Two people – a man and a woman both aged in their 20s – have been arrested over the attack and have been released on conditional bail.

Initial reports suggested the dog may be an XL bully, but confirming the breed will form part of the police assessment process, according to Avon and Somerset Police.

It was sedated and seized by officers.

Ms Dorsett’s family thanked the public for their support and those who have left flowers near the scene.

Officers were called to an incident in the Hartcliffe area of Bristol at 7.19pm on Wednesday.

Paramedics and police officers attended but Ms Dorsett died at the scene.

On Thursday, Inspector Terry Murphy said: “Our thoughts, first and foremost, are with the family of the young woman who’s tragically died as a result of yesterday evening’s incident. They have been updated and will be supported by a family liaison officer.

“I’d also like to thank the officers and paramedics who attended yesterday evening and tried to save her life. Support is in place for them.

“A full investigation is now well under way to establish the full circumstances of the events that led to her death.”

Read more from Sky News:
Baltic states ‘very unhappy’ after UK fails to invite leaders to Ukraine summit
Bargain Hunt auctioneer cleared of coercive control and assault allegations
Minister resigns over cut to international aid budget

A neighbour also paid tribute to Ms Dorsett, saying she “seemed a lovely girl” and had only lived in the property for a few weeks.

“I was up all night awake trying to process this,” the neighbour, who did not want to be named, said.

“I am shocked. I just can’t believe it’s happened and she hasn’t been there that long.”

The neighbour said she had seen the dog on a lead with its owner and was certain it was an XL bully.

“I do feel so sad for the dog owner,” she said.

“She did mention the dog wasn’t great with men, fine with women and children.

“I feel for her so, so much. It wasn’t her fault.”

She added: “I genuinely feel that this was one of those freak accidents and wasn’t her fault – that’s how I feel.”

In February 2024 it became a criminal offence to own the XL bully breed in England and Wales without an exemption certificate.

Anyone owning one of the dogs must have had the animal neutered, microchipped, and kept muzzled and on a lead in public, among other restrictions.

The government move to ban the breed followed a series of attacks on people and other dogs.

The post Woman who died after she was attacked by a dog in Bristol named appeared first on World News Stories.

The source, with knowledge of the situation, warned that Moscow would notice with interest that Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia have been excluded.

“Russia and our publics will clearly assess this that we are sold out by the US, but also by [the] UK and France,” said the source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Sir Keir Starmer, fresh back from a friendly meeting with Donald Trump in Washington, is due to host the leaders of more than a dozen European countries for a summit in the UK on Sunday to discuss Russia’s war in Ukraine and wider European security.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who is holding talks with the US president at the White House on Friday, is also due to attend.

The diplomatic source confirmed Sir Keir would have a phone call with the leaders of the Baltic states – but signalled this was a poor substitute for not participating in the summit, which will take place in person.

“We are truly very unhappy with a refusal to invite the Baltic leaders,” the source said.

The three Baltic countries – located on NATO’s eastern flank with Russia – are among the highest defence spenders in NATO as a percentage of GDP.

They are also, relative to their small size, among the biggest supporters of Ukraine – giving weapons and funding to help the Ukrainian armed forces fight off Russia’s invasion – and have been the strongest voices in Europe raising the alarm about the threat posed by Russian President Vladimir Putin for years.

The source said France was helping to organise the summit with Downing Street. It will be used to discuss support for Ukraine, including a plan to create an international “reassurance” force that could be deployed to the country to help secure a ceasefire if the US can negotiate a deal between Kyiv and Moscow.

Wider European security will also be discussed after Mr Trump made clear European NATO allies need to take a much greater responsibility for their own security instead of relying on the powerful US military.

Read more from Sky News:
Greek protesters hurl petrol bombs as demonstrationturns violent
Teenager who faked grooming scandal also named real abusers
911 call of moment Gene Hackman and wife found dead released

👉Listen to The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim on your podcast app👈

The source said the leaders of Norway, Finland, Sweden and Poland were among the invitees, noting Helsinki and Warsaw have both publicly ruled out contributing troops to an international security force in Ukraine.

The source said members of the Baltic states “have a plan… but [were] not invited”.

“All three Balts are among the highest supporters for Ukraine in terms of percentage of GDP and capabilities provided,” the source said.

“All decisions directly impact our security. Like another pact to divide Europe or take us for granted. Shameful.”

The UK regards Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia as key partners. The three Baltic states are closely allied with Britain as members of the Joint Expeditionary Force, a grouping of like-minded European NATO member states.

Downing Street was approached with a request for comment.

