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Rosemary Coogan, European Space Agency’s second UK recruit, will be deployed to ISS for six monthsShe beat a field of more than 22,000 candidates and has a PhD in astrophysics and a background as a Royal Navy reserve, but the newly qualified British astronaut Rosemary Coogan believes that in future space travel should not be restricted to elites.Coogan, 33, from Belfast, who is the...

Exclusive: Rights group expresses concerns as it emerges US spy tech company has been lobbying UK ministersThe US spy tech company Palantir has been in talks with the Ministry of Justice about using its technology to calculate prisoners’ “reoffending risks”, it has emerged.The proposals emerged in correspondence released under the Freedom of Information Act which showed how the company has also been lobbying new...

Another 16 infants were in critical condition after the blaze at a neonatal unit in Jhansi, Uttar PradeshTen newborn babies have died after a fire broke out at the neonatal unit of a hospital in northern India, with another 16 clinging to life.The fire broke out late on Friday at the Maharani Lakshmibai Medical College in Jhansi, in the state of Uttar Pradesh, 450km...

Authorities warn of ‘life-threatening’ surges as sixth storm to pound the country in the past month intensifiedPhilippine authorities ordered all vessels back to shore and people in coastal communities to leave their homes as Super Typhoon Man-yi neared the storm-weary archipelago nation.Man-yi will be the sixth major storm to pound the Philippines in the past month, killing at least 163 people, leaving thousands homeless...

Transparency International writes to EU requesting inquiry into potential failure to declare travel and ticket expensesAn NGO has called for an investigation into five far-right members of the European parliament, warning of a potential failure to declare expenses for a trip to attend a gala dinner in New York headlined by Donald Trump.Transparency International’s EU office has written to the parliament’s watchdog on MEP...

Supermarket fizz bursts the prestigious French label’s bubble in blind tastings by consumer group Which?Champagne at prosecco prices? Every little helps. Tesco’s Finest champagne has triumphed over the prestigious French label Moët & Chandon in a festive quaff test.The Tesco Finest premier cru brut champagne received the top score of 82% in a blind taste test conducted by the consumer group Which?. The £25-a-bottle...

Gellibrand, Dereel and Kadnook residents told to leave as total fire bans declared across parts of South Australia and VictoriaGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastSeveral communities in Victoria’s west have been urged to evacuate as firefighters work to control a number of bushfires.A short-lived heatwave has brought hot, dry and windy conditions to much of southern Australia, with total...

Victoria police believe building on Spencer Street was empty at the time of the blazeGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastPolice are investigating a warehouse fire in West Melbourne which led to 150 people being evacuated from an apartment complex in the middle of the night.Fire Rescue Victoria found the warehouse “fully involved with fire” after being called to the...

Samuel Woodward, 27, sentenced to life without parole over stabbing of Blaze Bernstein, who was gay and JewishA California man convicted of stabbing to death a gay University of Pennsylvania student in an act of hate was sentenced Friday to life without parole in prison.Samuel Woodward, 27, was sentenced in a southern California courtroom at the end of an all-day hearing for the murder...

Prime minister Dick Schoof said party leaders decided to work together after five-hour crisis meetingThe Dutch prime minister Dick Schoof’s rightwing government averted a crisis on Friday when a junior minister resigned over alleged racist comments by cabinet colleagues, but the coalition government will remain in place.The deputy finance minister, Nora Achahbar, handed in her resignation late on Friday as the Netherlands grapples with...

Local clerks say they received threatening emails last week, amid a series of hostile election-related incidentsThe FBI confirmed it is “aware” of bomb threats that targeted election offices in several Oregon counties. Local clerks in Deschutes, Crook, and Jefferson reported receiving threatening emails last week, just days after election day.The FBI said that none of the threats were deemed credible. Continue reading...

High court rules Aboriginal woman can pursue damages for abuse allegedly suffered in state care more than 60 years agoFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe high court has ruled an Aboriginal woman can pursue damages on some allegations of historical sexual and physical abuse while in state care in Queensland.The woman,...

