House Republicans are ‘the only thing standing’ in the way of ending DHS shutdown, Hakeem Jeffries says – as it happened
This live blog is now closed.Sign up for the Breaking US News emailsPeter Ticktin, an 80-year-old Florida lawyer who has various ties to Donald Trump and represents some 2020 election deniers, has become an outspoken advocate for an emergency executive order on US elections that would overhaul voting rules and rights by ending machine and mail-in voting.The exact nature and extent of Ticktin’s contact and influence with Trump and other administration officials is not clear. But election experts and analysts see Ticktin’s push for an executive order as worrying, and part of a broader drive by fellow election conspiracists who are now promoting similar and legally dubious emergency order plans to revamp voting rules this year in order to boost Republican fortunes in the fall elections. Continue reading...
KP Sharma Oli: Nepal’s former prime minister arrested over alleged role in deadly protest crackdown
At least 77 people killed in anti-corruption youth uprising in September, which began over a brief social media banPolice in Nepal arrested former prime minister KP Sharma Oli early on Saturday over the deaths of dozens of people during violent protests in September that toppled the government and resulted in new elections.Authorities arrested the powerful communist leader at his residence on the outskirts of the capital Kathmandu. They also arrested Ramesh Lekhak, the former home minister who has been accused of ordering authorities to fire on protesters. Continue reading...
From jammed broadcasts to a blocked website: BBC Russian's 80 years of defiance
For half a century, BBC Russian had to fend off jammers. Now its website is blocked, but millions still read it.
'We will always protect him' - Tuchel defends White after Wembley boos
England boss Thomas Tuchel defended Ben White after he was booed by sections of the Wembley crowd in the 1-1 draw with Uruguay. 
Tiger Woods arrested for suspected DUI after rolling his car
Police are charging professional golfer Tiger Woods with driving under the influence for a second time.
TSA funding update: House GOP spikes DHS funding proposal, extending shutdown that's caused airport delays
President Donald Trump on Friday issued an executive order to pay Transportation Security Administration agents during the shutdown.
Ukraine war briefing: Rubio stridently denies US is demanding Kyiv give up eastern Donbas to Russia
US secretary of state says Zelenskyy’s claims ‘not true’ about Donbas; French TV criticised over Sergei Lavrov interview. What we know on day 1,494US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, rejected Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s assertion that the Trump administration is demanding Kyiv hand over its eastern Donbas region to Russia to receive US security guarantees in any ceasefire plan. Speaking on Friday, Rubio disputed Zelenskyy’s recent comments and said the US has made no such stipulation in its talks with Ukraine. “That’s a lie,” Rubio said. “And I saw him say that. And it’s unfortunate he would say that because he knows that’s not true and that’s not what he was told.” Zelenskyy this week told Reuters the US was making its offer of security guarantees for Ukraine contingent on the ceding of the Donbas region, the industrial heartland long coveted by Russian President Vladimir Putin.French public television came under severe criticism on Friday for airing a prime-time interview with Russia’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov. The France 2 television channel aired 10 minutes of the pre-recorded interview during its Thursday evening news, while the full hour-long version was posted online. More than four years into Russia’s full-scale invasion on Ukraine, Lavrov on France 2 claimed Moscow was intent on defending “international law”. Lavrov said US-Israeli strikes on Iran that sparked the Middle East war had breached these rules. But he rejected any notion of Russia breaking international law in Ukraine, claiming its forces never targeted “exclusively civilian” targets.Ukraine’s ambassador to France, Vadym Omelchenko, said on X people must be wondering why French television had given a platform to “a war criminal”.And the French foreign minister, Jean-Noel Barrot, responded by saying Russia does not defend international law either in Ukraine or Iran with its actions. “Mr Lavrov was able to calmly spread his propaganda last night on a French television channel … You do not defend international law by launching a war of aggression,” Barrot told reporters on the sidelines of a G7 meeting in France.Meanwhile, Moscow has denied reports that Vladimir Putin asked Russian oligarchs to donate to fund the Ukraine war, as covered earlier by Nadeem Badshah. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said one of the businessmen at a closed-door meeting on 26 March proposed donating money to the state, and Putin welcomed this initiative.Ukraine’s foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, said the US still has a critical role to play in ending the war with Russia, adding that he had met Rubio on the sidelines of the G7 meeting in France. “Ukraine’s proposals are realistic and doable. Pressure on Russia is key to make Moscow end the war,” Sybiha posted to X on Friday. “We also spoke about the developments in the Middle East. Ukraine’s position is that the regimes in Moscow and Tehran work together to prolong the war.” There are fears the US-Israeli war on Iran has diverted attention away from finding peace in Ukraine. Continue reading...
