General news

• Dirty laundry: ancient washroom dating back to the Roman Empire uncovered near the Vatican in Italy

  25-06-2024 03:27 via foxnews.com
  
  Construction workers in Italy recently came across the site of an ancient laundry near the Vatican, officials say.Italy's Ministry of Culture announced the surprising findings in a press release on June 14. The discovery was made during construction efforts at Piazza Pia, a Roman square that Italian officials are "pedestrianizing."Pictures of the site show archaeologists uncovering ancient tiled floors several feet below ground level. Tubs, which were used to clean dirty clothes, were also found
  
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• Trump lashes out at judge who refused to dismiss business fraud conviction – US politics live

  17-12-2024 20:34 via theguardian.com
  
  President-elect claims allowing conviction to stand ‘would be the end of the Presidency as we know it’Donald Trump posted a long and angry message on Truth Social, after a New York judge refused to dismiss his conviction on 34 business fraud charges. His lawyers had argued, to no avail, that the supreme court’s ruling earlier this year granting presidents immunity for official acts should get the verdicts against him overturned. Trump’s attorneys were nonetheless busy wit
  
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• Biden administration advises caution on new natural gas permits after report

  17-12-2024 20:28 via theguardian.com
  Study published Tuesday shows rising LNG exports risk dramatically raising greenhouse gas emissionsThe Biden administration released a long-awaited study on the economic and environmental impacts of liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports on Tuesday, saying the results underscored the need for a cautious approach to new permits.Biden in January had paused the Department of Energy’s approvals of US LNG exports to big consumers in Asia and Europe in order for his administration to conduct the re
  
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• Expert witness condemns claims by Lucy Letby’s lawyer

  17-12-2024 20:02 via theguardian.com
  
  Dr Dewi Evans says allegations made by former nurse’s barrister are ‘unsubstantiated’ and ‘inaccurate’A doctor has said claims he has changed his mind over the cause of death for three of Lucy Letby’s victims are “unsubstantiated” and “inaccurate”.Retired consultant paediatrician Dr Dewi Evans responded to the assertions of Letby’s barrister, Mark McDonald, who said the prosecution’s lead medical witness had altered his view
  
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• Police investigate manifesto reportedly left by girl who killed two in school shooting

  17-12-2024 19:56 via theguardian.com
  Fifteen-year-old pupil at Abundant Life school in Madison killed teacher and student and wounded six othersThe 15-year-old girl who police say killed a teacher, a student and wounded six others before dying by suicide at a school in Madison, Wisconsin, reportedly left a manifesto that investigators are now reviewing.Police identified Natalie Rupnow – who also went by the name Samantha – as the shooter late on Monday. A law enforcement source told CNN that Rupnow “had been deali
  
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• Virginia man dies after bear shot in tree falls on him

  17-12-2024 19:54 via theguardian.com
  
  Lester C Harvey, 58, rushed to two different hospitals after being struck by fallen animal in unusual accidentA Virginia man has died after a bear in a tree shot by one of his hunting partners fell on him, state wildlife officials said.The bizarre, accidental death occurred 9 December in Lunenburg county, which is between Richmond and Danville, Virginia’s department of wildlife resources said in a statement. Continue reading...
  
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• Labour’s review of UK-China relations on hold until after chancellor visits Beijing

  17-12-2024 19:51 via theguardian.com
  Exclusive: Despite calls for more scrutiny in light of Prince Andrew spy allegations, Starmer’s instinct is not to do anything to hamper growthA review of UK-China relations has been delayed until after the chancellor makes her first trip to Beijing next month, the Guardian has learned, amid a row over an alleged spy who befriended Prince Andrew.Rachel Reeves will travel to China in early January as part of a charm offensive by the Labour government. The trip will be focused on financial s
  
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• Honda and Nissan to start talks on potential mega-merger

  17-12-2024 19:49 via theguardian.com
  
  Japanese car firms embark on negotiations to combat competition from bigger EV manufacturersJapanese carmakers Honda and Nissan will begin negotiations over a potential merger, according to a report.The Nikkei financial newspaper said on Tuesday that the two Japanese companies would start talks to help combat the increased global competition from bigger electric vehicle makers. Continue reading...
  
