There are grave fears for a former Canberra high school student after claims he was killed in Iran, amid representations by the Australian government to Tehran over the potential execution of prisoners.
Posts on social media accounts linked to the boy suggest he died on Friday, after reportedly being detained in Iran. The claims could not be verified.
It’s the part of myself I’m most frequently embarrassed by – but as comedy festival season approaches, I’m prepared for the worst
I thought Daniel Kitson was just about ready to kick me out of the comedy room. He had already picked on me several times for laughing too loud, too readily (“that wasn’t even a joke”, he chastised me at one point). I was trying hard to suppress my laughter – to hold it in, to hold it back, to not fully express the joy I was feeling. I was being somewhat successful. And then I wasn’t. Everyone in the audience was laughing – but I was laughing too much.
Then Kitson looked at me, and asked me to laugh “10% less” – I was ruining it for the rest of the audience, he said. Bring it down 10% and give everyone else a chance. My face turned red, I shrunk in my seat, and I tried my hardest – really, I did – to not laugh so loud.
Buddhist monks had walked 2,300 miles from Texas, braving snow and often barefoot – their arrival in the capital was greeted by thousands
Bhante Saranapala gazed down at more than a hundred Buddhist monks wearing burnt-orange, saffron and maroon robes, most sporting woolly hats, a few clutching flowers.
“These monks are awesome!” roared Saranapala, who is known as the “Urban Buddhist Monk”, prompting a cheer from the big crowd. “Their determination should be greatly appreciated. Walking from Texas to Washington DC, 2,300 miles; it requires strong determination!”
Jailed then exiled in London, Rahman returns home as the main contender to be next prime minister of Bangladesh
Tarique Rahman, who after 17 years in exile is the main contender to be the next prime minister of Bangladesh, has pledged to end entrenched corruption and put the country on a “new path” as voting began in the first free and fair elections in almost two decades.
Speaking to the Guardian before polls opened on Thursday morning, Rahman promised a new era of clean politics, including a “top down, no tolerance” approach to graft, if his Bangladesh Nationalist party (BNP) was brought to power.
Republicans join Democrats in objecting to national emergency US president declared to impose tariffs
The US House on Wednesday voted to rescind tariffs that Donald Trump imposed on Canada last year, a rare bipartisan rebuke of the White House’s trade policy as the president threatened electoral retaliation against any Republican who defied him.
The largely symbolic resolution to disapprove of the national emergency Trump declared to impose tariffs on Canada passed 219 to 211, with six Republicans – Don Bacon of Nebraska, Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Kevin Kiley of California, Dan Newhouse of Washington and Jeff Hurd of Colorado – voting with all Democrats except Jared Golden of Maine, who voted against it.
New evidence shows Gregory Bovino hailed agent who fired at Marimar Martinez five times in her car
Newly released evidence has shown that Gregory Bovino, a border patrol chief who was the face of the Trump administration’s mass deportation efforts until last month, praised a federal agent who shot a Chicago woman during an immigration crackdown last year.
Marimar Martinez, a US citizen, was shot five times by a border patrol agent in October while in her vehicle. She was charged with a felony after officials at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) accused her of trying to ram agents with her vehicle. But the case was abruptly dismissed after video evidence emerged showing that an agent had steered his vehicle into Martinez’s car.
Lawyers for Martinez have pushed to make evidence in the dismissed criminal case public, saying they were especially motivated to do so after a federal agent fatally shot Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis under similar circumstances.
Facing existential challenges on trade and security, the bloc has finally realised it has to grow up and go it alone – but the path ahead is a rocky one
Emmanuel Macron put it simply – and starkly. Confronted with “a world in disarray” and a double, potentially existential challenge from the US and China, he said: “Europe must become a power.”
The bloc is facing “a Chinese tsunami” on trade, Macron told several European newspapers, as the country most Europeans had for decades seen principally as an infinite export market transforms itself instead into a ferocious, low-price, hi-tech competitor.
Ukrainian president says security guarantees must first be in place as he pushes back at suggestions he plans to hold poll under US pressure. What we know on day 1,450
Ukraine will hold elections only once it has security guarantees in place and a ceasefire with Russia, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said, pushing back at suggestions he is planning to stage fresh ballots under US pressure. “We will move to elections when all the necessary security guarantees are in place,” the Ukrainian president told reporters on Wednesday in a voice note. “I have said it’s very simple to do: establish a ceasefire, and there will be elections.” He also said that if Russia agreed, it might be possible to “end hostilities by summer”. Elections in Ukraine have been effectively suspended since Russia invaded in 2022 due to martial law.
Senior Ukrainian officials agreed on Wednesday to boost air defence capabilities around the capital to counter possible further Russian air attacks on energy infrastructure, the energy minister said. “We also identified and prioritised other critical infrastructure facilities that require protection,” Denys Shmyhal said on Telegram on Wednesday after a meeting of the military staff. The fresh preparations follow attacks on Kyiv that have left officials scrambling to repair damage that has left thousands in the cold and darkness.
