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‘Evacuate immediately’: New Mexico villagers told to flee fast-moving fire

Residents of Ruidoso told to leave belongings behind as South Fork fire bears down of community of 7,000

Residents of a village in southern New Mexico were ordered to flee their homes on Monday evening without taking time to grab any belongings due to a fast-moving wildfire.

“GO NOW: Do not attempt to gather belongings or protect your home. Evacuate immediately,” officials with Ruidoso, a village home to 7,000 people, said on its website and in social media posts at about 7pm.

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© Photograph: Kaylee Greenlee Beal/Reuters

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© Photograph: Kaylee Greenlee Beal/Reuters

Biden set to open citizenship pathway for spouses and children of US citizens

Immigrants who have resided in US for 10 years would be able to pursue legal status while living in country

Joe Biden was set to announce a new action opening a pathway to citizenship for the undocumented spouses and children of US citizens, a sweeping initiative that could provide relief to hundreds of thousands of “mixed-status” families in the country, according to senior administration officials.

Biden is expected to announce the new actions at a White House event marking the 12th anniversary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or Daca, which presently shields from deportation nearly 530,000 undocumented immigrants brought to the US as children.

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© Photograph: Elizabeth Frantz/Reuters

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© Photograph: Elizabeth Frantz/Reuters

Deadland review – melancholy horror smuggles deep themes across the US-Mexico border

Lance Larson’s feature debut uses horror tropes to tackle themes of racism, immigration and post-traumatic stress disorder

Screened at SXSW last year but still relevant given the ongoing debate about immigration in the US, an especially live issue in election year, this offers a border-set ghost story that’s haunting in more ways than one. For a start, it’s not especially gory or scary; the tone is more melancholy and guilt-freighted, offering a study of masculine and, in particular, paternal anxiety that’s aggravated by divided loyalties. The main protagonist is Angel Waters (Roberto Urbina), a Mexican-American border guard who is the head of his small patrol unit not far from El Paso.

The son of a Mexican father he never knew and a white American woman who has recently died, Angel is now devoted to his pregnant wife Hannah (Kendal Rae, achieving a lot with a thinly written part); he only wants to do the best he can for the people who cross the border every day, even if he’s seldom thanked for sometimes saving their lives. For example, one day he shouts warnings in Spanish that the river isn’t safe to a lone stranger (Julio Cesar Cedillo) he spots trying to cross, and minutes later the man is swept away.

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© Photograph: Film PR handout undefined

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© Photograph: Film PR handout undefined

US avocado inspectors stop work in Mexican state over ‘security situation’

Mango inspections also suspended ‘until further notice’ in state troubled by gang violence, but USDA says produce already in transit not affected

The US paused safety inspections for avocados and mangos from the Mexican state of Michoacán due to a security incident involving US department of agriculture (USDA) staff, a spokesperson for the agency said.

The spokesperson said avocados and mangos already in transit from Michoacán would not be affected but further inspections were suspended “until further notice”.

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© Photograph: Mike Blake/Reuters

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© Photograph: Mike Blake/Reuters

Megachurch pastor and ex-Trump adviser admits child sexual abuse

Robert Morris, of Greenway church in Dallas, accused of sexual abuse of girl in 1980s, beginning when she was 12

A Texas evangelical pastor and former spiritual adviser to Donald Trump has confessed to sexually assaulting a young girl in his past.

Robert Morris, a founding pastor of the Dallas-based Gateway megachurch, was accused by an Oklahoma woman of sexual abuse in the 1980s, beginning when she was 12 and continuing until the age of 16.

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© Photograph: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters

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© Photograph: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters

Row as Nato chief hints at talks to increase availability of nuclear weapons

Jens Stoltenberg accused of ‘escalation of tension’ as he warns of growing threat from Russia and China

The Nato secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, has indicated that the military alliance is considering whether to increase the number of available nuclear weapons, triggering warnings from experts about the possibility of a new arms race.

Stoltenberg said Nato could, for the first time, face a significant nuclear threat from two fronts – Russia and China – and that it may be necessary to increase the number of deployable warheads as a deterrent.

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© Photograph: Omar Havana/Getty Images

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© Photograph: Omar Havana/Getty Images

Stanford disappoints critics of fossil fuel donations by hiring PR firm with big oil ties

University hires Brunswick Group amid anger from campus organizers at its sustainability school’s funding

Stanford University’s sustainability school has hired a public relations firm to address “potential reputational challenges” amid concern from campus activists over the institution’s extensive ties with fossil fuel companies.

