Manhunt launched after boy, 15, stabbed to death in Manchester
A manhunt has been launched after a 15-year-old boy was found stabbed to death on a Manchester street.
The teenager died after being found with stab wounds in Monton Street, Moss Side, on Monday afternoon following reports of a disturbance “involving a number of people”.
He was discovered just after 4.30pm and was treated at the scene and in hospital, but died a short time later.
Greater Manchester Police said a murder investigation has been launched, and the perpetrator is currently at large.
Section 60 powers are in place in the area until 5.20pm on Tuesday, allowing officers to stop and search people.
Chief Superintendent David Meeney, from the City of Manchester district, said: “There is a thorough investigation plan in place as we look to find the perpetrator of this appalling act that has seen a young man lose his life.
“Our thoughts are with the victim’s family and friends after this tragic and upsetting incident, and our specially trained officers will be supporting them at this difficult time.
“We have officers in the area as we work to establish the circumstances that led up to the incident.
“This incident will understandably have caused shock and concern within the community and the surrounding area, particularly those who witnessed it.
“The public will see an increased police presence in the area tonight and over the coming days, as we remain committed to providing the victim’s family with the answers they deserve.”
Constance Marten and rapist partner each jailed for 14 years over death of baby daughter
Aristocrat Constance Marten has been sentenced to 14 years in prison for killing her infant daughter while on the run.
Her partner Mark Gordon, a convicted rapist who spent 22 years in a Florida prison, must also serve 14 years after the parents were found guilty of gross negligence manslaughter of the baby girl, called Victoria. Gordon was handed down a further four years on extended licence.
The newborn died in a flimsy tent on the South Downs in the bitter cold as the parents hid off-grid to stop her from being taken into care like their four other children.
Marten, 38, wore her long dark hair in braids and was smartly dressed with a teal scarf and handbag as she sat in the dock next to Gordon, 51, in a suit. The pair, who sat just three metres apart to hear the sentencing, were repeatedly told off for attempting to pass notes to one another as they sat flanked by dock officers.
In Judge Mark Lucraft KC’s sentencing, he said neither Marten nor Gordon “gave much or any thought to care for the welfare” of their baby, adding that their focus was entirely on themselves.
He said the pair showed “no genuine expression of remorse” about the death of their child and had “sought to blame everyone else” for what happened. Marten shook her head as the judge related these findings.
He added that despite claims from Marten and Gordon that they dressed baby Victoria in a ski jacket and kept her in a sling, CCTV footage shows this was not the case, and she was, in fact, dressed in a thin baby grow that was inappropriate for the cold conditions. The judge accepted the prosecution’s case that baby Victoria died from hypothermia after being exposed to “significant cold stress”.
The pair were also convicted of perverting the course of justice after they stashed her decomposing remains under a pile of soil and rubbish in a Lidl bag, which they abandoned in a disused allotment shed.
Marten and Gordon were found guilty of child cruelty, perverting the course of justice and concealing the birth of a child following a four-month trial last summer.
They were further convicted of killing Victoria in a retrial this July, after jurors took just 14 hours and 32 minutes to return the unanimous guilty verdicts.
Marten, who shouted “it’s a scam” from the dock as the manslaughter verdict was returned, has already lodged a bid to appeal her conviction.
Marten’s mother, Virginie de Selliers, who was sitting in the court for the sentencing, delivered a statement via her daughter’s barrister, Tom Godfrey, saying she was “horrified” at how her daughter had been characterised in court and in the media, and that it did not reflect “the daughter I remember”.
She said: “What I do know is she showed sheer determination when fighting for her children and her daughter, Victoria.
“It is my sincere hope that when considering her future, her courage and loyalty and deep sense of fairness are not overlooked.”
Marten had cut ties with her wealthy family after she fell for Birmingham-born Gordon, who had been deported back to Britain after serving 22 years in a Florida penitentiary for a brutal knifepoint rape committed when he was just 14.
The two trials heard how the couple carefully concealed Marten’s pregnancy with Victoria – their fifth child – before going on the run to stop her from being taken into care.
Their first four children had been removed by a family court – a decision which the parents claimed was a miscarriage of justice driven by a “corrupt” social services system.
She gave birth in secret in a holiday cottage before they frantically travelled the country with Victoria hidden inside Marten’s coat – at first by road and later in taxis paid for with cash from her trust fund – after their car caught fire on the M61.
