Destroy

Republican Josh Hawley accuses Mark Zuckerberg’s firm of relentlessly pursuing and attempting to bankrupt herA US senator has accused Meta of using lawfare in “efforts to destroy” a whistleblower who made allegations about the social media company’s dealings with China and its treatment of teenagers.In a letter to its founder, Mark Zuckerberg, the Republican senator Josh Hawley demanded to know what measures Meta had taken to monitor Sarah Wynn-Williams, Facebook’s former global head of public policy, and her family. Continue reading...

Documents show the FBI director’s gift was ‘displayed proudly’ by the AFP before new commissioner ordered it be destroyedGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastWhen the FBI director, Kash Patel, visited the Australian federal police last year, he came bearing a gift: a 3D-printed imitation pistol that then was “displayed proudly” in the commissioner’s office.Yet within months, shortly after Krissy Barrett became the AFP’s new commissioner last October, she ordered it to be destroyed. Continue reading...

• Rep. Greg Casar and the Congressional Progressive Caucus are criticizing Donald Trump's assertion that a pro-democracy resolution would "destroy" the GOP. • The resolution is a Democratic response to a 6-3 Supreme Court ruling in Louisiana v. [Case Name], which allowed Republican states to redraw congressional maps and eliminate majority-minority districts. • Casar argues that the Supreme Court's actions are an attempt to rig elections in favor of Republicans by attacking voting rights.

Preliminary analysis of satellite data suggests magnitude of natural disaster could dwarf official estimatesMore than 58,000 buildings may have been damaged and destroyed by the twin earthquakes that hit Venezuela last week, according to a preliminary analysis of satellite data that suggests the scale of the destruction could dwarf official estimates.Last Wednesday’s back-to-back quakes – which measured magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 – killed at least 1,943 people, injured more than 10,571, and left tens of thousands missing amid the rubble. The UN migration agency has said that up to 6.8 million people could be affected by the disasters, and would require shelter, water, sanitation, healthcare and essential relief items. Continue reading...

• The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claims to have destroyed eight U.S. military infrastructures located in Kuwait and Bahrain. • The operation was carried out using a combination of missiles and drones in a coordinated joint strike. • This action was launched as a direct response to a second wave of U.S. military strikes against Iranian interests.

• President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that Ukrainian strikes destroyed 60,000 tonnes of Russian ammunition at a Baltic Fleet arsenal near St. Petersburg and targeted key defense-industrial facilities. • Zelenskyy claimed that Moscow has been forced to shift its air defenses to protect the Kerch Bridge and the capital city of St. Petersburg. • The Ukrainian leader asserted that Vladimir Putin's rejection of substantive diplomatic proposals is the primary reason the war is being prolonged.

Directive aimed at government workers, but reports of wider implementation spark warnings of future Afghanistan-wide prohibitionThe Taliban have ordered a sweeping ban on the use of smartphones by government officials – in what some analysts say could foreshadow broader, population-level restrictions.In a directive issued by the Taliban’s military courts and reviewed by the Guardian, the ban was to take effect this week and prohibits “high rank, low rank, general mujahideen, or service staff” from using mobile phones. Continue reading...

• Ukraine has claimed a devastating strike on a bridge in Crimea, resulting in the destruction of approximately 50 Russian military vehicles. • The operation coincides with warnings from Kyiv's drone chief, who asserts that Vladimir Putin will lose access to the Crimean peninsula in the "near future." • This escalation highlights Ukraine's strategic focus on disrupting Russian logistics and supply lines essential for maintaining control over occupied territories.

• The White House has proposed a new rule that would grant political appointees greater control over the approval and funding of scientific research grants. • Critics argue the proposal threatens the U.S. scientific enterprise by undermining the longstanding peer review process used to allocate funding. • Experts warn this shift could stifle critical advancements in artificial intelligence, climate science, and the treatment of HIV, cancer, and rare diseases.

• The White House has proposed a new rule that would grant political appointees greater control over the approval and funding of scientific research grants. • Critics argue the proposal threatens the U.S. scientific enterprise by undermining the longstanding peer review process used to award grants. • This shift could restrict research into critical areas such as cancer, HIV, rare diseases, climate science, and artificial intelligence by prioritizing political agendas over scientific merit.

