The Guardian
9 hours ago
I saw rioting, looting, above all, anger. If French leaders think more violence will solve this, they’re mistaken | Oliver Haynes
It’s a perfect storm of protesters with heartfelt grievances and others set on conflict. The key here is the sense of betrayal that united them on the streetsThe first thing I learned on the streets of Paris this weekend is that there is no arguing with teargas. I arrived at Place de la République just after 1pm yesterday. The mood was festive until police started firing volleys of teargas into the square from Rue du Faubourg-du-Temple.I didn’t see the inciting incident – if there even was one – and tried walking into the cloud of CS gas hanging in the air. It was impossible. The gas clings to your nose and burns your eyes, and you quickly start struggling to breathe. I retreated towards the Boulevard de Magenta, blinking furiously to stop the stinging.Oliver Haynes is a journalist and co-host of Sacré Bleu: the French presidential election podcastDo you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...
The Guardian
10 hours ago
Arrests over France protests rise to 1,800, with whole streets in Paris ‘devastated’ – Europe live
Interior minister says ‘the Republic will not yield’ to France’s worst protests in yearsA dispatch here from Sam Jones, our reporter in Madrid, as protests have spread to Italy and PortugalThe angry protests that have convulsed Spain and France in recent weeks have spilled over to Italy and Portugal, with rioters clashing with police and setting property on fire in Milan, and a tent encampment springing up in Lisbon over the weekend. Continue reading...
The Guardian
10 hours ago
Manchester City owner’s £55m housing loan while Burnham was mayor investigated
Scrutiny committee looks into financing of Manchester Life project as PM promises ‘full transparency’A £55m loan to Manchester City’s Abu Dhabi owner will be investigated as part of a review into a fund for housing projects while Andy Burnham was mayor.The prime minister has faced weeks of scrutiny over his links to Manchester City’s super-rich owners after the club was found guilty of boosting its income by £900m in a nine-year breach of financial rules. Continue reading...
The Guardian
10 hours ago
Wikipedia often gets taken for granted – but its history is fascinating, and its future is fragile
Wikipedia’s 68m articles have been consulted trillions of times. Not bad for a website that has barely changed since it was founded 20 years agoA few years ago, I was struck by the tension between how Wikipedia was used, and how it was talked about. Everyone was on it all the time, and yet its reputation had stalled at “don’t trust it”, because it was the “free encyclopedia that anyone can edit”.Clearly people were trusting it, so much so it had become part of the fabric of everyday life since it was founded by Jimmy Wales and Larry Sanger in 2001. But despite the fact it now has been consulted trillions of times by billions of people (English Wikipedia alone is 5.2bn words long), it inspires an odd lack of curiosity. Even people donating to Wikipedia might say the money was “for the factcheckers”, though there aren’t any – not paid ones, anyway. Meanwhile, the internet in the social media era had begun to feel like a much uglier place, and some digital nostalgia was setting in: here was this holdover that had somehow survived; a website that functions – and even looks – much the same as it did 20 years ago. Continue reading...
The Guardian
11 hours ago
What are self-replicating ‘AI worms’, and why is Anthropic worried about them?
The tech company says successful AI worms need more capability on less powerful devices, but current trends make that feasible by the end of the yearWarnings about what artificial intelligence might do in the future – together with alarming reports of what it has gotten up to already – are being issued so quickly that even security experts have difficulty triaging what to worry about.Yet a report this week from Anthropic’s offensive research team grabbed attention by describing a new, practical threat, one devoid of human characteristics or apocalyptic musings. The red team, as such internal testers are called, said it created a malicious AI program that spread autonomously through internet-connected “smart” televisions and could do the same inside other ordinary devices. While machines running AI usually need a fair amount of computing power, the researchers said that their program split parts of itself among 15 televisions and was still able to function by using a bit of power from each. Continue reading...