However, that PR firm, the Brunswick Group, has itself faced criticism for working with oil and gas companies, disappointing the university’s climate advocates. Brunswick says it is “vital to engage with companies in the most complex sectors to decarbonize”.

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© Photograph: Jeff Chiu/AP

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© Photograph: Jeff Chiu/AP

New York military veteran comes out in obituary: ‘I was gay all my life’

Colonel Edward Thomas Ryan, who died at age 85, will be buried next to his life partner Paul Cavagnaro

A US military veteran who died earlier this month came out as gay in an obituary published after his death.

The obituary in the Albany Times-Union tells the story of Colonel Edward Thomas Ryan, a decorated army officer who served in the Vietnam war and was also a fireman in his hometown, Rensselaer, New York. He died on 1 June at the age 85.

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© Photograph: Legacy.com

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© Photograph: Legacy.com

Netanyahu’s ‘war cabinet’ had little power – but its demise does him real damage | Alon Pinkas

It represented a forum he could conveniently castigate when things went wrong. Now the blame can only go in one direction

There is very little drama in Netanyahu’s decision, or rather bland and laconic statement that he is dissolving the “war cabinet” that he himself formed on 11 October 2023. Constitutionally and in terms of affecting policy, the decision is a Seinfeld decision: it’s about nothing. The constitutionally authoritative body – the one with real power – is the security cabinet. The war cabinet was a convenient and circumstantial political invention. But Netanyahu rival Benny Gantz’s recent withdrawal from the government made the forum redundant in terms of policymaking, and politically explosive, since the extreme rightwing ministers now demanded to join.

The dissolution of the war cabinet looks like an important development. It isn’t. Had Winston Churchill dissolved his war cabinet in January 1941, eight months after he assembled it in May 1940, that would have been significant. This is not the same. Churchill’s war cabinet, as Neville Chamberlain’s before him in 1939, or even David Lloyd George’s war cabinet during the first world war in 1917, then called the war policy committee, had clearly defined constitutional and statutory powers and authority. The war cabinet that Netanyahu formed in the panic, disarray and disorientation that ensued in the days after 7 October patently lacked those constitutional powers.

Alon Pinkas served as Israel’s consul general in New York from 2000 to 2004. He is now a columnist for Haaretz

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© Photograph: Amos Ben Gershom/Israel Gpo/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock

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© Photograph: Amos Ben Gershom/Israel Gpo/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock

Why is Trump cozying up to America’s most powerful business leaders? | Robert Reich

Stocks are at near record levels. That’s not enough for some corporate CEOs, who want more giant tax cuts

The Business Roundtable is an association of more than 200 CEOs of America’s biggest corporations. It likes to think of itself as socially responsible.

Last Wednesday, its chair, Joshua Bolten, told reporters that his group planned to drop “eight figures” while “putting its full weight behind protecting and strengthening tax reform”.

Robert Reich, a former US secretary of labor, is a professor of public policy at the University of California, Berkeley, and the author of Saving Capitalism: For the Many, Not the Few and The Common Good. His newest book, The System: Who Rigged It, How We Fix It, is out now. He is a Guardian US columnist. His newsletter is at robertreich.substack.com

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© Photograph: Michael Reynolds/EPA

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© Photograph: Michael Reynolds/EPA

Greek island searches for missing tourists intensify amid hiking deaths

Six holidaymakers reported dead or missing in nine days as ‘abnormally hot’ weather hits Mediterranean

Search operations to find three missing tourists on two Greek islands have intensified after police announced that two holidaymakers had been found dead on other islands over the weekend.

Rescue teams supported by sniffer dogs, helicopters and drones have been scouring the Cycladic islands of Sikinos and Amorgos for two French women and an American man who went missing last week.

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© Photograph: Freeartist/Getty Images/iStockphoto

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© Photograph: Freeartist/Getty Images/iStockphoto

Washington Post accuses incoming editor of using work of ‘blagger’

Article in US paper claims Robert Winnett, due to join from Telegraph, used material from self-described ‘thief’

The Washington Post has published an investigation that accuses its own future editor of using the work of a self-described blagger who stole private records to order.

Under the headline “Incoming Post editor tied to self-described ‘thief’ who claimed role in his reporting”, the newspaper claimed that Robert Winnett used material from a self-confessed blagger, John Ford, while working as a journalist on the Sunday Times during the 2000s.

