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The Oval Office meeting pivotal to New York's case against Trump - BBC News

2024-05-16

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Michael Cohen testified he met Trump weeks into his presidency to talk about hush money.

US & Canada

Michael Cohen at the White House after his meeting with Donald Trump in the Oval Office It was a brief exchange, held in the Oval Office a few weeks after Donald Trump became the 45th president of the United States. But the meeting between the now ex-president and his former lawyer Michael Cohen could prove pivotal in the criminal case against Mr Trump that is currently playing out in a high-profile New York trial. "I was sitting with President Trump and he asked me if I was OK, he asked me if I needed money," Mr Cohen testified at the trial on Tuesday. He said he told the then-president he was "OK", to which Mr Trump responded: "Alright, just make sure you deal with Allen [Weisselberg]". Mr Weisselberg was the Trump Organization's Chief Financial Officer at the time. Then, Cohen testified, Mr Trump told him a cheque would be coming soon. After the meeting, Cohen posed for a photo behind the famous lectern in the White House briefing room. On Tuesday, that snapshot of the man who once said he'd take a bullet for Mr Trump, in a black suit and standing at the press secretary's podium, flashed up on courthouse television screens as evidence in the first-ever criminal trial of a former US president. Prosecutors also showed an email from a White House aide confirming the meeting. Mr Trump denies dozens of charges of falsifying accounts to hide a hush-money payment made to adult-film actress Stormy Daniels, who claims they had a sexual encounter, in the lead-up to the 2016 presidential election. According to prosecutors, Cohen made the payment and was then reimbursed in monthly instalments disguised as legal fees. They say that Mr Trump's alleged hiding of the purpose of the reimbursements was election interference. The court heard that after the meeting, cheques reimbursing Cohen for the $130,000 (£103,000) he paid to Ms Daniels started to arrive, some with Mr Trump's signature. BBC News reporters are in the Manhattan courtroom covering the historic first criminal trial of a former US president. You'll find their updates and analysis on the BBC news website and app, and across TV, radio and podcasts. Cohen's invoices for these $35,000 monthly cheques were marked as "services rendered". But speaking in a courthouse packed with media and members of the public, Mr Cohen said the invoices were false. He testified they were really to reimburse him for the hush money, with extra dollars added in to cover potential taxes. These documents - 11 cheques, 11 invoices and 12 entries in an accounts ledger - make up the 34 felony counts charged against Mr Trump of falsifying business records. Former Manhattan prosecutor Rebecca Roiphe told BBC News that the Oval Office meeting could be a key moment of the trial, but it depends on how credible the jury finds Mr Cohen, who has pleaded guilty to federal crimes, including campaign finance violations and lying to Congress. "The prosecution could have established its case without Michael Cohen's testimony about the in-person meeting in the Oval Office, but it certainly helps connect the dots," Ms Roiphe said. "If the jury believes this part of Cohen's testimony, it would completely undermine one of the key defences - that Trump had nothing to do with these payments." But Mr Cohen's history of lying to Congress, and his time in prison, in part related to paying hush money, are significant factors the jury will have to weigh up. During two hours of cross-examination of Cohen on Tuesday, Trump's legal team did not touch on his assertions that Trump knew of the hush-money payment and the alleged reimbursement plan. Instead, they worked to dismantle his credibility. Ms Roiphe said the defence may keep up that line of attack in trying to counter the Oval Office claims when they resume questioning Cohen on Thursday. "The defence has sought to portray Cohen as a spurned underling who was obsessed with Trump and would stop at nothing to exact revenge," Ms Roiphe said. " It can draw on this theme to try to make it seem as if this uncorroborated testimony is made up." And indeed that is exactly how this trial began, when Mr Trump's lawyer Todd Blanche's opening statement said this of Mr Cohen:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69014017

Playground nails: How claims went viral - BBC News

2024-05-16

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BBC Verify examines how images of nails on playground gear have been shared wrongly by concerned parents.

UK

Photos of the nails have been spreading among concerned parents in London Viral images of nails attached to playground equipment in an Oxfordshire village have sparked misinformation about where the vandalism took place. After contacting the Marcham Parish Council and residents, BBC Verify spoke with the mum who found the nails. She did not want to be named, but said she and her daughter had discovered seven nails glued to a seesaw, swings, slides and other equipment on Monday. She provided original photos which confirm her account. After removing the nails, she handed them into a nearby shop and reported the incident on a private community Facebook group. The original images, which she shared in the group and later went viral, were passed on to BBC Verify. When we examined them, we found that the timestamp information was consistent with what we were told. In addition, we were able to match visual clues in the playground that confirm they were taken in Marcham. BBC Verify is not able to establish the exact circumstances in which the nails were glued to the equipment, but Thames Valley Police has confirmed officers are investigating. However, the mother said she has not yet been contacted by the force, and the nails have not been collected from the shop. Although the incident took place in a village near Abingdon in Oxfordshire, false claims that the playground was located in and around London began to spread online - creating concern for parents. The earliest false claim we found was shared on X on Tuesday evening, posted by an account called Tower Hamlets Crime Watch. The post incorrectly said the nails had been glued to equipment in one of the borough's parks in east London. On Wednesday morning, some public figures with large social media followings also shared the photos, including Channel 5 presenter Storm Huntley - who said she had been warned that the incident happened in Richmond, south west London. The post was viewed more than 52,000 times on X. Another post, written in Turkish by someone also living in London, also incorrectly stated the incident occurred in Richmond. The post was subsequently corrected and clarified, but it remains up and has more than 1.5 million views. Around the same time, posts in local Facebook groups in places like Ealing in west London also warned parents to check playground equipment, while one concerned parent sent the photos to a Whatsapp group in Tooting. By the afternoon, similar posts had spread to social media groups covering even more London areas, including Brentford and Wandsworth. These false claims continued to be amplified in spite of media reports explicitly stating the incident took place in Marcham, external. The pictures were also shared by several global media outlets, including in Russia and Spain. On Wednesday evening at least six London councils - as well as nearby Broxbourne in Hertfordshire - published statements clarifying the incident had not taken place in their areas. But despite assurances, misinformation continues to spread. On Thursday morning a woman posted the images on a local Northolt Facebook group claiming they had been passed on by a nearby nursery. • None Nails found glued sharp-end up on swings and slide

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-69022969

Putin arrives in China's 'Little Moscow' as allies aim to deepen trade - BBC News

2024-05-16

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It comes a day after the Russian and Chinese leaders pledged a "new era" of partnership between their countries.

Asia

An aerial view of the Saint Sophia Cathedral in Harbin Image caption: An aerial view of the Saint Sophia Cathedral in Harbin According to Russian media reports, Vladimir Putin said today of Harbin, “This is my first time here, and the city is truly impressive”, adding that he was struck by the extent to which the historical part of town “preserved a Russian feeling”. And you can see why he might like it. I can remember having a beer in the old central shopping street in Vladivostok – across the border on the Russian side – and saying to those I was with: “This reminds me of Harbin”. The part of North-east China which Russia’s leader is visiting was once dominated by Russian residents before huge numbers left in the 1930s. Right up to the invasion of Ukraine Russian tourists were easy to spot there but recently not so many. Chinese shopkeepers in Heilongjiang Province say their Russian customers have fallen away because of the war and their neighbour’s struggling economy. So Vladimir Putin is trying to prop up his war economy by selling more gas to China to make up for the markets Gazprom has lost in Europe, as punishment for his military adventure. In Harbin today, Russia’s leader – with his salesman hat on – reportedly said that “Russia's strategic alliance with China in the energy sector will strengthen further” and that this would “guarantee energy security” for China. The problem is that, beyond fossil fuels and other raw materials, there is not a lot more which Russia produces that China really wants. You can compare this to, say, the US which is holding back a lot of stuff that Chinese companies are desperate to get their hands on.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-asia-69001137

Premier League final-day predictions: Chris Sutton v Gladiators star and Arsenal fan Legend - BBC Sport

2024-05-16

BBC Sport football expert Chris Sutton takes on Gladiators star and Arsenal fan Legend to make predictions for the final round of Premier League games.

Tottenham fans, beware. It's not just your manager Ange Postecoglou who is unhappy with those of you who were glad your team lost to Manchester City on Tuesday. Chris Sutton's final predictions guest of the season is Gladiators star Legend, who supports Arsenal and watched Spurs play City hoping - in vain - they would do the Gunners a favour in the title race. "I don't have a problem with the Spurs players, it is with their fans literally cheering their team letting goals in," Legend told BBC Sport. "That's what I can't get my head around. "Fair play to Ange though, for basically just calling those Spurs fans a bunch of losers afterwards. That was amazing." Series one of Gladiators is available to watch on iPlayer and the hit Saturday-night show is set to return soon for a second season, with filming taking place in Sheffield in August. Legend, whose real name is Matt Morsia, is a lifelong Gunners fan who grew up at a time when Arsenal were collecting trophies on a regular basis. He explained: "My dad's side of the family are all big Arsenal fans and I was born in north London so I was just kind of raised that way. I have got lots of memories of going to games at Highbury when I was younger. "My formative Arsenal years were when we were the best team in the world, so I was pretty spoilt. "My first memories are of us winning the Double in 1998 after Arsene Wenger first joined. Even before the Invincibles went unbeaten for a season, he built an incredible side. "He inherited the English back five - David Seaman, Lee Dixon, Nigel Winterburn, Tony Adams and Steve Bould - and then brought in players like Patrick Vieira, Emmanuel Petit and Nicolas Anelka. "That team evolved into the Invincibles really, and for about six years we were just unbelievable." Legend was a teenage star at triple jump and targeted the 2012 London Olympics before being sidelined by a back injury. He turned his attention to powerlifting and won a silver medal in the European Championships in 2016, but football was his first love. "At school I was a footballer," he added. "I played for my county for a couple of years and I wanted to be a footballer. "Then right at the end of my sixth form, I just kind of fell into athletics. One of our guys was injured on sports day so I got chucked into triple jump. I broke the school record, and never looked back. "But for the first 15 years of my life, I played football every day and loved it. I was a centre-back, a monstrous and marauding centre-back. If you can remember Lucio, who played for Brazil, I was a lot like him - let's just say I relied heavily on my physical attributes. "I still play a bit now because I have got two boys and we go out in the garden and have a kickabout. In my head I am still unbelievable, although my days playing for a team are over. "A couple of years ago a mate of mine said 'why don't you come back and play five-a-side?' so despite having not played football competitively for 10 or 15 years, I thought that would be a great idea. "I started playing five-a-side once a week and I loved it, I was getting well into it... but about five or six weeks in, I ruptured my Achilles and that was the end of it. "I have done sport all my life but that was my first ever big injury. I am still tempted to go back, but with Gladiators now I just can't take that risk." Chris Sutton and Legend were speaking to BBC Sport's Chris Bevan. A correct result (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. The exact score earns 40 points. • None Visit your Premier League club's page with all the latest news, analysis and fan views, and sign up for notifications All games kick off at 16:00 BST. Sean Dyche is a scrapper and his Everton side are enjoying a strong end to the season. He would like nothing more than to end with a positive result here, but I cannot see past an Arsenal victory. With 15 wins, one draw and only one defeat from their past 17 Premier League games, the Gunners don't deserve to finish second but that is what is going to happen, and other than the Community Shield, they are going to finish trophyless too. Arsenal have invited players from their Invincibles side - who stayed unbeaten the last time they were champions in 2004 - to this game so they will want to put on a show for them. They should have something to smile about, even if there is no title to celebrate. Legend's prediction: Had Spurs got a result against City, I think we still would have won this game but it would have been tighter. The stress would have been outrageous and we might only have won by a goal or two, which would have been a worry if City were only behind us on goal difference. Now, even though it not completely over, our players know it kind of is, so that takes a lot of the pressure off and this could be an absolute hiding with Kai Havertz scoring a couple of goals. 5-0 Legend on Gunners boss Mikel Arteta: From day one, when I first heard him speak, you could tell he was going to be good, although I didn't think he would be this good. Even if we are playing badly, you want to get behind the side he has built because they have such amazing team unity - we don't have one megastar, and even though some players are clearly better than others, it feels like the whole squad look at each other as equals, which makes a massive difference. Everyone tracks back and works hard defensively, for example. Whatever happens this season, Arteta is still young and so are a lot of the team, so you have the feeling that it is going to get better. Look at what we've done this year, compared to three or four years ago, and it is unbelievable. Arteta has created such a positive environment and the club is going in an upward trajectory - this is just the start, hopefully. Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. Brentford's form has picked up recently and they will want to end the season on a high note, at home on the final day. Their manager Thomas Frank has been linked with the Manchester United job, and I understand that in a way, because he's done an excellent job with the Bees. Newcastle United need to at least match Manchester United's result against Brighton to make sure of finishing seventh. I'm expecting Eddie Howe's side to do that, but it won't be easy. Legend's prediction: This is going to be a high scoring game because both teams are going to go for it. 2-3 Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. I've been talking for a while now about how the season has fizzled out for Brighton and their manager Roberto de Zerbi, and their poor form continued against Chelsea on Wednesday. The Seagulls can still secure a top-10 finish with a win here, though, and things cannot be too bad if that counts as a disappointing campaign. Fair play to Manchester United for getting over the line against Newcastle United on Wednesday but they are still only in eighth place. If they finish there, that is a pretty accurate reflection of their season. Legend's prediction: It is between Chelsea, Newcastle and United for sixth and seventh place and the final European slots and I am so torn there because I actively dislike all three of those teams. With United that feeling is just inherent but, weirdly, out of those three I would rather they got in. They are going to concede goals but they do still look dangerous going forward, and Brighton are struggling. 1-2 Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. This was supposed to be the big relegation decider, but with Burnley down and Nottingham Forest's goal difference meaning they are as good as safe, there is nothing really riding on it now. I feel for Burnley in many ways, because I actually think they are a well-run football club. They have got a bright young manager in Vinnie Kompany and, if they can keep their squad together, they will be back in the Premier League soon. Regardless of the points deduction, this will go down as a disappointing season for Forest even though they have stayed up. It is not as if they have kicked on since Nuno Espirito Santo replaced Steve Cooper as manager in December, is it? Legend's prediction: Firstly it is at Burnley, which is big, and they have just gone down so they will want to sign off on a high. Also, Forest know they are staying up now and there is no way that won't affect them here. No matter what they say otherwise, their motivation for this game is not going to be there. 2-1 Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. Bournemouth have just dipped a bit recently but, whatever happens here, they have had a great first year under Andoni Iraola. Chelsea have won four on the spin and could reel Tottenham in to finish fifth, which would be remarkable after the campaign they have had. I am going to go with them to carry on their winning run, and Cole Palmer to continue his scoring form with another goal. Sutton's prediction: Chelsea are on a good run, apart from when we absolutely battered them 5-0 at the end of April. I was there for that game and it was amazing, we tore them apart. But the way Chelsea are playing, as much as I hate to admit, it, they are probably going to win this. 3-1 Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. Crystal Palace's biggest challenge is going to be keeping hold of Eberechi Eze, Michael Olise and Jean-Philippe Mateta, who form such a formidable forward line. They have helped the Eagles put together this great run of five wins and a draw from their past six games, and I think we will see more of the same on Sunday. Aston Villa know they are in next season's Champions League, so it is job done for Unai Emery and his players. They have probably been on the lash to celebrate since Tottenham lost against Manchester City on Tuesday, so I am going with a Palace win. Legend's prediction: Palace are banging the goals in and with Villa only just being confirmed in fourth, there could be that massive comedown where all that stress, anxiety, motivation and pressure comes out, and suddenly it is all gone. 2-1 Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. I can only see one outcome here. Mohamed Salah to score, Liverpool to go out with a bang under Jurgen Klopp, and send him off with a smile. Wolves are not in great form, with only one win - and seven defeats - from their past 10 matches, and they have not been good enough as of late. They were the club who triggered the vote over the future of video assistant referees (VAR) this summer, and they have been wronged by it this season, but Gary O'Neil needs to focus on their performances rather than decisions that are out of their control. This game is all about Klopp and Liverpool, though. It is going to be an emotional day and I don't think there will be many dry eyes at Anfield - I'll be crying myself, even though I won't be there. Being serious though, I am gutted he is going because he is a brilliant manager and his departure is an enormous loss to the Premier League as well as to Liverpool. Klopp is spiky at times, but he always says what he thinks and I admire that. Most football fans will be really sad to see him go, whoever they support. As well as what Klopp has what won, you have to appreciate how he has pushed City so hard in the seasons where they edged Liverpool to the title. He built an excellent team that could challenge them, and, without him, City would have dominated even more than they have done. Legend's prediction: It's Klopp's last game and it could be a big score. There will be a wild atmosphere. 5-1 Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. One win in their past 17 league games has put pay to Luton's chances of staying up. There is still talk of hope for the Hatters but, let's be realistic, they are not going to to overhaul Forest's vastly superior goal difference. Will Rob Edwards' side bow out with a win, though? No. Fulham have been accused of being on the beach already, but I am backing them here. Legend's prediction: This could be a similar outcome to Burnley because they will throw a lot at it. 1-0 Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. My son James thinks West Ham are going to win at Etihad Stadium but he's wrong. The same goes for Legend's prediction, and I can see why he doesn't win many on Gladiators. Four of City's seven Premier League triumphs have gone down to the final day, and they went at least one goal down in three of them. This one will be different, because I don't just think City will win, I am expecting them to wrap it up early and seal a record fourth Premier League title in a row without any last-day drama. Like most people, I am sick of them winning but you have to admire them because they are an absolute machine. The way they put their foot down, even on Tuesday night when Tottenham pushed them, is so impressive. They are a brilliant all-round team who have players who can come off the bench and impact the game, and their manager is a genius. Pep Guardiola seems to win every title in a different style, and his team never stops evolving. This season I have been particularly impressed with the physicality which has got them through the campaign. Also, there we were thinking Erling Haaland has not been very good, but he is going to walk away with another Golden Boot. They are a remarkable group of players to keep going on these runs of results that take them to the title season after season. I know I am talking about them as if they have already won it but I don't see any other outcome, because of how relentless they are, and their resilience, quality and mental strength. Everyone talks about the Premier League being the best in the world and part of the reason for that is because it is the most competitive. City have come through some difficult games this season, but they always produce when they are under pressure. Well played to them, again. I just feel a bit sorry for West Ham boss David Moyes because this is his final game in charge and it could not be any more difficult. Legend's prediction: I've been trying to scrape around for any reason to be optimistic here but even if West Ham are winning and it goes into stoppage time, you just know City will turn it around. To be honest, though, I am struggling to envisage a scenario where West Ham even score a goal, let alone beat them. The only hope is that it stays goalless, we go ahead, and everyone there starts to get nervous. I would be amazed if it is any other outcome other than a City win, but I need West Ham to do something, and somehow hold on so we win the league on goal difference. 0-0 Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. We have seen an angry Ange Postecoglou this week, and I totally get why. I really liked what he said before the Manchester City game about how he wants the club to win something, rather than just have bragging rights. If I'm a Spurs fan, that's what I want to hear. He was bang on. He is trying to build a winning culture at Tottenham and clearly the mentality at the club does not align with his. On the flip side, I do also understand the pettiness of the Tottenham fans who do not want Arsenal to win the title. But it sounds like Postecoglou's anger is not just at some of the Spurs supporters who wanted their side to lose to City on Tuesday, but at some people inside the club too. If you are are on the inside and you want to build a winning club, then you cannot have that mindset where you don't want to win every game - you cannot pick and choose, you have to be relentless and all pull in the same direction. That does not seem to be happening at Spurs. We have seen this movie before, and it will be interesting to see how it pans out. I admired Postecoglou when he was at Celtic, for the way he turned the club around as well as the football he played. I still think he has over-achieved in his first season at Spurs because they lost Harry Kane just before it started, and the football has been excellent, but they have fallen away recently. I am sure Postecoglou would accept it has been a disappointing end to the campaign, with five defeats in the past six games, even if they have had some difficult fixtures in that run, but all of this underlines that there are other issues at the club. I don't know what happens next - they either believe in him, or they don't. He will be desperate to finish the season on a high, as will Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder, whose side are already relegated, are bottom of the table with only three wins all season, and on a six-game losing streak. Even if the Blades do respond, I am still backing Spurs. Legend's prediction: I am absolutely disgusted by Tottenham fans. They deserve an absolute stinker here and I hope they get absolutely pummelled, then Ange comes out on the pitch with a microphone and announces his resignation there and then because he is sick of managing a club whose fans literally want them to lose. That's what I hope happens, and it would be the just outcome too. 0-0 Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. How did Sutton do last week? Sutton got seven correct results, with no exact scores, from the 10 Premier League games in week 37, giving him 70 points. He beat Kasabian frontman Serge Pizzorno. who got five correct results with no exact scores, leaving him with a total of 50 points. There were three extra games in midweek, all rearranged from week 34, when singer-songwriter Sam Tompkins was the guest. Sutton, who led 50-30 before the remaining games were played, picked up 50 more points to confirm his victory. Sam picked up 20 points, meaning the final score was 100-50. Andy Bell from Ride, UB40 drummer Jimmy Brown, Fabian Edwards, Joelah from 1Xtra, KSI, Franklin star Daniel Mays, Midas the Jagaban David Earl, Kings of Leon drummer Nathan Followill, Steve Queralt from Ride, Keke from 1Xtra, Jazzie Zonzolo Dave from The Zutons, Tommy Fury, Joe from Nothing But Thieves, Sam from Twin Atlantic Gabe of Jamie Johnson FC, Ed Leigh, Tash from The Football Academy, Sam Tompkins, Matthew Vaughn, Rick Witter How did you get on? Only 9% of you thought Brentford would beat Bournemouth, but the only other results to catch you out last time were the draws between Newcastle and Brentford, and Aston Villa versus Liverpool. You were right about Manchester City beating Tottenham in midweek, although 45% of you thought Spurs would pick up at least a point. Overall, you are now 10 points clear of Chris, with 10 games of the season remaining. *Win, draw, loss prediction based on highest % of vote for each match. • None Our coverage of your Premier League club is bigger and better than ever before - follow your team and sign up for notifications in the BBC Sport app to make sure you never miss a moment

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/69012388

David Copperfield: Magician accused of sexual misconduct - BBC News

2024-05-16

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Lawyers for the illusionist say the allegations are "false and scurrilous".

Entertainment & Arts

Magician David Copperfield has been accused of sexual misconduct and inappropriate behaviour by 16 women. Some of the alleged offences took place when the women were under 18, the Guardian newspaper has reported, external. The allegations date from the late 1980s to 2014. A representative for Copperfield told BBC News the allegations were "false and scurrilous" and "the exact opposite of who David is". According to the Guardian, three of the women claim the magician drugged them before having sex with them. They said they did not feel able to consent. In four instances, women alleged the magician groped them or made them touch him in a sexual manner during live performances on stage. One woman said she met Copperfield in 1991 when she was 15 and he kept in contact with her through phone calls. When she was 18, she says they had consensual sex, but the woman told the Guardian she believes she was groomed. Copperfield's lawyers acknowledged the relationship to the newspaper but denied any grooming took place. In a separate statement to the BBC, his lawyers said: "Everyone that knows David Copperfield will tell you that these recent allegations from one newspaper are the exact opposite of who David is. "In fact, David has a record of risking his career to help protect women from powerful predators. "Most of these historic accusations have been made before, and all of them are as false now as they were then. David requested the 'evidence' upon which these false allegations claim to rely and this has not been provided. "By contrast, whenever US law enforcement has looked into such matters, they have been investigated thoroughly and it has been found that there is simply no case to answer. "The Guardian's characterization is not who David is, and he continues to support anyone who has experienced any form of abuse or discrimination. The movement must succeed, but false accusations must stop for it to flourish. David will be considering the position with his legal team and will take such steps as may be appropriate over these false and scurrilous allegations." Copperfield has previously been accused of inappropriate behaviour and in 2018 he denied historical allegations of sexual misconduct. "I've lived with years of news reports about me being accused of fabricated, heinous acts, with few telling the story of the accuser getting arrested, and my innocence," he wrote on X/Twitter at the time. Copperfield is one of America's best-known magicians. He has won 21 Emmy Awards and holds 11 Guinness World Records.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-69017797

Slovakia PM Robert Fico in stable but serious condition after shooting, doctors say - BBC News

2024-05-16

https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews

Robert Fico's condition is still "very serious" after he was shot several times on Wednesday.

Europe

This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Slovak prime minister fighting for his life after shooting Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico is in a stable but serious condition after being shot several times on Wednesday, according to doctors. The hospital director said he was currently in an intensive care unit after five hours in surgery. Earlier Mr Fico, 59, was said to have been fighting for his life after being gravely injured in an attack in the small town of Handlova. A suspect was detained at the scene of the shooting. Miriam Lapunikova, director of the F. D. Roosevelt University Hospital in Banska Bystrica, where Mr Fico was admitted, told a press conference that his condition "is truly very serious". Previously, Deputy Prime Minister Tomas Taraba told the BBC that Mr Fico's surgery had gone "well" and "I guess that at the end he will survive". Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estoka described it as a politically motivated assassination attempt. Mr Fico is a divisive figure at home - and controversial in the EU - for his calls to end military aid to Ukraine and sanctions on Russia. But condemnation of the shooting has come from far and wide and it has been described as an attack on democracy. The gunman was in a small crowd of Fico supporters who were gathered outside a cultural centre in Handlova, where the prime minister had been holding a meeting. The shooting took Mr Fico's security officers completely by surprise. Footage shows the prime minister after he was shot being carried by several officers, who bundle him into a car and drive him away from the scene. This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Moment leading up to shooting of Slovak PM The gunman fired five shots at close range and Mr Fico was hit in the stomach and in the arm. He was rushed to hospital in an air ambulance and spent five hours in surgery, conducted by surgical and trauma teams, according to Ms Lapunikova. Later on Wednesday, Mr Taraba told the BBC's Newshour programme that Mr Fico was "not in [a] life-threatening situation at this moment". He added the prime minister was shot "from very close" and that "one bullet went through the stomach and the second one hit the joint". Police have not yet identified the alleged suspect. Unconfirmed local media reports say he was a 71-year-old writer and political activist. A video being widely circulated on Slovak media purports to feature the suspect. In the footage, the man says he disagrees with government policy and its stance towards state media. The BBC does not know if the person in the video is the perpetrator who was detained at the scene nor the circumstances under which it was filmed. The shooting came on the day parliament began discussing the government's proposal to abolish Slovakia's public broadcaster RTVS. Thousands of Slovaks have protested against the proposed reform of the public broadcaster in recent weeks. However, a planned opposition-led demonstration was called off on Wednesday as news of the shooting emerged. Slovakia's prime minister was airlifted to a hospital in Banska Bystrica and underwent several hours of surgery In his interview with the BBC, Deputy Prime Minister Taraba blamed "false narratives" by opposition parties in Slovakia for the shooting. "Our prime minister several times mentioned in the past that he was afraid that this would happen," Mr Taraba said in another interview with the BBC's World Tonight programme. Parliament was sitting at the time of the attack and Slovak media reported that a party colleague of Mr Fico's shouted at opposition MPs, accusing them of stoking the attack. And Interior Minister Mr Estok accused the media of contributing to the climate that led to the 59-year-old's shooting, telling a press conference: "Many of you were those who were sowing this hatred." Mr Estok added that he believed "this assassination [attempt] was politically motivated". Reacting to news of the attack, Slovakia's outgoing President Zuzana Caputova said something "so serious had happened that we can't even realise it yet". "The hateful rhetoric we witness in society leads to hateful acts," she added. Slovakia's state security council is due to convene and the government will also meet on Thursday morning following the assassination attempt.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-69019121

Restoring Scotland's extinct oyster reefs - BBC News

2024-05-16

Thirty thousand rare oysters are being reintroduced to the Firth of Forth having been wiped out by overfishing and pollution.

Thirty thousand rare oysters are being reintroduced to the Firth of Forth having been wiped out by overfishing and pollution. Once native to Scotland, it has been estimated that 30 million European flat oysters were being harvested towards the end of the 1800s. But by 1957 they were declared extinct in the area. So far, 14,000 oysters have been reintroduced with plans for the rest to be added by the end of the year, as part of a project to increase biodiversity in Scottish waters.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-69024283

Russia gives British diplomat Adrian Coghill a week to leave Moscow - BBC News

2024-05-17

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The expulsion of Capt Adrian Coghill comes after his counterpart was removed from Britain last week.

Europe

A British diplomat has been given a week to leave Russia in an escalation of a diplomatic spat over spying. The Russian foreign ministry said in a statement the removal of Capt Adrian Coghill was in response to "unfriendly anti-Russian actions" from Britain. On 8 May, external, the Russian defence attaché was expelled from London for alleged espionage as an "undeclared military intelligence officer". Russia says its response "does not end with this measure". It added the "initiators of the escalation will be informed about further retaliatory steps". It was inevitable following the UK's earlier announcement that Russia would declare Capt Coghill, a Royal Naval officer and Britain's defence attaché based at the embassy in Moscow, persona non grata. Russian statecraft follows closely the principle of reciprocity, which means for every tit, there must be a tat. So British diplomats in Moscow will expect further constraints. All this would have been taken into account when the government decided last week to crackdown on Russian espionage in the UK. Ministers would have decided that the loss of Britain's defence expert in the embassy in Moscow was worth the gain of disrupting Russian activities in the UK. Writing on X, previously known as Twitter, Defence Secretary Grant Shapps called the expulsion by Russia a "desperate move". He said Russia's only issue with Capt Coghill was that he "personified the UK's unwavering support for Ukraine in the face of his illegal and barbaric invasion". The removal of Col Maxim Elovik was among a number of other measures announced by the Home Office, Foreign Office and Ministry of Defence - as part of plans to "tighten defences against alleged malign activity by Russia" across Europe. In April, five people were charged over conspiring to commit espionage activities in the UK on behalf of Russia under the National Security Act, the first prosecutions of this kind under the new laws. Another of the measures included the removal of diplomatic premises status from several Russian properties in the UK - including in Sussex and Highgate, which officials believe had been used for "intelligence purposes". Russian diplomatic visas were also affected, with restrictions including a cap on the length of time holders can spend in the UK. Last week, Home Secretary James Cleverly said Moscow would make accusations of "Russophobia" while spreading "conspiracy theories and hysteria". Col Maxim Elovik appears to have been in the UK since at least 2014. Prior to his posting in London, Col Elovik served as an assistant military attaché at Russia's embassy in Washington DC. When approached for comment, a Foreign Office spokeswoman directed BBC News to Mr Shapps' X post on the matter.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-69023928

King Charles to attend D-Day commemorations in France - BBC News

2024-05-17

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The King, Queen and Prince William will take part in events marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day.

UK

King Charles will take part in commemorations marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day next month, says Buckingham Palace. He will travel to Normandy in France for ceremonies marking the landings which took place in 1944 during World War Two. There had been uncertainty because of the King's cancer diagnosis. But he will be taking part in D-Day events in the UK and France alongside Queen Camilla and the Prince of Wales. It will be the first time the King has travelled overseas since he began cancer treatment and it marks a further step in his return to public engagements. There will also be 23 surviving D-Day veterans going to Normandy and a further 21 veterans are expected at an event at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire. They are part of a diminishing number of people who took part in what was the biggest seaborne invasion in history. Five years ago there were 255 D-Day veterans going to Normandy events and Philippa Rawlinson of the Royal British Legion said: "These incredibly moving and poignant commemorations will be our last opportunity to host a significant number of Normandy veterans." On Southsea Common in Portsmouth on 5 June, the King, Queen and Prince William will attend a ceremony remembering the wartime Allied landings in northern France when it was occupied by the Nazis. The King handed over the role of Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps to the Prince of Wales on Monday This national commemoration will have light displays, readings and music in a city that was one of the starting points for the landings 80 years ago. Princess Anne, the Princess Royal, will unveil a statue in Normandy recalling the Canadian contribution to D-Day, before attending a remembrance service in Bayeux Cathedral. The King and Queen will then travel to France for an event on 6 June at the British Normandy Memorial in Ver-sur-Mer, which lists the names of more than 20,000 individuals under British command who died during the Battle of Normandy. This will include veterans' stories, music and a tribute by the Red Arrows and the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. Prince William will attend an international ceremony at Omaha Beach, Saint Laurent sur Mer, which is expected to include 25 heads of state.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-69026300

Rare footage shows deep-sea squid attacking camera - BBC News

2024-05-17

Watch video of the super-fast Dana squid getting a close-up 1km below the Pacific Ocean's surface.

