Open valve in heating system damaged 300-400 works just weeks after a brazen jewel theft raised security concerns

A water leak in late November damaged several hundred works in the Louvre’s Egyptian department, the Paris museum said on Sunday, weeks after a brazen jewel theft had raised concerns over its infrastructure.

“Between 300 and 400 works” were affected by the leak discovered on 26 November, the museum’s deputy administrator, Francis Steinbock, said, describing them as “Egyptology journals” and “scientific documentation” used by researchers.

Pushing for the release of the jailed leader could prove central to the peace that Donald Trump claims to seek in the Middle East

In a sort-of ceasefire, the killings – including of children – have slowed, not stopped. Israeli military operations continue to displace hundreds of families in Gaza. Aid has increased but Israel is still blocking vital supplies. Palestinians desperately require security, humanitarian relief and reconstruction. But they need and expect a political horizon too. Donald Trump’s plans make only the vaguest and most conditional reference to a Palestinian state, and Israelis – as well as their ultra-right government – have entrenched their opposition since the atrocities of 7 October 2023. Yet after two years of annihilation, Palestinian nationhood has won international support that many thought unimaginable.

The political fate of Palestinians is bound to the personal fate of Marwan Barghouti. After more than two decades in an Israeli jail for murder, the charismatic 66-year-old is by far the most popular Palestinian leader, widely regarded as the only figure capable of uniting factions riven by ideology and enmity. Though a member of Fatah, Mr Barghouti has criticised abuses by the Palestinian Authority and has won respect within Hamas ranks. He has led Palestinian prisoners, while the PA’s old guard are seen as self-serving, ineffective, unaccountable and essentially as security contractors for Israel in the West Bank.

• Pau 27-35 Northampton

• Wing’s late try gets Saints off to winning start

George Hendy’s late try ensured a winning start for last season’s beaten Champions Cup finalists, as Northampton saw off Pau 35-27 at the Stade du Hameau.

With the score locked at 27-27 with two minutes remaining, wing Hendy raced in at the corner to edge Saints ahead before Fin Smith’s penalty in the dying moments sealed his side’s thrilling win in their opening pool game.

Appointment marks a rapid political transformation for a former Tory donor and potential candidate for MP

The formerly Conservative-supporting boss of the supermarket Iceland is to be made a Labour peer when the party appoints another 25 representatives to parliament’s upper house later this month.

Keir Starmer will appoint Richard Walker to the House of Lords, the Guardian understands, the culmination of an unusual and rapid political transformation for someone named as a prospective Tory MP candidate a little over three years ago.

Tech moguls may foolishly hope to stay forever young, but others could benefit too from evidence of the human body’s dynamic and varied journey through life

Ageing can feel remarkably sudden. One morning you awake to find new aches, or lapses in strength and memory that you could swear were not present just a few days prior. We do not literally age overnight, but as research is increasingly showing, we may not do so in a steady, linear path either.

Over the past decade a multitude of studies have suggested that ageing – at least for certain organs and bodily systems – may actually consist of long periods of stability, punctuated by inflection points or periods of rapid biological change. This shift in thinking has raised hopes for anti-ageing medicines. But it could also make us rethink our attitude to ageing in general, viewing it as a dynamic and varied journey – rather than simply a slow march of attrition and breakdown.

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The drama doesn’t stop in Maryland. Over in the AFC South there is another battle for top spot popping off between the Jaguars and Colts. Both are 8-4 so a loss is a touch less damaging to the loser’s wildcard dreams than for their brothers in the north though maybe best to keep rolling and take hold of home-field advantage today.

Jacksonville have been a minor revelation after some mid-season wobbles with four wins from their past five while Indianapolis, the NFL’s early season darlings, are struggling with two wins from their past five.

(4-8) Atlanta Falcons v Seattle Seahawks (9-3)

(6-6) Baltimore Ravens v Pittsburgh Steelers (6-6)

(8-4) Buffalo Bills v Cincinnati Bengals (4-8)

(3-9) Cleveland Browns v Tennessee Titans (1-11)

(8-4) Jacksonville Jaguars v Indianapolis Colts (8-4)

(4-8) Minnesota Vikings v Washington Commanders (3-9)

(3-9) New York Jets v Miami Dolphins (5-7)

(7-5) Tampa Bay Buccaneers v New Orleans Saints (2-10)

• Champions’ 1-0 loss first league reverse since May 2024

• Manchester United beat West Ham; Spurs see off Villa

Chelsea’s record-breaking unbeaten run in the Women’s Super League was brought to an end with a shock result as Everton won away against the defending champions, who had not lost any of the previous 34 league matches.

