge chocolate heart, unwrapping a crinkly wrapper in the process.

The offenders were stopped in their tracks by audience members shushing - some even hissing - or having a quiet word, but in each case it still momentarily broke the spell of the film.

Shouting and throwing popcorn

Film TikToker Cerys Hawkes has posted about "how to avoid annoying cinema-goers".

She thinks earlier showtimes, daytime screenings and arthouse cinemas are the least likely to be disturbed, although she adds: "I understand that not everybody has this privilege."

Her worst incident was during a screening of supernatural horror film Smile 2, in 2024.

On one side of the auditorium, throughout most of the film, "two men spent the runtime filming themselves, the screen and other audience members with the flash on, in an attempt to (what looked like) record 'reaction' content for social media".

"They were shouting the whole time, and it got louder during the film's scarier scenes," she tells the BBC.

Hawkes went to get cinema staff to intervene, but says when they returned the men had "momentarily stopped, to avoid being kicked out".

She thinks being disruptive "goes hand-in-hand" with being messy, recalling last year's "infamous Minecraft Movie screenings, which saw auditoriums full of people throwing popcorn, drinks, and some even going as far as bringing in a live chicken".

Some cinemas then issued warnings about anti-social behaviour, saying "loud screaming, clapping and shouting will not be tolerated".

Not everyone minded some gentler audience participation though. Liverpool comedian Sam Avery told me last year that seeing the Minecraft Movie with his young sons was "honestly the most joyous cinemagoing experience I've ever had".

Another high-profile example was when fans started singing along to the Wicked film in some cinemas in 2024.

Cinema chains remind people to behave

TikToker, Finian Hackett, who posts about film and theatre, feels "the worst offender is phones".

"I don't think I've been to a single film in recent years where someone hasn't been scrolling on their phone, and that includes premiere screenings," he tells the BBC.

"As a regular cinema and theatre-goer, it is the bane of my life. Just turn it off and enjoy what you're watching. It truly baffles me."

He thinks people thinking it's OK to be disruptive could be "due to the availability of films at home".

"People are so used to being able to pop a film on, chat, eat their crisps, go up and wee, go on their phones, to their hearts' content, that when they enter a public space, they forget how to behave.

"The lack of respect for other patrons is astounding."

The BBC asked Vue, Odeon, Cineworld and Everyman cinemas about their policies on audience disturbances. They all state customers are asked to switch off phones during screenings.

Vue also told the BBC they ask customers to "have consideration to others when watching a film", while Odeon asks customers not to "spoil the enjoyment of others".

Cineworld said it reserves the right to ask disruptive customers to "leave the cinema immediately" without a refund.

When it comes to manners, Debrett's - a leading UK authority on etiquette - lists polite behaviours for the cinema, including to:

* turn off your phone

* eat considerately

* minimise talking

* take your rubbish

'Most people follow etiquette'

James Connor, a senior manager for the UK Cinema Association, tells the BBC that for the "vast majority of audiences", seeing a film "remains a hugely enjoyable shared experience".

He says mobile phone use or people chatting during cinema screenings "are not widespread and don't reflect typical behaviour".

"Most people understand and follow simple cinema etiquette... so everyone can enjoy the film as intended."

Dr Kirsty Sedgman, a lecturer at the University of Bristol who specialises in audiences, experience and behaviour, points out we've been having debates about whether audiences are behaving worse "for a really long time" - dating back as far as Plato in ancient Greece, she says.

However, she does think "something has really shifted, particularly since Covid".

"It's really tempting to say, 'Oh, lockdown meant that we forgot how to behave'.

"But it's not that simple," she adds. She says the breaking of lockdown guidance and rules by some resulted in "a weakening of what we call the 'social contract' - the rules that bind us together".

She also highlights what she sees as "the collapse of private norms in public spaces", with people's attention "absolutely being distorted and divided" by being able to go on their phones while watching films at home.

It comes at a time when cinemas are struggling, making it important for the financial health of the industry that people can continue to enjoy films together.

Hollywood leaders and cinema owners recently gathered in LA for trade show CinemaCon, where ABC News said "the future of movie theatres is at a critical point", with US annual domestic box-office grosses "still down about 20% from pre-pandemic levels.

But last year the UK and Irish box office had its best annual performance since the Covid pandemic.

Connor ends with an optimistic note for cinema's future.

"With a strong slate of films still to come this year, there's real confidence and excitement about what lies ahead for cinema audiences."

How the Irish novelty song that 'toppled' Céline Dion is making a comeback

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c30rrm4z1ggo, today

An Irish comedic singer who "toppled" the likes of Céline Dion and The Prodigy in the charts 30 years ago has earned a whole new audience as the hit song has taken social media by storm.

Richie Kavanagh's 'Aon Focal Eile', which plays on a four-letter swear word, has been re-released by the singer and his young grandson CJ to mark three decades since its Irish charts success.

The clip has received over half a million views on TikTok alone as Kavanagh and his grandson sing the song side by side.

"I'm probably more popular now than I was when we had the number one hit," said Kavanagh.

The County Carlow singer-songwriter spent seven weeks at the top of the Irish charts with Aon Focal Eile from March to May 1996 and the song went triple platinum.

While Dion's Because You Loved Me and The Prodigy's Firestarter were dominating the US and UK charts at the time, Kavanagh's track had captured the attention of the Republic of Ireland.

Known for having a habit of pushing the boundaries with his lyrics, Kavanagh said the BBC avoided playing Aon Focal Eile on the airwaves.

The 77-year-old said it was the BBC's Irish presenter Terry Wogan who wanted to play the song but a producer put an end to that saying: "I don't want to take early retirement."

But that did not stop the song being a success and Kavanagh won the Irish Recorded Music Association Award for Best Single in 1996 for the song.

The song's success has kept Kavanagh "busy", he joked.

How did the song become so big?

Kavanagh has previously said he sang the song at shows and people would ask if he had recorded it.

He said that when he did finally record it, those in studio told him "it would never get airplay".

However, Tony Kehoe was reportedly the first person to play the song on Southeast Radio based in County Wexford in 1996.

Kehoe said: "I don't take any claim from that because Richie is an absolute genius.

"That time it was pop songs and whatever, and he toppled the best in the world, he made the number one.

"The people loved it."

It was then played to the Irish nation on the The Gerry Ryan Show on RTÉ 2fm.

Freelance arts journalist Aoife Barry said getting played by Ryan helped with people "being exposed" to the track.

"He was a hugely important radio figure, and then he was a cultural figure in the 1990s. People listened to what Gerry Ryan said," said Barry.

"They really paid attention to him and the fact that he was championing Richie Kavanagh's music also would have played a massive role."

Barry added that the Irish "generally" love a novelty song.

"It kind of gave people the opportunity to laugh but it also gave people the opportunity to see the Irish language in music and in a song."

Kavanagh said the people saw the humour in Aon Focal Eile and his "dream came true".

"In 1996, I became a full-time entertainer."

Who is Richie Kavanagh?

Born in County Carlow in 1949, Kavanagh was diagnosed with psoriasis on his hands at the age of 44 and that led him to wearing gloves as part of his signature outfit, which includes dungarees and his trademark Hanna Hat of Donegal.

He spent his early days as a chef and later a lorry driver.

Kavanagh, who was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2010, explained he would do comedy shows and create his songs on drives home, saying: "If you got a good chorus, the verses would fall into place."

He became an Irish phenomena in the 1990s with the release of Aon Focal Eile, that song saw him travel the world performing.

His other songs include The Mobile Phone, Stay Wut Her Johnny, Chicken Talk and Get Out Your Focal Leabhar.

Glasgow arts groups secure 'positive' future after Trongate eviction row

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c78l2ljw6d8o, today

A bitter rental row that threatened the future of several Glasgow arts organisations has reached a "positive" agreement to secure the future of their building.

Trongate 103 said a meeting on Friday had produced a "clear plan of support" from the council that would address their financial pressures.

Seven groups that use Trongate 103 feared eviction after being told that rental costs at the city centre site would go up by four times the existing rate.

City Property - the Glasgow City Council body that manages the building - said that the terms offered in February were still much cheaper than commercial rents.

Organisations in the building include Glasgow Print Studio, Street Level Photoworks, Sharmanka Kinetic Theatre, Project Ability, Transmission and the Glasgow Project Room.

In a statement, they said: "There are a number of opportunities to explore in the coming months to help shape a long-term, sustainable future for Trongate 103.

"We look forward to working in partnership with Glasgow City Council and Glasgow Life to build a secure future for this vital cultural hub."

Trongate 103 opened in 2009 as a former warehouse converted into a not-for-profit arts space. Funding came from Glasgow City Council and several other bodies.

The arts groups have questioned why the running of the building wound up as part of the City Property portfolio.

The initial idea was for a 25-year charitable lease to take effect. However, for around 17 years the rent was handled on a monthly basis.

City Property said the newly proposed rent would be up to 12 times higher than current costs if a commercial organisation were the tenants.

One of the organisations the Glasgow Media Access Centre (GMAC) had already chosen to leave the site.

Trongate 103 said the remaining groups had a positive meeting with the Glasgow City Council's culture convener, Bailie Annette Christie, that would create a "viable long-term model" for the building.

Glasgow City Council - run by a minority SNP administration - said it had produced proposals for "practical and financial support" for the Trongate 103 tenants until March next year.

Councillors will also explore options for transferring the building from City Property's portfolio and back into council ownership.

Bailie Christie said: "Trongate 103 is a hugely important cultural asset for Glasgow, providing affordable and accessible space where artists, creative organisations and communities can thrive.

"This arrangement reflects our commitment to working in partnership to secure a financially sustainable, long‑term future for the building.

"Culture is central to Glasgow's identity, and we are determined to support it in practical and meaningful ways."

Glasgow City Council and City Property have been contacted for comment.

Skindred star celebrates number one with champagne and chips

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cly7w4120n8o, today

Welsh band Skindred have reached number one for the first time in their 28-year career.

Singer Benji Webbe told the BBC he celebrated with a dinner of chips, champagne and curry-filled Jamaican patties.

The Newport band, who formed in 1998 and fuse metal with reggae, missed out on the top spot in 2023.

Then, their eighth studio album, Smile, was beaten by Cian Ducrot's Victory.

But their new album, You Got This, held off Jessie Ware's Superbloom to win the chart battle.

Webbe dubbed the news "glorious", saying: "We came close before and got to number two, and I was not sure where we were going to go with this one.

"I was saying to people 'it would be nice to get to number one'.

"It's deserved, but I feel like we have taken the scenic route to get here. We've been going for a long time."

The 59-year-old added: "The chips are going down lovely with the pattie and the champagne is in the fridge.

"I might crack that open and have it in the hot tub."

Webbe, whose band became the only Welsh group to win a Mobo award in 2024, said they worked hard to get the number one.

He revealed the idea for the album title came from a visit to a spin class.

He said: "I was looking for a name for the album and the woman at the gym kept saying 'you got this' and I thought 'what a name!'

"Then I came out of the spin class and a friend of mine, a personal trainer, he said to the fella he was training 'you got this' and I went 'we are going to the call the album You Got This'."

Webbe can be heard in inteview on BBC Introducing with Adam Walton on BBC Sounds.

Painter's artwork returns to public after 65 years

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c239jkkpyglo, today

A beloved artwork by a renowned landscape artist has returned to public display after more than 60 years.

Sheila Fell's Pathway to a Farm, painted by the Cumbrian artist in 1959, was acquired by its sole owners in 1961, who displayed it in their Cockermouth home until recently.

The painting did not move far from its home of 65 years and was acquired by the town's Castlegate House Gallery, with the painting now on public display.

Art expert at the gallery Steve Swallow said: "It is one of the best works by Sheila Fell and certainly the most significant painting by her that we have handled in the last 15 years."

Fell was born in Aspatria in 1931 and is a well respected British landscape painter, known for her powerful depictions of the Cumbrian landscape.

She went on to be discovered and mentored by LS Lowry, who also spent a considerable time in Cumbria.

Fell, who died in 1979, is celebrated for her rural and industrial portrayals of life in the north.

Another of her paintings from the same time as Pathway to a Farm has also been acquired by the gallery, again bringing it back into public view after being in private hands in Cambridge.

Haystacks in Winter, painted in 1961, shows JMW Turner's influence on Fell's work.

It depicts a winter landscape along the Solway Plain, with the details in the sky especially reminiscent of Turner's treatment of light.

"Haystacks in Winter speaks clearly of Fell's admiration for Turner and the influence he had on her work," Swallow said.

"To create a winter snow scene that still feels warm and inviting is no small achievement, but Sheila manages it with remarkable confidence."

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Emotional day as River City films last ever scenes after 24 years

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c9370817nezo, today

It was a bittersweet day in Shieldinch as the cast and crew of BBC drama River City filmed their last ever scenes.

Actor Stephen Purdon, better known as 'Shellsuit' Bob O'Hara, said it was "emotional, surreal, hard to put it into words" on their final day on set on Friday.

The long-running soap opera that started out as Scotland's answer to Eastenders and Coronation Street has come to an end after 24 years.

A fierce campaign was mounted to save the programme after it was announced last year it would be axed. BBC Scotland said it was "no longer value for money".

Purdon is the programme's longest-serving cast member.

He said: "I've been here since I was 19, now I am 43. I have lots of memories from here - great memories.

"I've been lucky to work in this industry for 24 years. We all get on great and there's no place like it."

Sally Howitt played the much-loved Scarlett O'Hara for 23 years.

She said: "She came in screaming and shouting in tight leather jackets and leopard print chaps - shouting at her son Shellsuit Bob and it's been a journey.

"My agent said to me at the time, they're giving you a month, play your cards right and you might get six months or a year out of it.

"Now, 23 years later, I'm still here," she said.

Sally says a bit of Scarlett will always be with her.

"She was such a great character and so much fun to play. The character evolved and they put me through the mill. I had more children, more husbands and her clothes got slightly more demure."

"There's always going to be a part of me that will be Scarlett."

Executive producer Martin McCardie has worked in many roles on River City - on and off screen. He has been a writer, an actor, producer, series producer, and executive producer.

He told BBC Scotland News: "It's very sad. There's lots of people I've known since I first started on the show in 2005, some of them are still here and are the heart of the show.

"I said on the call sheet today that being the exec producer for people as special as them has been the honour of my professional life."

Scenes filmed on Friday will go to air at the end of August.

The final episode will be followed by a specially-commissioned documentary about the 24-year-long production.

The BBC said that cancelling River City reflected a significant change in audience behaviour away from long-running series and towards shorter runs.

The BBC is concentrating its budget on major drama productions set across Scotland, starting with three new series – Counsels, Grams and The Young Team.

This is on top of returning dramas such as Rebus, Shetland, Granite Harbour and Vigil.

Since the announcement last year, other new dramas from Scotland include Sutherland, Half Man and Mint.

Giving evidence at the Scottish Parliament about BBC Scotland's drama investment strategy, BBC Scotland's Director Hayley Valentine said that the "cost per viewer" of producing the show was now much higher as audience figures had declined.

She told Holyrood's culture committee that she didn't take the decision to end the show lightly.

Art by adults with learning disabilities exhibited

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx238dz62vro, today

Artwork produced by adults with learning disabilities is on display in Hull.

The charity CASE Training Services has teamed up with the city's Streetlife Museum to host the work.

The organisation helps people with disabilities gain new skills and enjoy social activities.

The Regeneration exhibition, which runs until 5 July, is described by organisers as "empowerment in expression".

Mark Cooke, chief executive of CASE Training Services, said: "It really brought out the passion in all our groups.

"We don't believe in the word 'no'. Everybody can do it and bring it out in their own individual way. I really hope people see that in the work."

There are "talking tiles" visitors can press to learn more about the artwork on display.

"Our trainees would love to update you on their work and the journeys they've been on," Cooke added.

Pete Vernon, a creative arts teacher at the charity, said he wanted to set up the exhibition to allow the trainees to showcase their artwork to the public.

"It's great that they can be creative in the classroom, but until they get the feedback from an exhibition like this, from displaying their artwork and seeing that other people value it, then we're not making the most out of the creative process."

Streetlife Museum curator Frankie Hodson said a range of work is on display.

"We've got sculpture, video, photography, and we've got paintings and portraits," she said.

"We just love being able to work with different communities and different people, and to show off their talents."

Listen to highlights from Hull and East Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North.

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'Facebook helped me bring colour to kids in hospital'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3exqvvqp85o, today

As a young boy, Adam Salisbury was obsessed with the Thomas the Tank Engine mural at his local hospital.

Anytime he had to go there - for a broken arm, or visiting other family members - he remembers making his mum take him to see it.

A budding young artist, Adam said he would dream of having the chance to do his own painting there one day.

Three decades on, Thomas the Tank Engine may no longer adorn the walls Blackpool's Victoria Hospital, but Adam's dream has well and truly come true, having painted almost 30 of the building's walls with his own masterpieces - and videos of the artwork has been viewed millions of times on social media.

Adam, 37, said he was "proud as punch" to bring "colour, calm and hope to places that need it most" including a mural of a Blackpool tram dedicated to his beloved grandad who encouraged him to follow his artistic ambitions.

Adam's talents were spotted at a young age - with his first teacher telling his mum he was going to be a great artist.

His grandfather, Robert Worthington - who he said was always making things out of wood and sketching but never pursued art as a career - would constantly buy him new paints and brushes.

He said his mum, Maureen, would encourage him, too, and when she was decorating his room she would leave lining paper on his wall and let him paint over it.

"As a young boy I painted dinosaurs, Goofy and even a Tasmanian devil - whatever I was into," he said.

He went to art college but while he would get distinctions for his artwork, he said he struggled with the academic side of the course and just scraped a pass.

When his first son was born, he put his art on hold and followed a career in retail, becoming a supermarket manager.

However, in 2015 everything changed when he posted a video on Facebook of him painting dinosaurs in his son's bedroom.

It got more than a thousand likes, but more importantly so many positive comments it "lit a fire inside me" and he decided to chase his dreams.

He painted a mural at a gym and got jobs painting murals in bedrooms which he also put on social media, and "it snowballed", he said.

A video capturing a Harry Potter painting Adam was commissioned to do for a child's bedroom blew up on TikTok in 2018 and was shared millions of times - helping him quickly gain about 500,000 followers.

The following year, a video on Facebook documenting his Beauty and the Beast painting in a girl's bedroom in 2019 was spotted by a nurse who invited him to showcase his artwork in Victoria Hospital.

He has had five commissions to do work at the hospital since then, funded by the Blue Skies Charity, which enhances patient care at Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

The Blackpool tram painting is very special to him as it is dedicated to his grandad who died the day after his 19th birthday - and also depicts his beloved hometown.

My grandad told me: "Your talents are in your hands and you are going to change the world."

Janet Barnsley from Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust which runs Victoria Hospital praised Adam's vibrant transformation to spaces across the site.

"Being in hospital can sometimes be a daunting experience, and these artworks help to create more welcoming environments."

Nicci Hayes, from the Blue Skies charity, added it was "incredibly proud" of the impact that Adam's murals have had across the hospital - and the joy they have brought.

"Art plays such a vital role in transforming clinical environments into warm, welcoming spaces that truly lift the spirits of our patients, visitors, and staff."

Adam is also a sought after tattooist after deciding to train as one to help fund his canvases and murals.

He travelled to Bolton to do his apprenticeship with renowned tattooist Danny Robinson, star of MTV's Just Tattoo Of Us.

In 2023, he opened his own studio The Inked Artist in Cleveleys where he splits his time between tattooing and creating artwork.

Videos he has shared of canvases he has created of celebrities have also gained lots of traction on social media such as a painting of darts sensation Luke Littler, US actor Will Smith and rapper Eminem.

Adam said when Smith - one of his favourite actors - shared his video in 2021, it was one of the best days of his life.

He is desperate to get the one of Eminem signed by the 8 Mile star - and would then auction it for a charity of the superstar's choice.

"I don't want money," he said. "I just want to do good and bring colour to people's lives."

His work not only makes him happy - but it also helped the dad of two find love.

He said he was blessed to meet his now wife, Sade, when she messaged him to say she liked his artwork.

"Doing what I love brought a love to me.

"I believe in doing good, good will come back to you," he said.

His ultimate dream now is to inspire the next generation by opening a not-for-profit art foundation one day in Blackpool.

He said he loves his life and does not regret quitting his job in retail.

"From being told I'd never make it… to creating art that lives in places where people need hope the most."

He urged anyone with a similar dream to "never stop believing in your vision".

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Grandad Skank painted under flyover ahead of rave

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2k3lx2q89go, today

Street art murals have been painted in preparation for a music event taking place under a flyover.

Thousands of drum 'n' bass fans are expected to attend The Under May Weekender, hosted by Mixology, under the Nene Parkway Flyover in Peterborough, on 2 to 3 May.

Artists, including Nathan Murdoch and Tony Nero, worked on pieces inspired by some of the musicians performing at the event.

Murdoch, who runs Streets Arts Hire, said: "We paint murals under the bridge every time there's an upcoming music event, usually held on bank holiday weekends. This time, we painted six murals and worked in collaboration with six other artists. Really enjoyed it."

He painted 'Grandad Skank', from Peterborough, who went viral in the last few years for being a 'pension-age raver', Murdoch said.

"High-contrast - one of the artists playing this weekend is another mural we painted," he added.

"We have had a huge response online for the pieces - a lot of people appreciated that we have included someone local in our artwork this time."

Tony Nero said this is the fifth time he has painted under the bridge, and he was "enjoying" all the positive reaction to the artwork.

"The first time was really scary, but I've since gotten used to the vast size of the wall," he said.

"It's always a challenge painting these pieces, not just for the sizes but also the time frame that we do them in. They are usually done in about a day or one and a half days."

This year's rave under the bridge, named Unitee, is expected to bring dozens of drum and bass artists together, including BBC Radio 1's Charlie Tee.

Murdoch, who is planning to attend, said: "For me, it's the best party in the city.

"The novelty of being under a motorway is great – and it brings a lot of people to the city, a really positive thing for Peterborough."

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Lecturer creates disabled musician roster for gigs

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c77mmynj13ko, today

A lecturer who has launched a worldwide database of musicians with disabilities says he wants to give them better access to "opportunities for success".

Bass player and senior lecturer in music business at the University of Gloucestershire, Andrew Lansley, is behind UnMute, which aims to get more artists with disabilities on to live line-ups.

Lansley said his project is aimed at "democratising access to people's amazing talent".

Bristol Gig Buddies, an organisation which supports adults with learning disabilities to go to music events, said the project "reinforces the idea that music spaces are for everyone".

The project has been in development for two years and has now gone live with the support of the Musicians' Union and Global Local.

Lansley said: "I realised unless I did it, it wasn't going to happen."

Among the acts who have applied to join the roster are Drag Syndrome, a collective of musicians with Down's Syndrome, and Deaf Rave, which comprises deaf and hard of hearing artists.

A spokesperson from Gig Buddies, which started in Bristol and operates across the UK, said access to "music space", whether as audience members or performers, "is still not equal".

"For the people we support, seeing disabled musicians represented more widely is so important," they said.

"It reinforces the idea that music spaces are for everyone and that performing or being part of the Bristol music scene is achievable for all.

"We welcome initiatives like Unmute who aim to increase representation of disabled musicians and create clearer pathways into the industry."

John Shortell from the Musicians' Union said this is the "first concrete scheme we've seen that can have a tangible impact on the employment of disabled musicians".

"It's an area that's underdiscussed.

"I think it's to do with a lot of attitudinal barriers that disabled musicians may cost more, or be more work to employ or engage and that's not true.

"This is a project that's ensuring visibility and equality across the music industry," he added.

Applications to be enrolled onto the database are now open.

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Animal sculptures turning town into street safari

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cpqxwwd2ee9o, yesterday

"I don't know what I'm going to be making this time next week and that's the joy of it," Malcolm Curley, who must be one of Devon's most prolific sculptors, said.

What started with making a few animals to brighten up his neighbours' gardens in Bridgetown, Totnes, has spread all over south Devon and beyond.

Curley estimates he has created and placed 300 exotic animals and children's book characters in locations that range from the local library and schools to floating on a river.

Demand to be part of the Bridgetown safari has quickly spread, with local bus stops marking the locations that children could spot his animals up in trees, hiding in bushes or swinging from window ledges.

At 87, Curley retired from his Bristol metal fabrication business long ago, but after forty years of making things with his hands, he wanted to continue being creative when he moved to Totnes after heart surgery.

He loves big cats while he has never been on safari himself, his first job was to make himself a leopard, that lies in the tree above his garden.

His creations are largely made from recycled materials.

After spotting a sheet of plastic in a neighbour's skip, he offered to swap it for a sculpture and the Bridgetown safari was born.

"I made them a pony. Since then they've had a zebra. Another neighbour wanted a giraffe as a memorial, because she lost her husband. I think the idea went up the road from there," Curley said.

Totnes quickly became a "zoo".

The popularity of the animals soon spread to the surrounding towns and villages as requests for increasingly exotic creatures came in from home owners in Salcombe, Dartmouth, Stoke Gabriel, and Torquay.

Everyone has their favourite and some of the most imaginative are located in unusual places.

Curley says some are so high up, they are hard for him to maintain: "One of the best ones is the tigers in Berry Pomeroy.

"They are looking a bit jaded now, but I can't get up the tree to touch up the paint work."

Before he gets to work, Curley said he started with considering where the art work would be placed.

"I ask people for the photo of the front of their house and I Photoshop a picture of the animal they want onto it, to show them what it will look like."

Often he positions them peeping out of a hedges or hanging from a tree: "Part of the fun is trying to spot them."

Trudie Headford is one neighbour who has several of Curley's creations in her garden.

He made a peacock for her mum.

She said: "It's lovely because in the summer you get the kids on holiday and they come and stand in front of it and get their pictures taken."

Curley's collection is even mentioned on the Round Robin open top bus tours.

Trudie added: "They come down the hill and you hear them saying on the loud speaker "on your right there's a panda eating some pampas grass" and it's just really funny.

"They have a tour of all the animals around here. It's really great fun. They even list them in the bus stop."

The sculptures are free.

Some donate Curley paint and materials, but all he asks is they make a direct donation to a charity of their choice of whatever they can afford.

Curley could never know how much, but local people believe he has raised thousands over the years.

Curley's garage studio in Bridgetown is always a hive of activity with several projects on the go at the same time.

Some animals come back for maintenance and repair while new ones are created daily so the sculpture trail is always changing and evolving.

Most recently is has been home to an oyster catcher that was destined for Canada, an Eeyore that needs mending after a mishap during a storm, a life sized leopard, and a Jack Russell dog, all in various stages of creation.

Curley's next big project is for Dartington Hall.

He has been asked to make three animals including a white stag for the estate.

"It's all about where you place them, that makes it the most fun," Curley said.

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Ex-Channel 5 newsreader withdraws claims against Dan Walker

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cdrmvx8m8vgo, yesterday

A former Channel 5 News presenter has withdrawn her claims against Dan Walker, who was her co-host at the channel, after reaching a "mutual agreement" with the broadcaster, owned by Paramount, and ITN.

Claudia-Liza Vanderpuije, who hosted a show with Walker for a year between 2022 and 2023, had filed claims of unfair dismissal, discrimination and harassment on grounds of race and sex, and breach of contract.

However her lawyers said she "can confirm that a mutual agreement has been reached with ITN and Channel 5 in respect of the matters subject to tribunal proceedings. Claudia-Liza fully withdraws her allegations relating to Dan Walker and does not intend to repeat or pursue them."

Walker said on Friday: "Channel 5 and ITN have reached an agreement with the claimant. I firmly feel that I should never have been pulled into this; however, I was fully prepared to go to tribunal and defend the allegations which were levelled at me."

The terms of the case, which was to be heard at an employment tribunal in London, were not made public.

On being told that the parties had reached an agreement, the judge formally concluded the case by dismissing the claim.

Walker's employers ITN and Channel 5 agreed to pay Vanderpuije an undisclosed amount to withdraw her tribunal, with no admission of liability.

A former BBC Breakfast and Football Focus presenter, Walker joined Vanderpuije as a co-host on Channel 5 News in 2022. Vanderpuije left Channel 5 News in 2024.

Walker said: "I will be forever grateful to those who were kind enough to go on the record with their accounts of working alongside me."

A statement from ITN said: "We continue to deny these claims in full, and we are glad this matter has been resolved."

A Channel 5 spokesperson said: "We strongly reject the claims that were made and are pleased that this matter has been resolved and that all the allegations relating to Dan Walker have been withdrawn."

'Singing my own songs live was terrifying'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c75kp5kk261o, yesterday

A Jersey singer-songwriter said she used to be "terrified" of performing live during the early years of her career but now found it a "magical" experience.

Nerina Pallot, 51, has released eight studio albums, with a new album called Fire Escape Symphonies set to be released next month as well as her new single Come Bring the Sun.

The singer, who was nominated for an Ivor Novello Award for her song Sophia, said she always wanted to be a musician but used to avoid performing her own songs live.

"I wrote a song called Patience, which was my first single 25 years ago," she said. "I think it was once I'd written a song I felt I was good enough, then I had the confidence to perform my own songs."

Pallot said she began learning to play the piano at about six-years old.

"Then that was it, I was just obsessed," she said. "[I] never looked back."

Pallot said her music had taken her around the world, including to Morocco where she shot a video for her song Sophia.

She said she had been incredibly lucky throughout her music career, adding she now found live performances "magical".

She said she used to feel disappointed because she thought her career was going to be "bigger than it was".

"There was a moment where, you know, I was getting Brit Award nominations and things, and I was in the charts and I thought I would always be in the charts. I thought it would always be like that and it didn't work out that way," the singer said.

"You know, I may not be Taylor Swift, but I've made eight albums. I'm playing the Royal Albert Hall. I've got this incredible fan base.

"I look back and I speak to younger artists who are just trying to get a record out or get a tour and I realise how profoundly lucky I've been."

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'Huge privilege' to paint jailed Post Office victim

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2e3235dxno, yesterday

An artist who has painted a victim of the Post Office Horizon scandal as a part of a BBC TV series says the story could only be told through hidden layers.

Seema Misra who ran a post office in West Byfleet, Surrey, was wrongly sent to prison while pregnant during the IT scandal.

Jack Dickson from Blandford, Dorset, said as the Extraordinary Portraits artwork was for all the victims the only way he could create it was through many layers.

He said "you won't see the whole story in the picture...but there's all sorts of stuff behind it" and added it was a "huge privilege" to create the portrait of such an "incredible" person.

Dickson said: "In the case of Seema you are painting for hundreds of people. It is very much for all the victims of the post office scandal.

"So that has to get into the process somehow but you can't paint that entire story that is impossible.

"So I put stuff on and then covered it up and told the story... but you won't see the whole story in the picture - it's under layers - there's all sorts of stuff behind.

"That's the only way I could approach it."

All of the portraits from this series will be on display at a free exhibition at The Loading Bay in Bradford from Friday 1 May.

Once that's finished, Dickson is hoping to look for venues in the south to exhibit the portrait.

Misra was jailed for 15 months in 2010 after being accused of stealing £74,000 from her Post Office branch.

She was sent to Bronzefield prison on the day of her eldest son's 10th birthday.

In April 2025 she was one of four leading campaigners to receive an OBE for their service to justice at Windsor Castle.

Extraordinary Portraits with Bill Bailey is available on BBC iPlayer.

Radio 1 warns against buying Big Weekend tickets from touts

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0led6g690go, yesterday

BBC Radio 1 has warned fans not to buy tickets for its upcoming Big Weekend festival from touts or unauthorised sellers.

Entry to the three-day live music event starts at £45 for Saturday and Sunday, but tickets have been seen online for more than 12 times face value.

Music industry group FanFair Alliance said it was further evidence of music lovers being exploited and called for a new law capping resale prices to be brought in urgently.

The government told BBC Newsbeat it was "committed" to delivering the ban, but resellers StubHub.co.uk and Viagogo said a cap could drive people to unregulated websites, increase the risk of fraud and drive prices even higher.

Radio 1 has said if people do buy tickets through touts, they may be refused entry to the festival - which is being held in Sunderland this year.

The station said the event was "primarily for people in Sunderland with 90% of tickets allocated to those living in the city and surrounding areas".

"The only place to buy a ticket is via the BBC Radio 1 Big Weekend 2026 website and Ticketmaster.

"We urge the public not to purchase tickets through touts or unauthorised sellers as those tickets will be void and the holder may be refused entry to the event."

Big Weekend's official seller Ticketmaster limits customers to two tickets per day, and its terms state resales should only take place on its own dedicated site.

Despite this, FanFair Alliance said it had found unofficial listings being sold for as much as £622.

It said tickets for Big Weekend's sold-out Sunday, when Brit and Mobo award winner Olivia Dean is performing, were all listed above face-value.

The alliance said its research showed two-thirds of tickets were being sold by traders rather than individuals.

And despite the two-ticket limit, it also found some sellers offering up to 30 tickets in one listing.

Newsbeat's own checks found similar results.

Two listings on StubHub.co.uk offered pairs of VIP tickets, normally £109 each, for £421 and £530, while Viagogo carried a listing for a £45 general admission ticket at £363.

FanFair also raised concerns about many sellers being based abroad, when Big Weekend is supposed to draw big artists to towns or cities they might normally skip.

The Labour government promised to ban the resale of tickets at inflated prices in its 2024 election manifesto, and announced plans to introduce the measure in November.

FanFair says it's concerned the ban won't be in the King's Speech on 13 May, when a list of the government's plans for the year ahead are announced.

It would also need to be discussed and voted on by politicians and members of the House of Lords in order to make it a law.

The Culture Select Committee - a group of MPs from different political parties - produced a fan-led review this week recommending the introduction of the ban "without delay".

Newsbeat's been told the government is exploring the best way of making the measure a law as soon as possible.

Adam Webb, from FanFair Alliance, said the government deserved credit for recognising the issue, but he was disappointed at the pace of its response.

"There's such unanimous support for this legislation," he said.

"We're just scratching our heads about why we're being left hanging here."

What do resale sites say?

StubHub.co.uk told Newsbeat it supported the "focus on improving the ticketing experience for fans" and said it was "committed to working with government".

But it raised concerns a cap on reselling would lead to fraud, pointing to analysis suggesting the proposed ban could cost customers £1.2bn each year if they turn to unregulated resellers.

Viagogo said 84% of its UK event tickets were sold for less than £100, and that "fans ultimately determine value based on what they're willing to pay".

It argued that only 6% of tickets were bought via resale market and a price cap was "unlikely to help fans".

Instead, it said the ban would "reinforce Ticketmaster's dominance, driving up prices".

Ticketmaster, which agreed to provide more pricing information after complaints over prices of Oasis gigs last summer, said it was "frustrating" to see tickets sold at inflated prices and backed the government's plans on resale.

Listen to Newsbeat live at 12:45 and 17:45 weekdays - or listen back here.

Meet the man making opera costumes sing since 1983

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c80mn97jv4ko, today

He's been behind some of the most striking costumes worn on stage in the north of England, but after more than four decades Stephen Rodwell is taking his final bow.

When Opera North's head of costume took took a six-month contract as a wardrobe runner at the Leeds-based production company in 1983, he never dreamed it would be start of an award-winning career spanning 43 years.

During his time with the company Rodwell has overseen costume design for countless productions, including classics such as The Merry Widow, Kiss Me Kate, Tosca and La Traviata.

"I can walk away with that feeling of I did my job and I'm happy with what I did," says the 64-year-old.

Rodwell had a passion for the arts from a young age.

He studied drama at Manchester University before initially joining Opera North in a maternity leave cover position, rising through the ranks to become head of costume in 2001.

"I felt very invested in it personally over the years," he says.

"I have only really got happy memories."

Though theatre remains a live spectacle untouched by many technological advances, Rodwell has seen the art form develop over the decades.

"With today's lighting everything that you see on stage is much more visible and clear, so now we make costumes that are more like what you would expect to see on film - it's that kind of detail," he says.

Some costumes wouldn't meet health and safety criteria in 2026 because their design would simply make them too heavy for a performer to wear, Rodwell adds.

In 2024 Rodwell became the first-ever recipient of the ABTT (Association of British Theatre Technicians) Award for Costume.

The gong was presented to him in recognition of his work realising the costumes, rather than designing them, as well as organising costume makers, buying fabrics, overseeing fittings and bringing them to the stage to mesmerise theatre-goers.

"When you see a show you see the hours and hours of work that has gone into the costumes," says Rodwell's colleague, Sian Gilroy, a senior producer at Opera North.

Reflecting on 43 years of bringing opera to life in the north of England, Rodwell says: "It's been a very, very special place to work and thing to be involved with."

Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.

Joe McElderry 'thrilled' with national panto award

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cm256jz4vygo, yesterday

Joe McElderry has said he was thrilled to be named the "best magical being" at the UK Pantomime Awards 2026.

The South Shields singer, who won X Factor in 2009, was recognised for his role as the Spirit of the Ring in Aladdin at Newcastle Theatre Royal.

"Best magical being, I think that's the nicest thing I've ever been called in this industry," McElderry joked.

He said pantomime was so important for introducing the younger generations to theatre and performance, adding: "We just feel lucky that we get to do it as a job."

McElderry scooped the award at an event on Sunday, which also saw former EastEnders actor Nigel Harman crowned best pantomime villain.

He said he did not expect to win for the Crossroads Pantomimes run of more than 80 shows over the Christmas period.

"For a lot of people, we're their first experience of theatre, and then years later they come back with their kids," McElderry said.

"I'm now reaching that age where people who first came to see me in my career, now have children that they bring.

"And I'm like 'don't tell us this, I already feel old enough'."

McElderry is hosting a production this summer called Something in the Water, where talent from around the North East will perform and raise funds to support the next generation.

He said: "I feel like I've got to a point in my career where I've experienced amazing things and I just want to give back where I can, and celebrate new talent."

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Playing Jenny Lind is an honour, says actor

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cg407egeggwo, 2 days ago

Actor, singer and harpist Penny Ashmore knew when she saw a casting call to play Jenny Lind in a major stage production, she had the skills to do it.

The show, Barnum, is based on the life of showman P. T. Barnum, covering the years 1835 to 1880 when he toured his performing companies.

"They were open to which instrument she would play... when I saw that casting call I thought 'if I can't get that job, I'll be fuming'," she said.

Ashmore got the role, and what is even more special is that Lind, also known as the Swedish Nightingale, spent her final years living in Malvern, Worcestershire - the county in which Ashmore was born and raised.

"She's from my area, she's a soprano, she's a very, very interesting person in history to me - it felt like big shoes to fill but I was so honoured to get the chance to portray her," Ashmore told the BBC.

As well as combining her singing, acting and harp skills, Ashmore has to speak Swedish in the production, which is in Birmingham until Saturday and comes to Malvern later in 2026.

"I've also learned other instruments for the show that have been more challenging, but the harp feels like an extension of me, and its lovely to get to bring that to Jenny Lind," she added.

'Full-circle moment'

Getting the role felt like a full-circle moment, she said, having visited Birmingham Hippodrome - where she is performing a leg of the show - as a child.

She has also loved theatre since she was young.

"Worcester was a wonderful place to grow up in the arts, I was part of so many shows, amateur companies, I did classical music and musical theatre," she said.

"[The Barnum show] is extravagant, it's spectacular, it's trying to be what Barnum was presenting which was just humbugging the audience, bedazzling them with nonstop sights."

Ashmore's ability to perform at all could be considered a miracle - as a teenager she had four cardiac arrests during one night, and her dad saved her life by performing CPR.

She now has an advanced pacemaker.

"I was definitely afraid that performing would be too intense a lifestyle after such a big surprise and health issues, but I think it goes to show I had a lot of support - I worked really hard to make theatre accessible to me," she said.

"It really shows that from the absolute depths of fear, you can totally come back and follow your dreams."

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New art gallery to spotlight South Asian artists

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvglypx9jx9o, 2 days ago

A new art gallery spotlighting artwork by artists from the South Asian diaspora is to open to the public this week.

The Runjeet Singh Gallery is holding an opening weekend at its premises on Chandos Street, in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, starting from Friday until Sunday.

Organisers said the gallery would provide a platform for UK-based South Asian artists as well as other ones, whose practices were inspired by South Asian history, traditions and cultures.

Founder and art curator Runjeet Singh, who has exhibited internationally, said he was "incredibly proud" to open the gallery in his hometown.

The site, which has space for works ranging from large sculptures to Indian miniature paintings, will deliver a rotating programme of exhibitions over time and has been adapted to accommodate both group and solo shows.

The Midlands was a region with a cultural identity that had been "shaped by South Asian communities", organisers added, with the gallery aiming to celebrate the relationship between South Asian and British culture in the UK.

Paintings and a range of works from eight local and national artists are set to feature across the gallery's opening exhibition, including Amrit Singh Sandhu, Simran Kaur Panesar and Rati Devi Sivyer.

Singh, who is also an expert on the BBC's Antiques Roadshow, said he had worked in the art industry for the past 12 years and had previously exhibited in cities such as London, New York, Paris and Mumbai.

"But this is a particularly special moment, opening a gallery in my own hometown and shining a spotlight on our wonderful spa town, and its creative and artistic spirit, makes me incredibly proud," he added.

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Musical casts voices 'beyond the M25' for UK tour

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz67zzp03g4o, 2 days ago

A musical director has spoken about his determination to have a cast that could represent "voices beyond the M25".

The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) has brought its UK Tour of Matilda The Musical to Manchester's Palace Theatre until 25 April with 23 children from the North West starring in it.

Associate director Joseph Pitcher, said: "The RSC were keen to reach out to young performers who wouldn't necessarily have the chance, to represent voices beyond the M25."

The show, which has hit songs like 'Revolting Children' and 'When I Grow Up', started its UK tour at The Curve Theatre in Leicester, before making stops in Liverpool and Bradford.

When talking about the auditions, which were held in Manchester last year, resident director Matthew Boland said it was "amazing to be in the city with the abundance of young local talent".

"I think Manchester and the surrounding areas are a real creative hub and you felt that energy everyday," he added.

When asked how it felt giving these kids this golden opportunity Joseph added: "I feel an immense amount of pride and why not do this sort of thing again."

Listen to the best of BBC Radio Manchester on Sounds and follow BBC Manchester on Facebook, X, and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.

Orchestra to play monthly concerts at care home

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c9qdzevqv34o, 2 days ago

Musicians from a professional orchestra will perform monthly concerts at a care home as part of a new partnership.

The 12-month programme will see players from Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra (BSO) visit Marjorie House, which provides residential and dementia care in Poole.

Organisers said the sessions aim to boost well-being by using music to stimulate memories and encourage social interaction.

Performances will include duets, classical pieces and music chosen to reflect residents' tastes.

The initiative, called Music at Marjorie House, began with a trial session featuring a cellist and accordion player.

Home manager Georgie Powell said residents were "thrilled" to welcome the musicians.

"They all have a real passion for music, so this is a very exciting opportunity for us," she said.

"They have already spoken to the musicians about the music that reminds them of their childhood, their families and friends or invokes a special memory.

"They are looking forward to hearing some of those pieces live up close and in person.

She said the sessions could help "lift mood, support memory and foster connection".

The partnership forms part of the orchestra's ongoing community work, which also includes projects in schools, hospitals and care settings.

Its Participate programme creates more than 50,000 opportunities each year for people to experience and take part in music.

BSO chief executive, Dougie Scarfe, said the project would help bring music to people "beyond the concert hall".

He said: "We have a hard-earned and longstanding reputation for our creative health work - of which dementia-friendly music-making is a big part.

"It give us the opportunity to take exceptional music into new settings to enrich the cultural lives of people of all ages."

'Very special' - Michael Sheen and Callum Scott Howells lead West End show

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2ev9318eywo, 3 days ago

Michael Sheen and It's a Sin star Callum Scott Howells will lead a major West End run - the first for a Welsh national theatre company.

Amadeus, written by Peter Shaffer, is set to open at the New Theatre in Cardiff in March next year, before transferring to London the following month as part of Welsh National Theatre's 2027/28 programme.

Sheen will reprise his role as composer Antonio Salieri opposite Howells as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

Sheen, the Welsh National Theatre's artistic director, called it a "full-circle moment" and described the West End move as "an important next step".

The story, set in 1820 Vienna, follows Salieri, a respected court composer, who becomes obsessed with Mozart's genius and is consumed by jealousy, beginning a dangerous campaign to destroy the man he both worships and despises.

Sheen first played Mozart in the late 1990s to major acclaim in London and on Broadway, before later taking on the role of Salieri in a production at Sydney Opera House, making him the first major star to play both lead roles.

Amadeus, directed by Jeremy Herrin, also marks Howells' return to the West End after Cabaret in 2022-23.

Sheen said: "To play Salieri opposite a fellow Welshman as Mozart - a role that has meant so much to me - feels very special indeed.

"I directed Callum in my television drama The Way - he's an extraordinary talent who deserves this stage and audiences should be excited for what's to come," he added.

Sheen also said the play was an "important next step" for the Welsh National Theatre, which he established to fill the gap left by the folding of National Theatre Wales.

Sheen, born in Port Talbot, is one of Wales' most recognisable stars, having played a host of high-profile roles, including depicting former prime minister Tony Blair, football legend Brian Clough and journalist David Frost.

Howells, from Pontypridd, won the Bafta Cymru for best actor in 2021 for his portrayal of Colin in Channel 4's It's a Sin, while he also stars in Madfabulous, about a wealthy and eccentric 19th Century Welsh aristocrat, which is due for release in June.

The Welsh National Theatre said its full programme for the upcoming year will be revealed in May at an event with Bad Wolf, featuring classics as well as new work.

Its founding chief executive officer, Sharon Gilburd, said it would "bring to life our vision of what an English language national theatre for Wales should be".

Ruth Slenczynska, last surviving pupil of Rachmaninoff, dies aged 101

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c62ly04pre3o, 3 days ago

Virtuoso pianist Ruth Slenczynska, who was the last surviving pupil of Sergei Rachmaninoff, has died at the age of 101, following an astonishing nine-decade career.

Born in California to Polish parents, the musician gave her first recital at the age of four, and debuted with a full orchestra in Paris aged seven.

Noted for her impeccable technique and musical insight, she played for five US Presidents - even performing a four-hand Mozart duet with Harry Truman at the White House.

Slenczynska performed into her 90s, releasing her final album in 2022. She died peacefully at an assisted living facility in California, said her former pupil Shelly Moorman-Stahlman in a statement to the BBC.

"Tonight, heaven gained a very special angel," said the musician and teacher, adding that Slenczynska's health had faltered after a series of falls.

During recent visits, "she was particularly energetic and mentally clear" and even "played the piano one day", Moorman-Stahlman recalled.

"Always a teacher, during a conversation about a recent performance with orchestra, she 'assigned' me the Mozart Concerto in A M[inor] to learn and bring to her the next time we visited."

After another fall, however, she "passed away peacefully" surrounded by friends, including Moorman-Stahlman's husband, Randy.

Born in 1925, Slenczynska was heralded one of the greatest child prodigies since Mozart.

A Pathé newsreel, filmed when she was five years old, noted that the toddler had "surprised musical critics by her playing of Beethoven".

Her concerts were "an electrifying experience," wrote the New York Times in 1933, "something nature has produced in one of her most bounteous moods".

The musician's father, Josef Slenczynski, was a well-known violinist and head of the Warsaw Conservatory before being wounded during World War One.

After moving to America, he resolved to raise a successful musician, and deemed his daughter a potential pianist or violinist within hours of her birth.

By the age of three, she was versed in basic musical theory and harmony - and the family moved to Europe so she could access the best teachers and rub shoulders with the most influential musicians of the day.

Tyrannical rule

She met Rachmaninoff in 1934, after substituting for him in a concert.

"Mr Rachmaninov had to cancel due to a problem with his elbow," she later recalled. "The manager did not want to lose money from the ticket sales so he contacted my father to see if I could play the concert."

She was summoned to meet the maestro soon afterwards.

"I was a frightened little girl at the door of his apartment at the Villa Majestic in Paris," Slenczynska told NPR in 2022, "and he pointed this long index finger down at me and he said, 'You mean that plays the piano?'"

The nine-year-old shook in fear, until Rachmaninov sat her down and showed her a picture of his speed boat, making buzzing noises to imitate the motor.

Once calm, she played a showpiece for him, then transposed the key instantly when he requested. They became lifelong friends - and she often wore a Fabergé egg necklace that he had given her.

In those early years, she was mentored by Josef Hoffman, Alfred Cortot, Egon Petri and Artur Schnabel.

She also studied alongside Samuel Barber, hearing his world-famous Adagio for Strings in the classroom, before it even had its title.

However, the tyrannical rule of her father proved to be too much.

"The reason that people were startled at what I could do at the piano was quite simple: Father was making me practice nine hours a day, every single day of the week," she wrote in her 1957 autobiography, Forbidden Childhood.

"If I showed signs of wanting to be just an ordinary little girl, like wanting to cuddle my sisters' dolls or make a little noise or jump up and down and run with the neighbourhood kids, father would come down on me with his pail of ice-cold water: 'That's all baby stuff! You're not a baby. You're a musician. Stay away from those kids and their stupid games. It's all a waste of time! You've got to act like a grown-up young lady.'"

At the age of 15, she rejected her concert career, cut off her father completely, enrolled for a psychology degree at the University of California and eloped with a fellow student, named George Born.

The couple divorced in 1953 and, needing to make ends meet, Slenczynska began teaching piano. Before long, she returned to the stage, ending an absence of more than a decade.

Thereafter, she toured with the Boston Pops orchestra for four years, enjoying an on-stage rivalry with conductor Arthur Fiedler.

"At first, Mr Fiedler got standing ovations, and I didn't," she told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch in 1999. "By the third year, I started getting them, too. I learned how to manage an audience, how to let them know you're glad to be there."

Finally, there was a concert in Chicago where a critic praised Slenczynska at Fiedler's expense, writing: "You don't serve champagne and beer together."

"After that, I was not renewed," she later remarked. "There was room for only one star on that tour."

Undeterred, she went on to record 10 sparkling LPs for Decca, showcasing her sense of drama and rhythmic control, especially when playing her speciality - the works of Chopin.

In 1961, she wrote a textbook - Music at Your Fingertips: Aspects of Pianoforte Technique - which remains in print, and later joined the Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville, first as an artist-in-residence, then as a faculty member.

A couple of years later, she married for the second time, to Dr James Kerr, a political science professor. They remained together until his death in 2000, and she described him as the "love of my life".

"I'd marry him again if I could, he's still my sweetheart," she told The Guardian in 2022.

She remained active throughout her life - and, during the first Covid-19 lockdown in 2020, uploaded home recordings of Beethoven's Sonatas to YouTube, to celebrate his 250th anniversary.

She celebrated her 97th birthday with a recital at Lebanon Valley College, Pennsylvania; and returned to Decca in 2022 to record what would become her final album.

Titled My Life In Music, it included touching performances of pieces by Rachmaninoff, Bach and Debussy - approached with a sense of tender nostalgia, as she reflected on her career.

Among the recordings was a version of Chopin's Prelude in F Major, a tribute to her Polish roots, which became one of her personal favourites.

"I had the honour of being with her during her recording session," said Moorman-Stahlman.

"After recording several takes of this work... she quietly turned to me and said, 'This one is good. I would like to have this one played when I ascend into heaven'."

Formal plans for a memorial service and concert will be announced in the coming days.

Port 'working hard' to attract more cruise ships

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg0y80jgj0o, today

The boss of England's most northerly port said he would love to have 10 to 20 cruise ships calling every year.

The Port of Berwick in Northumberland welcomed its first cruise passengers in 2021 and is expecting another ship in June with two more booked for 2027.

Although some passengers use the stop to see Holy Island, 14 miles (22kms) south of the town, others also visit a town renowned for its three bridges and defensive walls dating to the 16th Century.

The port's chief executive officer, David Calder, said it was a "slow burn" but the port was working "very hard with the agents to get more visits from the cruise companies".

"I'd love to see 10 or 20 coming into the port each year," he said.

"The cruise ships are not only good news for the port, they are also good news for the town and wider area."

Berwick has had a working port for more than 1,000 years.

In the 12th Century it was one of the biggest in Britain, taking wool and yarn to Flanders and France.

Agricultural products like grains and fertilisers still make up most of its business with up to 50 cargo ships arriving each year.

The port is also looking to develop into the offshore renewables sector with two projects using Tweed dock as a base in 2024 and 2025.

But it was the "small niche" in the cruise ship business that Calder said he would also like to see grow.

A dredging operation has been taking place at the port, due to end on Saturday, to allow the cargo ships to continue to come in safely.

But cruise ships are too large to come up the river so instead small boats called tenders are used to transport passengers.

The Mayor of Berwick, John Robertson said the cruise liner business was "good" for the town.

"We have so much to offer here, so much history, and something rather different to a lot of other places," he said.

"We really welcome the cruise ship passengers with open arms."

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Deputy defends new Guernsey to Heathrow route

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwy37x11ljyo, yesterday

Strengthening Guernsey's connectivity, supporting the finance sector and growing visitor numbers is a "priority", the Committee for Economic Development (ED) has said.

British Airways launched a new route between Guernsey and Heathrow on 19 April offering an additional flight option to London alongside Guernsey's States-owned airline Aurigny.

But States Trading Supervisory Board (STSB) President Mark Helyar has said the additional route would have a negative impact on Aurigny, which is set to make a £5m loss this year due to falling passenger numbers.

Deputy Sasha Kazantseva-Miller said competition could bring "short-term disruption" and Aurigny would need "time to adjust" to the competitor.

She said: "Securing a link to Heathrow with a national carrier such as British Airways was a key policy and investment objective as agreed by the States in 2018.

"Airline performance is influenced by a range of factors, including market competition, confidence, existing contractual commitments and operating costs."

Kazantseva-Miller said Guernsey's air connectivity had experienced "significant change" over recent years including the collapse of Flybe in 2020 and Blue Islands last year.

She said additional changes to "essential route licensing and rising fuel costs" had caused "a material impact on Aurigny".

"Throughout these challenges, the committee has continued to enable competition and support route development, benefiting different carriers including Aurigny on the Paris route," added Kazantseva-Miller.

Kazantseva-Miller said competition was "a natural part of market evolution".

She said: "Responding to these conditions is a matter for Aurigny's Board. With the existing Air Policy reaching the end of its useful life, work is well under way on a new framework.

"We are working closely with key stakeholders, including the STSB and Aurigny, to ensure it delivers stronger connectivity, greater resilience for lifeline services and clarity on Aurigny's role as a strategic infrastructure asset."

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Scots backpacker could face jail in Thailand over mobile phone 'mistake'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c87wz7n5pwqo, yesterday

A man from Edinburgh says he is facing jail in Thailand because he picked up a woman's phone in a bar "by mistake" on the first day of a backpacking holiday.

Rory McColl, 37, arrived in Bangkok on 9 March for a 12-day trip around the country, but was arrested after he went out for a drink on his first night.

His parents, who have been keeping in touch with him on FaceTime, told BBC Scotland News that bar staff called the police following the misunderstanding and Rory was taken into custody where he spent two days in a concrete jail cell.

They said he was released on bail but has been unable to leave the country as his passport was confiscated.

For the last seven weeks Rory has been living out of a hotel in Pattaya, a popular beach resort about 90 miles (150 km) south east of Bangkok.

A court hearing will decide his fate on 28 April.

Rory, who is a father, could face up to three years in a Thai jail unless the charges are dropped during the preliminary court hearing.

His parents, Helen and John McColl, say they are worried sick and doing their best to support their son from home.

Helen told BBC Scotland: "It all happened so quickly - before Rory knew it the police were there.

"Then he was cuffed and taken to the cells. He was there for two nights - he told us it was horrendous.

"When he realised he wasn't leaving after the first night he was distraught.

"He was on a concrete floor and all he had for a pillow was a plastic water bottle."

His parents said that after the 30-hour journey from Scotland to Thailand, Rory had been enjoying drinks in a bar on KahoSan Road, the world famous nightlife spot, when he realised he had misplaced his phone.

He told his parents he had noticed an identical one on the bar, picked it up and put it in his pocket without a second thought - not realising it belonged to somebody else.

Rory said he explained this to police and that he was in touch with the woman whose phone he took. The BBC has seen an email exchange in which she appears to corroborate his story, but has been unable to verify its authenticity.

The woman has since stopped responding to Rory's emails.

Meanwhile, police say they are pursuing the charges.

Rory said that after two nights in the cells, he paid police £1,000 in bail money and had his passport taken from him before he was allowed to return to a hotel.

He said while he was in the cell, he was approached by a man who claimed to be a lawyer who would represent him in court.

Rory said he paid the man who promised to help him twice, but his family were immediately suspicious.

Helen said: "Rory told us this man stood by him in court and told him he would help to get him back to his son but that never happened.

"The one time he told him to come to court, he sent him away again and told him: 'It is not a good judge today, this one will send you to prison.'

"Alarm bells started to ring when the guy asked Rory to travel two hours to court then sent him away again and when no action had been taken at all."

Rory's current lawyer has told the family it is highly likely this was a scam.

Until the hearing, his parents remain unsure when he will come home.

"We have no great confidence that things will be resolved now," Helen said.

"It is just the unknown that is scary. We don't know for certain what will happen now and that is what keeps us up at night."

John added: "It is incredible that Rory could go to jail on a charge where the injured party says she knows it is a misunderstanding - and does not want to press charges."

Speaking to his parents over FaceTime, Rory said: "I'll email my lawyer tomorrow to see what is happening but hopefully I will be home soon.

"I don't leave the hotel most days. Some days I try to go for a walk to get exercise.

"I just need to stay strong and keep putting a brave face on."

The BBC spoke to a police officer at Chanasongkhram police station in Bangkok who confirmed that Rory was arrested between 9-10 March on the charges of theft by night for stealing a mobile phone.

When asked about the claims that it had been a misunderstanding, the officer said there was no record about it and that "the offence has been done."

He said the case was now at the prosecutor's level and said other details could be clarified in court.

Under the Thai criminal code, such a charge is punished with imprisonment of one to five years and fined £46 to £228, or 2,000 to 10,000 Thai baht.

A spokesperson for the Foreign Office confirmed it was supporting a UK resident arrested abroad and was in communication with the local authorities.

New tourism strategy targets longer stays

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cpwj4r5v2nno, yesterday

A new tourism plan for Shropshire will focus on encouraging longer stays and more local spending, not just visitor numbers.

Shropshire Council said its three-year strategy would also focus on accessibility and inclusion.

Last month a report said Shropshire's tourism sector has passed the £1bn milestone for the first time, and visitor numbers grew to 10.66 million.

The council said over the next three years it wanted to focus on increasing serviced accommodation to support short breaks and build on "Shropshire's identity as a distinctive rural destination".

The plan, which was agreed by the council's cabinet, also sets out an aim to get people visiting all around the year.

Rob Wilson, the councillor responsible for economic growth, said: "Tourism is a major employer for Shropshire and a vital part of our local economy."

In 2025 the tourism sector supported 9,454 jobs across the Shropshire Council area.

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Firefighters tackling wildfire in Mournes

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cly95plvp0jo, today

Firefighters are tackling a wildfire on the Mourne Mountains in County Down.

The blaze broke out on the Slievenaman Road in Newcastle.

It comes as a yellow warning for wildfires remains in place across Northern Ireland.

People are being asked to avoid the area.

NIFRS Group Commander Peter Blaney said the fire is burning over about 10 hectares.

He added that a lot of vegetation has been burnt, but that fire crews have the blaze under control.

"This is in the heart of the Mournes, so it has been affected by wildfires before," he said.

Resources from throughout Northern Ireland are involved, with 52 firefighters attending.

Six pumping appliances, a water tanker, an off-road vehicle, and a command unit are present.

Diversions are in place at the junction of Bryansford Road, Moyad Road and Trassey Road.

Where, when and how can you get involved in IOM wildlife week?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3v6grk71qko, today

The beauty, diversity and potential fragility of the Isle of Man's natural environment is being celebrated in a week-long series of events.

The annual Manx Wildlife Week aims to encourage people to connect with the island's countryside, glens, hills and sea, as well as the creatures and plants that inhabit them.

Organised by Manx National Heritage (MNH), the events bring together experts and enthusiasts from across the island's environmental and conservation charities and groups to share their expertise with the wider public.

Beach cleans, bird watching, countryside walks, workshops, lectures and talks as well as a foray into macro-photography all feature in the programme of more than 25 events.

How did the week come about?

First held in 2018, the week stems from the island's involvement with an online atlas of wildlife.

Organiser Laura McCoy, who is MNH's curator of natural history, said while people could access lots of information online, "launching a website is a little bit boring".

"So we thought well how about we try and celebrate the work behind the scenes and the different groups that are involved in that process of collecting all that data?"

McCoy said the annual event had since "gained momentum - more and more people are ready to put their time into partnering up with us, which is really lovely".

Who is it for?

McCoy said the week involved "a mixture of creative pursuits, scientific pursuits [and] also just fun".

"It's about all ages as well – so the kids can enjoy it, but also adults, if they're a little bit more serious and want to do something that's a bit more scientific," she said.

"Not everybody is interested in the super-scientific stuff; some people just like going on a lovely walk and some people like connecting to their environment in different ways, so we thought 'Well let's mix it up a little bit'.

"And I think it's really worked because we get hundreds of people every year getting involved in these things."