The Guardian
11 hours ago
Microsoft pulls out of AI datacentre project in Essex over power supply concerns
Development by UK firm Nscale heralded by ministers as largest of its kind in country loses anchor tenantThe development of a huge AI datacentre hailed by the UK government has received a fresh setback after Microsoft pulled out of the project over concerns about power supplies.The development by the British company Nscale, heralded by ministers as the country’s largest AI datacentre when it was announced in 2025, was planned to open at Loughton in Essex next year. Continue reading...
The Guardian
12 hours ago
The next ayahuasca? Gabon fights to protect sacred plant from US drug companies
Iboga root, central to several Gabonese ritual traditions, is believed to have huge potential for use in treating addiction and some mental illnessesThe temple is dark, its sandy floor edged with candles. People sit shoulder to shoulder beneath palm fronds hung from the rafters. Through the night, they swallow what they have come here for: a bitter root bark called iboga.Tabernanthe iboga is a slow-growing central African rainforest shrub, the root bark of which has long been used in several Gabonese ritual traditions. Continue reading...
The Guardian
12 hours ago
US workers facing deadly heat borrow from tomato pickers to win key protections
As efforts to protect people from extreme heat stall, organizers are embracing an approach that targets major brands’ reputations“It’s the kind of heat that makes you feel like you’re being dehydrated, like your skin is drying out,” said Lucas Benitez, after harvesting watermelons with his sons and wife this summer. “The heat that we had 30 years ago is not nearly the heat that we have today.”This summer was the hottest on record in the US, and most workers in fields, greenhouses and unconditioned indoor facilities still do not have heat protections on the job, putting their health at risk as the climate crisis is expected to make extreme heat more frequent and intense. Continue reading...
The Guardian
13 hours ago
Small business owners are doing OK – but will that help Trump overcome his low approval ratings?
Overall, economic sentiment for Trump is poor, but small businesses seem fairly confident, according to several surveysThere are 34m small businesses in the United States. They employ approximately half of the country’s workers and generate about half of the country’s GDP. They’re an important voting block. So how are they feeling about the economy as we head into November’s midterm elections? Overall, economic sentiment for Donald Trump is poor but small business – admittedly a diverse demographic that’s hard to poll – seems fairly confident. A number of recently published surveys and reports can help understand their mood.Confidence is generally stable. Continue reading...
The Guardian
13 hours ago
World leaders must wise up to threat of cyber-attacks or rogue fridges will be least of their worries | Heather Stewart
Global cooperation seems unlikely despite AI increasing the risk of digital fraud and the need to protect the financial systemRogue French fridges were an unlikely talking point for the world’s leading economists, central bankers and finance chiefs meeting in a sultry Bangkok last week – helping to underline the spiralling cost of cyber-attacks.Kristalina Georgieva, the managing director of the International Monetary Fund, seized on news that supermarket chains across France had to chuck out piles of spoiled food after hackers accessed their fridge controls and turned up the temperature to 50C. Continue reading...
The Guardian
13 hours ago
‘We are suffocating’: protests spread to Lisbon and Milan as housing and living cost tensions intensify
Hundreds at Lisbon tent camp demand action, as Giorgia Meloni says march in Italy was exploited by ‘hooligans’The angry protests that have convulsed Spain and France in recent weeks have spilled over to Italy and Portugal, with rioters clashing with police and setting property on fire in Milan, and a tent encampment springing up in Lisbon over the weekend.A march in central Milan on Saturday to protest against rising living costs began peacefully but ended with masked rioters throwing stones, paving blocks and other objects at riot police and setting fire to barricades made from bar tables. Continue reading...
The Guardian
14 hours ago
The best toys and gifts for eight-year-olds, tested by eight-year-olds
From science kits to karaoke machines, shower sets to brain-boosting games, here are the presents our mini testers loved the most• The best gifts for seven-year-oldsEight is such a wonderful age. Kids are old enough to have their own interests and hobbies, but still young enough to get swept up in play and be absorbed for hours if you find the right toy for them.By eight, children’s interests and skills are taking shape. They’re more confident readers, more strategic thinkers and curious about how things work. And while they think they’re extremely grown up, eight-year-olds still need plenty of time to play for their overall wellbeing. Continue reading...
