Plan to install barriers through popular national park sparked outrage from advocates and politicians alike

A federal judge has temporarily blocked the Trump administration from expanding the border wall and other security infrastructure across the Big Bend region of west Texas, where contentious plans to build roads and vehicle barriers through a popular national park have led to furious backlash and public protests.

US district judge Kathleen Cardone’s ruling after a Friday hearing in El Paso deals a major blow to the Trump administration’s efforts to expand the border wall through west Texas at breakneck pace, while riding roughshod over the objections of local business owners, landowners, public land advocates and politicians from both parties.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Scott McWilliams/AP

© Photograph: Scott McWilliams/AP

© Photograph: Scott McWilliams/AP

Ukraine's Interior Minister Ivan Vyhivskyi discussed the security situation in Ukraine and the country's needs in countering Russian strikes during a meeting with U.S. Charge d'Affaires Paul Houston and William Solley, Head of the Law Enforcement Section at the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine.

Kevin Warsh’s predecessor had been investigated over cost overruns related to central bank renovation project

The US ⁠justice department is not reopening a criminal investigation into former Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell ⁠for cost overruns ⁠related ​to the central bank’s building renovation project, a department spokesperson said on Friday.

Attorney general Todd ⁠Blanche – in comments to Bloomberg News, which first reported the development – said he has not ruled out ⁠continuing to look into the project’s oversight and potentially take ​action if evidence of ‌wrongdoing came to ‌light.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters

© Photograph: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters

© Photograph: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters

Dozens of residents testify to legislature’s redistricting committee in heated hearing, the last of eight

Hundreds of people gathered across from the Mississippi state capitol building on Thursday evening to rally against the aggressive Republican efforts to draw maps that favor their own party.

Shortly after the US supreme court’s decision in Louisiana v Callais, which severely weakened section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, Tate Reeves, the Mississippi governor, moved in lockstep with other Republican governors and lawmakers to call for a special session to redraw maps. However, before that special session could occur, Reeves canceled it and wrote on X that he expected “lawmakers to redraw congressional lines BETWEEN NOW and 2027 elections!”

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Rogelio V Solis/AP

© Photograph: Rogelio V Solis/AP

© Photograph: Rogelio V Solis/AP

The Russian threat concerns not only Ukraine but the security of all of Europe, so Ukraine is ready to share its experience of defending against it.

Senate Leadership Fund is redirecting ad spending from Michael Whatley’s campaign to support other candidates

A major Republican political action committee pulled the plug on financial support for its Senate candidate in North Carolina, Michael Whatley, according to multiple reports, as the party begins to triage resources amid increasingly dire midterm polling.

The Senate Leadership Fund (SLF), the campaign arm of the Senate majority leader, John Thune, has withdrawn its ad spending in North Carolina to redirect support to other candidates, Semafor reported on Friday. The New York Times, CNN and other publications have confirmed the report with sources close to the fund.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Kent Nishimura/POOL AFP/AP

© Photograph: Kent Nishimura/POOL AFP/AP

© Photograph: Kent Nishimura/POOL AFP/AP

Ceremony will not be hosted at its traditional home for the first time since awards began in 1978

The Kennedy Center Honors will take place away from its traditional home this year for the first time in its history as the John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts remains in jeopardy amid Donald Trump’s ongoing battle to have it named after himself.

The Capital One Arena in Washington DC is now set to host the ceremony on 7 December, a Kennedy Center spokespersonsaid. The list of honorees this year has not yet been announced.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

Support for 37-year-old Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins could upend the governor’s race in the heavily Republican state

This July, Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins spent four days and 450 miles (725km) wending his way down the Yukon River in a 24ft Alweld skiff, a flat-bottomed aluminum boat built for shallow Alaska rivers.

Starting in Koyukon Athabascan country, he passed through Indigenous Deg Hit’an communities like Anvik, before ending among the Yup’ik villages of the lower river, Russian Mission and Pilot Station among them. The boat carried him through 11 villages – some only reachable by water or small plane, and most with fewer than 300 residents, and fewer still who could recall the last time they had seen a candidate for Alaska governor, Republican, Democrat or independent.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins for Alaska

© Photograph: Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins for Alaska

© Photograph: Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins for Alaska

Trump has repeatedly acted to boost like-minded and authoritarian leaders across Latin America using funds allocated for the European defense against Putin

© Getty

NATO allies must be prepared for further hostile actions by Russia against the Alliance, and the response should be increased support for Ukraine.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky has signed a law ratifying the Agreement between Ukraine, on the one hand, and the European Union, on the other, on Ukraine's participation in the European Defence Fund (EDF).

