Author: News Desk

Nepal floods and landslides kill more than 150, death toll expected to rise Nepal has suspended school operations for three days following devastating floods and landslides that resulted from two days of heavy rainfall. As of Sunday, officials reported at least 151 fatalities, with 56 individuals still unaccounted for. The floods have paralyzed daily life in the Kathmandu valley, where 37 of the deaths occurred in a densely populated area housing 4 million residents. Authorities have noted significant damage to schools and university buildings, complicating efforts to resume normal activities for students and their families. In some parts of Kathmandu,…

Maternity pay the next battle-axe for Tories Maternity pay the next battle-axe for Tories, leadership contender Kemi Badenoch has suggested that maternity pay in the UK is “excessive”. Sparking a debate among the leadership contenders about maternity rights, Badenoch, the former business secretary, said that maternity pay was “a function of tax”, adding: “Tax comes from people who are working, we’re taking from one group of people and giving to another. This, in my view, is excessive.” Arguing that businesses were closing because the burden of regulation is too high she added: “We need to allow businesses, especially small businesses,…

Israeli tanks mass on Lebanon border as ground invasion looms Israel appears poised for a ground invasion of Lebanon, with hundreds of tanks assembling along the northern border. Soldiers were seen making final preparations to their armoured vehicles. The US issued a last-minute appeal for restraint from both sides, warning the Israeli prime minister that escalating conflict would not allow the 60,000 displaced Israelis to return to their homes in northern Israel. “An all-out war with Hezbollah, certainly with Iran, is not the way to do that. If you want to get those folks back home safely and sustainably, we…

Japan’s incoming PM considers snap election amid stock market decline Japan’s new Prime Minister, Ishiba, is considering a snap election as he prepares for his formal appointment on Tuesday. Ishiba has expressed support for the Bank of Japan’s plans to raise interest rates and suggested there is “room” for increasing corporate taxes. The leadership race within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which has dominated Japanese politics for decades, reached a dramatic conclusion on Friday. Right-wing candidate Sanae Takaichi was initially favoured to win, buoying markets with her endorsement of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s controversial “Abenomics” policies, which include…

Hurricane Helene death toll soars in US as response to storm turns political  The recent hurricane response has taken on a notable political angle, with President Joe Biden, along with his potential successors—Kamala Harris and Donald Trump—planning visits to some of the hardest-hit areas. Many of these locations are in key battleground states ahead of the upcoming November elections. Hurricane Helene unleashed devastating winds and torrential rain across Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. The impact has been severe: homes destroyed, roads submerged, and millions left without power. The extreme weather has claimed at least 93 lives, with…

Keir Starmer tightens rules on gifts and donations after Rosie Duffield’s ‘avarice’ accusation Sir Keir Starmer has launched a fightback against accusations that his government is mired in “sleaze, nepotism and avarice”, with an announcement that the rules on declaring donations and gifts will be changed. The prime minister and a succession of cabinet ministers have been criticised for accepting thousands of pounds worth of freebies from corporate sponsors and millionaire donors, with the scandal hitting the party in the polls. In a bid to put the government back on track, Pat McFadden, the chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster,…

Royal biographer gives insight into Charles’s first day as King Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the worldSign up to our free Morning Headlines emailSign up to our free Morning Headlines emailA royal biographer has given an insight into King Charles’s first hours as monarch after being told the news of the Queen’s death in a car.Robert Hardman told an audience at the Henley Literary Festival – at which The Independent is the exclusive news partner for a second year – how Charles’s reign differed from his mother’s, as well as revelations about the late Queen’s final…

Kemi Badenoch insists she believes in maternity pay as Tory rivals jump on ‘excessive’ claim – UK politics live Immigrants who see Israel as enemy ‘not welcome’ in UK says Kemi BadenochSign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailGet our free View from Westminster emailKemi Badenoch has sparked controversy after describing maternity pay as “excessive” and calling for greater personal responsibility. In an interview with Times Radio, the Tory leadership hopeful argued that government intervention on issues like the maternity benefit had gone “too far”, placing a…

NHS warns of 18,000 flu deaths since 2022 as it urges vaccination uptake Health experts ask those eligible to ‘help reduce the burden on our hospitals’ over winter by booking in for free jabsAt least 18,000 deaths in England were associated with flu over the past two winters, figures have revealed, as health experts urge those eligible to take up a free vaccination on the NHS. The figures from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) cover the period from October to May 2022-2023 and 2023-2024. Over the same timeframe, UKHSA estimates a little more than 19,500 deaths were associated with…

The Far right in Austria have a long history, Nationalists in Serbia and Austria were the reason for first world war broke out