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© Photograph: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

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© Photograph: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Boss of US firm given £4bn in UK Covid contracts accused of squandering millions on jets and properties

Exclusive: Rishi Sunak’s team helped fast-track deal with firm founded by Charles Huang, who says contracts generated $2bn profit

In California, state of sunshine and palm trees, a small group of men are locked in a big legal fight over the money made by a US company selling Covid tests to the British government. The founder of Innova Medical Group says his business collected $2bn (£1.6bn) in profits, one of the largest fortunes banked by any medical supplier during the scramble for lifesaving equipment in the early months of the pandemic.

In a storm of claims and counter-claims, Innova’s boss, Charles Huang, is accused by former associates of “squandering” or moving $1bn of those profits, spending lavishly on luxury aircraft, an $18m house in Los Angeles and “homes for his mistresses”.

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© Photograph: Asian Inspiration

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© Photograph: Asian Inspiration

Weather tracker: Mexico and southern Texas brace for torrential rain

Disturbance in south-west Gulf of Mexico has 60% chance of developing into a hurricane over next seven days

A weather system is set to move over southern Texas and Mexico through this week, bringing vast quantities of rain. The National Hurricane Center noted a tropical disturbance in the south-west Gulf of Mexico that has a 60% chance of developing into a tropical depression during the next seven days. This potential tropical depression, essentially an area of low pressure, may be in a spot where the environmental conditions are good for its gradual development, and could end up moving towards hurricane status.

But even if it does not turn into a hurricane, heavy rain is expected to affect southern Texas and Mexico. Southern Texas may experience up to 100mm (3.9in) of rainfall on Wednesday through to Friday, and some Mexican states bordering the gulf may have up to 150mm. Rainfall totals of this magnitude, especially within such a small time frame, can cause catastrophic, life-threatening flooding.

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© Photograph: Brett Coomer/AP

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© Photograph: Brett Coomer/AP

Strong winds hamper crews battling Los Angeles area’s first major fire of the year

Winds blew embers ahead of flames and thwarted efforts by aircraft crews to drop water: ‘It sprays everywhere we don’t need it’

Strong winds were pushing flames through dry brush in mountains along Interstate 5 north of Los Angeles and officials warned residents in the wildfire’s path to be prepared to leave if it explodes in size again.

The blaze, dubbed the Post fire, was just 2% contained Sunday evening. No injuries were reported. The cause was under investigation.

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© Photograph: David Swanson/AFP/Getty Images

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© Photograph: David Swanson/AFP/Getty Images

Indian suspect in plot to kill Sikh separatist extradited to US

Nikhil Gupta accused of plotting to kill US resident who advocated for sovereign Sikh state in northern India

An Indian man suspected by the US of involvement in an unsuccessful plot to kill a Sikh separatist on American soil has been extradited to the US from the Czech Republic, the Czech justice minister said.

Nikhil Gupta has been accused by US federal prosecutors of plotting with an Indian government official to kill Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a US resident who has advocated for a sovereign Sikh state in northern India.

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© Photograph: Ted Shaffrey/AP

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© Photograph: Ted Shaffrey/AP

Jailed US reporter Evan Gershkovich to be tried behind closed doors, says Russian court

First hearing of journalist, who denies charges of spying for the US, scheduled for 26 June in Yekaterinburg

Russia will hold the espionage trial of the detained American reporter Evan Gershkovich, who denies charges of collecting secrets for the CIA, behind closed doors later in June, a court in the city of Yekaterinburg has said.

Gershkovich, 32, was detained by the Federal Security Service (FSB) on 29 March 2023 in a steak house in Yekaterinburg on charges of espionage that carry up to 20 years in prison.

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© Photograph: Tatyana Makeyeva/Reuters

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© Photograph: Tatyana Makeyeva/Reuters

Tony awards 2024: Stereophonic, Merrily We Roll Along and The Outsiders win big

At the annual celebration of Broadway, major acting winners included Jeremy Strong, Daniel Radcliffe and Sarah Paulson

The 77th annual Tony awards were dominated by major wins for shows Stereophonic, Merrily We Roll Along and The Outsiders as well as actors Jeremy Strong and Daniel Radcliffe.

Stereophonic, the most nominated play in Tonys history with 13 nods, picked up five awards including best play. It tells the story of a British-American rock band in the 1970s trying to make an album.

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© Photograph: Brendan McDermid/Reuters

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© Photograph: Brendan McDermid/Reuters

Maryland governor says he will pardon 175,000 marijuana convictions to right ‘historical wrongs’

Wes Moore promises mass pardon of low-level convictions to coincide with Juneteenth holiday marking Black slave emancipation

The governor of the US state of Maryland has promised to issue a mass pardon of 175,000 low-level marijuana convictions.

