Burnham stays away from No 10 North wedding after bride’s plea 23. August 2026 (15:56) PM sends video message to newlyweds instead after bride Sarah Burwin asked him not to ‘ruin’ vibe at Heron HouseAndy Burnham fulfilled a bride’s wishes by not turning up for her wedding after she asked him not to spoil her big day as she got married at the building housing No 10 North.Sarah Burwin had pleaded on TikTok in July for Burnham not to work from the building in Manchester that day, which hosts the government’s northern headquarters and the city’s register office. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Arrest warrant issued for wife of Massachusetts officer found dead at home 23. August 2026 (15:25) Woman remains missing more than five days after police found officer she was married to dead in their homeAn arrest warrant has been issued for a mental health advocate who remained missing on Sunday, more than five days after police found the Massachusetts officer she had been married to dead in their home.Karen Solomon, 58, was last spotted in a doorbell camera video, walking down a street in a T-shirt, shorts and flip-flops early Tuesday morning, just minutes after Worcester police officers responded to a call from the home where Kurt Solomon was found dead. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Double jeopardy? Luigi Mangione state case unlikely to proceed, experts say 23. August 2026 (14:00) Defense files motion to dismiss state case after federal guilty plea but prosecutors say they are prepared to litigateAfter Luigi Mangione admitted in Manhattan federal court that he killed UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, most experts believe that the state murder case against is highly unlikely to proceed – though some still see a slim possibility that it may yet happen.Mangione, who pleaded guilty on 14 August to two federal stalking counts, was scheduled for a New York state trial on 8 September for murder and weapons charges in the December 2024 killing. In the wake of Mangione’s surprise plea, legal experts said New York’s state-level double jeopardy law – which means someone cannot be tried twice for the same crime – could derail his local prosecution. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Holding election in wartime would risk destroying Ukraine, says Zelenskyy 23. August 2026 (13:50) President sharply criticises proposal, saying ‘elections right now are a tsunami for the state that will split Ukraine’Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said holding elections in Ukraine during wartime would risk splitting the country at a time when Russia is amassing ballistic missiles and considering whether to mobilise an extra 300,000 soldiers.The Ukrainian president, responding for the first time to a demand made by the sacked former defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov, sharply criticised an idea that he said was impractical given Russia appeared to have no interest in a ceasefire. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Burnham to face pressure at Labour conference to recognise Israel’s actions in Gaza as genocide 23. August 2026 (13:26) Grassroots groups to urge PM to break with Starmer policy and impose full arms embargo on IsraelGrassroots Labour groups are gearing up for a conference showdown with Andy Burnham over Gaza, as the party’s members seek to force the prime minister to recognise Israel’s actions as a genocide and impose a full arms embargo.Momentum, Labour & Palestine, the Campaign for Labour Party Democracy and Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) plan to ramp up pressure on Burnham before his first Labour conference as prime minister next month. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Pine-cone grenades and planet-baking carbon: the French fires 170 years in the making – a visual guide 23. August 2026 (13:00) An 1857 decree to drain swamps and plant a monoculture, detritus from the trees and global heating combined to produce the conditions for the Gironde infernoThe ruinous fires that overran parts of France this summer have burned more land than ever recorded, forced more people from their homes than at any point since the second world war and caused what scientists suspect is the country’s first firestorm thundercloud. The smoke from France’s biggest inferno in nearly 80 years choked Limoges, a city 125 miles (200km) from the flames, with more toxic dust than Delhi residents inhaled on the city’s worst day of smog last year.The blaze that tore through forests outside Bordeaux in late July took just a few weeks to reforge France’s relationship with fire, but the conditions behind it were centuries in the making. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Manuscript fragments hiding in plain sight shed light on medieval Guernsey’s literary life 23. August 2026 (13:00) Researchers say texts from 12th to 15th centuries ‘hint at a culture which has not even been imagined’Unprecedented insights into the literary and intellectual life on the island of Guernsey during the middle ages have been revealed through the discovery of 17 medieval manuscript fragments.Dating from between the 12th and 15th centuries, they offer evidence of wide-ranging reading tastes, with everything from an extract from a play and an Ovid poem to passages from the Bible and a travel text. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Personal care products are awash in unlabeled toxic chemicals, study finds 23. August 2026 (13:00) Even products labeled ‘eco’, ‘green’ or ‘natural’ can contain dangerous compounds including PfasCommon personal care products widely contain unlabeled toxic chemicals, results from a new peer-reviewed study suggest. The testing of more than 110 items ranging from shampoo to baby lotions found evidence of unlabeled toxic chemicals in about 85%.Many contained multiple ingredients known to be carcinogens or health hazards, and even 26% of products labeled “eco”, “green” or “natural” contained at least one dangerous compound. The products averaged more than three times as many chemicals than were listed on labels. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
‘No more!!!’: Trump lashes out after US-Canada talks devolve into trade war 23. August 2026 (13:00) PM Mark Carney says ‘we got attacked’ as tariffs come into force on items from hockey sticks to tongue depressorsDonald Trump has hit back at Canada after a breakdown in negotiations plunged the two countries into a trade war.In his first public comments since negotiations collapsed on Friday in Washington, the US president wrote on social media: “Canada wants the benefits of being a State, without being one!!!” Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Russia withdraws ambassador to UK as Kremlin ratchets pressure over Ukraine support 23. August 2026 (12:37) Andrey Kelin left last month after seven years in diplomatic post with no sign yet of anyone replacing him in roleRussia has withdrawn its ambassador to the UK, it has emerged, as the Kremlin continues to try to put pressure on Britain over its support for Ukraine.Andrey Kelin left last month after seven years in the diplomatic post, with no indication about whether he would be replaced. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
