Hunched over a table in a hotel conference room, 42-year-old Yvonne Feucht snaps the final blue jigsaw piece into place, revealing a vibrant, beachy collage of San Diego landmarks. It took her just 54 minutes and 41 seconds to complete. Instead of the quiet satisfaction that usually ensues after finishing a jigsaw, the room erupts in cheers as Feucht raised her hands over her head, letting out a sigh of relief. The Los Angeles-based TV and film camera operator had just become the inaugural champion of the 2022 USA Jigsaw Puzzle Nationals — America’s first-ever major competitive puzzling tournament.
This weekend, Feucht returns to try to reclaim her championship title at the 2026 edition of the Nationals. Hosted by the USA Jigsaw Puzzle Association, the three-day event, taking place in Atlanta from March 27 to 29, will welcome hundreds of puzzlers from around the world and just as many zealous spectators. Consisting of three events: individuals, pairs and teams of four, the competition sees contestants race to complete unreleased 500-piece and 1,000-piece puzzles.
Jigsaw puzzles have been around for centuries, believed to have been invented in 1770 by British cartographer John Spilsbury as an educational tool to teach geography to children. During the Great Depression of the 1930s, they saw a massive surge in popularity as an affordable escape thanks to the introduction of cheaper, die-cut cardboard puzzles. Since the new millennium, their popularity dipped slightly with the rise of television and video games.
However, the once-solitary pastime is now undergoing a quiet but transformative reimagining — as a highly competitive sport, with national and global competitions and a rapidly expanding fan base.
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Yvonne Feucht became the inaugural USA Jigsaw Nationals champion in 2022 (Courtesy of Yvonne Feucht)
I first discovered speed puzzling on Instagram — time-lapse videos of people assembling puzzles at lightning speed, pure kryptonite for my ADHD. The biggest star on the platform is Karen Puzzles, a 35-year-old from New Jersey with more than 550,000 followers across YouTube and Instagram.
“I think a lot of people never considered [speed puzzling] as an option,” Karen Kavett, the creator behind Karen Puzzles, tells me over Zoom. “Even if they enjoy puzzling, they didn’t know events like this existed.”
Kavett began posting puzzle content in 2018, when speed puzzling and puzzling in general had little online presence. However, fueled by the 2020 pandemic — and thanks in part to Kavett’s videos — interest in the hobby-turned-sport has grown exponentially.
Karen Kavett, 35, is one of the sport’s most well-known figures (Courtesy of Karen Kavett)
“I found out about speed puzzling because of Karen Puzzles,” says Jen Ferris, a third-grade teacher in South Florida. Ferris, 36, had always loved jigsaw puzzles as a child, but drifted away from the hobby in adulthood — particularly during a difficult and unhealthy marriage. She eventually stumbled across a TikTok of Kavett’s appearance at the 2024 World Jigsaw Puzzle Championship.
Ferris remembers thinking, “What is this? This is speed puzzling? This is a thing?” It wasn’t until she finally left her marriage that she picked up some jigsaws and tried her hand at speed puzzling. “I do feel like I was able to lean on this hobby and go back to [something] I used to love. That, honestly, I forgot that I loved,” she reflects. “It was kind of like finding myself [and] learning to love myself again. It helped me heal, but it also helped me find my purpose again in life and find my people.”
Jen Ferris will compete in her first USA Jigsaw Nationals this weekend (Courtesy of Jen Ferris)
Speed puzzling has only recently been recognized as a sport. The World Jigsaw Puzzle Federation was founded in 2019 and hosted the world’s first jigsaw puzzle championship later that year in Valladolid, Spain. The following year, the USAJPA was created and held the country’s first premier national championship in San Diego.
Feucht and Kavett have competed in both competitions several times, with Kavett coming in second just behind Feucht at the 2022 Nationals. Looking back on her victory four years later, Feucht remains just as stunned as she was at the time. “I couldn’t believe it,” she recounts. “I had to double-check that I’d actually won.”
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Nationals is a high-energy, knockout-style event, where individuals, pairs, and teams are steadily whittled down through multiple elimination rounds before a final showdown crowns the fastest puzzlers. At the starting signal, competitors rip open their bags and frantically flip pieces face-up, scanning for patterns amid the chaos. Some stick to the classic method — building the border first, then working inward — while others plunge straight into assembling whatever fragments they can find.