The post Baltic states ‘very unhappy’ after UK fails to invite leaders to Ukraine summit appeared first on World News Stories.

Omar Wilson repeatedly punched and kicked Mussie Imnetu during an altercation outside a restaurant in Queensway, west London, on 26 August last year.

Wilson, 31, then left the scene to go clubbing.

Mr Imnetu, 41, who worked under star chefs Gordon Ramsay and Marcus Wareing, died in hospital four days later, without regaining consciousness.

Sentencing Wilson to a minimum 18 years, Judge Philip Katz said Mr Imnetu’s “brutal” killing was “abhorrent”.

“Mussie and those who loved him are the victims in this case and the impact on them of his murder has been severe,” he said.

“Mussie was defenceless on the ground when you punched and kicked him to death.”

He continued: “You could not control your temper. Only a few seconds after punches were aimed by both of you you tripped Mussie and he fell to the ground and you could have walked away.

“As he knelt you rained further punches down on his head. You could have walked away.

“However, you stood up, raised your leg and kicked him hard to the head. Kicking someone to the head when they are defenceless on the ground is abhorrent.”

Mr Imnetu’s wife, Linda, described her husband as “respected, admired and loved” in a pre-recorded victim impact statement played in court.

“Mussie didn’t just leave behind a legacy for his family, he left an indelible mark on his workplace and community,” she said.

“Nothing can undo what has been taken from us. I ask the court to remember the man Mussie was: his character, his integrity and the life he built; not just the circumstances of his passing.”

An audio recording of Mr Imnetu’s six-year-old son wishing his “daddy” goodbye was also played in court, which the judge called “heart-rending”.

Follow Sky News on WhatsApp

Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News

Tap here

CCTV footage was played in court during the trial showing Wilson approaching Mr Imnetu and headbutting him.

Around a minute later, Wilson punched Mr Imnetu five times in the head, continued to repeatedly punch him while he was on his hands and knees, and then kicked him in the head.

Read more from Sky News:
Labour minister resigns over decision to cut foreign aid
Volcano owners’ conviction over deadly eruption overturned

Wilson of Napier Road, east London, told the Old Bailey he was acting in self defence, telling jurors: “I just regret that somebody’s life was taken while I was trying to defend mine.”

He claimed Mr Imnetu had a broken bottle – something Judge Katz described as “a deliberate lie”.

The court heard after the attack that Wilson had told an associate he “crossed the line”.

In a message, he said: “There’s a monster in me, man, and it’s just like sometimes it comes out.

“And I think I’ve messed up now, I’ve messed up, everything’s finished.”

The post ‘Monster’ who fatally beat chef near Notting Hill Carnival jailed for life appeared first on World News Stories.

Warning: This article contains references to sexual abuse and violence

Five years ago, police bodyworn camera footage showed a battered and drugged girl with a bleeding mouth and bruises mushrooming over her closed eye.

Looking like the victim of extreme violence, she claimed on Facebook in May 2020 that she was under the control of a brutal Asian gang who sold her for sex in her hometown of Barrow-in-Furness, northwest England.

But she was found guilty of perverting the course of justice. In January 2023, a jury found that she had lied, fabricated evidence and even inflicted wounds upon herself to frame innocent men.

There is, however, a new twist in this murky story.

There were Asian men grooming girls in Barrow – and at least one of those involved was linked to Eleanor’s allegations.

For the first time, Sky News is revealing extracts of a diary Eleanor kept in the run-up to her notorious Facebook post. And while her diary, which catalogues abuse by controlling men, may be another work of fiction, somehow within it, the girl famed for lying identifies a man who has been convicted of similar crimes.

“It’s hard,” she writes, that people think of her as a “liar” and “evil and a druggy”.

“I wish I could explain everything but what’s the point when they just say I’m lying,” she adds.

The girl who lied

The night before the Facebook post, police found Eleanor bruised and battered in a field.

“She had horrific facial injuries,” says her mother, Allison Johnston. “There was blood everywhere.”

It wasn’t the first time Allison had seen her daughter with unexplained injuries. Her sister, Lucy, believes Eleanor had reached breaking point and spoke about feeling ignored by the police.

“The only way I can think of it stopping is if people know what’s going on,” Lucy says Eleanor told her.

Read more:
How Eleanor Williams’ false claims unravelled
Sexual abuse victims reveal impact of Eleanor Williams case
Introducing… Unreliable Witness

The Facebook post triggered a wave of protest and anger at the police. People wanted “Justice for Ellie”.

The Asian community was targeted, businesses’ windows were smashed and there were more than 80 hate-related crimes linked to Eleanor’s claims in the ensuing months.

