Trump vows to resolve Kashmir dispute after ceasefire holds overnight
The ceasefire between India and Pakistan appeared to hold as no violations were reported overnight.
The two sides had accused each other of breaking the truce Saturday evening as explosions rockedKashmir barely hours after a deal was announced following US-mediated talks.
While the US had initially said the escalation between the two nuclear powers was “none of our business”, CNN reported that vice president JD Vance called prime minister Narendra Modi after receiving “alarming intelligence” about the conflict.
President Donald Trump hailed the truce and said he would now work “to see if, after a ‘thousand years’, a solution can be arrived at concerning Kashmir”.
“Millions of good and innocent people could have died!” he wrote on Truth Social. “Your legacy is greatly enhanced by your brave actions.”
Soon after the ceasefire was announced, Indian foreign secretary Vikram Misri accused Pakistan of breaching it.
Pakistan’s foreign ministry rejected the claim, accusing India of firing first and saying its forces were responding with “responsibility and restraint”.
In Srinagar, The Independent producer Mohammad Dawood reported, residents described feeling “like the city was being bombed”. Projectiles were also seen over Jammu to the south and explosions were heard in the western state of Gujarat.
Pope Leo appeals to global leaders for ‘no more war’ in first Sunday address
Pope Leo XIV has appealed to global leaders for “no more war”, in his first Sunday message to crowds in St. Peter’s Square since his election as pontiff.
The new pope called for an “authentic and lasting peace” in Ukraine, a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of all Israeli hostages.
Leo also welcomed the recent ceasefire between India and Pakistan, and said he was praying to God to grant the world the “miracle of peace.”
“Never again war!” He said from the loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica.
Recalling the end of World War II 80 years ago, Leo quoted Pope Francis in denouncing the number of conflicts ravaging the globe today, saying it was a “third world war in pieces.”
Leo also recalled that Sunday was Mother’s Day in many countries and wished all mothers, “including those in heaven” a Happy Mother’s Day.
The crowd, filled with marching bands in town for a special Jubilee weekend, erupted in cheers and music as the bells of St. Peter’s Basilica tolled.
The reinvention of Michelle Obama and her quest for stealth power
First, there was the speech at the Democratic convention last August when she was supposed to warm up the audience for her husband, Barack – but ended up stealing the show. Then came conspicuous absences at Jimmy Carter’s funeral and Donald Trump’s inauguration. And in recent weeks, there have been a string of high-profile – and searingly honest – podcast interviews.
Michelle Obama is very consciously reconfiguring her image. But it is less former first lady, more woman on her own terms. The straightened bob, neutral manicure and demure dresses of the White House years are gone, replaced with long braids, bright pointy nails and some fierce styling. More significantly, while she’s shut down any ideas of a political future, she looks more powerful than ever.
The former first lady is now signalling a new – and very focused – desire to create a different kind of change by leaning into the huge bank of soft power she’s amassed. And cleverly, instead of playing the game, she is changing the rules – and this will be power on her terms, which feels authentic and true to her spirit.
It started in early March with the launch of her new IMO podcast, hosted with her brother Craig Robinson. The siblings’ mission? To use the podcast space to create connection instead of the division that’s currently riddling the US.
“There is no single way to deal with the challenges we may be facing – whether it’s family, faith, or our personal relationships – but taking the time to open up and talk about these issues can provide hope,” Michelle said.
Robinson, whose career at the top level of basketball coaching has schooled him in the art of mentorship, also spoke of the siblings’ hope that the podcast “sparks new ideas, new perspectives, and creates the connection we could all use right now”.
For years, rumours swirled that the former first lady might follow in Hillary Clinton’s footsteps and launch her own political career. She’s a talented orator after all and has built a significant connection with the public since stepping into the world spotlight when Barack became president in 2009. With 57 million followers on Instagram, Michelle’s social media influence now dwarfs her husband’s and her 2018 memoir Becoming was a global bestseller. Most aspirant politicians could only dream of a base like this to build on.
But Michelle has shut down speculation before and did so again within a week of the first IMO episode.
“I was so glad when we got out of the White House,” she said to Kylie Kelce on the Not Gonna Lie podcast, before later adding: “So when people ask me would I ever run, the answer is no.”