Campaigners say builders’ demolition of nest site highlights weak protection of wildlife from developmentA building that was a noted nesting site for swifts, among the UK’s most at-risk birds, has been demolished during the nesting season, highlighting significant weaknesses in the protection of wildlife from development, campaigners say.Contractors for the housebuilder Hill Group carried out the demolition of Regent House near Dorking station in Surrey over the last few weeks, during the nesting season which runs from 1 March to 31 August. Continue reading...

Soho Society, funded by Westminster council, is ferociously opposing all new proposals, venue owners sayA society of residents funded by the council could “destroy Soho’s reputation on the international stage” as London’s entertainment district by ferociously objecting to all new bar and restaurant licences, operators in the area have said.The Soho Society, a group of residents established in 1972 aimed at “preserving the character of Soho”, voted in its AGM on Thursday for a new licensing mandate, meaning it will challenge all new applications for bars and restaurants in the area, including renewals of existing licences. It will also object to any venue that wishes to open beyond “core hours”, which Westminster council decrees end at 11pm. Continue reading...

Four people taken to hospital but mayor said search continues for other survivors or fatalitiesSign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Nearly 100 firefighters battled a large fire that erupted on Thursday at an apartment complex in Dallas, where debris from one collapsed building lay heaped on the ground while flames and black smoke billowed into the sky.News video showed dozens of firefighters at the scene. Some had hoses trained on piles of smoking debris while others lifted and moved lumber and other burned wreckage as if searching for people underneath. Two firefighters with hoses towered above the blaze on long ladders, while another sprayed water from the window of an upper floor of a neighboring building. Continue reading...

The EPA said it was cutting Biden-era regulations on Pfas in drinking water, but advocates say the move will harm public health and benefit industryA new Trump administration plan to ditch Pfas drinking water regulations and instead attempt to destroy “forever chemicals” on a wide scale tears a page from the fossil fuel industry’s carbon capture playbook, and will benefit the industry while harming public health.The US Environmental Protection Agency last week announced it is moving to kill strong Biden-era drinking water limits around four Pfas compounds, and delaying implementation for two more. It represented a blow to public health – advocates say strong limits and a dramatic cut in the production of the dangerous chemicals are imperative. Continue reading...

Media company says it is ‘committed to good faith bargaining’ amid claims including contract violationWorkers at local newspapers owned by Hearst allege the company is trying to “destroy unions” amid claims of widespread anti-union tactics, including violating union contracts and bad-faith bargaining.The Albany Newspaper Guild, which represents the Times Union newspaper in Albany, New York, said it had been more than 17 years since the union had a contract and there had been little progress toward reaching a new one. Continue reading...

Pressure grows on Alcoa over strip-mining of Western Australian jarrah forest, which also threatens Perth’s water supplyGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastUS mining company Alcoa’s strip-mining of Western Australia’s jarrah forest is under further investigation after its “deliberate repeat breach” of environmental laws that destroyed habitat for protected species – including black cockatoos, quokkas and numbats – and cost it $40m to avoid prosecution.The ongoing inquiry into Alcoa’s clearing at its Willowdale mine was revealed in talking points for federal ministers prepared ahead of the February announcement of a record $55m settlement for clearing at its Huntly mine. Continue reading...

About 200 firefighters responded to devastating blaze at University of South Florida’s lab on SaturdayOfficials are investigating whether a huge fire that destroyed a top marine science laboratory at the University of South Florida may have been caused by a lightning strike.Despite a massive response from local fire crews the Marine Science Laboratory building was completely destroyed after the blaze began on Saturday. Continue reading...

Blazes in US south-east have blown smoke over a wide area, and contributed to at least one death in FloridaTwo wildfires in south-eastern Georgia that have destroyed more than 120 homes continued to threaten property and lives on Saturday as officials warned that strong winds could spread the flames.The Brantley county manager, Joey Cason, called it a “dynamic situation” in a Saturday-morning video posted to social media and begged residents to “please evacuate” if they are ordered to do so. Continue reading...

Smoke drifts into Atlanta and Savannah, Georgia, as air quality declines and 50 homes destroyedSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxWildfires burning across the south-eastern US intensified on Wednesday across parts of south-east Georgia, where 50 homes were destroyed, and across north-east Florida, forcing evacuations and school closures in some communities.The Georgia forestry commission issued its first mandatory burn ban in the state’s history, effective across 91 counties in the lower half of the state, due to worsening drought conditions and rising wildfire activity. Continue reading...