Strategy, however, only goes so far. As Feucht puts it, the real advantage lies in memory and an instinctive feel for color — skills that allow the best competitors to recognize, sort, and place pieces at remarkable speed.
It’s no fortune, but first-place winners receive a cash prize of $1,500 in the individual division, $1,000 each for pairs, and $750 each for teams, for a total of $6,500 in cash prizes. The winnings are intended to help fund participants’ travel to other speed-puzzling events in the U.S. and abroad.
As a result of her standout performance at Nationals, Feucht became a notable figure in the puzzling community. Like many, she has fond memories of completing puzzles with her mother as a child. She later returned to the activity as an adult after coming across the popular speed-puzzling website speedpuzzling.com.
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Kavett has posted puzzling content online since 2018 (George Feucht)
For Feucht, speed puzzling has opened the door to new friendships. More broadly, the practice has helped ease her social anxiety and deepen her connections with family. “I like to dump out a puzzle during holidays, and I feel like a lot of people come and join me,” she says. “It’s lovely, because normally people don’t sit down and talk for that long — but when there’s a puzzle and a shared goal, people come, they sit, and they talk.”
Compared to the first Nationals, which featured 33 teams of four, 93 pairs, and 99 individual puzzlers, this year’s competition saw registration skyrocket, more than quadrupling to 200 teams of four, 400 pairs, and 800 individuals.
“It’s very exciting to see speed puzzling grow so that more people can discover it,” USAJPA founding member Valerie Coit tells me in an email. “We’ve heard many stories from USAJPA members that they’ve ‘found their people’ and that getting involved in the community has changed their lives for the better.”
That was certainly the case for 36-year-old Emma Landgraf, who discovered puzzling just over a year ago during a period of intense stress from a demanding job. “I was so stressed and burned out that I needed something to grab on to that was joyful,” the Chicago-based data strategist said.
Landgraf put herself to the test last April, competing in her first Nationals in Washington, D.C. This year, she’s eager not only to compete but also to volunteer.
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Emma Landgraf (left) returns this weekend for her second USA Jigsaw Nationals (Courtesy of Emma Landgraf)
“This is a very passionate group that wants to make sure they take part in making it happen,” she says. “And you really want to be a part of that.”
Landgraf recalls the overwhelming passion on display at last year’s Nationals, where nearly every team arrived in matching team shirts, head-to-toe puzzle ensembles, and even handmade crochet puzzle tops — a true celebration of the community’s creativity. “There’s just a lot of excitement over something that, in theory, is kind of silly and niche and boring,” she says. “It’s puzzles, it is what it is, but it’s a really warm, loving group of people.”
What was once a solitary pastime has quietly transformed into a global phenomenon. Yet despite its surging popularity, puzzling remains rooted in something more enduring: a shared challenge, a source of joy, and a growing community coming together, one piece at a time.
Beyond Paradise star Kris Marshall has opened up about his family life as the BBC drama returns for series 4.
08:48, 30 Mar 2026Updated 08:49, 30 Mar 2026
Beyond Paradise star Kris Marshall has shared his family’s response to the BBC show, which is returning for its fourth series, revealing his son’s “heartbreaking” viewing habit.
As they adjust to married life, the new series presents Humphrey with an “impossible decision” and a fresh set of cases to solve.
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Ahead of the new series, Kris, who shares two children, Thomas and Elsie, with his wife Hannah Dodkin, confessed that he’s “losing” his son’s interest in the BBC crime drama.
Speaking to Hello! Magazine, he disclosed: “My son, who is the eldest, is now a teenager, and he’s starting to drift away, towards things like Stranger Things,” reports the Express.
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“I’m sort of losing him to the darker side of things, but he watches [Beyond Paradise] a lot when I’m away, which is kind of heartbreaking, but also I love it.”
Kris has previously discussed juggling his demanding filming schedule with family life, after relocating from Guadeloupe in the Caribbean, where Death in Paradise was shot, to Bath in 2017, so his children could attend school in the UK.
The family initially made Bath, Somerset, their home before relocating to the New Forest. Kris later explained: “My wife and I moved back to Bath when we had kids, but we relocated to the New Forest last year, basically as a lifestyle choice.
