World news

• Matt Gaetz sues Ethics Committee to block report on sex and drugs allegations: Live updates

  23-12-2024 16:36 via independent.co.uk
  
  Gaetz stands accused of violating Florida’s statutory rape laws, among others, report finds
  
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• Israel confirms it killed Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh in Iran in July

  24-12-2024 01:47 via theguardian.com
  
  Defence minister Israel Katz threatens Houthi rebels in Yemen, saying the military will ‘decapitate their leadership – just as we did with Haniyeh’Israel’s defence minister has confirmed that the IDF assassinated former Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran earlier this year, and warned that the military would also “decapitate” the leadership of Yemen’s Houthi rebels.“We will strike hard at the Houthis ... and decapitate their leadership &
  
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• Greenlife ‘strongly defends’ allegations as EPA prosecutes over Sydney asbestos mulch

  24-12-2024 01:19 via theguardian.com
  
  Charges against three companies and one individual encompass a total of 102 alleged offences relating to 26 sites, including Rozelle parklandsGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe New South Wales Environment Protection Authority is prosecuting three companies and one individual in response to its investigation into Sydney’s asbestos in mulch scandal.The prosecutions encompass 102 alleged offences relating to 26 sites, including Rozelle parklands.Sign up for Guardia
  
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• Sydney trains to run on New Year’s Eve as union and Minns government reach agreement

  24-12-2024 01:06 via theguardian.com
  
  NSW rail workers agree to drop bans that would impact holiday services as government withdraws push to suspend industrial actionGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastSydney’s New Year’s Eve celebrations appear set to enter full swing, after rail unions agreed to tone down industrial action that authorities had warned could force them to cancel public events.The New South Wales government had lodged an application at the Fair Work Commission to have the combined r
  
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• Victoria bushfires: residents in Grampians fire zone given two hours to return home to collect Christmas gifts

  24-12-2024 00:38 via theguardian.com
  Holiday travellers warned to keep up to date with weather conditions as several states face growing risk of blazesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastResidents near bushfires raging in Victoria’s west have been given a two-hour window to return to collect their belongings before Christmas.A police roadblock at the junction between Grampians Road and Ararat-Halls Gap Road was to be opened between 10am and noon on Christmas EveSign up for Guardian Australia’s bre
  
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• TSA finds ‘surprising number of prohibited items’ in woman’s bag – including 82 fireworks and 3 knives

  24-12-2024 00:31 via independent.co.uk
  
  Officers found 82 fireworks in a woman’s carry on baggage
  
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• Bendigo Bank outage: frustration as app and digital banking services down on Christmas Eve

  24-12-2024 00:31 via theguardian.com
  
  Osko payments also affected as bank says it is working to restore services ‘at a busy time of year for all’Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastBendigo Bank’s phone app and e-banking services are down just one day before Christmas.The bank confirmed the problem on Tuesday morning, with Osko payments also impacted. Continue reading...
  
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• Part of Santa Cruz wharf collapses and floats away amid major swell

  24-12-2024 00:24 via theguardian.com
  Three people fell into water but survived with ‘minor injuries’ as swell expected to bring waves as high as 26ftThree people fell into the water, but survived with only “minor injuries”, when a 150ft portion of the Santa Cruz wharf in Santa Cruz, California, collapsed on Monday and floated away, according to local officials and the National Weather Service (NWS).The collapse comes as the area is experiencing a major swell that is expected to bring waves as high as 26ft (7
  
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• TSA officers shocked to find 82 fireworks and 3 knives in woman’s carry-on bag

  24-12-2024 00:15 via independent.co.uk
  
  Airport police and a bomb squad responded to the scene, according to the TSA
  
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• Rudy Giuliani poses as Santa with woman on knee to sell coffee

  23-12-2024 23:49 via independent.co.uk
  
  Rudy Giuliani dressed up as Santa Claus with a woman sitting on his knee in an advertisement for his Rudy Coffee brand.
  
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• Bill Clinton admitted to hospital with fever

  23-12-2024 23:42 via independent.co.uk
  
  Former president ‘remains in good spirits’
  
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• Norad Santa tracker – live: Follow Santa Claus and his reindeer around the globe

  23-12-2024 23:37 via independent.co.uk
  
  He’s made his list, he’s checked it twice – join us on Santa’s journey around the world
  
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• Texas woman accused of tying up 7-year-old inside dog cage next to Christmas tree

  23-12-2024 23:34 via independent.co.uk
  
  The 55-year-old is being held on a $10,000 bond
  
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• Democrats tell Johnson they won’t rescue him from far-right members again

  23-12-2024 23:21 via independent.co.uk
  
  Democrats who voted to save the speaker in May now feel they can’t trust him after he reneged on deal to fund the government
  
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• Broke Rudy Giuliani dresses up as Santa in odd coffee ad

  23-12-2024 23:20 via independent.co.uk
  
  Former New York mayor is promoting his coffee amid financial woes after being found liable for defamation of two Georgia election workers
  
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• Trump ally Gaetz paid 'tens of thousands' for sex and drugs, ethics report says

  23-12-2024 23:15 via bbc.com
  
  An investigation details allegations of drug use and payments for sex - which the former US congressman denies.
  