Rare footage shows a deep-sea squid wrapping its arms around a camera at a depth of about 1km (0.6 miles), where conditions are near pitch black. The Dana squid has all the tools of a top ocean predator, including a pair of brilliant "headlights" that it flashes at the moment it goes in for the kill. They are intended to dazzle the prey, to hold the victim stationary for those few moments longer until it can be captured in a death embrace. Scientists filmed the squid in full attack mode while they were on a research cruise in the Pacific Ocean. Read more on this story.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-69016403

Sean 'Diddy' Combs: Video appears to show rap mogul beating girlfriend Cassie in 2016 - BBC News

2024-05-17

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The clip seems to show an attack described in Casandra Ventura's lawsuit against the rapper last year.

US & Canada

The ex-couple were seen at a movie screening in LA about one week before the video was purportedly filmed CCTV has emerged appearing to show rap mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs attacking singer Casandra "Cassie" Ventura in a hotel hallway in 2016. The video, aired by CNN, has surfaced in the wake of allegations by Ms Ventura about her ex-boyfriend and producer in a lawsuit last year. She has not commented, but her lawyer said it confirms "the disturbing and predatory behaviour of Mr Combs". A lawyer for Mr Combs has not responded to a BBC request for comment. The BBC has not independently verified the video, which appears to be a compilation of surveillance footage angles dated 5 March 2016. According to CNN, it was filmed at the now-closed InterContinental Hotel in Century City, Los Angeles. The clip appears to show Ms Ventura leaving a hotel room to walk towards a row of elevators. A shirtless man is seen holding a towel around his waist, and hurrying down a hallway. When he catches up to her, he grabs her and throws her on the floor, causing her to drop some luggage. He kicks her while she is on the ground, before picking up her bags and kicking her a second time then attempting to drag her by her shirt. The attacker is seen leaving for a moment, before returning and shoving Ms Ventura as she stands up. He then sits in a chair near the lifts and throws an object. A lawyer for R&B singer Ms Ventura, Douglas Wigdor, said in a statement: "The gut-wrenching video has only further confirmed the disturbing and predatory behaviour of Mr Combs. "Words cannot express the courage and fortitude that Ms Ventura has shown in coming forward to bring this to light." The Los Angeles District Attorney's Office said on Friday that the assault captured in the video might be too old to prosecute. "We find the images extremely disturbing and difficult to watch," it said in a statement. "If the conduct depicted occurred in 2016, unfortunately we would be unable to charge as the conduct would have occurred beyond the timeline where a crime of assault can be prosecuted." In a now-settled federal lawsuit last year, Ms Ventura alleged that "around March 2016" Mr Combs "became extremely intoxicated and punched Ms Ventura in the face, giving her a black eye". "After he fell asleep, Ms Ventura tried to leave the hotel room, but as she exited, Mr Combs awoke and began screaming at Ms Ventura. "He followed her into the hallway of the hotel while yelling at her. He grabbed at her, and then took glass vases in the hallway and threw them at her, causing glass to crash around them as she ran to the elevator to escape," the documents said. The lawsuit alleged that the rap mogul had purchased the footage from the hotel for $50,000 (£39,000). Her legal action against Mr Combs, which accused him of rape and sexual trafficking over a decade, was settled for an undisclosed sum one day after it was filed in November last year. Mr Combs' lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, said at the time that the settlement "is in no way an admission of wrongdoing". "Mr Combs' decision to settle the lawsuit does not in any way undermine his flat-out denial of the claims. He is happy they got to a mutual settlement and wishes Ms Ventura the best." Since then, several other women have filed lawsuits accusing the rapper of sexual misconduct. His homes in Los Angeles and Miami, Florida, were raided last month as part of a federal investigation into human trafficking. Ms Ventura formally was signed to Mr Combs' record label, Bad Boy, and released several hits in the 2000s, including songs that featured Diddy. Her most famous tracks include Me & U, Long Way to Go and Official Girl, featuring Lil Wayne.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69030387

Long-lost siblings' emotional meeting at Dublin Airport - BBC News

2024-05-17

Long-lost siblings - one from Londonderry, one from Canada - meet for first time in Ireland.

Given up for adoption, Billy Scampton didn't know he had a sister. But the Derry man was overjoyed to meet Shannon Leet from Ontario earlier this month. “I can’t believe I have my sister here in Ireland, sitting in my house in Derry. It is just beyond the stuff of dreams.”

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-69028103

Boy, 5, dies in fall from upper floor of east London block of flats - BBC News

2024-05-17

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A neighbour says the boy's parents are "inconsolable" after his death in east London.

London

Police and paramedics were called to Jacobs House on Thursday A five-year-old boy has died after falling from a tower block of flats in east London. The child fell from the upper floors of Jacobs House in New City Road, Plaistow, at about 06:00 BST. He died at the scene. A neighbour who called the emergency services said the boy's parents were "inconsolable". The death is not being treated as suspicious and a file will be prepared for the coroner, the Met Police says. "Our thoughts are with the child's family at this time," a Met spokesperson said, adding they were supporting relatives with specialist officers. Neighbours have been leaving flowers and cards near the little boy's home A resident of Jacob's House, who gave his name as JJ, said the boy had lived on the 15th floor. He said he witnessed a man go to the boy and cry out: "No, my son." Another resident, Ansert Davis, said he saw the boy's father "rolling on the floor" and also "saying 'my son'". Mr Davis, who had previously seen the family playing on the swings, said the boy's mother was "distraught". Emergency crews went to the building in Plaistow He saw another neighbour run out to try and help: "She came running around, took one look at the child and turned back shaking. "I keep seeing the image in my head. It's so sad, I've got a grandkid about this age. Oh my God, it's like seeing your own kids." Another resident, who did not give their name, said the boy was an Arsenal supporter and described him as "a really nice boy." People are starting to leave flowers near the spot where the five-year-old boy died. Some people here are still hearing about the news, reacting with a mix of shock and empathy. Carol said her husband had heard the little boy's family scream early that morning Carol, who lives near the block, said her husband "woke up this morning and heard the screams" and said something terrible must have happened. "He drove by and saw the ambulance and the police and this is what we woke up to, which is very sad." A Met spokesperson said "officers, London Fire Brigade, London Ambulance Service and London's Air Ambulance" attended the incident. "A five-year-old boy had fallen from an upper floor of an apartment block. Despite the efforts of emergency services, he sadly died at the scene," they said. Flowers have been left near the scene A spokesperson from Newham Council said: "We are deeply sorry to hear about this devastating incident. "We extend our sincere condolences to all those affected. "We have staff at the location to provide reassurance to residents at this difficult time while we work with partners to establish the full facts." The boy was previously reported to have been six years old. This has since been corrected by the Metropolitan Police Service to five years old. Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook, external, X, external and Instagram, external. Send your story ideas to hello.bbclondon@bbc.co.uk, external The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-69019844

EHCP: Councils missing education plan deadlines for children with complex needs - BBC News

2024-05-17

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Many councils in England are failing to meet legal deadlines to set out the extra help pupils need to access education.

Family & Education

Since Freddie had a stroke, Sarah Kilgariff says she has been struggling to get her son the help he needs Thousands of children in England with complex needs are missing out on support as councils fail to meet care plan deadlines, BBC News has found. Councils have a legal time limit of 20 weeks, in most cases, to issue an education, health and care plan (EHCP), after a parent or school asks for one. BBC News has found eight councils met the deadline in fewer than 5% of cases, from April to December last year. Councils say growing demand and insufficient funding cause delays. An EHCP sets out the extra help a child needs to access education, on top of what is available through special education needs support. Examples of extra support might include one-to-one lesson time, or help to learn at home for those with such complex needs that school is unsuitable. Sarah Kilgariff, who lives near Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, applied for an EHCP for her son Freddie last July, after the five-year-old suffered a stroke because of a complication from chickenpox. Ms Kilgariff says Freddie now suffers from fatigue, struggles to regulate his emotions, and is back to wearing nappies. She says because of his needs, her son cannot attend school full-time. The family are still waiting for their EHCP - more than five months after the 20-week deadline. "It's horrific because I can't do anything because it's out of my control, and that's really frustrating," she says. "He's been neglected for a year. He's been completely forgotten about by the system." Staffordshire County Council apologised to the family for the delays. It said Freddie was assessed for a second time in April, after the first test in February failed to meet quality standards. It said a significant increase in requests for EHCP assessments had been made worse by a shortage of educational psychologists, and it had now recruited more. More than 1.5 million pupils in England have special educational needs or disabilities (Send). The latest figures, external from the Department for Education show 517,000 children and young people were on an EHCP in 2023 - the highest on record. The government has said "high-needs funding" for those with complex needs is rising to £10.5bn in 2024-25 - an increase of more than 60% since 2019-20. It said councils were responsible for making sure children in their area receive appropriate education. However, many councils are struggling financially. In a report published in February, one in 10 councils that responded said they plan on cutting services for children with Send, to help balance their books. Conservative MP Robin Walker, who chairs the Education Select Committee, said the delays to EHCPs being issued were "deeply concerning". He says the EHCP system is supposed to support children to help them have an education, which is "a basic right". "I think the design of that system is right but if it's not working we need to look urgently at where the investment is needed, where the changes are needed to make this system work," he added. The BBC made Freedom of Information requests to 152 local education authorities across England. Two thirds responded with the latest data. The findings suggest: • None At least 12 councils are completing EHCP assessments within the 20-week limit in fewer than 10% of cases • None Of those, 8 councils are issuing plans within the timeframe in fewer than 5% of cases • None In Essex, 9 out of 1,360 cases were completed in time between April and December last year, giving the authority one of the lowest rates. Five years ago, 66% of plans were on time • None In Portsmouth, out of 148 cases, only one was completed within the time limit - compared with five years ago when 95% of cases were on time. Both Essex and Portsmouth councils say they are working to tackle delays. They say there has been a rise in requests for EHCPs since the pandemic, as well as a shortage of educational psychologists - whose advice must form part of the EHCP assessment process. Cath Lowther, general secretary of the Association of Educational Psychologists, said demand had soared across England in recent years, but the workforce had not grown to match it. She said many educational psychologists were leaving the profession, or working for an agency or privately - where they can better manage their workload and earn more money. Kathleen Calma, who lives in Staines, Surrey, applied for an EHCP for her autistic son Elijah during the Covid pandemic. She believes regularly calling her case worker and checking progress helped her get the right support for her son within 20 weeks. She says getting an EHCP was "something I really fought for" which allowed her to get Elijah a place in a specialist school. Kathleen Calma "really fought for" an EHCP for her autistic son, Elijah Surrey's rate for getting EHCPs issued on time has dropped from 72% in 2020-21 - when Elijah got his - to less than 17% in the most recent dataset. Surrey County Council said it had seen a 64% increase in requests for assessments since 2020, at a time of a national shortage of educational psychologists. It said it was working hard to clear the backlog. Data from the two-thirds of councils which provided their latest figures suggests some are far more likely to meet the deadline than others: • None In Darlington and Blackburn, more than 80% of plans were issued on time • None In parts of Greater London, such as Enfield and Hounslow, around nine out of 10 of cases were within the time limit • None Barnet council's data shows 100% of plans were delivered within 20 weeks The average for England was 49.2% in 2022. The data suggests Hampshire council has shown one of the biggest improvements in performance over the past five years. In 2019, less than 6% of plans were issued in 20 weeks. Last year the figure rose to 73%. A spokesperson said the improvement was down to hiring more staff. Dame Rachel de Souza, children's commissioner for England, said BBC News' findings were "really shocking" in some areas, and showed the situation was a "crisis". "It's complicated, it's difficult, there are workforce issues, but nothing is more important than childhood, and a child getting their needs met in a timely manner," she added. Louise Gittins, chair of the Local Government Association's children and young people board, said councils "do their best" to meet the time limit in the face of "increasing demand and insufficient funding". BBC News asked 152 councils in England responsible for education and children for their data from the past five financial years, showing the number of EHCPs issued within the statutory time limit of 20 weeks. We received responses from 147, including two-thirds that gave us data for the period April to December 2023. Some councils were able to give us calendar years (January to December), while others gave us financial years (April to March). Are you affected by the issues raised in this story? Share your experiences by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk, external. Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also get in touch in the following ways: If you are reading this page and can't see the form you will need to visit the mobile version of the BBC website to submit your question or comment or you can email us at HaveYourSay@bbc.co.uk, external. Please include your name, age and location with any submission.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-68668602

Slot machines to go cashless as debit cards allowed - BBC News

2024-05-17

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The government says it will help slot venues compete - but charities warn it could increase addiction.

UK Politics

The government says it intends to let people use debit cards to gamble on slot machines. The move will allow pubs, casinos and slot venues to compete in an increasingly cashless society, ministers argue. Gamblers will still be banned from using credit cards in the machines. And there will also be a cap on how much they can spend in one gambling session, with staff alerted when limits are hit. Systems that require payment authorisation, such as Apple Pay, will be allowed, but otherwise contactless payments will remain banned. The Betting and Gaming Council, an industry lobby group, welcomed the "much needed" changes and called on ministers to set out a "clear timeline" for the relevant legislation. But Gambling with Lives, a charity that supports families bereaved by gambling-related suicide, said slot venues were "taking over our high streets" and card payments would make machines "even easier" to play. "Anything that increases access to highly addictive machines cannot be seen as a positive," co-founder Liz Ritchie told the BBC. "We instead need to look at how we make these machines safer, by reducing deposit limits and slowing spin speeds". The changes have been introduced as part of a wider package, which the government says, will level the playing field with online betting. Cashless gambling on gaming machines is currently limited to indirect payments via mobile apps, or by purchasing special tickets for machines. Stake limits have been cut in recent years, with fixed-odds terminals in bookmakers' shops limited to a maximum bet of £2, and £1 for machines in pubs. Direct payments from debit cards are not allowed, under legislation from 2007 designed to produce natural interruptions in play. But the culture department, responsible for gambling laws, says the decline in the use of cash across society could see machines become "obsolete" whilst slot-style games remain "easily available online". It added this would threaten the viability of bricks-and-mortar arcades, which "support jobs and have been adversely affected by the pandemic". The department said it could also arrest a decline in machine income in pubs since Covid, with people increasingly paying for food and drink by card and not carrying cash. Under the proposals, debit card payments will require authentication, such as chip and PIN or biometric verification of the type used for Apple Pay. Like with cash, there will be a £20 limit on the amount a person can deposit onto a machine in one go, lowered for £2 for low-stake fruit machines, penny falls and crane grabs. The government says players should have to wait at least 30 seconds after a payment is approved before depositing money onto a machine, to "broadly mirror" time to withdraw cash from an ATM. There will also be mandatory limits per session, to be set following a separate consultation by the Gambling Commission, a regulator, triggering a 30-second cooling-off period. Despite objections from the sector, staff working in pubs will be alerted when mandatory limits are hit, along with voluntary limits set by punters themselves. These will not apply to the lowest-stake machines. The changes will be made via a type of legislation that comes into force automatically, and can only be blocked if the House of Commons or Lords objects within a 40-day window. However it will only be drafted once the Gambling Commission consultation, to begin in the coming weeks and lasting three months, is complete.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-69021352

Rooftop peacock leaves residents sleep deprived in Ossett - BBC News

2024-05-17

The bird, which escaped from a farm in West Yorkshire, has been waking people up in the night.

A runaway rooftop peacock has been waking up residents in a West Yorkshire neighbourhood with its loud cry. The bird, which escaped from a nearby farm three days ago, has been disturbing people's sleep in Ossett. Both the RSPCA and RSPB have been called, but as the bird is not injured or in danger the charities are unable to help. The Watering Hole Farm, where the bird usually lives, said the peacock will return on its own when it is ready.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leeds-69023225

Israel troops continue posting abuse footage despite pledge to act - BBC News

2024-05-17

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Images shared online include Palestinian detainees draped in the Israeli flag and held in stress positions.

Middle East

A Palestinian detainee pictured with an Israeli flag draped over their back Israel's soldiers are sharing footage of Palestinian detentions in the occupied West Bank, despite the army's pledge to act on previous misconduct revealed by the BBC. Legal experts say the filming, and its posting online, could be a war crime. The BBC has analysed 45 photos and videos, which include those of detainees draped in Israeli flags. The Israel Defense Forces said soldiers have been disciplined or suspended in the event of "unacceptable behaviour". It did not comment on the individual incidents or soldiers we identified. International law says detainees must not be exposed to unnecessary humiliation or public curiosity, yet human rights experts say the posting of detention footage does just that. In February, BBC Verify reported on IDF soldiers' misconduct on social media during the war in Gaza which began after a 7 October Hamas attack on Israel, which killed about 1,200 people. More than 252 others were taken hostage. More than 34,000 people have since been killed by Israel's offensive in Gaza, the territory's Hamas-run health ministry says. During our earlier investigation, we noticed - and began looking into - a similar pattern of behaviour in the West Bank, which has experienced a spike in violence over the same period. Despite the BBC's previous reporting on Israeli soldiers' social media misconduct, and the military's subsequent promise to act on our findings, a former Israeli soldier, Ori Givati, says he is far from shocked to hear that this activity is continuing. A spokesperson for Breaking The Silence - an organisation for former and serving Israeli soldiers which works to expose alleged wrongdoing in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) - Mr Givati added that in fact he believed current far-right political rhetoric in the country is encouraging it further. "There are no repercussions. They [Israeli soldiers] get encouraged and supported by the highest ministers of the government," he said. And he says this plays into a mindset that the military already subscribes to. "The culture in the military, when it comes to Palestinians, is that they are only targets. They are not human beings. This is how the military teaches you to behave." Israel has built about 160 settlements housing some 700,000 Jews since it occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem - land the Palestinians want as part of a future state - in the 1967 Middle East war. The majority of the international community considers the settlements illegal under international law, although Israel disputes this. Screenshots of pictures shared to social media by members of the IDF Our analysis found that the 45 social media videos and photos that we examined were posted by 11 soldiers of the Kfir Brigade, which is the largest infantry brigade in the IDF and mainly operates in the West Bank. All 11 are, or were, serving soldiers, and did not hide their identity on social media. Four are from a Kfir Brigade reservist battalion - the 9213 - whose area of operation appears to be in the northern part of the West Bank, according to our analysis of their social media videos. We asked the IDF about the actions of the individual soldiers we have named and whether they have been disciplined, but they did not respond. We also attempted to contact these soldiers on their public social media accounts to put our findings to them. One appears to have blocked us and the others did not reply at the time of writing. The most prolific of these soldiers posts under the name Yohai Vazana. Many of his videos show his battalion entering homes at night and detaining Palestinians - often binding their hands and blindfolding them. Women are seen panicking as they are filmed without their headscarves. Mr Vazana - a self-proclaimed "digital creator" whose forearms bear tattoos saying "Never forget never forgive, 7/10" - often refers to his operations as "hunts". His military insignia, visible in the videos, suggests he carries the rank of sergeant major. He has posted 22 videos and photos on Facebook and TikTok, from what appear to be bodycam footage of patrols, showing the detention of Palestinians. TikTok confirmed that two videos we highlighted, which had not been taken down on its platform, have now been removed for violating its guidelines which "make clear that we do not tolerate content that seeks to degrade victims of violent tragedies". Meta, the company that owns Facebook, explained that it is reviewing the content and will remove any videos that violate its policies. A screenshot from one of Yohai Vazana’s videos shows members of his battalion posing in front of a Palestinian woman with a child This photo, a screenshot from one of Yohai Vazana's videos, shows members of his battalion forcefully entering a home and posing in front of a Palestinian woman with a child. Fellow soldier Ofer Bobrov features in a number of shots with Mr Vazana. Captions on his videos often include the hashtag "9213", suggesting he is from Mr Vazana's battalion. Mr Bobrov's videos of his military operations are posted alongside clips of soldiers dancing and partying, getting ready for patrols, and other snippets from their everyday life. One video posted on 12 February on TikTok includes several photos of a detainee blindfolded and bound on the floor as a soldier poses with the Israeli flag behind him. Another soldier from the same battalion, who goes by Sammy Ben online, has posted eight videos and one photo of Palestinian detainees on Instagram. The detained Palestinians are frequently shown blindfolded and restrained, having been forced to either lie on the floor, or squat, with their hands bound behind their backs, in what are often referred to by military and law enforcement as "stress positions". Mr Ben says in the posts that he and his fellow soldiers have detained "terrorists" and claim to have found Hamas flags on them. Israel - like the UK, US and other countries - proscribes Hamas as a terrorist organisation. In one video, Mr Ben, who has also served with IDF forces in Gaza, mocks two detained Palestinians, ordering them to say: "Am Yisrael Chai", meaning "The people of Israel live". Ori Dahbash is another member of the same battalion who has posted footage of military operations in the West Bank, including a photo of a detainee that has also been shared by Mr Vazana. An Israeli soldier posts a photo of detainees while holding an Israeli flag Experts said the footage posted by the soldiers could violate international law. Dr Mark Ellis, executive director of the International Bar Association, called for an investigation into the incidents in the footage, and for the IDF to discipline the soldiers involved. International human rights lawyer Sir Geoffrey Nice, who worked with the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) between 1998 and 2006, agreed with Dr Ellis, but was sceptical anyone would be held to account for their actions. In response to our investigation, the IDF replied: "The IDF holds its soldiers to a professional standard… and investigates when behavior is not in line with the IDF's values. In the event of unacceptable behavior, soldiers were disciplined and even suspended from reserve duty. "Additionally, soldiers are instructed to avoid uploading footage of operational activities to social media networks." The IDF's response did not acknowledge that it had pledged to act on our earlier findings on similar social media misconduct, in Gaza. Mr Givati, former Israeli commander in the West Bank, said he felt ashamed and disgusted by Israeli soldiers' treatment of detainees. "We should treat them with the same dignity that we would like to be treated with," he told the BBC. He said the behaviour reflected how he felt Israeli society views Palestinians, and called into question its claims to abide by international law. "We have no future as a society if we continue behaving this way," he said. • None Israeli soldier videos from Gaza could breach international law, experts say

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-69020237

Rebecca Joynes: Teacher guilty of sex with two boys - BBC News

2024-05-17

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Rebecca Joynes is told to expect to go to jail after being convicted by jury.

Manchester

Teacher Rebecca Joynes groomed the two teenage boys from the age of 15, the trial heard A teacher has been found guilty of having sex with two schoolboys. Rebecca Joynes, 30, groomed both boys from the age of 15, Manchester Crown Court was told. Joynes was convicted of four counts of sexual activity with a child and two counts of sexual activity with another child, She was on bail for sexual activity with the first child, boy A, when she began sex with the second, boy B, who she went on to become pregnant by. Neither teen must be identified. Joynes closed her eyes and grimaced before beginning to shake as the guilty verdicts were returned by the jury foreman. Her mother and father, sitting in the public gallery, made no reaction. But yards away the parents of the boys stifled cheers as Joynes was convicted. Judge Kate Cornell warned Joynes: "There's a baby in this case who has done nothing wrong and is entirely innocent of all wrongdoing, and you will obviously want to see her before the sentence is passed, I do understand that. "But you must be under no illusion what's going to happen on the fourth of July." The court previously heard that Joynes was 28, had just come out of a nine-year relationship, and was "flattered" by the attention of teenage schoolboys. Boy A worked out her mobile number after she gave him all but one digit, and the pair connected on Snapchat. He sent her flirtatious texts and they agreed to meet secretly. Boy A lied to his mother that he was staying over at a friend's house after school finished on Friday, but instead Joynes picked him up near his home in her Audi A1, took him to the Trafford Centre, and bought him a £350 Gucci belt. Joynes was on bail when she got pregnant by one of the boys Back at her flat they kissed and had sex twice. The next day the boy's mother noticed a love-bite on her son's neck, which he dismissed as "nothing". But police received a tip-off and visited the school along with boy A's "distraught" mother, who stormed into reception after being told her son had spent the night with a teacher. Joynes was bailed on condition she have no unsupervised contact with anyone under 18. She said she had a "breakdown" and moved back to her parents in Wirral. She was at a low point when boy B messaged her on Snapchat asking how she was. Joynes moved back to Salford Quays, and Boy B visited and they had sex for the first time. She was arrested for breaking bail conditions and spent five months in custody until she was bailed in November last year, giving birth in early 2024. Jane Wilson, senior crown prosecutor for CPS North West, said: "Rebecca Joynes is a sexual predator. "She abused her position to groom and ultimately sexually exploit schoolboys. Her behaviour has had a lasting impact on them." Listen to the best of BBC Radio Manchester on Sounds and follow BBC Manchester on Facebook, external, X, external and Instagram, external? You can also send story ideas to northwest.newsonline@bbc.co.uk, external

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-69026069

Gaza war: UN defends casualty tally amid Israeli anger - BBC News

2024-05-17

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A recent drop in UN estimates of killed Palestinian women and children brought Israeli criticism.

Middle East

The UN now says incomplete information has led to its casualties tally revision The UN humanitarian aid chief has defended the organisation's use of casualty figures in the Gaza war in response to sharp criticism by Israel. Martin Griffiths told the BBC the UN was "very cautious" in its approach. Israel earlier said a recent reduction in UN estimates of killed Palestinian women and children suggested it had relied on false data from Hamas. On 6 May, the UN said 69% of reported fatalities were women and children. On 8 May, it said this figure was 52%. The UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says incomplete information has led to the revision. The UN also says it is now relying on figures from the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza, rather than from the Hamas-run Government Media Office (GMO). Speaking to the BBC's Today programme, Mr Griffiths said: "Gaza is a war zone and the collection of data and statistics, while admirable and necessary, is first of all secondary to actually delivering some aid and, secondly, very difficult in cases of insecurity and violence. "So... be realistic, please, about what's possible in the middle of what we're seeing in Gaza. I think we are very cautious about these figures and I think it's not right to blame the messenger who is trying to get truth out of what is a very, very complicated situation." At the start of the war last October, the Hamas-run health ministry only reported deaths for which details had been registered in hospitals, whereas from November, the GMO included an additional category of deaths recorded in "reliable media reports". On 6 May, OCHA reported 34,735 deaths - of which there were more than 9,500 women and more than 14,500 children, citing the GMO as its source. Then two days later, the UN released a further report, switching its sourcing to the health ministry. The result of this was that although the overall recorded death toll was almost unchanged (34,844), the number of registered deaths of women (4.959) and children (7,797) as of 30 April had both fallen significantly. This difference was because those individuals with incomplete information were not included in the demographic breakdown. Reacting to the change in the official UN estimates, Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz called on the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres to step down. "The miraculous resurrection of the dead in Gaza. The UN had reduced its estimate of women and children killed in Gaza by 50% and claims that it relied on data from the Hamas Ministry of Health," Mr Katz wrote in a post on X on Monday. "Anyone who relies on fake data from a terrorist organisation in order to promote blood libels against Israel is antisemitic and supports terrorism. @antonioguterres, resign!" Israel began its military campaign in the Gaza Strip in the wake of Hamas's attacks on 7 October, in which 1,200 people - mostly civilians - were killed, and 252 others were taken hostage.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-69025420

Keir Starmer sets out what Labour would do first if it wins election - BBC News

2024-05-17

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The Labour leader promises more teachers and more NHS appointments in major pre-election speech.

UK Politics

This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Sir Keir Starmer has set out what Labour would do first if it wins this year's general election. The Labour leader unveiled a pledge card with six key policies, including delivering "economic stability" and providing 40,000 more hospital appointments each week. Some of the pledges are more modest in scale than the five "national missions" Sir Keir announced last year. But he said they were the "first steps" towards Labour's bigger plans. Sir Keir's five missions include making the UK the fastest-growing major economy by the end of a first Labour term in government and achieving clean power by 2030. Speaking at an event in Essex, he rejected claims the party had scaled back its ambitions as an election approached, saying the party had a "big, bold plan" but "we need first steps". The six "first steps" are: • None Sticking to tough spending rules in order to deliver economic stability • None Cutting NHS waiting lists by providing 40,000 more appointments each week - funded by tackling tax avoidance and non-dom loopholes. • None Providing more neighbourhood police officers to reduce antisocial behaviour and introduced new penalties for offenders • None Recruiting 6,500 teachers, paid for through ending tax breaks for private schools. Pledges on healthcare, policing and teaching only apply to England as powers over these matters are devolved in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Labour will make separate policy pledges for Scotland and Wales. Sir Keir said the steps were about looking "the public in the eye" with a "down payment" on what the party would offer the country. Asked whether the step on NHS appointments could be called a promise despite lacking a specific time scale for delivery, he replied: "It is - from day one, minute one, we'll be working to deliver it." He added that his party was already in discussions with doctors and that Labour would be able to increase appointments "pretty swiftly". He acknowledged that some promises he made when running to be Labour leader had been "adapted and changed" but added "only where circumstances have changed". "I'm not going to make a promise before the election that I'm not comfortable we can actually deliver." The Labour leader rejected being a Tony Blair "copycat" - despite handing out pledge cards, as Sir Tony did before his 1997 landslide election victory, and posing for pictures in a white shirt with rolled up sleeves. But he welcomed comparisons between himself and past Labour leaders who had led the party to general election victories. "Well the first thing I'd say about Tony Blair, other than he took his tie off at big events, is that he won three elections in a row," Sir Keir added. But he insisted the circumstances in 2024 were much different to those experienced by Labour when Sir Tony took power, describing it as a "very different moment to 1997". He said his onstage style, without a jacket and his sleeved rolled up, was about "trying to get across the sort of leader I am and my mind set and who I've got in my mind's eye when I make decisions". John Prescott - Labour's deputy leader from 1994 to 2007 - displaying the party's pledge cards Labour has said the six steps are "not the sum total" of the party's election offer and insisted the party also stood by its other policy commitments, such as housing and workers' rights. Conservative chairman Richard Holden said the British public would not be "conned" by Sir Keir, saying the Labour leader had "dumped every pledge that he made during the Labour leadership campaign" and when he was "trying to get Jeremy Corbyn in to be our prime minister". "I think people need to take with an enormous pinch of salt anything that he is putting forward," added Mr Holden. "It's quite clear Labour don't have a cohesive plan."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-69016719

MP writes to Netflix over Baby Reindeer evidence - BBC News

2024-05-17

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John Nicolson wants Netflix to substantiate what it told a committee about Baby Reindeer portrayal.

Entertainment & Arts

Jessica Gunning played the stalker Martha in the hit show Baby Reindeer SNP MP John Nicolson has asked Netflix to substantiate what it told a parliamentary committee about the woman alleged to have inspired the character Martha from the hit show Baby Reindeer. Giving evidence before the Culture Media and Sport Committee last week, Netflix executive Benjamin King said the show was "obviously a true story of the horrific abuse that the writer and protagonist Richard Gadd suffered at the hands of a convicted stalker". But Nicolson believes the evidence Netflix gave may have been inaccurate. The SNP MP told the BBC "it's clear that the evidence given by Netflix to the select committee is disputed". He added that "the charge made - of a conviction - is very important. Journalists can find no evidence to back up the Netflix claim". The MP posted a copy of his letter to Netflix on X, external. Fiona Harvey has identified herself as the woman portrayed as Martha the stalker in the series. Neither Netflix or Richard Gadd has confirmed this. Harvey said she has not been convicted of stalking and denied stalking Richard Gadd. Baby Reindeer has been watched by 65 million people worldwide. It is a dramatised account of the stalking its writer and star, Richard Gadd, says he suffered. He's since talked about the programme telling his "emotional truth". In its opening episode, the show claims "This is a true story". Baby Reindeer's popularity immediately led internet sleuths to hunt the "real figures" behind the fictional characters. After Ms Harvey was named, she appeared in a lengthy interview on Piers Morgan Uncensored and described the "absolutely horrendous" situation she finds herself in as a result of the programme. Fiona Harvey, who identified herself as the woman alleged to have inspired the character Martha, told Piers Morgan she had not stalked Richard Gadd So far, no evidence has been produced that she has a conviction. It has been reported that a writ was filed against her more than 20 years ago in a Scottish court by a lawyer who accused her of harassment. On Piers Morgan, Harvey claimed that never proceeded further. She denied harassment. Apart from the evidence to the Committee, Netflix has not made any comment since the controversy erupted. Piers Morgan also has questions to answer about his decision to interview Fiona Harvey. She is reported to have said she feels "used". On BBC Radio 4's The Media Show, Piers Morgan told me they "had to think long and hard about the public interest justification in giving her the platform", if she was a convicted stalker who had gone to prison. But he felt it was justified because "I felt there was enough of a question mark surrounding that part of the story". "She is emphatic that there was no court case. There was no conviction. She certainly never pled guilty, she says, and there was no prison sentence." He says the framing of Martha in Baby Reindeer as a stalker who goes to prison is a "serious failure by Netflix" as "nobody's found any evidence whatsoever that she has any criminal record, let alone for anything to do with Richard Gadd." Baby Reindeer creator Richard Gadd has asked viewers to stop speculating about the identity of the real-life stalker Chris Banatvala, former head of standards at Ofcom told The Media Show there is "a duty of care" whenever you make a programme dealing with potentially vulnerable people, "whether that's Richard Gadd or Fiona Harvey". "Has she been portrayed in a way that is unfair to her… did she or did she not go to prison?" He pointed out, for now, the streamer is not governed by Ofcom regulatory codes. "In traditional broadcasting, there's a very good set of rules around fairness, what you can and can't do". The Doctor Who writer, Russell T Davies, said the BBC's editorial compliance processes would have been "much stricter". Writing in The Times, external, he said "compliance and editorial policy drives us mad here but I sleep at night". In his evidence to MPs, King said in making the show, Netflix had taken "every reasonable precaution in disguising the real-life identities of the people involved in that story". Ms Harvey disputed that when she spoke to Morgan in an interview that has been watched more than 11 million times. She has since said she was paid £250 by the programme and now wants £1 million. Morgan told the BBC that "she's not going to get a million pounds from me, no… there's no question about that". Piers Morgan has rejected claims that he had exploited Fiona Harvey, when she appeared on his YouTube show He added the show had also paid "for her to have a very nice expensive haircut and we got a very nice car to bring her to and from her home. So I think we treated her extremely reasonably and fairly." He also hit back at claims that his interview was done in the interests of gaining hits above anything else. "As to the question of whether I should feel regretful that it's been successful, I find that a very perverse charge to make". Netflix has been approached for comment.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-69023143

Sunaks' wealth rises to £651m in latest Sunday Times Rich List - BBC News

2024-05-17

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Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty are richer than King Charles, according to The Sunday Times.

