Trump envoy accuses Putin of ‘stalling for time’ while bombing civilian targets

Three people have been killed and dozens injured after Ukrainian troops launched a drone attack on a Russian factory, Moscow officials claimed.

Izhevsk regional governor Alexander Brechalov said he had he informed Russian president Vladimir Putin about the attack.

A Ukrainian security official said at least two long-range drones were launched by the Security Service of Ukraine struck the Kupol plant, which manufactures drones and air defence systems.

A column of black smoke could be seen billowing into the sky from the site of a fire at a cluster of buildings in videos shared by the Ukrainian official who said the plant’s production facilities and warehouses had been hit.

Meanwhile, US president Donald Trump’s special envoy has accused Russia of “stalling for time” while bombing civilians across Ukraine.

Keith Kellogg said Moscow’s claim that the slow pace of talks was down to the US and Ukraine was “Orwellian” and “unfounded”.

“Russia cannot continue to stall for time while it bombs civilian targets in Ukraine,” Mr Kellogg said. “We urge an immediate ceasefire and a move to trilateral talks to end the war.”

Trump says he will ‘take a look’ at deporting Musk as feud escalates

President Donald Trump has suggested that the country’s immigration enforcement apparatus could be turned against now-former ally Elon Musk after the Tesla executive renewed criticism of the tax and spending megabill on which the president has bet his legislative agenda.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday as he departed the White House to visit an immigration detention facility in Florida, the president was asked if Musk, a naturalized American citizen who originally hails from South Africa, could be deported in retaliation for his attacks on the One Big Beautiful Bill Act under debate in the Senate.

“I don’t know,” he replied. “We’ll have to take a look.”

The president added that the administration might turn the quasi-agency once run by Musk, the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, on his ex-friend.

“We might have to put DOGE on Elon,” he said. “You know what DOGE is? DOGE is the monster that might have to go back and eat Elon.”

Musk spent the first few months of the president’s second term as an unpaid special government employee leading what was initially described as a cost-cutting effort that spiraled into operating more as a roving band of ideological enforcers who at one point fed the country’s entire foreign aid apparatus — the U.S. Agency for International Development — into what Musk called a “wood chipper” in a span of days.

DOGE’s efforts led to the agency largely shutting down, and Musk left the White House in May after being denied a request to remain in that unpaid status for longer.

Since returning to the private sector, Musk has become a vocal critic of the partisan spending package Trump has touted as a vehicle to fund his anti-immigrant agenda and other GOP priorities without making use of the regular appropriations process that would ordinarily require buy-in from Democrats, particularly in the Senate.

The Tesla and SpaceX CEO has been lashing out on X, the social media platform he owns, to amplify critics of the massive spending bill and threaten to support electoral challenges against lawmakers who vote for the legislation on account of the bill’s negative impact on America’s national debt.

Trump has claimed that Musk’s opposition to the bill is driven solely by pique over the administration’s efforts to eliminate tax incentives intended to promote sales of electric vehicles such as the ones sold by Tesla.

Echoing a post on Truth Social in which he claimed Musk receives “more subsidy than any human being in history” and suggested that the centibillionaire “would probably have to close up shop and head back home to South Africa” without federal support, Trump repeated his claim that Musk is motivated by his own financial needs rather than concerns about debt and threatened once more to punish his former ally financially.

“He’s upset … that he’s losing his EV mandate … he’s very upset about things,” Trump said. “But you know, he could lose a lot more than that. I should tell you, right? Elon can lose a lot more than that,” he said.

For his part, Musk has declined to respond directly to the president’s threats thus far. But in reply on X to a post highlighting the video of the president threatening deportation, he suggested that he could do so in the future.

“So tempting to escalate this. So, so tempting. But I will refrain for now,” he said.

Hottest day of the year recorded as temperatures in the UK hit 33C

The UK has recorded its hottest day of the year so far as temperatures surpassed 33C and much of the country swelters in heatwave conditions.

A high of 33.6C was recorded in Frittenden, Kent, on Tuesday, according to the Met Office with predictions that temperatures could still peak at 35C across the south east of England.