Soon, she was being interviewed again – this time on Sophia Bush’s podcast, where she both dismissed gossip that her marriage was in trouble because she hadn’t attended recent high-profile political moments with Barack, and also signalled that she was no longer going to play one half of a double act.
“That’s the thing that we as women, I think we struggle with, like disappointing people,” she said. “I mean so much so that this year people were, they couldn’t even fathom that I was making a choice for myself, that they had to assume that my husband and I are divorcing, you know? This couldn’t be a grown woman just making a set of decisions herself, right?
“But that’s what society does to us. We start actually, finally going, ‘What am I doing? Who am I doing this for?’ And if it doesn’t fit into the sort of stereotype of what people think we should do, then it gets labelled as something negative and horrible.”
Earlier this week, Michelle made headlines again when she appeared on Jay Shetty’s On Purpose podcast and spoke about going into therapy to navigate a “whole other phase in life” now her daughters, Malia, 26 and Sasha, 23, are adults.
“I’m an empty nester,” she said. “Now, for the first time, as I’ve said before, every choice that I’m making is completely mine now. I don’t have the excuse of, ‘Well, my kids need this, or my husband needs that, or the country needs that.’ So, how do I think about this next phase?”
For many years, Michelle followed the familiar path of political wives and was identified with her role as a mother and champion of children – known as “head mom in chief” to her daughters, she was also involved in several early years’ initiatives during her time in the White House, including programmes to tackle childhood obesity and open up educational opportunities for girls.
But Becoming certainly wove philosophical and intellectual ideas into her personal story, and the publication of her second book, The Light We Carry: Overcoming in Uncertain Times, in 2022 leaned even more into a philosophy of self-help and motivation.
But the message was intermittent. After 10 episodes of The Light Podcast were released, a six-month break was followed by two more in early 2024, and then Michelle went quiet again.
Meanwhile, the output of Higher Ground, the production company she and Barack set up post White House, was carving a hugely successful path. Instead of preaching, however, the couple were finding ways to be clever about communicating their values, but also entertaining and playful about heavyweight subjects. After signing a first-look deal with Netflix, projects have leaned into everything from the breakdown of social order to increasing visibility for older people – women in particular.
Apocalyptic thriller Leave the World Behind starred Julia Roberts and had 121 million views in a little over three weeks after it was released. The Later Daters took the youth-oriented tropes of reality TV romance shows and turned them on their head to focus sensitively – and entertainingly – on older participants. Michelle Obama seems to want to leave the polarised world of explicit political messaging behind and explore topics in a more nuanced – and joyful – way.
She’s also clearly ready to develop her own voice.
“Going through therapy is getting me to look at the fact that maybe finally I’m good enough,” she said when she interviewed Taraji P Henson for IMO last month.
Admitting self-doubt, embracing self-acceptance and being refreshingly honest about struggles in her marriage – Michelle once admitted she “couldn’t stand” her husband during their daughters’ early years because the mental and practical load felt so unequal – she has long been known for her authenticity and honesty.
But the launch of IMO and her recent interviews have seen her drive home a repeated message of self-actualisation and emotional rawness. As well as articulating her sense of a new era in her life, Obama has talked about everything from marrying a man who was “not financially sound” – Barack and she were young lawyers when they first met – to the profound emotional shift triggered by her mother’s death last year.
So, is there a plan behind it all?
Maybe. Oprah Winfrey is a treasured friend who threw Michelle’s 50th birthday party on her estate, and it could certainly be that the former first lady is being intentional about leveraging a similar kind of soft cultural power to create a more hopeful world.
“She’s built an incredible brand,” says Jennifer Holloway, a branding expert and author who’s worked with clients including Apple and Microsoft. “And what makes it so powerful is that she’s done it organically by being consistent and true to who she is. And it’s interesting that she’s now being more vocal in a way that perhaps she couldn’t before.
“She has a very profound effect. She gives people hope. And I think that’s very much her brand – it’s about fulfilling your own potential. Her key ability is to inspire others by being true to who she is, and honest about the challenges. She’s identifiable. And that is incredibly powerful.”
