Trump envoys Witkoff and Kushner ‘to meet Putin in Moscow for peace talks’

Donald Trump’s son in law Jared Kushner and envoy Steve Witkoff will travel to Moscow for another round of peace talks with Vladimir Putin, according to a report.

Sources told Bloomberg that the two envoys could meet with the Russian President this month amid faltering efforts by the US to negotiate an end to the conflict. A date for the meeting has not been agreed.

Witkoff and Kushner met with the Coalition of the Willing, comprised of Kyiv’s allies, in Paris earlier this month where Britain and France announced a plan to deploy troops to Ukraine in the event of a peace deal.

A flurry of diplomatic activity driven by Trump has failed to yield a peace agreement, with Moscow refusing to budge on its maximalist demands and Kyiv continuing to seek security guarantees from Washington.

But tensions between Moscow and Washington have increased in recent weeks following the US capture of Venezuela’s ex-president Nicolas Maduro, an ally of Putin. Russia has also warned against US interference in Iran, where Trump has vowed to help protesters demonstrating against the government.

Only Trump can stop Putin threatening Europe, says Polish president

Donald Trump is the only person who can stop Vladimir Putin from remaining a “threat” to the whole of Europe, Poland’s president has said.

Karol Nawrocki urged European leaders to assist the Trump administration in its efforts to end Russia’s war in Ukraine.

“Russia is still a threat for Europe,” he told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme on Wednesday. “And Donald Trump, nowadays, is [the only] leader who can solve this problem and we have to support him in this process.”

At least 20 drones violated Polish airspace from Belarus and Ukraine last year, prompting a response from Nato in the form of Operation Eastern Sentry.

Mr Nawrocki called the incident an “extraordinary situation” and added that “until that time, no Nato member state had experienced a drone attack on that scale”. He believes Putin sought to test Polish and Nato defences and demanded a no-fly zone at the time.

“We in Poland, we don’t know a different Russia than aggressive Russia,” he continued. “It’s always the threat for Poland, for Europe and for central Europe. In history, we know only the Russia who is the threat. Even nowadays in the 21st century, after Russia’s aggression on Ukraine.”

Mr Nawrocki, a Eurosceptic nationalist, was backed by Mr Trump in his election run last year and has remained loyal to him publicly ever since, visiting the White House in September 2025.

He appeared to dodge questions about Mr Trump’s controversial threat to take over Greenland, insisting that it is an issue that should be discussed between Denmark’s prime minister and the president.

Europe had been “involved in not so important things, in ideological issues such as green deal for instance, climate policy, migration issues”, he claimed.

Mr Nawrocki landed in Britain on Tuesday for a series of meetings with prime minister Keir Starmer and thanked the UK for sending RAF Typhoon jets to help fortify its borders.

“I would like to express my very deep appreciation for the British soldiers who are stationed in Poland… taking responsibility for Nato’s eastern flank,” he said.

The government said that the leaders reflected on the “strength of the relationship” between the countries in a statement released on Tuesday.

“They agreed that both countries would deepen that relationship even further, from defence and security, to trade, commerce and education,” it continued.

Increasingly close cooperation on defence projects was good for both the bilateral relationship and European security, the prime minister added. They agreed on the “importance of securing a just and lasting peace in Ukraine”.

Police chief blames AI for banning Maccabi Tel Aviv fans in apology

A police chief blamed the use of AI in an has an apology to MPs for giving them an error in evidence about the decision to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv fans.

West Midlands Police has faced questions over its handling of the decision to ban supporters of the Israeli football team from attending a Europa League match against Aston Villa on 6 November.

Chief constable Craig Guildford has now written to the home affairs committee to apologise for the mistake, after he appeared twice to give evidence over the controversy.

The AI search found social media posts about a match between Maccabi and West Ham United that never happened, which was then referenced in a report to the Birmingham City Council Safety Advisory Group over whether to prevent supporters from attending the game.

Mr Guildford told the Commons home affairs committee in a letter that until Friday afternoon, he believed the mistake was caused by using Google, when in fact it was the result of Microsoft Copilot, an AI tool.

He offered his “profound apology” for the error, but added: “My belief that this was the case was honestly held and there was no intention to mislead the committee.”

