• President Trump issued a controversial 'shoot and kill' order targeting boats placing mines in the Strait of Hormuz as tensions with Iran escalate, marking an intensification of military posturing in the critical shipping lane.
• Congress was briefed that removing all mines from the strait could take up to six months, creating significant concerns about extended disruptions to global energy supplies and trade.
• The Chevron CEO warned of potential air travel disruptions due to expected jet fuel shortages resulting from the ongoing tensions and potential blockade of the strategic waterway.
US president claims ‘total control’ of strait of Hormuz despite Iranian seizure of two ships and report warning it could take months to clear waterway of minesTrump claims US has total control over strait of Hormuz after Iran seizes two container shipsAnalysis: Trump may talk of regime infighting, but Iran seems united by strategy born of warHello and welcome to our live coverage of events in the Middle East.Donald Trump has ordered the US military to “shoot and kill” small Iranian boats that deploy mines in the strait of Hormuz and claimed that US minesweepers “are clearing the strait right now” amid the standoff over the key waterway.Trump said the US had “hit about 75% of our targets” in Iran and that a deal had not yet been reached because Iran was “in turmoil”. Trump added to reporters in the Oval Office that he would not use a nuclear weapon against Iran as the conflict continues without a clear end in sight.Trump also said the US had “total control over the strait of Hormuz” – a claim that has drawn scepticism in the face of Iran’s seizure of two container ships and a US report warning it could take six months to clear the strait of mines.Israel’s killing of a Lebanese journalist in a strike has been met with international outrage as Lebanon’s prime minister described the attack as a “war crime”. Amal Khalil, 43, was killed in what colleagues described as a sustained attack by Israeli forces, with rescuers attempting to dig her out of the rubble of a building also targeted and prevented from providing life-saving assistance.Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian, said there were no “hardliners” or “moderates” in Iran, responding a Trump claim there was internal division in Iran’s leadership. Separately, Iran’s foreign minister, Seyed Abbas Araghchi, said Iranian state institutions “continue to act with unity, purpose and discipline”.Italian sports officials say Italy is not interested in replacing Iran at the upcoming World Cup after a suggestion to that effect by a Trump administration official. Sports minister Andrea Abodi said “it’s not a good idea” while finance minister Giancarlo Giorgetti called the suggestion “shameful”. The US said it had no objections to Iranian players participating in the Cup but they would not be allowed to bring along people with ties to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards.Pope Leo XIV urged the US and Iran to return to talks to end the war and condemned capital punishment, calling for a new “culture of peace” to replace the recourse to violence.It remained unclear if the US and Iran would hold another round of talks in Pakistan amid efforts from mediators there towards a peace deal. Continue reading...
Episode four of Peacock’s Gilgo Beach Serial Killer: House of Secrets features interviews with Rex Heuermann’s ex-wifeThe meticulous rituals of the Long Island serial killer, Rex Heuermann, have been revealed in a Peacock documentary released on Thursday.The confessed killer of eight women relays via a therapist that he maintained a four-day ritual of preparation, building trust with his victims, murdering them in a basement “kill room”, a day of “playtime” with their bodies, and then using a stopwatch to perfect dumping them on a beach 20 miles from his home. He’d use the fourth day to deal with any unforeseen complications. Continue reading...
Media rights groups condemn killing of Amal Khalil, who said in 2024 she had been threatened by ‘an Israeli enemy’Middle East crisis – live updatesThe Lebanese journalist killed in an Israeli attack on Wednesday had previously complained of receiving a threat via an unidentified Israeli phone number that she would be killed if she did not leave southern Lebanon, where she had long been based and worked.Amal Khalil, 43, who worked for al-Akhbar newspaper and had described herself as supporting the resistance against Israel “whether communist or Islamist”, was killed in a sustained attack by Israeli forces in which a colleague was also wounded. Continue reading...
