The Guardian News

‘AbortOmat’ in Warsaw offers novel way to challenge country’s restrictions and allow women swift, anonymous access

They call it the “world’s first parcel locker for abortion pills”. Polish campaigners have launched a new means of distribution as part of their ongoing effort to skirt the country’s near-total ban on abortion.

Painted pink and framed by zebra-striped curtains, the 22-compartment “AbortOmat” in Warsaw allows women to access the pills swiftly and anonymously using a six-digit code. The service was envisaged for those who cannot or do not want to wait days for mail delivery due to a missed miscarriage or health complications, or who worry about receiving the pills at home.

The star was just eight when his friend was stabbed. Decades on, he’s ready to talk about that day – how it shaped him, and how, as he becomes a father himself, it will shape him as a dad

“I feel a bit nervous,” confesses John Boyega, as he sits down in front of the camera. “Speaking about it could possibly help. I haven’t revisited this in a long time. Yeah, my heart is just beating.” The Attack the Block and Star Wars actor is talking in the opening scene of a new BBC Two documentary about the killing of 10-year-old schoolboy Damilola Taylor.

On 27 November 2000, Damilola was stabbed in the leg with a broken bottle and left to die in a concrete stairwell, attacked as he walked home from an after-school club at Peckham library in south London. It took six years and three separate trials at the Old Bailey, costing a total of £16m, to secure a manslaughter conviction. His death shocked the nation not only because he was so young, but because all the suspects were also children. Boyega was one of the last people to see Damilola alive. The pair had enjoyed a close friendship since Damilola’s move to the UK from Nigeria in August of that year.

You can be curious about others’ beliefs without compromising your own

Recently, I had a conversation with a friend who explained that her ill health was down to reasons I would describe as dubious. Taking certain supplements and changing her diet have significantly improved her health. Good for her. However, she was disappointed and a little annoyed that I didn’t share her outrage and wasn’t going to follow her views.

I’ve got another friend who thinks cholesterol is a lie and that we should live largely on meat (and supplements). Another went through a sugar causes cancer phase. And another is sceptical of vaccines. Each of them may be right. They might not. We are learning more about the human body every day. But I was raised by scientists and I want to see a large-scale trial before I get outraged and change the way I live. Equally, I’m not convinced that a lightly regulated for-profit industry (supplements) is automatically more trustworthy than a highly regulated for-profit one (pharma).

The whole point of going to Claridge’s in the first place is to sweep in through the grand main hotel entrance

Dante Mayfair, inside Claridge’s on Brook Street in London, has been created, the hotel’s management says, to become “the living room of Mayfair”. It’s a charming idea: pop in, have a cuppa or a bowl of pappardelle bolognese, or lie about on the fancy sofas wearing elasticated tracksuit bottoms and slurping soft-serve with s’mores. No, sorry, I’ve gone too far: it’s nowhere near that informal.

Still, like many well-used living rooms, this one has been rearranged, redecorated and repurposed many times over the years. I’ve eaten fancy-schmancy Simon Rogan dinners here when it was Fera, as well as his table experience at Aulis during which venture capitalist “foodies” bored the pants off me over a 12-course meal in the kitchen itself. I’ve stared unmoved at Daniel Humm’s New York-style pomp at the short-lived Davies and Brook, and have visited several times since Claridge’s took matters in-house in the shape of a rather anonymous ye olde British brasserie.

Britain under pressure to put tariffs on cheap Chinese vehicle imports ahead of protectionist trade measures

Britain’s car industry is grappling with a “difficult trade-off” between China and Europe, as manufacturers struggle to balance the benefits of both markets ahead of looming trade measures that could restrict UK exports to the EU.

The UK is an outlier in choosing not to put import taxes on Chinese vehicles, even as the US has shut them out almost entirely, and the EU imposes duties of up to 45%.

