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Photo of smiling Princess Charlotte shared as she turns 8 - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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The young royal was photographed in Windsor by her mother, the Princess of Wales, at the weekend.
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UK
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A photograph of Princess Charlotte taken by her mother has been released on the eve of her eighth birthday.
The smiling young royal, who is third in line to the throne, is pictured in a white dress patterned with flowers and sitting in a white chair.
Her mother, the Princess of Wales, took the image in Windsor at the weekend.
The daughter of the Prince of Wales was born in the Lindo Wing of St Mary's Hospital in Paddington, London, at 08:34 on 2 May 2015, weighing 8lb 3oz.
Charlotte and her siblings George and Louis are expected to watch their grandfather, King Charles III, be crowned on Saturday.
George will be one of eight pages of honour during the service, joining a procession through the nave and assisting with the holding of robes.
The trio will also be expected on the Buckingham Palace balcony afterwards along with their parents, Prince William and Catherine.
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Watch: A look at two golden coaches to be used for King Charles III's coronation
Read the latest from our royal correspondent Sean Coughlan - sign up here.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-65452394
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Ukraine war: Bakhmut defenders worry about losing support - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Lack of ammunition is hampering Ukrainian fighters as they prepare an expected major offensive.
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Europe
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The call from Ukraine for more weapons and ammunition to bolster its defences has grown louder as the war has gone on
A year ago Volodymyr and his men were firing all 40 barrels of their BM-21 Grad rocket launcher in one go. Now they can only afford to fire a few at a time at Russian targets.
"We haven't got enough ammunition for our weapon," he explains.
His unit, the 17th Tank Battalion, is still being called on to provide fire support to Ukrainian forces desperately clinging on to the edges of Bakhmut, the eastern Ukrainian city which Russia has spent months trying to capture.
Russian forces are getting ever closer to their goal of taking the city, but at enormous cost.
While we're waiting in a line of trees, hidden from view, Volodymyr receives a call to fire his rocket launcher at a Russian mortar position about 15 kilometres away.
Some of the Ukrainian Grad missile supplies are coming from the Czech Republic, Romania and Pakistan
His men remove the branches camouflaging their vehicle. They drive towards an empty field about a kilometre away and quickly work out the range.
They elevate the rocket barrels towards the target while, out of sight, a Ukrainian drone hovering above assesses their accuracy.
They're told their first rocket misses by about 50 metres, so they adjust the elevation and fire another two and quickly return to the trees for cover. This time they're told they've hit the target.
Volodymyr however, is frustrated they can't do more. "We could have provided more support to our guys who are dying there."
He says Ukraine has already burned through its own stocks of Grad ammunition, so is relying on rockets sourced from other countries. Volodymyr says supplies are coming from the Czech Republic, Romania and Pakistan. He complains the rockets originating from Pakistan are "not of a good quality".
Ukraine's call for more weapons and ammunition has only become louder the longer the war has gone on. The focus now is preparing for a major offensive. But at the same time Ukraine is still having to expend huge resources on just maintaining its position.
Despite the recent arrival of modern weapons - like tanks and armoured vehicles - Ukraine remains heavily reliant on its older, Soviet-era arsenal.
The Russian-made Buk air defence system, which can target aircraft, drones and missiles, is still one of its prized possessions. We get rare access to see one further along the front line - also hidden in a wooded area.
This sophisticated weaponry has helped prevent Russia gaining control of the skies.
Josef, the Buk commander, tells me it's "target number one for Russia". This explains the extreme care taken to protect it. The long vehicle with its radar dome is buried in a deep trench covered with camouflage netting. On top are two grey missiles. Normally it carries four.
Serhiy fears Ukraine won't have resources for the war to go on for five or ten years
A cache of classified US documents was leaked online earlier this month - maps, charts and photos - revealing detailed intelligence gathered on the war.
I ask Josef if these were correct in highlighting an acute shortage of Buk missiles. "No, that's not true," he insists. But he does admit that the Buk is proving hard to maintain and Ukraine needs more.
"We haven't got enough," he says. "Parts break and we haven't got spares because the factories that produce them are not in Ukraine."
Josef doesn't only dispute some of the contents of those leaked US intelligence reports. He questions whether they have really revealed any secrets.
"Why should we be angry with the Americans?" he asks. "Because they gave information the Russians have had for 20 years? Ridiculous!" Russia, he believes, has always known about the capabilities of Ukraine's armed forces.
But Russia still does not know the timing or place of Ukraine's expected offensive. It will be key to taking back territory and relieving some of the pressure being felt along Ukraine's 800 mile (1,300km) front. Wherever it happens Russia will have to redirect some of its forces.
But Ukraine too is having to arm and equip new units to conduct that offensive. Both sides are struggling to feed the front line.
We're worried our Western allies are getting tired of helping us
At another location near Bakhmut, Ukrainian troops from its 80th Brigade are already expending hundreds of artillery rounds a day, to try to repel Russia's advances.
They are already using some of the weapons supplied by the West. Serhiy and his men are operating a British made L119 light artillery gun. But Serhiy says they too are having to ration rounds. He says they're firing on average 30 rounds a day.
"We've got enough people for the moment", he says. "But we need ammunition. Ammunition is the most important."
I ask Serhiy if this is the make or break year for Ukraine. "If we go on the offensive this year and retake our land, then we'll win," he replies. "But, if that doesn't happen, then we don't have the resources for the war to go on for another five to ten years."
Volodymyr, the commander of the Grad, is even more blunt. "The country is exhausted, the economy too," he says.
And he fears that if Ukraine's action on the battlefield are not decisive this year then Western support may falter. "We are also worried our Western allies are getting tired of helping us."
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-65347835
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Ukraine war: Leak shows Western special forces on the ground - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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The UK has the largest contingent of military special forces in Ukraine, according to a leaked file.
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Europe
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This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Watch: The Pentagon leaks explained in under 60 seconds.
The UK is among a number of countries with military special forces operating inside Ukraine, according to one of dozens of documents leaked online.
It confirms what has been the subject of quiet speculation for over a year.
The leaked files, some marked "top secret", paint a detailed picture of the war in Ukraine, including sensitive details of Ukraine's preparations for a spring counter-offensive.
The US government says it is investigating the source of the leak.
According to the document, dated 23 March, the UK has the largest contingent of special forces in Ukraine (50), followed by fellow Nato states Latvia (17), France (15), the US (14) and the Netherlands (1).
The document does not say where the forces are located or what they are doing.
The numbers of personnel may be small, and will doubtless fluctuate. But special forces are by their very nature highly effective. Their presence in Ukraine is likely to be seized upon by Moscow, which has in recent months argued that it is not just confronting Ukraine, but Nato as well.
In line with its standard policy on such matters, the UK's Ministry of Defence has not commented, but in a tweet on Tuesday said the leak of alleged classified information had demonstrated what it called a "serious level of inaccuracy".
"Readers should be cautious about taking at face value allegations that have the potential to spread misinformation," it said.
It did not elaborate or suggest which specific documents it was referring to. However, Pentagon officials are quoted as saying the documents are real.
One document, which detailed the number of casualties suffered in Ukraine on both sides, did appear to have been doctored.
UK special forces are made up of several elite military units with distinct areas of expertise, and are regarded to be among the most capable in the world.
The British government has a policy of not commenting on its special forces, in contrast to other countries including the US.
The UK has been vociferous in its support of Ukraine, and is the second largest donor after the US of military aid to Kyiv.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the Department of Justice had opened a criminal investigation and he was determined to find the source of the leak.
"We will continue to investigate and turn over every rock until we find the source of this and the extent of it," he said.
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Watch: Expert says US and Egypt ready to move forward after leak
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-65245065
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Coronation: Military rehearse parade on replica route - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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An airbase was transformed into a life-size replica of the procession route for the troops to practise.
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UK
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The Welsh Guards remove their hats as they give three cheers for King Charles in a rehearsal on Sunday
Thousands of ceremonial troops have been rehearsing ahead of the King's Coronation, bringing together the largest parade of military personnel since Winston Churchill's funeral.
The troops practised at an airbase which had been transformed into a life-size replica of the procession route.
More than 7,000 troops took part.
Capt Jordan Charles Whiteman, whose grandfather had taken part in the late Queen Elizabeth II's coronation, said he felt "ecstatic" to be involved.
Organisers were creative in recreating the route with a pair of rugby posts acting as Buckingham Palace, a minibus standing in for the royal Gold State Coach and a set of cones replacing Admiralty Arch at the entrance to the Mall.
Troops from 34 Commonwealth nations practised at the airbase in Hampshire
On 6 May, the armed forces will accompany King Charles and Camilla, the Queen Consort, between Westminster Abbey and Buckingham Palace.
The route will be a quarter of the length of the late Queen's grand procession back in 1953.
Irish wolf hound Turlough Mor, also known as Seamus, rehearsed his role as the mascot of the Irish Guards
The rehearsal - which included sailors, soldiers and aviators - took place at RAF Odiham in Hampshire on Sunday.
The procession route was mapped out onto the airfield using a pace stick to ensure it was the exact distance.
Some 40 nations were represented, including troops from 34 Commonwealth countries and six overseas territories.
More rehearsals are scheduled to take place, partly at night, ahead of the big day.
More than 7,000 troops will be involved in the King's Coronation next week
Capt Whiteman said the coronation would be a very special day for his family as they reminisced about his grandfather, Sgt Charles White.
Despite dying before he was born, Capt Whiteman said his grandfather had shared some advice, passed down by his mother.
"What's been passed on is remember the nerves will keep you sharp and keep your wits about you.
"But also actually don't forget to actually enjoy the moment and enjoy the day - it certainly is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," he added.
Read the latest from our royal correspondent Sean Coughlan - sign up here.
The rehearsal was the first time all elements of the procession had been come together
Also taking part were identical twins Amy and Jessica McLenaghan - who will be in the procession, just one row apart.
The air engineer technicians said they applied at the same time and were really pleased to both be selected.
On the day there is going to be a mixture of emotions, said Amy, "but overall it is a proud moment to be a part of".
The rehearsal on Sunday was the only full daytime run-through of the big event
Guards carried flags from some of the Commonwealth countries
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-65442708
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UK chip giant Arm files for blockbuster US share listing - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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In a blow to the London stock market, the firm said in March that it would not list shares in the UK.
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Business
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British microchip designing giant Arm has filed to sell its shares in the US, setting the stage for what could be the biggest stock market listing this year.
The Cambridge-based firm is reportedly aiming to raise up to $10bn (£8bn).
In a blow to the UK, the company said in March that it did not plan to list its shares in London.
Arm was bought in 2016 by Japanese conglomerate Softbank in a deal worth £23.4bn. At the time Arm was listed in London and New York.
The firm designs the tech behind processors - commonly known as chips - that power devices from smartphones to game consoles.
Its designs are used by chip manufacturers like the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company and household brands like Apple and Samsung to build their own processors.
Softbank said it had "confidentially submitted a draft registration statement" for the listing to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The announcement did not reveal how much it planned to raise or when the share sale might take place.
The firm was seeking to raise between $8bn and $10bn through the listing this year on the technology-heavy Nasdaq platform in New York, according to reports.
Listing a firm on a stock exchange takes it from being a private to a public company, with investors able to buy and sell shares of a company's stock on specific exchanges.
Sometimes referred to as the "crown jewel" of the UK's technology sector, Arm was founded in Cambridge, England, in 1990.
Earlier this year, Arm said it did not plan to pursue a London Stock Exchange listing.
Reports in January said that UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak had restarted talks with Softbank about a possible London listing.
Arm's decision raised concerns that the UK market is not doing enough to attract tech company stock offerings, with US exchanges seen to offer higher profiles and valuations.
The registration shows that Softbank is pushing ahead with the multi-billion dollar sale despite difficult conditions in the global financial markets.
The number of stock market listings has fallen sharply since Russia's invasion of Ukraine. At the same time, shares in major technology companies have fallen in the wake of the pandemic.
Softbank said the listing was "subject to market and other conditions and the completion of the SEC's review process."
Last year, Softbank called off its planned $40bn sale of Arm to technology group Nvidia after facing regulatory hurdles in the UK, US and EU.
After an acute shortage of semiconductors during the pandemic, the chip making industry has faced slowing demand.
Last week, US chipmaking giant Intel reported its largest quarterly loss in the company's history, while South Korean rival Samsung posted a more than 90% fall in its profits.
A successful stock market listing of Arm would be welcome news for its owner Softbank. Its Vision Funds have been hit by losses due to the declining valuations of many of its investments in technology start-ups.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-65445428
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Caerphilly: Baby in hospital after dog attack - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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The attack happened in Caerphilly county, where there have been two previous fatal dog attacks.
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Wales
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This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Greg Ead called the attack a "devastating blow for the community”
A five-month-old baby has been taken to hospital after a dog attack, police have said.
Emergency services were called to Penyrheol, Caerphilly county, on Saturday morning, Gwent Police said.
The baby was taken to Cardiff's University Hospital of Wales. The child's injuries are unknown but are not believed to be life-threatening.
Caerphilly MP Wayne David said he was shocked by the incident, after two recent fatal dog attacks in the area.
All three incidents have happened within a half mile (about 0.8 km) radius of each other.
The Welsh Ambulance Service confirmed it was called to a dog attack at 09:00 BST.
Caerphilly councillor, Greg Ead, said witnesses heard screams coming from the property at the time of the attack.
Local groups met on Thursday to discuss how to stop the rising numbers of attacks, with campaigners saying more needs to be done.
Police say they will be making further inquiries and will remain at the scene as the investigation continues
Gwent Police said officers seized the dog and confirmed no other animals were involved.
"We were called to an address in Penyrheol, Caerphilly at around 9.10am on Saturday 29 April, following reports of a dog attack," said the force.
"A five-month-old baby has been taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
"The dog was seized by officers. No other animals were involved in the attack."
Chief Insp Laura Bartley said officers would be making further inquiries and would "remain at the scene as the investigation progresses".
"It is possible that you may see ongoing police activity in Caerphilly as part of this work, but please do not be alarmed.
"If you have concerns or information then please do stop and talk with us."
Penyrheol councillor, Greg Ead, said his son was staying at his girlfriend's home on the same street where they heard and shouts and screams.
Mr Ead called the attack "traumatic" for everyone on the road.
"I think another death would be absolutely devastating for this community," he said.
The incident comes after two fatal dog attacks in the area. The latest is understood to have happened at Y Cilgant in Penyrheol.
A previous dog attack in Penyrheol saw Jack Lis, 10, killed by an XL Bully dog back in 2021
Jack Lis, 10, from Caerphilly, died after being mauled by an American or XL Bully dog - a legal breed - in November 2021.
And Shirley Patrick, 83, died in hospital after suffering a "violent and unnatural" death after being attacked by a dog in Caerphilly in December.
Jack's mum Emma Whitfield has been campaigning for changes in the law about breeding and selling dogs since his death.
"At the moment anyone can buy and sell a dog with no knowledge of where the dog has come from or who it is going to," she told BBC Wales on Sunday.
Ms Whitfield said she wanted to see more emphasis placed on breeding and selling dogs.
"With owners, I think people need to start realising that they have responsibilities.
"This problem is not going away."
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. "I can't say out loud what I saw because I don't want other people to have to picture it either"
In February, Welsh Labour MS Lesley Griffiths said the Welsh government had updated its animal welfare licensing regulations and closed "loopholes relating to pet sales".
She told the Senedd: "We need to make sure the public are making informed decisions when they buy a pet, but there is absolutely more we can do.
"I've asked officials to actually start to look at dog licensing again."
Details of the dog's breed involved in Saturday's attack has not yet been released by police.
Caerphilly MP Wayne David added: "There have been a number of incidents around Penyrheol.
"It shows there needs to be recognition that all dogs are potentially dangerous, particularly ones with a strong physique.
"Dogs like this need to be handled with great care and caution. They need to be trained properly.
"It's about responsible dog ownership. Children should not be able to go near them.
"The more general issue is all sorts of cross breeds being breed for the wrong reason with many not appropriate to be pets. They are bred to be violent.
"Not sure that's the case here.
"The aim is to have a different kind of approach to the issue of dogs.
"We must make sure that all owners are aware of what they are taking on when they are small puppies to make sure that people recognise that keeping a dog like this is a big undertaking."
Mr David said it was too difficult to ban certain breeds because of crossbreeding.
"So many of these breeds are now cross breeds, it's not that easy, you would have a list of thousands of breeds.
"What is happening is that the regulations are being broken, the wrong kinds of dogs are being bred."
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-65441162
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Jock Zonfrillo: MasterChef Australia host dies suddenly, aged 46 - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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The Scottish-born chef and presenter died suddenly, aged 46, on Sunday.
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Australia
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The Scotsman worked in renowned restaurants around the world before opening his own in Australia.
His death was confirmed by broadcaster Network 10 on the day the 2023 season premiere of MasterChef was set to air.
Zonfrillo is survived by his wife Lauren Fried and four children, who said in a statement their hearts were "shattered".
"For those who crossed his path, became his mate, or were lucky enough to be his family, keep this proud Scot in your hearts when you have your next whisky," the family said.
Zonfrillo was found dead at a house in Melbourne when police conducted a welfare check in the early hours of Monday morning. Victoria Police said the death is not being treated as suspicious.
His death has sparked an outpouring of grief from figures in the culinary and entertainment world.
Celebrity chefs Jamie Oliver and Gordon Ramsay, as well as a host of former Masterchef contestants led the tributes.
Oliver, who had been due to appear in the season opener posted a picture to Instagram of him with Zonfrillo and the two other judges, Melissa Leong and Andy Allen, on set.
