1 hour ago Amid the chaos after the fall of Kabul, two men became my lifeline | Shadi Khan Saif

Exactly four years later, our reunion in the safety of my new home in Melbourne was sweetSitting cross-legged on a richly patterned Afghan rug in a Melbourne living room, we chatted for hours, reflecting on the fall of Kabul four years ago that brought us together and nurtured a bond of friendship across continents.We had first connected in the chaos of August 2021, when the fall of Kabul shattered decades of fragile progress towards democracy, freedom and peace in Afghanistan. Our reunion this winter in Melbourne should have been pure joy – a celebration of survival and friendship – but it began in the quiet rows of a Muslim graveyard. We were there for the funeral of our mutual friend, Barez. Continue reading...

Events

2 h. ago Heatwave alert as Brits warned of BBQ fire risk during sizzling temperatures

This UK heatwave comes with potential fire risk from barbecues during rising temperatures, experts share advice on how to avoid the risk and save yourself from costly damages

Events

3 h. ago TOM UTLEY: I was once fiercely proud of being a Londoner born and bred. But as Sturgeon seeks greener pastures and after nine years of the Khan Terror, Mrs U and I are thinking the unthinkable...

Nicola Sturgeon, former First Minister of Scotland, who has spent her entire life fighting for Scottish independence and slagging off evil England, now says she's thinking of leaving her native land.

Events

3 h. ago IAN WILLIAMS: Ministers blinded by Beijing's cash cannot see their dangerous folly

The warning from America is stark: selling Thames Water, Britain's biggest water and sewage business, to a Chinese company would be a 'national security threat'.

Politics

3 h. ago Brooklyn and Harry are a pair of wet wipes who lack the gumption to stand up for the families who love them: JAN MOIR

Brooklyn and Nicola aren't speaking to Posh and Becks and made this abundantly clear when they renewed their wedding vows and didn't invite the paternal parents, writes JAN MOIR.

Society

3 h. ago What Vladimir Putin says and what he REALLY means are two very different things. Commentary on the Alaskan summit by MARK GALEOTTI

The US President is arguably the most powerful and influential leader in the world, but he craves the approval of his peers. He admires Putin's strong-man image.

Politics

3 h. ago Jeff Bezos posts heartfelt tribute to mom Jackie Bezos who’s died at 78

‘I hold her safe in my heart forever,’ the tech billionaire wrote

Events

4 h. ago In Washington police takeover, federal agents and National Guard take on new tasks

Federal agents who typically investigate drug lords, weapons traffickers or cyber criminals have fanned out across the nation’s capital

Events

4 h. ago ROBERT HARDMAN: On VJ Day how can we claim 'we will remember them' when the remains of UK war heroes are still in plastic boxes in Malaysia? 

Today's commemoration of Victory in Japan - VJ Day - at the National Memorial Arboretum, attended by the King and the Prime Minister, will be a poignant occasion, of course.

Events

5 h. ago Abortion drug could help reduce risk of breast cancer, group of medics says

Stigma around mifepristone is stopping studies, experts in reproductive health claim in Lancet opinion pieceA drug used in medical abortions could help prevent women at high risk of breast cancer from developing the disease, according to an international group of doctors and scientists.However, “stigma” around mifepristone is stopping pharmaceutical companies from investigating its potential as a new treatment doctors could offer to reduce the risk of breast cancer, they say. Continue reading...

Events

7 h. ago Full list of 12 Claire's stores in Wales at risk as chain files for administration

Claire's confirmed that it had fallen into administration on August 13

Events

7 h. ago King Charles to make 'important' speech to entire nation at this exact time tomorrow

King Charles will address the nation from 7.30am tomorrow morning to mark the 80th anniversary of VJ Day, in a special message to the nation, Realms and Commonwealth

Politics

8 h. ago Eating this surprising fruit might be the key to getting a better night’s sleep

Better sleep is linked to a decreased risk of heart disease, among other cardiovascular conditions

Politics

8 h. ago Countries urged to ‘hold the line’ in Geneva plastics treaty negotiations

Talks continue amid warnings from environmental groups over being ‘sold out’ without meaningful or legally binding measuresTalks between nations to hammer out a plastics treaty to end plastic pollution continued behind closed doors in Geneva on Thursday, the final day of negotiations, as civil society groups urged countries to “hold the line” to secure a strong agreement.With time running out to seal a deal between 184 countries, environmental groups expressed concern that frontline communities, Indigenous people and others suffering the worst impacts of the world’s growing plastic crisis were being “sold out” in an effort to secure a treaty, without meaningful or legally binding measures that would address the scale of the problem, “at any cost”. Continue reading...

Politics

10 h. ago Relive Jamie Smith helping London Spirit secure a convincing win over Trent Rockets in The Hundred at Lord's

Relive Jamie Smith helping London Spirit secure a convincing win over Trent Rockets in The Hundred at Lord's  BBC

Society

10 h. ago Sturgeon says she has been 'vilified' amid toxic abuse in trans debate

The former first minister said social media users had ‘laughed’ at her miscarriage

Events

10 h. ago Moment wanted man is caught hiding in HOT TUB by police sniffer dog

Despite his best efforts at holding his breath, police dog Luna led her handler straight to the fugitive after identifying his scent on the discarded outfit.

Events

10 h. ago Over 100,000 Drinkmate carbonation bottles recalled due to risk of explosion

More than 100,000 Drinkmate-branded bottles are being recalled across the U.S. and Canada

Events

10 h. ago Largest ICE detention facility at Fort Bliss opens after months of delays, contract squabbles, and a workplace death

New detention facility, dubbed the ‘Lonestar Lockup’ by one Texas senator, expected to hold roughly 5,000 immigrants

Events

11 h. ago ‘We thought with The Crown: “Is anyone going to watch this?”’ director Benjamin Caron on risk, realism – and royalty

A ‘safe pair of hands’ in high end TV, Caron now reunites with Vanessa Kirby for hyperactive Netflix thriller Night Always Comes about the terror of urban homelessnessIt’s quite a schlep from Buckingham Palace to the mean streets of working-class Portland, Oregon, but it is one that Midlands-born film-maker Benjamin Caron and actor Vanessa Kirby have undertaken with their new thriller Night Always Comes, adapted from the taut novel by Willy Vlautin. Caron and Kirby met nearly a decade ago when he directed episodes of The Crown, in which she played the young Princess Margaret from behind a cloud of cigarette smoke.Now Kirby stars as a former sex worker called Lynette, toiling in multiple jobs and living with her disabled brother (Zach Gottsagen) and their wrecked, wayward mother (Jennifer Jason Leigh). They have cobbled together the funds to buy their dilapidated house at a snip, only for Lynette’s mother to recklessly blow her half on a new car. Cue one manic night in which Lynette ...

Events