The case of the Siders family illustrates major shortcomings among Ohio’s political and administrative authorities

In June 2025, Jody Walker stood in front of Ohio lawmakers at a senate finance committee meeting in Columbus. As the head of South Central Ohio Job and Family Services, he was desperate for help.

“I have been a county director since 1999, yet I have not seen such a challenging time in the child welfare system as I do today,” he said, “specifically in terms of the needs of our children.”

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Carolyn Kaster/AP

© Photograph: Carolyn Kaster/AP

© Photograph: Carolyn Kaster/AP

These graphics explain what the Democrats would need to do to flip the Senate and House of Representatives

A turning point in Donald Trump’s second term will soon arrive. On 3 November, voters across the US will decide whether to keep the president’s Republican allies in control of Congress, or return Democrats to the majority.

Many indicators of voter sentiment suggest the Democrats are favored to take back control of the House of Representatives, and potentially the Senate. Winning either would be a significant victory for the party and give it the power to block Trump’s legislative agenda and more aggressively investigate his administration.

Continue reading...

© Illustration: Guardian Design / Getty Images

© Illustration: Guardian Design / Getty Images

© Illustration: Guardian Design / Getty Images

Ukraine is working to hold the first international summit on civilian detainees in Paris, launch joint medical commissions to provide access to seriously ill and severely wounded detainees, and create an international coalition to secure their return.

Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico is surprising everyone, as polls have him leading his Republican opponent, Ken Paxton, in the Republican-led state of Texas.

Jonathan Freedland speaks to James Henson, founder and executive director of the Texas Politics Project, about why a blue wave in the Lone Star state would be seismic

Continue reading...

© Photograph: AP

© Photograph: AP

© Photograph: AP

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has briefed Jeffrey van Leeuwen, Director of the Office of the NATO Secretary General, during his visit to Kyiv on Russia's ongoing campaign of terror.

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Friday threatened unspecified measures against Ukraine unless Kyiv acknowledged a confidentiality agreement that Seoul says covered the transfer of two captured North Korean soldiers and issued an apology.

President Volodymyr Zelensky held a meeting with the ambassadors of European Union countries in Ukraine.

Ukrainian and partner intelligence services have data on Russia's specific plans to attack European Union countries.

Advocacy group that pushed for the legislation says 9,000 children are married in California every year

California has outlawed child marriage, joining 17 other US states where the taboo practice is also banned.

Under past state law, minors of any age could obtain a court order for marriage with the consent of their parents.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Kyle Mazza/CNP/Kyle Mazza - CNP/Shutterstock

© Photograph: Kyle Mazza/CNP/Kyle Mazza - CNP/Shutterstock

© Photograph: Kyle Mazza/CNP/Kyle Mazza - CNP/Shutterstock

Latvia's public-service media will be allowed to produce content in Russian only in an emergency, under a state of emergency, or for the targeted debunking of disinformation.

Landlords can no longer refuse pit bulls, rottweilers, dobermans or other breeds considered ‘scary’

Landlords in Washington DC will no longer be able to refuse a tenant’s dog based on its breed, size or weight, nor can they impose special charges related to these factors.

At least, that’s what a new law that took effect on Thursday aims to achieve. Animal welfare organizations and animal shelters applauded the legislation, emphasizing the benefits of reducing barriers to pet ownership in the US capital.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: The Washington Post/Getty Images

© Photograph: The Washington Post/Getty Images

© Photograph: The Washington Post/Getty Images

Democratic-led coalition says gutting key protections will set US back decades and worsen climate crisis

States and cities sued the Trump administration on Thursday for repealing rules that limit planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions from power plants fueled by coal and natural gas.

Twenty-one states, led by New York, are challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s power plant rule. The Democratic-led coalition also includes Pennsylvania’s governor, the District of Columbia, New York City, Chicago and the city and county of Denver. They argue that “gutting one of the country’s most significant climate protections” will set the nation back decades and worsen the climate crisis.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Jeff Swensen/Getty Images

© Photograph: Jeff Swensen/Getty Images

© Photograph: Jeff Swensen/Getty Images

Moldova's Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned violations of the country's airspace by Russian drones and summoned Russian Ambassador Oleg Ozerov.

