UK government condemns 'death to the IDF' chants at Glastonbury
'A joke'GLASTONBURY: The UK government said on Sunday that the BBC had questions to answer over criticism of Israel by musicians at the Glastonbury festival that police are probing.UK officers are studying videos of rapper Bobby Vylan leading crowds in chants of "Death, death to the IDF", a reference to the acronym for the Israeli army, during his set on Saturday.They are also examining comments by outspoken Irish rap trio Kneecap, one of whose members wore a T-shirt dedicated to Palestine Action Group, which is about to be banned under UK terror laws.The IDF chants, condemned by the Israeli embassy in London, were broadcast on the BBC, which airs coverage of Britain's most popular music festival. "I thought it's appalling, to be honest, and I think the BBC and Glastonbury have got questions to answer about how we saw such a spectacle on our screens," UK minister Wes Streeting told Sky News.The Israel embassy said in a statement late Saturday "it was "deeply disturbed by the inflammatory and hateful rhetoric expressed on stage at the Glastonbury Festival".But Streeting, Labour's health secretary, also took aim at the embassy, telling it to "get your own house in order". "I think there's a serious point there by the Israeli embassy. I wish they'd take the violence of their own citizens towards Palestinians more seriously," he said, citing settler violence in the West Bank.A spokesperson for the BBC said some of the comments by Vylan, part of British duo Bob Vylan, were "deeply offensive" and the broadcaster had "no plans to make the performance available on demand".Avon and Somerset police said Saturday that video evidence would be assessed by officers "to determine whether any offences may have been committed that would require a criminal investigation".Kneecap, who have made headlines in recent months with their pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel stance, led crowds in a chant against UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer.Starmer had said the band should not perform after its member Liam O'Hanna, known by his stage name Mo Chara, was charged with a terror offence.He appeared in court earlier this month accused of having displayed a Hezbollah flag while saying "Up Hamas, Up Hezbollah" after a video resurfaced of a London concert last year.The Iran-backed Lebanese force Hezbollah and the Palestinian militant group Hamas are banned in the UK, and it is an offence to express support for them.O'Hanna has denied the charge and told the Guardian in an interview published Friday that "it was a joke -- we're playing characters".Kneecap regularly lead crowds in chants of "Free Palestine" during their concerts. Their fans revere them for their anti-establishment stance and criticism of British imperialism but critics call them extremists.The group apologised this year after a 2023 video emerged appearing to show one singer calling for the death of British Conservative lawmakers.
Source:The Times
June 29, 2025 09:55 UTC
Can Britain be great again? Good would be a useful start
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Source:The Times
June 29, 2025 09:12 UTC
Rod Stewart tells UK to ‘give Farage a chance’
Get the inside track from Roisin O'Connor with our free weekly music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy noticeRod Stewart has come out in support of Reform UK, urging his followers to give the right-wing party’s leader, Nigel Farage, “a chance”. Stewart, 80, made the statement after he was asked about the current political climate in the UK. Follow live updates from Glastonbury 2025 here. Speaking to The Times, Stewart admitted: “It’s hard for me because I’m extremely wealthy, and I deserve to be, so a lot of it doesn’t really touch me.
Source:The Times
June 29, 2025 08:59 UTC
Temperatures to soar again on Sunday amid amber heat health alert
The mercury could hit 30C in London, 28C in the east of England, and 28C in the Midlands, the Met Office said. It comes as a second amber heat health alert in two weeks came into force on Friday. The alert, which covers London, the East Midlands, South East, South West and East of England, will last until 6pm on Tuesday. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) also issued a yellow alert for Yorkshire and Humber and the West Midlands for the same time period, with the agency warning of significant impacts across health and social care services. On the same day, temperatures reached 32.2C in Kew, west London, before heatwaves were declared across England and Wales.
Source:The Times
June 29, 2025 08:53 UTC
Vigil to mark three years since Zara Aleena’s murder
Her killing was “preventable”, and the subsequent investigation has helped expose failings in institutions such as the probation service and the police, her family say. Ms Aleena’s murderer Jordan McSweeney had been released from prison nine days earlier. Ms Naz said: “The anniversary is heavy, of course — but the truth is, every day since Zara was taken from us has been hard. “We come together on this day not only to honour Zara’s life, but also in protest. She instructed the Probation Service and Metropolitan Police to improve their services.
Source:The Times
June 29, 2025 08:19 UTC
Boy, 2, born with one kidney fights for life after being stung 150 times by wasps when he bumped into nest on toy car
He was initially sent home from hospital after being stung but his skin turned yellow and he was rushed backWASP HORROR Boy, 2, born with one kidney fights for life after being stung 150 times by wasps when he bumped into nest on toy carA TODDLER missing a kidney is fighting for his life after being stung more than 150 times by wasps in a nightmare accident. Little Beckham Reed, two, was swarmed head-to-toe by yellow jackets after bumping into their nest while riding in a toy car with his cousins in Georgia. But horror struck less than a day later when Beckham’s skin turned yellow. He was rushed to another ER and diagnosed with multiple organ failure affecting his heart, liver and his only kidney. James Fuqua told local outlet WBNS the incident is being treated as a "tragic accident" and no charges are expected.
Source:The Times
June 29, 2025 07:46 UTC
Oasis Ends a 16-Year Pause With a Familiar Goal: Conquering America
It will not be televised.”When the band trumpeted the North American leg of the tour a few weeks later, the tone was a bit more passive-aggressive: “America. Oasis will play 17 stadium concerts in the U.K. and Ireland before arriving in North America in late August for a nine-show run; two additional London gigs will follow, then dates in Asia, Australia and South America. When tickets went on sale for the U.K. shows last August, a reported 14 million people tried to buy them, crashing ticketing websites and angering fans. In October, seats for the gigs in North America went fast too, selling out in an hour. Michael Rapino, the chief executive of Live Nation, later called it “the biggest on-sale in history.”