Much of England has faced warnings of extreme heat this week as Monday brought the hottest start to Wimbledon on record and temperatures shot up to maximums of 33.1C in Heathrow and 32.9C in Kew Gardens.

The previous warmest opening day on record was on 25 June 2001, when temperatures hit 29.3C.

Met Office spokesman Stephen Dixon said: “We got to 33.1C yesterday at Heathrow, and we’re expecting to be just a touch beyond that in London today, possibly getting up to around 35C in London in particular.”

Mr Dixon said Tuesday was likely to mark “the peak of this current heatwave in terms of absolute temperatures we’re expecting”.

“It’s a continuation of recent days in the South East in particular, with those temperatures well beyond average for the time of year, in a fairly notable heatwave,” he added.

It is the second heatwave for parts of the UK within the last month, as Europe more widely is facing searing temperatures in the high thirties with wildfires across Turkey and Greece.

The persistent heat comes as the Met Office reported that England had its warmest June on record, per the forecaster’s provisional statistics. The UK experienced its second warmest since the series began in 1884, with a mean temperature of 15.2C for June, only surpassed by June 2023, which recorded 15.8C.

Met Office Climate Scientist, Dr Amy Doherty, said: “While we’ve not conducted formal climate attribution studies into June 2025’s two heatwaves, past studies have shown it is virtually certain that human influence has increased the occurrence and intensity of extreme heat events such as this.

“Numerous climate attribution studies have shown that human influence increased the chance that specific extreme heat events would occur, such as the summer of 2018 and July 2022. Our Met Office climate projections indicate that hot spells will become more frequent in our future climate, particularly over the southeast of the UK. Temperatures are projected to rise in all seasons, but the heat would be most intense in summer.”

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has extended amber heat health alerts covering London, the East Midlands, South East, South West, Yorkshire and Humber, the West Midlands and East of England, until 9am on Wednesday.

Alerts provide a warning system to authorities and the public to show when temperatures may hit dangerous levels, impacting health and social care services. They are colour coded from green (no alert), yellow, amber, to red (emergency response).

A yellow alert indicates that weather conditions may affect vulnerable people, while an amber alert warns that conditions could impact the wider population, putting pressure on health services.

A heatwave is declared when areas reach a certain temperature for three consecutive days, with thresholds varying from 25C to 28C in different parts of the UK.

It seems that Tuesday will be the peak of the heatwave, as temperatures are set to drastically descend to the low twenties, with balmy peaks of 21-23C in the south of England. A cooler, wetter front over Scotland and the north of England will gradually move south-eastwards.

“It’s already bringing some rain to parts of Scotland through the day today, and will gradually move southwards through the day today and overnight tonight,” Mr Dixon said.

“Tomorrow will be feeling fresher for many, with temperatures more likely to kind of get into the mid-20s, and some showery rain, particularly in some eastern coasts, through the day tomorrow as well.”

Forecasters say conditions will stay relatively dry throughout the week in the South with the weekend looking more unsettled, with frequent showers, particularly in western areas.

While showers are expected to eventually move towards the south of England, people have been warned to watch out for wildfires amid the dry and hot conditions.

Ben McCarthy, head of nature conservation and restoration ecology at the National Trust, said: “With record-breaking temperatures across the country this week following the driest spring on record, our ranger and countryside teams are on high alert for fires which can cause decades of damage to habitats, decimate ecosystems and result in significant losses to our wildlife.

“Unfortunately, the sad truth is that most of the fires in the UK that impact our landscapes are started by people, whether accidentally or not, rather than by natural causes.

“Therefore, we’re calling on people to help us protect wildlife and habitats by acting responsibly when outdoors, as even a small spark can cause a fire, and to please call 999 if you see a fire or any suspicious behaviour.”

Families say they may have to homeschool children if school closes

“Distraught” families are fighting to save a private school which faces being shut down within days amid soaring financial pressures and the government’s controversial VAT policy.

