Martin Scorsese’s film about Pope Francis to receive world premiere in Vatican City

• US naval forces seized an Iranian-flagged cargo ship near the Strait of Hormuz, prompting Iran to label the action as 'bullying behaviour' and 'act of piracy'. • The operation occurred two days before a two-week ceasefire with Iran was set to expire, amid fragile diplomatic efforts and threats of retaliation. • Tehran insists on securing freedom of navigation in the strait, vital for one-fifth of global oil trade, before engaging in US talks, heightening energy security risks.

• Iran shot down a US F-15E fighter jet over Iranian territory, representing a major battlefield setback in escalating tensions. • President Trump reacted with hours of intense exchanges with aides, reported by The Wall Street Journal as a full meltdown. • The incident underscores growing military confrontations amid collapsing ceasefire and stalled US-Iran diplomacy.

• US-Iran ceasefire talks collapsed in Pakistan, raising doubts over Army Chief Asim Munir's role as mediator despite Trump's prior praise. • Concerns in US national security circles focus on Munir's alleged IRGC ties, questioning his neutrality. • Tehran refuses further Islamabad-hosted talks, pressuring Pakistan's diplomatic standing.

• Iran launched drone attacks targeting US warships in retaliation for the seizure of an Iranian cargo vessel in the Strait of Hormuz. • The strikes mark a sharp escalation, with both sides issuing warnings as a fragile ceasefire nears expiry and diplomacy falters. • Fears mount of wider regional conflict disrupting global oil flows through the world's critical waterway.

Michelle Sadio, 44, was shot near the River of Life Pentecostal church in Willesden in 2024Two men have been found guilty of murdering an innocent woman and injuring two more people in a drive-by shooting outside a wake.Michelle Sadio, a mother of two, was shot outside the River of Life Pentecostal church in Willesden in north London on 14 December 2024. She had been among about 100 mourners, including children as young as five, at the wake for 80-year-old Dianne Boatong. Continue reading...

The podcaster admits he ‘misled’ supporters as his rift with the US president deepens over the Iran warUS politics live – latest updatesTucker Carlson, a Conservative podcaster, has said he is “tormented” by his support of Donald Trump, issuing in an extraordinary mea culpa that called for “a moment to wrestle with our own consciences”.Carlson delivered that comment in a conversation with Buckley Carlson, his brother and a former Trump speechwriter, on The Tucker Carlson Show on Monday that reviewed the new money takeover of the traditional conservative values in a Republican party now dominated by the president. Continue reading...

Sacked Foreign Office chief tells MPs he was briefed that UKSV considered Mandelson ‘a borderline case’UK politics live – latest updatesAn account of Peter Mandelson’s vetting process given by the former top civil servant Sir Olly Robbins has raised new questions about whether Robbins was misled about the findings of the agency responsible for vetting.Robbins, who was sacked from his role of permanent secretary at the Foreign Office last week after revelations in the Guardian, gave testimony about the process to a select committee. Continue reading...

Seven held over alleged plot to commit another attack and man held over drone incident near Israeli embassySeven more people have been arrested after a series of arson attacks on Jewish sites in London.The Metropolitan police said the suspects were arrested in the past 48 hours over an alleged conspiracy to commit a further arson attack, although the specific target is not yet known. Continue reading...

Civil rights group logs 300% yearly rise from before war and says ‘authoritarian repression … went into overdrive’A civil rights group dedicated to the defense of pro-Palestinian speech said that requests for legal assistance linked to Palestine-related activism in the US continues to far surpass pre-2023 levels, having logged 300% more requests for support last year than in any year prior to Israel’s war in Gaza.Palestine Legal logged some 1,131 requests in 2025. That was less than the record 2,184 requests it received in 2024, amid the peak of student protests and encampments, but well above its yearly average prior to the October 7 2023 Hamas attacks and Israel’s response in Gaza. Continue reading...

Under settlement, Sackler family will pay state, local and Native American tribal governments, individual victims and othersSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxA judge is expected to sentence OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma to forfeit $225m to the US justice department on Tuesday, clearing the way for the company to finalize a settlement of thousands of lawsuits it faces over its role in the opioid crisis.The penalty was agreed to in a 2020 pact to resolve federal civil and criminal investigations it was facing. If the judge signs off, other penalties will not be collected in return for Purdue settling the other lawsuits. Continue reading...

Home secretary accuses protesters of trying to ‘delegitimise’ concerns people have over immigrationShabana Mahmood has told “white liberal” hecklers to “fuck right off” after being accused at an on-stage event of copying the policies of Nigel Farage’s Reform UK.The home secretary was barracked by a man who said he wanted to “personally thank you for out-Reforming Reform” during a live interview in central London on Monday. Two other audience members shouted “refugees welcome” as the man was removed by security. Continue reading...

French musician’s comments are in stark contrast to fears expressed by artists such as Elton John and Dua LipaJean-Michel Jarre has attacked the conservatism of the music and film industries over AI and urged them to embrace the technology instead of being fearful and “very anti-AI”.Jarre, one of the pioneers of electronic music in the 1970s, said while the existing creative industries were “freaking out” over the technology, artists would use AI “to create the cinema of tomorrow, the hip-hop of tomorrow, the techno of tomorrow, the rock’n’roll of tomorrow”. Continue reading...