Asian shares mostly drifted higher Monday as investors fretted whether the United States government would be able to reach a deal to avoid a federal default

Prince Harry has scored a victory at the outset of his first phone hacking trial with the publisher of the Daily Mirror apologizing for unlawfully gathering information about him in its reporting that warrants some compensation

Scientists have discovered a new virus in the Pacific that is thought to be the deepest ever found in Earth’s oceans. The so-called bacteriophage virus infects and replicates inside bacteria, and was found in the Mariana Trench, which is the Pacific’s deepest point. Bacteriophages are among the world’s most abundant life forms, and are important for regulating population sizes in the oceans and releasing nutrients. This one, the catchily named vB_HmeY_H4907, was picked up at 8,900 metres below sea level. That is still some way off the 11,000 metre floor of the trench. Min Wang, a marine virologist from the Ocean University of China, said: “To our best knowledge, this is the deepest known isolated phage in the global ocean.” “Wherever there’s life, you can bet there are regulators at work. Viruses, in this case.” Scientists think this virus is likely to be distributed widely in the world’s oceans, despite the fact it has only been discovered. It has a similar structure to its host bacteria group halomonas. These are usually found in sediments and geyser-like openings on the seafloor. They also think the virus is lysogenic, which means it infects the host but does not kill it. Dr Wang said the discovery could inform further research about how viruses survive in the world’s harshest environments. “Extreme environments offer optimal prospects for unearthing novel viruses,” he added. The virus was found in the so-called hadal zone, which the study’s authors said is “the planet’s least explored and most mysterious environment, and it is the deepest habitat for life on Earth’s surface”. The area is named after Hades, the Greek god of the underworld. Researchers wrote in the study: “These findings expand our understanding of the phylogenetic diversity and genomic features of hadal lysogenic phages, provide essential information for further studies of phage-host interactions and evolution, and may reveal new insights into the lysogenic lifestyles of viruses inhabiting the hadal ocean.” The findings were published in the journal Microbiology Spectrum. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Kevin McCarthy was never Washington’s bet to become House speaker

The National Archives found a trove of records proving that Donald Trump and his advisors knew they were breaking rules by taking classified documents to Mar-a-Lago, according to a report. The agency sent a letter, obtained by CNN, to Mr Trump this week revealing it had found 16 records showing he and his top advisers were aware of the correct declassification process when he was president. “The 16 records in question all reflect communications involving close presidential advisers, some of them directed to you personally, concerning whether, why, and how you should declassify certain classified records,” wrote archivist Debra Steidel Wall. These records will be turned over to Special Counsel Jack Smith as part of the criminal investigation into Mr Trump’s handling of classified documents. The revelation comes as Mr Trump continues to lash out at Ron DeSantis, as the Florida governor prepares to launch his 2024 campaign next week. “After campaigning for five months, and going nowhere but down, it looks like Ron DeSanctimonious will soon be entering the race. He has ZERO chance, and MAGA will never forget!” Mr Trump fumed on Truth Social on Thursday night. Read More Trump campaign knocks DeSantis over Disney’s cancelled Florida expansion Ron DeSantis mocked over bizarre video of roaring laughter: ‘A faulty robot’ Trump’s White House lawyer predicts ex-president will end up in jail as Mar-a-Lago probe heats up Trump whines that he is a ‘victim’ of ‘weaponisation of justice’

It appears to be the latest in a public falling out between the Wagner boss and Russian officials.

Vladimir Putin’s missile attack on a cafe and grocery store in northeastern Ukraine that led to 51 deaths, six injuries and three people left missing was “no blind strike”, said president Volodymyr Zelensky. The strike is the deadliest in the Kharkiv region since Mr Putin’s Ukraine invasion and also among the biggest civilian death tolls in any single Russian missile attack, especially after January this year. The missile strike occurred on Thursday afternoon in Kharkiv’s Hroza village where dozens had gathered to mourn a fallen Ukraine soldier, officials said. “A deliberate missile strike on a village in Kharkiv region on an ordinary store and cafe,” Mr Zelensky said in his nightly video address on Thursday. “Russian troops could not have been unaware of where they were hitting. This was no blind strike,” he said after attending a summit of the European Political Community in Spain. Mr Zelensky said a six-year-old boy was among the dead. According to regional officials, families had remained in the village despite a war-time order to evacuate. The site of the attack showed large piles of bricks, shattered metal and building materials strewn around the cafe and shop struck by a Russian missile. The attack was likely carried out with an Iskander ballistic missile, a Ukrainian minister said, citing preliminary information. Bodies of the dead were laid out in a field next to a children’s playground as rescue workers were seen making their way and sifting through mounds of debris from the attack. Regional police investigator Serhiy Bolvinov said they will use DNA laboratories to identify the bodies as they have found only bits and pieces and remains of the bodies. Officials said the Russian missile hit a service marking a reburial in his home village of a soldier who had died in action elsewhere. The son of the soldier was also killed in the attack, along with his wife and mother, prosecutors told public broadcaster Suspilne. “There were only civilians. The boy was from this village. When he died, we were under occupation. The (family) decided to rebury him, to bring him home,” said resident Oleksandr Mukhovatyi. “Then this happened. Someone betrayed us. The attack was precise, it all landed in the coffee shop.” He said his mother, brother and sister-in-law were among the dead. Local officials were sitting down for a meal when the missile struck, interior minister Ihor Klymenko said. “From every family, from every household, there were people present at this commemoration. This is a terrible tragedy,” he told Ukrainian television. Defence minister Rustem Umerov said the strike was clearly targeted and Ukrainian security services had launched an investigation into the matter. “The terrorists deliberately carried out the attack during lunchtime, to ensure a maximum number of casualties,” he said. “There were no military targets there. This is a heinous crime intended to scare Ukrainians.” Russia has not issued a comment on the attack in Hroza. It has denied deliberately targeting civilians, but many have been killed in attacks that have hit residential areas as well as energy, defence, port, grain and other facilities. Read More Ukraine-Russia war – live: Deadly Russian attack on memorial service was no blind strike, says Zelensky White House condemns ‘horrifying’ Russian attack on grocery store in Ukraine Russian missile strike kills more than 50 Ukrainians gathered for wake – in deadliest such attack in months Nearly 50 European leaders stress support for Ukraine at a summit in Spain. Zelenskyy seeks more aid Russia has tested a nuclear-powered missile and could revoke a global atomic test ban, Putin says

The cards used to be free - the new charge come amid a cost-of living crisis.

A resurfaced clip of the Wagner leader who was killed in a plane crash has resurfaced on social media, stoking conspiracy theories about his demise. In the 40-second clip, the Russian mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin compared Russia’s trajectory in the war to a plane that will “fall apart in the air”. The ominous comparison has now added fuel to fire in the theory the Wagner chief was killed the order of Russian president Vladimir Putin, after Prigozhin has been confirmed as one of the passengers on a private jet that crashed northwest of Moscow with no survivors on Wednesday. The incident occurred just two months after he shocked the global stage by leading a mutiny against Putin, before abruptly calling off the half-baked uprising at the eleventh hour. In the video taken from an interview originally published on April 29 with Russian military blogger Semyon Pegov, Prigozhin said he would rather be killed than lie to his country, and talked about a plane disintegrating in the sky. “Today we have reached the boiling point,” he said in the clip published on Grey Zone, Wagner’s Telegram channel. “Why am I speaking so honestly? Because I don’t have the right, before those people who will live on in this country. They are now being lied to. Better kill me.” He added: “But I will not lie, I must say honestly that Russia is on the brink of disaster. And if these cogs are not adjusted today, then the plane will fall apart in the air.” Hundreds of responses had been posted on Grey Zone within a few hours. “But he knew,” a Telegram user whose name translates to “outpost” wrote in the first response. Some posts speculated Prigozhin was still alive, with one claiming he would “soon jump out of a snuffbox and make the devils c*** themselves.” The Kremlin has said Western suggestions he had been killed on its orders were an “absolute lie.” Read More Prigozhin's final months were overshadowed by questions about what the Kremlin had in store for him Putin orders Wagner fighters to sign oath of allegiance following Prigozhin plane crash If the Wagner mercenary chief is dead, he got the death he deserved Russia says it has confirmed Prigozhin died in the plane crash Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin confirmed dead in plane crash by Russian investigators Ukraine-Russia war live: Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin confirmed dead in plane crash

Poland’s president has announced that the country will hold its parliamentary election on October 15

Slovaks voted on Saturday in a tight early election seen as key to whether the country will keep supporting neighbouring Ukraine after a...

NASHVILLE, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 11, 2023--