Homeland security agent charged with child rape in Alabama, officials say

• The Taliban’s Ministry of Mines and Petroleum signed a major oil and gas exploration and production agreement with the Saudi company Delta Energy in Kabul. • The deal focuses on the exploration and production of energy resources within Afghanistan.

Cameron Stanley talks up ‘revolutionary’ AI capabilities and says Washington working with Nato and Five Eyes partnersThe Pentagon’s top artificial intelligence official said on Tuesday that America’s closest allies lack the resources to keep pace with the US military’s adoption of AI, and that Washington is working to steer them away from mistakes it made along the way.“They don’t have the resources that we do, they don’t have the experience that we do, they don’t have the scale that we do,” Cameron Stanley, chief digital and artificial intelligence officer at the Department of War, said at an event at the Billington Cybersecurity summit. Of Nato and the Five Eyes, an intelligence-sharing partnership of the US, UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, Stanley said Washington was “actively working with a number of our partners” so “they don’t make the same mistakes that we make”. Continue reading...

Republicans plan to center the US president at the two-day event, while slamming Democrats as socialistsRepublicans will gather in Texas on Wednesday for a rare “midterm convention”, as they attempt to convince Americans to vote for a party led by a deeply unpopular president who has overseen price increases, inflation, and led the US into an increasingly unpopular war.Donald Trump will dominate the two-day convention, appearing both nights as the GOP works to cling to control of the House of Representatives in November. Republicans plan to put the president at the center of the event, a bold strategy given his approval rating is hovering at about 38%, while accusing the Democratic party as being socialist and out of touch with Americans. Continue reading...

Foreign secretary says Sir Ephraim Mirvis wrong to suggest measures against Israeli settlements will make British Jews less safeUK politics live – latest updatesEd Miliband has rejected warnings from the UK’s chief rabbi that the government’s sanctions against illegal Israeli settlements will make British Jews less safe, as he stressed ministers can confront the actions of Benjamin Netanyahu’s government while also fighting antisemitism.The foreign secretary announced sweeping sanctions on trade with Israeli settlements in the West Bank on Tuesday, with the government taking the position that Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territory was unlawful.An import ban on goods from illegal settlements in the occupied territories and a new ban for arms licences and other exports that “materially contribute to the occupation”.A comprehensive sanctions regime against providing services such as construction or financing for Israeli settlements and a ban on advertising them in the UK.Personal sanctions against key individuals accused of promoting settler violence.A new ban for arms licences and other exports that “materially contribute to the occupation”. Continue reading...

NSW police say a vehicle was seen driving away from the scene in Punchbowl in the city’s south-westA man has been shot dead in a carpark of a Sydney community centre in the city’s south-west.Emergency services were called to the community centre on Rossmore Avenue, in Punchbowl on Wednesday evening, following reports of a shooting. Continue reading...

New roles at Woking-based manufacturer will include positions for indirect and agency workersThe British supercar manufacturer McLaren is to create 1,000 jobs in a welcome boost to the UK’s struggling automotive industry.The carmaker is creating the jobs as part of a £450m investment in its technology centre in Woking, near to the plant where it manufactures all of its vehicles. Continue reading...

Andrew Frederick’s body was found in property he was staying at in Grenada in JanuaryThe family of a British father who was found dead in the Caribbean in January is urging authorities in Grenada to work with UK police to uncover the truth about his death.Andrew Frederick’s body was found in the property he was staying at in Grenada on 4 January. An autopsy, performed in the same week by a privately hired pathologist, concluded that the 47-year-old’s death was a homicide. Continue reading...

Funding from $560m invitation-only scheme prompts calls to make grant rules more transparentGet our new political email, free app or daily news podcastAnthony Albanese has claimed he did not know he was a member of his local golf club when his government gave it $6m for renovations, accusing the ABC of inappropriate reporting.The money came from an opaque $560m invitation-only grants scheme to fund projects Labor promised at the 2025 election, largely for Labor-held seats, prompting calls to make grant rules more transparent.Sign up for Guardian Australia’s Politics, really newsletter here Continue reading...

UK foreign secretary ‘regrets’ Israel’s response to ban on trade with illegal settlements but ‘proud’ of his actionsUK accuses Israeli ‘terrorists’ of ethnic cleansing in West Bank with government backingGood morning. Yesterday Ed Miliband, the foreign secretary, made what may turn out to be one of the most important Commons statements of the year. Here is our overnight report by Pippa Crerar, Jessica Elgot and Kiran Stacey.Here is an analysis by Patrick Wintour, the Guardian’s diplomatic editor. Continue reading...

Martin Rolfe, who faces pressure to resign, due to brief Heidi Alexander after cancellations hit 1,300Business live – latest updatesThe boss of the air traffic control provider Nats has been summoned to meet the UK transport secretary as the number of flight cancellations hit 1,300 in a second day of disruption for hundreds of thousands of passengers.Martin Rolfe, who is facing increasing pressure to resign over a third major stoppage to flights in just over three years, is due to brief Heidi Alexander on Wednesday. Continue reading...

Ukrainian leader calls for more action from allies following overnight attacks in which two people diedAt least two people died were injured in Russian attacks on Ukraine overnight, with Volodymyr Zelenskyy saying “there has been too little response from the international community to these strikes.”Two people were killed, three injured and 16 evacuated after a strike on the Starokozache border crossing with Moldova. Four people were injured after a Russian drone struck an apartment building in Kyiv. More strikes were reported in Dnipro, Mykolaiv, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia and Zhytomyr. Continue reading...