11 h. ago Free speech target or terrorist gang? The inside story of Palestine Action – and the plan to ban it

It started as a group of activists on a budget – now it could be banned under terrorism laws. But were lobbyists behind the proposed ban?If this interview had taken place in a week’s time, Huda Ammori might have been arrested. If this interview had been published in a week’s time, the Guardian might also have been breaking the law.Ammori, a co-founder of Palestine Action, said she was finding it “very hard to absorb the reality of what’s happening here”. She said: “I don’t have a single conviction but if this goes through I would have co-founded what will be a terrorist organisation.” Continue reading...

Events

3 d. ago New corruption scandal, same old story? Why Spanish politics keeps failing to clean up its act | María Ramírez

With the prime minister now mired in scandal, a culture shift is towards accountability is crucialMaría Ramírez is journalist and deputy managing editor of elDiario.esOn 31 May 2018, Pedro Sánchez, then the socialist opposition leader, delivered a powerful speech introducing the motion of no confidence that led to him becoming prime minister for the first time. It was a passionate speech, laced with detail. His target was the serving conservative PM, Mariano Rajoy, and his central argument for ousting Rajoy was the widespread corruption in the governing party, which Spain’s highest criminal court had confirmed just days earlier.“Corruption acts as a corrosive and profoundly harmful force for any nation. It erodes society’s trust in its leaders and consequently weakens the authority of the state. But it also strikes at the very root of social cohesion,” Sánchez said. “Corruption undermines faith in the rule of law when it is left to run rampant or when there is no political response ...

Politics

5 d. ago Labour backlash at plan to ban Palestine Action after vandalism of RAF planes

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper is due to update MPs later on proposals to make it a criminal offence to belong to or support the group.

Politics

5 d. ago Banning Palestine Action may be ‘escalation too far’, says Labour peer

The concerns come as Home Secretary Yvette Cooper will update Parliament on Monday on the Government’s plan to ban Palestine Action.

Events

5 d. ago David Lammy repeatedly declines to say whether British government believes US strikes on Iran were illegal – UK politics live

Keir Starmer backs strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities and calls on Tehran to return to negotiations but warns of ‘risk of escalation’ in Middle EastArmed forces minister Luke Pollard also appeared on the media round today, and stuck to the government line of not commenting on US action against Iran.He told viewers of Sky News that “it’s not for me to comment on the particular US action, but we’re assessing the battle damage at the moment to understand the true extent of the strikes.”I’m sorry that (the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) has since been breached, of course I am, but that’s why the international community is ultimately committed to this. And let’s be clear, if Iran is able to enrich beyond 60%, is able to get a weapon, what we will see is nuclear proliferation across the Middle East, the world will be seriously more dangerous than it is at the moment, that’s why it must be stopped.I went straight to Geneva to sit with the Iranians. I spent seven hours in Geneva to ta...

Politics

5 d. ago Met chief ‘shocked’ at Palestine Action support protest as Home Secretary moves to ban group

The Home Secretary will update Parliament on the Government’s plan to ban Palestine Action following its vandalism of two planes at an RAF base

Events

5 d. ago Sir Mark Rowley ‘shocked’ at planned protest in support of Palestine Action

The Home Secretary will update Parliament on the Government’s plan to ban Palestine Action following its vandalism of two planes at an RAF base.

Events

7 d. ago Every Man Utd player bar one put up for sale in club icon's drastic transfer action plan

Cash-strapped Manchester United have to make sales to fund Ruben Amorim's revamp of their struggling squad and Red Devils legend Teddy Sheringham has made clear that drastic measures need to be taken

Sport

8 d. ago Keir Starmer’s AI tsar to step down after six months in role

Matt Clifford, a tech investor who wrote government’s controversial AI action plan, to resign for personal reasonsKeir Starmer’s artificial intelligence tsar, a key figure in steering the government’s approach to artificial intelligence, is stepping down after six months in the role.Matt Clifford, the author of the government’s AI opportunities action plan, said: he would leave his post next month for personal reasons. Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago Clyde Valley Housing Association welcomes tenants to new £2.9m Mill Loan development in Airdrie town centre

Event marked the official handover of the 16-unit flatted development, which forms part of North Lanarkshire Council’s Airdrie Town Centre Action Plan.

