Israel has announced it will close its embassy in Ireland, citing Dublin’s decision last week to support a petition at the international court of justice accusing Israel of genocide.

The move was announced by the Israeli foreign minister, Gideon Sa’ar, who said it was prompted by the Irish government’s “extreme anti-Israeli policies”, noting its decision to join the ICJ petition last week.

The Irish taoiseach, Simon Harris, said on X: “This is a deeply regrettable decision from the Netanyahu government. I utterly reject the assertion that Ireland is anti-Israel. Ireland is pro-peace, pro-human rights and pro-international law.

“Ireland wants a two-state solution and for Israel and Palestine to live in peace and security. Ireland will always speak up for human rights and international law. Nothing will distract from that.”

Israel has not applied similar measures to other countries, including Egypt, Spain, and Mexico, that joined the petition.

The announcement came as the death toll of Palestinians in Gaza approached 45,000 in the war that began with Hamas’s 7 October attack into Israel last year. Dozens of deaths were reported in Israeli strikes on the coastal territory on Sunday.

Announcing the decision to close the embassy, Sa’ar said: “It should be noted that in the past, Israel’s ambassador to Dublin was recalled following Ireland’s unilateral decision to recognise a ‘Palestinian state’.”

He said the decision to close the embassy had been prompted by Ireland’s announcement of its support for South Africa’s legal action against Israel in the ICJ, accusing Israel of ‘genocide’.”

“The antisemitic actions and rhetoric that Ireland is taking against Israel are based on delegitimisation and demonisation of the Jewish state and on double standards,” said Sa’ar.

“Ireland has crossed all red lines in its relationship with Israel. Israel will invest its resources in promoting bilateral relations with the countries of the world according to priorities that are also derived from the attitude of the various countries towards it.

“There are countries that are interested in strengthening their ties with Israel and do not yet have an Israeli embassy,” Sa’ar continued, adding that Israel planned to open a new embassy in Moldova, which is seen as being more friendly to Israel.

“We will adjust the Israeli diplomatic structure of our missions while giving weight, among other things, to the approach and actions of the various countries towards Israel in the political arena,” he said.

Relations between Ireland and Israel have long been strained because of Ireland’s stance on Palestine.

In November, Harris said the country’s authorities would detain his Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu, if he travelled to Ireland, after the international criminal court issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu.

Israel has submitted an appeal against the arrest warrants issued by the ICC for Netanyahu and the former defence minister Yoav Gallant, Army Radio reported on Sunday.

On 21 November, the ICC issued warrants for the two, citing grounds to believe that Netanyahu and Gallant had committed the war crime of starvation and crimes against humanity such as murder and persecution.

The move to close the embassy follows last week’s statement by Micheál Martin, the Tánaiste (Ireland’s second most senior elected official) and minister for foreign affairs, that he had secured government approval for Ireland to intervene in South Africa’s ICJ case against Israel under the genocide convention.

“There has been a collective punishment of the Palestinian people through the intent and impact of military actions of Israel in Gaza, leaving 44,000 dead and millions of civilians displaced,” said Martin.

“By legally intervening in South Africa’s case, Ireland will be asking the ICJ to broaden its interpretation of what constitutes the commission of genocide by a state.

“We are concerned that a very narrow interpretation of what constitutes genocide leads to a culture of impunity in which the protection of civilians is minimised.

“Ireland’s view of the convention is broader and prioritises the protection of civilian life – as a committed supporter of the convention, the government will promote that interpretation in its intervention in this case.”

Israeli forces continued to pound northern Gaza on Sunday, with one airstrike on the Khalil Aweida school in the town of Beit Hanoun killing at least 15 people, according to nearby Kamal Adwan hospital, where casualties were taken.

In Gaza City, at least 17 people, including six women and five children, were killed in three airstrikes that hit houses sheltering displaced people, according to Al-Ahli hospital.

An Israeli airstrike also hit the civil emergency centre in the Nuseirat market area in central Gaza, killing Ahmed Al-Louh, a video journalist for Al Jazeera TV, and five other people, medics and fellow journalists said.

Benjamin Netanyahu has said he spoke to Donald Trump over the weekend about his plans in Syria and efforts to secure the release of hostages in Gaza amid a wave of strikes in the territory.

The Israeli prime minister said in an address on Sunday night: “We had a very friendly, warm and important discussion. We discussed the need to complete Israel’s victory and we spoke at length about the efforts we are making to free our hostages.”

Netanyahu said he spoke to Trump on Saturday night about the issue, which is likely to loom large as one of the main foreign policy challenges facing Trump when he takes office on 20 January. “We will continue to act relentlessly to return home all of our hostages, the living and the deceased,” Netanyahu said.

Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, warned last week during a visit to the region that it would “not be a pretty day” if the hostages held in Gaza were not released before Trump’s inauguration.

A Trump spokesperson on Sunday declined to give further details about the call. Trump said earlier this month there would be “hell to pay” in the Middle East if the hostages were not released before he came into office.

A bid by Egypt, Qatar and the US to reach a truce, which would also include a hostage deal, has gained momentum in recent weeks, though there has been no news of a breakthrough.

In Sunday’s statement, Netanyahu said Israel’s military had carried out intensive action in Syria to destroy “the capabilities that the Assad regime took decades to build” and attack Hezbollah supply routes running through Syria to prevent the group from rearming.

Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on Syria’s strategic weapons stockpiles in the days since Assad’s ousting and moved troops into a demilitarised zone inside Syria.

The strikes continued over the weekend, despite the Syrian rebel leader, Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, saying his Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group was not interested in conflict with Israel.

Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, a nom de guerre used by Ahmed al-Sharaa, told Syrian state media: “There are no excuses for any foreign intervention in Syria now after the Iranians have left. We are not in the process of engaging in a conflict with Israel.”

Jolani said Israel was using false pretexts to justify its attacks on Syria, but that he was not interested in engaging in new conflicts as the country focused on rebuilding after the end of Assad’s reign.

Netanyahu announced earlier on Sunday that he had approved a plan to expand settlement building in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. He justified his announcement by citing “the war and the new front facing Syria” and a desire to double the Israeli population in the area.

The UN has called on Israel to withdraw from the buffer zone, which sits between Syria and the Israeli-occupied area. The UN secretary general, António Guterres, said he was “deeply concerned by the recent and extensive violations of Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity”.

In Gaza, Israeli strikes killed at least 53 Palestinians, including a journalist and rescue workers, medics said on Sunday, and the Israeli military said its air and ground forces in the north of the territory killed dozens of militants and captured others.

An airstrike hit the civil emergency centre in the Nuseirat market area in the central Gaza Strip, killing Ahmed Al-Louh, a video journalist for Al Jazeera TV, and five other people, medics and fellow journalists said. Another strike on a house in Nuseirat camp killed five people, including children, according to medics.

The TV network said Al-Louh was working when he was killed and criticised Israel, calling on the international community to act on what it called an “alarming trend” in the targeting of journalists.

The Israeli military said the strike had targeted Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants operating from Gaza’s Civil Defence’s Nuseirat office. It named Al-Louh as a member of the militant group Islamic Jihad, without providing evidence.

At least 11 people were killed in three Israel Defense Forces (IDF) airstrikes on houses in Gaza City, while nine were killed in the towns of Beit Lahiya, Beit Hanoun and Jabalia camp when clusters of houses were bombed or set ablaze, and two were killed in Rafah, medics and residents said.

The Israeli military said the three Gaza City houses belonged to militants planning imminent attacks. It said steps were taken to reduce risk to civilians, including the use of precise munitions and aerial surveillance. The IDF issued a photo showing the weapons it seized in Beit Lahiya that included explosives and dozens of grenades. In Beit Hanoun, the IDF said it struck dozens of militants from the air and on the ground and captured others.