Wes Moore told the Washington Post in an interview published on Sunday that he would make the mass pardon on Monday morning. He said the timing was meant to coincide with this week’s Juneteenth holiday, a day that marks the emancipation of enslaved African Americans.

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© Photograph: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images

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© Photograph: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images

US tourist found dead on Greek island near Corfu and three others missing

Body of missing man found on Mathraki beach in string of recent cases of Greek island visitors dead or gone missing

A missing US tourist has been found dead on a beach on a small Greek island west of Corfu, local media reported.

The body of the man was found Sunday on a rocky, fairly remote beach on the island of Mathraki by another tourist. He had been reported missing Thursday by his host, a Greek American friend. The tourist had last been seen Tuesday at a cafe in the company of two female tourists who have since left the island.

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© Photograph: tupungato/Getty Images/iStockphoto

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© Photograph: tupungato/Getty Images/iStockphoto

California wildfire forces 1,200 people to evacuate and burns over 16 sq miles

Cause of blaze, named Post Fire, unknown as two buildings damaged and nearby valley and lake reservoir close

A wildfire that forced the evacuation of at least 1,200 people in southern California has burned more than 16 sq miles, officials said Sunday.

The blaze, named the Post Fire, started Saturday and was burning near the Interstate 5 freeway in Gorman, about 62 miles (100km) north-west of Los Angeles, according to the California department of forestry and fire protection.

California state park services evacuated 1,200 people from the Hungry Valley recreation area in Gorman and both Hungry Valley and the Pyramid Lake reservoir were closed as a result of the fire threat, the Los Angeles county fire department said.

The flames broke out at around 1.45pm, authorities said. The cause isn’t known.

No homes were threatened by the fire but two commercial buildings have been damaged, the Los Angeles county fire department said Sunday.

The fire was moving south-east toward Pyramid Lake and crews were constructing perimeter fire lines while aircraft worked against limited visibility to stop the fire’s progress, the fire department said. Fire lines had been built around 2% of the perimeter as of Sunday morning, the Los Angeles county fire department said.

Strong winds will impact firefighting efforts, especially after 8pm, the department said.

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© Photograph: Eric Thayer/AP

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© Photograph: Eric Thayer/AP

The Guardian view on the climate crisis and heatwaves: a killer we need to combat | Editorial

Britain may be chilly, but from Greece to India, people are dying due to record temperatures. The death toll will grow without urgent action

While Britons don jumpers and complain about the unseasonable cold, much of the world has been reeling due to excessive temperatures. India has been in the grip of its longest heatwave in recorded history, with thermometers hitting 50C in some places. Greece closed the Acropolis in the afternoon last week as temperatures hit 43C; never has it seen a heatwave so early in the year. Soaring temperatures in the Sahel and western Africa saw mortuaries in Mali reportedly running short of space this spring, while swathes of Asia suffered in May.

Mexico and the south-west of the US have also endured blistering conditions; it was particularly shocking to hear Donald Trump pledge again to “drill, baby, drill” at a rally that saw supporters taken to hospital with heat exhaustion. These bouts of extreme weather are increasing as the climate crisis worsens. Although the El Niño weather pattern contributed to heatwaves over the last 12 months, they are becoming more frequent, extreme and prolonged thanks to global heating. By 2040, almost half the world’s inhabitants are likely to experience major heatwaves, 12 times more than the historic average.

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© Photograph: Stelios Misinas/Reuters

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© Photograph: Stelios Misinas/Reuters

FAA investigates after Southwest plane drops to ‘within 400ft’ of Pacific Ocean

News comes as US regulators investigate separate incident after Boeing 737 Max 8 plane did a ‘Dutch roll’ in May

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating after a Southwest Airlines flight reportedly plunged to “within 400ft” of the Pacific Ocean during a flight.

A memo distributed to Southwest pilots, obtained by Bloomberg, said that the Boeing 737 Max 8 plunged at a rate of 4,000ft a minute off the coast of Hawaii, coming within hundreds of feet of the ocean before climbing to safety.

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© Photograph: Kiichiro Sato/AP

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© Photograph: Kiichiro Sato/AP

US braces for ‘dangerous’ conditions as heatwave to hit midwest and north-east

Meteorologists warn that heat will spread east through the week, with ‘heat dome’ expected to trap high temperatures

Millions of Americans are facing “dangerously hot conditions”, the National Weather Service said, with a heatwave set to hit the midwest and north-east US from Monday.

Michigan, Ohio and western Pennsylvania were all under heat warnings starting Monday, with alerts in place until Friday evening. Meteorologists warned that the heat will spread east through the week, with a “heat dome” expected to trap high temperatures across New York, Washington DC and Boston.

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© Photograph: Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

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© Photograph: Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

Democrats agree Biden had to act on immigration – but they’re split over his asylum order

Some feel limiting US-Mexico border crossings will protect the country, while others say ‘it violates American values’

Democratic mayors, governors and members of Congress from the south-west to the north-east stood beside Joe Biden at the White House, when he unveiled an executive order temporarily sealing the US-Mexico border to most asylum seekers – the most restrictive immigration policy of his presidency.

“We must face a simple truth,” the US president said. “To protect America as a land that welcomes immigrants, we must first secure the border and secure it now.”

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© Photograph: Hérika Martínez/AFP/Getty Images

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© Photograph: Hérika Martínez/AFP/Getty Images

Biden raises $30m at LA fundraiser featuring Obama, Clooney and Roberts

President speaks with ex-president Barack Obama during campaign event at Peacock Theater on Saturday night

Some of Hollywood’s brightest stars headlined a glitzy fundraiser for President Joe Biden, helping raise what his re-election campaign said was a record $30m-plus and hoping to energize would-be supporters for a November election that they argued was among the most important in the nation’s history.

George Clooney, Julia Roberts and Barbra Streisand were among those who took the stage at the 7,100-seat Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on Saturday night. Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel interviewed Biden and former president Barack Obama, who both stressed the need to defeat former president Donald Trump in a race that’s expected to be exceedingly close.

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© Photograph: Kevin Lamarque/Reuters

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© Photograph: Kevin Lamarque/Reuters

Recovery and interest rate cuts won’t be enough to win Sunak the election

Across the EU and US, strong anti-incumbency sentiment shows voters in west are unhappy with direction of travel

As the weeks roll by, Rishi Sunak’s decision to call the election before he needed to appears ever more curious. Unemployment is up and growth has stalled. NHS waiting lists have increased. There will be better news from this week’s annual inflation figures but it won’t make a difference to voting intentions.

The case for holding on until the autumn was that it would give time for the Bank of England to start cutting interest rates and for recovery to become more firmly embedded. That case now looks all the stronger. Threadneedle Street is not going to deliver a pre-election cut in interest rates this week and by the time it does start to reduce the cost of borrowing, the Conservatives will be long gone.

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© Photograph: Stefan Rousseau/AFP/Getty Images

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© Photograph: Stefan Rousseau/AFP/Getty Images

Sam Bankman-Fried funded a group with racist ties. FTX wants its $5m back

The Guardian reveals FTX trustees, in charge after the CEO’s downfall, allege payments were made with looted funds

Multiple events hosted at a historic former hotel in Berkeley, California, have brought together people from intellectual movements popular at the highest levels in Silicon Valley while platforming prominent people linked to scientific racism, the Guardian reveals.

But because of alleged financial ties between the non-profit that owns the building – Lightcone Infrastructure (Lightcone) – and jailed crypto mogul Sam Bankman-Fried, the administrators of FTX, Bankman-Fried’s failed crypto exchange, are demanding the return of almost $5m that new court filings allege were used to bankroll the purchase of the property.

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© Composite: Reuters, Google Maps

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© Composite: Reuters, Google Maps

The world’s tallest dog is an adorable scaredy cat, his owners say

Kevin, a great dane from Iowa, is the same height as a three-year-old – but can’t stand up to his family’s vacuum cleaner

The Iowa great dane that was recently crowned the world’s tallest dog is the same height as the average three-year-old child – and is often mistaken for being a horse. But Kevin cannot stand up to his household’s vacuum cleaner, which “he is terrified of”, his owners Tracy and Roger Wolfe told Guinness World Records in a recently published interview.

“He won’t let it come within six feet of him!” Tracy Wolfe told the organization known for maintaining a database of more than 40,000 records. “He will jump and run to get away from it.”

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© Photograph: Guinness World Records

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© Photograph: Guinness World Records

Trump gets name of his doctor wrong as he challenges Biden to cognitive test

Gaffe came as 78-year-old Republican presidential candidate sought to bolster his support among Black and Latino voters in Michigan

Donald Trump has made a point in recent months of deriding his rival Joe Biden as being cognitively impaired, mocking the 81-year-old US president for his verbal stumbles and accusing him of falling both up and down stairs.