Whether Michelle has an end game in mind for her recent moves to claim her own space, on her own terms, remains to be seen. But in the past, she’s written about “the kind of volcanic clarity that comes when you speak from the absolute centre of your being”.
It’s also certain that after spending years in politics, she’s learned some lessons along the way.
And, as fellow democrat Franklin D Roosevelt once said: “In politics, nothing happens by chance. If it happens, you can bet it was planned that way.” And in the words of Michelle Obama: “When they go low, we go high.”
Jackson sent off for elbow as Newcastle lead Chelsea in crucial clash
Newcastle United host Chelsea in a crucial Premier League clash as the race for Champions League qualification hots up.
With Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa breathing down their necks, both teams go into the game level on points and goal difference, meaning a win for either side at St James’ Park could be huge in securing a top-five spot. An unexpected slip-up for Manchester City, dropping points in a draw against relegated Southampton, leaves them still within reach for a victor with just two rounds of fixtures to come after this weekend.
Chelsea are in the slightly better form of the two sides, having defeated champions Liverpool last weekend for their third win in a row as Cole Palmer ended his goal drought in a 3-1 victory. Newcastle were held by Brighton last time out and go to Arsenal next weekend, so are perhaps more in need of three points than Chelsea as each club looks to return to the top tier of European competition.
Follow all of the latest from the Premier League fixture in our live blog below:
Just 21 companies prosecuted in 15 years for not paying minimum wage
Just 21 companies have been prosecuted for not paying the minimum wage in 15 years, shock new figures show.
Experts said the small numbers “emboldened” rogue employers who paid workers far less than they were due as ministers were warned to get a grip of the problem, amid claims it was hampering economic growth and increasing the burgeoning welfare bill.
Between 2008 and 2023, only 21 employers were successfully prosecuted for underpaying the minimum wage, with an additional case accepting a caution, according to official figures from the Department for Business and Trade.
Ministers say criminal prosecution is reserved for the most serious cases, which involve deliberate underpayment or reckless pay practices.
These are usually where there is a wider public interest, or where employers are persistently non-compliant or refuse to cooperate with HMRC, they say.
Last year 524 businesses were “named and shamed” for failing to pay the minimum wage, leaving more than 172,000 workers out of pocket, and ordered to repay workers nearly £16 million, plus an additional financial penalty.
But Labour peer Lord Sikka, emeritus professor of accounting at the University of Essex, described those punishments as “puny” and called for more companies to be prosecuted.
The figures on prosecutions were revealed by minister Baroness Jones of Whitchurch in response to a question from Lord Sikka.
He told The Independent: “Our enforcement is incredibly weak.
“I think this is part of the British disease where the law is not really enforced, because they do not employ enough enforcers. It really then emboldens rogue employers because they can then game the system. And every year hundreds of thousands of workers are denied the minimum wage.
He called for more prosecutions and said the penalty for not paying the minimum wage “should at least equal the remuneration of the company board. The larger the company the bigger the penalty”.
He added that a failure to pay the minimum wage, brought in the Labour prime minister Tony Blair has an impact “at many levels of the economy. It could boost growth and reduce the welfare budget – if people are earning more they have to claim less welfare.”
Celebration villa breaks: find your perfect luxury getaway
If you’re planning a milestone birthday, a big anniversary, or a long-awaited reunion, a villa holiday is hard to beat. Imagine clinking glasses on a rooftop terrace at sunset or gathering loved ones around a candlelit garden table for a leisurely dinner under the night sky.
These special occasions deserve much more than booking out a busy hotel, and nothing beats having your own sun-drenched sanctuary where you have the space and privacy to celebrate in style. Whether you’re heading to Marrakech in the shadow of the Atlas Mountains, to the rolling hills of Tuscany, or a tropical oasis further afield, Villas are the perfect home-away-from-home for celebrating something, or someone, special.
CV Villas’ luxurious ABOVE collection offers the perfect backdrop for unforgettable moments – think breathtaking settings, total privacy, and the kind of comfort and space that makes everyone feel at home. All come with stunning interiors, sweeping views as far as the eye can see, and enviable locations in some of the world’s most sought-after spots. Each villa is hand-picked by dedicated CV Villa specialists, who are experts in helping people craft their dream getaway. Many come with their own infinity pools, breathtaking views and large alfresco dining areas, perfect for spending quality time together during life’s most important moments. Villas aren’t just places to stay, they’re a big part of the celebration itself.