In southern Gaza’s Khan Younis, medics said that at least 20 people, including women and children, were killed when an airstrike hit a shelter housing displaced families.

The IDF did not immediately comment on the Khan Younis attack.

With Reuters

Damascus appeared to be adjusting to a new normality a week after Islamist-led rebels forced president Bashar al-Assad to flee the country, with schools and universities reopening on the first day of the working week.

Ali Allaham, the dean of Damascus University’s arts faculty, told AFP that 80% of staff and a “large number of students” had arrived on campus. About 30% of children had returned to one school, a staff member said, and that was expected to rise in the coming days.

Petrol shortages also appeared to ease, with cars queuing to fill up and people stopping to buy plastic containers from street vendors, while shopkeepers were busy scrubbing the old regime’s flag from their premises, repainting walls and shutters white.

Sunday church services were conducted as normal, and by nightfall in Bab Touma, a Christian part of the Old City area of Damascus, restaurants and bars opened for the first time since Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and other rebel groups stormed the capital.

The performance of the Syrian pound also augured well – it strengthened by 20% against the US dollar on Sunday, its best performance since the economic crash of 2021 and a huge boon in a country where 90% of the population live below the poverty line.

It is hoped the airport in Damascus will reopen later this week.

Celebrations have by no means stopped; there was a spontaneous gathering in the main courtyard of Damascus University, where students vandalised and stamped on a toppled statue of Hafez al-Assad, Bashar’s father, who seized power in 1971.

Others waved the three-star opposition flag and chanted slogans and sang songs associated with the Arab Spring pro-democracy protests in 2011. The faces of many schoolchildren in uniform were painted in the green, red, black and white of the flag’s colours.

Meanwhile, early attempts at accountability and justice for the regime’s crimes against its people are gathering pace amid warnings from the UN’s special envoy to Syria, Geir Pederson, that justice must be delivered through a “credible system” rather than revenge. Desire for retribution against Assad officials and members of his Alawite sect are strong: Hafez al-Assad’s tomb in Qardaha was burned down by armed men last week.

The Islamist HTS’s leader, Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, now using his real name, Ahmed al-Sharaa, has repeatedly called for unity and respect among Syria’s diverse ethnic and religious communities and emphasised that HTS will help the country rebuild. He has also promised that the state will take control over all weapons and a new government will be formed.

The international community is cautiously engaging with HTS, which remains a proscribed terrorist group in many western states. The UK foreign secretary, David Lammy, said on Sunday that the UK has already had “diplomatic contact” with the group.

“Using all the channels that we have available, and those are diplomatic and, of course, intelligence-led channels, we seek to deal with HTS where we have to,” he said.

The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, also confirmed there has been direct communication between Joe Biden’s administration and HTS. Blinken has just finished talks with Jordan, Turkey and Iraq with the aim of trying to shape the future of a post-Assad Syria by building consensus in the region, even as Turkey remains at loggerheads with Kurdish factions based in Syria and Israel has seized control of a formerly demilitarised zone in the disputed Golan Heights.

In a joint statement, the US, Turkey, the EU and Arab countries called for a Syrian-led transition to “produce an inclusive, non-sectarian and representative government formed through a transparent process”.

A delegation from Qatar, which backed Sunni Arab rebels in Syria’s war, was due to arrive in Damascus on Sunday, while France said that it would send a team of diplomats to the Syrian capital next week to assess the political and security situation.

Turkey, which supports an umbrella of Sunni Arab rebel groups but not HTS, has already sent intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin to Damascus for talks with al-Sharaa, and has reopened its embassy.

Israel struck dozens of sites in Syria overnight with airstrikes, despite the Syrian rebel leader, Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, saying his Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group was not interested in conflict with Israel.

Jolani’s comments came as Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, announced on Sunday that he had approved a plan to expand settlement building in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

The latest airstrikes follow a statement by Israel’s defence minister, Israel Katz, that Israeli troops, who seized the Golan Heights buffer zone with Syria last week, would remain for the winter on Mount Hermon – known to Syrians as Jabel Sheikh – in positions they occupied last week.

Katz’s office said in a statement that “due to what is happening in Syria, there is enormous security importance to our holding on to the peak”.

Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, a nom de guerre used by Ahmed al-Sharaa, told Syrian state media: “There are no excuses for any foreign intervention in Syria now after the Iranians have left. We are not in the process of engaging in a conflict with Israel.”

Jolani said Israel was using false pretexts to justify its attacks on Syria, but that he was not interested in engaging in new conflicts as the country focused on rebuilding after the end of Bashar al-Assad’s reign.

He added that “diplomatic solutions” were the only way to ensure stability rather than “ill-considered military adventures”.

“Israeli arguments have become weak and no longer justify their recent violations. The Israelis have clearly crossed the lines of engagement in Syria, which poses a threat of unwarranted escalation in the region,” Jolani said.

“Syria’s war-weary condition, after years of conflict and war, does not allow for new confrontations. The priority at this stage is reconstruction and stability, not being drawn into disputes that could lead to further destruction.”

The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Israel fired 61 missiles at Syrian military sites in less than five hours on Saturday evening.

Israeli air raids hit bases, heavy weapons, sites associated with the former Assad regime’s missile and chemical weapons programme, and destroyed Syria’s small naval force in port of Latakia.

The continuing strikes have prompted mounting concern among diplomats and international officials concerned over what they fear may be an open-ended new occupation of Syrian territory and Israel’s agenda in the Syrian buffer zone.

Saudi Arabia on Sunday condemned Israel’s plan for the Golan Heights as “sabotage”. In a statement, Riyadh’s foreign ministry expressed “condemnation and denunciation” of the plan, which it called part of “continued sabotage of opportunities to restore security and stability in Syria”.

Netanyahu justified his announcement of plans to expand Israeli settlements in the part of the Golan Heights the country initially occupied in 1973 “in light of the war and the new front facing Syria” and a desire to double the Israeli population in the area.

“Strengthening the Golan is strengthening the state of Israel, and it is especially important at this time. We will continue to hold on to it, cause it to blossom and settle in it,” he said in the statement.

The UN has called on Israel to withdraw from the buffer zone, which sits between Syria and the Israeli-occupied area. The UN secretary general, António Guterres, said he was “deeply concerned by the recent and extensive violations of Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity”.

France, Germany and Spain have also called on Israel to withdraw from the demilitarised zone.

The UN has said Israel is in violation of a 1974 disengagement agreement between Israel and Syria that established the buffer zone. Israel has said the 1974 disengagement agreement “collapsed” with the fall of the Assad regime government.

Responding to Jolani, the Israel Defense Forces chief of staff, Herzi Halevi, said: “We aren’t intervening in what is happening in Syria. We have no intention of administering Syria.”

“There was an enemy country here. Its army collapsed. There is a threat that terror elements will come here, and we advanced so … extreme terror elements won’t settle close to the border with us.

“We are unequivocally intervening only in what determines Israeli citizens’ security. The deployment along the entire border, from Mt Hermon to the meeting of the Israeli-Syrian-Jordanian border, is proper.”

According to reports, among the sites hit over the weekend were military headquarters, Syrian army positions, radars, and arms caches and assets of the Syrian Scientific Studies and Research Center, which was responsible for developing advanced weapons.

Israel also estimates it has destroyed much of the Syrian air force’s infrastructure and aircraft.

Medics also announced on Sunday night that at least 15 Palestinians had been killed and others injured in an airstrike on a shelter for displaced people in Gaza’s Khan Younis.

The scale of the Israeli bombing campaign has surprised many western capitals, who had believed that any Israeli strikes would be limited to chemical weapons and missiles sites rather than an effort aimed at the wholesale destruction of the Syria’s military, which has had 70% of its capabilities destroyed in hundreds of attacks.