Neighbours say crowds drawn by TikTok to Fabel Friet are clogging the picturesque canal street and attracting litter, gulls and rats

People living in one of Amsterdam’s most exclusive neighbourhoods have taken the city to court for licensing a chip shop that has gone viral on TikTok.

On busy days, the queue for Fabel Friet on Runstraat stretches across a bridge on the Keizersgracht – one of Amsterdam’s three main canals – a court was told last week. The narrow street itself is crowded by tourists waiting for their orders seven days a week. And loitering with intent – on parked cars, on the street itself, and on steps and porches – gulls wait to swoop.

While I suspect my husband and some of my friends would make excellent Traitors, my poker face is worse than Richard E Grant’s – as I learned when I played the game

Yes, yes, it’s achieved the impossible: brought back watercooler terrestrial TV, united the UK’s viewing habits, healed our divided nation. But more importantly, The Celebrity Traitors has given us a lens through which to look at life. Currently, the only conversation worth having is what you think you, whoever you’re talking to, and all your friends and family members would be like as contestants on the show. It’s a quick-smart way to evaluate society, a new shorthand. Describe a stranger as having “Faithful energy” and there are surely about two humans on these islands who wouldn’t understand exactly what you mean.

Can you handle the truth, though? It was a poignant moment on my journey of self-acceptance when I was forced to acknowledge that I’d be terrible as both a Traitor and a Faithful. However, confronted with most of the people who know me best being absolutely certain, laughing through tears at the idea of any other outcome, there was no getting away from it. The accusation was levelled that I would jump out of my skin and squeal if my shoulder was touched at the initial roundtable, meaning my Traitorhood would be over before it had begun, which was futile to deny. I suggested I might try to make the squeal seem like a double bluff – which was met with further amusement. Apparently my poker face is even less convincing than I thought. I’d make Richard E Grant look like a slick covert operator.

Kyiv working on better jamming capabilities, interceptors for Shahed drones and ballistic missiles that can reach Moscow. What we know on day 1,684

Ukraine will increase its attacks on Russian oil refineries, but won’t target civilians, because of a new policy of airstrikes by Moscow designed to force people to abandon Kyiv and other cities, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said. Ukraine’s intelligence service has obtained documents showing the Russian ruler, Vladimir Putin, has issued a new doctrine of military attacks on a much broader range of civilian targets ahead of winter, ⁠Ukraine’s president told Reuters. “We saw documents and we know that they ⁠allow them to attack infrastructure, logistics, and especially to attack ​in the cities, in the villages, everywhere, roads, schools, hospitals,” he said. “To pressure people to leave the capital, leave different cities: this is the goal of the operation.”

“We have to respond in any way [we can]. With their attacks on our energy, we have to respond on their energy. First of all, oil refiners: what gives money to them for this war,” Zelenskyy said. “But we will not respond, of course … on any civilian objects.” Russian attacks on Saturday in Ukraine killed at least six people and damaged Kyiv’s Northern Bridge, disrupting traffic for a third day in Moscow’s latest effort to complicate life in the Ukrainian capital. Previously, it has hit apartment blocks, supermarket warehouses, gas stations, datacentres and other civilian targets.

A continuing Ukrainian counteroffensive dubbed Vivaldi had recaptured about 140 sq km (54 sq miles) of Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region, Zelenskyy told Reuters. It is a setback for Putin who wants Russia to completely control the Donbas before agreeing to any peace deal. Zelenskyy said Ukraine was working to offset low supplies of ammunition for its fighter aircraft – F-16s and MiGs – that bring down about 60% of the Russian jet-powered drones. He said Ukraine was working to boost its jamming capabilities; and in the second half of October it would receive a first shipment of small, cheap air defence missiles capable of hitting new jet-powered Shahed drones. Ukraine had begun to deploy its own domestically made ballistic missile – the FP-7, which has a range of about 250km (155 miles), said Zelenskyy. It hoped to have a longer-range model, the FP-9, ready by autumn.