One mother, 48, told The Independent she will have no choice but to homeschool her son, who has special educational needs (SEND), if Bishop Challoner School in Bromley closes as planned on Friday, the last day of this school year.

Of the school’s 271 pupils, 94 have SEND, according to the Independent Schools Inspectorate’s report last year. This is around 35 per cent of students – almost double the 18 per cent of all pupils in England – according to the government’s figures for January 2024.

The school said it had become an increasingly challenging environment for schools, with falling birth rates, rising living costs, and the VAT rule adding to the issues. It said other government policies – such as the increase in employers’ NI and the removal of rates relief – had contributed.

Fees for the private school’s infant years started at £4,591 a term inclusive of VAT, increasing to £6,562 for secondary school pupils, with scholarships available for “outstanding achievement”.

A father said it was his five-year-old’s “devastated” reaction that drove him to set up a group for the parents to join forces in efforts to save the school, out of which their fundraiser was born. At the meeting when the school’s closure was announced, he described “every parent who attended showing a huge ‘roll your sleeves up, we’re gonna fight for this school’” attitude.

Stacy Long, 40, said his son, Paddy Dowling Long, attends the school. The 40-year-old father said: “He was absolutely distraught for a couple of hours. It blew me away. I couldn’t believe the attachment he showed. The fight to keep it alive has been because of his reaction.

“He’s shy and refused his first day of school. To see the development they’ve done with him, educationally, socially – there had to be a fight to keep the school alive.”

The mother, who wished to remain anonymous, explained that many parents whose needs cannot be met in the state sector chose Bishop Challoner, in south London, as it “offered a space with excellent pastoral care”.

She said she has been in a two-year battle to get an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) for her son, finding the process “impossible”. EHCPs are aimed at ensuring SEND children receive the support they need, with many parents reporting difficulties securing them through their local authorities.

Speaking of her son, the mother said: “All the staff have from day one gone above and beyond to support him, and despite a difficult start and many ups and downs, he has, after two years of hard work, kindness, patience and compassion from staff, settled and even made some friends. He even started in a singing group, which has been the making of him, and given him confidence, purpose and a sense of responsibility, as well as helping him discover that singing soothes him during periods of anxiety.

“This is now all being ripped away, and without an EHCP we have no viable alternative, so I will be forced to homeschool him from September. All the progress he has made, especially socially, will likely be lost, and I am very worried about what the future holds for him.”

Mr Long described the strong “wonderful” sense of community built around the school. He said he and his wife attended and met there, while his mother has worked at the school for 35 years. “It would be devastating to see it disappear,” he said.

The government’s policy to impose 20 per cent VAT on private school fees came into effect on 1 January and drew much backlash from the sector. Keir Starmer has insisted the tax will deliver more funds for state schools and so “drive up standards” for the majority who cannot afford surging fees in the independent sector.

Earlier in June, Bishop Challoner issued a statement announcing its closure, which read: “This has been an incredibly difficult decision, which the school made every effort to avoid.

“Despite the dedicated efforts of the school’s leadership and staff, Bishop Challoner School has been impacted by the broader increasingly challenging environment for schools. With falling birth rates, rising living costs and more recently the impact of VAT on school fees the school has seen a significant decline in pupil numbers. Meanwhile, its operating costs have risen significantly over recent years and further impacted by the recent removal of rates relief and the statutory increase in employers’ National Insurance.

“Together, these factors have placed significant strain on the school’s financial sustainability.”

A UK government spokesperson said: “Ending tax breaks for private schools will raise £1.8 billion a year by 2029/30 to help fund public services, including supporting the 94 per cent of children in state schools to achieve and thrive.

“On average, around 50 mainstream private schools typically close each year. This is due to a range of reasons, including financial struggles and school standards issues.

“Local authorities and schools commonly support children and parents in these circumstances; we are confident in local state schools’ ability to accommodate new pupils.”

The number of pupils in private schools in England has fallen following the introduction of VAT on fees, the latest government figures show. There were around 11,000 fewer pupils in private schools in January compared with the same point last year, according to Department for Education (DfE) data. But the DfE suggested this was “primarily driven by demographic changes”.