The latest Israeli air raids came as the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, wound up talks with Jordan, Turkey and Iraq with the aim of trying to shape the future of a post-Assad Syria by forging consensus among regional partners and allies whose interests often diverge.

“We know that what happens inside of Syria can have powerful consequences well beyond its borders, from mass displacement to terrorism,” he told reporters in Aqaba, Jordan. “And we know that we can’t underestimate the challenges of this moment.”

Blinken also confirmed contacts between the Biden administration and Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.

Blinken would not discuss details of the direct contacts with HTS but said it was important for the US to convey messages to the group about its conduct and how it intended to govern in a transition period.

Han Dong-hoon has resigned as leader of South Korea’s ruling People Power party, saying his position has become untenable after his dramatic decision to support President Yoon Suk Yeol’s impeachment at the weekend.

“Martial law in the advanced nation that is South Korea, in 2024. How angry and disappointed must you have all been?” he said at a press conference on Monday.

His announcement came as the constitutional court said it had begun reviewing Yoon’s impeachment, without giving further details. Investigators also plan to question the president this week, according to Yonhap news.

Han, once Yoon’s closest ally and former justice minister, defended his decision to break with the president after he attempted to impose martial law earlier this month.

“Even though [the martial law] was done by a president our party produced, being misunderstood as defending illegal martial law that mobilised the military is a betrayal of this great country,” he said, adding he had been “terrified” of potential bloodshed between citizens and soldiers if martial law had not been lifted.

“I tried in every possible way to find a better path for this country other than impeachment, but in the end, I could not. It’s all because of my shortcomings. I’m sorry.”

The resignation marks the final rupture in a once-close alliance between Han and Yoon, who worked together in the prosecution service before Yoon’s rise to the presidency.

Their relationship began showing signs of strain earlier this year, when Han broke ranks to suggest the presidential couple should apologise over allegations that the first lady had accepted a luxury Dior bag.

The breaking point came after revelations that Han was among several politicians, including opposition figures, whom Yoon had ordered arrested during his brief declaration of martial law.

Han subsequently urged ruling party lawmakers to support the president’s impeachment, saying Yoon posed “a great danger” to democracy. His stance represented an extraordinary reversal for someone who had served as Yoon’s justice minister and was long considered his closest political ally and protégé.

The rift reflects deeper divisions within South Korea’s conservative movement, with Han representing a younger, seemingly more reform-minded faction increasingly at odds with Yoon’s more traditional power base.

On Monday, all six current justices of the constitutional court attended the first meeting over the impeachment of Yoon, which the opposition-led parliament passed on Saturday. The court has up to six months to decide whether to remove Yoon from office or to reinstate him.

If Yoon is dismissed, a national election to choose his successor must be held within 60 days. Until then, his powers have been suspended and prime minister Han Duck-soo appointed as acting president.

Yoon and a number of senior officials face potential charges of insurrection, abuse of authority and obstructing people from exercising their rights for the short-lived martial law.

A joint team of investigators from the police, the defence ministry and an anti-corruption agency are planning to call in Yoon for questioning on Wednesday, Yonhap news reported.

The investigators’ office could not be immediately reached for confirmation.

On Sunday Yoon did not appear in response to a summons for questioning by a separate investigation by the prosecutors’ office, Yonhap news reported.

In a late-night emergency television address to the nation on 3 December, Yoon announced he was imposing martial law, accusing the opposition of paralysing the government with “anti-state activities”.

The imposition of martial law – the first of its kind in more than four decades – lasted only six hours, and hundreds of troops and police officers sent by Yoon to the national assembly withdrew after the president’s decree was overturned. No major violence occurred.

Prime minister Han Duck-soo, who became South Korea’s acting president after Saturday’s impeachment of Yoon Suk Yeol, is a career technocrat whose wide-ranging experience and reputation for rationality could serve him well in his latest role.

With parliament’s impeachment vote against Yoon passed after his short-lived attempt to impose martial law, Yoon is suspended from exercising presidential powers, and the constitution requires the prime minister to take over in an acting role.

In a country sharply divided by partisan rhetoric, Han has been a rare official whose varied career transcended party lines.

He faces a challenging task of keeping government functioning through its gravest political crisis in four decades, while also dealing with threats from nuclear-armed neighbour North Korea and a slowing economy at home.

His tenure as acting president could also be threatened by criminal investigations into his role in the martial law decision.

Han, 75, has served in leadership positions for more than three decades under five different presidents, both conservative and liberal.

His roles have included ambassador to the United States, finance minister, trade minister, presidential secretary for policy coordination, prime minister, ambassador to the OECD, and head of various thinktanks and organisations.

With a Harvard doctorate in economics, Han’s expertise in the economy, trade and diplomacy as well as a reputation for rationality, moderate demeanour and hard work has made him a regular go-to man in South Korean politics.

Han has been prime minister since Yoon’s term began in 2022, his second time serving in the role after a stint as prime minister under then president Roh Moo-hyun in 2007-2008.

“He has served in key posts in state affairs solely through recognition of his skills and expertise, unrelated to political factions,” Yoon said when appointing Han in 2022, echoing words used to describe him when previous administrations tapped him for key positions.

“I think Han is the right candidate to carry out national affairs while overseeing and coordinating the cabinet, with a wealth of experience that encompasses public and private sectors.”

Han has experience working with South Korea’s key ally the US, having been deeply involved in the process of signing the US-South Korea Free Trade Agreement.

Fluent in English, he was appointed South Korea’s ambassador to the US in 2009, working in Washington at a time when Joe Biden was vice-president, and contributed to Congress approving the Free Trade Agreement in 2011.

Han has also served as board member of S-Oil, a South Korean refining unit of Saudi Aramco.

“He is a civil servant through and through who didn’t take on a political colour despite working under [five presidents],” said a former high-ranking government official who declined to be identified.

Han’s role in leadership is expected to last for months until the constitutional court decides whether to remove Yoon or restore his powers. If Yoon is removed, a presidential election must be held in 60 days, until which Han will stay at the helm.

The main opposition Democratic party has filed a complaint against Han to be included in the investigations for failing to block Yoon’s attempt at martial law.

If parliament decides to impeach Han, the finance minister is next in line among cabinet members to serve as acting president.

South Korea’s constitution does not specify how much the prime minister is empowered to do in carrying out the leadership role.

Most scholars say the prime minister must exercise limited authority to the extent of preventing paralysis of state affairs and no more, although some say he can exercise all the powers of the president, as the constitution includes no restrictions.

MPs fear the government is moving too fast to re-establish UK-China relations as some consider naming the alleged spy who used his relationship with Prince Andrew to get access to the heart of the British establishment

Ministers will come under pressure this week to set a timeline to revive the foreign influence registration scheme (FIRS), which had been delayed until next year, and to put China on the enhanced category for threats.

Labour MPs are among those urging caution about the government’s warmer approach to China after the new revelations about the closeness of the now-expelled Chinese businessman to the Duke of York.

The former security minister Tom Tugendhat told the Guardian that the enhanced tier of the scheme had been “specifically designed” to tackle the operations of the Chinese organisation apparently connected to the expelled businessman. However, there is still a question mark over whether China will be designated in that category by the Labour government.

FIRS requires individuals or entities to register where they are directed by a foreign power to carry out political influence activities and there is an enhanced category for some nations, likely to include Russia and Iran.

Conservatives have claimed the scheme was ready to be put into force by the last government but the Labour security minister, Dan Jarvis, said in a letter in October that preparations for the introduction of the scheme by the last government were not sufficient.

A Home Office source said the Conservatives had not left the scheme in a fit state to be enacted but that it was still the government’s intention for it to come into force.

There is a court anonymity order protecting the identity of the alleged spy, though that may be lifted.

Chris Philp, the shadow home secretary, said the spy should be named. “I hope the court change or cancel their anonymity order. There may be other people who have had contact with that person,” he told LBC.

