The United Kingdom

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UK leader Starmer condemns attack on asylum-seeker hotel as far-right violence spreads

LONDON (AP) — U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer strongly condemned an attack Sunday on a hotel housing asylum seekers that saw at least 10 police officers injured, one seriously, describing it as “far-right thuggery.”

https://apnews.com/article/uk-protests-far-right-children-stabbed-police-2de808d796f81f719950acb4ea6f0af5?

 

UK riots

Rioters set fire to hotels used to shelter asylum seekers in northern England on Sunday as the country grapples with the worst social unrest it has seen in years. The violence was triggered by the stabbing of three young girls at a Taylor Swift-themed event at a dance school last week, sparking disbelief over why would anyone target children having fun during the summer holiday. The far right has seized on and spread a wave of disinformation, including false claims the attacker was an immigrant, to mobilize anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant protests. Police say the suspect was born in Britain. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned the weekend's protests, warning that those involved in violence will face the full force of the law.

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What’s behind the anti-immigrant violence that has exploded across Britain? Britain has been convulsed by violence for the past week as crowds spouting anti-immigrant and Islamophobic slogans clashed with police. The disturbances have been fueled by right-wing activists using social media to spread misinformation about a knife attack that killed three girls during a Taylor Swift-themed dance event. Read more.

Things to know: When did the violence begin? After what police described as a “ferocious knife attack” on July 29 in Southport, police detained a 17-year-old suspect. Rumors, later debunked, quickly circulated on social media that the suspect was an asylum-seeker, or a Muslim immigrant. The next day, as people gathered to comfort one another and lay flowers at the site, hundreds of protesters attacked a local mosque with bricks, bottles and rocks.   How did the violence spread? The rioting spread to cities and towns in many parts of the U.K. as far-right activists circulated misinformation about the attack, according to the government and police. More than a dozen towns and cities have been caught up in the unrest including London, Hartlepool, Manchester, Middlesbrough, Hull, Liverpool, Bristol, Belfast, Nottingham and Leeds.   What is the background to this violence? Agitators are exploiting long-simmering tensions over immigration and, more recently, the growing number of migrants who have entered the country illegally by crossing the English Channel in inflatable boats.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ UK prime minister talks of ‘standing army’ of police to deal with rioting across Britain   WATCH: UK police say violent disorder is ‘the worst they’ve seen’   Online misinformation fueled tensions over the stabbing attack in Britain that killed 3 children

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UK government calls on Elon Musk to act responsibly amid provocative posts as unrest grips the country

LONDON (AP) — The British government has called on Elon Musk to act responsibly after the tech billionaire used his social media platform X to unleash a barrage of posts that officials say risk inflaming the violent unrest gripping the country.

https://apnews.com/article/elon-musk-britain-riots-tweet-df3df49e7ba70b5af68f4fafa2fb4e68?

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UK riots

 

Thousands of anti-racism protesters took to the streets across the United Kingdom to counter a spate of far-right rallies planned to target immigration centers. After days of violence spurred by disinformation around a deadly stabbing attack, police had braced for another night of unrest on Wednesday. But by the early evening, thousands of counter-protesters had gathered at more than a dozen cities to guard the immigration centers and prevent them from being targeted by the far right. "There are many, many more of us than you," crowds chanted, with virtually no far-right supporters in sight. The fizzling out of the planned protests came as a major relief to the new Labour government, and for communities that had prepared for the worst.

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Man stabs a girl and her mother in a London tourism hot spot before being arrested, police say

LONDON (AP) — A man stabbed an 11-year-old girl and her mother in London’s bustling theater district on Monday before being arrested, police said, adding that there was no indication that the attack was terrorism-related.

https://apnews.com/article/britain-stabbing-attack-london-police-bf25e89184296a0919c2c8370eec629f?

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UK says it’s suspending some arms exports to Israel U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government said Monday that it’s suspending exports of some weapons to Israel because they could be used to break international law — a move with limited military impact intended to increase pressure by Israel’s frustrated allies for an end to the war in Gaza. Read more.