What are the events this year?

Saturday

Bee trail drop-in with Friends of the Earth (FoE), at the Green Centre in Douglas between 10:00 and 16:00 BST (free)

Birds of the coast for young birders with the Manx Ornithological Society, at Scarlett from 10:00 to 12:00 (free)

Wildlife Obstacle Course with Manx Wildlife Trust (MWT), at the Children's Centre from 10:00 to 11:30

Secrets of the Shore – sharks, skates, rays and more with MWT, at The Vollan, North Ramsey Beach, from 12:30 to 14:00 (free)

Nature's Apothecary with the Manx Herbalist, at the Wellbeing Garden in St John's, from 14:00 to 15:30

Sunday

How to Battle Invasive Plants with Friends of the Neb, at The Raggat between 11:00 and 12:00 (free)

Tuesday

Behind the Scenes Tour of Natural History Collections with MNH, at the Manx Museum from 11:00 to 12:30 (free)

Wednesday

Macro-photography: A technical field walk, at the Ballaugh Curragh from 9:30 to12:30

A Walk Through Time – Our peatlands past and future, with the Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture (Defa), at Beinn-y-Phott between 10:30 and 12:30 (free)

Minibeast hunt with MWT, at the Onchan Community Wetlands from 15:30 to 17:30 (free)

Managing your garden for fungi with the IoM Fungus Group, at the iMuseum between 19:00 and 20:00 (free)

Nocturnal Nature with Manx BirdLife, at the Langness Nature Reserve from 20:00 to 22:00

Thursday

Rockpooling for all ages with the MWT, at Douglas Beach, Summer Hill Road between 16:00 and 18:30 (free)

Nest Monitoring on the Ayres NNR with the Defa, at the MWT's Ayres Nature Discovery Centre from 18:30 to 20:00 (free)

Rainforest under construction guided walk, with MWT at the Glion Darragh Nature Reserve, in West Baldwin from 18:00 to 20:00 (free)

Friday

Morning Birdsong with Manx BirdLife, at the Tynwald National Park and Arboretum between 08:00 and 10:00

Wildflower Seed Papermaking workshop with MNH, at the Manx Museum from 11:00 to 12:30

Saturday 2 May

Wetland Wonders with the Invertebrate Group, at the Curragh Wildlife Park, drop-in from 11:00 to 15:00

Garden advice for very wet and dry with FoE, at the Green Centre, in Douglas, drop-in between 10:00 and 16:00 (free)

Spring Walk with the Manx Bat Group, in Silverdale Glen, from 20:30 to 22:00 (free)

Sunday 3 May

Dawn chorus mindfulness morning and concert with MWT, at Ballaugh Old Church from 05:15 to 08:00 (free)

Meditation and Guided Walk with the MWT, in Onchan Wetlands between 10:00 and 11:30 (free)

Monday 4 May

Seawatch with the Manx Whale and Dolphin Watch, at The Sound from 11:00 to 13:00 (free)

Get to know your terns, with the Defa's Ayres Warden, at MWT's Ayres Nature Discovery Centre between 14:30 and 15:30 (free)

Read more stories from the Isle of Man on the BBC, watch BBC North West Tonight on BBC iPlayer and follow BBC Isle of Man on Facebook and X.

Campaigners vow to fight solar farm appeal

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c70dll0qeero, today

Campaigners have vowed to fight a solar farm appeal as they claim the project will destroy farmland.

Bath and North East Somerset Council (Banes) refused permission for the 28.2-hectare (70 acre) solar farm in Burnett, near Keynsham, last year.

The developer, Conrad Energy II Ltd, is now appealing the authority's decision. Chiefs claim the project will create enough energy to power 5,500 homes annually and would still have room for sheep to graze on the fields.

A public consultation into the appeal is under way until 4 May.

The council initially received 41 objections against the site on Burnett Hill and Middlepiece Lane.

People complained the proposals threatened the loss of agricultural land, landscape and local ecology.

"The fields are very open, there is no screening to them at all and, in fact, the panels would all be running along the top of a prominent hill scarp," said resident Richard Arthur.

Potential flooding was also cited as an issue.

"In heavy storms the rain will saturate the ground immediately below the panels, that'll run into hills and there will be a lot more surface water," he added.

A Banes spokesperson said at the time that "significant weight was given to the need for renewable energy, but in this case, with the site location and scale of the development, the harm to the landscape would not be outweighed by the benefits identified".

Conrad Energy said the project would provide clean, renewable energy to the national grid.

"Ecological enhancements are at the heart of it.

"We carefully considered locations to allow the site to continue to be used for agriculture, with the panels designed to allow sheep to graze on the fields below.

"The project is fully reversible, so at the end of its operational life, the panels will be removed, leaving the land around Middlepiece Lane with enhanced biodiversity and an improved local ecosystem as a result," a spokesperson added.

Banes has been approached for comment.

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Thousands at risk after multi-million dollar Everest flood warning system left to rust

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/czjwr93vrrzo, yesterday

An early flood warning system designed to save the lives of thousands of people in the Everest region may no longer be working, Nepalese officials have admitted to the BBC, after it was allowed to fall into a state of disrepair.

The disclosure came after villagers in the local Sherpa communities told the BBC no inspection of the UN-supported project had been carried out for many years after the dangerous Imja glacial lake was last drained in 2016.

Since then, no maintenance has been undertaken, which means siren towers have been left to rust, while some have even had their batteries stolen, according to locals.

On top of this, the satellite data reception transmitting the lake's water level - which can then be used to send out mobile phone alerts to locals - has been unreliable, officials at Nepal's department of hydrology and meteorology (DHM) told the BBC.

The Imja lake, which sits at a little over 5,000m (16,400ft) above sea level, has not burst since it was drained a decade ago - at which point, it was almost 150m deep in places.

Back then, the depth of the lake was reduced by about 3.5m as part of a $3.5m risk reduction project, which included the early warning system.

But scientists warn global warming-induced fast melting glaciers are causing many Himalayan glacial lakes to expand dangerously - meaning they can then burst out and sweep away downstream settlements, trekking routes and bridges.

Ice loss rates have doubled in the Hindu Khush Himalaya region since 2000, according to a recent assessment by the Kathmandu-based International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development.

Experts say rising temperatures have also left mountains less stable, unleashing rockfalls and glacial collapse - sometimes triggering catastrophic floods.

In the Everest region alone, there have been at least five floods from glacial lakes in the last five decades, leaving those living in Imja lake's path fearing for the future.

"Going by the state of the siren towers, we don't expect to get any flood warning from them even when Imja lake bursts out," said Ang Nuru Sherpa, chairman of the Chaurikharka buffer zone area adjoining the Sagarmatha national park in the Everest region.

"The siren tower in our village is rusting and leaning and is set to fall any time because there has never been any maintenance."

"When the project was commissioned, we were told officials from the department of hydrology and meteorology will be visiting the region every year to inspect the system, but we see no one coming here," said Jangbu Sherpa at Chhukung, which would be the first village hit if Lake Imja burst.

"So, we go to the DHM in Kathmandu every year to request them to repair and maintain the early warning system but that has been of no use."

Tshering Sherpa, chief executive officer of the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee, a local NGO in the Everest region, echoed the same message, adding that it was more than just the villagers at risk should Imja burst. Spring is peak visitor season here, with trekkers, tourists and climbers all arriving in the area.

"Six villages in the region are vulnerable to floods and so are the more than 60,000 tourists who visit our region every year," Sherpa pointed out.

It is not that officials are not aware of the risks.

But Niraj Pradhananga, a senior meteorologist in the DHM, said central government had failed to allocate any budget, while suggestions the maintenance cost could be covered by hydro-power providers further down the valley have not come to fruition.

"As a result, we cannot say for sure if the early warning sirens work or they don't," he told the BBC.

"We have heard that batteries of the siren system have been stolen in [downstream villages ] like Dingboche."

Archana Shrestha, the DHM's acting director general, acknowledged funds had been redirected to upgrade the early warning system for another glacial lake.

"That took all our resources and time, now we will move our attention to Imja lake," she told the BBC.

"We are also making changes in rules and regulation so that our staff get enough time, budget and resources to go to the ground and perform maintenance and repair works as the Imja lake is in a remote location."

Compounding concerns is the fact the hydro-met station which is supposed to transfer real-time water-level related data to officials in Kathmandu has been plagued with issues.

"We have not been receiving data [of the level of lake and any changes] as regularly as we need to and as a result we are unable to issue mobile phone alerts if there is flood.

"We have been raising this with the satellite company and its local service provider," said Pradhananga.

The satellite company told the BBC there were no issues, pointing to the local service provider. DHM officials said the local service provider had not responded to them.

The BBC has contacted the provider with a request for comment.

Even as these problems are being dealt with, the UNDP has received another $36m grant to repeat the process from Imja lake at four other locations in Nepal.

Monica Upadhyay, head of communication with UNDP Nepal, said "lessons from Imja" had informed the design of the other schemes.

"These place stronger emphasis from the outset on long-term sustainability - through clearer institutional arrangements, dedicated financing mechanisms, and partnerships, including with the private sector where appropriate."

Meanwhile, members of the Sherpa community say they have no choice but to live with risks.

"For us in the Khumbu region, it has just been an eyewash," said Nawang Thome Sherpa, head of a local body in Phakding, one of the vulnerable villages downstream Imja lake.

"They spent millions of dollars in the name of protecting us from potential disaster - but we are having to live with fear of loss of lives and property every day."

In photos: North India braces for heatwaves as temperatures cross 40C

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg0666d0xjo, yesterday

India's weather department has said that parts of northern India, including capital Delhi, are likely to experience heatwaves over the weekend.

The warning came after temperatures crossed 40C in some parts of Delhi on Thursday, making it one of the city's hottest days this year.

The weather department has also warned of above normal temperatures in some states in central and western India, including Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, for the next two to three days.

Summers can be deadly in India, where the scorching heat causes various heat-related ailments in people and has even resulted in deaths.

On Friday, the weather department said that temperatures in northern and central India are likely to increase by another 2-3C.

Earlier this week, Delhi's education department issued guidelines to schools to deal with adverse weather conditions.

It asked schools to stop open-air classes and to curtail outdoor assemblies or to conduct them indoors. It also advised ringing a bell every 45-60 minutes to remind children to drink water.

A 2024 report by the medical journal Lancet found that almost one-third of the heatwave days India experienced that year were driven by climate change.

It also estimated that heat exposure in 2024 resulted in the loss of 247 billion potential labour hours, mostly in the agriculture and construction sectors. amounting to an economic loss of about $194bn (£151bn).

Experts say prolonged exposure to extreme heat has serious repercussions on health. It can overwhelm the body's ability to regulate temperature, increasing the risk of dehydration, heatstroke, cardiovascular stress, and even death - particularly among the elderly, infants and outdoor workers.

First ever talks to ditch fossil fuels as UN deadlock deepens

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2rq92yv4vo, 2 days ago

A large group of countries including some major oil producers are meeting on Friday to plan something UN climate summits have failed to agree on - a complete move away from fossil fuels.

Around 60 nations are gathering in Santa Marta, Colombia as the world warms rapidly, mainly from the use of coal, oil and gas.

Countries attending account for roughly a fifth of global fossil fuel supply - including Colombia, Australia and Nigeria - but major powers including the US, China and India are not part of the talks.

Progress at the annual UN COP climate meetings has slowed as decisions depend on the consent of all, giving large fossil producers an effective veto.

At COP30, held in Brazil last November, efforts to agree a roadmap away from fossil fuels failed as major oil producing nations wouldn't agree to the plan.

Delegates say this new meeting in Colombia is not to replace the COP, but to complement it.

This frustration with COPs is also being sharpened by the science, which suggests the chance to keep warming to safer levels - and avoid the most damaging impacts - is slipping away.

Scientists say once warming passes 1.5C, dangerous impacts become more likely and harder to reverse.

"We are inevitably going to crash through the 1.5C limit within the next three to five years," Prof Johan Rockström, director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, told BBC News.

"Breaking through 1.5C means we enter a far more dangerous world - with more frequent and intense droughts, floods, fires and heatwaves - and we are already approaching critical tipping points in major Earth systems."

At the same time, events beyond the climate sphere are beginning to reshape the debate of fossil energy.

While the US, the world's largest economy has pushed back strongly in favour of coal, oil and gas, under President Trump, many other countries are now sitting on the fence in terms of the scale and speed of their move away from fossil energy

Participants at the Santa Marta meeting believe the real purpose of the meeting is to show those who are hesitating about the transition that there is a critical mass moving in favour of renewables.

"We are committed to working with other countries to support those wishing to drive forward their transitions to clean and secure energy," said UK Climate Envoy Rachel Kyte who is attending the gathering.

"We have the experience of our transition to share and the recent experience of driving to energy security with our clean power mission."

Conflict in the Middle East has pushed up oil prices in recent weeks, highlighting the risks of dependence on fossil fuels and bringing questions of energy security back into focus.

"This is exactly why this conference matters now," said former Irish President Mary Robinson, who is attending the meeting as a founding member of The Elders group of former world leaders.

"The urgency is multiplied. What's happening has worsened the fossil fuel crisis we're already in."

The dramatic events in the Straits of Hormuz and elsewhere are impacting the choices people are making about energy consumption.

"I've just stepped off an advisory board meeting with Mercedes-Benz, and they expressed what's happening as a success - a sharp rise in demand for electric vehicles in Europe," Prof Rockström said.

"People are recognising they want energy independence - they don't want to be in the hands of a volatile oil and gas market."

The emergence of this new "coalition of the willing" raises questions about whether it represents a shift away from the COP process altogether.

"Ultimately you don't need all countries to drive global progress. You need a starting point," said Katerine Petersen from think tank E3G, who is attending the meeting.

"Then you need a coalition that can expand over time and show how it can and will be useful. And I think that's what we're expecting to see from Santa Marta."

The organisers stress that this meeting is not an alternative to COP, but see it as playing a key role in reviving that process.

Some of the leaders of the Brazilian COP will be in attendance in Santa Marta and the main conclusions agreed there will become part of Brazil's roadmap away from fossil fuels that the country has said it will publish before COP31 in Turkey in November.

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'Empower young people to be bold conservationists'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1eqxjz6g22o, 2 days ago

BBC Springwatch presenter Chris Packham has said young people should be empowered to become the brave and bold conservationists of the future.

The naturalist was visiting the University of East Anglia in Norwich as part of the centenary celebrations for the Norfolk Wildlife Trust.

"Typically young people are clearer thinking, clearer speaking, they're not so risk averse," he said.

He also praised the work of fellow TV conservationist Sir David Attenborough, who had "taught generations of young people to develop a deep-rooted love for the natural world".

Packham is a co-presenter of the long-running BBC Two wildlife programme, as well as a campaigner and author.

Speaking to BBC Look East's Amelia Reynolds, he said he had been visiting Norfolk since the late 1970s, including with Springwatch to broadcast from Wild Ken Hill by the coast.

"You've got sandy dunes, you've got muddy coasts, you've got reedbeds, you've got dry heath, you've got all this farmland as well," he said.

"With all that diversity of habitat over Norfolk, it attracts a great range of species."

He praised Norfolk Wildlife Trust for "diligently documenting everything that lives in our county".

The trust was founded by Dr Sydney Long after he purchased 435 acres of marsh at Cley next the Sea in 1926.

Past conservation efforts have focused on preserving nature reserves and Packham now wants people to work with farmers and foresters to help "reshape the landscape" so it is "healthier".

"I think what we need at the moment are some brave and bold politicians who are going to accept that we are in a crisis and we have to act," he added.

"Climate breakdown will be impacting the farmers here and their capacity to produce food... please don't think that the nature crisis and the climate crisis is not having an impact on the cost of living crisis, because it very definitely is."

In 2022, research by the London School of Economics and Political Science predicted that climate change would cost the UK the equivalent of 3.3% of its GDP by 2050.

Agricultural production would be seriously impacted by drier ground, the study also said.

Packham believes his campaigning activities would be harder if it were not for Attenborough — who is soon to celebrate his 100th birthday.

"He is the greatest broadcaster the world has ever had and the greatest ambassador of life. He has entertained, engaged, enraptured people, he has taught generations of young people to have a deep-rooted affinity, a love, for the natural world," he said.

"And without that, when people like myself go knocking on the door, asking for support, it wouldn't be there."

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New sustainability hub launches in Cheltenham

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj94xx9k2xeo, 4 days ago

A charity has opened a new venue aimed at helping people learn and share ideas about how to be more sustainable.

The Greenhouse, based in St Pauls in Cheltenham, operates by using a heat pump, rainwater harvesting and solar power.

The venue, opened by charity Vision 21 on Earth Day on Wednesday, will offer activities such as youth sessions, films, upcycling workshops, and discussions on environmental and social justice.

The charity's CEO, James Cooke, said the hub will "empower people to live greener and more sustainable lives".

Raechel Kelly, project lead, said The Greenhouse is "more than a building" and will help the community "lead the way on climate solutions".

Felicity Parnham runs Cheltenham Action for Nature, a local group that plans to use the hub for talks.

She said a dedicated space for discussing issues caused by climate change is needed in Cheltenham.

"I think one of the problems is that climate change, sustainability, nature recovery, they're big topics, and yet we have no central space to go to," she said.

"Having one place where you know you can go and meet people and they are fully supportive of what you're doing… I think it's going to be a real benefit."

Vision 21 said it will raise money towards the running costs and development of The Greenhouse through the Big Give Earth Raise appeal.

From Earth Day through to 29 April, every donation made to the charity through the Big Give platform will be matched in full.

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Electricity bills targeted in planned shakeup to energy pricing

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c79jg43vd8no, 5 days ago

Households will be better protected from high energy bills triggered by spikes in gas prices, the government said on Tuesday, as it announced a planned shakeup in the way electricity is priced.

Even though renewable energy sources like wind and solar often generate more power, volatile international gas markets can shape what homes and businesses pay for electricity.

The government wants to weaken this link within the next year to shield households from sudden rises in fossil fuel prices, like those triggered by the conflict over Iran.

It has not put a number on the savings but believes they could be "significant".

Analysts say any saving is likely to be small but should make prices more stable.

The Conservatives said that it was essential to make electricity cheaper and blamed high prices on government taxes and levies.

The government also announced an increase to the so-called windfall tax on some electricity generators, which it says will help it to support households with the cost of living.

"We need to get off the fossil fuel rollercoaster – this will make energy bills more stable and take the pressure off family budgets," Sir Keir Starmer said.

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband argued that "you can't solve a fossil fuels crisis by doubling down on fossil fuels", adding that the shift to clean energy was the solution to the threat of climate change and high energy bills.

Even though renewable energy is generating more electricity than ever before, the relatively cheap running costs of wind and solar are not fully reflected in people's bills.

That is partly because the price of electricity on the wholesale market is set, under the current system, by the last unit of electricity needed to meet demand at any given time.

In Britain, that last unit is often gas-generated electricity - which means that when gas prices spike, so do electricity bills.

Many European countries - such as Spain and France - are not as vulnerable to gas price spikes because they are not as reliant on it for electricity.

The government has decided – for now – against revamping the entire system, with gas still playing an important role when the Sun isn't shining and the wind isn't blowing.

But the government wants to shift older, clean energy projects – which account for about one-third of Britain's electricity generation - on to fixed-price contracts.

They would be paid their own renewable energy price - rather than the market electricity price, which is often set by gas - plus any previously agreed subsidy.

This would bring them more in line with recent renewable energy developments, which are already paid a fixed price, and analysts say it would better protect households against fossil fuel price spikes.

The government does not have a firm estimate for savings on bills, but says it is confident it will save people money.

The plans to weaken the link between electricity and gas prices will be subject to consultation, but the government believes the changes could be in place in about a year's time.

The government also says that "excess profits" made by some electricity generators will be taxed at 55% from 1 July, up from 45%.

The so-called windfall tax will also be extended beyond 2028, when it had been due to expire, the government says.

It was introduced in 2023 and applies to some generators with older renewable energy contracts, who would otherwise make large profits when gas prices spike.

The government hopes that the threat of a tax increase will incentivise these generators to make the voluntary switch to fixed-price contracts, which would not be taxed in this way.

Miliband has also announced plans to amend planning laws to make it easier for those without a driveway to charge electric cars and to enable more businesses to install solar panels, as part of a broader drive towards clean electric technologies.

In response, shadow energy secretary Claire Coutinho accused Miliband of "piling on cost after cost onto people's electricity bills", pointing to taxes and levies on bills on top of wholesale prices.

"If we want people to use electricity, then we need to make it cheap," she said.

Reform UK energy spokesperson Richard Tice argued subsidies for some clean energy projects were adding to bills.

"This is a cynical move by Miliband to lock future governments into wasteful, expensive energy contracts," he said.

Liberal Democrat energy spokesperson Pippa Heylings said the government should act and break the link between electricity and gas prices.

"We have consistently argued that if Britain is generating more and more cheap renewable electricity, households should feel the benefit in lower bills," she said.

Green Party energy spokesperson Carla Denyer said she was "relieved" to hear the plans but accused the government of being too slow to act.

"It is nearly two years since the election - two years in which they could have prevented a crisis like this rather than just respond to it," she said.

Plaid Cymru also welcomed the proposed changes but called for the government to go further.

"As long as electricity prices are tied to volatile gas markets, households and businesses will continue to pay the price," its energy spokesperson Llinos Medi said.

The SNP has been contacted for comment.

Northern Ireland is part of a separate energy market.

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Why was an EasyJet plane too heavy for take-off?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn8dp480p0no, 7 days ago

On 11 April five passengers volunteered to leave an EasyJet plane travelling to Malaga from Southend Airport because the aircraft was too heavy for take-off. The airport said it was not the first time it had been necessary to disembark passengers, but why does it happen?

For a heavy passenger plane to take-off it requires a finely tuned combination of four forces, weight, lift, thrust and drag.

The heavier the aircraft, the more lift it has to generate as it accelerates along the runway to become airborne.

To achieve lift, the air pressure under a plane's wing has to be higher than above it, and the shape of the wings, the aircraft's thrust or speed and the air density all play a part.

It means weather can affect this equation.

When it is hot, air molecules are further apart, which can cause the aircraft's combustion engines to take longer to reach the necessary speed for take-off and there are also fewer air molecules to lift the aircraft.

Why was the plane unable to take-off?

Lift is also affected by the direction and strength of the wind as a headwind aids take-off. Guy Gratton, professor of aircraft test and evaluation at Cranfield University, believes this was the problem for EasyJet's flight EJU7008 from Southend.

"The wind, being 50° off the runway heading, would give almost no headwind. Headwind is usually there - in England the wind is usually from the south-west, [which is] aligned with Southend's runway, which points at 230°, and helps shorten take-offs," he says.

"On this occasion, it wasn't and there may as well have been almost no wind at all. This would be quite unexpected and can indeed cause problems," he adds.

One way to overcome the problem, is for the aircraft to travel further along the runway to give it time to reach the necessary lift.

At Southend Airport, however, this was not possible as although the runway was extended in 2012, it is still relatively short at 1,856m (6,089ft).

By comparison, Stansted Airport's runway is 3,049m (10,003ft) and Luton Airport's is 2,162m (7,093ft).

Gratton says another way to address the issue is to make the plane lighter, which usually mean passengers disembarking or removing luggage.

He adds it is a "straightforward solution and it was quite right that EasyJet's dispatcher and captain would not take-off until the aeroplane was within limits".

How often does this happen?

While removing passengers and luggage for take-off is not a regular occurrence, it does happen, particularly at airports with shorter runways.

In 2014 a number of passengers travelling the same route from Southend to Malaga were asked to disembark the aircraft.

Sometimes aircraft are made heavier by the need to carry extra fuel to allow them to deal with changing weather conditions while flying.

Airlines do not routinely weigh passengers before a flight and instead work on standard average weight for each passenger.

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency carried out a study in 2022 that concluded the mean passenger weight, including carry-on luggage, was 84kg.

In the case of flight EJU7008 it appears the aeroplane's weight was too great for the conditions that morning.

Why wasn't it spotted earlier?

Jeremy Spake, who has worked in the aviation industry for 30 years and featured in Airport, a BBC programme that documented life at Heathrow Airport in the 1990s, said that "saving almost 600kg in weight might not sound much but it can be the difference in getting off the runway without issue".

Gratton says what is "slightly unusual" for flight EJU7008 is that the issue "wasn't realised earlier on".

"Usually, passengers will be asked [to switch flights] before they ever board. However, with the rush of an early morning tourist flight, it's perhaps not totally unexpected that this didn't occur earlier," he adds.

Spake agrees, adding "managing it in the terminal before people have their bottoms on the plane is so much easier".

"On the upside, if you're denied boarding, you're legally entitled to compensation, which for a flight to Malaga would be around £350. If your journey wasn't urgent that could be quite attractive," Spake says.

How will climate change impact flights?

Climate change is expected to bring more extreme weather events, including hotter summers and wind changes in the UK, which Gratton says could make flights struggling to take-off more likely.

"Almost all main airport runways were built aligned, as best as they could, with historical average winds.

"Climate change is moving the wind out of alignment with the runways, and thus reducing the useful headwind," he adds.

Gratton says he has researched the issue at Greek airports and found "significant differences for airports with short single runways, like Southend has".

As airlines have no control over the weather or the length and direction of runways, in future, he says, they may have to build more generous margins into the weight estimates of aircraft to minimise these last-minute problems for passengers.

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Wetter winter and warmer summer hit marine life

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy51wrg6lp0o, 11 days ago

Record winter rainfall is flushing pollution and sediment into Devon and Cornwall's coastal waters, raising risks to marine life, shellfish and potentially human health as conditions warm.

In March, forecasters said parts of Cornwall and Devon had seen rainfall totals reach about 150% of the long-term average and, in February, the Met Office recorded Cornwall's wettest winter since records began.

If future winters are mild, wet and windy, it may have long-term impacts, not just on land, but also in our marine environment and coastal ecology and health.

The Plymouth Marine Laboratory has been using equipment including satellites and drones to monitor the waters, testing levels of viruses and bacteria, and looking at the numbers of different species of algae.

'Large sediment plumes'

Bio-optical oceanographer Dr Gavin Tilstone, of the Plymouth Marine Laboratory, said: "The first thing that we notice is a large freshwater plume and that can reach way offshore.

"The second thing is sediment... large sediment plumes will completely block the light, and therefore it has an effect on submerged vegetation; seagrass, for example, maybe even seaweed."

Tilstone said this could be taken advantage of by certain species which were harmful to humans, fish and shellfish.

Within this sediment are high levels of nutrients from farm run-off to sewage spills, which has an impact on algal growth. The more nutrients in the water, the more prolific the algal growth.

Algal blooms are prominent going into spring and some of them are toxic to all marine life.

The sediment and nutrients from the winter stays in coastal waters throughout the year and can also contain high levels of bacteria and virus material.

It often sinks to the seabed but can be stirred up by wave action and, as the water warms, the bacteria thrive and high levels of sediment could smother marine vegetation and reduce growth of all types.

Another thing the team looks for is bacteria.

Tilstone said: "We run samples for bacterial counts, viral counts, and then we can see the numbers of bacteria that are coming down the rivers and along the coast.

"We've sampled for E. coli, a bacteria that's harmful to humans, and, indeed after any heavy rainfall event, we can detect large counts of E. coli."

He said the impact on the environment going forward was dependent on how spring and summer progressed.

"It could be that we get persistent rainfall, in which case we could get larger, possibly noxious and harmful blooms occurring on the coast.

"Or it could be that we get very dry and hot summer conditions, which can also have a big impact on the coastal environment.

"The system is in a state of flux and it will continue to change."

Bruce Newport, area environment manager for bathing waters at the Environment Agency, said there was a difference between the work of Plymouth Marine Laboratory and that of the agency.

He said: "Ours is very much more looking at sewerage indicators and, where we find those, we can then begin to work to understand where they've come from."

Newport said there was not methodology which would allow "real-time testing" to give information "moment by moment".

"Over the last 30 years, we've been collecting bathing water samples once a week through the summer and that long-term data set gives you the best idea of where is safest to swim."

'Much better place'

He added if people called the agency and gave information, it would respond to that but "many of our beaches have got very long records of being excellent bathing waters".

He said: "There are only a few of those beaches where you're likely to find issues, especially after heavy rain.

"It is disappointing to see sewage going into our rivers and into our bathing waters, but, if you look back in time, we're in such a much better place we are today than we were 10 or 15 years ago.

"The water is so much cleaner and now, with pretty well 98% of our bathing waters meeting brilliant standards, we're in a really great place right across Devon and Cornwall.

"I think the biggest challenge that we've got is, now we've got most of our bathing waters to a very clean state, it's actually now becoming more difficult to find out which of the pipes is causing the problem."

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UK butterflies declining after 50 years of data

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cddq51v7nygo, 11 days ago

A volunteer-led survey spanning half a century has revealed that more than half of the UK's butterfly species are in decline.

Figures from the UK Butterfly Monitoring Scheme show 33 of the country's 59 species have fallen since 1976.

The scheme, by Wareham-based Butterfly Conservation and partners, has gathered more than 44 million records over a half-century of volunteer surveys.

Experts say habitat loss, pollution and climate change are driving long-term declines, particularly among rarer species.

The monitoring programme, the largest of its kind in the world, has tracked butterflies across more than 7,600 sites, with volunteers walking the equivalent of 40 times around the globe.

While some adaptable species have increased, those reliant on specific habitats such as woodland or chalk grassland are struggling.

The Pearl-bordered Fritillary has declined by 70% since records began, while the White-letter Hairstreak has fallen by 80%.

By contrast, species like the Red Admiral have thrived, with numbers rising by more than 300% as warmer temperatures allow them to survive year-round in the UK.

Despite 2025 being the sunniest year on record, it was only an average year for butterflies overall, ranking 20th out of the past 50.

Professor Richard Fox, from Butterfly Conservation, said the figures showed "what type of wildlife is able to survive in the UK's modern landscapes".

He said restoring habitats was key to reversing declines, adding that conservation efforts were becoming "increasingly urgent".

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Butterfly numbers are dropping but here are five species you may see more of

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c75kk7p41npo, 11 days ago

Increasingly warm and sunny weather over the last half century – driven in part by climate change – has helped some British butterfly species to flourish, according to one of the world's biggest insect monitoring schemes.

But the overall picture is more troubling. Data collected over half a century shows many of the UK's most distinctive butterflies are in steep decline.

The findings come from the UK Butterfly Monitoring Scheme (UKBMS), which has gathered more than 44 million records from 782,000 volunteer surveys since 1976 – making it one of the largest and longest-running citizen science projects of its kind.

Of the 59 native species monitored, 33 have declined, 25 have improved and one mountain species has too little data to assess.

Butterfly species which are doing well include the Red admiral, some of which are now spending winter in the UK as the climate warms.

Comma butterflies, with their distinctively ragged wing edges, have recovered in numbers since the survey began.

Orange tip numbers are up more than 40% since 1976, and Black hairstreak - one of the UK's rarest butterflies - is recovering thanks to conservation work.

The Large Blue has also done well thanks to conservation efforts, after being declared extinct in 1979.

The survey results highlight a growing divide between adaptable species and specialists, according to the charity, Butterfly Conservation.

Butterflies able to thrive in a wide range of environments – including farmland, parks and gardens – are generally coping better and, in some cases, increasing in number.

Warmer conditions linked to climate change are helping drive this trend, the charity says, by boosting survival and extending the geographic range and breeding seasons for flexible species.

Prof Jane Hill, a butterfly expert at the University of York, describes the data collected by the scheme over the last five decades as "extraordinary" and says it represents a gold standard for wildlife surveys worldwide.

She explains that because butterflies are cold-blooded insects, they generally thrive in warmer conditions.

"Most British butterflies reach their northern range limit in the UK, so they have opportunities to expand further north into northern England and Scotland," she adds.

But butterflies whose lifecycles are tied to specific habitats, such as woodland clearings or chalk grasslands, are struggling.

Many are declining at alarming rates, as those environments come under pressure. They are failing to expand their ranges because of a lack of suitable new habitats to colonise.

Some of the losses have been dramatic. The white-letter hairstreak – whose caterpillars glow under ultraviolet light – has fallen by 80% since the scheme began.

The pearl-bordered fritillary, a striking orange-and-black butterfly whose caterpillars feed only on violets, has declined by 70%.

Even among more adaptable butterflies, the picture is mixed. The once-common small tortoiseshell, for example, has declined by 87%.

"Just as we have lost family-run shops and traditional skills from the nation's high streets, we've lost variety and diversity in the butterfly communities that can exist in our damaged and simplified landscapes," said Prof Richard Fox, head of science at Butterfly Conservation.

The scale of the dataset reflects a huge public effort. Volunteers have walked more than 932,000 miles in total at more than 7,600 sites

"Without this evidence timeline, we would be flying blind," said Steve Wilkinson, director of the Joint Nature Conservation Committee which advises the four UK governments and helps run the UKBMS.

"Understanding where conservation efforts are making a real difference and where we need to strengthen efforts, depends entirely on the quality and continuity of data that our volunteers make possible," he said.

Much of the conservation effort is focused on protecting and enlarging the habitats butterflies need to survive, particularly in the face of land-use changes, including the intensification of farming and environmental degradation.

It is made even more challenging because of how picky some butterfly species and their caterpillars are about what they eat.

Many species have evolved to rely exclusively on one or two specific plant species for food – the Duke of Burgundy on primroses and cowslips, for example, or the purple emperor on goat or grey willow.

This is why Butterfly Conservation's Magdalen Hill Downs reserve attempts to sustain a range of different habitats, explains the charity's reserves officer, Fiona Scully.

She gestures across the chalky fields, which are covered with cowslips in full bloom, and lists just a few of the other native plants that thrive here: "Lady's bedstraw, toadflax, betony, scabious, knapweed – we've just got so many."

It is this variety that makes the site such a stronghold for butterflies, she says.

Recent results from the UK Butterfly Monitoring Scheme highlight the scale of the challenge.

Despite the UK experiencing its sunniest year on record – conditions typically favourable for butterflies – 2025 ranked only as an average year (20th out of the past 50), with no species recording its best year.

This pattern echoes findings from Butterfly Conservation's Big Butterfly Count, which saw record participation from more than 125,000 people, yet reported only average butterfly numbers per count.

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Why are trees dying beside a major road and how can it be fixed?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgld6zn0192o, 12 days ago

National Highways is to trial a new way of planting trees alongside roads after admitting its "performance on tree planting has not been good enough".

Many thousands of trees have died since it planted 860,000 saplings between Cambridge and the A1, after completing the A14 upgrade in 2020.

A further 165,000 trees and shrubs were planted between 2022 and 2023, and people nearby even took to planting their own trees along part of the road's embankments.

So what goes wrong after trees are planted - and can it be fixed?

Why are trees planted along major roads?

For decades, the A14 in Cambridgeshire was synonymous with slow-moving traffic, jack-knifed lorries and very long delays.

That changed with the completion of a £1.5bn road improvement scheme, a 12-mile (19km) Cambridge to Huntingdon three-lane carriageway. About 270 hectares (670 acres) of habitat, including 40 native tree and shrub species, was planted as part of the project.

In part, this was to mitigate for the removal of the many existing mature trees in the path of the re-routed road.

"Trees are the soft estate along the highways and have multiple functions, including as a visual screen to hide it from surrounding landscape," said Neil Davies, the chairman of the board of trustees at the Arboricultural Association, a charity which promotes awareness of tree care.

"It can provide environmental screening, for noise for example, and it has a habitat and landscape value, including linking up with established habitats."

What has gone wrong with the A14 planting?

Up to 30% of the first tranche of saplings planted along the A14 died, although all were replanted.

In 2023, Martin Edwards, senior project manager at National Highways, said this was partly because their planting took place in the spring, which was not an optimal time, after the Conservative government wanted the road opened early.

Hot summers were also to blame.

But two years later, there were complaints sections of the A road "still look like a desert".

The problem is not unique to the government agency — the National Trust believes last year's drought was responsible for losing two in every five newly-planted trees in the Peak District, while hundreds of council-planted saplings died in Darlington.

Davies, whose organisation was not involved with any of these schemes, added: "I've never been involved with a scheme with a 100% success rate.

"If you plant 100 trees, you'll expect about 10% loss and up to 20% with a really horrible winter, but the contract would expect the owner and the contractor to take responsibility for 'beating up' - or making good the losses."

What are the problems that can affect growth?

"Often the problem is getting the right tree for the right location," said Davies.

He explained large-scale planting schemes, like the A14 one, planted "whips" - metre-high trees aged between two and four years old.

"These should have a good success rate if handled appropriately. Some species prefer very damp and wet locations, others prefer it dry and others don't like it in a very windy location," he said.

Willow or alder would suit a very wet site, designed to deal with motorway run-off while they would not be happy with a free-draining bank that drops away from the road.

Ground preparation was also key, removing any builders' rubble, not planting trees over drainage tunnels and ensuring the sub-soil has not been so tightly compacted by months of heavy machinery that the roots struggle or have nowhere to grow.

"You need to manage the conditions so it's not out-competed by brambles or bracken and to make sure the tree guards are still in place to stop deer or rabbits eating the bark, and water them if there's a drought," he added.

In fact, the association recommends that newly-planted trees should be given 50 litres (11 gallons) of water per week during the summer months for the first three years after planting.

"Ultimately, these whips have got quite a lot of vigour and vitality and should grow well if handled appropriately."

What is being done in the A14 trial?

A National Highways spokesperson said the A14 upgrade had "delivered major economic, safety and environmental benefits, but we recognise that our performance on tree planting has not been good enough".

So, in addition to using cell-grown saplings the government-owned company would:

* Use mychorrizal [fungi] to improve moisture retention

* Add fertiliser for an additional nutrient boost

* Install a mulch mat to provide a protective barrier to suppress weeds and further support moisture retention

Davies said: "It's always good to trial these things and see what does work and what doesn't.

"For example, the mychorrizal will help improve the condition and biome of soil [the community of organisms living in the soil], but I've not trialled it on a 50,000-trees scale, so it'll be interesting to see how it works out."

What should be done in the future?

Davies said the A14 landscape scheme was not the only one in the country which was "not getting it right" and often it came down to not factoring the all-important aftercare.

"I was talking to a colleague at the Netherlands last summer and over there, contracts are established on the basis of not only sticking the trees in the ground, but also making sure they survive for the first four or five years," he said.

In the UK, he had seen contracts where the emphasis is on keeping the contract as low as possible on price.

"As an industry, we've got to be aware that if we want trees to be established in the landscape — whether it's in a housing estate, by a railway or along a road — then we need to allocate resources to that," he said.

"The key from me is education, education, education. Let's let everyone know — it's not just sticking a tree in the ground, it's preparation and aftercare."

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Two killed in strike on alleged drug boat in Pacific Ocean, US military says

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cge03pjv2zqo, today

The US military has conducted another strike on an alleged drug smuggling boat in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing two people, US Southern Command said.

Southern Command, whose area of responsibility includes South America, Central America and the Caribbean, announced the strike in a post on X on Friday.

"Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations," the officials said.

The incident is the latest in a series of US strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats since the Trump administration launched its campaign in September.

Southern Command said "two male narco-terrorists" were killed in the action, and no US military forces were harmed.

"On April 24, at the direction of [Southern Command] commander Gen. Francis L Donovan, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations," the unit said in its post on X.

The unit also shared a video showing what appeared to be a small fishing boat being struck, causing a large explosion that left the vessel in flames.

Under the Trump administration, US forces have launched dozens of strikes on boats they say are part of a large-scale operation to ferry drugs into the US.

According to the BBC's US partner CBS News more than 180 people have been killed in strikes since September.

But the military has not provided evidence that the attacked boats were carrying drugs or drug smugglers, sparking criticism of the operation and questions around its legality.

Some legal experts have argued that the strikes could violate international law by targeting civilians without offering them due process.

The Trump administration has said the killings are lawful. In a statement to Congress last year, the White House said President Trump had "determined" that the US was in a formal armed conflict with drug cartels and that crews of drug-running boats were "combatants".

The frequency of the strikes has lessened since US forces in January seized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who the Trump administration has accused of participating in narco-terrorism schemes, which Maduro has previously denied.

Thirty-one sloths die in Florida before opening of attraction

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz675j3y151o, yesterday

Thirty-one sloths planned for a new "slothnarium" in Florida died before the attraction's planned opening, authorities have found.

The mammals were planned to be showcased at a permanent, public exhibit at Sloth World in Orlando, set to open this spring.

Many of the sloths died due to conditions at a Florida warehouse where they had been shipped, according to a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) report released on Friday. Others arrived in Florida already dead or appeared in ill health and later died, the report states.

The owner of Sloth World has denied allegations in the report and said there was "so much false and inaccurate information out there right now".

"The truth is, we lost sloths that had a virus of which showed barely any symptoms and was undetectable even after necropsy," Ben Agresta, the owner of Sloth World, told Fox-35 in Orlando.

The BBC has contacted Sloth World, along with its listed owner and representatives.

Sloth World is advertised as Orlando's only "slotharium", with a rainforest-inspired habitat "designed exclusively with sloth wellbeing in mind", according to its website.

The report from the FWC, obtained by the BBC on Friday, outlines two instances of the mammals dying ahead of the attraction's planned opening.

In December 2024, 21 sloths shipped from Guyana died due to cold conditions at a warehouse in Florida they had been shipped to, according to the FWC report.

Then, in February 2025, two of 10 sloths travelling from Peru arrived dead. The remaining eight "appeared emaciated" and later succumbed to "poor health issues", the report states.

When FWC investigators were alerted and began investigating, Peter Bandre, who is listed online as the attraction's vice-president, told them that the warehouse where the sloths had died was not properly set to receive the animals.

Bandre told investigators: "It was too late to cancel the shipment."

He attributed their deaths to a "cold stun", the report adds.

The building had no water nor electricity, so space heaters were purchased to keep it warm for the animals. But the heaters tripped a fuse and shut down, the report states.

For at least one night, the sloths were in the building without heat, investigators found. The animals are native to tropical rainforests and typically live in areas with temperatures ranging from 70-86F (21-30C).

The report notes those sloths arrived in Florida on 18 December 2024. Historical weather data shows lows hit 46F (7C) the following week.

In its investigation, the FWC also found that in two instances, the sloths under Bandre's care were in cages that did not meet captive wildlife requirements. A verbal warning was issued at the time.

It its promotional material, Sloth World describes Bandre as "one of the most respected sloth experts in the world".

The FWC closed its investigations into the animal deaths without a written warning or citation, an agency spokesperson told the BBC. There were, however, a number of other regulatory bodies investigating, the spokesperson said.

Orange County's building safety office posted a stop work order at the warehouse where animals had been housed on Thursday. A report obtained by the BBC from the agency notes alleged violations of state building codes and county rules.

It's unclear whether the attraction, located in a popular tourist corridor in Orlando, will open as planned later this year.

The FWC said the owner of Sloth World has a permit for wildlife on file. The permit allows individuals or businesses to exhibit or sell wildlife.

Local media has also reported that more than a dozen remaining sloths set to be part of the attraction were now being cared for by another zoo in central Florida.

The revelations about Sloth World has prompted criticism from several lawmakers and animal rights advocates.

Florida state representative Anna Eskamani said the case exposed a "major gap" in wildlife permits, as the FWC was not required to be alerted to animal deaths.

"If it wasn't for everyday people who care and reported these deaths it's hard to know when FWC would have even learned about [the deaths]," the Democratic lawmaker added.

Over the months, the Sloth Conservation Foundation and the Sloth Institute had both expressed concern over Sloth World's planned opening.

"When removed from the forest canopy and shipped internationally to the US, sloths often suffer from serious health issues related to the change in suitable diet and exposure to an artificial environment," Sam Trull, executive director of the Sloth Institute, said.

"For a lot of captured sloths," he added, "this leads to their death."

'We cried together': Trump's deportation drive forces tough decisions for couples

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cly032z5e71o, yesterday

Janie Pérez found it strange that her husband called her just a few minutes after leaving the house on his way to work.

When she picked up the phone, she learned why.

"I think ICE is here," her husband, Alejandro Pérez, said, referring to agents from the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.

"We started praying," Janie recalls, while in the background she heard the immigration agents arresting him.

At that moment, Janie - whose maiden name is Hughes - understood her life would change forever. But she did not imagine she would end up living in Mexico with her husband and their two young daughters.

The American woman, who does not speak Spanish, admits it's been difficult to start from scratch in an unfamiliar country. She does not regret the move, however. "There is nothing more important than being together."

These are the kinds of decisions being faced by families of mixed immigration status (one US citizen spouse and the other undocumented spouse), following an increase in detentions and deportations of illegal immigrants in the US since President Donald Trump began his second term in January 2025.

Official estimates suggest 1.1 million US citizens are married to an undocumented person.

Despite the marital bond, undocumented foreign nationals have difficulties in obtaining permanent residence – or a green card – through marriage, because once they have entered the country unlawfully, they may be barred from obtaining legal status.

Since returning to office, Trump has made good on his campaign promise to crack down on illegal immigration, which he has described as an "invasion".

But for couples like Alejandro and Janie Pérez, the choice between separation and leaving America is fraught.

'I had tears of happiness when I saw him again'

Speaking to BBC Mundo from the Mexican state of Querétaro, Janie recalls that fateful morning last October when her husband was taken away from her and their two young daughters, Luna and Lexie.

"I fell to the ground on my knees crying uncontrollably," says the 29-year-old.

As he was undocumented, both of them knew that the most likely scenario was deportation to Mexico. And that is what happened.

The idea of separating her family, Janie says, was "simply inconceivable", even if she had to leave behind her life in Missouri and start a new life in a country completely unknown to her.

Religion has been a fundamental part of their relationship since they met in 2019, when they worked at the same café, he as a cook and she as a waitress.

"He was also a man of faith and that was something very important to me," Janie says.

When they eventually decided to get married, they consulted a lawyer to try to get him legal status, but their efforts were unsuccessful.

Although they knew he could be arrested, they tried to go on with their lives as normally as possible.

Until everything collapsed when he was detained by ICE agents.

From then on, Janie says, it was clear that her husband's next stop would be Mexico.

While they were waiting for the judge's decision, Janie went to see her husband at the detention centre.

"As we couldn't touch each other, we put our hands facing each other separated by a pane of glass," she says. "And we cried together."

She also had the opportunity to see him from a distance at each of the court hearings, shackled at the feet and hands, with chains around his waist.

"It was heart-wrenching to see him like that," she says.

Alejandro was born in the Mexican State of Michoacán and entered the United States without a visa for the first time with his father, when he was just seven years old.

They soon returned to Mexico, but a few years later, Alejandro decided to try his luck in the US again.

He says he returned to the US unlawfully because he was afraid of being forcibly recruited by criminal organisations in that region - a common fate for other young men around his age.

In total, he lived around 16 years as an undocumented migrant in the US.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) says its priority is to remove "the worst of the worst illegal aliens with criminal records".

But many of those deported who entered the US without authorisation have clean records, the department's own data shows. Recent DHS data says that under 38% of deportees have been charged or convicted of a crime.

"Although he crossed without authorisation, I think he made a morally correct decision when he travelled to the US," his wife argues.

"He was seeking opportunities and a life away from criminal organisations. All these years he has devoted himself to working and he has no criminal record. That makes me think that many people want this to be a country only for white people. I am white and that does not make me a better person."

After his arrest by ICE agents, he spent about five months in a detention centre, before being deported to Mexico on 11 March.

A few days later, Janie moved to Mexico with her two daughters.

"I had tears of happiness when I saw him again at the airport," she says.

Alejandro says that when he saw his three-year-old daughter, Luna, come up to hug him in the airport, he felt profound emotion. "It can't be explained in words."

But that happiness has been accompanied by hard moments and difficulties to adapt to a new life in a country that, at times, feels alien to him. Alejandro says he wakes up in the middle of the night, looks around and asks himself: Is all this really happening?

"So far I feel like all this is a dream, but I believe in God and I know he did this for a purpose."

Volunteering to leave

Although it's still early days for Alejandro and Janie, another couple of mixed US immigration status says that returning to Mexico has proved challenging.

Raegan Klein and Alfredo Linares chose to move voluntarily to the other side of the border to avoid the risk of deportation.

"If something happened to him, I would never forgive myself," says Raegan, who now lives in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

Alfredo, who entered the United States without authorisation at the age of 17 and remained in the country for more than two decades, built a career that led him to become a chef at a fine-dining restaurant.

He and his wife had just opened their own Japanese-style barbecue business when immigration deportations began ramping up.

Raegan feared that ICE agents would detain her husband and convinced him to move voluntarily to Mexico.

"I was the instigator," she says.

For Alfredo, leaving the US - a country that had become his home - was very difficult.

"Today is my last day here in the United States. After 20 years, it's time to leave," he said in a social media post through tears.

They say their first year living in Mexico has been very challenging.

Although Alfredo is Mexican, he feels like a foreigner in the country he left behind when he was a teenager.

Many times they have regretted the decision they made because they have not managed to generate a permanent source of income, although Raegan still remains convinced that leaving was necessary.

Alfredo says that despite working as an independent chef, offering dinners for small groups, it is not enough. And Raegan, who does not speak Spanish, has had problems finding any remote work.

Despite the difficulties, they have a very clear goal: to open a restaurant in Puerto Vallarta, a popular tourist destination for many Americans and Europeans.

What they lack, however, is the initial investment.

Securing financing is the start of what could be called "the Mexican dream" for this couple, because the other one, "the American dream", is already behind them.

US to allow firing squads, gas and electrocution for federal executions

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cg73l2d079ko, yesterday

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has directed federal prisons to expand the range of methods used for executions to include firing squads, gas asphyxiation and electrocution.

The department said in a 48-page memo released on Friday that this will "strengthen" the death penalty, "deterring the most barbaric crimes, delivering justice for victims and providing long-overdue closure to surviving loved ones".

The previous administration had placed a moratorium on most federal executions. Before leaving office, former President Joe Biden gave clemency to 37 of the 40 federal death row prisoners.

President Donald Trump directed the DOJ to resume seeking executions on his first day in office last year.

The memo also defends the use of lethal injection, calling the drug pentobarbital "the gold standard of lethal injection drugs".

It has been the default means for federal executions since 1993 but has faced criticism by campaigners as being a cruel means of execution, while there have been challenges in recent years in sourcing the drug.

Broadening the means of executions "will help ensure the department is prepared to carry out lawful executions even if a specific drug is unavailable", the DOJ said in an accompanying report.

Trump is a long-time supporter of the death penalty. In his first term, he ended a 20-year moratorium on executions committed by the federal government. Thirteen death row inmates were executed during that term.

On his first day back in office in January 2025, he signed an executive order directing the death penalty to be pursued again "for all crimes of a severity demanding its use", as well as in cases in which an illegal immigrant kills a law enforcement officer.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche argued in a statement that "the prior administration failed in its duty to protect the American people by refusing to pursue and carry out the ultimate punishment against the most dangerous criminals, including terrorists, child murderers and cop killers".

Democratic Senator Dick Durbin called the change "cruel, immoral and discriminatory".

"Expanding the federal death penalty will be a stain on our history," he said in a statement on X.

Some states, which each have their own laws regarding the death penalty, have already turned to alternative methods.

Five states have firing squads, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.

In 2024, Alabama became the first state to kill a prisoner using nitrogen gas. Four other states have since adopted the use of nitrogen in executions.

Relatives of 10 scientists who died or vanished grapple with impact of wild speculation

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwyw9rpdl4po, yesterday

The disappearances and deaths of at least 10 people tied to sensitive US research have drawn scrutiny from online sleuths and now federal investigators. But for grieving relatives, all the wild speculation is "disgusting".

Carl Grillmair would laugh at the conspiracy theories about his killing, says his widow.

"I think it's absolute nonsense," says Louise Grillmair. "I mean, there's the facts, and they're out there."

Her 67-year-old husband was gunned down at their Llano, California, home in February.

Grillmair's alleged killer, a 29-year-old local man, Freddy Snyder, has been charged with murder and burglary and is due in court next week for his arraignment.

Despite the arrest, Grillmair figures prominently in conspiracy theories about the deaths and disappearances of about 10 people with connections to top-secret labs or scientific work.

They are often lumped together as "missing scientists", but the list includes an administrative assistant, an Air Force general, an engineer and a custodian, and spans several fields, from researching exoplanets to pharmaceuticals.

Online sleuths have suggested the cases may be connected, and speculation has been growing for some time, with at least one case going back to 2022.

Interest in the so-called "missing scientists" has reached such a fever pitch that the US House of Representatives Oversight Committee and the FBI to announce investigations into the cases.

President Donald Trump even weighed in, calling their disappearances and deaths "pretty serious stuff". This has only further stoked speculation.

But family members say that there are established explanations for the loss of their loved ones, and have tried to quell the hysteria.

Grillmair's wife believes her husband was targeted in a misguided revenge plot.

Months before the killing, a man had "wandered on [their property] with a rifle", claiming to be coyote hunting. She says her husband directed the suspect to a nearby ridge.

The man had also been causing mischief at other homes nearby, she says, and one resident called 911. Grillmair hadn't placed the call, but his wife believes the man blamed her husband for it as his behaviour was "escalating".

The man came back with a baseball bat two weeks before Grillmair was killed, but left without causing anymore trouble that day, she said.

Then he returned on 16 February and allegedly fatally shot Grillmair, a renowned astronomer at the California Institute of Technology's IPAC science and data centre for astronomy and planetary science.

"We believe [he] came for revenge, thinking Carl was the one that called 911," says Louise.

She says her late husband was "probably the nicest guy that walked the face of the Earth".

Sceptics have poured cold water on the wild theories surrounding the deaths.

"The US Top Secret-cleared aerospace and nuclear workforce is ~700,000 people," science writer, investigator and pseudoscience debunker Mick West wrote on 16 April on his Substack.

"Ordinary mortality over 22 months predicts ~4,000 deaths, ~70 homicides, and ~180 suicides. The list has 10 … The deaths are real. The families' grief is real. The pattern is not."

Louise Grillmair, similarly, says that - while her husband "would laugh" at speculation that the deaths might be connected - he would also "probably talk statistically" to squelch conspiracies.

The wife of retired Air Force General William Neil McCasland - the highest-ranking and highest-profile of the missing - took to Facebook the week after his 27 February disappearance from their New Mexico home to "dispel some of the misinformation circulating".

Even in her 911 call, three hours after she returned home from a doctor's appointment to find her husband gone, Susan McCasland Wilkerson said she had "some indication that he must have planned not to be found".

She told the dispatcher that he'd turned off his phone and left it behind, but took his gun, though he "doesn't generally" carry a weapon.

She also noted that her husband had recently been suffering from anxiety, short-term memory loss and lack of sleep - and he'd been "saying if his brain and body keep deteriorating, he doesn't want to live like that".

On Facebook one week later, she wrote that, while McCasland had access during his Air Force career to "some highly classified programs and information", he had retired "almost 13 years ago and has had only very commonly held clearances since. It seems quite unlikely that he was taken to extract very dated secrets from him."

She also acknowledged that McCasland had acted as an unpaid consultant for Blink-182 frontman Tom DeLonge's To The Stars organisation as it sought to investigate UFOs and other matters.

But her husband "does not have any special knowledge about the ET bodies and debris from the Roswell crash stored at Wright-Patt," Susan wrote.

She was referring to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio, which UFO lore speculates might be the final resting place of extraterrestrial remains from unusual debris found by a rancher in Roswell, New Mexico, in 1947.

Drily addressing the conspiracy theories, Susan wrote: "At this point with absolutely no sign of him, maybe the best hypothesis is that aliens beamed him up to the mothership.

"However, no sightings of a mothership hovering above the Sandia Mountains have been reported."

Eight months before McCasland's disappearance, also in New Mexico but 135 miles (220km) away in Taos, an administrative assistant at Los Alamos National Laboratory vanished.

The family of Melissa Casias also addressed the case on Facebook - again indicating that their loved one left deliberately. Their comments did little to dampen theorists' obsession with her case.

"It's been the hardest six weeks of our life with out you," her husband, Mark Casias, wrote on Facebook in August 2025.

"Sierra and I are starting to worry more every day about you, we believe you are ok but can't understand why you haven't reached out.

Other cases, like Grillmair's, had cut-and-dried explanations.

MIT physicist Nuno Loureiro was murdered by a former classmate who was also arrested for additional killings at Brown University - and the suspect confessed on video recordings later discovered by authorities.

Another researcher vanished from his home the month after losing both parents within hours of each other, his father suffering a fatal heart in his arms right after his mother's death.

His body was later found in a lake, and his wife told US media how bereft her husband - an only child - had been following his parents' death.

Another scientist died of "arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease" at the age of 59, according to a 2023 coroner's report.

Louise Grillmair says the explanations appeared to be no deterrent for conspiracy theorists - she's even "been contacted by many of them" asking her opinion.

"I said, 'Well, I can do better than an opinion,'" she says. "I have the facts."

The speculation, she says, is "denigrating to their memories".

Other loved ones reached by the BBC called the speculation "terrible" and "disgusting," compounding families' grief - but chose not to speak on the record because they didn't want to give the stories any more airtime.

For Louise Grillmair, who met her husband in an astrophysics class, she would prefer that the world know not just about his groundbreaking scientific work, but also his kind and generous character.

"He helped everyone that needed help," she says. "For example, he got into two quite serious car accidents… and he didn't believe in suing. I mean, it was the other guys' fault, and he just wouldn't sue."

His obituary remembered Grillmair as "an avid pilot, flying small aircraft and gliders that he owned and maintained at his home; he would cheerfully accept requests to fly with him".

"Friends and associates recall that he loved the outdoors, driving tractors, and doing repairs and other construction work on his house, where he also kept a small observatory with several telescopes."

His wife adds that he "had a very high standard of morals … he walked the talk".

No cartels involved - but Mexico's pyramid attack prompts new concerns

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cre1r5gdq04o, 4 days ago

The authorities in Mexico are still piecing together how a typical morning at the ancient pyramid complex of Teotihuacán, one of the country's foremost tourist destinations, descended into terrifying gun violence on Monday.

The video footage is disturbing. A gunman stands atop the imposing Pyramid of the Moon and opens fire on the tourists around him, who cower for cover among the pre-Hispanic stone structures.

After the ordeal, a 32-year-old Canadian woman had been killed and the gunman had died from a self-inflicted gun wound. Tourists from several nations, including Russia, Colombia and Brazil, were treated for their injuries in local hospitals.

The fact that visitors from overseas were targeted poses a headache for the government just weeks before Mexico co-hosts the men's football World Cup.

The shooting came less than two months after masked gunmen from the Jalisco New Generation Cartel unleashed a wave of violence, sowing fear across the country following the killing of their leader "El Mencho" by the security forces.

But this incident was very different.

Mexican authorities say the Teotihuacán gunman acted alone and there was no apparent link to Mexico's widespread cartel violence.

He has been identified as 27-year-old Julio César Jasso Ramírez, a Mexican citizen who lived in Mexico City.

"The aggressor planned and carried out the attack on his own and there is absolutely no indication at this point that he had any external help or that any other individuals were involved in this incident," said the Attorney-General of Mexico State José Luis Cervantes Martínez.

Among the gunman's belongings, officials found a handgun, a bag of cartridges and a tactical knife.

But, the attorney-general added, they also found "literature, images, manuscripts apparently related to acts of violence which are known may have occurred in the United States in April 1999".

A witness also told Reuters news agency that visitors had heard the attacker refer to Columbine - the site of a notorious US school shooting in which 13 people were killed by two teenagers on 20 April 1999, exactly 27 years prior.

Mexicans are no strangers to violence: some of the most atrocious massacres of this century in the Americas have been carried out on Mexican soil, generally between rival drug cartels fighting for territorial control.

However, the shooting at Teotihuacán appears to fall into a very different category altogether, that of mass killings carried out by lone assailants without apparent links to established criminal organisations.

Attorney-General Cervantes said that the evidence collected so far pointed to "a psychopathic profile of the attacker, characterised by a tendency to imitate situations that occurred in other places, at other times, and involving other individuals - this tendency can be referred to as copycat behaviour".

The incident at the ancient site comes just three weeks after a teenager killed two teachers with an AR-15 assault rifle at his school in the western state of Michoacán.

Again, a profoundly unusual incident in Mexican society.

Valeria Villa, a Mexican family therapist with decades of experience in mental health issues in the country, described it as "a moment of transition, a very unfortunate, lamentable and worrying one, towards imitation of the phenomenon of mass killings we see every day in the United States".

Yet this is not solely about echoing US societal problems; Mexico's own issues with violence are partly at play, too.

The country experiences the constant mood music of drug-related cartel violence which Dr Villa believes has desensitised society and young people.

While guns are not as available over the counter or online with the same ease as in the US, weapons can be readily obtained on the black market.

Most of those guns have been smuggled into the country from the United States.

President Claudia Sheinbaum recently hailed the success of her federal security strategy - saying the daily homicide rate in February 2026 was 44% lower than at the end of her predecessor's term in September 2024.

She has also repeatedly argued that the country's murder rate had been stabilised by the last administration - led by her political mentor, Andrés Manuel López Obrador - and that it has been on a downward trend under her mandate.

Her critics argue the murder numbers do not tell the entire story of security in Mexico where, with tens of thousands of Mexicans unaccounted for, disappearances among young people remain a major problem.

