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India’s street magicians struggle to preserve a fading family tradition
India’s traditional street performers are struggling to sustain their livelihoods as audiences and opportunities to perform in public spaces dwindle. The decline threatens skills passed down through generations, including the Madari community’s street magic, and reflects changing entertainment habits and tighter restrictions on public performance. Delhi magician Ishamuddin Khan, 55, learnt his craft from family…
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School strikes paralyse France; Spain braces for torrential storms
Nationwide school protests have forced hundreds of French schools to close and spread to universities, alarming Macron’s government, whilst Spain’s east coast faces its highest weather alert as torrential storms approach.
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Conservatives propose 50,000 prison places, funded by aid cuts
Kemi Badenoch says the Conservatives would build 50,000 prison places, expanding the prison estate by more than half, if they returned to government. The party says the expansion would allow it to end Labour’s early-release scheme and restore short prison sentences for offences such as shoplifting and carrying a knife. The proposed programme would cost…
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Zack Polanski faces leadership test over divisive conference motion
Green Party leader Zack Polanski faces pressure at the party’s Brighton conference over a motion declaring Zionism a form of racism. The article argues that the motion could test his standing with the party’s growing hard-Left membership and potentially prompt a challenge to his leadership. The motion has 800 co-proposers, making it the most popular…
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Labour MPs urge welfare safeguards as Burnham weighs under-25s reform
Andy Burnham is facing warnings from Labour MPs over possible welfare reforms that could remove the health element of Universal Credit from some disabled people under 25. The proposal would replace payments of £217 a month for people with less severe conditions with intensive employment support, including subsidised jobs and help with mental health. MPs…
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Magnitude 4.8 earthquake near Korumburra wakes residents across Victoria
A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck near Korumburra in Gippsland shortly after 2am on Saturday, waking people across parts of Victoria. Geoscience Australia said it was among the region’s strongest tremors in the past two decades; officials did not expect major damage. The epicentre was 6km north-east of Korumburra, about 103km south-east of Melbourne. The shaking…
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Channel boat pilot jailed for 18 months after crossing with 26 people
Jamel Abdela, a 32-year-old Eritrean national, has been jailed for 18 months for piloting a small boat carrying 26 people, including six children, across the English Channel on 25 July. He pleaded guilty to endangering others during an illegal sea crossing to the UK and was sentenced at Winchester Crown Court. The case represents part…
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Greens want to use taxpayers’ money to help fight immigration raids on illegal workers
The Green Party is planning to use public funds to help illegal workers resist immigration raids, with Hackney Council preparing an “information campaign” to inform them of their rights. Several Green-led London councils have already pledged to stop cooperating with Home Office raids. At the party’s Brighton conference, senior figures proposed this initiative alongside other…
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Houston father granted custody hours before mother killed their daughter and herself
A Houston judge granted Aaron Savella full custody of his four-year-old daughter, Vivian, hours before her mother, Cibelle, shot and killed the child and then herself. Aaron’s lawyer said the ruling was based on concerns about Vivian’s emotional wellbeing, not a belief that Cibelle posed a physical danger. The ruling required Cibelle’s contact with Vivian…
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Kushner rejects CNN report questioning potential Gaza role conflict with investments
Jared Kushner has rejected CNN’s reporting that his investments could create an ethical conflict with his role advising the Trump administration on Gaza. He called the story “deeply misleading”; CNN said it found no evidence that his diplomatic actions directly affected the investments it examined. The report focuses on Affinity Partners, Kushner’s private equity firm…