But people in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.

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© Photograph: Carlos Osorio/AP

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© Photograph: Carlos Osorio/AP

Nine injured including two children in shooting at public splash pad in Michigan

Police say eight-year-old shot in the head is in critical condition; suspect later died by suicide at home

Nine people, including two children, have been shot and wounded at a city-run water park near Detroit in what appeared to be a random attack, police have said.

Two children were among the victims, including an 8-year-old who was shot in the head and is in critical condition, after a shooter opened fire at the Brooklands Plaza Splash Pad park, where families had gathered to escape the summer heat.

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© Photograph: Jeff Kowalsky/AFP/Getty Images

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© Photograph: Jeff Kowalsky/AFP/Getty Images

Sean Combs returns key to New York City after Cassie attack video

Mayor Eric Adams sent letters rescinding key and asking for it to be sent back to City Hall, which received it on 10 June

Sean Combs has returned his key to New York City after a request from mayor Eric Adams in response to the release of a video showing the music mogul nicknamed “Diddy” attacking R&B singer Cassie, officials said Saturday.

The mayor’s office said Combs returned the key after Adams sent letters to the embattled musician’s offices in New York and California on 4 June rescinding the key and asking for it to be sent back to City Hall. The city received the key on 10 June.

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© Photograph: Willy Sanjuan/Invision/AP

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© Photograph: Willy Sanjuan/Invision/AP

Murder conviction of Missouri woman overturned after 43 years in prison

Prison term of Sandra ‘Sandy’ Hemme, 63, longest-known wrongful conviction of a woman in US history

A Missouri woman who was imprisoned for more than 40 years for murder has had her conviction overturned after a judge found “clear and convincing” evidence that she was innocent of the killing in question.

Sandra “Sandy” Hemme, 63, was convicted of – and sentenced to life imprisonment for – the 1980 slaying of Patricia Jeschke, a library worker in St Joseph, Missouri, after Hemme made statements to the police incriminating herself while she was a psychiatric patient.

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© Photograph: AP

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© Photograph: AP

Former White House staffer says Trump called for leaker to be executed

Trump’s demand that 2020 leaker be punished with death raises questions about retribution if he is re-elected

Former White House communications director Alyssa Farah Griffin has disclosed that Donald Trump repeatedly mused out loud about executing people at several meetings while she worked for him during his presidency.

Griffin’s claim, which she made in a podcast recording with Mediaite released on Friday, is likely to add to concerns that a return for Trump to the Oval Office could be characterized primarily by political retribution.

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© Photograph: Gerald Herbert/AP

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© Photograph: Gerald Herbert/AP

Oregon officials rescue 28 people stuck upside down on amusement park ride

Visitors to Portland’s Oaks Amusement Park trapped on AtmosFear for half hour after it unexpectedly stopped

Emergency crews in Oregon rescued 28 people on Friday after they were stuck for about half an hour dangling upside down high on a ride at a century-old amusement park.

Portland fire and rescue said on the social platform X that firefighters worked with engineers at Oaks Park to manually lower the ride, but crews had been preparing to conduct a high-angle rope rescue if necessary. All riders were being evacuated and medically evaluated, and there were no reports of injuries.

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© Photograph: AP

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© Photograph: AP

Biden goes on offense over age issue, wishing Trump a happy 78th birthday

Dogged by age issue, president, 81, is now highlighting Trump’s many peculiarities, from hair style to Bible sales

Taking a line out of Donald Trump’s playbook, Joe Biden offered his rival a tongue-in-cheek birthday greeting on X on Friday, saying: “Happy 78th birthday, Donald. Take it from one old guy to another: Age is just a number.”

The president then coupled his thoughts with a caustic video sarcastically touting “78 of Trump’s historic … ‘accomplishments’” before a Biden re-election campaign spokesperson added: “On behalf of America, our early gift for your 79th: making sure you are never president again.”

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© Photograph: Giuseppe Lami/EPA

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© Photograph: Giuseppe Lami/EPA

Evidence of human trafficking found in murder of four-year-old Louisiana girl

Two suspects in custody for deaths of Callie Burnett, 35, and her daughter Erin; second daughter found alive and brought to hospital

Authorities investigating the abduction and death of a four-year-old Louisiana girl whose body was found in Mississippi say they uncovered evidence of possible human trafficking where the child was discovered.

The evidence included cages meant for small animals, said investigators who had arrested Daniel Callihan, 36, and Victoria Cox, 32, with the killing of Erin Burnett.

