The Guardian

Two children dead after pram hit by car in Sydney

Police officers found two children – both aged under five – had been struck by a car in Cabramatta, in the city’s south-westFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastTwo children in a pram have been struck and killed by a car in Sydney’s south-west.Emergency services were called to the intersection of Joseph and Gilbert streets, Cabramatta at about 3.15pm on Wednesday after reports of a crash, New South Wales police said. Con

general  Jun 17, 2026

The Guardian

Middle East crisis live: Iran threatens ‘harsh response’ if Israel fails to cease attacks in Lebanon

Israel’s continued military operation in southern Lebanon puts at risk the agreement reached between Iran and the US on SundayFull report: Iran says peace deal dependent on Israel’s withdrawal from LebanonAnalysis: Where does Iran deal leave US-Israel relationship?Hello and welcome to the Guardian’s live coverage of the crisis in the Middle East.Iran’s military has threatened to respond to Israel after strikes in southern Lebanon killed four people, despite an agreement being reached between Teh

general  Jun 17, 2026

The Guardian

G7 commits to ‘unwavering support for Ukraine’ with pledge to offer more air defence – Europe live

World leaders backed Ukraine’s defence of ‘its freedom, sovereignty, and territorial integrity’in Évian les-BainsThe wait for Keir Starmer’s first session of the G7 gathering in Évian-les-Bains was undoubtedly awkward. Continue reading...

general  Jun 17, 2026

WSJ World News

U.K. Inflation Remains Unexpectedly Flat Ahead of Bank of England Meeting

Annual inflation was unchanged in May, defying expectations of an increase and reinforcing the view that the BOE will keep rates on hold Thursday.

general  Jun 17, 2026

The Guardian

Channelling Trump and deriding journalists: five key moments from Pauline Hanson’s Press Club speech

One Nation leader uses platform to rail against multiculturalism, the media and the climate change ‘hoax’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA nationally televised address to the National Press Club was perhaps the clearest proof yet of Pauline Hanson’s arrival in the mainstream of Australian politics.The One Nation leader used the platform to rail against multiculturalism, the climate change “hoax” and the media in a

general  Jun 17, 2026

BBC World

Japan raids ice cream giants over price-fixing allegations

The investigation on alleged cartel pricing of ice cream comes as Japan faces record summer temperatures.

general  Jun 17, 2026

The Guardian

Wes Streeting says he could launch leadership challenge next week

Former health secretary calls on Keir Starmer to step down to end ‘uncertainty and paralysis’Wes Streeting has said he would be prepared to challenge Keir Starmer and spark a Labour leadership contest as early as next week.The former health secretary, who quit the cabinet last month, said “uncertainty and paralysis” would have to be ended and that he would give the prime minister at least the weekend to think about it. Continue reading...

general  Jun 17, 2026

The Guardian

Students could be required to pass GCSE English to access university loans

Exclusive: Ministers consider national threshold in England that could in effect bar thousands from studyingUniversity students would face minimum grade requirements to qualify for student loans in England under proposals that could in effect bar thousands of young people from higher education.Under one proposal being discussed by ministers, a pass in GCSE English would become the national threshold for students to access government-backed tuition and maintenance loans through the Student Loans

general  Jun 17, 2026

The Guardian

Grade requirement for student loans would cut a financial lifeline for English universities

Institutions could lose out on at least £200m a year if 30,000 or so potential students without even one GCSE are excluded each yearIf universities thought a Labour government would quickly revive their financial stability, those days are over. The vibes may have improved but little else has, with rising costs remorselessly squeezing their budgets and universities having to cut or close departments.Prestigious universities such as Nottingham were hit after tougher visa restrictions skewered thei

general  Jun 17, 2026

BBC World

Telegram challenges India ban over exam paper leak fears

Telegram CEO Pavel Durov has called the ban a "mistake", arguing it would punish millions of users.

general  Jun 17, 2026

The Guardian

Clinician reported birthkeeper to police the day Melbourne wellness influencer died following freebirth

Inquest hears clinician wasn’t legally required to report to police but was concerned about public health and safety A senior clinician reported a birthkeeper to police the same day one of her clients died after giving birth at home – something the senior clinician said he had not done before.The evidence was heard during the third day of the inquest into the death of 30-year-old wellness influencer Stacey Warnecke, who died on 29 September in Frankston hospital in Melbourne. She had paid Emily

general  Jun 17, 2026

The Guardian

UK inflation stays steady at 2.8% despite Iran conflict driving up fuel prices

Flatlining figure confounds forecasts of an increase to 3% as Bank of England prepares to set interest ratesUK inflation unexpectedly remained at 2.8% last month despite the Middle East war driving up energy prices, official figures have shown.May’s annual price rise reading recorded by the Office for National Statistics confounded economists’ forecasts of a rise to 3%. Continue reading...