UK Politics

The personal wealth of Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty rose by £122m last year, according to the Sunday Times Rich List. The couple's fortune was estimated at £651m in the latest list, up from £529m in 2023. This was mainly due to Ms Murty's shares in Infosys, the Indian IT giant co-founded by her father. It means they are richer than the King, according to the annual list of the UK's most wealthy people., external Charles III was ranked higher than the Sunak family last year, but his personal fortune is estimated to have grown more modestly over the past year, up £10m to £610m. The Sunaks were ranked higher than the late Queen in 2022 - with Elizabeth II's personal fortune that year evaluated at £370m. However, estimating the personal fortunes of monarchs is tricky, while the wider wealth of the monarchy - which includes various estates and palaces - has been estimated at dozens of billions of pounds. Mr Sunak became the first front-line politician to feature on the Sunday Times' annual wealth list in its 35-year history when he appeared on it as chancellor in the 2022 edition. At that point, the family's wealth was estimated at £730m. According to the Sunday Times, the 10 richest families and individuals in the UK, the estimated value of their fortunes and the primary source of their wealth are: • None David and Simon Reuben and family - £24.98bn (property and internet) • None Guy, George, Alannah and Galen Weston and family - £14.49bn (retail and real estate interests, including Primark) Mr Sunak worked as a hedge fund manager before entering politics and is personally wealthy, listing £2.2m in income, earnings, and capital gains last year in his latest tax summary. But he owes his place at the top table of wealthy Britons mainly to his wife's Infosys shareholding, estimated to be worth £590m last year. Downing Street declined to comment on Mr Sunak's latest appearance in the rich list, saying it was a "private family matter". But the PM's official spokesman added: "When he's been asked this question before he's responded and asked that people judge him by his actions, including to support livelihoods during the pandemic though the furlough scheme as an example. "That's his focus and his priority and he should be judged on that."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-69027955

Quiz of the week: Why are puffins causing an international row? - BBC News

2024-05-17

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Test how closely you have been paying attention to what has been going on over the past seven days.

World

It's the weekly news quiz - how closely have you been paying attention to what's been going on in the world over the past seven days? Some mobile users may experience difficulties. If you cannot see the quiz, try this link, external. Try last week's quiz or have a go at something from the archives. What information do we collect from this quiz? Privacy notice. Sign up for our morning newsletter and get BBC News in your inbox.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-69023729

Shattered windows in high-rise buildings after deadly Texas storm - BBC News

2024-05-17

Shattered windows in high-rise buildings and fallen trees were visible around Houston after severe weather.

Severe thunderstorms have killed four people and knocked out power to nearly a million homes and businesses in south-east Texas. The storms shattered windows in high-rise buildings in the city of Houston and downed large trees throughout the area.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69029511

Paul Pelosi attacker sentenced to 30 years in prison - BBC News

2024-05-17

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Nancy Pelosi has not discussed the attack with her husband, whose skull was fractured with a hammer.

US & Canada

This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. The man who attacked the husband of former US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi has been sentenced to 30 years in prison. David DePape was convicted of assault and attempted kidnapping of a federal official in November after a week-long trial in San Francisco. The attack left Paul Pelosi, now 84, in hospital for six days with a fractured skull and other injuries. Mrs Pelosi had asked for a "very long" sentence to be given to DePape. A spokesperson for Mrs Pelosi said that the family "couldn't be prouder of their Pop and his tremendous courage" on the night of the attack and in testifying in the case. "Speaker Pelosi and her family are immensely grateful to all who have sent love and prayers over the last eighteen months, as Mr Pelosi continues his recovery," the spokesperson said in a statement posted on X, formerly Twitter. Prosecutors had asked the judge for DePape to be given 40 years. He is also facing life imprisonment on separate state charges. Video of the incident shown during the trial shows DePape, a Canadian citizen who has lived in the US for two decades, breaking into the Pelosi home in California armed with a hammer on 28 October 2022. DePape asked for Mrs Pelosi, who was not at home, when he confronted the lawmaker's husband inside the couple's house. When police officers arrived after responding to a 911 call, they found Mr Pelosi and DePape both gripping a hammer. Paul Pelosi was seriously injured in the attack Moments later - after being asked to drop the weapon - DePape abruptly struck Mr Pelosi before being wrestled to the ground by officers. The entire incident was caught on body cameras worn by the officers. In addition to a fractured skull, Mr Pelosi suffered injuries to his arm and hand. He was struck three times during the attack. In a letter filed ahead of the sentencing, Mrs Pelosi called on the court to hand down a "very long" sentence for DePape, adding that she and her husband have never been able to discuss the incident. "Paul and I have not discussed the events of that horrible night," she wrote. "Paul doesn't want to undergo revisiting it, and the doctors' advice is that discussing the vicious assault would only renew his trauma." During the trial, Mr Pelosi testified that DePape said his plan was to "take out" Mrs Pelosi, whom he referred to as the "leader of the pack". "It was a tremendous shock, looking at him, looking at the hammer and the ties," Mr Pelosi recalled. "I recognised I was in serious danger. I tried to stay as calm as possible." After the attack, Mr Pelosi said his next memory was waking up to a "pool of blood" and being rushed to the hospital. In his own letter to the court before the sentencing, Mr Pelosi said he is still grapping with the effects of the attack. "I walk slowly and have difficulty with my balance. Nearly every day I get headaches that become migraines unless quickly addressed," he wrote. "I need to sleep during the day and cannot tolerate bright lights or loud noises for extended periods of time." DePape's court-appointed lawyer, Jodi Linker, argued that her client was motivated by right-wing conspiracy theories, which the defendant believed "with every ounce of his being". Prosecutors, however, argued that DePape had a "plan of violence", noting that he told investigators he had a "target list" and plan to break Mrs Pelosi's kneecaps if she did not reveal "the truth". At the time of his arrest, DePape had zip ties and duct tape. Outside the courthouse, DePape's son told reporters that his father's prison sentence was the same as the death penalty. "I think that's a really long time, because if you think about it, he's already nearly 50," Sky Gonzalez said, according to the Associated Press. "Basically, it's just a death sentence." In addition to the federal charges, DePape is facing separate state charges stemming from the attack. They include burglary, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse, and attempted murder. He faces life imprisonment if convicted of those charges. He has pleaded not guilty.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69028127

Cost of living: Five tips when asking for a pay rise - BBC News

2024-05-17

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Recruiters, a manager and a workplace psychologist give their advice on how to negotiate for more money.

Business

If you feel like you're not getting paid enough, you're probably not alone. Increases in average wages have finally overtaken the pace of price rises, but many of us are still feeling the impact of the cost-of-living crisis. Last year saw waves of strikes, with tens of thousands of workers walking out in disputes over pay, jobs and conditions. Many of these strikes have taken place in the public sector, where workers often do not have the power to negotiate individually. And whether you work in the public or private sector, even if you do have a conversation with your manager there's no guarantee that it will result in a pay rise. However, there are ways to give yourself the best chance of success. We spoke to recruiters, a manager and a workplace psychologist to get five tips on how to best negotiate for more money. Jill Cotton, a career trends experts at jobs site Glassdoor, says scheduling a talk in advance will allow you and your boss time to prepare, and means you're more likely to have a productive conversation. "Don't spring this on your line manager," Ms Cotton says. "Be upfront and say that you want to book in a conversation that is specifically about pay." Rowsonara Begum, who helps her brother run Saffron Indian takeaway in Salisbury, says it also needs to be the right time for the business. The takeaway has five members of staff and occasionally takes on additional workers during busy periods. Rowsonara Begum says workers seeking a pay rise should ask at a good time She says if workers pick a time when the business is doing well, they will have the best chance of successfully negotiating more money. If you're asking for a pay rise, you should have lots of evidence of why you deserve one. "Know what you've achieved either from a work setting or what you've done to develop yourself, maybe to support your team, support your line managers. List all the pros of what you've done," says Shan Saba, a director at Glasgow-based recruitment firm Brightwork. This evidence also helps your manager rationalise why you should be paid more, according to Stephanie Davies, a workplace psychologist. "The brain needs a 'why' - why should I pay you this amount?" she says. However, it's not just about bringing a list of all the things you've done. You should also be clear about what you want to do next, says Mr Saba. "If you have aspirations of moving up through your organisation, have a plan of what you're looking to do over the coming year." When asking your boss for more money, it helps if you're confident and know your worth. That's something Ms Begum has noticed, from her experience of having these talks with staff. "Here in Salisbury, it's quite difficult to get the staff we need," she says. "It's also become harder to recruit from overseas. So workers have negotiating power because they know there's a shortage." Often people don't feel confident because there is a "stigma" around talking about pay, says Glassdoor's Jill Cotton, but it's "an important part of work". Women and people from minority backgrounds can often find it particularly hard to ask for more more, adds psychologist Stephanie Davies. Her advice to them is to ask for a mentor or role model, who can help guide them through those conversations. Most experts agree it's best to have an exact figure in mind before embarking on a conversation about pay. Do your research, advises James Reed, chair of recruitment firm Reed. "You can go online and look at job adverts and see what other comparable jobs are being recruited for and what the salaries are," he says. Ms Cotton warns the figure should be realistic. "We would all love to be paid millions of pounds every single year. But we are being paid to fulfil a role with the skillset we have," she says. If the above steps don't result in a pay rise, try not to be disheartened. "Sometimes these conversations can take a while, even months, but it's important to keep the communication open," says Ms Begum. Pay is also not the be-all and end-all, says Mr Reed. "It's not just necessarily about money. You might be able to get more holiday or more flexibility around working hours," he says, adding you could also negotiate extra training and development. And if you don't feel you're getting what you want from your employer, remember, there are other opportunities out there. "You can always look elsewhere, that's the really big lesson," says Ms Davies.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-64288791

Marjorie Taylor Greene: '9/11 absolutely happened' - BBC News

2024-05-17

The Republican congresswoman says she remembered 'crying all day watching it on the news.'

Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene says she regrets past comments in which she questioned whether the terror attacks on 9/11 or some school shooting tragedies actually happened. But she did not apologise and did not refer to a host of other incendiary statements made before she was elected to Congress in November. She has been condemned by colleagues from both parties, although the Republican leadership stopped short of removing her from two committees. The US House will vote on whether to punish her for those statements. Read more: Republican lawmaker says she 'regrets' QAnon posts

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-55942990

Daniel Anjorin: Hundreds at vigil for 'gentle, focused' 14-year-old - BBC News

2024-05-17

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Mourners gathered at Hainault Underground car park, metres away from where Daniel was killed.

London

More than 300 people have attended a vigil to pay tribute to Daniel Anjorin, a teenager who was fatally stabbed with a sword while on his way to school. The 14-year-old was attacked in Hainault, north-east London, on Tuesday morning. On Sunday, mourners gathered metres away from where Daniel was killed, at Hainault Underground station car park, to pay their respects. Daniel's family was not present at the vigil. Daniel's family is being supported by specialist police officers The family's church, Jubilee Church London, also paid tribute to Daniel and his family at a service on Sunday. Pastor Tope Koeoso told the congregation what had happened was "tragic and unimaginable". He said the family have been members of the church for more than 15 years and that Daniel was baptised there so "whatever touches them, touches us all". "This has hit all of us," he said. Pastor Tope Koeoso said the church had been supporting Daniel's family all week He added pastors had been supporting the family from the early moments of when the attack happened. "One of the first people his brother called was the youth leader who immediately went to him to give emotional and spiritual support," he said. "I know the family would want to say thanks to the police for the sensitive way they've cared for the family and protected them," he said, adding: "Although our hearts are heavy and the pain is deep, our faith is strong." At the vigil held earlier in the day in Hainault, Harris, a 17-year-old boy who knew Daniel, told the crowd: "He was a kid that was not in any type of trouble. I'm not just saying that. "He never did anything wrong. He focused on school, he got good grades, he (went) to church. "His family are appreciating all your support. They've noticed everything you guys are doing community-wise, fundraiser-wise, Arsenal as well. They've noticed it all. "On their behalf, thank all of you." A teddy bear in an Arsenal football kit was laid at the vigil for Daniel Arsenal, the football team Daniel supported, paid tribute to him during their Premier League game at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday. During the match there was also a moment of applause in the 14th minute, with a banner reading "RIP Daniel" among the crowd. Bouquets of flowers, handwritten notes, Arsenal FC memorabilia and teddies have been left at the bottom of Laing Close in Hainault, as well as a painting of Daniel. A banner reading 'RIP Daniel' was held among the crowd at Arsenal's football match against Bournemouth A family friend said the number of floral tributes left showed the outpouring of support from the whole country. Alistair Soyode said people had come from "near and far" to pay their respects and offer solidarity. "The flowers that have been laid are not just coming from one section of the community," he said. "This is a full representation of what the United Kingdom is. Different people from different communities, nationalities, are showing their sympathies and prayers by laying flowers in this spot." The community was thanked on behalf of Daniel's family In a statement issued by the Met Police, his parents said: "We as a family are devastated by the loss of our beloved son Daniel. "It is difficult for us at this time to process what has happened to him and that he will never come home. Daniel had left the house for school and then he was gone. "Our children have lost their loving and precious brother and we have lost the most loved and amazing son." His school, Bancroft's, in Woodford Green, said he was a "true scholar" who had a "positive nature and gentle character". In a statement, it described him as a "core member" of the community, adding: "Losing such a young pupil is something we will always struggle to come to terms with." Marcus Arduini Monzo, 36, from Newham, east London, has been charged with murdering Daniel. He has also been charged with two counts of attempted murder, two counts of causing grievous bodily harm, aggravated burglary, and possession of a bladed article. He was remanded in custody and will next appear in court at the Old Bailey on Tuesday. Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook, external, X, external and Instagram, external. Send your story ideas to hello.bbclondon@bbc.co.uk, external • None Family devastated by loss of 'loved and amazing son'

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-68961793

Junior doctors talks need 'time and space', says Victoria Atkins - BBC News

2024-05-17

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The health secretary says renewed negotiations should take place away from deadlines and social media.

UK Politics

This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Seventy-five years ago the NHS was "made by men for men", says Victoria Atkins. Health Secretary Victoria Atkins has compared talks with junior doctors in England to a "peace process away from the glare of the media". She told the BBC she wanted to give people the time and space for discussions, away from social media. Formal negotiations over the doctors' pay dispute collapsed in December. But on Thursday, the British Medical Association said it had agreed to fresh talks with the government and an unnamed independent mediator. A spokesperson for the association has said there was a need to restore trust and an independent mediator could help break the logjam. The row has run for more than a year and led to a number of strikes since March 2023. The BMA wants a 35% pay rise phased over a few years. Ministers awarded an average of just under 9% for the last financial year and have suggested anything higher would be unaffordable. Speaking to the Political Thinking with Nick Robinson podcast, Ms Atkins said she wanted to ensure people round the negotiating table did not feel beholden to deadlines or tweets. She agreed with the suggestion that the negotiations would be "effectively talks in secret... like a peace process where people are going away for some time. away from the glare of the media" to try to get a settlement. She added that in addition to pay, working conditions were also an issue and that she wanted to "help junior doctors with some of the working conditions that they are facing that make life really tough for them". Asked by Nick Robinson whether the prime minister and chancellor were "a block to progress" she replied: "Very much not." During the interview, Ms Atkins was also asked if she stood by her comment to Stylist magazine, external that the NHS had been a "system created by men for men". She agreed adding that historically, maternity care has not been "quite the priority". "In what other part of the hospital would a patient be expected to go through what can be quite a painful episode to put it mildly... without pain relief?" she asked. Earlier this week, a report was published calling for an overhaul of the UK's maternity and postnatal care. The Birth Trauma Inquiry - run by MPs - said poor care was "all too frequently tolerated as normal". It heard from 1,300 women, some of whom reported being mocked and denied basic needs such as pain relief. Recounting her own experience of giving birth to her first child, Ms Atkins said she had had "amazing care" but before the birth had been put on a ward with mothers who had had "very, very traumatic experiences". "Seeing other mums in a great deal of distress, it was quite frightening actually," she said. The hospital had since "rejigged things" and there were "better services and facilities available". "But it's why for me, this is personal," Ms Atkins said. "I want every woman to feel safe and happy as she goes in to give birth." Someone in pain, in distress or frightened could struggle to "articulate their concerns", so it was important hospitals had a culture of "non-defensive transparency", she said Labour's shadow health secretary Wes Streeting called the report "sobering" and said his party would "work in the same bipartisan spirit to deliver results".

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-69022696

Daniel Perry: Texas pardons US soldier who shot Black Lives Matter protester - BBC News

2024-05-17

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Daniel Perry shot an armed protester in Austin during a protest in the wake of the murder of George Floyd.

US & Canada

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has pardoned a man convicted of killing a Black Lives Matter protester in 2020. Daniel Perry, an ex-US Army sergeant, was moonlighting as an Uber driver in Austin when he turned on to a street where demonstrators were marching. Garrett Foster, one of the protesters, approached the vehicle carrying a rifle. Perry shot him dead. Perry said he acted in self-defence, but he was convicted by a jury and sentenced to 25 years in prison. Foster, 28, a former US Air Force mechanic, was openly carrying an AK-47 semi-automatic assault rifle - something that is legal under Texas law - at the time of the confrontation on 25 July 2020. He was white, as is Perry. Perry, now 37, had no passenger in his taxi and said some of the demonstrators, who had gathered in the wake of the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota, began banging on his car. The protesters said they feared the vehicle might ram them. During the trial, Perry's lawyers argued that Foster raised his rifle, a claim that some witnesses disputed. Perry lowered his window and shot Foster five times with a .357 revolver before driving off. He called 911 shortly afterwards. The case became a rallying point for conservatives and Governor Abbott previously said he would pardon Perry as soon as he received an official request. Perry was convicted of murder in April 2023. In announcing the pardon on Thursday, the Republican governor said that the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles had conducted an "exhaustive review" of the case and Perry's personal history. "Texas has one of the strongest 'Stand Your Ground' laws of self-defence that cannot be nullified by a jury or a progressive District Attorney," Governor Abbott said in a statement, referring to Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza, a Democrat. "Stand your ground" laws generally permit an individual to use force, including deadly, against someone if they believe that person is about to commit murder or other serious crimes. In a statement Mr Garza said: "The Board and the Governor have put their politics over justice and made a mockery of our legal system. They should be ashamed of themselves." A person lays down a candle at a vigil for Garrett Foster the day after the shooting According to court documents, Perry began searching for the locations of Black Lives Matter protests weeks before the shooting and messaged friends on social media, comparing protesters to "a bunch of monkeys flinging [expletive] at a zoo". In May 2020, shortly after Floyd's death, he sent a text message saying: "I might go to Dallas to shoot looters." He also sent messages about "hunting Muslims" and about killing a daughter if she had a crush on "a little negro boy".

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69013312

Slough: Refuse workers seen on CCTV dodging exploding gas canister - BBC News

2024-05-17

The canister can be seen flying out of the back of a waste lorry after being crushed.

Video has been released capturing the moment a gas canister exploded and nearly hit two refuse workers. The container flew out of the truck in Marcia Court in Slough, Berkshire, on Tuesday, landing between refuse supervisor Tom Conway and acting up supervisor Ray McNally. Slough Borough Council said it had been wrongly left in a waste bin for collection. Mr Conway said he did not see the canister fly out, but he ducked when Mr McNally shouted. "I don't normally listen to him, but I listened to him this time," he joked. He said when he realised what had happened he was "speechless". Mr McNally said the canister weighed between eight and 10 pounds (3.6 to 4.5kg) and flew "60 or 70 foot (18.2 or 21.3m) in the air". "If it had hit [Mr Conway] on the back he... could have been dead," said Mr McNally. "My kids could be without a dad right now." Councillor Gurcharan Singh Manku, in charge of environmental services at the authority, agreed that the men had had a lucky escape. "I would hate to think of what would have happened if they had not reacted so quickly or if there had been a child or even a local resident nearby who ended up being struck," he said. Follow BBC South on Facebook, external, X, external, or Instagram, external. Send your story ideas to south.newsonline@bbc.co.uk or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2240, external.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-berkshire-69022553

Harrison Butker 'homemaker' speech sparks backlash - BBC News

2024-05-17

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Harrison Butker also attacked "degenerate cultural values" and "the tyranny of diversity, equity and inclusion".

US & Canada

An NFL star has courted controversy by telling female graduates that one of their most important roles in life will be "homemaker". Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker also criticised abortion and LGBT Pride in a speech at Benedictine College, Kansas. His team has not reacted to the three-time Super Bowl champ's comments. The NFL said it was a "personal" matter. Nearly 160,000 people have signed a petition for the 28-year-old's firing. In his 20-minute address last Saturday, he said to women graduates at the Catholic private college that they had been told "the most diabolical lies". "Some of you may go on to lead successful careers in the world," he said. "But I would venture to guess that the majority of you are most excited about your marriage and the children you will bring into this world." Butker added that his wife's life had "truly started" when "she began living her vocation as a wife and as a mother". He added that Isabelle Butker had embraced "one of the most important titles of all: homemaker". Speaking about his marriage, he appeared to become emotional. His speech also attacked IVF, surrogacy, "degenerate cultural values", "dangerous gender ideologies" and "the tyranny of diversity, equity and inclusion". "Our nation is led by a man who publicly and proudly proclaims his Catholic faith, but... has been so vocal in his support for the murder of innocent babies," he said in a reference to President Joe Biden. The football league distanced itself from the remarks, saying they were given "in his personal capacity... his views are not those of the NFL". The LGBT advocacy group GLAAD called Butker's speech "woefully out of step with Americans". Many social media users also criticised the NFL star. Stefanie Hills, a former NFL cheerleader for the Chiefs, said on TikTok: "The best part of your speech when you said 'stay in your lane' ten plus times. Bro, take your own advice." But his remarks were cheered by many conservatives. And even staunchly liberal comedian Whoopi Goldberg defended Butker's right to express his views. "These are his beliefs and he's welcome to them," she told her co-panellists on ABC's The View. "I don't have to believe them. Right? I don't have to accept them." His Chiefs teammates have stayed largely quiet about the uproar. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes told The Pat McAfee Show, a radio programme, that he did not often speak to his teammate. "Honestly, I don't talk to Harrison all year long, man. I just let him do his thing," Mahomes said. Meanwhile, Missouri's top prosecutor vowed to investigate the alleged doxxing on Wednesday of Butker through a social media account run by Kansas City's government. The message, which revealed the neighbourhood in which the Butker family lives, was posted from a public account on X, formerly Twitter, that is controlled by the city. Attorney General Andrew Bailey said the investigation would look into whether the post had violated the Missouri Human Rights Act and targeted Butker for "daring to express his religious beliefs". It was deleted after about two hours. Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas has apologised for the message, calling it "clearly inappropriate". Butker has played for the Chiefs since 2017. He broke the Chiefs' franchise record in 2022 with a 62-yard field goal and helped the team win its first Super Bowl for 50 years in 2020.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69021543

Marjorie Taylor Greene booed in bid to oust House speaker - BBC News

2024-05-17

The Republican lawmaker motioned on Wednesday for a vote to oust House Speaker Mike Johnson.

Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene was booed in the House of Representatives after bringing forward a motion to vacate the seat of Speaker Mike Johnson. Greene accuses Johnson of aligning with the Democrats and said no speaker had aligned with the minority group in the chamber since the 1990s. Johnson was elected Speaker of the US House of Representatives last October after the a handful of Republicans joined the Democrats to oust Kevin McCarthy.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-68973270

Lawmakers hurl insults after 'fake eyelashes' comment - BBC News

2024-05-17

The fiery exchange began when Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene criticised Democrat Jasmine Crockett.

A clash ensued between congressional lawmakers on Thursday after Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene made a comment about Democrat Jasmine Crockett. "I think your fake eyelashes are messing up what you are reading", said Ms Greene. Left-wing New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez quickly intervened. The House Oversight Committee was debating to hold US Attorney General Merrick Garland under contempt.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69004633

US warns of possible Pride Month attacks worldwide - BBC News

2024-05-17

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The warning comes one week after a similar alert from the FBI and Department of Homeland Security.

US & Canada

US officials have warned that foreign terror organisations may attempt to target LGBT events around the world during Pride Month in June. "Stay alert in locations frequented by tourists, including Pride celebrations," a warning issued by the state department said. The advisory came on Friday, a week after a similar alert issued by US law enforcement agencies. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said: "Foreign terrorist organizations or supporters may seek to exploit increased gatherings associated with the upcoming June 2024 Pride Month." Although no specific gatherings or locations were mentioned in the warnings, the law enforcement agencies noted that messages from the Islamic State (IS) group distributed in English in February 2023 included rhetoric against LGBTQI+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning, and intersex) events and venues. During Pride Month in June 2016, a man inspired by IS ideology shot dead 49 people and wounded 53 more at Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida. The FBI and DHS warning also noted that three IS sympathisers had been arrested for attempting to attack a Pride parade in Vienna, Austria in 2023. The Counter Extremism Project, a New York-based non-profit group, noted that anti-LGBTQ ideas had been taken up by both Islamist and far-right extremists. "It is no surprise that neo-Nazis and jihadis often express mutual admiration for their shared anti-gay visions," Mark D Wallace, the project's chief executive, said in a statement. Protests and threats against LGBTQ communities by homegrown US groups also have been on the increase in recent years, according to a number of experts and research organisations. According to a report by the Anti-Defamation League and Glaad, a group formerly known as the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, there were at least 145 incidents of anti-LGBTQ violence, harassment and vandalism during Pride Month in 2023.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69013313

BBC iPlayer - BBC News

2024-05-17

JavaScript seems to be disabled. Please enable JavaScript to take full advantage of iPlayer.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10318089

The Oval Office meeting pivotal to New York's case against Trump - BBC News

2024-05-17

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Michael Cohen testified he met Trump weeks into his presidency to talk about hush money.

US & Canada

Michael Cohen at the White House after his meeting with Donald Trump in the Oval Office It was a brief exchange, held in the Oval Office a few weeks after Donald Trump became the 45th president of the United States. But the meeting between the now ex-president and his former lawyer Michael Cohen could prove pivotal in the criminal case against Mr Trump that is currently playing out in a high-profile New York trial. "I was sitting with President Trump and he asked me if I was OK, he asked me if I needed money," Mr Cohen testified at the trial on Tuesday. He said he told the then-president he was "OK", to which Mr Trump responded: "Alright, just make sure you deal with Allen [Weisselberg]". Mr Weisselberg was the Trump Organization's Chief Financial Officer at the time. Then, Cohen testified, Mr Trump told him a cheque would be coming soon. After the meeting, Cohen posed for a photo behind the famous lectern in the White House briefing room. On Tuesday, that snapshot of the man who once said he'd take a bullet for Mr Trump, in a black suit and standing at the press secretary's podium, flashed up on courthouse television screens as evidence in the first-ever criminal trial of a former US president. Prosecutors also showed an email from a White House aide confirming the meeting. Mr Trump denies dozens of charges of falsifying accounts to hide a hush-money payment made to adult-film actress Stormy Daniels, who claims they had a sexual encounter, in the lead-up to the 2016 presidential election. According to prosecutors, Cohen made the payment and was then reimbursed in monthly instalments disguised as legal fees. They say that Mr Trump's alleged hiding of the purpose of the reimbursements was election interference. The court heard that after the meeting, cheques reimbursing Cohen for the $130,000 (£103,000) he paid to Ms Daniels started to arrive, some with Mr Trump's signature. BBC News reporters are in the Manhattan courtroom covering the historic first criminal trial of a former US president. You'll find their updates and analysis on the BBC news website and app, and across TV, radio and podcasts. Cohen's invoices for these $35,000 monthly cheques were marked as "services rendered". But speaking in a courthouse packed with media and members of the public, Mr Cohen said the invoices were false. He testified they were really to reimburse him for the hush money, with extra dollars added in to cover potential taxes. These documents - 11 cheques, 11 invoices and 12 entries in an accounts ledger - make up the 34 felony counts charged against Mr Trump of falsifying business records. Former Manhattan prosecutor Rebecca Roiphe told BBC News that the Oval Office meeting could be a key moment of the trial, but it depends on how credible the jury finds Mr Cohen, who has pleaded guilty to federal crimes, including campaign finance violations and lying to Congress. "The prosecution could have established its case without Michael Cohen's testimony about the in-person meeting in the Oval Office, but it certainly helps connect the dots," Ms Roiphe said. "If the jury believes this part of Cohen's testimony, it would completely undermine one of the key defences - that Trump had nothing to do with these payments." But Mr Cohen's history of lying to Congress, and his time in prison, in part related to paying hush money, are significant factors the jury will have to weigh up. During two hours of cross-examination of Cohen on Tuesday, Trump's legal team did not touch on his assertions that Trump knew of the hush-money payment and the alleged reimbursement plan. Instead, they worked to dismantle his credibility. Ms Roiphe said the defence may keep up that line of attack in trying to counter the Oval Office claims when they resume questioning Cohen on Thursday. "The defence has sought to portray Cohen as a spurned underling who was obsessed with Trump and would stop at nothing to exact revenge," Ms Roiphe said. " It can draw on this theme to try to make it seem as if this uncorroborated testimony is made up." And indeed that is exactly how this trial began, when Mr Trump's lawyer Todd Blanche's opening statement said this of Mr Cohen:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69014017

‘That was a lie!’ - Trump lawyer clashes with Michael Cohen in hush-money trial - BBC News

2024-05-17

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Tensions boil over on a heated day in court, as the ex-president’s lawyer assails the prosecution's star witness.

