Articles about South

Director and producer is co-creator of You Are Here, a one-day immersive theatrical event traversing 75 years of youth cultureOut of chaos come great cultural movements, according to the director and producer Danny Boyle, who will inflict a little curated chaos on London’s Southbank Centre with what has been described as an “epic, one-off pop culture spectacular”.Boyle, whose 2012 London Olympics opening ceremony drew on the rich thread of British culture, is the co-creator and director of You Are Here, a one-day immersive theatrical event traversing 75 years of youth culture and social movement: think teddy boys, Lovers’ Rock, punk, Ziggy Stardust, rave, acid house, the spoken word, Brit pop, ballroom to name a few. Continue reading...

• On April 1, 2026, US Navy destroyers and Chinese warships faced off near the Spratly Islands, leading to a diplomatic breakthrough announced by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. • The agreement includes mutual de-escalation zones and joint patrols starting next month, with China committing to halt artificial island expansions for 60 days. • This averts potential conflict amid rising US-China tensions over Taiwan, boosting Asian markets by 2.5% overnight.

• No. 3 seed Illinois defeated Big Ten rival Iowa 71-59 in the South Region final, earning a spot in Saturday's national semifinal against No. 2 seed Connecticut at 6:09 p.m. ET. • Freshman Keaton Wagler led with 25 points and was named Region Most Outstanding Player, while Andrej Stojakovic added 17 points. • Illinois outscored Iowa 20-8 after a 51-51 tie with 7:14 left, closing with an 8-0 run as Iowa failed to score in the final two minutes.

• In late March 2026, the South Carolina Senate passed heavily amended H. 3924, regulating rather than banning hemp-derived THC products like drinks and gummies. • The bill restricts sales to those 21 and older, tightening safety standards to close 2018 Farm Bill loopholes on high-potency THC. • Legislation now returns to the House for concurrence before the May 7, 2026, deadline.

Plans would prevent the return of hundreds of thousands of residentsMiddle East crisis live – latest updatesIsrael said on Tuesday that it will occupy wide swathes of south Lebanon and destroy the homes along the border to prevent the return of some 600,000 residents, prompting concerns of long-term forced displacement.Israel’s defence minister, Israel Katz, said that it will occupy the area under the Litani River, some 19 miles from the Israel-Lebanon border, as part of its so-called buffer zone inside southern Lebanon when fighting with Hezbollah ends. Continue reading...

South Korea’s transport ministry says domestic airlines have asked authorities to redirect export-bound jet fuel back to the local market amid a supply crunch• Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastSouth Korean airlines have asked their government to help redirect jet fuel exports to the domestic market, threatening half of Australia’s imports of the critical fuel after Chinese authorities earlier this month flagged export restrictions.Amid deepening concerns across Asia about the impact of the escalating Middle East conflict, an official at South Korea’s transport ministry told the Guardian that “some domestic carriers” had asked authorities to redirect export-bound jet fuel back to the local market due to supply concerns. Continue reading...

Minister’s decision to ditch town’s colonial-era identity and honour anti-apartheid activist divides residentsA South African town is divided over changing its name from the colonial-era Graaff-Reinet to Robert Sobukwe, after the anti-apartheid activist, in a debate that has inflamed racial tensions.Petitions have been signed, rival marches held and a formal letter of complaint sent to the sports, arts and culture minister, Gayton McKenzie, who approved the name change on 6 February. Continue reading...

• Yuma, Arizona, hit a March record of 109°F on March 25, 2026, 28 degrees above normal, while sites near Yuma, Martinez Lake, Ogilby, and Winterhaven reached 112°F, tying the US high. • Sweltering conditions extended across several Southwest states and into Mexico, with Hermosillo setting a new March record at 108°F. • This extreme early heat signals intensifying climate patterns, challenging weather records and infrastructure in arid regions.

New unitary councils will replace 43 counties and districts under latest round of local government overhaulFifteen new councils will be created in the south and east of England under the latest round of a major local government overhaul, aimed at boosting economic growth and accelerating mass housebuilding plans.The new unitary councils will replace 43 counties and districts across Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex and Hampshire, with hundreds of councillors’ roles axed. A decision on future arrangements for East Sussex and West Sussex has been delayed. Continue reading...

Human Rights Watch and others say they have documented use of weapon in civilian areas, which some argue is illegalWhen the M825-series 155mm artillery projectile airbursts, expelling its felt wedges containing white phosphorus, it leaves a distinctive knuckle-shaped plume. That is how Human Rights Watch (HRW) researchers said they were able to verify that Israel was again using the notorious weapon over south Lebanon, reigniting accusations that it is breaking the laws of war.The New York-based rights group said it had verified and geolocated eight images showing airburst white phosphorus munitions exploding over residential areas in the southern Lebanese town of Yohmor in the opening days of Israel’s assault during the war on Gaza. Continue reading...

• House Republicans announced an investigation into rampant hospice fraud in Southern California, alleging tens of millions in taxpayer funds lost to improper payments. • The House Oversight Committee sent a letter to Governor Gavin Newsom requesting documents on state oversight of federally funded hospice programs. • Fraud involves companies receiving payments for ineligible patients, prompting calls for stronger controls amid ongoing healthcare waste concerns.

