From Eurovision to the Venice Biennale, culture contests are being overshadowed by politics

Representative Samantha Sencer-Mura leads action after Republican speaker rescinds promise to bring bill to vote Democratic state representatives in Minnesota staged an overnight sit-in in their house chamber on Thursday after the Republican speaker failed to put a gun violence prevention bill up for a vote.Samantha Sencer-Mura, a Democratic representative from Minneapolis, first announced the plan on Wednesday from the floor of the state’s house of representatives, giving speaker Lisa Demuth, a candidate for governor, 24 hours to give the bill a vote before the sit-in would start. Continue reading...

State oil company fast-tracks previously undisclosed project, which is expected to double export capacityBusiness live – latest updatesThe United Arab Emirates has announced it will complete a new oil pipeline bypassing the strait of Hormuz by next year to secure its future crude exports against the threat of disruption.The current blockade of the vital waterway, through which 20% of oil and seaborne gas flowed before the Iran war, is approaching the 11-week mark, sending energy prices soaring around the world and throttling Gulf economies. Continue reading...

Concerns raised that cases were caused by a new strain of the virus as African health officials race to coordinate and contain the infectionAn outbreak of Ebola has killed 65 people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, according to African health officials.There have been 246 suspected cases of the deadly haemorrhagic fever reported so far in Ituri province, which shares borders with Uganda and South Sudan. Continue reading...

The president’s ultimate goal is to push the Fed – among other independent US institutions – to bend to his willJerome Powell, who stepped down this week as chair of the Federal Reserve, had his hits and misses. The Fed was late to react as prices started rising when the Covid pandemic abated, but they eventually acted forcefully and achieved the most rare of feats: a “soft landing”, curbing inflation without sparking a recession or damaging employment.Strangely, given the chaotic era of pandemic and tariffs that coincided with Powell’s time as chair, monetary policy may not define his legacy. Powell’s most lasting accomplishment will most likely be his outspoken efforts to defend the independence of the Fed from an assault by the imperial presidency of Donald Trump. Continue reading...

Exclusive: DHS made social media posts out of a protester’s arrest at gunpoint. Christian Cerna speaks out about the lengthy prosecution that derailed his lifeChristian Cerna, 28, was driving with his partner and their two young children through Los Angeles, when two vehicles rammed his car and a group of men jumped out and trained their guns on them.It was 11 June 2025, and as Cerna exited his vehicle with his hands raised, he realized the masked men weren’t street criminals as he initially feared. They were Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. Continue reading...

Large-scale attack on Russian regions and huge oil refinery comes after 24 were killed when missile hit flats in KyivUkraine has launched a large-scale long-range drone attack targeting several regions in Russia including the huge Ryazan oil refinery, after several days of massive strikes by Moscow against Ukraine.Kyiv’s attack on Friday followed three days of drone and missile attacks on Ukraine, including on the capital, Kyiv, where a cruise missile hit an apartment block on Thursday, killing 24 people including three children. Continue reading...

China calls for ceasefire and opening of seaway, while Donald Trump says Xi feels ‘very similar’ about ending the war in IranTrump in China – latest updatesDonald Trump has claimed that the US and China “feel very similar” about ending the war in Iran but offered no details about a possible breakthrough.The US president was speaking alongside Xi Jinping of China at the Zhongnanhai garden in Beijing on the second and final day of the leaders’ summit. Continue reading...

Statement follows speculation party would not field candidate in Makerfield or barely fight seat UK politics live – latest updatesThe Greens are going to campaign for the upcoming Makerfield byelection, complicating Andy Burnham’s potential route back to parliament against what is expected to be a strong Reform UK challenge.A statement from the Greens said candidate selection was in process, and that the party had learned from its win in another Greater Manchester seat in February, when they overcame a 13,000 Labour majority in Gorton and Denton. Continue reading...

Record heat in North and Central America coincides with egg-sized hailstones in eastern ChinaExtreme weather across several parts of the world this week has brought record-breaking temperatures to Honduras, North America and Indonesia.Honduras smashed its all-time May maximum temperature record earlier this month – only for it to be broken again on 13 May in Choluteca, known as the furnace of Central America. Temperatures climbed to 42.2C (107.9F), surpassing the previous record of 42.1C. With intense heat forecast to persist over the coming weeks, more records are expected to fall. Continue reading...

All victims of US strikes in eastern Pacific and the Caribbean identified so far came from extremely poor communitiesSign up for the Breaking News US newsletter emailA five-month investigation has named 13 previously unidentified victims of US attacks on boats allegedly carrying narcotics in a campaign that has killed nearly 200 people in the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific.It is unclear if the US has ever identified any of its 194 victims before attacking them, and the names of just three had previously emerged, after their families launched legal cases against the White House. Continue reading...

Tube stoppages due on two 24-hour periods from midday on Tuesday and Thursday next week but sources say RMT seeking talksHopes have been raised that next week’s strikes by London Underground drivers could yet be averted, after sources said the RMT union had put out feelers for talks.The RMT members, almost half of London’s Tube drivers, are due to strike for two 24-hour periods from midday on Tuesday and Thursday, closing some lines entirely and bringing widespread travel disruption to the capital until the weekend. Continue reading...

Homework, social pressure and jobs still keep teens up but now screen time and social media rob their sleepA new study from the University of Minnesota School of Public Health shows that today’s teenagers are sleeping less than ever before.The findings, which appeared in Pediatrics, showed a consistent decline in sleep across every age category. The latest figures revealed record-low sleep levels for all groups, with only 22% of older adolescents saying they slept at least seven hours each night. Continue reading...