general  Jun 17, 2026

The Guardian

‘Tax break tart’: hospitality tipped to exploit summer VAT cut on children’s meals

As bosses ridicule the chancellor’s scheme, one venue is offering a £25 ‘kids’ menu of snails and anchovy butter toastRestaurants and pubs are expected to devise “enterprising” schemes to exploit a tax break on meals for under-18s, after one venue launched a menu for “kids” featuring wild burgundy snail salad and anchovy butter toast.Rachel Reeves last month announced a temporary cut in VAT on children’s meals from 20% to 5% between 25 June and 1 September, part of a “Great British summer saving

general  Jun 17, 2026

The Guardian

Wednesday briefing: In a new era of far-right organising, how can we tackle hate?

In today’s newsletter: The far right are using social media to foster division, from Southampton to Belfast, but there are calls for clear and urgent ways to counter digital radicalismGood morning. Ten years after the murder of the MP Jo Cox by a rightwing extremist in the run-up to the Brexit referendum, her sister Kim Leadbeater, now herself a MP, issued a clear and urgent summons.In an interview on our Today in Focus podcast, she proposed that political hatred in Britain is worse now than at

general  Jun 17, 2026

The Guardian

Woman says she ‘didn’t understand mental health’ before daughter experiencing acute psychosis killed another child

Girl told mother she thought about killing people ‘all the time’, inquest into 10-year-old Biddy Porter’s death hearsFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe mother of a child killer did not understand mental health and consulted a naturopathic herbalist about concerns for her teenage daughter, an inquest has been told.Two weeks after the 14-year-old confessed to her mother that she thought about killing people “all the

general  Jun 17, 2026

The Guardian

A nation shaped by rain: exhibition celebrates Scotland’s wettest obsession

Minnie the Minx and Macbeth feature in National Library’s exploration of how rainfall has shaped Scottish science, literature, history and identityIt seems fitting that, 250 years ago, one of Scotland’s foremost scientists took a close interest in what is arguably the country’s most famous feature: rainJames Hutton, celebrated by Scots as the father of modern geology, went so far as to write a formula for “a theory of rain”. In 1784, he sketched out the key principles for the “condensation of aq

general  Jun 17, 2026

The Guardian

BBC presenter Ashley Cain called women ‘slags’, ‘sluts’ and ‘bitches’

Exclusive: Cain has been lauded by corporation for his appeal to young men despite history of abusive and misogynistic remarks• Warning: this article contains sexually explicit, offensive languageA BBC presenter lauded by the corporation for his appeal to young male audiences has a history of making abusive and misogynistic remarks about women, whom he has variously called “slags”, “sluts”, “psychos” and “bitches”, the Guardian can reveal.Ashley Cain is the presenter of the BBC Three documentary

general  Jun 17, 2026

The Guardian

Sierra Leone’s first lady refuses to condemn FGM without ‘reliable data’ on harms

Exclusive: health professionals, survivors and politicians voice concerns in open letter over comments by Fatima Maadi Bio, who denies supporting the practiceThe first lady of Sierra Leone has denied that she supports female genital mutilation amid rising anger around her perceived approval of the practice.But in an exclusive response to the Guardian, Fatima Maada Bio, the wife of President Julius Maada Bio, also said she would not openly condemn FGM until she saw “reliable data” that the practi

general  Jun 17, 2026

The Guardian

Fashion tycoon Bernard Arnault accused of stranglehold over French business press

Arnault’s addition of leading weekly to stable of publications raises concerns about media ownership in FranceHe is known as the “wolf in cashmere” – the owner of the world’s biggest luxury group whose brands including Louis Vuitton, Dior and Tiffany have made him one of the world’s richest people.But Bernard Arnault, a close friend of Donald Trump, is under fire from journalists’ unions in France for buying up almost all the country’s business and economic press. Continue reading...

general  Jun 17, 2026

The Guardian

John Lewis injects £20m into Glasgow city centre store in wider branch reboot

Upgrade to Buchanan Galleries part of £50m spend this year and £800m by 2029 to revive appeal of department storesJohn Lewis is to spend £20m on a revamp of its Glasgow store in the city centre’s Buchanan Galleries in a vote of confidence in the shopping mall not long ago scheduled for demolition.It is the largest cash injection within a wider plan to spend £50m this financial year on refreshing its shops, with department stores in Reading, Cambridge, Leicester and Liverpool all earmarked for an

general  Jun 17, 2026