Trump administration’s unlawful policy turns ‘refugees’ American Dream into a dystopian nightmare’, judge says

A federal judge has blocked a Trump administration policy that allowed immigration authorities to arrest and detain certain refugees in Minnesota, ruling that the government relied on an incorrect interpretation of federal law and unlawfully targeted people who had already been admitted to the US.

In an order on Friday, the court said the administration’s approach had effectively been “terrorizing” refugees by subjecting them to arrest and potentially indefinite detention despite their lawful status. The judge concluded that federal immigration law does not give the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) authority to detain refugees simply because more than one year has passed since their arrival in the country.

By mid-afternoon, it was 91F (33C) in downtown LA, according to the National Weather Service

After a week of heavy downpours that left parts of Los Angeles flooded, the city is now facing unusually high temperatures for late February.

By mid-afternoon Friday, it was 91F (33C) in downtown Los Angeles, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). That breaks the daily record for 27 February, which was 88F (31C), set last year.

Sherry Xue Li ripped off millions from foreign investors and funnelled some stolen money into US political campaigns

A New York businesswoman was sentenced Friday to nine years in federal prison over a financial scheme that ripped off more than $30m from foreign investors and funnelled some of the stolen money into US political campaigns, including a Donald Trump fundraiser during his first presidency.

Sherry Xue Li was also ordered to forfeit $31.5m, as well as property at three locations, and to make restitution to her victims.

Musician died after being taken to hospital in Los Angeles, with his family remembering him as a ‘true rock and roll legend’ and ‘inspiration to millions’

Neil Sedaka, the singer-songwriter behind Breaking Up Is Hard to Do, Oh! Carol, Calendar Girl and Bad Blood as well as many hits performed by other artists including Stupid Cupid and Love Will Keep Us Together, has died aged 86.

A representative confirmed his death to Variety on Friday, hours after he was reportedly taken to hospital in Los Angeles. No cause of death was given.

Law demanding IDs must match ‘sex at birth’ invalidated the driver’s licenses of about 1,700 trans people in the state

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Two transgender men are suing Kansas over a new law that invalidated their driver’s licenses and about 1,700 others for reflecting people’s gender identities and not their sex assigned at birth, arguing that the measure is “dehumanizing”.

The men filed their case Thursday, the same day the law took effect, and argue that it violates rights to privacy, personal autonomy and due legal process guaranteed by the Kansas state constitution. The men also are challenging the law’s tough, new enforcement provisions for the state’s three-year-old policy of barring transgender people from using public restrooms or other single-sex facilities associated with their gender identities.

Brown, 62, third member of hit HBO series to die since December, was trying to jumpstart car at home at time of blaze

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The Wire actor Bobby J Brown died recently in a barn fire at his Maryland home, making him the third cast member of the acclaimed HBO show to pass away since December.

According to authorities and a statement on social media from his daughter, Reina, the 62-year-old Brown had gone into a barn at his residence in the St Mary’s county community of Chaptico at about 10pm on 24 February to try to jumpstart a car. It evidently ignited during the attempt, and Brown asked his wife for a fire extinguisher.

As Wolves applied the seal to only their second Premier League victory of the season, Rodrigo Gomes doubling their lead over Aston Villa deep into second-half stoppage time, Rob Edwards hared down the touchline, yelling into the stands as his players started a celebratory pile-on a few yards behind him. It was a moment of catharsis for Edwards, who beat his chest and wellied an advertising hoarding, but for Unai Emery it was a different kind of cue.

As those in old gold savoured a win over near neighbours that takes them to 13 points, ending any fears that they may not eclipse Derby’s record-low tally of 11 in 2007-08, Emery marched straight down the tunnel before the post-match handshakes.

Tehran’s ICBMs cannot currently reach the US, experts say, and White House has claimed its nuclear programme has been destroyed

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Donald Trump’s likely casus belli for an attack on Iran – which would be the largest US intervention since the Iraq war – is fraught with contradictions, and his top advisers have been left to cover for him as the White House makes the case for intervention.

In his State of the Union address this week, Trump alleged that Iran posed a direct threat to the US and that the country was “working to build missiles that will soon reach the United States of America”. But that claim has not been backed up with evidence by the White House or the Pentagon, and US intelligence reports from just last year say that it would take Iran 10 years to develop an intercontinental ballistic missile that could reach the US.