'The gravest crime against humanity': What does the UN vote on slavery mean?
African and Caribbean nations want countries which benefited from slavery to pay compensation but it will not be straightforward.
Tiger Woods charged with driving under influence after crash
The 15-time major champion faces charges of driving under the influence after rolling his car in Florida.
Tech Now
How research linking climate change and extreme weather events is being used in lawsuits.
Trump says US-Israeli war on Iran creating a new Middle East
Donald Trump told a Saudi investment conference that the Middle East will soon be free from Iranian “nuclear blackmail.”
Iran war live: Trump again slams NATO’s lack of support for war on Tehran
Iranian Red Crescent says more than 92,600 civilian units were damaged across the country in US-Israeli attacks.
If these were the Tuchel trials, Foden - among others - failed
After another subdued performance in an England shirt, has Phil Foden wasted his last chance to make their World Cup squad?
Three killed as tourist helicopter crashes on Hawaiian island of Kauai
Two others injured after sightseeing aircraft comes down on remote beach on Na Pali CoastA tourist helicopter crashed on a remote beach off the coast of Kauai, Hawaii, killing three people and injuring two others, authorities said.The helicopter was carrying one pilot and four passengers when it crashed on Thursday afternoon at Kalalau Beach, the Kauai fire department said. The beach is on the Na Pali coast on Kauai’s north shore. The area is otherwise reachable only by hiking or boat. Continue reading...
‘Break your silence’: Jane Fonda leads rally against Trump crackdown on arts and media
Actor outside Kennedy Center urges Americans to ‘stand tall against authoritarianism’ and resist free-speech threatsThe actor Jane Fonda joined journalists, musicians and writers outside Washington’s John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on Friday in urging US citizens to “break your silence” and “stand tall against authoritarianism”.At a damp but defiant rally hosted by Fonda’s Committee for the First Amendment, around a hundred invited guests gathered to hear speakers and singers rail against book bans, political censorship and other threats to free speech under Donald Trump. Continue reading...
US expects Iran operation to end in ‘weeks, not months’, says Marco Rubio
Secretary of state speaks as Israel threatens to expand attacks on Iran while Tehran keeps firing missiles at IsraelMiddle East crisis – live updatesWashington expects its operation against Iran to conclude in “weeks, not months”, the US secretary of state has said, despite continuing violence across the region and a threat from Israel to “escalate and expand” its attacks against the Islamic republic.“When we are done with them here in the next couple weeks, they will be weaker than they’ve been in recent history,” Marco Rubio told reporters on Friday after meeting G7 foreign ministers in France. Continue reading...
Red card confusion & contentious calls - VAR's 'bad day at office'
Manuel Ugarte appearing to be shown two yellow cards but not sent off was one of a number of confusing incidents on a bizarre night in England's friendly with Uruguay.
Labor to use new fuel security powers to underwrite extra shipments to Australia
PM did not rule out later fuel rationing or work-from-home measures but said he strongly preferred ‘voluntary arrangements’Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe Australian government will take on the financial risk of additional imports of essential products affected by the war in the Middle East, to get extra supplies of petrol, diesel and fertiliser into the country.The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, announced the new fuel security powers on Saturday after a month of soaring diesel and petrol prices and widespread shortages at service stations, particularly in regional Australia. Continue reading...
Rescue workers rush to save lives after south Tehran missile strike
Iranian rescue workers have been pulling survivors and bodies out of a building after a missile strike on south Tehran.
Trump calls Strait of Hormuz the 'Strait of Trump'
Trump recently floated the possibility that the strait could be controlled jointly by "me and the ayatollah" as part of a resolution to the Iran war.
Wakefield move third in Super League after away win at York
Tom Johnstone ran in two second-half tries to help Wakefield secure a 26-14 victory over York at LNER Community Stadium.
'Memory of a generation': China mourns the sudden death of a controversial education influencer
The divisive 41-year-old was among the country's most prominent influencers.
Papers: Man Utd target Wharton expecting summer Palace exit
The top stories and transfer rumours from Saturday's newspapers...