‘Stranded’: Palestinians who were in Israel on 7 October 2023 are suspended between exile and war 23. November 2025 (15:00) Unable to reunite with their families in Gaza due to the closed border, Palestinian workers have spent two years in a refugee camp at Nablus stadiumInside a dim locker room at the Nablus municipal stadium, in the occupied West Bank, the television rarely goes dark, streaming day and night the relentless news from Gaza. Gathered in front of it are a group of men from Khan Younis. For more than two years, they have lived in this stadium converted into a refugee camp, their lives suspended between exile and the war they watched on a screen.They are mostly construction workers who were in Israel on the morning of 7 October 2023 when Hamas launched its attack. As Israel rounded up Palestinians from Gaza, they fled to the West Bank, where they remain – cut off from wives and children living in makeshift tents inside the strip. With very few exceptions, civilians are not currently allowed in or out of Gaza. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Labor has brushed aside concerns over the social media ban. But what if it doesn’t work as promised? 23. November 2025 (15:00) If Meta, the world’s biggest social media company, expects problems after a year of preparation, then what should the rest of us be expecting?Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastOne year ago this week, Labor introduced its social media ban for under 16s, ramming it through parliament within seven days. Passing on the final sitting day of 2024, the contentious bill controversially only received a four-hour inquiry, such was the keenness of both major parties to speed it through parliament.A year later, just 19 days before the laws come into effect on 10 December, the government was still adding new platforms to the list of tech companies to face up to $50m fines if they fail to ban children from their services. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Labor advances universal childcare plan with new laws to allow collection of data from private operators 23. November 2025 (15:00) Exclusive: Jason Clare says new powers will ensure information is ‘accurate, comprehensive and representative’ to help government deliver ‘evidence-based reforms’Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastLabor is quietly advancing plans for universal childcare in Australia, with new laws to require private operators to hand over sensitive commercial data needed to design a new national system.Anthony Albanese wants a dramatic expansion in quality childcare services to form part of his political legacy and has pledged to move forward with the plans this term. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Architect George Clarke calls for boycott of firms criticised by Grenfell inquiry 23. November 2025 (15:00) TV personality wants homeowners and businesses to shun ‘dishonest’ firms Arconic, Kingspan and CelotexGrenfell United and the TV architect George Clarke are calling on businesses and homeowners to take a “moral decision” and boycott the companies criticised in the Grenfell inquiry for “systematic dishonesty”.Clarke, best known for his series George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces, said he had made the decision not to use products from Arconic, Kingspan and Celotex, three companies that were heavily criticised in the findings of the Grenfell inquiry published last year and who have continued to deny wrongdoing. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
London exhibition to explore mental health and social bonds in ‘polarised’ times 23. November 2025 (15:00) Artworks to go on display in January at Bethlem Museum of the Mind, in the world’s oldest psychiatric hospitalFrom images of empty community rooms and a colourful canvas crammed with caricatures to a baby linked by an umbilical-like cord to a seated stranger, artworks on the subject of mental health are to go on display in an exhibition that examines social bonds against the backdrop of today’s polarised times.Artists have long drawn on their own experiences of mental ill health. Staged at the Bethlem Museum of the Mind, in the world’s oldest psychiatric hospital, in south-east London, Kindred will explore the power of communities to make people feel comforted as well as isolated. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
UK launches critical minerals strategy to reduce dependency on China 23. November 2025 (14:18) Standoff between China and EU over supply of chips for car industry underlines value of sector requiring huge financial investmentKeir Starmer has announced a critical minerals and rare earths strategy to build resilience against China, which has a stranglehold on supplies of materials including magnets critical to everything from car doors to fridges.“For too long, Britain has been dependent on a handful of overseas suppliers, leaving our economy and national security exposed to global shocks,” the prime minister said. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Bereaved parents face ‘harrowing’ delays for NHS postmorterms 23. November 2025 (14:03) Shortage of specialist doctors means service is in crisis, says chair of Royal College of Pathologists committeeBereaved parents are enduring “harrowing” delays of more than a year to find out why their child died because the NHS has too few specialist doctors to perform postmortems.The shortage of paediatric and perinatal pathologists is revealed in a report by the Royal College of Pathologists published on Sunday. It warns that the situation is “dire”, services in some parts of the UK have “totally collapsed” and families are paying the price.37% of consultant posts in the UK are lying vacant.The UK has just 52 paediatric and perinatal consultants and 13 are due to retire in the next five years.Just 3% of consultants think current staffing levels are enough to sustain their service.Only 13 resident doctors are in training to become consultants in the specialty. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
French winemakers ‘battle for survival’ as minister prepares for crisis talks 23. November 2025 (14:02) Vineyard owners say sales slump, Trump tariffs and worst harvest in 70 years have put producers in danger of closureFrench winemakers are often accused of viewing the glass as half empty. Dire warnings about the state of the sector – one of the three pillars of the country’s economy – are a hardy perennial blamed on everything from geopolitics to a drop in the number of drinkers.Before a crisis meeting with the agriculture minister on Monday, vineyard owners say an unprecedented series of setbacks, including some of the worst harvests in 70 years, has left many of them on their last legs. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Trump’s former ‘drone guy’ Dan Driscoll is the unlikely point man for the Ukraine peace deal 23. November 2025 (14:00) The army secretary has little in his résumé to suggest he can end the war between Russia and UkraineLittle in Dan Driscoll’s résumé – past or present – suggests he has the qualifications to understand the often-tortured and bloody history of relations between Russia and Ukraine.A former investment banker with a degree in business administration, the current US army secretary’s main calling card for a prominent role in the Trump administration may be a friendship with JD Vance dating from when they were at Yale Law School together. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Epstein survivor condemns Trump for calling file release fight a ‘hoax’ 23. November 2025 (13:00) Danielle Bensky, who was abused by Jeffrey Epstein, says president was ‘incredibly disrespectful’ in recent commentsA survivor of Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse has condemned Donald Trump for dismissing the victims’ fight for transparency as a “hoax”.Shortly after signing a bill to release the Epstein files, the US president posted a lengthy social media rant accusing Democrats of weaponising the scandal against him. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
