🇺🇦 On The Contrary 🇺🇦

The US thought they’d killed an ‘Isis spy’. He may have been an ally A row over a tribal leader’s death in a special forces raid in Syria has highlighted the complexity and confusion of America’s hunt for Islamic State

Oh look, an American fuck up of grand proportions

www.thetimes.com/world/middle...

It’s the art of the dodgy deal, Middle East edition: author Donald Trump, updated by Jared Kushner | Marina Hyde Does the Donald know that there’s a new master negotiator in town? Of course he does, he taught the apprentice everything he knows, says Guardian columnist Marina Hyde

Marina Hyde takes aim at Jared Kushner…🎯

“Perhaps we should think of it as a hybrid doctrine: dealpolitik. Money, power, carve-outs, carve-ups – as the classic EA Sports slogan used to say … it’s in the game.”

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Prince Andrew ‘massage payments’ revealed in new Epstein documents The Duke of York is listed as a passenger on the disgraced financier’s aircraft, according to documents released by the US House oversight committee

www.thetimes.com/us/news-toda...

Suspected Russian drones ‘most serious attack on Denmark infrastructure’ Mette Frederiksen, the Danish prime minister, says the incident which disrupted flights at Copenhagen airport is linked to recent incursions in Poland and Romania

The Russians are probing European resolve. This is the third such incursion in as many days.

www.thetimes.com/world/europe...

Outgoing MI6 chief says Putin has ‘bitten off more than he can chew’ in Ukraine Richard Moore said Russia was unlikely to win on battlefield, as his agency launched call to recruit spies

The recruitment of spies has come a long way. Nowadays you advertise openly. Would love to see the stats on applications.

www.theguardian.com/world/2025/s...

MI5 admits illegally collecting data from BBC journalist’s phone Vincent Kearney was the corporation’s Northern Ireland home affairs correspondent when he was the victim of unlawful surveillance

Tip of the iceberg I fear. For every such admission there are likely thousands of other instances where police & security services in Western democracies have illegally surveilled journalists. An important concession nonetheless. 💪

www.thetimes.com/uk/crime/art...

Washington Post columnist says she was fired over posts after Charlie Kirk’s killing Karen Attiah says she was dropped by newspaper after 11 years for addressing political violence, race and gun control

America is sliding inexorably in to civil war. It is the logical end point of a toxic process where up has become down and bad has become good. Voices like Karen Attiah need to be heard, not stifled.

www.theguardian.com/media/2025/s...

Look, I absolutely detest Charlie Kirk and his appalling opinions, but I extend to him and his family all the courtesy that he has denied others and hope he recovers.

Shooting people in cold blood is bad. Always. Evil and bad. And none of us want to live in a world where that's celebrated.

Roy Jones Jr given gold medal by opponent after 1988 Olympic farce American boxer received medal from Park Si-hun 35 years after Seoul final, a result so fiercely criticised that the backlash left South Korean with depression

In a world dominated by doom and gloom - a good news story.

www.thetimes.com/sport/boxing...

I knew Macron as a young man in a hurry. Now he is running out of road The French president was always aware of the perils his country faced. Now, says his biographer, he can only hope his worst prophecies won’t come true

www.thetimes.com/world/europe...

Trump is an absolute disgrace. But you already knew that.

www.thetimes.com/us/news-toda...

Take 5 mins to read this article and digest the enormity of the theories being discussed. Even if it’s “just” a lonely comet it’s still amazing…

www.thetimes.com/us/news-toda...

‘A supermarket for sexual predators’: abuse scandal at elite boarding school shakes France Legal complaints filed by former pupils accuse priests and staff of physical or sexual abuse from 1957 to 2004

Sickening child abuse in France. Again the Catholic Church is at the centre.

www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...

‘A supermarket for sexual predators’: abuse scandal at elite boarding school shakes France Legal complaints filed by former pupils accuse priests and staff of physical or sexual abuse from 1957 to 2004

Sickening child abuse in France. Again the Catholic Church is at the centre.

www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...

Five things to remember about war:

I think it would be good to get some women in charge of the countries that have nuclear weapons. Women talk to each other. Women can be reasonable. Enough with the macho men and swinging dicks.