In a letter to Dame Karen Bradley, the chair of the committee, Mr Guildford said: “In preparation for the force response to the HMICFRS inquiry into this matter, on Friday afternoon I became aware that the erroneous result concerning the West Ham vs Maccabi Tel Aviv match arose as result of a use of Microsoft Copilot.”

He added: “I had understood and been advised that the match had been identified by way of a Google search in preparation for attending HAC.”

Home secretary Shabana Mahmood will make a statement to MPs after she received a report on the decision to bar Maccabi Tel Aviv football fans from attending a Europa League match against Aston Villa in November.

A Home Office spokesperson said: “The home secretary has this morning received the chief inspectorate’s findings into the recommendation by West Midlands Police to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from attending a match against Aston Villa.

“She will carefully consider the letter and will make a statement in the House of Commons in response later today.”

The fixture had been classified as high risk by West Midlands Police based on “current intelligence and previous incidents”, with the force pointing to violent clashes and hate crime offences that occurred during the 2024 Europa League match between Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv in Amsterdam.

But the Netherlands Police disputed information in a West Midlands Police report, which detailed justifications for the ban.

At the time, Sir Keir Starmer condemned the ban as “the wrong decision”, and Ms Mahmood has since ordered the policing watchdog to examine how forces in England and Wales provide risk assessments to safety advisory groups, which inform measures around high-profile events.

At least 31 dead after crane collapses onto speeding train in Thailand

At least 31 people have been killed in northeast Thailand after a construction crane collapsed onto a speeding train, causing it to derail and burst into flames.

Deputy prime minister and transport minister Phipat Ratchakitprakarn said 195 passengers were on board at the time.

The incident occurred in the Sikhio district of Nakhon Ratchasima province, 230km (143 miles) northeast of Bangkok where the train originated on Wednesday.

At least 64 others have been injured with seven seriously hurt. Those suffering the most serious injuries were transferred to major hospitals, with others treated nearer the crash site.

The crane was working on part of an ambitious Thai-Chinese high-speed project linking the national capital Bangkok to the north-eastern province of Nong Khai, bordering Laos.

Mr Ratchakitprakarn said the governor of the State Railway of Thailand had been instructed to conduct a “thorough and comprehensive” investigation into the cause of the accident.

He added that officials are verifying the identities of those affected and closely monitoring the injured, noting that compensation would be provided to the families of the deceased if they were railway workers.

Thailand’s acting prime minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, called on “all responsible parties” to be punished and held accountable for the incident.

Special express train number 21 was travelling from Bangkok to Ubon Ratchathani at 120kmph when it was struck by a falling construction crane at around 9.13am local time. The train had last departed from Nong Nam Khun station in Nakhon Ratchasima province and was headed for the next station when the incident happened.

The train had three carriages in total, with the crane impacting the middle car. Officials said the majority of those killed and injured were in the second and last carriages.

Images aired by Thai TV showed plumes of smoke rising from the derailed carriages of the train, and construction equipment hanging down from between two concrete support pillars.

Rescue workers were seen standing on top of overturned railways carriages, some of them with gaping holes torn in their sides, video from public broadcaster ThaiPBS showed.

A member of the train’s staff has said that he and passengers were thrown into the air by the impact when the crane fell.

Thirasak Wongsoongnern told Thairath Online he had tried to help passengers but was unable to reach them as the second carriage had already caught fire.

Mitr Intrpanya, 54, a local resident who was at the scene, said he saw the crane strike the second carriage of the train “slicing it in half”.

“At around 9am, I heard a loud noise, like something sliding down from above, followed by two explosions,” he told AFP.

“When I went to see what had happened, I found the crane sitting on a passenger train with three carriages.

“The metal from the crane appeared to strike the middle of the second carriage, slicing it in half.”

The company responsible for the construction project where the crane collapsed expressed its “deepest condolences” over the tragic incident.

Italian-Thai Development Public Company Limited, one of Thailand’s largest construction companies, was in charge of the Lam Takhong-Sikhio section of the project where the incident took place.

The company said it “takes full responsibility and will provide compensation and assistance to the families of the deceased and medical care to the injured”.