They decided to settle “off-grid” in the South Downs with little more than some sleeping bags and a cheap tent amid a nationwide manhunt after police found the remains of a placenta in their burnt-out car.
But Victoria died after Marten fell asleep with her zipped inside her jacket as they sheltered in the tent in January 2023.
Marten, a former journalist and aspiring actor, was eventually arrested with Gordon in Brighton on 27 February 2023 after 53 days on the run.
The prosecution said the parents’ “reckless, utterly selfish and callous” conduct led to the “entirely avoidable” death of the girl, whom they deprived of warmth, shelter and food during her short life.
They also claimed the parents concealed the infant, both when she was alive and after she had died, in a Lidl carrier bag as they kept her hidden while on the run, something Marten denied.
Harrowing footage played to the court revealed the moment officers pulled a beer can, scraps of newspaper, nappies, a Coke can and an old egg mayonnaise sandwich packet from the bag for life – before reaching inside to find the infant’s remains under a layer of soil and leaves.
However, the parents, who denied manslaughter, insisted her death was a tragic accident and they should not be blamed.
In tearful evidence, the mother told the jury she did “nothing but love” her baby, who deserved to be with her parents, adding: “I gave her the best that any mother would.”
In the aftermath of her death, she said she felt “disbelief, shock”, and “intense grief”, and revealed the couple had even contemplated suicide as they panicked over what to do next.
“I loved her so much I wasn’t thinking about myself,” she said. “I gave birth, but I didn’t even have time to rest myself. I got straight in a car and was up and down the country in different hotels. I didn’t allow myself to rest, I neglected myself and that’s why I fell asleep in that tent.”
UK Typhoon jets to fly over Poland after ‘reckless’ Russian drone incursions
British fighter jets will fly air defence missions over Poland as part of Nato’s defence mission, after Russian drones were flown over Nato members Romania and Poland.
The RAF Typhoons are expected to start flying the missions in the coming days, the government announced.
Prime minister Keir Starmer said: “Russia’s reckless behaviour is a direct threat to European security and a violation of international law.”
Earlier, the Kremlin claimed Nato was already fighting Russia through its direct and indirect support for Ukraine.
Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “Nato is providing direct and indirect support to the Kyiv regime. It can be said with absolute certainty that Nato is fighting against Russia.”
When Russia breached the airspace of Romania with a drone in the early hours of Sunday, the country’s defence ministry scrambled two F-16s to down it. Days earlier, Poland said it shot down at least 19 Russian drones.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said a Russian drone travelled about 10km into Romanian territory and operated in Nato airspace for around 50 minutes before it left towards Ukraine.
Ukraine’s top commander sacks officers after territorial losses, media reports say
Ukraine’s top military commander has sacked two senior officers after Kyiv’s army gave up territory in areas under their command, Ukrainian media reported on Monday, quoting military sources.
Ukrainska Pravda, citing two senior military sources, said top commander Oleksandr Syrskyi ordered the dismissal of the two officers in charge of the 17th and 20th army corps over the past two weeks. The Interfax Ukraine news agency filed a similar report.
Ukrainska Pravda said the 17th army corps, headed by Volodymyr Silenko, was located in Zaporizhzhia region, where the Ukrainian military had lost at least one village on the banks of the Dnipro River.
The 20th army corps, headed by Maksym Kituhin, was based on the administrative border between eastern Donetsk region and central Dnipropetrovsk region, where Russian forces have announced a series of successes, capturing a number of villages.
Interfax said the two officers had been transferred to other duties.
Russia’s Defence Ministry on Monday said its forces had seized the village of Olhivske in Zaporizhzhia region.
As the war has been going on for more than 3 1/2 years, Russian forces have been engaged in a long, grinding westward drive focusing on Donetsk region.
In addition to the advances announced just inside Dnipropetrovsk region, Russian forces have also applied pressure to parts of northeastern Kharkiv region, notably around the largely destroyed city of Kupiansk.
They have also tried to maintain a foothold in the northern border region of Sumy, although President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, quoting Syrskyi, has said Kyiv’s forces have been recapturing ground near the border.
Bessent says US won’t hit China with tariffs over Russian oil unless Europe goes first
US treasury secretary Scott Bessent said on Monday that the Trump administration would not impose additional tariffs on Chinese goods to halt China’s purchases of Russian oil unless European countries hit China and India with steep duties of their own.
