9 h. ago Why Trump’s Qatar plane ignited a fierce political debate and could cost more than $1bn

The president insists only a ‘stupid person’ would turn down extravagant gift intended to replace Air Force One, but risks violating U.S. Constitution’s emoluments clause

Politics

9 h. ago Donald Trump praises Syrian leader as ‘attractive guy, tough guy’ as trip continues in Qatar – US politics live

US president met Ahmed al-Sharaa in Saudi Arabia before heading to Doha amid growing controversy over Qatar luxury plane gift The meeting between Donald Trump and Syria’s president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, in Saudi Arabia was the culmination of months of diplomacy by the Syrians, as well as their Turkish and Saudi allies, who believed face time with Trump would help end Syria’s international isolation, writes William Christou.Damascus had prepared a pitch to Trump that included access to Syrian oil, reassurances of Israel’s security and a proposal to build a Trump tower in Damascus. Continue reading...

Politics

9 h. ago Donald Trump gushes over Qatar leader who is giving him a free luxury jet

He sat down with Qatar's emir, Sheikh Tamim Al Thani, at the start of a state visit to the state, lavishing him with praise - both for his "friendship" to the US and for the exquisite marbling of his palace

Politics

10 h. ago Trump touches down in Qatar amid controversy over luxury jet gift and hopes for Gaza ceasefire

President Donald Trump arrived in Qatar Wednesday amid a controversy about its gift of a new Air Force One and amid hopes he can broker an Israel-Hamas ceasefire.

Politics

19 h. ago Donald Trump complains Air Force One 'much smaller and less impressive' than Middle East planes

President Donald Trump on Tuesday again defended his decision to accept the gift of a luxury jet from Qatar to serve as Air Force One during his remaining years as president.

Politics

30 h. ago Trump 2.0 takes quid pro quo fears to new heights with $400m flying grift

Accepting a ‘gift’ of a luxury jet from Qatar is just the most eye-catching of the president’s ethically questionable actsUS politics live – latest updatesFox & Friends, the show beamed into millions of rightwing Americans’ homes every morning, is not generally considered to be the place where Donald Trump faces the tough questions. The “& Friends” in the show’s title gives that away.But on Monday morning, the show’s co-host Brian Kilmeade put the billion-dollar question to the White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt. News had just broken that Trump had decided to accept a gift of a $400m luxury jumbo jet from the government of Qatar, a petro-state which the president once denounced as a “funder of terrorism”. Continue reading...

Politics

36 h. ago Retrofitting Trump’s Qatari Boeing jet for use as Air Force One ‘impossible’ until after 2028, report says

The so-called “free” luxury jet is expected to come with a raft of upgrade and maintenance costs

Politics

45 h. ago BREAKING: Donald Trump touches down in UK as Air Force One lands on way to Middle East

Donald Trump has landed at a US airbase in the UK for refuelling as Air Force One heads to the Middle East where the president has talks planned amid trouble in Gaza and Iran

Politics

52 h. ago ‘Just wildly illegal’: top Democrats push to censure Trump’s plan to accept Qatar jet

Four senators, including Cory Booker, say they’ll press for vote against president’s plan to take $400m gift from QatarTop Democrats in the US Senate are pushing for a vote on the floor of the chamber censuring Donald Trump’s reported plan to accept a $400m luxury jet from the royal family of Qatar for use as Air Force One and later as a fixture in the Trump’s personal presidential library.Four Democratic members of the Senate foreign relations committee said on Monday that they would press for a vote later this week. They said that elected officials, including the president, were not allowed to accept large gifts from foreign governments unless authorized to do so by Congress. Continue reading...

Politics

54 h. ago Hamas releases final living American hostage to Red Cross as crowds celebrate in Tel Aviv

Hamas has released the last living American hostage held in Gaza after talks with the US on a ceasefire and allowing humanitarian aid to enter the besieged territory as Tony Blair joins aid effort

Events

61 h. ago Israel vows NO ceasefire or Palestinian prisoner release in return for US hostage being freed as Netanyahu warns fighting will be 'intensified' in Gaza

The militant group said it would release Edan Alexander, a US-Israeli soldier held in Gaza, later today as it engages in direct ceasefire talks with Washington.

