Texas Black man exonerated 70 years after execution in case marked by racial bias 23. January 2026 (23:47) Review of case found problems with statements from police officer who claimed victim had identified her attackerNearly 70 years after a Texas Black man was executed in a case that prosecutors now say was based on false evidence and was riddled with racial bias, officials have declared that he was innocent of the killing of a white woman in Dallas.Tommy Lee Walker was executed in the electric chair in May 1956 for the rape and murder of 31-year-old Venice Parker. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
What are the Trump administration’s policies about detaining immigrant children? 23. January 2026 (23:46) The detention of Liam Conejo Ramos, age five, marks the turbocharging of a policy discontinued five years agoThis week, ICE’s detention of a five-year-old boy wearing a Spider Man backpack in the Minneapolis suburb of Columbia Heights quickly became a defining image of the Trump administration’s hardline immigration enforcement. Furious critics, including many local politicians, seized on Liam Ramos’s ordeal as glaring evidence that Trump’s mass deportation campaign has little to do with crime and a lot to do with terrorizing children and their families.A homeland security spokesperson said ICE officers took the boy into custody only after an attempt to arrest his father led to a foot chase. But Liam Ramos’s detention is not an isolated incident. It’s part of a uniquely aggressive push to detain more unauthorized immigrant families, a turbocharging of a policy discontinued five years ago. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Poorly performing police forces to be named and shamed under new plans 23. January 2026 (23:30) Home Office to set targets for response times and victim satisfaction as home secretary takes powers to intervene directlyPolice forces will face new targets for crime fighting and those performing poorly will be named and shamed under government plans to take sweeping powers over law enforcement.The new plans come as part of changes to policing in England and Wales to be announced on Monday by the home secretary, Shabana Mahmood. The Home Office claims the reforms are the biggest in two centuries. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Three men charged after ‘highly targeted attacks’ against Pakistani dissidents 23. January 2026 (22:11) Alleged attacks took place in Cambridgeshire and Buckinghamshire against two prominent supporters of jailed former Pakistani prime minister Imran KhanThree men have been charged after a series of “highly targeted” attacks against two Pakistani dissidents living in Britain.Police carried out a series of seven raids and arrests this week in London, Essex and the Midlands after four attacks, which began on Christmas Eve. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Starmer faces pressure not to block Andy Burnham’s return to parliament 23. January 2026 (20:36) Angela Rayner plans to urge PM to let Manchester mayor stand in Gorton and Denton byelection Keir Starmer is facing mounting pressure not to block Andy Burnham from making a comeback to parliament, with Angela Rayner planning to urge No 10 to let him stand in a coming byelection.The prime minister’s allies have been trying to prevent Burnham’s return as a candidate in the Greater Manchester seat of Gorton and Denton, amid fears he could challenge the leadership. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Jury selection in Luigi Mangione murder trial set for 8 September 23. January 2026 (20:15) Much-anticipated trial scheduled in New York over killing of United Healthcare CEO Brian ThompsonLuigi Mangione’s federal murder trial in the killing of the United HealthCare CEO Brian Thompson is scheduled to start with jury selection on 8 September, triggering one of the most eagerly anticipated criminal trials in recent US history, a judge said on Friday.Judge Margaret Garnett of announced the trial date to a packed Manhattan federal courtroom shortly before an evidence-related hearing in his case. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Former UK police informer convicted of 38 paedophile offences jailed for life 23. January 2026 (19:58) Sentencing Nick Gratwick, judge described his offences, which included plotting to rape children as young as six, as ‘the stuff of nightmares’A “dangerous” paedophile who had worked as a police informer spying on environmental and animal rights activists has been jailed for life.Nick Gratwick had been found guilty of 38 paedophile offences, including arranging to rape children as young as six in the UK and abroad. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
United Arab Emirates plans to bankroll first ‘planned community’ in south Gaza 23. January 2026 (19:54) Exclusive: Blueprints describe a ‘case study’ community where residents submit biometric data to gain entryThe United Arab Emirates plans to fund “Gaza’s first planned community” on the ruined outskirts of Rafah, Gaza’s southernmost city. Palestinian residents there will have access to basic services like education, healthcare and running water, as long as they submit to biometric data collection and security vetting, according to planning documents and people familiar with the latest round of talks at the US-led Civil Military Coordination Center in Israel.The planned city would mark the UAE’s first investment in a post-war reconstruction project located in the part of Gaza currently held by Israel. The wealthy Gulf state has contributed more than $1.8bn of humanitarian assistance to Gaza since 7 October 2023, according to UAE state media, making it Gaza’s largest humanitarian donor. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Nigel Farage’s trip to Davos hosted and paid for by family trust of billionaire 23. January 2026 (19:39) Trust says Reform UK leader was invited to WEF event by London-based venture capitalist as an honorary adviserNigel Farage’s trip to Davos this week was hosted and paid for by the $10bn family trust of an Iranian-born billionaire, the Guardian has learned.The leader of Reform UK has been touring Davos this week, giving speeches in which he pledged to tax banks and “fight the globalists”. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Spanish prosecutors drop sexual assault complaint against Julio Iglesias 23. January 2026 (19:20) Court says alleged abuse and trafficking offences occurred outside Spain, leaving it without jurisdictionSpanish prosecutors have shelved a complaint brought by two women who have accused the singer Julio Iglesias of sexual assault and human trafficking, arguing the country’s courts have no jurisdiction as the alleged offences took place outside Spain.Two female former employees who worked at Iglesias’s Caribbean mansions 10 days ago accused the veteran entertainer of sexual assault, saying they had been subjected “to inappropriate touching, insults and humiliation … in an atmosphere of control and constant harassment”. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