Arsenal and Liverpool will fancy their chance of making the quarter-finals, while Manchester City and Newcastle face tougher routes

The Club World Cup final victory over Paris Saint-Germain last summer was probably Enzo Maresca’s finest hour as Chelsea manager. He devised a gameplan, pinging balls over Nuno Mendes for Cole Palmer to chase, backed up by Malo Gusto, that tore the European champions apart in the first half. Liam Rosenior may try to exploit the same vulnerability, but this is a Chelsea that look weary, their exertions in the US perhaps having left them fatigued.

Department of Defense and artificial intelligence company were unable to reach agreement before deadline

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Donald Trump said Friday he will direct all federal agencies to “IMMEDIATELY CEASE” all use of Anthropic technology.

The Department of Defense and Anthropic hit an impasse with neither side backing down as a deadline for an agreement lapsed on Friday afternoon. The Pentagon had demanded the artificial intelligence company loosen ethical guidelines on its AI systems or face severe consequences.

• Striker was demoted to under-21s after refusing to play

• Recent club form has not translated to USMNT

Josh Sargent joined Toronto FC from Norwich City in England’s second-tier League Championship on Friday, ending a difficult situation in which the striker was exiled to the under-21 squad after he refused to play in an FA Cup match last month.

Sargent, 26, was signed as a designated player through the 2030-31 MLS season. He had eight goals this season and 56 goals in 157 appearances with the Canaries overall

Former Boy Scouts cave to Pete Hegseth as he laments move from ‘focus on God as the ruler of the universe’

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Scouting America will alter several policies at the urging of the Pentagon, including one targeting transgender children, the defense secretary Pete Hegseth announced on Friday as he pushes a campaign against military support for diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.

Some of the changes mirror what the organization suggested to the defense department in January, which included discontinuing its citizenship in society merit badge and introducing a military service merit badge as well as waiving registration fees for the children of military personnel.

Deposition comes one day after Hillary Clinton testified and called proceedings ‘partisan political theater’

• Bill Clinton testimony – latest updates

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Bill Clinton told a congressional committee on Friday that he “had no idea of the crimes” Jeffrey Epstein was committing and insisted he “did nothing wrong” in his relationship with the disgraced financier and convicted sex trafficker.

The former president’s remarks came in his opening statement in a deposition to the House of Representatives’ oversight committee, a day after his wife, Hillary Clinton, appeared before the same body and called the proceedings “partisan political theater” and “an insult to the American people”.

Mamdani wooed the president with much property talk and showed the real ‘art of the deal’ might have been soft power via Photoshop

• US politics live – latest updates

In the hours after Zohran Mamdani met with Donald Trump for an undisclosed sit-down in the Oval Office on Thursday, a meme quickly circulated on X.

It resembled the screengrab of a TikToker who doles out dubious financial advice, but instead had the mayor’s picture front and center. On the left it read “I receive 12,000 homes” and “the release of a constituent kidnapped by ICE” and on the right “you receive fake newspaper cover”.

• Ifab expected to adopt changes at meeting this weekend

• MLS added timed sub, off-field treatment rules in 2024

• New rules could make for faster play at the World Cup

Four years ago, MLS Next Pro implemented a pair of rules geared towards eliminating time-wasting. Now, just months ahead of the 2026 World Cup, MLS’s experimentation is set to be adopted globally. The International Football Association Board (Ifab), the sport’s rule-making body, is set to meet this weekend and is widely expected to adopt both changes.

The first of the two, commonly referred to as the timed substitution rule, forces a team to play a man down for a minute if a player takes longer than 10 seconds to leave the pitch. The second of the guidelines, dubbed the off-field treatment rule, removes a player from the match for a minute if they spend more than 15 seconds on the ground after an injury.

Fires are still burning in the Mexican town of Tapalpa four days after the cartel boss known as 'El Mencho' made his last stand.

The Guardian correspondent Tom Phillips drove to the locations of fierce clashes between police and gang members who dug trenches, set fire to shops and sparked a forest blaze that was still burning days later.

Despite their efforts to distract security forces, the 59-year-old drug lord was wounded and he died in a helicopter on the way to the hospital

• Shell-shocked and tense: inside the Mexican tourist town where ‘El Mencho’ made his last stand

• Violence in Mexico after military kills notorious drug cartel boss – a visual guide

Decision by Netflix to walk away from takeover leaves workers anxious about possible merger of news networks

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Netflix’s decision to walk away from its $83bn bid for Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) has left some staffers working at CBS News and CNN panicking about the future as the two top-tier news operations come under the same roof.

