‘It’s the sovereignty of the country’: Guinea-Bissau says US vaccine study suspended

Despite US pushback, officials in west Africa say controversial hepatitis B study on pause amid ethics concerns
US health officials insisted it was still on. African health leaders said it was cancelled. At the heart of the controversy is the west African nation of Guinea-Bissau – one of the poorest countries in the world and the proposed site of a hotly debated US-funded study on vaccines.
The study on hepatitis B vaccination, to be led by Danish researchers, became a flashpoint after major changes to the US vaccination schedule and prompted questions about how research is conducted ethically in other countries.
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ActionAid to rethink child sponsorship as part of plan to ‘decolonise’ its work

Development charity’s new co-chief executives signal shift from controversial sponsor a child scheme launched in 1972 to long-term grassroots funding
Child sponsorship schemes that allow donors to handpick children to support in poor countries can carry racialised, paternalistic undertones and need to be transformed, the newly appointed co-chief executives of ActionAid UK said as they set out to “decolonise” the organisation’s work.
ActionAid began in 1972 by finding sponsors for schoolchildren in India and Kenya, but Taahra Ghazi and Hannah Bond have launched their co-leadership this month with the goal of shifting narratives around aid from sympathy towards solidarity and partnership with global movements.
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Head of US Africa bureau urges staff to highlight US ‘generosity’ despite aid cuts

Email sent to diplomats by state department office’s new boss is labelled ‘racist’ after dismissing Africa as a priority
US diplomats have been encouraged to “unabashedly and aggressively” remind African governments about the “generosity” of the American people, according to a leaked email sent to staff in the US state department’s Bureau of African Affairs this January and obtained by the Guardian.
“It’s not gauche to remind these countries of the American people’s generosity in containing HIV/Aids or alleviating famine,” says the email.
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‘Brazen’ political influence of rich laid bare as wealth of billionaires reaches $18.3tn, says Oxfam

Governments opting for oligarchy while brutally repressing protests over austerity and lack of jobs, charity report says
The world saw a record number of billionaires created last year, with a collective wealth of $18.3tn (£13.7tn), while global efforts stalled in the fight against poverty and hunger.
Oxfam’s annual survey of global inequality has revealed that the number of billionaires surpassed 3,000 for the first time during 2025. Since 2020, their collective wealth grew by 81%, or $8.2tn, which the charity claims would be enough to eradicate global poverty 26 times over.
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Uganda’s president calls opponents ‘terrorists’ in victory speech

Yoweri Museveni wins seventh term but poll criticised by observers and rights groups over repression of opposition and internet blackout
Uganda’s president, Yoweri Museveni, fresh from winning a seventh term in office at 81, said on Sunday that the opposition were “terrorists” who had tried to use violence to overturn the election results.
Official results showed Museveni winning a landslide with 72% of the vote, but the poll was criticised by African election observers and rights groups due to the heavy repression of the opposition and an internet blackout.
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Trump threatens Canada with 100% tariff over possible deal with China

President also claims US refineries will process seized Venezuelan oil, saying ‘we take the oil’
Donald Trump on Saturday said he would impose a 100% tariff on all Canadian imports if the North American country makes a trade deal with China.
Beside that tariff threat, another Trump foreign policy maneuver to make news on Saturday involved the president announcing the US had taken the oil that was on recently seized Venezuelan tankers.
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Spanish prosecutors drop sexual assault complaint against Julio Iglesias

Court says alleged abuse and trafficking offences occurred outside Spain, leaving it without jurisdiction
Spanish 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”.
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Canadian Olympic snowboarder turned alleged cocaine kingpin in US custody

Ryan Wedding turned himself in at US consulate in Mexico City and is due to appear in court in California on Monday
Ryan Wedding, the Canadian Olympic snowboarder turned alleged drug kingpin, has been arrested after turning himself in at the US embassy in Mexico, law enforcement officials announced on Friday.
Wedding, 44, had been sought by the FBI and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) for his role in overseeing what the US attorney general, Pam Bondi, called the “one of the most prolific and violent drug-trafficking organizations” in the world.
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Leaked video shows Venezuela regime’s desperate struggle to control message