Exit polls from Latvia’s parliamentary election published on Saturday night favoured prime minister Andris Kulbergs’s centrist, pro-Ukraine United List party, suggesting the country will maintain its pro-European and pro-Ukrainian course. But populist parties also had a good night after an election campaign dominated by fears about neighbouring Russia and the cost of living at home. With 72% of ballots counted, United List was on 36.5%, followed by the populist, Maga-style Latvia First on 13.0%. Kulbergs told journalists his party would not cooperate with any parties that were pro-Russian: “Our strong position is that any economic ties with Russia makes us weak; Russia would exploit this.”

Baltic countries have warned for months that Russia is mounting sabotage, cyber and other hybrid ⁠attacks across Europe to erode support for Ukraine and sow fear, although some western officials doubt it is capable of launching ​a direct assault on Nato, of which Latvia is ‌a member. Throughout his campaign, Kulbergs promised more anti-drone capabilities for Latvia and to maintain defence spending at 5% of gross domestic product, one of the highest levels in Nato. His pro-Kremlin rivals said Latvia should stop any aid to Ukraine and instead focus more on cost-of-living issues, particularly among the country’s Russian-speaking minority.

Police confirm investigation into period the man reportedly spent in Australia before alleged attempted terrorist attack

• Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast

Australian security agencies have launched an investigation after it emerged that the flydubai co-pilot who allegedly tried to hijack an Israel-bound flight spent about two years in the country as a student.

Disaster was narrowly averted on Wednesday when passengers and crew intervened to stop the co-pilot’s attempt to take control of the flydubai flight to Tel Aviv, which had 182 people onboard and plunged 16,625 feet (5,067 metres) in just over 30 seconds.

New York film festival: Paul Rudd, Paul Giamatti and Tatiana Maslany lead an excellent ensemble in this dramatization of a failed conference on climate change

In late October 1980, days before the election of Ronald Reagan, Congress summoned 20 experts in various fields to a beachfront hotel in Florida. Their mandate was simple: figure out how to address the dire threat posed to the climate by fossil fuel emissions, then deliver their recommendations to Congress in the form of a statement.

Every word said during four marathon sessions over the next 36 hours – every disagreement or digression, tirade or truce – was recorded by a stenographer for posterity into a single document, hundreds of pages long, that stands as an artifact from a time when expertise was trusted, before corporate greed and political expediency mired “debate” about rising levels of CO2 in the atmosphere in a haze of misinformation and inaction. The fact that this meeting took place at all – that experts in climate, energy, law, philosophy, politics and more agreed on the fundamental facts, yet struggled to reach consensus on what to do about them – is fascinating, if perhaps not the most natural fit for a movie. This was, after all, a conference room of specialists sharing evidence via overhead projector.

Critics say scrapping of plans, which aimed to increase judge-alone trials to deliver swifter justice, leaves court system and victims vulnerable

Ministers have scrapped plans that would have slashed the number of jury trials in England and Wales and replaced them with a judge sitting alone.

The proposals had sparked a fierce backlash from lawyers, who have welcomed the U-turn. But the victims’ commissioner expressed concern about the abandonment of measures drawn up by the then justice secretary, David Lammy, under Keir Starmer’s government, to tackle the record backlog in the courts.

Forty-year-old victim declared dead at the scene in East Acton in a ‘senseless act of violence’

A murder investigation has been launched after a 40-year-old man was shot dead in a “senseless act of violence” during a memorial service in west London, police have said.

Police were called on Friday at 7.47pm after multiple shots were heard in East Acton.

Chihuahua Comando is being trained for search-and-rescue work, and helping bring a warm connection with the public

Comando may be tiny, but Mexico’s national guard is giving him ⁠a very big role.

Outfitted with miniature goggles, a fitted tactical vest, a helmet and even a petite head-mounted camera, ⁠the 7lb (15lb) chihuahua ⁠has become ​the most unusual – and smallest – canine member of the force.