While no one was identified in her post, local restaurant and ice-cream van owner, Mohammed Ramzan, known as Mo Rammy, 45, was named by Eleanor to the police.

When rumours started circulating about his involvement, he was left fearing for his family’s safety and, he says, barely left the house for three years.

“We had fire extinguishers and baseball bats next to [the children’s] beds,” Mo says, tearfully. “We had threats people [were] going to burn the shop down, burn us down.”

Not long after her Facebook post started going viral, it emerged that Eleanor herself was under investigation – for fabricating stories. That same day, police arrested her on suspicion of perverting the course of justice. They would later discover a hammer in the field where she was found with her injuries, which only had her DNA on it, and CCTV from Tesco would show she had bought an identical hammer days earlier.

In her trial, evidence was placed before the jury that she had fabricated text messages to implicate the men. CCTV showed she had stayed in a hotel on her own for an evening in Barrow, on a night when she’d claimed to have been raped by multiple men in Blackpool.

In March 2023, she was found guilty of trying to frame five men and was jailed for eight and a half years.

The other trial

While most of the town was ready to move on – there was a group of local women with an ordeal ahead of them. Barrow had a secret. Another much-delayed trial involving three Asian brothers accused of grooming and sexually abusing underage girls, some as young as seven, in Barrow and Leeds was about to get under way.

“Barrow got branded a lying town,” says Elizabeth, a key witness. “It’s not. Grooming was happening here and still probably is.”

The three men faced 62 offences between them, which were alleged to have occurred in Leeds and Barrow between 1996 and 2010.

Shaha Amran Miah, 49, (Jai), was accused of 16 sexual offences against three girls, as well as two charges of intimidation and one of kidnap.

Shaha Alman Miah, 47, (Ali), faced three sexual offences against one girl.

Shah Joman Miah, 38, (Sarj), was accused of 40 sexual offences against three children. Nine of these were rape of a child.

Elizabeth’s then boyfriend worked at a takeaway called Iesha’s, owned by the Miah family. It was there, she says, that girls as young as 13 or 14 were taken to so-called sex parties.

“Men came down from Leeds. I know they’d come down for one thing… sex with girls,” she says.

It was Sarj and the eldest brother Jai, she says, who regularly resorted to “blackmail, manipulation and threats”. She told the court that Jai was a drug dealer who made threats to try to stop her giving them an interview.

Elizabeth was pregnant at the time. “I will set this house on fire with you and your partner in it and make sure that kid will never come out of you,” Jai told her, she says.

The court also heard how Sarj would take one underage girl to a hotel for sex, sneaking her in after the receptionist had left for the night. Aged in his late 20s, he began having sex with her when she was 13. A decade and a half later, the court heard she still has nightmares where she sees his face.

Prosecution barrister Tim Evans KC said the brothers “created an environment in Barrow in which each of them could abuse young girls”. He described how the men used free cigarettes, food and alcohol and even paid for hair extensions as “classic grooming” techniques, preying on vulnerable girls who were often neglected at home.

Earlier this month, all three men were found guilty of all the counts against them. Two of the brothers, Sarj and Jai, were sentenced to life in prison. Ali was given 14 years – four of those on licence.

Eleanor’s diary

A key character in Eleanor’s diary is the man now convicted of 40 counts of child abuse, Shah Joman Miah – Sarj.

The diary is dated from late 2019 to early 2020. In it, Sarj is frequently named as part of a controlling network of men. In the extracts below, we’ve replaced the names of other men with Z.

“Monday 21 October 2019… Had Snapchats from Z saying Sarj needs me in Blackburn tomorrow, said I had to get the train to Preston because they didn’t know for definite where Sarj wanted me.”

She also worries about Sarj being “pissed off” with her and references him being at so-called “parties” where men take money after she “goes with” certain people.

Feelings of intimidation also feature. “Tuesday 29 October 2019… Was watching out of my bedroom window and the car must have circled about three times. I got into bed and laid in the dark in silence. Had Z telling me not to piss Sarj off, Z saying I’m not to lose money.”

Sky News has digital evidence that the diary was written around the time it was dated. It wasn’t public knowledge at that time that police were investigating the Miah brothers for historical crimes.

Eleanor was convicted of lying about five men – Mo Rammy and four white men. But we can reveal that both Sarj and Jai’s names were brought up in her trial as among those she alleged had abused her, and what’s more – she was never charged with lying about them.

It was suggested during her trial that diaries were all part of her fabrication, along with faked messages and self-inflicted injuries – but it is a strange coincidence that a now convicted sex offender is in there. And he is not the only one.