Interim leader Delcy Rodríguez told influencers of US threat to kill leaders if they did not cooperate after capture of Maduro
The communications minister holds a phone up to a microphone before a gathering of regime-friendly influencers.
On speakerphone is Venezuela’s acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, who claims that when US forces captured the dictator Nicolás Maduro, she and other members of his cabinet were given 15 minutes to decide whether to comply with Washington’s demands – “or they would kill us”.
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Trump withdraws invitation for Canada to join his global ‘board of peace’

While leaders of many liberal democracies declined to sign on, Mark Carney had, before Davos, accepted in principle
Donald Trump withdrew on Thursday an invitation for Canada to join his “board of peace” initiative aimed at resolving global conflicts.
“Please let this Letter serve to represent that the Board of Peace is withdrawing its invitation to you regarding Canada’s joining, what will be, the most prestigious Board of Leaders ever assembled, at any time,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post directed at the Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney.
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Philippines ferry with 350 on board capsizes leaving 15 dead and dozens missing

Rescuers save at least 300 people after inter-island ferry sank early on Monday en route from the port city of Zamboanga to southern Jolo island
At least 15 people have died after a ferry with more than 350 people sunk early on Monday near an island in the southern Philippines, according to local officials, with the coast guard warning that 28 people remained missing.
The M/V Trisha Kerstin 3, an inter-island cargo and passenger ferry, was sailing to southern Jolo island in Sulu province from the port city of Zamboanga with 332 passengers and 27 crew members when it apparently encountered technical problems and sank after midnight, coast guard officials said.
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China’s top general under investigation for alleged violations amid corruption crackdown

Zhang Youxia, long seen as Xi Jinping’s closest military ally, reportedly accused of leaking nuclear secrets to US
China’s military leadership is in turmoil after its most senior general – a close ally of Xi Jinping – was placed under investigation for “suspected serious violations of discipline and law”.
Zhang Youxia is the joint vice-chairperson of the Central Military Commission (CMC), the ruling body of China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA). Second only to Xi in the military command structure, Zhang has long been seen as the Chinese president’s closest military ally.
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Advantage China: Trump’s tantrums push US allies closer to Beijing

In the search for stability, some western nations are turning to a country that many in Washington see as an existential threat
If geopolitics relies at least in part on bonhomie between global leaders, China made an unexpected play for Ireland’s good graces when the taoiseach visited Beijing this month. Meeting Ireland’s leader, Micheál Martin, in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China’s president, Xi Jinping, said a favourite book of his as a teenager was The Gadfly, by the Irish author Ethel Voynich, a novel set in the revolutionary fervour of Italy in the 1840s.
“It was unusual that we ended up discussing The Gadfly and its impact on both of us but there you are,” Martin told reporters in Beijing.
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Pentagon to reduce its role in deterrence of North Korea

US policy document suggests South Korea take primary responsibility, as Pentagon prioritises defending US homeland
The Pentagon foresees a “more limited” role in deterring North Korea, with South Korea taking primary responsibility for the task, a Pentagon policy document released on Friday said, in a move likely to raise concern in Seoul.
South Korea hosts about 28,500 US troops in combined defence against North Korea’s military threat and Seoul has raised its defence budget by 7.5% for this year.
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New Zealand landslide: rescue efforts called off for six people buried in disaster

Rescue efforts at Mount Maunganui site switch to recovery operation that police say could take several days
Efforts to rescue six people buried by a landslide at a New Zealand holiday park ended on Saturday, with police shifting into a recovery operation.
Police Supt Tim Anderson said human remains had been uncovered on Friday night beneath the mountains of dirt and debris that crashed into a campsite in Mount Maunganui on Thursday, adding that it could take several days to locate all of the victims due to the unstable ground.
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Man charged after allegedly making comments aligned with neo-Nazi ideology at Sydney anti-immigration march

Thousands of people across Sydney and Melbourne take part in March for Australia rallies on Invasion Day

