Author: SKYNEWS

Donald Trump has reduced the sentence of Larry Hoover Sr, a Chicago gang founder, after lobbying from controversial hip-hop artist Kanye West.On Wednesday, the sitting US president commuted the six life sentences that Hoover, founder of the Gangster Disciples (GDs), was serving following a 1998 conviction, Sky News’ US partner NBC News reported. It followed a campaign by West, now known as Ye, who has lobbied Mr Trump in the Oval Office over the release, it was reported. Image: Larry Hoover Sr. Pic: AP/Chicago Sun-Times Image: Kanye West speaking to Donald Trump during a 2018 Oval Office meeting. Pic: Reuters…

This is a huge decision by an obscure Manhattan court. President Trump’s core economic policy has just been comprehensively undermined, he has been undermined, and he will be seething.Beyond the upending of his policy agenda, the ruling will electrify the deepening schism between the administration and the judiciary, furthering the sense of constitutional crisis in this country. Donald Trump’s tariffs encapsulate his identity. They are the centrepiece of his economic platform. They are the tool with which he has tried to exert a sense of global authority. They are the levers in his “art of the deal”.👉 Follow Trump100 on…

Neanderthals may have made art just like modern humans do, researchers in Spain have said.The findings, published in the Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences journal, challenge existing assumptions that art began with homo sapiens. Researchers said a pebble excavated from central Spain in 2022 seemed to have been made to look like a face by having a painted dot where a nose would be – suggesting it may be an early artwork. Image: The pebble (left) and a close-up view of the fingerprint (right) seemingly painted on it. Pic: Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences/Alvarez-Alonso, de Andres-Herrero, Diez-Herrero et al “It has gradually…

Sean “Diddy” Combs kidnapped a former aide at gunpoint to join him as he attempted to confront love rival rapper Kid Cudi, his sex-trafficking trial has been told.Capricorn Clark, who worked for the Bad Boy Records co-founder in different roles on and off for several years, told the court he banged on her door and told her: “Get dressed, we’re going to kill Mescudi.” Kid Cudi, whose real name is Scott Mescudi, last week testified himself about the alleged incident in December 2011.Ms Clark became tearful a few times as she gave evidence – which marked the start of the…

Thames Water, the UK’s biggest water provider, has been hit by a record fine by regulator Ofwat. The company has been fined £122.7m following Ofwat’s “biggest and most complex” investigation. It follows two investigations related to Thames Water’s wastewater operations and dividend payouts.Of the total fine, £104.5m – 9% of Thames Water’s turnover – has been levied for breaches of wastewater rules – just below the maximum 10% of turnover that Ofwat could have applied.Money blog: Inside the booming one-bed flat market Image: Pic: istock Another £18.2m penalty will be paid for breaches of dividend payment rules.It is the first…

The Arctic is warming 3.5 times faster than the global average, scientists have warned, raising new security threats for the UK.Melting Arctic ice is opening up more routes for shipping and military vessels, and the potential to drill for new reserves of gas, oil and natural minerals in an otherwise virtually unspoilt ecosystem. The continent has long been warming faster than the rest of the world.As the sea ice disappears, its white surface that reflects sunlight gives way to darker ocean underneath that absorbs the heat instead. Today the United Nations’ World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) warned the Arctic is on…

Gary Lineker bid a tearful farewell to Match Of The Day as he presented the show for the final time.The ex-England striker, 64, announced his departure earlier this month after sharing a social media post from the Palestine Lobby group titled: “Zionism explained in two minutes.” The Instagram post was illustrated with a rat, which has been used to represent Jewish people in antisemitic propaganda – including Nazi Germany.Lineker “apologised unreservedly” for sharing it, saying he was unaware of the reference and it was a mistake. He maintained the importance of “speaking out on humanitarian issues, including the tragedy unfolding…

Abandoning her career to look after their two daughters was what Isobel’s* ex-husband wanted.Six years after their divorce, she earns a quarter of his salary while caring for the children six out of seven days. Despite having two university degrees, she is “trapped” on universal credit and frustrated with a “ludicrous” divorce system that didn’t account for years of unpaid work to support her ex and raise their family.”I feel hugely let down and I feel cheated by a system that feels so orchestrated towards women being on the back foot,” said Isobel, 44, from Berkshire.Data suggests she is not…

The mother of a 14-year-old boy who claims he took his own life after becoming obsessed with artificial intelligence chatbots can continue her legal case against the company behind the technology, a judge has ruled.”This decision is truly historic,” said Meetali Jain, director of the Tech Justice Law Project, which is supporting the family’s case.”It sends a clear signal to [AI] companies […] that they cannot evade legal consequences for the real-world harm their products cause,” she said in a statement.Warning: This article contains some details which readers may find distressing or triggering Image: Sewell Setzer III. Pic: Tech Justice…

Thousands of people are expected to attend Port Talbot this weekend as the town gears up to welcome an annual Welsh festival.The Urdd Eisteddfod is a celebration of Welsh culture when children and young people up to the age of 25 take part in a variety of competitions. There are 400 of them in total, including singing, reciting poetry and dancing.The Urdd organisation itself was established more than a century ago in 1922, with the aim of giving children and young people in Wales the opportunity to learn and socialise in the Welsh language.Its six-day Eisteddfod is held during May…