Suspected gunman was likely targeting White House officials at press dinner, acting attorney general says

Alex Greenwich says inquest crucial to understand what failures led to Bikram Lama’s death and avoid similar deaths Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe New South Wales attorney-general, Michael Daley, has been urged to order an inquest into the death of Nepali rough sleeper Bikram Lama in Hyde Park.The death of Lama – who was also known as “the birdman” for his love of the area’s pigeons – has prompted widespread calls for change, after Guardian Australia revealed last week that the young migrant’s body lay unnoticed for up to a week in bushes near a busy thoroughfare into St James station. Continue reading...

Police say attack in Dunmurry in which no one was hurt shows ‘murderous intent still exists’ in paramilitaries“Murderous intent and capability” still exists within paramilitaries in Northern Ireland, officers have said after a car exploded outside a police station on the outskirts of Belfast.Detectives said they believed the New IRA was involved and are treating it as attempted murder. Continue reading...

Special session comes after Virginia voted to redraw maps and as Trump pressures Republicans to protect House majorityFlorida begins a special session on Tuesday in what may be the last front of the redistricting war before the 2026 election, with Republicans trying to redraw maps to pick up more seats in Congress.Lawmakers enter the session in Tallahassee cloaked in mystery, with no preview of a proposed map to consider and no clear path for Republicans to increase their representation in what appears to be a hostile year for their party. Continue reading...

Trade union criticises airline’s plan to halve passenger numbers to the city as ‘purely profit-oriented’ Ryanair is to shut its Berlin operating base and cut its winter schedule to the German capital in half, blaming its decision on soaring aviation taxes in the country.The Irish budget carrier said its relocation of seven aircraft to other centres would reduce its Berlin passenger numbers from 4.5 million to 2.2 million a year, with flights in and out of the city served from October by planes based at other airports. Continue reading...

Shooting reveals how political violence has become feature of American life on a night dedicated to press freedomAhead of this year’s White House correspondents’ dinner, conversations centered on the role of the media and freedom of the press as journalists prepared to dine with the president.Instead of a speech stacked with heated barbs against the media, the event ended like many in the US do: with gun violence. Continue reading...

Prime minister has shed trusted staffers but can still turn to many genuine friends in and out of governmentGiven that the signs of an embattled premiership are all around – defensive-sounding interviews insisting he will be in post at the next election; a rush of stories about supposed cabinet plotting – now, more than ever, Keir Starmer needs real allies. And here, at least, there is something to feel positive about.If you talk to most Labour MPs, Starmer most likely will not lead Labour into the next election. He may even not remain in No 10 much beyond a set of Scottish, Welsh and local English elections on 7 May, which are expected to be disastrous for his party. Continue reading...

Researchers find ‘alarming’ effect on fertility across global species from simultaneous exposuresSimultaneous exposure to toxic chemicals and climate change’s impacts likely generates an additive or synergistic effect that increases reproductive harm, and may contribute to the broad global drop in fertility, new peer-reviewed research finds.The review of scientific literature considers how endocrine-disrupting chemicals, often found in plastic, coupled with climate change’s effects, such as heat stress, are each linked to reductions in fertility and fecundity across global species – including in humans, wildlife and invertebrates. Continue reading...

Liz Conmy’s death ‘is a profound loss’, Democratic party affiliate says following crash shortly after takeoffA small plane crashed just after taking off from Crystal airport north of Minneapolis on Saturday, killing a North Dakota state legislator and the pilot, authorities said.Liz Conmy, a North Dakota state representative from Fargo, was killed in the crash, her colleague, state senator Tim Mathern, told the Star Tribune. Continue reading...

Prime minister says his job is not at risk over Mandelson vetting as allies back him against claims of wrongdoingKeir Starmer has said he will lead Labour into the next general election as his Downing Street allies denied claims of any wrongdoing over the appointment and vetting of Peter Mandelson as US ambassador.Darren Jones, the chief secretary to the prime minister, told Sky News’s Trevor Phillips on Sunday show that “no wrongdoing by the prime minister has been proven in relation to Lord Mandelson’s appointment”, adding “the whole situation is regrettable”. Continue reading...

Law enforcement agencies name Cole Tomas Allen as Trump posts video of man sprinting through checkpoint at hotelUS politics live – latest updatesLaw enforcement agencies have identified Cole Tomas Allen of Torrance, southern California, a suburb of Los Angeles, as the suspected gunman arrested at the White House correspondents’ dinner in Washington DC on Saturday night.Allen, 31, has no record of criminal charges or a civil court history in Los Angeles county, according to a records search. Continue reading...

Experts fear losing ground to virus even as the end of the HIV epidemic is in sight, and say decline in infant testing is ‘particularly concerning’The US government released likely the last report from Pepfar (President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief) earlier this month and the chief science officer announced his resignation days later as the US moves to a patchwork of individual partnerships with each country, potentially driven by resource extraction.While more leadership with other countries has long been the goal with global HIV efforts, experts fear the US is moving too quickly without being able to monitor its efforts as well as it has done with Pepfar for more than two decades. They fear losing ground to the virus even as the end of the HIV epidemic is in sight. Continue reading...