Social workers in England say they often have no choice but to place children in unregistered settings because no one else will take themThe sinking feeling is familiar now, says Anna*. It’s Friday, the clock is ticking, and there is a vulnerable child in her care for whom – despite hitting the phones for days – she cannot find a place. Once the foster carers have been exhausted, and the registered private children’s homes begged, there is nothing for it but to look elsewhere.“It always seems to be on a Friday that you are struggling to place a child,” says the social worker. “They need somewhere safe tonight. You’re calling everywhere, already knowing the answer will be, ‘we haven’t got any spaces’. And then you’re left with what’s left of a hotel, a caravan … somewhere you know isn’t right, but you don’t have a choice.” Continue reading...

Blaze struck a ‘water village’ that is home to some of Malaysia’s poorest residentsA huge fire destroyed about 1,000 makeshift homes, many of them built on stilts over water, and displaced thousands of people in a coastal village in Malaysia’s Sabah state on Sunday, authorities said.The blaze broke out early on Sunday morning in a “water village” in Sandakan district in Sabah’s northeast, where some of Malaysia’s poorest residents, including indigenous and stateless communities, live in closely packed, wooden stilt houses. Continue reading...

No deaths reported after latest round of severe weather in the region as officials brace residents for long recovery A trail of damaged homes and buildings dotted a wide swath of the US on Saturday after a burst of destructive winds and reported tornadoes tore off roofs, uprooted trees and rendered rural roads impassable with debris.No deaths were reported after Friday’s storms, which barreled through the upper midwest and delivered the latest round of severe weather to batter the region. Officials braced residents for a long recovery in some rural communities. Continue reading...

US defense secretary said Iran’s energy infrastructure is ‘not destroyed yet’ at presser where he also lambasted the mediaIran’s energy infrastructure is “not destroyed yet” and the US is “locked and loaded” to finish the job, Pete Hegseth, the defense secretary, said on Thursday as he called many of the press corps gathered the moral equivalent of the Pharisees who conspired to destroy Jesus Christ.Hegseth’s comments from the Pentagon podium came as a naval blockade of Iranian ports began this week and he called on Tehran to accept a nuclear deal or face consequences for its remaining infrastructure, power generation and energy industry. 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...

• President Trump threatened to destroy Iran's power plants and bridges if Tehran refuses a deal to end the war by Tuesday evening, amid a Pakistani ceasefire push. • Trump detailed a complex U.S. military operation that rescued the two-man crew of an F-15 shot down Friday in Iran, calling it one of the largest and most harrowing missions ever. • The threat looms over diplomatic efforts, including a 45-day ceasefire proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and avert major escalation.

Two people reported killed in attack on newly completed suspension bridge after strike splits structure in halfMiddle East crisis – live updatesDonald Trump claimed responsibility for destroying Iran’s largest bridge, a day after he threatened to bomb the country “back to the stone ages” if a deal to end the five-week-long war he started was not reached.The US president shared footage of part of the newly built 136 metre-high $400m B1 suspension bridge between Tehran and Karaj collapsing dramatically on to the causeway below amid a rising plume of black smoke. Continue reading...

• US President Donald Trump threatened Monday to destroy Iran's Kharg Island crude oil export hub, along with oil wells and power plants, unless Tehran quickly accepts a deal to end the US-Israeli war. • The threat of potential US ground operations to seize Kharg Island is creating significant tremors through financial and energy markets, as well as raising concerns among neighbouring Gulf countries. • Trump expressed hope about talks with a "more reasonable regime" in Tehran on his Truth Social network, an apparent reference to new leadership despite the month-long war failing to dislodge the Islamic Republic.

• President Donald Trump warned Monday via Truth Social that if Iran does not open the Strait of Hormuz and a deal is not reached "shortly," the US will "blow up and completely obliterate" Iran's electric generating plants, oil wells, and Kharg Island. • US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington is close to achieving its objectives in Iran "in a matter of weeks" and that Trump has "a number of options available" to prevent Iran from controlling the strategic waterway. • The threat comes as 3,500 US Marines and sailors aboard the USS Tripoli arrive in the Middle East, joining over 50,000 American troops already in the region, with hundreds of Navy SEALs also deployed.