Republicans criticize racist social media post by Texas member running for office 15. September 2026 (20:30) Karl Rove, a respected GOP consultant, further said he would vote for ‘bigot’ Bo French’s Democratic opponent after postA senior Republican has called a party colleague running for office in Texas “a bigot” over a racist social media post attacking college football fans – and said he is so outraged by the comments that he will vote for the candidate’s Democratic rival.Karl Rove, who was former president George W Bush’s longtime political adviser and is a respected Republican consultant in Texas, told a private event in Austin on Sunday that he could not support Bo French’s candidacy for a seat on the state’s railroad commission, the Texas Tribune reported. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Leader of Reform UK in Wales stands down after arrest on suspicion of assault 15. September 2026 (20:26) Dan Thomas, elected in May, says he does not wish to be a ‘distraction’ on same day Reform MS defects to Plaid CymruThe leader of Reform UK in Wales is standing down after he was arrested and bailed on suspicion of assault and controlling or coercive behaviour.Dan Thomas, a former Tory councillor, had only been announced as Reform’s Welsh leader by Nigel Farage in February. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Republican Thomas Massie proposes impeaching Pete Hegseth over Iran war 15. September 2026 (20:20) Congressman says defense secretary repeatedly violated constitution through his handling of Iran warRepublican congressman Thomas Massie on Tuesday proposed impeaching Pete Hegseth, saying the defense secretary had repeatedly violated the constitution through his handling of war with Iran and the deaths of civilians in conflicts worldwide.The proposal by Massie, an iconoclastic lawmaker who lost his primary earlier this year after Donald Trump and Hegseth urged voters to oppose him, may put House Republicans in a bind just weeks before the 3 November midterm elections, where they are defending their control of Congress. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Georgia city removes 23-year-old mayor after sexting and municipal funds scandal 15. September 2026 (19:56) Jayden Williams of Stockbridge alleged to have made inappropriate texts to teen and using city funds improperlyUS politics live – latest updatesCity leaders in a suburb outside Atlanta have voted to remove the youngest mayor in their community’s history amid allegations of questionable spending of municipal funds and inappropriate communications with an 18-year-old high school student.Over the weekend, the Stockbridge, Georgia, city council voted to remove Jayden Williams, 23, from office after an hours-long hearing into allegations that included inappropriate exchanges with an 18-year-old in high school, improper purchases on a municipal government-issued credit card and mistreatment of employees. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Houthis threaten more Saudi strikes as UN warns of humanitarian crisis in Yemen 15. September 2026 (19:25) Estimated 100,000 Yemenis displaced amid renewed fighting as Qatar sounds alarm over Bab al-Mandab straitSaudi cities faced the threat of a second day of Houthi attacks as fighting across Yemen led the UN to warn of a humanitarian crisis with 100,000 Yemenis already displaced.As oil prices remained well over $100 (£74) a barrel, Qatar warned of a catastrophe if the Iran-backed Houthi militants won full control of the Bab al-Mandab strait, the narrow waterway at the bottom of the Red Sea dominating the key naval route to Asia. The strait has become vital to Saudi crude oil exports as the wider Middle East war chokes the strait of Hormuz in the Gulf. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
‘This should be condemned by any thinking human’: film industry rallies behind NAZA directors 15. September 2026 (18:44) Backing comes after Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor were threatened with having their citizenship revoked and accused of treasonFilm industry heavyweights across the globe have expressed solidarity with Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor, the Oscar-winning Israeli directors of documentary NAZA, who have been threatened with having their citizenship revoked by Israel’s culture minister, who accused them of “treason against the state”.NAZA, which was produced by the Guardian, is named for an acronym euphemistically used by Israel’s intelligence service to indicate how many civilians it expects to die in an airstrike on Gaza. It includes interviews with 24 Israeli military or intelligence soldiers and officers who outlined the AI-powered targeting systems used to bombard Gaza, resulting in the mass killing of Palestinian civilians. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
New Order keyboardist Gillian Gilbert announces she is ‘living with cancer’ 15. September 2026 (18:04) Musician clarified her own health status after concerns were raised by interview with husband and bandmate Stephen Morris earlier this monthGillian Gilbert, keyboardist with New Order, has announced she is again having treatment for cancer.The 65-year-old musician announced the news on Instagram, as a response to an interview her husband and New Order bandmate, drummer Stephen Morris, gave to Rolling Stone earlier this month. Morris had said: “I’ve got a bit of a health problem at the minute, which precludes leaving the country for any length of time … it’s pretty serious.” Continue reading...(The Guardian)
‘Like Syd Barrett’: AI models chatting in ‘surreal’ dialect mixing poetic language and tech bro jargon 15. September 2026 (18:00) Experts air concern over AI lingo redolent of Pink Floyd star and James Joyce’s prose that is creating headaches for monitoring and oversightAI models have begun communicating in a strange new version of English that reads like a cross between James Joyce’s Finnegans Wake and tech bro jargon, new research has found.Autonomous AI agents are rapidly creating novel dialects allowing them to converse in an often barely comprehensible language, which risks making it harder for humans to monitor their behaviour. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Indonesian wildfires threaten leading orangutan research site in Borneo 15. September 2026 (17:57) Critically endangered Bornean orangutans flee forests as staff at Cabang Panti work round the clock to stave off blazeWildfires in Indonesia are sweeping through a critical research site for Bornean orangutans and are now threatening a celebrated research camp, home to one of the world’s longest-running studies of wild apes.In the past few days, the fires have burned within 200 metres of Rangkong research station, a satellite of Cabang Panti research station, which lies about four miles north in Gunung Palung national park. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Matthew Rhys’s alma mater pays tribute to ‘loyal pupil’ and Welsh language devotee 15. September 2026 (17:53) Actor, who made history at the Emmys, thanked the ‘great and the good people of Wales’ for nurturing his talentWhen Matthew Rhys made history as the first actor ever to win two best lead Emmy awards in one night, he paid tribute to his roots.“To the great and good people of Wales, who were as much a nurturer as anyone else,” said the proud Welshman now living in New York, “We are a small but mighty nation”. “Diolch yn fawr iawn,” he added, meaning “thank you very much” in Welsh. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