Source:The Times
June 29, 2025 07:32 UTC
G7 back new 'side-by-side' tax proposal exempting American, UK firms from global tax rules
Live Events(You can now subscribe to our(You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channelUS-parented companies will be exempted from certain elements of an existing global tax agreement according to a statement released by the Group of Seven countires which detailed the new proposal signed by the United States and its G7 partners.The agreement will see US companies benefit from a "side-by-side" solution under which they will only be taxed at home, on both domestic and foreign profits, the G-7 said, in a statement released by Canada, which holds the group's rotating presidency.Earlier this year the US Secretary of the Treasury outlined the United States' concerns regarding the Pillar 2 rules agreed by the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on BEPS and set out a proposed 'side-by-side' solution under which US parented groups would be exempt from the Income Inclusion Rule (IIR) and Undertaxed Profits Rule (UTPR) in recognition of the existing US minimum tax rules to which they are subject.The side-by-side system could "provide greater stability and certainty in the international tax system moving forward, including a constructive dialogue on the taxation of the digital economy and on preserving the tax sovereignty of all countries, the statement read.The US Treasury Department noted that with Section 899 removed from the Senate version of the bill, there is now a shared understanding that the side-by-side system could help maintain progress made by jurisdictions within the Inclusive Framework in combating base erosion and profit shifting. "Following the removal of section 899 from the Senate version of the One, Big, Beautiful Bill, and consideration of the success of Qualified Domestic Minimum Top-up Tax implementation and its impact - there is a shared understanding that a side-by-side system could preserve important gains made by jurisdictions inside the Inclusive Framework in tackling base erosion and profit shifting and provide greater stability and certainty in the international tax system moving forward, the G7 announced. We look forward to discussing and developing this understanding within the Inclusive Framework," the Treasury said in a post on X.The removal of Section 899 has also been welcomed by the United Kingdom.British businesses, which had recently voiced concerns about potentially facing higher taxes due to the measure, will no longer be subject to those risks.G7 officials echoed the importance of collaboration, expressing their commitment to pursuing a solution that is "acceptable and implementable to all. "Earlier this year, through an executive order, Donald Trump declared that the 2021 global corporate minimum tax agreement--negotiated by the Biden administration and supported by nearly 140 countries--would not apply in the United States.He also threatened to impose a retaliatory tax on nations implementing the global tax rules against US firms, a move viewed as harmful to many foreign companies operating within the US.
Source:The Times
June 29, 2025 06:19 UTC
Revealed: Faces of Keeladi men; 3D recon by UK lab and researchers brings 2,500-year-old skulls from Tamil Nadu into shape
FIRST LOOK: These faces are predominantly south Indian with a touch of West Eurasian and Austro-Asiatic characteristicsPoll Should the government prioritize funding for archaeological research like that at Keeladi? Yes, it’s important for heritage No, focus on other areasIndia’s Ancient City Had a Stadium, Reservoir & Democracy. But It’s Being Lost Again | I Witness‘It is 80% science and 20% art’Archaeological excavations and carbon dating point to one of the oldest civilizations thriving at Keeladi, 12km southeast of Madurai in Tamil Nadu, in 6th century BCE. The lower halves of the faces were more guesstimate; reconstruction of the upper halves was more accurate. She studied the bone remains at Kondagai and Kodumanal.“The stature estimation is feasible for only 11 skeleton remains at Kondagai.
Source:The Times
June 29, 2025 04:44 UTC
Experts issue warning over swarms of flying ants in UK
Rentokil - experts in pest control - predict this year's Flying Ant Day, the yearly mating flight where millions of winged ants fill the sky in synchronised displays, could be one of the biggest in recent years. Paul Blackhurst, head of the technical academy at Rentokil Pest Control, said: "Experts warn that this year could see larger-than-usual swarms of flying ants, as we approach Flying Ant Day, also known as the nuptial flight, and sometimes nicknamed 'flant day'. Flying ant day 25th June 2025. "Despite the name, Flying Ant Day doesn't happen on a single fixed day each year. "While flying ants might disrupt your picnic, barbecue, or pub garden pint, they play a vital role in the ecosystem by aerating soil, recycling nutrients, and serving as a key food source for birds."
Source:The Times
June 28, 2025 23:41 UTC
WeWork CEO: My firefighter dad taught me how to lead
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Source:The Times
June 28, 2025 21:04 UTC
Shell is right to be wary. Gobbling up BP will lead to indigestion
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Source:The Times
June 28, 2025 21:04 UTC
F1 news live: Kimi Antonelli receives penalty after Max Verstappen crash
✕ Close The Inside Line | Episode 606 | SF 01Lando Norris won the battle of the McLarens to land a morale-boosting victory in Austria which breathes fresh life into his world championship charge. A fortnight after Norris ran into the back of Piastri in Canada, the two McLaren men came within centimetres of another collision on lap 20 of 70. Norris took the chequered flag 2.7 seconds clear of Piastri, with Charles Leclerc finishing third. Lewis Hamilton was fourth with the seven-time world champion's wait for a first podium in Ferrari colours extending to his home race at Silverstone next weekend. Follow live updates of the Austrian Grand Prix with The Independent
Source:The Times
June 28, 2025 20:18 UTC
Chelsea agree £55m Jamie Gittens deal — but have João Pedro bid rejected
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Source:The Times
June 28, 2025 18:53 UTC
Pompous Europe take note: no fans are more real than fervent Brazilians
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Source:The Times
June 28, 2025 17:04 UTC