Everton’s 1-0 victory inflicted Sonia Bompastor’s first defeat as a WSL manager after a remarkable 18 months in charge, and was Chelsea’s first loss in the league since going down 4-3 at Liverpool on 1 May 2024 when Emma Hayes was still at the helm.

Exclusive: Healthwatch study discovered 14% of cases are not put on hospital waiting lists for treatment GPs requested for them

One in seven people in England who need hospital care are not receiving it because the referral by their GP gets lost, rejected or delayed, the NHS’s own patient watchdog has found.

Three-quarters (75%) of these patients trapped in this “referrals black hole” suffer harm to their physical or mental health as a result of not being added to the waiting list for tests or treatment.

At some point in the future, Wilfried Nancy may glance back and laugh at this inauspicious start to his tenure as the Celtic manager. Pouring rain, a revolting support and a rejuvenated Hearts formed the backdrop. In the here and now, this was another alarming spectacle for anybody of Celtic inclination. Kieran Tierney’s stoppage-time goal should do nothing to mask how unimpressive Celtic were in a game of supposedly high stakes.

On the previous occasion when Celtic played Hearts, Brendan Rodgers was still in office. A 3-1 success for the hosts in Edinburgh preceded the Irishman’s resignation and a wait of over a month to hire Nancy. The Frenchman has arrived in low key circumstances.

There are raindrops depicted on Manchester City’s third kit, with a deliberate nod to the often unsettled weather. Seeing the strip, what catches the eye first, though, is the fluorescent, neon green socks. You cannot fail to notice them, and that is now also true of Manchester City in this season’s Women’s Super League title race; a team that quietly went under the radar initially, scarcely being spoken about as contenders, are now unmissable as they keep on winning, shining bright with a six-point lead at the top of the table.

Their latest victory, their ninth in a row in the league, not unlike the climate their kit honour, was not always particularly pretty. They spent well over an hour being frustrated by a Leicester side who were content to keep 11 players behind the ball with a deep, well-organised back five, but this is the sort of game, on a wet lunchtime in the East Midlands, when teams who go on to win titles manage to find a way through. Eventually, Manchester City did so, and then some, with two goals and an assist from Khadija Shaw delivering a 3-0 victory that more closely reflected their control of the contest than the 0-0 scoreline on the 73-minute mark had suggested. The visitors had 75.5% of the possession and 30 shots at goal compared to Leicester’s two.

Former Beatle argues use of terms for meat-free products ‘encourages attitudes essential to our health’

Paul McCartney has joined calls for the EU to reject efforts to ban the use of terms such as “sausage” and “burger” for vegetarian foods.

The former Beatle has joined eight British MPs who have written to the European Commission arguing that a ban approved in October by the European parliament would address a nonexistent problem while slowing progress on climate goals.

Moscow welcomes White House document critical of the EU as talks to end the Ukraine war enter a key phase

The Kremlin has heaped praise on Donald Trump’s latest national security strategy, calling it an encouraging change of policy that largely aligns with Russian thinking.

The remarks follow the publication of a White House document on Friday that criticises the EU and says Europe is at risk of “civilisational erasure”, while making clear the US is keen to establish better relations with Russia.

Egyptian’s calculated outburst is a challenge to management and their support for embattled Arne Slot

Mohamed Salah’s relationship with Liverpool is broken. That is abundantly clear after the incendiary interview at Elland Road on Saturday night that also poses a test of the club’s relationship with Arne Slot. The next revelation will be the extent of internal support for the coach who delivered Liverpool’s record-equalling 20th league title eight months ago.

Salah may have been emotional having been benched for the third successive game, but stunning waiting reporters not only by stopping to speak but by dropping a series of grenades during a post-match interview lasting more than seven minutes was not a case of heart ruling head. It never is when one of the greatest players to pull on the red shirt deigns to address the media. Whether it is criticism of contract negotiations, applying a little more pressure to get an agreeable deal done or, in this instance, piling more problems on Slot, Salah’s words are calculated to achieve what he wants.