US & Canada

This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Watch: The BBC's Nada Tawfik dissects the brutal questioning of Cohen Tensions - and voices - rose on Thursday as Donald Trump's lawyer hit back against prosecutors, accusing their star witness repeatedly of lying. On the most tense day yet of cross-examination, Michael Cohen, Mr Trump's former fixer, described talking to the former president directly about a hush-money payment to an adult-film star. But attorney Todd Blanche all but shouted Cohen's testimony was "a lie." Records, he said, show Cohen called Mr Trump's bodyguard about a prank caller. Mr Blanche's theory of the phone call was designed to sow doubt on Cohen's third day on the stand, as the jury watched the furious exchange with intense focus. Following the heated moment, Mr Blanche stormed back to the defence table and sat down next to his client. When the judge announced an afternoon recess, there was a collective exhale in the room. Mr Trump is charged with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, for allegedly disguising payments to Cohen as legal expenses when they were in fact reimbursements for paying off film star Stormy Daniels, who claims she had sex with him. Prosecutors allege Mr Trump sought to keep damaging information from the public to protect his 2016 presidential campaign. Mr Trump has pleaded not guilty to all counts and denied having sex with Ms. Daniels. On the stand Thursday under pressure, Cohen maintained that his previous testimony was true, and that he spoke to Mr Trump about the payout to Ms. Daniels on a call on 24 October 2016. Earlier this week, prosecutors asked Cohen about the call to help establish Mr Trump's alleged direct knowledge of the payoff scheme. Cohen testified that he kept his boss aware during every step of the process of paying Ms Daniels. As the man at the centre of the payout, Cohen's testimony is crucial for prosecutors to prove whether or not Mr Trump had knowledge of the allegedly fraudulent reimbursement plan. But Cohen's criminal record, history of lying to Congress, and profane public criticism of Mr Trump makes him a flawed witness. In 2018, he pleaded guilty to federal campaign finance crimes over the hush-money payment, but maintains that he sent the money at Mr Trump's direction. The defence seized on Cohen's credibility issues for nearly two days and sought to paint him as a liar with a vendetta against Mr Trump. On Thursday morning, Mr Blanche played recordings from Mr Cohen's podcast, Mea Culpa, where the witness expressed a desire to see the former president go through the booking process and said of Mr Trump, "I want this man to go down.'' Mr Blanche also confronted Cohen with an X post where he called the former president "Dumbass Donald." "Does the outcome of this trial affect you personally?" Mr Blanche asked him. The president's attorney pressed Cohen repeatedly about his guilty plea for lying to Congress, and aggressively questioned Cohen about previous statements that he did not believe prior tax evasion charges he pleaded guilty to were fair. Several hours of similar questioning all led to the dramatic showdown over the 24 October 2016 phone call. Mr Blanche first asked Cohen if he recalled receiving harassing calls in late October 2016. Cohen confirmed he had. Mr Blanche then displayed communications between Cohen and Mr Trump's bodyguard, Keith Schiller, on 24 October discussing how to deal with the prank calls. Amid their discussions about the prank caller, is a call between Cohen and Mr Schiller, that Cohen previously testified he made to discuss the payout to Ms Daniels with Mr Trump. That call lasted a minute and 36 seconds. Mr Blanche expressed scepticism that Cohen could have discussed both the prank caller and the six-figure payout in such a brief period. But Cohen countered that part of that call was about "the 14-year-old" who was behind the calls. He knew that Mr Schiller was with their boss at the time, and the call was about more than just the harassment, he said. Cohen insisted he always ran "everything by the boss" immediately, and that he did so on that call. The response drew a dramatic reaction from Mr Blanche: "That. Was. A. Lie," he declared loudly. Numerous Republican members of Congress filled the benches behind Mr Trump on Tuesday in a show of partisan support. BBC News reporters are in the Manhattan courtroom covering the historic first criminal trial of a former US president. You'll find their updates and analysis on the BBC news website and app, and across TV, radio and podcasts. A Trump campaign spokeswoman attended, as did his son, Eric Trump. Reps. Matt Gaetz of Florida, Lauren Boebert of Colorado, and Andy Biggs were among the entourage, which was so large that some lawmakers had to sit in the back of the courtroom. Cohen's testimony has piqued public interest. The line to get into court stretched down the block Thursday morning, and journalists and members of the public had hired line sitters to save them a spot overnight. One line sitter, whose employer did not show, offered others in line $400 for her spot. Despite the immense public interest, however, the defendant did not express much enthusiasm in the courtroom: Mr Trump sat back silently in his seat for most of the morning session. At a few points, he focused intently on the cross-examination. Though one of his biggest public nemeses sat just a few feet to his right, most of the time, Mr Trump just stared straight ahead. "I think it was a very interesting day," Mr Trump told the waiting cameras as he left the courtroom. "A fascinating day."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69024649

Boy, 5, who died in fall from block of flats named locally as Aalim Makail - BBC News

2024-05-17

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The Met Police and Newham Council are both conducting investigations over Aalim Makail's death.

London

Police and paramedics were called to Jacobs House on Thursday A five-year-old boy who died after falling from one of the upper floors of a tower block of flats in east London has been named locally as Aalim Makail. He fell from Jacobs House in New City Road, Plaistow, at about 06:00 BST on Thursday and was pronounced dead at the scene, the Met Police said. Police are not treating his death as suspicious but Newham Council says it is "undertaking a full investigation". The council described Thursday's events as "heartbreaking and tragic". A neighbour previously said the boy's parents were "inconsolable". Police were called at about 06:00 BST on Thursday Abi Gbago, chief executive of Newham Council, said it would provide an update once its investigation concludes. She said: "Yesterday was a heartbreaking and tragic day for all concerned, and we are united both in our grief, and in our determination to ensure the family are fully supported. "What they have been through with the loss of Aalim, their child, is truly devastating and they will need time and space to mourn such a terrible loss." The Boleyn Trust, which runs New City Primary School where the five-year-old attended, said: "Aalim was a beautiful, happy and caring child, he was much loved by his family and all the staff at New City. "This is a terrible tragedy and our thoughts and prayers go out to his family at this sad time." Asim Uddin, mosque leader at Masjid Ibrahim Plaistow, described Aalim's death as "shocking" and said the community was "sharing the grief". He said: "We are fully supporting the family. We are all standing side-by-side with the family and making sure there is support." Flowers have been left near the scene Throughout Friday, the number of flowers, toys and cards left near the tower block has grown, many of them left by children from Aalim's school who stopped by on their way home. An anonymous resident of Jacobs House described the windows as "poor quality". He told the BBC: "The design of the windows on high floors are not good and safe for children. "You can actually unlatch the windows in the living room, kitchen and one of the bedrooms wide open which is clearly not meant to be safe. If a latch does break, it will not close properly and it could blow wide open no matter what." Newham Council did not answer questions about windows in Jacobs House. A spokesperson for the Building Safety Regulator, part of the Health and Safety Executive, said: "We are engaging with the appropriate agencies to understand the facts." Two separate fundraising pages have raised more than £3,000 for the family. Scotland Yard said a file would be prepared for the coroner. Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook, external, X, external and Instagram, external. Send your story ideas to hello.bbclondon@bbc.co.uk, external • None Boy, 5, dies in fall from block of flats The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-69025732

Grove woman who had mastectomy hosts life drawing fundraiser - BBC News

2024-05-17

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Shelley Syme was diagnosed with breast cancer in August 2021, shortly after her 29th birthday.

Oxford

Ms Syme said she would feel "incredibly vulnerable" as no one had seen her naked body since the surgery A woman, who has had a full mastectomy on the left side, will host a life drawing event to raise funds and awareness for breast cancer. Shelley Syme from Grove, Oxfordshire, will be one of the models who get fully naked at Oxford's Old Fire Station on Friday in support of breast cancer charity CoppaFeel!. She was diagnosed with breast cancer in August 2021, at the age of 29. Ms Syme said she feels it would be "a powerful message" for body positivity. She initially found a small lump in her armpit in December 2020, and visited a breast clinic in August 2021. After nine biopsies from three areas of concern, Ms Syme said the nurse had told her to "prepare for the worst". Her treatment included, chemotherapy, lumpectomy, a full mastectomy on the left side and 15 sessions of radiotherapy. She will also continue hormone therapy for a number of years. Ms Syme would like to "give a boost" to people who have been affected by cancer and "are not happy with their bodies" Ms Syme told BBC Radio Oxford that the life drawing fundraiser would be "one hell of a challenge". "No one has seen my naked body since the surgery," she said. "It's going to be so exposing and I'm going to feel incredibly vulnerable." Ms Syme added that she thought it was "such a good and powerful message" not only for breast cancer awareness, but for body positivity in general. She said that the timing felt "especially more poignant", following CoppaFeel!'s founder Kris Hallenga recent passing at the age of 38. Ms Syme said she would love to "give a boost" to people who have been affected by cancer and "are not happy with their bodies". "I'd love young people to come as well," she added. She also co-hosts the podcast One Lump or Two?, where she shares her experience and helps others "feel a little less alone". Ms Syme said the event was "a powerful message" for both breast cancer awareness and body positivity Follow BBC South on Facebook, external, X, external, or Instagram, external. Send your story ideas to south.newsonline@bbc.co.uk or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2240. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-69022919

Playground nails: How claims went viral - BBC News

2024-05-17

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BBC Verify examines how images of nails on playground gear have been shared wrongly by concerned parents.

UK

Photos of the nails have been spreading among concerned parents in London Viral images of nails attached to playground equipment in an Oxfordshire village have sparked misinformation about where the vandalism took place. After contacting the Marcham Parish Council and residents, BBC Verify spoke with the mum who found the nails. She did not want to be named, but said she and her daughter had discovered seven nails glued to a seesaw, swings, slides and other equipment on Monday. She provided original photos which confirm her account. After removing the nails, she handed them into a nearby shop and reported the incident on a private community Facebook group. The original images, which she shared in the group and later went viral, were passed on to BBC Verify. When we examined them, we found that the timestamp information was consistent with what we were told. In addition, we were able to match visual clues in the playground that confirm they were taken in Marcham. BBC Verify is not able to establish the exact circumstances in which the nails were glued to the equipment, but Thames Valley Police has confirmed officers are investigating. However, the mother said she has not yet been contacted by the force, and the nails have not been collected from the shop. Although the incident took place in a village near Abingdon in Oxfordshire, false claims that the playground was located in and around London began to spread online - creating concern for parents. The earliest false claim we found was shared on X on Tuesday evening, posted by an account called Tower Hamlets Crime Watch. The post incorrectly said the nails had been glued to equipment in one of the borough's parks in east London. On Wednesday morning, some public figures with large social media followings also shared the photos, including Channel 5 presenter Storm Huntley - who said she had been warned that the incident happened in Richmond, south west London. The post was viewed more than 52,000 times on X. Another post, written in Turkish by someone also living in London, also incorrectly stated the incident occurred in Richmond. The post was subsequently corrected and clarified, but it remains up and has more than 1.5 million views. Around the same time, posts in local Facebook groups in places like Ealing in west London also warned parents to check playground equipment, while one concerned parent sent the photos to a Whatsapp group in Tooting. By the afternoon, similar posts had spread to social media groups covering even more London areas, including Brentford and Wandsworth. These false claims continued to be amplified in spite of media reports explicitly stating the incident took place in Marcham, external. The pictures were also shared by several global media outlets, including in Russia and Spain. On Wednesday evening at least six London councils - as well as nearby Broxbourne in Hertfordshire - published statements clarifying the incident had not taken place in their areas. But despite assurances, misinformation continues to spread. On Thursday morning a woman posted the images on a local Northolt Facebook group claiming they had been passed on by a nearby nursery. • None Nails found glued sharp-end up on swings and slide

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-69022969

The Global Story - Drake v Kendrick: The biggest rap feud of all time? - BBC Sounds

2024-05-17

Vicious beef between hip-hop stars has divided fans

Drake v Kendrick: The biggest rap feud of all time? Drake v Kendrick: The biggest rap feud of all time?

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Confirmed cases from Devon parasite outbreak rises to 46 - BBC News

2024-05-17

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Forty-six cases of a diarrhoea-type illness confirmed in Devon as company says it's located the source of entry for parasites.

Devon

Kayley Lewis said members of her family were first hit by illness on 5 May Image caption: Kayley Lewis said members of her family were first hit by illness on 5 May A woman whose son ended up in A&E with vomiting and diarrhoea says she is angry at South West Water's response to the parasite. Kayley Lewis said her 13-year-old son was admitted to hospital after blood was found in his vomit. The bug then spread to her other son, while she also experienced similar symptoms. She said her family started becoming sick on 5 May - 10 days before the water firm advised residents in Brixham to start boiling their water after traces of cryptosporidium were found in part of its network. Ms Lewis said the past fortnight had been "scary". "It was really worrying because blood and sick for a child gives red alerts," she said. "Every time he would take a sip of water it would come straight back up. "He is going OK now but he is still getting headaches now and then." Ms Lewis said she had lost about 6lb (3kg) since she first started showing symptoms. "I was poorly for six days straight," she said. "My other son was crying on the floor in pain - he is autistic so he didn't know what was going on. "It's very, very painful. "It's not just when you have a bug. It is constant." Ms Lewis says SWW's response to the issue had been "disgusting". "It's not good enough," she said.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-69026151

Putin arrives in China's 'Little Moscow' as allies aim to deepen trade - BBC News

2024-05-17

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It comes a day after the Russian and Chinese leaders pledged a "new era" of partnership between their countries.

Asia

An aerial view of the Saint Sophia Cathedral in Harbin Image caption: An aerial view of the Saint Sophia Cathedral in Harbin According to Russian media reports, Vladimir Putin said today of Harbin, “This is my first time here, and the city is truly impressive”, adding that he was struck by the extent to which the historical part of town “preserved a Russian feeling”. And you can see why he might like it. I can remember having a beer in the old central shopping street in Vladivostok – across the border on the Russian side – and saying to those I was with: “This reminds me of Harbin”. The part of North-east China which Russia’s leader is visiting was once dominated by Russian residents before huge numbers left in the 1930s. Right up to the invasion of Ukraine Russian tourists were easy to spot there but recently not so many. Chinese shopkeepers in Heilongjiang Province say their Russian customers have fallen away because of the war and their neighbour’s struggling economy. So Vladimir Putin is trying to prop up his war economy by selling more gas to China to make up for the markets Gazprom has lost in Europe, as punishment for his military adventure. In Harbin today, Russia’s leader – with his salesman hat on – reportedly said that “Russia's strategic alliance with China in the energy sector will strengthen further” and that this would “guarantee energy security” for China. The problem is that, beyond fossil fuels and other raw materials, there is not a lot more which Russia produces that China really wants. You can compare this to, say, the US which is holding back a lot of stuff that Chinese companies are desperate to get their hands on.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-asia-69001137

Premier League final-day predictions: Chris Sutton v Gladiators star and Arsenal fan Legend - BBC Sport

2024-05-17

BBC Sport football expert Chris Sutton takes on Gladiators star and Arsenal fan Legend to make predictions for the final round of Premier League games.

Tottenham fans, beware. It's not just your manager Ange Postecoglou who is unhappy with those of you who were glad your team lost to Manchester City on Tuesday. Chris Sutton's final predictions guest of the season is Gladiators star Legend, who supports Arsenal and watched Spurs play City hoping - in vain - they would do the Gunners a favour in the title race. "I don't have a problem with the Spurs players, it is with their fans literally cheering their team letting goals in," Legend told BBC Sport. "That's what I can't get my head around. "Fair play to Ange though, for basically just calling those Spurs fans a bunch of losers afterwards. That was amazing." Series one of Gladiators is available to watch on iPlayer and the hit Saturday-night show is set to return soon for a second season, with filming taking place in Sheffield in August. Legend, whose real name is Matt Morsia, is a lifelong Gunners fan who grew up at a time when Arsenal were collecting trophies on a regular basis. He explained: "My dad's side of the family are all big Arsenal fans and I was born in north London so I was just kind of raised that way. I have got lots of memories of going to games at Highbury when I was younger. "My formative Arsenal years were when we were the best team in the world, so I was pretty spoilt. "My first memories are of us winning the Double in 1998 after Arsene Wenger first joined. Even before the Invincibles went unbeaten for a season, he built an incredible side. "He inherited the English back five - David Seaman, Lee Dixon, Nigel Winterburn, Tony Adams and Steve Bould - and then brought in players like Patrick Vieira, Emmanuel Petit and Nicolas Anelka. "That team evolved into the Invincibles really, and for about six years we were just unbelievable." Legend was a teenage star at triple jump and targeted the 2012 London Olympics before being sidelined by a back injury. He turned his attention to powerlifting and won a silver medal in the European Championships in 2016, but football was his first love. "At school I was a footballer," he added. "I played for my county for a couple of years and I wanted to be a footballer. "Then right at the end of my sixth form, I just kind of fell into athletics. One of our guys was injured on sports day so I got chucked into triple jump. I broke the school record, and never looked back. "But for the first 15 years of my life, I played football every day and loved it. I was a centre-back, a monstrous and marauding centre-back. If you can remember Lucio, who played for Brazil, I was a lot like him - let's just say I relied heavily on my physical attributes. "I still play a bit now because I have got two boys and we go out in the garden and have a kickabout. In my head I am still unbelievable, although my days playing for a team are over. "A couple of years ago a mate of mine said 'why don't you come back and play five-a-side?' so despite having not played football competitively for 10 or 15 years, I thought that would be a great idea. "I started playing five-a-side once a week and I loved it, I was getting well into it... but about five or six weeks in, I ruptured my Achilles and that was the end of it. "I have done sport all my life but that was my first ever big injury. I am still tempted to go back, but with Gladiators now I just can't take that risk." Chris Sutton and Legend were speaking to BBC Sport's Chris Bevan. A correct result (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. The exact score earns 40 points. • None Visit your Premier League club's page with all the latest news, analysis and fan views, and sign up for notifications All games kick off at 16:00 BST. Sean Dyche is a scrapper and his Everton side are enjoying a strong end to the season. He would like nothing more than to end with a positive result here, but I cannot see past an Arsenal victory. With 15 wins, one draw and only one defeat from their past 17 Premier League games, the Gunners don't deserve to finish second but that is what is going to happen, and other than the Community Shield, they are going to finish trophyless too. Arsenal have invited players from their Invincibles side - who stayed unbeaten the last time they were champions in 2004 - to this game so they will want to put on a show for them. They should have something to smile about, even if there is no title to celebrate. Legend's prediction: Had Spurs got a result against City, I think we still would have won this game but it would have been tighter. The stress would have been outrageous and we might only have won by a goal or two, which would have been a worry if City were only behind us on goal difference. Now, even though it not completely over, our players know it kind of is, so that takes a lot of the pressure off and this could be an absolute hiding with Kai Havertz scoring a couple of goals. 5-0 Legend on Gunners boss Mikel Arteta: From day one, when I first heard him speak, you could tell he was going to be good, although I didn't think he would be this good. Even if we are playing badly, you want to get behind the side he has built because they have such amazing team unity - we don't have one megastar, and even though some players are clearly better than others, it feels like the whole squad look at each other as equals, which makes a massive difference. Everyone tracks back and works hard defensively, for example. Whatever happens this season, Arteta is still young and so are a lot of the team, so you have the feeling that it is going to get better. Look at what we've done this year, compared to three or four years ago, and it is unbelievable. Arteta has created such a positive environment and the club is going in an upward trajectory - this is just the start, hopefully. Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. Brentford's form has picked up recently and they will want to end the season on a high note, at home on the final day. Their manager Thomas Frank has been linked with the Manchester United job, and I understand that in a way, because he's done an excellent job with the Bees. Newcastle United need to at least match Manchester United's result against Brighton to make sure of finishing seventh. I'm expecting Eddie Howe's side to do that, but it won't be easy. Legend's prediction: This is going to be a high scoring game because both teams are going to go for it. 2-3 Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. I've been talking for a while now about how the season has fizzled out for Brighton and their manager Roberto de Zerbi, and their poor form continued against Chelsea on Wednesday. The Seagulls can still secure a top-10 finish with a win here, though, and things cannot be too bad if that counts as a disappointing campaign. Fair play to Manchester United for getting over the line against Newcastle United on Wednesday but they are still only in eighth place. If they finish there, that is a pretty accurate reflection of their season. Legend's prediction: It is between Chelsea, Newcastle and United for sixth and seventh place and the final European slots and I am so torn there because I actively dislike all three of those teams. With United that feeling is just inherent but, weirdly, out of those three I would rather they got in. They are going to concede goals but they do still look dangerous going forward, and Brighton are struggling. 1-2 Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. This was supposed to be the big relegation decider, but with Burnley down and Nottingham Forest's goal difference meaning they are as good as safe, there is nothing really riding on it now. I feel for Burnley in many ways, because I actually think they are a well-run football club. They have got a bright young manager in Vinnie Kompany and, if they can keep their squad together, they will be back in the Premier League soon. Regardless of the points deduction, this will go down as a disappointing season for Forest even though they have stayed up. It is not as if they have kicked on since Nuno Espirito Santo replaced Steve Cooper as manager in December, is it? Legend's prediction: Firstly it is at Burnley, which is big, and they have just gone down so they will want to sign off on a high. Also, Forest know they are staying up now and there is no way that won't affect them here. No matter what they say otherwise, their motivation for this game is not going to be there. 2-1 Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. Bournemouth have just dipped a bit recently but, whatever happens here, they have had a great first year under Andoni Iraola. Chelsea have won four on the spin and could reel Tottenham in to finish fifth, which would be remarkable after the campaign they have had. I am going to go with them to carry on their winning run, and Cole Palmer to continue his scoring form with another goal. Sutton's prediction: Chelsea are on a good run, apart from when we absolutely battered them 5-0 at the end of April. I was there for that game and it was amazing, we tore them apart. But the way Chelsea are playing, as much as I hate to admit, it, they are probably going to win this. 3-1 Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. Crystal Palace's biggest challenge is going to be keeping hold of Eberechi Eze, Michael Olise and Jean-Philippe Mateta, who form such a formidable forward line. They have helped the Eagles put together this great run of five wins and a draw from their past six games, and I think we will see more of the same on Sunday. Aston Villa know they are in next season's Champions League, so it is job done for Unai Emery and his players. They have probably been on the lash to celebrate since Tottenham lost against Manchester City on Tuesday, so I am going with a Palace win. Legend's prediction: Palace are banging the goals in and with Villa only just being confirmed in fourth, there could be that massive comedown where all that stress, anxiety, motivation and pressure comes out, and suddenly it is all gone. 2-1 Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. I can only see one outcome here. Mohamed Salah to score, Liverpool to go out with a bang under Jurgen Klopp, and send him off with a smile. Wolves are not in great form, with only one win - and seven defeats - from their past 10 matches, and they have not been good enough as of late. They were the club who triggered the vote over the future of video assistant referees (VAR) this summer, and they have been wronged by it this season, but Gary O'Neil needs to focus on their performances rather than decisions that are out of their control. This game is all about Klopp and Liverpool, though. It is going to be an emotional day and I don't think there will be many dry eyes at Anfield - I'll be crying myself, even though I won't be there. Being serious though, I am gutted he is going because he is a brilliant manager and his departure is an enormous loss to the Premier League as well as to Liverpool. Klopp is spiky at times, but he always says what he thinks and I admire that. Most football fans will be really sad to see him go, whoever they support. As well as what Klopp has what won, you have to appreciate how he has pushed City so hard in the seasons where they edged Liverpool to the title. He built an excellent team that could challenge them, and, without him, City would have dominated even more than they have done. Legend's prediction: It's Klopp's last game and it could be a big score. There will be a wild atmosphere. 5-1 Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. One win in their past 17 league games has put pay to Luton's chances of staying up. There is still talk of hope for the Hatters but, let's be realistic, they are not going to to overhaul Forest's vastly superior goal difference. Will Rob Edwards' side bow out with a win, though? No. Fulham have been accused of being on the beach already, but I am backing them here. Legend's prediction: This could be a similar outcome to Burnley because they will throw a lot at it. 1-0 Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. My son James thinks West Ham are going to win at Etihad Stadium but he's wrong. The same goes for Legend's prediction, and I can see why he doesn't win many on Gladiators. Four of City's seven Premier League triumphs have gone down to the final day, and they went at least one goal down in three of them. This one will be different, because I don't just think City will win, I am expecting them to wrap it up early and seal a record fourth Premier League title in a row without any last-day drama. Like most people, I am sick of them winning but you have to admire them because they are an absolute machine. The way they put their foot down, even on Tuesday night when Tottenham pushed them, is so impressive. They are a brilliant all-round team who have players who can come off the bench and impact the game, and their manager is a genius. Pep Guardiola seems to win every title in a different style, and his team never stops evolving. This season I have been particularly impressed with the physicality which has got them through the campaign. Also, there we were thinking Erling Haaland has not been very good, but he is going to walk away with another Golden Boot. They are a remarkable group of players to keep going on these runs of results that take them to the title season after season. I know I am talking about them as if they have already won it but I don't see any other outcome, because of how relentless they are, and their resilience, quality and mental strength. Everyone talks about the Premier League being the best in the world and part of the reason for that is because it is the most competitive. City have come through some difficult games this season, but they always produce when they are under pressure. Well played to them, again. I just feel a bit sorry for West Ham boss David Moyes because this is his final game in charge and it could not be any more difficult. Legend's prediction: I've been trying to scrape around for any reason to be optimistic here but even if West Ham are winning and it goes into stoppage time, you just know City will turn it around. To be honest, though, I am struggling to envisage a scenario where West Ham even score a goal, let alone beat them. The only hope is that it stays goalless, we go ahead, and everyone there starts to get nervous. I would be amazed if it is any other outcome other than a City win, but I need West Ham to do something, and somehow hold on so we win the league on goal difference. 0-0 Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. We have seen an angry Ange Postecoglou this week, and I totally get why. I really liked what he said before the Manchester City game about how he wants the club to win something, rather than just have bragging rights. If I'm a Spurs fan, that's what I want to hear. He was bang on. He is trying to build a winning culture at Tottenham and clearly the mentality at the club does not align with his. On the flip side, I do also understand the pettiness of the Tottenham fans who do not want Arsenal to win the title. But it sounds like Postecoglou's anger is not just at some of the Spurs supporters who wanted their side to lose to City on Tuesday, but at some people inside the club too. If you are are on the inside and you want to build a winning club, then you cannot have that mindset where you don't want to win every game - you cannot pick and choose, you have to be relentless and all pull in the same direction. That does not seem to be happening at Spurs. We have seen this movie before, and it will be interesting to see how it pans out. I admired Postecoglou when he was at Celtic, for the way he turned the club around as well as the football he played. I still think he has over-achieved in his first season at Spurs because they lost Harry Kane just before it started, and the football has been excellent, but they have fallen away recently. I am sure Postecoglou would accept it has been a disappointing end to the campaign, with five defeats in the past six games, even if they have had some difficult fixtures in that run, but all of this underlines that there are other issues at the club. I don't know what happens next - they either believe in him, or they don't. He will be desperate to finish the season on a high, as will Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder, whose side are already relegated, are bottom of the table with only three wins all season, and on a six-game losing streak. Even if the Blades do respond, I am still backing Spurs. Legend's prediction: I am absolutely disgusted by Tottenham fans. They deserve an absolute stinker here and I hope they get absolutely pummelled, then Ange comes out on the pitch with a microphone and announces his resignation there and then because he is sick of managing a club whose fans literally want them to lose. That's what I hope happens, and it would be the just outcome too. 0-0 Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. How did Sutton do last week? Sutton got seven correct results, with no exact scores, from the 10 Premier League games in week 37, giving him 70 points. He beat Kasabian frontman Serge Pizzorno. who got five correct results with no exact scores, leaving him with a total of 50 points. There were three extra games in midweek, all rearranged from week 34, when singer-songwriter Sam Tompkins was the guest. Sutton, who led 50-30 before the remaining games were played, picked up 50 more points to confirm his victory. Sam picked up 20 points, meaning the final score was 100-50. Andy Bell from Ride, UB40 drummer Jimmy Brown, Fabian Edwards, Joelah from 1Xtra, KSI, Franklin star Daniel Mays, Midas the Jagaban David Earl, Kings of Leon drummer Nathan Followill, Steve Queralt from Ride, Keke from 1Xtra, Jazzie Zonzolo Dave from The Zutons, Tommy Fury, Joe from Nothing But Thieves, Sam from Twin Atlantic Gabe of Jamie Johnson FC, Ed Leigh, Tash from The Football Academy, Sam Tompkins, Matthew Vaughn, Rick Witter How did you get on? Only 9% of you thought Brentford would beat Bournemouth, but the only other results to catch you out last time were the draws between Newcastle and Brentford, and Aston Villa versus Liverpool. You were right about Manchester City beating Tottenham in midweek, although 45% of you thought Spurs would pick up at least a point. Overall, you are now 10 points clear of Chris, with 10 games of the season remaining. *Win, draw, loss prediction based on highest % of vote for each match. • None Our coverage of your Premier League club is bigger and better than ever before - follow your team and sign up for notifications in the BBC Sport app to make sure you never miss a moment

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/69012388

Deutsche Börse Photography Foundation Prize 2024 winner revealed - BBC News

2024-05-17

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Lebohang Kganye has won the Deutsche Börse Photography Foundation Prize for her exhibition Haufi nyana? I've come to take you home

In Pictures

Lebohang Kganye has won the Deutsche Börse Photography Foundation Prize 2024 for her exhibition titled, Haufi nyana? I've come to take you home. Kganye, from Johannesburg, South Africa, was awarded the £30,000 prize on Thursday at a ceremony at The Photographers' Gallery in London. The annual award recognises artists and projects for their contributions to the world of photography over the past year.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/in-pictures-69021565

Canada wildfires force thousands to evacuate - BBC News

2024-05-17

Several fires are burning across the country, with a few dangerously close to towns and cities.

Officials say higher than normal temperatures may lead to another active wildfire season for parts of Canada. As of Friday, there were several fires burning across the country, with a few dangerously close to towns and cities. Thousands of residents from Alberta and British Columbia have been forced to evacuate to safer ground.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69024951

Trump's lawyer attacks Michael Cohen in hush-money trial - BBC News

2024-05-17

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The defence team questioned the credibility of Trump's former lawyer, who said he lied for the ex-President.

US & Canada

This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Watch: The BBC's Nada Tawfik walks through the defence's strategy in Michael Cohen's cross-examination Donald Trump's legal team sought on Tuesday to dismantle the credibility of the star witness in the ex-president's criminal trial, Michael Cohen. Mr Trump showed no reaction as his lawyer, during cross-examination, cast Cohen as a man with a personal vendetta against his former boss. Throughout the legal showdown weeks in the making, Cohen remained calm. He also said he hoped Mr Trump would be found guilty of fraud in the hush-money case. Cohen was on the stand for a second day of blockbuster testimony. He was called by prosecutors to testify about making a $130,000 (£104,300) hush-money payment to adult-film star Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election, to prevent her from telling a story about an alleged sexual encounter with Mr Trump. Donald Trump now faces 34 counts of business fraud for allegedly disguising reimbursements for the payment to Cohen as legal expenses. The former president pleaded not guilty to the charges and denies having sex with Ms Daniels. At one point, his lawyer Todd Blanche asked bluntly if Cohen wanted to see Mr Trump convicted in the case. After being pressed, Cohen responded: "Sure." Over the course of two hours, Mr Blanche tried to undermine Cohen, who was imprisoned after pleading guilty to tax evasion, fraud and campaign finance violations. He brought up his guilty plea for lying to congress, and sought to portray Cohen as being motivated by hate and fame. He also sought to show that Cohen seeks to profit from the legal woes of a man he blasts daily in public. The lawyer dredged up Cohen's prolific social media posts, podcasts, and media appearances attacking Donald Trump, often in unprintable language. BBC News reporters are in the Manhattan courtroom covering the historic first criminal trial of a former US president. You'll find their updates and analysis on the BBC news website and app, and across TV, radio and podcasts. At the start of the cross-examination, Mr Blanche asked about a comment Cohen made about him on social media. Is it true, Mr Blanche asked, that Cohen had called him a "crying little [expletive]". Cohen quickly replied: "Sounds like something I would say." Justice Juan Merchan swiftly struck the answer from the official record, but the exchange set the tone for the afternoon. Mr Blanche later displayed some of Cohen's podcast merchandise, including a t-shirt that showed Mr Trump in an orange jumpsuit, handcuffed. But by the close of Tuesday's session, the lawyer had not cross-examined Cohen on the most damaging testimony he had given prosecutors: that he had kept Mr Trump informed at every stage of the payment to Ms Daniels, and that the former president had approved the allegedly fraudulent reimbursement plan. Despite previous witnesses testifying to Cohen's belligerent nature, Cohen remained composed under cross-examination. Jeffrey Levine, an attorney who represents Cohen, said in a statement that "my understanding is Mr Cohen came across credibly." His testimony will continue when court is back in session on Thursday. Prosecutors took a risk calling Cohen, given his online posts and criminal record. But as the man who actually carried out the hush-money payment to Ms Daniels, his testimony was crucial for the New York district attorney's case. Prosecutors also hope he will help prove another part of their case - that allegedly covering up the payment was election interference. In a pivotal moment, prosecutor Susan Hoffinger asked Cohen why he made the payment. "To ensure that the story would not come out, would not affect Mr Trump's chances of becoming president of the United States," he told the court. Ms Hoffinger asked on whose behalf he committed that crime. Although Cohen said he didn't regret working for Donald Trump or his organisation, he said he had "violated my moral compass" in order to do Mr Trump's bidding. The FBI raided Cohen's apartment in April 2018. He spoke to then-President Trump, who told him "stay tough, you're going to be OK." "I felt reassured because I had the president of the United States protecting me," Cohen testified. But it was the last direct conversation between the two men. Cohen - who once said he would "take a bullet" for Mr Trump - testified that, after speaking to his family about being targeted by a federal investigation, he decided not to continue lying on behalf of his most famous client. After court wrapped up on Tuesday, Mr Trump told reporters that his team had "a very good day" and criticised a gag order limiting what he can say publicly about the judge's family and others involved in the case. A number of Mr Trump's Republican allies and possible running mates for November's election have attended the trial this week. House Speaker Mike Johnson, currently the top Republican in the US government and in line to succeed the president after the vice-president, was present on Tuesday and spoke to reporters outside. Former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum and Representative Byron Donalds of Florida also attended the trial. Prosecutors indicated during arguments on Tuesday that Michael Cohen would be the last witness they call. Donald Trump has indicated that he wants to take the witness stand to testify in his own defence - but whether he actually does so remains to be seen.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69012587

Canada police say dead US rapist was a serial killer - BBC News

2024-05-17

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Police said the suspect, who died in an Idaho prison in 2011, may be behind other unsolved killings.