Nigel Farage said he expected Reform UK MPs to attempt to name the businessman in the House of Commons this week under parliamentary privilege.

The former Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith is seeking an urgent question in the House of Commons on Monday or a government statement where he hopes to put new pressure on the government on FIRS.

The revelations come at an awkward moment for the UK government’s attempted reset of relations with Beijing, embraced by both Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves in a push for healthier economic growth.

Reeves is expected to visit China in the second week of January, followed by Starmer later in the year, which would be the first by a British prime minister in seven years.

There is growing unease about the government’s approach to China among some on the Labour benches and among trade unions. Five new Labour MPs have joined the China-sceptic group – the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC).

The Labour MP Blair McDougall, a member of IPAC who sits on the foreign affairs select committee, said: “This is a reminder you cannot separate one aspect of the relationship with China from others. China is not only looking at the world in commercial terms. We cannot be the naive ones in the relationship with China.

“My view of relationships with authoritarian countries is that if you give them an inch, they take a mile. What may seem like an overreaction is actually a warning. We’ve been here before with Russia, where we try and have a positive relationship, and we let relatively small acts of aggression or espionage go. We’ve got to learn that lesson in terms of our relationship with China.”

Duncan Smith, one of the co-chairs of IPAC, will submit an urgent question on the influence of the United Front Work Department – the shadowy organisation that is said to be connected to the alleged spy – described as one of the “magic weapons” of the Chinese Communist party. The purpose of the department is to befriend influential figures and win them over to China’s way of thinking.

“We want to know: what’s happening to the risk register? Are you planning to continue with it? And are you going to put China in the upper tier? So they’re going to come under pressure,” Duncan Smith told the Guardian.

Tugendhat said he believed FIRS would have captured the activities of the alleged spy, had it been in force. He told the Guardian it was vital China was in the enhanced category in order to detect the work of the United Front.

“The FIRS scheme is specifically designed to understand and protect against the work of United Front Work Department actions in the United Kingdom. It’s essential that China is on the enhanced scheme, to protect against this kind of attempt at influence.

“This doesn’t make Chinese citizens or businesses illegal, it gives a starting point for investigations and gives our intelligence services the tools they need to protect against this kind of espionage.

Duncan Smith said he did not know if an attempt to name the alleged operative in parliament would be successful. “It is ironic if parliament becomes the only place globally where nobody is allowed to name the guy – and this individual has been spying on this country.”

It was revealed over the weekend that Prince Andrew had been pictured alongside the man now banned from Britain in photographs at St James’ Palace.

The businessman, who had roles at key UK-China business groups, was filmed for a Chinese television documentary where he showed photographs of himself alongside the former prime minister David Cameron, in Downing Street and alongside the former prime minister Theresa May and her husband, Philip May.

According to court documents, the businessman was so close to the Duke of York, he was authorised to act on his behalf in an international financial initiative with potential partners and investors in China.

When the businessman’s phone was searched, officials uncovered a letter from March 2020 from Dominic Hampshire, a senior adviser to Prince Andrew, which referred to him being invited to the duke’s birthday party that month and said: “Outside of his closest internal confidants, you sit at the very top of a tree that many, many people would like to be on.”

In a rare statement, issued through his office, Andrew insisted he “ceased all contact” with the alleged spy, known as H6, after concerns were raised, and that “nothing of a sensitive nature was ever discussed”.

The letter also suggested the relationship had a potentially secretive nature, and said: “We have found a way to carefully remove those people who we don’t completely trust … we found a way to get the relevant people unnoticed in and out of the house in Windsor.”

A document was also found on the businessman’s phone that had “main talking points” for a call with the duke, which said he was “in a ‘desperate situation and will grab on to anything’.”

In the judgment this month, which upheld the alleged spy’s exclusion from the UK, the judge found he had “won a significant degree, one could say an unusual degree, of trust from a senior member of the royal family who was prepared to enter into business activities with him.”

The royal family’s Christmas Day walk from Sandringham House to St Mary Magdalene church in Norfolk is a longstanding tradition. But it has also become a barometer of internal pressures.

So, all eyes will be on whether the Duke of York is among family members walking alongside the king and queen this Christmas after the alleged Chinese spy controversy.

Royal sources have reportedly revealed Charles is still considering the optics, and whether or not to ban his younger brother from this very public part of the royals’ festivities, which attracts crowds of wellwishers.

After the Jeffrey Epstein scandal broke, though Andrew did not walk with the others to the 11am service in 2019, he was photographed walking side-by-side with Charles to a private 9am service. It was clear acknowledgment of his family’s firm support after his catastrophic Newsnight interview, and that while no longer having a public profile he very much retained his position as a senior member of the family.

He has been included since Charles’s 2022 accession. His exclusion this year, therefore, “would be confirmation that the relationship between the two had soured”, said Craig Prescott, author of Modern Monarchy, out in 2025, and a lecturer at Royal Holloway, University of London. “That would be a clear sign of Charles, at least, wanting to try and diminish the issue.”

News, released in court documents last week, that an alleged Chinese spy, now banned from the UK, formed links at the heart of the British establishment and previously became close to Andrew, has thrown the spotlight on the duke’s two main vulnerabilities: judgment – or lack of it – and finances.

In a rare statement, issued through his office, Andrew has insisted he “ceased all contact” with the alleged spy, known as H6, after concerns were raised, and that “nothing of a sensitive nature was ever discussed”. According to the court documents, H6 was told he could act on Andrew’s behalf when dealing with potential investors in China.

The problem the institution faces is what to do with Andrew, now and in the future.

Since the Epstein scandal, the duke’s car-crash Newsnight interview, and his out-of-court settlement, despite his denial of any wrongdoing, to Virginia Giuffre, he has lost his HRH status, his patronages and, recently, financial support from the king.

He no longer has the institutional support of the monarchy and its advisers – although history shows he often ignores advice. He receives nothing from the sovereign grant. It is not known what he may have inherited from the late queen, or his father, the Duke of Edinburgh.

“His finances have always been a mystery in many ways,” said Prescott. “Just where does he get the money from to live in the manner to which he has become accustomed?”

This includes the estimated £3m annual security bill for his 30-room home, Royal Lodge, Windsor, which he leases from the crown estate, and its upkeep, having reportedly turned down a request from Charles to move to the five-bedroom Frogmore Cottage, the former marital home of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

Buckingham Palace insists it no longer speaks for Andrew, as he is a non-working royal. Indeed, the palace is reportedly unable to exert any control over how the duke funds his lifestyle. Officials are said to have concluded they have no authority or legal right to examine his financial affairs and must simply rely on his word that his income is from legitimate sources.

“It’s very difficult to work out just what someone like Prince Andrew can do,” said Prescott. “He’ll continue to have this need for money and will always be on the hunt of it, you would imagine.

“The king has tried. He’s offered him a soft landing of Frogmore Cottage, which would have reduced his security, reduced his running costs, reduced, you imagine, his need for money.”

Now virtually a prisoner at Royal Lodge, one solution Andrew may be contemplating is moving abroad, according to reports.

Sources close to the government of the United Arab Emirates claim the duke is considering a permanent move to the Gulf, where his royal status would still confer a degree of respect, according to the Sunday Times. This would likely further alarm the royal family.

One of Andrew’s blind spots appears to be his vulnerability. In a document, referred to in a court ruling, the unnamed Chinese business contact described the prince as being “in a desperate situation and will grab on to anything”.

“The alarm bells didn’t ring for him,” said Prescott. “He could ultimately have been put in a very, very compromised position had MI5 not raised the alarm, ultimately.”

A Chinese businessman who some have claimed is regarded as a close confidante of the Duke of York lost his appeal against a decision to bar him from entering the UK on national security grounds. Known only as H6, who is he and what are his links to Prince Andrew?

