Exclusive: Former British PM urges police to reopen inquiry – and claims media executive Will Lewis attempted to incriminate him
The former prime minister Gordon Brown has made a new complaint to British police over allegations that Rupert Murdoch’s newspaper empire obstructed justice, after stating he has spoken to officers involved in the original phone-hacking inquiry.
Writing in the Guardian, Brown said one of the detectives had alleged they believed there was “significant evidence” that News Group Newspapers (NGN) deleted millions of emails to pervert the course of justice.
Continue reading...US president admits to concern Russian counterpart does not want to ‘stop the war’ and ponders new approach to Moscow
Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy have sat down for a face-to-face talk in the opulent halls of a Vatican basilica to discuss a possible ceasefire, after which the US president accused his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, of not wanting to “stop the war”.
The White House described Trump’s meeting with the Ukrainian leader before Pope Francis’s funeral as “very productive”, while Zelenskyy said on X that the talk with the US president was symbolic and had the “potential to become historic, if we achieve joint results”.
Continue reading...Applause rings out as late pontiff’s wooden coffin carried from altar of St Peter’s Basilica for open-air ceremony
Pope Francis has been eulogised as “a pope among the people, with an open heart towards everyone” during a funeral mass that brought 400,000 mourners to Rome, from pilgrims and refugees to powerful world leaders and royalty.
Francis, 88, died on Monday after a stroke and subsequent heart failure, setting into motion a series of centuries-old rituals and a huge, meticulously planned logistical and security operation not seen in Italy since the funeral of John Paul II in April 2005.
Continue reading...Archibald Gracie is known for writing one of the most vivid accounts of the 1912 maritime disaster
A letter written by a survivor of the Titanic disaster has sold for a record £300,000 at auction.
First-class passenger Col Archibald Gracie wrote The Truth About the Titanic, which described his experience of the 15 April 1912 tragedy that claimed 1,500 lives on the vessel’s journey to New York.
Continue reading...A crossbow and firearm were found at the scene in Headingley, and a man detained with a self-inflicted injury
Counter-terrorism police are investigating an incident that has left two women seriously injured in Leeds.
West Yorkshire Police were called at 2.47pm on Saturday following reports of a man with weapons.
Continue reading...12min: Lamine Yamal makes a bright run down the right for Barcelona. The score is nil-nil.
“I’d love to watch the game but a 10pm kick-off is getting a bit too near my bedtime,” emails Mark. “How do the players put up with it? It must be hard to be at your peak performance level so late in the day. Good night.
Continue reading...Chris Eubank Jr settled his middleweight grudge match with Conor Benn with a unanimous decision victory at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
All three judges ruled the fight 116-112 in a thrilling end to the pair’s family bad blood, with both Nigel Benn and Chris Eubank Sr in attendance.
Continue reading...Family issue statement on alleged Jeffrey Epstein victim who said she was trafficked to Prince Andrew
Virginia Giuffre has been hailed as an unflinching campaigner for survivors of sexual abuse, who took on the wealthy and the powerful during the course of her life.
“Virginia was a fierce warrior in the fight against sexual abuse and sex trafficking. She was the light that lifted so many survivors,” her family said in a statement confirming her death.
Continue reading...Trump scores poorly on economy and immigration as some fear he is ‘exceeding powers’ and focussed on wrong issues
Americans, including some Republicans, are losing faith in Donald Trump across a range of key issues, according to polling released this week. One survey found a majority describing the president’s second stint in the White House so far as “scary”.
Along with poor ratings on the economy and Trump’s immigration policy, a survey released on Saturday found that only 24% of Americans believe Trump has focussed on the right priorities as president.
Continue reading...Official suggests blast in southern port of Shahid Rajaee in Bandar Abbas due to explosion of chemicals in containers
An immense blast in Iran’s southern port of Shahid Rajaee has killed at least 14 people and injured more than 700, according to state media, with an official suggesting the fire was caused by the explosion of chemical containers.
A spokesperson for Iran’s crisis management body pointed to poor storage conditions of chemicals as the trigger for the port explosion. “The cause of the explosions was the chemicals inside the containers,” Hossein Zafari, a crisis management spokesperson, told Iran’s ILNA news agency. He added that the port administration had previously been warned about the danger these chemicals posed.
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