US & Canada

Barbara MacLean (left) and Eva Dvorak were two of four Canadians police believe were murdered by a serial sex offender from the US A man who died in a US prison where he was serving a sentence for rape also has been identified as a serial killer. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said Gary Allen Srery, who died in 2011 in an Idaho prison, strangled four girls or women in 1970s Alberta. Srery may be responsible for more unsolved homicides and sexual assaults in western Canada, police said. The victims were Eva Dvorak, 14, Patricia "Patsy" McQueen, 14, Melissa Rehorek, 20, and Barbara MacLean, 19. All four lived in Calgary and disappeared between 1976 and 1977. Their deaths were investigated at the time as either suspicious or as homicides, but remained unsolved for almost half a century. "For nearly 50 years, the Alberta RCMP exhausted all investigational means in an attempt to identify the person responsible for these tragic deaths," said Superintendent David Hall at a news conference on Friday. A suspect was finally identified through advanced DNA technology, which allowed investigators to build a family tree using data from public DNA sites and samples found on the victims' bodies. Eva and Patricia were in junior high in February 1976 when they disappeared while walking together in downtown Calgary. The following day, police said their bodies had been found on Highway 1 west of Calgary. Ms Rehorek was a housekeeper who recently had moved to Calgary from Ontario for work. Police said her body was found in September 1976 in a ditch 22km (13.6 miles) west of Calgary, also a day after she vanished. Police said Ms MacClean, who was working at a local food bank at the time of her death, had last been seen in February 1977 walking home after a night out at a bar with friends. Her body was found six hours later just outside Calgary city limits. Superintendent Hall said that if Srery was still alive, he would be facing murder charges in the four deaths. Srery was an American citizen who was in Canada illegally at the time of the murders, having fled the US after he was charged with rape in California, said police. Gary Allen Srery was a serial sex offender who was last arrested in Idaho, where he was convicted of rape He already had an "extensive criminal record in the US for sex offenses," including rape and kidnapping, said Alberta RCMP inspector Breanne Brown. After arriving in Calgary in 1975, police say Srery lived under multiple aliases and used fake IDs to apply for social assistance. He later moved to British Columbia's lower mainland and lived there undetected by law enforcement until he was convicted of sexual assault in New Westminster, a city southeast of Vancouver in 1998. Srery served five years in prison for that crime and was deported back to the US, where he was arrested again in Idaho and sentenced to life in prison. According to a 2008 news article from a NBC affiliate in Idaho, Srery was charged and later convicted for raping a 44-year-old woman in Coeur D'Alene, near the border of Idaho and Washington. The RCMP has appealed to the public for help in piecing together Srery's life in Canada, saying it is "particularly concerning" that he evaded police for more than 20 years, from when he illegally entered the country until he was arrested in British Columbia. They also offered comfort to the families. "Identifying the offender does not bring back Eva, Patsy, Melissa or Barbara," said Superintendent Hall. "But it is my true hope that their families are able to finally have some answers as to what happened to their loved ones all those years ago."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69030467

Narendra Modi’s India: A decade of popularity and polarisation - BBC News

2024-05-17

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Indian PM Narendra Modi is eyeing a historic third term after a decade in power.

India

Nawab Khan, who lives in Lohta, says weavers like him have become poorer in the past 10 years. "The only way to prosper is to be a BJP supporter, or else you are left to struggle. Those who buy sarees have become richer, and those [predominantly Muslims] who make them have become poorer," he alleges. The BJP's Dileep Patel, who is in charge of 12 parliamentary seats including Varanasi, dismisses persistent allegations about Muslims being sidelined, or the government discriminating against them, and says welfare schemes are distributed fairly. He blames opposition parties for "frightening our Muslim brothers and sisters" before Mr Modi came to power in 2014. "But since then, they don't feel scared and their trust in the BJP is rising day by day," he claims, mentioning the criminalisation of triple talaq, or the practice of "instant divorce", as a move particularly appreciated by Muslim women. Yet, in the past 10 years, there have been numerous attacks on Muslims by right-wing groups, many of them deadly, and anti-Muslim hate speech has soared. "When India and Pakistan were partitioned, our ancestors rejected Muhammad Ali Jinnah's [founder of Pakistan] call and stayed in this country. We have also given our blood to build this country. Yet we are treated as second-class citizens," says Athar Jamal Lari, who is contesting against Mr Modi in Varanasi. And in recent weeks, some of that feeling has appeared to bubble to the surface as the BJP's campaign has shifted from the government's track record to shrill rhetoric against Muslims. Mr Modi himself has been accused of using divisive, Islamophobic language, especially at election rallies, although he denies this, external. But the communal pitch suggests the BJP may be less confident than it was a few weeks ago. Political analyst Neelanjan Sircar says the party may be trying to shore up its supporters in states like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, where Hindu-Muslim polarisation has paid off in the past. This is especially important for revving up its young mobilisers, who might also be affected by issues such as unemployment. The party also seems nervous about there not being an overwhelming national issue - or wave - like in the past two elections. In 2014, there was massive public anger against a Congress-led government seen as corrupt, and in 2019, national security dominated the campaign after a deadly attack on Indian troops was followed by air strikes against alleged militant targets in Pakistani territory. "So it may still very much be a vote about how much you trust the leader, or how much you trust the party, but in the absence of a wave, the issues become much, much more local," Mr Sircar says. The BJP hopes Mr Modi's larger-than-life image will get them over the line, but analysts say it could be a problem as well.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-69010109

Tory peer Lord Ranger faces Parliament ban over drunken outburst - BBC News

2024-05-17

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An investigation finds Lord Ranger called a group of women "useless" while drunk in a Commons bar.

UK Politics

A Conservative peer could be suspended from the House of Lords for three weeks for drunkenly harassing two women. Lord Ranger, a former adviser to Boris Johnson, also faces a 12-month ban from all of Parliament's bars. A conduct watchdog found he swore at the women and called them "useless" while drunk in Strangers' Bar in Parliament. Lord Ranger said he did not recall the incident but apologised to the complainants. Peers will vote on the punishments, recommended by the House of Lords Conduct Committee, in June. The committee's report said Lord Ranger had been "visibly drunk" and made "various inappropriate comments" to a group of people in Strangers' Bar, which is next to the House of Commons terrace. He then returned to the same group and "acted aggressively, shouting and swearing", calling them "useless" and "invading their personal space". Lord Ranger, who worked as Mr Johnson's director for transport policy during his time as mayor of London, did not contest the report. He said he did not recall the incident but was "deeply mortified at the descriptions of my behaviour" and "saddened to hear that I caused you distress". Lord Ranger called the event a "wholly uncharacteristic outburst", influenced by family health problems that had "taken a significant toll" on him. As well as suspending Lord Ranger for three weeks, the committee recommended he be banned from the House of Lords bars for 12 months to "underline the House's disapproval of alcohol-related misconduct". The committee also urged the House of Commons authorities to ban Lord Ranger from its bars for 12 months. The House of Lords Standards Commissioner originally recommended that Lord Ranger be suspended for just one week. But the Conduct Committee increased the sanction after finding his behaviour had been "particularly serious". The committee said: "Lord Ranger's bullying behaviour was prolonged in duration, with two separate incidents separated by up to an hour, alcohol was an important factor, and it led to a finding of harassment as well as bullying". One complainant was left with trouble sleeping and became "more wary about her interactions with people", the report noted. The suspension will only take effect if the House of Lords agrees to the recommendations through a vote - expected in early June.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-69027589

Restoring Scotland's extinct oyster reefs - BBC News

2024-05-17

Thirty thousand rare oysters are being reintroduced to the Firth of Forth having been wiped out by overfishing and pollution.

Thirty thousand rare oysters are being reintroduced to the Firth of Forth having been wiped out by overfishing and pollution. Once native to Scotland, it has been estimated that 30 million European flat oysters were being harvested towards the end of the 1800s. But by 1957 they were declared extinct in the area. So far, 14,000 oysters have been reintroduced with plans for the rest to be added by the end of the year, as part of a project to increase biodiversity in Scottish waters.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-69024283

The BBC News app keeps you informed with live and breaking news you can trust - BBC News

2024-05-17

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Get our news coverage on your phone or tablet and discover a range of compelling features.

BBC News Services

Depending on the contract you have, data charges may apply for accessing the internet on your mobile device. If you are not sure about the potential charges, please ask your mobile network provider. You may find some costs are included in your existing price plan or that you can opt for a data package that gives reduced charges for accessing the internet. The BBC does not charge you to access mobile content.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10628994

First Apprentice wedding 'like an Alan Sugar task', say happy couple - BBC News

2024-05-18

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Akshay Thakrar and Harpreet Kaur put their business skills to use as they plan the week-long party.

Leeds & West Yorkshire

Akshay Thakrar and Harpreet Kaur are the first Apprentice couple to wed The Apprentice winner Harpreet Kaur said organising her week-long wedding extravaganza was like completing a task on the show. Harpreet and her fiancé, fellow contestant Akshay Thakrar, are the first Apprentice couple to get married and will tie the knot in June. Harpreet, 32, won The Apprentice in 2022 but it was not until the show wrapped that romance blossomed. She said: "The fans are so excited, some have even asked for an invite!" Harpreet is the owner and founder of dessert parlour Oh So Yum with branches in Huddersfield, Leeds and Bradford. When she was declared the winner, Lord Sugar invested £250,000 in the venture, and Harpreet has since bought back the shares from him so she can keep creative control of the business. But she said there were no hard feelings - and he still got an invite to the wedding, although he "politely declined because he is busy". Akshay, 31, was also on the show in 2022 but it was not until after it finished that Harpreet got in touch, and they "haven't looked back", he said. Less than two years later, they have bought their "dream home" in Bradford, met each other's family and are about to get married. The wedding celebrations include a civil ceremony in Pontefract because Harpreet wants to show Akshay's family "up north", followed by a traditional Indian wedding in London and a huge reception. Harpreet told the BBC: "When you work in business you're very capable of juggling multiple plates at once, so I found this like another Apprentice task really. "There are so many elements to the wedding, from picking a venue to considering your guests' travel arrangements to making sure they don't get bored." Akshay, founder of betting site Tips 360, added: "There's also the food, the finance, the timeline, even the weather… and of course the negotiations, that has been fun." Harpreet said she invited Lord Sugar but he politely declined as he is busy Both Harpreet and Akshay grew up watching The Apprentice. Harpreet said it was "surreal that love blossomed on the show" because initially they were competing against each other. Harpreet also spoke about the challenges South Asian women faced if they wanted to set up a business or deviate from the more traditional role of raising a family. She said: "I come from an extremely traditional background so growing up my dad always told us to study hard and go into medicine, law or banking because they are seen as well-paid jobs. "When I first told my dad I was going to set up my own business it did not go down too well. Akshay proposed on a London rooftop after telling Harpreet they were going to a friend's birthday "Opening a business is seen as a risk and in some Asian cultures it may not be seen as favourable as being a homemaker. "My dad was proud of me because I used to be in banking and thought going into business was risky... but safe to say by the time I won The Apprentice he was super proud of me." Harpreet said she hoped to be a role model for other women, especially from the South Asian community, and inspire them to be confident and "chase their dreams". She added: "Trends are changing and our culture is becoming a lot more accepting." Harpreet and Akshay said that West Yorkshire was definitely going to be home for the foreseeable future - especially as it was "such a lovely place to raise a family". Asked if they were expecting the next generation of Apprentices in the near future, Harpreet said: "We'll see! But we both have a few career goals and this wedding to do first!" Follow BBC Yorkshire on Facebook, external, Twitter, external and Instagram, external. Send your story ideas to yorkslincs.news@bbc.co.uk, external.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leeds-69021231

King Charles to attend D-Day commemorations in France - BBC News

2024-05-18

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The King, Queen and Prince William will take part in events marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day.

UK

King Charles will take part in commemorations marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day next month, says Buckingham Palace. He will travel to Normandy in France for ceremonies marking the landings which took place in 1944 during World War Two. There had been uncertainty because of the King's cancer diagnosis. But he will be taking part in D-Day events in the UK and France alongside Queen Camilla and the Prince of Wales. It will be the first time the King has travelled overseas since he began cancer treatment and it marks a further step in his return to public engagements. There will also be 23 surviving D-Day veterans going to Normandy and a further 21 veterans are expected at an event at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire. They are part of a diminishing number of people who took part in what was the biggest seaborne invasion in history. Five years ago there were 255 D-Day veterans going to Normandy events and Philippa Rawlinson of the Royal British Legion said: "These incredibly moving and poignant commemorations will be our last opportunity to host a significant number of Normandy veterans." On Southsea Common in Portsmouth on 5 June, the King, Queen and Prince William will attend a ceremony remembering the wartime Allied landings in northern France when it was occupied by the Nazis. The King handed over the role of Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps to the Prince of Wales on Monday This national commemoration will have light displays, readings and music in a city that was one of the starting points for the landings 80 years ago. Princess Anne, the Princess Royal, will unveil a statue in Normandy recalling the Canadian contribution to D-Day, before attending a remembrance service in Bayeux Cathedral. The King and Queen will then travel to France for an event on 6 June at the British Normandy Memorial in Ver-sur-Mer, which lists the names of more than 20,000 individuals under British command who died during the Battle of Normandy. This will include veterans' stories, music and a tribute by the Red Arrows and the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. Prince William will attend an international ceremony at Omaha Beach, Saint Laurent sur Mer, which is expected to include 25 heads of state.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-69026300

Rare footage shows deep-sea squid attacking camera - BBC News

2024-05-18

Watch video of the super-fast Dana squid getting a close-up 1km below the Pacific Ocean's surface.

Rare footage shows a deep-sea squid wrapping its arms around a camera at a depth of about 1km (0.6 miles), where conditions are near pitch black. The Dana squid has all the tools of a top ocean predator, including a pair of brilliant "headlights" that it flashes at the moment it goes in for the kill. They are intended to dazzle the prey, to hold the victim stationary for those few moments longer until it can be captured in a death embrace. Scientists filmed the squid in full attack mode while they were on a research cruise in the Pacific Ocean. Read more on this story.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-69016403

Sean 'Diddy' Combs: Video appears to show rap mogul beating girlfriend Cassie in 2016 - BBC News

2024-05-18

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The clip seems to show an attack described in Casandra Ventura's lawsuit against the rapper last year.

US & Canada

The ex-couple were seen at a movie screening in LA about one week before the video was purportedly filmed CCTV has emerged appearing to show rap mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs attacking singer Casandra "Cassie" Ventura in a hotel hallway in 2016. The video, aired by CNN, has surfaced in the wake of allegations by Ms Ventura about her ex-boyfriend and producer in a lawsuit last year. She has not commented, but her lawyer said it confirms "the disturbing and predatory behaviour of Mr Combs". A lawyer for Mr Combs has not responded to a BBC request for comment. The BBC has not independently verified the video, which appears to be a compilation of surveillance footage angles dated 5 March 2016. According to CNN, it was filmed at the now-closed InterContinental Hotel in Century City, Los Angeles. The clip appears to show Ms Ventura leaving a hotel room to walk towards a row of elevators. A shirtless man is seen holding a towel around his waist, and hurrying down a hallway. When he catches up to her, he grabs her and throws her on the floor, causing her to drop some luggage. He kicks her while she is on the ground, before picking up her bags and kicking her a second time then attempting to drag her by her shirt. The attacker is seen leaving for a moment, before returning and shoving Ms Ventura as she stands up. He then sits in a chair near the lifts and throws an object. A lawyer for R&B singer Ms Ventura, Douglas Wigdor, said in a statement: "The gut-wrenching video has only further confirmed the disturbing and predatory behaviour of Mr Combs. "Words cannot express the courage and fortitude that Ms Ventura has shown in coming forward to bring this to light." The Los Angeles District Attorney's Office said on Friday that the assault captured in the video might be too old to prosecute. "We find the images extremely disturbing and difficult to watch," it said in a statement. "If the conduct depicted occurred in 2016, unfortunately we would be unable to charge as the conduct would have occurred beyond the timeline where a crime of assault can be prosecuted." In a now-settled federal lawsuit last year, Ms Ventura alleged that "around March 2016" Mr Combs "became extremely intoxicated and punched Ms Ventura in the face, giving her a black eye". "After he fell asleep, Ms Ventura tried to leave the hotel room, but as she exited, Mr Combs awoke and began screaming at Ms Ventura. "He followed her into the hallway of the hotel while yelling at her. He grabbed at her, and then took glass vases in the hallway and threw them at her, causing glass to crash around them as she ran to the elevator to escape," the documents said. The lawsuit alleged that the rap mogul had purchased the footage from the hotel for $50,000 (£39,000). Her legal action against Mr Combs, which accused him of rape and sexual trafficking over a decade, was settled for an undisclosed sum one day after it was filed in November last year. Mr Combs' lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, said at the time that the settlement "is in no way an admission of wrongdoing". "Mr Combs' decision to settle the lawsuit does not in any way undermine his flat-out denial of the claims. He is happy they got to a mutual settlement and wishes Ms Ventura the best." Since then, several other women have filed lawsuits accusing the rapper of sexual misconduct. His homes in Los Angeles and Miami, Florida, were raided last month as part of a federal investigation into human trafficking. Ms Ventura formally was signed to Mr Combs' record label, Bad Boy, and released several hits in the 2000s, including songs that featured Diddy. Her most famous tracks include Me & U, Long Way to Go and Official Girl, featuring Lil Wayne.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69030387

Long-lost siblings' emotional meeting at Dublin Airport - BBC News

2024-05-18

Long-lost siblings - one from Londonderry, one from Canada - meet for first time in Ireland.

Given up for adoption, Billy Scampton didn't know he had a sister. But the Derry man was overjoyed to meet Shannon Leet from Ontario earlier this month. “I can’t believe I have my sister here in Ireland, sitting in my house in Derry. It is just beyond the stuff of dreams.”

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-69028103

Manthan: The Indian film at Cannes made by half a million farmers - BBC News

2024-05-18

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Manthan, a film produced by India's farmers, premieres at Cannes almost half a century after it was made.

India

Smita Patil played the role of an "untouchable" village woman in Manthan In the mid-1970s, half a million dairy farmers in India's western state of Gujarat contributed two rupees each to make a ground-breaking film. Manthan (The Churning), directed by venerated filmmaker Shyam Benegal, became the country's first crowd-funded film. The 134-minute 1976 film was a fictionalised narrative of the genesis of a dairy cooperative movement that transformed India from a milk-deficient nation to the world's leading milk producer. The story drew inspiration from Verghese Kurien - known as the "Milkman of India" for revolutionising milk production in the country. (India today accounts for nearly a quarter of the global milk production.) Nearly 50 years after it was made, a pristinely restored Manthan is receiving a red-carpet world premiere this week at the Cannes Film Festival, alongside classics from Jean-Luc Godard, Akira Kurosawa and Wim Wenders. Restoring the film was a challenge, according to Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, award-winning filmmaker, archivist and restorer. Girish Karnad (left) plays a veterinary doctor who meets a private dairy owner played by Amrish Puri (right) All that remained of Manthan was a damaged negative and two faded prints. The negative had been ravaged by fungus, leaving vertical green lines across many sections. The sound negative was entirely destroyed, forcing the restorers to rely on the sound from the sole surviving print. The restorers salvaged the negative and one of the prints. They borrowed and digitised the sound from the print, and repaired the film. The scanning and digital clean-up were conducted at a Chennai lab under the supervision of a renowned Bologna-based film restoration lab, with both Benegal and his long-time cinematographer Govind Nihalani overseeing the project. The film's sound was fixed and improved at the Bologna lab. Some 17 months later, Manthan was reborn in ultra high definition 4K. Benegal, one of the doyens of Indian cinema, says the film remains very close to his heart. "It is wonderful to see the film come back to life almost like we made it yesterday. It looks better than the first print," the 89-year-old filmmaker says. Actor Naseeruddin Shah learnt to make cow dung cakes and milk a buffalo during the making of the film Benegal recounts that, egged on by Kurien, he had produced several documentaries on Operation Flood, external - India's milk revolution - and rural marketing initiatives. When he suggested a feature film to Kurien, saying that documentaries mainly reached those "converted to the cause", Kurien balked. He told Benegal that there were no funds available to make the film, given his refusal to accept money from farmers. Under the cooperative model, small farmers would bring and sell milk in the mornings and evenings to a network of collection centres in Gujarat. The milk was then transported to dairies for processing into butter and other products. Kurien proposed that the collection centres deduct two rupees from each farmer, enabling all of them to become producers. The collected funds financed the making of the film. "The farmers readily agreed because we were telling their story," says Benegal. Manthan, external boasted a stellar cast, featuring Girish Karnad, Smita Patil, Naseeruddin Shah, Amrish Puri, Kulbhushan Kharbanda and Mohan Agashe in key roles. Vijay Tendulkar, a prominent Indian playwright, contributed multiple scripts, with Benegal selecting one for the film. Renowned composer Vanraj Bhatia scored the music. Benegal (left) oversaw the restoration of the film by Shivendra Singh Dungarpur (right) and his team In the film, a city-bred government veterinary doctor and his team arrive in a deeply divided village in Gujarat with plans to start a dairy cooperative. As he starts his work, the vet is caught in the tumultuous politics of change and faces challenges from a private dairy owner, the village head and a volatile local milkman. "Manthan is a microcosmic picture of transformative politics... Benegal offers a brilliant social critique of a situation in which government bureaucrats enter a village and try to change the social and economic perspectives of its inhabitants," wrote Sangeeta Datta, author of World Director Series: Shyam Benegal. Money was tight and the 45-day shoot was a challenge. Nihalani remembers using a "patchwork of different film stocks" to shoot the film. The crew lived as a close-knit family in the village, where many residents also acted in the film. The cast did not change their costumes throughout the shooting, so "that they looked worn in the village", said Datta. Many villagers of Gujarat acted in the film, which was produced by milk farmers Naseeruddin Shah, who began his acting career with Benegal and later became one of India's best-known actors, remembers living the film during its making. "I lived in a hut, learnt to make cow dung cakes and milk a buffalo," he says. "I would carry the buckets and serve the milk to the unit to get the physicality of the character." Shah, who will present the film at Cannes, also wore the same cotton shirt throughout the shoot. Kurien released the film initially in Gujarat to a rousing reception. "The film did brilliantly because its largest audience was also the film's producers. Every day we had this incredible sight of truckloads of people coming in from all over to see the film," says Benegal. More copies of this film were produced than any other in India, spanning formats from 35mm to 8mm, Super 8, and later, video cassettes. Manthan was widely shown around the world, including at the UN General Assembly, and won a National Award at home. Manthan's success gave Kurien another idea. Using the film to propagate the milk revolution, he distributed 16mm prints to villages nationwide, urging farmers to establish their own cooperatives. In real life imitating reel life, he sent teams comprising a vet, a milk technician and a fodder specialist to distribute and show the film to farmers. Benegal says Manthan "serves as a powerful reminder of cinema's ability to drive change" Benegal says Manthan "serves as a powerful reminder of cinema's ability to drive change". The film also retains surprising relevance today, as it explores a range of issues that continue to bedevil contemporary India. Trains, still notorious for running late, set the stage for the film's opening scene. A passenger train, carrying the doctor and his assistant, pulls into a tranquil village station. Locals, slightly tardy, rush down the platform to welcome their guests with garlands. "We are sorry," a breathless villager tells the vet. "The train arrived on time."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-69014789

Cuba laments collapse of iconic sugar industry - BBC News

2024-05-18

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For centuries, sugar was the mainstay of Cuba's economy. Now the industry is in rapid decline.

Latin America & Caribbean

For hundreds of years, sugar was the mainstay of the Cuban economy The men of the Yumuri sugar co-operative in Cuba have worked the cane fields around the city of Cienfuegos since they were old enough to wield a machete. Cutting cane is all Miguel Guzmán has ever known. He comes from a family of farm hands and started the tough, thankless work as a teenager. For hundreds of years, sugar was the mainstay of the Cuban economy. It was not just the island's main export but also the cornerstone of another national industry, rum. Older Cubans remember when the island was essentially built on the backs of families like Mr Guzmán's. Today, though, he readily admits he has never seen the sugar industry as broken and depressed as it is now - not even when the Soviet Union's lucrative sugar quotas dried up after the Cold War. Spiralling inflation, shortages of basic goods and the decades-long US economic embargo have made for a dire economic outlook across the board in Cuba. But things are particularly bleak in the sugar trade. "There's not enough trucks and the fuel shortages mean sometimes several days pass before we can work," says Miguel, waiting in a tiny patch of shade for the Soviet-era lorries to arrive. The lost hours of harvest as men and machinery lie idle have acutely hurt production levels. Last season, Cuba's production fell to just 350,000 tonnes of raw sugar, an all-time low for the country, and well below the 1.3 million tonnes recorded in 2019. Miguel Guzmán says his wages barely buy anything anymore Miguel is one of the fastest cutters in his team - or pelotón - recognised by his bosses as among the most efficient in the country. Yet he says he receives no financial incentive for greater production beyond his love of the trade. "My wages barely buy anything anymore," he says with no hint of exaggeration over the worsening inflation in the country. "But what can we do? Cuba needs the sugar." It certainly does: Cuba now imports sugar to meet domestic demand - once unthinkable, and a far cry from the glory years when Cuban sugar was the envy of the Caribbean and exported around the world. Inside Ciudad Caracas, a 19th-Century sugar mill near Cienfuegos, the air is thick with the overpowering smell of molasses. As obsolete, rusting cogs grind tonnes of sugarcane into pulp and juice, the workers tell me it is one of just two dozen working sugar mills in Cuba. "That's four more than originally planned for this season, thanks to the hard work and effort of the workers," says Dionis Pérez, communications director of the state-run sugar company, Azcuba. "But the other 29 are at a standstill," he acknowledges. "It's a disaster. Today the sugar industry in Cuba almost doesn't exist," says Juan Triana of the Centre for Studies of the Cuban Economy in Havana. Ciudad Caracas is just one of just two dozen working sugar mills in Cuba The slump in sugar has serious implications for other parts of the Cuban economy, he argues, including on its export earnings from rum. "We're producing the same quantity of sugar Cuba produced in the middle of the 19th Century." The problems have undoubtedly been worsened by the "maximum pressure" policy brought in by former US President Donald Trump. His administration ratcheted up the trade embargo on the island, a measure later extended by President Joe Biden. But the issues facing Cuban sugar are not solely the fault of the US embargo. Years of chronic mismanagement and underinvestment have also wrecked the once-thriving industry. Today, sugar receives less than 3% of state investment as the Cuban government backs tourism as its main economic motor instead. One man who can still get his hands on enough sugar is Martin Nizarane. Part of a new breed of Cuban private entrepreneurs, his company Clamanta produces yoghurt and ice cream in a factory outside Havana. As Mr Nizarane shows me sacks of sugar imported in bulk from Colombia, he says he hopes to double production soon. The business has been hailed by Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel as a model for the future. That praise from the top, to many, amounts to a paradigm shift. It may still be considered a dirty word by the Cuban state but this is capitalism pure and simple, even if Martin Nizarane displays his revolutionary credentials by adorning his office with photographs of him hugging the late revolutionary leader, Fidel Castro. Martin Nizarane says he is not given any special privileges whatsoever I put it to him that only people with close ties to the Cuban Communist Party can own a private business as sophisticated as his. "I am not an employee of the Cuban state. This is a non-state form of production which sells to both other non-state entities and state-owned companies," he retorts. "The state treats me like just another private entrepreneur with no special privileges whatsoever." Sugar's demise is just one part of Cuba's faltering economy. On 1 March, amid growing inflation, the government imposed a five-fold price increase on subsidised fuel at the petrol pumps. It was a difficult but overdue decision, officials said, arguing the government could no longer afford such high subsidies on fuel. As he queued to fill up his tank on the day the new prices came into force, Manuel Domínguez said he was not convinced. All he knows is that the measure is hurting drivers like him, and that Cubans are suffering now more than he can ever recall. "There's no relationship between what we earn and the prices we see - whether that's fuel or food in the shops or anything else." "There needs to be a correlation between our wages and what things cost because, right now, for the average Cuban, fuel is simply unaffordable." Following a rise in petrol prices, many Cubans are struggling to afford fuel A few days later, economy and planning minister Alejandro Gil Fernández was arrested for alleged corruption. Some think he has been made a scapegoat for the state of the Cuban economy. Either way, it was an extraordinary - and very public - fall from grace. But most think it will take much more than one ministerial head to roll to pull Cuba from its economic woes. Back in the sugarcane fields of Cienfuegos, the cutters carry out their gruelling work with little optimism. Invariably, when talking about the sugar industry in Cuba, someone will quote the island's famous refrain: "Without sugar, there's no country." For Cuban economist Juan Triana that idea is being tested to its limit. A quintessential part of the national identity - part of the island's very DNA - is being eroded before Cubans' eyes. "For more than maybe 150 years, the industry of the sugarcane was both the main export income and the locomotive for the rest of the economy. That's what we've lost."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-68935247

Rebecca Joynes: Teacher guilty of sex with two boys - BBC News

2024-05-18

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Rebecca Joynes is told to expect to go to jail after being convicted by jury.

Manchester

Teacher Rebecca Joynes groomed the two teenage boys from the age of 15, the trial heard A teacher has been found guilty of having sex with two schoolboys. Rebecca Joynes, 30, groomed both boys from the age of 15, Manchester Crown Court was told. Joynes was convicted of four counts of sexual activity with a child and two counts of sexual activity with another child, She was on bail for sexual activity with the first child, boy A, when she began sex with the second, boy B, who she went on to become pregnant by. Neither teen must be identified. Joynes closed her eyes and grimaced before beginning to shake as the guilty verdicts were returned by the jury foreman. Her mother and father, sitting in the public gallery, made no reaction. But yards away the parents of the boys stifled cheers as Joynes was convicted. Judge Kate Cornell warned Joynes: "There's a baby in this case who has done nothing wrong and is entirely innocent of all wrongdoing, and you will obviously want to see her before the sentence is passed, I do understand that. "But you must be under no illusion what's going to happen on the fourth of July." The court previously heard that Joynes was 28, had just come out of a nine-year relationship, and was "flattered" by the attention of teenage schoolboys. Boy A worked out her mobile number after she gave him all but one digit, and the pair connected on Snapchat. He sent her flirtatious texts and they agreed to meet secretly. Boy A lied to his mother that he was staying over at a friend's house after school finished on Friday, but instead Joynes picked him up near his home in her Audi A1, took him to the Trafford Centre, and bought him a £350 Gucci belt. Joynes was on bail when she got pregnant by one of the boys Back at her flat they kissed and had sex twice. The next day the boy's mother noticed a love-bite on her son's neck, which he dismissed as "nothing". But police received a tip-off and visited the school along with boy A's "distraught" mother, who stormed into reception after being told her son had spent the night with a teacher. Joynes was bailed on condition she have no unsupervised contact with anyone under 18. She said she had a "breakdown" and moved back to her parents in Wirral. She was at a low point when boy B messaged her on Snapchat asking how she was. Joynes moved back to Salford Quays, and Boy B visited and they had sex for the first time. She was arrested for breaking bail conditions and spent five months in custody until she was bailed in November last year, giving birth in early 2024. Jane Wilson, senior crown prosecutor for CPS North West, said: "Rebecca Joynes is a sexual predator. "She abused her position to groom and ultimately sexually exploit schoolboys. Her behaviour has had a lasting impact on them." Listen to the best of BBC Radio Manchester on Sounds and follow BBC Manchester on Facebook, external, X, external and Instagram, external? You can also send story ideas to northwest.newsonline@bbc.co.uk, external

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-69026069

Smoke fills street as London bus catches fire in Twickenham - BBC News

2024-05-18

Firefighters tackled huge flames from the blazing bus on Saturday as people looked on.

A single-storey bus was destroyed after it caught fire on Richmond Road in London on Saturday afternoon. Video footage from the scene in Twickenham showed firefighters battling huge flames and billowing black smoke in the middle of the street. The 490 bus burst into flames at about 13:18 BST, and was over for firefighters at 14:26 BST, the Fire Brigade said. No-one was hurt and the road has been closed for the rest of the day while investigations continue, according to the London Fire Brigade. Five fire engines and about 30 firefighters took just over an hour to extinguish the fire.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-69033322

Sheffield nutritionist lifts the lid on transforming Tyson Fury - BBC News

2024-05-18

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Sheffield nutritionist Greg Marriott has lived with, and cooked for, the boxer for seven months.

