11 h. ago Trump’s ambassador to Israel is hawking a sleeping aid on cable TV as a side gig: ‘Ambassadors need to sleep, too’

Mike Huckabee was paid more than $400,000 by the company that makes the sleep supplement, Relaxium

Politics

20 h. ago The village enduring climate catastrophe as Trump’s aid cuts bite

Nick Ferris visits families forced from their home due to flooding in Ethiopia’s northern Afar region – who say they have been largely deserted by humanitarian organisations as aid cuts have taken hold this year

Politics

3 d. ago Number of children abducted in Nigerian school attack now more than 300. Here’s what you need to know

The Trump administration's deep cuts in foreign aid to Nigeria this year haven't helped the situation

Events

5 d. ago There’s a catastrophic black hole in our climate data – and it’s a gift to deniers | George Monbiot

Climate sceptics tell us that more people die of extreme cold than extreme heat. What’s the truth?I began by trying to discover whether or not a widespread belief was true. In doing so, I tripped across something even bigger: an index of the world’s indifference. I already knew that by burning fossil fuels, gorging on meat and dairy, and failing to make even simple changes, the rich world imposes a massive burden of disaster, displacement and death on people whose responsibility for the climate crisis is minimal. What I’ve now stumbled into is the vast black hole of our ignorance about these impacts.What I wanted to discover was whether it’s true that nine times as many of the world’s people die of cold than of heat. The figure is often used by people who want to delay climate action: if we do nothing, some maintain, fewer will die. Of course, they gloss over all the other impacts of climate breakdown: the storms, floods, droughts, fires, crop failures, disease and sea level rise. B...

Politics

6 d. ago The Guardian view on funding Ukraine’s resistance: a looming financial crisis in Kyiv must be averted | Editorial

Whether by leveraging Russia’s frozen assets, or other means, the EU must deliver the cash necessary to withstand Putin’s war of attritionIn the early part of this year, as the US vice-president, JD Vance, berated European leaders in Munich, and Volodymyr Zelenskyy was subjected to a televised mauling in the White House, it became starkly apparent that the bonds of solidarity between the European Union and Ukraine would need to be strengthened to cope with a new geopolitical reality. As 2025 draws to a close, a moment of reckoning has arrived.According to EU estimates, Ukraine will need more than €70bn in extra financial assistance next year to keep defending itself against Vladimir Putin. That money won’t be coming from Washington, where Donald Trump has refused to seek new funding for military aid from Congress. Yet Kyiv’s ability to negotiate an acceptable peace depends on its capacity to withstand Mr Putin’s relentless war of attrition, which is designed to drain Ukraine of...

Economics

7 d. ago How US evangelicals are using Trump’s aid cuts to attack human rights in Africa

As Donald Trump's aid cuts leave African health programmes scrambling, The Independent pieces together events at a number of conferences where American religious organisations are looking to move in to shape the future. Rachel Schraer reports

Politics

8 d. ago Inside the US evangelical push into Africa in vacuum left by Trump’s aid cuts – as activists fear for human rights

As Donald Trump's aid cuts leave African health programmes scrambling, The Independent pieces together events at a number of conferences where American religious organisations are looking to move in to shape the future. Rachel Schraer reports

Politics

9 d. ago China basks in the spotlight at Cop30 as Trump forces the US to stay away

The world’s largest polluter is being celebrated by attendees in Brazil for leadership on renewable energy, Nick Ferris writes. However, experts warn that Chinese energy investment is no substitute for the grant-based climate aid that the US used to provide pre-Trump

Politics

1 week ago Poorer nations call on rich countries to open their wallets at Cop30: ‘Clean up the mess you are making’

After a year of aid cuts from the US, UK and around Europe, Nick Ferris speaks to African nations about the help they desperately need to fight the climate crisis. But there are few signs that richer countries are willing to step up

Politics

2 w. ago African HIV services face double blow of cuts from both Trump and UK

Britain has significantly slashed its contribution to the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria – compounding aid cuts announced by Donald Trump earlier this year