Events

3 d. ago Hamas says last American hostage in Gaza will be freed as part of ceasefire push

Hamas has announced it will release Edan Alexander — believed to be the last living American hostage held in Gaza — as part of a broader effort to secure a ceasefire and reopen key crossings into the war-torn territory.

Events

3 d. ago The Guardian view on Israel and Gaza: Trump can stop this horror. The alternative is unthinkable | Editorial

The US president has the leverage to force through a ceasefire. If he does not, he will implicitly signal approval of what looks like a plan of total destructionDonald Trump would like a big foreign policy win as he embarks on his tour of the Middle East this week. He could secure one – and save lives – by demanding that Israel agree to a lasting ceasefire in exchange for the release of all hostages held in Gaza. He might prefer to avoid the issue, but no other leader has the leverage to force its prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, to end this war. If Mr Trump instead backs Israel’s current proposals, he will put the US imprimatur on what looks like a plan of total destruction.Israel’s attacks have already killed more than 52,000 people in Gaza, according to local health authorities – the vast majority of them civilians, many of them children. Bakeries, hospitals and schools have been obliterated. Aid has been blocked for two months. Gaza faces famine. Last week, Isr...

Politics

3 d. ago ‘No more war,’ Pope Leo pleads to world in first Sunday address at the Vatican

The new pontiff called for ‘authentic and lasting peace’ in Ukraine and ceasefire in Gaza

Events

3 d. ago ‘Never again war’: Pope Leo calls for peace in Ukraine in first Sunday address

New pontiff also urges a ceasefire and humanitarian aid in Gaza and welcomes truce between India and PakistanPope Leo XIV has called for a just and lasting peace in Ukraine and pleaded for an end to global conflicts, which he likened to a “third world war in pieces”.In his first Sunday address at the Vatican, the new pontiff urged an immediate ceasefire and humanitarian aid in Gaza and the release of all hostages. He also welcomed the truce between India and Pakistan and referenced the end of the second world war in 1945. Continue reading...

Events

3 d. ago Pope Leo XIV delivers his first Sunday blessing calling for peace in Ukraine and Gaza ceasefire as he addresses HUGE crowd in St Peter's Square

Pope Leo XIV has delivered his first Sunday blessing from the balcony of Saint Peter's Basilica.

Events

3 d. ago Pope Leo XIV: Tens of thousands of people cram into St Peter’s Square to hear first Sunday Mass

Thousands of people rushed into St Peter's Square to hear Pope Leo XIV's first Sunday Mass where he called for 'no more war', peace in Ukraine & an immediate ceasefire in Gaza

Politics

3 d. ago Watch: Pope Leo calls for ceasefire in Ukraine and Gaza during first Sunday address

Pope Leo XIV used his first Sunday address from the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, to call for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine and Gaza and the return of Israeli hostages.

Events

3 d. ago Pope Leo XIV live: New pontiff appeals to global leaders for ‘no more war’ in first Sunday address at the Vatican

Pope called for ‘authentic and lasting peace’ in Ukraine and ceasefire in Gaza

Politics

8 d. ago Palestinians ‘desperate for food but getting bombs’, says UN as it criticises Israel’s Gaza aid plan – Middle East crisis live

Reports say that Israel is planning to use private American security contractors in move that OCHA says falls short of ‘humanitarian principles’China’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Lin Jian, said Beijing is “highly concerned about the current Palestine-Israel situation”.“We oppose Israel’s ongoing military actions in Gaza, and hopes all parties continuously and effectively implement the ceasefire agreement,” Jian said.The government of the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, hopes that the Israel Defense Forces’ call-up of tens of thousands of reservists, the threat of the new offensive and the prospect of Israel seizing swaths of territory will force Hamas’s leaders to make concessions.If it fails to do so, then physical possession of terrain will offer useful leverage in future negotiations and allow Hamas to be squeezed further in the meantime Continue reading...

Events