Police are hunting for a taxi driver accused of sexually assaulting a British teenager in the party town of Magaluf, in Spain. On Friday, it was reported that the 17-year-old was accompanied by his mother to a police station in the Mallorca town where he claimed he was assaulted in the back of a taxi. He told officers he was on his way back to his hotel from party strip Punta Ballena when the cab driver allegedly began touching him, local newspaper Ultima Hora reported. The driver then allegedly demanded the teenager perform a sex act on him, leading to a row. The boy also accused the driver of physically assaulting him, claiming he hurt his head on the door of the car while trying to escape. A Police spokesperson confirmed an “allegation has been made”, and that the claims were being investigated. Officers of the Civil Guard are said to be working to identify the alleged perpetrator. The Independent has contacted the Civil Guard for comment. Earlier this week, a British man was arrested for allegedly groping a 20-year-old British woman at an unnamed hotel in Magaluf, police said. The 48-year-old man allegedly approached the woman from behind and put his hands down her pants, before touching her private parts. She told the police she didn’t know the man and that they’d never met before the alleged incident. A suspect was arrested shortly after the hotel’s receptionist contacted the police. Last month, two Irish tourists were arrested after a British woman claimed she was raped at a hotel in Calvia, Magaluf. They were held at Palma airport on 19 July as they were preparing to board a flight to Dublin, the Civil Guard said in a statement at the time. Police said the pair had been detained in jail, pending an investigation. Additional reporting by agencies. Read More Maui fires – live: Wildfires death toll climbs to 55 with 1,000 people still missing on Hawaii island Ukraine-Russia war – live: Another drone attack on Moscow after fire breaks out near Putin’s residence How a TikTok craze led to five hours of chaos on London’s busiest shopping street Another drone attack on Moscow after fire breaks out near Putin’s home - live Cats given anti-Covid pills after thousands die from feline virus in Cyprus Church burns after Russian strike on residential area of Zaporizhzhia

The 2024 election looks set to be a rematch between President Joe Biden and his predecessor Donald Trump. Despite his mounting legal problems, Mr Trump is by far the most popular candidate in the Republican field. Only Florida governor Ron DeSantis has reached double digits but he remains miles behind Mr Trump. Author Marianne Williamson and anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist Robert F Kennedy Jr are challenging Mr Biden for the Democratic nomination but they are not considered real threats to the president. Mr Trump was indicted for the third time on 1 August for his efforts to overturn the 2020 election. As Democrats coalesce behind Mr Biden, Mr Trump’s mounting legal woes appear to only strengthen his support with his base. The Republican primary is scheduled to begin with the Iowa caucuses on 15 January and the New Hampshire primary on 23 January. The primary season may go all the way into June, but who the nominee is expected to become clear well before that point. Read More Who are the 2024 presidential election candidates? Meet the Republicans and Democrats campaigning Trump says he won't sign Republican loyalty pledge, flouting debate requirement Harassment of mother and daughter poll workers could form part of Trump’s Georgia indictment, report says