Bessent told Reuters and Bloomberg in a joint interview that European countries needed to play a stronger role in cutting off Russian oil revenues and bringing its war in Ukraine to an end.
“We expect the Europeans to do their share now, and we are not moving forward without the Europeans,” Bessent said, when asked whether the US would impose Russian oil-related tariffs on Chinese goods after Trump slapped an additional 25 per cent duties on Indian imports.
Zelensky tells Sky News Putin used Alaska summit with Trump to ‘escape from political isolation’
Volodymyr Zelensky also told Sky News that Vladimir Putin used the Alaska summit with Donald Trump because he “wanted to escape from political isolation”.
The Ukrainian president said he thinks the Russian leader “should have paid more” for the meeting with the US president.
Mr Zelensky told the broadcaster: “He should have received a setback in this war and stop.
“But instead, he received de-isolation. He got the photos with president Trump. He received public dialogue, and I think this opens the doors for Putin into some other summits and formats, because that’s how it is, and we see that, we observe this, and I don’t think he paid anything for it.”
Mr Zelensky argued that Mr Putin “should pay, firstly, because he started the war, and secondly, because (he is) trying to find a way out of isolation”.
He continued: “[It is very important not to give Mr Putin this space, because otherwise he won’t feel compelled that he has to stop the war.
“He’s waging the war and everyone is trying to stop him by arguing, by asking him – but instead force should be used. He understands force. That’s his language. That is the language he understands.
“He doesn’t speak many languages, but that’s the language of force he understands, just like Russian, his mother tongue – and we ask very much European and US countries to do that, to show that.
“Yes, they take some steps, such as sanctions, for example, but more needs to be done, quicker.”
Zelensky tells Sky News Putin is attempting to trick Trump into delaying sanctions
Volodymyr Zelensky has told Sky News that Vladimir Putin is attempting to trick Donald Trump into delaying sanctions.
Speaking of the Russian and US leaders’ meeting in Alaska last month, the Ukrainian president said: “I think it gave a lot to Putin, and I believe, if it was a trilateral meeting, we would have some result.”
The broadcaster’s Yalda Hakim asked if Mr Putin was attempting to trick Mr Trump. Mr Zelensky said he was, and added: “He’s doing everything he can to avoid sanctions, to prevent US and Trump from putting sanctions on him, and if you keep postponing applying sanctions any further, then the Russians will be better prepared.”
Pictured: People watch as drones carry Russian flags during military drills
Polish foreign minister calls for ‘no fly zone’ over Ukraine to help protect Europe
Poland’s foreign minister has called for a no-fly zone to be imposed in the skies in Ukraine to deter Russia from attacking Europe.
Radoslaw Sikorski told the German news outlet Frankfurter Allgemeiner said: “We as Nato and the EU could be capable of doing this, but it is not a decision that Poland can make alone; it can only be made with its allies.
“Protection for our population — for example, from falling debris — would naturally be greater if we could combat drones and other flying objects beyond our national territory.”
“If Ukraine were to ask us to shoot them down over its territory, that would be advantageous for us. If you ask me personally, we should consider it,” he added.
India sends troops to join Russian-led military drills
Indian soldiers have joined Russian-led military drills in Belarus, the country’s defence minister has said.
Around 30,000 Russian and Belarusian soldiers are taking part in the Zapad military drills – just days after Russian drones breached Romanian and Polish airspace.
In a statement, Delhi said it had dispatched 65 personnel to the drills.
The statement added that India wished to “further strengthen defence co-operation and foster camaraderie between India and Russia, thereby reinforcing the spirit of collaboration and mutual trust”.
Two Belarusians arrested after new drone flies over Poland
Two Belarusian people were arrested in Poland after authorities “neutralised” a drone over government buildings, the country’s prime minister Donald Tusk has revealed.
Pictured: Putin attends opening ceremonies for new government facilities
How could new US sanctions impact Russia?
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has indicated that Washington is ready to impose harsh sanctions on Russia over its war in Ukraine.
While the exact measures have not been outlined, sanctions so far have targeted Moscow’s energy and financial sectors to limit its ability to fund the war in Ukraine.
Sanctions like the EU’s oil price cap, or US tariffs against India, are designed to limit Moscow’s crude revenues, the cornerstone of its war coffers and economy.
Capital Economics estimate that Russia exported just over $200bn (£148bn) in energy products last year. A 50 per cent cut in Russia’s crude and petroleum exports could reduce export revenues by around $75bn.