From the moment you book your stay to your arrival back home, the CV Villas Concierge team is there to make everything as seamless and stress-free as possible. They are dedicated to looking after you and your party before and throughout your holiday so that you can focus on the things that really matter, like spending quality time together and celebrating without having to worry about the minor details. The team tailors each trip to exactly what you’re after, whether you’re looking to book a private boat day or need to organise a surprise celebration dinner, nothing is too much trouble. Many of the five-star villas even come with their own butlers and chefs so that you can be waited on hand and foot during your special getaway.
ABOVE villas are the epitome of luxury and come with designer interiors, infinity pools boasting panoramic ocean views, and terraces made for golden hour cocktails – properties with serious star quality. What’s more, they’re located all around the world, from the sun-soaked shores of Spain and Greece to the palm-fringed beaches of far-flung Sri Lanka and beyond.
Sampling delicious local food is a big part of a holiday, but catering for a large group can often mean juggling different requests and palates. Luckily for you, many of these luxury villas come with their very own in-villa chefs – perfect for when you’d rather toast the moment with a glass of fizz than spend time flapping around in the kitchen. Instead, let your chef whip up multi-course meals morning till night, using the freshest local produce, all based on your personal tastes and dietary requirements, before tucking into it alfresco under the undisturbed starry night sky.
The little luxuries make a big difference to a bucket-list trip: daily housekeeping to keep things spic and span, spa treatments for when you need a little R&R, wine tastings for the adults, yoga sessions with epic views, and even round-the-clock babysitting. All of this can be arranged to make your stay feel even more indulgent.
Maison Emilion, France
This rustic French villa is practically made for wine lovers, aptly located amidst the rolling vineyards of Bordeaux. This six-bedroom hilltop hangout boasts views of the working vineyards from every angle, including from the heated pool and surrounding sunbeds. Wander into the nearby village of Saint-Émilion, then enjoy the included wine-tasting experience before settling into the garden for dinner with nothing but the glow of flickering candlelight and the moonlit sky.
Oleander, Corfu
It doesn’t get much more luxurious than Oleander in Corfu, a five-bedroom villa overlooking Avlaki Bay and the picturesque town of Kassiopi. It’s located high above the Ionian Sea and is the ideal villa for memorable summer celebrations. Soak up the sunshine from the infinity pool while enjoying views of Albania’s craggy Ceraunian Mountains, or hang out on the wrap-around terraces and communal outside dining areas. During peak season at Oleander, chef service is also included, so you can enjoy meals with your loved ones without even having to leave the villa.
Spirit of Son Fuster, Mallorca
Spirit of Son Fuster in Mallorca is hard to beat for large groups and multigenerational stays. This five-star bolthole is set in a stunning natural landscape at the foot of the Alaro twin mountains, right near the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Serra de Tramuntana, and is as secluded as it gets. This gorgeous 14th-century manor house sleeps twenty people across ten bedrooms and even has its own on-site spa and hammam where everyone can enjoy treatments in the dedicated treatment rooms. There’s even a private cinema room for movie nights and a well-stocked wine cellar filled with local vintage wines.
Masseria Giardini, Puglia
Masseria Giardini in Puglia is the height of luxury and the perfect home-away-from-home for families and large groups. It was built in 1750 and is surrounded by leafy olive groves and landscaped gardens curated by Chelsea Flower Show winners Urquhart & Hunt. Enjoy unparalleled views of the Canale Di Pirro Valley from this ten-bedroom farmhouse and spend days lazing around in the heated pool. This villa is an architectural masterpiece, with signature stone domed roofs and hand-carved stone baths in five of the ten bedrooms.
For more travel information and inspiration and to book your perfect villa getaway, visit CV Villas
The Assembly: Inside the most groundbreaking TV show of the year
Danny Dyer’s favourite kebab is a doner with chilli sauce. His wife has had total control of their finances ever since they had a particularly huge spat in 2000. And when he was a child, his dad would refuse to hold his hand. These are some of the details I learnt while watching the Rivals actor being grilled by a panel of neurodivergent and learning-disabled interviewers on ITV’s groundbreaking, funny and often moving series The Assembly, where no question is off limits.
