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Cut benefits to fund work support for young people, says Neet review author Alan Milburn

Exclusive: Former health secretary says upfront investment in support is needed ‘if we are going to end the Neet crisis’

Ministers should cut welfare spending to fund more employment support if it wants to end the youth Neet crisis, the author of a government-led review has said.

Alan Milburn, the Tony Blair-era health secretary, told the Guardian he believed ministers should reduce benefits payments to help pay for more employment support, opening a potentially contentious debate within the Labour party over welfare cuts.

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© Photograph: Jeff Moore/PA

© Photograph: Jeff Moore/PA

© Photograph: Jeff Moore/PA

The Guardian view on plague in Russia: what is most worrying is the lack of information | Editorial

18 October 2026 at 17:30

In the three weeks since a health worker’s death in Siberia, officials have stonewalled the WHO – setting a worrying precedent for future pandemics

Is there a plague outbreak in Russia? If the answer were a clear yes, there shouldn’t be much reason to worry. With swift medical intervention, plague is treatable. But in the nearly three weeks since a worker at a Siberian plague research unit died of a mysterious respiratory illness, state officials have been consistently tight-lipped about what happened and whether there were any further cases.

It is this uncertainty that has the World Health Organization (WHO) and international community worried: partly because there is a – very small – risk of an outbreak, and partly because it is yet another warning that the international coordination we rely on to prevent pandemics is fraying along with the rest of international politics, and could easily fail to protect us in the future.

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© Photograph: Smirnov Vladimir/Anadolu/Getty Images

© Photograph: Smirnov Vladimir/Anadolu/Getty Images

© Photograph: Smirnov Vladimir/Anadolu/Getty Images

Kolkata’s Bonedi Bari Durga Puja: The ancestral homes preserving centuries of tradition

Kolkata’s Bonedi Bari Durga pujas bring together grand colonial-era architecture, family legacies and heirloom recipes. While the city’s pandals draw the biggest crowds, these ancestral homes offer a more intimate glimpse of the festival, following family traditions dating back more than 300 years

Thailand Allows Customs to Open Luggage Without Consent if Scans Flag Suspicious Items

18 October 2026 at 15:52
Starting October 16, travelers departing from Thailand will face a shift in how their checked luggage is handled. The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) has updated security protocols to allow airport officials to open and inspect suitcases without the passenger's prior consent, aligning national standards with international aviation security mandates. When a suitcase is opened The measure is not a blanket search of all luggage, but a targeted intervention triggered by technology. Security personnel are authorized to open a bag only when scanning equipment detects a suspicious item, a prohibited object, or an object that requires manual identification. Passengers should be aware that high-capacity batteries, dense organic materials, or unusually shaped metal objects are the most likely triggers for a detailed physical inspection. The inspection process To prevent theft or accidental damage, the CAAT has established a strict chain of custody for the inspection process. Checks are conducted in designated secure zones under constant video surveillance, rather than at open check-in counters. Every step is documented: officials must photograph any flagged items and log the specific employee responsible for the search. This documentation serves as a formal record should a traveler need to file a claim regarding the condition of their belongings upon arrival.

Manchester City owner’s £55m housing loan while Burnham was mayor investigated

Scrutiny committee looks into financing of Manchester Life project as PM promises ‘full transparency’

A £55m loan to Manchester City’s Abu Dhabi owner will be investigated as part of a review into a fund for housing projects while Andy Burnham was mayor.

The prime minister has faced weeks of scrutiny over his links to Manchester City’s super-rich owners after the club was found guilty of boosting its income by £900m in a nine-year breach of financial rules.

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© Photograph: Paul Ellis/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Paul Ellis/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Paul Ellis/AFP/Getty Images

Navratri kolu in Coimbatore: Doctor sets and dancing dolls take centre stage

From boxers in action and two-faced Thanjavur uruttu bommai to miniature tea and flower shops, artisans bring fresh ideas to kolu this year in Coimbatore. We visit two exhibitions celebrating their creativity and craftsmanship

Ao menos 16 deputados federais negros foram eleitos com o apoio de George Soros no Brasil

By: A A
18 October 2026 at 15:00

16 deputados federais negros eleitos com apoio da Coalizão Negra por Direitos, financiada por George Soros via Open Society Foundations.

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A Coalizão Negra por Direitos, organização que reúne centenas de entidades que se reivindicam da causa negra, comemorou a eleição de 42 candidaturas nas eleições legislativas no Brasil. Dessas, 26 são regionais e 16 federais.