However, the data does not show a trend of independent schools closing, with 35 opening since last year.

Bishop Challoner School declined The Independent’s request for comment.

Executions and paranoia: Inside Iran’s crackdown on its own people after Israeli strikes

This article first appeared in our partner site, Independent Persian

As part of a wider crackdown on dissent in recent days, the Iranian parliament has passed a bill titled ‘Enhancement of penalties for espionage and for individuals cooperating with the Zionist regime and hostile states against national security and interests’. The legislation makes it easier to accuse citizens of spying.

This move comes in the wake of Israeli attacks that killed dozens of senior military commanders of the Islamic Republic, resulting in a surge of mistrust inside the Iranian political establishment. Government officials have even accused one another in public interviews of collaborating with Israel and leaking classified information.

The new bill, which was passed less than a week after the military conflict between Iran and Israel began, is being promoted by its supporters as a tool to confront “enemy infiltration”. However, analysts and human rights organisations warn that the legal measure poses a serious threat to civil liberties, press freedom, and social activism.

According to official statements seen by Independent Persian, under this bill, sending photos or videos to foreign media outlets or commenting on security-related issues on social media could be considered “spreading corruption on earth”—a charge that can carry the death penalty in Iran.

In line with this policy, the Judiciary’s Social Affairs Department has sent warnings to citizens over text, warning them that following “Zionist regime-affiliated” pages on social media constitutes a crime. Meanwhile, hundreds of individuals across the country have been arrested on charges such as “espionage”, “disturbing public opinion,” or “collaborating with Israel”.

Security-affiliated media outlets in Iran reported that more than 700 people had been arrested last week, and dozens more arrests have been reported since. On Wednesday, the judiciary of the southwestern Fars region announced that they had pressed charges against 47 individuals suspected of collaborating with Israel.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) also announced the arrest of 26 citizens in the province of Khuzestan, an oil-rich region that borders Iraq and the Persian Gulf, on charges of “security infiltration”. There were also reports that a person was arrested in Tehran’s underground metro simply for “suspicious movement” and carrying an electronic chip, which police claimed had been used to send information about sensitive locations and receive “instructions in Hebrew”.

Alongside this wave of arrests, hasty executions have added a deeply troubling dimension to the situation. In less than two weeks, at least six people have been executed on charges of collaborating with Israel. Among them were Esmail Fekri, Majid Masibi, and Mohammad Mahdavi, who were sentenced to death on various allegations including espionage, cyber network membership, or transferring equipment. They were sentenced behind closed doors without access to legal representation.

Additionally, three ‘kolbars’, porters who carry goods on their backs across Iran’s borders, were executed in Urmia Prison in the northwestern West Azerbaijan region on similar charges.

Human rights organisations have repeatedly raised concerns about the nature of these trials, noting that many of the verdicts are issued in a matter of minutes without fair legal proceedings. The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Iran, Mai Soto, has also expressed alarm over the surge in executions and the dire conditions faced by political prisoners.

Amnesty International, in a statement issued on June 24, criticized the Islamic Republic for executing six people for espionage and arresting hundreds more on similar charges since June 15. The organization called for an end to the crackdown, emphasizing that Iranian authorities are using the death penalty as a tool to instill fear and exert political control over society.

There have also been reports of the arrest of cultural figures. Reza Daryakenari, an artist and graphic designer, was arrested at a cafe in Tehran and initially transferred to Evin Prison. After an Israeli airstrike on the prison, he was moved to Fashafouyeh Prison. Similarly, Hamid Pishqadam, a resident of the city of Shahriar in the vicinity of Tehran, was arrested in a raid by security forces and taken to the IRGC Intelligence Center in the northern city of Karaj, with no formal charges announced.

These actions are not merely a response to foreign threats but a broad attempt by Iran’s government to control society, suppress dissent, and escape its own crisis of legitimacy. The passing of vague and far-reaching laws, mass arrests, show trials, and swift executions all point to a regime seeking to eliminate voices of dissent from the public space.