"I'm in total shock to wake up to the sudden death of [Jock].. we had the best time working together for this year's MasterChef," he wrote.
Ramsay wrote on Twitter: "Saddened by the devastating news... I truly enjoyed the time we spent together on MasterChef in Australia".
Network 10 also paid tribute to the star, saying Zonfrillo's charisma, passion and wicked sense of humour had inspired a nation of home cooks. MasterChef - which is pre-recorded - will not air this week as planned, it said.
Born in Glasgow in 1976, Zonfrillo began working in kitchens at 12. At 15, he became one of the youngest-ever apprentices to work at luxury Scottish resort, The Turnberry Hotel.
Two years later he started working for Michelin-starred British chef Marco Pierre White at his famous Hyde Park Hotel.
But despite his burgeoning career, Zonfrillo said he became broke, homeless and addicted to heroin in his teenage years. He wrote at length about his struggles with drug addiction in his 2021 memoir, Last Shot.
He said he turned a new leaf with a move to Australia in 2000, and went on to open several restaurants. His most successful was Adelaide's award-winning Restaurant Orana, which opened in 2013.
In 2019, the presenter was announced as part of an all new host line-up for MasterChef Australia.
But Zonfrillo's career was not without controversy. Orana closed in 2020 with debts of millions of dollars, and Last Shot was criticised as inaccurate by former colleagues, including Marco Pierre White.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-australia-65446351
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Sudan crisis: Chaos at port as thousands rush to leave - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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The BBC's chief international correspondent Lyse Doucet reports from Port Sudan as thousands flee.
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Africa
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Evacuees rest aboard a Saudi naval vessel as it travels from Port Sudan to Jeddah
In the dead of night, as HMS Al Diriyah approached Sudan's coast, Saudi officers flicked on sweeping search lights to secure safe passage for their warship into a harbour rapidly transforming into a major evacuation and humanitarian hub in Sudan's deepening crisis.
Even at 2am two other hulking vessels were also anchored offshore at Port Sudan, its largest port, waiting their turn in this international rescue effort.
"I feel so relieved but also so sad to be part of this history," Hassan Faraz from Pakistan told us, visibly shaken.
We reached the quayside in a Saudi tugboat at the end of a 10-hour journey through the night in HMS Al Diriyah from the Saudi port city of Jeddah. A small group of foreign journalists were given rare access to enter embattled Sudan, if only briefly.
"People will be speaking about these events for many years to come," Faraz reflected, as a long queue formed on the wharf for passports to be checked against the Saudi manifest. This time, it was many young workers from South Asia who said they had waited here for three long days - after two hard weeks in this hellscape of war.
Another man from Pakistan, who said he had worked at a Sudanese foundry, spoke of having "seen so much, so many bomb blasts and firing". Then he fell silent, staring into the sea, too traumatised to say more.
The fighting which raged in recent weeks, amidst very imperfect and partial ceasefires, is a pitched battle for power between the Sudanese army led by Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group headed by Gen Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, widely known as Hemedti.
"Port Sudan has fared relatively better in this war," my British-Sudanese colleague Mohanad Hashim explained. "Fighting only erupted here on 15 April, the first day, but now this port city is overwhelmed by people fleeing Khartoum and other places."
We had just sailed past the graceful Naval Club turned tented village for the displaced. Many people are now sleeping rough on the streets as they wait for a way out. Local hotels are swamped by people with passports from the world over, along with emergency consular services hastily established by embassies who have evacuated most of their staff from the capital.
Many fear there is no way out. Port Sudan is packed with people who have less lucky passports, including Yemenis, Syrians and Sudanese.
Some 3,000 Yemenis, mainly students, have been stuck for weeks in Port Sudan. "The Saudis are rescuing some Yemenis but they're nervous about accepting large numbers," admitted a security adviser trying to help them find a way back to their own war-torn country.
Rasha, surrounded by her young children, has only one message: "Please tell the world to protect Sudan"
Many passengers arriving in the Saudi kingdom are provided with a short hotel stay. But it's made clear that their own countries are expected to soon pick up the bill and arrange onward travel.
Mohanad Hashim scanned the wharf at Port Sudan, hoping to catch sight of any of his own Sudanese relatives who may be trying to make it out. The day before, at the King Faisal naval base in Jeddah where we began our journey, he suddenly found himself embracing a cousin who had made it to the Saudi city, along with two of his teenage children, after an 18-hour passage across the Red Sea.
For the Sudanese with foreign passports who make it to safe shores, the moment is bittersweet.
"Please, please help our family left in Sudan," a pink-scarfed Rasha pleaded, one child sleeping on her shoulder, three more waving flowers handed out by Saudi soldiers. "Please tell the world to protect Sudan," she implored us. Their family had been living near Sport City in Khartoum where gunfire erupted the morning of 15 April.
Thousands have been fleeing from Port Sudan in recent days
Her eight-year-old daughter Leen, speaking fluent English with an American accent, recounted in excited detail how armed men burst into their home. "We had to all hide, all ten of us, in the back room," she declared with youthful bravado. "I stayed calm. I didn't cry because we couldn't make any noise."
"They were bad, bad guys," her younger brother chimed in. Her father explained that it had been RSF forces. Their gunmen are blamed for much of the looting and violence.
This worsening and deeply worrying war between Sudan's two most powerful men is fuelled not just by deep personal and political animosities, but also by the competing interests and influence of major powers.
Regional heavyweights, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have long bankrolled Hemedti, who grew ever richer by sending forces to fight for their side in the early years of their destructive war against Yemen's Houthis.
But in recent years Riyadh has also drawn close to Gen Burhan and also has longstanding ties to Sudan's army. The tangled political geography in a country with vast mineral wealth and agricultural potential also includes Egypt, Israel and Russia, including the mercenary Wagner group.
Many evacuees from Sudan now face an uncertain future
But in this current crisis, where the United States and Britain and other would-be peacemakers are also weighing in, outside powers are now said to be speaking with one voice in trying to end this dangerous spiral and the enormous suffering of civilians.
Diplomats express gratitude for Saudi Arabia's evacuation effort. So far, more than 5,000 people, of 100 nationalities, have made the Red Sea crossing on Saudi warships or private vessels chartered by the Saudi military. The biggest single operation on Saturday, which carried some 2,000 passengers, even included Iranians. Arch-rivals Riyadh and Tehran recently moved towards a cautious rapprochement, including reopening their embassies and consulates.
"It is our luck. We hope there will be peace between our countries," 32-year-old civil engineer Nazli remarked as she disembarked in Jeddah with her engineer husband, who has also worked for years as an engineer in Sudan.
In Port Sudan on Sunday, as another packed tugboat sailed in choppy waters to a waiting Saudi warship, its passengers turned en masse to wave a final farewell to a country they regretted, with sadness, they may never return to.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-65444282
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Bulgari store in Paris robbed in broad daylight - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Video shows suspects making a getaway on motorbikes from the city's flagship Bulgari store.
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Police are investigating after a high-end jewellery store in Paris was robbed in broad daylight on Saturday afternoon.
Video shows the moment suspects made their getaway from the store at Place Vendôme.
The Bulgari shop has been targeted by armed robbers before - with jewellery worth €10 million (£8.77m) taken less than two years ago.
On that occasion, one of the perpetrators was shot in the leg by police, and later convicted.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-65445245
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Sudan fighting: Why it matters to countries worldwide - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Fighting in the north-east African nation is ringing alarm bells around the world. Why does it matter so much?
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Africa
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The conflict unfolding in Sudan's capital, Khartoum, threatens to spread across the most fragile parts of Africa
If you want to know why Sudan matters to so many other countries, just take a look at a map.
There's a reason why the fighting that has erupted there over the past week is ringing so many international alarm bells. Sudan is not only huge - the third largest country in Africa - it also stretches across an unstable and geopolitically vital region.
Whatever happens militarily or politically in the capital, Khartoum, ripples across some of the most fragile parts of the continent.
The country straddles the Nile River, making the nation's fate of almost existential importance; downstream, to water-hungry Egypt, and upstream, to land-locked Ethiopia with its ambitious hydro-electric plans that now affect the river's flow.
Sudan borders seven countries in all, each with security challenges that are intertwined with the politics of Khartoum.
Trouble in Sudan's western Darfur region almost inevitably spills over into neighbouring Chad, and vice versa. Weapons and fighters from coup-prone Chad, and from the war-torn Central African Republic, often flow freely across the region's porous borders. Much the same has proved true with Libya, to the north-west.
Sudan borders the Tigray region of northern Ethiopia - only recently emerging from a gruelling conflict that involved another unpredictable neighbour, the isolated and highly militarised autocracy of Eritrea. There is also tension on other parts of Ethiopia and Sudan's shared - and in places, contested - border.
To the south, Sudan faces a relatively new nation, South Sudan, which formally broke away from its northern neighbour in 2011 after one of Africa's longest and bloodiest civil wars. That border, too, remains unstable.
South Sudan quickly spiralled into the sort of broad scale civil war that some fear could now be Sudan's fate too. Upon independence, South Sudan took with it most of the region's precious oil fields, leaving Sudan far poorer, and contributing, indirectly, to the current crisis in Khartoum, as rival military groups now struggle for control of shrinking economic resources, like gold and agriculture.
People are fleeing neighbourhoods close to the fighting in Khartoum, as the Sudanese army battles a paramilitary group for control
As part of that struggle, Sudan's generals - the military have always been big, allegedly corrupt players in the local economy - have gone in search of foreign partners. For agriculture, that has meant inviting Gulf states to invest in the huge, and relatively underused potential of the rich soil that borders the Nile River.
When it comes to gold, far murkier deals appear to have been done with Russia's notorious Wagner group, which is accused of smuggling gold out of Sudan. The US Treasury has accused Wagner's head, Yevgeniy Prigozhin, of "exploiting Sudan's natural resources for personal gain and spreading malign influence" online through his "troll farm".
Russia's interests in the country, and region, go much further. Eastern Sudan's stark coastline looks out onto the Red Sea.
The Kremlin has, for years, been seeking to establish a military base in Port Sudan, giving its warships access to - and influence over - one of the world's busiest and most contested sea lanes. Moscow has come close to finalising a deal about the base with Sudan's military government - which seized power in 2021 in a coup.
Not surprisingly, a vast range of governments are now seeking to influence events on the ground in Sudan.
For now, the focus appears to be on ending the battle between the army and the RSF paramilitary group before it spreads further, and threatens to evolve from a relatively straightforward power struggle into a more complex civil war.
Beyond that, some foreign governments are anxious to help guide Sudan towards the democracy that many had hoped might follow the overthrow, back in 2019, of the country's brutal ruler, Omar al-Bashir.
But other states may prefer to back another strongman, and to thwart the will of the Sudanese people, who have waited decades for one of Africa's struggling giants to fulfil its potential.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-65338247
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Maurizio Cattelan: Banana artwork eaten by Seoul museum visitor - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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A university student told staff he ate the fruit on display because he was hungry.
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Asia
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"Comedian", pictured here in Beijing in 2021, is currently being displayed in Seoul
A South Korean art student ate a banana that was part of an installation by artist Maurizio Cattelan, saying he was "hungry" after skipping breakfast.
The artwork called "Comedian", part of Cattelan's exhibition "WE", consisted of a ripe banana duct-taped to a wall at Seoul's Leeum Museum of Art.
After eating the banana, the student, Noh Huyn-soo, taped the peel to the wall.
The museum later placed a new banana at the same spot, reported local media.
The incident, which lasted more than a minute, was recorded by Mr Noh's friend.
The Leeum Museum of Art did not respond to an email inquiry by the BBC. However, it told media that it will not claim damages against the student.
The banana on display is reportedly replaced every two or three days.
In videos posted online, shouts of "excuse me" can be heard as Mr Noh takes the banana off the wall. He does not respond and starts eating as the room goes quiet.
He then tapes the peel to the wall and poses for a moment before walking off.
Mr Noh later told local media that he saw Cattelan's work as a rebellion against a certain authority. "There could be another rebellion against the rebellion," the Seoul National University student told KBS.
"Damaging an artwork could also be seen as an artwork, I thought that would be interesting... Isn't it taped there to be eaten?"
When told about the incident, Mr Cattelan said, "No problem at all".
This is not the first time bananas used for Mr Cattelan's work have been eaten by a visitor.
In 2019, performance artist David Datuna pulled the banana from the wall after the artwork was sold for $120,000 (£91,000) at Art Basel in Miami.
The banana was swiftly replaced and no further action was taken.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-65446331
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World Snooker Championship 2023 final: Luca Brecel beats Mark Selby for first world title - BBC Sport
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Belgium's Luca Brecel becomes the first player from mainland Europe to win snooker's World Championship, beating Mark Selby 18-15 in Sheffield.
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Last updated on .From the section Snooker
Best of Luca Brecel as he beats Mark Selby in world final Coverage: Watch live on BBC TV and Red Button with uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, the BBC Sport website and the BBC Sport app Belgium's Luca Brecel became the first player from mainland Europe to claim snooker's World Championship with an 18-15 win over Mark Selby in Sheffield. Brecel, 28, is just the fourth non-British winner at the Crucible and the first overseas player to triumph since Neil Robertson in 2010. Brecel won six of Monday afternoon's eight frames to open up a 15-10 lead. A visibly emotional Brecel sealed victory and the £500,000 top prize by taking three frames in the evening. "It's amazing. [Selby is] the worst opponent to have in the final. He just keeps coming back, he's such a fighter and at 16-15, I didn't fancy winning at all to be honest," Brecel told BBC Sport. "I was missing balls by a mile. I don't know how I did it. Once I got to 17, I fancied it if I got a chance to clear up, which I did. It's a great feeling." Despite becoming the youngest player to ever participate in the tournament in 2012, aged 17 years and 45 days, the 'Belgian Bullet' had remarkably never won a single match at the famous venue until this year, losing in the first round on his five previous visits. "Snooker is a difficult sport and in the first round [this year] I could have lost to Ricky Walden - I beat him 10-9," he added. "If I'd have lost that game then everybody would have said 'he's lost again in the first round' and now I'm the winner, that's the small margins in snooker, it's crazy. I still can't believe it." It is a moment that has long been in the making for Brecel, who climbs eight places to finish the season second in the world rankings behind Ronnie O'Sullivan. But it only arrived after he had come through the sternest of examinations from England's four-time world champion Selby, who won five consecutive frames and scored 315 points without reply at one stage to get back to 16-15. With the tension rising Brecel knocked in a timely 51 to leave himself on the brink of victory, which he confirmed with a stylish 112 break.
• None Snooker will explode in Europe after win - Brecel Brecel comes of age on biggest stage Luca Brecel moves up to second in the world rankings after winning the world title After losing Sunday's opening session 6-2, the manner in which Selby fought back to within one frame in the second session - a run lit up a sparkling 147 maximum break - raised significant questions about how Brecel might respond. But, resuming 9-8 in front on Monday afternoon, Brecel produced an incredible display of attacking snooker to seemingly take the match away from his opponent again, compiling four superb century breaks of 113, 101, 141 and 119. In a contest billed as a test of Brecel's mental endurance as much as his undoubted skill, few inside the Crucible Theatre could have been prepared for his blistering start. Brecel fired in doubles, a succession of stunning long pots and seemingly cleared balls at will as he rattled through the first four frames in under an hour. It was a theme that initially continued into the concluding session, Brecel making several astounding pots to craft a 67 that saw him go 16-10 ahead. Brecel's swashbuckling style has endeared him to fans across the world, in particular the manner of his famous victories over O'Sullivan and Si Jiahui on his run to the final. But when things do not go to plan the drawback is that it guarantees his opponent opportunities - and few in the game are as ruthless as Selby at capitalising on those. A wild effort on a long blue saw Selby reduce his arrears with a break of 78 and he then carved out a superb 122 on his way to reaching the mid-session interval just 16-13 adrift. Selby's charge continued with a half-century in the 30th frame and a fluked red set him on the way to winning the 31st frame. That opened up the possibility of a first Crucible finale to go the distance since Peter Ebdon's 18-17 victory over Stephen Hendry in 2002, but Brecel recovered his composure to get across the line for an emotional victory. "I battled and gave everything but every credit to Luca he deserves it," said Selby, the Crucible champion in 2014, 2016, 2017 and 2021. "Congratulations to Luca, he's a great talent and a great lad with a lovely family. I wish him all the best. It was great to make a 147 at the Crucible, I never thought I would do it in a final. "It was an amazing achievement and something I will remember for rest of my life but it's not about me today, it is about Luca, he played fantastic over the two days." He's been a breath of fresh air through this tournament. It's a refreshing thing to watch. He goes for his shots, he doesn't care if he misses but he pots more than he's entitled to. We talked about Mark's character this evening but how much did Luca show? To get over the line there, that's what champions do. Then in the last frame, to finish like he did with a century, the sign of a champion. Young players will be looking at that and saying 'that's the way to play, that's the way to win'. Don't hang around, don't study every shot, see the shot, go for it, trust your first instincts. It's great to see somebody play swashbuckling snooker but with balance as well and push the game to even more new limits than we thought possible. Sign up to My Sport to follow snooker news on the BBC app.
• None Which pair will finish first? A frenetic race across Canada without phones and flights
• None A warm-hearted Aussie rom-com about a flawed, funny couple getting it all utterly wrong
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/snooker/65450133
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Tony Hawk: Famous skateboarder backs Portrush skatepark calls - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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One of the world's most famous skateboarders says a north coast park would be in constant use.
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Northern Ireland
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Tony Hawk was speaking at a conference in San Diego
One of the world's most famous skateboarders, Tony Hawk, has backed calls for a skatepark in Portrush, County Antrim.
He was speaking at a conference in San Diego, California, when he gave his support to the decades-long campaign.