From steel to screen, podcasts to defence, Sheffield’s economy is diversifying amid a wave of new investmentIt has seen its fair share of Hollywood parties – albeit with a twist. Instead of champagne and caviar it is usually Guinness and scampi fries. Red carpet? There aren’t even cushions on the seats.The tiny Sheffield pub, Fagan’s, has raised more than a few toasts in the last year as Adolescence, the Netflix hit made by two of its owners, scooped multiple awards at the Emmys and Golden Globes and became one of the world’s most-watched dramas. Continue reading...

Israeli air defence systems fail to intercept at least two projectiles during attacks on cities of Arad and Dimona Middle East crisis live – latest updatesIranian ballistic missile barrages wounded about 100 people in southern Israel on Saturday, striking the cities of Arad and Dimona after air defence systems failed to intercept at least two projectiles.Among the injured were a 12-year-old boy and a five-year-old girl, both reported to be in serious condition. Continue reading...

The SA election result is devastating for the Liberals, but there are warning signs for Labor too in One Nation’s startling rise, which has rocked Australian politicsLabor secures overwhelming victory in SA electionRarely – perhaps never – has the winner of an election felt more like a subplot to a bigger and more consequential narrative than in South Australia on Saturday night.The ABC called the result for Peter Malinauskas and his Labor government less than 90 minutes after the polls closed, validating the opinion polls that had long forecast a landslide victory. Continue reading...

Almost 60 injured and three others missing after blaze breaks out at building in DaejeonA fire at a car parts factory in South Korea has killed 11 people and injured almost 60 others.Firefighters said the death toll could rise further. Rescuers were using dogs to search the wreckage of the three-storey building for three people who were still missing. Continue reading...

Premier Peter Malinauskas appears on track for a landslide win as Liberal party’s lower-house seats tipped to be reduced to single digitsGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastPeter Malinauskas appears on track for a landslide re-election victory in South Australia’s state election as polls closed at 6pm, local time (6.30pm AEDT), on Saturday.The race is a key test of the surge in support for Pauline Hanson’s One Nation, with the Liberal opposition’s lower-house seats tipped to be reduced to single digits. Continue reading...

Medics and officials say there is systematic use of double-tap strikes in campaign to make the south uninhabitableLebanese healthcare workers and officials say Israeli bombings have deliberately targeted medical workers and facilities in south Lebanon, including through the use of double-tap strikes, in what they describe as a systematic effort to make the area unlivable.Since the war began on 2 March, Israel has struck at least 128 medical facilities and ambulances across south Lebanon, killing 40 healthcare workers and wounding 107, according to the Lebanese ministry of health. The war started when Hezbollah launched rockets at Israel, triggering an Israeli military campaign. Continue reading...

Aoi Baxter was the party’s candidate for the state seat of Adelaide in Saturday’s election Former South Australian One Nation candidate, Aoi Baxter, has been dumped by the rightwing party, after media reports claiming there is a warrant for his arrest in the UK.Baxter, who was reportedly previously known as Trent Baxter, had allegedly failed to appear at a court hearing, according to reporting by the ABC. A UK court confirmed to the ABC a warrant had been issued for the arrest of a man named Trent Baxter. Continue reading...

One person survived and two were killed, the military said, who were turned over to Costa Rican coast guardUS Southern Command announced on Friday that US forces carried out another “lethal kinetic strike” on a suspected drug-smuggling boat in the eastern Pacific which left one survivor and two people dead.After the strike, the military said that it “immediately notified US Coast Guard to activate the Search and Rescue system” for three people who survived the strike. The coast guard said in a statement that one of its ships recovered two dead bodies and one survivor and turned them over to the Costa Rican coast guard. Continue reading...

California, Nevada and Arizona face record highs, with heat alerts and park trail closures as temperatures spikeStates across the US south-west recorded blistering temperatures at the tail end of winter, with forecasts indicating hotter days are still to come.California, Nevada and Arizona were all under heat warnings on Thursday amid record-breaking temperatures. Continue reading...

The move would be a major escalation in the US-Israel war against Iran. Plus, FBI director admits to buying data tracking Americans’ locationsGood morning.Donald Trump threatened to “massively blow up” the world’s largest gasfield after Israeli strikes on Iran’s South Pars field led Tehran to take revenge on energy facilities across the Middle East.What’s happening to oil and gas prices? Brent crude rose by 8% to $116 a barrel. European gas prices jumped, with the Dutch wholesale gas price up 24%.What do we know about the war’s economic cost? The war cost the US $12.7bn by day six – the total is likely to have now exceeded $18bn. Here’s a visualization of how that has been spent.Could US-Israeli attempts to take out Iranian leaders backfire? Some analysts think so. “It is not an approach that produces Jeffersonian democrats but hardened resistance fighters. It breeds more resistance,” said Sanam Vakil, an Iran expert at Chatham House.Follow our live coverage here.Who has spoken out? Labor rights activist and co-founder of the UFW Dolores Huerta, 95, released a statement on Wednesday saying: “I have kept this secret long enough. My silence ends here.” The report also includes the stories of two women, who were daughters of organizers in the movement, who said they were children when the grooming and abuse began. Continue reading...