Leavitt was Trump campaign’s national press secretary and assistant press secretary in first administration. This blog is now closed.Trump’s staffing picks and likely contenders – so farRepublicans are set to take control of the Senate next year, where one of their first jobs will be to confirm Donald Trump’s nominees for cabinet posts. Should they object to the president-elect’s picks, he has threatened to...

Palm Springs approves settlement for displaced Black and Latino families after decades-long fight for compensationThe Palm Springs city council on Thursday unanimously approved a $5.9m reparations settlement with former residents of a largely Black neighborhood that was leveled in the 1960s for commercial development.The city council was also set to approve another $21m for housing and small business support aimed at the former residents...

Nationwide says New Forest is most expensive national park with an average property price of £576,000Buying a home in a national park comes at a 25% price premium, with the New Forest the most expensive of the 13 parks in England and Wales, according to Britain’s biggest building society.Nationwide said properties in a national park enjoy a valuation almost £67,000 more than a similar...

Leavitt served as the national press secretary on Trump’s campaign and assistant press secretary during his first administrationTrump’s staffing picks and likely contenders – so farDonald Trump named his White House press secretary on Friday, placing Karoline Leavitt, a 27-year-old firebrand from his inner circle, in position to aggressively defend him.The job of the White House press secretary typically is to help inform the...

The 600kg animal was in the deep end and it took Leicestershire firefighters three hours to get her out safelyA pregnant cow has had to be rescued by firefighters after she got stuck in a small swimming pool.The 590kg (93-stone) cow was found in the deep end of the pool in two to three feet of water at a house in Ketton, Rutland. Continue...

Police investigate claim that Israeli PM’s chief of staff changed recorded time of call made about Hamas attacksA top aide of Benjamin Netanyahu has been questioned by police investigating reports of alterations made to official records of phone calls involving the Israeli prime minister on the morning of the 7 October attacks.Israeli media reported that Netanyahu’s chief of staff, Tzachi Braverman, is suspected of...

Previous provincial government said most patients were misdiagnosed and instead had dementia or cancerThe newly elected premier of New Brunswick has called on Canada’s federal government to aid in a “full, open scientific investigation” into the mysterious brain illness that has plagued the province for years, in a move that those suffering from the condition hope could finally bring answers.“We need to conduct a...

Ukrainian president says talk between German and Russian leaders on war will reduce Putin’s isolationVolodymyr Zelenskyy has warned that a telephone conversation between Olaf Scholz and Vladimir Putin will open a “Pandora’s box”, after the German chancellor and the Russian leader discussed the war in Ukraine in a rare call on Friday.Scholz urged his Russian counterpart to withdraw troops from Ukraine and negotiate with...

Video showed Charly A, one of 51 men accused of raping Gisèle Pelicot, discussing plan with Dominique PelicotA young vineyard worker accused of raping Gisèle Pelicot on six occasions over four years when she had been drugged by her husband also proposed drugging and raping his own mother, a court has heard.Charly A, 30, is one of 51 men on trial over the rape...

Far-right president may announce country’s departure from agreement after meeting Donald TrumpThere is growing concern that Argentina’s far-right president, Javier Milei, is set to announce his country’s departure from the Paris climate accord.Earlier this week, negotiators from Milei’s government were ordered to leave the Cop29 climate summit in Baku, Azerbaijan, after just three days. Now, the Guardian understands that Milei is considering announcing a...

Ruling coalition in crisis amid claims of racist remarks and speculation government may collapse The violence that erupted on Amsterdam’s streets last week has triggered a political crisis in the Netherlands, with the ruling coalition in turmoil over alleged racist remarks made by government officials during a closed-door meeting to discuss the events.Nora Achahbar, the Moroccan-born secretary for benefits from the centre-right New Social...

Attacks on Thursday night bring total number of emergency workers killed by Israel in Lebanon to more than 200Middle East crisis – live updatesTwenty-one civil defence rescuers have been killed in two Israeli strikes on Lebanon, in one of the deadliest days for rescue workers since the fighting began between Israel and Hezbollah 13 months ago.Thursday night’s airstrikes brought the total number of emergency...