He said a facility would be used from sun up to sundown and that there were more people interested in the sport than is often realised.
"There's a lot of stigma attached to skateboarding," he said.
"It's all very antiquated but if you dig deep you will see there are these people and skaters who have a passion for what they do."
Mr Hawk was responding to a question by an Ulster University academic on how skateboarders can be taken seriously as users of public space on the north coast.
Videos which highlighted the experiences of skaters in Portrush were also shown at the conference.
There has been a decades-long campaign for a skateboard park in Portrush
Dr Jim Donaghey asked how they could convince the council that adequate urban sports facilities would benefit the whole community.
In response, Mr Hawk said skaters were "determined, they're persistent, they just love to skate, they're not trying to cause trouble".
"The only reason you see them as troublemakers is because you won't provide a facility for them to do what they love doing so they have to resort to public property," he added.
In 2022, Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council removed ramps from Station Square citing health and safety risks.
The equipment was returned but barriers have since been erected in the public square.
"All the change that happens in Portrush marginalises skateboarders, which is a really strange thing because Portrush is so much associated with skateboard culture," Dr Donaghey said.
"If you look at other sports cultures in Portrush you might think of golf, motorbikes, lawn bowls even and, of course, surfing - they're all part of the tourist identity Portrush puts forward of itself and that's brilliant, it's vibrant.
"And I think skateboarding is and should be taken seriously as part of that overall culture."
Campaigners say there are skateboard parks in many other parts of Northern Ireland but not Portrush
Slaine Brown started skateboarding in Portrush in 1995 and has been filming the scene ever since.
"It hit me really hard how long it's been - year after year we've been asking the council again and again can we have a skatepark" he said.
"It does make me feel emotional that after all this time - I've been skating for 29 years and we have to take it to a world audience."
Mr Brown said skateboarders had gone from skating in a much bigger space in the town "to this really tiny square which we've now been caged into".
"It is interesting to think we're now in the year 2023 and the space we've had is reduced," he said.
"I've skated all around the world - in Hong Kong, Australia, America, all around Europe.
Tony Hawk skateboarding at an event in Sydney in 2018
"I've been to places in eastern Europe where the council provided little parks the space of this but the ramps were way better.
"We had parks built in Belfast, Banbridge, Newtownabbey - which is one of the biggest ones in the UK - Carrickfergus, Ballymena. Antrim is getting a park, Newtownards has a park.
"And every time we go to those skateparks, the local skaters tell us we still can't believe that Portrush hasn't got one."
The council said it is currently working with a local group to support the development of skateboarding facilities in Portrush.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-65380085
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Explosion in Russian border region derails freight train - governor - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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The region - which borders Ukraine and Belarus - has seen various acts of sabotage.
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Europe
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An explosion in the Russian border region of Bryansk derailed a freight train on Monday, authorities said.
Local governor Alexander Bogomaz said an explosive device went off along the Bryansk-Unecha line, 60km from Ukraine.
The incident, which occurred at 10:17 Moscow time (07:17 GMT), saw the locomotive catch fire and seven freight wagons derailed, Russian Railways said.
The region - which borders Ukraine and Belarus - has seen acts of sabotage since Russia invaded Ukraine.
The train was reportedly carrying oil products and timber. No injuries were reported.
"An unidentified explosive device went off at the 136-kilometre mark on the Bryansk-Unecha railway line, derailing a freight train," Mr Bogomaz said in a post on Telegram.
Images on social media showed tank carriages turned on their side with plumes of grey smoke billowing into the air.
On Saturday, Mr Bogomaz said four people died after Ukraine shelled the village of Suzemka, around seven miles (12km) north of Russia's border with Ukraine.
Meanwhile, power lines were destroyed early on Monday by a suspected explosive device in Leningrad Region, in north-west Russia, according to local governor Alexander Drozdenko.
The incident took place near the village of Susanino, some 60km (37 miles) south of St Petersburg, he wrote on Telegram, adding that the power supply to nearby settlements were not interrupted.
A second suspected device was defused, Mr Drozdenko said.
The sabotage occurred as Russia fired missiles across Ukraine in its second pre-dawn strike in three days.
The attacks caused widespread damage at a logistics hub in Pavlohrad, near the central city of Dnipro.
Dozen of houses were destroyed and 34 people were wounded.
Overall, the Ukrainian military said it shot down 15 of the 18 cruise missiles that had been fired.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-65448141
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Sudan: Final UK evacuation flights depart - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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The two "exceptional" evacuation flights had taken off from Port Sudan earlier on Monday evening.
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UK
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UK airlifts at an airstrip near Khartoum ended on Saturday
Two extra evacuation flights carrying British nationals have left Sudan, as UK efforts now turn to diplomacy and humanitarian aid.
The "exceptional" flights - billed as the last UK airlift from Sudan - took off from Port Sudan on the Red Sea coast on Monday evening.
Military rescue flights from an airstrip near the Sudanese capital Khartoum ended on Saturday.
Nearly 2,200 people had been evacuated as of Monday afternoon.
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office said it would release passenger numbers for the two latest flights on Tuesday.
British nationals and others, including Sudanese NHS staff, were asked to travel to Port Sudan by midday on Monday for the "additional exceptional" flights.
The Foreign Office would not confirm the movements of the flights, but a flight tracking website showed a RAF transport Hercules aircraft had landed in Larnaca, Cyprus, at 22:45 local time (20:45 BST). A RAF Atlas transport aircraft was due to land later.
The UK government said it had ended evacuation flights from Wadi Saeedna airstrip because of a decline in demand by British nationals and the "increasingly volatile situation" on the ground, with the last military plane taking off on Saturday night.
Airstrikes and fighting were reported over the weekend despite a ceasefire between the Sudanese army and its rival the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.
The UK government described the operation in Sudan as the "longest and largest airlift" by any Western nation, with 2,197 people airlifted from the war-torn nation as of 17:30 Sudan time on Monday.
This figure included 1,087 people from other nations, including the US and Germany.
In addition, a UK team is providing consular assistance in Port Sudan, where they will be helping British nationals leave by commercial routes. Royal Navy ship HMS Lancaster is supporting evacuation efforts from Sudan.
The FCDO said the situation remained volatile and "our ability to conduct evacuations could change at short notice".
Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said: "With thanks to the extraordinary efforts of staff and military, the UK has brought 2,197 people to safety from Sudan so far - the largest airlift by any Western nation.
"As the focus turns to humanitarian and diplomatic efforts, we will continue do all we can to press for a long-term ceasefire and an immediate end to the violence in Sudan."
Options to provide humanitarian assistance to Sudanese people in co-ordination with the UN and non-governmental organisations were being explored, the FCDO said.
But concerns have been raised by some British nationals attempting to get family, without British passports, into the UK.
Dr Hanna Yahya, from Cheadle, Greater Manchester, told the BBC her mother, who has a Sudanese passport and a valid 10-year UK visa, was refused entry on to an evacuation flight at Port Sudan.
She explained her British passport-holding brother, who had made the journey from Khartoum with his mother, had been told by a British Embassy helpline his mother could be evacuated if he proved she was dependent on him. But at Port Sudan she was told she could not be airlifted out the country as she was not "immediate family".
They are now stuck at the Sudanese border attempting to leave.
Dr Yahya said: "My mother doesn't have anyone to look after her. If she is left alone, she will probably die. She has mobility issues. She can walk for about 10 metres. She uses a wheelchair. a normal chair or a walking aid when tired.
"My brother will stay with my mom to look after her. It breaks my heart."
British nationals had to make their way unescorted to Port Sudan
Fighting has entered its third week in Sudan. Tens of thousands of people have fled the country since fighting engulfed the country more than two weeks ago.
The capital city Khartoum has seen the heaviest fighting, with the Sudanese military and the Rapid Support Forces, a powerful paramilitary group, fighting for control of the country.
Sudan's military said on Saturday it was launching a major new offensive against RSF positions in Khartoum.
The latest truce, which has not held, was due to end at midnight on Sunday. But the RSF said the ceasefire had been extended for another three days.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-65452057
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Liz Truss contests £12,000 bill over use of Chevening country house - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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The former prime minister says most of the bill relates to using Chevening for government business.
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UK Politics
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Liz Truss used Chevening House in Kent as she prepared for power in August last year
Liz Truss is contesting a government bill relating to her use of the grace-and-favour country house she had access to as foreign secretary.
The former Conservative prime minister has been asked to foot a bill of about £12,000 for costs incurred at Chevening House in Kent.
The bill covers the period last year when Ms Truss was running to be the leader of the Conservative Party.
The government said it was a matter for the Chevening Trust.
Ms Truss was foreign secretary when she used Chevening House in August 2022 as she prepared for power during the Tory leadership contest.
Conservative Party members elected Ms Truss to be leader in September last year, but her government collapsed within 45 days after her tax-cutting mini-budget spooked financial markets.
Chevening, a Grade I-listed, 115-room country house, was left to the nation by 7th Earl Stanhope following his death in 1967.
Since then, it has been up to the prime minister to decide who uses Chevening, with the foreign secretary the usual beneficiary.
The BBC has been told that Ms Truss's Chevening bill - which was first reported by the Mail on Sunday newspaper - covers missing items, including bathrobes, which she is happy to pay to replace.
But the former prime minister is maintaining that the majority of the invoice relates to using Chevening for government business, meaning she should not be liable for most of the bill.
Those close to Ms Truss have stressed that she will account for all personal expenses incurred.
A government spokesperson said: "Costs and funding relating to Chevening House are a matter for the Chevening Trust."
And "where appropriate", the government said it works closely with the Chevening Trust "to ensure costs incurred are allocated accordingly".
Liz Truss was granted access to Chevening House when she was foreign secretary
The ministerial rulebook states "where ministers host party or personal events in [official] residences it should be at their own or party expense with no cost falling to the public purse".
A spokesman for Ms Truss said: "Liz always paid for the costs of her personal guests at Chevening.
"The latest invoice contains a mixture of costs for her personally and costs for official government business with civil servants including [Cabinet Secretary] Simon Case and senior officials from other departments who met at Chevening during the transition preparations.
"The latter constitutes the majority of the bill. It would be inappropriate for her to pay the costs for officials as it would have breached the Civil Service Code for civil servants to accept hospitality during the leadership campaign. She has therefore asked for this to be billed separately."
Ms Truss is still an MP and has spent some of her time giving speeches about her economic philosophy since she left office, with the latest register of interests for MPs showing she received £65,000 for one speaking engagement.
Ms Truss - the shortest-serving prime minister in history - claimed her government was partly brought down by what she called "the left-wing economic establishment".
She has ruled out running as prime minister again, but is planning to stand again as the MP for South West Norfolk at the next general election.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-65441189
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Aberystwyth uni told student was suicidal before his death - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Charlie McLeod's mum Emma Laney says she feels "a lot more should have been done" to help him.
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Wales
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This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Charlie McLeod's mum says she will miss "everything about him"
The mum of a student who killed himself days after sharing his suicidal thoughts with his university said it "could have been different" if his family were told he was struggling
Charlie McLeod, 25, was found dead in his student accommodation at Aberystwyth University on 3 February.
His mother, Emma Laney, does not know if enough was done when he told the university's wellbeing services.
The university said it was in touch with Charlie "throughout" the year.
Ms Laney said more needed to be done at universities to make sure people get the help they need while having a mental health crisis.
"If they'd just contacted home, it could have been a different outcome. We'll never know, sadly," she added.
Emma said she would remember her son, from Winchester in Hampshire, as "an extremely intelligent young man" who was an "amazing big brother" to Max and Angel.
After a stint in China as an English teacher, Charlie applied to Aberystwyth to study computer science.
"He was always saying that he was doing well on the course. He found it very interesting. He made some new friends. It seemed a positive time for him," said Emma.
Charlie McLeod taught English in China before starting at Aberystwyth University
But in the summer of 2022, she said she noticed a difference - he was not communicating as often and kept telling his family he was busy.
"Christmas time he seemed extremely down. He didn't want to join in with anything. Everything seemed an effort. He just wasn't himself."
Emma was told Charlie admitted himself to A&E as a result of his mental health on 25 January.
The following day he went to a scheduled counselling session with the university's wellbeing service and said he was feeling suicidal.
This was his last engagement with the service and he died days later.
An inquest into his death is due to be held in the autumn.
A university spokesman said: "Our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with Charlie's friends and family at such an extremely difficult time.
"While we cannot go into individual circumstances, our student wellbeing team were in contact with Charlie throughout the 22-23 academic year, with the aim of providing direct support as well as linking to statutory NHS health and mental health services where appropriate."
Emma Laney says Charlie (left) was "an amazing big brother" to Max and Angel
Emma said she had "an overwhelming sense that something wasn't right" so asked Charlie's dad to contact the university, which is when it was discovered that Charlie was dead.
She said: "I feel a lot more should have been done. A lot more communication, sharing of information. I mean if they'd just contacted home or even a professional mental health then, you know, it could have been a different outcome."
Romana Nemcová, 22, was Charlie's girlfriend and is now one of the organisers of the Charlie Asked For Help campaign, which was set up by fellow students to demand the university changes how it handles cases like this.
She said: "It's really important because Charlie was an incredible person. I want to make a change for future students so, future students will not suffer how he suffered.
"He could still be here if he'd had help and that's the most difficult part for me."
Emma Laney feels something could have been done to save her son's life
The Charlie Asked For Help campaigners say students need clearer communication with wellbeing services, as well as help to register with a GP practice when they start university.
Rachael Eagles, chief executive of Area 43, a mental health charity based in Ceredigion, said there were not enough services to meet demand.
"We need to decide what the gold standard of mental health services and care looks like and then ensure access to that wherever you are," she said.
This "gold standard" is something the National Union of Students Wales wants the Welsh government to implement at all universities in to ensure a "consistent model" of support.
The Welsh government said: "We have established an expert group to provide advice on how to improve access to mental health services and ensure universities across Wales have consistent and accessible support for students."
Aberystwyth University said it was "continuously" reviewing its processes and updating practices to ensure it was giving students "the best support possible".
If you have been affected by any issues raised in this article, help and support can be found at BBC Action Line.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-65423997
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Suspected Islamic State chief Qurayshi killed in Syria, Turkey says - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Abu Hussein al-Qurayshi was killed by Turkish forces on Saturday, Turkey's President Erdogan says.
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Middle East
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A soldier mans a machine gun mounted on an army vehicle during a Turkish and Russian military patrol in Syria
Turkish forces have killed the suspected leader of the Islamic State (IS) group in Syria, Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced.
Abu Hussein al-Qurayshi is said to have taken over the group after his predecessor was killed last autumn.
Mr Erdogan told broadcaster TRT Turk the IS leader was "neutralised" in a Turkish MIT intelligence agency operation on Saturday.
IS has so far made no comment on the reported operation.
The BBC has been unable to independently verify President Erdogan's claim.
The MIT intelligence agency had been following Qurayshi for a "long time", Mr Erdogan said.
"We will continue our struggle with terrorist organisations without any discrimination," he added, providing no further details.
Syrian sources quoted by Reuters news agency said the operation took place in the northern town of Jandaris, close to the Turkish border.
Last November, the jihadist group announced the death of its leader, Abu al-Hassan al-Hashemi al-Qurayshi. The US said he was killed in an operation by the rebel Free Syrian Army in south-west Syria in mid-October 2022.
He took over the group after previous leader Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi set off a blast killing himself and his family as US special forces rounded on his hideout after a gunfight in February 2022.
That operation "removed a major terrorist threat to the world", US President Joe Biden said at the time.
IS once held 88,000sq km (34,000sq miles) of territory stretching from north-eastern Syria across northern Iraq and imposed its brutal rule on almost eight million people.
The group was driven from its last piece of territory in 2019, but the UN warned in July that it remained a persistent threat.
It is estimated to have between 6,000 and 10,000 fighters in Syria and Iraq, who are based mostly in rural areas and continue to carry out hit-and-run attacks, ambushes and roadside bombings.
IS regional affiliates also pose threats in other conflict zones across the world. The UN said the most vigorous and well-established networks were based in Afghanistan, Somalia and the Lake Chad basin.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-65445007
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Ukraine war: Bakhmut defender remembered by comrades - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Pavel Kuzin single-handedly manned a machine gun in Bakhmut so his comrades could be evacuated.
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Europe
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Pavel Kuzin was killed in Bakhmut amid brutal fighting around the eastern Ukrainian city
Staff sergeant Pavel Kuzin took his position at the machine gun - the only soldier still able to fight. Everyone else in his troop lay dead or injured.
Suffering from shell-shock and with one arm bandaged, the 37-year-old fired at the waves of Russian soldiers trying to storm his position. They didn't even try to take cover, but simply walked towards him across the open field.
It was clear Pavel wouldn't be able to hold the position for long, but he needed to buy time for a rescue team to arrive. His final action in life was to ensure his wounded comrades got to safety.
The Ukrainian military says Bakhmut is now the scene of many "unprecedentedly bloody" battles like this, where they now have to repel up to 50 attacks on their positions every day. Russia has concentrated massive forces in this area, and their brutal strategy of launching human wave attacks helps them to advance slowly - but at a very high cost.
Pavel was in charge of a forward observation group that consisted of six Ukrainian soldiers. On 17 February, shortly after the start of their watch, they came under heavy fire. A tank began hammering their position.
Unlike relentless mortar rounds, the tank's aiming was chillingly accurate. Shells were landing a few metres from their trenches. Two soldiers were wounded and Pavel told them to go into a dugout. A combat medic went down to tend to their injuries and prepare them for an evacuation. Moments later, the wooden shelter was directly hit by a shell.