The warnings

Eleanor’s mother Allison emailed police in October 2019 warning that Sarj had brought a dangerous man to Barrow, who was seen “manhandling” her daughter in a club and later pulling out a knife.

We can’t name this man for legal reasons, but two years after the email was sent, he broke into a woman’s house in another town and sexually assaulted her. He was later jailed.

In the extracts we have of Eleanor’s diary, this man is named 36 times and is described as violent towards her. Sarj is referenced eight times. Most of the men she was convicted of lying about were not referenced in the diary in the extracts we’ve seen.

The diary may well be an extension of the fantasy, but there is other supporting evidence that something was happening to Eleanor.

Her former boss at a local pub spoke of her being intimidated by men while she was working. And her sister said she was grabbed by an Asian man in a nightclub and received threats on her phone over Snapchat.

Sky News obtained a psychiatric report, which referred to a medical professional who did not believe Eleanor’s injuries were self-inflicted. The forensic psychiatrist concluded she was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, and was likely to have been the victim of child sexual exploitation.

Social service reports also reveal intimate injuries – and obvious signs of drug taking – even though the police say she was often pretending to be on drugs and that the injuries were for show. But the thing about the diary that is hard to ignore is she is naming men who would go on to be convicted of offences against other women.

Sarj had allegations made against him by another teenager in Barrow, which were investigated by police in 2018, but the case ended with no further action.

He was also identified by Sarah, not her real name, in Hull as having abused her from the age of 13 and selling her for sex to more than 100 men over three years.

Humberside Police continue to investigate Sarah’s case.

“He’s not just an abuser; he’s a ringleader,” Sarah told Sky News. When it comes to Eleanor’s case, she thinks the fact that Sarj “is a guy that has abused people” should have been looked at.

Elizabeth, whose evidence against Sarj helped lead to his conviction, said: “If I’d have known she’d [Eleanor] named him, I would have went to the police myself and said, ‘why are you calling this girl a liar?’.”

‘I don’t class him as human’

Sarj wasn’t charged until 2020. Previously, he often worked for local businessman Mo Rammy, the central figure who Eleanor was found guilty of lying about.

Mo first employed Sarj back in 2012. He says he felt betrayed when he learned of his crimes. “I don’t class him as human. You’ve had that person with you for so many years and they’ve just lied to you.”

But he doesn’t believe Eleanor is telling the truth about Sarj because of her lies about others including him. “Why would you fabricate the whole story and let this one horrible filthy beast walk the streets? It doesn’t make sense… I can’t see how I can believe that girl.”

Cumbria Police told Sky News: “All of Eleanor’s allegations (including those emailed by her mother) were investigated thoroughly and there was no evidence of any involvement by the Miah brothers.

“This is not a case where there was not enough evidence to pursue what she was reporting but a case where allegations were proved to be lies with evidence fabricated in an attempt to support those lies, resulting in convictions for multiple offences of perverting the course of justice.”

The force says the successful conviction of the Miah brothers shows how seriously they take offences of this nature in Cumbria, and they encourage victims to come forward. We’ve put our allegations to solicitors representing the Miah brothers but have currently had no reply.

What was going through Eleanor’s mind when she posted those allegations on Facebook is still unclear. But, at least, we know what she wrote in her diary in the months before.

On 17 October 2019, she wrote: “Starting to think there’s (ligit) no point in defending myself or explaining. I’ll let whoever think whatever and need to be okay with my situation.”

Eleanor has now been released from prison but has not returned to Barrow. She did lie about events, and a jury found she fabricated evidence, but we now know there were other liars in this town – with other secrets.

Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK

The post The teenager who faked a grooming scandal also named real abusers appeared first on World News Stories.

Mother of three Rania Alayed was murdered in 2013 by her husband Ahmed al Khatib, of Gorton, Manchester, who was jailed for life the following year.

Her body was never recovered and multiple searches have taken place in the years since then, said Greater Manchester Police (GMP).

On Tuesday, after receiving new information, GMP officers located buried human remains by the A19 in Thirsk.

The force said in a statement: “While no official identification has taken place, we strongly suspect the remains are that of Rania.

“Her family have been informed of the latest development and are being supported by specially trained officers. They remain at the forefront of our minds.”

Ms Alayed’s son, Yazan, speaking on behalf of their family, said: “The discovery of my mother’s remains more than a decade onwards has come as a surreal surprise to me and my family.

“At last, being able to provide a final resting place is all we have wanted for the last 11 years, to have the ability to lay down a few flowers for my mother is more than I can ask for from this world.”