“The company is ready to support officials from all sectors to expedite the process of resolving the situation and returning it to normal as quickly as possible.”

ITD was set up in the 1950s as a joint venture between a Thai and an Italian businessman, but is now wholly Thai-operated and headquartered in Bangkok. The same company was involved in the construction of a Bangkok building which collapsed in March during an earthquake.

At least 95 people were killed in that incident and the company’s president and several other officials were charged with professional negligence.

Thai prime minister Charnvirakul said the cause of the incident was not yet known but said the joint Thai-China project had experienced “several incidents before”, citing a tunnel collapse about a year ago that killed all three workers.

“Accidents like this can only happen due to negligence, skipped steps, deviations from the design, or the use of incorrect materials,” he said.

He added that officials would “need to investigate whether there were any construction errors or deviations from proper procedures”.

The Chinese government appeared to distance itself from the incident, noting that the section involved was being constructed by a Thai company.

The two-stage joint project has faced delays and disputes since it was kicked off in 2015. It has a total investment of more than 520bn baht (£12.2bn) and is part of an ambitious plan to connect China with south-east Asia under Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative.

The crash is among the deadliest rail accidents Thailand has seen in years, but it is not an isolated incident.

In 2023, a freight train crashed into a pick-up truck that was crossing railway tracks, killing eight people and injuring four others.

Trump gives middle finger to heckler who called him ‘pedophile protector’

Donald Trump appeared to mouth an expletive and stick up his middle finger after being heckled at an automotive plant in Michigan.

In a video obtained Tuesday by TMZ, the president was accosted by the off-camera heckler at the Ford factory in Dearborn, who can be heard calling him a “pedophile protector” – in apparent reference to the administration’s handling of the Epstein files.

Trump seemingly mouths “f*** you” back at the worker before walking off, waving and smiling.

The heckler has been identified by The Washington Post as TJ Sabula, a 40-year-old line worker at the factory. He is a member of the United Auto Workers Local 600 in Dearborn.

Sabula told the publication, “As far as calling him out, definitely no regrets whatsoever,” even though he said he’s been suspended from his job pending an investigation into the matter.

The worker claims he has been “targeted for political retribution” for “embarrassing Trump in front of his friends.”

White House director of communications Steven Cheung said the president’s reaction was “appropriate.”

“A lunatic was wildly screaming expletives in a complete fit of rage, and the President gave an appropriate and unambiguous response,” Cheung told The Independent in a statement.

The Independent has also contacted Ford for comment.

At the time of the incident, the president was taking a tour of the Ford F-150 plant, for which he was joined by Bill Ford, the company’s executive chairman and grandson of Henry Ford, and Jim Farley, the company’s president and CEO.

Despite the heckling, elsewhere on the tour, workers were seen cheering and taking selfies with the president, according to The Washington Post.

Trump later gave a speech at the Detroit Economic Club.

The criticism of Trump as a “pedophile protector” comes after the administration and the Department of Justice continue to deal with the fallout from the president’s alleged ties to Jeffrey Epstein – the disgraced financier.

Trump has consistently denied having ties to Epstein and has not been accused of any criminal wrongdoing, but the subject has dogged the first year of his second presidency and caused a schism among his MAGA supporters.

The likes of Marjorie Taylor Green and Thomas Massie defied the White House to force a November House vote compelling the Department of Justice to release all unclassified files connected to Epstein.

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Child killer Jon Venables set for latest parole bid for freedom

Child killer Jon Venables is set to have his latest bid for freedom heard by the Parole Board.

The 43-year-old, who tortured and murdered two-year-old James Bulger in 1993, will have his case heard by parole chiefs at an oral hearing more than two years after his last appeal.

In 2023, the Parole Board rejected the bid and found he still posed a danger to children and could go on to offend again.

The fresh hearing once again “reopens unimaginable trauma” for James’s loved ones, a spokesperson for his family has said.

Venables was jailed alongside Robert Thompson after the pair of 10-year-olds snatched James from a shopping centre in Bootle, Merseyside, in February 1993.

Venables was released on licence in July 2001 and recalled to prison in February 2010 after indecent images of children were found on his computer.

He was once again freed in August 2013 and then called back in November 2017 for the same offence, with parole judges considering his case again in September 2020.