With Paramount Skydance emerging as the winning bidder, a deal that still requires the approval of WBD shareholders and government regulators, they fear the merging of the two networks – and, with it, the potential for a significant amount of job cuts. Some CNN employees are also nervous about Paramount’s Trump-friendly ownership and leadership enacting ideologically driven programming changes at the network, with particular concern about the specter of the CBS News editor-in-chief, Bari Weiss, possibly getting a significant role.

⚽ Premier League updates from the 8pm GMT kick-off
⚽ Live scores | Table | Read Football Daily | Mail Tom

Unai Emery has been speaking to Sky Sports pre-match:

We are ready, we are focused. We are aware of how we must compete today. We need to be focussed tactically too, they [Wolves] have a very tactical coach in Rob Edwards.

We are definitely expecting a competitive match. Wolves are playing fresh at the moment, despite being at the bottom of the table. They are playing tactically offensive and individually in defence also. They are a demanding team for their opponent. We are ready but we expect a difficult match.

A lot of thought has to go into a takeaway order for the football. You don’t want something that is going to be a distraction to your viewing experience. So noodle dishes or similar are out as they require concentration. In fact you can rule out anything Asian as far as I’m concerned, it’s too fussy for this situation. I want to be able to shovel in while keeping my eyes up, which means I also swerve the chippy. Curry has a good short-distance range, but for me it’s pizza. Make sure it’s pre-cut and then it only requires a but of hand-eye to get it from box to mouth.

As tensions between two countries reach new highs, US president says regime is ‘talking with us’

Donald Trump has suggested the US could carry out a “friendly takeover” of Cuba as tensions between Washington and Havana reach a new high after the capture of Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro.

As he left the White House for a campaigning event in Texas on Friday, Trump said: “The Cuban government is talking with us. They’re in a big deal of trouble.”

Ofcom says that after provisional ruling it could apply to courts to demand internet providers stop access to site

A suicide forum linked to deaths in Britain has been ruled provisionally in breach of the Online Safety Act after it failed to properly block access to UK users when ordered to do so last year.

Ofcom, the online regulator, said it could now apply to the courts to demand internet service providers block access to the site in the UK. This will depend on how the site, which also faces fines, responds over the next 10 days.

Attorney general Pam Bondi says 39 people now charged over January protest and warns ‘more to come’

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Federal authorities have arrested more people on Friday for their alleged involvement in a protest at a church in Minnesota in January, following earlier arrests of organizers and journalists that were demonstrating amid sweeping, and often violent, immigration enforcement efforts in the state.

Attorney general Pam Bondi said the justice department unsealed an indictment that charged 30 more people for the demonstration. Of those charged, federal agents have already arrested 25 of them, Bondi said, with “more to come”. The latest arrests bring the total number of people charged to 39.

Volatility and unusual structure at Stamford Bridge leave club’s young manager with a big test to rebuild like his rival has at Arsenal

Arsenal’s journey under Mikel Arteta has long been a reference point for Chelsea’s owners. It is part of the club’s shift towards youth and potential after the Roman Abramovich era. Chelsea have built with a long-term view and, seeing how Arteta has reversed Arsenal’s decline since his appointment as manager in December 2019, have been keen to find a young coach capable of becoming a similarly galvanising force at Stamford Bridge.

It is not an easy task. Chelsea briefly thought they had their rising star when they hired Graham Potter in September 2022, only for his reign to end after seven months. Now there is hope that Liam Rosenior can become Chelsea’s answer to Arteta. Rosenior is young, confident, talented and a little unconventional in the way he presents himself. It is early days but the 41-year-old has made an encouraging start, winning eight of his first 12 games, and has transmitted enough authority to keep jibes about his inexperience at bay so far.

Investigation under way after vehicle ploughs into building

A tram derailed and crashed into a building in Milan on Friday, killing two people and injuring 38 others.

One of the dead was hit by the tram as it derailed while the second victim was a passenger, the city’s mayor, Giuseppe Sala, told reporters at the scene.

Mary Walsh, leaving after 46 years, says staffers told to ‘aim our reporting at a particular part of the political spectrum’

A veteran CBS News producer who is leaving the network after 46 years has suggested that political bias is at play at the network in a farewell memo sent to colleagues on Friday afternoon.

“We’ve been reading a lot of goodbyes lately and here I am headed out the door. It’s too soon, even after 46 years,” Mary Walsh wrote in the memo, which was obtained by the Guardian. “But maybe it’s for the best. We’ve been told to aim our reporting at a particular part of the political spectrum. Honestly, I don’t know how to do that.”