On Sunday afternoon, the Bishop of Townsville received an anonymous text message he’d spent nearly two decades waiting for: “Wheels up, the Bali 5 are on their way back to Australia”.

Timothy Harris, who provided pastoral care to the families of Scott Rush and Michael Czugaj after their arrest in 2005, immediately called Scott’s father, Lee. A short time later, they confirmed a plane carrying his son had landed in the Northern Territory.

“Their lost son has come home,” Harris said.

“Of course, they’re elated, but they know it is going to take a lot of effort to make sure the next part of Scott’s life is catered for with dignity and without a great deal of fuss.

“Every day of the last 20 years has been a nightmare for them.”

Rush, Czugaj, Matthew Norman, Si-Yi Chen and Martin Stephens have returned to Australia after the Indonesian government agreed to commute the rest of their life sentences for drug smuggling on humanitarian grounds.

A statement released on behalf of the five men and their families said they were “immensely grateful” to Indonesia’s president, Prabowo Subianto, and his government, as well as successive Australian foreign ministers who had advocated for their release.

The statement said the five men were “relieved and happy” to be back in Australia and that they looked forward to “reintegrating back into and contributing to society”.

But Harris said joining an Australian society they may no longer recognise would be very difficult.

“All sorts of things are going on at the moment in the Northern Territory, I know that much, to prepare them for what might come at them,” Harris said.

“Health is going to be an issue. The human body can only take so much. To be incarcerated like that for nearly 20 years has taken its toll.”

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, confirmed the Australian government would support their “rehabilitation and reintegration”. The five men have been placed in temporary accommodation.

“After 19 years in Indonesian prison, it was time for them to come home,” Albanese said on Monday morning.

“I had the opportunity to speak to a number of the parents last night of these people. They are grateful that their sons have been able to return home.

“They did a serious crime and they have rightly paid a serious price for it. But it was time for them to come home.”

Harris said some of the men had formed personal relationships in Indonesia that would be difficult to leave. Matthew Norman and Martin Stephens have both married while in prison.

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The terms of their repatriation state they cannot return to Indonesia. It is not known whether their spouses will be issued visas.

“Some of the hearts will be back in Indonesia,” Harris said. “I’m sure there is a bit of an [emotional] tug-of-war going on. There may be mixed feelings.”

The opposition leader, Peter Dutton, said he had spoken with the prime minister about the repatriation and did not repeat earlier criticisms of the deal made by some opposition MPs.

“These people don’t come back as heroes of our country,” Dutton said. “They haven’t been in political captivity. They have been sentenced under the rules of law that operate in that country for trying to import heroin.

“At a personal level and for their families, particularly coming into Christmas, you can understand the excitement and the relief that they’ll have.”

Indonesia’s senior minister for legal affairs, Yusril Ihza Mahendra, who struck the repatriation deal with Australia’s home affairs minister, Tony Burke, said the transfer was “reciprocal in nature”.

“If one day our government requests the transfer of Indonesian prisoners in Australia, the Australian government is also obliged to consider it,” he said in a statement.

But on Monday morning, when asked if there were “any payback arrangements expected” as part of the deal with Indonesia, Albanese said “no”.

The Bali Nine were charged and convicted with trying to smuggle 8.3kg of heroin out of Indonesia in April 2005.

The ringleaders of the drug-smuggling operation, Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan, were sentenced to death and executed by firing squad in Indonesia in 2015. Another member, Tan Duc Than Nguyen, died of cancer in 2018.

The only female member of the group, Renae Lawrence, had her sentence commuted in 2018 and was returned to Australia.

On Sunday afternoon, the Bishop of Townsville received an anonymous text message he’d spent nearly two decades waiting for: “Wheels up, the Bali 5 are on their way back to Australia”.

Timothy Harris, who provided pastoral care to the families of Scott Rush and Michael Czugaj after their arrest in 2005, immediately called Scott’s father, Lee. A short time later, they confirmed a plane carrying his son had landed in the Northern Territory.

“Their lost son has come home,” Harris said.

“Of course, they’re elated, but they know it is going to take a lot of effort to make sure the next part of Scott’s life is catered for with dignity and without a great deal of fuss.

“Every day of the last 20 years has been a nightmare for them.”

Rush, Czugaj, Matthew Norman, Si-Yi Chen and Martin Stephens have returned to Australia after the Indonesian government agreed to commute the rest of their life sentences for drug smuggling on humanitarian grounds.

A statement released on behalf of the five men and their families said they were “immensely grateful” to Indonesia’s president, Prabowo Subianto, and his government, as well as successive Australian foreign ministers who had advocated for their release.

The statement said the five men were “relieved and happy” to be back in Australia and that they looked forward to “reintegrating back into and contributing to society”.

But Harris said joining an Australian society they may no longer recognise would be very difficult.

“All sorts of things are going on at the moment in the Northern Territory, I know that much, to prepare them for what might come at them,” Harris said.

“Health is going to be an issue. The human body can only take so much. To be incarcerated like that for nearly 20 years has taken its toll.”

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, confirmed the Australian government would support their “rehabilitation and reintegration”. The five men have been placed in temporary accommodation.

“After 19 years in Indonesian prison, it was time for them to come home,” Albanese said on Monday morning.

“I had the opportunity to speak to a number of the parents last night of these people. They are grateful that their sons have been able to return home.

“They did a serious crime and they have rightly paid a serious price for it. But it was time for them to come home.”

Harris said some of the men had formed personal relationships in Indonesia that would be difficult to leave. Matthew Norman and Martin Stephens have both married while in prison.

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The terms of their repatriation state they cannot return to Indonesia. It is not known whether their spouses will be issued visas.

“Some of the hearts will be back in Indonesia,” Harris said. “I’m sure there is a bit of an [emotional] tug-of-war going on. There may be mixed feelings.”

The opposition leader, Peter Dutton, said he had spoken with the prime minister about the repatriation and did not repeat earlier criticisms of the deal made by some opposition MPs.

“These people don’t come back as heroes of our country,” Dutton said. “They haven’t been in political captivity. They have been sentenced under the rules of law that operate in that country for trying to import heroin.

“At a personal level and for their families, particularly coming into Christmas, you can understand the excitement and the relief that they’ll have.”

Indonesia’s senior minister for legal affairs, Yusril Ihza Mahendra, who struck the repatriation deal with Australia’s home affairs minister, Tony Burke, said the transfer was “reciprocal in nature”.

“If one day our government requests the transfer of Indonesian prisoners in Australia, the Australian government is also obliged to consider it,” he said in a statement.

But on Monday morning, when asked if there were “any payback arrangements expected” as part of the deal with Indonesia, Albanese said “no”.

The Bali Nine were charged and convicted with trying to smuggle 8.3kg of heroin out of Indonesia in April 2005.

The ringleaders of the drug-smuggling operation, Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan, were sentenced to death and executed by firing squad in Indonesia in 2015. Another member, Tan Duc Than Nguyen, died of cancer in 2018.

The only female member of the group, Renae Lawrence, had her sentence commuted in 2018 and was returned to Australia.

The five remaining members of the Bali Nine jailed for life over a drug smuggling plot have returned to Australia under a deal negotiated with the Indonesian government, describing themselves as “relieved and happy”.

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, confirmed that Scott Rush, Matthew Norman, Si-Yi Chen, Martin Stephens and Michael Czugaj returned to Australia from Indonesia on Sunday afternoon.

Having served almost 20 years in jail in Indonesia, the men have had the rest of their life sentences commuted on humanitarian grounds on the condition that they continue rehabilitation in Australia. They are now free but are banned from returning to Indonesia. There was no diplomatic quid pro quo, Guardian Australia understands.

