Starmer says UK wants to help reopen strait of Hormuz as route closes again

The prime minister will hold talks with his opposite number to shore fuel suppliesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastPenny Wong says the US-Iran ceasefire is fragile but must hold for the sake of the world economy and energy markets.Speaking on ABC’s 7.30, the foreign minister said there were obvious differences between the two parties but the potential downsides to the truce failing meant it was imperative that it worked.This ceasefire is fragile, there’s no doubt about that. The ceasefire is fragile but the world does need it to hold. There are obviously substantial points of difference between the parties. But I think we all know that the damage that is happening to the global economy, to global energy markets, means that the world does need this ceasefire to hold.And you know, I spoke early on to Singapore, to Korea, to Malaysia, the Prime Minister, as you said, is going to Singapore, we’ve seen one announcement already and we will continue to work with them. I spoke to the Japanese foreign minister just before this interview, we want to keep engaging with our counterparts, because this is a very large shock to global energy markets, and one that will continue to have an effect.I can understand people being really concerned about what is happening on global markets and what has happened in the Middle East, and the way this has escalated, which is why we have been saying for some time, it’s time for de-escalation. Continue reading...

Loyalists rush to defend president for ‘outsmarting the critics’ but others decry deal as ‘a negative for our country’Donald Trump’s acceptance of a two-week ceasefire in Iran has exposed fresh divisions in his Make America Great Again (Maga) movement, with some supporters expressing vindication and others accusing the US president of betrayal.The US and Iran both claimed victory after the two countries agreed to pause hostilities following more than a month of war. But the strait of Hormuz remained closed on Wednesday and fighting was still taking place as Israel launched its biggest attacks yet on Lebanon. Continue reading...

Paul Solway ignited explosion that damaged total of six terrace houses in Derby after his partner had kicked him out A man who blew up a terrace house by causing gas to leak from a pipe and setting fire to a chair after his partner kicked him out has been jailed for 11 years.Paul Solway was having a “meltdown” when he caused the explosion at his partner Joanne Waterfall’s home in Alvaston in Derby on the evening of 10 June last year. Continue reading...

Delo, pardoned by Trump after violating US banking law, describes himself as champion of free speechA British billionaire convicted in the US for failing to implement adequate anti-money-laundering controls in his cryptocurrency business has given £4m to Nigel Farage’s Reform UK.Ben Delo, 42, who is now based in Hong Kong, wrote in the Telegraph that he had made the donation since the start of the year, before the government’s cap on donations to political parties by British citizens living abroad. Continue reading...

Situation still volatile as Tehran and Washington issue conflicting messages about opening of Hormuz channelA plunge in the oil price, stock market rally and renewed hopes for the global economic outlook. After the announcement of a two-week ceasefire in the Iran war, the relief in financial markets was palpable. But it is far from absolute.For the past six weeks, the economic damage had been steadily mounting, as the effective closure of the strait of Hormuz by Tehran triggered the worst energy crisis of the modern era. Continue reading...

Over 70 Democratic lawmakers are calling for amendment to be invoked to remove Trump from office amid warDemocratic party leaders have vowed to renew the effort to curb Donald Trump’s war in Iran next week after several days of escalating tactics that culminated in a temporary ceasefire on Tuesday evening.In recent months, several war powers resolutions have failed in Congress after a handful of Democrats continued to vote alongside Republicans. But Trump’s aggressive overtures this week – including a Truth Social post that said “a whole civilization” could be wiped out if Iran didn’t agree to demands, have pushed some to act. Continue reading...

Attorney general says court ruling against Chad Bianco ‘reins in the destabilizing actions of a rogue sheriff’The California supreme court on Wednesday ordered a county sheriff and gubernatorial candidate who seized more than half a million 2025 election ballots to pause his investigation into election fraud allegations while the judges review the legal challenge against it.The order came after the California attorney general, Rob Bonta, last month asked the court to step in, arguing the sheriff has no authority over election materials. A voting rights group is also challenging the ballot seizure. Continue reading...

Pakistani officials defy the skeptics to lead a breakthrough in negotiations and help avert catastrophe in Iran Middle East crisis – live updatesPakistan’s leaders had almost lost hope. After more than two weeks of frantic negotiations, phonecalls and diplomatic summits to try to end the US-Israeli war with Iran, it looked like the conflict might instead be escalating into Islamabad’s worst nightmare.In a cabinet meeting held around 5pm on Tuesday, Pakistan’s prime minister Shehbaz Sharif was morose. “We should brace ourselves for the impact of the war,” he told his cabinet ministers. “The situation has really become very bleak. The chance of peace has become dim.” Continue reading...

Dozens of dogs were found crammed into single living room space at property in undisclosed location in UKMore than 250 dogs have been found at a property in scenes so shocking that the RSPCA was forced to deny allegations that the images were faked by artificial intelligence.The animal welfare charity said it took in 87 dogs from the property at an undisclosed location in the UK and the remainder went to the Dogs Trust, another charity. Continue reading...

New York Times report claimed London-born Adam Back was creator of the cryptocurrency after comparing writingsA British computer scientist has insisted that he is not the elusive developer of bitcoin after a report claimed to unmask him as its creator.The story, in the New York Times, details a years-long effort to unmask Satoshi Nakamoto, the mysterious author of the bitcoin whitepaper which laid the theoretical foundations for modern digital currencies. Continue reading...

High of 26.5C recorded in Kew Gardens in south-west London, but rain and cooler conditions are on the wayMany across the UK witnessed soaring temperatures as the country recorded its warmest day of the year so far – and one of the hottest April days in the last 80 years.Temperatures reached a high of 26.5C (79.7F) in Kew Gardens, south-west London, on Wednesday, the Met Office said. It was the hottest day recorded in the first half of April since 1946, according to the forecaster. Continue reading...