Author: BBC

A desperate search is under way in northern Australia for a child feared to have been taken by a crocodile.The 12-year-old was last seen around dusk on Tuesday, swimming near the remote town of Nganmarriyanga – about a 7-hour drive south west of Darwin in the Northern Territory (NT).Police say a specialist search and rescue team has been deployed after “initial reports stated the child had been attacked by a crocodile”.The NT is home to an estimated 100,000 saltwater crocodiles, more than anywhere else in the world, but attacks are uncommon.Community members in Nganmarriyanga – previously known as Palumpa and…

59 minutes agoBy Steven McKenzie, BBC Scotland Highlands and Islands reporterMichael ForbesA Scottish artist has painted over some of his artwork in protest against what he says are negative impacts of Artificial intelligence (AI) on Art.Black Isle-based pop artist Michael Forbes’ fans include singer Madonna, Monty Python’s Terry Gilliam and comedian Ricky Gervais.He said AI was saturating the internet with images, and also harvesting artists’ work to create new pictures without any acknowledgement of the source material.Forbes, who has “redacted” parts of four paintings so far, said: “Underneath the black paint is hours of work I’m proud of – in some respects…

Turkey is reported to have closed its main border crossings into northwest Syria after its troops were attacked by Syrians angered by violence against their countrymen in Turkey.Turkish police had earlier announced the arrest of nearly 500 people following attacks on Syrian properties and vehicles in several Turkish cities.The country is now home to more than three million Syrian refugees and tensions with local communities have been growing.At least four people were killed in the Syrian border city of Afrin in an exchange of fire between Turkish troops and armed protesters. Angry Syrian civilians have also hurled stones at Turkish…

13 hours agoBy Hannah Ritchie, BBC News, SydneyHeidi MetcalfA recent government survey found that two thirds of women, like Heidi Metcalf, have encountered gender bias or discrimination in Australian healthcareThere’s a memory, or more specifically a moment, that came to define Heidi Metcalf’s second birth.It wasn’t saying goodbye to her husband and newborn before being wheeled into an operating theatre, or the heart attack she thought she was having as she lay there on the table.It was when a male obstetrician “ripped the placenta” out of her body, without word or warning.A nurse, Ms Metcalf knows the intervention – while immensely painful…

Twelve former Biden administration officials who resigned over policy on Israel and the Gaza war say the government’s actions have endangered US national security.The policies have further destabilised the region and “put a target on America’s back”, they say in a joint statement.One of the 12 resigned only on Tuesday from the US Department of the Interior.The US Department of State has previously denied such claims, pointing to its criticism of civilian casualties in Gaza and its efforts to boost humanitarian aid.The joint statement by the former officials says: “America’s diplomatic cover for, and continuous flow of arms to Israel…

1 hour agoBy Beth Rose and Kate Lamble, Access All and More or LessGetty ImagesThere are 16 million disabled people in the UK – almost a quarter of the population – but many say they have felt “invisible” during this election campaign.The BBC podcast, Access All, asked the main parties about their policies on disability, social care and mental health, and Radio 4’s More or Less examined what they said.ConservativesGetty imagesMims Davies with her dog TJ The Conservatives want to “reform disability benefits” and tighten up what it calls a “sick-note culture”, saying people are now three times more likely to be…

Sex Education star Anne-Marie Duff is returning to the London stage for a new production of 1930s play The Little Foxes.The actress won a Bafta TV Award last year for her performance in Apple TV series Bad Sisters, and has also appeared in His Dark Materials and The Salisbury Poisonings.Later this year, Duff will appear at the Young Vic theatre in a new adaptation of The Little Foxes, directed by Oliver Award winner Lyndsey Turner.Duff told BBC News it was “a joy to return to the Young Vic stage and bring Lillian Hellman’s classic play to life”.First performed in 1939,…

31 minutes agoBy Paul Myers, Olga Robinson, Shayan Sardarizadeh and Mike Wendling, BBC Verify and BBC NewsXJohn Mark Dougan, an American ex-cop, now lives in Moscow and runs a network of AI-powered fake news sitesA network of Russia-based websites masquerading as local American newspapers is pumping out fake stories as part of an AI-powered operation that is increasingly targeting the US election, a BBC investigation can reveal. A former Florida police officer who relocated to Moscow is one of the key figures behind it.It would have been a bombshell report – if it was true.Olena Zelenska, the first lady of Ukraine, allegedly…

11 minutes agoBy Umaru Fofana, BBC News, FreetownKhadijatu BarrieKhadijatu Barrie ran away from home aged 10 because her father wanted her to get marriedSierra Leone has brought in a new law banning child marriage with much fanfare at a ceremony organised by First Lady Fatima Bio in the capital, Freetown.Invited guests, including first ladies from Cape Verde and Namibia, watched as her husband President Julius Maada Bio signed the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act into law.Anybody now involved in the marriage of a girl aged under the age of 18 will be jailed for at least 15 years or fined around $…

16 minutes agoBy Zoe Kleinman, Technology editorGetty ImagesUnder Jensen Huang’s leadership Nvidia has seen its share price soarLife comes at you fast.Last month, AI chip giant Nvidia briefly became the world’s richest company, overtaking Microsoft, which had in turn risen above Apple.When this news was mentioned on stage at a tech industry event I attended in Copenhagen, there was spontaneous applause from the audience.As I write, Nvidia is now back in second place, after a fall in its share price took its combined value down to $3tn (£2.4tn) compared with $3.4tn for Microsoft.Two things have propelled these two US tech titans to…