UK News
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Students occupy UK university campuses in protest against Gaza conflictIn a show of solidarity with Palestinians affected by the conflict in Gaza, students in Leeds, Newcastle, and Bristol have taken to occupying university campuses, setting up tents outside keyRead More...
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UK's fastest growing grocers revealed: Ocado, Lidl, and M&S lead the packAccording to industry data released by market researcher NIQ, online supermarket Ocado, discount giant Lidl, and upscale food retailer Marks & Spencer emerged as the UK's top-performingRead More...
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London thunderstruck: Met Office issues storm warning amid 'biblical' downpourLondon was struck by a powerful thunderstorm early on Thursday morning, described by many as "biblical" in its intensity. The Met Office issued dual yellow weather alerts, cautioningRead More...
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Minister for Europe meets with Evgenia Kara-Murza regarding Vladimir Kara-Murza's imprisonmentThe Minister of State (Europe), Nusrat Ghani MP, recently held discussions with Evgenia Kara-Murza concerning the detention of her husband, Vladimir Kara-Murza.Read More...
Culture
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Pippa Middleton and James Matthews unveil lodge at Bucklebury FarmPippa Middleton and her billionaire husband James Matthews have inaugurated the lodge at Bucklebury Farm Park in Berkshire, offering a venue for parties, events, and Pilates sessions.Read More...
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Five British museums nominated for prestigious arts prizeMuseums across Skipton, Dundee, Manchester, and London are vying for the esteemed title of Museum of the Year 2024.Read More...
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Gustav Klimt portrait sells for £25.7 million at Vienna auctionA long-lost portrait by Gustav Klimt, depicting a young woman, fetched a staggering 30 million euros (£25.7 million) at an auction held in Vienna on Wednesday.Read More...
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Rishi Sunak: remembering those lost in terror attackIn his Passover message to the Jewish community, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak acknowledges the somber reality that "for too many families, there will be empty seats" at the Seder table thisRead More...
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Co-op Live: Manchester's new arena opens with high capacity and ambitionsA monumental addition to Manchester's entertainment landscape, the new £365m Co-op Live arena is poised to claim the title of the largest indoor arena in the UK. Nestled beside ManchesterRead More...
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Brontë birthplace unveils open day prior to renovationThe birthplace of the renowned Brontë sisters is set to welcome visitors for a special glimpse inside before embarking on a significant refurbishment.Read More...
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Taylor Swift's 'The Tortured Poets Department' smashes Spotify recordTaylor Swift's latest album, "The Tortured Poets Department," has shattered Spotify's record for the most-streamed album in a single day, the platform has announced. Not only did Swift'sRead More...
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Historic London pub, linked to Royalty, ravaged by fire: a heartbreaking lossA renowned London pub, steeped in history dating back possibly to the 16th century, has suffered extensive damage in a devastating fire. The Burn Bullock, a grade II-listed establishmentRead More...
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Salvator Rosa painting stolen from Oxford, recovered in Romania, and returned to UKA painting valued at EUR 2 million, stolen from an art gallery at Oxford University approximately four years ago, has been recovered in Romania and returned to UK judicial authorities,Read More...
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Plans to demolish former Museum of London site put on pauseA last-minute intervention from Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove has halted plans to demolish the former Museum of London site.Read More...
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June’s London Fashion Week returns with fresh conceptThe British Fashion Council has unveiled an innovative approach for the upcoming London Fashion Week in June, aiming to spark a cultural phenomenon. Set to take place fromRead More...
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London's inaugural Taiwanese culture festival explores island's identity and historyLondon's vibrant Notting Hill district is about to experience a taste of Taiwanese culture with the launch of the 16-day Taiwan Festival on Friday, April 12.Read More...
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Soho showcase: The Art of Banksy unveils London's largest collectionThe largest collection of original Banksy artworks is set to make its debut in London's Soho, featuring over 150 pieces from the enigmatic Bristol-based artist. Opening at 100 CharingRead More...
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World News
Photo by Spana charity
The Foreign Office has urged all British nationals to leave Syria in the wake of the latest unrest unless they have a pressing need to remain in the country.
In updated travel advice, the Foreign Office said that following the "rapid deterioration" in the security situation Britons should get out while commercial flights were still available.
"Given the situation on the ground, it is highly unlikely that the British Embassy would be able to provide a normal consular service in the event of a further breakdown of law and order and increased violent civil disorder," it said.
"British nationals should therefore plan accordingly."
Allies should seek United Nations approval to arm and train Libyan rebels, a former head of the UK armed forces said, as Muammar Gaddafi's forces pounded the city of Misrata with rocket fire.
Lord Dannatt said that while the Nato-led air strikes had enjoyed some success, equipping the opposition to fight effectively was vital to prevent a vacuum forming that could be filled by extremists.
And the ex-chief of the defence staff said the dictator's illegitimacy as leader had been firmly underlined by the apparent use of controversial cluster munitions against residential areas.
Five civilians were killed on Saturday in a 30-minute barrage of shelling in Misrata - the only western city still in rebel hands - that damaged a dairy factory and sent up a column of black smoke.
Frustration has grown among residents of the port, where Gaddafi's troops have stepped up their siege. One doctor hit out at Nato for failing to stop the deadly assault, saying: "We have not seen any protection of civilians. Nato air strikes are not enough and the proof is that there are civilians killed every day here."
The criticism was echoed in rebel stronghold Benghazi, where rebel spokesman Abdel-Hafidh Ghoga said: "There's no more room for hesitation or for not standing with determination against what is happening in Misrata and other Libyan cities, because the destruction that Muammar Gaddafi is causing in Libyan cities is great and extensive."
