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The US supreme court is letting the Trump administration temporarily freeze $65m in teacher-training grants that would promote diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives in a 5-4 decision. The decision came down on Friday afternoon, with five of the court’s conservatives – Justices Amy Coney Barrett, Neil Gorsuch, Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Brett Kavanaugh … Read more
Key events Show key events only Please turn on JavaScript to use this feature We also have a big read on the floods that have devastated western Queensland and which are now spreading to north-western NSW. The Bureau of Meteorology said yesterday that the flooding had “severely impacted” more catchments spanning about 1m sq km … Read more
More than 60 of Reform UK’s council candidates standing in this year’s elections are defectors from the Conservative party, according to research from the Labour party. Reform has also selected an ex-Conservative for its candidate in the upcoming Runcorn and Helsby byelection, while the party’s mayoral candidate for Greater Lincolnshire is the former Tory MP … Read more
Texas on Friday reported another large jump in measles cases and hospitalizations, leaving the US with more than double the number of measles cases so far this year than it saw in all of 2024. Other states with active outbreaks – defined as three or more cases – include New Mexico, Kansas, Ohio and Oklahoma. … Read more
Donald Trump on Friday approved an emergency declaration for Kentucky as the central US braces for what experts in the region have warned could be a “generational” flooding event, as severe spring storms that have killed at least seven continue to wreak havoc. Millions are affected across a swath of the US stretching from Texas … Read more
Donald Trump said he will sign an executive order to extend the TikTok ban deadline. This is the second time the president will have delayed the ban or sale of the social media app, and will punt the deadline to 75 days from now. The TikTok deal “requires more work to ensure all necessary approvals … Read more
Israel has restarted ground operations in the northern Gaza Strip and killed at least 25 people in airstrikes on the southern city of Khan Younis in what it says is a renewed military campaign aimed at pressuring Hamas into releasing Israeli hostages. At least 25 people were killed in the attack on Khan Younis early … Read more
The wife of a Maryland man who was mistakenly deported to a notorious prison in El Salvador joined dozens of supporters at a rally before a court hearing on Friday, where his lawyers will ask a federal judge to order the Trump administration to return him to the US. Jennifer Vasquez Sura, a US citizen, … Read more
China has hit back hard against Donald Trump’s “bullying” tariffs, raising fears that the escalating trade war could trigger a global recession and prompting fresh turmoil in financial markets. Beijing retaliated on Friday with punitive 34% additional tariffs on all goods imported from the US – mirroring the US decision and exacerbating a sell-off on … Read more
The alleged Chinese spy Yang Tengbo gave advice on drafting private letters from the Duke of York to China’s president, Xi Jinping, a former senior adviser to Prince Andrew told a special immigration tribunal. Dominic Hampshire, who worked for Andrew from 2019-22, said Andrew had “always had a communication channel” with Xi which was “accepted” … Read more