Detective Chief Inspector Neil Higginson, from GMP’s major incident team, said Ms Alayed’s murder was “utterly horrific” and not knowing where her body was had caused further pain to those who knew her.

“More than a decade after her murder, we now strongly believe we have located Rania’s body and are finally able to provide closure to her family, who we know have endured so much pain and grief over the years.

“Rania’s family have always been kept informed following our searches over the last few years, and we are providing them updates as we get them following this most recent development,” he said.

During Mr al Khatib’s trial, a court heard how Ms Alayed was born in Syria and met her husband when she was 15.

Read more from Sky News:
Going For Gold and Game For A Laugh presenter Henry Kelly dies
Ukraine ‘agrees terms with US on minerals deal’

The couple fled the Middle East, eventually moving to England.

They had three children but eventually Ms Alayed left the unhappy marriage which had been marred by violence from her husband, the trial heard.

The post Human remains found in search for body of murder victim appeared first on World News Stories.

The Dublin-born writer and broadcaster died “peacefully” on Tuesday “after a period of ill health”.

“Henry will be sorely missed by his friends and family, including his partner Karolyn Shindler, their son Alexander, Henry’s daughter Siobhan and her mother Marjorie,” they added in a statement.

Kelly began his career in journalism in the 1960s while in Dublin – radio and TV presenting gigs followed from the 1970s when he moved to England.

While at University College Dublin, he wrote theatre reviews for The Irish Times, graduating with an English degree in 1968.

He went on to become the newspaper’s northern editor, based in Belfast in the 1970s – where he covered the height of The Troubles.

Kelly joined BBC Radio 4 current affairs programme The World Tonight as a reporter and presenter when he moved to London in 1976.

He was a presenter on the ITV entertainment show Game For A Laugh from 1981 – and went on to host BBC One game show Going For Gold for 10 seasons from the late 1980s to the mid-1990s.

The original show saw people from different countries competing against each other for a cash prize through answering questions. The show’s theme tune was composed by future multi-award winning composer Hans Zimmer.

The show was revived by Channel 5, featuring contestants from the UK and Ireland only, with newsreader John Suchet at the helm.

Kelly also appeared in Victoria Wood sitcom Dinnerladies, had a stint on morning programme TV-am, and talk show After Dark.

He was a founding presenter on Classic FM where he hosted a daily breakfast show from 1992 to 2003 – and won a Sony Radio Award in 1994 when he was voted national broadcaster of the year.

His later radio career saw him have the Henry Kelly Show on LBC for a while, as well as present on BBC Radio Berkshire from 2005 to 2015.

He also wrote books including the 1972 work How Stormont Fell, about the events which hit the Northern Irish parliament, and he co-authored the 1990s collection Classic FM Musical Anecdotes, Notes And Quotes with John Foley.

The post Going For Gold and Game For A Laugh presenter Henry Kelly dies appeared first on World News Stories.

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said she was “minded to approve” the airport’s plans, but the deadline for a decision has now been pushed back until the end of October.

The main stumbling blocks facing Gatwick’s proposals are related to its provisions for noise prevention and public transport.

The Planning Inspectorate had made recommendations in those two areas after initially rejecting the scheme.

Money latest: UK’s favourite DIY shops ranked

The airport welcomed the government’s statement but did not say whether it saw a need to adjust its plans to meet the conditions.

Gatwick has until April 24 to respond to the new proposals.

The northern runway already exists at the airport parallel to the main one, but cannot be used at the same time as it is too close.

It is currently limited to being a taxiway and only used for take-offs and landings if the main one has to shut.

Gatwick wants to move it 12 metres further away to solve this problem.

It says being able to run both at the same time would allow around 100,000 more flights per year and create 14,000 jobs.

Gatwick says the £2.2bn project would not need government money, would be 100% privately funded, and could be complete by the end of the decade.

The airport is already the second busiest in the UK, and the busiest single runway airport in Europe.

Campaigners argue the additional traffic would be catastrophic for the environment and the local community in particular.

The Conservatives accused the government of “failing to deliver” and said the decision to “kick the can down the road… shows this promise wasn’t worth the paper it was written on”.

Conservative shadow transport secretary Gareth Bacon added: “Labour are either serious about growth or they are not. This is latest proof that they have no idea how to deliver it.”

Today’s update comes after the chancellor said last month the government also supported a third runway at Heathrow as part of its wider effort to bolster UK economic growth.

However, the formal planning process is still to take place.

Gatwick’s additional runway would be unlikely to open until the end of the decade, assuming any legal challenges were swiftly overcome.

