A woman whose photograph was used in a poster campaign by Italy’s far-right League, a member of Giorgia Meloni’s ruling coalition, has said she will consult lawyers, describing the images as “racist”. Anna Haholkina, a Ukrainian-Italian model who lives in Rimini, said she was shocked to see her face on the posters that have sprung … Read more
Hospitals in Rafah risk being overwhelmed by a wave of sick and injured if the fighting there intensifies and routes into Gaza remain impassible, doctors and medical officials in the city say. Medics and patients hastily evacuated the Abu Yousef al-Najjar hospital, one of the few remaining functioning hospitals in Rafah, Gaza’s southernmost city, on … Read more
Steve Albini, the vocalist, guitarist and producer who helmed a series of the most esteemed albums across the US alternative music scene, has died aged 61 from a heart attack suffered at his recording studio. Staff at his studio, Electrical Audio, confirmed the news to Pitchfork. As well as fronting the bands Big Black, Rapeman … Read more
Israel’s national security minister presented himself before the television cameras to make a statement on Sunday, shortly after leaving a meeting with the country’s prime minister. Invoking divine support, Itamar Ben-Gvir said he had “warned the prime minister that if God forbids it, Israel will not enter a ceasefire”. He said Benjamin Netanyahu “promised that … Read more
Name: The £28 pain au chocolat. Age: Fresh out of the oven. Appearance: Extra-large, flaky, cuboid-ish. But it’s a pain au chocolat, right? Yes, recently launched at the Philippe Conticini bakery in Kensington, west London. They also do an XXL croissant – your choice. And they’re bigger than normal? The XXL croissant weighs 1.5kg. Wow. … Read more
Senior British government officials have congratulated the newly appointed head of the Ugandan army, a man accused of torture, in a move that has been called “absurd” and “disappointing”. Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, Uganda’s new chief of defence forces and son of President Yoweri Museveni, received a congratulatory letter from Britain’s most senior military officer, Adm … Read more
Natalie Elphicke, who has become Labour’s newest MP after her shock defection from the Conservatives, has a track record that places her firmly on the right of British politics. A lawyer who specialised in housing policy, she succeeded her now former husband – the disgraced former Tory Charlie Elphicke – as the MP for Dover. … Read more
Russia’s defence attache is an “undeclared military intelligence officer” who will be expelled from the UK amid an escalation of sanctions, the home secretary has said. James Cleverly also announced on Wednesday the removal of diplomatic status for several Russian-owned premises and told MPs the moves followed a pattern of “malign activity” across Britain and … Read more
Re the treatment of refugees in the UK (Report, 2 May), I work in Germany in a government-run institution for newly arrived asylum seekers. The initial processing involves an interview establishing the person’s name, nationality and languages spoken, and explaining what will happen in the centre (with help from translators). They also get health checks … Read more
The EU has reached a deal to seize profits from Russia’s frozen assets to fund weapons and aid for Ukraine within months. EU senior diplomats meeting on Wednesday agreed a compromise on using the estimated €4.4bn windfall profits to aid Ukraine, smoothing over a dispute about taxation and management costs in Belgium, the country where … Read more