The Guardian
14 hours ago
World Bank says ‘small AI’ could transform developing countries
Bank’s chief knowledge officer says the tech could speed up economic development from centuries to decadesThe World Bank is urging developing countries to kickstart the creation of “small AI” models, which can run on a mobile phone with low connectivity, to reap the full benefits of artificial intelligence.While Silicon Valley big tech firms are focused on ever more sophisticated consumer products, Paschal Donohoe, the World Bank’s chief knowledge officer, said AI could also accelerate development for emerging economies – but only if it was adapted to local needs. Continue reading...
The Guardian
15 hours ago
Jordon Steele-John says ‘I’m not on leave’ and accuses Greens leader of making ‘bad call’ regarding complaints
Greens senator for WA says complaints regarding his behaviour towards women not about ‘accountability’ but rather ‘factionalism’Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastJordon Steele-John has accused an internal faction within the Greens of playing “nasty political games” and the leader, David Shoebridge, of pressuring him to take leave after complaints about his conduct were made public last week.The 32-year-old Greens senator released a six-page statement on Sunday night after Nine newspapers reported last week that seven party members had demanded an investigation into allegations he had acted inappropriately towards women between 2017 and 2025. Continue reading...
The Guardian
15 hours ago
Hilarious quips and ‘100,000-volt’ energy: the hypemen (and women) redefining Afrobeats music
Style of emceeing based on high-octane, ad-libbed vocals has flourished thanks to its unique way of captivating crowdsFor the 2015 freshmen cohort of the history degree programme at the University of Lagos, their classmate’s first-semester presentation was so captivating that they began calling him Toby Shang, after the 16th-century Chinese dynasty he had focused on.His crowd engagement that day had been harnessed from his high school days as a ginger-man (energiser) in a three-man band and as a private tutor. By his final year at university, his viral catchphrases and infectious energy had resulted in a hit song, Shedibalabala. Today, he is one of the self-acclaimed “evangelists and pioneers” in the Afrobeats sub-genre some are now calling Afrohype or lamba. Continue reading...
The Guardian
16 hours ago
An extraordinary life: descendant welcomes biography of woman ‘gifted’ to Queen Victoria
A girl called Àìná was captured by an African king and later taken to England to become Sarah Forbes Bonetta, protege of the imperial monarch When she was seven years old, Bayo Randle’s great-great-grandmother Sarah Forbes Bonetta was presented to Queen Victoria at Windsor Castle as a “diplomatic gift” from an African king.Victoria would go on to pay for Bonetta’s education, approve her marriage to one of west Africa’s wealthiest men, and become godmother to her eldest daughter. Continue reading...
The Guardian
18 hours ago
Condé Nast’s UK profits drop by more than a third as sale of Vogue publisher ruled out
Magazine group points to restructuring bill but says it ‘remains profitable in the UK for another year’Profits at Condé Nast’s UK arm slumped by more than a third last year, according to figures published shortly after the billionaire family that owns the luxury magazine group and titles from Vogue to GQ ruled out a sale.The publisher, which enjoyed a bumper 2024 after booking £64m in proceeds from the sale of its UK headquarters Vogue House in London, saw pre-tax profits excluding exceptional items tumble 36% from £28m that year to nearly £18m last year. Continue reading...
The Guardian
18 hours ago
Heat pumps and insulation would cut UK living costs more than new oilfields, study suggests
Warm homes plan would create 50,000 jobs, compared with about 1,100 for Rosebank oilfield, thinktank findsInsulating Britain’s homes and investing in heat pumps would do more to cut the cost of living, create jobs and boost the UK’s economy than drilling for new oil, research suggests.The government’s £15bn warm homes plan, currently under threat of cuts as ministers seek budget savings, would slash £1bn a year from household energy bills across the UK, concentrated on those on low incomes, according to research by the thinktank E3G. It would also provide a £1.6bn yearly boost to the economy, and about 50,000 new jobs spread across thousands of small businesses. Continue reading...
