Washington state crews find body of another victim in paper mill explosion

New digital marking system is aimed at reducing human errors but many students say it has resulted in wrong gradesNational outcry has erupted in India after more than 400,000 students have requested copies of their exam papers and answer sheets amid an outcry over marking errors in the country’s most important school-leaving exams.Within days of the grade 12 exam results being issued, students began reporting marking discrepancies they linked to a new digital marking system. Continue reading...

Fireworks displays will replace all drone shows at the iconic festival after a technical issue saw dozens fall from the sky on Monday nightGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastVivid Sydney has cancelled all remaining drone shows after 83 fell from the sky into Darling Harbour this week, prompting a “full assessment” of the aerial light show.On Monday, audiences looked on as a performance called Star-Bound suddenly went awry, with “unforeseen technical difficulties” causing 83 drones to plunge into the waters of Cockle Bay and six to land on a boardwalk. No injuries were reported. Continue reading...

Three men killed in third attack this week amid Trump administration’s campaign against alleged drug boatsThe US military said it had carried out another strike Friday on a boat accused of smuggling drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing three men in the third attack this week and pushing the overall death toll above 200 people.US Southern Command announced the latest strike in the months-long campaign against alleged drug boats traversing the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific with its usual language that the vessel was “engaged in narco-trafficking operations” and operated by a designated terrorist organization. It provided no evidence. Continue reading...

Executive order recognizes health department assessment as guide for federal government for childhood vaccinesDonald Trump signed an executive order acknowledging a recent scientific assessment by the Department of Health and Human Services on childhood vaccines as a guide for the federal government, the White House said on Friday.The order directs the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and its Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) to review the HHS assessment and clinical data to update the vaccines schedule for children and adolescents, according to the text of the order. Continue reading...

Findings add to growing efforts to explain why cancer rates are increasing among younger adults worldwidePoor sleep may be fuelling the global rise in under-50s being diagnosed with cancer, two large studies suggest.The number of younger people diagnosed with the disease has risen by almost 80% in three decades. Worldwide cases of early-onset cancer increased from 1.82m in 1990 to 3.26m in 2019, while cancer deaths among people in their 40s, 30s or younger rose by 27%. Continue reading...

Announcement coincides with reports of influx of federal agents to Delaney Hall, site of protests and hunger strikeTop New Jersey officials announced on Friday that the state police will be taking over policing functions from federal immigration officers outside the contentious Delaney Hall facility, as reports surface of an influx of federal agents making their way to the area.As part of the state police’s takeover of “public safety operations” at the site, they will establish a “peaceful protected zone” for demonstrators and will have protesters “move there today”, according to New Jersey’s governor, Mikie Sherrill, and attorney general, Jennifer Davenport. Continue reading...

Investigation launched into activity in Coalsnaughton, Clackmannanshire, a former mining villageNearly 100 homes have been evacuated following reports of ground movements in a former mining village in Scotland.Properties began being evacuated on 18 May and an investigation has since been launched into the activity in Coalsnaughton, Clackmannanshire. Continue reading...

The policy memo issued last week requires many foreigners to obtain green cards through their home countriesA new policy memo issued last week by US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), requiring many foreigners in the US to leave the country and obtain green cards through their home countries, has sparked confusion and fear among hundreds of thousands of visa holders and families, as well as immigration advocates and lawyers.Multiple Guardian readers, speaking anonymously out of fear, said the memo threatens to upend lives they have spent years building in the US – from careers and homes to marriages and long-term plans for stability. Continue reading...

Anthony Odiong is charged with exploiting his status as clergyman to pursue sex with female parishioners to whom he was providing spiritual directionA jury of eight women and four men in Texas began deliberating a verdict on Friday afternoon in the trial of a Roman Catholic priest charged with illegally exploiting his status as a clergyman to pursue sex with female parishioners to whom he was providing spiritual direction.Anthony Odiong, 57, has pleaded not guilty to one charge of sexual assault in the first degree and two such counts in the second degree involving two women, each of whom testified during a trial that began with jury selection on Tuesday in the Texas city of Waco.Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organizations. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 500 2222. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html Continue reading...

Rare reprieve for people protected by temporary protected status granted after administration misses deadlineThe Trump administration has extended protections shielding about 11,000 Lebanese people from deportation, allowing them to stay and work in the United States for another six months.The decision, announced Thursday by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), marked a rare reprieve for people protected by temporary measures that have been harshly criticized by Republicans. The extension comes amid ongoing fighting in southern Lebanon between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. Continue reading...

Brandon Johnson, a progressive Democrat, applauded the pope for pushing back against Trump’s policies in meetingBrandon Johnson, the Chicago mayor, cast Pope Leo XIV as a powerful global ally on social justice, migration and reparations after meeting the Chicago-born pontiff at the Vatican, saying their shared roots and priorities could help amplify efforts to protect vulnerable communities.“We are incredibly elated and proud of him,” Johnson told the Associated Press in an interview on Friday, a day after the meeting with the American pope in a private audience. Continue reading...