President Sheinbaum was quick to offer her sympathies and "solidarity" with the victims and their families following Monday's attack at Teotihuacán.

The fact that the shooting at the popular tourist site came just a few weeks after the violence and havoc caused by gunmen from the Jalisco New Generation Cartel has caused real concern among football fans planning to come to the FIFA World Cup, which gets under way in Mexico City on 11 June.

The Sheinbaum Administration – and the president herself – are trying hard to reassure visitors that they will be safe and will take home with them only the fondest memories of Mexico, its people, its food and its culture.

Even though he appears to have been one deeply troubled man acting alone, the footage of a gunman on the Pyramid of the Moon firing at foreigners will not ease any fears, especially so close to kick off.

Foo Fighters interview: 'We're a different band without Taylor Hawkins'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0krl571l67o, 4 days ago

"I'm 57 years old," says Dave Grohl. "But there are still times where I feel like the little punk I was at 13.

"I can still connect with that side of myself where I can scream and we can thrash, and it feels good."

As if to prove it, the rock frontman has gone back to his post-grunge, punk roots on Foo Fighters' 12th album, Your Favourite Toy.

He has described the record as a "powder keg", as "burning diesel", and even a spicy "jambalaya" – and it's certainly harder and faster than anything the band have released over the past decade.

Recorded in a period of personal upheaval, the record is full of slashing guitar lines and scorched-earth vocals. At times, Grohl sounds desperate. His lyrics bristle with turmoil and paranoia.

On the opening track, Caught In The Echo, he's paralysed by the prospect of moving forward.

"Decide, decide, decide, decide / Do I? Do I? Do I? Do I?" he screams, his voice spinning around your headphones like intrusive thoughts.

Of All People is more direct. A furious diatribe, it was written after Grohl bumped into a drug dealer he'd known in Seattle in the 1990s.

"I knew a lot of people whose lives suffered from buying those drugs," says the star, who has been largely drug-free since he turned 20 (although he was admitted to hospital in 2010 for overdosing on caffeine).

"I was so conflicted. I was like, 'I feel so happy for this person survived'. But part of me was like, 'All that [stuff] that was going around, it didn't do anybody any good'."

On the night of the encounter, he distilled his confusion and anger into a song, recording it the following morning in the small studio above his garage.

"That was kind of the intended process of this record," he says.

"You write something really quickly, and the next day you record it and it's done. That's the photograph, that's the one moment that you catch."

Although it was recorded in a matter of weeks, Your Favourite Toy was the product of a long period of experimentation.

Grohl demoed more than 50 songs - typically in the middle of the night, many of them instrumental, touching on influences as diverse as Massive Attack, Pink Floyd and Bad Brains.

"One night, I was lying in bed, listening to them all and, randomly, there were 10 in a row on the playlist that were really reminiscent of the music we grew up listening to," he says.

"I thought, 'Oh my God, this is the energy'."

"This is how our band sounds," agrees bass guitarist Nate Mendel. "This is what we do. We can do other stuff too, but this feels comfortable."

Aiming for a different, more mature sound wouldn't fit so naturally, Grohl continues. "It's like when you get invited to a formal event and you try to put on something really nice and clean. I look in the mirror and I'm like, 'That's not me. I look like a stoner in court getting charged for some sort of misdemeanour marijuana offence!'

"I'm just like, 'Who is that person?'"

'This band was born out of pain'

"Who is that person?" is a question many fans asked in 2022 when Grohl - regularly described as "the nicest man in rock" - posted a statement on social media, admitting he had fathered a child outside his marriage.

"I plan to be a loving and supportive parent to her," he wrote. "I love my wife and my children, and I am doing everything I can to regain their trust and earn their forgiveness."

One of his new songs, Unconditional, appears to document those efforts to repair relationships.

"I'll find a better way / To explain this to you... Under one condition, though / It's unconditional," he sings.

"It's kind of a mournful song," he says, choosing his words carefully. "You're expressing how... how deeply sorry you are for... something.

"When you write a song like that, and you listen to it back, you kind of understand how you feel in yourself. And that makes it easier to use those words outside of the song, right?"

Grohl won't be drawn on the specific circumstances behind the song. "I can tell you're baiting the hook," he says (amiably) when I broach the subject, before offering a more general observation.

"You know, this band was born out of the pain of losing Kurt [Cobain] and Nirvana, so we've always relied on music to help us through difficult times - and it has certainly done that in my life in the last year and a half.

"At the same time," he continues, "it's one thing to send the world all these lyrics, and it's another to really delve into deeply personal things.

"So there are some things that I reserve for my personal conversations."

'We talk about Taylor every day'

As he acknowledges, the Foo Fighters' story was forged in tragedy, and Your Favourite Toy is the band's second release since the death of their beloved drummer Taylor Hawkins in 2022.

That loss was addressed on 2023's mournful, contemplative album But Here We Are. Today, the band have a new drummer, Ilan Rubin, but they're still grieving.

"We are a different band," says Mendel. "Taylor was such an energetic presence, he just brought himself so much."

After Hawkins was found dead in his hotel room, hours before a concert, Mendel thought the band were finished.

"I was like, 'Can we still do this without Taylor?', and I'm sure everyone else felt that, too.

"But one thing that I've come to realise - this sounds a little hokey, but it's true - is that Taylor is with us. His wife is on the road with us right now. We're still very close to the Hawkins family. We talk about him every day."

Grohl adds: "Continuing as a band was not easy. We were like best friends and brothers - so it was really complicated and felt really strange for a little while.

"When you go through any sort of trauma or loss, you have to do everything all over again. So the next day, that's the first cup of coffee since it happened. Then it's the first song we've written since it happened.

"But whenever we go through something really difficult, we go through it together, with our families and our kids and our wives. We really rally.

"And if you're surrounded by people that you know you can really rely on, that's the key."

One of those people was Sir Paul McCartney, who invited Grohl to join him on stage Glastonbury in June 2022.

It was the star's first public appearance since Hawkins' death, and the gesture meant the world – even if he almost missed the show after his flights were cancelled.

"I walked backstage 20 minutes before we were supposed to go on, so the whole thing was kind of a blur, but it meant a lot, for sure.

"He and his family were always so sweet and supportive and welcoming."

So has he thought about returning the favour and asking Sir Paul along when Foo Fighters play Liverpool's Anfield Stadium this summer?

"Someone asked that this week," he says. "And then, of course, all the headlines said, 'Dave Grohl has asked Paul to play in Liverpool'.

"I have not asked. I only texted and said, 'Hey, we're playing in your home town'. And he goes, 'You'll love it.'"

'I've built a lot of Ikea furniture in my time'

If the former Beatle does join them backstage, he may find that the encroachment of age has altered their pre-show rituals.

In the past, they'd slam tequila shots before walking into the spotlights. These days, "we do nap sometimes", Grohl admits; while Mendel confesses that the band can often be found building Lego sets in the dressing room.

"Not very rock 'n' roll, is it?" laughs Grohl, who has constructed the Eiffel Tower, the White House "and several Harry Potter castles" out of plastic bricks.

There is "something sort of meditative" about the process, he says. "You can just turn your brain off and follow the instructions.

"It's like Ikea furniture. I've built a lot of Ikea furniture in my time and you feel so proud."

However, cocktails do start flowing an hour before show time.

"Then the laughter gets a little louder, and the music gets a little louder and, just before we walk on stage, we're having the best time of our lives, so we hit the stage with a smile.

"It sounds so ridiculous, but to me, that's the most important part. There's no faking it in this band. You get on stage and you have those few hours to do it - and you've got to do it for real."

Trump buys time for Iran deal after frantic day of diplomacy

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg4yr90jr2o, 4 days ago

Tuesday began as a frantic day of diplomacy in Washington, with Air Force Two ready to fly Vice President JD Vance to Islamabad for another round of peace talks between the US and Iran.

Several hours later, Air Force Two hadn't taken off and the negotiations were postponed. President Donald Trump announced that he would extend the ceasefire with Iran, set to expire on Wednesday evening, to allow the regime more time to create a "unified proposal" to end the war.

In between, Trump weighed his options as the world waited to see if the countries were any closer to ending the war. Trump's decision marked the second time in as many weeks that he has backed off a threat to escalate the war, buying himself more time to wind down a conflict as it approaches the two-month mark.

Vance never officially announced the Islamabad trip, leaving Washington guessing. And Iran never officially committed to attending the talks, leaving the White House in the difficult position of deciding whether or not to send Vance with no assurance that Tehran would even come to the table.

As the day wore on, signs of a postponement emerged. Special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, senior members of the US negotiating team led by Vance, flew to Washington from Miami instead of heading straight to Islamabad. Soon after, Vance made his way to the White House for "policy meetings" as the president and his senior advisers debated what to do next.

In the end, Trump announced the ceasefire extension on Truth Social, his preferred means for war updates since it began in late February. The president said he made the decision at the request of Pakistan, which has mediated talks between Tehran and Washington.

"We have been asked to hold our Attack on the Country of Iran until such time as their leaders and representatives can come up with a unified proposal," Trump said.

Notably, Trump this time did not specify how long the ceasefire might last. Earlier this month, he set a two-week deadline for the first ceasefire. That came after conflicting comments in press interviews, during which he said the talks were going well but also warned that he would consider resuming the war if Iran refused to negotiate.

"There is no clear formula" for ending wars, James Jeffrey, a former US ambassador to Iraq and Turkey, told the BBC.

Trump isn't the first US president to "threaten significant military escalation," Jeffrey added, "while also putting a good deal on the table."

Trump's open-ended statement on Tuesday was more measured than his past social media attacks on Iran. That may signal Trump's desire to end a war that has roiled the global economy and is unpopular with anti-interventionist supporters in Trump's Maga base.

"This is a pragmatic decision based on what are quite obvious fractures in the current leadership of the Iranian government," said Brian Katulis, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute.

But Katulis said Trump's decision also created more uncertainty about how long the war will last.

"This move begs the question though for Trump about how he can deal with the economic pain that Americans are experiencing and the political pain he's experiencing from his base," Katulis said. "He hasn't answered the questions that are still driving this crisis."

With the ceasefire extension, the US and Iran now have more time to make a durable peace deal. But major questions remain.

Iran has said that the US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz is an act of war. While Trump chose not to restart the war immediately, he gave no indication he would end the blockade, which the US hoped would pressure Tehran to back down. So far that hasn't happened, leaving Trump with fewer options other than ramping up the military campaign.

Iran, meanwhile, has not signaled interest in ending its nuclear program or support for proxy groups in the Middle East -- two so-called "red lines" that Trump has demanded be included in any final peace deal.

Trump bought himself more time. But a quick resolution to the war, for now, seems as elusive as ever.

Follow the twists and turns of Trump's second term with North America correspondent Anthony Zurcher's weekly US Politics Unspun newsletter. Readers in the UK can sign up here. Those outside the UK can sign up here.

South Africa's top envoy to Ghana summoned over attacks on foreigners

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cp38e5jgxqyo, yesterday

Ghana has summoned South Africa's top envoy to the country over reported "acts of intimidation and harassment" against its citizens and other African migrants in the southern African nation.

Earlier this week, video clips were shared online showing vigilante groups attacking and confronting people they believed were in South Africa illegally - in one of them they challenge a Ghanaian man over his status.

Xenophobia has long been an issue in South Africa and has been accompanied by occasional outbursts of deadly violence.

Ghanaian officials have met the man in the video to offer him support and also urged citizens living abroad to continue being "law-abiding".

Meanwhile, Nigeria has urged its citizens living in South Africa to exercise caution following reports of renewed anti-foreigner protests in parts of the country.

In a statement on Friday, the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) said demonstrations in several cities - including Cape Town, Durban and East London, now known as KuGompo City - had turned violent, with incidents of looting, damage to property and injuries reported.

Ghana's foreign affairs ministry said its officials had also met South Africa's acting high commissioner to Ghana, Thando Dalamba, and raised a formal protest over the recent "xenophobic incidents" against foreigners, including its citizens.

It cited a video clip showing a group of South Africans questioning a Ghanaian man. The group demand to see the man's documents and even when he produces them, they question their authenticity, before telling him to go and "fix your country".

According to Ghana's foreign affairs ministry, the man is in South Africa legally.

"Such conduct undermines the dignity and rights of law-abiding citizens," the ministry said in a statement released on Thursday.

Ghana's High Commission in South Africa has shared a video of top envoy Benjamin Quashie meeting the man.

"The situation is dire, we understand, [but] let's continue being law-abiding [and] respect the rules... of engagement as migrant citizens in this country," Quashie says.

The country's Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has also spoken to his South African counterpart Ronald Lamola, who promised a full investigation and expressed empathy for the victims.

South Africa's acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia also condemned the acts, saying that "no individual or group has the authority to take the law into their own hands, irrespective of grievances or frustrations".

South Africa is home to about 2.4 million migrants, just less than 4% of the population, according to official figures. However, many more are thought to be in the country unofficially.

Most come from neighbouring countries such as Lesotho, Zimbabwe and Mozambique, which have a history of providing migrant labour to their wealthy neighbour. A smaller number come from Nigeria.

Vigilante groups like Operation Dudula, which means to force out in the Zulu language, and March on March claim South Africa is overrun with migrants and blame them for many of the country's social problems, especially unemployment and drug abuse.

They have held demonstrations in major cities which have sometimes turned violent and resulted in attacks on foreign-owned shops.

Earlier this week, March on March led a protest in the port city of Durban and in one clip shared online, a few participants are seen viciously attacking a man they believe is an illegal foreigner.

Additional reporting by Chris Ewokor in Abuja

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

Kenyan leader sparks uproar after mocking Nigerians' spoken English

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0ledd82ed0o, yesterday

Kenyan President William Ruto has faced a social media backlash after publicly suggesting that Nigerian-accented English was incomprehensible and required a translator.

Addressing Kenyans living in Italy on Monday, Ruto said: "If you listen to a Nigerian speaking, you don't know what they are saying - you need a translator," while boasting that Kenyans spoke "some of the best English in the world".

His remarks drew fierce condemnation from Nigerians and other Africans online who accused the Kenyan leader of demeaning a fellow African nation.

"English is a colonial language, not a measure of intelligence, capability, or national progress," wrote Hopewell Chin'ono, a Zimbabwean journalist.

As former British colonies, both Kenya and Nigeria share English as an official language, but each country has developed distinct spoken varieties with different phonetic structures.

These differences reflect the influence of indigenous languages - Nigeria has more than 500 languages which shape its cadence and intonation, while Kenya's Bantu, Nilotic and Cushitic mix give rise to its own accents.

But in his address to the diaspora gathering, Ruto said Kenya's education system produced strong English proficiency and that it was difficult to understand Nigerians when they spoke English.

"Our education is good. Our English is good. We speak some of the best English in the world. If you listen to a Nigerian speaking, you don't know what they are saying. You need a translator even when they are speaking English," he said, sparking laughter in the room.

"We have some of the best human capital anywhere in the world. We just need to sharpen it with more training," Ruto added.

His remarks have led to widespread reactions on social media, with many users criticising the Kenyan leader for showcasing a "deep inferiority complex rooted in colonial conditioning".

"Ruto is mocking the English of the country with a Nobel Prize for literature winner.The Nation of Achebe and Chimamanda," former Nigerian senator Shehu Sani posted on X, referring to Wole Soyinka - the country's only Nobel Prize winner - along with acclaimed authors Chinua Achebe and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

Other social media users urged Ruto to focus on addressing pressing issues facing his citizens - such as the cost of living and unemployment - rather than engaging in what they described as distractions.

Online barbs between Kenya and Nigeria are a frequent occurrence, often marked by intense, humorous and sometimes volatile cyber wars on platforms like X.

These exchanges typically revolve around economic comparisons, pop culture and sport and, more recently, political remarks.

Earlier this month, Nigerian President Bola Tinubu faced a backlash from Kenyans online after stating that Nigerians were "better off than those in Kenya and other African countries" despite rising fuel prices at home.

While Ruto did not make a direct reference to any specific comment, some online interpretations suggested his remarks may be in response to Tinubu's comments.

There has been no official response from Ruto's government, but some Kenyans have defended him online, arguing that critics have misunderstood the intent of his remarks and missed the humour.

Nigeria has more English speakers than any other country in Africa. Over time, the language has evolved locally into what is often described as "Nigerian English" - a distinct and widely recognised variety shaped by the country's history, cultures and everyday usage.

It continues to influence global English, with Nigerian expressions, such as "next tomorrow" (the day after tomorrow), increasingly appearing in mainstream dictionaries.

Nigeria's large and active diaspora, particularly in the UK, has also helped spread and shape these linguistic influences across borders.

Additional reporting by Makuochi Okafor in Lagos

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

A nation built on pan-African principles faces questions about racism

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq5700w7zx7o, yesterday

Zambia likes to pride itself as being at the forefront of African nationalism and the fight against colonial rule, however several Zambians have told the BBC that racism remains a problem in the country more than 60 years after independence from the UK.

Although it is rarely overt, they say that subtle everyday discrimination can make it feel like they are second-class citizens in their own country.

They give accounts of black people being passed over for certain jobs, snubbed at restaurants and disregarded by landlords. But there was also an element of optimism, with some Zambians pleased that conversations about race were slowly becoming more common. Zambia's government denies that racism is a problem in the country.

Alexander Bwalya, a black Zambian who asked us not to use his real name, says he finds it "very strange" that people can "live in an African country and be racist to black people".

He recounts visiting a wine bar with his friends in the capital, Lusaka, where they attempted to order relatively expensive bottles of wine. However, the waiters at the bar explained that they were out of stock, he recalls.

"And then came a white family who they were being very friendly with. And then they kept on offering them [the bottles that were supposedly out of stock]," Bwalya says.

"When we complained to the manager, we were told: 'If you don't appreciate the service, you're more than welcome to leave.'"

A heated argument ensued and during the altercation, the white manager allegedly directed a racial slur towards Bwalya's black friend.

Bwalya told the BBC he did not report the matter to the police as he felt it would not be taken seriously.

This is six decades after Kenneth Kaunda - a central figure in the fight against colonialism in Africa - became the country's first president.

Prior to independence in 1964, black Zambians had to carry passes that restricted their movement, schools and hospitals were segregated and skilled, high-paid mining jobs in the copper-rich country were reserved for white workers.

As president, one of Kaunda's missions was to empower the black majority. He imposed a "Zambianisation" policy, which saw white executives in key industries replaced with black ones, and rallied behind groups fighting for independence and the end of white-minority rule in neighbouring countries.

Kaunda's message was clear - black Africans must no longer be subjugated.

In his first press conference after taking office, he said Zambia's task was "building a nation founded on respect for all people of all races, all colours and all religions".

But in 2019 a report from a UN human rights committee found that "like other post-colonial societies, Zambia had struggled with how to prevent and eliminate the racial and class inequalities left by the colonialists".

At the height of colonisation, white people made up less than 2% of the population. Many left after independence and there are no specific figures for the numbers of white people in the country today but ethnic minorities, also including Indians, Chinese and Arabs, make up roughly 9% of the population.

There is no public official data on racial inequality in Zambia, but anecdotes and discussions on the topic abound on social media.

In January, a Zambia-based worker from employment firm Recruitment Matters posted an opening for a sales and marketing manager, writing in capital letters, "THIS ROLE IS CURRENTLY NOT OPEN TO ZAMBIAN NATIONALS; WE ARE LOOKING FOR EXPATS OR FOREIGN RESIDENTS IN ZAMBIA".

The advert was widely shared on social media, angering many, who felt it was discriminatory.

Omar Chanshi, a 37-year-old who works in marketing, told the BBC: "There are contracts and systems and a lot of opportunities that we just don't have access to as locals. Forget trying to show whether you are the best or most qualified person, you just don't have access."

The Recruitment Matters employee apologised following the backlash and deleted their post. Subsequently, the company acknowledged the "concern" caused.

"The wording did not meet our standards and did not reflect our approach to recruitment," Recruitment Matters told the BBC.

"Recruitment Matters operates a non-discriminatory, skills-based recruitment policy."

Victoria Phiri Chitungu, a historian and director of the Livingstone Museum, explains that Kaunda's message that discrimination was not to be tolerated may have simply pushed the issue below the surface.

"The obvious racist signs and acceptance of racism was no longer welcome and people were aware of that," Chitungu says.

But then "people started conforming to behave in ways that would not show racism. That doesn't mean that it's now absent", she adds.

Chitungu and fellow Zambian historian Chanda Penda acknowledge that while Zambia may have issues with racism, it is far from alone. They say they have witnessed much worse discrimination in South Africa, a country where inequality is rampant more than 30 years after the end of apartheid.

Malama Muleba, a Lusaka-based property manager says he thinks racism is not a "big issue" in Zambia as a whole, but admits it exists within his industry.

Muleba tells the BBC that when landlords and property managers are assessing tenants, "if a person's skin colour is white, people look at it, they see stability".

He adds that stereotypes about other ethnic groups abound in the industry, sometimes based on negative experience the landlords and property managers have had.

"They say: 'OK, this person will be able to pay the rent or they will be able to not give me problems.' Personally, it makes me feel a bit disappointed, but on the other side, it's the reality."

Zambia's small white population - comprising both foreigners and Zambian citizens - is concentrated in towns and cities like Lusaka, Livingstone and Mkushi. According to Muleba, many white people in Lusaka work for big multinational companies.

Numerous Zambians who spoke to the BBC highlighted the intersection between race and wealth, saying it is often assumed that non-black people have money and are therefore treated better than black Zambians.

One word surfaced repeatedly in the BBC's interviews with Zambians - queues.

"When it comes to accessing certain services, you'll find maybe there's a queue and you've got some black Zambians, you've got some Indians and you've got a few white people there," Muleba says.

"You'll find in certain situations the white man will come first in getting attended to. The other Zambians will be looking among each other saying: 'Look, we have been here long before this white man came here!'"

Many point out that in these establishments, such as shops, banks and cafes, it is often black employees giving preferential service to non-black customers.

But another black Zambian told the BBC that this wasn't necessarily prejudice: "People do say that in some places being white or Indian or just lighter might get you quick service but to call it racism is extreme. Driving a nice car may get you better service, as well as speaking with a better accent."

Zambia's government spokesperson went further, saying racism "is non-existent" in the country.

"I'll challenge any citizen out there to state that racism is a problem in Zambia. If there is somebody who has said that is a problem, I think perhaps they just wanted to sensationalise. Everyone is living harmoniously," Cornelius Mweeta says.

Historian Penda believes racism does exist in Zambia but "subtly". He theorises that inequality exists in a nation founded on pro-black, pan-African principles because a deference for whiteness was hard-wired into the region, long before independence.

Penda explains that from the 17th Century onwards, various ethnic groups told the legend of Luchele, a mystical, white-looking figure who helped their ancestors set up their kingdoms.

When colonialists and missionaries began arriving in the late 19th Century, some Zambian communities, having never seen a white person before, believed they were "Luchele" and treated them like Gods.

"So from my perspective, it is not a big surprise that even up to now, we have this high esteem for white people - this racial imbalance has been passed down as from history," Penda says.

Adrian Scarlett, a white British man married to a black Zambian, says that despite having lived in Zambia for three years, he still finds it "difficult to comprehend" that there is racial inequality within a black majority country.

Scarlett lives in Livingstone and says "there are certain [establishments] where Zambians are just not welcome, it's just a clique of white people who gather there of an evening or weekends".

Under the alias Bye Bye Fatman, Scarlett initially set up social media pages to document his weight-loss journey. Now, much of his content, which goes out to more than 520,000 followers across Facebook and TikTok, centres on racial inequality in Zambia.

The 56-year-old says some of his white friends have distanced themselves from him as a result of his output, but adds that the response from black Zambians has been "overwhelmingly positive".

Scarlett believes the discussions he starts are necessary. Similarly, Bwalya tells the BBC that Zambians desperately need to have "honest conversations" about race.

He is "glad" people have begun to talk about the topic more and hopes this eventually leads to a reckoning - one that reawakens the ideals of their defiant, optimistic founding father.

More about Zambia from the BBC:

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Behind Nigeria's murky coup plot - the money, the prayers and a Nollywood arrest

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gj1w5lqw7o, yesterday

For months rumours and secrecy have surrounded last year's alleged Independence Day coup plot in Nigeria - but with this week's indictment of six people accused of involvement comes the first details of what is said to have been an elaborate plan to oust President Bola Tinubu.

It was due to take place on 1 October 2025 - the day Nigeria marked the 65th anniversary of its independence from the UK.

But at the very last minute the celebratory parade, to be attended by the president, was cancelled - and the government and military were tight-lipped about why.

It was only in January that the military announced, in a statement short on detail, that 16 unnamed senior military officers were to face a court-martial over an alleged plot - effectively admitting a coup attempt had been thwarted.

Now court documents, filed by state prosecutors at the Federal High Court in the capital, Abuja, have revealed the name of the alleged mastermind and suggest that one of the major aims of the plotters was to destabilise the state ahead of the planned takeover.

The six going on trial at the High Court cannot go before a military court - some are civilians, one in a serving police inspector and others are retired military personnel.

They have denied the 13 charges, including treason, terrorism and money laundering - and while they may not necessarily be the ringleaders, their trial is likely to shed light on an alleged plan that is said to have involved all elements of Nigeria's security forces.

Nigeria has a long history of military takeovers but has been under civilian rule since 1999. Several other West African countries have experienced coups in recent years and there has been speculation that Nigeria could be next, with economic hardship rising and accusations that the political system was rigged in favour of a small elite.

Who was alleged architect of the plot?

Court documents point to Colonel Mohammed Ma'aji as the alleged chief strategist.

Little is known about the 50-year-old, a Muslim born in western Niger state who spent much of his early army career in the southern oil-rich Niger Delta region and where he climbed the ranks in the mid-2000s.

This was when oil militancy was at its height and heavily armed militants on speedboats were attacking oil installations and kidnapping foreign oil workers for ransom.

He is said to have developed close ties with oil businessman and one-time governor of Bayelsa state, Timipre Sylva, who was instrumental in getting the oil militants to agree to a ceasefire which eventually led to an amnesty in the creeks in 2009.

Ma'aji even co-ordinated security for Sylva during his failed bid to win a second term as governor in 2015, according to several newspaper reports.

It is this relationship that appears to be central to the alleged coup plot.

How was the alleged plot financed?

One of the military investigators, who spoke to the BBC on condition of anonymity, says this is where Timipre Sylva is alleged to come in.

The 67-year-old was not officially indicted this week, but his name appears in seven of the 13 counts - with the words "still at large" written every time he is mentioned.

Sylva served as the oil minister during the final term of President Muhammadu Buhari which ended in 2023, and the investigators believe he was a key financier of this alleged plot to overthrow Buhari's successor.

He is a member of the governing All Progressives Congress (APC) party but is known not to have backed Tinubu when he stood for president in 2023.

In the wake of the cancelled Independence Day events, Sylva's house in Abuja was raided by investigators, and at the time his spokesman denied the wealthy politician's involvement in the alleged plot.

He maintained the allegations and a subsequent arrest warrant issued for Sylva in a separate corruption case were politically motivated.

The spokesman added that Sylva was in the UK for medical treatment and would return home to clear his name. He is yet to do so.

Lots of money would have been needed to buy equipment and favours ahead of the alleged takeover. Several civilians on the charge sheet are alleged to have been given money for their services - figures quoted range from 2m naira (£1,000; $1,500) to 50m naira (£27,500; $37,000) - which it says they "reasonably ought to have known forms proceeds of an unlawful act… terrorism financing".

What was the alleged plan on the day?

These details are not in the court documents, but the military investigator explained how the conspirators allegedly planned to storm Nigeria's seat of power, the Aso Rock presidential villa in Abuja, on 1 October.

It is one of the most heavily guarded sites in the country - but the alleged plotters are said to have been able to build up intelligence through insider information. For example, one of the civilians indicted - Zekeri Umoru - was an electrician working at the villa.

After seizing control, the alleged plan was to immediately detain the president and other top officials. The military source further alleged that the plotters intended to assassinate Tinubu, his deputy Kashim Shettima, Senate President Godswill Akpabio and House Speaker Tajudeen Abbas.

But the government reportedly got wind of the plan and some arrests were made in the days leading up to Independence Day.

Yet concerns about the extent of the alleged plot convinced the military to abandon its parade on 1 October - and investigations and arrests continued afterwards.

According to the military investigator, the suspects are alleged to have procured vehicles, including SUVs, for their operation. These were to be used to get to strategic locations such as airports and other sensitive sites.

Nigeria's military forces comprise three branches - the army, navy and air force. Within the army there are eight divisions deployed across the country, plus the Presidential Guard to protect Aso Rock.

Of the 16 senior officers arrested, 14 were in the army, believed to be spread across numerous divisions, one in the navy and one in the air force.

Why was a cleric indicted?

Sani Abdulkadir is a name that stands out on the list of civilians indicted. A popular Islamic cleric from Zaria in Kaduna state, he was reported missing in late 2025, with his family appealing for help and giving media interviews.

They said he had gone to the capital to find out why his bank account had been frozen and disappeared. It only became clear after several months that he had taken into custody.

On Monday, the Federal High Court ordered that he be freed, awarded him more than $3,500 in damages for human rights violations and told the security agencies to apologise.

However, the next day he was named as one of the coup plot conspirators and has again been detained. The court documents state he received $1,500 from one of the alleged plotters.

According to the military investigator, this was not to preach a radical form of Islam with the end of destabilising the country, but to act as a "spiritual 'prayer-warrior' for the operation".

Abdulkadir is based in Kusfa, the religious centre of Zaria city where the area's many clerics are known to offer prayers for those who ask - a common custom in northern Nigeria.

Will more people be brought to trial?

This is likely, a legal source close to the investigation has told the BBC.

An in-depth investigation by Nigeria's Premium Times newspaper earlier in the year listed the names of 40 suspects, the majority of whom were in the military.

On Friday it was announced that the military tribunal was being inaugurated - with reports that more than 30 officers would be tried. However, the proceedings are to be behind closed doors.

Questions are being asked about one of the civilians on the leaked list, who has not appeared in court - famous Nollywood actor and director Stanley Amandi, popularly known as "Stan K".

In January, the Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN) confirmed to BBC Pidgin that the filmmaker from the eastern city of Enugu had been arrested after reports that he had been hired as a "propagandist" for the alleged coup.

It is believed Amandi, known for directing popular hits such as The Album and Tiger King and his recent role in Once Upon a Dream, was detained in September.

The legal source said his alleged role was to be that of a public relations operative who would use his media links and film content to win public support for the military takeover.

The AGN's Emeka Rollas Ejezie said the organisation had been in touch with the Department of State Services (DSS), Nigeria's domestic spy agency, to organise for his lawyer, wife and doctor to visit him.

However, Ejezie said the DSS officially responded to say the filmmaker was not in their custody but with the country's military intelligence agency, which has not commented further, despite the AGN's efforts.

Amandi has not been contactable to comment on the allegations and the AGN remains anxious to confirm his whereabouts.

The six defendants before the High Court were remanded into the custody of the DSS on Wednesday until their next court appearance on 27 April for bail hearings.

The few details that have so far come out about the alleged coup attempt have shocked Nigerians - the country has witnessed several military interventions, but the last successful coup took place in 1993 under Gen Sani Abacha.

Many will be anxious for more information from the trial about what appears to be the first serious coup attempt since the return to democracy in 1999, something commentators say is a worrying development given the recent rash of military takeovers elsewhere in West Africa.

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

Pirates hijack oil tanker off the coast of Somalia

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c78l26yn981o, yesterday

Pirates have hijacked an oil tanker with 17 crew that was sailing near the Somali coast, according to multiple security officials who spoke to the BBC.

The ship, Honour 25, was overrun late on Wednesday by six gunmen, when it was approximately 30 nautical miles offshore, the officials said.

Until three years ago piracy had almost disappeared in this stretch of the Indian Ocean once notorious for hijackings, but it has since made a comeback with fishing trawlers or container ships targeted.

The seizure of a tanker headed for the Somali capital, Mogadishu, is likely to increase anxiety in the city where petrol prices have already tripled since the start of the US-Israel war with Iran.

It was carrying 18,500 barrels of oil, security officials from Somalia's semi-autonomous Puntland region told the BBC.

The hijacked ship departed the port of Berbera, in the self-declared republic of Somaliland, on 20 February and arrived near the coast of the United Arab Emirates shortly after the conflict began, according to the ShipAtlas website.

The shipping map then shows it circling in the waters close to the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz before turning around on 2 April and making its way towards Mogadishu.

Under the control of the pirates, the vessel, carrying 17 crew - 10 Pakistanis, four Indonesians, one Indian, one Sri Lankan and one from Myanmar, has anchored close to the Somali shore between the fishing towns of Xaafun and Bander Beyla.

Five more armed men have since boarded the Honour 25, sources said.

Officials believe the hijackers set off from a remote area near Bander Beyla. It is unclear how they were able to intercept and take control of the oil tanker.

Neither the Somali authorities nor the European Naval Force, which oversees anti-piracy operations in Somali waters, has release a statement on the hijacking.

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

South African police chief suspended over $20m health contract

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvglxkjwr5lo, 3 days ago

South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa has placed the country's top policeman on "precautionary suspension" after he was charged in court on Tuesday.

Gen Fannie Masemola, 62, is alleged to have failed in his oversight duties in connection with the awarding of a controversial $21m (£15.5m) health contract, which has become the subject of a criminal investigation and has since been cancelled.

He has been charged with violating part of South Africa's Public Finance Management Act, which governs how taxpayers' money is spent.

Masemola told journalists after Tuesday's hearing that he denied the charges. "I know that I'm not guilty, I'm not wrong, but the [law] must take its course," he said.

He is the third South Africa police chief to face a criminal investigation while in office.

Ramaphosa said he had decided to suspend the policeman because of the "seriousness of these charges and the critical role that the national commissioner of police plays in leading the fight against crime".

Masemola will be suspended until the court case is concluded, he added.

Ramaphosa, who has been under growing pressure to stamp out police corruption, stressed that it was vital for the law enforcement agencies to be "capable, ethical and effective" and that they have the confidence of the people of South Africa.

The president made the announcement during a press briefing in the capital, Pretoria, with Masemola's replacement, Lt-Gen Puleng Dimpane, standing alongside him.

She has been the police service's chief financial officer since 2018 and has been in the force for almost 20 years.

But her appointment is already being questioned given she oversaw the police's finances during the period the alleged corruption took place. She has previously denied any involvement in corruption.

Masemola's court case relates to a tender awarded to controversial businessman Vusimuzi "Cat" Matlala's company Medicare24 Tshwane District in 2024, which was meant to provide health services to the police.

It was cancelled a year later, in May 2025, and since then a dozen senior police officers have been formally charged over their role in the awarding of the contract.

They have been accused of colluding with Matlala, who has also been charged with corruption. None of them have yet been asked to plead in court.

Masemola, who was also not asked to enter a plea, is the only one who has not been charged with corruption. He faces four counts of breaching the public finances act.

The allegations about the health contract tender came up at an inquiry, known as the Madlanga Commission, set up by Ramaphosa last September to look into corruption in the police force.

Additional reporting by Khanyisile Ngcobo in Johannesburg

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

He wasn't guilty but delays left this man jailed for five years without trial

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cql7p9rd3gyo, 3 days ago

Not listening to his mother cost 23-year-old Nigerian Rasheed Wasiu dearly – more than five years of his freedom for something he did not do.

Now released from prison, where he was stuck waiting for his trial as the judicial process crawled on, Rasheed has no idea where she is. His mother has gone missing.

In October 2020, she had told him not to go out as widespread anti-police brutality demonstrations, known as the End Sars protests, swept into his area of Lagos, Nigeria's bustling commercial heart.

People's anger was directed towards the now-disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad (Sars) accused of robbing, attacking and even killing innocent people.

The reaction of the security forces to the 2020 demonstrations was to reach a crescendo on the evening of 20 October, when officers opened fire on a group of protesters in the city.

But the protests had been building over the previous fortnight, with some turning violent, and the police along with a local vigilante group began responding by rounding up anyone they thought might be involved.

On the morning of 20 October, Rasheed, 17 at the time, was trying to get to a painting job with a friend in an area called Amukoko, but on their way they learnt that violence had broken out there and so turned around.

When he arrived home, his mother told him to "stay indoors" and not to "go outside because of the protests" that had by that point reached his neighbourhood.

But as a disobedient teenager he ignored her and stepped out on the street again.

Although he says he did not join the demonstration, members of the vigilante Odua Peoples Congress (OPC) caught him in their dragnet and bundled him into a van alongside weapon‑wielding protesters.

His mother and neighbours remonstrated with the OPC, insisting Rasheed was not part of the group, but their pleas were ignored.

He was first taken to an army barracks and then moved to a prison – Lagos's Kirikiri Correctional Centre – where he waited for his trial to start.

Rasheed says he was initially arrested on allegations that he had been involved in looting "but when I appeared in court, the offence on my charge sheet was 'unlawful possession of firearms'".

His experience and the charges chimed with many who were detained during the protests.

Speaking to the BBC, dressed in worn-out clothes and bathroom slippers, he sounds stressed and bitter as he recalls his incarceration.

"Jail is hell if you do not have money to ease your way through and cater for your needs," he says.

"The food is miserable; we get weak after eating. The space is really congested. They locked up to 70 people in a tiny room at a time. There is no good healthcare, but if you have money, you can have access to good food, a bed and proper medications.

"There was a time a young man died in my cell, his leg was just getting swollen." No-one had gone to help diagnose what was wrong.

Rasheed took on menial jobs to survive like washing clothes for inmates in exchange for a bit of cash or food. He also sold food items on behalf of prison staff, like cow skin, popularly known as "ponmo", and baked snacks. They would give him some of what he was selling or some money.

Months passed without his case being called. On the rare occasions when he was taken to court, his case was not mentioned. One of the lawyers who was representing Rasheed even died while he was in prison.

This state of purgatory continued for nearly six years.

However, at a hearing early last month, a judge at Lagos's high court struck out his case over a lack of evidence and Rasheed was set free.

The judge's ruling came after the intervention of an advocacy group known as the Take It Back Movement (TIB), which provides lawyers for free and fights for the release of people arrested during the End Sars protests as well as other demonstrations.

According to Nigeria's prison authorities, some 50,000 people are currently in detention in the country even though they are still awaiting trial - some 64% of the total prison population.

Human rights groups say that cases like Rasheed's - of people spending years in prison without being convicted of any offence - are not uncommon.

TIB's Lagos coordinator, Adekunle Taofeek, called the ruling on Rasheed's case "a significant milestone".

"This development reinforces our belief that persistence, solidarity and commitment to justice will always yield results."

TIB says it has managed to free 100 people who were detained during the End Sars protests.

Asked whether he planned to pursue legal action for the years he has lost, Rasheed responded: "No, I am leaving everything to God."

But Rasheed's joy at finally being released turned into another nightmare as, on returning home, he was unable to find his mother.

"People in my neighbourhood said they thought I was dead since they couldn't find me. I checked around for my mum but couldn't find her… neighbours told me she left the area because she was being threatened that she would be arrested as well."

He had only seen her once since his arrest, in the immediate aftermath of his detention when she followed him to the barracks where he was initially held.

On the following two days she returned with some food but was denied access.

He did not see her again.

Rasheed's neighbours could offer very little information about her whereabouts.

"When I asked… they said they did not know where she had moved to, but sometimes they see her when she passes by the market. They would greet her but she won't reply.

"They said my arrest caused her so much pain and tears."

Rasheed now lives with his mother's brother in another area of Lagos. They are both actively searching for his mother.

"I pray to God every day that I will see her, let me just come face to face with her," he says.

Rasheed's top priority is finding his mother but he is determined to rebuild his life after losing out on almost six precious years.

He says that before his arrest he was training to become a tailor and would have finished by now and set up his own business.

"Ever since I got out of prison, my neighbours have been the one[s] supporting me with food. But I don't want to be dependent on them, I wish to get a job and be a giver as well. I have two hands and legs, I can work."

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

'They told me he was dead': Children born near army base learn truth about UK soldier dads

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c895k3537kgo, 6 days ago

"Edward", a nine-year-old Kenyan boy, has always been aware his father worked for the British military. The boy's skin colour, lighter than his peers, has provoked years of bullying. His father disappeared before Edward [not his real name] was born, leaving his mum living in extreme poverty, ostracised by some of her family.

Now this man, who worked as a contractor at a British army base in Kenya, and 19 others who served as soldiers there, have been identified through a ground-breaking DNA and legal process as fathers of children born near the base.

Paternity has so far been legally confirmed in 12 of the cases by the UK's highest Family Court judge, a BBC World Service investigation can reveal.

The process provides answers for children who did not know where, or even in some cases who their fathers were - or who had been led to believe they had died. All have been seeking answers about their heritage, and have faced financial hardship. Most of the 12 confirmed cases are now eligible to register for British citizenship. Those under 18 or in further education will be eligible for child support.

UK solicitor James Netto, and Kelvin Kubai, a lawyer finding clients on the ground in Kenya, say there are nearly 100 documented cases of children born near the British Army Training Unit in Kenya (Batuk) to British soldiers. Netto believes there could be many more.

Batuk, which was set up in 1964 and sees more than 5,000 British personnel pass through every year, has attracted significant controversy over the decades it has been located in Nanyuki, a market town 185km (115 miles) north of Nairobi.

A two-year Kenyan parliamentary inquiry published last December accused British soldiers of operating within "a culture of impunity" at the base, resulting in sexual abuse, two allegations of murder, rights violations, environmental destruction and the abandonment and neglect of local children.

The UK Ministry of Defence responded that it "deeply regrets those issues and challenges which have arisen in relation to the UK's defence presence in Kenya… We continue to take action wherever possible to address them".

* Outside the UK, listen to the World of Secrets podcast here, or watch the Africa Eye film on YouTube

James Netto was first alerted to the issue of children seeking their fathers in Nanyuki in 2024. He teamed up with leading genetics professor Denise Syndercombe Court and they arrived in Kenya "armed with a suitcase full of DNA kits".

They then cross-referenced the DNA samples they gathered with the genetic profiles available to view on commercial genealogy databases to find the absent British military fathers of clients aged from three years to 70.

"Nothing like this has ever been done before, where you're engaging DNA testing on such a scale" in the UK courts, Netto says. And he and his team have a huge pool of genetic information to compare their samples with. By last year, there were almost 30 million profiles available on Ancestry.com, the largest of the commercial DNA websites which Syndercombe Court joined and used as their main source.

Netto says they had no idea how many leads they would get and were astounded by the good results. "We had completely distant family members, we had relatively close family members, all the way up to the bullseye hit of fathers being named and identified."

The breakthrough is potentially life-changing for Edward and his mother Nasibo, as he will now be entitled to financial support from his father.

"I used to think they were gentlemen," Nasibo says of the British military. She believed Edward's father truly loved and cared for her. We have seen a letter the soldier's mother wrote to Nasibo, before she fell pregnant, thanking her for making her son so happy. And when Nasibo told him she was expecting, she says he seemed delighted. He urged her to name the child after his brother if he was a boy, she says, and returned from a trip back to the UK with an engagement ring.

But when Nasibo was four months pregnant, she says he told her he had to return to the UK for an emergency and cut all contact.

Nasibo was forced by some of her relatives to leave the family home, she says, and her son was bullied at school for his lighter skin.

"They nickname him 'the British coloniser'," she told us. The UK governed Kenya from 1895 to 1963.

Netto was able to locate Edward's father after the court directed the Ministry of Defence, Department for Work and Pensions and HM Revenue and Customs to share the man's name and address. The man has asked Netto not to share his contact details with Nasibo or their son, but the lawyer is now in the process of starting the court proceedings to force him to pay child maintenance.

Another Kenyan, 18-year-old Yvonne, knew even less about her father than Edward did. She had been told he served in the British military but she did not have a name for him, and grew up believing he was dead. Her mother died when she was a baby, and soldiers at Batuk allegedly told her grandparents that her father had died.

The legal project has revealed - through a match with the man's mother's cousin, whose DNA had been uploaded to Ancestry.com - that in fact her father is alive and living in the UK.

After breaching five court orders, he eventually attended on the day his case was being heard. He requested a DNA test to confirm that he was Yvonne's father, the result of which, a week later, showed this was the case.

He does not want contact with Yvonne at the moment. But his mother's cousin says she is eager to meet Yvonne.

Not all the identified fathers have been reluctant to engage.

Phill, a former British soldier who was stationed in Nanyuki in 2004, says he is enjoying getting to know his daughter Cathy, 20. He had previously proposed to Cathy's mother, Maggie, and spent extended time with his daughter over the first few months of their baby's life. But when he moved to another deployment, he says his phone was stolen and he lost their contact details.

Maggie felt it was easier to tell Cathy her father was dead. But as she got older, Cathy discovered he was alive and tried messaging him on Facebook, but he says he blocked her accounts, not recognising them.

At that point, he says, he had left the Army and for some of the time was homeless and struggling with his mental health. "Transitioning into civilian life wasn't easy," he says.

Cathy was also struggling at the time, culminating in an attempt to take her own life.

"Growing up, I felt like I really needed a father figure because there's some things that my mom couldn't understand because of race and all that. It made me feel really lonely.

"There's a part of you that you don't know about. Like it's completely a mystery to you."

With his paternity recently confirmed in the UK courts, Phill says he is glad to have been found, describing it as a "very happy surprise".

He says he is in touch with Cathy, and is already giving her and Maggie some financial support.

"I told Cathy… it doesn't matter what I do, I can never make up for the amount of time that I've lost with her. But all I can do is to do the best that I can."

Cathy is now hoping to visit the UK.

Netto says that, to his knowledge, Phill is the only one of his clients' fathers so far to be sending their children money.

We asked local Kenyan lawyer Kelvin Kubai, who has set up a charity called Connecting Roots Kenya to help financially support British soldiers' children, if he believed there should be a blanket ban on such relationships, given the number of babies born out of wedlock. He firmly disagreed.

"This [would] be very racist in nature because you are asking predominantly white soldiers to avoid black women [just] because they may bring them trouble. The only… feasible solution… [is] just to ensure that these men are held accountable when they father children during their training duration in Kenya."

Netto and Kubai's work is continuing they say, with more cases due to be brought before the High Court in the next few months.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) before our publication told us: "Where a criminal accusation of unlawful activity against UK Service Personnel does not exist, and no specific concerns have been raised by local police, then the UK MoD would not investigate. Some of the paternity claims may relate to consensual relationships, which are not against UK MoD policy."

Brig Simon Ridgway, commanding officer of the Collective Training Group which delivers British Army training, added that those affected by paternity issues should engage with the Kenyan national children's service. "They then engage with the UK and we then provide whatever support in terms of answering questions and dealing with those allegations as they come in."

Since our publication, the MoD issued this additional statement to say it is "deeply concerned by the allegations regarding children left without appropriate support".

"Any service personnel found to have failed in their responsibilities are expected to take responsibility for their actions," it added. "Sexual exploitation or the abandonment of parental obligations is unacceptable."

December's Kenyan parliamentary inquiry called on the Nairobi government to put in place new mechanisms "to hold Batuk soldiers accountable for child support to children born out of consensual relations, including DNA-testing and psychosocial support for children fathered by Batuk soldiers".

Update 20 April 13:00: Subsequent to our publication, the MoD issued a statement to say it is "deeply concerned" by the allegations of children left without support, and that "abandonment of parental obligations is unacceptable".

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'The weapons were loud, but there was always music': Sudanese band play on through the war

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2ddjv90v9o, 7 days ago

Members of one of Sudan's most influential bands, Aswat Almadina, are scattered across the world, clinging to the hope that their music will be an inspiration for peace in a nation ravaged by war.

Timon was among the six members of the band who left Sudan two months after the conflict started in 2023, traumatised by the sight of dead bodies, destroyed buildings and burnt-out cars in the streets of the capital, Khartoum.

"It was like something out of a zombie movie," Timon tells the BBC Focus on Africa podcast.

More than 150,000 people have died in the conflict, and about 12 million have fled their homes in what the United Nations has called the world's largest humanitarian crisis.

Timon - whose real name is Mohammed Almustafa - was among the founding members of Aswat Almadina, meaning Sounds of the City, in 2014.

Their music blends Middle Eastern folk influences with urban pop and vibrant jazz, creating a distinctive and compelling sound from a once-peaceful city with an estimated population of more than seven million.

"We called ourselves 'Sounds of the City' as Khartoum is our inspiration," says Timon.

"Our music comes from the atmosphere in Khartoum, the natural sounds of the city, the sounds of the people, the sounds of the streets."

They quickly built a devoted following, especially among Sudanese youth, and became the first Sudanese band to tour the country.

"I remember one time we were performing, and we saw one lady holding a sign that said: 'Your music saved my life'," says Ibrahem Mahmoud, the co-founder and lead vocalist.

"I always keep that memory with me - it means that our music has a big responsibility."

Their lyrics, addressing social justice, corruption, and the everyday struggles of young people, earned them recognition as UNDP Goodwill Ambassadors in 2017.

For Ibrahem, music was always intertwined with activism. Before the uprising that saw longtime leader Omar al-Bashir ousted in 2019, he was repeatedly arrested for songs critical of the political system.

"I got arrested a lot by national security because of what I was doing - singing the truth. Thank God I'm still alive," he says with a smile.

The unrest began in December 2018, when Bashir introduced austerity measures to address a deepening economic crisis.

Cuts to bread and fuel subsidies triggered protests that spread from the east to the capital, evolving into nationwide calls for his removal after three decades in power.

Music became a defining feature of the uprising, with the lyrics of Aswat Almadina being chanted through the streets.

Ibrahem now lives in the Saudi Arabian city of Jeddah, after spending several years in Kenya's capital, Nairobi, but life in exile remains uncertain.

"I don't consider myself based in Saudi Arabia. I'm just visiting. My journey is still going on, and I don't know when it will end," he tells the BBC Focus on Africa podcast.

Timon, meanwhile, is based in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, having endured a difficult journey from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to be reunited with his family after two years.

"I missed the birth of my second child because of that," he explains.

Today, Timon sits in a softly lit studio, looking at a photograph from one of their final concerts in Khartoum.

"It was a month before the war. When you look at this, there was a Khartoum. There were very lovely nights in Sudan."

Elsewhere, Ibrahem reflects on those same memories.

"It was beautiful. It was warm."

Ibrahem and Timon remember exactly where they were when the civil war broke out in April 2023.

They were huddled, with several other members of the band, in a small studio in Khartoum, surrounded by electric guitars, keyboards, drums and saxophones, writing lyrics and recording new music.

But later that day, everything changed.

The studio fell silent as the sound of gunfire echoed through the streets.

"At that time I didn't believe it was a war," says Ibrahem.

"It was a confusing moment. We didn't know what was going on. We had never been in this situation before. It was very, very confusing."

Believing that the conflict would pass quickly, the recording studio became Ibrahem's temporary shelter while he continued to make music, writing and recording a song, whose title translates as Give Peace A Chance.

It was recorded remotely with a musician based in central Sudan, but they struggled to exchange files over a flickering internet connection amid ongoing shelling.

"The sounds of the weapons were loud, but there was always music going on," Ibrahem recalls.

"Music is my survival mechanism, it's always saving my life," he adds.

Despite the distance between them, the band's connection remains unbroken. They continue to collaborate remotely, working on a new song titled Sudan. The song, which they say reflects both the country's beauty and its pain, will be released later in April.

They believe the music will mean a lot to their fans at a time when the country continues to endure the devastation of war.

"The arts have a power," says Ibrahem. "It carries a lot of emotion for people."

They hold onto the hope that one day, Aswat Almadina will stand together again in the same room.

"Being part of this band is a dream come true for us," Timon says.

"There's always hope. I want everyone, not just me, to speak about peace and love. That's what will make things better, more than speaking about war."

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

More than 500 people killed in Tanzania election violence, inquiry finds

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgld775knzyo, 3 days ago

A total of 518 people died in Tanzania from "unnatural causes", including 197 who were shot dead, in the widespread protests that followed last year's general election, the commission of inquiry set up to investigate the violence has announced.

However, commission chairman Mohamed Chande Othman did not say who was responsible for the deaths, recommending further investigations.

This is the first time the authorities have said how many people died.

Opposition parties and human rights groups had previously accused the security forces of unleashing a brutal crackdown on anti-government protesters, killing thousands.

President Samia Suluhu Hassan was declared the winner of the 29 October poll with 98% of the vote - which the opposition described as a "mockery" of democracy after her main challengers were excluded.

At the time, the president said the election was fair and transparent and blamed foreigners for the violence, saying it was part of a plot to overthrow her.

International observers, however, last year raised concerns over the lack of transparency in the vote, with the African Union and the southern Africa bloc Sadc saying the election had fallen short of democratic standards.

Last year, the BBC verified multiple videos of police shooting towards groups of protesters. Footage posted online showed that demonstrators were confronted by heavily armed police units blocking their progress and firing tear gas to disperse crowds. In many of the videos, gunfire can clearly be heard as people scatter in the ensuing chaos.

The scale of Tanzania's election violence was shocking for a nation that had cultivated an image of calm, consensus and order for nearly six decades.

Speaking after receiving the report on the violence, Samia said it "shook our nation" and the government would take lessons from it.

She also defended the actions of the security agencies, saying they had prevented the state from sliding into anarchy.

"We have learnt. The commission has told us that all the violence was planned coordinated, financed and executed by people who were trained and given equipment for committing crimes," she said.

She believed that the objective of those involved was "to create a leadership vacuum" and make the country "ungovernable", adding that they would be held accountable.

The president also announced the establishment of a criminal investigation body to examine offences linked to the post-election unrest.

She said it would identify those involved in criminal acts such as breaking into shops, looting property, damaging infrastructure and causing deaths.

"The investigation will also examine the deaths of children, address claims of missing bodies, and probe allegations of abductions, including cases beyond the immediate areas of the unrest," she said.

The main opposition party, Chadema, told the AFP news agency the report was a "cover-up" and described it as "an attempt to whitewash the regime's crimes".

Among the 518 dead, 490 were male, 21 were children and 16 were security officers, Othman said.

But he explained that the death toll could be higher as some victims had been buried without the authorities being told.

More than 2,000 people were injured, including 120 security officers, he added.

Opposition and religious groups had said thousands of people were killed, with reports of bodies being taken from hospitals and some allegedly buried in mass graves.

Othman said the claims of the existence of mass graves "could not be substantiated", alleging that AI was used to manipulate some images.

The commission identified several underlying causes of the violence, citing economic, political and social issues, including demands for political reforms, unemployment and "lack of patriotism".

It said politicians and activists had used these issues to persuade citizens to take part in protests. It added that the demonstrations were neither peaceful nor lawful and would not qualify for legal protection.

After the nine‑member commission was appointed by President Samia, opposition parties had raised concerns.

They said the inquiry "cannot be independent or impartial, especially in a situation where the government is the primary suspect in the crimes being investigated".

The young protesters generally said they were angered by what they saw as a political system dominated by one party since Tanzania gained independence in the 1960s.

The two main opposition leaders were blocked from contesting the 2025 poll. Tundu Lissu is still in detention on treason charges, which he denies, while Luhaga Mpina's candidacy was rejected on technical grounds.

The commission made several recommendations including free medical treatment and psychosocial support for victims and that a national day of mourning be set aside in honour of those who died.

It also proposed setting up a commission of criminal inquiry to determine who is to be held accountable.

Besides, it recommends that a new constitution should be in place by 2028, before the next general election, as well as a new commission to foster reconciliation.

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

Pope Leo criticises Equatorial Guinea prisons as he winds up Africa tour

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c80m4822m1no, 3 days ago

Pope Leo has urged authorities in Equatorial Guinea not to use the justice system just to punish, but also to protect society, after criticising how prisoners are treated.

At a visit to a jail known for its dire conditions, he said true justice "seeks not so much to punish as to help rebuild the lives of victims, offenders and communities".

"To be effective, however, it must always promote the dignity of every person," the pontiff told hundreds of inmates gathered in the prison courtyard, encouraging them not to despair.

Rights groups say the prison in Bata is used to deny opponents their freedom, with Amnesty International saying inmates are "reportedly routinely beaten as punishment".

Numerous prisoners "have neither been seen nor heard from, and their relatives do not know whether they are alive or dead," the human rights organisation added.

Equatorial Guinea's Justice Minister Reginaldo Biyogo Ndong said detainees were treated fairly, and that the government was committed to protecting human rights.

The oil-rich country, often criticised for its human rights record and wealth inequality, is the Pope's final stop on a four-nation tour of Africa.

"You are not alone," the pontiff told the prisoners on Wednesday.

"Your families love you and are waiting for you. Many people outside these walls are praying for you," he added.

When he left, the prisoners who had been drenched in the rain shouted "freedom".

After meeting the inmates, the Pope visited a memorial for victims of an explosion at a military base in 2021, which killed over 100 people and injured 600 others.

He then went on to address locals at the Bata stadium, where he spoke about "respect for the rights of every citizen, every family, every social group".

He earlier addressed the Central African nation at a Mass that drew some 100,000 people, including Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, the country's leader and the world's long-serving president.

Pope Leo said: "My thoughts go to the poorest, to families experiencing difficulty and to prisoners who are often forced to live in troubling hygienic and sanitary conditions."

On Thursday, he celebrated the final mass on his Africa tour at a stadium in the capital Malabo in front of thousands of people, including the president once more.

During Wednesday's Mass at the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in the town of Mongomo, Pope Leo urged Equatoguineans "to serve the common good rather than private interests, bridging the gap between the privileged and the disadvantaged".

He also called for the country's resources to be used to improve the lives of the wider population and not just a privileged few.

"The Creator has endowed you with great natural wealth. I urge you to work together so that it may be a blessing for all," he said, warning that the future of the country depended on the people's choices.

Obiang's government has also been accused of corruption and diverting the country's oil revenues for the benefit of the elite, which it denies.

The president's son, who serves as the vice-president, was fined in a French court in 2020 for using public money to fund a luxurious lifestyle in the European nation. His French assets have since been seized.

Watchdog Transparency International has listed Equatorial Guinea as one of the world's most corrupt states, while the World Bank reports that more than half of Equatoguineans live in poverty.

Political opposition in Equatorial Guinea is barely tolerated and is severely hampered by the lack of a free press, as all broadcast media is either owned outright by the government or controlled by its allies.

"May there be greater room for freedom and may the dignity of the human person always be safeguarded," the Pope said pointedly.

President Obiang, who is 83 years old and seized power in 1979, held a private meeting with the Pope on Tuesday.

During his tour of Africa - in which he visited Algeria, Cameroon and Angola - Leo has spoken frankly and emphatically, blasting "tyrants" for spending billions on wars and condemning the "colonisation" of Africa's mineral resources.

Shortly before embarking on the trip, the Pope criticised Donald Trump for threatening Iran. In response, the US president criticised the pontiff as being "bad for foreign policy".

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

British conwoman who claimed to be royalty hit with new charges in Singapore

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c87wz7445wno, yesterday

A British woman who was charged with fraud after allegedly conning multiple people, including her son, to fund her lavish lifestyle will face further charges in Singapore.

Dionne Marie Hanna's alleged victims accuse the Singapore resident of taking their money with the promise they would be reimbursed through her inheritance from Brunei's royal family.

The 85-year-old, who was arrested and charged last year after being featured in the Netflix documentary Con Mum, was handed an additional 34 charges on Thursday, bringing the total against her to 39.

The number of alleged victims has now increased to 14, who were collectively deceived of more than S$800,000 ($626,000; £464,400) in cash and goods.

Among her victims is London-based pastry chef Graham Hornigold, her long-estranged son, although his case is not before the Singapore courts.

The new charge sheets include allegations that Hanna tricked one man into paying hundreds of thousands of dollars in expenditure on her behalf, telling him she would repay him and make him her stepson.

Another accuses Hanna of telling a woman that she would buy things for her – including Lexus and Aston Martin cars and a property in Singapore's prestigious Sentosa Cove – if the woman gave her money for "processing fees".

In many of the charges, Hanna claimed she was part of the Bruneian royal family and sought her victims' sympathy by saying she was terminally ill with cancer. She would then ask them to help her with outstanding payments and vouched to reimburse them through her inheritance, which she never did.

This was the same modus operandi Hanna was accused in the first tranche of charges handed down last year.

Prosecutors earlier accused her of deceiving three men in Singapore and France into transferring money to her accounts, claiming the funds were needed as legal fees and for the opening of new bank accounts.

In exchange for their money, she also made promises to donate millions of dollars to a mosque and a Muslim non-profit organisation in Singapore, the court heard last year.

Hanna faces a raft of charges including cheating and fraud by false representation – the latter of which carries potential fines and jail terms of up to 20 years.

The charges detail offences that took place between August 2024 and end of March last year. All of them allegedly took place in Singapore, although several happened "partly outside Singapore", according to the charge sheets.

Con Mum, which was released on Netflix on 25 March, follows Hornigold's reunion with Hanna in the UK, after she contacts him claiming to be his long-lost mother.

A DNA test later proves this to be true. But in the documentary, Hornigold disputes her claims to royalty.

Hanna presented herself as a wealthy, illegitimate daughter of the sultan of Brunei, initially showering Hornigold, his then-partner Heather Kaniuk and his friends with lavish gifts, from cars to homes.

Despite being initially sceptical, Hornigold, who has worked in Michelin-starred restaurants, quickly developed a close relationship with his mother.