Dos 16 deputados federais eleitos com a promoção da Coalizão, oito são do PT (Anielle Franco, Dandara Tontzin, Carol Dartora, Renato Freitas, Jack Rocha, Ana Elisa, Rosa Amorim e Walmir Assunção), cinco são do PSOL (Jones Manoel, Erika Hilton, Fábio Felix, Henrique Vieira e Talíria Petrone) e três são do PCdoB (Daiana Santos, Olivia Santana e Perpétua Almeida).

“Esse é o resultado da mobilização do Quilombo nos Parlamentos nas eleições de 2026”, publicou a Coalizão em suas redes sociais. “Essa conquista é fruto da organização política negra quando decide ocupar os espaços de poder. Cada candidatura eleita leva consigo o compromisso firmado no nosso Manifesto e a responsabilidade de fortalecer, dentro dos Parlamentos, as agendas construídas pelo movimento negro.”

O Quilombo nos Parlamentos é uma iniciativa da Coalizão Negra por Direitos com o objetivo explicitado em sua própria denominação: eleger candidatos negros para o Poder Legislativo. Isso fortaleceria a chamada “representatividade” dos negros brasileiros nas instituições, tornando-as mais favoráveis aos seus direitos.

Assim como todo movimento identitário, é uma iniciativa de caráter reformista rebaixado, que prega a farsa do “empoderamento” coletivo através de conquistas individuais. Um negro eleito deputado é apenas e tão somente um feito pessoal que beneficia o indivíduo em questão, não o conjunto dos negros. Beneficia, como fica claro ao ver quem são os negros eleitos pela Coalizão, uma aristocracia negra de classe média, que alcança um cargo no Estado capitalista para fazer carreira contra o restante da população negra.

Se não fosse isso, esses candidatos não seriam apoiados pelos banqueiros e grandes empresários nacionais e internacionais.

A Coalizão Negra por Direitos foi criada em 2019 e reúne centenas de ONGs, coletivos e entidades. Parte central de sua estratégia é a “incidência política”, ou seja, precisamente o lobby sobre as instituições brasileiras e os órgãos internacionais. Essa é justamente a estratégia delineada pela Open Society Foundations, do especulador multibilionário George Soros, que financia ONGs mundo afora para, como indica o próprio nome da organização, abrir as sociedades à penetração total do capital financeiro com o apoio de seus agentes dentro das instituições. Os deputados são alguns desses agentes.

E a OSF financia a Coalizão Negra por Direitos.

A entidade que recebeu a maior quantidade de fundos da OSF até 2024 havia sido a Conectas Direitos Humanos (R$ 34 milhões). O Instituto Clima e Sociedade (iCS) recebeu R$ 23,8 milhões da Open Society entre 2017 e 2023. Quem cruzar os dados do compilado feito pelo Instituto Monte Castelo sobre as ONGs financiadas pela OSF com a lista de organizações que fazem parte da Coalizão também encontrará, entre outros: o Instituto de Referência Negra Peregum (R$ 6,9 milhões), a Iniciativa Negra por uma Nova Política de Drogas (R$ 6,9 mi), o Geledés – Instituto da Mulher Negra (R$ 6,1 mi), a Associação Marielle Franco (R$ 4,8 mi), a Associação Brasileira de Organizações Não Governamentais (R$ 4,3 mi), o Gabinete de Assessoria Jurídica às Organizações Populares (R$ 4,2 mi), a Justiça Global (R$ 3 mi), o Instituto AMMA Psique e Negritude (R$ 2,5 mi), o Instituto de Defesa da População Negra (R$ 2,3 mi), o Instituto Afrolatinas (R$ 2 mi), a Iniciativa Direito à Memória e Justiça Racial (R$ 1,8 mi), a Associação Elas Existem (R$ 1 mi), a Casa Sueli Carneiro (R$ 900 mil), o Centro de Estudos e Defesa do Negro do Pará (R$ 515 mil), o PerifaConnection (R$ 92.700).

Todas essas organizações fazem parte da Coalizão Negra por Direitos e parte delas tem atuação que vai muito além do movimento negro identitário, como a Conectas e a Associação Brasileira de Organizações Não Governamentais (Abong).

A Associação Marielle Franco parece ser um erro no levantamento da própria OSF, porque não existe uma entidade com esse nome. Trata-se na verdade do Instituto Marielle Franco, criado formalmente em julho de 2018 para se beneficiar da imagem da vereadora assassinada em março daquele ano, o que gerou forte comoção e ampla divulgação nos noticiários. O instituto só foi se estruturar definitivamente em 2020. Mas no mês seguinte ao assassinato de Marielle Franco, a Open Society anunciou a criação de uma iniciativa “destinada a incentivar o protagonismo político de mulheres negras no Brasil”, inspirada em Marielle Franco.

A iniciativa contou com uma doação inicial de 10 milhões de dólares, dividida com a Fundação Ford e outras organizações.