The Guardian
19 hours ago
The last lace mill – in pictures
MYB Textiles Ltd is the last mill in the world weaving patterned Nottingham lace on traditional looms. Once there were 20 lace mills in the Irvine Valley towns of Newmilns and Darvel alone. The lace industry became the largest employer in the area for a time and flourished until the late 1970s when competition emerged from other European countries and Asia. Now the majority of their trade comes from the film, theatre, TV and entertainment industry Continue reading...
The Guardian
19 hours ago
£3,500 and no work done: the offer to help that’s really a roofing scam
Citizens Advice warns of its No 1 scam as growing number of people are targeted by criminals posing as roofersThe builder who calls at your door says they are doing some work in the area and has spotted a loose tile on your roof. They offer to fix it for a good price that you agree to.But when they go up on their ladder to inspect the problem, they see another problem. Rain has been splashing out of the gutters and the wood around them is getting damaged. The only solution, the builder says, is to have rigid PVC trays installed to divert the water. Continue reading...
The Guardian
19 hours ago
‘I felt disgusted’: MEP speaks out over nude deepfakes and urges EU action
Lena Schilling of Austrian Greens says images are ‘digital violence against women’ and a threat to democracyAn Austrian MEP has spoken out about her experience of being “stripped naked” online without her consent and has urged the EU to take action, as a report found that one in six female MEPs had been targeted by sexualised AI-generated content.Lena Schilling of the Green party said she had learned last month about nude deepfakes of herself circulating online. When she opened the links, she found herself staring at images from one of her first ever press conferences – but the images had been digitally altered to remove her clothing. Continue reading...
The Guardian
21 hours ago
‘4,000 people minding our own business’: four decades on, Falklands again face a hostile Argentina
Facing a slump in the polls, Argentina’s president is making economic attacks on the islands’ oil industry, and suggesting its key fisheries industry could be next A dozen local people and a uniformed military police officer (“Do you mind if I sit in?”) took their seats at the back of the handsome wood-panelled courtroom that doubles as the Falkland Islands’ legislative assembly. Outside, it was a typically blowy early evening. It may nominally be spring in the south Atlantic, but Stanley harbour, with its dark grey water speckled with historical shipwrecks, was a cauldron of swells and churn.Six of the assembly’s eight members – five men, one woman – waited patiently at a row of desks and microphones. The heating had been turned up to just short of uncomfortable. Behind them, a portrait of King Charles. From the other walls, dusty photographs of governors peered down on the scene. Continue reading...
The Guardian
21 hours ago
Police clash with students and workers protesting in Paris – video
Police fired teargas and blocked streets in Paris during protests supporting high school student grievances, high prices and the fraying of the social welfare system. A peaceful march was seen to turn violent as rioters threw fireworks around Place de la République in central Paris.Student protests started last month over absent teachers and decrepit school buildings, and has developed into a bigger movement over cost of living and falling standards. Demonstrations broke out nationwide with hundreds of thousands of people taking to the streets in Paris, Marseille, Lille and NantesPolice clash with protesters as tens of thousands take to streets across France Continue reading...
The Guardian
1 day ago
Top stories from trusted global sources
Updated 1 minute ago · Feeds: BBC World · Reuters World · DW World · The Guardian World · BBC Europe · The Guardian Europe · DW Europe · Euronews Europe · Reuters Business · BBC Business · CNBC · The Guardian Business · BBC Tech · The Verge · Reuters Tech · The Guardian Tech · BBC Sport · Reuters Sports · Sky Sports · ESPN Top · Al Jazeera Top · Euronews