Analysts warn that this heavy-handed approach is not a path to restoring lost authority. Instead, such actions could lead to more widespread civil disobedience and protests across the country. The recent crackdown being carried out under the guise of fighting “enemy infiltration” may well accelerate the collapse of the Islamic Republic.

On Wednesday, David Barnea, the Director of Mossad, published part of a speech he gave to Mossad agents involved in the June 13 operation against Iran. Speaking tauntingly of Tehran, he told the agents, “We will be there, just as we have been until now.” Islamic Republic officials had previously warned about security breaches. However, it appears that the level of infiltration is so deep that Iran’s government is finding it difficult to contain it.

Translated by Tooba Khokhar

How to host a Macmillan Coffee Morning like you’ve never seen before

What comes to mind when you think of a fundraising coffee morning? Soggy digestives, weak tea and sitting in a school hall having forced fun? Think again.

Macmillan Cancer Support are celebrating 35 years of the iconic Coffee Morning fundraiser, and we’re here to help you give your next Coffee Morning a glow-up. Behind the fun, Coffee Mornings help raise vital funds for people facing one of the toughest challenges of their lives.

Almost one in two people in the UK will get cancer in their lifetime, and no two experiences are the same. Where you live, who you are, or whether you have another health condition can all affect the care you receive – and that’s not fair. Macmillan is working to change that, doing whatever it takes to make sure everyone gets the best possible care, whoever and wherever they are.

So while tasty treats and fundraising fun of course get to stay, we’re leveling up the atmosphere with fresh ideas to keep everyone entertained.

Want to be a Coffee Morning Host?

Best of all, these new ways of raising vital funds don’t have to be expensive. In fact, they might even save you a bit of time, wardrobe space and money. Here’s how to host a Macmillan Coffee Morning like you’ve never seen before…

Organise a ‘style swap shop’

Clear out your wardrobe, raise money and bring your community together all at the same time by organising a ‘style swap shop’ – with all your finest, unworn or unwanted clothes and accessories.

Pack up the majestic hats you bought for a wedding but only wore once, the satin gloves that make you feel like Audrey Hepburn but don’t go with anything you own, or maybe that lace vintage dress your aunty wore to Glastonbury in the 70s, which now lives in an unexplored drawer in your bedroom.

Fill up a bag with your best cast-offs and get your friends, family and neighbours to do the same. Everyone pays £5 entry to the ‘style swap shop’ and then you all get to browse through each other’s preloved treasures – grabbing what takes your fancy.

One person’s hand-me-down is another person’s new look – so elbows at the ready! Want to raise extra cash? Add a £1-£2 price tag on each item that’s been donated.

Strut your stuff at a cake walk

We know that staying healthy and being physically active can reduce the risk of cancer, so why not combine the classic Coffee Morning with a walk around the block? Creative costumes, silly hats and streamers at the ready as we leave behind the school hall and instead take our cakes and cookies for a little jaunt to stretch our legs.

Up the fun, and the stakes, by upgrading from a cake walk to a cake race – the bigger and messier the dessert, the better!  And get the kids involved in the baking and racing too.

Or if you want to keep it indoors, turn your catwalk into a cake walk and give your best strut with your favourite pudding in hand. It’s giving egg and spoon race, jelly wobbling on a plate and doubling over with laughter as you sashay along clutching a platter filled with your finest roulade.

Dance away the morning at a sober rave

Why sit or stand when you can dance? Sober raves are all the rage – and ideal for a morning of fun with friends, family and neighbours. There’s no hangover, no late night and the kids can join in too – so, no need for a babysitter.

Grab your glow sticks for a Coffee Morning like no other, and you can still eat cake and have a brew or a cold drink. It’s a club night where nobody has to worry about the morning-after-the-night-before! You can host it in any hall, all you need is music and a disco ball.

You might feel silly at first, but soon you’ll be grinning with joy as dancing is proven to release endorphins (natural painkillers and mood boosters) as well as reducing stress and keeping you fit. Now, who does a good Big fish, little fish, cardboard box?