Sheffield & South Yorkshire

Marriott has been living with Fury for seven months in preparation for his blockbuster fight Athletes often leave no stone unturned in the pursuit of sporting success. Seven months ago, Tyson Fury enlisted the help of Sheffield-based nutritionist Greg Marriott ahead of this weekend's heavyweight showdown against Oleksandr Usyk in Saudi Arabia. The pair have been inseparable ever since, with Marriott even joining the Furys on holiday and moving into their family home in Morecambe. He tells the BBC what it's been like preparing the Gypsy King for the clash. Marriott, 41, was in a coffee shop when the call from Tyson Fury came through in November. Speaking from a sun lounger at Fury's hotel in Riyadh, briefly pausing the call to laugh and joke with the man himself, Marriott recalls being asked how he fancied "being part of history" over a FaceTime chat. He had first worked with Fury ahead of his 2018 comeback, which saw the boxer shed nine stone (57kg) in weight, having reportedly weighed 28 stone (178kg) at his heaviest. Marriott normally lives in Sheffield with his wife and their four children, but he determined a temporary trip across the Pennines to camp out with Fury, his wife and their seven children was essential to achieve his aims. "He didn't look that good against [Francis] Ngannou, so I thought I needed to get to him as quick as possible," explains Marriott, who embarked on a career in nutrition after recovering from cancer at the age of 27 and having worked in fast food restaurants in his younger years. "He's never going to be body-beautiful - to get him looking body-beautiful it would take a year or two," he adds. "For this camp, it was about being fit and strong." With Fury's undisputed champion status on the line, preparations for the biggest fight of his career - and the biggest boxing showdown of the 21st century - began in earnest. At the outset, Marriott accompanied the Furys on a family holiday to Jeddah, before dodging the "pandemonium" of their home in Morecambe in favour of the relative calm of an adjacent annexe. "I said 'It's not a holiday for you'," recounts Marriott. "It can be for your kids and your missus, but for you, that's the start of training camp." Undisputed status is on the line for Fury in Saudi Arabia Fury, who stands at 6ft 9ins (2.05m), is a larger-than-life character who frequently divides opinion. But Marriott insists he has an entirely different persona away from the cameras. "He's a very, very down-to-earth man. He's genuine, soft, and will do anything for you. "It's no secret that he's suffered with mental illness in the past. All the greats are walking this tightrope - Tyson is the same in that respect. "This is an entertainment business, and he's entertaining people." McDonalds trips and runs along Morecambe Bay became part of Fury's training regime, which has seen the self-styled Gypsy King hailed for his conditioning in the build-up to Saturday night's fight. "He came round to the annexe for all his meals," says Marriott, who established a similar set-up with Kell Brook for seven months ahead of his fight against Amir Khan in 2022. "The highlight of the day was going to McDonald's for a black coffee and talking about life." Despite Fury weighing in at his lightest since 2019 ahead of Saturday's hotly anticipated bout, his nutritionist - whose clients also include professional footballers, as well as boxers - says the secret has been eating more, not less. The occasional "cheat meal" has been sanctioned too - even during fight week. "A nice steak, a bit of veg and some sweet potato fries - you can have that and it's not dirty," he says, disclosing Fury's dinner order for the evening ahead. "He's not a big eater. Before he came on this camp, he would have two meals a day and a protein shake. He's never eaten as much! "If I wasn't doing my job properly, they [clients] wouldn't be in phenomenal shape." Marriott feels Fury has come on "leaps and bounds" since his heavily-criticised performance against MMA star Ngannou, who was making his professional boxing debut at the time. Critics slammed Fury for his performance and conditioning when he fought Ngannou in October "It's the mental aspect with Tyson," he says. "He sits on the end of my bed every night and we have a little chat." "He came into my room the other night and he just had such a smile on his face. I said, 'what's wrong?' and he said, 'nothing, I'm just in a really good place'". Marriott adds: "I'm just worried we will never see this Tyson Fury again after this fight. "We bounce off each other. You can't beat it when someone trusts you completely with their life - because he's going to war."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-south-yorkshire-69020655

Sunaks' wealth rises to £651m in latest Sunday Times Rich List - BBC News

2024-05-18

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Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty are richer than King Charles, according to The Sunday Times.

UK Politics

The personal wealth of Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty rose by £122m last year, according to the Sunday Times Rich List. The couple's fortune was estimated at £651m in the latest list, up from £529m in 2023. This was mainly due to Ms Murty's shares in Infosys, the Indian IT giant co-founded by her father. It means they are richer than the King, according to the annual list of the UK's most wealthy people., external Charles III was ranked higher than the Sunak family last year, but his personal fortune is estimated to have grown more modestly over the past year, up £10m to £610m. The Sunaks were ranked higher than the late Queen in 2022 - with Elizabeth II's personal fortune that year evaluated at £370m. However, estimating the personal fortunes of monarchs is tricky, while the wider wealth of the monarchy - which includes various estates and palaces - has been estimated at dozens of billions of pounds. Mr Sunak became the first front-line politician to feature on the Sunday Times' annual wealth list in its 35-year history when he appeared on it as chancellor in the 2022 edition. At that point, the family's wealth was estimated at £730m. According to the Sunday Times, the 10 richest families and individuals in the UK, the estimated value of their fortunes and the primary source of their wealth are: • None David and Simon Reuben and family - £24.98bn (property and internet) • None Guy, George, Alannah and Galen Weston and family - £14.49bn (retail and real estate interests, including Primark) Mr Sunak worked as a hedge fund manager before entering politics and is personally wealthy, listing £2.2m in income, earnings, and capital gains last year in his latest tax summary. But he owes his place at the top table of wealthy Britons mainly to his wife's Infosys shareholding, estimated to be worth £590m last year. Downing Street declined to comment on Mr Sunak's latest appearance in the rich list, saying it was a "private family matter". But the PM's official spokesman added: "When he's been asked this question before he's responded and asked that people judge him by his actions, including to support livelihoods during the pandemic though the furlough scheme as an example. "That's his focus and his priority and he should be judged on that."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-69027955

Marjorie Taylor Greene: '9/11 absolutely happened' - BBC News

2024-05-18

The Republican congresswoman says she remembered 'crying all day watching it on the news.'

Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene says she regrets past comments in which she questioned whether the terror attacks on 9/11 or some school shooting tragedies actually happened. But she did not apologise and did not refer to a host of other incendiary statements made before she was elected to Congress in November. She has been condemned by colleagues from both parties, although the Republican leadership stopped short of removing her from two committees. The US House will vote on whether to punish her for those statements. Read more: Republican lawmaker says she 'regrets' QAnon posts

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-55942990

Paul Pelosi attacker sentenced to 30 years in prison - BBC News

2024-05-18

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Nancy Pelosi has not discussed the attack with her husband, whose skull was fractured with a hammer.

US & Canada

This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. The man who attacked the husband of former US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi has been sentenced to 30 years in prison. David DePape was convicted of assault and attempted kidnapping of a federal official in November after a week-long trial in San Francisco. The attack left Paul Pelosi, now 84, in hospital for six days with a fractured skull and other injuries. Mrs Pelosi had asked for a "very long" sentence to be given to DePape. A spokesperson for Mrs Pelosi said that the family "couldn't be prouder of their Pop and his tremendous courage" on the night of the attack and in testifying in the case. "Speaker Pelosi and her family are immensely grateful to all who have sent love and prayers over the last eighteen months, as Mr Pelosi continues his recovery," the spokesperson said in a statement posted on X, formerly Twitter. Prosecutors had asked the judge for DePape to be given 40 years. He is also facing life imprisonment on separate state charges. Video of the incident shown during the trial shows DePape, a Canadian citizen who has lived in the US for two decades, breaking into the Pelosi home in California armed with a hammer on 28 October 2022. DePape asked for Mrs Pelosi, who was not at home, when he confronted the lawmaker's husband inside the couple's house. When police officers arrived after responding to a 911 call, they found Mr Pelosi and DePape both gripping a hammer. Paul Pelosi was seriously injured in the attack Moments later - after being asked to drop the weapon - DePape abruptly struck Mr Pelosi before being wrestled to the ground by officers. The entire incident was caught on body cameras worn by the officers. In addition to a fractured skull, Mr Pelosi suffered injuries to his arm and hand. He was struck three times during the attack. In a letter filed ahead of the sentencing, Mrs Pelosi called on the court to hand down a "very long" sentence for DePape, adding that she and her husband have never been able to discuss the incident. "Paul and I have not discussed the events of that horrible night," she wrote. "Paul doesn't want to undergo revisiting it, and the doctors' advice is that discussing the vicious assault would only renew his trauma." During the trial, Mr Pelosi testified that DePape said his plan was to "take out" Mrs Pelosi, whom he referred to as the "leader of the pack". "It was a tremendous shock, looking at him, looking at the hammer and the ties," Mr Pelosi recalled. "I recognised I was in serious danger. I tried to stay as calm as possible." After the attack, Mr Pelosi said his next memory was waking up to a "pool of blood" and being rushed to the hospital. In his own letter to the court before the sentencing, Mr Pelosi said he is still grapping with the effects of the attack. "I walk slowly and have difficulty with my balance. Nearly every day I get headaches that become migraines unless quickly addressed," he wrote. "I need to sleep during the day and cannot tolerate bright lights or loud noises for extended periods of time." DePape's court-appointed lawyer, Jodi Linker, argued that her client was motivated by right-wing conspiracy theories, which the defendant believed "with every ounce of his being". Prosecutors, however, argued that DePape had a "plan of violence", noting that he told investigators he had a "target list" and plan to break Mrs Pelosi's kneecaps if she did not reveal "the truth". At the time of his arrest, DePape had zip ties and duct tape. Outside the courthouse, DePape's son told reporters that his father's prison sentence was the same as the death penalty. "I think that's a really long time, because if you think about it, he's already nearly 50," Sky Gonzalez said, according to the Associated Press. "Basically, it's just a death sentence." In addition to the federal charges, DePape is facing separate state charges stemming from the attack. They include burglary, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse, and attempted murder. He faces life imprisonment if convicted of those charges. He has pleaded not guilty.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69028127

Slovakia PM Robert Fico 'approaching a positive prognosis' - BBC News

2024-05-18

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It comes as a man charged with attempting to murder Robert Fico arrived in court on Saturday.

Europe

Slovakia's Prime Minister is steadily approaching a "positive prognosis" after undergoing further surgery, the country's deputy leader says. Robert Fico, 59, was gravely injured after being shot in the small town of Handlova on Wednesday. He is currently in a serious but stable condition. Officials said it was unlikely he could be moved back to Bratislava in the next few days. Meanwhile, the man charged with his attempted murder appeared in court. It ruled that he be placed in custody until his trial, according to a court spokeswoman. The alleged assailant has not been formally named, but Slovak reports have widely identified him as 71-year-old Juraj Cintula from the town of Levice. The Pravda newspaper described Mr Cintula as a poet, while the Sme newspaper reported that he had been involved in many different politically-based organisations, with various ideologies. Deputy Prime Minister Robert Kalinak said on Saturday the various medical procedures Mr Fico had undergone were "beginning to bear fruit" and that there was no need to formally take over his official duties. He said "several miracles" had taken place at the hospital the prime minister was being treated at, thanks to the efforts of medical staff. "I can't find words of gratitude for the fact that we are steadily approaching that positive prognosis," he added. Nevertheless, Mr Kalinak said the prime minister's condition was still "really serious". "Certainly, it does not allow us to make such a transfer in the near future — that is, at the end of the weekend." Mr Fico was shot four times in the stomach and arm at close range as he greeted supporters, and his injuries were said to be extensive and complicated. He is understood to have undergone a number of surgeries, including the latest to remove dead tissue. Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok said on Thursday that the suspect in Mr Fico's shooting had acted alone and previously taken part in anti-government protests. The attack has left Slovakia tense and deeply polarised. Deputy Prime Minister Robert Kalinak has called for the country to embark on a path of tolerance and accused the opposition and the media of stirring up hatred. Mr Fico returned to power in Slovakia after elections last September, at the head of a populist-nationalist coalition. The political climate in the country has since turned particularly hostile - although the divisions date back to at least 2018, when a journalist investigating high-level corruption claims was murdered. Mr Fico was forced to step down then, amid giant protests. His re-election was a major comeback achieved on a platform that included promises to end military aid to Kyiv and veto Ukraine's Nato ambitions, as well as other talk more reminiscent of Moscow than Brussels.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-69031772

Hamas hostages: Stories of the people taken from Israel - BBC News

2024-05-18

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It is thought more than 100 Israelis are still being held hostage in Gaza after the 7 October attacks.

Middle East

Naama Levy, 19, was filmed being bundled into a jeep, her hands tied behind her back. The footage was released by Hamas and circulated widely on social media. According to her mother, the teenager had just begun her military service. Yousef Zyadna, a 53-year-old Bedouin dairy farmer, was abducted from Kibbutz Holit and taken to Gaza along with his sons Hamza, 22, and Bilal, 18, and his daughter, Aisha, 16. Aisha and Bilal were released on Thursday 30 November. Elad Katzir, 47, was abducted from Nir Oz with his mother, Hanna. The IDF said it had recovered his body from Gaza on 6 April after he was "murdered in captivity" by Islamic Jihad. Hanna was released in November. Ohad Ben Ami, 55, was kidnapped from Be'eri with his wife, Raz. She was released by Hamas on 29 November. Twin brothers Gali and Ziv Berman, 26, were taken from Kfar Aza. Ziv was messaging a friend as the attack happened. Their family said the IDF has told them the brothers are being held in Gaza. Their brother Liran told CBN news the pair had "twin power" and were the centre of attention wherever they went. Iraq-born Shlomo Mansour, 85, was taken captive from Kibbutz Kissufim, where he lived and worked as a chicken coop manager. His wife, Mazal, managed to escape. Michel Nisenbaum, 59, is a dual Brazilian-Israeli citizen who has lived in Israel for 45 years and works as a computer technician, his family told Brazilian media. They also say he is diabetic and has Crohn's disease. On 7 October, they say, someone claiming to be from Hamas answered his phone when they tried to call him. Daniela Gilboa, 19, sent messages saying that Kibbutz Nahal Oz, where she was staying, was under attack and asked her mother to pray for her. Her boyfriend, Roy Dadon, told the Economist 1843 magazine that he believes he saw a glimpse of her in a video showing three girls being driven away in the back of an SUV. Itay Chen, 19, a dual US-Israeli citizen and IDF solider, was on active duty with a tank unit on 7 October, according to the Times of Israel. The paper reported that his family was notified by the IDF that he is officially considered missing in action and probably being held hostage. Another soldier in his unit, Matan Angrest, 21, is also presumed to be in Gaza. Yosi Sharabi, 51, was taken from Be'eri with his brother, Eli Sharabi, 55. Eli's wife and two daughters were murdered in the attack. Ofir Engel, the boyfriend of Yosi's daughter, Yuval, was also taken, but released on 29 November. Agam Berger, 19, was kidnapped from Nahal Oz. She was seen being taken away in videos released by Hamas. Edan Alexander, 19, is an Israeli-US citizen who volunteered to join the Israeli army. He was serving near the Gaza border at the time of Hamas's attack. Edan's family said they had been told by Israeli officials that he had been taken to Gaza as a hostage. Kaid Farhan Elkadi, 53, lives with his family south of Rahat and worked as a security guard, according to Israeli media. Reports said his family believes he was kidnapped and taken to Gaza, based on images shared by Hamas.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-67053011

Dabney Coleman: TV and film actor dead at 92 - BBC News

2024-05-18

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The actor was known for playing comic villains, as well as his trademark moustache

US & Canada

Mr Coleman (c) as Ron Carlisle in Tootsie, in a scene with Dustin Hoffman (l) and George Gaynes (r) Dabney Coleman, best known for his portrayal of cantankerous characters in films such as Tootsie and 9 to 5, has died at age 92. Originally from Austin, Texas, he died at his home in Santa Monica, California, his daughter told US media. Mr Coleman began his career on Broadway in the 1960s. He later became known as a character actor in a variety of TV and film roles, as well as for his trademark moustache. One of his breakthrough parts was as a devious politician in the soap opera Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman in the 1970s. In 9 to 5, released in 1980, he starred opposite Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, and Dolly Parton, playing the role of Franklin Hart Jr - their obnoxious, sexist boss. His character in 1982's Tootsie was similarly lacking in redeeming qualities, as was the title character of Buffalo Bill, the NBC sitcom Mr Coleman later starred in. But although he was best known for playing nasty men for laughs, he also took on a range of dramatic roles and voice-over work. "Acting is acting, in my opinion," he told an interviewer in 2012, about the shifts in his career. "And if you can't make that adjustment, something's awfully wrong." Mr Coleman won an Emmy Award and a Golden Globe for his TV appearances. More recently he appeared in the western drama Yellowstone, and had a recurring role as an influential businessman in the HBO gangster saga Boardwalk Empire. His daughter, singer Quincy Coleman, told The Hollywood Reporter: "My father crafted his time here on Earth with a curious mind, a generous heart and a soul on fire with passion, desire and humour that tickled the funny bone of humanity." "As he lived, he moved through this final act of his life with elegance, excellence and mastery," she said.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69013314

Marjorie Taylor Greene booed in bid to oust House speaker - BBC News

2024-05-18

The Republican lawmaker motioned on Wednesday for a vote to oust House Speaker Mike Johnson.

Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene was booed in the House of Representatives after bringing forward a motion to vacate the seat of Speaker Mike Johnson. Greene accuses Johnson of aligning with the Democrats and said no speaker had aligned with the minority group in the chamber since the 1990s. Johnson was elected Speaker of the US House of Representatives last October after the a handful of Republicans joined the Democrats to oust Kevin McCarthy.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-68973270

Chris Heaton-Harris not standing for re-election - BBC News

2024-05-18

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The Northern Ireland secretary announced his intentions on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter.

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris has said he will not be standing at the next general election. The Tory MP said on X, formerly Twitter, it had been an "honour and a privilege to serve" and passed on his thanks to his constituents in Daventry. Mr Heaton-Harris has been the Northern Ireland secretary since September 2022, describing it as the "best job in the Cabinet". He announced his intention in a letter to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. Mr Heaton-Harris was first elected as an MP in 2010. He was appointed Tory chief whip in 2022 by Boris Johnson. Later that year, Liz Truss appointed him as secretary of state for Northern Ireland, a role he retained when Mr Sunak became prime minister. At the time, the Stormont power-sharing institutions had collapsed due to a Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) protest against post-Brexit trading arrangements. Much of his time in Northern Ireland was spent negotiating with parties in efforts to restore the assembly and executive. In his letter to Mr Sunak, published on X on Saturday night, Mr Heaton-Harris said: "Working with you I helped negotiate and deliver the Windsor Framework, which both solved many of the major practical issues created by the Northern Ireland Protocol, put in place as we left the EU, and helped reset our countries' relationship with our European neighbours. "Then, after long and detailed negotiations within Northern Ireland, we produced the command paper Safeguarding the Union , externalwhich resulted in the return of Stormont and devolved government to serve the people of Northern Ireland." Mr Heaton-Harris added: "I strongly believe the conditions now exist for Northern Ireland to thrive". Mr Heaton-Harris, who has been an MP for 14 years, said Northern Ireland had "privileged access for manufactured goods into the EU single market, whilst being an integral part of our UK internal market" "It finds itself in a remarkable favourable position," he added. He added that he wanted to remain as Northern Ireland secretary until the next election as "there are still a number of pieces of unfinished business I wish to complete and I love the people, place and job".

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-69032420

Newscast - Can Rishi Sunak turn it around? - BBC Sounds

2024-05-18

What was Project Sunak? And what is life like in Number 10?

Can Rishi Sunak turn it around? Can Rishi Sunak turn it around?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0hywbw0

Lawmakers hurl insults after 'fake eyelashes' comment - BBC News

2024-05-18

The fiery exchange began when Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene criticised Democrat Jasmine Crockett.

A clash ensued between congressional lawmakers on Thursday after Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene made a comment about Democrat Jasmine Crockett. "I think your fake eyelashes are messing up what you are reading", said Ms Greene. Left-wing New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez quickly intervened. The House Oversight Committee was debating to hold US Attorney General Merrick Garland under contempt.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69004633

East Belfast: Three still held over Kathryn Parton murder - BBC News

2024-05-18

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Kathryn Parton, 34, who suffered serious head injuries, was found dead on Wednesday.

Northern Ireland

The body of Kathryn Parton was found in a house on Madrid Street in Belfast Police are continuing to question three people on suspicion of murder after a woman was found dead in east Belfast. Kathryn Parton - known as Kat - was discovered with serious head injuries in a house in Madrid Street on Wednesday afternoon. The 34-year-old was pronounced dead at the scene. The three who remain in custody are a woman aged 43 and two men aged 22 and 23. Earlier this week, the PSNI said they were trying to establish the exact circumstances of her death. Belfast East MP Gavin Robinson described the incident as heart-breaking. The charity Women's Aid said Ms Parton was the 19th woman to be killed in Northern Ireland since 2020.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-69032418

US warns of possible Pride Month attacks worldwide - BBC News

2024-05-18

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The warning comes one week after a similar alert from the FBI and Department of Homeland Security.

US & Canada

US officials have warned that foreign terror organisations may attempt to target LGBT events around the world during Pride Month in June. "Stay alert in locations frequented by tourists, including Pride celebrations," a warning issued by the state department said. The advisory came on Friday, a week after a similar alert issued by US law enforcement agencies. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said: "Foreign terrorist organizations or supporters may seek to exploit increased gatherings associated with the upcoming June 2024 Pride Month." Although no specific gatherings or locations were mentioned in the warnings, the law enforcement agencies noted that messages from the Islamic State (IS) group distributed in English in February 2023 included rhetoric against LGBTQI+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning, and intersex) events and venues. During Pride Month in June 2016, a man inspired by IS ideology shot dead 49 people and wounded 53 more at Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida. The FBI and DHS warning also noted that three IS sympathisers had been arrested for attempting to attack a Pride parade in Vienna, Austria in 2023. The Counter Extremism Project, a New York-based non-profit group, noted that anti-LGBTQ ideas had been taken up by both Islamist and far-right extremists. "It is no surprise that neo-Nazis and jihadis often express mutual admiration for their shared anti-gay visions," Mark D Wallace, the project's chief executive, said in a statement. Protests and threats against LGBTQ communities by homegrown US groups also have been on the increase in recent years, according to a number of experts and research organisations. According to a report by the Anti-Defamation League and Glaad, a group formerly known as the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, there were at least 145 incidents of anti-LGBTQ violence, harassment and vandalism during Pride Month in 2023.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69013313

Hit Me Hard And Soft: What makes Billie Eilish's records 'eco-friendly'? - BBC News

2024-05-18

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The singer promised Hit Me Hard And Soft would be her most environmentally conscious album yet.

Newsbeat

Billie Eilish is a long-standing climate campaigner and says she's working to reduce waste in her music Each year, the UK's vinyl habit is estimated to produce the same amount of emissions as 400 people. But Billie Eilish is hoping to change the record with her new album Hit Me Hard and Soft, which came out on Friday. Albums will be pressed on to recycled or eco-vinyl and the packaging will also be made from recycled materials. There's scepticism about how much difference that can really make when it's linked to a huge world tour. But Billie is keen not to be the Bad Guy, and has also been praised for drawing attention to sustainability in the music industry. In an interview last month, external, the singer told Billboard she and her team were doing everything they could to minimise waste "in every aspect" of her music. "My parents have always kept me well informed and hyper-aware that every choice we make and every action we take has an impact somewhere or on someone, good or bad, and that has always stuck with me," she said. At a record press in South Wigston, Leicestershire, BBC Newsbeat was offered a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of making records more sustainable. "Factories are so different to when I first started," says Karen Emanuel, CEO of vinyl manufacturers Key Production. Most important are the ingredients. Records are made from PVC, a type of plastic which takes centuries to decompose. PVC is the base of all records and traditionally is made using fossil fuels At factories like Sonic Wax, which supplies Key Production, Karen says they're replacing fossil fuels with biofuels when making the plastic granules that are the building blocks of records. Biofuels are renewable, often made from vegetable oils, and Karen says it can cut emissions from this stage of the process by up to 90%. Once you have the plastic granules, these are melted together to become pucks which are then stamped into records at high temperatures. Offcuts from this process, as well as any records that don't come out up to scratch, can be melted down and re-used in the process too. "Those trimmings can be reground into vinyl again," says Karen. "So when people talk about using recycled vinyl, what they really mean is they're using the reground that's coming off the machine." Vinyl that's already been pressed into records and used can't currently be recycled in this process because they'd need to be specially cleaned with chemicals, Karen says. However, that is something the company is looking at for the future. Karen says she's seen lots of positive change in the music industry in recent years Aside from what goes into making the physical record, there's still the environmental impact of transporting the final product and what happens when they're eventually thrown away. Compared to say CDs, Karen says the transport emissions from vinyl are "hugely different". "There's a lot less material in a CD for example," she says. "With vinyl, it's a large, quite heavy thing." One way manufacturers like Key Production aim to mitigate that is to urge their clients to opt for lighter records. "We advise people to stick to 140g," Karen says. Some special editions are available at 180g, but unless you've got high quality sound equipment that costs thousands and thousands of pounds, Karen says "you're not going to be able to tell the difference". Taking 40g off an individual record can add up across a whole shipment, she says, meaning lighter batches to transport and therefore fewer emissions. As well as eco-vinyl, Billie's records will also be sold in recyclable packaging Would it be better to just not buy the product at all though? It might not be that simple. Research from Keele University, external in Staffordshire suggests the most sustainable way to listen to music depends on your habits. Streaming can often seem like a low-impact option but Spotify's most recent impact report, external reveals its total emissions in 2023 added up to 280,355 metric tons of greenhouse gases. The energy we use to charge and power our devices as well as the energy needed to transmit tracks across a network and store data on servers all adds up. Streaming is still thought to be the best option if you only listen to a track a few times. For repeat listeners though, physical copies of albums are likely to be a more sustainable alternative. And to cut down on overconsumption, Billie's also limiting her vinyl release to eight variants to limit the market for collectables. "Vinyl is made to keep," says Karen. "Yes, it is a plastic based product. But that product is being made more sustainably now and it's there to keep forever. "It's not like it's being wasted. It's being bought and enjoyed." And while old records can't yet be recycled into new ones, that doesn't mean they can't serve a purpose once we're done with them. Karen says old records can be turned into - admittedly less glamourous - everyday items, such as household pipes. Although she says the industry has started to wake up to the need to change thanks to big names like Billie, Karen acknowledges there's still a way to go. Not least with other areas of the music industry - particularly touring. Billie's tour for Hit Me Hard and Soft will see her do more than 80 shows in North America, Australia and Europe later this year. With all the travel and intensive energy needs, that creates a significant carbon footprint. To try to mitigate that, the Oscar-winning singer's partnering with Reverb, a non-profit organisation that works to promote sustainability in the music industry. She worked with them on a previous tour, external to provide initiatives like reducing single-use plastics, offering plant-based food options and donating a portion of profits to funding climate projects. "I've seen an incredible change, just in the past few years," Karen says. "Bringing more awareness to people is the most important thing. "Some of the bigger artists are taking that responsibility, which is fantastic. We need the major record labels to do it as well." Listen to Newsbeat live at 12:45 and 17:45 weekdays - or listen back here. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/newsbeat-69011387

Unpaid carers being forced to repay £250m to DWP in allowance overpayments - BBC News

2024-05-18

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One claimant unknowingly overpaid Carer's Allowance said the debts she incurred have brought 'considerable financial strain'.

UK

Wren Seaward, who cares full-time for her husband John, owes the government £5,000 in overpayments Unpaid carers must repay more than £250 million after many were unknowingly overpaid their allowance, new figures show. The government is seeking to recover money from more than 134,000 carers. Carer's Allowance must be repaid in full if a strict earnings limit is exceeded by even a few pence. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) said it was "progressing an enhanced notification strategy" to alert carers to overpayments. Wren Seaward, a full-time carer for her husband John who relies on a wheelchair because of severe osteoarthritis, must pay back £245 a month after unwittingly receiving £5,000 in overpayments. This has brought a "considerable financial strain" and "makes many of the things we could do in the home to make John's life easier... very difficult to access", she told the BBC. The couple admit missing DWP letters reminding them to report any changes in circumstances, but say they became overwhelmed with correspondence following the death of their daughter in a car crash. Unpaid carers who provide care for someone for more than 35 hours a week are entitled to receive the Carer's Allowance. However they are only eligible if they earn less than £151 per week after tax. If this is exceeded following a change in circumstances - such as working overtime or a modest pay rise - they are no longer eligible and have to repay any allowance received in full. The latest figures were released by the DWP after a parliamentary question from Labour MP Sir Stephen Timms. The datashows more than twice as many women are in debt because of overpayments, roughly in line with the proportion that receive Carer's Allowance. The DWP has previously said that "claimants have a responsibility to inform DWP of any changes in their circumstances that could impact their award, and it is right that we recover taxpayers' money when this has not occurred". But carers have told the BBC they were unaware they had exceeded the threshold until being informed years later, by which time the sums had run into the thousands. In 2019, a report by the Work and Pensions Committee, external warned carers could be "heavily penalised for making honest mistakes", as errors in claims were not being spotted quickly enough by the DWP due to "problems with its systems" and "staff shortages". At the time, the government said it believed it was "well on the way" to fixing those problems and limiting overpayments. On Thursday, the Work and Pensions Committee warned there has "not been progress" in limiting the impact of the problems raised five years ago, and called on the DWP to "improve urgently" how it monitors and communicates allowance overpayments. Sir Stephen, who chairs the committee, said the government "has known for years" about the issues, but had "just allowed many unpaid carers to unwittingly rack up unmanageable levels of debt". "The DWP must now move without delay to get a grip of the problem and ensure carers are no longer subjected to the distress that such overpayments can cause," he said. Last month two former DWP ministers - Conservative MP Sir Iain Duncan Smith and the Liberal Democrat pensions minister during the coalition government, Sir Steve Webb - called on the government to pause its demands for repayments of large sums of money. A report by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) published last week said, of more than 1,000 carers surveyed, 3% had to make repayments after changes in circumstances meant that they received the benefit in error. Emily Holzhausen from Carers UK, said carers are often "shocked and horrified" when they find out they have been overpaid. "It's devastating for their mental health, and feels really tough paying that back", she said. Karina Moon, whose daughter Amber requires round-the-clock care, owes £11,000 after earning slightly over the claim limit at her part-time supermarket job. She has been paying back £60 a month for the last four years, and will continue paying for another 11. "It takes money out of our income", she said, "it's money that would help me run the car, help pay bills, put food on the table". Karina Moon will be repaying the debt she owes the DWP until she is 73 Meanwhile Gina Price, from Carmarthenshire in south-west Wales, cared for her dad while working part-time at a petrol station. She said she would sometimes agree to work an extra shift, but would do fewer other weeks. This way, she believed she would remain under the earnings threshold to qualify for the benefit. She now owes the DWP around £7,000 in overpayments, and said the debt was a "huge blow". It is "a big debt by anyone's standards", let alone someone working part time, she added. Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey, a carer himself, has called for these debts to be cancelled. "It's just unbelievable" that carers are being forced to repay as a result of the "government's own incompetence", he told the BBC. "People work hard, they pay their taxes, they look after their loved ones, the government should be incentivising work," he said. The Department for Work and Pensions said the total amount of Carer's Allowance overpayments "includes historical debts which the department is seeking to recover". "In comparison, Carer's Allowance expenditure is forecast to be £4.2 billion this year alone," it said. "Carers across the UK are unsung heroes who make a huge difference to someone else's life, and we have increased Carer's Allowance by almost £1,500 since 2010," the department added.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-69031180

Canada police say dead US rapist was a serial killer - BBC News

2024-05-18

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Police said the suspect, who died in an Idaho prison in 2011, may be behind other unsolved killings.