The Daily Mirror reported that James’s family was informed on Tuesday of the upcoming parole hearing, which it said is expected next month.

No date has yet been confirmed by the Parole Board.

Spokesperson Kym Morris, on behalf of James’s mother Denise Fergus, told the paper: “Once again, Denise Fergus has been forced to confront a process that reopens unimaginable trauma.

“Denise was hoping for a redirection … allowing her a measure of peace and protection from further distress. That hope has now been taken away.”

Ms Morris added that Ms Fergus’s application to observe the hearing has been granted.

Victims have been able to attend parole hearings held in private under reforms rolled out nationally in April as part of efforts to boost confidence in the justice system.

The new Northern Powerhouse Rail plans are paper thin

“A transformation in transport connectivity between the cities of the north is vital to realising their potential to become a ‘northern powerhouse’ for the UK’s economy,” the transport secretary said.

“Passengers, businesses, local communities and their representatives across the north told us that railway services must be revitalised and expanded.”

Few would disagree. The minister in question, though, was not the current transport secretary, Heidi Alexander – but Sir Patrick McLoughlin. He was speaking in 2015, at a time when the coalition government was proposing High Speed 3: a bold new east-west line through the Pennines to connect Liverpool, Manchester, Bradford and Leeds.

Fast forward (not something that happens much on trains in the north) to 2026, and here’s the incumbent transport secretary speaking to Times Radio: “People in the north of England for too long have had to put up with second-rate rail systems. They have got creaking Victorian infrastructure, slow trains, poor reliability, and this has to change.”

Ms Alexander says the latest plan has four stages:

So when will passengers notice any improvement? Perhaps a decade from now, if they live in Yorkshire. “We anticipate that work will start on that in the 2030s,” says the transport secretary.

You can sense the relief at the Treasury. All that the government has committed is “a down payment on the north of infrastructure” of £1.1bn – barely a mile of track on the catastrophic HS2 project. No actual spades in the ground; this is for “planning, development and design work”.

I imagine the discussion at the Treasury went like this.

Civil servant one: “The government wants to spend more money on new railways in the north of England.”

Civil servant two: “Well, obviously, we can’t trust the railways with public money. Look what happened after we gave the go-ahead for HS2: the budget trebled with items like the £100m ‘bat tunnel’ and the length of the line halved.”

CS 1: “So what can we do?”

CS 2: “Say we’re looking into improving links but not this decade.”

To be fair, tens of billions of taxpayer cash is being squandered on HS2 because previous governments let contracts without a clear plan – and ministers then kept changing their minds. The original, visionary plan for a Y-shaped network linking both Manchester and Leeds with Birmingham and the line to London suffered death by a thousand U-turns.

Then-prime minister Rishi Sunak sealed the destruction of sensible transport planning in October 2023 when he gleefully announced he was scrapping the HS2 link from Birmingham to Crewe and onwards to Manchester.

This is the stretch of line that is needed more desperately than any other. You might remember the prestige express train from Manchester to London that the Office of Rail and Road said could not carry actual passengers. The reason that was given for the now-reversed decision: lack of capacity on the West Coast Main Line, and the need to maintain “firebreaks” to allow recovery from disruption.

Of all the links that the north of England needs for improved connectivity with the rest of the nation, Birmingham to Manchester is the most critical. The land needed as far as Crewe is already reserved. Yet instead of going ahead with something that has been years in the planning, the project is being put on hold for at least two decades.

I’ve seen some cans kicked down the road or into the long grass in my time, notably on airport expansion, but this announcement trumps them all. Around the middle of the century, we’ll take another look at the Birmingham to Manchester line that everyone agrees is desperately needed right now. Yes: the 2050 from Manchester Piccadilly is not a train leaving at ten to nine in the evening, but the possible year a fast line to Birmingham might begin.

Time for some guarded optimism. A decade from now, and many years behind schedule, HS2’s first stage should be running. I predict it will be hailed as a huge success despite the disgraceful waste it has involved – and trigger demands for urgent action on more of the same further north, on a line that is already agreed.

And if I am wrong? Perhaps by then we will all be whizzing around on personal jet packs. I await a government announcement on that very topic…

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