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In a statement released on behalf of the men and their families, the group said they were “immensely grateful” to Indonesia’s president, Prabowo Subianto, and his government as well as successive foreign ministers in Australia who had advocated for their release

“A special mention should be made of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Dfat,” the statement continued. “In both Australia and Indonesia, at both a senior level and in prison visits and personal assistance, over many years, Dfat have offered professional and enduring support.

“The men and their families will always be grateful. The men and their families thank all those who have assisted them to reach this point. In particular, they thank their Indonesian lawyers, friends in Indonesia, academics and others in Australia, and numerous friends in Australia. This support has been essential and invaluable.”

The statement said that the five men were “relieved and happy” to be back in Australia and that they looked forward to “reintegrating back into and contributing to society”.

In a statement, Albanese said the government “would like to convey our deep appreciation to the government of Indonesia for its cooperation to facilitate the men’s return to Australia on humanitarian grounds,” adding his thanks to the president, Prabowo Subianto, for his “act of compassion”.

“This reflects the strong bilateral relationship and mutual respect between Indonesia and Australia. These Australians served more than 19 years in prison in Indonesia. It was time for them to come home.

“They will now have the opportunity to continue their rehabilitation and reintegration here in Australia.”

The Bali Nine were charged and convicted with trying to smuggle 8.3kg of heroin out of Indonesia in April 2005.

The ringleaders of the drug-smuggling operation, Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan, were sentenced to death and executed by firing squad in Indonesia in 2015. Another member, Tan Duc Than Nguyen, died of cancer in 2018.

The only female member of the group, Renae Lawrence, had her sentence commuted in 2018 and was returned to Australia.

Albanese said on Sunday that Australia shared Indonesia’s concern about “the serious problem illicit drugs represents” and the two nations would continue to work together to combat it.

Guardian Australia has been told the federal government would provide short-term accommodation for the five men who returned on Sunday. They would have access to medical and other support.

Their life sentences were effectively converted to 20 years, meaning they are considered to have been completed. The Australian government hopes the agreement with Indonesia might serve as a model for future cases.

Australia’s home affairs minister, Tony Burke, signed a ministerial agreement with his Indonesian counterpart to seal the arrangement, which was not a prisoner transfer because the countries’ respective legal systems did not allow for that. The deal was signed after to Burke’s visit to Indonesia this month.

Australian government officials declined to provide details of the men’s location for privacy reasons. They are understood to have returned by commercial aircraft, accompanied by Australian consular officials, and have undertaken voluntarily to continue a rehabilitation program – the details of which were unavailable.

The Australian government consistently raised the case of the Bali Nine with Indonesia. In November Albanese discussed it with Subianto on the sidelines of the Apec summit in Lima.

Since then there has been speculation that an agreement was imminent that would return the five men to Australia.

A 16-year-old boy in New Mexico allegedly killed four members of his family and then drunkenly turned himself in Saturday, investigators said.

The New Mexico state police said in a Facebook post that the teen was arrested in Belén, a small city in Valencia county, after he called authorities late at night and informed them he killed his family.

When the police arrived, the boy – identified as Diego Leyva – walked out of his home with his hands in the air and in an “extremely intoxicated” state, according to a statement from investigators. Inside the home, officers said they found a gun on the kitchen table and the bodies of the deceased family members.

New Mexico state police said they arrested Levya and booked him as an adult on four counts of murder. He was also brought to a hospital to undergo detoxification while investigators and crime scene technicians prepared to interview him, police added.

Members of the Valencia county community expressed a sense of disbelief Sunday after learning the identity of the accused killer. One of his former teachers said she was in disbelief that one of her students could have allegedly carried out such a horrendous act.

“I would never have thought that something like this would happen and that Diego would be capable of doing something like this” Vanessa LaGrange told the Guardian. “Everyone’s in shock.”

The identities of the victims were not immediately released on Sunday. However, according to LaGrange, one of the victims is believed to be a student at a middle school where other students are planning to wear black and bring balloons to mourn.

Meanwhile, the fire chief for the Valencia county fire department, Matt Propp, said: “We have every reason to believe that one of the victims is a volunteer firefighter.”

The killings that unfolded on Saturday were consistent with the type of crime that since the 1980s has been referred to as a “family annihilation”. Saturday’s killings were the 29th mass murder in the US so far this year, according to statistics from the non-partisan Gun Violence Archive, which defines a mass murder as one in which four or more victims are killed.

There is no centralized database for family annihilations that could provide insights into that kind of crime’s characteristics or prevalence. But the overwhelming majority of such cases involve a male killer armed with a gun who kills himself after murdering multiple close family members.

Local communities typically treat such cases as isolated tragedies, though a 2023 Indianapolis Star investigation found they had occurred across the US – on average – once every five days.

Annually high rates of mass shootings and mass murders in the US have prompted some in the country to call for more substantial federal gun control. But Congress has been unable or unwilling to implement such measures.

At least several hundred people are feared to have been killed after the worst cyclone in almost a century ripped through the French Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte on Saturday, uprooting trees, tearing houses apart and pounding the impoverished archipelago’s already weak infrastructure.

Rescuers have been dispatched to the islands, which lie between the coast of Mozambique and Madagascar, but their efforts are likely to be hindered by damage to airports and electricity distribution in an area where clean drinking water is subject to chronic shortages.

Speaking to Mayotte’s la 1ere TV station on Sunday, the archipelago’s prefect, François-Xavier Bieuville, said the confirmed toll of 11 dead was likely to soar over the coming days.

“I think there will certainly be several hundreds, maybe we will reach a thousand, even several thousands,” he said.

Bieuville said it would be very difficult to reach a final count given that most residents were Muslim and so traditionally would bury their dead within 24 hours.

Establishing an accurate toll will be doubly difficult given that France’s interior ministry estimates about 100,000 people live clandestinely on Mayotte.

Some of them did not dare to venture out and seek assistance, “fearing it would be a trap” designed to remove them from Mayotte,” said Ousseni Balahachi, a former nurse.

The mayor of Mayotte’s capital of Mamoudzou, Ambdilwahedou Soumaila, had earlier told Agence France-Presse that nine people had been seriously injured when Cyclone Chido hit and were fighting for their lives in hospital, while 246 more were badly hurt.

“The hospital is hit, the schools are hit. Houses are totally devastated,” he said, adding that the cyclone had “spared nothing”.

One local resident, Ibrahim, told AFP of “apocalyptic scenes” as he made his way through the main island, having to clear blocked roads for himself.

Mayotte’s 320,000 residents had been ordered into lockdown on Saturday as Chido bore down on the islands, bringing winds of at least 226 kilometres an hour (140mph).

Aerial footage shared by French gendarmerie forces showed the wreckage of hundreds of makeshift houses strewn across the hills of one of Mayotte’s islands, which have been a focal point for illegal immigration from nearby Comoros.

France’s interior minister, Bruno Retailleau, would travel to Mayotte on Monday, his office said, alongside 160 soldiers and firefighters who will join the 110 personnel already deployed to the islands.

Authorities in Réunion, another French Indian Ocean territory about 1,400 kilometres away on the other side of Madagascar, said medical personnel and equipment were on the way by air and sea.

A first aid plane landed in Mayotte at about 3:30pm local time on Sunday with three tonnes of medical supplies and blood for transfusions and 17 medical staff. Two military aircraft were expected to follow.

A navy patrol ship was also to depart Réunion with personnel and equipment, including for the electricity supplier EDF.

The prefect of Réunion, Patrice Latron, said authorities aimed to establish an air and sea bridge to Mayotte. About 800 more rescuers were to be sent in the coming days and more than 80 tonnes of supplies had been flown in or were on their way by ship. Priorities included restoring electricity and access to drinking water, he said.

Mayotte is France’s poorest island and the EU’s poorest territory. In some parts, entire neighbourhoods of metal shacks and huts were flattened, while residents reported many trees had been uprooted, boats flipped or sunk and the electricity supply knocked out.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen and French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday pledged help.