But over time, Hanna began to leave Hornigold and his friends to foot her escalating bills. Hornigold said in the documentary that he lost £300,000 in the process.

The film suggests that Hanna had previously been convicted in the UK for shoplifting and fraud.

South Korea police arrest man for posting AI photo of runaway wolf

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gx1n0dl9no, yesterday

South Korean police have arrested a man for sharing an AI-generated image that misled authorities who were searching for a wolf that had broken out of a zoo in Daejeon city.

The 40-year-old unnamed man is accused of disrupting the search by creating and distributing a fake photo purporting to show Neukgu, the wolf, trotting down a road intersection.

The photo, circulated hours after Neukgu went missing on 8 April, prompted authorities to urgently relocate their search operation, sending them on a wild wolf chase.

The hunt for two-year-old Neukgu gripped the nation before he was finally caught near an expressway last week, nine days after his escape.

The AI-generated image of Neukgu had prompted Daejeon city government to issue an emergency text to residents, warning them of a wolf near the intersection. Authorities also presented the AI image during a press briefing on the runaway wolf, local media reported.

The police identified the man as a suspect after reviewing security camera footage and his AI programme usage records. Authorities did not specify if the man had intentionally sent the photo to authorities during their search or simply shared it online.

When questioned by the police, the man said he had done it "for fun", local media reported.

Authorities are investigating him for disrupting government work by deception, an offence that carries up to five years in prison or a maximum fine of 10 million Korean won ($6,700; £5,000)

For more than a week, the search for Neukgu captured the attention of South Koreans across the country - including the country's president Lee Jae Myung, who publicly prayed for the wolf's safe return.

Born in 2024, Neukgu is part of a programme at O-World to restore the Korean wolf, which once roamed the Korean Peninsula but is now considered extinct in the wild.

Since he was safely taken back to the zoo, the city has been swept by a craze for Neukgu. A local bakery started selling a pastry featuring the wolf's face, and the city is reportedly considering naming him as an official local mascot.

A video posted by the zoo showing Neukgu eating meat in his enclosure racked up more than one million views - though the zoo has since announced that it would no longer post updates on Neukgu to give him a calm environment for recovery.

A rumour, a lynching in India and a long wait for justice

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cly07kk2pm2o, 2 days ago

One summer afternoon in 2018, two men set out on a road trip into the Karbi Anglong region of India's northeastern Assam state. They never came back.

Abhijeet Nath, a 30-year-old businessman, and Nilotpal Das, a 29-year-old musician, were driving from the city of Guwahati. By evening, their journey had taken them to a village, where they were surrounded by a mob that suspected them of being "child kidnappers" and beaten to death.

The case drew national attention - not only for its brutality, but because it reflected a wider pattern of violence emerging at the time. Across parts of India, rumours about child-abduction gangs were spreading rapidly through WhatsApp messages and viral videos, fuelling suspicion of strangers and, in some cases, mob attacks.

Nearly eight years later, the lynching is back in the headlines after a court in Assam convicted 20 people, finding them guilty of murder and participation in an unlawful assembly, while acquitting 25 others for lack of evidence "beyond reasonable doubt". The sentencing is on Friday.

Those convicted have denied the allegations. They have the option to appeal against the verdict in a higher court.

In its order, the sessions court said: "This is not a simple case of murder. The involvement of [the] entire locality is established from the evidence on record."

But for the victims' families, the ruling has fallen short of their expectations of justice, with the acquittal of more than half of the accused being a key concern.

Das's father, Gopal Das, told reporters the family was "not satisfied", adding that they would consult with their lawyer on possible next steps and that they sought the strictest punishment for those convicted.

Nath's family has expressed similar concerns, saying they were considering legal options over the acquittals and hoped for government support.

The judgment, passed on Monday, uses witness statements and police evidence to describe what happened that June evening in 2018.

According to witnesses, a "hue and cry" drew villagers to the spot where Nath and Das were being held. The court records a crowd of around 150-200 people, with at least 50 directly participating in the attack using sticks and other weapons, which led to the deaths.

The judgment does not establish a clear reason for why the men were travelling to Karbi Anglong, around 180km (112 miles) from their homes in Guwahati. But their parents told the court that the two were keen travellers who often explored places together.

Police said they believed the men stopped in Panjuri Kachari village, where they were killed, to ask for directions. A rumour that the men were child abductors spread in the area, drawing a crowd, according to court documents.

The families learnt of the killings after Nath's father tried calling his son.

A stranger answered and told him Nath had been killed and that the news would soon appear on television, according to witness statements. The families set out for Karbi Anglong soon after.

Separately, police said they received reports of two men being assaulted in the village and rushed to the scene. The victims were taken to a local hospital, where they were declared dead.

In the weeks that followed, dozens of arrests were made. A chargesheet was filed in 2024 against 48 people, three of whom were later found to be minors and their cases transferred to a juvenile court.

Of the remaining 45 accused, 25 were found to be innocent, defence lawyer Manas Sarania told reporters earlier this week.

The ruling has renewed focus on one of the most widely discussed cases of mob violence in recent years which sparked protests and demands for accountability.

At that time, there was a wave of attacks fuelled by rumours circulating across parts of India - often spread through WhatsApp messages and viral videos alleging the presence of child-abduction gangs. Sometimes amplified by local media, these messages stoked fear and suspicion of strangers.

Similar lynchings had already been reported in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Telangana, with more incidents later emerging in Maharashtra, Tripura and elsewhere, as police struggled to curb the spread of misinformation on social media and messaging platforms.

The federal government, however, said at the time that there was no evidence linking these cases to the rumours circulating online, sparking outrage. Lawmakers raised concerns about the spread of "fake news", particularly on WhatsApp, while the Supreme Court urged the government to consider an anti-lynching law.

The incidents also put pressure on WhatsApp, eventually prompting the government to warn the platform that it could face legal consequences if it remained a "mute spectator". The company later introduced limits on message forwarding, labelled forwarded messages and launched public awareness campaigns.

In the years since, the killings have raised broader questions about how such rumours can be contained - and who is responsible for stopping them.

A 2021 UNICEF study found that false information can spread faster and more widely than verified facts, particularly when it provokes fear or anger, making it harder to contain.

"Technology companies alone cannot address problems rooted in society," said Prateek Waghre, a tech policy researcher.

Measures such as restricting how messages are forwarded can slow the spread of misinformation, he said, but may also affect the flow of legitimate information.

On platforms like WhatsApp, where messages are protected by end-to-end encryption and can only be read by the sender and recipient, monitoring content is inherently difficult. Any attempt to directly moderate such messages, Waghre added, could require weakening those protections and raise broader concerns about privacy.

The episode also became a turning point for law enforcement agencies. Kuladhar Saikia, Assam's former police chief, said the response to such incidents shifted in the years that followed.

Authorities came to see that blunt measures - such as suspending internet services - offered only temporary disruption and did little to address the underlying spread of rumours.

"Instead, we focused on grassroots outreach, working with community leaders to verify information and discourage rumours," Saikia added.

But for the families at the centre of the case, those debates feel far removed.

For them, the verdict marks only another step in a case that has stretched on for years - one that does not alter what was lost on that summer day in 2018.

Nath and Das never returned home, and their deaths continue to shape the lives of those they left behind.

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Woman trapped in poo for three hours after outback toilet collapses

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clyedj166k5o, yesterday

A woman who was taking a toilet break while on a road trip in the Australian outback ended up getting stuck waist-deep in a pit latrine after it collapsed.

She was "trapped in the sewage pit for approximately three hours, until [she was] rescued by a local tradesman who happened to be passing by," authorities in the Northern Territory said.

The woman, who was with her husband and two children, was on the way home to Canberra after visiting relatives in Darwin when the incident happened, according to the Action for Alice community Facebook page.

The toilet in question is located at the Henbury Meteorites Conservation Zone, about 145km (90mi) south-west of the remote town of Alice Springs.

Pit toilets are basic, non-flush latrines that collect human waste in a deep hole in the ground. They are common in remote or rural areas, such as off-grid camping sites.

NT WorkSafe, which regulates workplace health and safety in the territory, said the agency managing the Henbury conservation zone had notified it of the incident.

An investigation is ongoing, NT WorkSafe said.

An eyewitness told local news outlet NT News that the woman's husband managed to get the attention of the tradesman, who lowered a rope into the pit for the woman to hang on to then used his car to lift her out.

The process took over 45 minutes, said the unnamed eyewitness, who told NT News that there were "literal nappies", excrement and urine in the hole.

The woman was taken to the hospital but did not suffer serious injuries, reports say.

This is not the first time accidents involving pit toilets have happened in Australia.

In July 2024, firefighters had to pull apart one such toilet in Indigo Valley in the state of Victoria after a man got stranded in it.

And in 2012, a 65-year-old woman was airlifted to the hospital after falling back-first into a pit toilet in central Queensland. She fractured her leg in the tumble, according to The Courier Mail.

Pit latrines have also led to fatal accidents in other places.

In 2014, a five-year-old student in South Africa died after the pit latrine he was using collapsed. In 2018, after the death of a second student, it was established that more than 4,500 schools in the country had pit latrine toilets, which were often shoddily built and left uncovered. The same year, South Africa's government vowed to get rid of them from schools entirely.

Huge chunk of glacier blocks Everest route in peak climbing season

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy81lrnv5peo, 3 days ago

A huge, unstable chunk of glacier is blocking the route up Mount Everest from Base Camp in Nepal just as peak climbing season gets under way in the Himalayas.

"Icefall doctors" – who fix ropes and ladders on the lower part of the route up the world's highest peak - can find no way round the 100-foot-high (30m) block of ice just under Camp 1.

They say the only option is to wait for the ice block, called a serac, to melt – which they hope will happen within days.

The delay means preparations are weeks behind schedule for the spring season when weather for Everest ascents is usually best, and fears are growing that climbers will be queuing to reach the summit again this year.

Purnima Shrestha, a prominent climber and photographer from Nepal, is currently acclimatising to summit Everest for the sixth time.

"We usually climb between Camp I, Camp 2 and Camp 3 back and forth during this acclimatising process. Delays in the opening of the route have added concerns of possible 'traffic jams' to the peak this year," she told the BBC from Base Camp.

The icefall doctors work for the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee (SPCC) that is responsible for securing ropes as far as Camp 2 on Everest, which stands 8,848.86m (29,031 feet) above sea level. They reached Base Camp three weeks ago.

By this stage in April they would normally have fixed the route as far as Camp 3, but are still blocked by the chunk of glacier about 600m below Camp 1.

"We haven't found artificial ways to melt it so far, so we don't have any options other than to wait for it melting and crumbling itself," SPCC base camp co-ordinator Tshering Tenzing Sherpa told the BBC.

Ang Sarki Sherpa, who has worked as an icefall doctor for years, said he expected the serac to melt because its lower part was weak.

"We reached it on 10 April. The crevasse below is melting," he said, adding that Sherpas after him said it had melted further and was close to collapsing.

He and other climbers have not seen a way of safely bypassing the serac and say a possible alternative route to Camp 1 would be challenging to put up this year. Scaling the huge serac has been deemed too risky.

"There is no choice. We spent four days touring the area, looking at every place from the mountain to the right and left," Ang Sarki Sherpa said over the phone from Base Camp.

Nepal's Department of Tourism says it's exploring different options, including airlifting teams to Camp 2.

"We are thinking about airlifting the rope-fixing team and their logistics to Camp 2 by helicopter, so they can open the route above that altitude for now," Ram Krishna Lamichhane, the department's director general, said.

"We will wait for the ice to melt at the place where there is an obstruction and work there when everything is safe."

Favourable weather is expected only until the end of May, and with the melting of the ice currently obstructing the route, Sherpas hope the rope-fixing work to Camp 2 will be completed within a few days - and the summit within a week.

But Purnima Shrestha said that even if the route is opened soon, the climbing window could be reduced this season. She summitted Everest three times in a single season in 2024, having made the first push for the summit on 11 May that year.

"I am not worried that the route won't open because we still have time for that. But the window could be narrow – with lots of climbers having to make their attempts in a short period of time."

Despite the Iran war - and its impact on fuel costs and travel – large numbers of people are expected to attempt Everest this year.

"There has been a slight decrease due to the impact of flights, but mountaineering has not been affected as much as trekking," said Dambar Parajuli, president of the Expedition Operators' Association.

According to the Department of Tourism, 367 people have so far obtained climbing permits, most of them Chinese. According to climbing organisers, China has not issued permits for foreign nationals from its territory this year.

Most Everest ascents are from Nepal rather than via the easier route from Tibet. Last year, more than 700 people, including guides, summited from the Nepalese side, while only about 100 people climbed from China.

Since photos of climbers queuing on Mount Everest went viral in 2019, Nepal has been tightening its permit system and sharply increasing prices.

Climbing fees for Everest in spring have been hiked this year to $15,000 (£11,105) from $11,000 for foreign nationals. For Nepalis it's doubled to $1,000.

Sri Lanka investigates after hackers steal $2.5m

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn53vlvn3lvo, 3 days ago

Sri Lanka has launched an investigation after hackers breached the finance ministry's computer systems and stole $2.5m (£1.8m), officials say.

The funds were part of a bilateral debt repayment to Australia - with a settlement due in September 2025.

Authorities believe the diversion took place sometime in January, though details are only now emerging.

Harshana Suriyapperuma, the finance ministry secretary, told media on Thursday: "Even though Sri Lanka had made the due payments, the cyber criminals had intervened and diverted it to other bank accounts, instead of the intended recipient."

He said four senior officers at the Public Debt Management Office had been suspended and that they were seeking assistance from foreign law enforcement agencies.

Details of how the hackers managed to steal the money are not clear, but investigators believed hackers tampered with email-based payment instructions in the sovereign debt payment process.

Sri Lankan officials detected the missing $2.5m only after the Australian creditor complained that the debt payment had not been received.

Deputy finance minister Anil Jayantha Fernando said the extent of the cyber heist became clearer after the cyber criminals attempted to make another payment due to India, raising suspicions over altered bank account details.

Officials are investigating how various control mechanisms have failed and whether the funds can be recovered.

The cyber attack is a fresh blow for Sri Lanka, which is recovering from a crippling economic crisis four years ago, when it ran out of foreign exchange.

Colombo defaulted then on its $46bn (£34bn) external debt.

The government was unable to pay for the import of food, fuel and medicine, resulting in short supply and triggering widespread anti-government protests that eventually toppled the then President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in July 2022.

The Australian High Commissioner in Colombo, Matthew Duckworth, said Canberra was aware of irregularities in payments owed to it.

"Sri Lankan authorities are investigating the matter and are coordinating with Australian officials, who are assisting the investigation," Duckworth said on X.

The cyber-attack came as Sri Lanka's central bank and finance ministry launched an advertising campaign in local newspapers earlier this year, warning Sri Lankans not to fall prey to cyber scams, AFP reports.

Philippines' Duterte to stand trial as ICC confirms crimes against humanity charges

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8x7z5g5eydo, yesterday

Rodrigo Duterte, the former president of the Philippines, will stand trial for crimes against humanity after judges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) confirmed his charges.

The 81-year-old is accused of the extrajudicial killing of thousands during his deadly "war on drugs" between 2011 and 2019.

Those charges that were "unanimously confirmed" by pre-trial judges, who had "substantial grounds to believe" that Duterte had committed the alleged crimes, the ICC said in a statement on Thursday.

The confirmation of Duterte's trial comes after several appeals by the ex-president to be released from detention, where he has been held for more than a year.

Duterte has refused to recognise the ICC proceedings, arguing that during his presidency in 2019 the Philippines had pulled out of the Rome Statute, the ICC's founding agreement.

But on Wednesday, judges in the ICC's Pre-Trial Chamber ruled that the court could still hear Duterte's case, given that the alleged crimes had happened between 2011 and 2019 - while the Philippines was still a member of the ICC.

According to the ICC, judges have also authorised more than 500 victims to take part in proceedings.

Duterte's legal team told Philippine media that it would seek permission to lodge an appeal of the Pre-Trial Chamber's ruling on Thursday.

At the heart of the trial is Duterte's "war on drugs" campaign, which human rights groups say targeted and killed small-time drug dealers while failing to nab the kingpins.

Duterte has denied the allegations - condemning the charges against him as "an outrageous lie". The police maintained that they only killed in self-defence.

Duterte's lawyers had argued that the former president was unfit to participate in ICC proceedings due to cognitive impairment.

But ICC judges rejected the argument and, citing medical experts' opinions, said they believed Duterte was fit to take part in the proceedings and effectively exercise his procedural rights.

Duterte's arrival at the Hague last year, after he was arrested at a Manila airport, was the result of a falling out between his daughter Sara and the incumbent president Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

A 'bittersweet' moment

The ICC trial has been hailed as a historic moment by critics of his deadly crackdown on drugs.

Leila de Lima, a member of the Philippines' House of Representatives and one of Duterte's staunchest critics, said the confirmation of his crimes against humanity charges marked "a great day for the fighters against impunity and state-sponsored violence".

"The wheels of justice should have not taken this long to turn. But we take what we are dealt with for the sake of the rule of law," she said.

"Today we celebrate even as we grieve for those we lost to Duterte's madness."

Human rights organisation KARAPATAN described it as "vindication of the Filipino people's efforts to uphold and pursue justice and accountability for the killings of thousands under Duterte's bloody regime".

They added, however, that the development was "bittersweet".

"The thousands of lives taken by those who spit on human dignity cannot be brought back. Their families remain stricken with grief on their loss, and the majority remain as poor as ever," they said.

"Extrajudicial killings continue... in most places in the country where injustice and impunity continues to reign."

Malacañáng Palace, the office of the Philippine president, also welcomed the news.

Ex-president Duterte, however, retains a fervent base of supporters who have staged protests against his detention.

Taiwan minister makes rare visit to disputed South China Sea island

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c87wzpey8jlo, 3 days ago

A Taiwanese minister has made a rare visit to a Taiwan-controlled islet in the South China Sea to observe a coast guard exercise, as tensions flare in the region.

Ocean Affairs Minister Kuan Bi-ling witnessed the humanitarian rescue and medical evacuation drills on Itu Aba, which is also claimed by China, Vietnam and the Philippines.

China also claims self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory, even though Taiwan sees itself as distinct.

Kuan's visit to Itu Aba comes as US and Filipino forces hold their largest ever military drills across the Philippines, drawing anger from China.

As the US-Philippines drills were ongoing, China dispatched a new amphibious warship to the South China Sea and sailed one of its aircraft carriers in the nearby Taiwan Strait.

The Taiwanese exercise on Itu Aba included a scenario where coast guard officials armed with guns intercepted a suspicious cargo vessel that did not respond to hails.

Footage shared by the coast guard show heavily-armed special forces breaking into the control room of the ship.

About 200 people live on the 46-hectare Taiping Island. It is the largest natural island in the Spratly chain and is equipped with an airstrip and a hospital.

A ruling by an international tribunal in 2016 classified Taiping Island as a "rock" under the United Nations' Convention on the Law of the Sea, which gives Taiwan rights to resources for only 12 nautical miles around it – in contrast to 200 nautical miles, if it were deemed an "island".

Taiwan and China have rejected the ruling and refused to recognise the arbitration case that was brought by the Philippines.

In 2024, Taiwan's then-foreign minister Joseph Wu warned that China has built "enormous" military bases in the area around Taiping Island.

High-stakes West Bengal election begins as parties row over voter roll

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg3y553lkpo, 3 days ago

Millions of Indians have begun voting in high-stakes state elections in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu.

In West Bengal, where the fiercest contest is unfolding, voting is under way in 152 of 294 seats across 16 districts in the first phase, with 1,478 candidates in the fray. A second phase of polling is scheduled for next week.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has mounted an aggressive push to unseat Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, whose Trinamool Congress is seeking a fourth straight term in a state the BJP has never governed.

The election is taking place against a controversy over a sweeping revision of electoral rolls that has heightened political tensions.

In Tamil Nadu, elections are being held in a single phase across all 234 constituencies, with more than 57 million voters eligible to vote.

These elections are part of a wider round of state elections seen as an early gauge of support for Modi's party, with polling already held this month in the states of Kerala and Assam and the federally-administered territory of Puducherry.

For the BJP, the contests are a test of its ability to expand in regions where it has struggled, while opposition parties are gauging whether they can challenge its dominance.

That contest is most sharply defined in West Bengal, where the poll is unfolding amid controversy over the electoral roll revision.

About nine million voters - roughly 12% of the state's electorate - have been removed following a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, with officials saying millions were classified as absentee or deceased, while the status of another 2.7 million remains under review.

While tribunals in West Bengal continue hearings on more than three million appeals from people removed from electoral rolls, 136 voters were cleared for inclusion in the first round of polling at the last minute, according to reports.

India's Election Commission (EC) says the exercise aims to clean up rolls, but it has been mired in controversy and legal challenges since it was first carried out in Bihar last year.

Thirteen states and federally-administered territories have undergone the SIR process so far, but West Bengal is the only one where it was followed by an additional layer of special adjudication.

The issue has raised concerns among affected families, some of whom say their names were struck off despite valid documents, leaving their eligibility to be decided by tribunals even as voting proceeds.

Tensions have been fuelled by political remarks, including from Modi, suggesting the voter roll "clean-up" targets so-called "illegal Bangladeshi infiltrators" - a term the Trinamool Congress says is being used to refer to Muslims. However, officials say many Hindu voters have also been excluded from the list.

Security is a key focus, with a record deployment of about 240,000 central forces across West Bengal, supported by bulletproof vehicles patrolling poll-bound districts.

The scale reflects concerns over electoral violence and intimidation in a state with a history of politically charged contests.

Ahead of the first phase of voting, the EC imposed strict curbs to ensure security, including a ban on bike rallies, pillion riding during the day and non-essential two-wheeler movement at night across 152 constituencies.

The restrictions, in force from Tuesday, also include a 96-hour liquor ban - longer than the usual 48 hours.

West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal clarified that the extended liquor sale restrictions were not ordered by the EC, while noting a sharp "30-240% spike in offtake from 1,200-1,300 liquor shops".

He said authorities were "looking into where all this liquor went".

"This liquor cannot be used for inducement [to voters]. If we receive verified information on any government servant being involved in such inducement activities, very strong action will be taken against them," Agarwal said.

The revision of electoral rolls, large-scale reshuffle of state government officers and heightened security measures have become particularly contentious in a state where the ruling party is locked in a bitter stand-off with the election authorities.

Thursday's polling will cover seats largely in the farthest reaches of West Bengal - the northern, central and southwestern belts, which are among its less prosperous regions.

These areas also have a higher share of Muslim, tribal and lower-caste Hindu populations. West Bengal is home to India's second-largest Muslim population, accounting for roughly 14% of the country's 172 million Muslims, according to the 2011 census.

All three of the state's Muslim-majority districts - Murshidabad, Uttar Dinajpur and Malda - go to the polls in this phase.

The constituencies also account for a larger share of the 2.7 million voters removed from the rolls over "logical discrepancies" in their records.

The second phase of polling on 29 April covers 142 seats, largely in and around the capital, Kolkata, and the lower Gangetic plains of south Bengal, a region that has remained a stronghold of Banerjee's TMC over the past three elections.

Beyond West Bengal, attention also turns to Tamil Nadu, where politics has long been dominated by two regional parties - the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) - both rooted in social justice movements.

The state is currently governed by MK Stalin-led DMK, while the AIADMK is contesting in alliance with the BJP.

This year's contest has drawn added attention with the entry of actor-turned-politician Vijay and his Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), raising the prospect of a three-way race.

The BJP has historically struggled in the state, where politics is shaped by regional identity, linguistic pride and welfare-driven policies.

Analysts say even modest gains here would be significant for the party as it seeks to expand in southern India, while debates over delimitation - the redrawing of constituencies - have added a sharper edge to regional concerns about political representation.

With additional reporting by Snigdhendu Bhattacharya and Moyurie Som in Kolkata

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The Kashmir town trying to win back tourists after a deadly attack

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cnv80130zyro, yesterday

Nazakat Ali's phone rings in the evening, as it often does now.

The 30-year-old tourist guide in Indian-administered Kashmir answers with the same practised calm every time - yes, it is safe; yes, he will be there; yes, they should come. On the other end are people planning holidays to the stunning Himalayan region, known for its mountains and meadows.

"There is a lot of fear," he says. "We have to convince them that everything is fine."

A year after militants killed 26 people in Pahalgam town - one of the deadliest attacks on tourists in Kashmir in decades - the region's tourism economy has yet to recover.

In the weeks that followed, authorities shut 48 of 87 tourist sites in the region. Visitor numbers fell sharply, from nearly three million in 2024 to under 1.2 million in 2025, according to official data. Some sites have since reopened, but Baisaran meadow - where the killings took place - remains closed.

The assault struck at the heart of a fledgling industry that has endured despite years of uncertainty.

Violence in Kashmir, claimed in full by both India and Pakistan but administered in parts by each, has claimed thousands of lives in the past few decades.

The attack in Pahalgam added to the strain, triggering four days of military conflict between the neighbouring countries, with Delhi accusing a Pakistan-based group of carrying out the killings - a charge Islamabad denied. A ceasefire was announced four days later.

While tourist numbers have since begun to recover elsewhere in Indian-administered Kashmir, Pahalgam - once among the busiest destinations - has struggled to draw visitors back. The town recorded about 259,000 visitors between January and mid-April this year, down from more than 469,000 in the same period before the attack.

The decline has hit local businesses hard. Just four months before the attack, Mohammad Abubakar, 25, invested two million rupees ($21,254; £15,762) to open a hotel.

"But after April, we earned almost nothing," he said, adding that he had to shut down the business.

The impact has not only been felt in numbers.

In the days after the killings - which prompted protests and condemnation across the region - security operations intensified. Nearly 3,000 young men were detained for questioning, and in some areas authorities demolished the homes of suspected militants, extending the consequences of the attack into everyday life.

While officials say the security situation has since stabilised, for those who depend on tourism the uncertainty has lingered - raising questions over when, or if, visitors will return.

"We've seen difficult times before," said Abdul Waheed Bhat, head of the pony riders' association in Pahalgam.

"But this attack is different. This has sent a very negative message."

Over the years, Kashmir's conflict has produced a grim cycle - phases of protest, security crackdowns and militant violence that flare and recede, followed by periods in which daily life is gradually pieced back together.

Tourism, too, found a place within that uneasy pattern. Even during years of unrest, places like Pahalgam - known for its pine forests and alpine meadows - were largely spared from direct violence.

The attack last April shattered that.

By targeting visitors in one of Kashmir's busiest hubs, locals say it disrupted a delicate balance that had allowed livelihoods to coexist with instability.

That shift is now visible in daily life.

In Pahalgam, mornings still arrive the same way - a pale wash of light over pine slopes, the river moving steadily through the valley.

But the rhythm of the day has changed.

Guides gather at the roadside, waiting for work that may or may not come. By afternoon, small groups of visitors drift through, taking photographs quickly, as if aware of time. By evening, the town empties out, with few choosing to stay the night.

Hotels that once ran at full capacity now sit largely empty, with as much as 80% of rooms unoccupied.

"Last year my target was to earn around 20m rupees but I could only make 1.5m," said Mushtaq Ahmad Magrey, who heads Pahalgam's hotel association.

About three miles from the meadow, a memorial now stands. People approach it slowly. Some leave flowers. Others linger only for a moment, reading the names of the victims before stepping back, as though unsure how long it is appropriate to stay.

For Nazakat Ali, that hesitation has become part of the job.

Each call carries an unspoken calculation - how much to reassure, how firmly to say it.

"Nothing in the landscape has changed, and yet the place does not feel entirely the same," he said.

The attack also cut across the federal government's broader effort to present Kashmir as stable and open to tourism.

In recent years, authorities have pointed to rising visitor numbers, new infrastructure and high-profile events as signs of normalcy returning - particularly after the 2019 revocation of the region's semi-autonomous status, a move that was accompanied by a security lockdown, communication blackout and a sharp, though temporary, collapse in tourist arrivals.

Officials now point to early signs of recovery, saying the broader security situation remains relatively stable, with violence at one of its lowest levels in decades.

Syed Qamar Sajad, Kashmir's tourism director, declined to share figures for this claim but said that tourists were still visiting the region, including Pahalgam, suggesting that "confidence is gradually returning".

"We are hinged to hope," he said, adding that outreach efforts were being stepped up across India.

Some visitors have returned, cautiously. Kiran Rao, visiting with his family from Kerala, said security concerns had not stopped them from coming.

"There were worries before we booked," he said. "But it feels good to be here."

For many in Kashmir, however, last year has been harder to move past.

Rayees Ahmad Bhat, a horse rider, was among the first to reach the meadow after the shooting.

A year on, the memory still haunts him.

"I saw bodies lying all around," he said. "People crying for help."

In the months that followed, he sought therapy.

Then there is Syed Haider Shah, whose son Adil - a pony rider and the family's sole breadwinner - was killed as he tried to shield tourists, guiding them away from the attackers.

"We miss him every day," Shah said. "But we are proud of him."

Elsewhere, the aftermath has taken a different shape.

In Pulwama district, Abdul Rashid said his family had spent the past year in a makeshift shelter after their house was demolished days after the attack, part of a wider crackdown.

His son, who had joined a militant group, had been killed the previous year.

Authorities say such demolitions are meant to deter militancy, but critics call them collective punishment.

For Rashid, that has meant enduring a harsh winter without a home.

"Temperatures dropped below zero," he said. "If someone has committed a crime, why should the family suffer?"

Back in Pahalgam, Nazakat Ali is still answering his phone, repeating the same reassurances to visitors.

"The place feels cursed now," he said.

Then the next call comes, and he begins again.

Why police are seeking to arrest billionaire K-pop mogul behind BTS

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz78zj74548o, yesterday

Prosecutors in South Korea have rejected the police's request to arrest K-pop mogul Bang Si-hyuk, the man who created supergroup BTS, on charges of fraudulent trading.

There are "insufficient grounds" to warrant an arrest at this stage, prosecutors said on Friday, and called for further investigation.

Police accuse Bang of misleading his investors in 2019 by claiming a public listing for his conglomerate Hybe was not likely, while secretly preparing for it.

Hybe, now worth $7.3bn, debuted on the South Korean bourse in October 2020, and police allege Bang pocketed some 200bn won ($136m; £101m) as a result. He denies the charges.

The case against Bang is long-running and has seen raids at Hybe's headquarters, some of his assets frozen and calls for him to step down as the company's chairman.

The 53-year-old has maintained that his actions were above board. He has been banned from travelling abroad since August while the investigation is carried out.

The request for a warrant comes weeks after BTS – Hybe's crown jewel and the reason for its immense success – kicked off a comeback world tour following a hiatus of nearly four years.

Industry watchers estimate that Hybe stands to make more than $1bn from the sold-out tour, which will take the group to 34 cities across the world.

The company's shares hit a four-year high when BTS announced their world tour in January, adding over 1 trillion won to its market value.

Bang, who was instrumental in taking the group global, said in a recent interview with Billboard that BTS had become like a "tourist attraction... widely recognised and embraced by the global public".

Under South Korean law, those convicted of making 5bn won or more in illicit proceeds face between five years in jail and a life sentence.

Who is Bang Si-hyuk?

Bang's passion for music started at a young age. He was part of a band in middle school that performed songs he wrote, while a budding songwriting career began in his university years.

In 1997, Bang co-founded JYP Entertainment with singer-songwriter Park Jin-young. Like Hybe, JYP is today one of the "big four" K-pop conglomerates.

One of Bang's and Park's early successes was first-generation group g.o.d, which earned them a reputation as hit composers and gave Bang the nickname "Hitman Bang".

In 2005, Bang left JYP to start his own venture, Big Hit Entertainment, known today as Hybe. He began creating a seven-member boy group in 2010, but it took a few years for BTS, as we know it today, to take shape.

The group was initially conceived as a hip-hop crew, but Bang decided to adopt a "K-pop idol model" after considering "the business context", he told Time in an interview in 2019.

In the years since their launch, BTS has gone on to become among the most successful pop groups in history, including being the first Korean act to top Billboard's Hot 100 and the first Asian group to surpass five billion streams on Spotify.

Shares in Big Hit Entertainment debuted in October 2020 at $235 a piece, more than doubling the initial public offering price of $110.

In 2019, Bloomberg put Bang's net worth at about $770m – this has since skyrocketed to more than $2bn. As of last month, Bang held more than 13 million Hybe shares, valued at nearly 5 trillion won, according to the Korea CXO Research Institute, a Seoul-based corporate analysis firm.

Illegal trading allegations

In December 2024, South Korea's financial regulator launched an investigation into allegations that Bang entered into profit-sharing agreements with private equity funds ahead of Hybe's market debut, without proper public disclosure.

Police allege that Bang had deceived existing investors and venture capital firms into thinking that there were no plans for a public listing, inducing them instead to sell their Hybe shares to a private equity fund he is alleged to have ties to.

Bang is suspected of then getting a 30% cut of the illicit proceeds, amounting to about 200 billion won, when the private equity fund sold its stake after Hybe went public.

Hybe has denied wrongdoing, arguing that it had provided a copy of the agreement in question to the underwriters for its initial public offering who advised that disclosure was not necessary.

Bang has also denied wrongdoing throughout the investigations.

On Tuesday, his lawyers said they "regret" the police's request for an arrest warrant. "We will continue to co-operate with all legal procedures and make every effort to clearly explain our position," they said in a statement.

Hybe shares fell 2.3% at the closing bell on Tuesday while the benchmark Kospi rose 2.7%. Stocks in the other big three K-pop conglomerates also fell.

The police can re-apply for a detention warrant at a later stage, after collecting further evidence. They could also indict Bang without first detaining him, but legal experts tell the BBC police may prefer to take him into custody to prevent him from fleeing or tampering with evidence.

Moon Eugene, a judge-turned-lawyer in South Korea, believes the case could "cast doubt on South Korea's moral standing" should Bang be found guilty. He is after all "at the very heart of K-pop", she says.

South Korea's crackdown on stock rigging

Stock manipulation is a persistent issue in South Korea, which authorities have recently vowed to crack down on.

While those involved in illicit trading practices were previously subject to fairly lenient penalties like warnings and administrative fines, President Lee Jae Myung has called for harsher sanctions.

In August, a new team comprising officials from the national financial regulators and the Korean stock exchange was set up to investigate illegal stock trading activities.

The team abides by a "one strike and you're out" policy, where accounts found to be used in illegal activities will be promptly suspended. Perpetrators face fines of up to twice the value of their illicit gains.

Other high-profile figures who had previously been indicted on separate cases of stock rigging include Samsung chairman Lee Jae-yong, Kakao founder Kim Beom-su, and former first lady Kim Keon-hee. They were eventually acquitted.

Additional reporting by Leehyun Choi in Seoul

Hotpot, bubble tea and sportswear: China's new exports take on the world

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/crr1ln1575lo, 4 days ago

Step into pretty much any shopping mall in Singapore and you're likely to find queues snaking outside shops with catchy names and bright-coloured branding. Chinese brands like Chagee, Molly Tea and Mixue are drawing crowds – not just in Asia, but increasingly in cities from Sydney to London and Los Angeles.

Alongside fashion labels, toy stores and sportswear giants, these tea chains are riding a new wave – as Chinese firms move from low-cost manufacturing to globally recognisable consumer brands.

Built in the world's second-largest consumer market, they already have scale and operational muscle. But competition is intensifying at home, and so expanding overseas has become a necessity. At the same time, they are entering markets where the perception of "Made in China" is often still associated with cheap, low-quality goods.

"China has moved beyond a replication economy," Tim Parkinson of consultancy Storytellers China notes. "Its products now meet the expectations of a new generation of demanding global consumers."

Factory of the world

China has long been the world's workshop, producing goods for Western companies. In the process, suppliers learnt not only how to make goods, but how to brand, distribute and sell them at scale.

Companies like Miniso have benefitted from that kind of know-how. The retailer - which sells toys and movie merchandise from Disney, Marvel and Warner Bros - now operates stores in more than half the countries around the world.

"Consumers aren't particularly concerned about where the brand comes from," says Vincent Huang, general manager of overseas markets at Miniso. They're more focused on the shopping experience - the designs, value for money, and enjoyment," he says.

Licensing deals and relative speed in getting products from factory to shelf are central to its model.

Beyond consumer goods, BYD has overtaken Tesla as the world's largest electric vehicle (EV) maker. The company benefitted from betting on the right technology early in the EV race, plus China's vast domestic market helped it scale and improve cost efficiencies.

It is now pushing beyond cars - developing ultra-fast charging systems that add hundreds of kilometres of range in minutes, as part of an effort to build an ecosystem around its vehicles.

Government support has helped accelerate China's EV sector, through subsidies and incentives that boosted demand. But this has drawn criticism from Europe and the US with officials saying such support gives Chinese firms an unfair advantage. Beijing rejects this, saying the growth reflects China's innovation and industrial might.

Anta is another example - it now runs nearly 13,000 stores globally and has become the world's third-largest sportswear brand behind Nike and Adidas.

It first cracked China's vast domestic market, while growing its footprint through global acquisitions of established international brands like Salomon and Wilson and, more recently, a 29% stake in Puma.

South East Asia as a launchpad

Before entering Western markets, many Chinese companies have used South East Asia as a testing ground.

With more than 650 million consumers who are young and increasingly affluent, the region offers scale and diversity, while competition from established Western brands keeps standards high.

Restaurant firm Haidilao opened its first overseas outlet in Singapore in 2012. It is now the largest hotpot chain in the world with 1,300 restaurants across 14 countries.

"Haidilao's story is not just a restaurant success," says Zhou Zhaocheng, vice chairman of Haidilao International. "It reflects China's 30 years of economic transformation and internationalisation."

The chain's global reach relies on a strong brand, robust ecosystem, and loyal customer base, according to Zhou. He notes that every overseas market is complex, shaped by different cultures, legal systems, and consumer habits - so localising food, menus, and service is essential.

The chain is now pursuing halal certification in Indonesia and Malaysia, a move that could open up Muslim-majority markets across the Middle East.

Other brands are moving fast too. Ice-cream and Bubble Tea outlet Mixue operates more stores globally than McDonald's or Starbucks, while Molly Tea has expanded internationally within just a few years of being founded.

More than 70% of Chinese firms operating in South East Asia plan further expansion, according to market research firm Euromonitor International.

The region is also home to some of the fastest growing smartphone markets, and social media is turbocharging the popularity of these products. Pop Mart's Labubu figurines, for example, became a global phenomenon with minimal traditional advertising.

In the US, Pop Mart's sales have grown by 900% since 2024. Despite the company's shares falling sharply in recent months on concerns over how it can keep growing, it is still worth more than the combined value of US toy giants Hasbro and Mattel, and Sanrio, the Japanese firm behind the Hello Kitty brand.

Price wars

In China, this outward push - known as "chuhai", which roughly translates to going out to sea - is increasingly being driven by domestic pressures. A sluggish economy, intense competition and a declining birth rate have changed spending habits and squeezed growth, pushing companies overseas.

Even foreign brands are feeling the shift. Starbucks' market share in China has more than halved since 2019. Local chain Luckin Coffee now has almost four times as many stores in the country than its US rival. Luckin's mobile-first model keeps costs low and service fast.

In November, Starbucks announced a deal to sell a controlling stake in its Chinese operations to Hong Kong-based Boyu Capital.

Despite a major accounting scandal in 2020 that led to its delisting from Nasdaq, Luckin has continued expanding in China and abroad, including Singapore, Malaysia and New York, and is reportedly planning to return to the US stock market.

The challenge for Chinese soft power

Analysts say perceptions around Chinese firms also seem to be shifting.

Where "Made in China" once implied cheap products, they are increasingly seen as innovative and design-led.

"Brands like BYD combine superior quality with emotional storytelling and local adaptation," says marketing expert Foo Siew-Ting.

Even so, challenges remain. Tariffs, political scrutiny and concerns over data security continue to complicate expansion, as seen in cases such as Huawei and TikTok.

Questions also remain over whether fast-growing brands like Shein and Temu can sustain momentum in Western markets.

Still, the direction of travel is clear: Chinese companies are no longer defined by low prices, and are innovating and jumping on consumer trends.

They are building brands, adapting to local markets and going head-to-head with and sometimes pulling ahead of established global players.

Additional reporting by Jaltson Akkanath Chummar

India has splurged billions on metro trains. But where are the commuters?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4g833128vlo, 6 days ago

On a weekday evening last month, Mumbai's southbound Aqua Line metro train nearly emptied out a couple of stops before the final one.

On de-boarding, the last station bore the look of a desolate Soviet-era structure rather than a bustling train terminal in a city where crowds typically jostle for space.

Aqua Line is the city's new fully underground metro train connecting the old business district of Cuffe Parade to newer commercial hubs like BKC and the airport terminals in the northern suburbs. It opened last year.

The 33.5km (20.8-mile) corridor was expected to ease congestion in India's financial capital and projected to carry nearly 1.5 million passengers every day. The actual numbers are about a tenth of that, according to various estimates.

"Not a lot of people are using the line. It's too expensive," a ticketing executive told the BBC at Cuffe Parade station.

The low number of passengers on this corridor is part of a broader trend confronting the breakneck expansion of India's metro network.

Since 2014, the Narendra Modi government has splashed out more than $26bn on building metro connectivity across nearly two dozen Indian cities.

The network has grown fourfold from under 300km to more than 1,000km by 2025. Average daily ridership has also almost quadrupled from three million to more than 11 million people in the last decade.

But these grand aggregate numbers mask worrying underlying data.

Most metro systems in India have failed to achieve even a sliver of the ridership projected during their planning stages, according to experts.

An Indian Institute of Technology Delhi report from 2023 showed ridership of merely 25-35% of the projected figures across corridors. And these numbers are unlikely to have significantly changed over 2024 and 2025, one of the study's authors told the BBC.

Other studies corroborate these findings.

According to the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) think tank, ridership in some tier-3 cities such as Kanpur in the north was as low as 2% of the projected estimate, while in the southern city of Chennai it was 37% for the first phase.

Data shared with the BBC by the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP) also revealed actual ridership of between 20-50% in cities such as Pune and Nagpur in western India.

The capital Delhi, which has India's widest metro network, is perhaps the only exception where usage has slightly surpassed projections.

However two transport experts - Aditya Rane of the ITDP and Ashish Verma of the Sustainable Transportation Lab at the Indian Institute of Science in Bengaluru - told the BBC that this is because Delhi has begun to count interchanges as separate trips.

So why has metro travel struggled in a country where car ownership is still low and other public transport systems are overcrowded and overstretched?

It's a confluence of factors starting with consultants often inaccurately projecting potential demand, says Verma.

"It is a complex task [to project demand], and figures are sometimes exaggerated to show the project is economically viable," he said.

He added that forecasts were often made based on "offered capacity" on the trains - such as a certain number of coaches, or frequency times for trains. In many cases these have never been realised.

For instance, in Bengaluru, peak-hour train frequency on the busiest line is five minutes or more, while on a newer line, it goes up to 25 minutes.

Similarly, the number of coaches on many trains is only between three and six, whereas the busiest metro rail systems in the world typically operate with nine coaches and a frequency of a train every minute-and-a-half, according to the Sustainable Transportation Lab.

Affordability, or the lack of it, is another important factor.

A single journey on the Aqua line costs 10-70 rupees (£0.08-£0.56; $0.10-$0.70). A three-month unlimited travel pass on the local Mumbai suburban railway is significantly cheaper at 590 rupees.

"In Indian metro systems, the integrated journey cost can consume 20% of income for lower-income workers, above the global benchmark of 10-15%," says Rane.

Verma notes that there has been an increasing proclivity to reduce subsidies, which may not necessarily be a good idea in a price-sensitive country like India.

This was borne out by citizens' demonstrations after Bengaluru metro hiked fares last year and ridership dropped some 13% after the hike, according to data collated by Greenpeace.

"Even the London Tube till today is heavily subsidised. Because there is a purpose. You are trying to provide sustainable mobility and decongest the city," says Verma. Despite the subsidies, London's Tube is still among the most expensive public transport systems in the world.

Other issues that keep demand suppressed are poor network planning and last-mile connectivity.

"People will switch to public transport only when waiting times are as low as possible," Nandan Dawda, a fellow at ORF's Urban Studies programme, told the BBC.

In India, a big problem is the lack of enough feeder buses to handle last-mile connectivity, he says.

Transit times between two lines are also often high, and unwieldy.

At Hauz Khas station in Delhi, for instance, it can take 15-20 minutes to transfer from one line to another.

"Institutional disaggregation" is an impediment to solving this, says Dawda. Various metro lines and bus networks even in a single city are run by different operators who often work in silos.

"There needs to be better operational integration between them," he adds.

Another issue in India is poor walkways and concerns about women's safety.

"Access and approach to and from metro stations to other destinations has to be convenient to support the use of public transport," said Verma.

"If I am a tourist even in a city like Delhi, I can't drag my bag to the metro easily and walk to my hotel 500m away."

For residents like Chetna Yadav, 40, who lives in north Delhi, safety is a prime concern.

"If I am coming home after sunset, I cannot rely on the metro. The station is about 15km from where I live and when I reach the final stop at night, it is next to impossible to get a cab home. I have been stuck in that situation a few times."

Still, despite all these problems, experts foresee metro use continuing to inch up incrementally.

Traffic, pollution, parking and road safety issues have reached a tipping point in many Indian cities. Calls to introduce congestion pricing for private vehicles have grown.

Without the promise of a cheaper, more seamless metro ride though, a swift and dramatic rise in adoption will be unlikely.

"The systems most likely to improve strongly are the ones that get bus integration, station access and fare integration right. Without that, India may continue to build metros that are operationally useful but still underperform against their original projections," says Rane.

Additional reporting by Nikita Yadav

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Aboriginal children's book pulled over illustrator's Bondi attack comments

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c87wzv3lv1vo, yesterday

An Australian publisher has scrapped a children's book over comments made by the book's illustrator on the Bondi beach shooting, which the publisher says violates its policy on antisemitism.

The move has prompted several prominent Australian writers to cut ties with The University of Queensland Press (UQP) and sparked allegations of political censorship.

Thousands of copies had already been printed for Bila, A River Cycle - an Indigenous children's book, written by poet Jazz Money and illustrated by Matt Chun.

In January, Chun wrote and published an essay on his public Substack newsletter critiquing some of the public's responses to the Bondi shooting.

Fifteen people were killed after two gunmen opened fire at a Jewish festival held at the beach on 14 December.

The victims included Rabbi Eli Schlanger, who led the local Chabad mission, an international Hasidic Jewish group that organised the event.

In his essay Chun accused the "Australian left" of trying to "perform respectability and avoid accusations of 'anti-semitism'" in the wake of the shooting, while also criticising media coverage of the incident.

He also criticised Chabad and Schlanger because they had supported Israel's military actions and illegal settlements in Palestinian territories.

The University of Queensland said in a statement to the BBC that Chun's comments were "abhorrent and hateful to the innocent victims of the attack".

"The University cannot overlook or condone them and cannot proceed in a way that suggests endorsement or association," it said.

It also said that they regretted the impact their decision has had on Money, "for whom we have enormous respect".

"We would welcome the opportunity to work with Jazz again in the future," it said.

The university added that copies of the books are in storage while they consider "recycling options".

Separately, the New South Wales Police told the BBC that they were "working with the Engagement and Hate Crime Unit" in relation to the post.

Chun has since written on Instagram that the university "has not identified the specific passages or statements in my political writing that contravene its policies and values. Nor has the university identified a single term from our publishing agreement that can be relied upon to justify its termination".

He also said that he and Money had known about UQP's decision to cancel the book "for some months now".

On Instagram, Money said that her relationship with UQP was "now over".

"The pulping of Bila sets a precedent that any book that is more political, more urgent or more sensitive can be victim to censorship, cancellation and more," she wrote.

Money, a Wiradjuri woman, has received accolades for her poetry, including the 2025 Kate Challis RAKA Award, which celebrates Indigenous artists. She is also a recipient of the First Nations Emerging Career Award by the Australia Council for the Arts.

UQP's decision to scrap her book has sparked a boycott of the publisher by several prominent Australian writers.

The award-winning poet Evelyn Araluen said UQP's handling of Money's book was of "extreme disappointment" to her, and she would rescind all her remaining contracts with the publisher.

Randa Abdel-Fattah, the Australian-Palestinian writer whose disinvitation from a major literature festival in Adelaide sparked an uproar in January, said her upcoming book, Discipline, would be her "first and last book with UQP".

Other writers, including Melissa Lucashenko and Natalia Figueroa Barroso, have also announced that they would terminate their partnerships with UQP.

Founded in 1948 as an academic publishing house, UQP publishes books across different genres including fiction, non-fiction and poetry.

Everton pitch invader sentenced over rugby stunt

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cg549v11798o, 5 days ago

A pitch invader who appeared with the Australia team in full kit before their rugby league game against England has been given a suspended sentence.

Daniel Jarvis was seen on BBC coverage standing at the end of Australia's line-up during the national anthems before the game at Everton's Hill Dickinson Stadium in November.

The 37-year-old, from Gravesend, Kent, pleaded guilty to trespass.

He was given a 10 week sentence suspended for 12 months at South Sefton Magistrates' Court in Bootle.

Jarvis was also handed 20 days rehabilitation along with 150 hours of unpaid work and ordered to pay £500 in damages and a £154 court surcharge.

The court heard he has similar previous convictions, including for colliding with England cricketer Jonny Bairstow after invading the Oval pitch in 2021.

Jarvis told BBC Radio Merseyside outside court he was "ready for rehabilitation and I think everything happens for a reason".

"It's happened now and I accept my punishment."

The match was the first non-football event at Everton's new stadium, which opened earlier last year.

Australia won 14-4 to secure victory in the three-Test series.

Jarvis also invaded the pitch during an Ireland and England football match at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin last year.

He was banned from attending all national and international games for five years.

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Veteran Australian talkback radio host James Valentine dies at 64

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cdxk3zrv254o, 3 days ago

James Valentine, a veteran talkback radio host on Australia's national broadcaster, has died at 64, two years after a cancer diagnosis.

Best known as host of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's (ABC) Afternoons radio programme in Sydney, a role he held for more than 20 years, Valentine was also an accomplished musician.

In 2024, he was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer and took time off for treatment. He returned to the airwaves briefly last year before retiring in February.

ABC Managing Director Hugh Marks described him as a "trusted companion... for generations of our Sydney audience" who brought "warmth, wit and humanity to radio". Valentine is survived by his wife and two children.

In a statement, Valentine's family said he had died "peacefully at home surrounded by his family who adored him".

"Throughout his illness, James did it his way, which lasted all the way until the end when he made the choice to do Voluntary Assisted Dying," the statement said, according to the ABC.

"Both he and his family are grateful he was given the option to go out on his own terms. He was calm, dignified as always and somehow still making us laugh."

Outside of radio, Valentine played saxophone in a number of bands including The Models who had two number-one hits and toured in the US and Europe.

Tributes flowed for the much-loved broadcaster on Thursday, with ABC presenter Robbie Buck describing him as "joyous, irrepressible and unbelievably sharp".

Former ABC colleague Richard Glover said Valentine had "lifted the spirit of the city every day for 25 years" while Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told ABC radio that Valentine was "someone who was always worth listening to".

Australia's Governor-General Sam Mostyn said that Valentine had recently been recommended and awarded for a Member of the Order (AM) for his work in broadcasting, as a musician and an advocate of the arts.

"His ideas were, as they were on radio, just lovely, gentle, sensible, really important things about how community comes together and how we all have a role to play," Mostyn told ABC radio.

The award had been presented to his wife and children last Saturday.

Fourth man charged over mistaken identity kidnap murder of Sydney grandfather

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cly7ezv8yp2o, 4 days ago

Police have charged a fourth man in the alleged kidnap and murder of a Sydney grandfather who authorities say was taken by mistake.

The charges come two months after widower Chris Baghsarian, 85, was kidnapped in a pre-dawn raid at his North Ryde home. His body was found near a golf course about two weeks later.

A teenager, 19, was arrested on Tuesday and charged with murder and take or detain in company with intent to ransom occasioning actual bodily harm. He was refused bail and is due to appear in court on Wednesday.

Three other men, all in their 20s, are also facing similar charges with more arrests expected after investigators earlier said up to nine people may have been involved.

Baghsarian was taken from his home at around 05:00 local time on 13 February, with footage showing what appeared to be several men bundling the elderly man into an SUV before driving off.

Baghsarian's family and police said he had no criminal connections and local media reported that the alleged attack may have been aimed at a family living nearby with suspected links to organised crime.

In the days after the alleged kidnapping, images and videos purportedly showing the grandfather, seriously injured and wearing the pyjamas he was kidnapped in, were claimed to have been circulating among Sydney's underworld.

Police made several public pleas for Baghsarian's return, given he had health issues and needed daily medication.

In statements at the time of his kidnap, Baghsarian's family said he was "deeply loved, gentle, and the kindest person we know - someone who would never hurt a fly".

A day after Baghsarian's body was found in north-west Sydney, police arrested and charged two men, aged 29 and 24, with kidnap and murder.

Last month, a third person, 23, was arrested and charged with multiple offences including kidnap, murder, and firearms and drugs offences, with police describing him as a "major player" in Baghsarian's case.

Harry and Meghan's trip felt like a royal tour - except many Aussies weren't interested

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwyx014e2wqo, 7 days ago

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have finished their brisk four-day visit to the east coast of Australia.

With an itinerary of Indigenous culture, Australian sport, multiple good causes and a trip to the national war memorial, it had all the hallmarks of a traditional royal tour.

But Prince Harry and Meghan, no longer working royals, were here in a private capacity.

When they last visited in 2018 - then still active members of the Royal Family - tens of thousands of people greeted them on a nine-day tour across Australia.

This time was different. Most Australians the BBC spoke to were either unaware or uninterested in the couple's visit.

There has been some backlash too, after it emerged Australian taxpayers may be saddled with some of the security costs for their public events.

"If they think it's gone well, it's because nothing has gone wrong," says Giselle Bastin, an associate professor at Flinders University with a research interest in Australia's relationship with the monarchy.

"They didn't turn up at great big advertised opportunities to see them, at least not in the form of walkabouts, so they've managed to minimise the risk of people having a negative reaction, or hecklers calling out or booing them or anything like that.

"It has been very carefully controlled so that they just sort of spontaneously appear at places."

That's not to say Harry and Meghan haven't been in their element during such encounters, high-fiving fans and taking selfies with them.

We witnessed this up close time and again – including on Friday, when Harry met Michelle Haywood beneath the sails of the Sydney Opera house. Haywood is the daughter of Daphne Dunne, a servicewoman and war widow who met the Prince in 2015 during a previous visit; she was wearing her husband's Victoria Cross.

Dunne died aged 99 in 2019, but Haywood waited patiently this week to present Harry a photo of her mother alongside him, in his army fatigues.

"He just said, 'Oh my gosh' and then he gave me a big hug," Haywood says. "It was beautiful. He went through each time he'd met her, and he reminded me of one of the times when it was pouring with rain. He remembered it vividly."

Meghan also showed her warmth, whether listening intently and compassionately to survivors of the Bondi Beach attack, or telling a young boy how much her children loved the Australian book Diary of a Wombat.

And if you call that a connection, then it was right on brand. The words "connection" or "connected" were mentioned 30 times across the press releases issued by the Sussexes' media team to journalists after each day of the visit.

Such missives resembled the way royal press officers would round up a day of engagements on a royal tour, except these were with language free of convention and formality.

They mentioned "community" on 21 occasions and "wellbeing" eight times. Incidentally, "royal" appears just once in the press releases - in the name of the Melbourne children's hospital the Sussexes' visited at the start of the tour.

Mental health was another theme of the couple's schedule, including meeting young people to discuss the harms of social media. It was here Meghan said she had been "the most trolled person in the world" for 10 years and shared stories of being attacked and bullied online for a decade.

But social media has also been useful to the pair - their "@sussexroyal" Instagram account has 8.7 million followers. Such a platform could prove increasingly useful with the couple now open about seeking new opportunities since their deals with Spotify and Netflix ended.

Harry and Meghan have a life to build - and pay for - away from royal duty. But when it came to the commercial side of their Australia trip, it wasn't always clear what was – and what was not – a paid gig.

The Duke spoke powerfully at a summit on mental health about life as a royal after the death of his mother, Princess Diana. Tickets for the event were sharply reduced in price, but still cost nearly A$1,000 (£520) a head.

Organisers repeatedly refused to confirm to the BBC whether Harry got a fee, saying only "all ticket proceeds" went to the Australian charity, Lifeline.

Meghan was paid to appear for a couple of hours at a glitzy "girls only" weekend retreat with VIP tickets costing A$3,199 (£1,725).

She was also unveiled as an investor in OneOff - an AI platform that gives fashion suggestions based on the styles of celebrities and influencers, with a small cut of sales going to the featured stars. The Duchess's profile on the app already features items she has worn during the Australian tour.

While the itinerary for their 2018 mega-tour was rammed with engagements (76 over 16 days in Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga), this one had plenty of gaps.

Most notable was Meghan's complete absence of public-facing appearances on Wednesday. That evening, it was revealed she had been filming an episode of MasterChef Australia.

It is understood she was not paid for this, although the Duchess does have a food-centric show on Netflix, and her As Ever lifestyle brand includes a food range. Last year the trademark was registered in more than a dozen product categories in Australia, including cookware and table linen.

For the Sussexes, the only acknowledgement of the business side of the trip came at the bottom of a five-page pre-tour briefing. It said: "As with many visits of this nature, a small number of private engagements are included to support broader commercial, charitable, and community objectives."

Of course, as private citizens, the couple are not required to declare their earnings publicly, nor to account for their every move.

But Bastin, the academic, feels some of the ventures appeared "tone deaf in a cost-of-living crisis".

And one Sydney Morning Herald columnist proclaimed: "Australia was good to Harry and Meghan. Now they want to use us as an ATM."

Such a portrayal is "in part" unfair, says Michael Hartung, chief executive of Invictus Australia, which organised the 2018 Invictus Games - the sporting competition for wounded and sick military personal and veterans, founded by Harry in 2014.

"A lot of criticism is thrown their way and what we've seen this past week is they do a hell of a lot for charity and organisations like us, where their presence here in Australia has made a significant impact on our work," he tells the BBC.

"Our work will advance years ahead as a result of their visit, that would have otherwise taken us a lot of hard work and effort to engage with different people and audiences.  It really does make a difference."

And perhaps unsurprisingly, Harry and Meghan's fans stress how the majority of their time here has been spent on good causes, and see no issue with the commercial side of the trip.

"They're entitled to make the money how they need to," says Lisa Perry, who was visiting Sydney and got a selfie with the pair.

"They've chosen their path in life and if that's their brand and they need to make a living and do it how they wish, they should be allowed to do so."

Vida Benic, who met the couple in Melbourne, insists she's "not into negativity".

"They're welcome to come here any time. Our big Australian arms and hearts are fully open to them – and to their children hopefully one day."

Prisoners handcuffed and executed: The war crime charges against Australia's most-decorated soldier

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj40pr8x49lo, 8 days ago

Warning: This story contains distressing content

Beaming into a small Sydney courtroom on Friday via video link, Ben Roberts-Smith sat silently as he appeared on war crimes charges for the first time.

The country's most-decorated living soldier was earlier this month charged with five counts of murder - allegedly committed while the former Special Air Service (SAS) corporal was deployed to Afghanistan.

Fresh court documents seen by the BBC reveal – in detail – allegations that the 47-year-old murdered a disabled Afghan detainee, kicked a handcuffed prisoner off a cliff, ordered rookie soldiers to execute others in an initiation practice called "blooding", and planted items on the alleged victims to cover up misconduct.

Roberts-Smith vehemently denies the claims. "I always acted within my values, within my training and within the rules of engagement," he said in a statement after being charged.

The criminal case follows a 2023 civil defamation case, in which a judge found - on the balance of probabilities - there was "substantial truth" to some of the murder claims against Roberts-Smith.

Australia has never held a war crimes trial for one of its own.

So what are the allegations - and what happens next?

'Whiskey 108' Compound - 12 April 2009

Roberts-Smith joined the Australian Defence Force (ADF) as a fresh-faced 18-year-old, and did two tours in East Timor before joining the SAS in 2003.

By the time he was sent to a compound dubbed "Whiskey 108" on 12 April 2009, he had more than a decade of service and a Medal of Gallantry under his belt.

Australian troops had been battling Taliban insurgents at the site near Tarin Kowt, in central Afghanistan, and Roberts-Smith's SAS crew were called in to clear it after an airstrike, the court documents state.

They discovered a tunnel from which they pulled and handcuffed two men – identified by prosecutors as father and son, Mohammad Essa and Ahmadullah.

Ahmadullah, who wore a prosthetic leg, was allegedly carried by Roberts-Smith outside the wall of the compound, thrown to the ground, and shot multiple times using a belt-fed machine gun, the court documents say.

"That action was witnessed by several ADF members, including those who were providing a protective cordon outside the compound," the documents continue.

Back inside the compound, Roberts-Smith turned his attention to the senior Essa, the prosecutors' submission continues.

Grabbing a trooper referred to as "The Rookie" – anonymised in the court documents as Person Four – Roberts-Smith borrowed a firearm suppressor from another man before placing the detainee on his knees.