“Marielle representava a possibilidade de uma mulher negra, da favela, bissexual chegar em espaços de poder. Seu assassinato brutal foi uma tentativa de dizer que essa possibilidade não existe. É fundamental que anunciemos para o mundo que o Brasil produzirá novas Marielles. Que mulheres negras das periferias ocuparão espaços de poder e que esse caminho não tem volta”, anunciou à época Pedro Abramovay, diretor da OSF para a América Latina.

A fundadora do Instituto Marielle Franco é sua irmã, Anielle Franco. Não por coincidência, ela trabalhou como consultora da OSF para a América Latina a partir de 2019. Em 2023, assumiu o cargo de ministra da Igualdade Racial do governo Lula e agora foi eleita deputada federal com o apoio da Coalizão Negra por Direitos.

Forget the seven-year itch: opposite-sex marriages more likely to end after two decades

18 October 2026 at 14:29

ONS data for England and Wales shows 26% of heterosexual divorces in 2025 followed 20 years or more of marriage

Most couples are aware of the dreaded “seven-year itch”, when the honeymoon period wears off and real life starts to bite.

Now official data has shown that couples in England and Wales are more likely to split after 20 years. According to Office for National Statistics figures, more than a quarter of all divorces between opposite-sex couples happened after 20 years or longer of marriage.

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© Photograph: Rani Nurlaela Desandi/Getty Images

© Photograph: Rani Nurlaela Desandi/Getty Images

© Photograph: Rani Nurlaela Desandi/Getty Images

Screw piles bridge the permafrost to open a 3 km trail in Chukotka

18 October 2026 at 11:54
At the edge of the map, where the landscape is defined by permafrost rather than soil, a new path is rising above the tundra. In Anadyr, Chukotka, construction is nearing completion on the Tirkitytira, or Solar, Trail. As the easternmost project under Russia's federal "Far East Trails” initiative, this roughly 3-kilometer route represents a specific engineering challenge: how to connect urban recreation areas with pristine coastal ecosystems without destabilizing the ground beneath them. While the physical structure is set to be finished by the end of 2024, the trail is not yet open for tourism; its full launch is scheduled for the 2027 season, a gap that reflects the careful calibration required in such a fragile environment. Engineering in the Cryolithozone The primary constraint governing the trail's design is the cryolithozone-the zone of permafrost. In this environment, traditional foundations are not only difficult but potentially damaging. The trail's builders have chosen a solution that prioritizes thermal isolation and minimal earthwork: more than 2,000 screw piles. These piles are driven down to dense layers of permafrost, lifting the wooden deck above the tundra surface. This elevation serves a dual purpose. First, it protects the flora. By bridging over the terrain, the path allows visitors to bypass high shrubs and rhododendrons without trampling them. Second, and perhaps more critically, it prevents thermal degradation. The air gap between the frozen ground and the deck allows for circulation, preventing the body heat of visitors from thawing the permafrost. As Tikhonov Dmitrievich, a construction engineer involved in the project, explains, using screw piles in permafrost conditions is a standard method for light structures precisely because it avoids large-scale excavation and minimizes the heat impact on the soil. In the cryolithozone, this thermal stability is not just a preference but a requirement for the long-term integrity of the structure.

Thailand's Free Airport Layover Tours Suit Efficient Explorers, Not Wanderers

18 October 2026 at 10:52
For millions of passengers whose layovers in Thailand currently amount to nothing more than time lost in an airport terminal, a pilot program launching in January 2027 will transform that waiting period into a short, cost-free excursion. The initiative, designed for transit passengers with six to eight hours between flights, allows travelers to exit the secure zone and explore the country without paying for a tour, provided they return in time for their connection. The move is driven by sheer volume. Tapani Kiatphaiboon, the head of the Thailand Tourism Authority, noted that Suvarnabhumi Airport alone handles approximately 1.3 million transit passengers annually. By targeting just 10% of this figure for the free tour program, Thailand aims to convert a logistical necessity into a revenue-generating cultural experience. The pilot will operate across four major hubs: Suvarnabhumi, Don Mueang, Phuket, and Krabi. The trade-off of the transit window The practicality of the program hinges on the specific constraints of the passenger's schedule. The tours are not generic city tours but are structured into three distinct categories designed to fit within the tight transit window: cultural-historical visits, culinary experiences, and wellness treatments. Options include the Grand Palace, the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, or the ancient site of Somut Pra Kaeo. Alternatively, passengers can engage with Thai street food culture or opt for spa procedures and traditional massage.