In response to the lifting of European sanctions against Russian oligarchs Mikhail Fridman and Alisher Usmanov, Ukraine will add 20 more Russian oligarchs to its sanctions lists.

Spain, Belgium and Poland have begun supplying 20mm-caliber ammunition, which plays a critical role in countering Russian jet-powered drones.

Court will review practice of indefinite detention for undocumented immigrants living in the US

The US supreme court agreed on Thursday to take up a case challenging the Trump administration’s practice of indefinite detention for undocumented immigrants living in the US and awaiting deportation proceedings.

At the center of the immigration case is a dispute over Donald Trump’s reinterpretation of a longstanding policy that has led to a huge surge in the number of migrants held in detention centers.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Caitlin Ochs/Reuters

© Photograph: Caitlin Ochs/Reuters

© Photograph: Caitlin Ochs/Reuters

The Czech government led by populist billionaire Andrej Babiš survives a parliamentary no-confidence vote

© Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna has called on European leaders to stop referring to Russia's actions as "hybrid attacks," arguing that they involve acts of sabotage that are part of Russia's systematic actions against Europe and effectively constitute "some kind of war."

Jorge Messias calls Guardian report ‘an important alert for Brazilian sovereignty’ as nation prepares to go to polls

Brazil’s attorney general has said foreign meddling in his country’s institutions and democracy “cannot be tolerated” after a Guardian report revealed how the Trump administration was pushing to direct funds to a campaign against the Brazilian supreme court.

Writing on X, Jorge Messias called the report “an important alert for Brazilian sovereignty”. “The information is especially serious in light of Brazil’s electoral process and the recent episodes of external pressure on our institutions,” Messias added.

Continue reading...

© Composite: AFP, Getty Images

© Composite: AFP, Getty Images

© Composite: AFP, Getty Images

Three-quarters of nations have rightly abolished capital punishment in law or practice, but killing by the state has surged in the US

What is the kindest way to kill? That’s the question being asked once more following Tennessee’s failed attempts to execute Christa Pike for the brutal murder of a classmate, Colleen Slemmer, when she was 18. The 50-year-old was taken to a medical facility, her condition unknown, with witnesses describing her snoring loudly around 40 minutes after receiving two injections of pentobarbital on Wednesday. It is the second botched killing in months, prompting Tennessee’s governor to order a halt to executions.

Lethal injection was supposed to be the humane alternative to firing squads and electric chairs. They in turn were seen as an improvement on hanging, which looked much like lynching in a system disproportionately handing the death penalty to black men. The age and ill health of those executed, and the ethical refusal of most medical staff to be involved, may contribute to botched injections. But analysis of autopsy results has provided compelling evidence that suffering is inherent; injections – especially those involving paralytic drugs – have merely disguised it. What is described as safeguarding the dignity of prisoners is really about reducing the discomfort of witnesses who would otherwise see their suffering.

Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: George Walker IV/AP

© Photograph: George Walker IV/AP

© Photograph: George Walker IV/AP

Many men rape; many men giggle encouragingly, or shrug indifferently, when their friends rape. Many men rape, and few seem to think that it’s a very big deal

Maybe more than anything else, sexual violence is repetitive. Men commit it in patterns: mostly against women who are close by and vulnerable, just below them on some social hierarchy: their assistant, their date, their friend, their daughter, their student, their kid’s babysitter.

Men rape for opportunity – because they can – and for status – because it makes them feel good. They rape to impress other men, documenting it on phones for one another’s benefit. Men rape and do not always seem to register much of a difference between the sex they’ve had that was rape and the sex that they’ve had that wasn’t. They rape, often, without seeming to think about it, registering their victims’ unwillingness with vague contempt, if at all.

Moira Donegan is a Guardian US columnist

Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organizations. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 500 2222. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Monkey Business Images/REX

© Photograph: Monkey Business Images/REX

© Photograph: Monkey Business Images/REX

DNC accuses Pentagon of pushing through changes to how voters abroad request absentee ballots ahead of midterms

The Trump administration broke the law when it pushed through a last-minute change to the form overseas citizens use to register and request absentee ballots, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) said in a lawsuit filed on Thursday.