Read our full story below.
What could Trump’s ‘second phase’ of sanctions against Russia involve?
Three Venezuelan ‘narcoterrorists’ killed in strike, Trump says
President Donald Trump on Monday said American forces had attacked and destroyed a second small boat purportedly carrying narcotics from Venezuela to the United States, killing three people whom he referred to, in a social media post, as “narcoterrorists.”
Writing on Truth Social, Trump said the “second kinetic strike” had been carried out on his orders against “positively identified, extraordinarily violent drug trafficking cartels and narcoterrorists” operating in the area of responsibility for the U.S. Southern Command.
“The Strike occurred while these confirmed narcoterrorists from Venezuela were in International Waters transporting illegal narcotics … headed to the U.S.,” he wrote.
Trump added that such “extremely violent drug trafficking cartels” are “a threat to U.S. National Security, Foreign Policy and vital U.S. interests” and stated that “3 male terrorists” were killed in the strike.
Continuing, the president said his administration was “hunting” anyone who is “transporting drugs that can kill Americans” and accused drug cartels of having wrought “DEVASTATING CONSEQUENCES ON AMERICAN COMMUNITIES FOR DECADES, killing millions of American Citizens.”
The strike, which was captured by an American video camera with footage posted to Truth Social by the president, is the second such attack this month against a boat the Trump administration has claimed to be carrying drugs.
Earlier this month, U.S. forces struck a similar vessel carrying 11 people who the White House claimed were members of Tren de Aragua, the Venezuelan gang which the Trump administration has designated as a foreign terrorist organization and has attempted to link to the Venezuelan government headed by dictator Nicolas Maduro.
The action drew condemnation from some members of Congress who stressed that the legislative branch has not authorized military action against Venezuela while citing longstanding statutory prohibitions against using the U.S. military for law enforcement purposes.
In a letter to the White House earlier this month, Virginia Senator Tim Kaine and 24 other Democratic members of the upper chamber said the Trump administration has provided “no legitimate legal justification” for the strike and demanded more information from the administration on the situation and use of U.S. military power.
At least one Republican, Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, has also suggested that Trump lacked the authority to order the strike.
The Trump administration has claimed self-defense as a legal justification for the strike, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio arguing the drug cartels “pose an immediate threat” to the nation. The U.S., which has designated Tren de Aragua as a terrorist organization, has indicated more military strikes on drug targets could be coming as it seeks to “wage war” on cartels.
“The President acted in line with the laws of armed conflict to protect our country from those trying to bring poison to our shores,” White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said in a statement justifying the initial strike earlier this month. “He is delivering on his promise to take on the cartels and eliminate these national security threats from murdering more Americans.”
With additional reporting by agencies
Farage criticised for saying ‘most stable relationships’ are between men and women
Nigel Farage has been accused of “vile homophobia” for claiming straight couples are more stable than gay relationships during a press conference welcoming former Conservative MP Danny Kruger to Reform UK.
The Reform leader said “the most stable relationships tend to be between men and women” after he was asked about past comments made by the right-winger, who became the first sitting Tory MP to join Mr Farage’s party.
Mr Kruger, who was shadow work and pensions minister, previously told a National Conservatism conference that marriage between men and women was “the only basis for a safe and successful society”.
Questioned on whether he shared Mr Kruger’s view, Mr Farage said: “I think one thing for certain is children who have two stable parents have a better chance in life. And the most stable relationships, maybe not my example, but the most stable relationships, the ones that last the longest, tend to be between men and women.
“I’m not absolutist about this in any way at all. I just happen to think of kids in the country not getting the start at home or at school that they deserve.”
Mr Farage, who has twice been married and is now in a relationship with Laure Ferrari, was accused of “seeking to reopen settled debates on gay marriage and adoption”.
Labour MP Nadia Whittome said: “This is vile homophobia that has no bearing on reality. Make no mistake: Farage is seeking to reopen settled debates on gay marriage and adoption, in order to stir up further hatred and division. The rights of the whole LGBT+ community would be in danger under a Reform government.”
A Stonewall spokesperson said: “In the modern world we live in, families are diverse and come in all shapes and sizes. The most important thing is for children to be brought up in a stable, supportive, loving environment that will enable them to develop and thrive.”