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“When I’m not working, I’m all about just enjoying myself as much as possible – I’m big into sailing, surfing and skiing… oh, and Scrabble! All the S-words, really. As much as I love Bath, there’s not much in the way of coast there! So now we’re a 10-minute drive from the beach and a five-minute drive from the forest, and I love it.”
His work now requires him to spend considerable periods away from his family while filming in Devon and Cornwall. Speaking recently to The Daily Mail, he revealed that following 14-hour days across five days weekly, he doesn’t return home every weekend – a four-hour journey.
Kris reflected: “My kids are growing up. They’ve got their own lives.”
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He continued by saying he “loves” the arrangement, appreciating the “beauty” of reuniting with his family fortnightly while also valuing the “solitude” of personal time following demanding filming schedules.
Discussing the challenge of readjusting to domestic life, he noted: “You have to relearn each other’s ways. It’s difficult. Let’s not beat around the bush. It’s an extremely blessed job when you’ve got your own show, you’re looked after and solitude is something you turn to.
“Time on your own, not having to do school drop-offs and all the things that come with family life. But you always have to remember how to be a parent when you come back, which is difficult because to me it is all about a light touch on the tiller.”
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The synopsis for the new series of Beyond Paradise teases: “Fact and folklore blur as they investigate the death of a novelist who predicted their demise, a magical night of Dark Morris that soon turns sour, a stolen treasure map that suddenly reappears, and the alleged sighting of a vengeful mermaid lurking out at sea.
“Humphrey (Kris Marshall) and Martha (Sally Bretton) launch into married life as they search for a new home, whilst Humphrey wrestles with an impossible decision that may change the lives of everyone at the station forever.”
Beyond Paradise continues on Friday at 8pm on BBC One and iPlayer.
The Yorkshire Craft Festival, organised by Made in Yorkshire, will take place on Parliament Street in York from April 7 to 12.
The six-day event will feature a large marquee filled with handmade goods from makers across the region, including art, homeware, gifts and traditional crafts, alongside live demonstrations and interactive workshops.
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Tracie Jarvis-Post of Made in Yorkshire said: “Yorkshire has an incredible community of skilled makers, artists and craftspeople.
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“The Yorkshire Craft Festival is all about bringing those makers together in one place, giving visitors the chance to discover locally made products, learn new skills and enjoy a creative day out in the heart of York.”
The tent at previous festivals (Image: Provided)
The workshops throughout the week will let visitors try their hand at stained glass making, blacksmithing, felt making, willow weaving and paper craft.
Families can enjoy dedicated children’s activities such as pot painting and paper crafts, while adults can participate in pot throwing and other hands-on sessions led by experienced artisans.
Artists at a previous event (Image: Provided)
The event aims to highlight the skill and creativity of Yorkshire’s independent craft community.
MELBOURNE, Australia. (AP) — Australian police said they believe they shot dead a suspect Monday accused of killing two police officers and seriously wounding a third in a remote forest region seven months ago.
There had been no confirmed sightings of Dezi Freeman, 56, since he allegedly opened fire on police officers who came to serve a warrant at his home near Porepunkah in Victoria state northeast of Melbourne on Aug. 26 last year, Victoria’s Chief Commissioner of Police Mike Bush said on Monday.
A man believed to be Freeman was fatally shot by police on Monday at a remote location near Thologolong, around two hours’ drive north of Porepunkah, a police statement said.
“We believe it is Freeman, but we have to go through a formal identification process,” Bush told reporters in Melbourne. Identification could take up to 48 hours through processes including fingerprinting.
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Heavily armed Special Operations Group tactical police were involved in a standoff for three hours before the suspect was shot. He had been inside a shelter like a shipping container and did take up a police offer to surrender, Bush said.
“This was all about bringing this to a conclusion as safely as possible. Our ultimate goal was to arrest the person there … as peacefully as possible,” Bush said.
Bush said he “strongly believed” the suspect was armed. Bush could not say whether the suspect fired at police.
Australian news outlets widely reported that Freeman espoused co-called sovereign citizen beliefs and had grievances with police. He had wilderness survival skills that police feared could sustain him living in the open indefinitely.
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The shooting of three police officers led to a massive search across Victoria’s heavily forested alpine region. In recent months, police said they suspected Freedman had killed himself.