"Shoot that [expletive]," the court documents allege he said to Person Four – who understood it to be an order and complied.

"At the conclusion of the mission, both Roberts-Smith and his patrol leader claimed that they had 'blooded the Rookie'," the court documents say.

Darwan Village - 11 September 2012

In late August 2012, an Afghan National Army soldier working with Australian soldiers turned on them, killing three and injuring two others, sparking a massive manhunt. The search for Sgt Hekmatullah became the highest priority for the ADF.

Roberts-Smith - who the year before had been awarded the Commonwealth's highest military honour, the Victoria Cross - went looking for him in a village called Darwan two weeks later.

Arriving by helicopter on 11 September, his team searched a series of compounds near a dry creek bed, capturing three detainees, the court documents say. One of them was a man called Ali Jan.

The prisoners were "tactically questioned" by Roberts-Smith, prosecutors allege, which involved him punching and physically assaulting the handcuffed men.

Roberts-Smith then allegedly pulled Ali Jan, who was taken to the edge of a cliff by a colleague given the pseudonym Person 11.

"Whilst [Ali Jan] was still cuffed and physically restrained, Roberts-Smith kicked him causing him to fall approximately 10 metres and causing injuries including the loss of teeth," the court documents claim, adding that Person Four and local villagers say they witnessed the fall.

Roberts-Smith and Person 11 then climbed down the slope to where Ali Jan lay, hurt and still handcuffed.

Person Four told prosecutors he saw Roberts-Smith and Person 11 – both carrying rifles – have a short chat.

Several shots rang out when Person Four's back was turned, and when he looked over, Person 11 had his rifle up on his shoulder. The prosecution alleges that Person 11 shot Ali Jan.

The court documents claim that a hand-held radio - one that Roberts-Smith had taken from the body of a man he had earlier killed - was placed near Ali Jan and photographed to support the killing.

Roberts-Smith, during the defamation trial, denied any men had been detained, or that the cliff existed.

Syahchow - 20 October 2012

On 20 October 2012, Roberts-Smith – by then a patrol commander – was sent into Syachow village to look for an insurgent dubbed "Objective Pine".

The reports from that mission say that two people were killed during fighting in a compound. Another two were killed shortly after, shots and a grenade sent into a cornfield where they were refusing to surrender.

That was a lie, prosecutors allege. A junior soldier – called Person 66 – says the two men in the field were detainees murdered on Roberts-Smith's command.

Person 66 says the pair were detained in the compound, and then questioned by Roberts-Smith, who punched one of them in the stomach.

The two men were later lined up at the end of the cornfield, the court documents allege.

A senior soldier shot dead one man, before Roberts-Smith allegedly removed handcuffs and a blindfold from the second and ordered that Person 66 do the same.

The man had been pushed to the ground, his hands up in front of his face, the prosecutors claim. Person 66 – who was on his first operational mission – paused for a moment, then shot the man two to three times in the chest, the documents say.

He then watched as Roberts-Smith threw a grenade towards the dead detainees, described by investigators as an act to support the "false claim" they were killed during legitimate fighting.

Forensic pathologists identified marks consistent with ligatures in photographs of at least one of the men. Less discernible linear marks were also found on the other.

Trial could be 'years away'

Roberts-Smith stepped back from active duties at the end of 2012, and formally left the ADF in 2015, shortly after receiving a commendation for Distinguished Service.

About a year later, top military brass began an inquiry into rumours of war crimes committed in Afghanistan, and media reports detailing allegations began circulating.

Roberts-Smith was by 2018 identified as the alleged perpetrator in several incidents – something he vehemently denied and launched a landmark defamation case over. He lost.

In sworn evidence given at that civil trial, transcripts of which were included in the court documents tendered in the criminal case, Roberts-Smith denied he had ever broken the rules of war, underpinned by the Geneva Convention.

He also said he knew killing a "person under control" - or detainee - would never be permissible, and denied ever using "throwdowns", jargon to describe items like a radio or weapon planted at the scene of lethal engagements to justify them.

"Roberts-Smith exercised his right to decline the opportunity to add, amend or comment upon his previous sworn evidence," the court documents say.

However prosecutors have outlined other evidence they want to use to make their case at trial.

There were "common themes" to the alleged murders, the court documents concluded: every single alleged victim was handcuffed, detained for a period, and questioned prior to their execution, and each was killed in a situation where the ADF had control of the situation and there were no active engagements with enemy forces.

There was also at least one direct or eyewitness account to each of the alleged killings. The court documents reveal that list includes three witnesses who testify that they were involved in the execution of one or more detainees – either at the direction of, or with the complicity of, Roberts-Smith, who was their military superior.

Roberts-Smith's legal team has not yet responded to the detailed allegations put in the documents, nor has the veteran entered a plea, and any trial is still a long way off.

Granting Roberts-Smith strict, conditional bail on Friday, Judge Greg Grogin said it would be "not weeks or months, but years - possibly years and years" before Roberts-Smith appears in the dock.

Iranian footballers say Australia has given them 'hope' for safe future

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c624x4xgw6xo, 9 days ago

Two Iranian footballers who were granted asylum in Australia have said the country has given them "hope for a future where we can live and compete in safety".

Atefeh Ramezanisadeh and Fatemeh Pasandideh were among seven members of the Iranian team who were originally granted humanitarian visas while in Australia for the Women's Asian Cup - but the other five changed their minds and returned home.

It was feared the team would face repercussions for declining to sing the Iranian national anthem at their opening match, days after the war began.

In their first public statement, Ramezanisadeh and Pasandideh thanked supporters for their compassion and asked for privacy.

"At this stage, our primary focus is on our safety, our health and beginning the process of rebuilding our lives," the statement read.

"We are overwhelmed by the warmth and generosity of the Iranian diaspora community in Australia. Your support has made us feel welcome and less alone as we navigate this transition," they added.

The pair also thanked the Australian government for providing them "a safe haven in this beautiful country" and officials from the Home Affairs staff for their "dedicated" assistance.

Ramezanisadeh and Pasandideh - who have been pictured training with A-League Women's team Brisbane Roar - said they hope to continue their elite sporting careers in Australia.

The drama around the Iranian team unfolded against the background of the war back in their home country which erupted on 28 February when Israel and the US launched joint air strikes.

Concerns grew about the team's safety after footage emerged of a host on state TV calling them "traitors" who ought to be punished for their silence during the anthem on 2 March.

The players were moved to Brisbane, about an hour's drive north from the Gold Coast where they had been staying with their teammates before giving minders the slip and going into the protection of Australian Federal Police.

Human rights activists have said the women who returned to Iran may have been pressured to reverse their decisions through threats against their families.

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke at the time said the Australian government could not "remove the context in which the players are making these incredibly difficult decisions".

Iran's sports ministry said that they had "defeated the enemy's plans" against them through their "national spirit and patriotism", and accused Australia's government of "playing in Trump's field".

News agency Tasnim - which is affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps - meanwhile reported the players had faced "psychological warfare, extensive propaganda and seductive offers" in Australia.

'Out of control' diesel prices threaten Australia's crucial freight industry

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cde5d8y8lx9o, 13 days ago

Australia, like many countries around the world, is in the grip of a fuel crisis.

The nation has experienced some of its biggest ever spikes in petrol and diesel prices - and the lorry industry has been among the hardest hit.

Operators are reliant on diesel, often to power heavy long-haul road trains, and many say costs have more than doubled since war broke out in Iran, sending oil prices to record highs across the globe.

In a rare national address, Australia's prime minister recently made a three-and-a-half minute plea about the country's fuel supplies.

"These are uncertain times," Anthony Albanese said during the prime-time televised address.

"But I am absolutely certain of this: we will deal with these global challenges, the Australian way."

He asked everyone to "think of others" when using fuel and opt for public transport where possible, so that supplies could be saved for "people who have no choice but to drive".

But for Aaron Fischer, an owner-operator of a lorry company, Albanese's words brought little relief as he spent another sleepless night trying to keep his business afloat.

"I was laying in bed the other night with my laptop, just running through numbers," he tells the BBC.

"I need to know what I've got coming in and going out to make sure my maintenance bills are right, my fuel bills are fine, my tyre bills are good."

The price of diesel has seen his fuel costs skyrocket.

"Before all this stuff happened, it used to cost me A$3,600 (US$2,540, £1,890) to fill up a tank... now I'm spending $7,500. That's the problem: it's literally doubled my bill."

Fischer's business is based in Howlong, a border town between the Australian states of New South Wales (NSW) and Victoria.

Every week, he sends more than a dozen road trains - which can be about the length of an Olympic-sized pool - across the unforgiving terrain of the Nullarbor Plain, a 1,200km (750 miles) expanse of desert named for being a treeless landscape.

Book-ended by Ceduna in South Australia and Norseman in Western Australia, there are about a dozen fuel stations along the way, with distances between some stops stretching to about 200km.

Reports of diesel shortages along the route have caused headaches for lorry drivers, or truckers.

"We've had a few [drivers] that went to put fuel in and they've had none," Fischer says.

His lorries hold 2,500 litres of fuel, and the amount each trip burns up depends on the load - which can range from heavy machinery to large orders of bottled water and mail deliveries.

According to the latest figures from the Australian Institute of Petroleum, the national average price of diesel is 312.7 cents per litre, up from 180.2 cents before the war started. Petrol prices have also jumped from 171 cents to 240.1 cents.

"Instead of me spending $150,000 a month on fuel, I'm now spending $300,000 a month," Fischer says. "And we've had to come up with that money straight away".

That's because operators typically have to wait 60 days before they get paid, meaning Fischer will have to spend about $600,000 before he sees any returns.

"I've got to carry the business through for another two months before I see any of that money. This is where a lot of people are going to come unstuck."

'Everything comes off a truck'

In a bid to address the financial stress on operators, the government announced A$1bn in interest-free loans for the transport and freight sectors as well as fuel and fertiliser producers.

But Alex Randall from freight carrier Loadshift says the offer won't solve the problem.

"Interest-free loans are still debt," he says. "If you're a small carrier whose fuel bill has just doubled and your customers are cancelling jobs, the last thing you need is more on the books."

Instead, Randall says small operators need direct payments or faster help with fuel costs.

For Fischer, it's about keeping food on the table for his family and his staff of eight drivers.

One of those drivers is Michael Webb, 33, who has been a lorry driver for almost a decade.

When he spoke to the BBC, Webb was on the return leg of an "East to West" run across the Nullarbor, having left Howlong in Australia's east days earlier.

It took him three-and-a-half days to travel 3,600km, cutting across Victoria and South Australia and into the Western Australian capital of Perth, where he offloaded large pieces of mining equipment.

"I've never driven a truck that's cost this much to fill up - it's out of control," he said.

Webb also said Albanese's address provided little comfort, and that the industries moving goods around the vast distances of Australia need more support.

"Everything that you get has come off a truck at one point - whether it's your food, your drinks, the shirt you're wearing, the phone you're using," he said.

'Catastrophic' price rises

The fuel price rises could not have come at a worse time for William Hawkes.

He started his lorry business three months ago and has been forced to re-quote all his jobs due to the price hikes, increasing them by around a third.

"That's pretty catastrophic when you're starting out," he says, noting that it's put a strain on new relationships with clients.

Hawkes's company moves essential equipment such as excavators to flood-hit areas - like the outback NSW town of Broken Hill, which saw record rains last month - or tipper trucks to Queensland for emergency road repairs.

Last week, one of his drivers was moving modular homes from one corner of Australia to another - Bendigo in Victoria to Broome in Western Australia - on a 5,300km trip.

"When we're moving an item like that, because of the way it catches the wind, our fuel consumption can be anywhere from 0.6 litre per km to 1.2 litres per km," he says.

By comparison, a car in the city uses on average about eight to 10 litres per 100km.

"We got onto the Nullarbor and there was some chatter through the UHF (ultra-high frequency radio) about different service stations that didn't have any diesel," Hawkes tells the BBC. So he decided to re-route the driver, adding several hours to the days-long journey.

He says his profit margin has stayed the same but the volume of work has plummeted as clients cancel or delay jobs.

Meanwhile, veteran lorry driver Terry Snell says the current situation is unlike anything he's seen before.

The 68-year-old has been driving lorries for more than four decades, but has been forced to reduce his workload because of costs and his profit margin becoming "very slim".

"We used to run every week. We now run every fortnight," he says. "With the increase in the fuel charges, if we run weekly, we need to go off to a bank or a financial institution."

Snell just finished a Perth-to-Brisbane run, transporting a franna crane - a lorry and crane combined - and charged the client $18,000, a job that would have cost $9,000 a few weeks ago.

"There's a massive shortage of trucks at the moment because a lot of blokes have just stopped running... they can't afford to," he says.

"If we don't get this problem sorted and get it sorted very quickly, we are going to have a supply chain crisis."

Refinery fire risks Australia's oil supply amid Iran war fuel crisis

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce8jpye1r5ko, 10 days ago

Prices at the pump in Australia have soared since the Iran war, and now there's a chance they could go higher, after a fire broke out at one of the country's two oil refineries.

Emergency crews rushed to Viva's Corio oil refinery in Geelong, southwest of Melbourne, just before midnight on Wednesday, after reports of explosions and flames. The blaze was put out after burning for 13 hours.

The refinery - which produces 50% of Victoria's fuel and 10% of the nation's - is still partially operational but the government has warned of impacts to petrol production.

BBC's Simon Atkinson reports from Melbourne on the blaze, which rescue officials say was caused by equipment failure.

Rebel Wilson's claims against actress are 'malicious concoctions', Australian court hears

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn4vn021mg9o, 6 days ago

Claims by Rebel Wilson that a young Australian actress was sexually harassed by a producer but then hid it to better her career are "malicious concoctions", a Sydney court heard on the first day of a defamation case against the star.

Charlotte MacInnes is suing Wilson over social media posts she says defamed her by suggesting she withdrew her complaint to further her career.

In 2024 and 2025, Wilson posted on Instagram that MacInnes - who stars in Wilson's film The Deb - felt "uncomfortable" after sharing a bath with one of its female producers.

The Pitch Perfect star claimed MacInnes retracted a complaint - which MacInnes denies making - in exchange for a major theatre role and a record deal.

MacInnes says the allegations have tarnished her reputation for integrity and honesty, and is seeking damages.

Lawyers for MacInnes have said she made no complaint to Wilson about the bath incident but that Wilson later used it as "leverage" in a dispute with producers about the film's budget and contracts.

On the first day of the case, the court saw a series of private texts between Wilson, the producer Amanda Ghost and MacInnes as well as detailed emails about the bath and alleged sexual harassment.

The incident happened on 5 September 2023 when MacInnes and Ghost went for a late afternoon swim at Bondi Beach.

Ghost had an allergic reaction to the water, known as cold urticaria, breaking out in red welts and shaking uncontrollably, the court heard.

The pair went back to Ghost's beachside apartment with MacInnes running a hot bath for Ghost, who had got into a shower to warm up.

Both later got into the bath – described by MacInnes' legal team as "oversized" – with both wearing their swimsuits.

They "were not even touching at all", Sue Chrysanthou SC told the court.

Ghost's assistant made hot drinks for the pair and sat with them in the bathroom for a short while.

The next day, Wilson spoke to MacInnes who told her she felt uncomfortable about the bath incident, according to Wilson, who then raised it with Ghost.

But when Wilson discussed it with MacInnes again a couple of days later, the young actress said this was not what she had said, Chrysanthou said.

A text message sent by Wilson to the producer Ghost and shown to the court read: "Charlotte says all good. She just meant 'it was a bizarre situation' not that she personally felt uncomfortable."

That night, they all went to a Boy George concert, the court heard.

The allegations that she was sexually harassed by Ghost but then retracted her complaint to further her career were "completely false, fantasy, malicious concoctions", Chrysanthou said.

However Wilson's lawyer Dauid Sibtain said that MacInnes lied by denying she had complained to Wilson "to ensure that her career as an actress and musician progressed by appeasing Ms Ghost".

Sibtain said since the film, MacInnes has starred in a theatre production in the US and released a single, with another to "drop any day now".

"She's suffered no harm to her reputation, indeed, her career has progressed," he said.

"All of these wealth of prizes and opportunities that have materialised has come, we would suggest, because Ms MacInnes decided to tie herself to Ms Ghost's version."

"MacInnes lied by denying she had made a complaint to Ms Wilson, that a producer had asked her to have a bath and shower with her and it made her feel uncomfortable," Dauid Sibtain said.

In one post from September 2024 Wilson wrote: "The fact that this girl has been employed now by this 'producer' in the lead role of a production called GATSBY (ART Boston) and given a record label – should be all the proof you need as to why she has now changed her story."

MacInnes, who graduated from a Western Australian acting academy in 2021, plays one of the two lead characters in The Deb, a musical comedy set in the Australian outback, having starred in a theatre production of the play in 2022. The movie was released in Australia this month.

Wilson, who also appeared in the hit film Bridesmaids, is facing two other court cases, one in Australia where the film's producers allege contract breaches, and another in the US over claims Wilson defamed the producers and where Wilson is countersuing.

The trial in Sydney that began on Monday is expected to continue for nine days.

One dead after car hits pedestrians in Melbourne, police say

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c20dy511v3lo, 8 days ago

Police have arrested a man in Melbourne after a car mounted a kerb and drove into pedestrians, killing one.

A grey Toyota struck two pedestrians on Langs Road in the Ascot Vale suburb just before 17:00 local time (07:00 GMT) on Saturday, Victoria Police said.

One pedestrian died at the scene and the second was taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries.

Police said the circumstances surrounding the collision had not yet been established and the arrested man was due to be interviewed.

Local media reported the crash happened outside the Melbourne Showgrounds, which had been hosting the two-day Supanova Comic Con & Gaming event.

Pictures of the scene showed a police cordon around the vehicle which appeared to have visible damage.

Det Insp Craig McEvoy told 9News that the driver had been arrested by an off-duty officer who received assistance from the public.

He said it was unclear whether the incident was intentional, but police would be investigating all avenues, including whether drugs or alcohol were involved.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported an eyewitness, Tom, said he "heard a screech and a guy mounted the kerb at an erratic speed, hit a couple people".

He said the car U-turned back down the street towards him before it stalled, and he claimed to have stopped the driver from fleeing.

Thousands of people had reportedly been expected to attend the event, which describes itself as the "home of Australia's pop culture fandom".

Celebrities including Lord of the Rings actor Andy Serkis and Harry Potter actress Bonnie Wright were announced as guests at the expo.

Mandelson under formal investigation by EU's anti-fraud office

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c77m242z2j8o, yesterday

The EU's anti-fraud office has begun a formal investigation into Lord Peter Mandelson, who was sacked as UK ambassador to the US over his ties to late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Lord Mandelson served as European trade commissioner from 2004 to 2008. The European Commission asked the European Anti-Fraud Office (Olaf) two months ago to look into allegations of misconduct during that four-year period.

Olaf confirmed on Friday that it had recently had "sufficient information" to launch an investigation, but said it was too early to say whether or not it involved allegations of fraud.

After Lord Mandelson left Brussels, he became UK business secretary until 2010.

Olaf is expected to look at exchanges with Epstein from Lord Mandelson's time as EU commissioner. It has confirmed its mandate covers all four years, and is limited to staff and members of EU institutions.

However, emails to Epstein have also surfaced surrounding the eurozone crisis in 2010. Among the allegations are that Lord Mandelson gave Epstein advance notice of an impending €500bn (£434bn) bailout, when EU governments decided to do "whatever it takes" to stop Greece's financial crisis spreading to other countries in the eurozone.

Lord Mandelson has not commented on the allegations but the BBC understands he has denied acting in any criminal manner and was not motivated by financial gain.

The anti-fraud office said it had no jurisdiction to prosecute and made clear that "if there is a criminal element we will pass it to the European Prosecutor's Office".

Olaf's role is to investigate allegations of fraud that relate to the EU's budget, as well as corruption and serious misconduct within EU institutions.

It can recommend sanctions against someone under investigation, but the decision has to be taken by relevant EU authorities. Among the recommendations possible are judicial, financial, administrative and disciplinary, so that could include revoking the former commissioner's pension.

Olaf told the BBC that any documents would now be analysed and that "IT forensics" would be done, insofar as they were available after so many years. It could not confirm whether further allegations had come to light since February.

Earlier this year, email exchanges between Lord Mandelson and Epstein emerged from that period, prompting the UK's Metropolitan Police to launch a criminal investigation into suggestions that he had passed on market-sensitive information during his time as business secretary in 2009.

Lord Mandelson was sacked as UK ambassador to the US in September 2025 as the extent of his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein became clear.

The scandal surrounding the peer's ties to Epstein continue to reverberate through UK politics, and this week the former top civil servant at the Foreign Office, Sir Olly Robbins, said he had been pressured to rush through Lord Mandelson's appointment as ambassador to the US.

Three Kosovo Serbs jailed over deadly gun battle and monastery siege

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/crr1gwnx4e8o, yesterday

A court in Kosovo has sentenced two Kosovo Serbs to life imprisonment and another to a 30-year jail term for taking part in what it described as a "terrorist" attack in September 2023.

The men were found guilty of violating Kosovo's constitutional order and inciting terrorist activities. Prosecutors have charged 45 people in total - but they believe most of them are in Serbia and unlikely to be handed over.

The "Banjska incident" is a prosaic label for one of the most dramatic, dangerous and deadly days Kosovo has seen since it unilaterally declared independence from Serbia in 2008.

A police officer and three members of an armed group of Kosovo Serbs died during several hours of shooting in northern Kosovo.

On Friday, the court in Kosovo's capital Pristina sentenced Vladimir Tolić and Blagoj Spasojević to life in prison and Dušan Maksimović to 30 years in prison.

Kosovo's acting President Albulena Haxhiu welcomed the verdict, describing it as "proof that the attack on the Kosovo police, on the constitutional order and on the security of our country will not remain unpunished".

Despite the convictions, many questions remain over what happened in the village of Banjska, which is less than half-an-hour's drive from the crossing point into central Serbia.

The authorities in Pristina maintain that Serbia's government in Belgrade was ultimately responsible, though it is still far from clear what the armed group actually hoped to achieve.

The shooting started when police responded to a lorry blockade set up on a bridge in the early hours of Sunday 24 September.

Kosovo authorities said that a group of about 30 men attacked the officers with guns and grenades.

Sgt Afrim Bunjaku was killed, while two of his colleagues were injured.

The armed group then retreated to the nearby 14th century Serbian Orthodox monastery, forced their way in and barricaded themselves inside, much to the alarm of a group of pilgrims from Serbia's second city, Novi Sad.

Shooting continued throughout the day, resulting in the deaths of three members of the armed group.

But by the time Kosovo police's special forces took control of the monastery in late afternoon, the surviving group members had somehow slipped away despite being, to all intents and purposes, surrounded.

The self-confessed leader of the group, Kosovo Serb politician Milan Radoičić, soon emerged in Serbia, boasting that he had "personally made all the logistical preparations" for the attack.

Police questioned him, but he does not face any charges in Serbia and remains at large there - although an Interpol arrest warrant means his freedom to leave the country is limited.

Kosovo's authorities have seized on Radoičić's connections to Serbia's government as proof that the attack had an official seal of approval from Belgrade.

Radoičić was the deputy leader of the main Kosovo Serb political party, Serbian List, which has strong ties to the governing Progressive Party of President Aleksandar Vučić

Radoičić insisted that nobody in Serbia's government knew about his plans.

But Kosovo's Prime Minister Albin Kurti claimed the attack was part of a Serbian plot to annex a majority-Serb north Kosovo.

Relations between Belgrade and Pristina were already strained before the "Banjska incident". Since then, they have been close to non-existent.

Multiple attempts to revive the EU-moderated normalisation talks between the two sides have failed.

The convictions are unlikely to do anything to improve the atmosphere.

Kosovo's Interior Minister Xhelal Sveçla said "it remains for Serbia to be held accountable for its political, financial and logistical role in this aggression".

Seven dead in major Russian attack on Ukraine

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0rxk4q0pj0o, today

At least seven people were killed in Russian strikes across Ukraine overnight, including five in the central city of Dnipro, where officials said an apartment building was hit.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the latest attack lasted "practically all night", while rescue workers were still searching for survivors under rubble in Dnipro on Saturday morning.

British jets were scrambled from Romania during the heavy attack when Russian drones were detected near the border, though the UK Ministry of Defence rejected a report it had shot some down.

Meanwhile, Ukraine carried out some of its longest-distance drone strikes deep inside Russian territory.

In Yekaterinburg, almost 1,000 miles (1,600km) from Ukraine's border, the governor said six people were injured when a building was struck - while in nearby Chelyabinsk, a local leader said drones targeting an industrial facility were intercepted.

Russian missiles and drones also targeted the northern city of Chernihiv, where officials said two people were killed, as well as Odesa and Kharkiv.

Ukrainian authorities said they repelled the vast majority of the more than 600 Russian drones, which appears to have been the largest attack in several days.

Zelensky wrote on social media: "The Russians' tactics have not changed: strike drones, cruise missiles, and a significant amount of ballistics.

"Most of the targets are ordinary infrastructure in cities. Residential buildings, energy, and enterprises have been damaged."

Russia's Ministry of Defence said it had shot down 127 drones over more than a dozen regions.

The department also said it had taken control of Bochkove, a village in the Kharkiv region, on Saturday morning, according to state-linked news agency Tass.

The settlement is close to Ukraine's northern border with Russia, where invading forces have made repeated attempts to push further south towards the city of Kharkiv.

Ukrainian authorities have not commented on Russia's claim to have gained control of the village, nor has BBC News been able to independently verify it.

Elsewhere, Romania's defence ministry said it was investigating "the fall of an object" on its territory close to the Ukrainian border during the Russian attack.

It also clarified a previous statement which appeared to suggest that British jets based in the country had shot down Russian drones, which would have been the first incident of its kind.

It said British jets "did not enter Ukrainian airspace", and "no drones were shot down by the aircraft, because the drones did not breach Romanian airspace".

With peace talks between Russia and Ukraine at an impasse, Ukraine continues to seek international backing for its military efforts.

On Friday, Zelensky met Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the second round of talks between the pair in recent months as Ukraine seeks to broker closer ties with Gulf allies.

Saudi Arabia and its neighbours have a renewed interest in Ukraine's drone warfare expertise since coming under Iranian attack in recent weeks.

The crown prince and Zelensky discussed strengthening air defence cooperation and joint military production, an official account of the meeting said.

Additional reporting by Vitaly Shevchenko

Nato says 'no provision' to expel members after report US could seek to suspend Spain

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz78x703lrvo, yesterday

Nato says there is no provision for member states to be suspended or expelled from the military alliance after a report said the US could seek to suspend Spain over its Iran war stance.

Reuters quoted a US official who said an internal Pentagon email had suggested measures for the US to punish allies it believed had failed to support its campaign.

The email also suggested reviewing the US position on the UK's claim to the Falklands islands in the south Atlantic, which are also claimed by Argentina.

A Nato official told the BBC that the alliance's founding treaty "does not foresee any provision for suspension of Nato membership, or expulsion".

Spain's leader has also dismissed the report.

Pentagon Press Secretary Kingsley Wilson told the BBC that despite "everything" the US has done for its Nato allies, "they were not there for us".

She added: "The War Department [defence department] will ensure that the president has credible options to ensure that our allies are no longer a paper tiger and instead do their part.

"We have no further comment on any internal deliberations to that effect."

The BBC has contacted the UK government for comment.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticised Nato allies for their reluctance to play a greater role after the US and Israel attacked Iran on 28 February and Iran subsequently restricted shipping through the key Strait of Hormuz route.

Spain has refused to allow the use of air bases on its territory for attacks on Iran. The US has two military bases in Spain, Naval Station Rota and Morón Air Base.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez told reporters: "We do not work based on emails. We work with official documents and official positions taken, in this case, by the government of the United States."

Sánchez added that Spain supported "full co-operation with its allies, but always within the framework of international law."

Meanwhile, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has insisted that greater involvement in the war or the current US blockade of Iran's ports is not in the UK's interest.

The UK has allowed the US to use British bases to launch strikes on Iranian sites targeting the Strait of Hormuz and RAF planes have taken part in missions to shoot down Iranian drones.

The UK, France and others have said they would be willing to keep the Strait of Hormuz - a global oil shipping route - open after a lasting ceasefire or the end of the war.

On Friday, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth used a news conference to again take aim at European allies for not helping Washington in its war against Iran.

"We are not counting on Europe, but they need the Strait of Hormuz much more than we do, and might want to start doing less talking and having less fancy conferences in Europe and getting a boat. This is much more their fight than ours," Hegseth said.

"Europe and Asia have benefitted from our protection for decades, but the time for free riding is over," he added.

Last month Trump said he had always considered the 32-member Nato defence alliance to be a "one-way street". "We will protect them, but they will do nothing for us," he wrote.

The internal Pentagon email said access, basing and overflight rights (ABO) were "just the absolute baseline for Nato", the unnamed US official told Reuters.

As possible retaliation for this perceived lack of co-operation, the email suggested reassessing American diplomatic support for longstanding European "imperial possessions" such as the Falkland Islands, Reuters quoted the US official as saying.

On Friday, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni urged Nato allies to stick together in the wake of the Pentagon memo, saying the alliance is a "source of strength".

"We must work to strengthen Nato's European pillar... which must clearly complement the American one," she told reporters at an EU summit in Cyprus.

A German government spokesperson said Spain's membership was not in question.

"Spain is a member of Nato. And I see no reason why that should change," the spokesperson said during a regular news conference in Berlin.

The Falklands, known in Argentina as the Malvinas, are about 8,000 miles (12,875km) from the UK and about 300 miles from mainland Argentina.

Argentina has long claimed sovereignty over the islands, a British overseas territory in the south-west Atlantic Ocean. The two countries fought a war over the issue, after Argentine forces invaded the islands in 1982.

Another option in the email outlined suspending "difficult" countries from important positions within the alliance, according to the official.

The official told Reuters that the memo did not suggest that the US could withdraw from the alliance, nor did it propose closing bases in Europe.

Poisoning suspected in deaths of 18 wolves in Italian national park

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0mjederzwdo, yesterday

Poisoning is suspected in the deaths of 18 wolves within a few days in a national park that straddles three regions of central Italy.

After the carcasses of 10 wolves were found last week, another eight were found when patrols were stepped up in recent days in the Abruzzo, Lazio, and Molise National Park.

The park authority said last week that traces of suspected poisoned bait had been found in an area where five of the wolves had been found dead and the latest deaths elsewhere raised "very strong suspicion" of further poisoning.

The authority said it was working to determine the cause of death and collaborating with local public prosecutors.

The park's initial suspicions appear to have been corroborated in tests carried out by the local animal health research institute IZS.

Thirteen of the dead wolves were taken to the institute in Teramo, which found the "presence of pesticides for agriculture used in poisoned bait for animals".

In a sign of the national seriousness of the issue, Environment Minister Gilberto Pichetto Fratin also intervened, condemning the killings as "horrendous and serious", adding that the protection of wolves was "crucial to the balance of our ecosystem".

Italy's Institute for Environmental Protection and Research (Ispra) warned that the killing of wolves most likely by poisoning called into question significant advances in animal protection and conservation.

Poisoned bait posed a concrete risk to other protected wild species as well as domestic pets and public safety, it said.

Wolves have seen their population swell in Europe in recent years, with the European Union reporting a 35% increase to 23,000 from 2016 to 2023, concentrated especially in Central Europe and Alpine regions.

In Italy alone the wolf population was estimated to be about 3,300, according to a 2020-21 census by Ispra.

Accompanying that rise has been an increase in attacks on livestock, and that has led to the EU downgrading the "strictly protected" status of wolves to "protected". Latest EU data suggests 65,500 individual livestock are killed by wolves each year.

The change of status to merely "protected" has paved the way for a limited cull of 160 wolves to be allowed in Italy annually from 2026, but wildlife groups have appealed for that to be revisited in the wake of the suspected poisonings.

The head of environmental group Legambiente, Stefano Ciafani, described the 18 deaths as an "unprecedented attack on protected wildlife" and an example of "do-it-yourself justice".

He warned that other animals could now come under attack, including the Marsican brown bear - a critically endangered species considered a symbol of the Abruzzo national park. About 50 Marsican bears remain.

Headscarf with a beret: Muslim designers showcase floral dresses and boxy streetwear in Paris

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx23zmxd2z3o, 2 days ago

Paris has held its first ever Modest Fashion Week - hosting nearly 30 designers whose collections include loose, long-cut garments and headscarves.

It's the kind of clothing many Muslim women choose to wear in line with their religious principles - covering their arms, legs and sometimes hair.

There was a particular significance to setting it in France, where hijabs and other religious clothing have frequently made headlines and are restricted in certain settings.

Rukaiya Kamba, the creative director of Nigerian brand Flaunt Archive, said the decision to present her collection in Paris came from a "very intentional place".

And as models took to the runway, some young attendees told the BBC they felt the event demonstrated a more inclusive French culture taking shape.

France is home to around 5-7.5 million Muslims according to estimates, and Özlem Şahin, head of the organisation behind Modest Fashion Week, has described Paris as "one of the leading modest fashion capitals in Europe".

Inside Hôtel Le Marois, a mansion just off the Champs-Élsyées, the focus was on florals and nature-inspired hues.

Hicran Önal, the founder and designer behind Turkey-based brand Miha, wore a printed floral tulle dress and told me romance was key to her collection.

Her outfits blend water-like teals and blue, contrasting with natural floral pinks. Indonesian designer Nada Puspita followed suit, but with cleaner lines.

Aisa Hassan, the designer behind Australian brand Asiyam, said she too had been inspired by nature but her references were decidedly warmer - with deeper greens and almost autumnal reds. A bucket hat nodded to her Aussie heritage.

The softness in Hassan's outfits contrasted with the sporty aesthetic that remains so prevalent in the industry.

French brands Soutoura and Nour Turbans' nylon, black, jewel-toned and boxy garments are heavily influenced by Gen Z streetwear - the kind of modest fashion that's also been championed by sportswear giants Nike and Adidas.

Like Asiyam, Nour Turbans also used headwear to make an impression - styling her model with a beret over a headscarf.

The market for modest fashion has grown rapidly in the past decade - with global consumer spending expected to exceed $400bn by next year, according to research firm DinarStandard.

While the industry initially catered to Muslim women specifically, it is increasingly appealing to other religious communities and secular shoppers too.

Soutoura's founder and creative director Fatou Doucouré told me having the event in Paris filled her with pride. She said she had struggled with her hijab in France but today felt it was not holding her back.

The headscarf and other religious symbols were banned in state-run schools more than 20 years ago in France, and more recently, loose full-length robes known as abayas were prohibited in schools too.

This stems from laïcité, the French brand of secularism which decrees the state and public institutions should be free of religion. One consequence is that people cannot wear religious clothing and work in public-sector professions like teaching or the civil service.

Doucouré said exhibiting her collection in Paris made her feel that Muslim women who cover their hair or dress modestly could "take on any role in any society".

Turkish swimwear brand Mayovera showcased a collection of burkinis - a mix of the terms "burka" and "bikini" - covering everything except the face, hands and feet. The item is banned in most public swimming pools in France - but allowed on beaches.

One young French attendee of Malian heritage said the event had brought her joy as someone who had previously faced discrimination due to wearing a headscarf.

Seeing a major show full of international designers in the heart of Paris had made her "never want to leave".

Another said it felt like something had changed in France, with her hijab no longer feeling like the centre of political discussion. She said she felt that on the streets, too, people had begun to see beyond it.

'Animals are traumatised too': Pet rescuers under fire in Ukraine

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn783emlgdno, yesterday

On a morning in February, animal shelter staff were getting changed for their shift when a Russian drone slammed into the centre of their compound in the frontline Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia.

The steel door at the entrance probably saved their lives. More than a dozen animals sheltering at "Give a Paw, Friend" were not so lucky.

"It was terrifying, to put it mildly," says the group's head Iryna Didur.

Residents rushed to help clean up the rubble and catch the animals that had escaped in terror. The local energy company - itself the target of relentless Russian attacks - installed a new steel door.

"We've got very good people here in Zaporizhzhia. A lot of them have been visiting us to help, and we cleared almost all the rubble in three days," Didur tells the BBC.

Hers is one of numerous groups catering to animals in need of food, veterinary care and shelter - or helping to evacuate the pets to safer areas.

Others also neuter stray cats and dogs to stop their populations from growing.

Countless pets were abandoned in Ukraine when their owners fled areas near the front line as they came under Russian bombardment.

Other pets are struggling to survive because their owners have been killed.

It was the sight of abandoned and homeless dogs that moved Lala Tarapakina to get involved in the pet evacuations.

"That was the first time I witnessed the catastrophe affecting animals," said the head of the 12 Guardians charity, "they were walking along a road, and they obviously used to be family pets. It was awful."

Her organisation has since rescued more than 40,000 animals, often from extremely dangerous areas, she tells the BBC.

"Many people were forced to flee under shelling, losing friends, relatives and limbs along the way. They left lots of animals behind, and we evacuated them under artillery shelling," she says.

Evacuated animals are either placed in shelters or with adoptive families - or they are reunited with their owners.

These evacuations also help save the lives of pet owners who are either unwilling or unable to travel with pets.

Alla was the last resident to leave her village in Donetsk region because of the cats and dogs she was looking after. "I love them all! How could I abandon them? I probably wouldn't survive, my heart would just break," she told Ukrainian TV.

And it is not just pet owners who find it difficult to leave. A special police unit helped one farmer under bombardment in the northern region of Sumy to leave with his 11 goats.

Many Ukrainians have stayed near the front line because travel with animals is more complicated and expensive, and finding rented accommodation that allows pets in safer parts of Ukraine is not easy.

Travelling with animals abroad is even more difficult because they need paperwork, for instance showing that they have been inoculated against rabies.

Helping animals in wartime is also extremely risky, says Nate Mook, whose Hachiko Foundation provides veterinary treatment and pet food and has 150 feeding stations for homeless animals along the front line.

"We've had to arm our teams with drone detectors now. We're driving along highways with [anti-drone] netting," he explains.

"We've had to relocate in certain areas because it became too dangerous, and unfortunately, some of the areas where we began our work in 2022 are now no-go zones."

There are so many stray animals on the front lines that Ukrainian soldiers joke that cats and dogs have become standard issue.

For more than two years, the driver of a drone unit outside Kupyansk has been accompanied by a maltipoo dog, and the 831st Myrhorod tactical aviation brigade has a ginger cat that comes out whenever there is an air raid.

"He just sits near an air defence artillery gun, silent and motionless, as if he's also on duty," the brigade says.

But why do people choose to help animals at a time of immense human suffering, risking their lives in the process?

"Saving one animal is the same as saving several people because it gives them hope," says Lala Tarapakina. "By rescuing one dog, you make an average of about 10 people happy. That's good maths, isn't it?"

Before getting involved in animal rescue, Nate Mook ran World Central Kitchen, which feeds people affected by crises across the globe.

"Dogs and cats have no choice about what's happening around them, and there's this sense that they are really powerless. They are equally traumatised and shell-shocked, and the same thing that humans go through, the animals also go through," he says.

It is not a case of helping one or the other, and animals do not start wars, he adds.

Chernobyl's last wedding: The couple who married as a nuclear disaster unfolded

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0q92lx8q75o, 7 days ago

It was just after midnight. Iryna Stetsenko had finished doing her nails for her wedding, opened the balcony door and was battling her nerves to get to sleep.

In a nearby apartment packed with guests, her fiancé Serhiy Lobanov was asleep on a mattress in the kitchen.

Then a "rumble" disturbed the quiet, says Iryna. "It was as if a lot of planes were flying overhead, everything was humming and the glass in the windows shook."

Serhiy says he "felt a shake, as if some kind of wave passed", wondered if it was a mild earthquake, and fell back to sleep.

The 19-year-old trainee teacher and power plant engineer, who was 25, were looking forward to married life in the newly built Soviet city of Pripyat. They had no idea that the world's worst ever nuclear accident was unfolding less than 2.5 miles (4km) away.

Reactor number four at the Chernobyl power plant – in what is now northern Ukraine - had exploded, spewing out radioactive material that would spread across swathes of Europe.

Forty years later, the highly radioactive remains of the plant are in a warzone. The couple now live in Berlin, having uprooted their lives a second time - this time to escape conflict, not a nuclear disaster.

But on the morning of 26 April 1986, Serhiy remembers waking around 6am, full of excitement, to find his wedding day had dawned gloriously sunny.

He had errands to do - bed linen to take to a friend's apartment where he and Iryna planned to sleep that night, and flowers to buy.

He says he saw soldiers in gas masks outside, and men washing the street with a foamy solution. Some men he knew from his work at the nuclear plant told him they had been called in urgently because "something happened", but they did not know what.

As he looked out from the friend's high-rise apartment, he spotted smoke rising from reactor four.

It would later become clear that firefighters and power plant workers had spent the night risking lethal doses of radiation to tackle a huge toxic blaze.

"I felt a bit anxious," he says. Drawing on his training, he took some fabric, wet it and put it across the apartment entrance as a precaution to catch radioactive dust, he adds.

He then rushed to the market. Unusually for a Saturday morning, it was deserted, so he picked five tulips for the bouquet.

Iryna, who was staying with her mother in the family's apartment, says the phone kept ringing overnight. Her mother sounded "alarmed", she says, by neighbours calling to say "something terrible" had happened. But there was little detail.

Information was strictly controlled in the Soviet Union. They turned on the radio, but there was no mention of any incident.

In the morning, her mother rang the authorities: "They told her not to panic, all planned events in the city should go ahead."

Officially, everything carried on as usual. Children were sent to school.

Later in the day, the bride, groom and guests drove in a line of cars to the Palace of Culture, known for hosting both ceremonial events and popular discos.

They made their vows standing on a cloth embroidered with their names, then moved with their guests to a nearby café.

But the wedding banquet felt "sad", not celebratory, says Serhiy. "Everyone understood that something had happened, but no one knew the details".

For their first dance, they had practised a traditional waltz. But with the growing realisation that a tragedy was unfolding, "from the first steps we went out of rhythm", recalls Iryna. "We just hugged each other and moved in the hug."

Then - exhausted but finally man and wife - they returned to the friend's apartment.

But, Serhiy says, in the early hours of Sunday morning, another friend knocked on the door, telling them to rush to an evacuation train, due to leave at 5am.

The only extra clothing Iryna had with her was a flimsy dress for the second day of the celebrations, so she put her wedding dress back on to hurry back to her mother's apartment to change. Also, her shoes had given her blisters. "I was in a wedding dress and I was running barefoot through the puddles," says Iryna.

It was still dark as they saw the glow of the collapsed reactor from the train. It was "as if you were looking into the eye of a volcano," says Serhiy.

The official announcement, when it came, described the evacuation as "temporary".

"We left for three days, but ended up going for our entire lives," he adds.

The Soviet Union was heavily criticised for its slowness in revealing the scale of the disaster. It was only two days after the explosion – after radiation was detected in Sweden – that it acknowledged an accident had happened. It was more than two weeks before Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev spoke about it publicly.

A safety test had gone badly wrong. An estimate cited by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and World Health Organization suggests the explosions released 400 times more radioactive material than the bomb at Hiroshima.

Nikolai Solovyov was working as a lead engineer in the turbine hall at the time.

"It was like an earthquake beneath us," he recalls. "We saw the roof collapsing… A blast of air came towards us and brought all this black dust… And the siren started."

He says he and colleagues raced towards the site thinking a generator had exploded – unable to imagine it could be the reactor itself.

One checked their monitors and said radiation levels were "off the charts", Nikolai remembers.

He says they found another colleague standing on one of the turbines, apparently unhurt but vomiting - a sign of radiation sickness. "He was one of the first to die," he says.

The official death toll from the incident is 31 people - two were killed by the explosion itself, while 28 died from Acute Radiation Sickness, and one from cardiac arrest, in the weeks afterwards.

The wider impact of the disaster is contested and difficult to determine. No comprehensive long-term medical study was set up at the time.

In 2005, a study by several UN agencies concluded 4,000 people could die as a result of the accident. Other estimates suggest the number could be tens of thousands.

An operation was launched to stop the exposed reactor pouring out radiation.

Helicopter flights dropped sand and other materials on it. The authorities brought in hundreds of thousands of people from all over the Soviet Union to contain the disaster.

Extreme radiation levels caused machines to break down, so some work had to be done by hand.

Jaan Krinal and Rein Klaar were deployed from Estonia, then part of the Soviet Union, and were part of a group sent to clear debris from the roof of reactor three.

"You wore lead plates - one in front, one on your back, and one between your legs. It was heavy, 20kg or more," says Jaan.

"On your head: a standard Soviet construction helmet - goggles, gloves and a dosimeter [to measure radiation] in your pocket," he says.

Rein recalls being sent to work in bursts of a single minute to limit their exposure. "Nobody could tell what was what… There was no time to think," he says.

As the clean-up began, Iryna and Serhiy were staying with her grandmother, about 300km away in the Poltava region, east of Kyiv.

A few days after they arrived, doctors monitoring the evacuees for radiation gave them unexpected news - Iryna was three months pregnant.

She remembers weeping as she discovered doctors were warning that radiation exposure may have affected unborn babies, and advising women who had been exposed to have abortions: "I was scared to have a baby, and scared to have an abortion."

But a sympathetic female doctor encouraged her to proceed with the pregnancy, and Iryna gave birth to a healthy girl, Katya. Decades on, she has become a mother herself and Serhiy and Iryna now have a 15-year-old granddaughter.

The couple feel the nuclear accident has affected their health, though this has not been confirmed by doctors.

Iryna has had to have both knees replaced, and believes radiation may have weakened her bones. They think radiation may be a factor in a heart attack Serhiy had in 2016, a week after visiting his old home town, Pripyat.

Jaan, who leads an organisation for Estonian former liquidators, says some have had health problems, but they have not seen "cancers everywhere" as they initially feared. He says in 1991, 51 Estonian liquidators died, including 17 who took their own lives.

Nikolai, the turbine engineer, was married with two sons at the time of the accident. He returned to work at the plant and retired recently. His younger son joined Ukraine's military in the wake of Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022, but has been missing in action since September 2023.

The nuclear plant itself needs constant monitoring and maintenance.

A concrete sarcophagus over reactor four was completed in just seven months after the accident. But it became unstable and, in 2016, a new £1.3bn ($1.8bn) metal shield was rolled over the top to contain leaks.

Radiation in much of the "exclusion zone" around the plant is now at levels low enough to be safe to visit for limited periods, but no one is allowed to live there legally. There are still hotspots with dangerously high levels of radiation, both in and near the destroyed reactor, and in places such as the "Red Forest", which was heavily contaminated.

The buildings of Pripyat – once considered a beacon of youthful optimism and Soviet technology – now stand crumbling and abandoned, including the Palace of Culture where Serhiy and Iryna made their vows.

Inside the new dome, the chimney of reactor four is a haunting ruin, coated with a crude grey concrete shell, under the shiny metal dome tall enough to house the Statue of Liberty.

In 2022, Russian forces rolled into the power plant complex in tanks, taking staff hostage for five weeks, laying mines and digging trenches.

And last year, a drone smashed a hole in the new shield. Ukraine accused Russia of targeting the power plant – which the Kremlin denied. Radiation levels did not increase but the IAEA says the shield has lost its "primary safety function".

Serhiy and Iryna moved to Germany in 2022 after their daughter's flat in Kyiv was hit by a missile. Their marriage, begun amid uncertainty and tragedy, remains a comfort.

"I think we really had to go through some difficulties in life, in order to understand that we… really can't be one without the other."

"After 40 years, I can say with certainty that we are like a thread with a needle," says Iryna. "We do everything together."

Additional reporting by Paul Harris and Ellie Jacobs

'Croatia, but cheaper': The quirky holiday spots on trend for 2026

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c747r0l8n7do, 7 days ago

Many can relate to the buzz of stumbling upon a hidden gem.

This year, more people are seeking out "authentic" holiday experiences abroad rather than all-inclusive tourist traps, according to ABTA, the association for British travel agents.

ABTA also says two in five Britons are planning to holiday in a country they've never been to this year.

It comes as war in the Middle East is causing some to switch to European destinations, while warnings of potential jet fuel shortages and the high cost of living are putting others off holidays completely.

So if you're looking for a cost-effective and slightly quirky destination this summer, read on for what's proving popular.

Montenegro

Montenegro is popping up more and more on social media as a hidden travel gem.

The Balkan state is now served by several UK airline routes and is popular among people who want to visit Greece, Italy and Croatia - but don't want to spend a full holiday there.

Because Montenegro is small, tourists can combine a beach holiday, city break and outdoor pursuits, explains Jennifer Lynch, managing director of travel agency Arrange My Escape.

"If you are on the beach resort, you can go and do a day trip up into the mountains," she says. "You can do rail tours through Montenegro and you could team it up with Bosnia and Croatia as well."

Lynch says it's not a traditional family holiday destination but there are some packages available for adventurous types. She estimates an eight-day family adventure package would cost about £1,825 per person.

Some young people have been finding the country an attractive choice for a holiday and sharing experiences of visiting the country on TikTok.

Travel blogger Em says there's value to be had in Montenegro.

"It was basically like Croatia, but cheaper," she says. "Kind of a combination of a city and a beach break.

"It was probably one of the first places I went to that sparked my obsession with travel."

The Baltic coast

Estonia, Finland and Lithuania are becoming popular tourist destinations for families, couples and solo travellers.

As with Montenegro, the three countries are easy to travel between – the Finnish capital Helsinki and Estonian capital Tallinn are linked by ferry.

The Baltic Sea offers beach getaways for those who would rather not swelter in Spain or inland. Tallinn's temperature is usually about 21C in July, but the city can be lashed with heavy rain.

History buffs may be drawn to Lithuania, with its five Unesco world heritage sites.

Also tucked away on the Baltic coast is the "German Riviera". Rϋgen, Germany's largest island, is a popular spot for domestic tourists with its chalk cliffs, national parks and unspoiled fishing villages. It's three hours from Berlin by train.

Some might be put off by a three-hour train after a flight from the UK, but ABTA's Emma Brennan says growing numbers of people - both young and older - are treating travel as part of their holiday experience.

"As soon as you're on the journey, you're getting to explore places, you're making stops along the way, and so you're getting under the skin of a different part of the destination, rather than just getting there and focusing on one area," she says.

Rügen is an example of more tourists looking for an "authentic experience" of a country, away from the classic cities, she adds.

Steph Jepson from Courtney World Travel says the ongoing war in the Middle East is leading some customers to look to northern Europe to feel safer.

"We've got clients at the moment who are getting really jittery about Cyprus, which is a shame because tourism is their main industry."

She estimates an all-inclusive, seven-night package in Tallinn for a couple in June would cost about £1,800 in total. A family of four would spend about £3,400.

Albania

In Albania, it's easy to make travel part of your holiday.

"You can just fly to Corfu [in Greece], then you can catch a half-hour ferry across to Saranda, which is sort of the entry to the 'Albanian Riviera'," travel blogger Amber Robertson explains.

She's seen a steady rise in the number of people viewing her guide to Albania in recent years.

"You've got really beautiful beaches, good beach clubs, getting that sort of Greece feel - but at a cheaper price.

"And then there's some really nice history," she says. "Barat and Gjirokastër, these really old beautiful stone towns that have a lot of culture."

Jepson estimates an all-inclusive, seven-night package for a couple in what she's heard referred to as the "Maldives of Europe" would cost about £1,400. A family of four would spend about £2,300.

"One of the big draws, particularly for younger people, has been value," she says, "your money goes quite [a lot] further.

"They've got some really interesting wildlife in Albania, so that's been drawing in either families or people with specialist interests."

Northern Spain

Spain is still the most popular destination for British tourists, according to ABTA, but more are venturing beyond Barcelona or the Costa del Sol.

Brennan says Asturias and La Rioja are on the up, in part because of concerted efforts by the Spanish government to spread tourism across the country.

"I's a very different offering up there. You've still got beaches, but then you've got greenery and mountains and wildlife."

ABTA members have reported more and more holidaymakers are building their itineraries based on particular interests, such as food and wine.

Robertson feels there's nothing wrong with going for the tried-and-tested locations, but parts of Spain are a nice halfway house between being suitable for tourists and a little unconventional for trips.

"Places like San Sebastian and Bilbao, they are still touristy to an extent, however, they're going to be far less touristy than Barcelona," she says.

And for those that way inclined, "around San Sebastian there's all these really good cider houses".

School shootings a new trauma for Turkey as nation mourns

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwyv21q9y1go, 9 days ago

Outside a morgue in south-eastern Turkey about a dozen men rushed to carry a coffin, but it was light - just the weight of a 10-year boy.

His father followed behind, propped up by relatives on both sides but weighed down by grief. "Oh, my martyred child," he wailed, "oh my darling."

His son was one of eight children shot dead on Wednesday in the city of Kahramanmaras by a fellow student,14, who also killed a teacher. This city, traditionally famous for its ice cream, now has a new and terrible distinction – it is the location of Turkey's first deadly mass school shooting.

Relatives, neighbours and emergency services gathered around as coffins emerged one by one each draped in the Turkish flag. There was an angry yell from one woman towards a line of waiting police. "Too late, too late," she chided. "You didn't save the children." Another woman shouted that the attacker should be hung in the main square, but he is already dead. He was killed at the scene.

Outside the main mosque, a mother wept, leaning forward to stroke the coffin of her daughter, Zeynep. From the family home, beside the Ayser Calik Secondary School, she heard the shots that killed her 10-year-old – shots that have reverberated around Turkey.

Relatives told us Zeynep was clever and respectful.

"She became an angel, and she flew away," said Mahmut, her uncle, his voice breaking. "My only wish is to have more security at the schools, so this does not happen again. This pain landed on us. I do not want it to fall on anyone else."

The attack came just one day after a former student roamed the corridors of another school in the same region, shooting at will. He wounded 16 but killed only himself.

"There have been two attacks, in a very short period, both in cities with lower incomes," says Prof Asli Carkoglu, an expert in teen psychology. "These things do have a way of spreading."

She is worried the deadly shooting here could become "an example for young minds that are frustrated enough".

The attack was a tragedy but "not a surprise" to people like her who work with young adults and adolescents, she said.

"There have been stabbings, beatings and attempted suicides in the school system," she told the BBC. "The guns weren't there before, but the violence was."

As the victims of the attack were being lowered into their graves, more details were emerging about the killer. The authorities here say he referred on social media to an American gunman, Elliot Rodgers, who killed six students in California in 2014. They also say an entry on his computer, dated 11 April, indicated there would be a major attack "in the near future".

He did not have to go far to get weapons – just to the bedroom of his father, a former police officer who is himself now under arrest. He has made a statement to the authorities, according to reports in the local media, painting a picture of a bright but troubled teenager who spent a lot of time playing war games on his computer and was attending a psychologist.

While mass school shootings are a familiar horror for the US, this is a new trauma for Turkey. The authorities want to calm the public and control the narrative.

Around 150 people have been detained for social media posts about the killings, accused of spreading misinformation, or "glorifying crime and criminals". More than 1,000 social media accounts and Telegram groups have been blocked.

There is no evidence of any link between the two attacks this week. And police say "initial findings indicate" that the killer in Kahramanmaras acted alone and was not linked to any terrorist organisation.

At the school gates, now locked, and guarded by police, teachers laid flowers in memory of the children who were killed where they should have been safe.

New search engine reveals if ancestors were in Nazi party

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cr411ndee7yo, 11 days ago

A new German online search engine is helping people to discover if their ancestors were members of the Nazi Party.

Christian Rainer, from Austria, told the BBC he found the name of his grandfather "within a few seconds".

"I found out that he became a member of the Nazi Party around 21st of April 1938, just a few days after the Anschluss," when Adolf Hitler annexed Austria to Germany, he said.

The online tool allows people to search through several million Nazi Party membership cards, the "NSDAP-Mitgliederkartei".

"He applied to become a member of the NSDAP (Nazi) Party, just five days after it became legal in Austria," Rainer, the former editor of the Austrian news magazine profil, said.

The search tool was set up by the German newspaper, Die Zeit, in cooperation with archives in Germany and in the United States.

Rainer never met his grandfather, who died shortly before he was born in 1961.

"I always knew that he was close to the Nazis, but I was surprised that it only took him five days" to join them, he said.

"He was an academic," Rainer added. "He should have known in 1938 who the Nazis were."

The search engine was important, Rainer said, not only for what it told him about his grandfather, but because it also helped clear other members of his family, including his father.

"I was happy I didn't find anyone else from my family, especially not my father. I had never suspected him of being a Nazi. He was drafted into (the Wehrmacht) in 1941 and wounded few times," he said.

Die Zeit said the response to the search engine has been "overwhelming".

It has been "accessed millions of times and shared thousands of times" since it was launched at the beginning of April, said Judith Busch, spokesperson for Die Zeit.

One user wrote on Die Zeit's website: "I've already found two close relatives, which destroys the myth that no one in our family was involved.

"To have my perspective changed at the age of 71 is a bitter shock."

Around 10.2 million Germans became members of the party between 1925 and 1945.

The membership cards, which were stored in the Nazi headquarters in Munich, almost got destroyed during the last days of World War Two.

Die Zeit said that with Hitler's Reich in ruins, orders were given for the records to be pulped, but they were saved by Hanns Huber, the director of a nearby paper mill, who later handed them over to the Americans.

The cards, which helped identify people, were to play a key role in the de-Nazification process in post-war Germany.

For almost half a century, the cards were kept by the Americans at the Berlin Document Center. In 1994, they were handed over to the German Federal Archives and microfilm copies were sent to the US National Archives in Washington DC.

Until recently it was only possible to make enquiries by making a formal request to the German Archives. In March this year, the US Archives began to make its records available online.

Die Zeit said it obtained the data, and "backed up the documents to make them easily searchable".

Christian Rainer said the information still has huge resonance.

Previously, research focused on "higher-ranking people who became politicians, judges or doctors later on", he told the BBC.

"A lot of people now are searching for family members so it's a very individual thing now."

"Eight decades on, after the end of the World War, you can still find out truth that you haven't known before," he said.

Teenage motorcyclist dies after collision

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5y71v16zlxo, today

A teenager has died after a road traffic collision in County Donegal on Saturday afternoon.

It happened on the R252 at Cloghan at about 16:30 local time.

Gardaí (Irish police) said it involved a car and a motorbike.

The motorcyclist, a male in his teens, was pronounced dead at the scene. No one else was injured.

Anyone with information including dashcam footage and were travelling in the area between 16:00 and 17:00 have been asked to get in contact with gardaí.

The road remains closed.

Man who died after bus crash at Dublin Airport named

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0rxk802nrdo, yesterday

A man who died after being hit by a bus at Dublin Airport has been named as racehorse owner and publisher John Fleming.

The crash happened shortly after midnight on Thursday on Corballis Road, which is the main road between Dublin Airport and the roundabout at the front of the airport grounds.

Gardaí (Irish police) said they attended the scene along with emergency services, and a man in his 60s was pronounced dead at the scene.

In a statement, Horse Racing Ireland (HRI) said John Fleming, an accountant from Kilkenny, had published the Irish Racing Year Book for over 20 years and was a "very proud" owner of the racehorse Navassa Island.

'Very talented and hugely respected man'

In a tribute posted to social media, Suzanne Eade, chief executive of Horse Racing Ireland said: "Like everyone connected to Irish racing, I am very saddened to learn of the sudden passing of John Fleming.

"He was a very talented and hugely respected man with a genuine passion for the sport.

"John had over 30 years' experience as an accountant and adviser to many in the bloodstock industry.

"He published the Irish Racing Year Book for over two decades out of his sheer enthusiasm for racing.

"He was also a very proud racehorse owner and was on hand to greet his mare Navassa Island after she won the Listed Irish EBF Cork Stakes on Easter Sunday.

"On behalf of HRI, I wish to offer our sincere sympathies to John's family and his many friends and associates."

Dublin Airport Authority (Daa) said it was "deeply saddened by the tragic passing of a passenger overnight following a road traffic accident on the main road leading to Dublin Airport (between the Airport Roundabout and the airport)".

Role of US officials killed in crash in Mexico under scrutiny

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c86expy881qo, 5 days ago

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has ordered an investigation into the role played by two US officials who reportedly worked for the CIA in a counter-narcotics operation in the northern state of Chihuahua.

The two died alongside two Mexican officials when their car crashed on their way back from an operation to destroy illegal drug labs, Chihuahua officials said.

Sheinbaum said that neither she nor senior members of the federal security team had been informed about any joint US-Mexican operations.

The Mexican leader has been adamant that foreign officials can only operate on Mexican soil if given prior clearance at the federal level.

Sheinbaum has come under pressure from her US counterpart, President Donald Trump, to do more to stem the flow of drugs from Mexico to the United States but she has insisted that Mexico's "sovereignty" cannot be breached.

On Monday, Sheinbaum said "we did not have knowledge of any direct work between Chihuahua state and personnel from the US embassy".

She also said the government needed "to understand the circumstances under which this was taking place, and then assess the legal implications".

According to a Chihuahua state official, the two US nationals and two members of the Chihuahua State Investigation Agency (AEI) died on Sunday morning when the car they were travelling in skidded off the road and fell into a ravine, where it exploded.

The US ambassador in Mexico, Ronald Johnson, described the two American citizens as "US embassy personnel".

