With few good strategic options, Iran’s best prospect may be to retaliate while it can 28. February 2026 (21:06) Regime could try to retain control of streets as US and Israel have expressed no intention of mounting ground invasionVenezula’s Nicholás Maduro was captured. But Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu have chosen a different strategy for Iran: to target and aim to kill the country’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, and as many other senior regime figures as possible.Though Iranian military sites and its air defence systems were also targeted by coordinated US and Israeli bombing, beginning in the morning, the most significant attack was on Khamenei’s compound in Tehran. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Labour minister Josh Simons resigns after falsely linking journalists to ‘pro-Kremlin’ network 28. February 2026 (20:50) Makerfield MP has been under pressure over thinktank’s commissioning of PR firm to investigate reportersThe Labour minister Josh Simons has resigned from the government after the Guardian revealed that he falsely linked reporters to a “pro-Kremlin” network in emails to GCHQ despite having claimed to be “surprised” and “furious” about a PR firm’s investigation into their journalism.Simons, who had been a Cabinet Office minister, previously ran the thinktank Labour Together. He quit on Saturday, saying his position in office had become “a distraction from this government’s important work.” Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Explosions rock Bahrain, Dubai, Jordan and Kuwait as war spreads across Middle East 28. February 2026 (20:27) War launched by US and Israel on Iran has quickly escalated prompting anxiety and concern in whole regionFull reportUS-Israeli attack on Iran – live updatesIran struck the world-famous Fairmont hotel in Dubai, setting the hotel alight, as the war launched by the US and Israel on Iran quickly spread to the rest of the Middle East on Saturday.Residents watched in shock as an Iranian missile hit the five-star hotel in Dubai’s luxurious Palm Jumeirah area. Social media videos showed fires breaking out near the entrance of the hotel, which led to four people being injured. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Son of rapper Lil Jon drowned after ingesting hallucinogenic mushrooms 28. February 2026 (20:02) Body of Nathan Smith, known professionally as DJ Young Slade, was found in pond north of Atlanta in FebruaryThe son of the rapper Lil Jon drowned after ingesting hallucinogenic mushrooms, officials in the US state of Georgia said.The body of Nathan Smith, known professionally as DJ Young Slade, was found in a pond north of Atlanta in early February. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Australia’s broken aged care home support system is ensuring that loved ones live and die without dignity 28. February 2026 (20:00) Alan Nicolle was already approved for urgent aged care supports, but delays and confusion under a ‘Kafkaesque’ system made his final days exhausting and painfulGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastDying Australians approved for government-funded aged care home support are struggling to access it, with carers describing a system plagued by delays and lack of control around how funding is spent.The accounts of carers and aged care assessors spoken to by Guardian Australia show that beyond the controversial, algorithm-driven assessment process for home care funding, many are left without adequate and timely support even after funding has been approved. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Violent and menacing threats to Australia’s politicians double in two years, according to police data 28. February 2026 (20:00) At least 21 charges have been laid against individuals since October, Australian federal police say, following 951 reports to JuneGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastNearly three violent or menacing threats against federal politicians are being reported to police daily, according to Australian federal police data, with rates almost doubling in two years.The soaring danger for elected officials and their staff reached new heights this week when Anthony Albanese was evacuated from The Lodge in Canberra over a bomb threat. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Man arrested in shooting of prominent Muslim leader in Utah during Ramadan 28. February 2026 (19:51) Imam Shuaib Din was not hit by multiple shots fired by Abdul Raouf Afridi, who ambushed him outside his homeA man has been arrested for recently shooting a gun at prominent Muslim leader Imam Shuaib Din in Utah, the police department in the city of Sandy said Saturday.Din’s suspected attacker was identified as Abdul Raouf Afridi. Police said the man was arrested on 12 counts of aggravated assault, including felony discharge of a firearm, possession of a controlled substance, dangerous discharge of a weapon from a vehicle and possession of a dangerous weapon as a prohibited person. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
At least 80 children dead as missile reportedly hits school in southern Iran 28. February 2026 (19:28) The building appears to be among many devastated in Trump’s ‘major combat operations’ as long expected attacks arriveUS-Israeli attack on Iran – live updatesUS and Israel strikes on Iran: what we know so farIran’s parents had just dropped their children off for class on Saturday morning when they found themselves racing back to school gates, as bombs began to fall across the country in a joint US-Israel attack.At one elementary school, according to Iran’s state-controlled media, they arrived to find devastation. At least 80 children had been killed in the strike on Shajareh Tayyebeh girls’ school in Minab, southern Iran, the IRNA news agency reported, with dozens more unaccounted for. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Trump vies for Bush’s crown for worst foreign policy decision in history 28. February 2026 (18:33) The US president upended half a century of US foreign policy in an eight-minute video with another attempt at Middle Eastern regime changeIt was another date that would live in infamy. But whereas Franklin Roosevelt declared war in sombre tones to a joint session of Congress, Donald Trump did it his way.The US president wore a white “USA” cap, dark jacket and white shirt open at the collar. He stood at a blue lectern bearing the US presidential seal and a black microphone, with the Stars and Stripes behind him, presumably at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida. He released a video on his own social media network, Truth Social, at 2.30am on Saturday – a time when most Americans are asleep but Trump is often found rage-tweeting into the night. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
OpenAI to work with Pentagon after Anthropic dropped by Trump over company’s ethics concerns 28. February 2026 (18:06) CEO Sam Altman claims military will not use AI product for autonomous killing systems or mass surveillanceOpenAI said it had struck a deal with the Pentagon to supply AI to classified US military networks, hours after Donald Trump ordered the government to stop using the services of one of the company’s main competitors.Sam Altman, OpenAI’s CEO, announced the move on Friday night. It came after an agreement between Anthropic, a rival AI company that runs the Claude system, and the Trump administration broke down after Anthropic sought assurances its technology would not be used for mass surveillance – nor for autonomous weapons systems that can kill people without human input. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
