Police storm right-wing event attended by Farage and Braverman to shut it down
Police in Brussels have stormed a right-wing conference attended by Nigel Farage and Suella Braverman after orders for the event to be shut down.
Local authorities ordered the controversial National Conservatism (NatCon) Conference to be closed to “guarantee public safety”.
Ms Braverman, the former home secretary, and Mr Farage, the former Ukip leader, were among the political names advertised to speak at the event on Tuesday alongside right-wing Hungarian autocrat Viktor Orban.
Officers arrived after the event began at the Claridge venue in central Brussels to tell organisers the event would be shut down. According to a report on social media, police arrived while Mr Farage was addressing the event, giving attendees 15 minutes to leave the venue. However, officers did not appear to force the event to shut down and speeches continued.
Police have now said they will not let anyone else into the venue and people can leave and not re-enter.
The conference has already had to move location twice after mayors within the Brussels region refused the meeting’s chosen venues.
Emir Kir, mayor of the area where the conference was held, said: “I issued an order from the mayor to ban the ‘National Conservatism Conference’ event to guarantee public safety.
“In Etterbeek, Brussels City and Saint-Josse, the far-right is not welcome.”
Conference organisers said they were launching a legal challenge to Mr Kir’s order, adding: “There is no public disturbance and no grounds to shut down a gathering of politicians, intellectuals, journalists, students, civic leaders, and concerned citizens.
“The police entered the venue on our invitation, saw the proceedings and the press corps, and quickly withdrew. Is it possible they witnessed how peaceful the event is?”
In a video on social media, Mr Farage said the Brussels authorities were behaving “like the old Soviet Union”.
He said: “At the meeting, over the next two days, you’ve got the prime minister of Hungary, you’ve got a bishop, you’ve got members of the European royal families coming, well-known international businessmen and women, politicians, leaders of parties that will win European elections in countries this year in June.
“And yet, because they are questioning ever-closer union, because they are questioning globalism, they are literally being shut down.”
During her keynote speech at the conference, Ms Braverman said the UK lacks the “political will” to leave the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
The former home secretary attacked the ECHR as incompatible with parliamentary democracy and the court charged with enforcing it as “profoundly undemocratic and politicised”.
The Conservative MP, a long-time opponent of the ECHR, said the UK could leave the convention “at the stroke of a pen” with the Prime Minister sending a letter giving six months’ notice to the Council of Europe.
The conference is hosted by the Edmund Burke Foundation think tank, which declares its aim to be “strengthening the principles of national conservatism in Western countries”.
Ms Braverman and Mr Orban were unveiled as the event’s keynote speakers last month.
Mr Orban is widely seen as Russian President Vladimir Putin’s closest ally in the European Union and has been accused of launching a crackdown on gay rights and press freedom.
The conference is also due to hear from Conservative MP Miriam Cates later on Tuesday, before hosting a speech by Mr Orban on Wednesday.
The Liberal Democrats criticised Ms Braverman over her plans to “share a platform with a far-right authoritarian”.
Lib Dem foreign affairs spokesman Layla Moran said at the time of the announcement: “No politician should be sharing the stage with an ally of Vladimir Putin as he carries out his barbaric invasion of Ukraine.”
She added that it was “staggering” that a former home secretary “would think that this is the right thing to do”.
“From cries of a conspiratorial deep state to sharing a platform with a far-right authoritarian, the Conservative Party has gone completely off the rails,” she added.
Mr Sunak had faced pressure to block Ms Braverman’s attendance at the conference, with shadow minister Jonathan Ashworth urging the Prime Minister to stop the former home secretary “giving oxygen to these divisive and dangerous individuals”.
Israel military vows to respond to Iran attack as Western nations urge restraint
The Israeli war cabinet will meet for the third time in three days to consider its response to Iran’s attack on Israel over the weekend.
Military chief of staff Herzi Halevi had promised that Saturday night’s launch of more than 300 missiles, cruise missiles and drones from Iran into Israeli territory “will be met with a response“, but gave no details.
Iran launched the attack in retaliation for an airstrike on its embassy compound in Damascus on 1 April attributed to Israel, but signalled that it did not seek further escalation.
It comes as Western leaders are urging Israel to show restraint, with US President Joe Biden telling Mr Netanyahu that his armed forces would not participate in an Israeli counter-strike.
On Tuesday, Rishi Sunak is also set to urge Mr Netanyahu to show restraint. In a Commons statement, Mr Sunak said he would “express our solidarity with Israel in the face of this attack” and “discuss how we can prevent further escalation”.
Due to the fragile situation in the Middle East, budget airline EasyJet has suspended flights to Israel until 27 October. The company had only recently restarted flights to Tel Aviv following the 7 October attacks.
Huge fire rips through Evri depot in Avonmouth as smoke seen for miles
A huge fire has broken out at an Evri depot in Avonmouth, with smoke seen billowing out of the warehouse.
Footage on social media of the scene shows black acrid smoke coming from the delivery company’s distribution centre near Bristol, with a vehicle also on fire.
In a tweet, Avon Fire and Rescue Service said: “We currently have 16 appliances in attendance at a warehouse fire in Avonmouth. If you live and work in the local area, we’d advise you to keep your windows and doors shut.”