US & Canada

Barbara MacLean (left) and Eva Dvorak were two of four Canadians police believe were murdered by a serial sex offender from the US A man who died in a US prison where he was serving a sentence for rape also has been identified as a serial killer. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said Gary Allen Srery, who died in 2011 in an Idaho prison, strangled four girls or women in 1970s Alberta. Srery may be responsible for more unsolved homicides and sexual assaults in western Canada, police said. The victims were Eva Dvorak, 14, Patricia "Patsy" McQueen, 14, Melissa Rehorek, 20, and Barbara MacLean, 19. All four lived in Calgary and disappeared between 1976 and 1977. Their deaths were investigated at the time as either suspicious or as homicides, but remained unsolved for almost half a century. "For nearly 50 years, the Alberta RCMP exhausted all investigational means in an attempt to identify the person responsible for these tragic deaths," said Superintendent David Hall at a news conference on Friday. A suspect was finally identified through advanced DNA technology, which allowed investigators to build a family tree using data from public DNA sites and samples found on the victims' bodies. Eva and Patricia were in junior high in February 1976 when they disappeared while walking together in downtown Calgary. The following day, police said their bodies had been found on Highway 1 west of Calgary. Ms Rehorek was a housekeeper who recently had moved to Calgary from Ontario for work. Police said her body was found in September 1976 in a ditch 22km (13.6 miles) west of Calgary, also a day after she vanished. Police said Ms MacClean, who was working at a local food bank at the time of her death, had last been seen in February 1977 walking home after a night out at a bar with friends. Her body was found six hours later just outside Calgary city limits. Superintendent Hall said that if Srery was still alive, he would be facing murder charges in the four deaths. Srery was an American citizen who was in Canada illegally at the time of the murders, having fled the US after he was charged with rape in California, said police. Gary Allen Srery was a serial sex offender who was last arrested in Idaho, where he was convicted of rape He already had an "extensive criminal record in the US for sex offenses," including rape and kidnapping, said Alberta RCMP inspector Breanne Brown. After arriving in Calgary in 1975, police say Srery lived under multiple aliases and used fake IDs to apply for social assistance. He later moved to British Columbia's lower mainland and lived there undetected by law enforcement until he was convicted of sexual assault in New Westminster, a city southeast of Vancouver in 1998. Srery served five years in prison for that crime and was deported back to the US, where he was arrested again in Idaho and sentenced to life in prison. According to a 2008 news article from a NBC affiliate in Idaho, Srery was charged and later convicted for raping a 44-year-old woman in Coeur D'Alene, near the border of Idaho and Washington. The RCMP has appealed to the public for help in piecing together Srery's life in Canada, saying it is "particularly concerning" that he evaded police for more than 20 years, from when he illegally entered the country until he was arrested in British Columbia. They also offered comfort to the families. "Identifying the offender does not bring back Eva, Patsy, Melissa or Barbara," said Superintendent Hall. "But it is my true hope that their families are able to finally have some answers as to what happened to their loved ones all those years ago."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69030467

Narendra Modi’s India: A decade of popularity and polarisation - BBC News

2024-05-18

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Indian PM Narendra Modi is eyeing a historic third term after a decade in power.

India

Nawab Khan, who lives in Lohta, says weavers like him have become poorer in the past 10 years. "The only way to prosper is to be a BJP supporter, or else you are left to struggle. Those who buy sarees have become richer, and those [predominantly Muslims] who make them have become poorer," he alleges. The BJP's Dileep Patel, who is in charge of 12 parliamentary seats including Varanasi, dismisses persistent allegations about Muslims being sidelined, or the government discriminating against them, and says welfare schemes are distributed fairly. He blames opposition parties for "frightening our Muslim brothers and sisters" before Mr Modi came to power in 2014. "But since then, they don't feel scared and their trust in the BJP is rising day by day," he claims, mentioning the criminalisation of triple talaq, or the practice of "instant divorce", as a move particularly appreciated by Muslim women. Yet, in the past 10 years, there have been numerous attacks on Muslims by right-wing groups, many of them deadly, and anti-Muslim hate speech has soared. "When India and Pakistan were partitioned, our ancestors rejected Muhammad Ali Jinnah's [founder of Pakistan] call and stayed in this country. We have also given our blood to build this country. Yet we are treated as second-class citizens," says Athar Jamal Lari, who is contesting against Mr Modi in Varanasi. And in recent weeks, some of that feeling has appeared to bubble to the surface as the BJP's campaign has shifted from the government's track record to shrill rhetoric against Muslims. Mr Modi himself has been accused of using divisive, Islamophobic language, especially at election rallies, although he denies this, external. But the communal pitch suggests the BJP may be less confident than it was a few weeks ago. Political analyst Neelanjan Sircar says the party may be trying to shore up its supporters in states like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, where Hindu-Muslim polarisation has paid off in the past. This is especially important for revving up its young mobilisers, who might also be affected by issues such as unemployment. The party also seems nervous about there not being an overwhelming national issue - or wave - like in the past two elections. In 2014, there was massive public anger against a Congress-led government seen as corrupt, and in 2019, national security dominated the campaign after a deadly attack on Indian troops was followed by air strikes against alleged militant targets in Pakistani territory. "So it may still very much be a vote about how much you trust the leader, or how much you trust the party, but in the absence of a wave, the issues become much, much more local," Mr Sircar says. The BJP hopes Mr Modi's larger-than-life image will get them over the line, but analysts say it could be a problem as well.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-69010109

Overpayments to carers must be recouped in 'compassionate' way - minister - BBC News

2024-05-18

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Wrongly overpaid benefits must be dealt with in a "compassionate" way, the deputy prime minister says.

UK Politics

It is right for the government to recover overpayments of benefits to unpaid carers but this must be done in a "compassionate" way, Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden has said. Some have said they were told to repay thousands of pounds after erroneously being overpaid Carer's Allowance. Mr Dowden said "appropriate discretion" should be shown in such cases. However, he added: "It's right on behalf of the taxpayer to be able to recuperate those [overpayments]." Full-time carers can claim £81.90 a week, but they become ineligible for the whole amount if they earn more than £151 a week, after tax and expenses. Some carers have told the BBC they were unaware they had exceeded the threshold until being informed years later, when the sums had run into the thousands. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has faced criticism for failing to prevent overpayments, despite benefits staff getting automatic alerts from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) if a Carer's Allowance claimant is earning over the threshold. On Tuesday, one of the prime minister's dementia champions quit in protest over the issue, saying clawing back benefits overpayments was "devastating" for families. The DWP says claimants have a responsibility to inform the department of any changes in their circumstances which would impact their allowance. Standing in for Rishi Sunak at Prime Minister's Questions, Mr Dowden faced calls from Liberal Democrat health and social care spokeswoman Daisy Cooper to apologise to unpaid carers "failed by his government". "Unpaid carers have shared heartbreaking stories of how they have been hounded by the DWP and told to pay huge fines for minor infringements on carers' allowance earning rules," she said. "All because the government failed to do anything about a problem they have known about for years." In response, Mr Dowden said the government had uprated benefits for carers. He added: "Of course we'll work with anyone who is struggling to negotiate sustainable and affordable repayment plans." Later, Labour MP for Newcastle upon Tyne Central Chi Onwurah raised the case of constituent who cares for her mother and works part-time at WH Smith. She told the Commons the woman kept the DWP informed of her job but because of a "blunder" by the department now faces a bill of £4,000. Mr Dowden replied: "People up and down the country would expect the government to seek to recover overpaid sums. "But of course we need to do that in a compassionate way and if people are struggling to make payments I know that the DWP will engage to make sure they have a sustainable and affordable way to make those repayments."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-68890328

The BBC News app keeps you informed with live and breaking news you can trust - BBC News

2024-05-18

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Get our news coverage on your phone or tablet and discover a range of compelling features.

BBC News Services

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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10628994

Have Trump prosecutors made their case at hush-money trial? - BBC News

2024-05-19

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As their final witness testifies, legal experts assess the evidence so far and chances of a conviction.

US & Canada

Michael Cohen is questioned by prosecutor Susan Hoffinger on 13 May in Manhattan while Donald trump looks on. For nearly four weeks, Donald Trump has sat quietly in a New York courtroom while state prosecutors laid out the first-ever criminal case against a former US president. Lawyers from the Manhattan District Attorney's Office have called on a cast of blockbuster witnesses and produced dozens of surreptitiously recorded conversations and documents to help corroborate their case. They allege Mr Trump directed a hush-money payment to an adult-film star in 2016 to avoid a sex scandal he feared would derail his presidential campaign - and then authorised an illegal reimbursement scheme to cover it up. The prosecution's final witness, Michael Cohen, will face further cross-examination on Monday before Trump's lawyers get an opportunity to present his defence. Legal experts say the prosecution has done an efficient job. But even with solid evidence and testimony, they acknowledge that a conviction in the complex felony case is far from guaranteed. "The pieces are all there. But is it there beyond a reasonable doubt?" said former Brooklyn prosecutor Julie Rendelman. "I don't know." "It only takes one juror," she added. Though Mr Trump's case centres on a reimbursement he made to Cohen, his former fixer, prosecutors spent the first weeks of the trial walking the court through what led up to the $130,000 (£102,000) hush-money payment Cohen made to adult-film star Stormy Daniels. They started with David Pecker, the former publisher of the National Enquirer. He described a series of meetings in Trump Tower where he, Cohen and Mr Trump hatched a plan to suppress negative stories about Mr Trump - including alleged sexual encounters - as he ran for president. His testimony proved influential, said former Manhattan prosecutor Lance Fletcher. "He doesn't have a reputation that's been blown apart by this. And he came into it really seeming to be Trump's friend," Mr Fletcher said. "So I think he comes off as almost an impartial witness." From there, prosecutors called a host of others, including former Trump aide Hope Hicks and Daniels' former attorney Keith Davidson, to corroborate the story. This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. "They sort of connected a fascinating novel … about how all of these characters interacted," said Columbia Law School professor John Coffee. "And that was wise." They also interspersed evidence such as meeting logs, recordings and receipts of hush-money payments made to a Trump Tower doorman and Playboy model Karen McDougal to bolster witnesses' stories. Prosecutors used weeks of storytelling and evidence to build up to the most highly anticipated witnesses, including Ms Daniels. While prosecutors pledged to tread lightly when quizzing her about the alleged sexual encounter at a hotel suite in Nevada in 2006, she still proved at times an uncontrollable witness, Judge Juan Merchan told the court. Mr Trump has denied having sex with her. Her explicit testimony led to several unsuccessful mistrial motions from Mr Trump's legal team and may have opened the door for an appeal, some legal experts said. But others said that context helped prosecutors show why Mr Trump would be desperate to pay for her silence in order to protect his campaign. "She got into some salacious details, which I thought went too far," said Ms Rendelman. "But at the same time, the argument for the prosecution is the more salacious it is, the more Trump would want it to be shut down." BBC News reporters are in the Manhattan courtroom covering the historic first criminal trial of a former US president. You'll find their updates and analysis on the BBC news website and app, and across TV, radio and podcasts. Ultimately, Ms Daniels could only testify to what led up to the hush-money payment. For the behind-the-scenes reimbursement, they had to rely on a problematic witness: a convicted felon who recently has made a living off attacking Mr Trump. Members of the public held their breath earlier this week as Mr Trump's former fixer-turned foe, Cohen, was called to the stand. Many anticipated the same character who authored fiery social media posts attacking Mr Trump, for whom he once pledged to take a bullet. But the man speaking in a blue suit and tie took them by surprise. Cohen appeared composed as he detailed his decades with Mr Trump. "He is measured. He is reflective," said Diane Kiesel, a former New York Supreme Court Justice and Manhattan prosecutor. "He has not let any bias or animus for Mr Trump show through." Cohen told the court of his initial admiration, working as Mr Trump's personal attorney for 10 years. He acknowledged the lows as well, including lying on Mr Trump's behalf, leading to regrets. This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Watch: The BBC's Nada Tawfik dissects the brutal questioning of Cohen His composure boosted the prosecutors' case, and his testimony was bolstered by a weak cross-examination from Mr Trump's legal team on day one, experts said. Mr Trump's attorney, Todd Blanche, appeared disorganised at first, stumbling sometimes in his questioning, experts told the BBC. But he appeared to make strides on the second day, Thursday, casting doubt on details of Cohen's testimony, including an October 2016 phone call Cohen made to Mr Trump's bodyguard in which he claimed to have to talked to Mr Trump about details of the hush-money payment. It was a reminder of what experts said was one of prosecutors' largest problems: Cohen's credibility. The defence hammered home the point that Cohen is a convicted criminal, who spent time in prison after being convicted on several charges including lying to Congress. Cohen was able to testify to a key part of prosecutors' case - Mr Trump's direct knowledge of the hush-money payment reimbursement scheme. Cohen said former Trump Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg - currently serving a perjury sentence at Rikers Island prison - decided to classify reimbursements from Mr Trump's account as legal expenses. Cohen testified that he heard Weisselberg get the OK from Mr Trump himself. As Cohen spoke, prosecutors also displayed the dozens of cheques, ledgers and invoices at the heart of the 34-count indictment. But Cohen's story may not sway all jurors. "You are relying on a witness who in many respects … comes with a larger load of baggage than others," Ms Rendelman said. "It makes it a bit more difficult to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt." Other challenges remain for the prosecution. In a relatively novel approach, the Manhattan District Attorney's Office elevated falsifying business records charges to a felony by claiming Mr Trump did so with the goal of concealing another crime. To prove their case, prosecutors must show intent - that Mr Trump illegally classified records for the purpose of aiding his campaign. This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Watch: Trump's hush-money case asks, did he 'cook the books'? Several witnesses seemed to corroborate this. "He wasn't thinking at all about [his wife] Melania," Cohen told the court. "This was all about the campaign." But prosecutors must make this connection clear to the jury. "Essentially they have to connect these payments to a motive that links them to a campaign," said Ms Kiesel. "This requires a summation of a lifetime, because you really have to connect these dots." Mr Fletcher said prosecutors succeeded in doing so, with witnesses arguing the hush-money payment and reimbursement was not made to protect Mr Trump's family. "This was all about the election," Mr Fletcher said. "If I was going to bet, I would bet on a conviction. But I don't think it's a slam dunk." In the end, the verdict could come down to jury selection, experts said. The 12 members and six alternates were picked from hundreds who expressed a range of political views and familiarity with Mr Trump and this case. Jury members are often unpredictable, Ms Kiesel said. "It only takes one person to decide that the people have not met their burden," she said. "The people have 12 [jurors] to convince."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69030047

First Apprentice wedding 'like an Alan Sugar task', say happy couple - BBC News

2024-05-19

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Akshay Thakrar and Harpreet Kaur put their business skills to use as they plan the week-long party.

Leeds & West Yorkshire

Akshay Thakrar and Harpreet Kaur are the first Apprentice couple to wed The Apprentice winner Harpreet Kaur said organising her week-long wedding extravaganza was like completing a task on the show. Harpreet and her fiancé, fellow contestant Akshay Thakrar, are the first Apprentice couple to get married and will tie the knot in June. Harpreet, 32, won The Apprentice in 2022 but it was not until the show wrapped that romance blossomed. She said: "The fans are so excited, some have even asked for an invite!" Harpreet is the owner and founder of dessert parlour Oh So Yum with branches in Huddersfield, Leeds and Bradford. When she was declared the winner, Lord Sugar invested £250,000 in the venture, and Harpreet has since bought back the shares from him so she can keep creative control of the business. But she said there were no hard feelings - and he still got an invite to the wedding, although he "politely declined because he is busy". Akshay, 31, was also on the show in 2022 but it was not until after it finished that Harpreet got in touch, and they "haven't looked back", he said. Less than two years later, they have bought their "dream home" in Bradford, met each other's family and are about to get married. The wedding celebrations include a civil ceremony in Pontefract because Harpreet wants to show Akshay's family "up north", followed by a traditional Indian wedding in London and a huge reception. Harpreet told the BBC: "When you work in business you're very capable of juggling multiple plates at once, so I found this like another Apprentice task really. "There are so many elements to the wedding, from picking a venue to considering your guests' travel arrangements to making sure they don't get bored." Akshay, founder of betting site Tips 360, added: "There's also the food, the finance, the timeline, even the weather… and of course the negotiations, that has been fun." Harpreet said she invited Lord Sugar but he politely declined as he is busy Both Harpreet and Akshay grew up watching The Apprentice. Harpreet said it was "surreal that love blossomed on the show" because initially they were competing against each other. Harpreet also spoke about the challenges South Asian women faced if they wanted to set up a business or deviate from the more traditional role of raising a family. She said: "I come from an extremely traditional background so growing up my dad always told us to study hard and go into medicine, law or banking because they are seen as well-paid jobs. "When I first told my dad I was going to set up my own business it did not go down too well. Akshay proposed on a London rooftop after telling Harpreet they were going to a friend's birthday "Opening a business is seen as a risk and in some Asian cultures it may not be seen as favourable as being a homemaker. "My dad was proud of me because I used to be in banking and thought going into business was risky... but safe to say by the time I won The Apprentice he was super proud of me." Harpreet said she hoped to be a role model for other women, especially from the South Asian community, and inspire them to be confident and "chase their dreams". She added: "Trends are changing and our culture is becoming a lot more accepting." Harpreet and Akshay said that West Yorkshire was definitely going to be home for the foreseeable future - especially as it was "such a lovely place to raise a family". Asked if they were expecting the next generation of Apprentices in the near future, Harpreet said: "We'll see! But we both have a few career goals and this wedding to do first!" Follow BBC Yorkshire on Facebook, external, Twitter, external and Instagram, external. Send your story ideas to yorkslincs.news@bbc.co.uk, external.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leeds-69021231

Rare footage shows deep-sea squid attacking camera - BBC News

2024-05-19

Watch video of the super-fast Dana squid getting a close-up 1km below the Pacific Ocean's surface.

Rare footage shows a deep-sea squid wrapping its arms around a camera at a depth of about 1km (0.6 miles), where conditions are near pitch black. The Dana squid has all the tools of a top ocean predator, including a pair of brilliant "headlights" that it flashes at the moment it goes in for the kill. They are intended to dazzle the prey, to hold the victim stationary for those few moments longer until it can be captured in a death embrace. Scientists filmed the squid in full attack mode while they were on a research cruise in the Pacific Ocean. Read more on this story.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-69016403

The mystery of the man embroiled in a billion dollar gold scam - BBC News

2024-05-19

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Questions remain around the disappearance of a man mixed up in one of the biggest gold scams in history.

US & Canada

A mining company's claim that it had discovered a huge deposit of gold, deep in the Indonesian jungle, led to a scramble to invest in the firm. But all that glittered was not gold, as a new podcast series reveals, and questions remain about the mysterious death of the company's chief geologist. Warning: This article contains spoilers. It also has references to suicide and graphic content that some readers may find upsetting On the morning of 19 March 1997, Michael de Guzman, chief geologist at Canadian mining company Bre-X Minerals, boarded a helicopter flight to travel to a remote jungle site in Indonesia. It was a journey he had made many times before, to a place where he had reported finding huge deposits of gold. But this time, de Guzman never arrived. Twenty minutes into the journey, a rear door on the left-hand side of the helicopter opened and de Guzman had gone, plummeting to his death into the dense foliage below. The CEO of the mining company announced de Guzman had taken his own life, having been diagnosed with hepatitis B and exhausted from fighting recurring Malaria. Ten years later, Canadian journalist Suzanne Wilton was sent by the Calgary Herald to investigate De Guzman's death. "I was sent halfway around the world… This story has haunted me ever since," she says. Now, she is back on the case for a new podcast series - digging deeper into what happened before the fateful helicopter trip. The remote site was in Busang, in the province of East Kalimantan, on the island of Borneo De Guzman was born in the Philippines on Valentine's Day, 1956. An apt birthday, as he was often in love. He had three, possibly four, wives all at the same time across different countries. A man who enjoyed karaoke, beer, visiting strip clubs and wearing gold, de Guzman was an experienced geologist who believed he could make his fortune in Indonesia. In the 1990s, the country was seen as a land of opportunity for gold prospectors with its rich natural mineral sources, says Wilton. One Dutchman - John Felderhof, known to many as the Indiana Jones of geologists - believed a remote site in Busang, in the province of East Kalimantan on the island of Borneo, was a goldmine waiting to be exploited. But he needed cash to move forward. John Felderhof was said to have had a charismatic personality In April 1993, Felderhof struck a deal with David Walsh, Bre-X Minerals' CEO. Walsh was to sell the dream to potential investors of a site laden with buried treasure. Felderhof controlled operations on the ground and made it clear he wanted a project partner to help with the search - fellow geologist and friend de Guzman. But Felderhof, de Guzman and their team only had until 18 December 1993 to drill test holes to see if the gold was really there. That was when the exploration licence granted to them by the Indonesian government expired. With only a couple of days to go before the final deadline, and two holes dug, there was still no sign of gold. Then, says Wilton, de Guzman suddenly told Walsh he knew the precise spot they needed to drill - the location had come to him in a dream. The team drilled a third hole exactly where de Guzman had pinpointed - and struck gold. A further fourth hole brought with it the prospect of an even greater find. It was the biggest gold mine fraud of all time - a scam that devastated countless lives. But what really happened? And if you're outside the UK, listen to the series wherever you get your podcasts. For the next three years, work at the site continued. As estimates of the amount of gold that was there grew, so did the number of investors. The price of shares in Bre-X Minerals began to soar, from 20 cents to C$280 (US$206; £163). The company was eventually valued at C$6bn (US$4.4bn; £3.5bn). Many people in Canadian small towns joined the gold rush, investing hundreds of thousands of dollars of their savings. But as time went on, the shine began to wear off. Drilling at the site continued until 1997 In early 1997, Indonesia's then-president, Suharto, ruled that a small company such as Bre-X Minerals could no longer solely own the site and reap its rewards. It had to be shared with the Indonesian government and assisted by a larger, more experienced mining firm. So, a deal was struck with US company, Freeport-McMoRan. Before agreeing to take on all the financial risks associated with precious metals mining, Freeport-McMoRan needed to do its own checks. Its geologists were sent to drill twin holes in the Busang deposit. Twinning is a way of double-checking gold is present by drilling next to the place it has been found and taking rock samples. This was standard practice in mining, but had not been done so far by Bre-X Minerals. The twinning samples were sent off to two different labs, but the results came back the same - no traces of gold could be found. What could this mean for the people who had invested their savings? Walsh and Felderhof were informed of the new data by Freeport-McMoRan. They instructed de Guzman, who was at a convention in Toronto, to return to Busang to meet the Freeport-McMoRan team to explain. De Guzman travelled from Canada via Singapore, where he spent time with his wife Genie, with whom he had a son and daughter. Michael de Guzman was born in the Philippines His final hours have since been pieced together by another Canadian journalist, Jennifer Wells. She says de Guzman spent his last evening in the city of Balikpapan, more than 100 miles (161km) south of the Busang mine, with Bre-X Minerals employee Rudy Vega. Vega was part of the company's Filipino exploration team and had been due to travel with de Guzman to face Freeport-McMoRan. According to an account Vega would later give to Indonesian police, the two of them went to a karaoke bar. After returning to his hotel room, de Guzman attempted to take his own life, Vega said. The next morning, de Guzman and Vega travelled by helicopter to Samarinda, another city closer to Busang. De Guzman then re-boarded the helicopter to travel to the mine - but Vega did not join him. Two men were with de Guzman on the flight - a maintenance technician and a pilot. But the pilot was an Indonesian air force pilot - not the usual one who made the trip to the Busang mine. The stop-off in Samarinda was also odd - usually de Guzman would fly straight from Balikpapan to Busang. After having given an initial statement at the time, the pilot has rarely spoken about the trip. But, says Wilton, he has denied any involvement in what happened to de Guzman and has maintained he did not see what happened. By 10:30 local time on 19 March 1997, de Guzman was dead. Handwritten suicide notes were found in the helicopter and, four days later, a body was recovered in the vast jungle. Journalist Suzanne Wilton visited de Guzman's tomb in Manila in the Philippines Six weeks after de Guzman's death, the Busang gold dream was over for everyone, leaving investors in despair. Bre-X Minerals' C$6bn valuation had been reduced to nothing. An independent report would confirm there was no gold at all at the Busang site. Rock samples dating from 1995 to 1997 were analysed and found to have been tampered with through a process called salting. Fragments of gold from another source had been sprinkled among rock samples via a saltshaker to falsify results. Almost 30 years later, no-one has ever been held accountable for the scam. Walsh maintained he knew nothing about it and died of a stroke in 1998. In 2007, a Canadian judge ruled that Felderhof had been unaware of the swindle and found him not guilty of insider trading. The Dutch geologist died in 2019. That brings us back to de Guzman. Had he taken his own life to avoid having to reveal that he had been the mastermind of the deceit? For the podcast, a cousin, once removed, of Felderhof - Suzanne Felderhof - says he had expressed doubt over whether de Guzman could ever have written them. The notes mention physical ailments which, she says, her relative had never heard him complain about. Wilton says another suicide note was written to a Bre-X Minerals finance manager who de Guzman didn't actually know. In it, one of de Guzman's wives' names had been spelt incorrectly. Dr Benito Molino was a member of the Filipino investigative team hired by de Guzman's family to examine the evidence once the autopsy reports had been released. In the photographs of the body found in the jungle, Molino says he saw bruises on the neck and concluded de Guzman had died by strangulation. "When he was dead, he must have been thrown out of the chopper in the jungle to make it appear he committed suicide," Molino tells the podcast. "In big crimes, there will always be a fall guy, so we don't believe that the real mastermind will be identified." Or was the body even that of de Guzman? Based on initial descriptions, it would appear the individual had been dead for longer than four days - the time it took for the body to be discovered - says forensic anthropologist, Dr Richard Taduran, who worked with Molino. De Guzman's wife Genie also says the teeth were intact on the body that was found, and yet her husband had false teeth. De Guzman's dental records have never been released by his family, says Wilton. Geologist Mansur Geiger - a friend of Genie de Guzman - says she had told him her husband was still alive and had escaped to South America. Geiger believes he is now living in the Cayman Islands. Could de Guzman have arranged to pick up a body to take on the final flight to fake his own death? Did he even get on the helicopter at all? The son he shared with Genie believes his father could still be alive - having been told this by his mother. He is a geologist, like his father, and is determined to continue his father's legacy - but this time in the right way. "Maybe I could start my own mines," says Michael de Guzman Jr. "Get some investors and... be the better Mike de Guzman." Listen to The Six Billion Dollar Gold Scam podcast, made for BBC World Service and CBC by BBC Scotland Productions.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-68987824

Sean 'Diddy' Combs: Video appears to show rap mogul beating girlfriend Cassie in 2016 - BBC News

2024-05-19

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The clip seems to show an attack described in Casandra Ventura's lawsuit against the rapper last year.

US & Canada

The ex-couple were seen at a movie screening in LA about one week before the video was purportedly filmed CCTV has emerged appearing to show rap mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs attacking singer Casandra "Cassie" Ventura in a hotel hallway in 2016. The video, aired by CNN, has surfaced in the wake of allegations by Ms Ventura about her ex-boyfriend and producer in a lawsuit last year. She has not commented, but her lawyer said it confirms "the disturbing and predatory behaviour of Mr Combs". A lawyer for Mr Combs has not responded to a BBC request for comment. The BBC has not independently verified the video, which appears to be a compilation of surveillance footage angles dated 5 March 2016. According to CNN, it was filmed at the now-closed InterContinental Hotel in Century City, Los Angeles. The clip appears to show Ms Ventura leaving a hotel room to walk towards a row of elevators. A shirtless man is seen holding a towel around his waist, and hurrying down a hallway. When he catches up to her, he grabs her and throws her on the floor, causing her to drop some luggage. He kicks her while she is on the ground, before picking up her bags and kicking her a second time then attempting to drag her by her shirt. The attacker is seen leaving for a moment, before returning and shoving Ms Ventura as she stands up. He then sits in a chair near the lifts and throws an object. A lawyer for R&B singer Ms Ventura, Douglas Wigdor, said in a statement: "The gut-wrenching video has only further confirmed the disturbing and predatory behaviour of Mr Combs. "Words cannot express the courage and fortitude that Ms Ventura has shown in coming forward to bring this to light." The Los Angeles District Attorney's Office said on Friday that the assault captured in the video might be too old to prosecute. "We find the images extremely disturbing and difficult to watch," it said in a statement. "If the conduct depicted occurred in 2016, unfortunately we would be unable to charge as the conduct would have occurred beyond the timeline where a crime of assault can be prosecuted." In a now-settled federal lawsuit last year, Ms Ventura alleged that "around March 2016" Mr Combs "became extremely intoxicated and punched Ms Ventura in the face, giving her a black eye". "After he fell asleep, Ms Ventura tried to leave the hotel room, but as she exited, Mr Combs awoke and began screaming at Ms Ventura. "He followed her into the hallway of the hotel while yelling at her. He grabbed at her, and then took glass vases in the hallway and threw them at her, causing glass to crash around them as she ran to the elevator to escape," the documents said. The lawsuit alleged that the rap mogul had purchased the footage from the hotel for $50,000 (£39,000). Her legal action against Mr Combs, which accused him of rape and sexual trafficking over a decade, was settled for an undisclosed sum one day after it was filed in November last year. Mr Combs' lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, said at the time that the settlement "is in no way an admission of wrongdoing". "Mr Combs' decision to settle the lawsuit does not in any way undermine his flat-out denial of the claims. He is happy they got to a mutual settlement and wishes Ms Ventura the best." Since then, several other women have filed lawsuits accusing the rapper of sexual misconduct. His homes in Los Angeles and Miami, Florida, were raided last month as part of a federal investigation into human trafficking. Ms Ventura formally was signed to Mr Combs' record label, Bad Boy, and released several hits in the 2000s, including songs that featured Diddy. Her most famous tracks include Me & U, Long Way to Go and Official Girl, featuring Lil Wayne.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-69030387

Overpayments to carers must be recouped in 'compassionate' way - minister - BBC News

2024-05-19

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Wrongly overpaid benefits must be dealt with in a "compassionate" way, the deputy prime minister says.

UK Politics

It is right for the government to recover overpayments of benefits to unpaid carers but this must be done in a "compassionate" way, Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden has said. Some have said they were told to repay thousands of pounds after erroneously being overpaid Carer's Allowance. Mr Dowden said "appropriate discretion" should be shown in such cases. However, he added: "It's right on behalf of the taxpayer to be able to recuperate those [overpayments]." Full-time carers can claim £81.90 a week, but they become ineligible for the whole amount if they earn more than £151 a week, after tax and expenses. Some carers have told the BBC they were unaware they had exceeded the threshold until being informed years later, when the sums had run into the thousands. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has faced criticism for failing to prevent overpayments, despite benefits staff getting automatic alerts from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) if a Carer's Allowance claimant is earning over the threshold. On Tuesday, one of the prime minister's dementia champions quit in protest over the issue, saying clawing back benefits overpayments was "devastating" for families. The DWP says claimants have a responsibility to inform the department of any changes in their circumstances which would impact their allowance. Standing in for Rishi Sunak at Prime Minister's Questions, Mr Dowden faced calls from Liberal Democrat health and social care spokeswoman Daisy Cooper to apologise to unpaid carers "failed by his government". "Unpaid carers have shared heartbreaking stories of how they have been hounded by the DWP and told to pay huge fines for minor infringements on carers' allowance earning rules," she said. "All because the government failed to do anything about a problem they have known about for years." In response, Mr Dowden said the government had uprated benefits for carers. He added: "Of course we'll work with anyone who is struggling to negotiate sustainable and affordable repayment plans." Later, Labour MP for Newcastle upon Tyne Central Chi Onwurah raised the case of constituent who cares for her mother and works part-time at WH Smith. She told the Commons the woman kept the DWP informed of her job but because of a "blunder" by the department now faces a bill of £4,000. Mr Dowden replied: "People up and down the country would expect the government to seek to recover overpaid sums. "But of course we need to do that in a compassionate way and if people are struggling to make payments I know that the DWP will engage to make sure they have a sustainable and affordable way to make those repayments."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-68890328

Cuba laments collapse of iconic sugar industry - BBC News

2024-05-19

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For centuries, sugar was the mainstay of Cuba's economy. Now the industry is in rapid decline.

