Some of the world’s poorest countries to lose UK aid due to 56% budget cut

• Thousands of TSA agents called out sick on March 19, 2026, protesting ongoing delays in wage payments despite federal funding. • The mass absenteeism disrupts airport security nationwide, coinciding with surging travel demands and war-related alerts. • Labor issues risk compromising U.S. aviation safety at a critical time, prompting emergency federal intervention calls.

• FBI sources report analyzing an apparent improvised explosive device (IED) left outside the visitor center at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, amid heightened security concerns linked to the Iran war. • The device was discovered on March 19, 2026, prompting a federal investigation by the FBI's National Counterterrorism Center, though no group has claimed responsibility. • This incident heightens fears of domestic terror threats tied to escalating Middle East conflicts, potentially straining U.S. military installations.

• A New York Times investigation on March 19, 2026, alleges civil rights icon Cesar Chavez groomed and sexually abused teenage girls in the farmworkers movement. • Sources detail multiple accounts of abuse during the 1970s, challenging Chavez's legacy as a labor hero. • The revelations prompt reevaluation of U.S. civil rights history and calls for institutional accountability.

• A University of Alabama student disappeared in Spain while on spring break, with foul play fears growing as of March 19, 2026. • U.S. authorities and Spanish police are searching for the student, last seen in a popular tourist area, amid reports of potential abduction risks. • The case underscores vulnerabilities for American travelers abroad during global tensions, drawing State Department involvement.

• The U.S. Federal Reserve decided to hold interest rates steady on March 19, 2026, in its first move since oil prices spiked due to the Iran war. • Officials cite inflationary pressures from energy disruptions but project stability if conflict de-escalates. • The decision impacts American consumers facing higher gas prices, influencing mortgage and loan rates nationwide.

Badr Albusaidi claims Israel convinced Donald Trump to make the ‘grave miscalculation’ of waging war on IranMiddle East crisis – live updatesOman’s foreign minister has claimed the US has “lost control of its own foreign policy” and accused Israel of persuading Donald Trump’s administration to go to war with Iran – a conflict he described as a “catastrophe” and “grave miscalculation”.Writing in the Economist, Badr Albusaidi, the Omani minister who mediated the latest nuclear talks between Iran and the US, offered an unusually damning assessment of events leading up to the US and Israel’s bombing of Iran and the war that it has triggered across the Middle East. Continue reading...

Conservative leader says debate not about freedom of religion, but its expression in shared public spaceUK politics live – latest updatesKemi Badenoch has backed her shadow justice secretary, Nick Timothy, after he claimed that Islamic prayers taking place in public are intimidating and un-British, with Labour saying the Conservatives had embraced the “gutter” politics of prejudice.The row began after Timothy posted images on social media of prayer at a Ramadan event in London’s Trafalgar Square, saying mass prayer in public places was “an act of domination” and “straight from the Islamist playbook”. Continue reading...

Academics discover black people ‘significantly more likely’ to be identified when compared with other ethnic groupsEssex police has paused its use of live facial recognition (LFR) technology after a study found cameras were significantly more likely to target black people than people of other ethnicities.The move to suspend use of the AI-enabled systems was revealed by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), which regulates the use of the technology deployed so far by at least 13 police forces in London, south and north Wales, Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Hampshire, Bedfordshire, Suffolk, Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, Surrey and Sussex. Continue reading...

Lovehoney sponsors Aphrodite-themed ‘pleasure garden’ full of flowers associated with love and sexIt is one of the most prestigious events of the UK social calendar, but the great and good attending Chelsea flower show may be in for a shock this year as the Royal Horticultural Society unveils a sex-themed garden sponsored by a company that sells vibrators.Lovehoney, a sex toy company, is sponsoring an Aphrodite-themed “pleasure garden” full of flowers and plants associated with love and sex.Chelsea flower show will be held at the Royal Hospital Gardens from 19-23 May. Continue reading...

US defense secretary suggests Thursday will be ‘largest strike package yet … death and destruction from above’ Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxThe US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, said on Thursday there is no “timeframe” for ending the US war against Iran and did not deny reports that the Pentagon could seek an extra $200bn in taxpayer funding.The military US-Israeli offensive began three weeks ago and continues to widen. Donald Trump threatened on Wednesday to “massively blow up” the world’s biggest gasfield after Israeli strikes on the Iranian site prompted Tehran to escalate strikes on oil and gas facilities around the Persian Gulf. Continue reading...

On second anniversary of his sister ending her life at Dignitas, Tony Marra will protest outside parliament with other campaignersTwo years after Paola Marra, on the eve of her death, appealed to politicians to change the law on assisted dying, the terminally ill adults (end of life) bill is stuck in the House of Lords. For her brother, the second anniversary of her death will be spent protesting outside parliament.Marra died aged 53 on 20 March 2024. She documented her solo journey from north London to Dignitas in Switzerland in photographs and a short film by the photographer Rankin, released posthumously, as well as in a powerful interview with the Guardian. Continue reading...

Reform leader ‘unavailable’ on service after Guardian investigation unearths clips of him repeating extremist slogansFarage videos reveal support for rioter, neo-Nazi event and far-right slogansNigel Farage has stopped using the personalised video platform Cameo after revelations that the Reform UK leader has filmed a string of highly questionable paid-for clips.On Thursday morning, Farage’s page on the website said he was “unavailable”, and sources said he had ended his use of the platform over security concerns. Continue reading...