MI5 issues spy alert to UK universities over Chinese front company stealing research 30. September 2026 (15:00) Security service says academics should stop taking grants from and working with firm backed by China’s intelligence serviceMI5 China alert will send chill through UK’s cash-strapped universitiesChina’s intelligence service used a front company to pay grants to British universities and steal crucial research about technology projects, MI5 said on Wednesday in a rare public espionage warning.Britain’s domestic security service said researchers and academics should cease work with the China General Technology Research Institute (CGTRI), sometimes also known as the China Academy of General Technology (CAGT). MI5 believes it poses a “significant threat”. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
UK-France ‘one in one out’ deal to expire on Thursday, say sources 30. September 2026 (14:52) Deal aimed at deterring small boat arrivals set to end as talks stall over French demand for EU-wide schemeUK politics live – latest updatesThe UK government’s “one in one out” deal with France, which was supposed to help deter small boat arrivals, is expected to expire on Thursday, government sources have said.Negotiations to extend the deal have stalled over French demands for a Europe-wide deal instead, and a reluctance to scale up the numbers of people exchanged between the two countries. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Europe ‘faces window of vulnerability until 2030,’ Dutch chief of defence warns - Europe live 30. September 2026 (14:50) Chief of defence of the Dutch armed forces, Gen Onno Eichelsheim, says Europe urgently needs to learn lessons from UkraineMeanwhile, Ukraine’s total war costs will reach $155bn this year and the government is struggling to close a $27bn funding gap to ensure it can still conduct combat operations at the start of 2027, prime minister Sergii Koretskyi said.Koretskyi said the government planned to cover $7bn of the gap by postponing expenditure, reallocating money from other parts of the budget and cutting some costs, and was in talks with partners on how to cover the remaining $20bn, Reuters reported. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Israeli minister claims ‘terrorist’ wanted to crash plane after Tel Aviv-bound flight’s emergency landing – latest 30. September 2026 (14:48) Israeli media say incident, which raised fears of possible hijacking, stemmed from feud between plane’s two pilotsFull report: Israel-bound passenger plane makes emergency landing in Saudi Arabia In a video from inside the plane that was reposted by Israeli social media users, one passenger, blood dripping from an open wound on his head, pleaded for assistance and said they were descending into Saudi Arabia, with which Israel has no diplomatic relations.“We are here during an attack on the plane. We just subdued the terrorists and are preparing to land,” the man said in Hebrew. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Burundi agrees to receive ‘third-country’ migrant deportees from US 30. September 2026 (14:47) Burundi joins several other African nations in accepting people deported under Trump’s hardline policyBurundi has agreed to join a clutch of other African nations in receiving migrants from other countries deported from the US under Donald Trump’s hardline immigration policy.However, the authorities in Bujumbura, the country’s economic capital, said Burundi will only accept those not accused of crime or terrorism links, said Nancy Ninette Mutoni, a spokesperson for the country’s president, Évariste Ndayishimiye. Tuesday’s announcement gave no details of numbers, timing or financial details. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