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• French PM names new government, hoping to avoid another no-confidence vote

  23-12-2024 23:14 via theguardian.com
  
  Centrist François Bayrou had promised a ‘national interest government’ across the middle political ground but ended up leaning to the conservative rightThe French prime minister has announced his new government – the country’s fourth since the beginning of the year – in the hope his administration can see off another vote of no confidence from a bitterly divided parliament.There is a mix of old and new in François Bayrou’s government, which inclu
  
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• Israeli confirms it killed Hamas leader Haniyeh in Tehran

  23-12-2024 23:10 via bbc.com
  
  Ismail Haniyeh was Hamas's most prominent leader until his death in July.
  
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• Magdeburg attack offers far right fertile ground despite suspect's backing for AfD

  23-12-2024 23:05 via bbc.com
  
  There is deep sadness in the city - and also anger directed at the government and migrants.
  
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• Trump taps Katie Miller, wife of key aide Stephen Miller, for Musk’s DOGE panel

  23-12-2024 22:47 via independent.co.uk
  
  DOGE panel aims to cut at least $500m a year from federal government
  
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• Former D.C. police officer found guilty of tipping off Proud Boys leader ahead of Jan 6

  23-12-2024 22:46 via independent.co.uk
  
  Lamond was indicted last year for his role in assisting the Proud Boys leader ahead of January 6
  
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• Four revelations from the House ethics report on Matt Gaetz

  23-12-2024 22:40 via bbc.com
  
  The report gives fresh details about the former Florida congressman's alleged payments for sex and drugs.
  
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• Blake Lively sees wide support in lawsuit against co-star Justin Baldoni

  23-12-2024 22:25 via theguardian.com
  
  Actor filed sexual harassment complaint against director amid allegation he launched smear campaign against herBlake Lively is picking up broad support in her battle against her It Ends With Us co-star and director Justin Baldoni, days after the US actor filed a sexual harassment and retaliation complaint against him on Friday in what was rapidly becoming the most dynamic #MeToo event of the dying year.“Never change. Never wilt,” Colleen Hoover, author of the book that inspired and s
  
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• A history of the Panama Canal — and why Trump can't take it back on his own

  23-12-2024 22:20 via independent.co.uk
  
  President-elect Donald Trump is decrying rising shipping fees Panama has imposed to use the Panama Canal
  
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• Mixed ruling leaves Missouri abortion rights in limbo despite ballot measure

  23-12-2024 22:16 via theguardian.com
  
  Judge said state’s ban ‘clearly contrary’ to recently passed constitutional amendment but left other laws in placeMore than two months after Missouri residents voted to add abortion rights into their state constitution and overturn the state’s ban on the procedure, abortions have not yet resumed in Missouri – and it’s not clear when they will, according to a key Planned Parenthood official in the region.The day after the election, Missouri Planned Parenthood a
  
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• El Salvador overturns metals mining ban, defying environmental groups

  23-12-2024 22:14 via theguardian.com
  
  President Nayib Bukele pushed for the legislation that will grant government sole authority over mining activitiesEl Salvador’s legislature has overturned a seven-year-old ban on metals mining, a move that the country’s authoritarian president, Nayib Bukele, had pushed for to boost economic growth, but that environmental groups had opposed.El Salvador became the first country in the world to ban all forms of metals mining in 2017. Bukele, who took office in 2019, has called the ban a
  
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• Illegal drugs and sex with a minor: All the allegations against Matt Gaetz revealed in explosive report

  23-12-2024 21:57 via independent.co.uk
  
  A bomshell ethics investigation alleges Matt Gaetz paid for sex with a high schooler, used cocaine and ecstasy, and abused the power of his office. He denies wrongdoing. Alex Woodward reports
  
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• Australian leaders acknowledge financial pressures and emergency workers in Christmas messages

  23-12-2024 21:55 via theguardian.com
  
  Anthony Albanese wishes Australians ‘a peaceful and joyful Christmas’ while Peter Dutton says to spare a thought for ‘those doing it tough’Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAnthony Albanese and Peter Dutton have released their Christmas messages to Australians.The prime minister has thanked medical and emergency workers and defence force members who have given up their Christmas to help others. Continue reading...
  
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• Kilauea on Hawaii’s Big Island, one of world’s most active volcanoes, erupts

  23-12-2024 21:51 via theguardian.com
  
  Eruption was confined to volcano’s summit caldera, with torrents of red-hot lava and cloud-line plumes of gas visibleRed torrents of lava and billows of volcanic gas began erupting from Kilauea on Hawaii’s Big Island – one of the world’s most active volcanoes.The eruption was confined to the volcano’s summit caldera, in a remote, closed area of Hawaii Volcanoes national park, the Hawaii Volcano Observatory reported. Increased earthquake activity began at about 2am l
  
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• DC police officer convicted of tipping off Proud Boys leader before Capitol attack

  23-12-2024 21:43 via theguardian.com
  
  Shane Lamond found guilty of leaking to Enrique Tarrio that a warrant was out for his arrest before January 6The former head of the Metropolitan police intelligence unit in Washington DC has been found guilty of tipping off Enrique Tarrio – the imprisoned, one-time leader of the Proud Boys – that a warrant was out for his arrest before the January 6 Capitol attack in 2021.Shane Lamond has been charged with tipping off Tarrio, who at the time of the Capitol attack was wanted for the b
  
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