Chido also battered the nearby islands of Comoros and Madagascar. Authorities in Comoros said 11 fishers who had gone out to sea earlier this week were missing.
The intense tropical cyclone, which made landfall in Mozambique on Sunday, could affect 2.5 million people in the north of the country as aid agencies warn of more loss of life and severe damage.

A Unicef spokesperson confirmed that Cabo Delgado, Mozambique’s northernmost province, which is home to about 2 million people, had been hit, and that many homes, schools and health facilities there had been partly or completely destroyed. The death toll so far stood at three, according to local officials.

Cyclone season in the region runs from December to March, and parts of the south-eastern Indian Ocean and southern Africa have been hit by a series of strong ones in recent years. Cyclone Idai killed more than 1,300 people in Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe in 2019. Cyclone Freddy left more than 1,000 dead across several countries last year.

The cyclones bring the risk of flooding and landslides, but also stagnant pools of water that may later cause deadly outbreaks of cholera, dengue fever and malaria.

Studies say the cyclones are getting worse because of the climate emergency. They can cause large humanitarian crises in poor countries in southern Africa, which contribute a tiny amount to global heating, underlining their call for more help from rich nations to deal with the impacts of climate change.

Associated Press and Agence France-Presse contributed to this report

At least several hundred people are feared to have been killed after the worst cyclone in almost a century ripped through the French Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte on Saturday, uprooting trees, tearing houses apart and pounding the impoverished archipelago’s already weak infrastructure.

Rescuers have been dispatched to the islands, which lie between the coast of Mozambique and Madagascar, but their efforts are likely to be hindered by damage to airports and electricity distribution in an area where clean drinking water is subject to chronic shortages.

Speaking to Mayotte’s la 1ere TV station on Sunday, the archipelago’s prefect, François-Xavier Bieuville, said the confirmed toll of 11 dead was likely to soar over the coming days.

“I think there will certainly be several hundreds, maybe we will reach a thousand, even several thousands,” he said.

Bieuville said it would be very difficult to reach a final count given that most residents were Muslim and so traditionally would bury their dead within 24 hours.

Establishing an accurate toll will be doubly difficult given that France’s interior ministry estimates about 100,000 people live clandestinely on Mayotte.

Some of them did not dare to venture out and seek assistance, “fearing it would be a trap” designed to remove them from Mayotte,” said Ousseni Balahachi, a former nurse.

The mayor of Mayotte’s capital of Mamoudzou, Ambdilwahedou Soumaila, had earlier told Agence France-Presse that nine people had been seriously injured when Cyclone Chido hit and were fighting for their lives in hospital, while 246 more were badly hurt.

“The hospital is hit, the schools are hit. Houses are totally devastated,” he said, adding that the cyclone had “spared nothing”.

One local resident, Ibrahim, told AFP of “apocalyptic scenes” as he made his way through the main island, having to clear blocked roads for himself.

Mayotte’s 320,000 residents had been ordered into lockdown on Saturday as Chido bore down on the islands, bringing winds of at least 226 kilometres an hour (140mph).

Aerial footage shared by French gendarmerie forces showed the wreckage of hundreds of makeshift houses strewn across the hills of one of Mayotte’s islands, which have been a focal point for illegal immigration from nearby Comoros.

France’s interior minister, Bruno Retailleau, would travel to Mayotte on Monday, his office said, alongside 160 soldiers and firefighters who will join the 110 personnel already deployed to the islands.

Authorities in Réunion, another French Indian Ocean territory about 1,400 kilometres away on the other side of Madagascar, said medical personnel and equipment were on the way by air and sea.

A first aid plane landed in Mayotte at about 3:30pm local time on Sunday with three tonnes of medical supplies and blood for transfusions and 17 medical staff. Two military aircraft were expected to follow.

A navy patrol ship was also to depart Réunion with personnel and equipment, including for the electricity supplier EDF.

The prefect of Réunion, Patrice Latron, said authorities aimed to establish an air and sea bridge to Mayotte. About 800 more rescuers were to be sent in the coming days and more than 80 tonnes of supplies had been flown in or were on their way by ship. Priorities included restoring electricity and access to drinking water, he said.

Mayotte is France’s poorest island and the EU’s poorest territory. In some parts, entire neighbourhoods of metal shacks and huts were flattened, while residents reported many trees had been uprooted, boats flipped or sunk and the electricity supply knocked out.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen and French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday pledged help.

Chido also battered the nearby islands of Comoros and Madagascar. Authorities in Comoros said 11 fishers who had gone out to sea earlier this week were missing.
The intense tropical cyclone, which made landfall in Mozambique on Sunday, could affect 2.5 million people in the north of the country as aid agencies warn of more loss of life and severe damage.

A Unicef spokesperson confirmed that Cabo Delgado, Mozambique’s northernmost province, which is home to about 2 million people, had been hit, and that many homes, schools and health facilities there had been partly or completely destroyed. The death toll so far stood at three, according to local officials.

Cyclone season in the region runs from December to March, and parts of the south-eastern Indian Ocean and southern Africa have been hit by a series of strong ones in recent years. Cyclone Idai killed more than 1,300 people in Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe in 2019. Cyclone Freddy left more than 1,000 dead across several countries last year.

The cyclones bring the risk of flooding and landslides, but also stagnant pools of water that may later cause deadly outbreaks of cholera, dengue fever and malaria.

Studies say the cyclones are getting worse because of the climate emergency. They can cause large humanitarian crises in poor countries in southern Africa, which contribute a tiny amount to global heating, underlining their call for more help from rich nations to deal with the impacts of climate change.

Associated Press and Agence France-Presse contributed to this report

A Russian tanker carrying more than 4,000 tonnes of oil products has sunk in the Black Sea amid stormy conditions while a second has run aground, threatening an ecological disaster.

The cargo ship Volgoneft-212 snapped in half on Sunday after being hit by a large wave. Video showed its bow end sticking vertically out of the water. The boat got into difficulties off the east coast of occupied Crimea, 5 miles (8km) from the Kerch strait, Russian media reported.

Russian investigators opened two criminal cases to look into possible safety violations after at least one person was killed when the 136-metre tanker, which had 15 people on board, went down.

The tanker was carrying 4,300 tonnes of low-grade heavy fuel oil, known as mazut. Russia’s emergency service launched a rescue operation involving tugboats and a Mil Mi-8 helicopter. Twelve other people were evacuated, eleven of whom were taken to hospital, with two in a serious condition, the Tass news agency quoted Alexei Kuznetsov, an aide to the health minister, as saying.

Shortly afterwards, another cargo transporter, the Volgoneft-239, got into difficulties in the same area. It was carrying 4 tonnes of fuel oil. Initial reports also suggested the ship had sunk. “Another ship is going down. Holy shit!” a sailor said, filming from a nearby boat.

However, the emergencies ministry said the 132-metre vessel, built in 1973, had run aground 80 m from shore near the port of Taman at the south end of the Kerch Strait.

The ministry later wrote on Telegram that efforts to evacuate the 14-member crew had been suspended because of bad weather. The ministry said rescue teams were in contact with the ship, which had all facilities on board necessary to ensure the lives of the crew were not in danger.

Official statements did not provide details on the extent of the spill or why the first tanker had sustained such serious damage.

President Vladimir Putin ordered the government to set up a working group to deal with the rescue operation and mitigate the impact of the fuel spill, news agencies cited Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov as saying, after Putin met with the ministers for emergencies and environment.

Ukrainian officials accused Moscow of recklessness. Dmytro Pletenchuk, Ukraine’s navy spokesperson, said: “These are quite old Russian tankers. You can’t go to sea in such a storm. The Russians violated the operating rules. The result is an accident.”