Chihuahua State Attorney-General César Jáuregui said in a news conference on Sunday that the two were "instructor officers" from the US embassy who were engaging in "training work as part of the general and normal exchange we have with the US authorities".

He added that the accident happened as they were driving back from an operation in which a number of clandestine labs for the production of synthetic drugs were destroyed.

Quizzed again on Monday about the role of the two US officials, he said they had been engaged in "basic training work, some eight or nine hours' [drive] from the place where the operation against the drugs lab took place".

Sheinbaum said officials from her government had asked both the US embassy and Chihuahua state authorities for information to determine if the operation may have breached Mexican national security law, which does not allow for joint operations without prior approval at federal level.

She stressed that while her government worked with the US, including intelligence sharing, there "are no joint operations on land or in the air".

On Tuesday, The Washington Post reported that the two US officials who died worked for the CIA as part of a significantly expanded role in battling narcotics trafficking in the Western Hemisphere.

Their employment was later confirmed by other US media outlets, including BBC partner network CBS.

The BBC has contacted the CIA for comment.

Last September, a Reuters investigation found the intelligence agency had been running covert operations in Mexico for years to track down the country's most-wanted drug traffickers. It also found the agency worked closely with special narco-hunting units inside the Mexican military.

With the Mexican government's approval, the CIA has provided select Mexican units with training, equipment, and financial support for operations, including travel, according to Reuters.

At least two CIA-vetted military units are currently active, including the Mexican Army group that captured Ovidio Guzmán-López, and a specialised Mexican Navy intelligence outfit, the news agency reported citing officials.

Mass trial for 486 alleged MS-13 gang members begins in El Salvador

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c20ql985gryo, 5 days ago

A mass trial of 486 suspected MS-13 gang members has begun in El Salvador, the country's attorney general's office has said.

The group are collectively accused of committing more than 47,000 crimes - including murder, extortion, drug and arms trafficking - between 2012 and 2022.

United Nations experts have criticised the use of mass trials, saying that they "undermine the exercise of the right to defence and the presumption of innocence of detainees".

But the attorney general's office said it had "compelling" evidence that would allow "maximum penalties" to be imposed on those found guilty.

Among those on trial are people alleged to have been involved in a wave of gang violence in March 2022, which saw 87 people killed in one weekend, and led President Nayib Bukele to declare a "war on gangs".

The attorney general's office did not provide details on the length of the trial but it said that 413 suspects were already in custody, while arrest warrants had been issued for 73 others who are being prosecuted in absentia.

A controversial state of emergency, which expanded powers to arrest those suspected of gang affiliation or support and suspended some constitutional rights, has been in place in El Salvador since March 2022.

Since it came into force, tens of thousands of suspected gang members have been arrested, but human rights groups have argued it has led to arbitrary detentions.

Supporters of President Bukele's hardline approach to fighting crime say it has made El Salvador a safer place but UN experts have warned his government it "cannot trample on fair trial rights in the name of public safety".

MS-13 is a transnational gang which was designated as a terrorist organisation by the US last year.

It was founded in Los Angeles during the 1980s, formed by immigrants who had fled El Salvador's civil war, but its presence is now larger in Central America.

The attorney general's office said "for years, this structure has operated systematically, instilling fear and grief in Salvadorean families".

It said the charges against the 486 suspects people also included femicide and disappearances, adding that the crimes had impacted lives and limited the country's economic and social development.

In addition, the accused are charged with "rebellion for attempting to maintain territorial control to establish a parallel state", the office said.

UAE-backed Colombian mercenaries provided support to Sudan paramilitary, report says

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn4vk13wgwwo, 4 days ago

A network of Colombian mercenaries backed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) provided critical support to Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) enabling it to capture the western city of el-Fasher last year, a new report says.

The investigation, by security analysis organisation the Conflict Insights Group (CIG), used data obtained from tracking the mobile phones of the Colombian fighters.

The UAE has long denied supporting the RSF, which has been fighting Sudan's regular army for three years.

El-Fasher's fall was one of the most brutal chapters of the conflict, which has led to the world's worst humanitarian crisis with tens of thousands killed and millions forced from their homes.

The CIG has been closely following evidence of extensive Emirati military assistance to the RSF, but "this is the first research where we can prove UAE involvement with certainty", says director Justin Lynch.

"We are making public what governments have long known - that there is a direct link between Abu Dhabi and the RSF."

The report "shows mercenaries involved with drones travelling from a UAE base to Sudan before the RSF takeover of el-Fasher", he says.

"Mercenaries involved in drone operations even named their wi-fi network their unit name - linked to a company operated out of the UAE."

Colombian President Gustavo Petro was quoted last year as calling the mercenaries "spectres of death" and describing their recruitment as a "form of human trafficking".

The BBC has asked for a response from the Emirati government to the latest findings.

The UAE has previously issued statements rejecting what it called "false and unfounded allegations" that it backs the RSF and condemning "in the strongest terms" the atrocities committed in el-Fasher.

Analysts agree that foreign support for both sides has been key to the continuation and expansion of the civil war.

The CIG says it used commercially available technology designed to make advertising more personal to track more than 50 mobile phones in Sudan between April 2025 and January this year whose operators were Colombian mercenaries, including at RSF-held areas from which drones were fired.

It also used flight-tracking data, satellite imagery, social media videos, news and academic articles to support its analysis.

The report says its data details a pipeline that showed the mercenaries present at various regional staging grounds, most significantly a UAE military training facility in Ghayathi in Abu Dhabi.

It followed one phone from Colombia to Abu Dhabi's Zayad International Airport and then to the facility, where it also found four other devices configured to Spanish, which is spoken in Colombia.

Two of those phones subsequently travelled to Sudan's South Darfur state and one to the de-facto RSF capital of Nyala, where it logged into wi-fi networks named "ANTIAEREO" (meaning "anti-aircraft" in Spanish) and "AirDefense".

Nyala is a prominent hub for Colombian mercenaries and RSF drone operations, the report says. The CIG has documented significant drone activity there and identified more than 40 Spanish-language devices.

In another case study the CIG tracked a phone from Colombia to Nyala and then to el-Fasher, in North Darfur state, during the time last October when the RSF took over the city after an 18-month siege.

While in el-Fasher, the device connected to a wi-fi network named "ATACADOR" ("attacker" in Spanish), says the report. It adds that the CIG identified other devices associated with Colombian mercenaries also present during the RSF takeover.

The fall of the city was accompanied by mass atrocities assessed as war crimes and crimes against humanity by the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and described by UN investigators as bearing the "hallmarks of genocide".

"CIG assesses that the UAE-Colombian mercenary network bears shared responsibility for these outcomes," says the report.

"The scale of atrocities and siege in el-Fasher wouldn't have happened without the drone operations the mercenaries provided," Lynch adds, noting evidence that they also helped support the RSF siege.

According to the report, the mercenaries operated as part of the Desert Wolves brigade, serving as drone pilots, artillerymen and instructors.

One of them connected to wi-fi networks named "DRONES" and "LOBOS DEL DISIERTO [sic]" (meaning "Desert Wolves" in Spanish), while using Spanish-language settings.

The brigade is led by retired Colombian army Colonel Alvaro Quijano, according to the Colombian digital news site La Silla Vacía. He is based in the UAE and has been sanctioned by the US and UK governments for recruiting Colombians to fight in Sudan.

The Desert Wolves were paid and employed by a UAE-based company with documented ties to senior Emirati government officials, according to La Silla Vacía and documents obtained by the CIG, the report says.

The CIG also says it identified devices with Spanish-language settings at a port in Somalia with links to the UAE, and at a town in south-eastern Libya believed to be a logistical hub for the flow of weapons to the RSF, allegedly facilitated by the Emirates.

The number of Colombian fighters in Sudan has previously been estimated in the low hundreds.

The US has twice sanctioned Colombian nationals and associated companies for recruiting mercenaries to fight in Sudan, in December and again last week.

The US Treasury Department has said that Colombian fighters supported the RSF capture of el-Fasher but has stopped short of making a direct connection to the UAE.

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

Why your recycled clothes could end up in this South American desert

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c62kg63k8v6o, 6 days ago

If you have ever taken old clothes to a recycling bank, be it in the UK or North America, there is a real chance that the garments ended up illegally dumped in a desert in northern Chile.

The South American country is one of the world's biggest importers of used clothing, but items that fail to be resold have for years been simply discarded in big piles out in the barren, bone-dry countryside. In response to a law change, one Chilean company is now moving to tackle the problem.

Chile imports 123,000 tonnes of used clothes every year, according to government estimates. The big driver of this is the free-trade port of Iquique in the north of the country.

Businesses in the city and surrounding towns can import, store and sell goods without having to pay customs duties or VAT.

Known as Zofri, which stands for Zona Franca del Iquique (Iquique Free Trade Zone), it was created in 1975 to boost economic and social development in northern Chile.

Used clothes became one of the biggest imports. They continue to arrive from the US, Canada, Europe and Asia, baled up in shipping containers. The clothing is either sold locally, or exported to other countries in Latin America.

Felipe González, the general manager of Zofri, says the 50 or so clothing import firms help the local economy. "It's a sector that gives the most work to local women in the region," he says. "Around 10% work with textiles.

"The women help to put the clothes in different categories according to their quality. It's not highly-skilled labour, which makes it accessible for people without lots of qualifications."

The worst quality clothes end up at La Quebradilla, a huge open air market near the town of Alto Hospicio, around half an hour uphill from Iquique, and still within Zofri.

There are rows upon rows of tents with piles of clothes laid out on plastic sheets.

Stall-holders sell everything from T-shirts, to jeans and dresses. The prices are cheap, starting from 500 Chilean pesos (54 cents; 42 pence). Tourists and locals flock here, especially at the weekend to find a bargain.

Although the clothes create jobs for the local economy, the big issue is what happens to the stock that doesn't sell. It cannot go to the local council's landfill, because that can only be used for household waste, not commercial imports.

So what the traders should be doing is either exporting the clothing, or paying tax to sell it in Chile beyond the free-trade zone, or sending it to an authorised waste company.

As all those options cost money, what unscrupulous traders actually do is either illegally burn the clothes, or illegally dump them out in the surrounding Atacama Desert. Some 39,000 tonnes are illegally dumped every year, according to the biggest estimates.

It's a headache for Alto Hospicio's local authority. Miguel Painenahuel, who works in the town's planning department, says it is difficult to monitor and stop the dumping.

"Alto Hospicio is surrounded by the desert and hills which are easy to access with a lorry or truck to ditch the clothes. The town council has patrols with cars and cameras so that it can keep tabs on what's going on and fine the culprits."

But he admits: "There are so many trucks dumping clothes it's really hard to keep on top of it! We don't have the resources."

Elsewhere, a solution has emerged to turn the waste clothing into a business opportunity.

Back in Iquique, Luis Martínez is the executive director of the Centro Tecnológico de Economía Circular (CircularTec).

It is a private Chilean organisation focused on promoting reuse of resources rather than them being thrown away. Martínez recently led a project looking at how best to refashion and reuse unsold old clothing.

"We don't want the Atacama Desert to be famous as a tourist attraction where visitors can see mountains of clothes," he says.

Martínez highlights a factory being built to find new uses for unwanted clothing. "It's run by a private company and according to our projections it will be able to deal with a big part of the unwanted stock," he says.

Out in the hot, windy desert around 20 minutes' drive from Alto Hospicio the facility in question is being constructed by businessman Bekir Conkur.

Originally from Turkey, but working in Chile for more than 15 years, he is one of the largest importers of textiles in the region. His company brings in around 50 containers of clothes every month.

He says he wants there to be a solution the problem of dumped clothing, "and I think this factory is going to help that".

He describes what the site will be capable of when it's up and running in a few months' time. "The factory we are building won't need water or chemicals.

"We are going to use machines that will turn the clothes into fibres, and then into felt, which will be used in things like mattresses, furniture, the inside of cars and for insulation.

"We think we will have the capacity to process 20 tonnes a day."

He admits one of the reasons he is doing it is to comply with a law change that's in progress.

Last July, textiles were added to existing Chilean legislation called the Extended Producer Responsibility (Rep) Law. This makes companies that sell physical products responsible for what happens to them at the end of their life.

For clothing firms, it means fashion brands, retailers, and importers will eventually have to finance and organize the collection, reuse, recycling, or proper disposal of textiles, instead of that cost falling on local councils or the Ministry of the Environment.

The government is currently working to draft the specific details for the clothing sector.

For Bekir it's a great business opportunity. He has invested $7m (£5.2m) in the new factory and hopes he can recoup it by taking on unwanted textile stock from the length of Chile, and, in the future, from other countries around the world.

Retrial over death of Argentina legend Maradona begins

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj377mm7zzvo, 12 days ago

A retrial into the death of the football legend Diego Maradona began on Tuesday - he died aged 60 after suffering heart failure.

Maradona's medical team are accused of failing to administer proper medical care, with seven people charged over negligible homicide. They have denied the allegations. If convicted, they face between eight and 25 years in prison.

The first trial collapsed last May when one of its three judges resigned, after allegedly allowing unauthorised filming in court for a documentary.

Maradona died in 2020 at his home in Tigre, Buenos Aires province, while he was recuperating from surgery to remove a brain blood clot.

Investigators classified the case as culpable homicide - a crime similar to involuntary manslaughter - because they said the accused were aware of the seriousness of Maradona's health condition but did not take the necessary measures to save him.

The heart failure caused him to suffer acute pulmonary oedema, when fluid builds up in the lungs, the preliminary autopsy confirmed.

A panel of medical experts, asked by prosecutors to investigate Maradona's medical team, said the treatment he received at his home was "deficient and reckless".

It concluded that the footballer "would have had a better chance of survival" with adequate treatment in an appropriate medical facility.

The seven people on trial include his main medical adviser, Leopoldo Luque, and his psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov. His former nurse, Dahiana Gisela Madrid, will stand in a separate trial.

Around 100 people are set to testify in front of a new set of judges at a court in San Isidro, including Maradona's daughters. The trial is expected to last until July.

When the footballer died on 25 November 2020, then President of Argentina Alberto Fernandez declared three days of national mourning.

"Thank you for having existed, Diego. We're going to miss you all our lives," he said.

Maradona started his career with Argentinos Juniors. He went on to represent Argentina in four World Cups, scoring 34 goals, including the infamous "Hand of God" goal against England in 1986.

During the second half of his career, he struggled with cocaine addiction. He was banned for 15 months after testing positive for the drug in 1991.

He retired from professional football in 1997, on his 37th birthday, during his second stint at Argentine giants Boca Juniors.

Maradona was appointed head coach of the national team in 2008 and left after the 2010 World Cup, where his side were beaten by Germany in the quarter-finals.

He subsequently managed teams in the United Arab Emirates and Mexico and was in charge of Argentinian club Gimnasia y Esgrima at the time of his death.

Canadian killed in shooting at Mexico's ancient Teotihuacán pyramids

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/crm1rg3ydkvo, 5 days ago

A 32-year-old Canadian woman has been killed and 13 people injured after a man opened fire at a historical site in Mexico, according to Mexican officials. The gunman killed himself after the attack.

President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico has expressed her solidarity with the victims of a shooting at one of the country's most important tourist destinations, the ancient pyramid complex of Teotihuacán.

It comes with seven weeks to go before the first match of the Fifa World Cup is held in Mexico City.

"There was a big push and panic of everybody running at the same time to get out," a British couple told the BBC, describing chaotic scenes amid the sound of gunfire.

Local prosecutors identified the shooter as Julio César Jasso Ramírez, a Mexican national, without providing further details in a post on X.

In a separate post, the Mexican government's security cabinet said 13 people, whose ages range from six to 61, had been treated in hospital after being injured in the incident.

On Tuesday, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney expressed condolences to the family of the woman who was killed, calling it "a terrible circumstance".

The woman has not yet been identified by authorities.

Carney also thanked Sheinbaum for her response, and said Canada is working with Mexican authorities on the incident.

The pre-Hispanic pyramids and ruins at Teotihuacán are a Unesco World Heritage Site and among the most popular tourist attractions in the country.

Police recovered a firearm, a bladed weapon, and live cartridges at the scene. Sheinbaum said she was following updates and was in touch with the Canadian embassy.

She wrote on social media that she had instructed her security cabinet to investigate the incident and provide all necessary support.

"What happened today in Teotihuacán deeply pains us. I express my most sincere solidarity with the affected individuals and their families," she wrote in Spanish.

State Security Secretary Cristóbal Castañeda Camarillo told reporters on Monday that two Colombians, a Russian and a Canadian were among those injured.

According to a witness who spoke to Reuters news agency, a young boy was shot in the leg during the attack, which they said began at about 11:00 local time on Monday.

They added that the gunman was on the temple's mezzanine and appeared to fire most shots into the air, while carrying a digital tablet and shouting.

In Mexico on holiday, a British couple from London, who did not want to be named, were taking a photo of the Pyramid of the Sun when they saw people start running towards them and shouting about a gunman.

"Gunfire was becoming louder and more frequent and people around us felt the same, because a couple of people shouted things like, 'They're coming this way,' which created quite a lot of panic," they told the BBC.

The couple persuaded their tour group to make their way to an exit, despite some confusion as to what was unfolding - as they reached the ticket gates, they saw tourists still entering the site.

"There was no coordinated evacuation whatsoever - we could see that there were officials running around, but none of them were telling anyone to leave," they told the BBC.

They added they were not subject to any security checks when entering the site, despite having a backpack with them.

"You never think it's going to be the situation you have to deal with, but ultimately we are okay," they said.

"I think, fundamentally we are the lucky ones - someone lost their life today."

The Teotihuacán is an ancient city, home to massive pyramids, and predates the Aztecs.

It will be the site of an immersive nighttime show for tourists during the World Cup this summer, the Mexico state government announced earlier this month.

Earlier this year, the Mexican Government was forced to reassure people that security will not be an issue during the tournament after gunmen from the Jalisco New Generation Cartel terrorised numerous cities amid burning barricades and gun violence following the killing of the group's leader, Nemesio Oseguera, known as "El Mencho".

While this latest incident appears to have no link to drug violence: the victim was a Canadian tourist shot by a man who opened fire from the site's iconic Pyramid of the Moon.

The shooter then apparently took his own life. Several more victims, citizens from Colombia, Russia and Canada, were injured and are being treated in hospital.

Despite the widespread cartel violence in Mexico, such incidents involving tourists are rare.

The opening game of the World Cup will be held in Mexico City on 11th June, between Mexico and South Africa. The tournament is expected to draw some 5.5 million international visitors, Mexican officials have said. As World Cup co-hosts, Mexico plans to deploy nearly 100,000 security personnel to protect fans at this summer's tournament, amid ongoing drug cartel violence in the country.

With additional reporting by Nadine Yousif in Toronto, Canada.

Police gunfight with favela gang traps 200 tourists on hilltop

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cjr9vvr904wo, 6 days ago

Around 200 people were trapped at the top of a popular Rio de Janeiro tourist spot during a police operation in the Vidigal favela of the city, according to local media.

The trail leading to the top of Morro Dois Irmãos, popular for its views over Ipanema Beach, begins east of the neighbourhood.

Officers from the Public Prosecutor's Office of Bahia and Rio's Polícia Civil were seeking to arrest alleged members of the Comando Vermelho gang they believed to be hiding in Vidigal, broadcaster TV Globo reported.

The main access route to the trail was blocked as the officers and suspected gang members exchanged fire, leaving the alarmed tourists stranded.

Video shared on social media shows the group sitting on the ground as the sun rises - a police helicopter flies overhead and shooting can be heard in the distance.

Portuguese tourist Matilda Oliveiro was waiting to see the sun rise from the top of Morro Dois Irmãos with her sister Rita when the guides told everyone to sit down.

"We had waited for sunrise and, suddenly, the guides asked us to sit down and we started hearing gunshots," she told TV Globo.

"They did their job. It's always scary, but it was controlled as much as possible. We passed the police on the way, and the situation was already under control."

The stranded group were able to descend after about 30 minutes, according to local media.

The guides had been informed about the operation beforehand, according to Rita Oliveiro. Other local guides told TV Globo they had coordinated with police units operating in Vidigal.

"We were caught by surprise. We were already at the top when we started hearing gunshots, and the guides were already telling us what was happening," Danielly Nobre, 25, told daily newspaper O Dia.

Nobre said the guides reassured her party that everything was under control. A passing police helicopter also signalled for calm, she added.

"In the end, everything worked out. Everyone went down in a single file, everyone helping, and we managed to finish the trail, see the sunrise, and experience that adrenaline rush," Nobre told the paper.

Comando Vermelho and groups like it enforce strict rules in the areas they control.

These criminal enterprises have moved beyond the sale of drugs and now hold the monopoly for the provision of gas, cable television, internet and transport.

Couple discovers Lebanon home destroyed by Israel from satellite image

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg30jkvklno, 2 days ago

"It's a catastrophe... for all of us, not only my family, but every single family that lives in that town."

Joe Elias and his wife Diana have not been able to return to their home in Qouzah, a predominantly Christian village in southern Lebanon, since renewed fighting between Hezbollah and Israel began in early March.

When BBC Verify reported that Qouzah was among several villages in southern Lebanon where buildings had been demolished after Israeli forces invaded, the Elias family got in touch. Satellite imagery later obtained independently by both BBC Verify and the family showed the house they had built had been flattened and several of their olive trees destroyed.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said "five anti-tank missiles were launched towards troops" from the co-ordinates of the Elias house on 6 March, injuring four soldiers. It did not provide any evidence or details when asked, but said it had "struck several military targets" - including Elias' home - "to prevent further attacks against IDF troops".

The renewed fighting began after Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel, in retaliation for the killing of Iran's supreme leader. Since then, Israel's forces have levelled buildings and homes across southern Lebanon as part of its campaign against the armed group - which international law experts say may amount to a war crime.

Visual evidence analysed by BBC Verify shows controlled demolitions have taken place in at least 12 border villages and towns since the beginning of March. The IDF says that Hezbollah is embedded in civilian areas in the region and that it operates in accordance with the Law of Armed Conflict.

"[The village] is strategically located 750 metres above the ocean" on the top of a mountain, Elias said. "You can see 360 degrees all the way to Haifa in Israel."

Elias and his wife have been staying in their main home east of Beirut since February, but their neighbours in Qouzah told them they fled after Hezbollah entered the village.

"They just left with nothing, no food, no support. The ones that have cars, they went with the cars. The ones that do not have cars, they went walking," he said.

More than 1.2 million people are estimated to have been displaced across Lebanon since 2 March, according to figures by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

BBC Verify analysis of satellite imagery shows the IDF destroyed nearly a third of buildings in the main residential area of Qouzah between 3 March and 16 April.

Both Hezbollah and the IDF say buildings in the village have been used by each other's forces.

The IDF published a video which it says shows Hezbollah fighters climbing into the grounds of a building, which BBC Verify located to the centre of Qouzah. While other verified videos shared on a Hezbollah military Telegram channel showed what it described as Hezbollah drone attacks on Israeli positions both inside the village and in neighbouring towns.

"I understand there is a world [with] two parties shooting at each other, firing missiles and all of this. But at the end, in reality, the Lebanese civilian is the one who pays the price," Elias said.

Even before the renewed fighting between Hezbollah and Israel, Elias' house was severely damaged during the war triggered by the Hamas-led attack on Israel on 7 October 2023.

The previous fighting between Israel and Hezbollah shattered the windows and left cracks in the walls, which the couple spent months repairing.

Elias said that Hezbollah fighters might operate from villages but that the "Israelis respond excessively".

"No need to destroy the entire infrastructure - not the roads, the water pipes, the electricity," he added.

BBC Verify has also confirmed the presence of the Israeli military in the area. Analysis of satellite imagery by intelligence firm MAIAR shows three armoured vehicles just 200 metres from Elias' house on 16 April, while seven armoured vehicles, four tanks, an excavator and a bulldozer can also be seen in the village.

Elias built the house in his ancestral village nearly 20 years ago, after spending six years saving up. He and his wife had spent 26 years in the US, where he worked as an engineer and eventually became citizens, before deciding they wanted their six children to have a chance to experience the area where his family grew up.

They planted olive, fig and pomegranate trees in their garden and brought furniture back from the US from the Amish community in Pennsylvania: "That's something we cannot replace," he said.

Before the recent conflict, his family produced around 1,000 litres of organic olive oil a year from their groves. But satellite imagery shows several olive trees around the house razed to the ground.

Elias became a mayor in the village for more than a decade, and his family members are buried in its cemetery.

"My wife and I are trying to hold on to what's left… to memories that are slipping away from us like the falling rubble," he wrote in a post online sharing footage of the olive groves around his home.

"Every corner of that home held a story, and every piece of furniture carried a heartbeat of our lives - a laugh, a tear, a dream that was once real," he added.

"We don't know if we want to go back and build a house in the absence of a permanent, lasting peace."

A 10-day ceasefire was announced on 16 April after six weeks of conflict and remains in place, but Israel continues to occupy towns and villages up to 10km (6 miles) beyond the border.

Additional reporting by Barbara Metzler, Yi Ma and Tom Gould.

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Israeli strikes kill eight Palestinians in Gaza, first responders say

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cly60dwxjd1o, 3 days ago

At least eight Palestinians, including three children, have been killed in two Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip, according to medics and first responders.

Five died when an Israeli drone struck a group near a mosque in the northern town of Beit Lahia on Wednesday evening.

Local journalists identified them as Abdullah al-Abed, 9, Salah al-Abed, 12, Mohammed Balousha, 14, Alaa Balousha, 46, and Anas Abu Foul, 19.

In a statement, the Israeli military said it had targeted what it called "a terrorist" who had approached troops in the area of the Yellow Line, which marks territory held by Israeli forces, and posed an immediate threat.

A Hamas spokesman condemned what he described as "the horrific massacre" and accused Israel of undermining efforts to implement their ceasefire agreement.

On Thursday morning, the families of the three boys grieved as their shrouded bodies were lined up outside al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City.

"I woke up to the sound of heavy shelling and rushed out. I looked around but couldn't find my children beside me," said Amna al-Abed, the mother of Abdullah and Salah. "I rushed outside and found them lying on the ground, martyred. My husband was there with them, wounded."

A relative of Mohammed said: "There is no ceasefire, no truce, nothing at all... There is no safety in any area."

Later on Thursday, another three men were killed when Israeli shellfire hit a car in the central Maghazi area, according to the Hamas-run Civil Defence.

The agency said one of its first responders, Hazem al-Aidi, was among the dead.

The Israeli military said it was checking the reports.

There has been a ceasefire in Gaza since last October, but it is fragile at best.

The Hamas-run health ministry in the territory says at least 792 Palestinians have been killed and 2,200 injured in Israeli attacks since it came into force.

The Israeli military says four of its soldiers have been killed in attacks by Palestinian armed groups over the same period.

Hamas and Israel have accused each other of breaching the ceasefire agreement.

The Gaza war was triggered by the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, when about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.

Israel responded by launching a military campaign against Hamas in Gaza, during which more than 72,560 people have been killed, according to the territory's health ministry.

Key suspect in notorious Tadamon massacre during Syria civil war arrested

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvglxgq1p2jo, yesterday

A key suspect in one of the most notorious killings of the Syrian civil war has been arrested, Syria's interior minister has said.

Amjad Youssef was wanted over the mass killing of civilians in April 2013 in the Tadamon district of Damascus.

Footage emerged in 2022 showing Syrian soldiers leading victims, bound and blindfolded, to a pit before shooting them. The video became one of the most direct pieces of visual evidence of extrajudicial killings by then government forces.

Interior Minister Anas Khattab said Youssef was the main perpetrator of the massacre and was taken into custody after a "well-executed" security operation.

Syria's state news agency said he was detained in Hama province.

Footage published by the UK-based monitoring group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) appeared to show Youssef after his arrest, sitting in a police car, his nose and forehead bloodied.

The killings at Tadamon attracted widespread attention after video, filmed by the perpetrators, showing it taking place was leaked nine years later.

In the film, victims are seen being led one by one to the pit and shot. It was one of several mass killings in Tadamon by government forces around that time.

Human Rights Watch (HRW), which has visited the site, said there was evidence that 288 were killed in Tadamon, 41 in the incident in April 2013.

It said 11 blindfolded victims shown in the video were shot at close range and pushed into a machine-dug grave.

It has called the area "a huge crime scene".

HRW senior researcher Hiba Zayadin said the leaked video "filmed by the perpetrators themselves who laughed as they killed their victims, shows the [former] Syrian government's callous disregard for people's lives.

"This massacre is just one horrific incident in a pattern of state violence and apparent war crimes."

The government at the time, led by President Bashar al-Assad, was toppled by rebels in December 2024. Assad's forces had fought jihadist and rebel groups in the civil war which began in March 2011 when security forces cracked down violently on peaceful pro-democracy protests.

More than half a million people were killed in over 13 years of conflict which followed.

Israeli police investigate after officers 'cut Palestinian flag' from skullcap

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz67qjn48eqo, yesterday

A British Israeli academic has told the BBC of his shock at being detained by Israeli police for wearing a Jewish kippah, or head covering, embroidered with an Israeli and a Palestinian flag.

Alex Sinclair, 53, said he was taken from the cafe where he was sitting near his home in Modiin, central Israel, on Monday, ordered to hand over his kippah and locked in a cell.

He said when the item was returned to him, the part with the Palestinian flag had been cut off.

The unusual case has gained domestic and international attention after Sinclair shared the details in a social media post. Police told the BBC a complaint has been filed with their internal investigations division.

Sinclair, who is also a novelist, was working on his laptop in the cafe when, he said, "a religious man came over to me with an angry face and shouted at me that my kippah is against the law".

He said he invited the man to sit down to discuss his views, but he refused and said he would call the police. "Five minutes later, the police arrive," he wrote on Facebook. "Two officers, and they immediately tell me that my kippah is against the law and that they are going to confiscate it."

Sinclair said he tried to explain "politely" that his kippah was not illegal but was taken into detention and driven by police car to the police station. He said he was forced to hand over his possessions and unable to make a phone call. Sinclair said he was then frisked and locked in a cell.

Twenty minutes later, Sinclair said, he was told he could leave but without his kippah. He said when he insisted on it being given back, the officer handed it to him with the Palestinian flag cut out. Sinclair called the incident "surreal".

"That photo of the ripped kippah – there's something so kind of evocative about it," he reflected. "I think that's part of the reason that this story has gone so crazy."

In a statement, Israeli police said officers had attended the scene to "assess and address" a report on a hotline about a man wearing a kippah with a Palestinian flag.

"During the handling of the incident, the individual was brought to the police station where following clarification, the individual was subsequently released. As a complaint has been filed with the Police Internal Investigations Division within the Ministry of Justice, no further details can be provided at this stage."

There is no explicit Israeli law banning public displays of the Palestinian flag. While Israeli courts have viewed it as a protected form of expression, Israeli police are authorised to remove or confiscate them if they are deemed "a threat to public order" or identifying with a terrorist organisation.

The current far-right National Security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, has instructed police to clamp down on Palestinian flags, in a way that Israeli rights groups have said is illegal.

Sinclair regularly wore his kippah with the Israeli and Palestinian flags on a black background over the past 20 years, after he specially ordered it from a shop in Jerusalem. He described it as a symbol of "the messy ambivalence of my Jewish-Zionist identity".

"I'm doing all of this as a Zionist, as somebody who chooses to live here, as somebody who believes in the right of Israel to exist and to flourish in security, along with the Palestinians having those same rights as well," he told the BBC. "I've not given up on a future where we can live together in peace and security."

Sinclair said he chose the design of his head covering to distinguish himself from right-wing and far-right religious nationalists. "When you walk around Israel and people see you in a kippah, they immediately associate you with certain political and religious groups who I don't want to be associated with to put it mildly," he said.

"The journey behind it was just trying to figure out a way to keep a kippah on my head. How do I take part in a Jewish ritual that is meaningful to me but do so in a way that feels authentic to me."

Sinclair, an observant Masorti or conservative Jew, who grew up in north London, said he has often had positive reactions and "moving moments" in response to his choice of kippah from Palestinian citizens of Israel.

He acknowledged that he has had "some less pleasant moments" too but said that he previously managed to engage people in "interesting conversations about politics".

After this week's experience he said he felt "anger and frustration as well as concern" that he was now on the police radar.

The leader of Israel's Democrats Party, Yair Golan, criticised the police over what had happened.

"This isn't just a story about a kippah that was crudely torn off by police. It's a story about the collapse of the Israeli police," he wrote on X.

The Hebrew University in Jerusalem – where Sinclair works as a lecturer in Jewish education – has written a strongly-worded letter to the Israel police force.

It said it "is troubled by the blatant violation of freedom of expression in the public sphere and strongly condemns the conduct of the police officers during the incident, in the course of which they cut Dr Sinclair's kippah".

In his complaint to the Department for Internal Police Investigations, Sinclair has claimed unlawful detention and damage to property. He has asked for compensation for his ruined kippah.

He is also planning to order a new kippah with both flags, and added "some people are saying that maybe it'll start a trend".

Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu treated for early-stage prostate cancer

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckgw72lrvn3o, yesterday

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he is "in excellent physical condition" after the publication of his annual medical report revealed he had a malignant tumour removed.

In a post on X on Friday, Netanyahu said that during routine medical monitoring following successful surgery for an enlarged benign prostate, doctors found an early-stage malignant tumour.

Treatment had "removed the problem and left no trace of it", he added.

Netanyahu said he had requested to delay publication of his health record so it was not released at the height of the US and Israel's war with Iran, to prevent Tehran from spreading "even more false propaganda against Israel".

The 76 year-old Israeli leader said he underwent the initial surgery for an enlarged benign prostate in 2024 and has been under routine medical monitoring. "A tiny spot of less than a centimetre" was discovered during the most recent check up.

"I had a minor medical issue with my prostate that was completely treated. Thank God, it's behind me," he said.

In the lengthy post, Netanyahu also said he chose to undergo treatment because "when I'm given information in time about a potential danger, I want to address it immediately".

He added: "This is true on the national level and also on the personal level".

The revelation comes as Netanyahu is due to visit the White House in the coming weeks as the US seeks to broker a long lasting peace deal in the war with Iran.

Israel's ceasefire agreement with Lebanon, following fighting between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah, has also been extended by three weeks.

US-Kuwaiti journalist held in Kuwait over social media posts acquitted, lawyers say

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy81ljrd445o, 3 days ago

An American-Kuwaiti journalist who was detained by authorities in Kuwait last month after he re-posted videos and images related to the US-Israeli war with Iran, has been acquitted, according to his international legal team.

Ahmed Shihab-Eldin was understood to have been charged with spreading false information, harming national security and misusing his mobile phone.

On Thursday, London-based barrister Caoilfhionn Gallagher KC said Shihab-Eldin had been found innocent of all charges and was expected to be released imminently.

Kuwaiti authorities have not commented on the case.

However, Kuwait and other Gulf Arab states have said they have detained hundreds of people for sharing footage documenting Iranian attacks on their territory during the war.

Ahmed Shihab-Eldin - a journalist who has contributed to the BBC, New York Times and Al Jazeera - had been visiting his family in Kuwait when he was last seen on 2 March.

That day, he shared on his Substack account a verified video showing a US F-15 fighter jet falling from the sky and crashing near Kuwait City, as well as photos that he said showed an American pilot who had ejected and landed in the al-Jahra area. The jet was one of three which were mistakenly shot down by Kuwaiti air defences.

His international legal team - including Caoilfhionn Gallagher - said he was arrested the following day and had been detained since. He was understood to have faced charges based on re-posting images verified and posted by the international media, they added.

On Thursday, a statement from Gallagher said the legal team could confirm a verdict had been handed down that acquitted Shihab-Eldin.

"We are relieved that, after 52 days in detention, Ahmed has been found innocent on all charges. Our focus now is upon ensuring the liberty and safety of our client, and we will provide more details once they can be confirmed," Gallagher added.

Jodie Ginsberg, CEO of the US-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), said she was "relieved" by the news.

"Ahmed's freedom and safety remain our topmost priority and we will continue to closely monitor his case," she added.

The BBC has contacted the Kuwaiti government for comment.

Earlier this month, the Kuwaiti interior ministry urged members of the public to "refrain from spreading rumours or sharing unverified videos and images", state media reported.

It also stressed that such actions were "being closely monitored and dealt with firmly, with violators referred to the relevant authorities for legal action".

Kuwait's emir also issued a decree last month that was aimed at "securing and protecting the supreme interests of military entities".

According to the CPJ, the legislation stipulated prison sentences of up to 10 years for anyone who "disseminates news, publishes statements, or spreads false rumours related to military entities" with the intent of undermining confidence in them.

Lebanon accuses Israel of targeting journalist killed in air strike

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5yvn036evlo, 3 days ago

Lebanon's prime minister has accused Israel of war crimes after Israeli air strikes killed one journalist and wounded another in southern Lebanon on Wednesday.

The strike killed Amal Khalil, who worked for a Lebanese newspaper, and injured freelance photographer Zeinab Faraj.

Officials in Lebanon say they were deliberately targeted as they sought shelter in a home after an initial air strike hit the vehicle in front of them, killing two men.

The officials also accused the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) of intentionally targeting a marked ambulance as it tried to reach the journalists in the village of Tayri.

The IDF denied that it was preventing rescue teams from reaching the area and said it did not target journalists.

Journalists Khalil, 43, who worked for Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar, and Faraj, a freelance photographer, were travelling together. The two men who died have not been named by officials.

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said: "Targeting journalists, obstructing access to them by relief teams, and even targeting their locations again after these teams arrive constitutes described war crimes."

He accused Israel of repeatedly targeting media workers in southern Lebanon in what he described as "an established approach".

Salam offered condolences to Khalil's family and said that Lebanon would "pursue the crimes before the competent international forums".

In a statement, the IDF said it "does not target journalists and acts to mitigate harm to them while maintaining the safety and security of its troops".

The IDF said it identified two vehicles that had "departed from a military structure used by Hezbollah".

One of the vehicles had approached Israeli troops in a manner that was an "immediate threat" after crossing a "forward defence line", violating a ceasefire, the statement said.

The IDF said the Israeli Air Force then struck one of the vehicles, and that the "structure from which the individuals had fled was also struck".

The Lebanese health ministry said the IDF "pursued" Khalil and Faraj, "who had taken refuge from the first raid in a nearby house, targeting the house where they had sought shelter".

When a Lebanese Red Cross ambulance arrived to treat the wounded, Israeli forces directed a stun grenade and gunfire toward it, preventing it from reaching them, the ministry said in a statement.

"This constitutes a blatant double violation: obstructing the rescue efforts of a citizen known for her civic media activism, and targeting an ambulance clearly marked with the Red Cross emblem," the health ministry said.

Clayton Weimer, the executive director of Reporters Without Borders, said the IDF had received messages from the organisation, as well as journalists, asking that it allow ambulances to get to Khalil.

"The Red Cross signalled they were unable to get through because of ongoing Israeli bombardment. So that is callous disregard, on top of what appears to be a deliberate and targeted killing of a journalist."

Faraj was eventually evacuated along with two of the dead, the statement added. Khalil's body was later recovered by emergency teams, according to Lebanon's civil defence agency.

On Thursday morning, journalists gathered at Martyrs Square in Beirut to remember her in silence.

The front page of Al Akhbar featured a picture of Khalil, microphone in hand, smiling. The newspaper said in an article on her death that Khalil "remained steadfast in her humanitarian and professional duty".

The Guardian's William Christou, who covers the Middle East for the paper, described her in a post on X as a "professional, kind and dedicated journalist, and always a pleasure to run into in the field".

The IDF acknowledged reports that two journalists were injured as a result of the strikes, but insisted it was not preventing further rescue teams from reaching the area. It has not acknowledged Khalil's death.

The US-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said it was "outraged" by Khalil's death.

"The repeated strikes on the same location, the targeting of an area where journalists were sheltering, and the obstruction of medical and humanitarian access constitute a grave breach of international humanitarian law," said CPJ Regional Director Sara Qudah.

In 2024, Khalil said she had been the target of an "Israeli death threat" that warned her to leave southern Lebanon, local media reported. CPJ said the report raised "serious concerns of deliberate targeting".

Earlier this month, two journalists were killed in separate Israeli strikes in Lebanon - Ghada Dayekh, a presenter with privately-owned radio station Sawt al-Farah, and Suzan Khalil, a reporter and presenter on Al-Manar TV, which is affiliated with the armed group Hezbollah.

Last month, three Lebanese journalists were killed in a targeted Israeli strike in the town of Jezzine, their employers said.

Ali Shoeib, a reporter for Hezbollah-affiliated Al Manar TV, and reporter Fatima Ftouni and her brother, cameraman Mohamed Ftouni, both from Al Mayadeen channel, were killed in the strike.

At the time, the IDF confirmed it killed Shoeib and Mohamed Ftouni, describing them as "terrorists" from Hezbollah's military wing, while saying it was aware of reports a female journalist was also killed.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun called the killings a "brazen crime" that broke the "most basic rules" of international law by targeting reporters, "who are ultimately civilians performing a professional duty".

At least 2,475 people have been killed in Israeli attacks in Lebanon since the latest war began, and more than 7,500 wounded, according to the Lebanese authorities, whose figures do not differentiate between civilians and combatants. The number includes at least 274 women and 177 children.

The Lebanese health ministry said last week that at least 100 medical workers had been killed in Israeli attacks during the war, and that more than 120 Israeli attacks have been recorded on ambulances and medical facilities. Israeli attacks have killed seven journalists In Lebanon, according to the CPJ.

Israeli authorities say Hezbollah attacks have killed two civilians in Israel since 2 March, and that 13 Israeli soldiers have been killed in combat in Lebanon.

Both Hezbollah and Israel have accused each other of violating the ceasefire agreement. The IDF said earlier on Wednesday that Hezbollah launched an attack on Israeli forces in southern Lebanon.

On the same day, Hezbollah issued four statements saying it had struck Israeli targets in south Lebanon, "in response to the Israeli enemy's violation of the ceasefire", according to the AFP news agency.

Last week, a meeting hosted by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio brought Lebanese and Israeli envoys together for the first direct, high-level contact in three decades between the two countries.

Following the talks, their governments agreed to implement a 10-day cessation of hostilities that began on Friday in order to "enable good-faith negotiations toward a permanent security and peace agreement", the US state department said.

Ahead of Thursday's follow-up talks in Washington, Lebanon's president confirmed that efforts were under way to extend the ceasefire.

Aoun said preserving Lebanese sovereignty over all of its territory was his top priority, and that Lebanese negotiators would seek an end to Israeli attacks, the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Lebanon, release of Lebanese prisoners in Israel, deployment of Lebanese troops along the Israeli border, and the beginning of reconstruction process, according to a statement from his office.

A Lebanese official told AFP news agency that Lebanon would request a one-month extension of the ceasefire at the talks.

In a speech to Israeli diplomats, Israel's foreign minister said the two countries should "work together against the terror state that Hezbollah built".

Iran says Strait of Hormuz cannot be opened due to ceasefire breaches

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3w3vqv0edpo, 3 days ago

Iran's chief negotiator in talks with the US said it is "not possible" for the Strait of Hormuz to be opened due to "the blatant violations of the ceasefire" by the US and Israel.

In a post on X on Wednesday, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said the "violations" include the US naval blockade of Iranian ports - which he said amounted to taking the global economy "hostage" - and "warmongering" by Israel "on all fronts".

Iran remains open to negotiations, said Iran President Masoud Pezeshkian, but he added, "breach of commitments, blockade and threats are main obstacles to genuine negotiations".

It appeared early Tuesday that the US and Iran would hold new peace talks in Pakistan this week - but they have yet to begin.

Vice-President JD Vance - due to lead the US delegation in those talks - remains in the US.

On Tuesday night, US President Donald Trump announced an extension to the US-Iran ceasefire that was due to expire on Wednesday.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt later clarified that Trump's extension is open-ended, and has no new deadline. She added that Trump is "satisfied" with the ongoing US naval blockade against Iran, and "understands Iran is in a very weak position".

"The cards are in President Trump's hands right now," she said.

Asked by reporters when the war would end, Leavitt said that it's up to Trump to decide, "and he will do so when he feels it's in the best interests of the United States and the American people".

The Iranian negotiator's latest comment comes as clashes continue in the dangerous waterway and vital global shipping route, with Iran announcing that it had "seized" two ships in the strait.

On Wednesday morning, Iran said two cargo ships were taken in the Strait of Hormuz for "inspection". The announcement follows reports of attacks on three cargo ships in the strait.

Euphoria, one of the three container ships attacked earlier in the Strait of Hormuz, appears to have dropped anchor near a port in the United Arab Emirates, according to MarineTraffic tracking data analysed by BBC Verify.

UAE-owned Euphoria was attacked eight nautical miles west of Iran, according to the maritime security firm Vanguard. No damage to the ship or injuries to crew was reported.

Iran has not commented on Euphoria, but has said it seized the other two vessels - MSC Francesca and Epaminondas - both of which reported damage resulting from the attacks.

A statement from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corp (IRGC) Navy said that the ships were "operating without authorisation" and committed "repeated violations", accusing them of trying to leave the Strait of Hormuz "in secret" and tampering with navigation systems.

It also warned that it is "monitoring" movements through the strait and has vowed "firm" action against the "violators".

Iranian news outlet Tasnim, which is affiliated with IRGC later posted dramatic footage of Iranian commandos raiding the two ships.

Their most recent broadcast positions indicates neither has moved far since the attacks occurred.

However, MarineTraffic data indicates Euphoria returned to sailing southwards after the reported time it was attacked, ending up about 13 nautical miles from the port of Khor Fakkan at around 14:00 BST.

Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis later confirmed that the Epaminondas, a Greek-owned ship, had been attacked.

"I can confirm that there was an attack against the Greek cargo ship, but I cannot confirm that this has been seized by the Iranians," Gerapetritis told CNN.

Also on Wednesday, the US Defense Department announced that the US Secretary of the Navy would depart his post "effective immediately".

No reason was given for John Phelan's ouster. It comes just weeks after US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth asked Army Chief of Staff Randy George to step down from his post. Navy Undersecretary Hung Cao will serve as acting secretary.

The White House lack of a timeline - either for a return to negotiations in Pakistan or to kinetic strikes against Iran - is likely strategic. It gives the Trump administration significant flexibility to let the blockade and the economic stranglehold on Iran bite.

Leavitt said this will allow "pragmatists" in Iran to come up with a peace proposal without pushback from hardliners.

At the same time, it allows Trump to avoid a return to full-scale military action that many Americans are weary of, and that could upset already nervous global markets.

"The strategic disadvantage at the moment is that Iran has decided that the measure of victory has become control of the Strait of Hormuz," said Andrew Peek, a former State Department deputy assistant secretary.

The "bright side", he told the BBC is that "President Trump has managed the stock market effectively, though gas prices have ticked up about a dollar in some places."

In her remarks to reporters at the White House, Leavitt also said that the US does not consider Iran's seizure of two ships in the Strait of Hormuz to be a violation of the ceasefire.

"These were not US ships, these were not Israeli ships," she said.

US and Iran in blockade standoff as Pakistan pushes for talks

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0q9xq7knq2o, 4 days ago

Courtesy of last night's Truth Social post from US President Donald Trump, the ceasefire between Iran, the US and Israel which was due to expire on Wednesday does at least persist.

Instead of fighting, we have a "war of blockades" over the Strait of Hormuz, with both sides using force to intercept and seize commercial vessels.

The mood out in one of the world's most important waterways is combustible. It would be unwise to bet against events spiralling out of control.

In the meantime, Islamabad still waits for Iranian and American representatives to arrive for peace talks.

Parts of the city remain sealed off, the signs are still up and the hotel where talks were expected to take place is empty, ready for the hoped-for return of high-level delegations.

But after several days of fevered anticipation, the atmosphere has changed.

Gone is the talk of press pools in faraway Washington being told to head for the airport, or speculation about the contents of the giant C-17 Globemaster transport planes that landed at a nearby military airbase earlier in the week.

In its place is the gloomy realisation that an opportunity for Pakistan to prove itself on the international stage, to broker a deal - any kind of deal - between mortal enemies may have slipped out of Islamabad's grasp. For now.

Pakistan has not given up. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who has invested considerable diplomatic capital in getting the two parties together, posted on social media that Pakistan would "continue its earnest efforts for negotiated settlement of the conflict".

Donald Trump has told at least one journalist that a deal is still possible in the next few days.

It's hard to know if this is reality speaking, or the voice of an impatient man, anxious to remove Iran from his most urgent to-do list before King Charles arrives in Washington for a state visit next Monday - and Trump's much anticipated visit to China not long afterwards.

Iran dismissed the president's suggestion that he was giving Tehran time to come up with a "unified position", but it seems unlikely that the regime, already bruised and battered by the war, will break the ceasefire, thus inviting more punishment from the air.

In the meantime, what are we to make of the Iranian delegation's reluctance to get on a plane for the short ride to Islamabad?

Iran accuses the US of a "breach of commitments" and cites what it called Washington's "contradictory behaviour".

Donald Trump's wildly conflicting public pronouncements – threatening apocalyptic punishment one moment and offering an olive branch the next, claiming all the while that Iran has already made significant concessions – have muddied the waters.

Iran still complains that it has entered negotiations twice in the past year, only to be attacked by Israel and the United States.

But Donald Trump's Truth Social post announcing the ceasefire extension, lacking its usual bombast, spoke of an Iranian regime that is "seriously fractured, not unexpectedly".

For a man who has trumpeted the fact that he has already achieved regime change in Iran, was this an admission that Washington is struggling to know who it's dealing with?

Has "regime fracture" made the business of diplomacy with Iran – never the easiest art to master – that much more difficult?

Deliberately or not, the president, through his choice of words, briefly joined a debate that has been raging among seasoned Iran watchers in recent days: who's in charge in Iran now that so much of the old leadership is gone?

Why and how is US blockading Iranian ports in Strait of Hormuz?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5yv6xr6me3o, 6 days ago

The US has attacked and seized an Iranian-flagged cargo ship trying to get past its blockade of Iran's ports, President Trump says.

The ship, called the Touska, was intercepted in the Gulf of Oman.

Earlier this month, US forces announced they would intercept or turn back vessels travelling to or from Iran's coast.

Washington said ships coming or going from elsewhere would be allowed to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway off Iran's coast that Tehran effectively closed in response to US-Israeli strikes.

The US wants to restrict Tehran's ability to profit from oil exports in an attempt to put pressure on the country.

Why did Trump decide to blockade Iranian ports?

Trump hopes to put pressure on Iran by targeting two economic drivers - the huge tolls it was demanding ships pay to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, and its oil revenue.

The US president told Fox News that "we're not going to let Iran make money on selling oil to people that they like and not people that they don't like". He said the goal was letting "all or nothing" pass through the channel.

Iran has responded by calling the blockade "piracy", threatening to retaliate by targeting ports in the Gulf states.

The BBC's security correspondent Frank Gardner said the blockade brings two main risks:

* It drives up oil and gas prices yet again

* The ceasefire collapses, full-scale war breaks out again between the US and Iran, also impacting places like Dubai, Bahrain, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia

What is a naval blockade?

The US Navy Commander's handbook on naval operations law from 2022 defines a blockade as a "belligerent operation to prevent vessels and/or aircraft of all states, enemy and neutral, from entering or exiting specified ports, airfields, or coastal areas belonging to, occupied by, or under the control of an enemy state".

The UN's maritime agency, the International Maritime Organisation, has said no country has a legal right to block shipping in straits used for international transit.

"I do understand there is a conflict going on there, but there is still no legal basis in international law to take any actions to block any strait used for international navigation," Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez told the BBC.

Donald Rothwell, professor of international law at the Australian National University, said international law would see the US, Israel and Iran as 'belligerents' as opposed to 'neutrals'.

"This means the US, as a belligerent, can legitimately impose a blockade under international law – specifically, the law of naval warfare," he wrote.

Where is the blockade?

The exact locations of US navy ships on deployment are not known publicly. That makes it hard to know exactly where the US will attempt to intercept vessels.

However, the US military is unlikely to position its warships close to Iran's coast due to the risk of missile and drone attacks.

Instead the focus of the blockade is likely to be around the Gulf of Oman, a key transit point for much of the world's oil, including Iranian exports.

US forces will likely use satellite and commercial intelligence to monitor which ships are leaving Iranian ports, and wait for them to sail into the open Indian Ocean before intercepting them.

US Central Command (Centcom) has said more than 12 warships and more than 100 fighter and surveillance aircraft are involved.

Satellite imagery from 11 April analysed by BBC Verify shows the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier positioned at the eastern edge of the Gulf of Oman, roughly 200km (124 miles) to the south of the Iranian coast.

This was the closest to the Gulf that BBC Verify had observed the nuclear-powered warship since the start of the war.

Two other nearby warships visible in the imagery are consistent in size and shape with US Navy guided-missile destroyers.

They are likely to be part of the Lincoln's carrier strike group, but BBC Verify can't identify exactly which vessels are visible.

How will the blockade be enforced?

US Central Command (Centcom) said it had approached the Touska by helicopter, adding marines then rappelled - or descended by rope - onto the ship.

Trump earlier wrote on social media that "our Navy ship stopped them right in their tracks by blowing a hole in the engineroom".

Centcom has previously said it would permit passage of humanitarian shipments including food, medical supplies and other essential goods, subject to inspection.

Trump has also said that the US will begin destroying mines he accuses Iran of having laid in the strait.

The US president added that "at some point" an agreement on free passage will be reached.

Earlier in April, Centcom claimed that six merchant vessels had been asked to turn around and re-enter an Iranian port in the Gulf of Oman.

How will Iran and other countries be affected by the blockade?

After the US announced that the leaders of Israel and Lebanon had agreed to a 10-day ceasefire, Iran's foreign minister said that the Strait of Hormuz would be opened.

Shortly after, Trump said the US naval blockade of Iranian ports would remain in place until a deal is reached. Iran has since said the strait is closed again.

The effective closure of the strait, through which a fifth of the world's energy shipments pass, has sent oil prices surging.

But Iran has continued exporting its own oil - and in doing so, cashing in on the high prices. March was the fifth biggest month for oil exports from Iran over the past year and a half.

The blockade could also have major consequences for Iran's oil customers.

In 2022, around 82% of crude oil and other fossil fuels leaving the Strait of Hormuz were bound for Asian countries, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).

China alone is estimated to buy around 90% of the oil that Iran exports. Earlier this month, its foreign ministry called the US blockade "dangerous" and "irresponsible".

Analysts say the blockade may be designed to force Beijing to become more active in peace talks.

A prolonged blockade could further damage the global economy, pushing up petrol and food prices, as well as limiting access to critical materials like aluminium, helium and feed stocks for fertilisers.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned on Tuesday that the global economy was at risk of recession if the war continued and high energy prices persisted.

The Fund also said the war's energy shock would hit the UK the hardest of the world's advanced economies.

Civilians in Iran could also be impacted, with the country reliant on grain and wheat imports, creating potential food security issues.

How many ships usually use the Strait of Hormuz?

The strait's geography has allowed Iran to use it as leverage throughout this war, using threats to selectively prevent vessels from passing through the narrow waterway.

About 3,000 ships a month usually sail through the strait each month but this dramatically decreased to just a handful a day during recent hostilities.

The strait is also a vital channel for imports to the Middle East, including food, medicines and technological supplies.

The disruption has created a fuel crisis in Asia, a region heavily reliant on Middle Eastern oil.

Governments have ordered employees to work from home, cut the working week, declared national holidays and closed universities early in order to conserve their supplies.

Are the UK and other countries taking part in the blockade?

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has said UK forces will not be involved in enforcing the blockade.

UK minesweepers and anti-drone capabilities will continue operating in the region but British naval ships and soldiers will not be used to block Iranian ports.

Trump has said that other countries would be involved in blockading the strait, but did not say which ones.

Trump also told Fox News that Nato had offered to help "clean out" the strait, adding that it would be free to use again "in not too long".

Additional reporting by Barbara Metzler, Frank Gardner, Dearbail Jordan, Joshua Cheetham and Shruti Menon

What people in power think the impact of the Iran war will be

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c9vl37eev7ko, 8 days ago

The two centres of this crisis are the 24-mile Strait of Hormuz south of Iran and 7,000 miles away in the White House.

This week was the unique opportunity for the rest of the world to make its economic case to US President Donald Trump's administration directly at the Spring meeting of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank – taking place in Washington DC just down the road from the White House.

The sense I got speaking to the majority of G7 finance ministers, some central bankers, and some of the world's top financiers was unhappiness about the rest of the world picking up the inadvertent but predictable costs of the US's decision to go to war.

It was the Chancellor Rachel Reeves who was especially vocal on the "folly" and "mistake" of war "which is not ours".

The meetings of finance ministers such as the G20 breakfast were sombre affairs. According to participants, the United States was the only voice in the room projecting short-term confidence.

Asian financiers in particular displayed clear worry "about real shortages of energy," according to those in the room. Shortly after multiple concerns were expressed around the breakfast table, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent popped up on US financial TV to say there was nothing to worry about. Markets and the economy would recover fast, he said.

'Slower moving shock'

However, the Canadian finance minister François-Philippe Champagne, who was present at all the key meetings and has been at the sharp end of dealing with Trump's tariff war, had a different take.

"Geography doesn't change. People don't change that much either, so that is going to be a risk in terms of world energy that we'll have to manage for years to come, even when the conflict is over," he said.

Kristalina Georgieva, IMF managing director told me, the world faced a "slower moving shock" while the World Bank's president Ajay Banga told me about the impact on economically poorer countries.

Iraq is not shipping or producing oil, which is normally responsible for 85% of revenues. Bangladesh, with significant household needs for gas for cooking, is cut off from Middle East suppliers. And Pacific Island nations with little energy storage are waiting for tankers and container ships at the end of very long shipping routes. These are just some real examples of extreme supply-chain fragility exposed by the stoppage in the Strait.

In response, the World Bank has readied support funds of up to $100bn (£74bn) – more than for the Covid lockdowns – to help economically poorer countries deal with rising energy and food costs.

Speaking before Iran said it would temporarily reopen the Strait, Georgieva warned: "March was a tough month, but April is likely to be even tougher."

"Why? Because the tankers that left by 28 February have reached their destinations, and there are no new deliveries coming… A tanker is a slow-moving vessel. It would take 40 days to get all the way to Fiji."

Despite the promising developments on Friday, the countdown clock for world food prices is very much ticking. Urea, the key input for fertiliser, has doubled in price. While countries in the north of the world are planting food now, the problem for global food availability could come in June to July.

Banga said: "The real problem will be, if fertiliser is not available three months from today, and we reach the planting season of the non-northern countries, then we start getting into a difficult cycle on food availability.

The Trump Administration's response to all of this was two fold: the war will be over soon and the gain is worth the pain.

At the Willard Hotel, just across from the US Treasury Building, the rest of the world gathered to exert some diplomatic pressure to avoid an economic disaster.

Bessent was holding court with a few members of the press, including myself. What did he make about the concerns in the IMF forecast about the Iran War causing a rare global recession?

"I wonder what the hit to global GDP would be if a nuclear weapon hit London," he told me.

"I am less concerned about short-term forecasts for long-term security… a small bit of economic pain for a few weeks is worth taking off the incalculable tail risk."

I asked him to clarify exactly what he meant and he pointed to the Iranian launch at Diego Garcia. Bessent was also bullish about the US blockade on Iran whose ships "shall not pass" he said. At the same time he was bullish about negotiations with Iranians who could credibly speak for all arms of the Iranian leadership.

The French finance minister Roland Lescure had just had a private meeting with Bessent when I met him.

"I'm not going to tell you everything I'm telling them, but the Strait is the knot of this crisis and it needs to be unknotted. This is costing us all," he told me.

Pointedly, he said that the US was also feeling the pinch in terms of higher gasoline prices. The Iranians, he said, were using the economic damage as leverage. "This is their weapon of deterrence," he added.

By contrast, he believes that French domestic energy prices will not go up much.

"In the 70s when there were oil shocks, 90% of [French] energy was coming from hydrocarbons. It's now 60%. We're using the crisis to double down and invest even more in nuclear and renewables."

For UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves there was also a change in energy policy. She is now looking at trying to maximise production from existing North Sea fields through "tie backs" and enact a radical reform to break the link between electricity prices and rising gas prices. New proposals are expected in days.

Despite the issues the UK faces, the Governor of the Bank of England Andrew Bailey was pretty clear to me that the Bank shouldn't rush to raise interest rates to combat higher inflation from the war. The way to deal with inflation was de-escalation, he said.

'Unknown, unknown'

The war was not the only talking point. There are other clouds on the horizon – from concerns about private credit to AI cybersecurity vulnerabilities created by Anthropic's Mythos model.

"The Strait of Hormuz, we know where it is, and we know how large it is. The issue that we're facing with [Mythos] is the unknown, unknown," said Canada's finance minister Champagne.

When I spoke to Barclays chief executive C.S. Venkatakrishnan, the Gulf crisis was only number three in his list of concerns. The first was "whether there has been an overbuilding in technology and AI".

"The second is what's going on in private credit and the liquidity issues. And third, of course, is what's going on in the Middle East," he said.

