US to demand countries share data on ‘pathogens with epidemic potential’ in return for health aid 08. November 2025 (12:00) Draft template seen by the Guardian has no reference to countries receiving benefits for sharing information, such as guaranteed access to medicines developed as a resultThe US wants countries to agree to hand over information on bugs that could cause large-scale disease outbreaks in return for restoring aid to tackle health problems such as HIV and malaria, according to government documents.The Trump administration is seeking new bilateral aid agreements with dozens of countries, after an abrupt withdrawal from existing arrangements at the start of this year. The agreements form part of a new America First Global Health Strategy announced in September. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Woman stabbed in neck in ‘unprovoked attack’ in Birmingham city centre 08. November 2025 (11:49) Police arrest man in his 20s near to scene as woman remains in hospital in critical conditionA woman is in critical condition after she was stabbed in the neck in what police believe was “an unprovoked attack”.West Midlands police were called to Smallbrook Queensway in Birmingham city centre shortly before 9pm on Friday after reports of a stabbing. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
World’s longest-married couple reveals key to a lasting relationship: ‘We love each other’ 08. November 2025 (11:00) Eleanor Gittens, 107, and Lyle Gittens, 108, of Miami met at a basketball game in 1941 and have been married for 83 yearsA Miami husband and wife who recently attained the title of world’s longest-married couple say they managed that feat just by loving one another.“We love each other,” Eleanor Gittens, 107, said to LongeviQuest when the website specializing on people who are in their second century of life asked what was the secret to her 83 years of marriage to her husband, Lyle. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Cutting aid for disease fund would be moral failure, Labour MPs tell Starmer 08. November 2025 (10:00) UK expected to reduce contribution to Global Fund to Fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria by 20%A group of seven Labour MPs who served as ministers under Keir Starmer have written to the prime minister warning that an expected cut to UK funding for aid to combat preventable diseases would be both a “moral failure” and a strategic disaster.With ministers and officials expected to decide the UK’s contribution to the Global Fund to Fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria within days, the letter renews pressure on Starmer to pull back from an expected 20% cut. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Jailed UK climate protesters facing conditions reserved for extremists on release 08. November 2025 (09:00) Exclusive: Just Stop Oil activist was banned from attending gatherings, including meeting a friend in a cafe, without permissionEnvironmental protesters are being given licence conditions on release from jail that are supposed to be limited to extremism cases.Ella Ward, 22, was banned from going to any meetings or gatherings, except for worship, without permission from her probation officer, although the Ministry of Justice dropped the condition after she brought a legal challenge. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Israel’s underground jail, where Palestinians are held without charge and never see daylight 08. November 2025 (09:00) Exclusive: Detainees at Rakefet include nurse and teenager who have been deprived of natural light since JanuaryIsrael is holding dozens of Palestinians from Gaza isolated in an underground jail where they never see daylight, are deprived of adequate food and barred from receiving news of their families or the outside world.The detainees include at least two civilians who are being held without charge or trial: a nurse detained in his scrubs, and a young food seller, according to lawyers from the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel (PCATI) who represent both men. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Former Met police officer accused of using sex workers while on duty 08. November 2025 (08:09) Exclusive: Imran Patel, who resigned last year after reports about his conduct, is being investigated by the IOPCA former Metropolitan police officer allegedly used sex workers while on duty in the midst of a major investigation into behavioural standards, the Guardian can reveal.Britain’s largest police force has been described as “institutionally misogynistic” after widespread claims that a “toxic” sexist culture has been allowed to thrive for decades. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
A rats to riches story: Larry the Downing Street cat finds place in TV spotlight 08. November 2025 (08:00) Popularity of Britain’s top mouser – ‘the guy to meet in No 10’ – to feature in documentary seriesHe’s seen six prime ministers come and go, watched presidents and princes walk through the black door of No 10, and will soon become the longest continuous resident of Downing Street since Pitt the Younger.The landscape of British politics has changed a lot in the past 15 years, but Larry the cat has remained a reassuring constant. Now his enduring popularity – the like of which some of his temporary owners would kill for – is to feature in a new Channel 4 documentary series exploring Britain’s love of cats. For his fans, the spotlight has been a long time coming. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Cutting home insulation funding will imperil UK’s climate goals, Reeves told 08. November 2025 (07:01) Energy firms and charities urge chancellor to avoid short-term fix that could also harm low-income householdsRachel Reeves has been told that cutting funding for home insulation at the budget would risk the UK’s climate goals and hurt low-income households in a joint intervention by energy firms, fuel poverty charities and environmental groups.In a letter to the chancellor, more than 60 groups and companies urged Reeves not to take such a damaging “short-term fix” to slash funding for more energy-efficient homes to pay for a reduction in energy bills. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
US and China seek to project power with huge and expensive aircraft carriers 08. November 2025 (06:00) China launches £5.4bn ship capable of carrying 60 aircraft that Beijing values as much for maintaining its global influence as for its use in warfare In port, the 80,000-tonne Fujian aircraft carrier would be impossible to miss. More than 300 metres long and capable of carrying about 60 aircraft, the £5.4bn super-vessel places China second among the world’s navies, with three aircraft carriers, though still a long way behind the global leader, the US, which has 11.Yet for all the great power projection of the new warship, nearly 5,000 miles away from its home port another conflict appears to suggest size may not matter. In the Black Sea, Ukraine achieved an extraordinary military success by inflicting a “functional defeat” on Russia’s naval fleet using swarms of skilfully targeted sea drones. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