Run an Is it cake? competition

If you haven’t seen the Netflix hit Is it cake? – an American game show-style cooking competition, you’re missing a treat. Contestants compete to both identify and recreate their best version of everyday items – in cake form.

That could be fire hoses made from vanilla sponge and icing, kitchen utensils that cut open to reveal red velvet cake, replica designer handbags that are actually edible, and even other food items such as burgers, which are of course, cake.

Up the baking ante by running your own cake lookalike competition inspired by the show. The best thing about it is that even if your cake looks like a pair of stinky old sports shoes, it’ll still taste great!

Whether you’re swapping styles, raving sober or sculpting a sponge handbag, every slice of fun helps Macmillan Cancer Support do whatever it takes to help everyone living with cancer.

Signing up to host your own Macmillan Coffee Morning this year couldn’t be easier! Find out more today on the Macmillan website

Macmillan Cancer Support, registered charity in England and Wales (261017), Scotland (SC039907) and the Isle of Man (604). Also operating in Northern Ireland.

‘Lycra nuns’ kept cult leader’s home spotless, abuse trial hears

A priest once hailed for his “groundbreaking” services became the leader of a cult in the Church of England and sexually abused a “staggering” number of women, a court heard.

Christopher Brain, who led the progressive Nine O-Clock Service (NOS) in Sheffield in the 80s and 90s, surrounded himself with women who wore lingerie or revealing clothes as part of his “homebase team” who kept his house “spotlessly clean”, jurors at Inner London Crown Court were told.

The court heard the women – sometimes referred to as “the Lycra Lovelies” or “the Lycra Nuns” – were on a rota to help then-Reverend Brain get to bed, and this included performing sexual favours, a bishop was told by a whistleblower in 1995.

When Mr Brain was confronted at the time over claims he had abused up to 40 women, he replied: “I thought it was more,” the court heard. He resigned from holy orders in November that year.

Appearing in the dock wearing purple shirt on Tuesday, Mr Brain is accused of one count of rape and 36 counts of indecent assault relating to 13 women between 1981 and 1995.

Opening the prosecution’s case, Tim Clark KC said that the Church of England initially viewed NOS as a success story and Mr Brain was fast-tracked for ordination.

“In truth, NOS became a closed and controlled group which the defendant dominated and abused his position first as a leader and then as an ordained priest to sexually assault a staggering number of women from his congregation,” he told the jury.

Mr Clark said NOS became a cult in which members, who were vetted and organised into “discipleship” groups, were isolated from their friends and families.

“Members of NOS became utterly dependent on NOS and desperate for the attention and praise of the defendant,” he added. “They were encouraged to give up their time, finances and, eventually, their sense of self to this organisation and its leader.”

Mr Brain first became involved with St Thomas’ Church in Sheffield through his Christian rock band Present Tense. The 9pm NOS multimedia church services were described as “visually stunning” and featured live music aimed at a younger congregation.

By the time he took holy orders in December 1991, “signs of grandiose self-regard were already present” and large sums of money were spent finding the robes worn by the actor Robert De Niro in the movie The Mission for him to wear at his ordination, Mr Clark said.

Mr Brain would be surrounded by “beautiful women in heavy makeup wearing revealing clothes” as they managed his housekeeping and kept his home “spotlessly clean”, the jury were told.

Women were at times called to the priest’s attic bedroom to give him massages, the court heard.

One complainant who first joined the church as a teenager said she viewed Mr Brain as a “form of prophet” who told her their contact was part of her “sexual healing”.

“She found it impossible to leave, she made an effort one time but was talked out of it,” Mr Clark said. “She describes becoming severely depressed. She stated that she engaged in the sexual activity, or more precisely submitted to it occurring, in order to survive.”

Another woman said she “viewed him as almost a God”.

The prosecutor said Mr Brain would “suddenly appear” in the lives of female members of NOS, “often picking them up in his car whilst they were walking along”. Women who did not keep the defendant happy would find themselves estranged from the group, he added.

