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South Africa to deploy troops to tackle crime gangs

President Cyril Ramaphosa says the army will work with the police to fight organised crime and illegal mining.

Ukraine Says U.S. Is Increasing Pressure for a Deal as the Midterms Loom

It is unclear what the Trump administration is prepared to do if it does not get the concessions it wants from Kyiv on issues like territory and elections.

UK ban on Palestine Action unlawful, high court judges rule

Protest group’s co-founder wins legal challenge against decision to proscribe it under anti-terrorism laws The co-founder of Palestine Action has won a legal challenge to the home secretary’s decision to ban the group under anti-terrorism laws. The proscription of Palestine Action, which categorised it alongside the likes of Islamic State, was the first of a direct action protest group and attracted widespread condemnation as well as a civil disobedience campaign defying the ban, during which...

FBI releases description of suspect in Nancy Guthrie kidnapping

The 84-year-old mother of news anchor Savannah Guthrie disappeared from her Arizona home two weeks ago.

Rubio warns Europe of new era in geopolitics before big Munich speech

The US Secretary of State will address the first major transatlantic meeting since Donald Trump threatened to annex Greenland.

Venezuelan Politician Living in Exile in the US is Detained by ICE

Carlos Roberto García, an ex-mayor opposed to the Maduro regime, fled Venezuela in 2017. He faces deportation to a country with a long history of punishing political dissidents.

Will the Epstein files tarnish the reputation of Jamie Dimon, America’s banker?

The final stretch of the JP Morgan Chase chief’s career is a bumpy one, as Trump himself demands prosecutors investigate Epstein’s ties to Dimon’s bank Continue reading...

Milan Has an Affordable Housing Crisis. Can the Olympic Village Help?

The accommodation for athletes includes a video game lounge, massage room and a range of food options. Starting from September, it will house students — or at least those who can afford the rent.

Ex-cabinet secretary condemns Starmer’s sacking of Chris Wormald as ‘shabby’ – UK politics live

Gus O’Donnell urges Starmer to ‘get a grip’ of ‘disastrous’ advisers as PM heads to Munich Security Conference In a story in the Times today Oliver Wright and Steven Swinford say that “government officials refused to sign off on Sir Keir Starmer’s decision to sack Britain’s most senior civil servant because it would cost the taxpayer a quarter of a million pounds that could not be justified”. They report: In an unprecedented move, senior civil servants told Starmer that ministers would have t...

High court to rule on lawfulness of Home Office’s decision to proscribe Palestine Action – live

Case brought by the group’s co-founder is challenging the organisation’s ban under the Terrorism Act The ruling, expected to begin at 10am, comes after a group of six Palestine Action activists were cleared of aggravated burglary last week over a break-in at an Israeli defence firm’s UK site. The youngest of the group, Fatema Rajwani, 21, said the verdicts were a vindication of their cause. Continue reading...

UK weather: major road across Pennines shut as Arctic blast brings snow and ice

Section of A66 closed and warning of travel disruption amid freezing temperatures in Scotland and northern England A major road across the Pennines has been closed as an Arctic blast brought snow, ice and freezing temperatures to Scotland and northern England. The Met Office said widespread travel disruption was likely on Friday as it issued two yellow warnings that will remain in place until noon. Freezing temperatures have led to a four-day health alert for cold weather. Continue reading...

Steven Spielberg donates $25,000 to James Van Der Beek's $2m GoFundMe

The family of the late Dawson's Creek star have thanked contributors to the $2m collection pot.

Tarique Rahman Is Elected Bangladesh’s New Leader

Tarique Rahman, the scion of a political dynasty, returned to sweep his party into government with a promise of change. Some have doubts.

Shares in trucking and logistics firms plunge after AI freight tool launch

SemiCab platform by Algorhythm, previously considered a ‘penny stock’, sparks ‘category 5 paranoia’ across sector Shares in trucking and logistics companies have plunged as the sector became the latest to be targeted by investors fearful that new artificial intelligence tools could slash demand. A new tool launched by Algorhythm, a former maker of in-car karaoke systems turned AI company with a market capitalisation of just $6m (£4.4m), sparked a sell-off on Thursday that made the logistics i...

‘A great wee place’: the small Scottish factory crafting Olympic curling stones

All stones in Cortina are made from granite found on tiny island in Firth of Clyde and crafted in East Ayrshire “It takes 60m years and about six hours to make a curling stone,” shouts Ricky English above the whine of the lathes. The operations manager at Kays Scotland is surrounded by wheels of ancient granite in varying states of refinement. It is a small business with a big responsibility: the only factory in the world to supply the Winter Olympics with curling stones. Competitors don’t tr...

Munich Security Conference: Rubio flies in amid testing times for US-Europe ties – live

German chancellor Friedrich Merz among key figures to speak as three-day security gathering opens Guardian staff: The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, has said he will have a chance to meet Volodymyr Zelenskyy at this week’s Munich Security Conference . Continue reading...

Paul Thwaite seals largest payout for NatWest CEO since disgraced Fred Goodwin in 2006

Thwaite given £6.6m pay package for 2025, while Goodwin received £7.7m when bank was known as RBS Business live – latest updates The NatWest boss Paul Thwaite has clinched the largest payout for a chief executive of the banking group since his disgraced predecessor Fred Goodwin took home £7.7m in the lead-up to the 2008 financial crisis. Thwaite, who guided the once-bailed-out lender to full private ownership last year, was given a £6.6m pay package for 2025, with the boardroom lifting his ov...

Reform UK’s Kent council faces ‘extreme risk’ after passing first budget

Councillors vote for 3.99% council tax increase while mounting ‘attack on the vulnerable’, opposition says Reform UK’s showcase council in Kent faces “extreme risk” and “instability”, opposition politicians have warned, after it passed its first budget. The party’s councillors voted it through on Thursday night after their leaders announced a 3.99% council tax increase, one percentage point under the limit before a referendum is required, despite promising before their election win not to rai...

Israeli journalists fear for press freedom if UK billionaire sells TV channel stake

Union urges Leonard Blavatnik to scrap Channel 13 deal, saying it is part of Netanyahu plan ‘to capture the media’ Israeli journalists have appealed to a British billionaire not to proceed with the sale of a stake in an Israeli television channel, which they warn would represent a severe blow to the independence of the country’s media. Sir Leonard Blavatnik, listed by the Sunday Times as the UK’s third richest person, is selling a nearly 15% share in Channel 13, a commercial channel that has ...

First-time buyers enjoy biggest choice of low-deposit mortgages in UK since 2008

More than 500 deals now offer 95% loans as banks and building societies loosen their borrowing rules Would-be first-time buyers have the biggest choice of low-deposit mortgages for at least 18 years, new data shows, suggesting that 2026 is looking positive for those trying to get a foot on the property ladder. In recent months many banks and building societies have been loosening their affordability rules or launching deals that let people borrow 95% of the property’s value, and in some cases...