A government source told Sky News: “The transport secretary has set out a path to approving the expansion of Gatwick today following the Planning Inspectorate’s recommendation to refuse the original application.

“This is an important step forward and demonstrates that this government will stop at nothing to deliver economic growth and new infrastructure as part of our Plan for Change.

“Expansion will bring huge benefits for business and represents a victory for holidaymakers. We want to deliver this opportunity in line with our legal, environmental and climate obligations.

“We look forward to Gatwick’s response as they have indicated planes could take off from a new runway before the end of this Parliament.”

Stewart Wingate, Gatwick’s chief executive, said: “We welcome today’s announcement that the Secretary of State for Transport is minded to approve our Northern Runway plans and has outlined a clear pathway to full approval later in the year.

“It is vital that any planning conditions attached to the final approval enable us to make a decision to invest £2.2bn in this project and realise the full benefits of bringing the Northern Runway into routine use.

“We will of course engage fully in the extended process for a final decision.”

He added: “We stand ready to deliver this project which will create 14,000 jobs and generate £1bn a year in economic benefits. By increasing resilience and capacity we can support the UK’s position as a leader in global connectivity and deliver substantial trade and economic growth in the South East and more broadly.

“We have also outlined to government how we plan to grow responsibly to meet increasing passenger demand, while minimising noise and environmental impacts.”

A spokesperson for campaign group Communities Against Gatwick Noise Emissions (Cagne) responded: “We welcome the extension by the secretary of state until October as she has obviously recognised the many holes in the Gatwick airport submissions during the planning hearings.

“Cagne do not believe Gatwick has been totally up front with their submissions, and the planning hearings left so many questions unanswered.”

Greenpeace UK’s policy director, Doug Parr, said of the process ahead: “By approving Gatwick’s expansion the government will hang a millstone the size of a 747 around the country’s neck.

“Such a decision would be one that smacks of desperation, completely ignoring the solid evidence that increasing air travel won’t drive economic growth. The only thing it’s set to boost is air pollution, noise, and climate emissions.”

Ryanair chief executive Eddie Wilson told Sky News the project would do nothing to support growth as there was spare capacity already and claimed the best way to boost the economy was by cutting Air Passenger Duty.

“You have increased taxes in the UK. It’s the airlines that decide on capacity, not the airports,” he said.

The post Gatwick second runway supported but decision deadline extended appeared first on World News Stories.

It means £13.4bn more will be spent on defence each year after 2027, the prime announced in an unexpected statement in parliament.

Sir Keir said he wants defence spending to increase to 3% of gross domestic product in the next parliament, but that would rely on Labour winning the next general election, set for 2029.

Politics latest: PM fast-tracks defence spending boost by cutting foreign aid

The number is much lower than the US president has demanded NATO members spend on defence, with Mr Trump saying they should all be spending 5% – an amount last seen during the Cold War.

Sir Keir also announced the government would cut back on foreign aid to fund the increase, reducing current spending from 0.5% of GDP to 0.3%.

Moments before the announcement, the Foreign Office said it was pausing some aid to Rwanda due to its role in the conflict in neighbouring Congo.

Foreign secretary David Lammy just two weeks ago criticised Mr Trump’s decision to freeze USAID, saying development remains a “very important soft power tool” and is worried without it, he “would be very worried China and others step into that gap”.

Sir Keir said the reduction in foreign aid is “not a renouncement I’m happy to make”, as charities said the cuts would mean more people in the poorest parts of the world would die.

He reiterated the government’s commitment to NATO, which he described as the “bedrock of our security”, and criticised Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying “tyrants only respond to strength”.

Addressing his upcoming visit to the White House to meet Mr Trump, the prime minister said he wants the UK’s relationship with the US to go from “strength to strength”.

Read more:
Healey announces new defence spending leaders
Badenoch says US acting in national interest – UK must also

You won’t see more tanks – the money is likely to go on cyber warfare

Michael Clarke

Military analyst

Our defence budget should hit £67.6bn by 2025/26 then another £13.4bn onto that – that takes you to just over £80bn.

My guess is it won’t be spent on the heavy metal, it won’t be lots more tanks, not lots more aircraft or ships.

A lot of it will go, I think, into personnel which are the key elements and the thing we’ve seen degraded and degraded.

So, a lot of the money, I think, will go into transformational warfare, into cyber, into computing, into quantum computing, into being able to create what’s called a kill chain and a kill net, whereby you can see a threat, deal with it immediately, understand what it is immediately, and bring in exactly the right weapon to do something about it.