Office for National Statistics figures show there were 103,816 divorces in England and Wales in 2023, with 1,891 divorces of same-sex couples. Some studies, however, have shown a higher risk of divorce for same-sex couples, especially female couples.
The claim by Mr Farage comes after condemnation of his views on abortion laws, which he has described as “totally out of date”. The Reform leader was criticised after he said it is “ludicrous we allow abortion up to 24 weeks”.
Mr Kruger’s surprise defection on Monday marked the first sitting Tory MP to join Reform’s ranks in the Commons.
The East Wiltshire MP has joined Reform to head up its preparations for government, becoming the latest in a series of high-profile former ministers to join the party, taking the number of Reform MPs to five.
Mr Kruger said there is a “crisis in the economy, crisis at the border, crisis in our streets and a crisis in our military”.
He said Britain “is not broken, but it is badly damaged” and that “something has got to give”.
The Independent has contacted Mr Farage for comment.
I wish my mum had contacted Macmillan Cancer Support
I wasn’t at my mum’s side when she learned she had breast cancer, but that made me determined to be there the day she was getting the all-clear 18-months later. However, things didn’t go to plan that day.
Mum’s cancer journey started over a decade ago, a few months after a routine mammogram – when she developed “a pain”. She told herself it was probably nothing, because the scan she’d just had was fine. When she mentioned it to her GP – a small lump that didn’t feel quite right – she convinced herself that she was just being silly. The biopsy begged to differ.
In the list you keep in your head of the cancers you worry your mum might get, breast wasn’t that high on mine. Yes, it’s long been the number one cancer affecting women, with Macmillan Cancer Support reporting that about 55,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer in the UK each year – the risk factor only increasing with age. But my mum had other health concerns to contend with.
As a schoolgirl in swinging London, she’d been a back-of-the-bikeshed smoker, which had graduated into a lifelong habit. Lung cancer seemed like a possibility.
Mum’s also the biggest sun worshipper I know. Long before any of us had heard of SPF, she would think nothing of spending an afternoon in the garden, stretched out on a blanket, slathered in baby oil. So, given what we know now about UV radiation, I wondered about skin cancer too.
Mum went on to have a series of lumpectomies to get rid of three spots of malignant tissue. She would also have lymph nodes removed as a precaution, as well as undergo extensive chemotherapy.
For me, her diagnosis was as though a stopwatch had been started. How long might she have left? She did her best to be stoic. Which was just as well, given what government austerity measures at the time were doing to the NHS: budget cuts, hapless reorganisations, and an end to the “gold-standard” two-week referral from detection to the start of treatment.
All mum could do was wait for the brown envelopes to drop on the doormat detailing appointments at unfamiliar hospitals many miles away, sometimes after the appointment had been and gone.
If she felt let down by the bureaucracy of our health service, the same could not be said for the army of individuals involved in her care. On a human level, she found her nurses and doctors to be uniquely composed and compassionate throughout her treatment.
When the day finally came for her oncologist to tell her that all the signs of her cancer had gone, I was invited along to hold her hand. “The scans are back,” he began. “And I need to discuss your options for the next course of action.” It seemed the cancer hadn’t quite gone after all. She had fought so hard to get to this point, she was expecting good news, and was unprepared for the knockback.
But she did go on to beat cancer – and has been in remission for more than five years, which we couldn’t be more grateful for. However, should it ever come back, there’s one thing we’d do differently from the off: make a call to Macmillan Cancer Support.
Only with hindsight, did we realise how much help Macmillan would have been. Someone to provide her with a calming companion for the journey, someone to help with the cancer admin – the appointments, the prescriptions, the test results – and someone to explain what all the scans and tests were for, what the results might mean, and what to expect next.
I couldn’t always be around while mum was living with cancer, and that’s where Macmillan steps in. Now, enjoying a slice of cake at a Coffee Morning, which is raising money to fund the work they do, seems like the least I can do.
Find out how you can help raise vital funds by hosting a Macmillan Coffee Morning. Sign up now 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.
Fifty Arab leaders hold urgent summit over Israel’s Doha bombing
Fifty leaders from across the Arab and Islamic world gathered in Qatar’s capital for an emergency meeting in an “unprecedented show of unity” against Israel’s shock bombing of the Gulf state last week, as Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned further strikes may be on the horizon.