"There was a bright flash," one of the wounded soldiers with a callsign Tsygan told the BBC. "I was thrown onto the logs with such force that it nearly crushed me. I couldn't understand whether I was dead or alive. Someone was shouting, it seemed the sound was coming from 100m away."
I couldn't understand whether I was dead or alive
It was Pavel's voice who was checking on them. The other soldier was half-buried under dirt and logs. He was dead.
Tsygan could barely move and Pavel had to drag him up over the splintered logs that blocked the way. It was painfully slow to move Tsygan just a few metres away into a nearby trench. When the shelling paused briefly, Pavel went back trying to find others.
Two minesweepers arrived to clear the logs and find the bodies. But yet another shell hit the dug out, killing one of the men and injuring the other. The tank kept firing.
At that moment, Russian troops started storming their position. Pavel called for a support group to evacuate the wounded and rushed back to his Browning machine gun to stop the Russian infantry.
The 206th Battalion in which Pavel served had fought in the southern Kherson and north-eastern Kharkiv regions. But the battles over Bakhmut were very different from what they had seen before.
"The intensity of fighting to break through our positions was shocking," says Mykola Hlabets, platoon commander. "Sometimes, [Russian soldiers] would get as close as 20 metres from us, crawling and moving under a treeline or across an open field. This is where we had our first gunfights at such proximity."
"They would just stand and walk towards our positions without any cover. We wiped out one group after another, but they kept coming."
Hlabets described them as a suicide squad. Others call them cannon fodder.
Ukrainians are trying to fight off Russia's human wave attacks - similar to tactics used during World War One
A number of videos have been shared on telegram channels recently where newly mobilized Russian soldiers appealed to President Vladimir Putin and the authorities to stop what they called "illegal orders" to send them "to be slaughtered".
Last month mobilised soldiers from Belgorod posted a video saying that they were sent for an assault mission without proper training. After suffering heavy losses, they said they refused to carry out their orders.
Often these poorly trained soldiers are reportedly forced to keep pushing forward. The assault group Storm of the 5th Brigade of the Russian army said in a video appeal that they couldn't leave their position because of zagryad otryad, or blocking troops - detachments that open fire at their own men who try to retreat.
These wave attacks are similar to World War One tactics, when troops charged the enemy and engaged in close combat. And despite their lack of training and experience, sending newly recruited soldiers to such assaults are bringing some results for Russia, albeit at a very high cost.
Ukrainians expose their positions when they open fire to stop those attacks. That allows Russian artillery to identify the target and destroy it, as happened with Pavel's post.
Also, soldiers at forward positions run out of ammunition while trying to repel numerous wave attacks. They then become an easy target.
That was the risk Pavel knew he faced as he rushed to his Browning machine gun. But as long as he kept firing, his wounded brothers-in-arms had a chance to be rescued.
Tsygan was bleeding in the trench where Pavel had left him. Shrapnel had smashed his pelvis. Another piece had gone through his thigh, and a third had hit his abdomen, "turning the internal organs upside down", he said. He was barely conscious.
"I didn't see much, it was all white," he said. "I lay on the snowy ground for two hours and I didn't feel cold or anything."
Next to him was another wounded soldier. The rescue team on an armoured personnel carrier hastily picked them up as shelling resumed. They didn't even have time to close the hatch, Tsygan says.
By that time, Pavel's machine gun had fallen silent. He died from a head wound: a piece of shrapnel had pierced his helmet.
Commanders of the 206th battalion decided to send a group to retrieve the bodies of Pavel and the other soldiers.
The next day in the evening, three groups of two soldiers each set off to bring the bodies back.
"The plan looked good on paper, but things quickly went wrong," junior sergeant Vasyl Palamarchuk, who was in the lead group, remembers. They got lost and nearly ran into Russian positions in the dark. When they got close to the dugout, Russians spotted them and opened fire from a tank.
Pavel Kuzin died holding off Russian attackers so his wounded fellow soldiers could be evacuated
Russian tanks and artillery had continuously shelled that post in those days, but the Ukrainian big guns had largely stayed quiet. The reason was a massive shortage of shells.
"Once we counted that the Russians had fired up to 60 shells a day, whereas we could allow only two," Palamarchuk explains. "They destroyed trees and everything else and you had no place to hide."
Ukraine is struggling to find ammunition for its Soviet-era artillery. Getting shells for weapons donated by Ukraine's western partners has its own limits. As the secretary general of the Nato military alliance, Jens Stoltenberg, said recently: "The current rate of Ukraine's ammunition expenditure is many times higher than our current rate of production."
Palamarchuk's group eventually picked up Pavel's body just a few hours before Russian troops seized the area. Heavy snow turned into a freezing rain. After numerous breaks on the way back, crawling through craters left by shells, they finally arrived. The whole operation over just a kilometre's distance lasted for six hours.
It was past midnight but the entire battalion gathered at the evacuation point to pay their respects to Pavel, who is survived by his daughter and wife.
"It was a huge loss for our unit," Palamarchuk says. "He saved two people but died himself."
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-65313367
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Trevelyan descendant would consider Irish famine compensation - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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An ex-BBC journalist says her ancestor, referenced in the Fields of Athenry, failed Irish people.
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Northern Ireland
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Laura Trevelyan, now a slavery reparations campaigner, worked for some time as a BBC correspondent in the United States
A descendant of 19th Century aristocrat Sir Charles Trevelyan has said if the Irish government asked her family to pay compensation over the Irish famine they would consider the request.
Laura Trevelyan accepts that her great, great, great-grandfather was among those who "failed their people" while governing Ireland during the famine.
The Irish folk song The Fields Of Athenry singles him out for blame.
But she does not believe her family should be held personally responsible.
Ms Trevelyan, a former BBC journalist, said this is because Sir Charles was involved in his capacity as a British government official during the famine.
In the 1840s, he was the senior British civil servant in charge of Irish famine relief.
More than a million people died and another two million emigrated during the famine, the result of potato blight and exports of food to Great Britain, which ruled the entire island of Ireland at the time.
The Fields Of Athenry is a ballad about a man prosecuted for stealing "Trevelyan's corn".
The Trevelyan family recently agreed to donate more than £100,000 to the Caribbean island of Grenada to compensate for their ancestors' historic role in the slave trade.
Asked why the Trevelyan family would pay compensation to Grenada over slavery and not to Ireland over the famine, Ms Trevelyan said her ancestors were personally profiting from the sale of sugar cane harvested by enslaved Africans in the Caribbean, while Sir Charles was carrying out government policy.
She added: "If the Irish government said the Trevelyan family are liable for what Sir Charles Edward did, then of course that would have to be considered."
After 30 years in the BBC, in the UK and America, Ms Trevelyan left the corporation last month to become a full-time slavery reparations campaigner.
After her family issued a public apology in February over their historic links to slavery, the Irish novelist Katherine Mezzacappa asked Ms Trevelyan on Twitter: "Any word on Charles Trevelyan's catastrophic handling of famine relief in Ireland?"
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Ms Trevelyan told BBC Radio Ulster's The Nolan Show that the Fields Of Athenry had been sung at her, and she had been directly challenged about her family link to the famine by Sinn Fein's Martin McGuinness in the 1990s.
She said: "A quarter of a century ago, when I was a BBC reporter covering the Good Friday Agreement, I tripped over my own history.
"I well remember Martin McGuinness saying to me, 'Is this a coincidence that the British have sent a Trevelyan for the BBC, a state institution, to cover these negotiations?'.
"I assured him it was a coincidence but he didn't think it was at all and that's when I tripped up against Sir Charles Edward Trevelyan.
"And I remember so clearly being in Crossmaglen in south Armagh and speaking to a member of Republican Sinn Fein who looked at me in horror and said, 'How can you be driving around south Armagh with the blood of the Irish on your hands?' And to my embarrassment I didn't even really understand what either of them were talking about.
"When I got back to Britain I began to read up on Sir Charles."
Laura Trevelyan as a young BBC reporter in the historic town of Carrickfergus, County Antrim
Amid all the recent publicity about her family's connection to the slave trade, she expected questions to be also asked about what happened during the Irish famine.
In the 1830s, after the abolition of slavery, the Trevelyan family received about £34,000 in official compensation, the equivalent of about £3m in modern money.
Asked for her personal view of Sir Charles Trevelyan, she said: "When I wrote a book in 2006, A Very British Family, I'd read everything that had been written about him to that point.
"Where one ends up is, as [the then prime minister] Tony Blair said in 1997, those who governed in London at the time of the Irish famine failed their people by standing by while a crop failure turned into a massive human tragedy.
"He [Sir Charles] was the Treasury official in charge of the famine relief so he is an absolutely central character in this and as I reflected in my book in 2006, he's a providentialist, he's a laissez-faire economist. He feels that private charity in Ireland should be leaping to the rescue.
"It is hard to interpret his writings in some ways because they're so Victorian and convoluted and open to interpretation in some ways. But he both says the people cannot under any circumstances be allowed to starve - and they do starve, so he's failed by his own point.
"And he also seems to suggest that in some ways this is the divine punishment of God for a one-crop economy. It's very hard to defend any of it."
In her book, she said there was a debate over the extent of the role played by Sir Charles, with some historians being more critical than others, and at least one defending him.
Detail from an illustration depicting a scene outside a 19th century workhouse during the Irish famine
As for the song, The Fields Of Athenry, it has become very familiar to Ms Trevelyan.
Written by Pete St John, it has grown in popularity in recent years and is often sung at Irish sporting occasions, including by fans supporting the Ireland rugby team.
"It's been sung to me many a time," Ms Trevelyan said.
"I was once trying to park a car outside the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in Dublin and somebody came and helped me get into the spot. I said, 'Thanks very much', and he said, 'What's your your name?' and I said 'Laura Trevelyan'.
"He looked at me… and began singing The Fields of Athenry.
"And I when I got into the Irish Ministry for Foreign Affairs I was shown around as though I was an historical artefact - 'she's related to Sir Charles' - all of which was pretty extraordinary. What I was embarrassed about at the time was that I didn't know the history of my family and here I was meeting all these people who knew it intimately.
"It made me realise that the past defines the present… you realise that more and more, how the past is not really the past."
On the issue of reparations for Ireland, Ms Trevelyan expanded on her position.
She said: "To the best of my knowledge there isn't an inter-government request from the Irish government to the British for reparations to be paid for the famine because of the action of officials like Sir Charles.
"I guess the distinction I would make is that in the Caribbean my ancestors were acting for private profit whereas Sir Charles was acting as an official for the British government, and the British government did in 1997 acknowledge his failures and the failures of others."
After three decades of telling the stories of other people, Laura Trevelyan is now at the centre of her own.
From anchoring BBC World News America, the broadcaster has turned into a campaigner.
While finding the sudden switch "truly weird", she says she has no regrets and is now fully focused on her new role.
Listen to the full interview with Laura Trevelyan on The Nolan Show on BBC Sounds.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-65440287
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Man's viral worm dance at charity event wows Rita Ora - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Ian Smith couldn't help the impromptu move as Rita Ora performed at the Prince's Trust event in New York.
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A video of a man doing the "worm" during a Rita Ora performance at a charity event has gone viral.
Ms Ora was performing her song Praising You at a Prince's Trust event in New York when Australian lobbyist Ian Smith decided to show off his dance moves.
The 57-year-old's wife, and former Australian senator, Natasha Stott Despoja watched on as her other half was filmed by high-profile stars like Kate Beckinsale.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-65448332
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Missing teenager: Body found in the River Thames - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Rescuers find a body in the search for a boy of 17 who went missing in a river in Gloucestershire.
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Gloucestershire
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Crews from Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue and Dorset and Wiltshire Fire Service carried out searches
A body has been found in the search for a 17-year-old boy who went missing in a river, police have confirmed.
Gloucestershire Police was called at about 22:00 BST on Sunday after the boy was spotted in the River Thames near Lechlade on Thames.
A group of five had been at the location together, and some had entered the water to try to find him.
The others have been accounted for and the death is not being treated as suspicious.
The National Police Air Service, Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service and Severn Area Rescue Association carried out searches into the early hours of Monday.
Searches continued throughout Monday and a body was later recovered from the river by specialist police divers from Avon and Somerset Police.
Five teenage boys had been playing in the river, but the others have been accounted for
Although formal identification has not yet taken place, the boy's next of kin have been informed and they are being supported by trained officers.
Gloucestershire Constabulary has said its thoughts were with the boy's family and friends at this distressing time.
Follow BBC West on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to: bristol@bbc.co.uk
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-65447977
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France protests: More than 100 police hurt in May Day demonstrations - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Almost 300 people are arrested across France in clashes with demonstrators angry at pension reforms.
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Europe
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At least 108 police officers have been injured in clashes across France with protesters angry at pension reforms, the interior minister has said.
Gérald Darmanin said such a large number of police wounded was extremely rare, adding that 291 people had been arrested during the unrest.
Hundreds of thousands have been taking part in May Day demonstrations against President Emmanuel Macron's reforms.
Most were peaceful but radical groups threw petrol bombs and fireworks.
It is not clear how many protesters have been injured.
Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne tweeted that the violence was "unacceptable", while also praising the "responsible mobilisation and commitment" of demonstrators in numerous cities.
This is the latest day of mass action against changes that raise the state pension age from 62 to 64. Trade unions want them withdrawn.
The Interior Ministry put the overall number of demonstrators at 782,000, including 112,000 in the capital Paris, but the CGT union say the figure is three times that number.
Union leaders were adamant that months-long opposition to the reforms was not waning.
"The page is not going to be turned as long as there is no withdrawal of this pension reform. The determination to win is intact," said CGT leader Sophie Binet, quoted by AFP.
In Paris, one police officer suffered serious burns to his hands and face when struck by a petrol bomb, Mr Darmanin said.
Violence also broke out in Lyons, Toulouse and Nantes, where vehicles were set on fire and businesses attacked.
Most of the protests were peaceful but police clashed with radical groups throwing projectiles and firebombs
There were also reports that protesters briefly occupied a luxury hotel in the southern city of Marseille. Monday was the first time since 2009 that France's top eight trade unions had backed calls for a protest, AFP news agency said.
Mr Darmanin accused far-left groups known as black blocs and numbering a few thousand of being behind the violence and urged that "those who attacked the police and public property be severely punished".
There has been a violent element to the protests ever since March, when the government decided to force the legislation through the lower house of parliament - where it lacks an absolute majority - without a vote.
Mr Macron says the reform is a necessity.
He signed the reform into law on 15 April, hours after France's Constitutional Council broadly backed the changes, but opinion polls show a large majority of the population opposes the higher pension age.
The reforms are expected to come into force by September.
The government has promised further talks but the unions are determined to get the changes repealed, and it is not clear where a compromise could be found.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-65449777
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Sudan crisis risks becoming a nightmare for the world - former PM Hamdok - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Former PM Abdalla Hamdok says the Sudan conflict could become worse than the wars in Syria and Libya.
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Africa
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Abdalla Hamdok served twice as Sudan PM between 2019 and 2022
Sudan's former Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok has warned that the conflict in his country could become worse than those in Syria and Libya.
The fighting between the regular army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) would be a "nightmare for the world" if it continued, he said.
Early on Sunday, warplanes and heavy anti-aircraft fire were heard over the capital Khartoum, residents said.
The army said it was attacking from all directions, using heavy artillery.
The fighting that started on 15 April has left hundreds dead, while tens of thousands of people are fleeing the country.
Thursday night's extension of an uneasy ceasefire between the rival factions followed intensive diplomatic efforts by neighbouring countries, as well as the US, UK and UN. But the 72-hour extension has not held.
Meanwhile, there are chaotic scenes in Port Sudan where people are desperate to board ships, some of which are heading to Saudi Arabia and Yemen.
The UK government said it had ended its evacuation operation. The Foreign Office said the last flight left Khartoum at 22:00 local time (20:00 GMT) on Saturday, and in total nearly 1,900 people were flown out.
The US government meanwhile said a US-organised convoy had reached Port Sudan to evacuate more US citizens by ship to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. It said hundreds of Americans had already left Sudan, in addition to the diplomats evacuated by air a week ago.
Speaking at a conference in the Kenyan capital Nairobi, Mr Hamdok called for a unified international effort to persuade the Sudanese army chief and the RSF leader to hold peace talks.
"This is a huge country, very diverse ... I think it will be a nightmare for the world," he said.
"This is not a war between an army and small rebellion. It is almost like two armies - well trained and well armed."
Mr Hamdok - who served as prime minister twice between 2019 and 2022 - added that the insecurity could become worse than the civil wars in Syria and Libya. Those wars have led to hundreds of thousands of deaths, created millions of refugees and caused instability in the wider regions.
Tens of thousands of people are attempting to flee Sudan
Army commander Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and RSF chief Gen Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, better known as Hemedti, disagree about the country's proposed move to civilian rule, and in particular about the timeframe of the 100,000 strong RSF's inclusion into the army.
Both factions fear losing power in Sudan, partly because on both sides there are men who could end up at the International Criminal Court for war crimes committed in the Darfur region almost 20 years ago.
Millions of people remain trapped in Khartoum, where there are shortages of food, water and fuel.
Sudan's army has urged people in Khartoum to remain indoors and stay away from windows, as it deploys tanks and other artillery in an effort to recapture areas held by the RSF.
The RSF says the army is widening the conflict by deploying the Central Reserve police - a unit with a reputation for brutality against civilians.
Violence is also reported to have been particularly bad in El Geneina, a city in Darfur in western Sudan, with claims that militia groups have looted and torched markets.
Hemedti has told the BBC he will not negotiate until fighting ends.
He said his fighters were being "relentlessly" bombed since the truce was extended.
"We don't want to destroy Sudan," he said, blaming army chief Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan for the violence.