One female congregant, who believes she was “brainwashed” by the priest, alleges he invited her to his home while his wife was away in 1983 or 1984, where he pinned her down and raped her.

“She recalls moving her head from side to side and saying “No,” Mr Clark told the jury. “She said his weight was too great for her to be able to move him off her. She felt that she froze.”

Another woman claims she “had to be available” to “put him to bed”. On those occasions, he would undress and rub himself against her as she massaged him while wearing only her underwear, the court heard.

Mr Clark said: “She described going into a ‘robotic’ state doing this, she dreaded receiving his phone calls.”

Mr Brain told his alleged victim he was helping her “heal from her sexual repression”, the jury heard.

A third woman alleges she would be called to the defendant’s address to “help him relax”. She said she had no friends outside NOS and feared being removed from the organisation if she disobeyed.

She described him as “Jekyll and Hyde” character, Mr Clark said, adding: “She feared his anger if she didn’t comply, isolation if she didn’t submit, and he had installed in her a belief (as an apparent man of God) that she was doing the right thing.”

A further complainant described him as a “predator hiding in plain sight” who would “pick off women who he viewed as vulnerable”.

On one occasion he pinned her down on the floor, pressed himself against her and said she “needed to accept that she was the sort of woman who wanted to be raped and that she couldn’t be spiritual person unless she admitted this”, Mr Clark said.

“He continued to pin her down until she made this admission,” the prosecutor added. “She didn’t hold such views, but she was scared of him. His violent conduct was sudden and without warning.”

The former priest appeared in a 1995 documentary and made admissions to the filmmaker of sexual contact with a number of the female members of NOS, jurors were told.

Mr Brain, 68, who denies all charges, insists NOS was not a cult. He accepts that he engaged in sexual activity with some of the complainants, but that it was consensual.

The eight-week trial continues.

Bob Vylan say they have been ‘targeted for speaking up’

Punk group Bob Vylan have posted a fresh statement addressing the controversy surrounding comments they made about the Israel Defence Force during their Glastonbury performance on Saturday (28 June).

During the set, rapper Bobby Vylan led crowds at the festival’s West Holts Stage in chants of “free, free Palestine” and then: “Death, death to the IDF [Israel Defence Forces].”

The performance from the duo, who go by the names Bobby Vylan and Bobbie Vylan, was broadcast live by the BBC. Police have now said they are assessing the comments to decide whether any offences have been committed.

In a new statement on the situation, posted on Instagram on Tuesday (1 July) and captioned “Silence is not an option”, the group claimed they were being “targeted for speaking up” and that the row was a “distraction” from the real issue.

“Today, a good many people would have you believe a punk band is the number one threat to world peace,” the statement said. “Last week it was a Palestine pressure group, the week before that it was another band.

“We are not for the death of Jews, Arabs or any other race or group of people. We are for the dismantling of a violent military machine. A machine whose own soldiers were told to use ‘unnecessary lethal force’ against innocent civilians waiting for aid.

“A machine that has destroyed much of Gaza. We, like those in the spotlight before us, are not the story. We are a distraction from the story. And whatever sanctions we receive will be a distraction.”

They continued: “The government doesn’t want us to ask why they remain silent in the face of this atrocity? To ask why they aren’t doing more to stop the killing? To feed the starving?

“The more time they talk about Bob Vylan, the less time they spend answering for their criminal inaction. We are being targeted for speaking up. We are not the first. We will not be the last. And if you care for the sanctity of human life and freedom of speech, we urge you to speak up too. Free Palestine.”

On Saturday, Glastonbury Festival organisers said they were “appalled’’ by Vylan’s comment, adding that they “very much crossed a line”.

Meanwhile, prime minister Keir Starmer said: “There is no excuse for this kind of appalling hate speech.

“I said that Kneecap should not be given a platform and that goes for any other performers making threats or inciting violence.

“The BBC needs to explain how these scenes came to be broadcast.”

It has since been reported by Deadline that United Talent Agency (UTA) have dropped the band over the backlash. The agency appear to have scrubbed the act from their official website. The Independent has contacted UTA for comment.