54 m. ago EU says US ‘still our biggest ally’ despite release of policy paper supporting Europe’s far

The Trump administration released a policy paper on Friday that made explicit Washington’s support for Europe’s nationalist far-right partiesOvernight Russian missile and drone strikes left parts of Ukraine without power on Saturday morning, Ukraine’s energy ministry said on Telegram.The strikes hit energy infrastructure in the Kyiv, Chernihiv, Lviv, Odesa, Zaporizhia, Dnipropetrovsk, Mykolaiv and Kharkiv regions, according to the ministry. Continue reading...

Events

1 hour ago Harbadus attacks Andvaria: cyber war game tests Nato defences against Russia

Power blackouts, public chaos and loss of communication with space were all thrown at troops in seven days Russia and China were barely mentioned, but they were the threats in everyone’s minds in Tallinn this week, where Nato hosted its largest ever cyber war game.The goal of the war game, conducted 130 miles from the Russian border in Estonia, was to test the alliance’s readiness for a rolling enemy assault on civilian and military digital infrastructure. Continue reading...

Events

2 h. ago Crystal Palace fans are literally fighting each other. How has it come to this?

Clashes between rival factions are the culmination of a long-running feud involving claims of racismIt should have been a night for Crystal Palace supporters to savour. About 1,500 officially made the trip to Strasbourg for their second away match of the Conference League group stage last week, although plenty more had gathered in the pretty Alsatian city famous for its expansive Christmas market.Yet while most were enjoying being part of Palace’s first European campaign after May’s FA Cup win, “a tiny majority” – as the club’s statement the following day described them – had different ideas. Footage of bottles and chairs being thrown as two rival groups of supporters of the same club clashed before the game in one of the city’s squares went viral on X. “Palace fans fighting each other in Strasbourg,” read the message, not surprisingly sparking widespread confusion. Continue reading...

Sport

3 h. ago 'Putin killed my girlfriend' claims partner of poisoning victim Dawn Sturgess

Charlie Rowley has called for Vladimir Putin to be put on trial after an inquiry ruled the Russian president was 'morally responsible' for the 2018 novichok attack that killed his girlfriend Dawn Sturgess

Events

3 h. ago London’s mystery poisoning? Russian ambassador ridicules UK’s poisoning evidence, drops bombshell | Videos

London’s mystery poisoning? Russian ambassador ridicules UK’s poisoning evidence, drops bombshell | Videos  Hindustan Times

Politics

3 h. ago ‘The only idea around’: will Labour return to a customs union with the EU?

The desperate search for economic growth is pushing the party to confront the issue that dare not speak its nameFor much of the last week, Keir Starmer’s government has been suggesting that a closer relationship with Europe will be a more prominent part of his agenda in the future.But it was a little-noted personnel change that might prove the most telling shift: Nick Thomas Symonds, the minister in charge of EU negotiations, was promoted to full cabinet rank. Continue reading...

Politics

3 h. ago Nick Cave’s Veiled World: the starry tale of how sometimes the devil doesn’t have the best tunes

This documentary on the musician interviews everyone from Flea to Rowan Williams. It’s a thoughtful take on his songs and ChristianityDevouring the new Nick Cave documentary on Sky, I am reminded how critics go wild for arty musicians who constantly change direction and dabble in everything. This is its own kind of myth. I know plenty of artists who keep moving – one week they’re sewing fish scales on to jackets, the next they’re painting mirrors or putting seahorses in samovars. The problem is, no one cares. If poet and ceramicist Nick Cave didn’t also write classic songs, he’d just be a local weirdo. I definitely wouldn’t buy a hardcover transcription of conversations he’d had with a mate about God. I’m glad I did, though.The documentary, Nick Cave’s Veiled World (Saturday 6 December, 9pm, Sky Arts), is timed to promote the TV adaptation of his filthy novel The Death of Bunny Munro. It’s a glorious opportunity to revisit his early, intense masterpieces: electric chair confess...

Politics

3 h. ago Swedish navy encountering Russian submarines ‘almost weekly’ – and more could be on the way

Moscow ‘continuously reinforcing’ its presence in the region, says Swedish chief of operations Capt Marko PetkovicThe Swedish navy encounters Russian submarines in the Baltic Sea on an “almost weekly” basis, its chief of operations has said, and is preparing for a further increase in the event of ceasefire or armistice in the Ukraine war.Capt Marko Petkovic said Moscow was “continuously reinforcing” its presence in the region, and sightings of its vessels were a regular part of life for the Swedish navy. Its “very common”, he said, adding that the number of sightings had increased in recent years. Continue reading...

