United Kingdom

    The billionaire ruler of Dubai arranged the kidnapping of two of his adult daughters and forcibly returned them to the Gulf state after they attempted to flee abroad, a UK court has found. In a case described by the judge as "extraordinary," the family division of the High Court in London also found that Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum conducted a "campaign of fear and intimidation" against his former wife, Jordanian Princess Haya bint al-Hussein. The court determined that the sheikh organized abductions of his two daughters on three occasions including one from the historic UK city of Cambridge and another in international waters off the coast of India. The findings were revealed after a series of hearings in London involving Princess Haya and can now be dis...

    A new dossier of claims that more than 300 Tories have been Islamophobic has been submitted to the human rights watchdog to persuade it to investigate the party. The Muslim Council of Britain (CB) has handed the Equality and Human Rights Commission a detailed file including claims involving MPs, councillors, members and government advisers. The document collects together scores of previously publicised incidents and allegations while uncovering new claims, including: A former councillor calling for unconditional surrender by Muslims, who they label “brutes who beat, kill and maim young women; A local party association chair who called for Muslims to be banned; A member who called for Muslims to be thrown from bridges; Another member who called for th...

    The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have arrived at one of their last official engagements together before they quit royal life. Harry and Meghan are attending the Endeavour Fund Awards at Mansion House in central London to celebrate the sporting and adventure achievements of wounded, sick and injured service personnel. It is the first time Meghan has carried out a public royal duty in the wake of the Megxit crisis. The evening event is the couple’s first joint official appearance since announcing their decision to step down as senior royals, which takes effect on March 31. Sheltering from the rain under an umbrella as they arrived on Thursday, the duke wore a navy blue suit while American former actress Meghan was dressed in a light blue fitted dress. The couple were...

    The number of confirmed cases of coronavirus in the UK has risen to 51, Health Secretary Matt Hancock has said. The jump comes after the number of confirmed cases in the UK hit 39 yesterday, with a school in Devon confirming that a pupil had been diagnosed with coronavirus after travelling from northern Italy. The 12 new cases emerged today and include eight patients who had recently travelled from Italy, one from Germany, one from Singapore, one from Japan and one from Iran. They are from London, Hampshire, Northamptonshire, Bury, Wirral, Greater Manchester, Humberside and Kent. Mr Hancock said: We've responded to a wide range of disease outbreaks in the past, the NHS has been preparing for a pandemic virus for over a decade, we have world class expertise to make...

    A woman who made more than 1,200 nuisance calls to the Met Police in attempts to get herself arrested has been jailed for ten weeks. Jelena Bobrova, 54, has pestered police operators for the last three years in rambling 999 calls, clogging up the emergency line and costing the force more than £10,000. Despite being handed a criminal behaviour order in November last year, Bobrova continued making the nuisance calls including 39 times in the space of just four hours on February 16. Scotland Yard said Bobrova appeared to be rambling and challenged police to arrest hereach time she rang 999. Bobrova initially denied making the calls, trying to blame them on a technical glitch, but has now been sentenced to ten weeks in prison by Croydon magistrates. Sergeant Terry Co...

    Three more patients in England have tested positive for coronavirus, bringing the total number of UK cases to 23. Chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty said two of the patients had recently travelled back from Italy while the other had returned from Asia. The cases are from Gloucestershire, Hertfordshire and Berkshire. Prof Whitty said: All three are being investigated and contact tracing has begun. It comes amid reports the government is to use a COBRA meeting on Monday, to agree emergency powers to ensure COVID-19 - the disease caused by the coronavirus does not get out of control. Schools, councils and other institutions would be able to suspend some laws to cope with a pandemic. The measures could also include allowing teachers and nursery workers to h...

    NHS patients could be denied lifesaving care during a severe coronavirus outbreak in Britain if intensive care units are struggling to cope, senior doctors have warned. Under a so-called three wise men protocol, three senior consultants in each hospital would be forced to make decisions on rationing care such as ventilators and beds, in the event hospitals were overwhelmed with patients. The medics spoke out amid frustration over what one said was the government’s dishonest spin that the health service was well prepared for a major pandemic outbreak. The doctors, from hospitals across England, said the health service’s existing critical care capacity was already overstretched and would crumble under the demands of a pandemic surge in patients who may all need venti...

    The Duke of Sussex today embarked on his final round of engagements as a senior working royal as he launched a new eco-friendly travel firm in Edinburgh and asked delegates just to call him Harry. Prince Harry, who will step down as a senior royal in less than five weeks, is in the Scottish capital for a 'working summit' of the Travalyst partnership, which will feature a grading system for users to track their carbon emissions. Before he took to the stage today, host Ayesha Hazarika, a former Labour adviser and broadcaster, told delegates: He's made it clear that we are all just to call him Harry. So ladies and gentlemen, please give a big, warm, Scottish welcome to Harry. He told the event at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre that the industry in Scotl...

    Millions of people were today urged to keep their distance to stop an outbreak of coronavirus spreading in Britain. The World Health Organisation called on countries around the globe to prepare for the arrival of Covid-19 as America warned that a pandemic was now likely. Stockmarkets fell again today. More than £2.5 trillion has been wiped off the value of shares globally in the past four trading sessions as investors became spooked by the infection’s spread. With more and more cases being confirmed in Asia, Europe and also the first diagnosis in South America, in Brazil, scientists were racing to learn more about the virus. “The most important thing we are realising is it’s really infectious but it’s infectious if you are close up with people,” WHO coronavirus re...

    Snow could fall as far south as London later this week as parts of Britain face a further three inches tonight. Areas of Scotland, northern England and Northern Ireland have already been blanketed in the white stuff over the past two days, with more falling today after temperatures fell to -5C (23F) overnight. The Met Office has predicted that up to 3in (8cm) could fall over the higher ground in North West England, Wales and western Scotland between 8pm tonight and 10am tomorrow as it also imposed an ice warning. Most showers will tend to ease by tomorrow evening, while Thursday will be dry with sunny spells for most areas along with some wintry showers - while Friday will be grey with patchy rain for many, especially in the South. Significant snowfalls were recor...