Venezuela says it released 99 people detained for 2024 election protests 26. December 2025 (15:25) Government said the move was due to its ‘unrestricted respect for human rights’ in the face of US aggressionVenezuela has said it has carried out its largest release of political prisoners this year, claiming to have freed 99 people detained for taking part in protests after the 2024 election, widely believed to have been stolen by the dictator Nicolás Maduro, as it comes under increasing military pressure from the US.Civil society organisations have treated the news with caution and stressed that the releases were insufficient, noting that at least 900 political prisoners remain in the country. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Coastguard search for missing Devon sea swimmers called off 26. December 2025 (15:03) One man in his 40s and one in his 60s missing after going into the water at Budleigh Salterton on Christmas DayA coastguard search for two men who went missing in the sea off Devon during a Christmas Day swim has been called off.Emergency services were called to Budleigh Salterton at 10.25am on Christmas Day after concerns were raised for people in the water. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
‘A PR stunt’: Post Office scandal victims dismiss plans for museum exhibition 26. December 2025 (15:00) Many victims and families advising inquiry’s legacy project are highly suspicious of idea of Postal Museum exhibitionVictims of the Post Office Horizon scandal have dismissed a planned exhibition on the affair at the Postal Museum as a PR stunt that they are refusing to endorse.The inquiry into the wrongful convictions of hundreds of post office operators announced in September that it was working with the Postal Museum as part of a legacy project to commemorate the devastating impact of the scandal. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Zelenskyy to travel to US for Trump meeting amid push for Ukraine deal 26. December 2025 (14:49) Meeting on Sunday will follow flurry of US, Russian and Ukrainian talks, but Putin has shown little sign of softeningVolodymyr Zelenskyy is to travel to the US for a planned meeting with Donald Trump on Sunday, as Washington continues to push for a possible peace deal between Kyiv and Moscow.The Ukrainian president announced the visit on Friday in a social media post, saying he had received a briefing from Rustem Umerov, the secretary of Ukraine’s national security and defence council, on new contacts with US officials. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Southern separatists in Yemen report Saudi airstrikes near positions 26. December 2025 (14:31) Alleged strikes close to UAE-backed forces follow Riyadh’s call for STC to withdraw from newly seized provincesA separatist group in southern Yemen that this month seized two oil-rich provinces has claimed that Saudi Arabia has fired warning airstrikes directed at its forces.Videos issued on Friday by media linked to the United Arab Emirates-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) showed airstrikes that it said were close to its positions in Wadi Nahab, Hadramaut province. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Nigeria provided US with intelligence for strikes on Islamist militants, says foreign minister – US politics live 26. December 2025 (14:25) Yusuf Tuggar says strikes against group accused by Donald Trump of attacking Christian communities will be an ‘ongoing process’Explained: Why has Trump ordered strikes in Nigeria?Nigerians across Sokoto state told of their shock at Christmas Day strikes by the United States.Agence France-Presse spoke to people around Jabo town, who said that their area was sometimes a target of armed “bandit” gangs and jihadists, but was not a stronghold for the groups. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
British Museum’s plan for ‘red, white and blue’ ball sparks row 26. December 2025 (14:00) Exclusive: some staff claim the theme is ‘in poor taste’ following a rise in flag-hoisting across the UKAn internal row has broken out within the British Museum over its director’s suggestion of a “red, white and blue” themed ball for 2026, after staff condemned it as “in poor taste” following the rise in flag-hoisting across the UK.Nicholas Cullinan, the director of the 272-year-old museum, has proposed a colour theme based on the union jack and French tricolore to mark next year’s loan of the Bayeux tapestry from Normandy. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Conservative and Christian? US right champions psychedelic drugs 26. December 2025 (14:00) Texas governor among those to call for expanded access to ibogaine, said to help with treating veterans with PTSDFor half a century, psychedelics largely belonged to the cultural left: anti-war, anti-capitalist, suspicious of the church and state. Now, one of the most politically consequential psychedelic drugs in the US – ibogaine – is being championed by evangelical Christians, Republican governors, military veterans, and big tech billionaires.Many of them see ibogaine, an intense psychedelic derived from a central African rootbark, as a divine technology. In fact, some pointedly do not refer to it as a psychedelic, given the apparent baggage of the term in some circles. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
US voters linking climate crisis to rising bills despite Trump’s ‘green scam’ claims 26. December 2025 (13:30) New polling shows 65% of registered US voters believe global heating is affecting cost of livingMost Americans now connect the worsening climate crisis with their cost of living pressures, with clear majorities also disagreeing with moves by the Trump administration to gut climate research and halt windfarms, new polling has found.About 65% of registered voters in the US think that global heating is affecting the cost of living, according to the polling by Yale University. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
How an ex-US Marine became vital in the fight against Trump’s aggressive immigration enforcement 26. December 2025 (13:00) When Trump began deploying troops to US cities, Janessa Goldbeck’s Vet Voice Foundation was ready – now they’re preparing for what may be nextWhatever the worst case scenario, Janessa Goldbeck has probably imagined it. In 2023 the US Marine veteran consulted on a documentary that war-gamed a presidential candidate staging a military coup. Last year she advised local leaders on the hypothetical of troops being deployed to their streets for immigration enforcement.Then Donald Trump won and Goldbeck’s nightmare came true. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