US president claims Israel will not attack South Pars again – but threatens to destroy ‘extremely important and valuable’ site if Iran continues to attack gas facilities in QatarMiddle East crisis – live updatesDonald Trump threatened to “massively blow up” the world’s largest gasfield after Israeli strikes on the Iranian site prompted Tehran to step up attacks on energy facilities across the Middle East.Israel’s decision to target the South Pars gasfield on Wednesday marked a major escalation of the war, heightening fears of significant disruption to international energy supplies. Continue reading...

US president says Israel will not launch another attack on the giant gasfield shared by Iran and Qatar, but promises to destroy it if Tehran retaliatesIsrael strikes Iran’s South Pars gasfield hours after forces kill intelligence minister Fighting intensifies between Israel and Hezbollah in southern LebanonWelcome to our continuing live coverage of the US-Israel war on Iran and the broader crisis in the region, and global economy.Donald Trump has threatened to “massively blow up” the entire South Pars gas field if Iran carries out any more retaliatory attacks on Qatar’s LNG gas facilities.The Pentagon “has asked the White House to approve a more than $200bn request to Congress to fund the war in Iran, according to a senior administration official”, the Washington Post reports.The oil price climbed towards $110 a barrel on Wednesday as the mounting threat to the Gulf’s oil and gas infrastructure fuelled concerns of more disruption to global supplies, amid the continuing blockade of the strait of Hormuz.QatarEnergy said “sizeable fires” caused extensive damage at its LNG facilities after Iranian missile attacks in the early hours of Thursday.An attack set a ship ablaze early on Thursday off the UAE coast, authorities said. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre said “a vessel has been hit by an unknown projectile, which has resulted in a fire onboard”.French president Emmanuel Macron called for an immediate moratorium on striking civilian infrastructure, and said civilian populations and their needs must be “protected from military escalation”.Three Palestinian women were killed in an Iranian missile attack in the occupied West Bank late on Wednesday, the Palestinian Red Crescent said, in the first deadly Iranian strike there.A man was killed in central Israel in the latest round of Iranian missile fire, medics say. It brings the death roll in Israel from the war to 15.Republicans in the US Senate blocked a measure that aimed to reign in Donald Trump’s power to wage war against Iran without congressional authorisation, winning a 53-47 vote. Continue reading...

• Iranian state media reported US and Israeli attacks on the world's largest natural gas field at South Pars and other energy facilities on March 18, 2026. • The strikes coincide with US deployment of 5,000-pound bunker-buster bombs on Iranian missile sites near the Strait of Hormuz to reopen oil routes. • Escalation threatens global energy supplies, with oil prices surging and political pressure mounting on President Trump.

IDF is attempting to gain control of border towns, in particular the strategic hilltop city of KhiamMiddle East crisis live – latest updatesIsrael and Hezbollah are engaged in intense ground clashes in at least three strategic areas in south Lebanon as Israel pushes on with its ground invasion of its neighbour, according to a Lebanese security source and residents of the affected towns.Much of the fighting was concentrated around the strategic hilltop city of Khiam, with the Israel Defense Forces carrying out an air and artillery campaign against Hezbollah fighters dug into the city. Fighting escalated there after days of clashes, with a Hezbollah spokesperson acknowledging there were “heightened clashes” on the eastern and northern outskirts of the city. Continue reading...

Hopes for uniform nationwide gun control reform fade as states walk back federal cabinet commitment after Bondi beach massacreGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe South Australian premier, Peter Malinauskas, assured gun lobbyists that he had no plans to strengthen firearm laws in the state despite agreeing to a national crackdown after the Bondi beach massacre.In a letter signed a day before the government entered caretaker mode for the state election on 21 March, Malinauskas told a peak shooters group that SA had some of the strictest gun laws in the country and there was “currently … no plans to amend” them. Continue reading...

Governments in countries heavily reliant on Middle Eastern oil introduce measures to shield public from soaring costsMiddle East crisis – live updatesIn Thailand, news anchors ditched their jackets on air as the government called on the public to reduce their use of air conditioning to save energy. In the Philippines, many government workers are now operating on a four-day week. In Vietnam, officials have urged employers to allow staff to work from home.Across south-east Asia, governments are scrambling to find ways to conserve energy and shield the public from soaring costs as war in the Middle East causes what the International Energy Agency has described as the largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil market. Continue reading...

Putting Pauline Hanson’s party above Labor on how-to-vote cards is a gamble for Ashton Hurn’s leadership, with the Liberals facing potential eclipseGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastSouth Australian politics rarely takes a central position in national news, but this Saturday’s state election will be watched much more closely than usual for potential federal implications.It is shaping up as a perfect storm for a struggling Liberal party: under pressure from a popular first-term Labor government, while One Nation eats into the Liberal base. The election will be a first test of One Nation’s growing support nationally, with federal polls showing Pauline Hanson’s party regularly outpolling a weakened Coalition. Continue reading...