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A man who made antisemitic comments that police allege were “unequivocally” aligned with neo-Nazi ideology in front of a cheering crowd at an anti-immigration protest in Sydney has been charged with inciting hatred.
An estimated 2,000 people took part in a March for Australia rally in Sydney on Monday, while hundreds marched in a March for Australia rally in Melbourne, with police working to keep the groups separate from Invasion Day rallies which were held at the same time.
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Australia cancels visa of Jewish influencer who previously called for Islam to be banned

Sammy Yahood had his visa cancelled three hours before his flight was due to depart, according to the Australian Jewish Association
The government has cancelled the visa of a Jewish influencer, who has previously called for the ban of Islam and was booked to speak at several events in Australia.
The right-leaning Australian Jewish Association (AJA) said Sammy Yahood’s visa was cancelled three hours before his flight was due to depart.
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Victorians urged to evacuate Otways as massive fire threatens to spread east towards more than 1,000 homes

Fire in Otways has burned about 9,400 hectares and could spread as far as Lorne amid onset of heatwave in Victoria

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Residents of more than 1,000 homes in Victoria have been urged to leave before sunset in anticipation of a massive fire spreading and the onset of a severe heatwave.
Six fires were burning across the state on Monday afternoon, and authorities were concerned that Tuesday’s heatwave conditions and forecast northerly winds could cause the fire in the Otways to spread as far as Lorne.
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Man arrested over alleged antisemitic speech at protest in Sydney – As it happened

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Invasion Day: police clear Perth protest site amid reports of ‘threat’ as huge marches held across Australia

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Several beaches in Sydney are closed this morning after shark sightings in the water.
Lifeguards have evacuated the water at Manly beach, Dee Why beach and Palm beach this morning, all around 9am, after the sightings. The beaches are closed.
The search will continue as is in it current intensity for a number of days yet. We will act on all information coming forward.
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Severe heatwave envelops South Australia as Victoria braces for record-breaking weather and fire threats

Residents near Otways fire in Victoria urged to prepare to evacuate, while Ouyen and Mildura forecast to record 49C on Tuesday

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South Australia faced another day of searing heat on Monday, as Victorians prepared for conditions forecast to be the hottest in history and more than 1,100 residents told to get ready to evacuate ahead of extreme fire danger.
Tuesday could see heat records broken throughout Victoria and eastern South Australia, with maximums expected to be near 50C across inland areas, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.
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US-Ukraine security deal waiting to be signed, says Zelenskyy – Europe live

Ukrainian president’s remarks come as Russia praises trilateral talks but warns against expectations of ‘significant results’
And since we’re on the subject of the German army, it’s worth listening to this podcast with our Berlin correspondent Kate Connolly on the vast military expansion under way in Germany and the geopolitical landscape that prompted it.
Speaking to Annie Kelly, Kate discusses the current rearmament and recruitment campaigns, the political and economic pitfalls the German government faces, and the wider question of national identity that Germany is grappling with.
“Not so long ago, to be a German soldier dressed in German uniform was quite a difficult role to embody. I mean, you could be going down the street and you could be spat on, or you could have names called at you.
“I’ve recently seen people get into conversation with soldiers, which I hadn’t seen in the past, [and] more recently, somebody going up to a soldier and actually getting him into conversation about his role, and at the end of the conversation, thanking him.”
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Weather tracker: Severe storms grip US as snow, ice and deep freeze spread

Warnings issued across 26 US states, while Portugal braces for heavy rain as Storm Joseph rolls in
The US is enduring another bout of severe winter weather, as a succession of powerful weather systems brings heavy snow, freezing rain and extreme cold temperatures to much of the country.
Twenty-six states, from Texas to Massachusetts, were under storm warnings issued by the National Weather Service over the weekend, with many alerts remaining in place this week.
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Why Germany is racing to rebuild its army

Are the German people on board with the government’s massive militarisation programme? Kate Connolly reports
“Not so long ago, to be a German soldier dressed in German uniform was quite a difficult role to embody. I mean, you could be going down the street and you could be spat on, or you could have names called at you.
“I’ve recently seen people get into conversation with soldiers, which I hadn’t seen in the past, [and] more recently, somebody going up to a soldier and actually getting him into conversation about his role, and at the end of the conversation, thanking him.”
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UK among 10 countries to build 100GW wind power grid in North Sea