State’s strict gun policies heralded as data shows 35% reduction in homicides between 2022 and 2024California officials are touting a historic three-year decrease in homicides and gun violence that has led to the state’s lowest number of killings on record.The number of homicides in California decreased by 35% between 2022 and 2024, with 2,304 deaths reported in 2022 and 1,768 in 2024, according data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The dip in homicides was most pronounced for teenage and young adult Black and Latino males, who have historically faced the highest risk of being killed or injured by gunshot wounds. Suicides, the most common type of gun deaths, also fell to record lows, according to the report. Continue reading...
Autopsy of Celeste Rivas Hernandez finally released after law enforcement had requested it be sealed in NovemberSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxCeleste Rivas Hernandez, the 14-year-old girl whom the singer D4vd is charged with killing, died from penetrating injuries, according to an autopsy report released Wednesday.Her death was ruled a homicide in the report from the Los Angeles county medical examiner’s office that had been blocked from release for months. Continue reading...
Christopher Trybus, of Swindon, also found not guilty of coercive and controlling behaviour towards Tarryn BairdA man has been cleared of waging a campaign of domestic abuse and sexual violence on his wife, who went on to take her own life.Christopher Trybus, 43, was charged with manslaughter, as well as with two counts of rape and coercive and controlling behaviour, but was found not guilty after a seven-week trial at Winchester crown court. Continue reading...
Local officials and witnesses say attackers shot at students first then those who arrived at the sceneTwo Palestinians, including a 14-year-old schoolboy, have been killed in the occupied West Bank after Israeli settlers opened fire near a school amid mounting assaults on education in the territory, witnesses and local officials have said.The Palestinian health ministry said Aws al-Naasan, 14, and Jihad Abu Naim, 32, were killed in the attack on the village of al-Mughayyir, which also left three others wounded. The head of the local council told Reuters that Israeli settlers had entered the village and opened fire near a school – first at students, and later at others who arrived at the scene. Witnesses said settlers were eventually followed by Israeli soldiers. Continue reading...
Two staff suspended after damning review finds department was warned last December that triple murderer Regina Arthurell was living in the homeFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastTwo staff members in the New South Wales Department of Communities and Justice have been suspended following a review into why two foster children went to live with a convicted triple killer.The review, which was made public on Wednesday, found “significant failures” by the department led to foster children aged 12 and 14 living alongside convicted murderer Regina Arthurell until her removal from the home last month. Continue reading...
Asa Ellerup said Rex Heuermann confessed to killing multiple women in their basement while she was awayThe convicted Gilgo Beach serial killer who recently pleaded guilty to seven murders confessed to his ex-wife that he had killed multiple women in the basement of their home while she was away, a new documentary reveals.In a teaser clip released on Tuesday to promote Peacock’s The Gilgo Beach Killer: House of Secrets, Asa Ellerup said her ex-husband, Rex Heuermann, told her he killed eight women without hesitation. That was the case, though he was only formally charged with – and pleaded guilty to – seven. Continue reading...
Michelle Sadio, 44, was shot near the River of Life Pentecostal church in Willesden in 2024Two men have been found guilty of murdering an innocent woman and injuring two more people in a drive-by shooting outside a wake.Michelle Sadio, a mother of two, was shot outside the River of Life Pentecostal church in Willesden in north London on 14 December 2024. She had been among about 100 mourners, including children as young as five, at the wake for 80-year-old Dianne Boatong. Continue reading...
An Ecuadorian fishing crew describe their ordeal as victims of Trump’s purported war on ‘narcoterrorists’By 4pm, the light was softening over the Pacific, and the crew of the Don Maca were finishing a long day hauling in lines of swordfish and albacore. Down in the hold, the mood had settled into the familiar rhythm of a fishing day drawing to a close.“We were just working, waiting for the last trawler to return,” Jhonny Sebastián Palacios, one of the fishers, told the Guardian. “Everything was perfectly fine.” Continue reading...
At least four more injured at world heritage site in latest violent incident as country prepares to co-host World CupOne Canadian tourist has been killed and at least four other people have been shot after an armed man opened fire at one of Mexico’s most famous tourist destinations, the Teotihuacán pyramids near Mexico City.The shooting – the latest violent incident to affect Mexico as it prepares to co-host the football World Cup in June – took place on Monday lunchtime and was captured in mobile phone videos shot by visitors to the site. Continue reading...