Henry Cuellar launched House re-election bid as Democrat days after Trump pardoned him over bribery charges

Days after issuing him a pardon, Donald Trump criticized US House member Henry Cuellar of Texas for deciding to run for re-election as a Democrat.

Trump pardoned Cuellar and the congressman’s wife on Wednesday as they faced bribery charges. They were alleged to have accepted thousands of dollars from Azerbaijan and a Mexican bank in exchange for advancing their interests.

At least eight MEPs elected for Ukip or Brexit party now known to have been focus of efforts by jailed Nathan Gill

Three more British MEPs from Nigel Farage’s bloc are alleged to have “followed the script” given to a colleague who was being bribed by an alleged Russian asset, according to prosecutors, as a police investigation into the affair continues.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has named Jonathan Bullock, Julia Reid and Steven Woolfe, saying they followed the script provided to Nathan Gill by Oleg Voloshyn when giving interviews to 112 Ukraine, a pro-Russian TV channel in March 2019.

After blows in mid-season the British driver rallied to hold off the challenge of teammate Oscar Piastri and a stunning late run from Max Verstappen to make history in Abu Dhabi

“Just want to go have a burger and go home,” was the disconsolate entreaty from Lando Norris when he felt his Formula One world championship hopes had taken a mortal blow after he failed to finish at the Dutch Grand Prix in August. Yet it was testament to the resolution he has shown all season that while down, he was far from out as he proved in going on to claim the title that he felt had slipped away.

When Norris took the world championship with his third place in Abu Dhabi on Sunday he became the first British world champion since Lewis Hamilton took his last title in 2020 and, similar to Hamilton’s first in 2008, he had to show his absolute determination to close it out in what has been a rollercoaster ride for the 26-year-old.

Government faces setback after judge said it likely violated Comey ally’s protections from unreasonable searches

A federal judge has temporarily blocked prosecutors from accessing materials from a key ally of James Comey on Saturday, making the already uphill criminal case against the former FBI director even more difficult.

Daniel Richman, a Columbia University law school professor who has also represented Comey as an attorney, sued the government in November, saying that the government had unlawfully accessed materials from his computer as they charged Comey with lying to Congress. Richman is a close friend of Comey who worked at the FBI.

• Match at Craven Cottage kicks off at 4.30pm (GMT)

• Brighton 1-1 West Ham: live reaction in our blog

9 min: Good effort by Smith Rowe Iwobi, on the left, curls a wicked inswinging corner that brushes a Palace head and flies over the bar for another corner.

This time it’s on the right. Iwobi clips it deliberately towards Smith Rowe, unmarked 10 yards out at the near post. He watches the bounce and twists his body to crack a shot that hits Guehi and flies over the bar. Lovely effort though, a variation on the old Anderton/Sheringham corner.

Israeli PM to discuss next steps with Donald Trump this month but timetable for lasting peace remains unclear

Benjamin Netanyahu has said that the first phase of the UN-endorsed Gaza ceasefire plan is close to completion, and that the second phase must involve the disarmament of Hamas.

The Israeli prime minister said he would discuss the next steps later this month in Washington with Donald Trump, whose Gaza proposals were codified in a UN security council resolution on 17 November.

• Norris is 11th Briton to win title after tense third place

• Max Verstappen second in title race, Oscar Piastri third

Lando Norris has won his first Formula One world championship with a gutsy, nerveless drive of no little bravery to seal it with third place at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. A podium was enough for the 26-year-old British driver despite Red Bull’s Max Verstappen winning and his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri taking second.

Norris did exactly what was required of him in an enormously intense and high-pressure contest at the Yas Marina Circuit, including making a series of bold overtakes, with a flawless execution by himself and by his McLaren team.

From nascent policy idea in one state to passing federal parliament in just days, it’s been a whirlwind journey for the world-first legislation that will take effect from 10 December

In late 2023, the South Australian premier’s wife put down a book she had been reading. It was Jonathan Haidt’s The Anxious Generation.

“[She] said to me you better bloody do something about this ... and then we got to work,” Peter Malinauskas later recalled in an ABC interview.

Imagine what a relaxing and special celebration it could be if it was tailor-made just for you

• The modern mind is a column where experts discuss mental health issues they are seeing in their work

Now is the time of year some of my clients want to talk about Christmas.

As a specialist in addiction, many are seeking my help for their drinking.