Russian strikes killed four civilians on Wednesday in different localities in Ukraine’s south-eastern Dnipropetrovsk region, the regional governor said. The attacks occurred in three small localities near the town of Synelnykove, east of the regional centre of Dnipro, Oleksandr Ganzha said on Telegram. In one attack, a man was killed and his wife wounded. In a different locality, a couple and their 45-year-old son was killed and a man wounded. A woman was hurt in a third village.
Zelenskyy said the US needed to put more pressure on Russia if it wanted the war to end by summer, adding it is unclear whether Moscow would attend US-brokered peace talks next week. “It depends not only on Ukraine, but also on America, which must exert pressure – excuse me for saying so, but there is no other way: it must exert pressure on Russia,” he said on Wednesday, after previously saying Washington wants to end the war by June. Zelenskyy said Russia was still deliberating over whether to participate in the proposed next round of trilateral peace talks in Miami but that Ukraine was ready to attend.
The Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych says he is ready to be disqualified on Thursday because he does not want to betray his country’s dead athletes, reports Sean Ingle.Heraskevych has vowed to wear his “helmet of memory” in the skeleton, even though the International Olympic Committee has told him it will kick him out if he does. “I will not betray these athletes,” he said after finishing first on the final day of practice.
British defence minister John Healey says the UK has committed £150m ($205m) to the so-called prioritised Ukraine requirements list (Purl) initiative to supply Ukraine with US weapons. Purl was set up last summer to keep US weapons flowing to Ukraine at a time when new US military assistance had stalled. “Together we must provide Ukraine with the critical air defence it needs in response to Putin’s brutal onslaught,” Healey said in a statement on Wednesday. Allies have already put forward more than $4.5bn through the programme, the US ambassador to Nato, Matthew Whitaker, said on Tuesday.
A Russian crackdown on the Telegram social media app risks damaging its own army, pro-war bloggers have warned, as the platform’s founder refused to bend to pressure from Moscow, reports Pjotr Sauer. Russia’s communications watchdog said on Wednesday that the app – used by more than 60 million Russians each day – would begin slowing nationwide, accusing it of failing to address earlier regulatory violations.
Europe’s largest nuclear power plant can be restarted safely only if it is returned to Ukrainian control, the head of Ukraine’s nuclear power operator said on Tuesday. The six reactors at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant have been shut down since Russian forces captured the area, and Moscow announced last year it was aiming to restart at least one reactor. But Pavlo Kovtoniuk, boss of Ukrainian state nuclear firm Energoatom, said Russia lacked some equipment and spare parts to operate it, and risked a nuclear accident if it tries.
Bill that requires proof of citizenship and would limit mail-in voting passes 218-213 but faces uphill battle in Senate
The House on Wednesday passed the Save America Act, which would dramatically change voting regulations by requiring proof of citizenship at voter registration and significantly curtail mail-in voting.
The legislation, which passed 218 to 213, faces an uphill battle in the Senate, close observers say.
Writer made international breakthrough with 1980 novel Rituals and won acclaim for his travel writing
The Dutch writer Cees Nooteboom, whose novels, travel writing and translations made him a prominent literary figure in postwar Europe, has died aged 92.
Publishing house De Bezige Bij said in a statement on Wednesday evening that Nooteboom had “passed away very peacefully on his beloved island Menorca”. The statement was made on behalf of the author’s wife, the photographer Simone Sassen.
Arne Slot does not believe his job security hinges on Liverpool securing Champions League qualification this spring but the Dutchman would much prefer not to put that particular notion to the test.
On this evidence there seems a decent chance last season’s title winning manager will not have to. In finally ending Sunderland’s proud unbeaten home record in the Premier League, sixth placed Liverpool left themselves only three points adrift Manchester United and two behind Chelsea.
British pair finish seventh after stumble in free dance
Gold goes to France’s Fournier Beaudry and Cizeron
Lewis Gibson did his best to smile, but the pained pinch on the face of his partner, Lilah Fear, as they twirled around the Milan Ice Skating Arena gave the game away. The Team GB pair had dreamed of becoming the first British Olympic skating medallists since Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean in 1992. Instead, they endured a nightmare on ice.
Their chances went barely a minute into their free dance routine. The crowd had just started to clap boisterously along to the Proclaimers’ hit I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles), when Fear stumbled and lost her balance through the twizzle sequence.
Evangelos Marinakis often takes action when the crowd turns against a head coach. The Nottingham Forest owner watched from his throne, enduring 90 minutes of inept finishing and sloppy play in a desperate goalless draw against rock‑bottom Wolves, resulting in boos and insults aimed at Sean Dyche at full time, which sealed a third head coach sacking of the season.