Energy secretary Ed Miliband says clean energy project is part of efforts to leave ‘the fossil fuel rollercoaster’
The UK and nine other European countries have agreed to build an offshore wind power grid in the North Sea in a landmark pact to turn the ageing oil basin into a “clean energy reservoir”.
The countries will build windfarms at sea that directly connect to multiple nations through high-voltage subsea cables, under plans that are expected to provide 100GW of offshore wind power, or enough electricity capacity to power 143m homes.
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Russia launches ‘brutal’ attack on Ukraine as peace talks continue

Kyiv says Moscow used 396 drones and missiles in ‘another night of Russian terror’ on second day of talks in UAE
Russia launched a major drone and missile attack targeting Ukraine’s two largest cities, Kyiv and Kharkiv, early on Saturday, as US, Ukrainian and Russian negotiators met in the United Arab Emirates for a second day of tripartite peace talks.
“Peace efforts? Trilateral meeting in the UAE? Diplomacy? For Ukrainians, this was another night of Russian terror,” the country’s foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, said after the latest Russian assault on critical infrastructure.
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Israel agrees to ‘limited reopening’ of Gaza’s Rafah crossing once operation to locate hostage completed

The opening of the the Rafah crossing with Egypt is a key part of the US brokered ceasefire
Israel said on Sunday its military was conducting a “large-scale operation” to locate the body of the last hostage in Gaza, adding that it would only reopen the Rafah crossing with Egypt after the mission was completed.
The statement came as Israel’s cabinet met to discuss the possibility of opening the key border crossing, and a day after top US envoys met prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and reportedly urged him to reopen the vital entry point for aid into Gaza.
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Iran president’s son urges authorities to restore internet after protests blackout

Yousef Pezeshkian says nothing will be solved by trying to postpone moment images of violent crackdown circulate
The son of Iran’s president has called for the internet restrictions in the country to be lifted, saying nothing will be solved by trying to postpone the moment when pictures and video circulate of the protests that were violently crushed by the regime.
With a battle under way at the top of the regime about the political risks of continuing to block Iran from the internet, Yousef Pezeshkian, whose father, Masoud, was elected in the summer of 2024, said keeping the digital shutdown would create dissatisfaction and widen the gap between the people and the government.
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‘Emotionally devastating’: Iranians in US on regime’s deadly protest crackdown

US readers said they were feeling anxious and helpless as authorities’ brutal crackdown has left thousands dead
Recent protests in Iran have created the most serious and deadliest unrest in the country since the 1979 revolution, prompting eyes from all around the globe to shift to the Middle East.
The Guardian asked Iranians living outside the country to share their views on the current situation in the country and about the possibility of US intervention.
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Syrian and Kurdish forces agree to extend ceasefire as threat of war looms

Ceasefire to be extended for one month to allow transfer of suspected Islamic State members from Syria to Iraq
The Syrian government and Kurdish forces agreed to extend a ceasefire on Saturday, according to Syrian diplomatic sources, temporarily staving off a looming war between the two sides in the north-east of the country.
Sources told Agence France-Presse the ceasefire would be extended for “a period of up to one month at most”, citing the need to facilitate the transfer of suspected members of Islamic State from Syria to Iraq.
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Trump says US ‘armada’ heading to Middle East as Iran death toll put above 5,000

US president says ‘we have a lot of ships’ going in that direction and that Washington is watching Iran closely
Donald Trump has said an American “armada” is heading towards the Middle East and that the US is monitoring Iran closely, as activists put the death toll from Tehran’s crackdown on protesters at 5,002.
Speaking on Air Force One as he returned from the World Economic Forum in Davos overnight, he said: “We have a lot of ships going that direction, just in case. I’d rather not see anything happen, but we’re watching them very closely … we have an armada … heading in that direction, and maybe we won’t have to use it.”
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