US House passes bill funding much of DHS, ending agency’s longest shutdown

Vote comes as 60-day deadline looms, with two GOP backing limits and dispute over whether ceasefire pauses clockUS politics live – latest updatesThe Republican-led Senate on Thursday again blocked a Democratic attempt to stop Donald Trump’s war in Iran, rejecting a war powers resolution that would have limited the conflict until Congress authorizes further military action.The vote was 47-50, with two Republicans – Susan Collins, a senator of Maine, and Rand Paul, of Kentucky – voting in favor and one Democrat – John Fetterman, of Pennsylvania – opposing it. Continue reading...

President says decision made ‘in honor of the king and queen’ as industry officials call deal ‘significant boost’In a gesture of diplomatic friendliness after King Charles’s visit to the White House, Donald Trump said the US would be removing all tariffs on whisky imports.“In Honor of the King and Queen of the United Kingdom, who have just left the White House, soon headed back to their wonderful Country, I will be removing the Tariffs and Restrictions on Whiskey having to do with Scotland’s ability to work with the Commonwealth of Kentucky on Whiskey and Bourbon,” Trump said in a post on social media. Continue reading...

Green checkmark will appear on artist profiles to signal they meet the platform’s standard for authenticitySpotify on Thursday unveiled a new verification system designed to help listeners distinguish human musicians from AI-generated content, as people flood streaming platforms with a growing volume of synthetic tracks made with artificial intelligence.The Swedish streaming giant said its “Verified by Spotify” badge – marked by a green checkmark – will begin appearing on artist profiles and in search results in the coming weeks, signaling that a profile has been reviewed and meets the platform’s standards for authenticity. Continue reading...

Shayndi Raice to lead CBS’s foreign coverage after Weiss ousts bureau chief over reported tensionsSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxBari Weiss, the CBS News boss, has ousted a veteran bureau chief following tensions over coverage of the Middle East and brought in a new foreign editor who, according to sources, is more aligned with Weiss’s pro-Israel agenda.Paramount, which owns CBS, announced on Wednesday that it had hired Shayndi Raice, a Wall Street Journal editor who most recently served as the paper’s deputy bureau chief for the Middle East and north Africa, based in Israel. Raice will move to London, where she’ll oversee the network’s international coverage in a newly created position, the company said. In a social media post, Weiss called Raice “a scoophound reporter, a brilliant editor, and a clear-eyed leader”. Continue reading...

Four months after US capture of Nicolás Maduro, officials hail repairing of ties as American Airlines flight lands at Simón Bolívar airportUS and Venezuelan officials have hailed a new era in diplomatic relations as the first direct commercial flight between the two countries in more than seven years landed in Caracas.Nearly four months ago, US special forces attack helicopters and planes swept into the skies over Venezuela’s capital after Donald Trump ordered the capture of its president, Nicolás Maduro. Continue reading...

Decision follows pressure from lawmakers and families as investigations continue into response to deadly disasterThe embattled Camp Mystic organization on Thursday halted plans to reopen this summer in a decision that followed months of intensifying outrage by political leaders in Texas and the families of 27 young campers killed last July when massive floodwaters swept through the all-girls Christian camp in the middle of the night.The decision comes after days of pointed questioning by Texas lawmakers who are investigating camp officials’ response to the devastating flood on July 4 that claimed the lives of the campers and two teenage counselors. The camp’s owner, Dick Eastland, also died in the flooding. Continue reading...

Dozens handed life peerages in apparent concession, enabling their return to red benchesDozens of hereditary peers whose seats have been abolished have had their lawmaking powers restored as Keir Starmer seeks to accelerate changes to the House of Lords.It is understood that 15 Conservative hereditary peers, two Labour and nine crossbenchers have been handed life peerages, enabling their return to the red benches. Continue reading...

Coroner says none of the five civilians killed in incident in Belfast during Troubles should have been shotBritish army soldiers “lost control” and used force that was “not reasonable” in the killing of five civilians in Northern Ireland in 1972, an inquest judge has ruled.Four of the victims – two teenagers, a father of six and a Catholic priest – posed no risk when they were shot in the Springhill and Westrock areas of west Belfast on 9 July 1972, Mr Justice Scoffield said on Thursday. Continue reading...

DoJ announces changes including ‘loophole’ that allows people to buy guns at shows without background checkThe US justice department has rolled back several significant restrictions on guns, including reinstating the so-called “gun show loophole”, which allowed people at such events to buy firearms without a background check.The changes, announced by the acting attorney general, Todd Blanche, amount to a shift in firearm policy advocated by supporters of the second amendment, who are prominent in Donald Trump’s supporter base. Continue reading...

Decision follows backlash from Italian government and European CommissionThe jury of the Venice Biennale has quit just days before the prestigious art exhibition was due to begin, amid a row over the decision to allow Russia to participate.The resignation of the five-member international jury was announced late on Thursday in a brief statement by the Venice Biennale organisers, and came a day after the Italian culture ministry sent inspectors to Venice in search of information about the decision to allow Russia to have a pavilion at this year’s event. Continue reading...

Researchers say results mark a ‘profound change in technology that will reshape medicine’From George Clooney in ER to Noah Wyle in The Pitt, emergency department doctors have long been popular heroes. But will it soon be time to hang up the scrubs?A groundbreaking Harvard study has found that AI systems outperformed human doctors in high-pressure emergency medicine triage, diagnosing more accurately in the potentially life and death moments when people are first rushed to hospital. Continue reading...