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• Ban physician associates from seeing NHS patients one-to-one, says RCP

  17-12-2024 19:48 via theguardian.com
  
  Medical body asks ministers to slow hiring of PAs in England and take a ‘more measured approach’ to their integrationThe NHS in England should slow or scrap altogether the recruitment of physician associates (PAs) and ban them from seeing patients one-to-one, medical groups are urging ministers.The Royal College of Physicians (RCP), which represents hospital doctors, has called for a rethink of government plans to increase the number of PAs from 3,000 to 10,000 by the mid-2030s. Cont
  
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• Driverless bus service in Scotland to be withdrawn due to lack of interest

  17-12-2024 19:30 via theguardian.com
  
  Passenger numbers on the UK’s first autonomous buses – a £6m venture over the Firth of Forth – ‘did not meet expectations’The UK’s first driverless bus service, originally heralded as a breakthrough of global significance, is being withdrawn from service because too few passengers used it.The autonomous buses, operated by Stagecoach, have been running between Fife and Edinburgh along a 14-mile route over the Forth road bridge since May 2023 to relieve th
  
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• Nima Momeni found guilty in murder of Cash App founder Bob Lee

  17-12-2024 19:24 via theguardian.com
  Momeni, 40-year-old tech consultant, found guilty of second-degree murder in the 2023 stabbing of Lee, 43A San Francisco jury on Tuesday found a tech consultant guilty of second-degree murder in the stabbing death of a Cash App founder, which carries a sentence of 16 years to life. The case had captured the imagination – and ire – of the tech world.Nima Momeni was charged with murder in the first degree, but jurors found him guilty of murder in the second degree. Momeni, 40, has been
  
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• Cost of HS2 could pass £80bn as estimated bill jumps 15% in a year

  17-12-2024 19:17 via theguardian.com
  
  Projected bill includes price of building HS2 station at Euston, with a budget of about £5bnThe bill for building the HS2 high-speed railway could pass £80bn at current prices, as estimated costs jumped by 15% since the last parliamentary report just over a year ago.An update expected imminently from ministers will put the budget at building the line from London to Birmingham at between £54bn and £66bn, quoting figures supplied to the Department for Transportby HS2 Ltd. C
  
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• Holyhead port closure to disrupt Christmas travel across Irish Sea

  17-12-2024 19:12 via theguardian.com
  
  Impact of Storm Darragh has shut route between Wales and Ireland, with up to 150,000 passengers affectedHolyhead port in Wales, battered by Storm Darragh 10 days ago, is to remain closed until mid-January at the earliest, in a major blow for 150,000 passengers in Britain trying to get to Ireland for Christmas.The port in the north-west of Wales is the second biggest roll-on roll-off ferry in the UK after Dover, and the continued closure is likely to have a major impact on deliveries of cheese, b
  
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• Gilgo Beach serial killings: suspect charged with murder of seventh victim

  17-12-2024 19:07 via theguardian.com
  
  Architect Rex Heuermann charged in death of Valerie Mack, who was last seen in 2000The alleged Gilgo Beach serial killer previously charged in the deaths of six women on New York’s Long Island was charged on Tuesday with the murder of a seventh alleged victim.Valerie Mack, 24, is the latest murder victim linked to Rex Heuermann. Continue reading...
  