Fire crews remain at the location tackling the fire, with locals urged to avoid the area.
While it is currently unknown when the blaze broke out, a video posted on X shows the warehouse, which is located on Boundary Road, in flames at 1.35pm.
The parcel depot is located at the Access 18 industrial estate around seven miles from Bristol city centre.
Heavy traffic is also building along both directions of the A403 St Andrew’s Road due to smoke billowing across the road from the warehouse.
A spokesperson for Evri said: “Fire services attended a fire at our Avonmouth depot earlier today, all colleagues on site are safe and the fire has now been put out.
“Our main priority has been to ensure that all colleagues are safe, the cause of the fire will be fully investigated in due course.
“There were very few parcels at the site at the time with the vast majority of outbound deliveries having left the building.
“We have quickly made plans for alternative arrangements to minimise disruption to deliveries taking place over the next few days.”
More follows on this breaking news story
Astronomers find huge black hole – and it is near us
Astronomers have found the most massive stellar black hole known in our own galaxy.
The object is relatively close by, at least in black hole terms, sitting just 2,000 light years away.
It is the largest black hole of its kind – a black hole formed from an exploding star – known to be in our Milky Way, and the second most massive in our galaxy. The current record is held by Sagittarius A*, which sits at the Milky Way’s centre but could not have been formed by a star and is linked to the birth of the galaxy itself.
Scientists say that the newly discovered object is a “unicorn” – and could be just the first of a host of black holes waiting to be found in our Milky Way.
The European Space Agency’s Gaia mission, involving UCL researchers, found the black hole, known as Gaia-BH3, which is 33 times the mass of our Sun.
Gaia-BH3 was not seen directly but inferred from the movements of what appeared to be a lone star now understood to be its companion.
The discovery of the bright star nearby suggests many more black holes could be found in the next set of data to be released from the Milky Way-mapping Gaia space telescope.
The next set is not scheduled to be released before the end of 2025, researchers said.
Pasquale Panuzzo of CNRS, Observatoire de Paris, in France, who is the lead author of this finding, said: “It’s a real unicorn.
“This is the kind of discovery you make once in your research life.
“So far, black holes this big have only ever been detected in distant galaxies, by the LIGO–Virgo–KAGRA collaboration thanks to observations of gravitational waves.”
The average mass of known black holes of stellar origin in our galaxy is around 10 times the mass of our Sun.
Until now, the weight record was held by a black hole in an X-ray binary in the Cygnus constellation, which has a mass estimated to be about 20 times that of the Sun.
Dr George Seabroke, Mullard Space Science Laboratory at UCL, a member of Gaia’s black hole task force, the team that made the discovery, said: “Finding Gaia BH3 is like the moment in the film The Matrix where Neo starts to see the matrix.
“In our case, the matrix is our galaxy’s population of dormant, stellar, black holes, which were hidden from us before Gaia detected them.
“Gaia BH3 is an important clue to this population because it is the most massive, stellar, black hole found in our galaxy.
“Gaia’s next data release is expected to contain many more, which should help us to see more of the matrix and to understand how dormant, stellar, black holes form.”
There are currently some 50 confirmed or suspected black holes in our galaxy, but theory predicts there is a hidden population of thousands or millions, due to the number of stars that have likely already died over the galaxy’s lifetime.
Gaia-BH3’s companion star, a sub-giant star, is 15 times brighter than the Sun and five times its radius, but slightly cooler and lighter.
Its orbit, in the opposite direction from most stars of the galaxy, indicates it is part of a cluster of stars thought to have merged with the Milky Way about eight billion years ago.
At the widest point of its orbit, the star is as far away from Gaia-BH3 as Neptune is from the Sun. At its closest, it is about the distance of Jupiter from the Sun.
The research, which used data from the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT) and other ground-based observatories, will be published in the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics.
Additional reporting by agencies
Church stabbing declared terrorist attack as teenage suspect detained
The attack on a bishop at a church in Sydney on Monday has been declared an act of terrorism by police, as authorities call for calm in the wake of disturbance following the incident.
At least four people were injured in the attack, including Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel, during a service at the Christ The Good Shepherd Church in the suburb of Wakeley in the west of the city.
A 16-year-old boy was arrested during the event, which triggered a riot outside the church. Two officers were injured with one suffering a broken jaw after he was hit with a brick and fence palings. Ten police cars were destroyed.
On Tuesday, New South Wales Police Commissioner Karen Webb declared the church attack a terrorist incident.
And Prime Minister Anthony Albanese urged the public not to take the law into their own hands. “It is not acceptable to impede police and injure police doing their duty or to damage police vehicles in a way that we saw last night,” he added.
The attack came days after six people were killed in a stabbing rampage by Joel Cauchi at Westfield Bondi Junction shopping centre on Saturday. The 40-year-old, who was shot dead, also injured 12 others, including a including a nine-month old baby.
From reefs to rainforests: A nature-lover’s guide to Queensland
From the oldest tropical rainforest on the planet to iridescent everglades, striking marine life and dramatic mountain peaks, Queensland is a paradise for anyone into nature and wildlife. We’ve put together a guide to the best natural spots to visit in each region, with help from the experts at Travelbag, who are on hand to make your dream holiday happen.