Photo by danmags100
British efforts to help Japan are gathering pace as specialist teams begin their work in the country following the devastating earthquake and tsunami.
A search and rescue team organised by the Department for International Development (DfID) has arrived at its base 20km outside Ofunato in the north east, where they are due to join in the international search for survivors at first light.
The group, made up of 63 UK fire service search and rescue specialists, two rescue dogs and a medical support team, are set to work alongside American counterparts and co-ordinate their operation with local teams.
Meanwhile, 12 Britons and two New Zealanders from the International Rescue Corps (IRC) are in place to assist in the humanitarian effort.
photo by British Red Cross
The family of a British woman missing after the New Zealand earthquake have spoken of their agonising wait to learn whether she was among the dead.
Susan Selway was in her fourth floor office in the Canterbury Television building, which was struck when tremors tore through the city of Christchurch on the South Island earlier this week.
Ms Selway, a clinical psychologist who celebrated her 50th birthday this month, was working in the building temporarily after her previous office was badly damaged in the last earthquake to hit the area in September.
Her husband, financial adviser Richard Austin, rushed to her workplace after hearing the news and waited all night with his brother David in the hope of seeing her walk out of the building alive.
Meanwhile, her father Malcolm Selway, 72, from Henley-on-Thames in Oxfordshire, had just returned to Britain after a trip to New Zealand but took the first plane back there to look for his daughter.
US stocks finished with modest gains after the government reported a sharp drop in the unemployment rate. Information technology companies led stocks higher.
The Labour Department said that the unemployment rate dropped to 9% in January, the lowest rate since April 2009. But in a separate survey, the government said 36,000 new jobs were created last month, the fewest in four months.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 30 points, or 0.2%, to close at 12,092. The S&P 500 index rose 3 points, or 0.3%, to 1,310. The Nasdaq gained 15 points, or 0.6%, to 2,769.
Britain has called on Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to "listen urgently" to protesters as pressure for him to quit intensified.
Foreign Secretary William Hague delivered the message after tens of thousands of demonstrators again defied a government curfew to remain on the streets.
More than 50 people are now said to have been killed and thousands injured in five days of clashes between police and crowds demanding economic, social and democratic reform.
Efforts by Mr Mubarak to contain the crisis and prolong his three-decade reign appeared to be having little success. On Saturday evening he appointed former intelligence chief Omar Suleiman as his new deputy, having dismissed his whole cabinet overnight.
But the army seems unwilling to intervene to quell the uprising, and the US and UK - long-standing allies of the president - have refused to back his regime. America is reviewing its multibillion-dollar aid package for Egypt in light of the violence.
Nobel Peace Prize winner Mohamed ElBaradei, a leading opponent of Mr Mubarak, has returned to the country to join the dissidents but is believed to have been put under house arrest.
The Foreign Office has advised Britons against "all but essential" travel to Cairo, Alexandria, Luxor and Suez, while extra diplomatic staff have been flown out to help those stranded. An estimated 30,000 UK nationals are in the country, but the majority are in the relatively safe Red Sea resorts.
photo fiannafail
Irish Prime Minister Brian Cowen has announced he is standing down as leader of the ruling Fianna Fail party but will remain at the head of the country's government until the March general election.
After more than a week of political turmoil and a string of ministerial resignations, Mr Cowen said the election should be fought on policies not a leadership issue.
"I'm concerned that renewed internal criticism of Fianna Fail is deflecting attention from this important debate," Mr Cowen said.
Photo by Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Russia has stepped up its spying row with Britain, declaring the expulsion of a diplomat from its London Embassy as groundless and unfriendly.
Foreign Secretary William Hague announced that he had requested the diplomat's removal "in response to clear evidence of activities by the Russian intelligence services against UK interests".
The Kremlin responded with the tit-for-tat expulsion of a member of staff from the UK Embassy in Moscow.
The Russian foreign ministry issued a statement declaring itself the injured party, saying: "The British side took an unfriendly step the other day, having groundlessly declared one of our colleagues in our embassy in London persona non grata. We were forced to take an adequate corresponding measure."
The statement described Britain as the "initiator" of the row and voiced regret that it had come at a time when "encouraging trends" had been developing in Anglo-Russian relations.
The UN Security Council is meeting in an emergency session amid rising tensions on the Korean Peninsula and a North Korean warning of a "catastrophe" if South Korea goes ahead with a live-fire drill.
Russia called for the meeting, and Moscow wants the UN's most powerful body to adopt a statement calling on North Korea and South Korea "to exercise maximum restraint".
The North has warned of "catastrophe" if the South goes ahead with plans to conduct one-day, live-fire drills by Tuesday on the same front-line island the North shelled last month as the South conducted a similar exercise.
The US government is to sue BP for costs and damages resulting from the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
The firm is among eight companies named by the US Justice Department in a lawsuit filed in a New Orleans court.
On April 20, an explosion at BP's Deepwater Horizon rig killed 11 workers and led to the worst environmental disaster the region has ever seen.
The US administration is calling for the eight named firms to be held liable without limitation for all costs and damages under the Oil Pollution Act.
The lawsuit is also calling for the companies - which includes drilling rig operator Transocean and its insurer QBE Underwriting - to be held accountable under the Clean Water Act.
The US administration alleges that safety regulations were violated prior to the blast. It claims that the defendants failed to use the best available drill and neglected to adequately monitor conditions at the well.