Israel bombed Doha on 9 September, targeting Hamas militant leaders who, according to Qatar, were in its capital to discuss Donald Trump’s latest ceasefire proposal for Gaza. The air raid, which was conducted without prior knowledge of either the US or Qatar, marked a significant escalation of Israeli military action in a region already shaken by conflict since the Hamas-led 7 October attacks that ignited the Gaza war.
Qatar, a key mediator and host of talks for Gaza, is also the home of Washington’s largest base in the Middle East.
The increasingly alarmed bloc of leaders convened in the Gulf state on Monday, including – unusually – Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman, Egyptian president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, and Emirati president Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, whose countries have in the past boycotted Qatar over diplomatic disputes.
The aim was to hammer out a joint plan of action, Qatari officials told The Independent, as Doha is seeking legal recourse and the suspension of Israel’s membership in the United Nations.
Qatar’s ruling emir opened the summit with a blistering condemnation of Israel, describing it as “cowardly and treacherous” and accusing it of caring little for the hostages in Gaza – instead working solely to “ensure Gaza is no longer liveable”.
“If Israel wishes to assassinate Hamas leaders, why then engage in negotiations?” Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani said in an unusually fiery speech. “If they wish to insist on the liberation of hostages, why then do they assassinate all negotiators?”
“There is no room to deal with such a party that is cowardly and treacherous,” he added. “Those who work consistently to assassinate the parties involved in these negotiations will certainly do everything to ensure the failure of these negotiations. When they claim that they seek the liberation of hostages, that is a mere lie.”
Later, Qatar’s prime minister and foreign minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said: “It is time for the international community to stop applying double standards and punish Israel for all the crimes it has committed.”
The Qatari premier had held a closed-door meeting and later dinner with President Trump, and vice-president JD Vance the week prior in Washington DC. The Independent understands that Qatar received assurances from the US that such an incident “will not happen again on Qatari soil”.
But Mr Netanyahu, seemingly unperturbed by the summit or these assurances, appeared to hint at further airstrikes.
In a joint press conference with US secretary of state Marco Rubio – who was visiting Jerusalem on Monday and is due to travel to Qatar on Tuesday – Mr Netanyahu appeared to double down on Israel’s actions.
There were no signs of US frustration or annoyance with Israel’s latest moves, although Mr Trump had made clear his displeasure with Israel’s unilateral strike on Hamas.
Asked about whether Israel would consider bombing Hamas operatives in other sovereign countries again, the prime minister said that Israel follows the principle “that terrorists should not have immunity, wherever they are”.
The raid, he added, carried “one central message: you can hide, you can run, but we will get you”.
He has previously warned Qatar and “all nations who harbour terrorists” that: “You either expel them or you bring them to justice. Because if you don’t, we will.”
Qatar’s top diplomats told The Independent that the Gulf state, as a key mediator in the bloody conflict, had repeatedly been asked by both Israel and the US to host talks and negotiating teams from all sides including, of course, Hamas.
In Doha, officials said that Monday’s summit represented “an unprecedented show of unity from across the Arab and Muslim world – both in support of Qatar’s sovereignty and in opposition to Netanyahu’s reckless aggression”.
“More than 50 leaders from all over the world have swiftly gathered in Doha to issue this collective response. It shows the urgency of the problem at hand and sends a strong and clear warning to Netanyahu that leaders representing over a billion of the world’s population will not remain silent.”
Officials added that Qatar hopes attendees will coordinate their response to Mr Netanyahu’s actions, “including efforts to suspend Israel’s membership in the UN following its blatant violations of the charter”.
In Monday’s press conference, Mr Rubio called on Qatar to continue to play a constructive role in resolving the Gaza conflict, saying it could help achieve the goals of releasing all 48 hostages still held in Gaza, disarming Hamas, and building a better future for Palestinians in Gaza.
“And so we’re going to continue to encourage Qatar to play a constructive role in that regard,” he said.
Mr Trump has also indicated his displeasure at the attack, saying Israel should proceed with caution: “My message is that they have to be very, very careful. They have to do something about Hamas, but Qatar has been a great ally to the United States.”
Tyler Robinson reportedly confessed in group chat for shooting Charlie Kirk
The 22-year-old man suspected of fatally shooting Charlie Kirk reportedly confessed to the killing in a group chat on Discord shortly before being arrested.
Tyler Robinson allegedly wrote in a small group chat, “Hey guys, I have bad news for you all. It was me at UVU yesterday. im sorry for all of this,” two people familiar with the chat told The Washington Post.