Until recently, the form, the Federal Post Card Application (FPCA), gave overseas voters four options to choose from when describing their geographic location. Voters could say they needed an overseas ballot because they were on active military service, living outside the US with an intent to return, or living outside the US and uncertain about their return.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Mladen Antonov/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Mladen Antonov/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Mladen Antonov/AFP/Getty Images

The Pentagon did not invite several key allies to a meeting of NATO countries that will take place this month in Poland, following earlier threats from Washington to compile a "list of good and bad" countries.

Installing tech billionaires Elon Musk and Palmer Luckey to Pentagon defense board raises conflict-of-interest concerns

• Send us your questions about how the Iran war will affect US voters in the midterms

By installing the tech billionaires Elon Musk and Palmer Luckey to advisory roles in a Pentagon project about the future of warfare, the defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, bestowed extraordinary influence on two of Maga’s most significant campaign donors – and both men own companies that benefit from federal defense contracting.

The new project, which Hegseth dubbed “Project Meridian” in an event in Quantico, Virginia, on Wednesday, will be led by Pentagon official Emil Michael, a former Uber executive. As the Guardian has reported, Michael made millions in profits off non-public Musk company AI stock while in federal office – and while guiding the Department of Defense’s artificial intelligence efforts.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Kent Nishimura/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Kent Nishimura/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Kent Nishimura/AFP/Getty Images

House Democrats say officials may have illegally misused public funds to pay for president’s ‘narcissistic ego trips’

The Trump administration is facing growing questions over whether it illegally used taxpayer money to air television ads promoting Donald Trump five weeks before the US midterm elections.

Two congressional Democrats, Jamie Raskin of Maryland and George Whitesides of California, have asked federal watchdogs to investigate the ads.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Kent Nishimura/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Kent Nishimura/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Kent Nishimura/AFP/Getty Images

A woman convicted of murdering a schoolmate 30 years ago has been taken to hospital after surviving two rounds of lethal injections in Tennessee. Christa Pike would have been the first woman to be executed in the state in 200 years. Pike, 50, has spent three decades on death row after she was convicted of the murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer in 1995. A last-minute appeal to stop the lethal injection was overturned by the supreme court, but the state governor, Bill Lee, has suspended executions in Tennessee for the rest of the year. Lucy Hough speaks to the attorney and anti-capital punishment campaigner Clive Stafford Smith – watch on YouTube

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Reuters

© Photograph: Reuters

© Photograph: Reuters

President also dismissed low poll ratings as ‘fake numbers’ and deflected responsibility for Iran war in Time interview

• US politics live – latest updates

Donald Trump deflected responsibility for misleading Americans about the length of the Iran war, dismissed low poll ratings as “fake numbers” and refused to rule out the possibility of declaring a state of emergency before the midterms, in a wide-ranging interview with Time magazine.

When confronted with questions about the length of the Iran war, the US president blamed the media for reporting his remarks in which he said the conflict was projected to last “four to five weeks”, in March.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

© Photograph: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

© Photograph: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

The agreement establishing the International Claims Commission for Ukraine has already been signed by 40 countries and the EU, but only ten of the required 25 ratifications have been completed.

Network was listed as primary TV pool covering Thursday’s presidential activities but then was abruptly removed

For a second time in a week, the White House has unilaterally removed CNN from its assignment as the primary television pool representative covering Donald Trump.

CNN was excluded on Saturday from pool duty onboard Air Force One, despite a district judge’s ruling – two days earlier – overturning the White House’s ban on the network and two other media organizations.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

© Photograph: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

© Photograph: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Artificial intelligence chatbots rely on Russian narratives when generating responses about the history of Lithuania. This is due to the Russian side uploading massive amounts of data online, which algorithms then absorb to formulate their responses.

Administration says increased immigration enforcement led to fewer homicides, but they have been on the decline since Joe Biden’s term

Over the last year and a half, the US has seen a historic drop in homicides. Researchers and reporters are still puzzling through the complex set of reasons why - from the easing of pandemic-era stressors and the Biden administration’s investments in community-based violence prevention to policing and other factors.

But for the Trump administration, there’s one easy explanation: increased immigration enforcement. As the midterm elections approach, the White House has been doubling down on this message, saying its crackdown against immigrants is why US crime rates are now falling.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Fred Greaves/Reuters

© Photograph: Fred Greaves/Reuters

© Photograph: Fred Greaves/Reuters

As the midterms approach, Americans’ digestive health has become a bizarre talking point

Donald Trump seems to spend an unusual amount of time thinking about toilets.