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• Elon Musk’s Farage meeting renews reports he could fund Reform UK

  17-12-2024 19:07 via theguardian.com
  
  Reform treasurer also joins talks at Donald Trump’s home as far-right party says ‘we can do great things together’Elon Musk has met Nigel Farage and Nick Candy, Reform UK’s new treasurer, at Donald Trump’s home, Mar-a-Lago, reviving speculation the billionaire could fund the hard-right party.After the meeting on Monday, Reform released photos of Musk sitting with Farage and Candy, and standing with them beneath a portrait of a young Trump at the US president-elect&r
  
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• Mother of Filipina who spent 15 years on death row in Indonesia calls for pardon

  17-12-2024 19:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Mother of Mary Jane Veloso urges Philippine president to act so family can be reunited for ChristmasThe mother of Mary Jane Veloso, the Filipino domestic helper who spent almost 15 years on death row in Indonesia, has urged her government to grant a pardon after she is repatriated so their family can be reunited for Christmas.Veloso, 39, who was sentenced to death in 2010 for drug trafficking, was handed over to Philippine officials in Jakarta on Tuesday night, after the Indonesian and Philippin
  
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• Middle East crisis: UN envoy to Syria warns conflict is not over amid ‘significant hostilities’ – as it happened

  17-12-2024 18:54 via theguardian.com
  
  This live blog is now closed. For the latest on the Middle East, read our full coverage here.France has raised its flag over its embassy in Damascus, Syria, after it had been closed for 12 years during the country’s civil war, the foreign ministry said.France sent a team of diplomats to Syria on Tuesday to assess the political and security situation. The team will not be staying, however, and the gesture does not mean the embassy has reopened, according to reports. Continue reading...
  
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• UK government denies rift with Mauritian PM over Chagos Islands deal

  17-12-2024 18:38 via theguardian.com
  
  Downing Street says ‘details’ being discussed after newly elected Navinchandra Ramgoolam criticised the agreementDowning Street has denied that a deal with Mauritius to hand over control of the Chagos Islands is in peril after the new Mauritian prime minister said the arrangement as it stood was not beneficial to his country.The agreement, under which the UK would hand over its final African colony while keeping control of the UK-US military base on the island of Diego Garcia for at
  
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• Friedrich Merz lashes out at Greens as German election campaign starts

  17-12-2024 18:22 via theguardian.com
  
  Favourite to be country’s next leader rails against possible coalition partners even as he says he will restore harmonyThe frontrunner to be Germany’s next leader has pledged to end the infighting that has hobbled the country’s politics in recent years, even as he railed against his most likely coalition partners.The country’s main parties kicked off their campaigns on Tuesday, a day after Chancellor Olaf Scholz triggered a snap election for February with a confidence vot
  
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• Jill Biden leaves job at Virginia community college ahead of White House departure

  17-12-2024 18:21 via foxnews.com
  
  First lady Jill Biden announced that she recently taught her last class at Northern Virginia Community College."Last Thursday I taught my last class of the semester and my final class ever at Northern Virginia Community College," she said.She made the remarks in a message to educators while flanked on either side by union presidents Randi Weingarten, of the American Federation of Teachers president, and Becky Pringle, of the National Education Association.SOCIAL MEDIA ERUPTS AS KIDS CORRECT JILL
  
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• 49ers' Deommodore Lenoir torches suspended teammate for refusal to enter game: 'Lost all respect'

  17-12-2024 18:21 via foxnews.com
  
  San Francisco 49ers cornerback Deommodore Lenoir torched teammate De’Vondre Campbell after the linebacker was suspended for his refusal to enter their game last week.The 49ers suspended Campbell for three games over the incident. Lenoir did not hold back when he was asked his thoughts about it on Monday.CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM"When he first got signed, I was thinking in my head, like, we got another guy we can add to the defense who can contribute," Lenoir recall
  
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• Hopes for Gaza ceasefire-for-hostages deal rise

  17-12-2024 18:16 via theguardian.com
  
  Israeli officials, Hamas sources, and US and Arab figures say deal may be within reach – perhaps within daysThe pace of talks aimed at securing a ceasefire-for-hostages agreement in Gaza appeared to be accelerating, amid claims on both sides that a deal may be within reach, perhaps within daysSenior Israeli officials, Hamas sources, and US and Arab officials have all expressed optimism that a deal may be close for a phased release of the surviving hostages in Gaza in exchange for a ceasefi
  
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• The chemical weapon accusations against the general killed in Moscow