Gen Burhan - the head of Sudan's regular army - has tentatively agreed to face-to-face talks in South Sudan.
Around 2,000 people have arrived in the Saudi coastal city of Jeddah
Around 2,000 people have arrived in Jeddah from Port Sudan. Most are expected to be flown home via charter flights arranged by their governments within the next few days.
Speaking to BBC's Chief International Correspondent Lyse Doucet in Jeddah, Nazli, a 32 year-old Iranian civil engineer who fled with her fellow engineer husband, recalled the fighting they fled.
"We couldn't even sit on our balcony; the gunfire was everywhere," she said.
"Please please help our family in Sudan," cried Rasha, a Sudanese-American mother of four children - who spoke of hiding for three days, terrified.
"I call on the world to protect Sudan," she pleaded, underlining fears that once all the foreign nationals have fled, the fighting will intensify.
Are you in Sudan? If you are preparing to leave on an evacuation flight share your experiences by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.
Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also get in touch in the following ways:
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-65436815
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Aughnacloy crash: Hundreds attend Strabane vigil to remember victims - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Dan McKane, Christine McKane and Julia McSorley are named locally as the those who died on the A5 road.
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Northern Ireland
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Hundreds of have people gathered for a vigil to remember the three members of a family who died in a minibus crash in Aughnacloy, County Tyrone.
The victims have been named locally as Dan McKane, his sister Christine McKane and their aunt Julia McSorley.
They were killed when their minibus collided with a lorry on the A5 Tullyvar Road on Thursday morning.
The family had been returning home to Strabane, County Tyrone, from an aunt's funeral in England when it happened.
Prayers were said and candles were lit at the vigil in Strabane on Friday evening
Four others who were in the minibus suffered serious injuries.
Father Declan Boland, a priest in Strabane, said the family and the community in the town were in total disbelief at the tragedy.
"The community are struggling to comprehend what is happening," he told the BBC's The North West Today programme.
"We have to face into the horror of the bodies coming home and then the funerals."
Fr Declan Boland said people in Strabane were shocked and saddened
Fr Boland visited the home of Ms McKane on Thursday where people had come together to pay tribute.
"People were just gathering in groups, not saying an awful lot but just being there in silent solidarity, embracing one another," he said.
"It really is a silent witness where words are really inadequate."
The vigil was held at the Holy Grotto in Strabane
Two people who were badly injured in the crash had emergency surgery in Belfast's Royal Victoria Hospital will pull through, added the priest.
Speaking at the vigil in Strabane on Friday evening, he said the community had come together to "stand in solidarity" with the family and grieving relatives.
The community then prayed the rosary in memory of the victims and in support of those who were injured.
"It's just important to show the family that we're all with them," one woman attending the vigil told BBC News NI.
"It's a tragic loss for the town of Strabane."
Another vigil-goer said: "The family are well known so it's hit every part of the community.
"As you can see today, the community has come out in force and they will do over the next [few] days to make sure that the family has support."
Candles were lit in the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Strabane
There's a palpable sense of shock and disbelief in Strabane in the wake of this tragedy.
People attending morning Mass in the Church of the Immaculate Conception on Barrack Street said they were heartbroken at the deaths.
"I can't believe that they were over in England for a funeral and returning home when this happened. It's terrible, just terrible," said one woman.
Another woman said she was going to Mass to pray for the family and light a candle for them: "It's just such an awful tragedy."
Friends of the McKane family said they are lovely people and are completely devastated by what has happened.
Thursday's fatal crash is the latest to happen on the A5 road, which links the north-west with Dublin in the Republic of Ireland.
Plans to upgrade the road between Aughnacloy and New Buildings in County Londonderry were announced in 2007.
But they have been delayed amid funding issues and legal challenges.
The Department for Infrastructure said the estimated cost of the project was £1.6bn - up £400m since the last estimate.
Campaigners from Enough Is Enough, a group calling for the upgrade to take place, previously said 44 people have died on the road since 2007.
Alan Kilpatrick, who lives on the road where the crash happened, said it was dangerous.
He was one of the first people to arrive at the scene of the crash on Thursday morning.
"I don't want to see what I saw again... because this is avoidable with a better road," he told the BBC News NI.
He said there was a high volume of traffic on the road, including heavy commercial vehicles trying to navigate small roads.
"Here is a main road between the largest city on the island, the whole north-west of the island and it's absolutely horrendous."
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-65422147
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Donald Trump says it is 'great to be home' on visit to Scotland - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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The former US president has flown into Aberdeen on his first visit to the UK since 2019.
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Scotland
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This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. The former US president is visiting the UK for the first time since 2019.
Former US President Donald Trump has said "it is great to be home" as he arrived in Aberdeen on a visit to his Scottish golf properties.
It is Mr Trump's first visit to the UK since 2019 after leaving office.
He attended a ceremony to break ground on a new course at his Aberdeenshire resort, Trump International Scotland.
Mr Trump, whose mother was from the Isle of Lewis, sparked a security operation on a 2018 visit with protests in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen.
The visit comes as Mr Trump faces court action in the United States. Earlier this month he pled not guilty to 34 counts of falsifying business records.
He is also facing a civil trial over an allegation that he raped an advice columnist in the mid-1990s. A judge has denied his legal team's request for a mistrial.
Mr Trump, who is running for the White House again in 2024, is visiting Scotland as a private individual.
It is understood there is no requirement on the Scottish or UK governments to pay for special security.
Mr Trump walked down the steps to the sound of bagpipes
The former president arrived at Aberdeen Airport at about 11:30 and was met by two pipers, a red carpet and a 10-vehicle motorcade.
He left the plane and greeted reporters as he walked to a waiting car, but did not stop to take questions.
Before getting into the vehicle, he said: "It's great to be home, this was the home of my mother."
His mother, Mary Anne MacLeod, was born on Lewis in the Outer Hebrides before emigrating to the US.
Mr Trump said a "spectacular" second course on the Menie Estate at Balmedie in Aberdeenshire would be dedicated to her.
Mr Trump cut the ribbon on the MacLeod course with son Eric and Sarah Malone of Trump International Scotland
The former president cut a ceremonial red ribbon to mark the beginning of work on the MacLeod course.
He said the new course would be fit to "host many great championships" in future.
He added: "My mother was an incredible woman who loved Scotland. She returned here every year and she loved the Queen."
He added: "I love Scotland just as much."
Mr Trump is later expected to visit the Trump Turnberry course in Ayrshire before travelling to his course in Doonbeg on Ireland's west coast.
On Mr Trump's last major visit to Scotland in July 2018 he spent two days at his Turnberry resort with wife Melania.
Mr Trump was heckled as he played golf there with his son Eric.
It was part of a four-day trip to the UK, during which he met then Prime Minister Theresa May and the Queen.
Donald Trump's mother may have come from Scotland but he's had a very difficult relationship with people and politicians in the country of her birth.
While he is now opening the second of two golf courses in Aberdeenshire, his investment there remains a fraction of the one billion pounds he originally promised.
Developing the site brought him into conflict with some of his neighbours and environmental campaigners who wanted to preserve the sand dune system and its natural habitats.
Donald Trump also clashed with the Scottish government in court in an unsuccessful attempt to block a wind farm off the Aberdeenshire coast.
His redevelopment of Turnberry in Ayrshire was more warmly received.
All Holyrood party leaders opposed his election as President in 2016 and the new First Minister Humza Yousaf suggested Trump be barred from the UK following the storming of the US Capitol building by his supporters.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-65448007
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Tributes paid to man stabbed near Bodmin nightclub - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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Five other people have since been released from hospital, with two recovering from surgery.
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Cornwall
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Michael Allen has been named as the man who died at the scene
Tributes have been paid to a man stabbed to death near a nightclub on Sunday whom police have named as Michael Allen, 32.
Mr Allen was confirmed dead at the scene close to the Eclipse venue on Castle Canyke Road in Bodmin, Cornwall, following reports of a street brawl.
Seven men and women with suspected stab wounds were taken to hospital.
Police have been granted by magistrates more time to question a man, 24, in connection with their murder inquiry.
Police investigations are continuing in the area
The family of Mr Allen, from Liskeard, said he was a "much-loved son, brother, grandson, and uncle who loved his dogs".
The family wished to "respectfully request privacy at this time", their statement added.
The suspect, also from Bodmin, has been arrested on suspicion of murder, attempted murder and causing grievous bodily harm with intent.
Officers were called to the scene at 03:15 BST on Sunday.
Of the seven people injured, five have since been released and two remain in hospital recovering from surgery.
Bodmin Rugby Club have set up a tribute site for people to remember Michael Allen
A tribute site has been set up at Bodmin Rugby Club, where Mr Allen was a player, for people to gather and remember him.
Officers will be in attendance to support the local community between 16:00 and 18:00 BST on Monday, and twice daily from 10:00 to 12:00 and then 16:00 to 18:00 for the next week.
The club said Mr Allen's "humour and kindness has left a mark on us all, and we will miss him dearly".
Det Insp Ilona Rosson said police would "continue to ask the public for their help" in the investigation.
She said: "If you have any information relating to this murder and have yet to have spoken with the police, please come forward immediately. The information you have, no matter how small you may feel it could be, could be vital to our investigation."
It is unclear whether the victims had attended the nightclub prior to the violence outside.
Eclipse released a statement saying it was "deeply saddened" by the events and its "thoughts are with the victims and their families".
Follow BBC News South West on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to spotlight@bbc.co.uk
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cornwall-65449416
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World Snooker Championship 147: Mark Selby makes first maximum in final but trails Luca Brecel - BBC Sport
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Mark Selby creates history as he becomes the first player to make a maximum 147 break in a World Championship final, but trails Luca Brecel 9-8 overall.
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Last updated on .From the section Snooker
Coverage: Watch live on BBC TV and Red Button with uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, the BBC Sport website and the BBC Sport app
Mark Selby created history as he became the first player to make a maximum 147 break in a World Championship final.
But the four-time world champion trails Luca Brecel 9-8 going into Monday's last day of action.
"The atmosphere when I potted that final black was electric. It is incredible. Just to make a 147 here is hard enough," said 39-year-old Selby.
"I always thought that if I got in that position I would be shaking like a leaf. It was amazing how calm I felt."
Belgium's Brecel had dominated the opening session with his flamboyant attacking style to open up a 6-2 advantage.
However, Selby, who appeared jaded on Sunday afternoon as a consequence of the draining late-night finish to his semi-final victory over Mark Allen, delivered a superb riposte in an exhilarating second session.
A high-quality start saw Selby finally display his devastating potting ability, opening with a 134 break and then a 96 as he reeled off three of the first four frames.
Brecel, who crafted a brilliant 99 of his own in the 10th frame of the match, constructed back-to-back half centuries to re-establish a four-frame lead at 9-5.
But Selby again responded, pinching the final frame of the session after his 147 to leave snooker's blue-riband event delicately poised when play resumes at 13:00 BST on Monday.
Selby's special effort arrived in the 16th frame of the match, with the Englishman coming to the table after Brecel had left a red hanging in the jaws of the bottom corner pocket.
As excitement built he went on to superbly pot a difficult final red with the rest to clear all 15 reds, all accompanied by blacks, before dispatching the colours.
It prompted joyous scenes as the fans inside the auditorium erupted.
Referee Brendan Moore, officiating in his third and last Crucible final before retirement, congratulated Selby, who was also embraced warmly by Brecel.
Selby's feat comes 40 years on from the first ever maximum at the Crucible, compiled by Cliff Thorburn in 1983.
The Englishman is the 10th player to achieve a total clearance at the Sheffield venue - Kyren Wilson also made a 147 earlier in the tournament.
There have been 14 maximums in total at the Crucible with Ronnie O'Sullivan and Stephen Hendry making three each.
The select band of players to reach the magical tally is completed by Cliff Thorburn, Jimmy White, Mark Williams, Ali Carter, John Higgins and Neil Robertson.
Wilson's 147 came during his 10-5 first-round win against Ryan Day.
Selby is set to share with him an additional £55,000 in prize money, with £40,000 on offer for a 147 and £15,000 for the tournament's highest break.
It was amazing, to be here and have a bird's eye view of it, it's a magical moment in Crucible history.
To make a maximum in a final is just the icing on the cake for Mark Selby in his career.
Phenomenal. Iconic pictures. The irony that during the interval we were running a piece about Cliff Thorburn [making the Crucible's first maximum in 1983] and celebrating the anniversary of that, to then a couple of frames later [for Selby to make one].
It was absolutely amazing. What a competitor. To then follow that up by winning the final frame, that is absolutely vital. A very interesting day that we're set up for tomorrow.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/snooker/65443883
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Ding Liren becomes China's first male world chess champion - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Ding Liren, 30, defeated his higher-ranked Russian opponent in a rapid tiebreaker game.
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China
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China's Ding Liren, 30 is the country's first winner of the World Chess Championship
Ding Liren has become China's first men's world chess champion, after defeating Russia's Ian Nepomniachtchi.
Ding, 30, won a rapid-play tiebreaker after 14 first-stage games at the World Chess Championship in Kazakhstan.
He succeeds Norway's Magnus Carlsen, the five-time champion who said he was "not motivated" to defend his title.
Carlsen accused a US opponent of cheating last year in a row that rocked the chess world. He remains number one in the rankings.
Ding's victory makes him the 17th winner of the world chess tournament, while Nepomniachtchi, who had previously made a grand final, fell at the final hurdle for a second time.
Ding said he was "quite relieved" after his victory, according to comments shared by FIDE, the International Chess Federation.
"The moment Ian resigned the game was a very emotional moment. I couldn't control my feelings. I know myself, I will cry and burst into tears. It was a tough tournament for me."
His victory was celebrated by chess fans and patriots in China, which is a growing chess power.
"One Ding to rule em all," tweeted fellow grandmaster Anish Giri after Ding's victory.
China's General Administration of Sport, a government department, also posted a warm congratulatory message, praising Ding for "winning glory for the motherland and its people".
A native of Wenzhou, China's "chess city", Ding triumphed in dramatic circumstances in Astana, the Kazakh capital.
The opening 14 games were played over three weeks. Ding and Nepomniachtchi each won three, with eight draws.
For the tiebreaker, each player had only 25 minutes to make their moves, plus an additional 10 seconds for each move played. Ding clinched victory in winning the fourth quick-fire game.
The 2m euro (£1.8m; $2.2m) prize money will be split 55-45 between the two players.
Ding was able to compete against Nepomniachtchi due to Carlsen's abstention. Ding had finished second at the Candidates Tournament, which players must win to challenge the world champion.
In 2009, he became China's youngest chess champion at national level.
Within 12 years, he had become the highest-ranked Chinese player in the world rankings, reaching second place.
Ding was undefeated in classical chess for 100 games from August 2017 to November 2018. This was the longest unbeaten streak in top-level chess history until Carlsen surpassed it in 2019.
His triumph reflects China's growth in the global chess scene.
China has dominated women's chess tournaments since the 1990s, when Xie Jun became the first Chinese person to claim a world title in 1991 in the women's game.
No Chinese player had ever previously won the World Chess Championship, in which both men and women can compete.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-65445948
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Texas shooting: Suspect had been deported four times - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Police have announced a reward of $80,000 for information leading to the suspect's arrest.
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US & Canada
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This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Watch: Wilson Garcia describes the tragic events that allowed him to flee
The man on the run after killing five people in Texas was deported at least four times, US media report.
The suspect, 38-year-old Francisco Oropeza, is a Mexican national who had reportedly been deported twice in 2009, then again in 2012 and 2016.
Police say he killed five of his neighbours, including a child, after an argument about him practice-shooting with a semi-automatic weapon nearby.
A reward of $80,000 (£64,000) has been announced for information.
A man who survived the shooting in which his wife and son died has tearfully recalled the details of the tragedy at a vigil held in Texas on Sunday.
Wilson Garcia said the noise of a neighbour's gunfire made his one-month-old son cry, so he and two others asked the man to move farther away.
The suspect, Francisco Oropeza, later fired indiscriminately on Mr Garcia's home, killing five people inside, say police
Mr Garcia said he "respectfully" asked his neighbour in the small town of Cleveland, San Jacinto County, to shoot his gun farther away so his infant son could sleep.
"He told us he was on his property, and he could do what he wanted," he told Associated Press.
Mr Garcia called the police five times and was reassured each time that help was on the way. Then he saw Mr Oropeza running toward his home and reloading his weapon.
His wife, Sonia Argentina Guzman, told him to go inside because he wouldn't fire at a woman, he recalled. But she turned out to be his first victim as he shot at the house.
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.
There were 15 people in the house at the time of the shooting - many of them reportedly there on a church retreat.
Also among the dead was Mr Garcia's son, Daniel Enrique Laso, aged nine, and two women who died while protecting Mr Garcia's infant and two-year-old daughter.
Mr Garcia said one of the women had told him to jump out a window to stay alive, in order to take care of his surviving children.
The victims were all from Honduras. The others include Diana Velazquez Alvarado, 21; Julisa Molina Rivera, 31; and Jose Jonathan Casarez, 18.
"I don't have words to describe what happened," Mr Garcia told local news. "It's like we're alive but at the same time we're not. What happened truly was horrible."
Three children present during the shooting who were injured and taken to the hospital were released on Sunday, the Houston Chronicle reported.
An aerial view of the search
A manhunt continues for the suspect. He should be considered armed and dangerous, police said.
Authorities have announced an $80,000 (£64,000) reward for information leading to Mr Oropeza's arrest, funded by Texas Governor Gregg Abbott, the FBI and local authorities.
San Jacinto County Sheriff Greg Capers said at least three weapons were discovered inside the suspect's home, CNN reported.