Latin America & Caribbean

For hundreds of years, sugar was the mainstay of the Cuban economy The men of the Yumuri sugar co-operative in Cuba have worked the cane fields around the city of Cienfuegos since they were old enough to wield a machete. Cutting cane is all Miguel Guzmán has ever known. He comes from a family of farm hands and started the tough, thankless work as a teenager. For hundreds of years, sugar was the mainstay of the Cuban economy. It was not just the island's main export but also the cornerstone of another national industry, rum. Older Cubans remember when the island was essentially built on the backs of families like Mr Guzmán's. Today, though, he readily admits he has never seen the sugar industry as broken and depressed as it is now - not even when the Soviet Union's lucrative sugar quotas dried up after the Cold War. Spiralling inflation, shortages of basic goods and the decades-long US economic embargo have made for a dire economic outlook across the board in Cuba. But things are particularly bleak in the sugar trade. "There's not enough trucks and the fuel shortages mean sometimes several days pass before we can work," says Miguel, waiting in a tiny patch of shade for the Soviet-era lorries to arrive. The lost hours of harvest as men and machinery lie idle have acutely hurt production levels. Last season, Cuba's production fell to just 350,000 tonnes of raw sugar, an all-time low for the country, and well below the 1.3 million tonnes recorded in 2019. Miguel Guzmán says his wages barely buy anything anymore Miguel is one of the fastest cutters in his team - or pelotón - recognised by his bosses as among the most efficient in the country. Yet he says he receives no financial incentive for greater production beyond his love of the trade. "My wages barely buy anything anymore," he says with no hint of exaggeration over the worsening inflation in the country. "But what can we do? Cuba needs the sugar." It certainly does: Cuba now imports sugar to meet domestic demand - once unthinkable, and a far cry from the glory years when Cuban sugar was the envy of the Caribbean and exported around the world. Inside Ciudad Caracas, a 19th-Century sugar mill near Cienfuegos, the air is thick with the overpowering smell of molasses. As obsolete, rusting cogs grind tonnes of sugarcane into pulp and juice, the workers tell me it is one of just two dozen working sugar mills in Cuba. "That's four more than originally planned for this season, thanks to the hard work and effort of the workers," says Dionis Pérez, communications director of the state-run sugar company, Azcuba. "But the other 29 are at a standstill," he acknowledges. "It's a disaster. Today the sugar industry in Cuba almost doesn't exist," says Juan Triana of the Centre for Studies of the Cuban Economy in Havana. Ciudad Caracas is just one of just two dozen working sugar mills in Cuba The slump in sugar has serious implications for other parts of the Cuban economy, he argues, including on its export earnings from rum. "We're producing the same quantity of sugar Cuba produced in the middle of the 19th Century." The problems have undoubtedly been worsened by the "maximum pressure" policy brought in by former US President Donald Trump. His administration ratcheted up the trade embargo on the island, a measure later extended by President Joe Biden. But the issues facing Cuban sugar are not solely the fault of the US embargo. Years of chronic mismanagement and underinvestment have also wrecked the once-thriving industry. Today, sugar receives less than 3% of state investment as the Cuban government backs tourism as its main economic motor instead. One man who can still get his hands on enough sugar is Martin Nizarane. Part of a new breed of Cuban private entrepreneurs, his company Clamanta produces yoghurt and ice cream in a factory outside Havana. As Mr Nizarane shows me sacks of sugar imported in bulk from Colombia, he says he hopes to double production soon. The business has been hailed by Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel as a model for the future. That praise from the top, to many, amounts to a paradigm shift. It may still be considered a dirty word by the Cuban state but this is capitalism pure and simple, even if Martin Nizarane displays his revolutionary credentials by adorning his office with photographs of him hugging the late revolutionary leader, Fidel Castro. Martin Nizarane says he is not given any special privileges whatsoever I put it to him that only people with close ties to the Cuban Communist Party can own a private business as sophisticated as his. "I am not an employee of the Cuban state. This is a non-state form of production which sells to both other non-state entities and state-owned companies," he retorts. "The state treats me like just another private entrepreneur with no special privileges whatsoever." Sugar's demise is just one part of Cuba's faltering economy. On 1 March, amid growing inflation, the government imposed a five-fold price increase on subsidised fuel at the petrol pumps. It was a difficult but overdue decision, officials said, arguing the government could no longer afford such high subsidies on fuel. As he queued to fill up his tank on the day the new prices came into force, Manuel Domínguez said he was not convinced. All he knows is that the measure is hurting drivers like him, and that Cubans are suffering now more than he can ever recall. "There's no relationship between what we earn and the prices we see - whether that's fuel or food in the shops or anything else." "There needs to be a correlation between our wages and what things cost because, right now, for the average Cuban, fuel is simply unaffordable." Following a rise in petrol prices, many Cubans are struggling to afford fuel A few days later, economy and planning minister Alejandro Gil Fernández was arrested for alleged corruption. Some think he has been made a scapegoat for the state of the Cuban economy. Either way, it was an extraordinary - and very public - fall from grace. But most think it will take much more than one ministerial head to roll to pull Cuba from its economic woes. Back in the sugarcane fields of Cienfuegos, the cutters carry out their gruelling work with little optimism. Invariably, when talking about the sugar industry in Cuba, someone will quote the island's famous refrain: "Without sugar, there's no country." For Cuban economist Juan Triana that idea is being tested to its limit. A quintessential part of the national identity - part of the island's very DNA - is being eroded before Cubans' eyes. "For more than maybe 150 years, the industry of the sugarcane was both the main export income and the locomotive for the rest of the economy. That's what we've lost."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-68935247

Kathryn Parton: Man charged with murder of woman in east Belfast - BBC News

2024-05-19

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A 43-year-old woman and a 22-year-old man also face charges related to Kathryn Parton's death.

Northern Ireland

A 23-year-old man has been charged with the murder of Kathryn Parton in east Belfast. Ms Parton, who was 34, was found dead at her home in Madrid Street on Wednesday.A 43-year-old woman and a 22-year-old man have been charged with assisting an offender and of aiding and abetting a breach of bail. The woman has also been charged with attempting to pervert the course of justice. All three are due appear at Belfast Magistrates' Court on Monday, police said. Ms Parton - known as Kat - was found with serious head injuries and pronounced dead at the scene.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-69033997

Families 'let down' over decades on infected blood -Shapps - BBC News

2024-05-19

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Labour's Wes Streeting says "all parties" will take some "very heavy criticism" on the infected blood report.

UK Politics

It was another busy morning on this week's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg. We're closing our coverage now, but before we go here's a recap from today's show. We heard from Defence Minister Grant Shapps, who acknowledged that families have been let down over decades by the infected blood scandal, though he wouldn't be drawn on the amount of compensation due. On Ukraine he said the west "took its eye off the ball" and he doesn't want a direct conflict with Russia. Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting outlined plans to cut NHS waiting lists and said a future Labour government would ensure victims of the infected blood scandal are compensated. We also had an interview with Leonid Volkov, former aide to the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny. He says he doesn't think a Putin victory is possible and that the Russian president is "bluffing". Our panel today were journalist Piers Morgan, climate campaigner Mikaela Loach and former Tory donor and businessman David Ross. This page was written by Gabriela Pomeroy, Kathryn Armstrong and Lou Newton, and edited by me. See you next week. • You can continue reading here: Infected blood victims have waited too long, says Grant Shapps

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-politics-69029058

Watch: Blue fireball lights up skies over Spain - BBC News

2024-05-19

The suspected meteorite was also seen in Portugal, with many sharing their videos on social media.

Footage from static cameras in Spain shows a suspected meteorite streaking across the night sky. The European Space Agency said the object appeared to be "a small piece of a comet." The phenomenon was also spotted in Portugal, with many witnesses sharing their videos online.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-69034415

Smoke fills street as London bus catches fire in Twickenham - BBC News

2024-05-19

Firefighters tackled huge flames from the blazing bus on Saturday as people looked on.

A single-storey bus was destroyed after it caught fire on Richmond Road in London on Saturday afternoon. Video footage from the scene in Twickenham showed firefighters battling huge flames and billowing black smoke in the middle of the street. The 490 bus burst into flames at about 13:18 BST, and was over for firefighters at 14:26 BST, the Fire Brigade said. No-one was hurt and the road has been closed for the rest of the day while investigations continue, according to the London Fire Brigade. Five fire engines and about 30 firefighters took just over an hour to extinguish the fire.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-69033322

Cold case detectives vow to solve historical sex crimes - BBC News

2024-05-19

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Forensic science advances are helping police to secure convictions in unsolved cases spanning 50 years.

UK

Det Con Hayley Dyas warns offenders who may think they have evaded justice, 'we will come for you' With so few rape cases making it to court across the UK, one police team has made it a priority to revisit 50 years of unsolved sex crimes. Operation Painter, run by the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Major Crime Unit, started in 2016 and began by combing through 5,407 unsolved rape and sexual assault cases. It is using the latest forensic science to bring some justice to victims such as Karen - who had believed her rapist would never be caught. Karen had been celebrating her 26th birthday with a night out in Luton, Bedfordshire, in 1993, when she decided to get a taxi home. But she became uneasy when the driver took a wrong turn and began to veer away from the direction of her house. Karen says the tone of his voice switched and he said: "You haven't got a clue where you are, have you, you stupid bitch." She says his whole face changed and he looked "completely evil". Karen went into "survival mode" while the man raped her by some garages in the dark. "I thought, 'the best thing to do here is just to let him do whatever he wants to do, to survive and get back to my son,'" she tells a new BBC Two documentary. Intimate swabs were taken after the attack, but forensic science was not advanced enough to get a DNA profile of the culprit from the traces of semen which were found. • None If you have been affected by sexual abuse or violence, details of help and support are available at BBC Action Line, external. Karen's case file joined the tens of thousands of other unsolved rape and sexual assault cases lying dormant in police archives across the UK. But for her and so many other victims, the trauma of what happened could never be so neatly filed away. So far, Operation Painter has led to 10 cases that have reached court and nine successful convictions. These include convictions for the rape and sexual assault of men, women and victims who were children at the time of the attack. Another case is due in court this month, and detectives are currently working on 10 live cases. There are also other cases which would have been taken to court, but the suspect has died or the victim hasn't wanted to reopen the investigation. DNA evidence kept from the original police investigations is outsourced to Eurofins Forensic Services in Staffordshire for analysis Advances in forensic science have put the police in a much stronger position to make arrests and progress cases. DNA evidence kept from the original police investigations is outsourced to Eurofins Forensic Services in Staffordshire for analysis. In Karen's case, the forensic scientists took another look at the swabs taken after she was raped. They had been kept along with a thin wedge of case notes from the original investigation and an e-fit she had helped create at the time. The scientists used modern techniques to find traces of sperm that had been missed during the initial investigation. This made it possible to establish a full DNA profile, which was then loaded on to the National DNA Database. The database, which was created in 1995, holds the DNA records of people who have been cautioned by police or convicted of a crime in England and Wales. The profile generated a single match against Zahid Majeed, a taxi driver in his 50s, from Luton. His name was on the DNA database because he had been arrested for another offence in the past. "It was the DNA evidence put to him [in his police interview] which made him accept that this wasn't going away," says Det Con Hayley Dyas, who worked on Karen's case. He was charged in 2020 and the following year, after a three-day trial, Majeed was sentenced to 13 years in prison for rape and three for kidnap. When the judge sentenced her attacker, "it was very difficult to hold the tears back", says Karen. "The look he gave me when he was sentenced was absolute disgust, and that's what reminded me that he could still be quite dangerous." Det Con Dyas says her favourite part of being a police officer is working on cold cases like Karen's. "Success is standing in front of a victim and saying, 'we've done it, you've got through this and not only have we always believed you but now 12 jurors have believed you too,'" she says. The number of convictions achieved so far might seem small, but the harm being removed from society is big, says Det Supt Carl Foster, who ran the team for more than five years. "Even if we only ever got one conviction, it would be worth it," he says. "For the victim, and for the public to know that person is in prison and can't offend again." He adds that people who commit rape can often be serial offenders - five of the men Operation Painter has put behind bars had offended before. Det Supt Carl Foster says unsolved rape and sexual assault cases will be continually reviewed as forensics advance "This is work that every police force ought to at least be considering because of the results it delivers for victims. The issue is, it's massively time-consuming," he says. Building a rape case can take years, and even when a person is charged, it currently takes an average of two years, external to get to court and be completed. From October to December 2023, there were a record number of 10,141 sexual offence cases waiting to go to court, and 2,786 adult rape cases - again, a record high, according to government figures, external. Detectives will also work on live murder investigations and other major crimes alongside their cold case work. "There's always daily demands and those jobs need resourcing as well," says Det Supt Foster. The unit is waiting for another 90 cases to come back from Eurofins Forensic Services to see if they can yield new evidence and provide grounds to knock on the doors of more suspects. Funding is also an issue. The operation was initially financed as a special project by the three police forces involved, explains Det Supt Foster. But he says "money got tighter and tighter" and for about four years the funding to keep it going has come out of the Major Crime Unit's own budget, absorbing this work into its daily business. A government spokesman has told us that it is up to individual major crime units to prioritise their workloads, but says that the number of adult rape cases being referred by the police, charged and reaching court, has doubled since 2019. It adds that 4,500 officers have completed specialist training to better support victims. Despite these challenges, Operation Painter is ongoing and cases which cannot be reinvestigated now will be reviewed as forensic science advances, Det Supt Foster confirms. After Karen's attack she developed agoraphobia and still has days when she battles with her mental health. But with her rapist's life now restricted, she says her life is "opening up". She adds: "He's in jail now and I'm not, I'm walking free." Det Con Dyas says she often wonders whether there's a point when people who have committed horrific crimes stop worrying about getting a knock on the door from the police. She has a message for those people: "These are just a few of the successful convictions we have secured and should send a clear warning that justice has no expiration date. We will come for you." Cold Case Investigators: Solving Britain's Sex Crimes will be broadcast on Monday 20 May and Tuesday 21 May at 21:00 GMT on BBC Two. Or catch up afterwards on BBC iPlayer. • None Why do so few rape cases go to court?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-69023887

Baby Reindeer 'a big problem' for Netflix and Gadd - Morgan - BBC News

2024-05-19

Journalist Piers Morgan says there are issues to be addressed by the programme makers.

Journalist Piers Morgan has said issues with the TV show Baby Reindeer are "a big problem for Netflix, Richard Gadd and Clerkenwell Films". Speaking to the BBC's Laura Kuenssberg, he referenced his recent interview with Fiona Harvey on Piers Morgan Uncensored. Harvey has identified herself as the woman portrayed as Martha the stalker in the series - which neither Netflix nor Richard Gadd have confirmed. Piers Morgan criticised the series for saying it was a true story, after Harvey told him she has not been convicted of stalking and that she denied stalking Gadd. He questioned if there has been failure of duty of care, given how the story was told on screen, which included using real posts from Fiona's social media accounts.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-69034417

Infected blood scandal: Inquiry into NHS disaster to publish findings - BBC News

2024-05-19

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More than 30,000 people were infected with HIV and hepatitis C in the infected blood scandal.

Health

Demonstrators on the day Prime Minister Rishi Sunak gave evidence to the inquiry in July last year The public inquiry into the infected blood scandal, known as the biggest treatment disaster in NHS history, is due to publish its findings. More than 30,000 people were infected with HIV and hepatitis C between 1970 and 1991 by contaminated blood products and transfusions. Around 3,000 of them have since died - many haemophiliacs given infected blood products as part of their treatment. Chairman Sir Brian Langstaff will present his findings on Monday. The Infected Blood Inquiry took evidence between 2019 and 2023. Two main groups of people were caught up in the scandal. One was people with haemophilia, and those with similar disorders, who have a rare genetic condition which means their blood does not clot properly. In the 1970s, a new treatment was developed to replace the missing clotting agents, made from donated human blood plasma. But whole batches of the treatments - Factor VIII and Factor IX - were contaminated with deadly viruses. Some of the treatments were imported from the US where blood was bought from high-risk donors such as prison inmates and drug-users. The second group affected include people who had a blood transfusion after childbirth, accidents and during medical treatment. Blood used for these patients was not imported, but some of it was also contaminated, mainly with hepatitis C. The key issues addressed, external by the inquiry include: • None whether the victims have been supported enough • None whether there were attempts by the government or NHS to conceal what happened • None what more should have been done to prevent people becoming infected, including whether screening could have been introduced sooner. Sir Brian's two interim reports, published in July 2022 and April 2023, made recommendations about compensation for victims and their families. The government has said it accepts the "moral case" for compensation, and interim payouts of £100,000 each have already been made to about 4,000 survivors and bereaved partners. Ministers have promised to address the issue of final compensation once the inquiry's report is published. The total cost is likely to run into billions. On Sunday, the Conservatives and Labour both committed to compensation for victims, no matter the outcome of the general election expected later this year. Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting told Laura Kuenssberg there was a "rare moment of consensus", as Defence Secretary Grant Shapps agreed families had been let down "over decades". Andy Evans says victims were "gas-lit" by the government The Tainted Blood campaign group chairman, Andy Evans, who was infected with HIV and hepatitis C as a child through his haemophilia treatment, said publication of the report would be a "defining" moment after decades of campaigning. "This is where we pin our hopes, really - we don't have anywhere else to go after this," he said. "From the very beginning, victims have been gas-lit by government saying that the treatment was the best available and every decision was made with the best intention and with the best information they had available at the time. "Through the course of the inquiry, that's proven to be false. The testimony that we've heard, both from victims and from people in office and the NHS, has shown that that wasn't true." During the four-year inquiry, victims and their families have given evidence alongside former and current ministers, including Lord Clarke, who was health minister in the 1980s, and the current chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, who also gave evidence in his former role as health minister. Speaking to the BBC's Westminster Hour on Radio 4, Labour's Dame Diana Johnson, the leading MP campaigning in parliament for the victims of the scandal, said many of the victims and their families were "apprehensive" and "worried" ahead of the report's publication, as "so many times before they've been let down". She said those affected by the scandal had had to "battle and battle" against successive governments who had denied any wrongdoing since the 1980s, and that compensation for them would be "an acknowledgment of what the state did to those individuals and their families". She said there was hope that their main questions - "Why was this allowed to happen and why was it covered up for so many years?" - would be answered by Sir Brian. Speaking on the same programme, former Business Secretary Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg said, "If the state has killed people it has got to pay the price", and that the government "should not shy away from it being expensive". He added that the scandal demonstrated a "defence mechanism within the institutions of the state which we need to break down". "For some reason there is a desire to cover up the mistakes made by long since passed government to no benefit of anybody who is currently in government...I do not understand why the state is not more open to saying yes mistakes were made." On the issue of compensation for victims and their families, the Conversative MP said: "People deserve this compensation. This is one of the most important bills the government will pay." Campaigners have also been critical of how long it has taken to get a public inquiry. In other countries that faced contaminated blood scandals, including France and Japan, investigations into the medical disasters were completed many years ago. In some cases, criminal charges were brought against doctors, politicians and other officials. In the UK, a private inquiry in 2009 - funded entirely by donations - lacked any real powers, while a separate Scottish investigation in 2015 was branded a "whitewash" by victims and their families. In 2017, following political pressure, then-Prime Minister Theresa May ordered a UK-wide public inquiry. The findings are set to be presented at 12:30 BST. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-69022726

Cost of living: Five tips when asking for a pay rise - BBC News

2024-05-19

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Recruiters, a manager and a workplace psychologist give their advice on how to negotiate for more money.

Business

If you feel like you're not getting paid enough, you're probably not alone. Increases in average wages have finally overtaken the pace of price rises, but many of us are still feeling the impact of the cost-of-living crisis. Last year saw waves of strikes, with tens of thousands of workers walking out in disputes over pay, jobs and conditions. Many of these strikes have taken place in the public sector, where workers often do not have the power to negotiate individually. And whether you work in the public or private sector, even if you do have a conversation with your manager there's no guarantee that it will result in a pay rise. However, there are ways to give yourself the best chance of success. We spoke to recruiters, a manager and a workplace psychologist to get five tips on how to best negotiate for more money. Jill Cotton, a career trends experts at jobs site Glassdoor, says scheduling a talk in advance will allow you and your boss time to prepare, and means you're more likely to have a productive conversation. "Don't spring this on your line manager," Ms Cotton says. "Be upfront and say that you want to book in a conversation that is specifically about pay." Rowsonara Begum, who helps her brother run Saffron Indian takeaway in Salisbury, says it also needs to be the right time for the business. The takeaway has five members of staff and occasionally takes on additional workers during busy periods. Rowsonara Begum says workers seeking a pay rise should ask at a good time She says if workers pick a time when the business is doing well, they will have the best chance of successfully negotiating more money. If you're asking for a pay rise, you should have lots of evidence of why you deserve one. "Know what you've achieved either from a work setting or what you've done to develop yourself, maybe to support your team, support your line managers. List all the pros of what you've done," says Shan Saba, a director at Glasgow-based recruitment firm Brightwork. This evidence also helps your manager rationalise why you should be paid more, according to Stephanie Davies, a workplace psychologist. "The brain needs a 'why' - why should I pay you this amount?" she says. However, it's not just about bringing a list of all the things you've done. You should also be clear about what you want to do next, says Mr Saba. "If you have aspirations of moving up through your organisation, have a plan of what you're looking to do over the coming year." When asking your boss for more money, it helps if you're confident and know your worth. That's something Ms Begum has noticed, from her experience of having these talks with staff. "Here in Salisbury, it's quite difficult to get the staff we need," she says. "It's also become harder to recruit from overseas. So workers have negotiating power because they know there's a shortage." Often people don't feel confident because there is a "stigma" around talking about pay, says Glassdoor's Jill Cotton, but it's "an important part of work". Women and people from minority backgrounds can often find it particularly hard to ask for more more, adds psychologist Stephanie Davies. Her advice to them is to ask for a mentor or role model, who can help guide them through those conversations. Most experts agree it's best to have an exact figure in mind before embarking on a conversation about pay. Do your research, advises James Reed, chair of recruitment firm Reed. "You can go online and look at job adverts and see what other comparable jobs are being recruited for and what the salaries are," he says. Ms Cotton warns the figure should be realistic. "We would all love to be paid millions of pounds every single year. But we are being paid to fulfil a role with the skillset we have," she says. If the above steps don't result in a pay rise, try not to be disheartened. "Sometimes these conversations can take a while, even months, but it's important to keep the communication open," says Ms Begum. Pay is also not the be-all and end-all, says Mr Reed. "It's not just necessarily about money. You might be able to get more holiday or more flexibility around working hours," he says, adding you could also negotiate extra training and development. And if you don't feel you're getting what you want from your employer, remember, there are other opportunities out there. "You can always look elsewhere, that's the really big lesson," says Ms Davies.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-64288791

Slovakia PM Robert Fico 'approaching a positive prognosis' - BBC News

2024-05-19

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It comes as a man charged with attempting to murder Robert Fico arrived in court on Saturday.

Europe

Slovakia's Prime Minister is steadily approaching a "positive prognosis" after undergoing further surgery, the country's deputy leader says. Robert Fico, 59, was gravely injured after being shot in the small town of Handlova on Wednesday. He is currently in a serious but stable condition. Officials said it was unlikely he could be moved back to Bratislava in the next few days. Meanwhile, the man charged with his attempted murder appeared in court. It ruled that he be placed in custody until his trial, according to a court spokeswoman. The alleged assailant has not been formally named, but Slovak reports have widely identified him as 71-year-old Juraj Cintula from the town of Levice. The Pravda newspaper described Mr Cintula as a poet, while the Sme newspaper reported that he had been involved in many different politically-based organisations, with various ideologies. Deputy Prime Minister Robert Kalinak said on Saturday the various medical procedures Mr Fico had undergone were "beginning to bear fruit" and that there was no need to formally take over his official duties. He said "several miracles" had taken place at the hospital the prime minister was being treated at, thanks to the efforts of medical staff. "I can't find words of gratitude for the fact that we are steadily approaching that positive prognosis," he added. Nevertheless, Mr Kalinak said the prime minister's condition was still "really serious". "Certainly, it does not allow us to make such a transfer in the near future — that is, at the end of the weekend." Mr Fico was shot four times in the stomach and arm at close range as he greeted supporters, and his injuries were said to be extensive and complicated. He is understood to have undergone a number of surgeries, including the latest to remove dead tissue. Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok said on Thursday that the suspect in Mr Fico's shooting had acted alone and previously taken part in anti-government protests. The attack has left Slovakia tense and deeply polarised. Deputy Prime Minister Robert Kalinak has called for the country to embark on a path of tolerance and accused the opposition and the media of stirring up hatred. Mr Fico returned to power in Slovakia after elections last September, at the head of a populist-nationalist coalition. The political climate in the country has since turned particularly hostile - although the divisions date back to at least 2018, when a journalist investigating high-level corruption claims was murdered. Mr Fico was forced to step down then, amid giant protests. His re-election was a major comeback achieved on a platform that included promises to end military aid to Kyiv and veto Ukraine's Nato ambitions, as well as other talk more reminiscent of Moscow than Brussels.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-69031772

Inside the England museums averaging fewer than one visitor a day - BBC News

2024-05-19

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What is it like for the volunteers who keep England's smallest attractions going?

England

The three-storey white-washed Bay Museum is a 1960s naval monitoring station once used to prevent passing ships setting off magnetic underwater mines Nearly everybody knows of Stonehenge, the Tower of London and the Natural History Museum. Each year, Visit England's annual statistics reveal the millions who flock to explore the nation's best-known attractions. But what of the 20 or so at the other end of the list who see fewer than 300 visitors a year? From the outside, The Bay Museum on Canvey Island in Essex looks more like a toilet block than a trove of military treasures. Once a Cold War naval magnetic monitoring station, the diminutive white-washed building was plucked from a possible future as an ice cream shack and turned into a museum. Inside, nearly every piece of wall space is packed with military items from both world wars, including weapons, medals, uniforms and models. One of the key exhibits is an engine cylinder from a B-17 which crashed at Canvey Point in 1944 One of the key exhibits is an engine cylinder from a B-17 which crashed at Canvey Point in 1944. Come rain or shine, the team of volunteers here - three of whom are owners of the items exhibited - aim to open every Sunday throughout the year. With about 200 visitors a year, The Bay Museum was Visit England's 18th least-visited attraction, external. On some days, not a single visitor makes it through the door. On other days, there might be a small flurry, with people coming from as far away as the US, Argentina and Nigeria. Martin Daniell tells how the museum recently had visitors from Ukraine and Russia on the same day "We recently had somebody from Ukraine and another from Russia - on the same day," says museum treasurer Martin Daniell. "It is an absolute pleasure when we get people who have come a long way. Mostly, it is people from Essex and London. "People often say they expect to spend 10 minutes here. Three hours later, they are often still here and suddenly worry about the car parking." David Thorndike was a 10-year-old boy when the B-17s collided near Canvey "We're all about remembrance and education," says David Thorndike, who was a 10-year-old boy when the B-17s collided near Canvey and remembers the immediate aftermath. "We had a young woman recently who thanked us for helping her with her GCSE work. They were so interested in the museum - it makes it very rewarding." One younger visitor recently thanked the museum for helping with her GCSE studies Some of the museums with the fewest annual visitors declined to speak with the BBC for fear they might suddenly attract more people than they could accommodate. Susanna Chancellor, the present beneficiary of the Stoke Park Settlement Trust, is perfectly content with the modest visitor numbers she sees each year. Northamptonshire's Stoke Park Pavilions in Stoke Bruerne, Towcester, hosted 140 or so visitors in 2022. It might not sound a huge number but it was a 520% rise on the 20 guests recorded by Visit England in 2021. Today, the house (and its later replacement) are gone. The two pavilions, however, whose design is attributed to Inigo Jones, still stand The site occupied by the two pavilions has a regal past. In 1541, the 400-acre deer park at Stoke Bruerne was acquired by Henry VIII who, with his second wife Anne Boleyn, used it for hunting. Then, in 1629, the ill-fated Charles I gave it to Sir Frances Crane to settle a debt. Under Sir Frances, the medieval hunting lodge was replaced by an impressive new country house, the first in England built in the Italian Palladian style. Linked by colonnades stood two pavilions - one, a chapel; the other, a library. Today, the house (and its later replacement) are gone. The two pavilions, however, whose design is attributed to Inigo Jones, still stand. Most of the visitors who come to see the pavilions are either locals, walkers or those with a bent for architecture. "We had a couple of bus loads of architectural students visit last year," says Mrs Chancellor. "We also get people doing trips down the canal who think it would be nice to come and have a look. And we've had a few visits from caravan club members. "Because we're between Northampton and Milton Keynes, we get quite a few visits from people who live in the area. Some did not previously know we were here before, which is nice. "We've only got one lavatory," she says. "And we've got no café, no shop and no entrance fee - and visitors seem to appreciate a bit of quiet." Visit England says the nation's smallest museums are "a crucial and valuable part" of the range of attractions on offer Places like The Bay Museum and Stoke Park Pavilions form "a crucial and valuable part" of the range of attractions out there, says Andrew Stokes, director of Visit England. "From our renowned museums, galleries, castles and historic houses to our stunning gardens, rural, wildlife and outdoor attractions there really is an attraction to suit every taste and budget," he adds. But can our smallest attractions offer something household names cannot? Visitors will usually get a bespoke tour of Longthorpe Tower, says volunteer Karyn Hillier Karyn Hillier, a volunteer guide at Longthorpe Tower, Peterborough, believes the answer is a resounding "yes". The tower, which houses one of the most complete sets of 14th Century domestic wall paintings in northern Europe, had just 183 visitors a year at the most recent count. But each of those visitors will get a bespoke tour of the building, Ms Hillier says. "We vary the information based on the type of group we have coming," she says. "If we have children, we will focus on the animals and the bonnacon (a mythical bovine creature which emits burning poo), and we have colouring that children can do. "We also get historians and people from outside Peterborough come who do know about the tower and its history. "We try and give a sense of what life was like for the Thorpe family when this was built." Volunteer Alan Brimmell says many people are "surprised" by their visit to the tower But for those who do make it to Longthorpe, says fellow volunteer Alan Brimmell, the offer is something "unique to the country". "Most of existing medieval paintings are in churches, cathedrals and monasteries. "This was somebody's status symbol and it is purely accidental that it has survived because most did not. "People are surprised when they leave." Volunteer Amanda Johnson says some visitors have lived their entire lives nearby without realising the tower was under their noses Like many of the nation's smallest museums, Longthorpe is only open at weekends (during the warmer months) or when guides are available. Volunteer Amanda Johnson says the tower often attracts "people from around the world coming to see specific things", including medievalists and art historians. But the biggest source of pride for those keeping England's smallest attractions going comes not from the miles a visitor will travel but from local discovery. "We have people who have lived locally all their lives and didn't realise there was a tower here," says Ms Johnson. "Most people who come in to have a look around leave pretty impressed." Follow East of England news on Facebook, external, Instagram, external and X, external. Got a story? Email eastofenglandnews@bbc.co.uk , externalor WhatsApp 0800 169 1830

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-68779540

Hamas hostages: Stories of the people taken from Israel - BBC News

2024-05-19

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It is thought more than 100 Israelis are still being held hostage in Gaza after the 7 October attacks.

Middle East

Naama Levy, 19, was filmed being bundled into a jeep, her hands tied behind her back. The footage was released by Hamas and circulated widely on social media. According to her mother, the teenager had just begun her military service. Yousef Zyadna, a 53-year-old Bedouin dairy farmer, was abducted from Kibbutz Holit and taken to Gaza along with his sons Hamza, 22, and Bilal, 18, and his daughter, Aisha, 16. Aisha and Bilal were released on Thursday 30 November. Elad Katzir, 47, was abducted from Nir Oz with his mother, Hanna. The IDF said it had recovered his body from Gaza on 6 April after he was "murdered in captivity" by Islamic Jihad. Hanna was released in November. Ohad Ben Ami, 55, was kidnapped from Be'eri with his wife, Raz. She was released by Hamas on 29 November. Twin brothers Gali and Ziv Berman, 26, were taken from Kfar Aza. Ziv was messaging a friend as the attack happened. Their family said the IDF has told them the brothers are being held in Gaza. Their brother Liran told CBN news the pair had "twin power" and were the centre of attention wherever they went. Iraq-born Shlomo Mansour, 85, was taken captive from Kibbutz Kissufim, where he lived and worked as a chicken coop manager. His wife, Mazal, managed to escape. Michel Nisenbaum, 59, is a dual Brazilian-Israeli citizen who has lived in Israel for 45 years and works as a computer technician, his family told Brazilian media. They also say he is diabetic and has Crohn's disease. On 7 October, they say, someone claiming to be from Hamas answered his phone when they tried to call him. Daniela Gilboa, 19, sent messages saying that Kibbutz Nahal Oz, where she was staying, was under attack and asked her mother to pray for her. Her boyfriend, Roy Dadon, told the Economist 1843 magazine that he believes he saw a glimpse of her in a video showing three girls being driven away in the back of an SUV. Itay Chen, 19, a dual US-Israeli citizen and IDF solider, was on active duty with a tank unit on 7 October, according to the Times of Israel. The paper reported that his family was notified by the IDF that he is officially considered missing in action and probably being held hostage. Another soldier in his unit, Matan Angrest, 21, is also presumed to be in Gaza. Yosi Sharabi, 51, was taken from Be'eri with his brother, Eli Sharabi, 55. Eli's wife and two daughters were murdered in the attack. Ofir Engel, the boyfriend of Yosi's daughter, Yuval, was also taken, but released on 29 November. Agam Berger, 19, was kidnapped from Nahal Oz. She was seen being taken away in videos released by Hamas. Edan Alexander, 19, is an Israeli-US citizen who volunteered to join the Israeli army. He was serving near the Gaza border at the time of Hamas's attack. Edan's family said they had been told by Israeli officials that he had been taken to Gaza as a hostage. Kaid Farhan Elkadi, 53, lives with his family south of Rahat and worked as a security guard, according to Israeli media. Reports said his family believes he was kidnapped and taken to Gaza, based on images shared by Hamas.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-67053011

Watch: Keir Starmer explains his 'presidential look' - BBC News

2024-05-19

Sir Keir Starmer tells the BBC he's "leading from the front" as he launches six pledges at an event in Essex.

Sir Keir Starmer tells the BBC he's "leading from the front" as he launches six pledges at an event in Essex. Speaking to the BBC's Chris Mason, the Labour leader said he wanted to "get on with the delivery" of bringing change to Britain if Labour wins this year's general election.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-69023349