Politics

2 w. ago David Squires on Fifa’s peace prize and Donald Trump’s eligibility

Our cartoonist on how the US president’s actions in office may have put him in line for an awardBuy a Squires cartoon in our Print ShopDavid’s latest book, Chaos in the Box: get it now Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago Bel Trew answers your questions: From aid shortages in Gaza to morale in the Israeli military

Chief international correspondent Bel Trew answers your questions on Gaza’s aid crisis, the fragile ceasefire, regional power dynamics, and morale in the Israeli military

Events

2 w. ago US to demand countries share data on ‘pathogens with epidemic potential’ in return for health aid

Draft template seen by the Guardian has no reference to countries receiving benefits for sharing information, such as guaranteed access to medicines developed as a resultThe US wants countries to agree to hand over information on bugs that could cause large-scale disease outbreaks in return for restoring aid to tackle health problems such as HIV and malaria, according to government documents.The Trump administration is seeking new bilateral aid agreements with dozens of countries, after an abrupt withdrawal from existing arrangements at the start of this year. The agreements form part of a new America First Global Health Strategy announced in September. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago US supreme court issues emergency order blocking full Snap food aid payments

High court’s order comes after appeals court rejected Trump administration’s request to block November benefitsThe supreme court has issued an emergency order temporarily blocking full Snap food aid payments.The high court’s order came after the Trump administration asked a federal appeals court on Friday to block a judge’s order that it distribute November’s full monthly food stamp benefits amid a US federal government shutdown. Continue reading...

Events

2 w. ago Trump demands supreme court intervene after judges reject bid to halt Snap funding

Appeals court rejects administration’s legal effort and orders officials to pay November’s food aid benefits in fullThe Trump administration asked a federal appeals court on Friday to block a judge’s order that it distribute November’s full monthly food stamp benefits amid a US federal government shutdown, and was denied later the same day.Now, the administration must continue to follow the orders of a lower court. Continue reading...

Events

2 w. ago Passengers start to feel bite of flight cuts amid US government shutdown

Travellers forced to adjust their plans as longest shutdown on record continues with no sign of resolutionUS politics live – latest updatesA US government order to make drastic cuts in commercial air traffic amid the government shutdown has taken effect, with major airports across the country experiencing a significant reduction in schedules and leaving travellers scrambling to adjust their plans.The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has said the move is necessary to maintain air traffic control safety during a federal government shutdown, now the longest recorded and with no sign of a resolution, in which air traffic controllers have gone without pay. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago How thousands of fossil fuel lobbyists got access to UN climate talks – and then kept drilling

Exclusive: Research shows oil, gas and coal firms’ unprecedented access to Cop26-29, blocking urgent climate actionMore than 5,000 fossil fuel lobbyists were given access to the UN climate summits over the past four years, a period marked by a rise in catastrophic extreme weather, inadequate climate action and record oil and gas expansion, new research reveals.Lobbyists representing the interests of the oil, gas and coal industries – which are mostly responsible for climate breakdown – have been allowed to participate in the annual climate negotiations where states are meant to come in good faith and commit to ambitious policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago Archaeologists discover how oldest American civilisation survived a climate catastrophe

Experts find artefacts left behind in Caral showing how population survived drought without resorting to violenceArchaeologists in Peru have found new evidence showing how the oldest known civilization in the Americas adapted and survived a climate catastrophe without resorting to violence.A team led by the renowned Peruvian archaeologist Ruth Shady, 78, concluded that about 4,200 years ago, severe drought forced the population to leave the ancient city of Caral, and resettle nearby. Continue reading...

Events

2 w. ago When Trump’s aid cuts robbed them of HIV drugs, these people died. Now the UK is poised to slash funding further

Special Report: Three people have died at just one community centre on the outskirts of Senegal’s capital, Dakar, following US aid cuts to HIV care. Rachel Schraer meets the women fighting to stop more deaths

Events

3 w. ago Rape survivors blocked from treatment as aid cuts make Africa’s unsafe abortion crisis worse, researchers warn

Funding cuts are set to block more women and girls from getting lifesaving healthcare and post-rape support, researcher Dr Jonna Both tells The Independent

Events