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• Diplomacy between Tehran and Washington has accelerated after weeks of escalation, with regional mediators helping drive a new round of Iran-U.S. talks. • The reporting says the confrontation follows more than six weeks of disruption tied to Iran’s pressure on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and a U.S.-enforced naval blockade.

• The Center for Strategic and International Studies hosted a press briefing previewing the upcoming summit between President Trump and Xi Jinping, with Taiwan expected to be a central issue. • CSIS said Xi highlighted Taiwan as the most important issue in U.S.-China relations during a February 2026 phone call and urged Washington not to provide arms to Taiwan.

Classic starring Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing will include footage censors decided was too gruesomeHammer Films’ horror masterpiece Dracula is to be re-released in UK cinemas in October, including footage believed to have been lost for more than six decades after it was deemed too gruesome for audiences.The 1958 movie from starring Christopher Lee as Count Dracula and Peter Cushing as Doctor Van Helsing has been fully restored in 4K. Continue reading...

Russia says arrest of Bishop Hilarion, who heads Orthodox congregation in Karlovy Vary, was politically motivated ‘setup’Czech police have released a Russian Orthodox bishop who had been detained on suspicion of drug possession, after Moscow condemned the arrest as a politically motivated setup.Bishop Hilarion, also known by his secular name Grigory Alfeyev, was stopped by police on Sunday in Karlovy Vary, a spa town in western Czechia popular with Russian tourists, after officers discovered containers holding a white substance in the boot of his car. Continue reading...

Joanna Howe says the image was sent to her by a woman ashamed of her abortion, and used it to support ‘rally for Emma and Ruth’ in favour of NSW billGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAn image posted by anti-abortion activist Joanna Howe claiming to show aborted twin girls called “Ruth and Emma” appears to be a picture of sugar gliders.The two little pink bodies are displayed on a clean white background and experts say the image does not look at all like the product of an abortion. Continue reading...

Trial of former DUP leader is expected to last four weeks and is among the most high-profile in Northern Ireland in recent yearsThe jury in Jeffrey Donaldson’s trial for alleged sex offences has been sworn in, launching one of the most high-profile trials in recent Northern Irish history.The former MP and Democratic Unionist party leader entered Newry crown court on Tuesday amid a heavy police and media presence for a trial that is expected to last about four weeks. Continue reading...

Panels of three judges says congressional map was drawn to intentionally discriminate against Black votersAlabama cannot use a new Republican-friendly map in this year’s midterm elections because it was drawn to intentionally discriminate against Black voters, a panel of three federal judges ruled on Tuesday.The decision blocks Alabama from using a congressional map lawmakers passed in 2023 but never went into effect because the same court found it was drawn with intent to discriminate. Alabama was eventually ordered to adopt a map with two majority-Black districts that both elected Democrats After the US supreme court gutted a major provision of the Voting Rights Act in April, Alabama took the extraordinary step of moving its imminent congressional primary and sought to use the 2023 congressional map this year. Continue reading...

Temperature reaches 35C at Heathrow on Tuesday after 34.8C high at Kew Gardens in London on MondayTell us: how are you coping in the UK heatwave?The UK has recorded its highest-ever May temperature for the second consecutive day, as thermometers hit 35C (95F) at Heathrow and Kew Gardens in London, the Met Office said.The latest high was recorded the day after the country’s provisional hottest meteorological spring temperature of 34.8C in Kew Gardens in south-west London. The previous May peak of 32.8C had stood since 1922. Continue reading...

Janice Nix convicted of manslaughter after brother of Andrea Bernard alters account of incident in 1978A woman has been found guilty of killing her five-year-old stepdaughter by punishing her in a scalding hot bath almost 50 years ago.Andrea Bernard’s death in 1978 in Thornton Heath, south London, was treated as an accident until her older brother, Desmond Bernard, went to police in 2022 with a new account of what happened, Isleworth crown court heard. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Police data shows 21% of the 949 people detained in England and Northern Ireland were later accused of violence against intimate partnerOne out of every five people arrested after their participation in the 2024 summer riots has since been reported to the police for domestic abuse, the Guardian can disclose.Police data released under freedom of information (FoI) laws shows that 21% of 949 people arrested for taking part in the violent disorder have been reported for crimes associated with intimate partner violence since August 2024. Continue reading...

Prediction sites, which allow bets on all topics from weather to politics, may be in breach of country’s rulesSpain’s ministry of consumer rights has blocked access to Polymarket and Kalshi while it investigates whether the leading prediction market sites are violating Spanish law by operating without a gambling licence.On Tuesday the ministry said it had launched disciplinary proceedings against the two platforms, which allow users to bet on everything from the weather to political events, amid allegations that they lacked the “necessary administrative authorisation” to operate in Spain. Continue reading...