Economics

2 w. ago Scottish Tory leader Russell Findlay aims to get party ‘back on the pitch’

Mr Findlay used his conference speech to set his party the target of winning more constituencies in next May’s Holyrood election.

Politics

2 w. ago Donald Trump is losing control of American foreign policy | Christopher S Chivvis

After Israel’s attacks on Iran and Ukraine’s on Russia, it is time the administration finds discipline and focus to regain authority of its foreign policyIran and the US have stood at a crossroads in recent weeks. Down one path lay negotiations that, while difficult, promised benefits to the citizens of both countries. Down the other path, a protracted war that promised little more than destruction.Back in 2018, Donald Trump had blocked the diplomatic path by tearing up the existing nuclear agreement with Iran – the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. But since beginning his second term in January he has been surprisingly open to negotiations with Tehran. Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, seemed ready to go along. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago The Guardian view on Iran’s nuclear programme: Trump undid a crucial accord. A new deal is urgently needed | Editorial

Diplomacy can do more to slow Tehran’s alarming progress than threats from IsraelA year into his first term, Donald Trump pulled the US out of the hard-won international deal that had slowed Iran’s advance towards nuclear weapons, and imposed punishing sanctions. Europe tried to keep the joint comprehensive plan of action (JCPOA) on life support. But the strangling of Iran’s economy, and the US assassination of Qassem Suleimani, the powerful head of its Quds force, undermined the country’s moderates and the progress on non-proliferation.The fallout of Mr Trump’s Iran policy is still becoming evident. On Thursday, the UN nuclear watchdog found, for the first time in two decades, that Tehran was not in compliance with the nuclear non-proliferation treaty. Iran vowed to “significantly” increase production of enriched uranium in retaliation, following a pattern of escalation in response to International Atomic Energy Agency criticism. US and European officials say th...

Politics

2 w. ago University of Michigan ends undercover surveillance contracts after Guardian revelations

Outcry after report that private investigators had been trailing and recording pro-Palestinian protesters for monthsThe University of Michigan has canceled its contract for undercover investigators to surveil pro-Palestininan campus groups, following outcry after a Guardian story revealed the private investigators had been trailing and recording students for months, and published damning video of one investigator’s interaction with a student.“We recently learned that an employee of one of our security contractors has acted in ways that go against our values and directives,” the U-M president, Domenico Grasso, wrote in an email to students and faculty on Sunday night. “Going forward, we are terminating all contracts with external vendors to provide plainclothes security on campus.” Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago A Palestinian American writer’s story of exile, addiction and surrogacy: ‘I had to do something with the fragments’

In her new memoir, Hala Alyan reflects on her fractured lineage and having a child against all oddsIn the poem Hours Ghazal, published in 2024, Hala Alyan writes: “The cost of wanting something is who you are on the other side of getting it.” The line is a glimpse into the mind of a woman, who, at 38, has paid a high price for desire and emerged intact after living through what might feel like several lifetimes for the rest of us.Alyan is a Palestinian American poet, novelist, clinical psychologist and psychology professor at New York University. She is also the author of a memoir published this week titled I’ll Tell You When I’m Home.I have never not been a Palestinian. That has never not been written upon my body. In Lebanon, in Kuwait, in Oklahoma – I am what my father is, and my father is a man who was once a boy who was born to a woman in Gaza. Who speaks with the accent of that place. Continue reading...

Politics

4 w. ago Wildlife boom in Olympic Park as dozens of new species identified

The discoveries were made during a bioblitz—an intensive one-day biological survey—and detailed in the park’s new Biodiversity Action Plan

Politics