The Iraqi city of Ramadi could be taken back from Islamic State (IS) militants “in days”, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has told the BBC. But he said more support was needed from international coalition partners. Iraqi forces have suffered a number of defeats at the hands of IS over the past year, and fled from […]
Scottish Labour MSP Ken Macintosh needs to “spell out” his accusations against the “party machine”, a former first minister has told the BBC. Mr Macintosh said on Saturday his supporters were being bullied to prevent a leadership contest. He and party deputy leader Kezia Dugdale have confirmed that they are standing for leadership of the […]
Police have released the name of a man wanted in connection with the deaths of a man, a woman and a girl, found at a house in Oxfordshire. Thames Valley Police are looking for Jed Allen, 21, thought to be a relative of the three people were found in Didcot on Saturday. Officers were called […]
Several mass graves thought to contain bodies of migrants have been found in Malaysia, authorities say. Home Minister Zahid Hamidi was quoted by Malayia’s Star newspaper as saying the graves were found in 17 abandoned trafficking camps near the Thai border. He did not know how many bodies had been recovered. Several mass graves have […]
Former Scottish Secretary Alistair Carmichael will not face any party disciplinary proceedings after admitting being behind the leak of a memo before the general election. A Lib Dem spokesman said no more action would be taken after the suggestion that Nicola Sturgeon wanted David Cameron to remain as prime minister. Orkney and Shetland MP Mr […]
Councils across England and Wales have called on the government to introduce a ban on the sale of legal highs. The Local Government Association (LGA) said current legislation was “not fit” for tackling the growing numbers of deaths linked to the substances. It wants the policy to be included in next week’s Queen’s Speech at […]
At least 43 people have been killed in a shoot-out in the western Mexican state of Michoacan. Friday’s gunfight between security forces and an armed gang took place in Tanhuato near the Jalisco state border. The violence is thought to be drug-related and officials have said that at least one police officer was killed. The […]
Islamic State militants have seized the last Syrian government-controlled border crossing between Syria and Iraq, a Syrian monitoring group says. Government forces withdrew from al-Tanf – known as al-Waleed in Iraq – crossing as IS advanced, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said. The loss of al-Tanf to IS follows the group’s takeover of […]
Labour’s Kezia Dugdale has confirmed she will stand for the leadership of her party in Scotland when Jim Murphy steps down next month. Ms Dugdale, 33, who became an MSP four years ago, has been the Scottish party’s deputy leader since December. The Lothian region MSP is expected to face a challenge from another MSP […]
An unexploded World War Two bomb uncovered by builders near Wembley Stadium poses “a genuine risk to life”, the Army has said. Homes and businesses have been evacuated and the Army has built a blast wall around the bomb in case it goes off. The 50kg (110lb) device, thought to date from the early 1940s […]