US Deploys 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit and USS Tripoli to Middle East

Death comes two months after Alford was jailed for eight-and-a-half years for sexually assaulting two teenage girlsThe actor John Alford has died in prison two months after being jailed for sexually assaulting two teenage girls. Alford, 54, was jailed for eight-and-a-half years in January after he was found guilty of the assaults which occurred during a party at a friend’s home. The actor, who appeared in the drama London’s Burning and BBC show Grange Hill, died at HMP Bure, Norfolk, on Friday, the Prison Service said. Alford, who was tried under his real name, John Shannon, was convicted of four counts of sexual activity with a 14-year-old girl and charges of sexual assault and assault by penetration relating to a 15-year-old girl at a property in Hertfordshire in 2022. Jurors heard during the trial that he had sexually assaulted the girls while they were drunk after a night out at the pub. A Prison Service spokesperson said: “John Shannon died in prison on March 13 2026. “As with all deaths in custody, the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman will investigate.” Continue reading...

Six-day state tour includes visits to Canberra, Melbourne and Hobart and aims to deepen trade tiesDanish royals Frederik and Mary have kicked off their first trip to Australia since taking the throne in the nation’s red centre.The six-day state tour, which includes visits to Canberra, Melbourne and Hobart, aims to deepen trade ties between Queen Mary’s adopted and home countries. Continue reading...

US Central Command says crash followed unspecified incident, and second refueling tanker landed safely in IsraelThe names of two of the six US service members who died when the military refueling aircraft they were aboard crashed over Iraq last week were made public Saturday, revealing a father who had recently been promoted and a beloved son.The Ohio air national guard said that three of the service members came from its 121st air refueling wing in Columbus, while a family from Birmingham, Alabama, confirmed that pilot Alex Klinner was killed in the crash. Continue reading...

Bahrain circuit only 20 miles from targeted US baseRaces unlikely to be replaced because of logisticsFormula One has cancelled the Bahrain and Saudi Arabia grands prix because of the war in the Middle East.The races were due to take place on 12 April in Bahrain and 19 April in Saudi Arabia but the sport was approaching the point at which a decision on cancellation needed to be made to prevent more freight being sent to Bahrain. Continue reading...

Minns government introducing legislation to significantly increase penalties. Follow the day’s updates liveFuel shortages not expected, Chalmers saysJim Chalmers has told Sky the government does not expect Australia to run out of fuel amid the ongoing war in Iran. About a fifth of the world’s oil supplies travel through the Strait of Hormuz and the growing conflict has already played havoc with international prices.We don’t have a model that has petrol prices going that high, but there’s a lot of volatility and a lot of unpredictability in the global oil market.The way these things unfold is ultimately a matter for those officials to determine they’ve done the absolute best they can by these Iranian women under extreme and extraordinary pressure, and often that requires some pretty dramatic and unusual steps, like those which you’ve described. Continue reading...

Brendan Carr posts that he may cancel spectrum permits of ‘mainstream news’ outlets for ‘misleading’ coverageThe Trump administration’s communications licensing tsar fired a warning shot over the US broadcasting industry Saturday, threatening to cancel the spectrum permits of broadcasters pushing what he termed “hoaxes and news distortions”.Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chair Brendan Carr posted on social media that broadcasters running “fake news – have a chance now to correct course before their license renewals come up. The law is clear. Broadcasters must operate in the public interest, and they will lose their licenses if they do not.” Continue reading...

Met police says woman, 43, was detained after newborn girl in Westminster taken to hospital and pronounced deadA woman has been arrested on suspicion of murder after an 18-day-old baby girl fell from a property in central London.The Metropolitan police said officers attended Horseferry Road in Westminster after reports on Saturday morning that a baby had fallen from a residential property. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Queensland Performing Arts Centre board nominated Oodgeroo as their preferred name for the theatre in 2024, but it was not one of the four options put to public vote by the LNPGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA Queensland government minister intervened to ensure a new theatre would not be named after Aboriginal poet Oodgeroo Noonuccal, overriding the theatre’s board, according to documents obtained under right to information laws.The late artist’s name is also set to be stripped from a state electorate, in draft electoral boundaries released by the state’s redistribution commission this week. The LNP lobbied for the change. Continue reading...

As users turn to VPNs to access pornography, experts warn collection of information creates a ‘honeytrap’ for bad actors Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastWhen porn sites began blocking Australians from access, it also meant X began age-checking users before they could look at adult content on the social media site.But it asked some users to send a video selfie every time they wanted to look at a single picture or video. Continue reading...

SNP leader hails prospect of success for parties in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland that want to break up unionThe UK is facing an “absolutely seismic moment”, John Swinney has said, with the prospect of the election of first ministers in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in May who are all committed to the break-up of the union.Speaking at the Scottish National party’s campaign conference ahead of the Scottish parliament elections, the first minister told delegates: “For people watching around the world, there could be no clearer sign that Westminster’s time is up.” Continue reading...

Joshua Nass, of alleged $600,000 extortion plot, played role in pardon of man convicted of failing to pay $40m in taxesA New York lobbyist and attorney connected to a presidential pardon issued by Donald Trump in November has been charged with attempting to extort a former client and the client’s son over an alleged $500,000 debt.Joshua Nass, 34, was arrested on Friday after being charged in federal court in Brooklyn with attempted Hobbs Act extortion. US justice department prosecutors contend that Nass threatened a client for payment that he claimed he was owed for his services. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Senior party figures conclude outsiders or existing senior staff deemed more suitable should take over from current permanent secretariesA Reform UK government would expect to dismiss the top civil servant in every government department and replace them with people seen as more likely to implement the party’s priorities, the Guardian has learned.Senior Reform figures have concluded that the current crop of permanent secretaries, the lead civil servant in each department, are not up to the necessary standard. Some would be replaced by outsiders, and others by existing officials viewed as more suitable. Continue reading...