Pakistani farmers to sue German polluters over climate-linked flood damage 28. October 2025 (14:00) Claimants seek compensation from RWE and Heidelberg Materials after extreme flooding destroyed harvestsA group of Pakistani farmers whose livelihoods were devastated by floods three years ago has fired the starting shot in legal action against two of Germany’s most polluting companies.Lawyers acting for 43 men and women from the Sindh region sent the energy firm RWE and the cement producer Heidelberg formal letters before action on Tuesday warning of their intention to sue later this year. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
A strange brew: the case of the man behind an audacious Scottish tea fraud 28. October 2025 (14:00) A charismatic, tweed-wearing grower from Perthshire falsely claimed to be able to create thriving tea plantations in Scotland. His elaborate deception took in luxury hotels, media outlets and tea growers across the countryWith its large silver pouch, artistic label and delicate leaves, Dalreoch Scottish white tea might be expected to grace elegant cups with saucers, perhaps with a scone served on the side. Instead, it is nestled with an array of numbered polythene packets in a room just off a laboratory at the University of Aberdeen.This is not an ordinary afternoon tea but evidence in a crime that science helped solve. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Russian drone attacks on civilians in Ukraine are war crimes, UN report concludes 28. October 2025 (13:42) Rights commission inquiry focused on south-east of country found drones targeted gathering points and critical infrastructureEurope live – latest updatesA UN rights commission has concluded that Russia’s drone attacks on civilians in south-eastern Ukraine constitute crimes against humanity and war crimes.In a report published this week, the commission said Russian forces, operating under a centralised command, had systematically used drones to “intentionally target civilians and civilian objects and cause harm and destruction”. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Tilda Swinton and Gary Oldman return to stage for Royal Court’s 70th anniversary 28. October 2025 (13:27) Tilda Swinton’s performance marks 30 years since audiences last saw her tread the boards, meanwhile Gary Oldman will be in Krapp’s Last TapeTilda Swinton will return to the stage for the first time in more than 30 years as part of the Royal Court’s 70th anniversary programme, in a reprisal of her 1988 one-woman performance in Manfred Karge’s Man to Man.Swinton’s return to the role, in which she plays a widow who takes on the identity of her deceased husband, is one of two star turns in David Byrne’s third season as artistic director, which will also feature Gary Oldman in another revival: Samuel Beckett’s Krapp’s Last Tape, which was first performed in 1958. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Mass killings reported in Sudanese city seized by paramilitary group 28. October 2025 (13:14) Rapid Support Forces accused of killing more than 2,000 unarmed civilians in El Fasher in recent daysReports of ethnically motivated mass killings and other atrocities are emerging from El Fasher after the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces took control of the city in Sudan’s western Darfur region last week.Video released by local activists showed a fighter known for executing civilians in RSF-controlled areas shooting a group of unarmed civilians sitting on the ground at point-blank range. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Ben & Jerry’s owner stopped brand developing flavour for peace in Gaza 28. October 2025 (13:00) Exclusive: Co-founder accuses ice-cream brand’s parent of taking part in ‘corporate butt kissing’ of Donald TrumpThe co-founder of Ben & Jerry’s has accused its owner of being part of a movement of “corporate butt kissing” of Donald Trump and says management blocked the ice-cream brand from producing a flavour in support of peace in Gaza.Ben Cohen told the Guardian that Unilever was pursuing a “corporate attack on free speech” by blocking the development of a special flavour in solidarity with the Palestinian people. It is understood the flavour had been approved by Ben & Jerry’s independent board and first mooted about a year ago. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
As Netherlands goes to the polls again, Geert Wilders faces isolation 28. October 2025 (12:28) With other parties refusing to govern with the far-right leader, months of political deadlock may lie aheadDutch election: the key players and main issuesVoters in the Netherlands return to the polls on Wednesday less than two years after Geert Wilders led his party to a shock election win that the anti-immigration agitator could well repeat – but this time, with little chance of his party ending up in government.Polls suggest that Wilders’ far-right Freedom party (PVV) could again finish first in a vote triggered when he pulled it out of a fractious and ineffectual four-party rightwing coalition last June in a row over his 10-point plan for a radical crackdown on refugees. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Black women with fibroids face delays and poor care in the UK, says report 28. October 2025 (11:46) Exclusive: All party parliamentary group on black health found 27% not offered any treatment after diagnosisBlack women in the UK who experience symptoms caused by fibroids are facing delays, poor care and dismissal by healthcare professionals according to a parliamentary report.Published by the all party parliamentary group on black health, the report included a survey of more than 500 women regarding their experience of uterine fibroids, with more than 70% of respondents being Black British. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Three more Reform UK councillors expelled from party over ‘dishonest’ behaviour after leaked video meeting – UK politics live 28. October 2025 (11:45) Footage of online meeting showed Kent county council leader remonstrating with councillorsYouGov has published the latest results from the weekly polling it carries out for the Times and Sky News. The results are startling, showing Labour on just 17% (the party’s lowest ever score in a YouGov poll), the Green party just one point behind, and four parties clustered within two points of each other.One fairly reliable rule about polling is that any poll that makes headlines is likely to be wrong. That is because things become news when they are unusual, but in polling ‘unusual’ is likely to mean outlier (which means wrong). Polling is most useful when it illuminates trends. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Von der Leyen says EU ‘cannot tolerate’ disruption of airspace, calling balloons over Lithuania a ‘provocation’ – Europe live 28. October 2025 (11:31) She also added they back plans to step up EU investment in military equipment and they are ready to cover the financing needs of UkraineEU’s von der Leyen also gets asked about the balloons disrupting the Lithuanian airspace.She says she wants to “express my full solidarity” with Lithuania, and calls it “a provocation, a hybrid threat,” which “we cannot tolerate.”We’re in for the long haul. We are ready to cover the financing needs of Ukraine, so that we are standing by Ukraine for as long as it takes. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
