Jamaat e-Islami, oppressed under Sheikh Hasina’s rule, could take unprecedented share of the vote on ThursdayAs the clock hit midnight, the women held their flame torches aloft and marched into the Dhaka night. “The people have given their blood, now we want equality,” they shouted above the roar of the traffic.For many in Bangladesh, the past few weeks have been a cause for jubilation. The first free and fair elections in 17 years have been promised for Thursday, after the toppling of the regime of Sheikh Hasina in a bloody student-led uprising in August 2024 in which more than 1,000 people died. Continue reading...

11 Feb 2026 02:00 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN

Officials arrested Kwok Yin-sang after he tried to end his daughter’s insurance policy and withdraw the fundsA Hong Kong court has found the father of a wanted activist guilty of a national security violation, after he tried to end her insurance policy and withdraw the funds, drawing international criticism for the targeting of relatives of pro-democracy campaigners.Kwok Yin-sang, 68, is the first person to be charged under a homegrown national security law, also known as Article 23, for “attempting to deal with, directly or indirectly, any funds or other financial assets or economic resources” belonging to an absconder. Continue reading...

11 Feb 2026 04:05 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN

PM and global climate action advocate looks set to secure another victory despite voter concerns over cost of living and crime Barbados prime minister and global climate action champion, Mia Amor Mottley, is on course for a third consecutive term in office, forecasts suggest, as voters head to the polls on Wednesday.Mottley is the country’s first female leader since its independence in 1966, and her strong international advocacy for climate action and support for small and vulnerable nations have made her an influential and popular global and regional leader, experts say. Continue reading...

11 Feb 2026 07:00 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN

Individual detained Tuesday south of Tucson, Arizona, in relation to case of mother of NBC’s Savannah GuthrieA suspect in the abduction of US television host Savannah Guthrie’s elderly mother, Nancy, was taken into custody in Arizona on Tuesday, nine days after the 84-year-old woman was reported missing, according to a law enforcement official briefed on the case.The Pima County sheriff’s department issued a separate statement online late on Tuesday saying deputies had “detained a subject during a traffic stop” and that the individual was “being questioned in connection to the Nancy Guthrie investigation”. Continue reading...

11 Feb 2026 03:05 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN

Labour has removed the whip from Matthew Doyle, Starmer’s former director of communications, who only recently became a peerGood morning. At PMQs last week Keir Starmer had to face questions about a Labour peer with a paedophile friend. Today he seems likely to face questions about another peer in this category.As Peter Walker reports, yesterday Labour said it had removed the whip from Matthew Doyle, who only recently became a Labour peer, having previously served as Starmer’s director of communications.Keir Starmer handed a peerage to Matthew Doyle despite knowing about his ongoing friendship with a man charged with child sex crimes.The Prime Minister has now suspended the whip, but he must come clean about what he was told before making this appointment. Continue reading...

11 Feb 2026 08:47 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN

Lengthy delays in compensation are ‘emblematic’ of what many relatives of migrant workers go through in the Gulf kingdom, say rights groupsWhen Mohammad Arshad fell to his death while constructing the first new stadium for the 2034 World Cup in Saudi Arabia, one of the main stadium contractors, the Belgian construction multinational Besix, promised it would take immediate steps to ensure all end-of-service and insurance payments were, “handled in a timely and respectful manner”.Almost a year later, Arshad’s family say they have yet to receive either. Continue reading...

11 Feb 2026 07:00 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN

Austin Appelbee told authorities he was ‘really scared’ after swimming 4km in rough seas to get help for mum and two siblingsFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast“We got lost out there,” 13-year-old Austin Appelbee tells the triple-zero operator, after swimming 4km (2.5 miles) in the rough, open ocean and running 2km (1.25 miles) to save his family.The operator asks how long it is since he set off. Continue reading...

11 Feb 2026 08:27 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN