Senate votes down GOP-led stopgap for 14th time

But Republicans and Democrats are talking about a possible off-ramp to end the government shutdown. The Senate rejected the House-passed funding patch Tuesday afternoon for the 14th time, as Congress is poised to beat the record later in the day for the longest government shutdown in U.S. history. There is some newfound hope on Capitol … Read more

Duffy warns of air travel ‘mass chaos’ by next week

The Transportation secretary said air traffic controllers can’t afford to miss another paycheck. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on Tuesday said the government shutdown has injected “more risk” into air travel and warned of widespread flight cancellations and potentially closed airspace if air traffic controllers miss their second full paycheck next week. Duffy told reporters at … Read more

Americans will still get partial SNAP benefits despite Trump post, White House says

The clarification comes after the president threatened on Truth Social to withhold federal food aid funding until Democrats agree to reopen the government. The Trump administration is still sending partial food aid benefits for nearly 42 million Americans this month, despite the president’s recent threat to withhold federal funding until the shutdown ends. “The administration … Read more

Voting opens in Netherlands as narrowing polls suggest second Geert Wilders win

Major parties rule out coalition with rightwinger, giving his party little chance of being part of government Voting is under way in a knife-edge parliamentary election in the Netherlands that polls suggest could again be won by the far-right Freedom party (PVV) of Geert Wilders, although there is little chance of it being part of … Read more

Director of Bataclan terror attack drama rejects accusations of ‘indecency’

ean-Xavier de Lestrade defends decision to film mini-series inside Paris theatre where 130 people died in 2015 The Oscar-winning director of a TV mini-series about survivors of the 2015 terrorist attack at the Bataclan in Paris has rejected accusations his decision to film inside the theatre was “indecent”. Jean-Xavier de Lestrade said the hostages on … Read more

Donegal to Dakar: the Irish play about British rule hitting home in post-colonial Senegal

An African staging of Brian Friel’s Translations resonates deeply as the country distances itself from France On a humid evening in Dakar, an Irish jig echoes through the country’s air-conditioned national theatre. The breathy, woody sound of the west African Fula flute brings a different cadence to the traditional tune. Actors dance across the stage, … Read more

Facing War review – cool customer of a Nato secretary general marshals world on the brink

Gripping documentary follows Jens Stoltenberg through his final year as Nato chief – balancing diplomacy, egos and all-out war with unnerving calm Jens Stoltenberg is the Norwegian politician and international diplomat whose destiny it was to be secretary general of Nato in the second most fraught period of its postwar history (if we accept that … Read more

After a year of student-led protests, the cracks in Serbia’s government have turned into fissures Srdjan Cvijić

The government of Aleksandar Vučić’s now resembles a political Ponzi scheme: borrowing legitimacy through spectacle while deferring its collapse n 1 November 2024, a concrete canopy collapsed at the railway station in Novi Sad, Serbia’s second-largest city, killing 16 people. The tragedy triggered the longest wave of protests the country had seen in a decade … Read more