Man in Swindon charged with assisting Russian intelligence agency

• Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro publicly criticized China during the Seoul Defense Dialogue after receiving a note from Chinese officials mid-speech. • Teodoro read the note aloud to the forum, describing the communication regarding South China Sea arbitration as actual coercion and bullying.

• The UN stabilization mission in the Central African Republic reported a gradual return to normal life in Am-Dafock following an attack by armed groups. • The violence killed 29 people and displaced more than 17,000 residents near the border with Sudan.

Spiritual leaders stress diversity of views within Jewish community and warn against inaction on settler violenceProminent British rabbis have backed Ed Miliband’s sanctions on Israeli settlements, warning that the time for inaction on settler violence must come to an end.The intervention comes after the UK’s chief rabbi, the spiritual leader of mainstream Orthodox Jews in the UK, Sir Ephraim Mirvis, described UK sanctions against illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories as a “dark day for British Jews” and warned they could embolden people who “use hatred as a weapon against Jews”. Continue reading...

Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba announces decision to pull out of event in post on X, citing tensions over ‘Harry-Meghan nonsense’Uganda is withdrawing from the Duke of Sussex’s Invictus Games, the country’s military chief said, out of respect for King Charles amid division over the “Harry-Meghan nonsense”.Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, son of the Ugandan president, made the surprise announcement in a post on X on Wednesday. Continue reading...

Analysis of two skeletons reveals tooth wear and traces of psychoactive substance in what may be earliest known evidence for human drug takingWhat may be the earliest known evidence for human drug taking has been traced to ancient Indonesian foragers who sucked on mind-altering nuts as long as 25,000 years ago.Analysis of two exceptionally rare skeletons from the Indonesian island of Sulawesi revealed dramatic tooth wear and traces of a psychoactive substance in the individuals’ remaining teeth, suggesting they routinely sucked on hard, abrasive betel nuts. Continue reading...

Ed Miliband’s intervention was inevitable after Israeli government and security failures, say former ministers and diplomatsProminent Israelis have welcomed new UK sanctions as a necessary response to settlement expansion and spiralling violence in the occupied West Bank.The president of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, a former prime minister, an ex-head of the army and former ministers and diplomats described the intervention as an “inevitable consequence” of Israeli government and security failures. Continue reading...

John Ternus will helm first major event as head of $4.5tn company, alongside new productsJohn Ternus, Apple’s new CEO, will helm the company’s annual showcase of new iPhones and other products on Wednesday. It will be the first time the public will get a feel for the executive, who is filling the shoes of Tim Cook and his predecessor, Steve Jobs, at the $4.5tn tech giant.Not much is publicly known about Ternus’s leadership style, even though he has worked at Apple for 25 years. He has kept a low profile and is known for a calm manner and attention to detail. Ternus started at the company in 2001 and in 2013 became the vice-president of hardware engineering. By 2021, he was heading the entire hardware department. Continue reading...

Scott Bessent made announcement on Wednesday as bond yields rose to highest point since 2008 financial crisisUS politics live – latest updatesThe US treasury will buy back $6bn worth of government debt in an effort to alleviate a sell-off in the US bond market, the treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, announced on Wednesday.Rising inflation and uncertainty from the war in Iran has spooked investors from US bonds, what has historically been known to be one of the safest investment vehicles. Treasury yields have been rising, with the yield for the 30-year treasury bond hitting about 5.2% – the highest yield since the 2008 financial crisis. Continue reading...

UK foreign secretary says international community including US shares ‘frustration’ at Israel’s failure to constrain illegal settlersBritish intelligence has been given assurances by its Israeli counterpart that information sharing with the UK will continue as before, Ed Miliband, the foreign secretary has said. The disclosure counters predictions that his decision to impose a ban on trade with illegal Israeli settlements will lead to a collapse in cooperation between the agencies.The exchanges of information are seen as mutually beneficial and it is understood that Israeli intelligence was never willing to become mired in any political dispute between the two governments. Continue reading...

One researcher who resigned said many in industry believe that without regulation AI could kill off humanityArtificial intelligence could kill off humanity within the decade, according to three researchers with the industry giant Anthropic, one of whom has quit his job in protest.The latest doom-laden predictions came in posts on social media on Tuesday by a researcher who said he resigned because Anthropic and his previous employer, OpenAI, were ignoring or at best mishandling their response to the threat. Continue reading...

Brandon Herrera of state’s 23rd congressional district calls insults against women and unhoused people ‘jokes’A Republican candidate for a key congressional district in Texas has come under scrutiny over a series of derogatory comments made about women in his social media posts and videos.Brandon Herrera, who is the GOP candidate for Texas’s 23rd congressional district, has made a string of insults while fashioning a rightwing online persona as the “AK Guy”, and hosts a YouTube channel with more than 4 million subscribers that tests and reviews firearms. Continue reading...