Commentators pointed out that the oil products, if spilled into the Black Sea, would cause serious ecological damage to a marine environment already badly affected by war.

The Volgoneft-212 was 55 years old, registered in St Petersburg and recently refitted. The centre was cut out and the stern and bow were welded together, forming a huge seam in the middle. It is this section that appears to have broken.

Crew members watched as the helpless ship was wrecked. Video footage showed men standing in the bridge wearing orange lifejackets. A black slick could be seen floating on the surface, next to a parabolic upturned bow. Waves crashed over the stricken hull.

The accident involving decrepit Russian boats is the latest marine catastrophe to take place near the coast of southern Ukraine. The Black Sea has been a zone of intense military conflict since the start of Vladimir Putin’s 2022 full-scale invasion of the country.

Ukraine has used sea drones and other missiles to sink some of Russia’s Black Sea fleet. It has been forced to leave the Crimean port of Sevastopol and to relocate to the safer Russian harbour of Novorossiysk.

In June 2023, Russian troops blew up the Kakhovka hydroelectric dam over the Dnipro River, in occupied territory, in order to hamper a Ukrainian military attack. The explosion released 18bn tonnes of water held upstream in a giant reservoir.

The floodwater swept away dozens of villages. Water contaminated with fuel, sewage and fertilisers cascaded into the Black Sea. According to biologists, the pollution wiped out mussels and other molluscs, as well as fish and crustaceans.

Scientists have recorded a rise in deaths among dolphins and porpoises since the Kremlin’s all-out attack. About 1,000 cetaceans were killed in 2022. Populations of bottlenose and white-sided dolphins suffered.

US senator Lindsey Graham has said officials who investigated Donald Trump supporters’ deadly attack on the US Capitol in 2021 should not be imprisoned – despite what his fellow Republican has argued in advance of his second presidency.

During an interview Sunday on NBC’s Meet the Press, show host Kristen Welker asked Graham whether he agreed with Trump’s assertion on the program seven days earlier that those involved in the investigation of the January 6 Capitol attack “should go to jail”.

“No,” said Graham, South Carolina’s senior senator as well as a ranking member of the chamber’s judiciary and budget committees.

Welker directed the question at Graham during a segment meant to elicit quick answers, which she acknowledged by replying: “OK – that was very clear and concise.”

The exchange offered an example of Graham’s occasional willingness to publicly disagree with Trump while still generally serving as a staunch ally – and it came amid a broader political dialogue about who should receive pardons in connection with an attack on Congress that was linked to multiple deaths, including the suicides of traumatized law enforcement officers.

Trump has promised to begin his second presidency in January 2025 by issuing pardons to those who carried out the attack, though there may be some exceptions. He spoke to Welker on 8 December about how supporters of his were pressured into accepting guilty pleas in connection with the violent, desperate attempt to keep him in the White House after losing the presidency to Joe Biden in 2020.

Having won the Oval Office back in November in his race against Vice-President Kamala Harris, Trump denied he would direct his second administration to arrest elected officials who investigated the Capitol attack, leading to federal criminal charges against him that have been dismissed. Nonetheless, he made it a point to tell Welker: “Honestly, they should go to jail.”

Bernie Sanders, the liberal US senator, made a separate appearance on Sunday on Meet the Press and said Biden in turn should “very seriously consider” issuing pre-emptive pardons to those who investigated the Capitol attack, as others have suggested. Sanders didn’t provide any names, but a week earlier Trump mentioned the names of Bennie Thompson and Liz Cheney, once the chairperson and vice-chairperson respectively of the US House committee convened for that investigation.

“You do not arrest elected officials … who undertake an investigation,” Sanders said, adding that doing so “is what authoritarianism [and] dictatorship is all about”.

Sanders also said: “You just heard Lindsey Graham make that statement – I think that idea of Trump is not going to very far.”

More than 1,250 people have pleaded guilty or otherwise been convicted in the January 6 attack. And at least 645 people have been sentenced to serve some time in prison, ranging from a few days to 22 years.

During his 8 December interview with Welker, Trump blamed those convictions on “a very corrupt system” that he would hold in check with pardons, despite criticizing Biden’s recent pardon of his son, Hunter, on convictions of lying on gun ownership application forms as well as tax evasion.

“I know the system,” said Trump, himself convicted in May in New York state court on charges of criminally falsifying business records to conceal hush-money payments to the adult film actor Stormy Daniels.

Guy Pearce has revealed that the reason he has not worked with Christopher Nolan since the 2000 film Memento is because he was repeatedly blocked by a Warner Bros executive who didn’t like his acting.

Speaking to Vanity Fair, Pearce said he had not worked with Nolan – famed for working with the same actors in many of his films – since the director began working with Warner Bros for his 2002 thriller Insomnia, an 18-year relationship that ended with his 2020 film Tenet.

Pearce said Nolan had approached him to play Ra’s al Ghul in 2005 film Batman Begins (eventually played by Liam Neeson), as well as a character in his 2006 film, The Prestige.

“He spoke to me about roles a few times over the years,” the 57-year-old actor said. “The first Batman and The Prestige. But there was an executive at Warner Bros who quite openly said to my agent, ‘I don’t get Guy Pearce. I’m never going to get Guy Pearce. I’m never going to employ Guy Pearce.’

“So, in a way, that’s good to know. I mean, fair enough: there are some actors I don’t get. But it meant I could never work with Chris.”

The unnamed executive “just didn’t believe in me as an actor”, Pearce said, which meant he missed out on roles.

“They flew me to London to discuss the Liam Neeson role and I think it was decided on my flight that I wasn’t going to be in the movie,” Pearce said. “So I get there and Chris is like, ‘Hey, you want to see the Batmobile and get dinner?’”

Warner Bros did not respond to a request for comment from Vanity Fair.

Pearce and Nolan may yet work together again. The director ended his relationship with Warner Bros over a disagreement with its decision to simultaneously release films in theatres and on the streaming service HBO Max, a fate he did not want for his 2023 historical drama Oppenheimer. He moved to Universal Pictures and Oppenheimer won seven Oscars, including best director for Nolan.

“So now my time has come!” Pearce told Vanity Fair.

Nolan is working at Universal again on an as-yet-unnamed film coming out in 2026 that will star Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Zendaya, Charlize Theron and Anne Hathaway.

A judge in Las Vegas sentenced a Texas man to 100 years in prison for his role in a two-state shooting rampage on Thanksgiving 2020 that included the killing of a man in Nevada and a shootout with authorities in Arizona.

Christopher McDonnell, 32, pleaded guilty in October to more than 20 felonies including murder, attempted murder, murder conspiracy, weapon charges and being a felon illegally in possession of a firearm.

Clark county district judge Tierra Jones sentenced him on Friday to a minimum of 100 years in prison, KLAS-TV reported. If he’s still alive, he would be eligible for parole in 2120 with credit for time served.

McDonnell of Tyler, Texas, his brother Shawn McDonnell, 34, and Shawn McDonnell’s then wife, Kayleigh Lewis, 29, originally faced dozens of charges.

Police and prosecutors say the trio began an 11-hour rampage on 26 November 2020 that included apparently random shootings that killed Kevin Mendiola Jr, 22, at a convenience store in Henderson, near Las Vegas, and drive-by gunfire that wounded several other people.

The group then continued into Arizona, where there were additional shootings, including one involving a police officer. All three were arrested after their car rolled over.

Prosecutors said Lewis was the driver as the two brothers fired indiscriminately out of the vehicle’s windows. Shawn McDonnell and Lewis are awaiting trial.

The shooting rampage ended near the Colorado River town of Parker, Arizona, after a chase involving officers from the Arizona department of public safety, the crash of a car with a Texas license plate and the wounding of Shawn McDonnell by troopers wielding assault-style rifles, police said.