While there is still much uncertainty from the Gulf, the clouds are less dark now, allowing some to focus on other concerns. Reeves could even be hopeful after growth figures showed the UK on course for 0.5% to 0.6% growth in the first quarter. As news emerged yesterday of the reopening of the Strait, energy prices tumbled. So too did borrowing costs, petrol prices, and mortgage rates.

Everyone here in Washington DC is daring to believe the crisis has peaked. The consequences if it has not are dire.

A moment of risk and opportunity: How two ceasefires could boost US-Iran talks

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0mjynzvw94o, 8 days ago

With not one, but two ceasefires in place across the Middle East, is the scene now set for a pair of historic breakthroughs?

The ceasefires - in Iran and Lebanon - are both described as "shaky" (ceasefires generally are), but as the din of war fades away once more, this is a moment pregnant with opportunity. And risk.

On the face of it, Thursday night's announcement of a 10-day pause in the fighting between Israel and the Iranian-backed militia Hezbollah, is a win for Iran.

The regime in Tehran had demanded a ceasefire in Lebanon, saying talks with the US could not be expected to progress without it.

With the pause now in place, Iran has responded, declaring the Strait of Hormuz "completely open".

As last weekend's marathon negotiating session in Islamabad showed, progress was in fact possible, even as the fighting in Lebanon continued (with Israel merely avoiding further attacks on Beirut). But Iran and Pakistan both insisted that Lebanon must be included.

That has now happened, much to the fury of Israelis living close to the northern border who believe that their Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has caved in to American pressure, rather than making sure Hezbollah never fires another rocket at their country.

For some in Israel, the ceasefire plays right into Iran's hand, allowing Israel's mortal enemy to dictate the course of events.

"The ceasefire effectively puts Israel's stamp of approval on the very situation the country had been trying to avoid: legitimising the link between Iran and the Lebanese theatre of operations," Shirit Avitan Cohen of the popular right-wing daily Israel Hayom wrote this morning.

"Yesterday, Hezbollah also received final confirmation that its master, and Lebanon's, still has its hands on the wheel and continues to dictate what happens in the region."

In fact, all the players involved in these overlapping conflicts get something out of the latest deal.

For US President Donald Trump and the leadership in Iran, it's a chance to take credit for bringing about a ceasefire.

Netanyahu can point to the fact that Israeli troops remain on the ground in southern Lebanon, while the Lebanese government, after months of trying, now has direct negotiations with Israel.

Hezbollah, which says it will abide by the ceasefire (while insisting that it still has its "finger on the trigger") has not been defeated and insists it will not be disarmed.

"Not until a proper ceasefire, a real one. Not until Israeli withdrawal. Before the return of prisoners, before the return of displaced people and before the reconstruction. Until then, it is not possible to talk about Hezbollah's weapons," senior Hezbollah leader Wafiq Safa told the BBC on Thursday.

Lina Khatib, of the London-based think tank Chatham House, says the ceasefire paves the way for Israel and Lebanon to continue their face-to-face talks but that the obstacles to a peace agreement between the two are enormous.

"The issue is very complicated," she says. "It has to do with border demarcation, the disarmament of Hezbollah and the withdrawal of Israel from Lebanese territory."

Israel and Lebanon have technically been in a state of war since 1948 and the two countries do not have diplomatic relations.

But far from strengthening Iran's position across the region, Khatib argues that this week's direct talks in Washington between the Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors have started the process of removing Lebanon from Iran's hands.

"The regional balance of power is shifting away from Iran," she says. "Now it's no longer going to be able to use Lebanon as a bargaining chip."

But much still depends on what happens in the other diplomatic process, between the US and Iran.

Reducing what America and Israel see as Iran's malign behaviour across the Middle East will be on Washington's agenda, if and when a second widely anticipated round of talks in Islamabad goes ahead.

For Israel in particular, it is vital that Iran's support for Hezbollah, Hamas and the Houthis in Yemen is curtailed, ending decades in which Iran's "Axis of Resistance" has been able to threaten and harass the Jewish state.

Iran will not give up what it regards as a vital tool of regional influence lightly.

But that's just one of the formidable challenges that lies ahead.

The others - the fate of Iran's nuclear programme and the future of the Strait of Hormuz - are going to take some negotiating.

Trump, as always, is doing his best to sound like he's in control, saying a deal with Iran is "very close", that the war is going "swimmingly", telling reporters that Iran has already agreed to hand over around 440kg (970lb) of highly enriched uranium (the president is fond of calling it "nuclear dust") thought to be buried under the rubble of a facility in Isfahan bombed last year.

Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei denied that claim, telling state TV: "The transfer of uranium to the US has not been presented as an option. Iran's enriched uranium is as sacred to us as the soil of Iran and will under no circumstances be transferred anywhere."

Any deal on the nuclear file would also need a pledge from Iran never to build a nuclear weapon, as well as agreement on how long it would be willing to suspend enrichment.

Then there's Iran's other weapon, always in the country's armoury but only recently deployed: its closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran says it wants a new set of protocols to govern maritime traffic through the narrow waterway, replacing its current chokehold with a legal framework that would recognise what it regards as its sovereign right, along with Oman, to control what moves in and out of the Gulf.

In the meantime, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi, welcoming the ceasefire in Lebanon, says the Strait is "completely open for the remaining period of the ceasefire" – in other words, for the next week.

There is a caveat: vessels will be expected to use what Aragchi called "the co-ordinated route as already announced by the Ports and Maritime Organisation of the Islamic Republic of Iran".

This appears to refer to new routes, running much closer to the Iranian mainland, north of the two traffic separation lanes in use before the war.

How quickly this eases the bottleneck of vessels trapped inside the Gulf remains to be seen.

Trump says, in his typically full-throated way, that the strait is "FULLY OPEN AND READY FOR FULL PASSAGE," and the markets appear to have responded positively. But captains may well be looking over their shoulders, and Trump says the US blockade of Iranian ports remains in place for now.

Despite these positive developments, it's safe to say that there's a lot of ground for negotiators to cover.

The last major deal with Iran, 2015's Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), took around 20 months to negotiate and only addressed the nuclear issue. Trump pulled America out of the deal in 2018, leading it to crumble.

Trump loves to project the image of a rapid deal-maker, rarely looking back to see what, if anything, his deals actually achieved.

For all the hoopla surrounding his two summits with North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un, in 2018-19, the meetings in fact achieved very little. Pyongyang continues to develop its nuclear programme.

But after the tumultuous events of the past six weeks, some kind of diplomatic process is now well under way and will have received a boost following the ceasefire in Lebanon.

Is it enough to prevent an eventual return to war? Not even Trump knows that.

Ceasefire with Israel brings respite to Lebanon, but obstacles to peace remain

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/crm10w4ynj1o, 9 days ago

At the stroke of midnight, gunfire and fireworks celebrated the start of the ceasefire in Beirut.

Throughout the morning, smiling crowds gathered along roads leading to Lebanon's south, the heartland of Hezbollah, playing revolutionary music and waving the group's yellow flag as they started their journey back to where they had been forced from by the war.

This is, initially, a 10-day ceasefire after six weeks of a devastating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, the Lebanese Shia Muslim militia and political party. But it brings some respite for a country exhausted by the war.

More than 2,100 people have been killed, Lebanese health authorities say, and over a million, or roughly one in five of the population, have been displaced - creating a pressing humanitarian crisis.

Mattresses on top of cars and families on motorbikes indicated that people were on the move - but many are not returning to stay.

In some places, the damage is too extensive and for some there is nothing to go back to at all. Some towns and villages near the border remain under Israeli occupation.

But in the Hezbollah-controlled southern suburbs of Beirut, known as Dahieh, the streets remained relatively quiet. The area has been hammered by Israel during the war, and many residential buildings have been reduced to rubble.

In the city's waterfront, where hundreds of displaced families have been living in improvised tents, some said they feared returning.

Announced by US President Donald Trump, the ceasefire leaves open questions.

First, it does not mention the withdrawal of Israeli troops from southern Lebanon, which has raised fears that parts of the country will remain occupied even after the war. Israeli officials say their goal is to create a so-called security buffer zone, several miles deep, and many residents of those areas may not be allowed to go back.

Secondly, there is the issue over Hezbollah's weapons, which has long divided this country. Disarmament is a demand of the US, Israel and many Lebanese, who accuse the group of defending the interests of its patron, Iran, and dragging the country into unnecessary wars.

Supporters say Hezbollah is the only protection they have in a weak state and, for now, Hezbollah has refused to discuss the future of its weapons.

Speaking to the BBC in a rare interview, Wafiq Safa, a high-ranking member of Hezbollah's political council, said the group would "never, ever" disarm. He also said there "can be no separation" between Hezbollah and Iran, describing the relationship as "two souls in one body".

"There can be no Hezbollah without Iran, and no Iran without Hezbollah," he said.

The government has very little - if any - influence over Hezbollah. President Joseph Aoun has said disarmament cannot be delivered by force, warning of the possibility of violence, and that it would require negotiations with the group. Observers say that, given Iran's role, any decision about the future of the weapons is likely to be taken in Tehran, not in Beirut.

Finally, according to the deal, Israel may even continue to attack Lebanon, citing security concerns, which may bring the country back to the situation before the most recent fighting - when Israel carried out near-daily attacks on targets and people allegedly linked to Hezbollah, despite the ceasefire that had ended their previous conflict in November 2024. Hezbollah remained quiet.

Trump seems to hope that this could be the beginning of a process to normalise relations between Israel and Lebanon - another divisive topic in the country.

The two neighbours have technically been in a state of war since 1948 and have no diplomatic relations. With parts of Lebanon occupied and Hezbollah yet to be disarmed, progress on that front appears, for now, unlikely.

Who is making decisions in Iran?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cm29m732vgno, yesterday

The question hanging over Tehran since the opening strikes of Iran's current war with the US and Israel is simple: Who is in charge?

Formally, the answer is clear. Mojtaba Khamenei has assumed the role of supreme leader following the killing of his father, Ali Khamenei, on the first day of the war on 28 February. In the Islamic Republic's system, that position is meant to be decisive. The leader has the final word on almost anything important: war, peace, and the state's strategic direction.

But in practice, the picture is far murkier.

Donald Trump has described Iran's leadership as "fractured" and suggested the US is waiting for Tehran to produce a "unified proposal".

Unity was certainly on the minds of Iran's leaders when they distributed a message to Iranians on their mobile phones on Thursday night saying there was "no such thing as a hardliner or moderate in Iran - there was just one nation, one course".

Invisible leader

Mojtaba Khamenei has not been seen in public since taking power. Beyond a handful of written statements, including one insisting the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, there is little direct evidence of his day-to-day control.

Iranian officials have acknowledged that he was injured in the initial strikes but have offered few details. The New York Times, citing Iranian sources, reported this week that he may have suffered several injuries, including to his face that have made it difficult for him to speak.

That absence matters. In Iran's political system, authority is not just institutional - it is also performative. Khamenei's late father signalled intent through speeches, calibrated appearances, and visible arbitration between factions. That signalling function is now largely missing.

The result is a vacuum of interpretation. Some argue that Mojtaba Khamenei's wartime elevation has simply not allowed him to establish authority on his own terms. Others point to reports about his injuries and question whether he is able to actively manage the system at all.

Either way, decision-making appears less centralised than before the war.

Diplomatic channels open but only just

On paper, diplomacy sits with the government. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi continues to represent Tehran in talks with the US, under Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.

But neither appears to be setting strategy and their authority is further put into question by the fact that Iran's delegation is headed by Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf.

Araghchi's role looks operational rather than directive. His brief reversal over whether Hormuz was open or closed - first suggesting traffic had resumed and then quickly retracting that - offered a rare glimpse of how little control the diplomatic track has over military decisions.

Pezeshkian, meanwhile, has aligned himself with the broader direction of the regime without visibly shaping it. Considered a relatively moderate figure, he has so far avoided pushing an independent line.

The stalled second round of talks with the US in Islamabad reinforces the point. Even when diplomatic channels are open, the system appears unable or unwilling to commit.

A military expanding remit

Control over the Strait of Hormuz is Iran's most immediate source of leverage. But decisions over its closure sit with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), led by Ahmad Vahidi, rather than the diplomatic team.

That places real power in the hands of actors who operate behind closed doors. Unlike previous crises, there is no single, identifiable figure clearly owning the strategy. Instead, a pattern emerges: actions first, messaging later, and not always consistent.

In practice, it is the IRGC's actions, whether in enforcing the closure of Hormuz or in striking targets across the Gulf, that appear to be setting the pace of the crisis. Political and diplomatic responses often follow rather than lead.

This does not necessarily signal a breakdown of the administrative branches. But it does suggest that operational autonomy of the IRGC has widened, at least temporarily, in the absence of clear political arbitration.

Ghalibaf steps forward

Into this ambiguity steps Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf.

A former Revolutionary Guard commander now serving as speaker of parliament, Ghalibaf has emerged as one of the most visible figures in the current moment. He has inserted himself into negotiations, addressed the public, and at times framed the war in pragmatic rather than ideological terms.

Within parliament and across conservative networks, resistance to negotiations remains strong.

Hardline messaging has intensified, with state media and public campaigns increasingly framing negotiations as a sign of weakness in the face of the country's enemies.

Ghalibaf's position is therefore precarious - active but not clearly authorised. He insists his actions align with Mojtaba Khamenei's wishes, yet there is little visible evidence of direct co-ordination.

In a system that depends on signals from the top, that ambiguity is telling.

Claimed or exercised coherence

Taken together, these dynamics point to a system that is functioning, but not coherently directed.

The supreme leader's authority exists but is not visibly exercised. The presidency is aligned but not leading. Diplomacy is active, but not decisive. The military holds key levers, but without a clear public architect. Political figures are stepping forward, but without uncontested legitimacy.

This is not collapse. The Islamic Republic remains intact. But it does suggest something more subtle - a system struggling to convert the leverage it has - for instance the ability to close the Strait of Hormuz - into clear strategy at a moment of acute pressure. It can still act across multiple fronts, but it struggles to signal clear direction to its own centres of power.

And in Iran's political model, signalling is how coherence is maintained.

For now, the system is holding the line, maintaining control and avoiding any visible breakdown despite mounting pressure. But increasingly, it raises the question of whether coherence is being exercised or simply claimed.

Voice notes are massive in some countries but not the UK. This is why.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn7kpyye4y0o, today

On an August day in 2013, WhatsApp, the messaging app now owned by Meta, made an announcement. With relatively little fanfare, they revaled the voice note, the messaging feature that lets you send a clip of your own voice to friends and family.

"We know there's no substitute for hearing the sound of a friend or family member's voice," the company enthused in a press release.

Thirteen years on, receiving a 10-minute clip from a friend, telling you about a complex family feud or workplace drama, is an experience that is loved by some and loathed by others.

In places like India, Mexico, Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates, voice notes are almost matching the popularity of written texts as the preferred form of electronic communication.

But curiously, the truth is that compared to many places, Britain never seems to have quite caught the voice note bug.

A YouGov survey of more than 2,300 British adults, published this month, found that while voice notes have become slightly more popular in the last year, still only 15% communicate via voice note regularly (i.e. a few times a week). Across men, women, and across every age group - including Gen Zs - voice notes were the least popular method of communication.

And in 2024, YouGov found that Britain was the most voice note-averse country of the 17 mostly rich nations it surveyed, with 83% of respondents saying they prefer text based messages to voice notes (and only 4% saying they prefer voice notes).

So, why do voice notes prove so divisive? And why have they taken some countries by storm, while failing to truly take off in Britain?

A happiness boost

In 2011, researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the US measured how a group of children's hormones reacted when they got phone calls from their parents, compared to text messages.

It found that the levels of the stress hormone, cortisol, went down when they heard their parent's voice in a phone call, while oxytocin, the hormone involved in the formation of positive relationships and bonding, increased.

The study looked at phone calls rather than voice notes, but its key insight - about the value of hearing a loved one's voice - may still be relevant.

Prof Seth Pollak, one of the psychologists behind that 2011 study, now says it's worth running the study again, looking specifically at voice notes.

"I do think it would be interesting to [include] something that was pre-recorded, where we're hearing somebody and they're speaking but they're not necessarily responding to what's going on with you," he says.

His "hunch", he says, is that a pre-recorded voice note will probably "pack less of a punch" emotionally than a live phone call in which you're able to respond in real time to whatever you're hearing.

Meanwhile Dr Martin Graff, a psychologist at the University of South Wales who researches online communication, says voice notes can offer more emotionally layered ways of speaking.

"I think it possibly hangs on what used to be called media richness theory," he says. "[It] means that if you're sending 'rich media' – i.e. not just text, but you're sending voice as well – it conveys an emotion, and that might lead to what we call uncertainty reduction, so we're more sure of the person with whom we're talking."

No wonder then, that dating apps like Bumble, Happn and Grindr have all introduced a voice note function over the last few years.

But why, then, are many British people still so stubbornly against them?

A pro-voice note country

Prof Jessica Ringrose, a sociology professor at University College of London, says that British people are perhaps more reserved in their communication styles than other cultures.

She said voice notes would appeal "if you really love talking, and you've got that communicative and also performative element of how you do your relationships" - and that isn't, generally speaking, as common in British culture, which is typically seen as relatively emotionally reticent.

"I could definitely see that British people would be less inclined [to send voice notes] and briefer in their interactive style," she said, though she admitted it is "hard not to stereotype if you talk about this".

In the absence of up-to-date science, I conducted some (highly unscientific) research of my own. I'm a British person with Indian heritage, giving me a vantage point over two countries with radically different feelings towards voice notes.

India is one of the most pro-voice note countries in the world; the 2024 YouGov survey found that 48% of Indian respondents either preferred receiving voice notes, or liked receiving them just as much as texts, compared to just 18% of people in Great Britain.

So first, I asked friends - and friends of friends - in Britain.

As it happens, I love voice notes. But I'm aware that they get on my sister Ramya's nerves.

"The reason I hate voice notes is, it's so imbalanced," Ramya told me.

"For the person who's sending the voice note, it's super easy. They just have to press the button and then they can ramble on. But for the person who's receiving… they've got to just pay all their attention to this voice note.

"You get a six-minute voice note, and you don't know if they're telling you that their house burnt down and their cat died, or if they're just talking about how lovely their day is."

The Gen Z apprentice on my team, Gyasi, told me he found them "a bit of a nuisance", specifically because you need headphones to listen to them.

But perhaps counter-intuitively, given younger people in Britain are most likely to use voice notes, Gyasi's mother, 53-year-old Buzz, said they were a handy way of putting off an overdue phone call.

Meanwhile Daniela, 30, said: "Voice notes stress me out a little bit, because once you open them you're committed to listening to the whole thing."

Josh Parry, the BBC's LGBT and Identity reporter, is perhaps the biggest voice note-lover in my life. His messages have been known to get up to 15 minutes long on occasion (no, I'm not exaggerating).

"I think that they can add really good context when you're talking about something, you can discuss things in a way that maybe is a bit harder to write down, and you can get across the nuance," Josh told me.

"It's also really handy instead of texting when I'm walking the dogs."

Another friend, designer and business owner Naomi, said they are useful when her hands are full – "I love sending voice notes when I'm busy… if I have lots going on, if I have the kids around and I'm trying to multitask."

"It feels like a nice way to be a bit more connected," she said.

The language factor

In India, the country of my heritage, almost half of the population prefer voice notes, or at least like them just as much as texts, meaning voice messaging is now baked into the way Indians communicate.

The Indian wing of WhatsApp recently released a glossy, nine-minute advert telling the story of a fictional newlywed couple in rural India who fall in love via voice note. And on the opposite side of the joy spectrum, there are reports criminals in India have been choosing to issue threats over voice notes.

Some say that it's down to language. In multi-lingual cultures such as India, voice messaging is an easier way to mix languages. For example, people who speak Hinglish – a fluid mix of Hindi and English – can do so more naturally.

Shreya, a college student in Pune, in the Indian state of Maharashtra, told me her friend group mainly uses voice notes "because we use a lot of languages".

"So I usually switch between my mother tongue, which is Marathi, and English," she said.

"I've tried the Marathi keyboard, but it's really complicated to use," she added, saying that the only person she knows who uses the Marathi keyboard to type is her grandmother.

Namratha, a 29-year-old who lives in Khargar, near Mumbai, says that because people speak multiple languages, but can't necessarily read and write in all of those languages, voice messaging makes communicating easier.

"Maybe I know their language, but they don't know mine well enough to actually write it - they might know how to speak it but not to write," she said.

But some things do transcend borders - like the need for gossip.

Shreya, for example, told me voice notes "also convey expression better… so when it comes specifically to spilling the tea [gossiping], we expect a voice note."

The topic is under-researched in India, though Prof Kathryn Hardy, a professor of Sociology at Ashoka University in Sonipat, Haryana, told me it was "extremely plausible" that voice messaging was particularly popular in rural communities and areas where written literacy is lower.

"We've seen so many technologies taken up in rural communities just instantaneously, because they do bypass literacy requirements," she said. "This seems like the most obvious use of voice notes, to get around the problem of not just literacy but fluency."

Could language also help explain British dislike of voice notes? The Spectator columnist Rory Sutherland thinks so. "We actually have quite an efficient language. [In] English, you don't have to type 16 letters to say sorry," he says - making written communication more tempting.

Disapora communities

It's also notable that voice messages are popular in countries with large diaspora communities. India, for example, has the world's largest diaspora, with over 35 million Indians and people of Indian origin living outside the country and an estimated 2.5 million more moving abroad every year. Mexico, where 53% of the population say they like voice notes, also has a large diaspora community too, predominantly based in the US.

It could be that they provide people living in different time zones with a way of keeping in touch that's more asynchronous than phone calls, but more personal than texts.

Prof Hardy backed up this theory. As an American who's lived in India for almost a decade, voice notes have allowed her children to keep in touch with their grandparents back in the US.

"We use voice notes probably 10 to 20 times a week - we send a lot of voice notes," she said. "So my hunch is that at least some of that use [in India] is maybe intergenerational, or across long distances and major time zone distinctions.

Etiquette and gossip

We don't yet know whether voice notes cause that surge of oxytocin found in the 2011 study of phone calls. And whether they do or don't won't necessarily change minds.

Rory Sutherland sees it as a matter of being polite. "Whether this is something to do with the English language or to do with the British character, I hope we do retain some vague measure of what is etiquette. I would argue that recording a five minute message is discourteous to the recipient," he says.

For my part, I can't help but feel that, with many of us feeling increasingly distant from each other, there is an important place for little recordings from our friends, and we should treasure them.

As my friend Josh tells me: "I hope they never ever go away. The gossip in our lives would be much less rich without voice notes."

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Fairway or driveway? The furious debate over building houses on golf courses

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce8jjne5ereo, 3 days ago

Drivers lean on their horns as a group of protesters stand along the roadside. One white-chalk sign reads: "Beep if you want to save our green spaces". Another, decorated with hand drawn foxgloves, hedgehogs and birds, declares: "We need homes too!". The demonstration is organised by Protect Enderby and Narborough Green Spaces, a local group fighting a proposal to build up to 800 homes, partly on Enderby Golf Course.

The development forms part of Blaby District Council's emerging Local Plan, the document that will shape where future housing can be built. But the proposals have triggered a backlash: thousands of people have signed a petition urging the council to rethink.

This local protest was one of many held on Saturday - with what organisers from the Community Planning Alliance claimed were around 170 organisations taking part nationwide as part of a day of action aimed at highlighting concerns over the loss of green spaces across the UK.

For some of the people who use Enderby Golf Course in Leicestershire, its loss would be keenly felt. "It's only a nine hole little course, which is why a lot of people love it here, because it's like half a golf course," explains Chris D'Araujo, who manages the site. "It is perfect for a new golfer or retired people that don't really want the big long up and down hills, like a proper private course. We do serve a very good purpose for the community."

"It'd be sad to see it go… I think this would be the very, very last site you would pick if you had to," Chris says.

Blaby District Council has said the area of land it has proposed for development, including the golf course, could help it meets its planning obligation of delivering 654 new homes a year up to 2042. The site offers an opportunity to create a "sustainable community" with public green space open to all and "much-needed affordable housing" it said.

The site still needs to go through the relevant planning stages, and the need for new homes will be balanced "against public amenity", the council added.

The UK hosts around a quarter of Europe's golf courses at a time when the government is pushing hard to increase housing supply - aiming for 1.5 million new homes in England over five years, or roughly 300,000 to 370,000 a year. In England alone, golf courses occupy an estimated 270,000 hectares, around 2% of the country's total land area - roughly the same amount used for domestic buildings, by some estimates.

Gavin Anderson, from England Golf, the governing body for amateur golf, says the organisation has seen a significant rise in planning proposals involving partial or full loss of golf provision, particularly over the last two to three years - likely because golf courses often sit on large, well‑located pieces of land at a time when councils are trying to find space for new homes.

And Custodian Golf consultancy reports that nearly 20% of clubs are financially at risk, a factor that could influence decisions to release land for housing.

It is against this backdrop a debate has sharpened over how this land should be used: are golf courses the right places to build housing, or are they simply a soft target?

Public good

Golf has long carried a reputation as a pastime reserved for the privileged - with the average age of a golfer in many traditional club settings in the 50s. But many argue the landscape has shifted.

Chris has played at Enderby Golf Course for about 35 years. He says before Covid-19 the average age of a golfer there was around 60, but is now much younger with many players in their 20s or younger. "The difference in demographic is incredible," he says.

The course is municipal, meaning it is owned by the local council and open to the general public, while private golf clubs tend to be members-only and have annual fees. Enderby costs an adult £12 for a nine hole round on a weekend.

"[The course] is massive for youngsters now," Chris says. "They can't really access the private golf courses, because they're too expensive." Membership costs vary greatly - one annual survey of 79 members' clubs across ten regions in the UK found costs ranged from £200 to £3,870.

But Anderson says that golf is becoming more welcoming. "The myth that golf is exclusive or inaccessible is not the reality on the ground," he argues, though he notes barriers still exist - including cost and perception.

Total membership at English golf clubs rose from 730,602 in 2024 to 750,071 in 2025 – with junior membership growing by more than 34% in 2025, rising from 46,028 to 61,483. Meanwhile, 20% of adult golfers on full-length courses in the UK and Ireland were female in 2022 compared to 15% in 2019.

Yet this growth happens at a time when house building is falling well short of government targets. Ant Breach, director of policy and research at the Centre for Cities think tank, says too few homes are being built, contributing to "exceptionally expensive" housing.

Ben Cooper, head of the Fabian Housing Centre, a left-leaning think tank, argues golf courses are often a waste of land, which could instead be used for house building. Amidst a housing crisis, and with many people in temporary accommodation, he suggests "using substantial acres of land for golf courses, compared to actually building on those golf courses, is probably the wrong priority".

Russell Curtis, director at RCKa architects, also believes some golf courses could be turned into housing. He began looking at courses in London as a lockdown project and calculated that Greater London has more than 90 golf courses - which take up to 17% of all the available green space in London. Combined, they cover an area roughly the size of the entire borough of Brent (43km²).

"There's an argument, I think, to be made to convert these into lots of things. It doesn't have to be just housing," he says.

The green belt debate

The government has set annual housing targets for each local authority in England.

Planning is devolved in the UK, and historically development on green belt land has been discouraged. In July 2024 the government introduced a new "grey belt" policy for England - proposing that if a council's housing targets cannot be met, some existing green belt land will be redesignated as grey belt.

Some think this now makes golf courses a "soft target" for development.

According to Anderson, the overwhelming factor driving cases of golf course redevelopment in England "is the increasing value of land, combined with the escalating pressure on local authorities to identify sites to meet ambitious housing targets." Because golf courses can sit on large areas of open land, often bordering or nearby urban zones, this can mean they are put forward as development options.

A Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government spokesperson said: "We inherited a housing crisis which is why we're getting spades in the ground to build the homes people need and restore the dream of homeownership.

"We also recognise the value sports facilities and green spaces can have for local communities, which is why there are appropriate planning protections in place to safeguard these spaces."

And though many golf courses in England are being discussed as potential redevelopment sites, it's not an even picture across Britain. In Wales, the golf governing body says it is aware of very few courses being converted into housing. It suggests this is largely because most Welsh courses sit in out‑of‑town or rural locations, making them less attractive for development. Scottish Golf also say the issue has not emerged as a major concern.

'It has to be well connected'

This all begs the question: are golf courses actually suitable locations for new housing developments?

Nicole Guler, a chartered town planner and director at Urbanist Architecture says choosing a golf course could be suitable but there always has to be a "logic" to it, with access being a key consideration. "It has to be well connected… if it is not, then I would definitely say that it is not appropriate to select that site."

Russell Curtis, who analysed London golf courses during the pandemic, takes a similar view. He notes that while some courses are poorly connected and therefore unsuitable, "there are quite a number of courses that are very close to public transport and it seems reasonable that at least some of those should be turned into housing."

"We should be building homes close to social infrastructure that aren't reliant upon car ownership," he says.

But what about golf courses in the green belt, which though perhaps well connected, may have environmental value?

Anderson says golf courses can act as significant green infrastructure supporting biodiversity: "Many courses provide tree cover, habitats for wildlife, pollinator‑friendly environments, and opportunities for ecological improvement that can exceed what is possible on developed land or open fields."

But studies have suggested that golf courses can perform poorly for biodiversity compared to more natural habitats and their maintenance can be resource intensive (though many golf courses are working to improve their environmental footprint).

Paul de Zylva, from the environmental group Friends of the Earth, says the debate about building on golf courses should be seen in the context of the "pressure on green spaces".

He says that people will dub golf courses as not particularly biodiverse so as to argue they do not really count as green, and therefore should not be part of the green belt. De Zylva argues this misunderstands the point: "The purpose of the green belt isn't to be green per se, it is to be a buffer to prevent sprawl." So the question is not only whether golf courses are particularly biodiverse, but whether or not it is wise to build on this type of land.

"If golf courses are under pressure to be developed, that's because of the way the system has been set up," he says.

For Cooper, from the Fabian Housing Centre: "The nature versus house building [debate] doesn't necessarily apply in golf courses, because golf courses are not biodiverse… or easily accessible if you want to enjoy nature."

"Whereas what we can do is use that land not only to supply thousands of additional affordable homes, we can use it to increase access to these spaces."

Cooper notes that under the grey belt policy, there are "golden rules" which apply for development. These include things like accessible green space. "So you can get that win-win for affordable housing and for access to nature in communities."

"We can have house building [and] we can have more nature if you build on golf courses."

De Zylva suggests well managed golf courses could play their role in restoring nature in the UK, and says: "I don't think they should be seen as fair game for being covered in concrete, in the same way as quality farmland, woodlands, wetlands, parks, should not be."

Research from the Campaign to Protect Rural England argues there is enough brownfield land to build 1.4 million homes in England, and more than half of these sites already have planning permission.

Curtis accepts the principle of "brownfield first," yet argues that many golf courses effectively meet that definition, describing them as "not biodiverse."

'Planning and health are inextricably linked'

For more than 40 years, David Young was a member of the North Oxford Golf Club. The 70‑acre site closed at the end of 2025 after being earmarked for a development of more than 1,000 homes. The landowners - Oxford University, Merton College and Exeter College - reached an agreement with the club and offered £4.3m for them to vacate the site. A group of golfers called the Greenway Group, of which David is a member, came together in an effort to halt the plans, but ultimately their campaign failed.

An alternative golf course site at Frieze Farm has been proposed as part of Cherwell District Council's local plan. Oxford is one of the least affordable places to live in the country, with average house prices now more than 13 times the average household income.

"Very cross… very sad," is how David sums up his feelings. For him, the club (where monthly fees for a full seven day membership were around £130), was "very much a community-based" place, and its closure has left many locals having "lost a friendship group". A former county planner in Oxfordshire, he argues: "Planning and health are inextricably linked. People need to exercise, they need to have somewhere to walk, go, play, commune. Mental health and physical health are exceedingly undervalued at the moment by planning."

Russell Curtis suggests there's a case for making golf courses smaller without limiting people's ability to play. "If you reshape a course and reduce its size, that releases quite a lot of land for other things, including development and that development might then provide an injection of cash into a club."

Some, however, are concerned about the wider impact on the sport.

Enderby's Chris D'Araujo argues: "You're going to gradually take the accessibility of the sport away, because you're going to find all the private rich clubs, they're going to still be about, but you are making it less affordable, and taking it away from the masses."

Others suggest the debate should not be framed as a binary choice. "It's only relatively recently that the idea of there being a straightforward choice between golf and housing has surfaced, largely driven by the pressure on land [rather] than by any fundamental issue with the sport itself," says Anderson.

"Fundamentally, when framed as golf versus housing, this risks oversimplifying a much more complex challenge and distracts from the reality that housing shortages are driven by systemic planning and infrastructure issues, rather than the presence of one particular sport."

Top picture credit: Getty Images

BBC InDepth is the home on the website and app for the best analysis, with fresh perspectives that challenge assumptions and deep reporting on the biggest issues of the day. Emma Barnett and John Simpson bring their pick of the most thought-provoking deep reads and analysis, every Saturday. Sign up for the newsletter here

Why cheap power could matter more than clean power in the push for net zero

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c86ey5n9vx9o, 10 days ago

"I'm an early adopter of new technology," says Gavin Tait, a 69-year-old from Glasgow, with a hint of pride.

So when he received a lump sum on retirement a decade or so ago, he invested in renewable energy: solar panels on the roof, a home battery and a heat pump. "It seemed like a no-brainer," he recalls. "I could save money and help the environment - why wouldn't I?"

At first, it worked. His well-insulated home stayed warm and his energy bills fell. But over the past couple of winters, things began to change. "I noticed my electricity bills were going through the roof," he says.

This winter, he and his wife switched it off and went back to their gas boiler, which they had kept as a backup.

Gavin - who wrote in to BBC Your Voice about his experiences - says he knows what the problem was. At best gas delivers nearly one unit of heat for each unit of energy put in; his heat pump can deliver up to three or four units of heat for every unit of power. But as heat pumps run on electricity, he is now paying around 27p per kilowatt-hour, compared with less than 6p for gas that powers a boiler - more than four times as much.

"It's simple," he says. "Economically, it just doesn't stack up."

His experience is not unusual. A survey of 1,000 heat pump owners last summer, carried out by Censuswide for Ecotricity, found two-thirds said their homes were more expensive to heat than before.

For critics of government policy, stories like Gavin's point to a deeper problem.

Heating and transport account for over 40% of the UK's emissions but they say that progress on replacing gas boilers and petrol cars is lagging well behind targets because ministers have got the wrong focus.

In their view, the government is obsessed with cleaning up electricity generation, even though it accounts for a far smaller total of our emissions - around 10%. So that obsession is pushing up the price of electricity and making it more expensive for people to switch to a heat pump or electric vehicle.

The issue has taken on new urgency as conflict in the Middle East pushes up oil and gas prices, raising fears that high energy costs could persist.

The government insists that focusing on renewables will ultimately deliver greater energy security by reducing reliance on imported gas, lowering emissions and - crucially - cutting bills.

Are they right? Or by prioritising cleaner electricity while progress on heating and transport lags behind, is the government chasing the wrong targets?

The hidden cost of clean power

The issue is that while generating renewable electricity can be cheap, the system needed to deliver it is not. When I ask Sir Dieter Helm, professor of economic policy at Oxford University, for his definitive answer on the cost of renewables, he laughs.

"It all depends what you choose to measure," he says. Sir Dieter says focusing only on the cost of generating electricity misses a larger issue: the cost of the system as a whole.

Electricity has to be available all the time - not just when the wind is blowing or the sun is shining. That means back-up generation, additional capacity and a more extensive network.

Sir Dieter gives me a simplified example. The UK's peak electricity demand is around 45 gigawatts (GW), he says. In the past, this could be met with roughly 60GW of capacity from coal, gas and nuclear power stations.

As the system shifts towards renewables, far more capacity is needed - not just wind and solar, but back-up for when they are not producing. In Sir Dieter's estimate, the UK is moving towards something closer to 120GW. At the same time, the grid must also be expanded to carry electricity from offshore wind farms to where it is needed.

The exact figures are debated, but the direction is clear: partly because of renewables, the system is becoming larger, more complex and more expensive. Some of those costs are already showing up in bills. Expanding the grid - building new pylons and power lines - is pushing up network charges.

There are also "balancing costs", including payments to wind farms to switch off when the system cannot absorb all the electricity they produce. And until recently, a subsidy scheme accounted for around 10% of the average household bill.

There is another issue. The UK is richest in one of the more expensive renewable resources - offshore wind.

Solar power has seen dramatic cost reductions thanks to mass production. But Britain's often dull skies - especially in winter, when demand is highest - limit how far it can carry the system.

Offshore wind is more dependable but it involves large, site-specific engineering projects that cannot be replicated in the same way, and so have not seen the same sustained falls in cost. At the same time, rising prices for materials such as steel and rare earths - along with higher interest rates - have pushed costs up further.

The price of progress

On paper, the UK has made significant progress on going green — the nation's emissions are down by around 50% since 1990. But that does not necessarily mean the UK's overall global footprint has fallen by that much.

Many of the goods that were once produced and then used in Britain are now being made overseas and then imported here, and often that production is happening in countries with a higher carbon footprint.

China, for example, still relies on coal for more than half of its energy, meaning emissions simply have shifted abroad rather than been reduced altogether.

This is a point made by leading climate scientists including Prof Kevin Anderson of Manchester University, who argues the 50% figure "excludes international aviation and shipping and our imports and exports".

He adds: "If you include those, which of course the climate includes, then the reduction's about 20% since 1990." The government says it follows United Nations guidelines on emissions reporting.

At the same time, the higher system costs do not just show up in household bills - they ripple through the wider economy. UK households face some of the highest electricity bills in Europe. For businesses, the picture is even starker.

While the cost of renewables plays a part, the principal driver for this is, ironically, gas itself. The UK energy mix at any one moment usually includes plenty of renewables, but some gas is still frequently still needed. The way the market works, generators bid to supply power in half-hour blocks, with the cheapest bid accepted first. But all successful bidders end up being paid the price of the most expensive source needed to meet demand.

In practice, that source is usually gas. So, even when much of the electricity is generated from renewables, which are cheap to produce once you get past the hefty set-up costs, it is often gas-fired power stations that set the price - and therefore what everyone pays.

The system is widely used across Europe, but the UK's heavy reliance on gas has a clear consequence: when gas prices rise dramatically as in recent weeks, electricity bills tend to rise with them - even if much of the power itself is renewables that are cheap to produce.

The UK's comparatively higher energy costs have coincided with a wave of closures among energy-intensive industries. Sharon Todd, chief executive of the Society of Chemical Industry, described the impact of energy costs as a "national act of self-harm", warning that UK industry is "standing on the edge of a cliff" and calling for an urgent independent review of the country's approach to net zero.

The politics of price

It is against this backdrop that the politics of climate change has begun to shift.

When then Prime Minister Theresa May set the 2050 net zero target in 2019, it passed without formal opposition in Parliament. That consensus has since fractured.

The Conservative Party now argues the target is "impossible", with leader Kemi Badenoch openly sceptical. Reform UK says it would abandon what it calls "net stupid zero" altogether. Even the Green Party has criticised aspects of government policy, with its leader, Zack Polanski, saying the current approach to net zero is not delivering for ordinary people.

The Liberal Democrats also say net zero must support households and bring down energy bills. The SNP says it is "absolutely committed to a fair and just transition to net zero", while Plaid Cymru recently moved away from its earlier ambition of reaching net zero in Wales by 2035.

Polling suggests the public appears to still support the decarbonisation effort. More in Common found that four in five Britons think it is important that the government cares about tackling climate change, including nearly 80% of 2024 Conservative voters.

What really concerns people is cost. Data from the Office for National Statistics shows the cost of living is cited by around nine in 10 adults as an important issue, with energy bills among the most frequently mentioned pressures on household finances.

This is where the argument about focusing on lower energy prices and decarbonisation comes in. The economists and politicians who make this case say that it would both help keep the public onside on decarbonisation and drive more rapid emissions reductions.

Their argument is simple: if electricity is cheaper, more people and businesses will switch to technologies like electric cars and heat pumps - and emissions will fall faster.

The highest-profile intervention to date has come from former UK Prime Minister Sir Tony Blair. His Tony Blair Institute for Global Change last year called for a shift in focus from the government's "Clean Power 2030" agenda to "Cheap Power 2030".

The "clean power" logic is that a cleaner grid will make everything that runs on electricity, from cars to heating, cleaner by default. Supporters of a "cheap power" approach argue that is only part of the story. The bigger prize lies in cutting emissions from the sectors that use energy, not just how that energy is generated.

Reducing emissions therefore depends on persuading people to switch to electric technologies such as heat pumps and electric vehicles. But, as the experience of Gavin Tait - the Glasgow homeowner - shows, that decision often comes down to cost.

If electricity is expensive, households and businesses have little incentive to make the switch. If it is cheaper, the transition becomes easier - and faster.

The difficult choices ahead

Tone Langengen, senior policy adviser on climate and energy at the Tony Blair Institute and the author of its recent report, argues that the focus should shift away from targets and towards what will bring down the cost of energy.

In her view, every decision on energy policy should be judged through the prism of whether it reduces prices.

"The sooner we move from a debate focused on targets to one focused on how you structurally change the economy and decarbonise in a way that works both economically and politically," she says, "the faster we will move on climate action."

But turning that idea into policy is not straightforward. Every option involves trade-offs - between prices, emissions and public spending.

Sir Dieter, the Conservatives and the Tony Blair Institute all argue that slowing the pace of renewable expansion, and maintaining a larger role for gas in the short term, should be part of the answer. But while using fewer renewables could ease pressure on system costs, it risks slowing the pace of emissions cuts.

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband says renewables bring other benefits too. "The lesson of yet another global energy shock is that the UK needs to get off the fossil fuel rollercoaster and onto clean homegrown power that we control," he says.

"Driving for clean energy is a national security and economic security imperative- that is why this Government is investing record amounts in new renewables, nuclear, and upgrading homes through our Warm Homes Plan."

Other proposals raise similar tensions. Reforming the way the electricity market works could reduce the amount providers get and therefore reduce bills. Shifting some policy costs from electricity bills to general taxation could lower prices but would place greater strain on public finances.

When I press Langengen on how electricity prices could be reduced in practice, she acknowledges there is "no magic wand". She argues that "speaks to the credibility of the argument". But it also highlights just how difficult those choices are.

For some economists, that difficulty points to an even more uncomfortable conclusion - one that goes to the heart of political leadership.

Sir Dieter says we need to face up to a hard truth: tackling climate change costs money.

Fossil fuels are cheap in part because their price does not reflect the damage they cause - from rising temperatures to impacts on health, property and the natural world. Cutting emissions means bringing those hidden costs into the price of energy. And that has consequences.

"My costs go up, my bills go up and my standard of living goes down," says Sir Dieter. There is, he argues, no easy way around that. "The evidence suggests it is going to be more expensive."

That presents a dilemma for governments. The bet behind today's push for clean power is that countries, like the UK, can show it is possible to decarbonise the grid without imposing unacceptable costs - and in doing so, lead the way for others.

The Office of Budget Responsibility has said "the costs of failing to get climate change under control would be much larger than those of bringing emissions down to zero." But achieving that requires global emissions cuts.

There is also the argument that getting oﬀ gas quicker reduces vulnerability to price shocks. But there is a risk. If the transition here in the UK drives up costs and erodes public support, it will not be a model to follow, but a warning to avoid.

And yet the urgency of cutting emissions is not in doubt. The World Meteorological Organization warns the Earth is now further out of balance than at any time in recorded history, with the planet absorbing far more heat than it can release. As the UN Secretary General António Guterres has put it, "every key climate indicator is flashing red".

If Sir Dieter is right, governments will have to be honest: the transition will cost more. The challenge - and it is a tough one - is persuading the public it is worth it.

Top image credit: Getty Images

Lebanon seeks peace, but Hezbollah needs to be convinced first

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cr51l794mlyo, 9 days ago

With Lebanon, again, engulfed by war, I remember a meeting I had with President Joseph Aoun at the Baabda Palace, a modernist building at the top of a hill overlooking Beirut last August.

Aoun, a former army chief, took office after a devastating war between Israel and Hezbollah, a Lebanese militia and political party that is backed by Iran. At that point, Hezbollah had been weakened and was isolated at home and Aoun had vowed to disarm it. The seemingly intractable issue over Hezbollah's weapons has long divided Lebanon, but Aoun appeared to believe he could solve it. "I was born an optimist," he told me.

At the time we met, a fragile ceasefire was in place in Lebanon. This deal had ended the war between Israel and Hezbollah in November 2024, but Israel was carrying out near-daily attacks on what it described as people and targets linked to the group. In some parts of the country, the conflict had never stopped. Even from my home in east Beirut I could occasionally hear the buzz of Israeli drones circling overhead.

For Hezbollah's supporters, the group is their only protection against Israel, which they see as an enemy intent on capturing Lebanese land. Opponents accuse Hezbollah, which is a Shia Muslim group, of defending the interests of its Iranian patron, dragging the country into unwanted and unnecessary wars.

When Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Iranian supreme leader, was killed in a strike on the first day of the US-Israeli bombardment of Tehran in February, Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel. The group said this was in retaliation for his death and the constant Israeli bombing during the ceasefire; Israel responded with air strikes and another ground invasion of southern Lebanon.

President Aoun, hoping to stop the bloodshed, proposed to negotiate directly with Israel, a significant step for two countries that do not have diplomatic relations. Israel ignored the offer until last week, after the US agreed a ceasefire with Iran and Israel carried out widespread air strikes that killed more than 300 people in just one day in Lebanon.

A meeting between ambassadors from both countries, expected to focus on a ceasefire here, is scheduled to take place later on Tuesday in Washington. With very limited influence over Hezbollah, what can the Lebanese government do? And what are the chances of finding lasting peace?

Forged in conflict

Hezbollah, or Party of God in Arabic, was created in the 1980s during Israel's occupation of Lebanon in the Lebanese Civil War. From its beginning, the group has been financed, trained and armed by Iran, and the destruction of Israel remains one of its official goals.

In 1989, the Taif Agreement that ended Lebanon's conflict mandated the disarmament of all militias and introduced a power-sharing deal between sects in a country that is multi-cultural and multi-faith. However, Hezbollah, branding itself as a resistance movement fighting the Israeli occupation, managed to keep its weapons. Israel withdrew its troops in 2000 after an 18-year occupation of southern Lebanon, but territorial disputes remained. And the United Nations Resolution 1701, that ended the war with Israel in 2006 and demanded Hezbollah's disarmament, has never been fully implemented.

The group is designated as a terrorist organisation by countries including the UK and the US. But, in Lebanon, Hezbollah is more than a militia. It is a political party represented in parliament and in the government, and a social movement that runs services including schools and hospitals in areas where the state has been absent. It is the country's most powerful group.

Since coming to power, President Aoun has defended a policy he calls the "state monopoly on arms". As part of the ceasefire deal in 2024, Hezbollah had agreed to remove its fighters and weapons from southern Lebanon which, for decades, had effectively been under the group's control. Hezbollah also holds sway over Beirut's southern suburbs, known as Dahieh, and the eastern Bekaa Valley, where part of its arsenal is located, but Naim Qassem, its secretary-general, has rejected discussing a full, nationwide disarmament.

Aoun, however, has warned that action to remove Hezbollah's weapons without its consent could lead to violence. "We can't let the country descend into another civil war," he said when we met in August. Amid continued Israeli attacks and Hezbollah's refusal to negotiate, I asked Aoun what his plan was. He said there was almost nothing else he could do.

A government without cards

Lebanon, a tiny country measuring just 4,000 square miles on the eastern Mediterranean, has a population of around 5.8 million and officially recognises 18 religious sects. Two thirds of its people are thought to be Muslim – Sunni and Shia populations are relatively equal in size – and a third is Christian. In December, a Gallup poll suggested that nearly four in five Lebanese were in favour of only the country's army being allowed to maintain weapons – in other words, that factions including Hezbollah should be disarmed. Responses to the poll, unsurprisingly, followed default lines. There was overwhelming support among Christians, Druze and Sunnis; more than two thirds of Lebanese Shias disagreed.

Michael Young, senior editor at the Carnegie Center think tank in Beirut, told me that some people "were naïve to think that the army", chronically underequipped and underfunded, had not disarmed Hezbollah "because of a lack of will".

"You can't come to the Shia community and impose this by force. You'll fail, and this will be a disaster. Armies are not made to enter military confrontations with their own population," he said. "What does it mean to disarm a group like Hezbollah? Does the army have the capacity to go into every Shia home and disarm it? No, it doesn't. Can they go into areas where Hezbollah has missiles and heavy weapons and disarm those areas? They can't."

When I asked him about the expected negotiations with Israel, he told me, "Lebanon has nothing to offer" as it cannot deliver Hezbollah's disarmament. "The government is without any cards," he said, "and this is a reality we need to accept".

'Our patience has limits'

In a televised address last month, Qassem said Hezbollah had not responded to Israel's attacks during the ceasefire to "not be accused of impeding diplomacy" but that Israel "had not abided by a single term" of the deal. Israeli troops had also remained in five positions in the south occupied during the war, in another violation of the agreement, measures Israeli officials said were needed to protect the country's northern communities. "Our patience has limits," Qassem said, and Hezbollah "would not debate… its weapons with anyone". So, can it ever disarm?

Armed resistance is key in Hezbollah's raison d'etre – its flag features a hand carrying an assault rifle. The group is part of what Iran calls the "Axis of Resistance", an alliance of armed factions that include Hamas in Gaza and the West Bank, and the Houthis in Yemen. They have been severely downgraded by Israel and the US in the conflicts that followed the Hamas-led attacks on Israel on 7 October 2023 but not defeated. Nicholas Blanford, the author of Warriors of God: Inside Hezbollah's Thirty-Year Struggle Against Israel, told me that, given Iran's role, any decision about the group's path would likely be made not in Beirut, but in Tehran.

Last year, I reported from southern Lebanon on how communities were living under fear from the constant Israeli attacks, and some appeared to question Hezbollah's strategy. In this conflict, the group has demonstrated, by attacking Israel and fighting invading forces, that it managed to rebuild some of its military capabilities, degraded in the previous war – as Israel had warned – which had reignited part of its base. A Western diplomat told me the recovery was led by officials from Iran's elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, who were sent to Lebanon following the 2024 war.

Amid its current invasion of Lebanon, Israeli officials say they aim to create a so-called security buffer zone in southern Lebanon, along the border with northern Israel, which has raised concerns within Lebanon that parts of the country will remain occupied even after the conflict. This means that thousands of people displaced from their homes in the south may never be able to return. This is likely to boost Hezbollah's narrative that their weapons are needed in a state that is unable to defend its territory.

Blanford says this is another reason Hezbollah is unlikely to disarm. "Hezbollah is all about what it calls its 'resistance priority'. All the other elements of the party… are there to protect and sustain it. This is its beating heart. If you remove the military component, the organisation becomes something else entirely," he said.

A crisis without end

Over 1.2 million people have been displaced in Lebanon since the start of the conflict, most of them from Shia communities. This has exacerbated sectarian tensions. With Israeli air strikes targeting people allegedly linked to the group outside areas where Hezbollah is strong, residents are suspicious of new arrivals. Clashes have erupted in some areas.

Kim Ghattas, a journalist and former BBC correspondent who wrote the book Black Wave, told me Hezbollah was an essential part of the lives of many in the Shia community. "Shia Muslims have historically been the downtrodden of Lebanon," she said. "For many, this is an issue about belief and ideology, and the sense of fear and vulnerability. If they were to give up their weapons, what would happen to them? Will they be downtrodden again or outcasts? It's very difficult to argue with these deep-seated fears."

Last week, Israel launched a wave of air strikes that brought horror and destruction to Lebanon. Some are calling it Black Wednesday. In Beirut, the intense bombing, which came in the middle of the day without warning, hit some busy, densely populated areas that had never been attacked before, and where people felt safe. Even for people who have become used to violence, that day felt different. Since the start of the war six weeks ago, more than 2,000 people have been killed in Lebanon, Lebanon's health ministry says, without distinguishing combatants from civilians.

Many Lebanese feel stuck in a state of permanent crisis. In the Ain Mreisseh neighbourhood near the Beirut Corniche, I met a man called Mohammed Hamoud. In disbelief, he looked at a residential building that had partially collapsed. "You don't get rest. All my life, I've had the feeling that we're in a continuous war," he told me. "Let's hope it'll be the last one, and things get better."

Top picture credit: AFP via Getty Images

Correction 17 April: This article was amended after we incorrectly stated in an earlier version that Israel and Lebanon do not recognise each other. Israel does recognise Lebanon as a sovereign state whereas Lebanon does not recognise the state of Israel. Neither has diplomatic relations with each other, as we have now made clear.

If Plaid win in Wales, that won't mean independence - at least not yet

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c9958227r38o, 5 days ago

In a further education college in the Pembrokeshire town of Haverfordwest, a studio audience had gathered to hear leaders of Wales' political parties make their pitch at a BBC Wales Ask the Leaders debate.

After an audience member asked Plaid Cymru leader Rhun ap Iorwerth about independence, presenter Nick Servini followed up with a question about whether the party's plans for Welsh independence had been "paused".

Ap Iorwerth replied: "Do I sound as if I've paused on my ambition for Wales or my belief that this isn't as good as things could be for Wales? No, my situation on this has been the same, life-long. It's a question for the people of Wales.

"How brave we want to be, how far we want to go."

Take a closer look at the question and a closer look at the answer.

The question is about independence; the answer does not include that word.

The polls suggest that two diametrically opposed parties - Plaid Cymru and Reform, who are pro and anti-independence respectively - are vying to lead the Welsh government for the first time.

During this election, independence has certainly been part of the conversation - with claims that it is "the normal state for any nation", or "unaffordable", bandied about by either side. But it has not dominated the campaign. And there is an odd dynamic at play: the Welsh pro-indy parties tend to be talking about it less than those who are against it.

On the campaign trail, the parties are weighing up whether the issue of Welsh independence is a vote winner or loser.

As far as independence is concerned, the big question is: what would happen to the cause if Plaid Cymru wins and ap Iorwerth becomes first minister? And were that to happen, supposing the pro-indy Greens won enough seats that there became a majority in the Senedd in favour of Wales breaking away from the rest of the UK?

In the hunt for votes, politicians of all stripes are trying to convince the public that their forecast of what would happen or not happen is the correct one.

Independence, but not yet

Plaid's position on independence is clear. The second line of its constitution says: "As the National Party of Wales, the Party's aims shall be: to secure independence for Wales in Europe."

But party figures have consistently said that this is not an independence election.

The word was absent from ap Iorwerth's February conference speech and what was said at April's manifesto launch in Wrexham the morning after the Haverfordwest leaders debate, although a commitment to next steps towards that ultimate goal did appear in the document itself.

Plaid's opponents claim that if it wins, it will pursue independence "by stealth" or through the "back door" and also warn that Wales could not afford it. The Greens also seem reticent to mention the "I" word unprompted. It does not appear in their Senedd election manifesto.

Welsh leader Anthony Slaughter told the BBC that he "won't shy away" from independence but believes the issue is "not front and centre of this campaign". Slaughter suggested that talk of an independence referendum during this campaign would be "divisive" and hand the initiative to Reform.

He added that the cost-of-living crisis had to be the focus of the next four years. Both pro-independence parties also say the NHS, housing and a better deal for Wales under the current constitutional settlement are more important at the moment than the question of independence.

Plaid's next steps involve a National Commission, costing half a million pounds from the Welsh government's £27bn budget, that would "lay the foundation" of a future independence plan.

The party had already decided not to present a formal plan for independence during a first term in office - in contrast to the 2021 campaign, when then-leader Adam Price promised a referendum within five years.

In 2021 Plaid came third behind Labour and the Welsh Conservatives and shortly after taking over as leader in 2023 ap Iorwerth said that there would be no timetable.

"Independence by stealth?"

But Labour, which argues for a stronger Wales within the UK, insists its rival remains as committed to independence as ever. First Minister Eluned Morgan has warned that "separatism is now very much on the agenda in our nation".

But Labour is facing a threat on all sides, with polling analysis suggesting it is losing voters to Plaid, the Greens and to a lesser extent Reform. In a speech to the Institute for Government in January she said: "Support for independence tends to rise when politics feels stuck or uncertain, and it falls when people see devolution deliver."

"Devolution is the best way to lower the temperature and raise trust."

After more than a century of Westminster and Senedd elections in which it has been the biggest party, Labour is in danger of losing that status.

Now it is facing serious questions about its record, especially on the biggest area of Welsh government spending - the NHS. The health service regularly appears in the top three concerns for voters, according to the You Gov issue tracker.

Shortly after taking over as leader in 2024, Eluned Morgan made cutting waiting lists her top priority and is trying to gain political ground in highlighting that they have been falling for months. Her problem is that they are still high.

As for Labour's handling of devolution, especially since a Labour government took over in Westminster in 2024, there are questions over how well it has lowered that temperature mentioned by Morgan in her January speech.

A long list of Welsh Labour demands for more powers, such as devolution of the Crown Estate - the body that is responsible for much of the seabed around Wales, and vital to the development of floating offshore wind-power - and policing, as well as reform of how Wales is funded, has not been granted by its UK Labour colleagues.

While Welsh Labour is keen to extol the virtues of two Labour governments working together, citing the development of new nuclear power on Anglesey, rail infrastructure spending and what it describes as record levels of funding, its opponents say it does not get a good enough deal out of its colleagues in London - and when it doesn't get what it asks for, its opponents claim it is weak.

A row over the lack of specific Welsh funding from the HS2 high speed rail project has become politically totemic.

Plaid makes much the same demands as Labour but tells voters that it will press for a better deal.

Welsh Labour accuses Plaid of trying to move Wales towards independence by stealth. A source described Plaid's National Commission as "an independence commission in all but name".

Passion and pragmatism?

So how serious really is Plaid about independence going in to this election?

"I believe that the normal state for any nation is to be independent. I passionately believe that that is true for Wales," ap Iorwerth said.

But in 2026 there is that caveat: not yet. Back in February, Plaid's finance spokesperson Heledd Fychan denied that the party was trying to avoid a debate about independence and said that journalists needed to be "clear" on what the election was about.

Fychan accused Labour and Reform of trying to "scare" people by "shouting independence at us when we talk about a policy because they want to detract from their actual record or their lack of policies".

Given the pro-independence parties' reticence to put it front and centre of their campaigns, could it be that Welsh independence is simply not a vote winner?

Ap Iorwerth said it wasn't a matter of that, but added: "I do not think now is the time to have that referendum because the people of Wales are not telling us that it's that time."

In a recent BBC Radio interview, he conceded that he would not win an independence referendum now.

When I asked him if there was any pushback from Plaid members, ap Iorwerth said: "The answer to that is no, because we share this belief in what Wales can be."

Richard Wyn Jones, director of the Wales Governance Centre at Cardiff University, thinks ap Iorwerth's confidence on the question of internal pushback is well-placed.

"If Plaid is the largest party after the election and has managed to depose Labour after a century, frankly he's going to be unassailable," he said.

A secondary consideration?

A recent poll carried out for the BBC found support for Welsh independence at 32%, with 52% against and 16% uncertain. The same poll suggests that only 56% of Plaid voters are in favour.

According to Dr Jac Larner, a leading Welsh pollster and political analyst, independence does not feature in the top three or four issues for Welsh voters.

Larner suggests that another issue is also at play: that for some left-leaning voters, a pro-indy Welsh government is "not as scary" as a Reform-led Welsh government would be and everything else is "a secondary consideration" to stopping the party.

He added: "Some people are thinking that even though Plaid wants independence, they're not going to be in a position to do it in the near future anyway."

Looking to Holyrood

There's an obvious template for Plaid for advancing the cause of independence in office - the SNP, which took power in Scotland in 2007.

Under Alex Salmond, it went on to secure a referendum on Scottish independence in 2014, which it lost - but the issue has never left the political agenda.

Richard Wyn Jones said it was "obvious" to longstanding independence-supporting Plaid members that the party was trying to pursue the SNP's post-2007 strategy.

"That is the election in which the SNP forms a minority government, is perceived as governing well, returns to power four years later and then negotiates with the UK government for a referendum."

"So if there is a model then that is it," he said.

A senior Plaid source said that the two parties had not "sat down in a room and discussed a roadmap for Wales", but that Plaid had been to Scotland for "valuable" learning about its sister party's experience of government.

The source added: "The prospect of two first ministers from the SNP and Plaid Cymru would represent a different dynamic. Where we had a common interest or common goals we would work with them."

The source also suggested that it might "focus minds" in Wales if the SNP started "banging the drum" for a second referendum, and that a lot would then depend on Sir Keir Starmer's approach to more powers or funding.

Crunching the numbers

The question of affordability also comes into play.

Wales Office figures published last autumn suggest a net fiscal deficit were Wales to be independent – in other words the gap between tax raised and spending on public services - of £21.5bn, or just under £7,000 per person in Wales.

Plaid Cymru accused Labour of "peddling dodgy numbers".

Labour hit back, warning of the fiscal implications for an independent Wales. It challenged Plaid to say how much it would borrow, what taxes it would raise or what services it would cut to manage the economy of a future independent state.

Ap Iorwerth maintained that the statistics ignore how independent states work - but he conceded that borrowing would be "inevitable", declining to say how much, beyond that it "would be very similar to the kinds of deficit that other countries have".