Former prosecutor Renato Mariotti has claimed Jack Smith is using insights he gained from his role at the Hague to bring Donald Trump to justice for his role in the 2020 efforts to overturn the election. Mr Mariotti cited Mr Smith’s stint in the Hague, where he played a role in prosecuting authoritarian leaders prior to becoming the special counsel in the cases against Mr Trump. “I think he understands the way an authoritarian can use these soft methods of increasing their power and staying in power,” Mr Mariotti said on Thursday on MSNBC to anchor Ari Melber. “I think his experience prosecuting a sitting head of state, as you highlighted a moment ago, really prepared him for a moment like this. It shows when someone is desperate to stay in power, it’s important, ultimately, to find the way to bring him to account quickly, and I think that’s what he’s trying to do here.” “Autocrats use propaganda,” Melber earlier said. “That’s been true even as the nature of distribution has changed in many different eras. And propaganda is dangerous, precisely because you don’t have to physically oppress people. You don’t need weaponry if you trick enough of them into this or that position, whether that’s hating authoritarianism or groups. “I want to play that other piece of footage where he [Jack Smith] makes a point – again, who could see how things echo. “People have a choice of what they want to repost on Facebook or whatever platform they use. And I thought this was so striking that in a related context of both authoritarianism and ethnic hate, he talked about the ethical people who chose not to perpetuate things. Take a listen,” he said. Melber then played the video clip. “The accused, in committing their crimes, tried to amplify the damage they caused by exhorting the media in Kosovo to publish. The ethical journalists refused to publish the documents they provided them,” Mr Smith be heard saying in the clip. “This question is as much societal as it is legal. I’m not talking about a repost or publisher’s liability. I’m asking you the deeper question about why you’re a prosecutor, why you care about justice, which is, what do you think of his appeal of how we all exercise our choices in the face of propaganda matters and how that relates at home right now?” Melber continued. “It’s pretty profound,” Mr Mariotti replied. “I have to say, I’m struck by the way in which he has an understanding of some of the softer ways in which people can exercise power. “It’s such an interesting, different approach to Robert Mueller. Robert Mueller was very old school. He saw things, I think, in the way that – in a very black-and-white way that the Justice Department traditionally has. “Jack Smith... he’s from a different generation. I think he understands the way an authoritarian can use these soft methods of increasing their power and staying in power.” Read More Jack Smith uses Trump lawyer’s media statements against him in latest 2020 election case filing Trump reacts with fury to proposed 2 January trial date in special counsel’s 2020 election case Trump and one co-defendant plead not guilty in superseding Mar-a-Lago indictment Trump furious at proposed 2 January trial date in special counsel 2020 election case Special Counsel requests January 2024 trial in Jan 6 case - latest Judge Chutkan to hear arguments in protective order fight in Trump's 2020 election conspiracy case

Special Counsel Jack Smith’s office has asked the District of Columbia judge overseeing the 2020 election subversion case against former president Donald Trump to schedule the twice-impeached, thrice-indicted ex-president’s trial for a four to six week period beginning on 2 January next year. In an eight-page filing authored by Senior Assistant Special Counsels Molly Gaston and Thomas Windom, the special counsel’s office said their proposed schedule would give Mr Trump and his defence team sufficient time to prepare a case and review the evidence which the government is prepared to turn over as part of the discovery process, as well as litigate any pre-trial matters such as the request for a change of venue Mr Trump has said he will call for. The prosecutors also said that a 2 January 2024 trial date would “most importantly ... vindicate the public’s strong interest in a speedy trial,” which they described as being “of particular significance” because Mr Trump is “charged with conspiring to overturn the legitimate results of the 2020 presidential election, obstruct the certification of the election results, and discount citizens’ legitimate votes”. “A January 2, 2024, trial date represents an appropriately speedy trial in the public interest and in the interests of justice, while affording the defendant time to prepare his defense and raise pre-trial legal issues with the Court,” they said. At his arraignment one week ago, Mr Trump’s attorneys indicated that they would request significant delays and ask Judge Tanya Chutkan to stop the clock set under the Speedy Trial Act which sets out a 70-day period in which trials in criminal cases are required to begin. The ex-president’s legal strategy in both civil and criminal matters, dating back decades, is to cause as many delays as possible through any means possible. The three criminal cases against him have not proved an exception to this pattern, as Mr Trump is understood to believe his best chance at avoiding any negative consequences from the cases is to win next year’s presidential election. But the magistrate judge who presided over the arraignment, Moxila Upadhyaya, told Mr Trump’s counsel that Judge Chutkan intends to set a trial date after a status conference on 28 August, and gave the government a full week to propose a trial schedule. Mr Trump’s team will now have a week to respond to the department’s proposed schedule, though it’s unlikely that the ex-president’s counsel will agree with the government’s timeline. At the arraignment last week, Trump attorney John Lauro suggested that he and his co-counsel could not begin to consider any possible trial date until they’d received the evidence which the government must turn over as part of the pre-trial discovery process. “We need all that information, I think, in order to address the issue of when we would be ready, and also the extent to which we would have an idea of how long the trial would be,” he said. Mr Trump’s legal team has already prevented the discovery process from kicking off by objecting to the government’s proposed protective order on the grounds that it would violate the ex-president’s right to free speech by barring him from publicly revealing evidence while on the campaign trail. The prosecutors noted the disconnect between the arguments made at arraignment and the Trump defence team’s refusal to agree to a protective order that would allow them to begin reviewing discovery, calling the contradiction “perplexing”. They also slammed Mr Lauro’s claim that the defence is “starting with a blank slate” as “impossible” and “disingenuous,” citing Mr Trump’s awareness of and response to much of the evidence which was previously made public during the House January 6 select committee’s hearings last year and the panel’s final report. Continuing, prosecutors also pointed out that one of Mr Trump’s lawyers, Evan Corcoran, has long represented the ex-president in matters relating to his efforts to overturn his election loss. “The defendant has a greater and more detailed understanding of the evidence supporting the charges against him at the outset of this criminal case than most defendants, and is ably advised by multiple attorneys, including some who have represented him in this matter for the last year,” they said. “The Government’s proposed schedule and January 2 trial date afford the defendant many months to review the discovery in this matter, raise pre-trial legal issues, and prepare his defense. No additional time is necessary or warranted under the Speedy Trial Act and in light of the public’s strong interest in a prompt trial”. Read More Trump and one co-defendant plead not guilty in superseding Mar-a-Lago indictment Trump and Biden tied in hypothetical 2024 rematch, poll finds Trump complains world has ‘never been nastier than it is now’ as cases against him proceed Trump says Georgia DA ‘may change her mind’ about indicting him as he launches fresh attack Prosecutors seek Jan. 2 trial date for Donald Trump in his 2020 election conspiracy case Georgia DA Fani Willis tells staff to ignore Trump’s ‘derogatory and false’ attacks Trump says world has ‘never been nastier than it is now’ as cases against him proceed