Key points: Foreign Secretary David Lammy said the U.K. government has concluded there is a “clear risk” some items could be used to “commit or facilitate a serious violation of international humanitarian law.” But he also added that the decision wasn’t “a determination of innocence or guilt” about whether Israel had broken international law, and wasn’t an arms embargo.   British firms sell a relatively small amount of weapons and components to Israel compared to major suppliers such as the U.S. and Germany. But the U.K. is one of Israel’s closest allies, so the decision carries symbolic significance.   The United Kingdom is among a number of Israel’s long-standing allies whose governments are under growing pressure to halt weapons exports because of the toll of the nearly 11-month-old conflict in Gaza. More than 40,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to the local health ministry.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Could mass protests in Israel over the hostages persuade Netanyahu to agree to a cease-fire deal?   Some Lebanese who fear war is coming have an unusual backup plan: Moving to Syria   As Iran threatens Israel, the danger of Tehran’s long-vaunted missile program remains in question

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Kate Middleton announces she's completed chemotherapy treatment

Kate Middleton, the Princess of Wales, announced in a video message shared Monday that she has completed chemotherapy.

https://www.axios.com/2024/09/09/kate-middleton-cancer-chemotherapy?

Kate, princess of Wales, says she completed chemotherapy and will return to limited public duties

LONDON (AP) — Kate, the princess of Wales, has completed chemotherapy and will make a limited number of public appearances in the coming months, bolstering Britain’s royal family after it was rocked by the twin cancer diagnoses of the princess and King Charles III.

https://apnews.com/article/kate-princess-wales-public-duty-ee5a195bc0c4af3516245f9262ffc306?

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Princess Kate

 

Catherine, Princess of Wales, says she has completed her chemotherapy and is “doing what I can to stay cancer free,” as she plans to gradually return to public life in the coming months. Catherine, who revealed in March she had been diagnosed with cancer, said in a highly personal video released Monday that she is entering a “new phase of recovery with a renewed sense of hope and appreciation of life.” The princess, known as Kate, has made just two public appearances since her diagnosis, which came after she underwent major abdominal surgery shortly after Christmas. 

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Precious jewels

A diamond necklace that has been worn at two British coronations is expected to fetch up to $2.8 million at auction. The 18th-century piece weighs about 300 carats and is on public display for the first time in 50 years. Take a look.

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UK leader Starmer aims to shed gloomy image by saying things will get better — eventually

LIVERPOOL, England (AP) — British Prime Minister Keir Starmer tried to shake off his image as a gloom-monger on Tuesday, telling voters exhausted by years of political and economic turmoil that better times are on the way — if they swallow his recipe of short-term pain for long-term gain.

https://apnews.com/article/uk-labour-starmer-conference-speech-6dbf5decdd53b14d0717b3e0c919ffc1?

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49 saplings from famous UK tree that was illegally chopped down will be shared to mark anniversary

LONDON (AP) — It’s been a year since a sycamore tree that stood high and proud near the Roman landmark of Hadrian’s Wall in the north of England was inexplicably chopped down, triggering a wave of shock and disbelief across the U.K., even among those who had never seen it up close.

https://apnews.com/article/sycamore-gap-tree-hadrians-wall-britain-vandalism-f01a506ce053bb746156e2492911d446?

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A new initiative will allow UK deaf audiences to see captioned films before general release

LONDON (AP) — For once, deaf audiences are being prioritized at U.K. cinemas.

https://apnews.com/article/deaf-cinema-transformers-paramount-picture-uk-e04e95518418d1c60b045fc9439f24e8?

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Vial that contained nerve agent that killed UK woman contained enough poison to kill thousands

LONDON (AP) — The lead counsel for a public inquiry into the 2018 death of a British woman poisoned by a Soviet-developed nerve agent said Monday that there was enough poison in the vial she unwittingly opened to kill thousands of people.

https://apnews.com/article/britain-russia-poisoned-spy-nerve-agent-d7ae02a79d6be8ed3a1989cbfbf06a86?

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UK Conservatives pick Kemi Badenoch as new leader, first Black woman to head a big British party

LONDON (AP) — Outspoken, right-leaning lawmaker Kemi Badenoch was named leader of Britain’s opposition Conservatives on Saturday, as the party tries to rebound from a crushing election defeat that ended its 14 years in power.

https://apnews.com/article/uk-conservative-party-new-leader-elected-b2300368b66deb930dce1d9068ba0770?

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UK doctor gets 31 years for poisoning mother’s partner with fake COVID vaccine

LONDON (AP) — A British doctor who was disgruntled about his inheritance and tried to kill his mother’s boyfriend by injecting him with a fake COVID-19 vaccine that was poison was sentenced Wednesday to 31 years in prison.

https://apnews.com/article/uk-doctor-fake-vaccine-poisoning-plot-ffc3a2fbdf8c27a561cf6d39e0525611?