Preston Davey died aged 13 months after ‘routine abuse’ by Jamie Varley and his partner, John McGowan-Fazakerley, jury hearsA baby boy was “routinely ill-treated, sexually abused and physically assaulted” before he was killed by a secondary school teacher adopting him, a jury has heard.Jamie Varley, the teacher, 37, and his partner, John McGowan-Fazakerley, 32, were in the process of adopting Preston Davey. Continue reading...
Firefighters confirmed that seven people were trapped, but they could not search the building engulfed in flamesSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxA mother and six children ranging in age from three to 11 were killed in an explosion and fire at a central Pennsylvania home, authorities said.Firefighters responding to a report of an explosion and fire at a home in Lamar Township in Clinton county near Mill Hall on Sunday morning confirmed that seven people were trapped, but they could not search the building engulfed in flames, Pennsylvania state police said in a statement. All seven died and police identified them as Sarah Stolzfus, 34, four sons, ages 11, 10, five and three, and two daughters, ages eight and six. Continue reading...
Gunman, identified as Shamar Elkins, fatally shot the children – including seven of his own – at two separate housesMass shooting rampage in Louisiana leaves eight children dead and others woundedSign up for the Breaking News US newsletter emailLouisiana authorities have identified eight children – aged three to 11 – who were killed Sunday during what police described as a “violent domestic incident” in Shreveport that marked the deadliest US mass shooting in more than two years.The Caddo parish coroner’s office identified the children as Jayla Elkins, 3; Shayla Elkins, 5; Kayla Pugh, 6; Layla Pugh, 7; Markaydon Pugh, 10; Sariahh Snow, 11; Khedarrion Snow, 6; and Braylon Snow, 5. Continue reading...
Director of state investigation agency among those killed in Chihuahua in operation to destroy clandestine drug labsTwo United States officials and another two Mexican officials assigned to combat drug cartel operations died in a car accident in the northern Mexican state of Chihuahua on Sunday, a US embassy spokesperson said.The Mexican officials were the director of the state’s investigation agency and an officer, state authorities said, adding that they were on an operation to destroy clandestine laboratories in the municipality of Morelos.Guardian staff contributed Continue reading...
Two men died at the scene after head-on motorway collision near Kincross, police sayTwo drivers have died in a motorway crash in Scotland involving a car apparently travelling in the wrong direction on the carriageway, police have said.The two men died at the scene of the collision on the M90 near Kinross, a town in Perth and Kinross, at 10.30pm on Friday. Continue reading...
Jay Bryant negotiating plea deal in New York death of Run-DMC star, over which one conviction has been overturnedOne of the three men charged in the killing of Jam Master Jay plans to plead guilty, court records show, in what would be the first admission anyone has made in court to any role in the Run-DMC star’s death in 2002.Jay Bryant pleaded not guilty to murder after his 2023 indictment, but his lawyer and federal prosecutors told the court in recent letters that they were negotiating a plea agreement. Continue reading...
Health secretary in a diary entry said his kids were in the car as he cut off animal’s genitals in 2001 to ‘study them later’Robert F Kennedy Jr once cut the penis off a road-killed raccoon in an incident that is just one of several involving dead animals that the controversial US health secretary has been involved in.A new book called RFK Jr: The Fall and Rise was published this week and reveals a diary entry for Kennedy that describes the prominent vaccine critic and leader of the “Make America healthy again” (Maha) movement stopping his car on a New York highway on 11 November 2001. Continue reading...
Police say the couple’s teenage children called 911 after a domestic dispute at their Annandale home during divorceSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxJustin Fairfax, a former lieutenant governor of Virginia whose tenure was upended by allegations of sexual assault, shot and killed his wife Cerina Fairfax on Thursday before killing himself, police said.Kevin Davis, the chief of the Fairfax county police department in Virginia, said at a press conference that the murder-suicide took place in the context of “an ongoing domestic dispute surrounding what seems to be a complicated or or messy divorce”. The shooting took place at the Fairfax’s residence in Annandale, Virginia, and police arrived on the scene after receiving a 911 call from one of their teenage children shortly after midnight. Continue reading...