  17-12-2024 18:13 via theguardian.com
  
  The US and UK say Igor Kirillov was head of a unit partly responsible for chemicals on the battlefield in UkraineGasping, choking. On Ukraine’s frontline, the country’s soldiers report what statistics show: a persistent use of chemical weapons, mostly teargas, whose deployment on the battlefield is illegal. The US and UK go further in their accusations and say Russia is using another toxic agent, chloropicrin, first employed to gruesome effect in the trenches of the first world war.B
  
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• Hannah Kobayashi returns to US after Mexico disappearance, had no idea about global media coverage: report

  17-12-2024 18:13 via foxnews.com
  
  Hannah Kobayashi, a formerly missing Hawaii woman, has returned to the United States after surveillance footage captured her crossing into Mexico on foot with a suitcase, according to authorities."The Los Angeles Police Department received notification from Customs and Border Protection that Hannah Kobayashi had presented herself on December 15, 2024, for entry into the US and appeared in good health," the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) said in a statement, adding that her missing persons
  
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• ‘America First’ group says its voter-targeting made a difference as Trump picks several leaders for WH

  17-12-2024 18:08 via foxnews.com
  
  The hard work and vision of a top policy and advocacy group in the America First movement helped make the difference in the 2024 presidential election, as several of its chairmen prepare to join the new Trump administration, a top official said.America First Works executive director Ashley Hayek told Fox News in a Monday interview that her group has succeeded in focusing on popular policies from the first Trump administration and bringing those to state governments.As the 2024 race heated up, Ha
  
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• USA Fencing board votes against motions on hot button issues including all-female task force on trans policy

  17-12-2024 18:01 via foxnews.com
  
  USA Fencing board members voted against several motions to amend the sports governing body’s current policies, including measures to allow the national anthem to be played before competition and approving an all-female task force to re-evaluate and revise the current transgender policy. The special board meeting held on Saturday came just days after the Fair Fencing Organization (FFO) penned an open letter to the board asking that it re-evaluate its stance on several issues, including
  
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• Fox News Digital posts best month since 2020, crushing CNN and New York Times during November’s election

  17-12-2024 17:55 via foxnews.com
  
  Americans flocked to Fox News Digital for information and analysis in November as the news site put up its most impressive month since the last presidential election. Fox News Digital had its best month since November 2020, leading news brands among both multiplatform views and minutes, according to Comscore. Fox News Digital piled up 4.5 billion multiplatform minutes to lead all news brands, a 57% increase compared to November of last year. CNN managed only 1.8 billion multiplatform m
  
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• Kristin Cavallari woke up to intruder crawling on bedroom floor while sleeping next to son

  17-12-2024 17:44 via foxnews.com
  
  Just call Kristin Cavallari cool, calm and collected in a moment of crisis.The reality star, who recently made headlines for admitting actor Kevin Costner, 32 years her senior, is her "forever crush," recounted a horrifying incident that took place in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic in the latest episode of her podcast, "Let's Be Honest." Cavallari says she and her husband at the time, ex-NFL quarterback Jay Cutler, and their three children, were in what they believed to be "a reall
  
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• House GOP lawmaker rejects committee assignments to dedicate time to DOGE

  17-12-2024 17:43 via foxnews.com
  
  A Republican lawmaker is declaring that she will forgo many of the traditional day-to-day obligations of the House GOP Conference, suggesting she will dedicate more of her time to aiding the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).Rep. Victoria Spartz, R-Ind., said she plans to reject any House committee assignments she is given and will refuse to attend the House GOP’s weekly conference meetings. "I will stay as a registered Republican but will not sit on committees or participate
  
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• Republican demands info from State Department on delayed Afghanistan flights

  17-12-2024 17:38 via foxnews.com
  
  FIRST ON FOX: A Republican congressman is disputing Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s insistence that the State Department did not block citizens from leaving Mazar-i-Sharif Airbase in Afghanistan during the frenzied withdrawal. Rep. Warren Davidson, R-Ohio, wrote a letter, obtained by Fox News Digital, demanding to know how many planes the State Department blocked from leaving the airbase, who made the call on whether to clear flights for takeoff, what the criteria for blocking del
  
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