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© Photograph: AP

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© Photograph: AP

How the US supreme court could be a key election issue: ‘They’ve grown too powerful’

Grassroots Democrats seek to make ‘judicial activism’ a driving voting issue, but swing voters have other priorities

“Look at me, look at me,” said Martha-Ann Alito. “I’m German, from Germany. My heritage is German. You come after me, I’m gonna give it back to you.”

It was a bizarre outburst from the wife of a justice on America’s highest court. Secretly recorded by a liberal activist, Martha-Ann Alito complained about a neighbour’s gay pride flag and expressed a desire to fly a Sacred Heart of Jesus flag in protest.

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© Photograph: Shawn Thew/EPA-EFE

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© Photograph: Shawn Thew/EPA-EFE

Alaska limits cruise ship passengers in capital city after 1.6m visitors last year

Juneau agrees deal with industry body to curtail visits but critics say it does not go far enough to protect quality of life

Alaska’s capital city is to limit the numbers of cruise ship passengers arriving at the port amid concerns over tourism’s growing impact, but a leading critic of the industry has said further measures to protect Alaskans’ quality of life are needed.

Located on the Gastineau Channel in southern Alaska, Juneau has a population of 32,000 and last year received a record 1.65 million cruise ship passengers – a 23% increase from the previous high.

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© Photograph: Stephen Dorey/Alamy

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© Photograph: Stephen Dorey/Alamy

Accessible and ‘a pleasure to read’: how Apple’s podcast transcriptions came to be

Apple rolled out a feature highly requested by both disabled users and podcast creators. Why did it take so long?

Ren Shelburne was fed up with trying to listen to popular podcast episodes her friends recommended. Shelburne, a photographer with partial hearing loss and an auditory processing condition, remembers struggling to finish a particular episode. It was a specific type of show: too many talking heads, complicated overlapping dialogue and, until recently, no transcription. “Those I’m just so lost on because there’s just too much going on at once,” Shelburne says. She couldn’t follow along, so she couldn’t discuss the show with her friends. “Podcasts are such a big part of pop culture and media at this point. I want to be able to be a part of that conversation.”

Weekly podcast listenership in the United States has more than quadrupled in the past decade, according to Pew Research. For some, though, the medium still feels inaccessible.

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© Photograph: Apple, Guardian Design

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© Photograph: Apple, Guardian Design

When protests cross into antisemitism, it hurts the Palestinian cause | Jo-Ann Mort

The pronounced antisemitism in recent protests is an unsettling phenomenon

Congratulations to the group of radical protesters who claim to be for the Palestinian cause in New York City. They brag online that they “shut down” the Nova exhibit on Wall Street and played out their day of rage throughout the subway system, against some museums and museum directors, and on the New York City streets and even hit some UN missions.

In reality, they didn’t shut down the Nova exhibit. The exhibit will probably get more attendees than anticipated and its presentation has been extended. The exhibit, which originated in Israel, presents oral history and artifacts of the horrific 7 October 2023 attack by Hamas on thousands of mostly generation Z and millennials who were at a rave enjoying music, drugs and dance.

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© Photograph: Councilman Brad Lander

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© Photograph: Councilman Brad Lander

US imposes sanctions on ‘extremist Israeli group’ for blocking Gaza aid

US says Tsav 9 activists have blockaded key crossing, set trucks on fire and injured drivers as hunger spreads inside Gaza

The US state department has imposed sanctions on Tsav 9, “a violent, extremist Israeli group”, for blocking convoys taking humanitarian aid to Gaza, and attacking trucks.

The US said Tsav 9 activists began blockading a key crossing, Kerem Shalom, at the start of the year, and later set trucks on fire and injured drivers and Israel Defense Forces soldiers, as hunger spread inside Gaza.

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© Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images

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© Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images

Kamala Harris after supreme court ruling: ‘Weapons of war have no place on the streets of a civil society’ – live

The supreme court has ruled in favor of a challenge to a federal ban on gun ‘bump stock’ devices

Joe Biden released a statement in light of the supreme court’s latest decision on bump stocks, saying:

“Today’s decision strikes down an important gun safety regulation. Americans should not have to live in fear of this mass devastation.”

“I have used every tool in my administration to stamp out gun violence. I nominated the first Senate-confirmed director of the ATF since 2015. My administration ensured that the ATF has the funding it needs to address emerging firearm technologies like machine-gun conversion devices and ghost guns that pose a unique and acute threat to public safety.