Thirty-five shots came and went for Forest, few testing José Sá but the patience of the crowd was thoroughly tested, ultimately costing Dyche his job. It was a missed opportunity for the hosts, who moved only one point further north of 18th-placed West Ham, when three were there for the taking.
Former New York Jets first-round draft pick Darron Lee has been kept in jail without bond as he faces a first-degree murder charge over the death of his girlfriend in Tennessee.
The ruling by Judge Tori Smith came after Lee was arrested and charged late last week. He also faces a charge of tampering with or fabricating evidence. Lee is due back in court for a preliminary hearing on 9 March.
Authorities identified the victim in the case as Gabriella Perpétuo. The couple had been living in a home they rented where the incident occurred for about 10 days, Brian Lockhart a detective in Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office testified on Wednesday.
Holly Morton-Bowles and Bianca Jones were travelling in Laos in late 2024 when they were fatally poisoned with methanol at Nana Backpackers Hostel in Vang Vieng
Australia will send a special envoy to Laos as it investigates the methanol poisoning deaths of two teenagers.
The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, announced the appointment on Thursday after the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade apologised earlier this week for not providing more information to the victims’ families.
Public opinion polling agency says decision ‘solely based on Gallup’s research goals and priorities’
Gallup, the public opinion polling agency, will stop tracking presidential approval ratings after almost nine decades, a spokesperson confirmed.
As Donald Trump continues to closely scrutinize polling of his popularity, and publicly lambast media companies that report on unfavorable numbers, Gallup insisted its decision was “solely based on Gallup’s research goals and priorities”.
“I think it’s important to differentiate between clinical addiction and problematic use,” Adam Mosseri said on the witness stand. Psychologists do not classify social media addiction as an official diagnosis. Researchers have documented the harmful consequences of compulsive use among young people, and lawmakers around the world are worried about its addictive potential.
When an actor like James Van Der Beek dies, the obvious thing would be to concentrate on their biggest role. In the case of Van Der Beek, that would be Dawson’s Creek, Kevin Williamson’s soapy drama that ran for six seasons across the millennium.
And that would be perfectly justified, since in its time Dawson’s Creek was a genuine sensation. It might be hard to remember, since the show became the water that all teen drama swims in, but Dawson’s Creek had a rare knack for meeting its audience where it was.
Manchester City’s week is moving along sweetly, this win closing the gap to three points to Arsenal, who travel to Brentford on Thursday. On Sunday, they defeated Liverpool at Anfield, on Wednesday they downed Fulham at home to reel off a 20th consecutive victory against them.
The rosiest moment for the title challengers was Erling Haaland’s 39th‑minute strike, a first in the competition from open play in nine games, though more concerning was his removal at the break, when City led 3-0.
Cognitive health in later life is ‘strongly influenced’ by lifelong exposure to intellectually stimulating environments, say researchers
Reading, writing and learning a language or two can lower your risk of dementia by almost 40%, according to a study that suggests millions of people could prevent or delay the condition.
Dementia is one of the world’s biggest health threats. The number of people living with the condition is forecast to triple to more than 150 million globally by 2050, and experts say it presents a big and rapidly growing threat to future health and social care systems in every community, country and continent.
Israeli leader was expected to advocate for more forceful US intervention during sixth visit to current White House
Donald Trump has said that he is still seeking a deal with Iran to prevent it from seeking a nuclear weapon following a three-hour meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu in which the Israeli leader was expected to advocate for a more forceful intervention by the US military.
Netanyahu’s sixth visit to the White House since Trump returned to office ended without any public remarks between the two leaders. The results of the hastily arranged meeting were announced by Trump in an online post.
Sunderland finally lost this season at the Stadium of Light, Virgil van Dijk making the difference with his second-half header
2 min: … the ball’s played back to Angulo, who tries to trick Alisson at his near post. The keeper reads the danger and claims. That’s got the home fans, already giving it plenty, going some. Meanwhile here’s Peter Oh: “Liverpool have had such bad luck with injuries, shipping comical last-gasp goals, and suspensions. How could things possibly get worse? Running into eleven Black Cats maybe? Sigh.”
1 min: It has been belting down on Wearside all day. It’s still raining. Windy as well. And Sunderland are on the front foot early doors, Mukiele in space on the right and winning a very early corner off Robertson. From which …
Tribe, which was forcibly removed from its lands near Lake Tahoe, used $5.5m grant and private donations for purchase
The Washoe Tribe has purchased more than 10,000 acres of land near Lake Tahoe for conservation in one of the largest tribal land returns in California history.
The sprawling property, located 20 miles north of Reno, Nevada, stretches from the Great Basin through the Sierra Nevada and encompasses sagebrush scrublands and juniper and pine forests.
Andrew Paul Johnson was found guilty of five counts including molesting a child under 12 and another under 16
A man who took part in the 6 January 2021 attack on the US Capitol and later pardoned by Donald Trump was found guilty on Tuesday of multiple child sexual abuse charges in Florida, officials said.
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