The show initially aired as a pilot last year on BBC One, which saw 56-year-old actor Michael Sheen being asked the jaw-dropping question, “How does it feel to be dating someone only five years older than your daughter?”, about his partner Anna Lundberg, who is 30. The format replicates the original French show Les Rencontres du Papotin, on which President Emmanuel Macron was quizzed on whether marrying his high school teacher set a bad example (I should note, questions around age-gap relationships don’t actually appear in every episode).
Tonight, the first full British series of the show comes to a close on ITV, with final guest Gary Lineker following in the footsteps of Sheen, Dyer, David Tennant, and Little Mix’s Jade Thirlwall. These celebs have been interrogated on everything from their flatulence to their rockiest moments, and it’s made for the most life-affirming television in recent memory. Dyer opened the series with his candid, foul-mouthed confessions about being pushed out of EastEnders, being a “p****” to his wife Joanne Mas, and how he deals with anxiety (this ended with him leading a breathwork session for the entire cast). One interviewer, named Caroline, said what everyone was thinking and asked him why he swears so much. And when interviewer Harry told Dyer that he and his mum are big fans, Dyer shot back: “Is your mum fit?”
Tennant talked about the grief of losing his parents, his support of trans people, and learnt how to Vogue like Madonna. Thirlwall warmly discussed being the subject of pregnancy speculation in the media (“Guys, I just had a bit of garlic bread, I’m bloated”), being bullied at school and her memories of the late Liam Payne. And then there’s Lineker, who gets interrogated on his BBC exit, his favourite flavour of Walkers’ crisps and how he dealt with his son George’s leukaemia diagnosis. The stripped-back interview scenario, with no eagle-eyed publicists lurking in the corner or pre-approved questions, makes for a series of illuminating interviews that allow the celebrities to respond on their terms. Not only that, it’s telly featuring neurodivergent and learning-disabled people that doesn’t pander to any overly sympathetic or stereotypical narrative, but celebrates self-expression.
The people behind the British version of the show are executive producers Michelle Singer and Stu Richards, co-owners of the disabled-led production company Rockerdale Studios. When Richards was first brought the idea of optioning the format for UK screens, he wasn’t fussed. “Before we saw it, our initial reaction was, ‘God this is going to be dreadful,’ because we know how TV usually deals with disabled people,” he tells me. “But then we watched the episode with Emmanuel Macron. I was completely hooked. I thought, ‘We have to be making this because it’s unlike any interview or chat show we’ve ever seen.’”
Both of them hope the show has challenged stereotypes about disabled people, but not in the conventional sense. “Our show is not about autism or learning disabilities,” says Richards. “It’s about honesty and connection and humanity.” He says their studio’s mission is about making “mischievous content with disabled people”, rather than taking an approach that bashes viewers over the head with statistics and informational messages. “The boring way of doing that is to sit and talk about stereotypes in the actual show and look it in the eye,” he says. “We don’t do that. We make an entertaining show. And if it does nice things, then f***ing great.”
Finding that balance, Singer says, is about always checking that their shows – which include Channel 4’s Dine Hard, starring comedian Rosie Jones, and the BBC’s I am Darren, a sports mockumentary about GB Paralympian Darren Silverstone – don’t “tip into mawkishness or the tilty head ‘Ahhhh’ side of things”. “These are people who are excited about the world, who are a little bit naughty and mischievous. That’s the show. It isn’t, ‘Ah, aren’t they lovely? Look at people like that,’” she says. Richards adds that it’s about allowing the group the space to show off, when they often aren’t given the chance. “It’s being given agency and power to be the subject of something rather than the sort of object of our sympathy.”
The interviewers also have the power to ask anything they like. The celebrities are all given a short briefing by the production team, but there are no pre-planned scripts or rehearsals. “We tell the celebrities simply to be prepared to answer the questions as openly as possible,” says Singer. “You remind them that there’s no trickery here. Nobody’s trying to trip anyone up, and the questions our cast have come up with are genuine.”