More than 100 injured across country after Russia launches nearly 700 drones and dozens of ballistic and cruise missilesEurope live – latest updatesRussia has carried out its deadliest attack against Ukraine this year, killing at least 17 people, and injuring more than 100, in a wave of drone and missile strikes across the country.Nine people died in the southern port city of Odesa, with four killed in Kyiv, including a 12-year-old boy. There were three fatalities in the Dnipropetrovsk region. Another person died in Zaporizhzhia oblast. Continue reading...
Risks from cancer and other diseases could be hidden with little accountability if justices favor big firms, critics warnThe US could face foreign attacks, food shortages and agricultural “devastation” if the supreme court rules against Monsanto in a closely watched case over pesticide regulation that is set for arguments later this month, according to a series of legal briefs supporting the company.In contrast, opposing legal briefs warn that if the court sides with Monsanto, consumers will be stripped of their rights to sue when they develop cancer or other serious diseases they attribute to exposure to dangerous chemicals. Companies will be able to hide product risks with little accountability, they warn. Continue reading...
Wednesday’s strike brings the total of those killed in US military strikes on alleged drug boats to at least 177Three people were killed in a US strike on another alleged drug-trafficking boat, the fifth such deadly attack in as many days, military officials have announced.US southern command said it conducted “a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations” in the eastern Pacific, without naming the alleged group, in an X post. Continue reading...
Two killed, including a child, in Kyiv with another death in the city of Dnipro amid strikes across the countryRussian forces attacked Kyiv and other cities early on Thursday, killing three people, including a 12-year-old child, injuring more than 20 and badly damaging buildings, officials said.Moscow has fired hundreds of drones on its neighbour almost nightly since the beginning of the four-year war, and recently expanded daytime strikes. Continue reading...
Killing of Lauren Bullis and woman not yet identified in ‘random’ Monday attacks draws attention of Trump officialsAn Atlanta man has been charged in a string of attacks over a matter of hours that left two women dead and a man in critical condition, drawing the Trump administration’s attention after one of the victims was identified as a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) employee who was walking her dog.The killing of the DHS worker, Lauren Bullis, and shootings of the two other victims on Monday led homeland security secretary Markwayne Mullin to issue a statement raising concerns that the 26-year-old suspect, British native Olaolukitan Adon Abel, was granted US citizenship in 2022. Continue reading...
Proceedings brought to halt as protesters condemn Russ Vought for slashing Pepfar program amid sweeping aid cutsProtesters decrying delays to funding in the battle against HIV/Aids charged into a congressional hearing where the Trump administration’s budget czar, Russell Vought, was testifying in Washington on Wednesday.The demonstrators disrupted the proceedings on Capitol Hill and twice brought the hearing to a halt. Continue reading...
Physicians issue reminder to public after TV doctor and CMS chief relays president’s claim on Don Jr podcastDonald Trump defended his consumption of diet soda by suggesting it might help prevent cancer, according to recent comments shared by Mehmet Oz in an interview with Donald Trump Jr.The remarks have even prompted some doctors to remind the public that, no, diet soda will not do anything to prevent cancer. Continue reading...
Strike marks third deadly attack on vessels in region in four days, and the killing of 174 people since SeptemberSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxThe US military said it killed four more people in a boat strike in the eastern Pacific ocean on Tuesday, marking the third deadly attack on vessels in the region in four days.The US Southern Command, which oversees military operations in Latin America and the Caribbean, announced the killings in a social media post, claiming, without providing evidence, that the men killed were “narco-terrorists”. Continue reading...
Independent Office for Police Conduct examines allegations that the race of victim’s’ families influenced conduct of officersThe police watchdog is investigating complaints made against 11 officers over their handling of an inquiry into a road crash that killed two schoolgirls.The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has confirmed that the officers, including a serving commander and a detective inspector, are being investigated over alleged gross misconduct. Continue reading...
