Lewis was the father of Avi Lewis, who was elected leader of the progressive New Democratic party one day before his father died Stephen Lewis, the Canadian diplomat, politician and human rights advocate, who spent decades tirelessly working to focus global attention on the HIV/Aids epidemic, has died of cancer. Lewis, who served as the Canadian ambassador to the United Nations, as well as the head of Ontario’s New Democratic party (NDP), was 88. Continue reading...

Kyiv urges inquiry after leaked calls appeared to capture Hungarian foreign minister telling Moscow he would try to amend EU sanctions to its liking. What we know on day 1,498 Continue reading...

Pentagon chief’s remarks come after US army said crews suspended amid investigation into incident in Tennessee Defense secretary Pete Hegseth said the crews of two US army AH-64 Apache helicopters that hovered next to the singer Kid Rock’s swimming pool while he clapped and saluted on Saturday are no longer suspended. “No punishment. No investigation,” Hegseth wrote on social media. “Carry on, patriots.” Continue reading...

Defence ministry says contact was lost with the An-26 military transport aircraft whilst it was on a scheduled flight over the Crimean Peninsula A Russian Antonov-26 military plane crashed while flying over the Crimean peninsula, killing 29 people, the TASS news agency reported Wednesday, quoting Russia’s defence ministry. “On 31 March at around 18:00 Moscow time, contact was lost with the An-26 military transport aircraft whilst it was on a scheduled flight over the Crimean Peninsula,” the defence ministry said. Continue reading...

Sadie Sink and Noah Jupe’s pure chemistry perfectly encapsulates the urgent and uncompromising nature of first love Has the conveyor belt from screen-to-stage celebrity turned full circle when a star from a hit TV series steps on to the West End stage in a production that is running contemporaneously with a stage adaptation of that same TV series? Sadie Sink, better known to Stranger Things fans as Max Mayfield, performed her West End debut while Stranger Things: First Shadow played up the road, at the Phoenix theatre, in a prequel to the Duffer Brothers’ series. It may seem like the Netflixification of the West End, but Sink actually began life as a theatre actor – and earned a Tony nomination for Broadway’s run of John Proctor is a Villain, currently at the Royal Court for its London run. At the Harold Pinter theatre, London, until 20 June. Continue reading...

Sector cites ‘billions of pounds in additional costs’ from new business rates and increase in minimum wage thresholds Two-thirds of hospitality businesses are planning to cut jobs as a result of “suffocating” costs imposed by government, as new business rates and higher wage bills come into force. Many pubs, restaurants and hotel companies will see their costs increase significantly from 1 April after Rachel Reeves’s changes to business rates and an increase in minimum wage thresholds announced at the chancellor’s November budget. Continue reading...

London Coliseum Superbly cast, the dancer brings stratospheric levels of charisma to a rather pedestrian show driven by Cyndi Lauper’s songs Johannes Radebe (AKA Jojo from Strictly) is a born performer. He is utterly magnetic on stage, and when he’s dancing you can’t take your eyes off him. The role of the drag queen Lola in Kinky Boots could have been written for Radebe, whose entrances alone are a thing to behold – rising from a trapdoor, say, draped in a floor-length crimson gown and wearing a curly blond wig, part Diana Ross, part Whitney Houston. The musical is based on the 2005 film inspired by the real-life story of a troubled Northampton shoe factory that switches to making thigh-high boots for drag queens. It’s a riot of feathers and sparkle, with designers Robert Jones and Tom Rogers going all out on the costumes. The foil to Lola’s otherworldly glamour is the everyman character Charlie Price (usually played by 2010 X Factor winner Matt Cardle, but due to illness, by understudy Liam Doyle on the night I watch). Charlie is likable, directionless, pulled back home from London by the death of his father to reluctantly take over the ailing family business. A chance encounter with Lola and her friends leads to a mad scheme to save the factory, and a bit of culture clash comedy. Kinky Boots approaches gender and sexuality in a warm, good-humoured way, and lightly explores themes of fathers and sons, expectations and acceptance. Continue reading...

UK researcher uses maths to explain seeming inevitability of phenomenon experienced by many motorists It is a situation experienced by many motorists: one driver overtakes another only to find the slower car is right behind them when they reach a red light. Now a researcher has used mathematics to reveal why the situation feels inevitable. Dr Conor Boland from Dublin City University has called his work “The Voorhees law of traffic”. Continue reading...