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her husband agreed to let lawyers defending the man charged with assaulting

Maryland detectives investigating the homicide of missing mother-of-five Rachel Morin have said they do not have a solid suspect yet in the case and warned members of the community to be vigilant. "Not knowing whether this was a targeted event specific to Rachel, we are going to say, ‘yes, be aware, be thinking there could be somebody out here and this is a random event’," Harford County Sheriff Jeffery Gahler told WBALTV. Morin, 37, was last seen heading to the Ma & Pa Trail in Bel Air at around 6pm on Saturday evening, according to the Harford County Sheriff’s Office. After she failed to return home that night, her boyfriend reported her missing. Then on Sunday afternoon, a Maryland father discovered a woman’s body in a tunnel off the trail which was later confirmed to be Morin. Mr Gahler announced that Morin’s case is now a homicide investigation at a press conference that evening. Rebekah Morin, the deceased’s sister, started a GoFundMe to pay for funeral expenses. As of Thursday morning, it has raised almost $41,000. Read More Rachel Morin was found dead on a popular Maryland hiking trail. Her sister says she ‘did not go willingly’ Rachel Morin’s boyfriend says he ‘would never do anything to her’ as homicide probe launched Rachel Morin’s chilling Facebook post before mother-of-five found dead on Maryland hiking trail