"I can tell you right now, we have zero leads," FBI special agent James Smith told reporters. "We do not know where he is. We don't have any tips right now to where he may be. Right now, we're running into dead ends."
Following the shooting, more than 150 officers gathered in a wooded area near the site to search where authorities initially believed Mr Oropeza had fled on foot, finding clothes and a phone.
Tracking dogs eventually lost the suspect's scent, Mr Capers said, but the search involving over 200 officers continued on Sunday.
The FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Texas Public Safety Department are all involved in the manhunt - which has some law enforcement on horseback.
When asked about the response time to Mr Garcia's multiple calls for help, he said officers got there as quickly as possible and that he had only three officers patrolling several hundred square miles.
Honduras' foreign minister, Enrique Reina, tweeted: "We demand that the full weight of the law be applied against those who are responsible for this crime."
The incident came days after nine people were injured at a shooting during a teenagers' party in eastern Texas.
Two weeks ago, four young people were shot dead during a 16th birthday party in Alabama.
Firearm incidents are the top cause of death for US children and teenagers, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-65447378
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Florida tornado flips car across highway - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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A driver captured video of a car being flipped upside down by a powerful storm in Florida.
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The storm in Florida was so powerful that it flipped a car upside down within seconds. Fortunately no one was seriously hurt.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-65450458
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Macron tries to escape French pension row with street song - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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The French leader tries to relaunch his presidency as a video is shared by a group linked to the far right.
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Europe
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President Macron is seeking to relaunch his second period in office and the latest viral video is a potential distraction
Even a traditional sing-song with a group of young Parisians is fraught with risk for a president attempting to persuade France to accept an unpopular increase in the pension age.
Emmanuel Macron had given a TV address on Tuesday regretting "no consensus could be found" on the reform when he went for a walk with his wife Brigitte.
He joined some men singing a song he remembered from his grandmother.
But it was shared by a Facebook group reportedly set up by the far right.
The young singers were part of a Parisian choir singing traditional songs on a street in the sixth district in Paris,
One of them approached President Macron asking him to join in a rendition of an old song from the Pyrenees called "Le Refuge", which he sang on a trip to the French mountain range last year.
The men, who were part of the local Saint Longin choir, were apparently using a mobile phone app to read the words of the song created by the Canto project.
This Twitter post cannot be displayed in your browser. Please enable Javascript or try a different browser. View original content on Twitter The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Skip twitter post by Stanislas Rigault This article contains content provided by Twitter. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read Twitter’s cookie policy, external and privacy policy, external before accepting. To view this content choose ‘accept and continue’. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.
Last October, left-leaning newspaper Libération revealed that the project, set up to promote the memory of traditional songs, had been founded and run by far-right activists.
Songs included French classics and nursery rhymes, but also others with a more questionable past including songs linked to the Spanish fascist Falange of the 1930s and Nazi Germany.
President Macron and his team are keenly aware of how viral videos can distract from the business of the day, especially when it comes to pension reforms.
Reacting to the video on a trip to the eastern Alsace region, he told journalists that whatever he did would have been wrong.
"You're the president and you're in the street. There are 10 young people in the street who I don't know, singing a song I know... they say 'would you like to sing with us?'
"You tell them no, no etc... you [journalists] would have spent 48 hours saying 'he shows contempt, he's not a nice guy'. On the other hand you know the song so you stop and what do you get? 'He sang with these guys who are politicised.'"
Last month another viral video showed how his relatively expensive watch magically disappeared in the middle of a TV interview.
It was a non-story as there was no evidence to back up claims that he was embarrassed by its opulence. The more obvious explanation was that it was banging the table. No matter, it was the tale that counted.
The only link with the far right is that the founder of the Canto project app he was reading from was close to the National Rally opposition party.
But the app's aim is to encourage communal singing. It includes plenty of revolutionary songs dear to the far left on its site, like "Ah ça ira", which features the friendly line "Aristocrats to the gallows!".
The choir are evidently from the Catholic right, but one of the singers, Géraud, told public radio station France Inter that their only link to the Canto project was that it had a repertoire of music they were interested in.
These protesters against the Macron pension reforms urged the president to "come and work a bit at night to see"
The story has legs because of the video and because the president is not in good odour at the moment.
He has now signed into law deeply unpopular reforms that raise the pension age from 62 to 64 and given Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne the job of leading 100 days of action, with a roadmap of major projects "at the service of France".
His latest appearance in public has had a far more cacophonous response.
The aim of his visit to the eastern region of Alsace was to relaunch his second term in office.
On arrival in the town of Sélestat in Alsace, he was booed loudly by residents and protesters. He then spoke to workers at a timber factory only to find that the power had been cut by union members protesting against the pension reforms.
President Macron responded defiantly to the chorus of boos on the streets, insisting he expected nothing else. "Anger won't stop me continuing to move around," he said.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-65321265
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Gerry Adams wrongly denied prison compensation, court rules - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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The ex-Sinn Féin leader meets the test for compensation after having convictions quashed, judge says.
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Northern Ireland
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The judge ruled that he was satisfied that Mr Adams meets the test for compensation
Gerry Adams was wrongly denied compensation after his convictions for trying to escape from prison in the 1970s were quashed, the High Court has ruled.
The former Sinn Féin president won an appeal to have two historical convictions overturned in 2020.
Mr Justice Colton said he was satisfied that Mr Adams meets the test for compensation.
He also ordered the Department of Justice to reconsider Mr Adams's application.
Mr Adams had been found guilty of two attempts to escape from lawful custody while being held at the Maze Prison - then known as Long Kesh internment camp - in 1973 and 1974.
He was in jail because he had been interned without trial, a practice that was introduced in Northern Ireland amid spiralling violence in the early 1970s.
More than 1,900 people suspected of being members of paramilitary organisations were detained, but many were arrested based on flawed intelligence.
Mr Adams, who has consistently denied being a member of the Irish Republican Army (IRA), was later sentenced to a total of four-and-a-half years in jail.
In 2020, the Supreme Court ruled that his detention had been unlawful and quashed both convictions.
The interim custody order (ICO) used to initially detain him was held to be invalid because the then-Northern Ireland secretary, Willie Whitelaw, had not personally authorised it.
Mr Adams issued judicial review proceedings after a subsequent application for compensation was turned down.
Under the statutory scheme, payment for a miscarriage of justice is made in cases where "a new or newly-discovered fact" shows the person did not commit the offence, which lawyers representing Mr Adams argued he qualifies under based on new circumstances established by the Supreme Court.
Mr Adams' lawyer said the newly-discovered fact in this case was the confirmation that "there was no personal consideration by the secretary of state, and that (another) minister of state signed the ICO without authorisation to do so".
"If the applicant was not lawfully detained, he did not commit the offence he was convicted of.
"The newly-discovered fact led to the quashing of these convictions," he added.
A lawyer for the Department of Justice had argued it was the analysis of a legal point which led to the guilty verdicts being overturned, rather than a new or newly-discovered fact.
The judge stressed that both counsels were unaware of the factual situation surrounding the invalid ICO.
"The applicant has been convicted of a criminal offence, his conviction has been reversed in circumstances where a newly-discovered fact, the lack of consideration by the secretary of state, shows beyond reasonable doubt that there has been a miscarriage of justice, that is the applicant is innocent of the crime for which he was convicted," he said.
He concluded that the Department of Justice had "erred in law" in determining that the reversal of Mr Adams's conviction arose from a legal ruling on facts, something which he said had been known all along.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-65423440
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Khartoum branch of Sudan Central Bank in flames - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Video shows burning chunks of the large building's facade falling to the ground.
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Video has emerged showing a branch of the Central Bank of Sudan on fire as fighting continues throughout Khartoum.
The BBC has not been able to verify the date it was filmed.
On Sunday, air strikes intensified in the city despite a truce aimed at allowing civilians to flee. The army said it was attacking the city to flush out its paramilitary rivals, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
More on the latest developments here
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-65444503
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Ukraine war: More than 20,000 Russian troops killed since December, US says - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Another 80,000 Russian soldiers have been wounded in fighting since December, the White House estimates.
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Europe
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A Ukrainian soldier fires towards Russian positions outside Bakhmut in November
More than 20,000 Russian soldiers have been killed in fighting in Ukraine since December, the US estimates.
A further 80,000 have been wounded, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said, citing newly declassified intelligence.
Half of the dead are from the Wagner mercenary company, who have been attacking the eastern Bakhmut city.
Russia has been trying to take the small city since last year in a grinding war of attrition.
Moscow currently holds most of Bakhmut, but Ukrainian troops still control a small portion of the city in the west. The fierce battle has taken on huge symbolic importance for both sides.
Ukrainian officials have also said they are using the battle to kill as many of Russia's troops as possible and wear down its reserves.
"Russia's attempt at an offensive in the Donbas [region] largely through Bakhmut has failed," Mr Kirby told reporters. "Russia has been unable to seize any real strategic and significant territory.
"We estimate that Russia has suffered more than 100,000 casualties, including over 20,000 killed in action," he added.
The toll in Bakhmut accounts for losses since the start of December, according to the US figures.
"The bottom line is that Russia's attempted offensive has backfired after months of fighting and extraordinary losses," Mr Kirby said.
He added he was not giving estimates of Ukrainian casualties because "they are the victims here. Russia is the aggressor".
The BBC is unable to independently verify the figures given and Moscow has not commented.
A local resident pushes his bicycle down a street in Bakhmut in January
The capture of the city would bring Russia slightly closer to its goal of controlling the whole of Donetsk region, one of four regions in eastern and southern Ukraine annexed by Russia last September following referendums widely condemned outside Russia as a sham.
Analysts say Bakhmut has little strategic value, but has become a focal point for Russian commanders, who have struggled to deliver any positive news to the Kremlin.
The Wagner mercenary group - which widely uses convicts and has become notorious for its often inhumane methods - has taken centre stage in the Russian assault on Bakhmut.
Its leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, has staked his reputation, and that of his private army, on seizing the city.
But he recently threatened to pull his troops out of Bakhmut.
In a rare in-depth interview to a prominent Russian war blogger, he vowed to withdraw Wagner fighters if they were not provided with much-needed ammunition by the Russian defence ministry.
Wagner fighters could be redeployed to Mali, he warned.
He has often clashed with Russia's defence ministry during the war, accusing officials of not providing his fighters with enough support.
Mr Prigozhin also called upon the Russian media and military leadership to "stop lying to the Russian population" ahead of an expected Ukrainian spring counteroffensive.
"We need to stop lying to the Russian population, telling them everything is all right," he said.
He praised the Ukrainian military's "good, correct military operations" and command.
A top Ukrainian general said on Monday that counterattacks had ousted Russian forces from some positions in Bakhmut, but the situation remained "difficult".
New Russian units, including paratroopers and fighters from Wagner, are being "constantly thrown into battle" despite taking heavy losses, Gen Oleksandr Syrskyi, the commander of Ukraine's ground forces, said on Telegram.
"But the enemy is unable to take control of the city," he said.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-65451487
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Terrorists limited to two boxes of books in prison cells - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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New rules on extremists in custody will also stop them from playing a "leading role" in religious services.
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UK
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Limits have been placed on the amount of books convicted terrorists in England and Wales can keep in their prison cells.
Extremists will also now be banned from taking a "leading role" in religious services under the new measures.
It follows a 2022 report which raised concerns about radicalisation and Islamist gangs in prisons.
New Justice Secretary Alex Chalk said the changes would stop terrorists advancing "their own sinister agenda".
Those in custody convicted of terrorism - about 200 people - will be limited to two medium-sized boxes of books that must weigh no more than 15kg.
Prisoners can obtain books from prison libraries, order from approved retailers or be sent them by friends and family.
But there are concerns around extremist materials being hidden inside approved books, or covers being swapped as a disguise.
The government said the move would make it easier for prison staff to search for prohibited material, citing a case in which one convicted terrorist had 200 books in his cell.
A previous blanket ban on prisoners being sent books from people outside prison was ruled to be unlawful by the High Court in 2014, less than a year after it was imposed.
The same ruling said there was "no good reason" to restrict the amount of books prisoners can have by volume, but the Ministry of Justice said it was not expecting a legal challenge as the change is limited to terror offenders.
The changes announced on Sunday do not require Commons approval and come into force immediately, the Ministry of Justice said.
The library at HMP Berwyn in Wrexham, Wales, photographed in 2017
Restrictions will also be strengthened so convicted terrorists can not have any formal role in religious services, such as delivering a reading.
Currently only the most dangerous prisoners are banned from leading Friday prayers. Now the ban will cover prisoners of any faith, and not just those in high-security prisons.
The changes follow recommendations made by Jonathan Hall, the Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation, which drew particular attention to the influence of Islamists in prison.
He said the prison service had "lost its role in the national endeavour to reduce the risk of terrorism" and called for tighter restrictions on terror offenders while in custody.
Mr Chalk, who replaced Dominic Raab as justice secretary after his resignation earlier this month, said he recognised the role faith can play in a prisoners' rehabilitation but said some may abuse the rules.
He added: "These changes, alongside tougher sentences for terrorists who commit crimes behind bars and our work to separate more of the most radical terrorists, will better protect our hardworking staff, other prisoners and the public."
Labour responded by criticising the government's record on counter-terrorism policy, referencing concerns about the potential effect on terror trials raised by the security services in 2021 amid attempts to reform the Human Rights Act.
Shadow justice secretary Steve Reed said: "If the Conservatives really cared about stopping terrorists they would not be proposing changes in the law that will slow down prosecuting them.
"Britain's security services slapped down the government's disastrous proposals to slow down trials for foreign terrorists and risk cases collapsing so instead of being jailed or deported they remain loose on Britain's streets.
"Only Labour can be trusted with keeping the public safe. And that starts by working with our intelligence services to do their job, not working against them."
Liberal Democrat cabinet affairs spokesperson Christine Jardine accused the Conservatives of breaching pre-election rules, which restrict ministers from making party political announcements with the help of government resources in the run-up to a vote.
In a letter to the Cabinet Secretary Simon Case, she called for the timing of the announcement - which came via the Ministry of Justice press office days before the local elections - to be investigated.
BBC News has contacted the Green Party for a response.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-65443483
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Shaquil Barrett's daughter, aged two, drowns in pool at Florida home - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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The youngest child of linebacker Shaquil Barrett fell into the family's Florida pool, said police.
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US & Canada
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The two-year-old daughter of a Tampa Bay Buccaneers NFL player drowned in a swimming pool at the family's home on Sunday, authorities said.
Police officers responded to a call that Arrayah, the youngest daughter of Shaquil Barrett, fell into the pool around 09:30 local time (14:30 BST).
She was taken to a hospital in Tampa, Florida, and pronounced dead.
A Super Bowl winning linebacker with the Buccaneers, Mr Barrett, 30, and his wife have three other children.
The Buccaneers released a statement on the "tragic" and "heartbreaking" news.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with Shaq, (his wife) Jordanna and the entire Barrett family during this unimaginably difficult time," it said.
"While no words can provide true comfort at a time such as this, we offer our support and love as they begin to process this very profound loss of their beloved Arrayah."
Police said an investigation is ongoing but the death was not believed to be suspicious.
Mr Barrett is entering his fifth year with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, after spending the first four seasons of his career with the Denver Broncos.
He is currently recovering from an Achilles injury that kept him on the bench during the second half of last season.
He led the NFL with 19.5 sacks in 2019 and in the following season helped the Buccaneers win the Super Bowl alongside the retired, famed NFL quarterback Tom Brady.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-65447377
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Sudan crisis: Air strikes hit Khartoum despite truce - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Warring sides agree to extend the current truce even as the capital is hit with air strikes.
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Africa
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Air strikes have pounded Sudan's capital, Khartoum, despite a truce aimed at allowing civilians to flee.
The army said it was attacking the city to flush out its paramilitary rivals, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
The fighting intensified even as the warring sides said they would extend the truce by another three days.
More than 500 deaths have been reported with the true number of casualties believed to be much higher. Millions remain trapped in Khartoum.
Army commander Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and RSF chief Gen Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, better known as Hemedti, are vying for power - and disagree in particular about plans to include the RSF into the army.
The generals agreed a humanitarian truce after intensive diplomatic efforts by neighbouring countries, the US, UK and UN. It was extended, but did not hold.
However, it remains unclear on what they will do in the next stage of the deal arrived at with US and Saudi mediation, according to the army.
The country is now in a civil war, says Sudanese businessman and philanthropist Mo Ibrahim, and its conflict must not be allowed to spill over its borders and become regional.
"We don't want another Syria," he told the BBC, adding that it was difficult for either side to win outright.
BBC diplomatic correspondent Paul Adams, who is monitoring events from the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, says the fighting is concentrated mainly in the north of Khartoum, close to the confluence of the Blue and White Niles, but right across the city, people are huddled in their homes, wondering whether it is more dangerous to stay or leave.
The army will find it difficult to expel the RSF from Khartoum - for all the army's superior firepower, the paramilitaries are highly mobile and more suited to urban warfare, our correspondent adds.
Before the announcement of the extension on Sunday, the army said it had conducted operations against RSF troops north of the city centre.
On Monday, the World Food Programme announced that it was resuming its operations in Sudan, reversing its decision to pull out two weeks ago, after three of its staff were killed when fighting erupted in Khartoum.
Hamid Khalafallah, from the Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy, is one of those unable to flee.
"When there is very loud bombing and it gets closer, we take shelter in the house, try to all come to a central room, far from windows, far from walls, and so on, and just lie on the floor until it passes.
"When it's a bit further, we try to use the quiet hours that we get - a couple of hours a day - to just quickly go out and get what we need which is also very risky but we have to do it," he told BBC Newsday.