Notwithstanding this decision, my administration will continue to take action. I took on the NRA and signed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act – the most significant gun violence reduction legislation to pass Congress in nearly 30 years. My administration established the first-ever White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, made historic investments in mental health to support people in times of crisis, and expanded background checks to keep firearms out of the wrong hands.”

“Weapons of war have no place on the streets of a civil society. That is why Democrats and Republicans alike supported the federal government banning bump stocks after they were used to fire over 1,000 rounds into a crowded music festival in Las Vegas, killing 60 people in the deadliest mass shooting in American history.

Unfortunately, today’s supreme court ruling strikes down this important, commonsense regulation on devices that convert semiautomatic rifles into weapons that can fire hundreds of bullets per minute.

While the supreme court has once again rolled back progress, we will not allow the victims and survivors of 1 October to be forgotten. President Biden and I fought to pass the most significant gun safety legislation in nearly 30 years, but our work is not done. We are calling on Congress to immediately ban bump stocks. We do not have a moment to spare nor a life to spare.”

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© Composite: AFP via Getty Images, Reuters

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© Composite: AFP via Getty Images, Reuters

Russian warship visit brings cold war frisson to sweltering Havana

Hundreds of Cubans queue for hours to visit naval vessel as tensions rise between Russia and United States

Where once vast American cruise ships disgorged mojito-thirsty holidaymakers into the crumbling streets of old Havana, now lurks the eerie darkness of the Russian nuclear-powered submarine Kazan.

“It looks like a dead whale,” says Adolfo García, as he queues under the scorching sun. The Kazan is off-limits, but García is hoping for a tour of the second of the four Russian naval vessels that have just docked in the Cuban capital, the frigate Admiral Gorshkov.

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© Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images

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© Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images

The Sopranos cast reunites in New York City: ‘Everyone up here, that’s a family’

At the Tribeca premiere of Wise Guy, a documentary about the legendary show, cast and crew laughed and reminisced

David Chase selected Journey’s Don’t Stop Believin’ to soundtrack the final moments of The Sopranos in part because he liked the lyric about how “the movie never ends, it goes on and on and on and on”. (His decision was sealed when he floated the idea to his writers’ room and everyone reacted in uniform revulsion.)

Depressed kingpin Tony’s attempts to self-improve, compromised wife Carmela’s delicate program of rationalization, the capitalistic churning of America – it all continues ad infinitum, and last night at the Tribeca film festival’s premiere of the documentary Wise Guy: David Chase and the Sopranos, it was clear that the saga of New Jersey’s top “waste management consultants” wasn’t over, either.

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© Photograph: Jason Mendez/Getty Images for Tribeca Festival

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© Photograph: Jason Mendez/Getty Images for Tribeca Festival

Tony Bennett’s daughters sue brother over late singer’s estate

Late star’s two daughters claim their brother failed to disclose certain assets during his time as estate trustee

Tony Bennett’s two daughters are suing their brother, alleging he mishandled and failed to disclose some of their father’s assets in his role as trustee of the late singer’s estate.

The lawsuit filed on Wednesday in New York by Antonia and Johanna Bennett accuses D’Andrea “Danny” Bennett of not accounting for all of the proceeds from this year’s sale of Tony Bennett’s catalogue and certain image rights to the brand development firm Iconoclast.

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© Photograph: AFF-USA/REX/Shutterstock

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© Photograph: AFF-USA/REX/Shutterstock

Elon Musk’s $45bn Tesla pay package not a done deal, say legal experts

Although shareholders have backed chief executive’s remuneration deal, doubts remain over whether he will be able to access share-based package

Tesla’s battle to reinstate Elon Musk’s $45bn (£35bn) pay package is far from over, according to legal experts, despite shareholders backing the chief executive’s remuneration deal.

Investors in the electric carmaker re-ratified the pay deal on Thursday after it had been struck down by a judge in the US state of Delaware. The company’s chair, Robin Deynholm has already pledged to “put it back in front of the court”.

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© Photograph: Mario Anzuoni/Reuters

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© Photograph: Mario Anzuoni/Reuters

US bank Wells Fargo fires employees for ‘simulating’ being at their keyboards

Workers were sacked after review found they were ‘creating impression of active work’, says filing

The US bank Wells Fargo has fired more than a dozen workers for alleged “simulation of keyboard activity”, in an apparent attempt to fool their employer into thinking they were working.

The employees were “discharged after review of allegations involving simulation of keyboard activity creating impression of active work”, according to a filing with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.

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© Photograph: De Visu/Alamy

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© Photograph: De Visu/Alamy

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