Joe Biden dismissed a question posed by Fox News White House correspondent Peter Doocy by calling it “a lousy question”. Doocy, who was reporting from New Mexico following Mr Biden’s address on green energy endeavours, inquired about the recent congressional testimony of Devon Archer, a former business associate of Hunter Biden, the president’s son. Mr Archer’s testimony last week indicated that Hunter Biden had at times placed his father, who was then serving as vice president, on speakerphone during business discussions. Amid Republican assertions of potential corruption, allegations have arisen suggesting the president’s involvement in his son’s business activities. “We got a first of its kind of reaction to that testimony,” Doocy said on Wednesday. “Nobody has asked President Biden yet about these allegations from a former Hunter Biden business associate, that Hunter would call his dad – then the vice president – and put him on speakerphone to chat with his business associates. So, at the conclusion of this event, I had a chance at the president’s invitation – he waved us on over – to ask him.” Then Fox News cut to the exchange. Doocy asked the president, “There’s this testimony now where one of your son’s former business associates is claiming that you were on speakerphone a lot with them talking business. Is that what…” Mr Biden hit back, saying, “I never talked business anybody, and I knew you’d have a lousy question.” “Well, what, why is that a lousy question?” responded Doocy. The president said “because it’s not true”. Early last year, a hot microphone captured the president referring to Doocy as “a stupid son of a b****” following a question posed by the reporter about inflation. Towards the end of last year, Doocy again asked Mr Biden about the same topic that had led to the earlier insult. “Just hoping to clarify for midterm voters, top domestic issue: inflation or abortion?” Doocy had asked the president then. Mr Biden grinned on hearing the question and then answered, “All important! Unlike you, there’s no one thing. It crosses the board... domestic... ask me about foreign policy, too.” Mr Biden again clashed with Doocy earlier this year after he was asked why classified documents had been found stored next to his Corvette sports car. “Classified materials next to your Corvette? What were you thinking?” Doocy had asked the president at a White House event this January. “My Corvette’s in a locked garage so it’s not like it’s sitting on the street,” responded Mr Biden. “So the material was in a locked garage?” Doocy pressed. “Yes, as well as my Corvette,” Mr Biden said. Read More Trump 2020 electoral college plan outlined in memo as Twitter special counsel search warrant revealed - latest Indictment shows White House lawyers struggling for control as Trump fought to overturn election Biden welcoming Australian leader to White House for state dinner in October Trump and Biden tied in hypothetical 2024 rematch: poll Wildfires take Maui by surprise, burning through a historic town and killing at least 6 people Trump ‘fake elector’ memo details 2020 plan as Twitter search warrant revealed - live

Ukrainian forces broke through some of Russia’s defensive lines after launching a surprise raid across the Dnipro River as monitors of Moscow’s full-scale invasion reported clear signs of a major battle. The Dnipro River divides liberated Ukrainian territory on one bank and Russian-occupied land on the other, and for months it has served as part of the front line in southern Ukraine. Up to seven boats, each carrying up to six troops, arrived on the Russian-occupied bank, apparently under the cover of darkness, and advanced 800m, the Russian military bloggers said. Blogger Trinadtsatyi, posting on the Telegram messaging app to more than 150,000 followers, said a number of Russian soldiers were allegedly killed or taken captive during the raid. Images circulating on social media appeared to show captured soldiers. This latest surprise raid appears to be the most significant since the launch of a similar operation by Ukraine’s 73rd marine special operations unit. Read More Ukrainian troops launch surprise raid across Dnipro River and break through some of Russia’s defences Ukraine accuses Russia of targeting rescue workers in latest missile strikes Pokrovsk reduced to rubble after Russian strike hits hotel, killing eight What Ukraine’s First Lady Olena Zelenska wants the world to know