Back in 2019, he bizarrely claimed: “People are flushing toilets 10 times, 15 times as opposed to once.” He repeated this claim at a Michigan rally the following year. “Ten times, right, 10 times,” Trump complained. “Not me, of course not me, but you,” he added while pointing at an unfortunate audience member.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Nathan Howard/Reuters

© Photograph: Nathan Howard/Reuters

© Photograph: Nathan Howard/Reuters

The Czech opposition will again raise with the government the issue of providing Ukraine with four L-159 aircraft currently in service with the Czech army.

US president blames attacks for driving up fuel prices before midterms, though analysts say his Iran war is main cause

• Europe live – latest updates

Ukraine is pressing on with strikes on Russian oil refineries, defying Donald Trump, who blames the attacks for exacerbating a global diesel shortage and pushing up fuel prices.

Kyiv struck an oil facility in Russia’s southern Samara region overnight, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Thursday in a statement on social media. The Ukrainian president added that a Russian vessel in the Black Sea was hit, as well as a launch and storage site for attack drones in the Oryol region.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: EyePress News/Shutterstock

© Photograph: EyePress News/Shutterstock

© Photograph: EyePress News/Shutterstock

New ad features audio from Trump’s declaration of war and Pete Hegseth saying ‘if you kill Americans … we will kill you’

• Send us your questions about how the Iran war will affect US voters in the midterms

The latest in a series of pro-Trump television ads aired using taxpayer funds in the run-up to the the midterm elections is a one-minute spot that celebrates Donald Trump’s decision to go to war with Iran.

The ad aired during a commercial break on Fox News on Wednesday night, according video posted online by MeidasTouch, a leftwing outlet.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: White House

© Photograph: White House

© Photograph: White House

Critics noted that the plan does not discuss Israel; others praised it for not conflating Jews with the state of Israel

When the New York City mayor, Zohran Mamdani, announced the city’s first-ever municipal strategy to address antisemitism – a nuanced, multi-pronged approach ranging from greater security measures for synagogues to an increased focus on Jewish history in public school education – critics were quick to note what the 33-page document does not mention at all: Israel.

Israel has played an outsized role in Mamdani’s campaign and since his election, with the mayor standing by his years-long support for Palestinians, and frequently describing Israel’s actions in Gaza as genocide and it’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, as a war criminal.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Matt Roberts/Shutterstock

© Photograph: Matt Roberts/Shutterstock

© Photograph: Matt Roberts/Shutterstock

President’s outlandish and extensive conspiracy theories endanger US freedoms, health and science, experts say

Since the start of his second presidency, Donald Trump has often launched outlandish conspiratorial attacks on critics and foes that mock them and label their views as hoaxes, prompting scholars and legal experts to say Trump’s attacks endanger US freedoms, public health and science.

Trump’s extensive use of conspiracy theories is the hallmark of an authoritarian leader that has weakened trust in the coming midterm elections, dangerously ignored scientific evidence, and often pushed for prosecutions of his political enemies in ways that seriously erode civil liberties, say critics.

Continue reading...

© Composite: The Guardian/Getty Images

© Composite: The Guardian/Getty Images

© Composite: The Guardian/Getty Images

Gavin Newsom says Trump is a ‘gift’ to the climate cause for dispelling notions of fossil fuel energy security

Of all the epithets hurled at Donald Trump since he became US president, perhaps the most unusual was delivered last week – that he is, in fact, some sort of environmentalist.

Trump is the “greatest gift” to the environmental movement, argued Gavin Newsom, California’s governor, due to the fallout from the US-Israel war on Iran.

Continue reading...

© Composite: AFP via Getty Images

© Composite: AFP via Getty Images

© Composite: AFP via Getty Images

Six lawmakers demand information on childcare center closures, cost changes, Head Start and government grants

Democratic senators have accused Donald Trump’s administration of worsening the country’s childcare crisis, warning that rising costs and daycare closures are leaving families with fewer affordable options.

In a letter seen by the Guardian and addressed to Alex Adams, assistant secretary of the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), senators led by Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts argue that federal cuts and changes to childcare programs like Head Start are destabilising an already fragile system.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Cavan Images/Getty Images/Cavan Images RF

© Photograph: Cavan Images/Getty Images/Cavan Images RF

© Photograph: Cavan Images/Getty Images/Cavan Images RF