Top World News
Rush Hour 4 in the works at Paramount after reports of Trump intervening
Brett Ratner, accused of sexual misconduct by several women, will bring his hit franchise back to the big screenRush Hour 4 is reportedly a go at Paramount – after Donald Trump intervened on behalf of the movie.The studio will now release the next sequel by Brett Ratner, the director, who had retreated from Hollywood after numerous allegations of sexual misconduct during the #MeToo movement. Continue reading...
David Lammy considers scrapping jury trials for all but the most serious cases
Senior lawyers criticise justice secretary’s radical plan, saying it could ‘destroy justice as we know it’Jury trials for all except the most serious crimes such as rape, murder and manslaughter are set to be scrapped under radical proposals drawn up by David Lammy.In proposals that drew a swift backlash from senior lawyers, who said that they would not reduce court backlogs and could “destroy justice as we know it”, the justice secretary has proposed that juries will only pass judgment on public interest offences with possible prison sentences of more than five years. Continue reading...
Millions of UK workers to get pay rise as Reeves plans increased minimum wage
Chancellor says people must be ‘properly rewarded for their hard work’ with 16- to 21-year-olds also in line for raiseMillions of low-paid workers in the UK are to get a pay rise of 4.1% next year, as Rachel Reeves confirmed that minimum wage rates will go up as part of the government’s ambition to improve living standards.The national living wage will rise from £12.21 to £12.71 an hour from April for over-21s, which the government said would increase the annual earnings of about 2.4 million workers by £900.A year in Westminster: John Crace, Marina Hyde and Pippa Crerar. On Tuesday 2 December, join Crace, Hyde and Crerar as they look back with special guests at another extraordinary year, live at the Barbican in London and livestreamed globally. Book tickets here Continue reading...
Kash Patel's 3D-Printed Gun Gift To New Zealand Officials Was Toy Replicas
Inoperable pistols gifted by Kash Patel to senior New Zealand security officials, who had to relinquish them for destruction because they were illegal to possess, were revolvers inspired by toy Nerf guns and popular among 3D-printed weapon hobbyists.
UK accused of caving-in to British Virgin Islands over access to companies register
Parliamentary group urges government to clamp down on overseas territories before flagship anti-corruption summitThe UK government has been accused of caving-in to pressure from the British Virgin Islands by allowing it to limit access to a register of company share ownership to only those deemed to have a legitimate interest.The restriction, to be discussed at talks starting on Tuesday between Foreign Office ministers and leaders of the British overseas territories (BOTs) in London, is in defiance of legislation passed by the UK government as long ago as 2008 that would make the register available to all. Continue reading...
Protests erupt in China’s Guizhou province over cremation mandate
Villagers demonstrate against drive for alternative funeral practices instead of burial to preserve land resourcesProtests have erupted in China’s southern Guizhou province, the latest in a string of rural demonstrations that have seen incidents of unrest increase by 70% compared with last year.The protests in Shidong town started over the weekend in response to a directive from local authorities that people should be cremated rather than buried after their death. Continue reading...
Seven killed in Kyiv as Russia hits Ukraine’s energy sector with missiles and drones
Wide-ranging assault included drones that crossed into Romanian and Moldovan territory Europe live – latest updatesRussia launched a massive missile and drone attack on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure overnight, killing seven and injuring 21 in Kyiv as a fresh round of US-brokered peace negotiations began in Abu Dhabi.A total of 22 missiles, including four hypersonic Kinzhals, and 464 drones, were fired by Russia in attacks that principally targeted Kyiv and the surrounding area, according to the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Continue reading...
Nato scrambles jets as Russian drones make deepest incursion into Romania
Fighter jets track two uncrewed aircraft in first daytime breach of Romanian airspace since full-scale Ukraine warNato jets were scrambled to track two Russian drones that crossed into Romania on Tuesday in the deepest and first daytime incursion into the country’s airspace since the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine.German Typhoon and Romanian F-16 fighter jets took off in pairs to follow the uncrewed aircraft. The first flew back into Ukrainian airspace, but the second was later found downed in Puieşti, about 70 miles from Ukraine. Continue reading...
Jacob Zuma’s daughter accused of tricking men into fighting for Russia in Ukraine
South African police investigate allegations made against Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla by another of ex-president’s daughtersEurope live – latest updatesSouth African police are investigating allegations that a daughter of the former president Jacob Zuma tricked men into fighting for Russia in Ukraine by telling them they were travelling to Russia for a paramilitary training course.Another of Zuma’s daughters, Nkosazana Zuma-Mncube, filed a police report on Saturday alleging that her sister Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla and two others, Siphokazi Xuma and Blessing Khoza, had recruited 17 men who are now trapped on the frontlines of the war in Ukraine. Continue reading...
Rebuilding ‘human-made abyss’ in Gaza will cost at least $70bn, UN says
Report says Israel’s operations ‘significantly undermined every pillar of survival’ and reduced the economy by 87%Israel’s war in Gaza has created a “human-made abyss”, and reconstruction is likely to cost more than $70bn (£53bn) over several decades, the United Nations has said.The UN’s trade and development agency (Unctad) said in a report that Israel’s military operations had “significantly undermined every pillar of survival” and that the entire population of 2.3 million people faced “extreme, multidimensional impoverishment”. Continue reading...
Italian man ‘dressed as dead mother in order to claim her pension’
Man from Borgo Virgilio investigated for benefit fraud and hiding body since woman’s death in 2022An Italian man is under investigation for benefit fraud and hiding a body after allegedly dressing up as his dead mother – including mimicking her hairstyle with a wig and wearing makeup and jewellery – in order to claim her pension.The man, from Borgo Virgilio close to the northern Italian city of Mantua, allegedly claimed thousands of euros in pension payments after the death of his mother in 2022. Instead of reporting her death, he allegedly hid her body in his home. Continue reading...
24 schoolgirls abducted from Kebbi in Nigeria have been rescued, president says
Nigeria's president has announced that all 24 schoolgirls who were abducted by armed assailants from a school last week in Kebbi in northwestern Nigeria have been rescued