The home affairs select committee said Prevent cannot deal with the modern challenges of fighting extremism The government’s anti-terrorism programme, Prevent, is “outdated and inadequately prepared” to deal with modern challenges such as extremists adhering to no particular ideology, an influential cross-party group of MPs has concluded. The home affairs select committee has called for a reset to the approach for dealing with fast-evolving online subcultures promoting antisemitism, anti-Muslim hostility, misogyny and violence, as well as an over-representation of neurodiverse people and those with mental health conditions. A growing prevalence of under-18s being drawn into extremism. Neurodiverse individuals, particularly those with Autistic Spectrum Disorder, being over-represented among referrals to the programme. Fluid or hybrid ideological beliefs among those referred and a shift toward nihilistic violence. Influencers and creative tools such as memes, humour and coded messaging being used to spread extremist content in a way that is accessible and appealing. Generative AI being used to produce large volumes of tailored content and disinformation. An increase in hate crimes and incidents in the UK that are linked to anti-blasphemy activism, anti-Israel extremism, anti-Muslim hostility and eco-extremism. Continue reading...

The new rules are the first major change to the country’s laws governing child-rearing in more than a century Divorced couples in Japan will be able to negotiate joint custody of their children from Wednesday, in the first major change to the country’s laws governing child-rearing in more than a century. Previously, Japan’s Civil Code required couples to decide which parent would take custody of their children when they divorce. Continue reading...

Trans and gender-diverse people experience ‘significant and preventable barriers to their safety and dignity’, report finds Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast The sex discrimination commissioner says there has been a concerted disinformation campaign against transgender rights since Australia’s postal survey on same-sex marriage. The Australian Human Rights Commission released a report on Tuesday – coinciding with international trans day of visibility – finding that trans and gender-diverse people experience “significant and preventable barriers to their safety, dignity and full participation in society” spanning healthcare, housing, education, employment and public life. Continue reading...

Policymakers should address financial barriers that hinder young people from starting families, says thinktank Politicians hoping to persuade young people in the UK to have more children should prioritise tackling housing affordability, according to research by the Resolution Foundation thinktank. There has been growing concern in recent years about Britain’s declining birthrate, given the long-term fiscal pressures of supporting an ageing population. Continue reading...

Trump administration claims list is part of an EEOC investigation into antisemitic discrimination at university A federal judge on Tuesday ordered the University of Pennsylvania to hand over records about Jewish employees on campus to a federal agency as part of an investigation into antisemitic discrimination but said it did not have to reveal any employee’s affiliation with a specific group. US district judge Gerald Pappert said employees can refuse to take part in the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) investigation but the agency “needs the opportunity to talk to them directly to learn if they have evidence of discrimination”. Continue reading...

Sandhu Ponnachan, 36, charged with grievous bodily harm, dangerous driving and possession of a bladed article A 36-year-old man has been charged after seven people were injured when a car hit pedestrians in Derby, police have said. Sandhu Ponnachan, of Chariot Close, Alvaston, was charged on Tuesday night with six counts of causing grievous bodily harm with intent, one count of attempted grievous bodily harm, one count of dangerous driving and one count of possession of a bladed article, Derbyshire police said. Continue reading...

The story will be of another Italian apocalypse, yet another infamous occasion for a nation that has won four men’s World Cups but is starting to believe it might never go to another after missing out for the third time in a row. After a North Macedonian bolt from the blue in 2022, and a stultifying two-legged defeat to Sweden five years before that they found a new way to come up short in 2026 – eliminated on penalties in their playoff final against Bosnia and Herzegovina. But this night should also be remembered for an electric performance by the hosts, who richly deserve the place they have claimed at this summer’s tournament in the USA, Mexico and Canada. Despite falling behind early to a Moise Kean goal, Sergej Barbarez’s side kept their heads, kept attacking and ultimately played the Italians off the park. The only area in which they came up short was scoring the goals their performance deserved. They put that right in the shootout, converting four out of four. Continue reading...

The playing of a Scotland fixture on Merseyside provided a significant boost to the area’s ­hospitality sector. Questions remain over whether or not Scotland’s World Cup involvement this summer can deliver on‑field impact. Steve Clarke believes momentum is little more than a buzzword. There is an unavoidable sense, however, that Scotland are desperately in need of precisely that with North America calling. Supporters are edgy. Continue reading...