Politics

3 h. ago My cultural awakening: Jonathan Groff inspired me to overcome my stammer

Watching the Broadway actor’s joyous energy, along with his calmness and openness, I was convinced that I could step out into the world and be myselfMy first encounter with Broadway actor Jonathan Groff was innocuous. Stuck in the wilds of Donegal for two weeks as part of teacher training, I listened to Broadway musicals while the rest of the lads watched the Gaelic fixtures and got drunk. I stumbled upon the recent production of Merrily We Roll Along with Jonathan Groff and Daniel Radcliffe and like most of the internet, I became obsessed.Afterwards, I went down a Groff rabbit hole tracking down interviews and cast recordings. I was drawn to how bubbly he was, how smiley he was. Groff had a joyous energy that was infectious. His voice was like melted chocolate. I both loved – and envied – his calmness and his openness to the world. Continue reading...

Politics

3 h. ago Peter Andre offers support to Molly Mae after she's 'left in tears'

EXCLUSIVE: In his weekly column, Peter Andre shares his advice to Molly-Mae Hague amid her recent troubles with daughter Bambi, and his Christmas preparations at home

Politics

4 h. ago The Metrolink station lift 'only open three days in 18 months'

It's hoped the situation might improve next week

Politics

4 h. ago Sean Combs: The Reckoning to It Was Just an Accident: the week in rave reviews

A documentary so damning it surely marks the end for Diddy, and grotesquery of a different kind in a Palme d’Or-winning film. Here’s the pick of the week’s culture, taken from the Guardian’s best-rated reviews Continue reading...

Politics

4 h. ago Six greats reads: a train ride to the future; searching for the ‘sky boys’ and wallaby hunting in the English countryside

Need something brilliant to read this weekend? Here are six of our favourite pieces from the last seven days Continue reading...

Politics

4 h. ago Bombed Chornobyl shelter no longer blocks radiation and needs major repair – IAEA

Drone attack that Ukraine blamed on Russia blew hole in painstakingly erected €1.5bn shield meant to allow for final clean-up of 1986 meltdown siteThe protective shield over the Chornobyl disaster nuclear reactor in Ukraine, which was hit by a drone in February, can no longer perform its main function of blocking radiation, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has announced.In February a drone strike blew a hole in the “new safe confinement”, which was painstakingly built at a cost of €1.5bn ($1.75bn) next to the destroyed reactor and then hauled into place on tracks, with the work completed in 2019 by a Europe-led initiative. The IAEA said an inspection last week of the steel confinement structure found the drone impact had degraded the structure. Continue reading...

Events

5 h. ago Liverpool news: Mohamed Salah transfer situation emerges as Arne Slot admits ‘obvious’ problem

Liverpool are set to face Leeds United in the Premier League this weekend

Politics

5 h. ago Only Europe can save Ukraine from Putin and Trump – but will it? | Timothy Garton Ash

Whether using frozen Russian assets, ramping up defence production or deepening the relationship with the EU, it is up to us to secure Ukraine’s future – and our ownEurope, you have been warned. President Vladimir Putin has waged a full-scale war against Ukraine for nearly four years and this week threatened that Russia was “ready right now” for war with Europe if need be. President Donald Trump has demonstrated that the US is ready to sell out Ukraine for the sake of a dirty deal with Putin’s Russia. His new US National Security Strategy prescribes “cultivating resistance to Europe’s current trajectory within European nations”. How much more clarity do you need?Now it’s up to us Europeans to enable Ukraine to survive armed assault from Moscow and diplomatic betrayal from Washington. In doing so, we also defend ourselves. For a year now, people have been telling me that Trump will eventually get tough on Russia. It’s been the geopolitical version of Waiting for Godot. Then his perso...

Politics

6 h. ago Will the EU’s bid to use frozen Russian assets hit the euro? 

Some fund managers see potential fallout affecting the currency’s global status from controversial plan

Events

7 h. ago Woman still in hospital weeks after falling from window fleeing raid

The woman was attempting to flee from immigration enforcement officers when she fell on a Welsh high street

Science

7 h. ago Falcons vs. Seahawks Week 14 Injury Report: Drake London misses a third straight game

Falcons vs. Seahawks Week 14 Injury Report: Drake London misses a third straight game  The Falcoholic

Events

8 h. ago Ukraine war briefing: Progress depends on Russia taking peace talks seriously, say Washington and Kyiv

US and Ukraine to hold third day of discussions in Florida as Emmanuel Macron says there is ‘no mistrust’ between Europe and White House. What we know on day 1,382See all our Ukraine war coverageUkrainian and US officials will hold a third straight day of talks in Miami on Saturday, with Washington saying the two sides agree that “real progress” would depend on Russia’s willingness to end the war. Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and the president’s son-in-law Jared Kushner have been meeting top Ukrainian negotiator Rustem Umerov and Andrii Hnatov, the chief of staff of Kyiv’s armed forces. “Both parties agreed that real progress toward any agreement depends on Russia’s readiness to show serious commitment to long-term peace, including steps toward de-escalation and cessation of killings,” said a summary of the talks.The US and Ukrainian officials “also agreed on the framework of security arrangements and discussed necessary deterrence capabilities to sustain a lasting pea...

Events