93 minutes ago Ben Stokes left out of England squad for Champions Trophy but Joe Root returns under Brendon McCullum

McCullum will take charge of white-ball side for the first time as England travel to India

Politics

1 hour ago ‘I’ll starve myself until I collapse to secure my son’s release from Egyptian prison’, vows grandmother

Exclusive: Pro-democracy activist Alaa Abdel Fattah has been in prison in Egypt for more than 10 years on charges the United Nations says are unjust

Events

1 hour ago EastEnders icon missed out on huge Gavin and Stacey role after audition 'didn't go to plan'

An EastEnders star has opened up for the first time about when she auditioned for a major character on Gavin and Stacey

Politics

2 hours ago Nigel Slater’s recipes for salmon and sprouts, and chocolate ginger sundae

It’s time for a last-minute festive fry-up, followed by a biscuity ginger sundaeThe house is bathed in the glow from the Christmas tree. There are scented parcels tied with ribbon, a majestic panettone on a cake stand in the larder and the rough puff pastry is rolled, folded and wrapped in baking parchment in the fridge. I’ve been playing carols for a fortnight or more.We are so close now to the principal meals of Christmas, most of which are probably sorted and partially shopped for. It is those last-minute dishes I feel are most useful. The quick toss-up of greens and smoked fish; a dessert that can be made in minutes and, perhaps, the odd homemade edible gift. Christmas is, of course, about more than one meal. Continue reading...

Politics

2 hours ago Stampedes in Nigeria leave at least 32 dead in a rush to get Christmas gifts

Nigerian police say the death toll from stampedes during two Christmas charity events has increased from 13 to 32

Events

2 hours ago Inside Joe Exotic's sad Christmas behind bars as he begs Donald Trump for freedom

Tiger King's Joe Exotic is repeating his plea for freedom five years after his conviction on 17 federal charges and has opened up on the apparent conditions he'll face in jail this Christmas

Politics

3 hours ago With Assad’s fall, Putin’s dream of world domination is turning into a nightmare | Peter Pomerantsev

Complaints about the president are growing among Russian military and business leaders. Now is the time for the west to turn up the heat As Bashar al-Assad fell, Russian nationalist military bloggers turned on the Kremlin. “Ten years of our presence,” fumed the “Two Majors” Telegram channel to its more than one million subscribers, “dead Russian soldiers, billions of spent roubles and thousands of tonnes of ammunition, they must be compensated somehow.” Some didn’t shy away from lambasting Vladimir Putin. “The adventure in Syria, initiated by Putin personally, seems to be coming to an end. And it ends ignominiously, like all other ‘geopolitical’ endeavours of the Kremlin strategist.” These weren’t isolated incidents. Filter Labs, a data analytics company I collaborate with, saw social media sentiment on Syria dip steeply as Assad fell.It was in stark contrast to Putin’s silly claim at his annual news conference last week that Russia had suffered no defeat in Syria. Unlike social med...

Politics

3 hours ago Knowing the Christmas school fair is on? Not for all the reminders in the world | Seamas O'Reilly

Some parents are good at noting the important events, others at making up for it in the sweets raffleThe Christmas fair in my son’s school was, like all such things, unexpected. This is no one’s fault, but my own. I have a tendency to be – nay, an addiction to being – the last person to know about anything going on in his school. It is entirely my fault, you understand. There are leaflets and emails and reminders, it’s just that they never seem to sink in and leave me filling out zoo paperwork at 6am on the morning of ‘Adopt a Giraffe’ Day, or scrambling to cobble together a costume on Sunday night, before ‘Dress Like One of Those Chilean Miners That Got Trapped In 2010’ Week begins in earnest for another year.It’s tempting to say that I was blindsided by this Christmas fair, but sadly, such a claim does not stand up to scrutiny. For one thing, I have been reminded of it several times by people in our school WhatsApp group and my son has also mentioned it several times more than onc...

Science

3 hours ago King Charles set for a 'different' Christmas as he tackles 'road to recovery'

King Charles will be looking for a "different" and "more normal" festive season this year after a tough year for his health, according to the former butler to the monarch

Politics

3 hours ago Middle East crisis: Israeli strikes kill 28 Palestinians in Gaza – live updates

The strikes came a day after Pope Francis condemned the bombing of children in Gaza as ‘cruelty’Gaza’s civil defence agency said Israeli airstrikes overnight and early this morning have killed at least 28 Palestinian people. Civil agency spokesperson Mahmud Bassal said at least 13 people were killed in an airstrike on a house in Deir al-Balah – a town in central Gaza – belonging to the Abu Samra family.Bassal said that eight people, including four children, were killed in the attack on the Musa Bin Nusayr school, which had been repurposed as a shelter for Palestinians displaced by the war. Bassal said an overnight Israeli airstrike killed three people in the southern city of Rafah, and a drone strike this morning hit a car in Gaza City, killing four people.They (Israeli forces) have been using heavy artillery and detonating explosive devices that had been planted in the areas surrounding the hospital, preventing and impeding the movement of ambulances, as well as that of people seek...

Events