The pro-UK position

Reform's Welsh leader Dan Thomas is unequivocal about the "huge risk" of independence. He said he believed an emboldened ap Iorwerth would begin pushing the case for independence much harder if Plaid won in May.

He admitted that independence was likely to be a "secondary" argument, but that it was "fair game" to "keep reminding people about Plaid Cymru's ultimate goal".

Darren Millar, the Conservatives' Senedd leader, made similar noises.

"Wales does not need a government that is fixated on independence," he said.

Millar thinks there are people in Plaid Cymru who would see a victory in May as a mandate to "try to break up the UK", adding: "It is little wonder that Plaid is trying to calm the waters and suggest that independence is not a big deal."

The Welsh Liberal Democrats could conceivably do a post-election deal with Plaid, but the publication of the party's "red lines" appears to have ruled that out.

Jane Dodds' party says that "not a single penny" should be spent on preparations for independence and although some of her colleagues appear to have left the door ajar, she is sticking to her guns. The Lib Dems manifesto itself is titled "A Stronger Wales in a Stronger UK".

Is it worth pro-union parties sounding the alarm over independence ahead of this poll?

"It might be the case that if everyone starts talking about it, then it raises the salience," Jac Larner said. "It would be covered in the media and people would see it more. But I just think that for most voters, that is not what is on the table at this election.

"They see it as Reform or not, and that is the driving factor."

The end destination?

The independence debate has been a small if noisy element of this campaign. Parties in favour of remaining in the UK see it as a way of trying to rein in Plaid's apparent lead in the polls.

Plaid is also acutely aware not just that there is no majority support for independence, but also - and that many voters are looking not only for change but, as one source put it, "instant gratification".

Independence would not be a speedy process.

Ap Iorwerth appears to have approached the issue cautiously ever since he took over as Plaid leader in 2023.

But his opponents worry about the end destination.

Additional reporting by David Deans

Scammers are becoming ever more sophisticated - this is what the fightback looks like

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj60pl5g4z4o, 7 days ago

In 2024, Kirsty, a woman in her 40s living in North Yorkshire, met a man on a dating website who said he was an English businessman working in Turkey.

He shared a picture that he claimed was of himself showing his chiselled abs on the beach and claimed to be financially secure. He even used a banking website to persuade her he had $600,000 (£443,600) in savings.

But after two weeks of chatting, he said he'd been mugged and his phone and computer had been stolen, and he asked her to buy him a phone and to pay some bills for him with her money. What happened next perfectly illustrates the international web that scammers weave.

Kirsty bought a phone in the UK and posted it to a block of flats in northern Cyprus, where the man told her he was visiting for work, and bit by bit over a period of two months she transferred £80,000 from her bank account. She'd borrowed £50,000 of it from her family, in the belief the man she loved was in trouble. All on his promise he'd pay her back as soon as he could get back into his bank account.

But in fact the phone ended up in Lagos, Nigeria, and the £80,000 went to people with Nigerian, Romanian and other European names via money transfer services. The man was not British, but Nigerian, using a voice disguiser to deceive his target.

Even the banking website he had shown Kirsty shortly after meeting her turned out to be a very sophisticated fake registered in the US city of Baltimore.

Kirsty is just one victim of what experts say has been a surge in scams since the Covid lockdowns of the early 2020s. Global fraud losses are now over half a trillion dollars a year, according to the Global Anti-Scam Alliance.

Reports of romance scams such as Kirsty's rose by 20% in the first quarter year on year between 2024 and 2025, according to Barclays, with City of London police saying £106m was lost in the UK in 2024 alone to scams like the one Kirsty fell prey to.

Kirsty's story is also an example of the increasingly internationalised nature of scamming and with the costs adding up, governments and companies are pushing for international cooperation to stop the scammers.

For the first time, a joint agreement has been signed between nations to combat scamming. But criminal techniques are becoming increasingly sophisticated and they often originate from parts of the world where the authorities struggle to operate.

And so the question is whether there is really much countries can do to turn the tables on the scammers and prevent many more people like Kirsty being conned out of their savings?

The Covid boom

Scams are usually defined as an attempt by an individual, be it by text, on the phone or email, to get you to do something which will ultimately see you losing money, or your data. I've spent two decades investigating fraud for the BBC and while scams come in every flavour, ultimately they're all the same – someone lying to you to get you to send money.

Fraud is the most common crime in the UK, accounting for more than 40% of crimes against individuals. The UK government says 70% of scams come from overseas, and they're usually through criminal gangs.

As governments across the world restricted the movements of their citizens during Covid lockdowns from 2020, people spent more time online. We bought more online and socialised more online, and this brought us closer to the people who want to scam us. At the same time, realistic video impersonations, voices, websites, and texts became more commonplace, and scammers increased their use of social media including WhatsApp.

Meanwhile, global layoffs created a new labour force that could be recruited by criminal networks, says Ilias Chatzis, acting head of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime. The criminal networks are very hard to crack.

"Some of these scams are in almost lawless areas or in areas which are controlled by armed gangs… that the governments may have very little control over."

Myanmar is one country that has become notorious for its scam centres. These have their roots in the 1990s, when illegal casinos were set up. These were cracked down on, but during the pandemic these buildings were increasingly used as the operational hubs for scams. When the military junta seized power in 2021, the civil war that ensued helped criminals capitalise on the chaos within the country and scam centres flourished.

Victims creating victims

There's also another complicating factor - that the scammer could be a victim too. Bogus job adverts lure people overseas who can't find work in their home country. They are trafficked to scamming centres, where they are trapped and forced to steal people's money for their criminal bosses.

The BBC recently visited a massive vacated scam compound in a Cambodian town that people had fled after being shelled during a border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia.

The scam centre revealed desperate living and working conditions. The walls of one of the rooms in the centre were painted with motivational messages, such as "Money Coming From Everywhere" in Chinese letters.

Records showing when 'employees' went to the lavatory and how long they took were found, along with fake police uniforms and counterfeit police summons, which were designed to scare people into handing over their money.

Conning people into going to the scam centres is a scam in itself. The victim will be met at the airport, convinced they are on their way to a new job as a teacher or a customer service agent. "Everything looks normal - until they are in the compound, and they're totally in the hands of the traffickers," Chatzis says. "From then on, the nightmare starts. Passports are taken away."

The people inside these scam compounds are forced to work long, hard shifts, with targets to bring in a certain amount of money from defrauding victims around the world. Failure to hit these targets can mean solitary confinement, beatings or the threat of being moved to a different compound where conditions are even worse.

Chatzis points out that for every victim in the UK, "there may be another victim on the other side that has been forced to commit this scam".

It isn't only South East Asia - scam centres also flourishing in countries such as India and the UAE.

Some scam farms act as legitimate businesses during the day and scam centres by night. For example, in north-east India, legal call centres become scam centres by night, with the scammers taking advantage of the time difference to target people in the UK, the US and Australia, because the common language is English.

Nick Court, a City of London police officer who is currently working as head of Interpol's financial crime and anti-corruption centre, says people from wealthy nations need to understand the reality overseas.

He describes them as "lawless areas where law enforcement officers cannot enter, except with huge military escorts, where the pay is low and the benefits of being involved in fraud are incredibly high."

Tackling the scammers

At the Global Fraud Summit in Vienna, organised by the United Nations and Interpol last month, there were 1,400 guests including governments, from the UK to China, and the biggest tech companies in the world.

Gatherings like this have been taking place since 2024, but I could see this was clearly much bigger. Government ministers, tech giants and law enforcement were all there and for the first time a joint agreement was signed between some nations at the end.

The summit saw 44 countries out of 120 represented signing a pledge committing to "disrupting fraud at the source and enhancing victim support". While it's hoped more will sign later, there are still many nations that have not committed to cooperation.

Wealthier nations in attendance – European nations, South Korea, Australia – are often the victims, and they have a greater interest in solving this matter.

Meanwhile developing nations, where many of the scam operations are based – especially Myanmar, West Africa and South Asia – are being asked to do more, often without the resources to do so.

It is a stark reminder of the imbalance: of criminals exploiting impoverished communities with opportunities to make money that they wouldn't otherwise have. And for some countries tackling things that are much more elemental to their own population's existence have to take precedence over worrying about financial crimes in wealthier countries.

What really caught my ear was Xolisile Khanyile, a financial crimes prosecutor from South Africa, outlining this tension. She argued that two-way collaboration was critical: if developing nations are to help destroy fraud networks, wealthier countries need to share their technical expertise and resources too.

She said in her experience, developed nations will complain about a lack of resources without understanding that fighting industrialised fraud needs "fit-for-purpose skills like your forensic accountants, experts on crypto, experts in open source investigations, so that we will be able to make a difference."

When I spoke to the UK's Fraud Minister, Lord Hanson of Flint, he told me punishing countries for refusing or failing to cooperate on tackling scams could be counterproductive. Instead, he said, the focus should be on "soft power".

"What I can do is try to get international cooperation to ensure that we have outcomes which support the making of fraud harder for criminals, make their costs harder, bring them to account, and if we can freeze any assets they're making from those fraudulent activities."

There is also the question of whether the authorities and big tech are working closely enough together. "It's long been my opinion that the big tech companies and social media giants need to be far more involved and at a far more operational level," says Steve Head, who is now retired but was previously the UK's first National Coordinator for Economic Crime. In 2014 he helped break up the so-called boiler room scams operating from Spain that tricked British people into investing in non-existent shares.

"It's these multifaceted international relationships with big business that we really need to be strengthening far more than we have," he adds.

Digital firms including Amazon and Meta were at the summit, signed the joint statement, and have stepped up their anti-scam protections. Dating platform Match.com has cracked down on fake accounts, and says it now removes 50 every minute.

Head says he learned laying the groundwork for successful action took time before any operational activity took place, and the same applies to cooperating with tech firms. "That's still about creating and demonstrating that mutual benefit, and it's about building trust between the partners and mutual respect."

Show me the money

It's not all doom and gloom. There were plenty of examples of successful operations at the Vienna summit.

Alex Wood, former fraudster and part of the BBC Scam Secrets team, heard a successful example of collaboration on a very small scale that could give inspiration for future operations.

"I was listening to someone from the German police in one of the sessions and he was explaining how a victim in Germany was defrauded and the money ended up in Hong Kong," he said. "He happened to have the mobile phone number for somebody at Interpol, phoned that person, the person at Interpol happened to have the mobile phone number for someone in Hong Kong, and they managed to stop the payments and get the money back."

Another example from Vienna was a Google representative saying it had worked with the Singaporean government to prevent 2.8 million "malicious apps" from being downloaded. Criminals were persuading people to "sideload" things like fake banking apps – downloading them from the internet rather than the official Android store.

Though many remain hopeful about the future of fighting scams, it's victims like Kirsty who resonate with me. As well as the money she transferred, she lost her faith in people.

With scammers increasingly fleet of foot, cross-border attempts to crack down on them will need to be swift too.

Top image credit: Getty Images

Correction 20 April: This article was amended after we incorrectly stated in an earlier version that Nick Court was a former City of London police officer. As we have now made clear, he remains a member of the force while in his current role at Interpol.

Why Starmer still can't move on from the Mandelson mess

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gd7kxdk37o, 8 days ago

Everyone's cross.

The prime minister's furious. Whitehall's angry. Labour MPs are frustrated. But giving a top official, Sir Olly Robbins, the boot has not brought an end to this fiasco, nor to the political blowback for Sir Keir Starmer.

As one party insider suggests in disbelief: "There's no point Keir saying again and again he's angry, when that's exactly how the public feels about him!"

The prime minister's original decision to give Peter Mandelson the US ambassadorship, one of the best jobs in the land, had risks from the start that could be seen from space. Now we know the former Labour minister didn't clear security checks, perhaps it was even, in the words of one government source, "absolutely mental" - a disastrous episode of "don't ask, don't tell" spreading political poison months on.

First you have to understand, I'm afraid, the labyrinth of Whitehall's process. As we revealed in September, No 10 was warned about Peter Mandelson's links with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein before giving him the job. Those warnings were in the first government report that checked out the Labour peer's background, produced by the Cabinet Office's Propriety Department.

Starmer's team asked Mandelson three further questions after that report and were satisfied with his answers, although they now believe he misled them.

Step two: crucially after the prime minister had given the former Labour minister the job, there was a security check, known as developed vetting. As we reported in the autumn, that's a standalone confidential process, which involved an in-person interview, financial checks, and "ought to have been completely forensic", said one senior figure. To protect confidentiality, the details of those investigations would not have been passed on to No 10 or ministers.

As sources told me in the autumn, and government still says publicly now, no concerns were raised with ministers as a result, even though the agency that checked him out had recommended that he didn't get the job.

That might also seem insane nearly 18 months later, but to explain: there is process and then there is political reality.

Under an obscure bit of the law - section three of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act, if you are really interested - ministers do not have powers over security vetting. The vetting agency also only provides recommendations to officials at the Foreign Office - they don't make decisions about who gets what job. Think of it like a credit checking agency: they might delve into your financial background, but it's the bank that decides in the end if you get the loan.

In this case, the agency's concerns were passed on to the most senior official in the Foreign Office, Sir Olly Robbins. But he didn't necessarily see the full documented verdict at the time. And he seems to have concluded that the concerns he was told about could be managed. As one former senior official says: "Vetting is a process, not a point, it's not like a test you pass or fail - it's about managing risk, not big thumbs up or down."

When he appears in front of MPs on Tuesday, Robbins will no doubt be pressed on why he thought the gamble was worth it. But the political reality? Before Robbins' department took a look, the former peer had already been through a separate government check, and concerns had already been shared with No 10. But Starmer had decided to go ahead anyway, and the White House was expecting Mandelson. As the now former top mandarin at the Foreign Office underlined to MPs last year, when the vetting had actually been taking place, "it was clear that the prime minister wanted to make this appointment himself".

In Whitehall, some are amazed that a highly capable and experienced official took the decision to clear Mandelson for the job despite the vetting verdict, without lodging concern somewhere. One said: "It is impossible to believe that Olly would have done this on his own. He is known to be obsessed with process – what did he have to gain by taking a risky decision like this without a paper trail? It just doesn't add up."

MPs and advisers now say it's "incredible" and "unforgiveable" and that they are "aghast" that Robbins didn't flag the problem to ministers at the time.

The law suggests ministers ought not to be involved. The process is meant to be confidential. And one ally of Robbins tells me simply: "He hasn't done anything wrong." It's a line that was echoed by his predecessor, Lord Simon McDonald, on Saturday: "No 10 wanted a scalp and wanted it quickly."

The view at the top of government, though, is that it is unconscionable that Robbins didn't stick his hand up when the prime minister and other ministers said repeatedly in public that the process had been followed, and explicitly, that Mandelson had been cleared by vetting. One bit of the law might say that vetting must be a confidential process. But the civil service code says officials must correct errors as soon as possible, accurately present options and facts and not knowingly mislead ministers, or Parliament.

A former Foreign Office minister says it's astonishing that ministers didn't press for more information about the vetting process when Mandleson was given the job: "It's shocking, and it's also incompetence - when giving a job to someone of that nature, and nobody asked the question! Whether David Lammy (foreign secretary at the time) or the PM didn't ask: Is everything OK?"

One senior Whitehall figure suggests: "Olly Robbins has seemingly been sacked for not creating a problem for the prime minister. Which is novel. The great lesson from all this is that the Labour government want the civil service to save them from their own judgments."

'It doesn't stack up'

What is more baffling than the botched decision-making at the time is that officials have been going through what happened behind closed doors for months. The prime minister has repeatedly promised everything is being pored over, with countless earnest statements about how no stone will be unturned.

When he was giving repeated assurances that the rules had all been followed properly, on one of the hottest and most embarrassing political controversies in years, did Starmer really not think to ask if Mandelson's security checks had come back clean?

If you're feeling charitable, he, of course, is a pretty busy man. But then did no-one in his team think to ask that pretty basic question during the many months when the government has been under the cosh over giving Mandelson the job?

It's not until the past few weeks that the vetting decision seems to have been uncovered. And it was the work of journalists, not the promised transparency from ministers, that brought it to light.

Some experienced government insiders find it hard to believe the official account. One told me: "It is inconceivable that there was a flag from the vetting that did not come up between September and now. I just find it very hard to believe that anyone outside of the foreign office didn't know - it doesn't stack up."

Above all else, given the Mandelson mess has caused the prime minister deeply serious and repeated political trouble, did he - a former chief prosecutor - really think not to ask if anyone had checked all his references in the last few torrid months? It suggests, as a party insider worries, "he's just never, at any point, gripped the danger".

This is not the first time Starmer has been criticised by his rivals for a lack of curiosity about the government he runs, risking the impression that he is somehow a bystander - a witness to what happens in Whitehall and Westminster, rather than its central character.

It's one thing being "mortified and furious" when things go wrong, as one Starmer loyalist describes it when things go south - but that's a reaction to government, not an action. One senior Whitehall figure claims this latest bout of panic over Mandelson "sums up Starmer's premiership: a man who claimed he was grown-up public servant turns out to be hopelessly out of touch with the detail, not interested in the actual processes of government and devoid of any political antenna". Ouch!

'It's so painful to Keir'

By publishing an account of a recent meeting about the mess, it's been made clear the prime minister didn't know what had happened. One of his senior ministers, Darren Jones, says it's a "failure of the state". Starmer himself has found lots of different words to say the same thing - that he is mightily hacked off. It's plain to see that No 10 does not accept it's their failure and the rapid firing of Robbins shows they where they are determined to place the blame.

The horror of this row's return is not just that it connects the Labour government with the worst excesses of power - the friendship between a prominent Labour figure and a disgraced wealthy billionaire and his abuse of vulnerable young women. And it's not uncomfortable just because of how it clashes with Starmer's 'Mr Rules' persona - as one ally says: "It's so painful to Keir, who prides himself to be a person of integrity - and this is just wiping that away in the eyes of the public."

But this is happening at a time when Labour is about to face millions of voters in a vast set of elections in Scotland, Wales and across England. The party felt like it was almost, with some praise for Starmer's handling of the war, starting to catch a break. Then, this most embarrassing of scandals blows up again - a mess, fundamentally, created, not by Whitehall, but by Starmer's original decision to bring Mandelson back into the fold.

One MP with the unforgiving task of banging on doors in the rain this week told me: "It's so incredibly frustrating for Labour activists, councillors and candidates across the country to once again have campaigns derailed by this mess. It is unbelievably incompetent from Keir to have us in this situation again, three weeks out from an election." Another senior MP told me it's just a sinking feeling: "Oh no, here we go, again."

With those elections in just a few weeks, no Labour figure is now likely to jump-start a bout of leadership frenzy, but don't doubt that is on many MPs' minds. Another told me: "It's not possible to put any more nails in his coffin without it being made of nails, but this is another one."

Robbins' exit also creates more bad blood between ministers and the civil servants they need to make their plans work - friction a struggling government can ill afford. And it's also worth noting the departure creates a vacuum in foreign policy - one of the few arenas where the prime minister is generally considered to have a decent record.

There won't be a break from this until the middle of next week at the earliest. Starmer himself will face questions on Monday. Sir Olly Robbins has been summoned to give evidence in front of MPs on Tuesday, P45 in hand. He's getting the blame: his original judgment that he could clear Mandelson for take-off to DC despite the vetting agency's concerns will take a hammering. But Robbins' allies insist he believes he was working within the rules. And ministers are yet to explain clearly why they think he was not.

It's easy now to say Mandelson should never have been given the job in Washington, although there were clear reasons why it was tempting to send a flamboyant maverick with a troubled past to appeal to another flamboyant maverick with a troubled past in Donald Trump.

It's easy, too, to say that the way Mandelson was appointed was bonkers, that the process failed. But ultimately it was a political decision to give the job to a politician with huge talent but a reputation for finding himself in huge trouble.

Many months since Mandelson's forced exit, the prime minister is still struggling to demonstrate decisively that he can move on.

The surprising reality of how teenage girls still define themselves

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c62je1g000eo, 13 days ago

A felt‑tip sign taped to the door of a private room announces "GIRLS ONLY", "Boy's don't Eneter!" [sic], and, by way of a cheeky flourish, "don't worry boys!". The sign is covered in colourful hearts and stars. A group of around a dozen girls at DRMZ youth club in Carmarthen, Wales, are already deep into a competitive card game when I join them at a large round table. Conversation flows easily as we chat and pizza is duly ordered.

This visit is part of my Radio 4 series About The Girls, for which I spoke to roughly 150 girls, the vast majority aged between 13 and 17. What we discussed at that table echoed so many of those conversations.

Savvy, chatty, funny and bright, the girls were uplifting and brilliant company. Full of ambition and plans for their futures ("I would like to have a fridge that you can have a vase in… And be a doctor!"), love for their friends ("I can tell her anything") and a great awareness of the value of caring for family members ("I go to town to top up my Nan's electric. I love looking after her.")

The conversation hopscotched between the card game at hand, school dramas, teachers they like (and those they don't), stuff they'd seen on social media and debate about whether there were enough slices of Cheese Feast to go round. There were.

This project follows my series About The Boys, for which I also spoke to teenage boys from all over the UK. In the wake of Covid-19, #MeToo and all the noise about Andrew Tate, I was curious to know what they were thinking. I also found them excellent company: thoughtful and articulate and brave. Repeating the experiment with girls next seemed logical and fair. It happened that the Epstein files were released just as I set off for Carmarthen, and the work suddenly felt even more urgent.

What I was not expecting was that across all the conversations I had, one theme kept resurfacing: teenage girls still tend to see themselves through the lens of boys. And, importantly, there seems to be an acute understanding of this.

When I asked my opening question "What is it really like to be a girl in 2025/26? Tell me the truth, don't be polite!" The answer almost invariably began with the words: "Well boys think/say/want/ feel…". These conversations felt like some odd real-life version of the Bechdel Test. Which, in case you are not familiar, provides a metric for evaluating female representation in films. To pass the test, a film (1) has to have at least two named women in it, who (2) talk to each other, about (3) something besides a man. None of my interviews would pass.

"Growing up as a girl," said one "so much of that is about how boys are behaving around you and what they're doing to you. So there isn't really a way to talk about that without mentioning boys... and it is frustrating."

So why does this dynamic persist? The girls I met talked fluently about the weight of gendered social expectations, the influence of boys in school environments, versions of feminine "perfection" seen endlessly on social media, and described something deeper about how girls learn to behave while trying to safely navigate the world.

'Not making a fuss'

After the girls in Carmarthen had all gone home, I spoke to Alison Harbor, manager at the youth centre. She was delighted that they had all talked so freely.

"The boys at the club are quite vocal" she told me, "and pretty confident in telling you all their opinions and thoughts. Well today, the girls have been the same! My worry is that they usually internalise a lot of their troubles…".

Though the girls did not hold back, the irony was that almost all of them said their behaviour was different than when boys are around.

Girls told me about not wanting to be seen by boys as "too much", "too loud", "weird", "annoying", a "pick me", or "a beg" (someone looking for attention). They told me how boys can be loud and funny, but that girls had better not. They described not wanting to "take up space" and trying to be "smaller and quieter" in mixed company.

Teachers of girls talked about them "keeping their heads down" and "not making a fuss" or "flying below the radar".

In her own research, Dr Ola Demkowicz, senior lecturer in psychology of education in the Manchester Institute of Education, has spoken with young women about issues affecting their mental health. She says: "There is certainly a pressure that we heard from young women around that - really translating into they need to be polite and respectful, and that they feel the behaviour expectations on them were greater. So boys could be loud in the classroom and that's not a problem. It's boys will be boys. They felt that that was not afforded to them."

Dr Demkowicz argues society expects "adultification" - girls to present in more mature ways. "You are supposed to act grown up and not necessarily be playful or express things loudly, or struggle…"

Elsewhere, girls talked about their fear and experiences of sex–based harassment and violence. Girlguiding's latest research suggested that 68% of girls change their everyday behaviour to avoid sexual harassment, and almost every single girl I spoke to described an experience of being catcalled.

Dr Hannah Yelin from Oxford Brookes University says that, in her research conversations with girls, she has found they are "devastatingly, but also brilliantly, astutely aware" that the scrutiny they face is often sexualised. She explains that girls recognise how quickly their position becomes tied to ideas about how attractive they appear to men, and they are also aware that this can put their safety at risk.

The school environment

Most of my 150 interviews were done in schools, where data about the rise in misogynistic behaviour was no surprise to girls. A teaching union recently warned that a "masculinity crisis is brewing" in UK schools after almost a quarter of female teachers it surveyed reported that they have been subject to misogynistic abuse from a pupil in the last year.

The girls told me they are sometimes dismissed by boys, who tell them to "make me a sandwich" or "get back in the kitchen". They were clear-eyed about the root of the problem – while also feeling afraid.

"I feel like the fear comes from looking online," one Year 10 pupil explained, "and seeing the reason that boys go after girls a lot is because they want someone to blame for their problems. I think men's mental health is a problem, but with the internet, I feel like the main solution for that is just to blame it on a woman."

So at the same time as worrying about their male classmates "bottling things up", girls are also feeling scared about how some boys and men - aping Manosphere behaviours - might act.

Dr Yelin says: "Their understanding of misogyny and rape culture was so sophisticated and so devastating, because they're living it all the time, every day."

The same girls reported wanting to protect younger girls who they see posting online about "wanting a toxic relationship with a guy" in which they are "told to watch their behaviour or change their attitude".

They could see the ways girls were performing a strange kind of female role in order to please boys who are themselves performing a nasty version of masculinity.

Their solution: organise. In one school I visited in Rochdale, they were starting a girls club in which they would discuss it all: from gender inequality, to domestic violence and body shaming, to periods, sexuality and friendship groups.

But leaders from the trust of a Birmingham-based school raised a further concern: girls at school might be worryingly quiet in class, but that's if they make it into school at all.

Chronic absenteeism (missing 50% or more of school sessions) is on the rise. In 2017/18, only 6% of girls affected by absenteeism were severely absent. In 2024/25, that proportion more than doubled to 13%. Absence rates were higher for particular groups of pupils including those eligible for free school meals.

Mental health issues like anxiety were the most common concern raised by parents of girls to a helpline run by the charity Young Minds. And there's also caring responsibilities.

I was told of girls as young as Year 6 tasked with caring for younger siblings, and missing lessons as a result. In one city, I spoke to a teenage girl who had spent a year away from school, "helping her mum" with the newest baby.

Tom Campbell, who heads up the ACT Academy Trust, which runs 38 schools in England and Wales, told me: "The decline [for girls] is real. And the data is flashing red." GCSE passes in English and Maths are down 7% at grade 4, (previously a grade C).

Progress being 'held back'

Nevertheless, every single girl I met had dreams for her future – from being a microbiologist to pursuing an acting career, to playing for the Lionesses.

I was so impressed by how aware all the girls were of the choices they have, and how they compare to those available to generations before. "I'm just so grateful for the opportunities us girls have today!" one cheerful 15-year-old told me.

In fact, in almost every place I went, the girls I met talked (without being prompted) about their place in history – how recently women had the right to vote, work and be independent.

They also described how they understood the challenges that their mothers, sisters, aunties, godmothers and grandmothers had faced, and how they still come up against some of the same ones, because even when laws change, attitudes do not necessarily fall in line with them.

The girls described the ways that they believed progress for women "which got to a certain point" is being "held back" or reversed in some ways by social media and the views that generate traction on it. They cited the rolling back of Roe v Wade in the US and referenced the "anti woke" ideas' movement, "trad wife" online content, and the traction of Elon Musk's pronatalist views.

They reported seeing "older men… in their twenties" freely sharing their opinions online about "what women should look like".

I was struck by how knowing they are about the business of online content, how clearly girls can see the unhealthy ways that lifestyles and beauty standards are peddled to them, while still feeling as if they need to perform versions of it.

Their frustration at being entangled in the machine of it all was sometimes palpable. For example, they were outraged about their "eight-year-old cousins getting skin care for Christmas" while they themselves were also wearing a full face of makeup aged 12.

They know they are being sold to, but at the same time, these videos are entertainment and often form the backbone to their chats with friends.

Places to replace social media

After all, their friendships are conducted - to such a large degree - through social media. Girls said they feared that being left out of the fast moving chatter online, could mean being ostracised at school.

They talked about the weight of managing these hybrid friendships "every day, all the time" and of wrestling with incidents of upsetting online bullying by peers, and worse behaviours from strangers.

One girl said she thinks that as ever younger children use social media, her generation will be the last to get a real childhood. The girls reported that their parents said "they were growing up in two times speed" but said that girls even younger are growing up in "three times speed" - "acting like high school age when they're 10".

But the idea of waving a magic wand and getting rid of it all, was met with mixed reactions. Older teen girls - fed up by the "romance via Snapchat" norm, and shocked by unsolicited images of genitals and pornified sexual interactions - expressed a kind of faux nostalgia, a yearning for a 1990s phone free meet-cute. But they also recognise how tightly knitted together their realities and online realities are now.

Girls of all ages were quick to point out the benefits of finding like-minded people who might live far away, and of the solace that could offer. But some ventured that if social media magically vanished (for everyone) that they would be happier.

After all the hours of interviews, I'm left thinking about the youth clubs I visited. Their number reduced considerably in the years leading up to the pandemic. In particular, the netball club and dance company sticks in my mind. These are "third spaces", with real-life community and so much activity. In these clubs, the girls I spoke to had something else, which set their interviews apart; places to be loud and physical, unafraid of making noise, taking up space or being subject to the judgement of boys or online critics.

A report published in 2025 by OnSide, a national youth charity, finds that 76% of young people spend most of their free time on screens and almost half (48%) spend most of their free time in their bedrooms.

And so I wonder: in all the chatter about trying to prise our teens off their screens, by banning social media - where teens do feel that they meet and "commune" now - whether we have failed to think properly about what better places must replace them, in the real lives of teen girls?

What we know about the Iranian ship seized by the US

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c75kg0vdxyro, 5 days ago

The US has intercepted an Iranian ship entering the Gulf as part of its naval blockade, US President Donald Trump has said.

Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform that the ship was seized by the US Navy after failing to respond to a warning to stop.

Iran said it was a violation of the ceasefire and it would retaliate soon for an "act of armed piracy".

It's the first ship to be seized by the US since its blockade of Iranian ports began.

Here's what we know so far about it.

Some Iran-linked ships have crossed US blockade, data suggests

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckge7138l2go, 9 days ago

At least four vessels tracked from Iranian ports appear to have crossed a US blockade line in the Gulf of Oman, BBC Verify analysis of ship-tracking data suggests.

President Donald Trump said the US blockade of Iranian ports, which began on Monday, will stay in place after Iran's foreign minister said on Thursday that the Strait of Hormuz will be open for the duration of the ceasefire.

In a statement on X, Abbas Araghchi said the strait "is declared completely open for the remaining period of ceasefire", which is due to expire on 22 April.

"Thank you!", Trump wrote on Truth Social, adding in a second post: "The naval blockade will remain in full force and effect as it pertains to Iran, only, until such time as our transaction with Iran is 100% complete."

The US has said ships coming from and going to other countries will be able to pass its blockade.

Access to the Strait of Hormuz has become a focal point of the US-Israel war with Iran after Tehran effectively choked off one of the world's most important shipping lanes.

The disruption to shipping since the conflict began six weeks ago has sent shock waves across the global economy, destabilising energy prices and exposing just how reliant international supply chains are on the channel that connects the Gulf with the Indian Ocean.

An average of 138 ships passed through the strait each day before the conflict started on 28 February, according to the Joint Maritime Information Centre.

At a Pentagon news conference on Thursday, America's most senior military officer Gen Dan Caine presented a map which showed a "blockade line" stretching from the eastern tip of Oman to Iran's border with Pakistan.

Caine told reporters the blockade "applies to all ships, regardless of nationality, heading into or from Iranian ports".

The US Navy has also said it will intercept ships it suspects of carrying "contraband" including oil, petroleum products, weapons, munitions and nuclear material linked to Iran.

But ship-tracking data suggests at least four vessels tracked from Iranian ports have crossed the US blockade line since the blockade came into force.

Three of the four vessels - Shabdis, Tava 4 and Azargoun - are under US sanctions and are broadcasting locations off the coast of India.

The cargo vessel Ashkan3 25278 is broadcasting its location at the port of Karachi in Pakistan.

Ship-tracking relies on vessels transmitting location data accurately. However, some ships may be turning their trackers off or broadcasting a false position, a practice known as "spoofing".

Experts have told BBC Verify this is common for sanctioned vessels linked to Iran.

When BBC Verify asked the US military's Central Command (Centcom) about these four vessels it said it had "nothing to add" to what Caine said at Thursday's briefing. The general had told reporters the US had not had to board any ships.

At least three further tankers that have been sanctioned by the US for links with Iran have also crossed the blockade line since Monday, BBC Verify analysis of ship tracking data suggests.

The ships were not affected by the blockade because they did not report calling at Iranian ports.

Centcom said on Thursday that in the first 72 hours of the blockade, 14 vessels had "turned around to comply with the blockade at the direction of American forces".

Tracking data analysed by BBC Verify shows at least two ships with links to Iran have reversed course close to the US blockade line.

The Iranian-flagged container ship Kashan, which sailed from the port of Bandar Abbas, and the tanker Simba V have both been sanctioned by the US for links with Iran.

Centcom later posted a video of a ship filmed from a helicopter accompanied by what it said was audio of a sailor on the warship USS Michael Murphy saying it would be escorted to the next port of call.

Monitoring group TankerTrackers.com has confirmed to BBC Verify that the ship in the video is the Iranian-flagged tanker Deep Sea which has been sanctioned by the US for links with Iran.

Deep Sea has not broadcast location data for more than a month, but BBC Verify analysis of satellite imagery indicates that the tanker is now close to the Iranian port of Chabahar.

BBC Verify has asked Centcom to confirm the identity of the vessel in the video it published and where it was intercepted, but it has not responded.

Satellite images reveal scale of Israeli demolitions as Lebanese villages destroyed

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cdxkk1vnp57o, 10 days ago

Towns and villages in southern Lebanon are being levelled by Israeli demolitions, satellite images and videos obtained by BBC Verify reveal.

BBC Verify analysis found more than 1,400 buildings had been destroyed since 2 March based on verified visual evidence.

This is just a snapshot of the overall damage caused by Israeli air strikes and demolitions, because of limited access on the ground and available satellite imagery. The true scale is likely to be much higher.

Israel's levelling of these structures comes after Defence Minister Israel Katz's order on 22 March to "accelerate the destruction of Lebanese homes" near the Israeli border based on the "model in Gaza" as part of its campaign against Hezbollah.

The systematic demolition of these towns and villages may amount to a war crime, international law experts told BBC Verify.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said that it operates in accordance with the Law of Armed Conflict and does not allow the destruction of property unless there is an imperative military necessity.

It added, without providing evidence, that Hezbollah has embedded military infrastructure within civilian areas in the region.

On 2 March the Iranian-backed armed group Hezbollah launched rockets and drones into Israel in retaliation for the killing of Iran's supreme leader at the start of the war with Israel and the US.

The IDF responded with a wave of strikes across Lebanon, targeting what it said was Hezbollah infrastructure, and launched a ground invasion of southern Lebanon.

An IDF spokesperson first ordered Lebanese civilians living close to the border to leave on 2 March. Days later the evacuation order was expanded to those living south of the Litani river about 30km (20 miles) from the border, and it was then later widened further to those living south of the Zahrani river 40km from the border.

On 16 March, the IDF said its troops had begun a ground operation against Hezbollah - a Shia Muslim political and military group - in south Lebanon.

More than 1.2 million people are estimated to have been displaced across Lebanon, including 820,000 from the south, according to figures by the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). It said the war in Lebanon has forced many to flee to areas further north or cross into Syria.

The Lebanese health ministry says more than 2,000 people have been killed since the war began. Israeli authorities said 13 soldiers and two civilians have been killed by Hezbollah over the past six weeks.

Lebanese hilltop border towns and villages are now hard to recognise. Once characterised by their winding streets lined with stone buildings overlooking sweeping valleys, verified videos now show how they have turned grey from dust and debris of explosions.

Katz's plan for an Israeli-controlled "security zone" extending from the border to the Litani river would take up about 10% of Lebanon's territory. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was to "thwart the threat of invasion".

Using verified footage and analysis of available satellite imagery, BBC Verify found evidence of controlled Israeli demolitions in at least seven border towns and villages.

The town of Taybeh, about 4km (2.4 miles) from the border, has been subject to particularly intense demolitions. Eleven verified videos show whole sections of the town blown up simultaneously.

A comparison of satellite images taken on 28 February and 11 April shows more than 400 buildings, including a mosque, have been levelled there.

Meanwhile, in the town of Khiam and the villages of Qouzah, Deir Seryan, Markaba and Aita al-Shaab, other verified videos show co-ordinated explosions engulfing several buildings.

We found more than 460 buildings had been demolished in Aita al-Shaab alone. Excavators and armoured vehicles can also be seen in satellite imagery of the village, according to Tony Reeves, founder of intelligence analysis firm MAIAR.

In the coastal town of Naqoura, explosions from Israeli demolitions have also damaged the headquarters of the UN's peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon.

Kandice Ardiel, a spokeswoman for the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) based at the HQ, said she had seen regular demolitions of several buildings at a time since early April.

Our satellite image analysis shows at least 100 buildings have been levelled in Naqoura in recent weeks.

Ardiel said most of the buildings opposite the Unifil HQ had now been destroyed, describing the "scale of the destruction" in Naqoura as "truly heartbreaking". "These are not just buildings, they represent a community," she added.

The deliberate demolition of structures is not a new Israeli military tactic. It has been deployed across swathes of Gaza during the war that was triggered by the Hamas-led attack on Israel on 7 October 2023.

"It's been clear since October 7 and since Israel and Hezbollah have gone to war that there has been a strategy for Israel to revise the balance of power in the region," said Renad Mansour, Deputy Director of Middle East and North Africa Programme at Chatham House, a UK-based think tank.

Multiple legal experts told BBC Verify the destruction of property is strictly prohibited by international humanitarian law, unless it is demanded by military necessity.

The bar for necessity is higher than military convenience or advantage, according to Prof Janina Dill, a global security and international law expert at Oxford University: "It certainly does not cover levelling entire villages as a predicate to long-term national security."

It also requires case-by-case analysis when determining which buildings have military significance, said Yuval Shany, a legal expert from the Israel Democracy Institute think tank.

The capacity of some civilian buildings to be used for military activity "does not justify a sweeping policy of creating buffer zones next to the border inside which all buildings are to be destroyed", he added.

Prof Ben Saul, UN Special Rapporteur on counter-terrorism and human rights, said Israel's "extensive destruction of residential areas, particularly in Southern Lebanon but also parts of Beirut" appeared to violate international humanitarian law.

Shia Muslim communities make up the vast majority of the southern Lebanese population, but other groups including Christians live there too.

"In places the pattern of attacks appears aimed to 'cleanse' predominantly [Shia] villages and populations from the south, collectively punishing civilian populations within which Hezbollah fighters may be mingled," Saul said.

The IDF said in response that "any suggestion that the IDF is acting to "cleanse" civilian populations, punish communities, or target civilians on the basis of religion or sect is categorically false."

"Such warnings are not intended to permanently displace civilians or prevent their lawful return," it added.

Dr Lawrence Hill-Cawthorne, co-director of the Centre for International Law at the University of Bristol, reiterated that the "fundamental rule of law" is that civilian objects must not be targeted.

"It is not a permissible defence to claim that the total destruction of towns and villages in southern Lebanon is necessary for creating a buffer zone to hold back Hezbollah," he said. "Even if Israel's war in Lebanon can be considered self-defence against attacks from Hezbollah, its conduct seems to go far beyond a limited war of self-defence against specific attacks."

Additional reporting by Paul Brown and Adam Durbin.

How many ships are crossing the Strait of Hormuz?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3w39lg84w2o, 11 days ago

Since the start of the US blockade on Monday, 15 vessels have crossed the Strait of Hormuz, nine of which have links to Iran, BBC Verify analysis of ship-tracking data suggests.

US Central Command (Centcom) has said its blockade applies to all ships entering and exiting Iranian ports.

In an update on Tuesday, Centcom said in the first 36 hours no vessels made it past the blockade and six obeyed instructions to turn around.

Ship-tracking data suggests six of the ships which passed through the strait had previously visited an Iranian port. We have identified two more that left the vicinity of an Iranian port far to the east of the strait.

President Donald Trump has said the US blockade is in response to Iran "knowingly failing" to reopen the strait.

BBC Verify has not seen evidence from the available tracking data of any tankers carrying full loads of oil or gas heading out from the Gulf into open sea during this period, whether linked to Iran or not.

Tracking vessels relies on them transmitting their locations accurately. However, some ships may be turning their trackers off or be transmitting a false position, a practice known as "spoofing".

Experts have told BBC Verify this is common for sanctioned tankers linked to Iran.

We've not been able to verify the US claim about the number of ships that have been turned round, but tracking data indicates that at least one vessel which passed through the strait has reversed course.

The US-sanctioned tanker Rich Starry sailed east from Sharjah in the UAE through the strait but turned round and crossed back into the Gulf on Wednesday.

In addition, two Iranian-flagged ships have been tracked leaving the vicinity of Iran's Chahbahar port, east of the Strait of Hormuz on Iran's southern coast, after the start of the blockade.

The Strait of Hormuz has become a focal point of the US-Israel war with Iran after Tehran effectively choked off one of the world's most important shipping lanes.

An average of 138 ships passed through the strait each day before the conflict started on 28 February, according to the Joint Maritime Information Centre.

Trump has warned the US Navy will "blow to hell" any Iranians that attack them and will take action against any ship found to be paying transit tolls to Iran.

Jakob Larsen from the Baltic and International Maritime Council, which represents shipowners, told BBC Verify that he is concerned about the "risk of further escalation to involve direct attacks on ships" with the introduction of the US blockade.

'Nearly 800 ships stuck'

If crossings for ships not linked to Iran do resume at a greater pace, experts say stranded tankers that are fully loaded with cargo will be the priority.

"You've had nearly 800 ships stuck in there for several weeks. Most of them are now loaded with cargo so the priority is going to be to get them out," said Richard Meade, editor-in-chief of Lloyd's List

BBC Verify's analysis shows ships that have passed the strait have taken a northerly route close to Iran's coastline and within its territorial waters.

Prior to the conflict, vessels usually took a more southerly route through the middle of the waterway.

Another uncertainty is the possibility of sea mines, says Thomas Kazakos, secretary general of the International Chamber of Shipping.

"We need to make sure that we have clear confirmation that the safety of navigation for the ships and the seafarers are being agreed," he told BBC Verify.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy published what it states are the permitted routes to be followed when passing through the strait "to avoid possible collision with sea mines".

It has marked a region in the middle of the channel as a "dangerous area" to be avoided.

Centcom has previously announced that two destroyers - the USS Frank E Petersen and USS Michael Murphy - are in the area as part of a mission to clear "sea mines previously laid by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps".

Additional reporting by Kayleen Devlin and Alex Murray

15 April: This piece is being updated to reflect the latest number of vessels crossing the strait since the ceasefire.

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What does the data tell us about immigration in Wales? Search for your area

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c9d443d4n33o, 2 days ago

Like many countries, Wales sees a steady flow of people arriving and leaving for other countries each year.

The difference between those arriving and those leaving is known as "net migration".

Focusing on people moving from abroad, latest estimates say Wales' population - which was 3.2 million in June 2024 - had increased by about 23,000 over the previous year as a result of net international migration.

A recent YouGov poll found a quarter of people surveyed in Wales believed that immigration, alongside the economy, should be among the issues prioritised by the Welsh government, even though immigration is controlled by the UK government.

So why do people care so much about it, and what does the data tell us?

How much international migration has there been where you live?

International migration figures include people planning to stay for at least 12 months, such as British nationals returning to Wales from abroad as well as those moving from other countries.

Most people arrive to work or study, while others come to join family members, through humanitarian schemes - such as those for Ukraine and Hong Kong - or to seek asylum.

You can explore international migration in your area using our interactive tool below.

There is often confusion about the common terms used to discuss immigration.

Legal immigrants are those who enter the country with permission such as a visa, while illegal immigrants arrive without it, or stay in the UK after their permission has expired.

Some legal and illegal immigrants make claims for asylum once they have arrived.

Asylum seekers are those asking for sanctuary due to dangers in their home country, and successful applicants are given refugee or protected status.

Apart from the Nation of Sanctuary policy, through which the Welsh government aims to help refugees and asylum seekers placed in Wales to integrate and access public services, the UK government is in charge of immigration.

Home Office data from December 2025 showed that overall across Wales, there were 11 asylum seekers being supported per 10,000 people, the lowest rate across the UK's four nations.

England had the highest, with 16 asylum seekers per 10,000 residents.

The view from Wrexham

The city of Wrexham, in north Wales, is home to 138,245 people, according to the latest ONS estimates from June 2024.

Between 2020 and 2024, it is estimated that international net migration added 2,900 people to Wrexham's population.

But because of other changes in the area over the same time - like a higher number of deaths than births among people already living there - the city's population went up by less than that overall.

Wrexham has seen recent anti-immigration protests, after Home Office proposals - which were scrapped - to house 70 asylum seekers in a disused care home in the area.

Natalie Wasiuk, 38, who attended the protest, said she believed immigration was a problem in the area.

"The homeless people in town, they're not getting priority over immigrants," she said.

Her friend Kelsey Hesp, 32, felt that people arriving in the city from overseas were given support with services before families like hers.

"Seven years I was homeless for with my two children," she said.

"Yet, there are families coming over here and they get housing.

"No matter what colour you are, or language you speak, we all bleed the same. But, when it comes to taking housing, jobs, being treated differently in your own country, I'm sorry."

The Home Office has a legal responsibility to house asylum seekers while they wait for a decision on their claim.

Local authorities in Wales have legal duties towards those who are homeless, and what help is given depends on circumstances.

Home Office figures showed that, as of the end of December 2025, 128 asylum seekers were being housed in Wrexham while their claims were processed. There is no data on how those individuals entered the UK.

Separately, 333 households in Wrexham were found to be eligible for homelessness support in the year to March 2025. The data does not break down whether these people were British nationals or migrants.

Steven Rees-Davies, 63, said he often talked to friends about immigration.

"Don't get me wrong, the ones in the war I understand, but the ones that are coming over illegally, we're still looking after them. I think that's totally wrong," he said.

Most people who come to the UK from abroad do so legally, having been granted a visa before they travel.

Official estimates suggest about 898,000 people arrived in the UK in the year to June 2025. Around 49,000 entered the country illegally over the same period.

Some of those arriving illegally - including by small boat - go on to claim asylum, which allows them to remain in the UK while their application is considered.

About half of all asylum claims in 2025 were made by people who had entered the country this way.

Anna Buckley, the director of the Polish Integration Support Centre which provides support to Wrexham's Polish community, said it's a welcoming city.

"Every year, we have about 300 people who get in touch with us, maybe they need help with housing, maybe they want to open a business, sometimes we help with the transfer from Poland," she said.

"People who come here legally, they are hardworking people. They pay taxes. They want to feel safe. We are one big international family.

"So if we're talking about legal migration, I'm 100% behind that. But not illegal migration."

She said she had concerns about "illegal immigration leading to crime".

"As an immigrant, you have to apply the rules, you have to apply the law, you have to respect someone's heritage," she said.

'People think we are all illegal immigrants'

In Pendine Park Care Home on the outskirts of Wrexham, Arlene Elano from the Philippines is one of hundreds of staff members from overseas.

Arlene, who came legally to work in Wales almost 24 years ago, said the recent protests had led to tensions in the community.

"These people think that because of our colour, because of our features, we are all the same, all the same 'illegal immigrants'," she said.

"It threatens the safety of our children. We're worried."

In Wrexham, many people recognised that legal migration was important to sectors such as healthcare and hospitality.

Director of Pendine Park, Mario Kreft, said the sector would be "lost" without migrant workers.

"We have 850 staff. About half of those are from overseas. Philippines, Africa, India, Europe," he said.

"These overseas workers that bring great skills to our country, that bring their families, that actually make a contribution to our country, to our economy, are in fact supporting the national health service."

Prof Ryszard Piotrowicz of Aberystwyth University said political parties might use immigration "as a vote winner" ahead of the Senedd election.

"Parties realise that there are votes to be gained by it," he said.

"I think that parties, in different ways, deliberately play on it, and manipulate it, and I think people fall for it.

"But I think people are genuinely concerned about it. Unless funding is increased to help the extra people who are coming in, who are applying for asylum, then that will have a negative impact on the resource available to the population who are actually living in Wales."

The Home Office, which is the UK government's department responsible for immigration and border control, said "nearly 60,000 illegal migrants and foreign national offenders have been removed since the 2024 election". Though recent figures show the majority of these individuals left voluntarily.

It said it was also "increasing removals of people with no right to remain while moving those in the system out of expensive hotels and into larger, more basic accommodation".

What do the political parties in Wales say?

The Welsh Conservatives and Reform want to scrap Wales' Nation of Sanctuary policy.

A Welsh Conservative spokesperson said: "The Welsh Conservatives believe in a fair system that is firm but controlled - supporting those who contribute, while working with the UK government to stop illegal immigration".

Reform Wales leader Dan Thomas said "immigration is an important issue for voters, and it's easy to see why", adding that "when immigration is too high it puts a strain on our public services and our communities".

Plaid Cymru said it "wants a fair, rules-based system of controlled migration that works for Wales, meets the needs of our communities, reflects Wales' unique challenges, and that upholds our values".

Plaid, along with Welsh Labour, Liberal Democrats and the Green Party, supports the Nation of Sanctuary policy.

Welsh Labour said it was "proud of [its] record supporting those who fled the conflict in Ukraine" and added that the "UK Labour Government vowed to scale up removals of illegal migrants and have done that".

Welsh Liberal Democrat Leader Jane Dodds said the "biggest challenge facing Wales and our public services is the number of young people leaving the country over the last 27 years of Labour control".

A spokesperson for the Wales Green Party said it would "advocate to the UK government for a stronger, more efficient asylum system which includes safe and secure routes".

Additional reporting by Jess Carr, Aidan McNamee and Tony Brown.

As former Nato chief warns about defence spending, how much has the military shrunk?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c6244zqnk16o, 12 days ago

Lord Robertson, who led the government's recent Strategic Defence Review (SDR), is accusing it of putting the UK's security "in peril" and being unwilling to make the necessary investment.

The former Labour defence secretary and Nato secretary general is warning: "We cannot defend Britain with an ever-expanding welfare budget."

BBC Verify has been looking at the current size of the UK military.

What has happened to the size of the armed forces?

In 1990 - at the end of the Cold War - the army had 153,000 regular soldiers in its ranks, this is now down to 73,790.

The 2025 SDR recommended that the British Army's regular force should not drop below 73,000.

In its latest update, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) confirmed the number of people applying to enlist in the regular army had fallen by around 40% in 2025 compared to 2024.

Since 1990, the number of reservists has fallen from 76,000 to 25,770.

In 1990, the Royal Navy had 48 major combat ships (13 destroyers, 35 frigates).

That has dropped to seven frigates and six destroyers.

There has been criticism of the Navy's readiness after it took weeks to deploy a single ship - HMS Dragon - to the Gulf to help protect an Royal Air Force (RAF) base in Cyprus.

In 1990, the RAF had over 300 combat jets.

Now, with 107 of the newer model Eurofighter Typhoons and at least 37 Joint Strike Fighter F-35 Lightning II in service, it has far fewer, though they are technically superior.

Uncrewed aircraft systems, also known as drones, now form an element of the UK's military air capabilities. These did not exist in 1990.

The threat from drones has been highlighted in the Ukraine conflict where they now kill more people than traditional artillery.

Analysts say the UK needs to invest considerably more in this military technology.

What has happened to defence spending?

Responding to the criticisms from Lord Robertson, the government said it is planning "the largest sustained increase in defence spending since the Cold War".

But that is a low bar because defence spending has been on an almost constant downward path since the fall of the Berlin Wall.

The government is currently planning to commit 2.5% of GDP to Nato-qualifying defence spending by April 2027, with an "ambition" to spend 3% of GDP in the next Parliament.

One of Lord Robertson's specific criticisms is the level of spending on defence when compared with welfare spending.

Spending on working-age benefits was lower than on defence in the mid 1980s - but now it's more - and is projected to rise to around 4.3% of GDP by the end of the decade, pushed up, in part, by rising claims for things like Personal Independence Payments (PIP).

While there is some evidence that a rising number of people suffering from mental health conditions have contributed to the increase in PIP claims, independent researchers remain uncertain about the exact causes behind the upward trend.

How does UK defence spending rank in Nato?

In addition to the "ambition" to spend 3% of GDP on defence during the next Parliament, the UK has committed to a Nato target to spend 5% of GDP on "national security" by 2035.

The government has said this would be made up of 3.5% of GDP on "core defence" and another 1.5% of GDP going on things like protecting critical infrastructure and ensuring civil preparedness.

Only three countries: Poland, Lithuania and Latvia, spent more than 3.5% of their GDP on defence in 2025, although Estonia and Norway were close.

The UK's spending of 2.3% of GDP in 2025 put it just above the mid-point of spending by Nato members, according to figures from the military alliance.

What is the UK military's record on big spending projects?

The MoD has some of the largest procurement projects in government, accounting for 47 of the 213 Government Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP) in 2024-25.

In December, the National Audit Office (NAO) published an overview of its performance and said progress on 12 of those projects was rated 'Red', meaning that their successful delivery "appears to be unachievable".

And the NAO added: "Over many years, the MoD has regularly experienced difficulties delivering many of its projects to required performance, cost and time".

In addition, the NAO report was critical of the MoD's administration, noting that for projects valued above £20 million it currently takes the MoD an average of six and a half years to award a contract.

The 2025 SDR recommended a new "segmented approach" to MoD defence procurement to deliver contracts within two years.

Challenges to come

Military analysts cite the rising threat from Russia since 2022, the current war in the Middle East and questions over the future of the US in Nato as powerful reasons for the UK to spend more on national defence.

General Sir Richard Barrons - one of the authors of the SDR in 2025 - told the BBC: "We've now entered a very new era in global affairs, with much greater risk but we're entering it with the armed forces we were left with for a much more comfortable, peaceful time."

A government spokesperson said: "We are delivering on the Strategic Defence Review to meet the threats we face."

"It is backed by the largest sustained increase in defence spending since the Cold War, with a total of over £270bn being invested across this Parliament."

Although the SDR was delivered in June last year, the 10-year defence investment plan to fund it has been repeatedly delayed.

Additional reporting by Gerry Georgieva

Correction: 15 April 2026: The original article used MoD annual figures from October 2025 to show there were 11 frigates. A subsequent Parliamentary answer reduced that figure to seven. We also sourced a figure of 137 Eurofighter Typhoons to a House of Commons Library briefing from November 2025. After consulting the MoD we have changed that number to 107.

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Track UK's latest migration numbers - including asylum, visas and small boats

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c70989jrdweo, 3 days ago

The number of people seeking asylum in the UK has fallen, according to February's official figures.

How does that sit alongside other key migration measures, including overall immigration, small boat arrivals and visas granted? Scroll down to find out more about the latest key figures, and get answers to key questions on a range of topics.

Produced by: Rob England, Libby Rogers, Jess Carr, John Walton, Becky Dale, Allison Shultes, Chris Kay, Steven Connor and Scott Jarvis.

Graphics by: Jez Frazer, Zoe Bartholomew and Joy Roxas

About the data

Figures from government and other official sources can be revised between publications. This page shows data as presented in the latest available release.

Immigration, emigration and net migration

*The net migration figure for the UK will not exactly equal immigration minus emigration because the Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes it as a rounded number.

Immigration and emigration estimates from the ONS are updated twice a year.

Net migration figures use the internationally recognised definition of a long-term migrant: "A person who moves to a country other than that of their usual residence for at least a year."

Visas for legal migration

The total number of visa entries only includes visas that have been granted. It does not include visitor visas or transit visas, where the UK is not the final destination.

Visa figures record when permission was granted, not when or whether someone arrived in the UK.

If a person was granted more than one visa within the year shown, each visa is counted separately.

Work visas refer to new individuals granted permission, or extensions of existing permission. This includes categories such as seasonal work, health and care, domestic worker and youth mobility visas.

Study visas include all individuals sponsored by approved UK education providers, as well as those on short-term study visas.

Family visas allow someone to come to or remain in the UK to live with close family members already here. This includes joining a spouse, partner, child or parent, or coming to care for a relative.

The "Other" category includes visas outside work, study and family routes. This covers humanitarian schemes such as the Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme and the British National (Overseas) route. It also includes family permits for people from European Union or European Economic Area countries.

Asylum applications and accommodation

Home Office figures for asylum seekers in hotels are published under the category "contingency accommodation - hotel".

The number of people in all other forms of accommodation includes non-hotel contingency accommodation, as well as initial, dispersal and "other" accommodation.

To show how evenly accommodation is distributed, a scale compares each local authority's share of people in that type of accommodation with the UK-wide average for areas using the same accommodation type:

* Less than half – more than 50% below the average share

* Lower than – between 25% and 50% below the average share

* About the same as – within 25% of the average share

* Higher than – between 25% and 100% above the average share

* More than double – more than 100% above the average share

Backlog figures for people waiting for an initial asylum decision include both main applicants and dependants.

Open appeals against refused asylum applications refer to individuals. Figures on appeals are published every three months by the Ministry of Justice, at a different time from other government asylum statistics. It also includes a small number of appeals against revocation of protection.

Small boat crossings and other irregular arrivals

Small boat crossing figures and the average number of people per boat are taken from the Home Office daily data.

Entering the UK without permission is an offence under immigration law, but asylum seekers are generally not prosecuted if they claim asylum on arrival. In some cases, people have been prosecuted alongside other offences, such as people smuggling or re-entering after deportation.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) collects figures on people who have died or gone missing while crossing from mainland Europe to the UK. These reports are based on information from French and UK officials (such as police or coastguard) and media sources. The IOM considers them an undercount because there are no official statistics.

The figures may include people who died in the Channel itself, as well as those who died while travelling to a crossing point.

Data on modern slavery includes final decisions only. Modern slavery covers human trafficking, slavery, servitude and forced labour.

Figures for other entries without permission combine all recorded irregular arrivals that were not by small boat. This includes inadequately documented air arrivals, recorded detections at UK ports, and other recorded detections within the UK.

Returns and deportations

People who are denied entry at the border and then leave the UK are not included in the returns figures on this page.

Returns involving the government are grouped into three categories. Enforced returns (which include deportations) are cases where the Home Office requires someone to leave and arranges their removal, usually because they have no legal right to remain or following a criminal conviction.

Assisted voluntary returns are when someone agrees to leave the UK and receives government support, such as help with travel documents, flights or reintegration assistance.

Controlled voluntary returns are when someone leaves the UK voluntarily without being forcibly removed, but their departure is formally recorded by the Home Office.

Independent returns are referred to by the government as "other verified returns," and refer to individuals who have left the UK without

People returned after a criminal conviction include non-British citizens convicted in the UK of any criminal offence, or convicted abroad of a serious criminal offence.

UK migration compared with other countries

Sea arrival figures are taken from the UNHCR European sea arrivals dashboard and combined with UK Home Office small boat data.

Asylum application, immigration and emigration figures for European countries are the latest available data from Eurostat for: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Czechia, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Romania, Norway, Switzerland and Croatia.

UK population figures are from ONS, National Records of Scotland and the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency 2024 mid-year estimates. European population figures are from Eurostat as of 1 January 2024.

To ensure comparability with the UK, European countries with populations under one million are excluded from per-capita comparisons of net migration and asylum applications.

For net migration comparisons, only countries that include asylum seekers or refugees in their immigration figures are included.

These are: Austria, Belgium, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Slovenia, Spain and Switzerland.

Portugal was also excluded as it did not have net migration data available for 2024, it will be re-included in future updates.

What do you want BBC Verify to investigate?

NHS tracker - are hospital waiting times improving near you?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq53qx2vg6jo, 10 days ago

Every NHS hospital in England has been told to improve patient waiting times for planned treatment as the government has made hitting the 18-week target one of its key priorities for this parliament.

By the end of March 2026, the government wanted to see at least 65% of patients waiting no longer than 18 weeks.

Data to be released in May will show whether the target was met.

Every NHS trust was told to either get to 60% or improve on its November 2024 figures by five percentage points - whichever is greater.

That is just a stepping stone towards the ultimate goal of achieving 92% by July 2029.

Use your postcode to find out whether waiting lists are getting better near you.

About the data

BBC Verify's analysis included NHS trusts in England that had at least 5,000 people waiting for elective treatment in November 2024.

Targets in other nations are different and the interim targets for March set by the UK government do not apply.

In Wales the target is for 95% of patients to wait less than 26 weeks.

In Northern Ireland, 55% of patients should wait no longer than 13 weeks for day case or inpatient treatment.

Scotland aims for 90% of patients to be treated within 18 weeks of referral, but Public Health Scotland has stopped publishing data on this target.

The tracker uses data on the percentage of patients in Scotland waiting less than 12 weeks for inpatient or day case treatment.

Interactive tool produced by Alli Shultes, Rebecca French, Daniel Wainwright, Nick Triggle, Ollie Lux Rigby, Chris Kay, Adam Allen, Avi Holden and Rebecca Wedge-Roberts

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