Even the United States, which is the most sophisticated in the world, is constantly chasing that sort of, Philosopher’s Stone, of the kill.

The Russians aren’t very good at it at all. The Chinese, we don’t know how good they are.

We’re not really certain. But we’ve got to get much, much better at doing that.

So, I suspect a lot of this money will go on things that you won’t see immediately.

But I’m pretty sure also that this sort of money is fundamental to the sort of transformations which I suspect the defence review is going to talk about.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch welcomed the defence spending increase and said she had written to him over the weekend to suggest how he could redirect money from the overseas development budget.

“This is absolutely right,” she told the Commons.

“And I look forward to him taking up my other suggestion of looking at what we can do on welfare.”

She urged him to not increase taxes further or to borrow more to fund the rise, but to ensure the economy grows to support it.

Former Conservative defence secretary Ben Wallace said an extra 0.2% was “a staggering desertion of leadership”.

“Tone deaf to dangers of the world and demands of the United States,” he wrote on X.

“Such a weak commitment to our security and nation puts us all at risk.”

Labour MP Sarah Champion, chair of the international development committee, said cutting the foreign aid budget is “deeply shortsighted and doesn’t make anyone safer”.

“The deep irony is that development money can prevent wars and is used to patch up the consequences of them, cutting this support is counterproductive and I urge the government to rethink,” she wrote on X.

Charities condemned the cut, with ActionAid saying cutting the aid budget to fund the military “only adds insult to injury” and “flies in the face of UN charters”, adding it was a “political choice with devastating consequences”.

Christine Allen, CEO of CAFOD (Catholic Agency for Overseas Development), said the cut means “in some of the most vulnerable places on earth, more people will die and many more will lose their livelihoods”.

She said the cut, coming just after the US froze its aid programme, “is another lifeline being pulled away from those in desperate need”.

Labour promised in their manifesto to increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP from the current 2.3%, however, ministers had previously refused to set out a timeline.

They had insisted a “path” to get to 2.5% would be set out after a defence spending review is published this spring.

The post UK defence spending to rise to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 – as Starmer hits out at ‘tyrant’ Putin appeared first on World News Stories.

Twenty-one Capture cases have now been submitted to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) for review.

Before Christmas, it was around eight.

They relate to the Capture computing software, which was used in Post Office branches in the 1990s before the infamous faulty Horizon system was introduced.

Hundreds of sub-postmasters were wrongly accused of stealing after Horizon software caused false shortfalls in branch accounts between 1999 and 2015.

A report last year found that there was a reasonable likelihood that the Capture accounting system, used from the early 1990s until 1999, was also responsible for shortfalls.

If the CCRC finds significant new evidence or legal arguments not previously heard before, cases can be referred back to the Court of Appeal.

Lawyer for victims, Neil Hudgell from Hudgell Solicitors, says the next steps for the Capture cases and the CCRC are still “some months away”.

He said he is also hopeful that the first cases could be referred to the Court of Appeal before the end of this year.

“Certainly we will certainly be lobbying,” he said. “The CCRC will be lobbying, the advisory board will be lobbying any interested parties, that these are hideously damaged people of advancing years who need some peace of mind and the quicker that can happen the better.”

‘We didn’t talk about it’

Among those submitted to the CCRC – Pat Owen’s Capture case was the first.

Her family have kept her 1998 conviction for stealing from her post office branch a secret for 26 years.

Speaking to Sky News they have opened up for the first time about what happened to her.

Pat was a former sub-postmistress, who was found guilty and given a two-year suspended sentence.

She died in 2003 from heart failure.

Her daughters describe her as coming home from court after her conviction “a different woman”.

“We didn’t talk about it,” said Juliet Shardlow. “We didn’t talk about it amongst ourselves as a family, we didn’t talk about it with the extended family.

“Our extended family don’t know.”

David Owen, Pat’s husband, said she lost a lot of weight after her conviction and at 62 years old “looked like an old gal of 90”.

Capture evidence never heard in court

Pat’s family kept all the documents from her case safe for over two decades and now a key piece of evidence may turn the tide on her conviction, and potentially help others.

A document summarising the findings of an IT expert described the computer Pat used as having “a faulty motherboard”.

It also stated that this “would have produced calculation errors and may have been responsible for the discrepancies subsequently identified by Post Office Counters’ Security and Investigation team.”

Read more from Sky News:
Sub-postmasters: ‘Still going through hell’
Compensation for victims of Capture
Calls on Fujitsu for compensation

The computer expert was due to give evidence in Pat Owen’s defence at court as part of her trial – but failed to turn up on the day.

The family say they never found out exactly why he didn’t show up at court.