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UK identifies 4 cases of new mpox variant, the first cluster outside Africa

LONDON (AP) — British health officials say they have identified four cases of the new, more infectious version of mpox that first emerged in Congo, marking the first time the variant has caused a cluster of illness outside of Africa. Scientists said the risk to the public remains low.

https://apnews.com/article/mpox-variant-clade-uk-africa-vaccine-cf54bba3e8731a30feac34f4006e9a15?

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Church of England head Justin Welby resigns over handling of sex abuse scandal

LONDON (AP) — Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, head of the Church of England and spiritual leader of the global Anglican Communion, resigned Tuesday after an investigation found that he failed to tell police about serial physical and sexual abuse by a volunteer at Christian summer camps as soon as he became aware of it.

https://apnews.com/article/justin-welby-resigns-archbishop-of-canterbury-abuse-2ab9cab63572f5062b5a5588698fe492?

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Storm Bert

Storm Bert is wreaking havoc across the United Kingdom as floods inundate parts of the country. At least five people have died in multiple locations across Britain, authorities said. Dramatic footage that emerged over the weekend showed rivers in Wales, one of the hardest hit areas, bursting their banks to submerge low-lying streets and vehicles parked outside. Residents are dealing with widespread power outages and some 300 flights in and out of London's Heathrow Airport were also cancelled over the weekend, with nearly 1,200 flights delayed. The storm is expected to clear from the far northeast early Tuesday, though risks of further downpours and strong winds remain across the south of the UK until Wednesday.

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Landmark fish and meat markets in London to close, ending 1,000 years of tradition

LONDON (AP) — Two of London’s most famous markets — one selling fish, the other meat — are set to close in the coming years, bringing an end to traditions stretching back to medieval times.

https://apnews.com/article/smithfield-billingsgate-london-closure-britain-markets-9e002da94245f004a97ca7a80a0caa41?

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British lawmakers give initial approval to a bill to allow terminally ill adults to end their lives

LONDON (AP) — British lawmakers gave initial approval on Friday to a bill to help terminally ill adults end their lives in England and Wales, following an impassioned debate that saw people sharing personal stories of loss and suffering.

https://apnews.com/article/britain-assisted-dying-debate-legalizing-0bc2de13d41fe6d62753935e91dfb0f8?

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A country divided

Wetherspoon pubs — cavernous places that serve pints of ales and traditional food at remarkably low prices — are a cultural institution in the UK. Some people love them, while others say they represent everything that’s wrong with modern Britain.   Sumo wrestlers bring 1,500 years of tradition to London as the sport has an international moment LONDON (AP) — London’s Royal Albert Hall, the gilded concert venue known for an annual “Rule Britannia” singalong, is preparing to host a different kind of spectacle: Sumo wrestling. https://apnews.com/article/britain-sumo-wrestling-royal-albert-hall-cc7acc92b743469019e1db4c7fcc5693?

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Britain’s famous Sycamore Gap tree is gone. 2 men accused of cutting it down are going on trial

LONDON (AP) — It was neither Britain’s biggest tree nor its oldest. But the majestic sycamore that stood for 150 years along a stretch of Hadrian’s Wall in northern England was one of the most beloved.

https://apnews.com/article/sycamore-gap-tree-trial-23f66f89dc00605f44acd38670e71025?

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Who is the alleged Chinese spy with close ties to Britain’s Prince Andrew?

LONDON (AP) — An alleged Chinese spy who cultivated close ties with Prince Andrew said Monday he has done “nothing wrong or unlawful” as Britain’s government faced questions about what it is doing to thwart security threats from China.

https://apnews.com/article/britain-andrew-china-businessman-prince-df7354a1cf404a203e809ce36c4754d5?

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Britain’s Princess of Wales says her cancer is in remission

LONDON (AP) — The Princess of Wales said Tuesday that her cancer is in remission after she spent the day supporting other cancer patients at the hospital where she received treatment.

https://apnews.com/article/britain-royals-princess-kate-cancer-remission-40a0f1d7494d80a3b2197dce1589bbfe?

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Climate protest

Environmental activists in the UK painted Charles Darwin’s grave in Westminster Abbey with the words “1.5 is dead,” referencing the critical climate threshold that the world temporarily passed in 2024.