Mariann Budde gained national attention for calling on US president to consider immigrants and LGBTQ+ people

Rev Mariann Edgar Budde, the Episcopal bishop of Washington DC who gained national attention when she called on Donald Trump to “have mercy” on the country’s immigrants and LGBTQ+ community after his second inauguration, is resigning.

Budde shared in her resignation letter that she will be leaving her post on 3 June 2028 after the consecration and ordination of the new diocesan bishop.

Lamine Yamal says he feels like Superman or Spider-Man sometimes, and Spain’s fans are starting to feel the same way about him. There is something comic book hero about what the teenager is doing right now, some super power swelling inside the nineteen-year-old. For the third consecutive game he scored inside six minutes, curling in another outrageous goal as Spain completed their World Cup homecoming in Oviedo with a 3-1 win over Czechia that leaves them a single point from the Nations League quarter finals already.

And yet in a game which seemed to have been done at half-time, when Spain led 2-0 after Rodrigo Hernandez had added the second and Lamine Yamal was withdrawn, the world champions were closer to not winning than they could have imagined. Czechia, vastly improved after the break, pulled one back through Jiri Slama on 69 and then were denied an 80th-minute equaliser when Vassilis Fotias, the referee, harshly ruled out a Ryan Naderi goal – apparently for a foul on Robin Le Normand as the free-kick that led to it was swung in.

This was an occasion on which Scotland dare not stumble. By the time Kieron Bowie smashed home a seventh minute opener against a North Macedonia side not without its troubles to seek, it was already clear they would not. Bowie afforded Sébastien Pocognoli his first goal as the Scotland manager. Later, the Belgian had his maiden victory confirmed. Anything else, against such a dismal level of opposition, would have been worthy of significant Scottish embarrassment.

John McGinn’s 22nd goal for his country, coming from the penalty spot, meant the scoreline at least almost reflected Scotland’s dominance. Only Scott McKenna’s late sending off and a failure to notch three, four or five could have irked Pocognoli. Scotland remain alive and kicking in section B1 of the Nations League while aware they will face far, far stiffer challenges. Scotland needed to be professional in North Macedonia and met that task appropriately.

• Nations League updates from the 7.45pm BST kick-offs

• Live scores | Get the Football Daily newsletter | Mail Luke

Spain: Raya; Fresneda, Le Normand, Laporte, García; Rodri, Pedri; Lamine Yamal, Olmo, Baena; Fernández.

Czechia: Kinsky; Sacek, Chaloupek, Krejci, Slama; Ambros, Macek, Kral; Radosta, Hlozek, Lingr.

It’s Movie Week, with routines inspired by films ranging from The Godfather to Ratatouille. But which cinephile rug-cutter will impress the judges most?

Roll the traditional movie-themed VT. A Top Gun spoof this time. I feel the need. The need for speed.

Salt or sugar your popcorn. Switch your phones to silent. Pop open that “sharing” box of Maltesers. We’re about to go live to Elstree Studios…

• ‘We’ll always have a scar, but this is how we move forward’

• Manager praises ‘complete package’ Scott on full debut

Thomas Tuchel said England have moved on from their World Cup pain after seeing his side deliver a statement performance in Rijeka and hand Croatia their biggest ever defeat.

Tuchel was delighted after his front four combined to devastating effect at Stadion HNK Rijeka, where 6,200 local schoolchildren were allowed in free of charge even though the game was supposed to take place behind closed doors after Croatia were punished by Uefa for racist and discriminatory fan behaviour last year.

David Robinson joins other insiders in urging industry to take more care over rapidly developing technology

A safety leader at OpenAI has quit the company, warning that its culture was broken and that AI firms were not “being nearly careful enough” about developing the technology.

David Robinson, who led the writing of safety reports that accompanied the ChatGPT developer’s product releases, explained his resignation in an essay headlined, “I quit OpenAI because its culture is broken”.