The Guardian

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Venice protest planned for US ambassador’s superyacht visit

Activists aim to repeat disruption of Jeff Bezos’s wedding when billionaire Tilman Fertitta drops anchor

Protesters in Venice are planning to disrupt a visit by the billionaire US ambassador to Italy in his 117-metre superyacht, which they fear he plans to dock in the lagoon city.

“We ruined the party for Jeff Bezos’s wedding last year – this year let’s ruin the ambassador’s tour!” said Stella Faye, a 28-year-old researcher and activist, at a meeting of about 40 demonstrators on Thursday.

2026-06-27 05:00:34

Is this kitten fur real? The Becky Barnicoat cartoon

2026-06-27 05:00:34

Prosecutors in England and Wales expect rise in domestic abuse during World Cup

CPS urges victims to go to police, saying they will be taken seriously and it ‘won’t hesitate’ to bring abusers to justice

Prosecutors in England and Wales are expecting incidents of domestic abuse to increase during the men’s World Cup, and have urged victims to come forward, saying those responsible “will be held accountable”.

“We often see more domestic abuse cases around major football tournaments like these,” the CPS national stalking lead, Olivia Rose, said. “The point that we want to get across is that those responsible will be held accountable, and that we won’t hesitate to bring them to justice.”

2026-06-27 05:00:33

People in Britain used to agree to disagree. Since Brexit, they no longer dare to talk about difficult things | Elif Shafak

Studies suggest the country is more divided than ever – but we won’t come together unless we begin to talk rationally and calmly

Read more from the Brexit Vote: 10 Years On series

When I first moved to England, nearly two decades ago, I was invited to attend a talk in London on “the future of British identity”. It was a heated debate from the start, and it became all the more intense when the subject of putting colonial history in the school curriculum was raised. The two main speakers held opposite views and they traded barbs wrapped in velvet – scathing but polite at the same time. It wasn’t just the particulars of the oratory that stayed with me, but what happened afterwards. When the session was over, I saw the speakers shake hands, and then I heard one of them casually ask the other whether he would like to go for a pint. Off they went looking for a nearby pub, these two men who were at loggerheads on so many issues.

I stood there absorbing what I had just witnessed. That two people with clashing worldviews could still find the openness of heart to share a drink together somehow left a bigger impact on me than anything that had been said that evening. This is because I came from Türkiye, a country of profound political chasms and unhealed social fractures. Equally, I had lived in the US for about five years in the aftermath of 9/11 – writing and teaching in various universities in Boston, Michigan and Arizona, which gave me the chance to observe the deepening fissures between liberal campuses and anti-liberal small towns.

2026-06-27 05:00:33

Blind date: ‘She seemed to like me, but I’ve been wrong about this kind of thing before’

Philip, 74, an antiquarian book dealer, meets Carol, 66, who is retired

What were you hoping for?
Reciprocated love at first sight (I don’t ask for much in this life). To meet a kindred spirit who might even become a partner.

2026-06-27 05:00:33

The UK is introducing an ‘Australia plus’ under-16s social media ban. But how is it going there?

Last week, the prime minister, Keir Starmer, announced a sweeping ban on under-16s that would stop them accessing social media apps including Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, X and Facebook by 2027.

The move has been nicknamed an ‘Australia plus’ ban, after Australia became the first country to introduce a nation-wide ban on children accessing these apps at the end of last year.

But how is it actually going over there? Political correspondent Aletha Adu teamed up with Guardian Australia social media host and reporter Matilda Boseley to find out

2026-06-27 05:00:32

Profound lessons from dog training, the story of the Brexit campaign and France’s struggle with heat-trap homes

Need something brilliant to read this weekend? Here are six of our favourite pieces from the last seven days

2026-06-27 05:00:32

Two tickets for Wimbledon Centre Court? That’ll be £586,000 please

A pair of debenture tickets changed hands this week for a sum far beyond the means of ordinary tennis fans

Like many of us, Marcos Ortega enters the Wimbledon public ticket ballot every year in the hope of seeing some championship tennis. In seven straight years of trying, however, he has never got lucky. So he was delighted – initially, at least – to learn there was a way to secure a ticket for every game played on Centre Court.

But Ortega’s hopeful delight quickly turned to anger when he discovered that it would cost him £293,000.

2026-06-27 05:00:32

Social media bans go global: big tech faces a reckoning after Australia’s crackdown

As a host of countries move to rein in social media use by children, could this be technology’s big tobacco moment?

2026-06-27 05:00:31

Slashdot

News for nerds, stuff that matters

US Government Allows Anthropic Limited Release of 'Mythos' AI Model, Saying 'Appropriate Safeguards are in Place"

"The US government has allowed Anthropic to release its powerful Mythos AI model to select companies and organizations," reports CNN, "revising license requirements after ordering an export block earlier this month in the wake of national security fears."

Since the export ban earlier in June, "Anthropic has worked with the US government to address risks associated with the Covered Models," Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick wrote to the company in a letter dated Friday. In light of progress in that work, Lutnick wrote, "I have determined that appropriate safeguards are in place to permit certain trusted partners to access the Claude Mythos 5 Model."

The letter does not include permission for Anthropic to release Fable, a less powerful version of Mythos. "We received notice from the US government that Mythos 5, our strongest cybersecurity model, can be redeployed to a small group of cyber defenders and infrastructure providers," Anthropic said in a statement...

Conversations between Anthropic and the government are expected to continue into the weekend, with an eye to restoring access to Fable, as well, a source familiar with the discussions told CNN.