Mr Khalafallah said his neighbourhood was dotted with RSF checkpoints, with people risking their lives every time they had to negotiate their way past.
"It's basically a gamble. Sometimes they let you through, sometimes they don't. Sometimes they shoot at you, sometimes they steal your things and it's very random," he added.
Mr Khalafallah said he has not had a "single drop of water" at his home since fighting started on 15 April, and he was getting it from neighbours who had wells at their homes.
The first major aid flight, laden with medical supplies, has arrived in the country.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) says a plane landed at Port Sudan with eight tonnes of relief supplies, including health kits for hospitals.
"With hostilities still ongoing, ICRC teams will need guarantees of safe passage from the parties to the conflict to deliver this material to medical facilities in locations with active fighting, such as Khartoum," a statement said.
More than 70% of health facilities in the capital have been forced to close as a result of the fighting that erupted on 15 April.
Foreign countries have been evacuating their nationals amid the chaos.
The UK government announced on Sunday that it would organise a final evacuation flight on Monday - two days after it said it had ended its operation to bring British nationals out. The Foreign Office (FCDO) advised those wishing to leave to travel to the evacuation point in Port Sudan before 12:00 (10:00 GMT). So far, 2,122 people have been evacuated, the FCDO statement said.
A US-organised convoy has reached Port Sudan to evacuate more US citizens by ship to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. It said hundreds of Americans had already left, in addition to the diplomats evacuated by air a week ago.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-65440528
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Stella Creasy: MP left humiliated after online troll contacted police - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Labour MP Stella Creasy was investigated after a troll told authorities her children were at risk.
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London
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The Labour MP said she was left feeling humiliated
An MP has said she was left "humiliated" when she was subjected to a social services investigation after a complaint from an internet troll.
The probe was launched after a man complained to Leicestershire Police that Stella Creasy's children should be taken into care.
The Labour MP told Today on BBC Radio 4 he made the complaint as he disagreed with her campaign against misogyny.
Waltham Forest Council decided no action was needed against her.
The Walthamstow MP told the Today programme the man, from Leicester, had initially emailed her office angry about the work she was doing to tackle violence against women.
She ignored them as she gets "a lot of emails like that, lots of MPs do and you think people are entitled to their opinion".
She then received a call from social services informing her they had held a safeguarding investigation over an allegation her children were at "direct risk".
They then told her they thought she was the person who may be at risk "because of the way in which this person is targeting me", she said, adding social services wanted to know how to raise concerns about her safety with the parliamentary policing system.
"I was horrified and humiliated," she said.
"My children now have a social services record and it sets the green light that in public life, you can target these children. I think most people would think that's unacceptable."
The council said it launched the investigation as it was legally required to following the referral from Leicestershire Police.
A panel, which was made up of social workers, then met to discuss the case.
Although the panel decided no action was needed, it is legally prevented from removing the complaint from its record.
The MP said she was told the complainant would not face criminal sanctions as he was "entitled" to his view her children should be taken into care.
Leicestershire Police said it had investigated a "number of emails" sent to the MP and gave the man a community resolution rather than a formal sanction because the messages did not meet the threshold for a criminal offence.
It said the content of the messages had "understandably caused upset and distress" to the MP and officers had spoken to the sender who admitted he was responsible and apologised.
Ms Creasy said she was not "pushing for a prosecution" but for a caution as that would have meant the details would have gone into the police intelligence database.
"Having worked on harassment legislation myself, the irony is not lost on me that one of the challenges we've been trying to raise in tackling harassment against women, is the attitude of the police and that's exactly what I experienced," she said.
Ms Creasy added she was "passionate about safeguarding" and "we can't have the system corrupted in this way".
The MP is a prominent campaigner for women's rights
The MP also voiced concerns that instances like this were "damaging the whole of public life".
She said MPs did not want to be "put into glass cages" but this was "the reason why a lot of women are put off" standing to be an MP as it is "women who are targeted".
"It's not a matter of free speech, the police acted as if his free speech to argue without any evidence at all - he'd never met me, seen my children, he'd never been in a room with us; he simply disagreed with my views.
"That can't stand in a thriving democracy because it's going to drive people out of it."
The force said it had told the complainant to not contact Ms Creasy and there had been no report of further unwanted contact.
A spokesman said: "Leicestershire Police takes any report of harassment extremely seriously and will carry out a full investigation into the report and take the appropriate action.
"The force remains fully committed to keeping women and girls safe, listening to concerns and tackling violence."
According to the Sentencing Council, a community resolution is an "informal, non-statutory disposal used for dealing with less serious crime and anti-social behaviour where the offender accepts responsibility".
"The views of the victim are taken into account in reaching an informal agreement between the parties which can involve restorative justice techniques," it adds.
Waltham Forest Council said: "All safeguarding allegations are dealt with in line with the national legislation. We have a duty to treat each case seriously and ensure the statutory process is followed."
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-65436690
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'Seriously?' - Swiss TV host's exasperation at protester - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Host Jeremy Seydoux challenges a climate activist when he interrupts a local election debate.
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A TV presenter in Switzerland had a surprise when a climate activist walked on stage and glued himself to a podium during a live show.
Jeremy Seydoux was hosting a debate on local elections when the man walked on stage. He was later removed.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-65450834
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Orkney ferry runs aground after smoke in engine room - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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A lifeboat has been sent and everyone on board is safe, says the ferry company.
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NE Scotland, Orkney & Shetland
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The Pentalina only came back into service earlier this week after time in dry dock
A ferry has run aground in Orkney with 60 people on board, including a baby.
Smoke was detected in the engine room of the MV Pentalina before it became grounded near the village of St Margaret's Hope.
Emergency services are at the scene as well as lifeboats from the RNLI.
Ferry company Pentland Ferries said all 56 adults, three children and an infant on board were safe. "The safety of our passengers is, of course, our first priority," it added.
Pentland Ferries sails across the Pentland Firth from Gills Bay in Caithness to St Margaret's Hope on the Orkney Islands.
The Pentalina came back into service earlier this week after time in dry dock to allow another ferry, the MV Alfred, to service other routes to islands on Scotland's west coast.
The MV Alfred itself ran aground in the Pentland Firth in Swona in July last year, with 97 people on board who were transferred to lifeboats.
The Rail, Maritime and Transport union said the MV Pentalina was "taking on water with a fire in the engine room", describing it as a "major incident".
"RNLI lifeboats have been dispatched and all of the ferry's passengers and crew are reported to be safe.
"A thorough investigation will be needed to establish how this major incident aboard the Pentland Ferries vessel occurred."
Scottish Transport Minister Kevin Stewart tweeted that he was "sorry" to hear of the incident, but that "all on board are safe and well and that emergency services are in attendance".
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-65439336
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Sudan crisis: 'Fighter jets are roaring over my home in Omdurman' - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Thousands of people have left Sudan's capital but the situation is getting worse for those left behind.
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Africa
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With temperatures soaring to more than 40C at this time of the year, I normally sleep outside in my garden, but I am too scared to do that now, as fighter jets roar over my home in Sudan's Omdurman city - despite the latest ceasefire.
I live with my mother and siblings in the centre of Omdurman, just over the River Nile from the capital, Khartoum.
The fighter jets are a constant reminder that Sudan is now in a state of war. I cannot get used to their terrifying sound.
The fighting between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) is all around us - to our north, south, east and west.
It came close to our home on Monday afternoon, when a bullet ripped through the roof of my neighbour's house, hitting her leg while she was asleep. Fortunately, she was not seriously wounded.
We heard loud noises - boom, boom, boom - a short while earlier. We think it was anti-artillery fire, but are not sure. We hid in our homes, as it is too dangerous to even look out of our windows.
From morning to evening, ceasefire or no ceasefire, fighter jets fly past our neighbourhood, coming from the same military airport from where foreign nationals have been evacuated, and heading towards Khartoum to strike at positions of the RSF.
From all the reports I have received, most of Khartoum is controlled by RSF fighters, with hardly any army soldiers - or police officers - on the streets.
The RSF fires anti-aircraft artillery to try and bring down the fighter jets, but I am not aware of any aircraft that has been shot down.
Three days ago, some of the projectiles landed in an open field in my neighbourhood. Luckily, they missed a nearby mosque and homes.
The RSF has its origins in the war that broke out in Darfur two decades ago, and is made up of the Janjaweed militiamen who helped the government crush a rebellion there.
It had around 20,000 men before the fall of long-time ruler Omar al-Bashir in 2019, but has since turned into a force with an estimated 80,000 to 100,000 fighters.
It built a strong presence in cities and towns across Sudan, but many of its fighters have now been deployed to Khartoum as RSF commander Gen Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, better known as Hemedti, fights army commander Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan for power.
The city is dotted with checkpoints, manned by RSF fighters in pick-up trucks.
Hamid Khalafallah, from the Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy, told the BBC's Newsday programme that people risk their lives every time they have to negotiate their way past.
"It's basically a gamble. Sometimes they let you through, sometimes they don't. Sometimes they shoot at you, sometimes they steal your things and it's very random," he said.
Tens of thousands of people have fled Sudan following the outbreak of conflict more than two weeks ago
The fighting has been most intense around the international airport, presidential palace, and the military headquarters.
All my friends who lived in these areas have fled - some of them making a long and arduous road journey to Egypt, not lucky enough to be evacuated, like foreign nationals, in specially chartered planes.
I have decided to stay, as my neighbourhood is one of the safest, but I do not know for how long.
A relative of mine, in her early 30s, has died of dengue fever. She was supposed to have got married this month, but died because she could not get treatment as hospitals were either shut or treating only those with gunshot wounds.
The Omdurman Teaching Hospital is one of the biggest in Sudan, but it is operating at minimal capacity.
Many doctors are unable to get to the hospital, as it is too dangerous for them to travel.
Along with the breakdown in health services, there is a water and electricity crisis.
Some residents have not had water in their homes since fighting broke out on 15 April, forcing them to rely on the wells of neighbours for their supply.
We are all hoping that the war ends soon, but our biggest fear is that former Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok could be proven right, with Sudan descending into a civil war worse than those in Syria and Libya.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-65448685
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Belfast: Man charged after car crashes into police station - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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The crash sparked a security alert with residents moved from homes around the east Belfast police station.
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Northern Ireland
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Ladas Drive was one of the streets closed during the alert
A man has been charged with a number of offences after a car crashed into the wall of a police station in east Belfast.
The crash happened at Alexander Road, outside Castlereagh Police Station, in the early hours of Monday morning.
It sparked a security alert and a 49-year-old man was detained at the scene.
He has been charged with attempted criminal damage, criminal damage, driving without due care and failing to provide a specimen while driving unfit.
He has also been charged with possessing an offensive weapon in a public place.
The man will appear at Belfast Magistrates' Court on Friday 26 May.
Robotic bomb detection equipment was deployed during the operation
Police evacuated a number of homes in the area while Army technical officers examined the car.
Roads between Orangefield Crescent and Ladas Drive, and at Bellsbridge roundabout on the Cregagh Road were closed for a time.
Nothing untoward was found and residents were allowed back home.
Only one vehicle was involved in the crash.
Several police vehicles were sent to the scene
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-65446571
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Sudan: Extra rescue flight for British nationals - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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It follows the evacuation of 2,122 people on 23 flights from an airfield near Khartoum.
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UK
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An extra RAF evacuation flight for British nationals still trapped in Sudan was due to depart on Monday.
Foreign NHS staff and their dependants with the right to live in Britain were also eligible for what is being billed as the last UK airlift from Sudan.
The UK has so far carried 2,122 people on 23 flights.
People needed to reach to the airport in coastal city Port Sudan, 500 miles from capital Khartoum where previous planes took off, by noon local time.
The Foreign Office would not confirm whether the plane had taken off. But flight tracking websites showed a Royal Air Force Hercules transport aircraft departed Port Sudan New International Airport at 18:43 local time (17:43 BST).
Another flight, an RAF Atlas transport plane, was due to leave at 20:25 local time (19:25 BST).
Foreign Office minister Andrew Mitchell warned on Saturday that the UK "can't stay [in Sudan] forever" as the security situation continued to deteriorate.
Airstrikes and fighting have been reported over the weekend despite a ceasefire between rival army factions.
Tens of thousands of people have fled the country since fighting engulfed the country more than two weeks ago.
The capital city Khartoum has seen the heaviest fighting, with the Sudanese military and the Rapid Support Forces, a powerful paramilitary group, fighting for control of the country.
Sudan's military said on Saturday it was launching a major new offensive against RSF positions in Khartoum.
The latest truce, which has not held, was due to end at midnight on Sunday. But the RSF said the ceasefire had been extended for another three days.
British security services had been scoping out Port Sudan as an alternative evacuation site since the beginning of the week, and have established a limited diplomatic presence there.
The British Ambassador to Sudan is leading the UK's regional response from Addis Ababa in neighbouring Ethiopia.
The FCDO said the dependants of British nationals and NHS staff, who have leave to enter the UK, would also be allowed on the flight.
The UK government on Friday announced non-British NHS staff in Sudan could catch evacuation flights out of the country, in a U-turn on its previous policy.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said: "I am grateful to our armed forces who have ensured there was an alternative to Wadi Saeedna and who are currently supporting FCDO and Border Force staff to facilitate the rescue effort."
A Royal Navy frigate - the HMS Lancaster - and Royal Air Force personnel are in Port Sudan, Mr Wallace added.
Another British vessel - the RFA Cardigan Bay - is on its way to Sudan and would also be able to provide humanitarian support, the BBC has been told.
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Watch: Baby meets father for first time after evacuation from Sudan to UK
The UK initially faced criticism for starting its evacuation after other countries, including European nations which rescued hundreds before the first British airlift took place.
A separate operation days earlier saw special forces troops evacuate UK diplomats from Khartoum after fighting broke out around the embassy.
But a Foreign Office spokesperson said the UK's Sudan evacuation had grown to become "the largest of any Western country".
The UN's top humanitarian official, Martin Griffiths, says he is travelling to Sudan to co-ordinate the international aid effort, and would be looking to bring immediate relief to millions of people who have fled their homes.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-65441191
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A5 crash: Christine and Dan McKane's deaths leave 'hearts torn apart' - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Mourners at the funeral of brother and sister Dan and Christine McKane hear how the community is 'broken'.
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Northern Ireland
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A joint funeral service has taken place for brother and sister Dan and Christine McKane who died in the collision
The hearts of a community have been "torn apart" by the deaths of two siblings in a crash in Strabane, County Tyrone, a priest has said.
Brother and sister Christine and and Dan McKane died along with their aunt Julia McSorley, 75, in the collision on the A5 last Thursday,
The minibus they were travelling in was in a collision with a lorry.
Mourners have heard how Dan McKane was "a big-hearted" man who lived for his family.
Christine McKane was described as "small in stature but big of heart".
Fr Declan Boland told mourners in The Church of The Immaculate Conception, she was "a pocket rocket" whose children and grandchildren were "everything to her".
Brother and sister Dan and Christine McKane died in the collision
The mother-of-three was described as a "chocoholic" who was "so proud of her two wonderful little grandchildren".
"Her wonderful children and beautiful grandchildren, they were everything to Christine. She just lived for them," Fr Boland said.
He added: "As long as they were all happy and okay, she was happy".
Nothing, the parish priest said, "was a bother to Dan McKane". A father of two daughters, he was the "go-to person" in times of need.
A lorry driver for a living, Fr Boland said it was "in his blood".
Fr Boland said local hearts "are sad and broken" following the crash on Thursday.
A single piper led a procession of hundreds into The Church of The Immaculate Conception
"Events of last week remind us we are fragile. We never know the day or hour, that has been brought home so forcibly in recent days.
"Our community's hearts have been torn apart by this terrible loss".
He thanked Commandant Brian Walsh, aide-de-camp to President Michael D Higgins, for his message of support. He also thanked Sinn Féin's Michelle O'Neill, who was among the mourners.
Earlier, a single piper led a procession of hundreds into the church. As the coffins entered the church grounds side-by-side, four lorries beeped their horns in unison.
Naomh Eoghan GAA formed a guard of honour outside the church, as the service took place.
Requiem Mass was held for Ms McSorley on Sunday.
She was described as "selfless, smiling, kind and bubbly".
Julia McSorley's funeral has taken place in Glenock, near Strabane, County Tyrone
Thursday's fatal crash was the latest to happen on the A5 road, which forms part of the main route between Londonderry and Dublin.
Four other people were injured in the incident.
Campaigners from Enough Is Enough, a group calling for urgent improvements to the route, previously said 44 people have died on the road since plans to upgrade it were first announced in 2007.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-65444526
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Adidas sued by investors over Kanye West deal - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Shareholders claim the sportswear giant knew about the rapper's behaviour before it cut ties in 2022.
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Business
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Adidas is being sued by investors who claim the firm knew about Kanye West's problematic behaviour years before it ended their partnership.
Investors allege Adidas failed to limit financial losses and take precautionary measures to minimise their exposure.
The sportswear giant ended its collaboration with the designer and rapper, who is known as Ye, last year following antisemitic comments.
In response, Adidas said: "We outright reject these unfounded claims."
It added it "will take all necessary measures to vigorously defend ourselves against them".
West is not party to the lawsuit. The rapper designed a line of hugely successful trainers under the Yeezy brand for Adidas.
Since then, Adidas admitted that it could lose up to €700m (£619m) after being left with hundreds of millions of euros worth of unsold Yeezy products.
Last October, when the company ended the collaboration, it said: "Adidas does not tolerate antisemitism and any other sort of hate speech.
"Ye's recent comments and actions have been unacceptable, hateful and dangerous, and they violate the company's values of diversity and inclusion, mutual respect and fairness."