David said there was a computer all set up in the courtroom for the expert to use to show malfunctions.

“I heard, now I can’t remember who from, that he’d done work for the Post Office,” he said.

“If he turned up to be a witness in court for us to he wouldn’t get any more work from the Post Office.”

Despite best efforts the expert has never been tracked down. The Post Office has declined to comment.

David also described how his wife never expected to lose her case.

“She was so confident. She knew she didn’t do anything wrong,” he said.

“But when the guilty verdict came out she actually fell to her knees in the dock crying her eyes out shaking.”

He said the judge then asked if he wanted to say anything, and David said he got up in court and spoke at length about his wife’s innocence.

The government announced in December that they will be setting up a redress scheme for Capture victims, similar to Horizon.

So far around 100 people who suffered after being accused of stealing from their branch, while using Capture, could be eligible for redress.

The post More than 20 cases in second Post Office IT scandal being investigated appeared first on World News Stories.

Nicholas Prosper, 19, appeared at Luton Crown Court over the deaths of Juliana Falcon, 48, Giselle Prosper, 13, and Kyle Prosper, 16.

Their bodies were found at a flat in Leabank, off Wauluds Bank Drive, Luton, in September.

He was also planning a shooting at St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School in Luton, where he and his siblings had all been pupils.

Headteacher Maureen Murphy said staff were “very shocked” to learn of the plot, but that there is no threat to the school.

Prosper’s harrowing plan, said to have left investigators “in shock and disbelief”, was foiled by police who spotted him in the street immediately after the murders.

He was stopped in nearby Bramingham Road, and a loaded shotgun was found hidden in bushes nearby, along with more than 30 cartridges.

As he appeared in court on Monday, Prosper spoke to confirm his identity and to plead guilty to three charges of murder.

Detective Chief Inspector Sam Khanna, from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Major Crime Unit, said: “In all my years working on murder investigations, I have never known a case quite like this.

“Not only were three innocent lives taken in such brutal circumstances, but we then learnt of Prosper’s plans to carry out a shooting at a school, something which left our whole investigation team in shock and disbelief.

“We cannot even begin to comprehend why someone would plan to kill innocent children and are so grateful to those arresting officers who helped prevent this from taking place.”

Leader of Luton Council, Hazel Simmons MBE, branded the murders as “senseless” and said their thoughts were with the victims, their family and friends.

The councillor sought to reassure parents by saying “our schools have robust systems in place to keep children safe and security is constantly reviewed and monitored”.

After recently asking schools to review their security, Ms Simmons said schools will be asked to further review their measures in light of what emerged from court on Monday.

“On behalf of the town I would like to thank and praise the excellent work of Bedfordshire Police for apprehending the perpetrator before he attempted to cause more harm.

“However, we know this case will be unsettling for parents which is why the council is working with schools to put support in place in our schools to anyone who needs it.”

Prosper also admitted a number of other offences, including purchasing a shotgun without a certificate, possession of a shotgun with intent to endanger life and possession of a kitchen knife in a public place.

He will be sentenced on 5 March and has been remanded in custody.

‘A cold-blooded attack’

Chris Derrick, a deputy chief crown prosecutor at the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), said the victims’ lives “were stolen in a cold-blooded attack”.

Mr Derrick said in a statement “the full extent of Prosper’s actions will be laid bare when he is sentenced, and he can expect to face a very long time behind bars”.

He added: “We hope today’s conviction offers some solace to those who loved and cared for them, as they mourn their loss.”

A friend of Ms Falcon previously described her as someone who “lived for her children” and said she was “a positive person who will be so terribly missed”.

A previous statement on X from the headteacher at Lea Manor High School said they were “deeply shocked” by the death of Giselle.

“Giselle was a beautiful soul and a model pupil, she excelled in all her subjects and will be sorely missed, particularly by her friends in Year 9.”

Read more from Sky News:
Girl, 3, who died in crash involving van and tram named
Children ‘screaming in sheer terror’ after van filled with fireworks set alight

Kyle’s school described the incident as “devastating” and offered “heartfelt condolences” to his family.

A previous statement issued by Cardinal Newman Catholic School said: “This is devastating news to all those who knew and loved Kyle and it will take some time to come to terms with the profound sense of loss.

“We know this will be a difficult time for students and staff and we will do all we can to support them with love and compassion.

“We extend our heartfelt condolences to Kyle’s family on their immeasurable loss, to his friends and to all those in neighbouring schools who are coming to terms with their own loss.”

The post Teenager who murdered family was planning school shooting appeared first on World News Stories.