The Guardian

Activist’s latest arrest was in December and she has recently had two suspected heart attacks in prison Jailed Iranian Nobel peace prize winner Narges Mohammadi is fighting for her life after being hospitalised under guard for the last five days with a heart condition, her supporters have said. “We are not just fighting for the freedom of Narges, we are fighting so that her heart continues to bea…

The British poet, who also wrote plays, fiction and published poetry in translation, analysed almost 1,000 poems for her much-loved series British poet Carol Rumens, whose Guardian poem of the week column ran for nearly 20 years and was beloved among its loyal readership, has died aged 81. Her family said that she died peacefully on 25 April, after being diagnosed with a brain tumour. Explore the…

If you’re affected by the National Savings and Investments lost funds scandal, we would like to hear from you This month the state-backed National Savings and Investments (NS&I) bank will share its plan to reunite thousands of bereaved families with their missing money. In March it emerged that 37,500 people faced delays because of problems tracing the premium bonds of deceased customers. The fa…

Zack Polanski must be more nimble in fending off attacks than the former Labour leader or he risks suffering the same fate For more than a decade, Britain’s acrimonious politics has included a fundamental but often misunderstood battle. Sometimes it is fought out in the open and sometimes more in the shadows. Its protagonists extend far beyond Westminster, into the media, big business, the civil …

Zia Yusuf’s mad idea of building migrant detention centres exclusively in areas that vote Green works a treat It’s a classic from the Donald Trump playbook: everything’s been going a bit tits up, so you create a distraction. Get everyone looking in the wrong direction. Last week was the worst in months for Reform. First the party was pegged back in the opinion polls, then the Guardian revealed Ni…

Readers respond to articles in the wake of the Golders Green stabbings and suggestions that pro-Palestinian protests could be banned Banning protests will not make Jews safer ( Some pro-Palestinian protests could be banned amid attacks on British Jews, 2 May ). I am Jewish and I no longer feel safe walking the streets of north London where I live. But I don’t blame the pro-Palestine marches. I bl…

John Marriott and Michael Pyke respond to a report on a UCL study on classes grouped by ability As a retired modern foreign languages teacher, I read your report with interest ( Teaching in classes grouped by ability does not hamper progress of less able pupils, study finds, 29 April ). I struggled for years to devise lessons to cater for all abilities and came to this conclusion very rapidly. Th…

Luz Castano responds to a column by Zoe Williams on how gen Z think old age begins at 53 At 58, I read Zoe Williams’s column with a mixture of laughter and disbelief, and, I admit, a flicker of irritation ( Gen Z thinks old age begins at 53 – so I have only three months to go, 28 April ). If 53 is now considered the starting point of “old age”, what exactly am I meant to be doing? Planning my fun…

MPs drinking | Birds of a feather | Going Green | Andy Burnham | Dangerous moves I am sorry, Gaby Hinsliff, but I cannot defend MPs’ booze culture ( My advice to Hannah Spencer? Before calling out MPs’ boozing, try to understand the reasons behind it, 1 May ). As a retired nurse, there were times when my colleagues and I were working long hours under a great deal of stress, often making life and …

Former leader says antisemitic comments by some election candidates are unacceptable UK politics live – latest updates The former Green leader Caroline Lucas has called for the party to take immediate action against candidates who have made antisemitic comments or posts, following a series of cases before Thursday’s elections. Lucas, who led or co-led the party for six years and served as its fir…

Review finds force missed clear signs 21-year-old’s death was result of violent predator’s grooming and degradation A catalogue of police failures in handling the suspected murder of a young woman in Northern Ireland reflected institutional misogyny, a report has found. The Police Service of Northern Ireland missed clear warning signs that Katie Simpson’s death in August 2020 was not suicide but …

‘Least affordable’ areas mainly in London commuter belt, UK Finance finds, with Iran war not yet reflected in data Business live – latest updates UK homebuyers are facing the worst mortgage affordability pressures for almost two decades, although the “pain” is not being felt equally across the country, according to industry data. The banking body UK Finance said that at a nationwide level, initia…

Activists found guilty over break-in at Israeli defence firm’s UK site after jury deliberated for more than 14 hours Four out of six Palestine Action activists who stood trial over a break-in at an Israeli defence firm’s UK site have been convicted of criminal damage. Charlotte Head, 29, Samuel Corner, 23, Leona Kamio, 30, and Fatema Rajwani, 21 were all found guilty on Tuesday of smashing up pro…

Decision of the king’s track to quit the Racecourse Association may ultimately lead to long overdue reform The racing industry is such a broad and varied collection of professions, venues and interests that at times it can feel like the Holy Roman empire: there is always a turf war or two going on somewhere, but never to such an extent that the whole thing falls apart. Ascot’s announcement on Mon…

Sign up now! Sign up now! Sign up now? Sign up now! When Jérémy Doku wheeled away in celebration with his finger to his lips after curling home a last-gasp equaliser for Manchester City at Hill Dickinson Stadium on Monday night, it was difficult to know who he was trying to shush. If the gesture was intended to mute the celebrations of Arsenal fans who had just witnessed their team seize the uppe…

Briton to be evacuated from MV Hondius with Dutch colleague, after both began suffering respiratory symptoms What is hantavirus, the infection thought to have killed three on cruise ship? A British crew member who became ill after a suspected outbreak of hantavirus on a luxury cruise ship in the Atlantic Ocean is to be medically evacuated, officials have said. The crew member is being prepared fo…

Finalisation of pact governing global response to disease outbreaks delayed as talks on how to share benefits stall A key deadline to finalise a global pandemic treaty has been missed by negotiators, prompting warnings that the world remains unprepared for the next major disease outbreak. Countries have been trying to agree how they should share information on pathogens, such as bacteria or virus…

Players want greater share of revenue from tournaments Sabalenka: ‘I think at some point we will boycott it’ Aryna Sabalenka believes that the top tennis players will boycott grand slam tournaments in an attempt to resolve their dispute with the four events, which they argue should provide players with a greater share of their growing revenues. “I think at some point we will boycott it, yeah,” sa…

UK chancellor said to have told US treasury secretary she did not like his tone during meeting in Washington in April UK politics live – latest updates Middle East crisis – live updates Rachel Reeves had an angry exchange with her US counterpart, Scott Bessent, in Washington last month over the war in Iran, sources have said, in the latest sign of the deepening tensions between the two countries.…

Jonathan Rinderknecht’s attorneys say he’s being used as scapegoat for Los Angeles fire department’s failure to fully extinguish earlier blaze Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox The man accused of sparking the deadly Palisades fire in Los Angeles was upset over a failed relationship and his lack of plans for New Year’s Eve – and he ranted about being ang…