Azerbaijan and the hijab question

By: A A
18 October 2026 at 10:05

Considerations on the boundaries between secularism, sovereignty, and social stability\

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The controversy surrounding the wearing of the hijab in Azerbaijani schools took on new dimensions in October, following the implementation of dress code rules that resulted in female students and teachers being denied entry to public institutions. The episode sparked demonstrations, arrests, and criticism from international organizations, while also drawing reactions from Turkey. The debate extends far beyond the school environment, involving questions of sovereignty, religious identity, and regional stability.

Azerbaijan has historical reasons for maintaining a secular state model. The Soviet experience, the formation of its institutions after independence, and the need to govern a religiously diverse society amid a tense regional environment have contributed to the consolidation of a system in which the state maintains strict control over the functioning of public institutions. Azerbaijani authorities have the prerogative to determine their educational policies, establish standards for schools, and decide how constitutional principles are to be implemented.

However, the way these policies are implemented can produce consequences that extend beyond their original objectives. In the case of the hijab, the enforcement of school regulations has provoked resistance among families and religious communities, while arrests related to the protests have amplified the controversy. The government’s central challenge will be to manage this reaction without allowing a dispute over school uniforms to develop into a broader conflict between state authorities and religious communities.

The situation also has important international implications. Ankara, Baku’s main strategic partner, has expressed concern over restrictions on the Islamic headscarf. The political, cultural, and linguistic proximity between the two countries makes the issue particularly sensitive. Although this disagreement does not necessarily amount to a bilateral crisis, it demonstrates how domestic decisions can create friction even between governments that maintain close relations. Ankara must take its own social and political considerations into account, while Baku seeks to preserve its autonomy in managing domestic affairs.

The Iranian dimension also deserves attention. Azerbaijan maintains a complex relationship with Iran, shaped by historical and religious ties as well as strategic disagreements. Like Iran, Azerbaijan has a predominantly Shiite population, while the Islamic Republic has a substantial Azerbaijani minority. Both Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei and President Masoud Pezeshkian have Azerbaijani ethnic backgrounds. In this environment, secularization policies may be interpreted by external actors as part of a broader struggle for religious and political influence within Azerbaijan. This interpretation, however, does not establish that the school regulations were adopted exclusively to counter Iranian influence.

There is also a domestic risk worth considering. Religious restrictions implemented too rigidly can produce effects contrary to those intended. When segments of the population perceive certain measures as impositions on their religious practices, radical groups may exploit the resulting discontent, portray the state as an adversary of religion, and expand their capacity for mobilization. Understanding this issue requires consideration of other experiences, such as Syria under the Assad government, where secularism coexisted with the proliferation of extremism. This outcome is not inevitable, and opposition to the regulations should not automatically be equated with extremism. Nevertheless, international experience suggests that this possibility needs close examination.

For Azerbaijan, the issue therefore involves more than the definition of a school uniform. The country has the right to organize its institutions according to its own priorities, without foreign governments dictating its choices. At the same time, maintaining stability requires preventing administrative decisions from fueling lasting polarization or creating new opportunities for actors seeking to intensify religious tensions.

The evolution of this case will have implications for Baku’s relations with Ankara and Tehran, as well as for the country’s domestic political dynamics. The outcome will depend not only on the regulations themselves but also on their practical implementation and the authorities’ response to concerns raised by students, families, and educators. In the South Caucasus, where identity, sovereignty, and security remain closely intertwined, even a seemingly localized dispute can have serious regional repercussions.

‘I felt disgusted’: MEP speaks out over nude deepfakes and urges EU action

Lena Schilling of Austrian Greens says images are ‘digital violence against women’ and a threat to democracy

An Austrian MEP has spoken out about her experience of being “stripped naked” online without her consent and has urged the EU to take action, as a report found that one in six female MEPs had been targeted by sexualised AI-generated content.

Lena Schilling of the Green party said she had learned last month about nude deepfakes of herself circulating online. When she opened the links, she found herself staring at images from one of her first ever press conferences – but the images had been digitally altered to remove her clothing.

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© Photograph: APA-Images/Alamy

© Photograph: APA-Images/Alamy

© Photograph: APA-Images/Alamy

‘I felt disgusted’: MEP speaks out over nude deepfakes and urges EU action

Lena Schilling of Austrian Greens says images are ‘digital violence against women’ and a threat to democracy

An Austrian MEP has spoken out about her experience of being “stripped naked” online without her consent and has urged the EU to take action, as a report found that one in six female MEPs had been targeted by sexualised AI-generated content.

Lena Schilling of the Green party said she had learned last month about nude deepfakes of herself circulating online. When she opened the links, she found herself staring at images from one of her first ever press conferences – but the images had been digitally altered to remove her clothing.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: APA-Images/Alamy

© Photograph: APA-Images/Alamy

© Photograph: APA-Images/Alamy

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