However, investors who filed the lawsuit in the US against the company on Friday claim that Adidas knew about other questionable behaviour by West, alleging that it was discussed by former chief executive Kasper Rorsted as well as other management.
The Wall Street Journal published details of an alleged meeting in 2018 where Adidas discussed West.
The report claimed that senior executives spoke about how to mitigate the risk of staff interacting with him as well the company possibly cutting ties with the rapper.
Kanye West designed trainers for Adidas under the Yeezy brand
Since Adidas parted ways with West in October last year, it has launched an investigation after reports he created a "toxic environment" at the company.
Rolling Stone magazine published excerpts of an open letter by Adidas staff members who claimed bosses were aware of West's "problematic behaviour" but "turned their moral compass off".
In response, Adidas said it was not clear whether the accusations made in the anonymous letter were true.
"However, we take these allegations very seriously and have taken the decision to launch an independent investigation of the matter immediately to address the allegations," it said.
Last October, West held a show at Paris Fashion Week where models wore clothing with the slogan "White Lives Matter".
The Anti-Defamation League said it is "a white supremacist phrase that originated in early 2015 as a racist response to the Black Lives Matter movement".
Later that month, West had both his Instagram and Twitter accounts suspended after making antisemitic remarks.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-65441303
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Cardiff: Disabled people's 20-year railway station access fight - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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One of Wales' busiest railway stations has no lift and steep stairs between platforms.
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Wales
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Disabled people have been struggling to use one of Wales' busiest railway stations for more than 20 years.
Cardiff's Cathays station is the seventh-most used in Wales yet people with mobility issues and wheelchair users cannot easily cross platforms.
The footbridge between the two platforms has no lift and the Transport for Wales (TfW) website describes the steps as steep.
TfW said a "proposed" accessible bridge was part of the South Wales Metro.
The station is right next to Cardiff University so Alice Moore, who represents students with disabilities, said it was "a really important aspect of public transport for students".
She said the city's good transport links were "no good when disabled students - arguably the students who need it the most - are excluded from using it".
Cathays station was used 514,730 times in 2021-22 - more than Bangor, Wrexham General and Cardiff Bay.
Funding to make the station more accessible was announced by the Department for Transport in 2019 as part of its Access for All programme.
TfW's website advises wheelchair users travelling from the valleys to travel to Queen Street station, then get on another train to come back to Cathays if they wish to access the university or Civic Centre, but an extra ticket is not needed.
Alice, who has cystic fibrosis, said she was "disappointed and appalled" at this suggestion.
Disabled train users have been trying to get changes to Cathays station since the 1990s
This issue is not a recent one and has been a problem for students for more than two decades.
Disability activist and photojournalist Natasha Hirst, 44, was the disabled students' officer at Cardiff University in the late 1990s.
She recognised the problem during her time and it is yet to be addressed.
She said: "You've got that footbridge and if you've got mobility impairments, there's no easy way of getting from one side of the station to the other.
"I guess during the daytime you can go through the students' union and use the lifts but if you're not a student you're not really going to feel able to go into a building that you don't know.
"Why should people have to do that?"
Natasha Hirst says disabled people "should be able to have equal access to the same services"
Ms Hirst said Cathays station needed a brand-new accessible footbridge with either a lift or a long ramp.
Kat Watkins uses a wheelchair and often commutes from Swansea to Cardiff - she opts to drive to work in Cathays most days due to the access problems at the station.
She said TfW's suggestion that people extend their journey in order to get to the right platform was "such a hassle".
"It's not as simple as they think because you've got to wait for your train and then wait for another train," the 36-year-old said.
Kat Watkins does not feel comfortable catching the train to Cathays for work due to accessibility issues
Disability Wales said it was "vital that disabled people and wheelchair users can access public transport".
It added: "It is important that public bodies engage with organisations, such as ourselves, so we can ensure disabled people's voices are heard."
TfW said it was working with partners on "the initial stages" of a fully accessible footbridge at Cathays station and would "share further information as it progresses".
A spokesman said the company was "committed to improving accessibility at stations throughout the Wales and Borders network and our work is guided by our dedicated experts who advise us how to support disabled, deaf and older customers to use our services effectively".
Cardiff University said it shared students' concerns and would work with TfW and others so people could have "a fully accessible station in Cathays, as soon as practicably possible".
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-65348813
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Aurélien Pradié: The rising star shaking up French politics - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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Aged 37, Aurélien Pradié has exploded onto France's political stage after ruining Macron's plans.
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Europe
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The millennial politician scuppered plans for a government vote on retirement reforms - catapulting him onto the national stage
Aurélien Pradié has exploded onto the centre stage of French politics after single-handedly scuppering a government vote on pension reforms.
In the space of just a few weeks, the MP has emerged as one of the biggest stars on the national political scene, helped by his youth - he is just 37 years old - his good looks, and his oratory skills. Now, he tells me, he is not ruling out a run for the presidency.
I met Mr Pradié at the biennial county fair in the village of Bétaille, where the centre-right politician grew up.
The département of Lot in south-west France is one of the country's most rural. Some 15% of the working population here are employed in the agriculture sector.
Despite the cold, relentless rain and muddy conditions, Mr Pradié spent several hours shaking hands, kissing women on the cheek, and tasting locally grown food at the stands. He has rock star status here.
Last month he took a wrecking ball to President Emmanuel Macron's retirement reform bill by refusing to back his own Les Républicains party's support for it, despite winning major concessions from the government.
Many of the MPs from his party followed him. It left the government's centrist Renaissance party without the parliamentary majority it thought it had to pass the bill.
The retirement reforms have sparked huge and often violent protests across France
Instead, the government used highly controversial constitutional powers to force the bill through without a parliamentary vote - a move that sparked weeks of often violent protests.
Mr Pradié defied his party leadership again shortly afterwards, choosing to censure the government in a no-confidence vote which would have forced it to resign and scrap the retirement bill.
The government survived by just nine votes. Mr Pradié was stripped of his position as deputy leader of his party for his act of rebellion. He said it's not the job of his party to become a crutch for President Macron and his Renaissance party, which doesn't have an absolute majority in parliament.
"I believe in destiny in politics," he said. "I wasn't breast fed with the idea I would one day become president, but I want a situation where the French don't have to continuously choose between candidates that they don't want."
Mr Pradié (centre) - seen here joining a rugby game on the campaign trail - was easily re-elected as an MP last year
The millennial politician's rapid political rise was done the old fashioned way - door to door, village by village. In his first election campaign he rode a moped as he couldn't afford a car. He became an MP at the age of just 31 in a socialist stronghold and was easily re-elected last year.
He told me that coming to events like this village fair was essential for getting to know what people are thinking.
"This isn't about folklore, this is where I pick up things about people's everyday lives," he said.
"Having roots in politics is fundamental and what has poisoned political life recently is the disconnection between politicians and the population. Here people don't lie to you - they tell you what they think and it's not always easy because they sometimes shout at me."
His focus, however, is expanding beyond the local. Since 2014 Mr Pradié has gone from village mayor to regional councillor to MP.
Right now he doesn't speak English, and he knows that as his national and international profile soars that could be a problem. He confided he will start taking intensive English classes in a few weeks' time.
Philippe Labarthe (right) says he likes that Mr Pradié sticks to his political convictions
As we wandered among the food stands and exhibitors, the main subject was the cost of living crisis and the impact on farmers. His blunt way of talking and doing business went down well here.
"When it comes to the retirement reform I think [Mr Pradié] did the right thing, and he made the government fold," honey producer Philippe Labarthe said. "At least he has convictions and sticks to them. Even if I disagree with him I have to recognise that quality."
Benoît Jouclar, who runs an agricultural museum, said the MP has a vital role to play locally and nationally. "He is very important for our region, he promotes us and we need young combative people like him in government. He tells the truth and we support him entirely."
One of the foremost analysts of French southern politics, Laurent Dubois, said Mr Pradié has a window of opportunity to rise further - but it won't last long.
"He is something new on the scene, but can he last in the long term with something new to offer and prove that he can handle his opponents?" he said.
"His big advantage is his freshness, [but] his biggest challenge is going the distance - especially as what is new in politics often ends up out of date."
Mr Pradié says he wants to create a new revolution from the right, but he is vague on specifics. "I think one of the big mistakes of the French right is that in recent years it's been abandoned by the French people," he said.
"It no longer represents the workers, the French middle class who work hard, who struggle to make ends meet and this retirement reform punishes those who work the hardest. For a while now the right has only talked to a more privileged bourgeois part of society."
There are just two MPs representing Lot. The other is Huguette Tiegna, from President Macron's ruling centrist Renaissance party. She says her opponent is simply an opportunist who seized the retirement reform as a way to climb the political ladder.
Pradié likes to talk... You get the impression it's all about him and his career
"I deal with key issues in depth. Pradié likes to talk," she said.
"It's a real problem because he's thinking just about himself, you get the impression it's all about him and his career."
"Since I am not from the establishment and have different convictions from them I am accused of being an opportunist who wants to steal the limelight, which is ridiculous when you consider the criticism I have received. If I wanted an easy life I would have taken another approach.
"The right can't keep pretending everything is all right and sweep the dust under the carpet - if we want to rebuild then there has to be an electroshock," he said.
"Sometimes collateral damage is the price to pay to rebuild a home."
Chris Bockman is the author of Are you the foie gras correspondent? Another slow news day in south-west France.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-65186539
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Printworks: Final show for famous dance music venue - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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The London club, which has hosted the Chemical Brothers and Aphex Twin, will become an office block.
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Entertainment & Arts
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Printworks is closing to make way for office space
One of the UK's biggest and most well-known nightclubs is closing its doors, after holding a final show on Monday.
Printworks originally opened in 2017 and has played host to the Chemical Brothers, Deadmau5 and Aphex Twin.
The unique south London venue, which once housed the largest printing presses in Western Europe, was only meant to hold club nights temporarily.
Events company Broadwick Live became caretakers and established the space as the go-to for all dance music genres.
Despite being recognised as one of the best clubs in the world, it is now it is set to become an office block, but there are hopes within the clubbing community that a space for them will be saved within its walls.
DJ and radio presenter Melvo Baptiste is one of last people to play at Printworks and is part of the line-up for disco record label Glitterbox's final show at the venue.
Speaking backstage before his set, he tells the BBC: "It's strange because when you walk into the empty room here, it's almost like it shouldn't work.
Melvo Baptiste has been DJing at Printworks for four years
"There's just a magic and an energy in that room - four years ago I played my first closing set here and I looked up at 6,000 people and it was terrifying."
He says losing the space is "heartbreaking" and worries about what it could mean for young clubbers just getting into dance music.
"Club environments are where you really find your tribe and meet friends, you don't do that in bars or restaurants as there's not that one common thing that's connecting everyone apart from alcohol," he says.
We find two partygoers in the crowd, Libby Minney and Andrew Bartha, both 25, who tell the BBC they became friends after meeting at Printworks.
"I've met so many friends here," says Ms Minney.
"It's especially sad to think in the future that's not going to happen," she adds.
Bartha calls the venue "a cultural institution" and says "it's given rise to a lot of great friendships and good memories".
Printworks can hold 6,000 partygoers - making it one of the biggest clubs in the UK
"Printworks is one of the last big proper venues where when you come in, it feels like a proper rave," Minney adds.
Mr Bartha says what makes it special is "the great production - the lighting and graphics", which he says is missing in smaller clubs.
The pair might be too young to remember the illegal warehouse scene that developed in 1980s London, as an antidote to licensing laws that saw the city shut down at 3am. But that's not the case for all Printworks attendees - it has quite the reputation of attracting clubbers of all ages who want to remember the feeling of the rave.
This is echoed by some of club's performers who say what makes Printworks so special is its inclusive feel.
The venue has hosted every dance genre from drum and bass to house and techno, and it has also championed LGBT friendly events such as Sink The Pink and disco label Glitterbox.
"When you're up on that stage and you look out down at seas of thousands of people - it's the closest feeling you ever get to being a pop star," says transgender dancer Lucy Fizz.
"For all of us queer people, those who have been marginalised, to have that experience and be on a platform where we are celebrated for being our authentic selves - it's really amazing," she adds.
Lucy Fizz, a dancer for Glitterbox, hails Printworks as an inclusive space
Dancer and performer Te Te Bang calls the venue "the Olympics of nightclubs".
She adds: "It's like an adult playground, it really is a utopia where you're in this little bubble of music where everyone's really free to be themselves - there's nothing else like it in the UK".
Simeon Aldred, who is one of the founders of Broadwick Live, says Printworks has been incredibly special for his team.
"It's our baby, we created it from scratch - to replicate it or find that anywhere else in the world is difficult," he tells the BBC.
Printworks' closure comes at a time when Britain has the lowest number of nightclubs on record and Mr Aldred says operating nightclubs is "pretty difficult" in 2023.
"The pandemic was pretty horrific, with two years of closure critical to us. Now the cost of living has hit us across the 26 venues we own and operate, and then power has gone up by millions of pounds across that portfolio," he says.
"There's also some massive challenges and inconsistencies around licensing and planning," Mr Aldred adds.
"You've got some councils that are really pro-culture and some that aren't".
Printworks is known for its imposing press halls that are 130 metres long.
The BBC has contacted the Department for Media, Culture and Sport, who declined to comment.
Mr Aldred says Printworks established itself as not only a London clubbing staple, but a national and even international attraction, evidenced by the relationship the venue owners have established with local hotels.
He says "one of the hotels next door [to Printworks] does an average of 100 rooms for every show" whilst their reinvigoration of the daytime clubbing scene has allowed for people to venture down to the capital for the day too.
"It's also really valuable to other venues nearby when we finish at 11pm," he adds.
"So people can go to after-parties at venues that have maybe been seen as competitors, but they're actually all friends because we are all part of one ecosystem".
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-65427101
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King Charles Coronation: What will he wear for the ceremony? - BBC News
| 2023-05-01T00:00:00
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https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews
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The King will wear layers of glittering garments, some of which were created for George V.
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UK
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King Charles will wear layers of golden robes during the Coronation
We know the date, the time, most of the guest list - and now we know the outfit.
The heavy and priest-like golden robes King Charles III will wear for his Coronation have been revealed.
During the service, the King will put on layer upon layer of glittering vestments, some of which were created for his great-grandfather George V.
Prince William will help during the service by placing a ceremonial robe on his father.
The Imperial Mantle, seen here, is meant to symbolise the divine nature of kingship
For the crowning, King Charles will be given a long shimmering gold-sleeved coat to wear called the Supertunica.
The robe was created for George V in 1911 and has been worn at successive coronations including by the late Queen Elizabeth II.
It weighs about 2kg (4.4lb), is made of cloth of gold - silk thread wrapped in thin pieces of gold or silver gilt metal - and is embroidered with stylised arabesques and floral motifs.
Layered on top of the Supertunica, there will be a floor-length cloak called the Imperial Mantle, or Robe Royal, which was made for George IV in 1821 - it weighs 3-4kg (6.6-8.8lb).
The mantle, which fastens across the chest with a golden eagle clasp, is inspired by ancient coronation ensembles and its priest-like style is meant to symbolise the divine nature of kingship.
Made of cloth of gold, it is embellished with motifs including fleur-de-lis, as well as imperial eagles, and national floral emblems of red-pink roses, blue thistles and green shamrocks.
It has been worn by previous monarchs including Queen Elizabeth II during her coronation in 1953.
The Imperial Mantle fastens across the chest with this golden eagle clasp
The weight of the ceremonial robes comes on top of the crown which weighs about 2.23kg (nearly 5lbs).
The robes are reminiscent of the coronation ceremony, explained Caroline de Guitaut, deputy surveyor of the King's Works of Art at the Royal Collection Trust.
"They have clearly incredible historic significance, but they're also significant because of the sacred nature of their use during the investiture part of the coronation ceremony," she said.
The garments are usually kept in the Tower of London and form part of the coronation regalia.
It is tradition for recent monarchs to reuse garments, just as King Charles is, but they usually have a new coronation sword belt and glove to be used during the ceremony.
But in a move aimed at making the event more sustainable, the King has decided to reuse the belt and glove worn by his grandfather George VI - the last male monarch.
"It was the King's personal decision", said Ms de Guitaut, adding that the items remain in "remarkable condition".
"And it's in keeping with this idea of sustainability and efficiency to reuse these pieces," she added.
The sword belt from 1937, also known as the Coronation Girdle, is made of embroidered cloth of gold and has a gold buckle stamped with national emblems.
During the investiture, it will be placed around the King's waist, over the Supertunica, and has a gold clip used for briefly attaching the jewelled Sword of Offering, which symbolises being able to decide between good and evil.
Meanwhile, the single coronation glove, also known as the Coronation Gauntlet, will go on King Charles' right hand while he holds the Sovereign's Sceptre with Cross during the crowning.
It is made of white leather and the large cuff is embroidered in the form of national emblems including the Tudor rose, thistle, shamrock, oak leaves and acorns. The back of the hand has an embroidered ducal coronet above the coat of arms of the family of the Dukes of Newcastle.
The garments are usually kept in the Tower of London and form part of the coronation regalia.
King Charles decided to recycle the Coronation Gauntlet worn by his grandfather George VI
King Charles will arrive at Westminster Abbey in George VI's crimson red Robe of State which he will remove for his anointing.
Then for the investiture he will put on a sleeveless white garment called the Colobium Sindonis - Latin for shroud tunic - and will also be given a long, narrow embroidered band of gold silk which goes around the shoulders, known as the Coronation Stole.
At the end of the service, the King will change into George VI's purple Robe of Estate to leave the Abbey.
Read the latest from our royal correspondent Sean Coughlan - sign up here.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-65448709
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