Queensland’s vibrant capital, Brisbane offers plenty to lure urbanites with its galleries, museums and restaurants, and it doesn’t fall short on the nature front either.
For an especially tranquil spot, head to the city’s Botanic Gardens, set just outside the centre and home to the biggest collection of Australian native rainforest trees in the world (entry is free). If you fancy getting up close and personal with the local wildlife, swing by the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary – home to a koala research centre alongside various experiences, from wildlife encounters to a Nocturnal Twilight Tour.
Beyond the city itself, you’ll find plenty more to explore; for one of the most jaw-dropping spots, head to the Scenic Rim, a dramatic caldera landscape scattered with soaring peaks, lush valleys and scenic bushwalking trails.
The Gold Coast might be best-known for its beaches, nightlife and family-friendly fun, but as the gateway to several national parks, it’s also a dream for nature-lovers. It’s here you’ll find Lamington National Park and Springbrook National Park – both part of the Unesco-listed Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area, the biggest subtropical rainforest on the planet. Hiking trails lace these tree-carpeted landscapes, with waterfalls, mountains and lush flora for scenery.
Elsewhere, venture to Burleigh Heads National Park to amble between scenic coastline and emerald rainforest, and come between July and October to spot migrating whales as they pass the famous ‘Humpback Highway’.
Just north of Brisbane sits the Sunshine Coast – an idyllic stretch lined with sugary beaches and cerulean sea, and the home of laid-back surf town Noosa.
Among the myriad natural charms here you’ll find the Noosa Everglades – one of only two everglades systems in the world, tucked within a sprawling UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. Nicknamed the ‘river of mirrors’, this network of waterways, tea tree forests and wetlands is home to 40% of Australia’s bird species, with canoe and kayak tours available if you want to see its wildlife from the water.
It’s not just the everglades worth a visit here, though. In the wider Great Sandy National Park, you’ll find hidden-away beaches, tumbling sand dunes and sprawling rainforests – best explored by 4×4 – while elsewhere in the hinterlands lie the Glass House Mountains, a cluster of volcanic, craggy peaks offering excellent hiking and exceptional views.
Much of Queensland’s charm lies beneath the surface, of course, and if you’re looking to explore the region’s colourful marine life, the Whitsunday Islands should be high on your list.
There are plenty of options for sailing trips here, with key spots including the talcum-sand Whitehaven Beach and paradise-worthy Hamilton Island. Book a Whitehaven Camira Sailing Adventure to explore the first, or if you fancy getting properly back to nature, opt for the two-day Reeflseep, which combines snorkelling and optional diving with dinner and a night sleeping under the stars.
There’s more in the way of world-class snorkelling and diving in Cairns – the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef, where dwarf minke whales, manta rays, turtles and groupers inhabit the surrounding waters.
But it’s not only about the marine life here – two hours away sits the Daintree Rainforest; the oldest tropical rainforest in the world, believed to date back around 180 million years. Saltwater crocodiles, kaleidoscopic butterflies and an array of tropical birds inhabit this ancient landscape, with waterfalls, creeks and swimming holes hidden among the trees.
Head out on a riverboat cruise to take it all in, or book an indigenous-led tour to learn more about the Daintree’s Aboriginal people; this vast, heritage-filled wilderness is Australia at its most quintessential, and a perfect symbol of Queensland’s striking diversity.
Book it: Combine Queensland’s natural highlights on Travelbag’s Queensland Ocean & Rainforest Experience, or get in touch with Travelbag’s experts for a private, tailor-made trip to suit.
To ‘take the win’, Israel must now use its head and its heart
David Cameron made an eloquent case for Israel to show restraint as it considers how to respond to Saturday’s drone and missile attack by Iran. In a round of broadcast interviews, the foreign secretary urged Israel to be “smart as well as tough” by refraining from escalating this dangerous conflict, and to “think with head as well as heart”.
Lord Cameron described the state of play as a “double defeat” for Tehran: the attack was repelled, and the rest of the world could see what a “malign influence” Iran is in the region. He echoed Joe Biden in appealing to Israel to “take the win”.
Even his critics acknowledge that Lord Cameron is a good communicator. The former prime minister can encapsulate in a few words an argument it would take other politicians three sentences to spell out. At Westminster, there is predictable gossip that Lord Cameron is upstaging Rishi Sunak, who looks a lot less comfortable when giving his almost-daily pooled TV interview as the “long campaign” for the general election continues.
Can the government expand the Rwanda scheme to other countries?
Britain has begun talks with several other countries about replicating the government’s controversial scheme to deport migrants to Rwanda. The disclosure raised eyebrows because ministers are still awaiting parliamentary approval for legislation to declare Rwanda a safe country after its two-year-old plan was blocked by the Supreme Court. After a further round of ping-pong between the Commons and the Lords, the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill should finally become law later this week.
Negotiations are said to be underway with Armenia, Botswana, Costa Rica and Ivory Coast, which are judged most likely to sign such a “third country asylum processing deal”.