X to block UK access to accounts linked to terrorist groups in Ofcom agreement 15. May 2026 (14:32) Media regulator announces commitments by Elon Musk’s platform to crack down on terrorist and hate contentElon Musk’s X platform has promised to block UK access to accounts linked to banned terrorist groups under an agreement with the communications regulator to crack down on terrorist and hate content.X will also review suspected illegal terrorist and hate content within 48 hours and seek expert advice on how to handle user reports of such content. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Health agency names two schools affected by Berkshire meningitis outbreak 15. May 2026 (14:27) Students from Reading Blue Coat school, and Highdown secondary school and sixth form centre receiving treatmentTwo schools attended by pupils receiving treatment for meningitis have been named amid an outbreak of the infection in Berkshire which has caused the death of a student.The patients attend Reading Blue Coat school and Highdown secondary school and sixth form centre, according to the UK Health Security Agency. Their close contacts have been offered antibiotics as a precaution. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Men in the mirror: Trump and Xi’s suits put ‘chameleon effect’ to test in Beijing 15. May 2026 (14:00) Mirroring of each other’s attire may signal alignment – though the look wasn’t a huge departure for either leaderWhen Donald Trump and Xi Jinping met for a welcome ceremony in Tiananmen Square this week with the world’s gaze on them, they mirrored one another in strikingly similar suits.Both were blue, single-breasted with flap pockets. Both had two buttons with only the top one done up. Both wore red ties. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Minnesota Democratic lawmakers stage sit-in over gun violence protection bill 15. May 2026 (13:33) Representative Samantha Sencer-Mura leads action after Republican speaker rescinds promise to bring bill to vote Democratic state representatives in Minnesota staged an overnight sit-in in their house chamber on Thursday after the Republican speaker failed to put a gun violence prevention bill up for a vote.Samantha Sencer-Mura, a Democratic representative from Minneapolis, first announced the plan on Wednesday from the floor of the state’s house of representatives, giving speaker Lisa Demuth, a candidate for governor, 24 hours to give the bill a vote before the sit-in would start. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
UAE to complete second oil pipeline bypassing strait of Hormuz by 2027 15. May 2026 (13:28) State oil company fast-tracks previously undisclosed project, which is expected to double export capacityBusiness live – latest updatesThe United Arab Emirates has announced it will complete a new oil pipeline bypassing the strait of Hormuz by next year to secure its future crude exports against the threat of disruption.The current blockade of the vital waterway, through which 20% of oil and seaborne gas flowed before the Iran war, is approaching the 11-week mark, sending energy prices soaring around the world and throttling Gulf economies. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Ebola outbreak kills 65 people in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo 15. May 2026 (13:15) Concerns raised that cases were caused by a new strain of the virus as African health officials race to coordinate and contain the infectionAn outbreak of Ebola has killed 65 people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, according to African health officials.There have been 246 suspected cases of the deadly haemorrhagic fever reported so far in Ituri province, which shares borders with Uganda and South Sudan. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
ICE violently arrested a US citizen and filmed it ‘like a documentary’, videos reveal 15. May 2026 (13:00) Exclusive: DHS made social media posts out of a protester’s arrest at gunpoint. Christian Cerna speaks out about the lengthy prosecution that derailed his lifeChristian Cerna, 28, was driving with his partner and their two young children through Los Angeles, when two vehicles rammed his car and a group of men jumped out and trained their guns on them.It was 11 June 2025, and as Cerna exited his vehicle with his hands raised, he realized the masked men weren’t street criminals as he initially feared. They were Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
The Federal Reserve’s independence is hanging by a thread in the age of Trump 15. May 2026 (13:00) The president’s ultimate goal is to push the Fed – among other independent US institutions – to bend to his willJerome Powell, who stepped down this week as chair of the Federal Reserve, had his hits and misses. The Fed was late to react as prices started rising when the Covid pandemic abated, but they eventually acted forcefully and achieved the most rare of feats: a “soft landing”, curbing inflation without sparking a recession or damaging employment.Strangely, given the chaotic era of pandemic and tariffs that coincided with Powell’s time as chair, monetary policy may not define his legacy. Powell’s most lasting accomplishment will most likely be his outspoken efforts to defend the independence of the Fed from an assault by the imperial presidency of Donald Trump. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Ukraine attacks Russia with drones after suffering three days of massive strikes 15. May 2026 (12:21) Large-scale attack on Russian regions and huge oil refinery comes after 24 were killed when missile hit flats in KyivUkraine has launched a large-scale long-range drone attack targeting several regions in Russia including the huge Ryazan oil refinery, after three days of massive strikes by Moscow against Ukraine.Kyiv’s attack on Friday followed a series of drone and missile attacks on Ukraine, including on the capital, Kyiv, where a cruise missile hit an apartment block on Thursday, killing 24 people including three children. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Weather tracker: Furnace Creek sizzles as snow sweeps Siberia in a week of extremes 15. May 2026 (12:04) Record heat in North and Central America coincides with egg-sized hailstones in eastern ChinaExtreme weather across several parts of the world this week has brought record-breaking temperatures to Honduras, North America and Indonesia.Honduras smashed its all-time May maximum temperature record earlier this month – only for it to be broken again on 13 May in Choluteca, known as the furnace of Central America. Temperatures climbed to 42.2C (107.9F), surpassing the previous record of 42.1C. With intense heat forecast to persist over the coming weeks, more records are expected to fall. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