Some of the questions posed throughout the series are any showbiz journalist’s dream. Singer remembers the reaction when Sheen was asked about his age-gap relationship for the BBC pilot. “The room sort of went, ‘Ohh, holy s***.’ And so did we, by the way. He had a lovely, thoughtful and considered response to it.” In another setting, a publicist might swoop in to change the subject, but the beauty of The Assembly is that the celebrities are allowed to pause and consider their response when answering the trickier questions. “He took his time,” says Singer. “And so the result of that is that they feel satisfied that they’ve been able to give their right answer.”
The authentic nature of the interviews also disarms the celebrities, and the process has a profound effect on them. In their respective episodes, Dyer, Tennant and Thirlwall are all wiping away tears by the time the cast give musical performances at the end of the programme (covers of “Movin’ On Up” by Primal Scream, the Proclaimers’ “Sunshine on Leith” and Diana Ross’s “I’m Coming Out”). After filming wrapped for Dyer’s episode, Richards remembers the actor seeming “giddy” and having a “sort of tingling, warm and emotional feeling”. Singer says that each celebrity has written to them via their agents to say how impactful they found the experience. Thirlwall even requested the names of each cast member to write them a handwritten thank-you card. On social media, she called it her “favourite interview”.
There’s no doubt that, despite the spicy questions, the interviewees on The Assembly’s first series come off extremely well (and they will surely be basking in the mountains of praise they’ve been receiving online). Richards teases that the Rockerdale inbox is already swimming with celebs asking about future series, but he’s aware that it could be cynically viewed as a good PR move. “[Agents] might think, ‘Oh, I’ll just get my celebrity on a show that they associate with some disabled people and automatically people will think they’re great.’ We’ve booked mostly quite nice guests so far, but what would happen if we booked an absolute piece of s***?”
The pair laugh as they mention a few names, one of which is Donald Trump. They would love to get UK politicians involved, too, namely the current prime minister. “If we get a future series of this show, I would love to see Keir Starmer on it,” says Richards, to which Singer adds: “In that environment, we can all tell and rumble somebody who was holding back or lying.”
The cast, too, have been enjoying the reception the series has received. Essin, one of the interviewers who delivered searing questions to Lineker about LGBT+ issues and football, recently left Singer a voice note saying she had been recognised in the street and was asked to take a selfie with a viewer. Richards says that everyone in the cast has been elated. “And Harry’s mum was delighted that Danny Dyer was asking if she was fit,” he says. A result all round.
‘The Assembly’ airs on Sunday at 10pm on ITV1 and ITVX. ‘The Assembly: Unseen’ will air on Sunday, 18 May and is available to watch now on ITVX
Children eat more per day after watching five minutes of junk food ads
Just five minutes of exposure to junk food advertising can lead children to consume an additional 130 calories daily, equivalent to a small chocolate bar, according to new research. The study, presented at the European Congress on Obesity in Malaga, reveals that advertising across various platforms, including social media, television, and podcasts, all contribute to this increased calorie intake.
Researchers found that children aged seven to 15 exposed to five minutes of advertisements for foods high in saturated fat, sugar, and/or salt (HFSS) consumed an average of 130 extra calories per day.
This concerning finding highlights the pervasive impact of junk food marketing on children’s dietary habits. While the research is yet to be published in a peer-reviewed journal, the preliminary findings underscore the need for stricter regulations on advertising unhealthy foods to young audiences.
Lead author, Professor Emma Boyland from the University of Liverpool, said: “Even short exposure to marketing of foods high in fat, salt and sugar can drive excess calorie consumption and potentially weight gain, particularly in young people who are more susceptible to advertising and whose eating patterns influence their lifelong health.”
The research included 240 children aged seven to 15.
Analysis showed that following exposure to HFSS food ads, children consumed more snacks (an extra 58.4 calories), more lunch (an extra 72.5 calories), and more food overall (snack and lunch combined) than after exposure to non-food advertising.
Those children with a higher body mass index also showed a “greater responsivity” to the food adverts, experts found.
The Government is introducing a ban on the targeting of junk food adverts at children from October this year.
It estimates this will prevent thousands of cases of childhood obesity.
The restrictions affect advertising for less healthy food or drink on television between 5.30am and 9pm, alongside paid-for advertising online at any time.
Other types of advertising, such as billboards and other outdoor advertising, are not be affected by the change.