Top World News

May 12, 2026 - World

Despite years of harsh rhetoric on China, Donald Trump has continued to publicly praise Chinese President Xi Jinping. Just last week, he described Xi as a "good man" and a "smart man" with whom he has "a very good relationship".

May 12, 2026 - World

Pete Hegseth and other officials appear before House to face grilling on Iran war expenditure and military operationsIran has expanded its definition of the strait of Hormuz into a “vast operational area” far wider than before the war, according to a senior officer in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy in comments likely to anger the US.The strait is no longer viewed as a narrow stretch around a handful of islands but instead has been greatly enlarged in scope and military significance, according to Mohammad Akbarzadeh, deputy political director of the IRGC Navy, the state-affiliated Fars news agency reported this morning. Continue reading...

May 12, 2026 - World

Congresswoman says she did not condone radio host’s language about Hakeem Jeffries, the top House DemocratUS politics live – latest updatesSign up for the Breaking News US newsletter emailJen Kiggans, a Republican congresswoman, is facing calls from Democrats to resign for agreeing with a radio host after he said the top US House Democrat, Hakeem Jeffries, should get his “cotton-picking hands off of Virginia”.Kiggans, who represents a swing district in southeastern Virginia, has said she was agreeing with the host that Jeffries – who is the first Black American to lead a party in Congress – should stay out of the state’s politics. She also said she did not condone the host’s language, which multiple Democrats criticized as racist. Continue reading...

May 12, 2026 - World

A number of Streeting’s allies resigned from their ministerial posts on Tuesday and called for Keir Starmer to quitStarmer tells cabinet he will not quit without leadership challengeHere are some pictures from No 10 this morning.Darren Jones, the chief secretary to the PM, is now being interviewed on the Today programme. Nick Robinson, the presenter, is asking him if he knows whether Keir Starmer has decided how to respond to the pressure on him to resign. Jones is avoiding the question, as he did on Sky News earlier. (See 7.43am.) Continue reading...

May 12, 2026 - World

Downing Street insiders suggest health secretary does not yet have the support for a leadership pushUK politics live – latest updatesKeir Starmer was increasingly confident that he had seen off the immediate threat to his job on Tuesday after a challenge from Wes Streeting failed to materialise despite several of the health secretary’s allies quitting the government.Downing Street insiders suggested that the health secretary did not yet have the required support from the 81 MPs he needed to formally launch a leadership bid after Starmer issued a ‘put up or shut up’ ultimatum to his cabinet. Continue reading...