The revelation comes as officials have said Robinson refused to cooperate with law enforcement in the investigation.
Although Robinson surrendered to the police on the evening of September 11, authorities have not yet determined a full motive for the shooting. Officials say Robinson was radicalized online and subscribed to a “leftist” ideology.
Trump administration have claimed without presenting public evidence that the shooting was part of an organized left-wing terror plot, and vowed on Monday to go after the groups behind it.
Kirk, a Republican activist and co-founder of the conservative youth movement Turning Point USA, was fatally shot while hosting an event at a Utah college on September 10.
His death has prompted widespread mourning and outrage, especially on the right, and Vice President JD Vance stepped in Monday to host an episode of the late activist’s podcast.
SC lawmaker wants to pull funding from major college over three faculty members’ alleged Charlie Kirk comments
A Republican legislator in South Carolina has called for one of the state’s biggest colleges to be defunded if it does not crack down on faculty members who allegedly celebrated Charlie Kirk’s assassination.
In a letter published on Facebook on Monday, state House of Representatives member Jordan Pace asked House and Senate leaders to call a special session in order to punish Clemson University for allegedly “failing to act”.
“Such behavior is intolerable at any public institution funded by South Carolina taxpayers,” Pace wrote. “We, as a body, should be clear on what accountability looks like: immediate termination of those faculty members.
“If Clemson persists in this failure we must act. If Clemson refuses to hold these faculty members accountable then the taxpayers deserve a refund.”
Io Dodds has the story.
SC lawmaker wants to defund major college over Charlie Kirk posts by faculty
Trump, Miller outline crackdown on left-wing groups following Kirk killing
The Trump administration is preparing to crack down on unspecified left-wing groups it alleges had a hand in the Charlie Kirk assassination and other recent political violence, officials said on Monday.
“We are going to channel all the anger we have over the organized campaign to led to this assassination to uproot and dismantle these terrorist networks,” White House deputy chief of staff said Monday during a memorial taping of Kirk’s podcast at the White House, hosted by Vice President JD Vance.
Officials have not described suspect Kirk assassin Tyler Robinson as receiving help from any group or even being a member of any organized political movement or party, though they have said he held a general “leftist” ideology. They have also not determined a full motive for the shooting.
Elsewhere, Assistant U.S. Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon has implied schools where educators have made negative comments about Kirk following his death could lose federal funding, as Republicans in Congress like Nancy Mace push the Department of Education to cut ties.
Later that day, taking questions from reporters in the Oval Office, Trump said he supported designating antifa as a domestic terror organization and wanted to use a so-called RICO statute, criminal conspiracy laws usually used against organized crime figures, to prosecute people he claimed without evidence were spending “millions and millions” of dollars to pay violent agitators at recent protests.
Antifa is a broad category of anti-fascist activists, not a single group with a leader or common organizational structure, which would likely frustrate efforts to classify it as an organized terror cell.
Tennessee professor facing firing over Charlie Kirk comments
An assistant professor at the University of Tennessee may be fired over alleged social posts celebrating Charlie Kirk’s death.
“The university has taken swift action against a faculty member who has failed to meet our expectations for civil engagement,” the university told WVLT in a statement. “The faculty member is out of the classroom, placed on administrative leave, and termination proceedings have begun.”
Tamar Shirinian, an assistant professor in the anthropology department, allegedly commented on Facebook “the world is better off without him in it” and claimed the late activist’s wife was “sick” for marrying him.
The professors alleged comments were flagged online by conservatives and Republican members of Congress, quickly making their way to university and Trump administration officials.
Assistant U.S. Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon praised the university’s action, writing, “Well done,” on X, and suggested elsewhere on Monday universities could face federal funding issues for faculty expressing similar views.
“Federal funding for higher education is a privilege, NOT a right,” she wrote. “The government is not obligated to fund vile garbage with our tax dollars.”
Charlie Kirk’s sister has drastically different political views: report
Charlie Kirk’s sister reportedly appears to have very different political views than her late brother, one of the country’s most prominent young conservative activists.
Mary Kirk, 29, supported Bernie Sanders and urged followers online to donate to a museum on slavery that had its funding cut by the Trump administration, The Daily Beast reports.
“#Tbt to when I met Bernie a year ago and had no idea who he was and now he is the light of my life,” she wrote on social media in 2016, according to the outlet.
Teachers suspended for post on Charlie Kirk for post that ‘justified violence’
A Southern California teacher has been suspended for social media comments that allegedly celebrated violence after the assassination of Charlie Kirk.
“We are shocked and deeply dismayed by the vile and completely inappropriate sentiments displayed in a social media post made by one of our employees regarding the recent horrific murder of Charlie Kirk,” Las Virgenes Unified School District in Calabasas said in a statement to KABC. “At a time when our world feels so divided, educators carry a special responsibility: to help young people learn how to handle conflict, respect different points of view, and engage in civil discourse, regardless of where one lies on the political spectrum.”
The school district, which did not name the educator in question, said the social media material “violates Board policy.”
“It is never appropriate for any LVUSD employee to justify violence,” the district statement reads.
Tyler Robinson’s roomate/partner ‘hates conservatives and Christians’
The roommate and romantic partner of Tyler Robinson, the man arrested for allegedly shooting conservative activist Charlie Kirk, had aggressive views towards Christians and those on the political right, according to a family member.
The individual “hates conservatives and Christians,” a relative of Robinson’s told Fox News.
The family member said Robinson came to share their views during the year they were dating.
“He has obviously gotten progressively worse the last year or two,” the relative said, describing Robinson as “very angry.”
Officials have said the roommate, whom they described as in the midst of a transition from male to female, is cooperating with officials and was “shocked” by the assassination.
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said Sunday there is “not a solid understanding” whether there was a connection between the gender identity of the roommate and the killing of Kirk, an outspoken conservative who denied the legitimacy of transgender people.
In the wake of the shooting, allegations that Robinson’s roommate or partner is transgender prompted some in the MAGA movement to repeat the false, debunked claim that trans people are more likely to carry out gun violence.
Why understanding the Charlie Kirk shooting suspect may be harder than we thought
Nancy Mace seeks to strip Ilhan Omar of committee assignments over Charlie Kirk comments
Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota should be stripped of her committee assignments over recent comments about Charlie Kirk, according to Rep. Nancy Mace.
The South Carolina Republican posted a copy of a censure resolution against Omar on X, alleging she made recent “disgraceful” remarks about Kirk’s assassination.
The resolution referred to a recent interview between Omar and the news site Zeteo, in which the Minnesota accused conservatives of weaponizing Kirk’s death to attack the left. The resolution also cites a video Omar allegedly reposted that suggested Kirk’s divisive views helped create the political conditions that led to his death.
Earlier in the day, Omar appeared to weigh in on widespread conservative anger about those being critical or even celebrating after Kirk’s death.
“To those claiming they’re for free speech while punishing and silencing those for exercising that right: You’re not pro-free speech,” she wrote.
Trump appears to forget about recently slain Minnesota lawmaker in question about lowering flags
Speaking to reporters on Monday, President Trump appeared to initially be unfamiliar with the recent fatal shooting of Melissa Hortman, the Democratic former speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives, who was killed in June along with her husband in what officials described at the time as a “politically-motivated” shooting.
“I’m not familiar,” Trump said, when asked about whether he thought it would be appropriate to have lowered flags to half-mast for Hortman, as the president did for the recently slain Charlie Kirk.
“Well if the governor had asked me to do that, I would’ve done that, but the governor of Minnesota didn’t ask me,” Trump said of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz. “I wouldn’t have thought of that, but I would’ve if somebody had asked me.”
At the time of the Minnesota shootings, Trump said it would “waste time” to call the “whacked out” Walz, who ran against the Republican as Kamala Harris’s vice-presidential pick in the 2024 election.
Trump mocks Tim Walz when asked if he’s called the Minnesota governor
Watch: JD Vance On Why He Owes His Political Career To Charlie Kirk
Young conservatives reflect on Kirk’s massive impact
Charlie Kirk is being remembered as a singular figure in U.S. politics, perhaps the single most influential figure in attracting young people into conservative politics, despite decades of the youth leaning left.
“I thought it was supercool that there’s someone younger who was going to all these universities, and who did believe in God and really made that known,” Grand Canyon University student Olivia Hubbard told The Wall Street Journal.
Kirk, who became a fixture on college campuses with “debate me”-style public conversations with students, proved instrumental in helping erode the Democratic Party’s hold on young voters.
In 2024, Kamala Harris failed to clear the 60 percent or more youth support that every Democrat has achieved since 2008, according to exit polls.