Politics

Sergei Lavrov said there is 'still a long way to go' in peace talks after recent meetings in Abu Dhabi; Russia continues to press territorial and security demands while Ukraine reported strikes on energy infrastructure including in Odesa.

An immigration court found on Jan. 29 that the Department of Homeland Security had not proved that Turkish Tufts PhD student Rümeysa Öztürk should be removed and terminated her removal proceedings, her attorneys said; the department may appeal.

UN rights chief Volker Turk described last October's violence in El-Fasher as a 'preventable human rights catastrophe' and warned similar abuses may be repeated in Kordofan; Britain said it had imposed new sanctions and raised the matter at the UN Security Council.

The Civil Nuclear Constabulary is marking National Apprenticeship Week 2026 by welcoming a new cohort of apprentice officers and celebrating two years of its police apprenticeship programme.

A Texas federal lawsuit says an 18-month-old girl was returned to ICE custody after a hospital stay for a serious respiratory illness and that prescribed medication was taken from her; immigration authorities later released the child and her parents after the suit.

Reuters interviewed 20 Trump voters who largely praised his first-year record but urged him to tone down rhetoric and prioritize domestic issues such as clearer pathways to legal status for law‑abiding immigrants, healthcare reform, reducing waste and lowering the national debt.

Human rights groups report that detainees in Iran have been secretly executed or given lethal injections after the government’s crackdown, and authorities have acknowledged 3,117 deaths while rights monitors report higher counts; arrests of senior reformist figures were also reported.

Faber-Castell says a factory it donated in Costa Rica for humanitarian use was reportedly used to hold people deported from the US; Costa Rica denies a rights violation and a constitutional court later found the deportees’ liberty had been deprived.

The International Organization for Migration reports 53 people are dead or missing after a migrant boat capsized off the Libyan coast; two survivors were rescued and given emergency medical care.

The UK Government has laid legislation in Parliament to change elements of Universal Credit, with reforms due to take effect in April; it also announced over £3.5 billion of employment support funding by the end of the decade.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer apologised to victims of Jeffrey Epstein's abuse for having believed Peter Mandelson's 'lies' when appointing him as ambassador, and ministers agreed that a parliamentary committee will oversee publication of documents about Mandelson's appointment after MPs threatened to rebel.

Albert Lamond, one of Scotland's last surviving D-Day veterans, has died at 100; he served as an 18-year-old signalman aboard HMS Rowley during the 1944 Normandy landings and later helped evacuate prisoners of war in the Pacific.

Iranian security forces have reportedly arrested at least four reformist figures after nationwide protests, and detained Nobel laureate Narges Mohammadi has been given an additional prison sentence of more than seven years, officials and media reported.

Hong Kong's High Court sentenced media tycoon Jimmy Lai to 20 years in prison after convicting him of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces under the national security law and of publishing seditious materials.

Juan Pablo Guanipa has been released after eight months in detention, his son said; rights group Foro Penal said he was among at least 30 people freed on Sunday.

Pope Leo XIV has accepted an invitation to attend the 54th International Eucharistic Congress in Sydney in October 2028 and is expected to celebrate a Sunday mass at Royal Randwick for about half a million worshippers.

Supporters say Iran has sentenced Nobel laureate Narges Mohammadi to an additional seven years in prison and that she has been on a hunger strike; her lawyer said the Mashhad court issued the ruling.

The article reports that the New START treaty expired on 5 February, raising concerns about a renewed US–Russia arms race, and calls for renewed global peace activism to press for limits and new negotiations.

Australia's Liberal-National Coalition reunited after splitting over proposed hate-speech reforms, with leaders Sussan Ley and David Littleproud announcing an agreement that joint shadow cabinet decisions will stand.

A Resolution Foundation report says about 1 million people in the UK provide at least 35 hours of unpaid care a week, and that one in three carers from poorer families are unable to work because of their duties.

Authorities reported coordinated attacks on railway infrastructure near Bologna on the first full day of the Milan‑Cortina Winter Olympics, causing delays and a temporary suspension of services; officials said traffic later returned to normal and an investigation is under way.

The Rafah crossing reopened this week under a limited pilot arrangement, but far fewer people than expected crossed and the crossing was later closed for two days.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the US has invited Russian and Ukrainian negotiating teams to talks in the United States next week and that Washington wants the war to end by June.

Green Party leader Zack Polanski campaigned in Denton with candidate Hannah Spencer, saying the contest is between the Greens and Reform; Spencer faces candidates from Reform, Labour, the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats.

Democracy experts report President Trump suggested his administration should "take over the voting" in some states, and legal specialists say the Constitution gives states authority to run federal elections.

China's highest court has overturned the death sentence of Canadian Robert Lloyd Schellenberg and ordered a retrial; his lawyer and a Canadian official confirmed the decision, and the Liaoning high people's court will handle the retrial with timing not yet set.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for quicker strengthening of air defences and faster repair of power and heating systems after recent large air attacks; more than 1,110 apartment blocks in Kyiv were reported without heat and personnel changes were announced for underperforming defence areas.

President Trump said he approved an aide reposting a video that showed Barack and Michelle Obama with primate imagery; he did not apologize and the post was removed after about 12 hours, with the White House calling it an error.

People's party is leading opinion polls ahead of Sunday’s election, but it faces coalition challenges and ongoing legal investigations linked to its predecessor, Move Forward.

Islamic State claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing at a Shi'ite mosque in Islamabad that officials say killed at least 31 people and wounded about 169, and Pakistani authorities have opened an investigation.