Germany wants next EU budget to focus on defence Berlin seeks to streamline the bloc’s seven-year budget without increasing its overall size

Given Russian aggression this just makes a whole lot of sense

www.ft.com/content/f71b...

US, UK and allies to lift all range restrictions on weapons in Ukraine After a weekend of record Russian drone strikes, Friedrich Merz, the German chancellor, said Ukraine would be able to defend itself with ‘long-range fire’

And not before time.

www.thetimes.com/world/russia...

Was this a hen do or a humanitarian mission to liberate Paris? Either way, give Lauren Sánchez an award | Marina Hyde The hemlines were high and the diamonds hefty as the world’s second-richest fiancee and her entourage stormed the Seine. Formez vos bataillons, says Guardian columnist Marina Hyde

“She accepted her gong wearing a necklace with a diamond pendant slightly larger than an Amazon warehouse, once again redrawing the blueprint that other humanitarians will simply need to watch and learn from.”

Marina Hyde in full flight🤣🤣

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Russian strike on civilian bus in northern Ukraine kills nine The attack on the northern Sumy region comes hours after Kyiv and Moscow concluded talks in Istanbul Nine people were killed in a Russian drone attack on a minibus carrying civilians in Ukraine’s northern Sumy region on Saturday, the local military administration said, hours after Kyiv and Moscow held their first direct peace talks since 2022. The bus, which was attacked near the city of Bilopillya while travelling towards Sumy, was “targeted by the Russians”, the military administration said. Continue reading...

Russian strike on civilian bus in northern Ukraine kills nine

Will Russia attack Nato? Experts warn of invasion as early as 2027 A think tank said Russia would be able to rebuild its forces after a ceasefire in Ukraine and warned of the cost of US withdrawal from the western alliance

“Russia could be in a position to pose a significant military challenge to Nato allies, particularly the Baltic states, as early as 2027,”

www.thetimes.com/uk/defence/a...

Will Russia attack Nato? Experts warn of invasion as early as 2027 A think tank said Russia would be able to rebuild its forces after a ceasefire in Ukraine and warned of the cost of US withdrawal from the western alliance

“Russia could be in a position to pose a significant military challenge to Nato allies, particularly the Baltic states, as early as 2027,”

www.thetimes.com/uk/defence/a...

We didn’t forget about journalist Jamal Khashoggi, did we?

Murdered inside a Saudi consulate. Dismembered. Then a full-on coverup, sanctioned at the highest levels.

SAS accused of ‘barbaric’ war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan Soldiers are alleged to have shot a handcuffed child as a BBC investigation uncovers fresh claims of unlawful killings and implicates SBS for first time

Elite status doesn’t excuse war crimes. The honour of a regiment isn’t preserved by silence but by confronting its darkest chapters. Britain like Australia must face this head-on. Not with spin. With truth.

When you unleash the dogs of war…

www.thetimes.com/uk/defence/a...

SAS accused of ‘barbaric’ war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan Soldiers are alleged to have shot a handcuffed child as a BBC investigation uncovers fresh claims of unlawful killings and implicates SBS for first time

Elite status doesn’t excuse war crimes. The honour of a regiment isn’t preserved by silence but by confronting its darkest chapters. Britain like Australia must face this head-on. Not with spin. With truth.

When you unleash the dogs of war…

www.thetimes.com/uk/defence/a...

Australia’s Anthony Albanese handed sweeping mandate in anti-Trump backlash Labor PM to expand public spending while balancing US-China ties amid trade war turmoil

Australia’s Anthony Albanese handed sweeping mandate in anti-Trump backlash

https://www.ft.com/content/b097767c-7f2e-4a54-81ee-449571f4b33b

Print featuring an image of a white person in shirts floating in rippled water facing left

'Weightless', linocut by contemporary Australian artist and printmaker Rachel Newling #WomensArt

🇺🇦📞 Zelensky spoke with Australian PM Anthony Albanese, thanking him for continued support and discussing Ukraine's needs, including air defense and strengthening the AFU. The leaders also focused on the importance of releasing prisoners and agreed to stay in constant contact.

🇦🇺🇺🇦 I spoke with Prime Minister of Australia Albanese. Strengthening air defence remains our key priority to protect our people, and we count on our partners’ support.

We also discussed ways to further enhance Ukraine’s security and defence capabilities.