June 4, 2026 — Uncertainty surrounds US-Iran talks, Hezbollah rejects Lebanon-Israel ceasefire plan

• Author Lawrence Wittner argues in a June 1, 2026, article that there is a significant disconnect between nationalist political rhetoric and the actual desires of the global population. • The piece highlights a "curious irony" where politicians frequently belittle international cooperation and rail against foreign nations despite widespread public support for solidarity.

The Men Who Saved the World, the Pulitzer winner’s lost manuscript found in Yale archives, appears in Strand magazineA never-before-published short story by Edith Wharton, the first female Pulitzer prize winner, who encapsulated the so-called gilded age of US society in bestselling novels including The Age of Innocence, received a first public airing on Friday.The Men Who Saved the World, discovered in the author’s archives at Yale University, appears in the Strand, a quarterly magazine that has previously turned up lost or previously unknown works by literary luminaries such as Raymond Chandler, Graham Greene and Tennessee Williams. Continue reading...

King footing bill for Beatrice and Eugenie, and Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh subletting among findingsA report that revealed Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor received undisclosed private income from subletting three cottages on his Royal Lodge estate in Windsor while paying a peppercorn rent to the crown estate also shines a spotlight on the property arrangements of other members of the royal family.The National Audit Office findings include the revelation that King Charles foots the bill for Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie’s accommodation in royal palaces, despite both being “non-working royals” (in that they don’t carry out royal duties), and that the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh also benefited from subletting their crown estate property. Continue reading...

Campaigners say supreme court judgment on deprivation of liberty safeguards introduces ‘regressive legal standard’Severely disabled people will be at heightened risk of abuse in care homes and hospitals after the biggest upheaval in disability law in a generation overturned “vital” legal safeguards, campaigners have warned.They said a supreme court judgment that potentially strips the right of hundreds of thousands of vulnerable people to independent checks on the safety and appropriateness of their care “devalues the dignity of disabled people”. Continue reading...

Shoppers turning to online options also affects BHF, which has carried out review of retail armThe British Heart Foundation is to close about 150 shops and cut jobs, as rising costs and the shift to online shopping makes about a quarter of the charity’s high street locations commercially unsustainable.The charity carried out a review of its retail arm, which employs almost 3,700 staff, after net profit across its 640 UK stores plunged from £18.8m in 2024 to £3.6m in the year to 31 March 2025. Continue reading...

Anwar Ashraf, 39, forced his way into building in Whiteley, where Carla Skeites was workingA man has been jailed for 26 years for attempted murder after he stormed into his ex-partner’s office building and stabbed her 17 times in front of colleagues.Anwar Ashraf, 39, forced his way into the office in Whiteley, Hampshire, where Carla Skeites was working, having bombarded her with messages demanding her to go outside to speak to him. Continue reading...

Government figures show unemployment rate at 4.3% amid rising inflation and economic uncertainty from Iran warUS employers added 172,000 jobs in May while the country’s unemployment rate held steady at 4.3%, a sign of a resilient labor market despite rising inflation and economic uncertainty brought on by continued conflict in the Middle East.Economists initially predicted there would be about 80,000 new jobs and a steady unemployment rate of 4.3%. Job figures for March and April were also revised up 29,000 and 64,000, respectively, a 93,000 boost compared to initial figures. Continue reading...

Proponents say scheme could generate up to £2.7bn in five years by making travel around north of England easier A proposed travel card for northern England modelled on London’s Oyster system could save commuters up to £276 a year, data shows.Users would tap in and out across different transport networks and fares would be automatically capped at the cheapest available rate. Continue reading...

While some residents are proud to host celebrations, others lament road closures and city’s transformation into a ‘theme park’Concetta Chillemi was chatting to friends outside her shop next to Palermo’s gallery for modern art housed in a sublime baroque church in the city’s historic centre. A few metres away, an Italian TV crew had its camera trained on the tiny square in front of the church where event staff in black T-shirts scurried around in the heat.They were preparing for the arrival of the British singer Dua Lipa and the actor Callum Turner, who over the next two days are celebrating their wedding in the Sicilian capital after exchanging vows in London last weekend. Continue reading...

Review detects ‘forever chemicals’ in many of the state’s tested streams and rivers, including drinking water sourcesAround half of California waterways tested by regulators are contaminated with pesticides considered Pfas, “forever chemicals”, a new analysis of state and federal records shows, highlighting a risk in the substances’ wide use that is only beginning to come into focus.The pesticides are linked to a range of health problems, including cancer, and the review is the first to systematically check for the dangerous substances in streams and rivers, which include drinking water sources. Continue reading...

Former student Almunthir Daqamah, 21, due to appear in court on Friday while campus safety officer is in stable condition in hospitalA man has been charged with attempted murder after a staff member was shot with a crossbow at the University of Surrey.Almunthir Daqamah, 21, a Saudi national, has been charged with attempted murder, possession of an offensive weapon, two counts of possession of a bladed article and possession of class B drugs, Surrey police said. Continue reading...