It is not a question that Thomas Tuchel wants to entertain at the World Cup this summer but one he had a run at here in what was supposed to be England’s grand Wembley send-off. Can the team thrive against good opposition without Harry Kane? The answer was played out across an increasingly frustrating 90 minutes. It was no. It was not all about Kane, who missed out because of a sore foot. But it was easy to conflate England’s lack of cutting edge with his absence. Tuchel had highlighted the poor goal returns from his other attacking players before this friendly. They needed to bring more to the party. There was only bluntness. Continue reading...

It was a step too far for Kosovo, but only just. They could hardly have given more in running Turkey to the wire but it is Vincenzo Montella’s team, relieved and jubilant at the end, that will play at the World Cup in a little over two months’ time. Turkey make their return after 24 years away; Kosovo had been seeking the most unlikely of debuts and could have made that prospect real if Fisnik Asllani’s first-half effort had not come back off the bar. In the end, though, a scruffy and hotly contested finish by Kerem Akturkoglu settled things early in the second half and, via some minor scares, Turkey could scrape home from there. Kosovo will surely be back, a technically exceptional side richer for this heady experience. Continue reading...

The Graham Potter magic knows no bounds. There will be those who wonder what right Sweden had to be in this playoff, but they will be in the World Cup after an extraordinarily dramatic victory secured by Viktor Gyökeres’s 89th-minute winner. A patchy, anxious game in which Poland had twice equalised, its shapelessness an apt reflection of the stakes, had seemed to be drifting towards extra-time when Sweden, in a rare forward sally, won a pair of corners in a row. Suddenly there was momentum and a mounting sense of anticipation. The second corner was half-cleared, Lucas Bergvall jabbed it goalwards. His shot was saved but Besfort Zeneli skewed against the post and the ball fell for Gyökeres five yards out with the goal gaping. Destiny called and the Arsenal forward answered emphatically. Continue reading...

Company said it achieved valuation of $852bn, mentioning in a blog post it generates $2bn a month in revenue OpenAI announced on Tuesday it had closed a fundraising round of $122bn. The company behind ChatGPT said it had achieved a valuation of $852bn, cementing its status among the most highly valued privately held companies in the world. Continue reading...

US president demolished East Wing of White House last year to make way for 90,000-sq-ft project Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox A US judge has blocked Donald Trump from proceeding with the construction of his $400m White House ballroom. The US president demolished the East Wing of the White House last year to make way for the project. Continue reading...

Prop played with Tigers coach under Stuart Lancaster ‘I am honoured to be part of this prestigious club’ The former England prop Mako Vunipola has confirmed he is joining Leicester this summer as the Tigers look to beef up their pack for next season. The 35-year-old Vunipola will be joined in the East Midlands by the Argentinian front-row Joel Sclavi who will also help to fill the gap left by Nicky Smith’s impending switch to Sale Sharks. Vunipola, who won 79 England caps and was picked for three British & Irish Lions tours, is playing for Vannes in France’s ProD2 but has opted to extend his career by a year. “He was hungry for the chance to come back to the Prem and finish in the comp he knows best,” the Leicester head coach, Geoff Parling, said. Continue reading...

Luanne James said as a librarian she had an obligation to protect the public’s right to access information Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox A Tennessee library director has been fired after she refused to relocate more than 100 LGBTQ+-themed children’s titles to the library system’s adult section. The Rutherford county library board on Monday voted to fire Luanne James following a heated emergency meeting that involved supporters of hers chanting “We stand with Luanne!” while wearing shirts that read “Protect the freedom to read.” Continue reading...

Leaked audio appeared to capture Péter Szijjártó telling Moscow he would try to amend EU sanctions list to its liking Polish and Irish leaders have called the Hungarian government’s actions “repulsive” and “sinister”, after leaked audio appeared to capture its foreign minister telling Moscow he would try to amend the EU sanctions list to its liking. On Tuesday – days before an election in which Hungary’s Viktor Orbán is facing the toughest battle of his 16 years in power – a joint media investigation published a report that it said was based on leaked phone calls between Péter Szijjártó and his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov. Continue reading...

Luca Cella Walker asked chatbot for best way for someone to kill themself on railway line before his death A 16-year-old boy killed himself after asking ChatGPT for the “most successful” way to take your own life, an inquest has been told. Luca Cella Walker, a private school pupil from Yateley, Hampshire, died on 4 May last year. Continue reading...