When John Green’s book, The Fault in Our Stars, was first published in 2012 it rose to the top of bestseller lists. The love story about two cancer stricken teenagers won the hearts of teenagers globally and was soon turned into a movie starring Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort. Now the book, a favourite of older teenagers, has been moved to the adult section in a library in the suburbs of Indianapolis. Green took to X, formerly called Twitter, to voice his frustrations. “This is ludicrous. It is about teenagers and I wrote it for teenagers. Teenagers are not harmed by reading TFIOS. This is such an embarrassment to the city of Fishers,” he said. “I only have a small voice in these decisions, of course, but you won’t catch me alive or dead in Fishers, Indiana until these ridiculous policies are revoked,” he added. “Which I guess means no Top Golf or IKEA for a while.” At the local library, staff have spent hours rummaging through books and moving those that don’t comply with the board’s policy to the general section from the young adult section. Books have been targeted for language about sexuality and reproduction, profanity and criminal acts. This isn’t the first time one of Green’s books has irked administrators and parents. His book Looking for Alaska, also aimed at older teenagers, has become a regular feature on the American Library Association’s top 10 most challenged books, making the list in 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2022, for being sexually explicit. In 2008, the author filmed a YouTube video titled “I Am Not A Pornographer” explaining that a school in Buffalo, New York was planning to teach Looking for Alaska to 11th graders. But some people, he said, found the book controversial so the school administrators gave parents the choice: their children could read the book or find an alternative. “But there were a few people who weren’t happy with this solution,” Green said in the clip. “These people didn’t actually have kids in the 11th grade, but no matter. They think that my book is pornographic, and that it will cause immoral thoughts and actions in children. These people believe that no one should be allowed to read the book, even those people whose parents signed the permission slip.” And now with book bans on the rise across America (2022 saw the highest number of attempted book bans), Green told The Independent earlier this year that these parent groups have rallied “to take over America’s school systems”. “There are attempts not just to ban books, but to ban entire subjects from high school curricula,” he said. “There are attempts to rewrite American history to better fit contemporary narratives around America’s purported greatness.” The book, a coming of age story with themes of loss and forgiveness, features a scene in which the main character Miles, receives oral sex from Lara, a friend. A few pages later, in a highly emotional scene, Miles kisses another character, Alaska. By juxtaposing the two scenes, Green said in the YouTube video, he attempts to show “that physical intimacy can never stand in for emotional closeness.” Yet, it’s these very scenes that have led to some seeking to ban the book. “It’s always a bummer to have your work read in bad faith,” Green told The Independent in an interview earlier this year. “It’s always a bummer when people read your work to find out what they hate about it, because that’s not, of course, why anyone writes.” Having this specific section read out of context, he adds, is “especially troubling,” because “removed from its context, it can’t do its work – which is to point out that the romantic encounter that Miles and Lara have is awkward and unfulfilling, precisely because they don’t have the emotional connection they need to have a fulfilling romantic encounter.” Read More John Green on book bans, bad faith, and the ‘history of folks trying to control what other folks can read’ Book bans in US schools increased by 28 per cent in the first half of the school year, says new report Texas county moves to restrict ‘explicit’ and ‘objectionable’ books at public libraries Tennessee educators file lawsuit challenging law limiting school lessons on race, sex and bias Jacqueline Wilson says censorship of children’s books is ‘a huge worry’ Biden reelection campaign offering joint meeting with Obama as ex-president enters 2024 fray early Biden wants to compensate New Mexico residents sickened by radiation during 1945 nuclear testing Trump campaign runs ad attacking Georgia DA who’s expected to indict him

Victims' families are distraught that Russian prisoners released to fight in Ukraine are reoffending.

The special counsel investigating Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results obtained a search warrant for the former president’s Twitter account in January, according to newly unsealed records. Twitter was prohibited from telling Mr Trump about the search, but the platform – now called “X” – was fined $350,000 for failing to meet the deadline to produce records under court order. The company ultimately produced the records three days after that deadline, according to the filing. Twitter and the office of US Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith spent several months debating whether to inform Mr Trump about the warrant, a dispute that surfaced with a Washington DC appeals court’s unsealing of a decision that upheld a lower court ruling to prohibit the platform from telling the former president about the case. A federal court agreed there were “reasonable grounds to believe” that disclosing the warrant would “seriously jeopardize the ongoing investigation” by giving him “an opportunity to destroy evidence, change patterns of behavior, [or] notify confederates,” according to the decision. A footnote adds that the court “found reason to believe” that Mr Trump could “flee from prosecution”. “The government later acknowledged, however, that it had ‘errantly included flight from prosecution as a predicate’ in its application,” the footnote adds. “The district court did not rely on risk of flight in its ultimate analysis.” Mr Trump has pleaded not guilty to three criminal conspiracy charges and a charge of obstruction for his attempts to overturn 2020 election results. This is a developing story Read More Trump 2020 election plan detailed in ‘fake elector’ memo as Chris Christie reacts to ‘fat pig’ attack - latest

Disgraced ex-NFL star Henry Rugs has been sentenced to between three and 10 years in prison for a fiery DUI crash that killed a woman and her dog in Las Vegas. The former Raiders wide receiver was speeding down a road in the city at up to 156mph when he smashed his Chevrolet Corvette Stingray into the back of 23-year-old Tina Tintor’s SUV in November 2021. Tintor’s vehicle was consumed by flames and she was trapped inside with her pet and died from injuries caused by the fire and the crash.