Author: BBC

40 minutes agoBy Jonathan Amos, @BBCAmos, Science correspondentAFPEurope’s big new rocket, Ariane-6, has blasted off successfully on its maiden flight.The vehicle set off from a launchpad in French Guiana about 16:00 local time (19:00 GMT) on a demonstration mission to put a clutch of satellites in orbit.Crews on the ground in Kourou applauded as the rocket soared into the sky. Developed at a cost of €4bn (£3.4bn), Ariane-6 is intended to be a workhorse rocket that gives European governments and companies access to space independently from the rest of the world.It already has a backlog of launch contracts, but there are worries its…

At least 29 Palestinians have been killed and dozens wounded in an Israeli air strike on a camp for displaced people outside a school in southern Gaza, hospital officials say.Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry said the strike hit next to the gate of al-Awda school in the town of Abasan al-Kabira, east of the city of Khan Younis, and put the initial death toll at 25.One video showed more than a dozen dead and seriously wounded people, including several children, on the floor of a local hospital.The Israeli military said it was looking into the reports, which come a week after…

Harvey Weinstein is being investigated for “additional violent sexual assaults” months after a previous conviction in New York was overturned, a court in Manhattan has heard.Nicole Blumberg, an assistant district attorney, told Tuesday’s hearing that the alleged assaults fall within the statute of limitations and could be charged as crimes.The disgraced film mogul, 72, is already facing a retrial after his 2020 conviction for sexual assault and rape was overturned in April on the basis that it was unfair.”As we said in 2020, there were women who were not ready to proceed with the legal process. Some of those women…

Labour revealed plans to scrap the non-dom regime in April 2022.Former Conservative chancellor Jeremy Hunt then announced in the March 2024 Budget that the non-dom tax regime would be phased out.According to Mr Hunt’s plans, people who move to the UK from April 2025 will not have to pay tax on money they earn overseas for the first four years.After that period, if they continue to live in the UK, they will pay the same tax as everyone else.Those people who currently have nom-dom status will be allowed a two-year transition period, during which they will be encouraged to bring…

29 minutes agoBy Helen Bushby, Culture reporter ParamountPaul Mescal plays Lucius, whose character was the grandson of Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius in the first Gladiator filmThe trailer for Ridley Scott’s sequel to Gladiator has dropped, showcasing several epic scenes, including a water battle in Rome’s Colosseum and Paul Mescal being rammed by a rhino. All Of Us Strangers star Mescal plays Lucius, fighting for his life as a gladiator, despite his high status as nephew of corrupt former Emperor Commodus. Sir Ridley’s first film in 2000, which starred Russell Crowe as soldier-turned-gladiator Maximus, won five Oscars including best actor.The trailer opens as…

A court in Moscow has issued an arrest warrant for the widow of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny on charges of extremism, according to state media.The charges brought against Yulia Navalnaya, who lives outside Russia, in absentia are to do with her alleged “participation in an extremist society”, Tass news agency said. The opposition leader – Russia’s most significant for the past decade – died in an Arctic Circle jail of natural causes, according to Russian authorities. Mr Navalny had been serving 19 years on extremism charges that were widely seen as politically motivated.But his widow accuses Russian President Vladimir…

Energy boss Greg Jackson has said people living near wind farms – such as in Scotland – should pay less for their electricity.The founder and chief executive of Octopus said it was “crazy” that the electricity price was the same across the UK.His firm already offers a discount on bills for people living near wind farms, and this has led to lots of local interest in their construction, he said.New Chancellor Rachel Reeves set out plans on Monday to boost onshore wind farms.Speaking at an event hosted by the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, Mr Jackson said his company…

Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro benefited from an illegal scheme to sell $1.2m (£937,000) in jewellery and other luxury gifts given to his government, police investigators say.It comes after Brazil’s Federal Police last week recommended charging him with crimes including money-laundering over undeclared jewellery gifted between 2019 and 2022.The latest police report states that officials had “acted to divert” expensive gifts to Mr Bolsonaro from foreign governments. The officials then sought to sell the items for “the illicit enrichment of the then president”. The far-right politician has claimed that cases against him are politically motivated. The report submitted to the…

46 minutes agoBy Alice Cuddy, BBC NewsGetty ImagesThe US government has blocked a British court hearing from taking place on a British territory, citing security concerns, according to court documents.The supreme court of British Indian Ocean Territory (Biot) was due to hold a hearing this week, attended by the BBC, on whether a group of migrants was being unlawfully detained on the island of Diego Garcia.The island hosts a secretive UK-US military base and access is heavily restricted.The US last week said it was “withdrawing its consent” for lawyers representing the migrants and “members of the press” – the BBC – to…

15 minutes agoBy Michelle Roberts, Digital health editor, BBC NewsReutersMr Streeting was speaking at the Tony Blair Institute Future of Britain conferenceFace-to-face talks between junior doctors unhappy over pay and the new health and secretary are set to begin. Wes Streeting has already said the government cannot afford or commit to the 35% rise the doctors want. But there is renewed optimism an agreement might be reached to avoid more strikes and disruption for patients. Tens of thousands of appointments were postponed during the most recent walkout by doctors, earlier this month.The long-running dispute has seen 11 rounds of strikes by junior…