“We have to follow every avenue of inquiry and there was a lot to suggest that Freedman had taken his own life,” Bush said.
Bush would not say whether a tipoff led police to the suspect on Monday. Police had offered a 1 million Australian dollar ($678,000) reward for information.
Police said they continue to investigate whether others had helped the suspect avoid arrest.
The Making Every Moment Count Campaign managed to raise over £214,000 to help the hospice run its vital services, more than double the £100,000 goal.
The campaign was ‘match funded’, meaning that for every £1 raised, a local business or organisation would donate another £1, effectively doubling the total raised.
Kathryn Willet offering thanks to backers and champions (Image: Dan Dougherty)
This was something the hospice had never tried before, and the success took them by surprise.
Kathryn Willett is the relations manager for the hospice.
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“What you have all achieved is amazing,” she said, in a speech at the event.
“I couldn’t wish for better supporters – from the bottom of my heart, I can’t thank you enough.
“I still can’t get over it!”
The celebration event brought together donors and matchers for the first time, giving them the chance to meet the generous people who helped double their generous donations.
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Hospice exec Leigh Vallance giving a speech thanking everyone for their generosity (Image: Dan Dougherty)
The donations were made over a 36-hour period.
They thought they’d be ok with four people on the phones, but this turned out to be an underestimation of local generosity.
“We were on the phones from nine o’clock to four o’clock,” said volunteer Anne Davison, “and we were dumbstruck with how many calls we were getting and how much money people were donating.
“We raised £214,000, and that doesn’t even include Giftaid.”
This is why the hospice is always thankful to the people that help keep them afloat, people like the Cunningham family, who estimate they have raised over £10,000 for the hospice over the years.
The celebration evening took place on March 26 (Image: Dan Dougherty)
The two said: “It’s something we’d done for a long time, but we never expected we’d have to use it.
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“It’s one of those things where you don’t think about it, but when you need it, you can’t live without it.”
It wasn’t until last year that they had to use the service themselves.
The evening’s spread (Image: Dan Dougherty)
“It was grandpa Joe,” Christina said, referring to Joseph Cunningham, her paternal grandfather, and Mark’s dad.
“None of us knew he had cancer at the time, it was all so quick.”
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Joseph – a former member of the Cottontown Chorus – was moved quickly into the hospice.
“At first he was unsure about it, but soon he was moving things around, reorganising things, putting up pictures.”
Muntazir Dipoti, who volunteers for the hospice, trying to raise its profile amongst the Muslim community (Image: Dan Dougherty)
Although suffering from dementia, Joe was still able to remember the words from his old Cottontown Chorus performances after an old choir buddy came to visit.
They played a Youtube video of their MGM Grand performance in Las Vegas.
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Mark said: “His voice wasn’t quite there, but he still had the rhythm of the words.
“Any time his friend made a mistake, Joe would raise his hand telling him ‘stop!’”
The Cunninghams were extremely grateful for how the hospice allowed them all to navigate Joe’s last days.
“We can’t thank the hospice enough – they made all of us feel at home,” said Christina.
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Muntazir Dipoti and hospice relationships manager Kathryn Willett (Image: Dan Dougherty)
“He could see his great-granddaughter playing outside his window in the garden – you wouldn’t really get that in a hospital, where it’s more regimented.
One of the family’s last acts was to visit Joe to let him know that Christina was pregnant, and that he was about to have a great-grandson.
“We went to see him at the weekend,” said Christina, “and on Monday he died.”
Christina’s son’s was named ‘Joseph’ in his great grandfather’s honour, making him Theodore Joseph Cunningham-Jones.
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“The important thing is that it allowed him to die as himself – he didn’t die as sick Joe, he died as Joe Cunningham.”
Two different roads have been closed this morning due to downed trees
Rob Currell Live news reporter
07:18, 30 Mar 2026Updated 07:22, 30 Mar 2026
Fallen trees have caused problems for motorists this morning, (Monday) as two different roads were closed. Drivers are asked to find alternative routes while work to clear debris is underway.
The Ballygowan Road, Saintfield is currently closed due to a fallen tree and damaged NIE cable. Northern Ireland Electricity have been informed and according to Traffic Watch NI are due to respond. Road ahead closed and road closed signs are currently in place.
A 50-year-old man has been charged with murder following an incident in Portadown last week.
The charge follows the death of Rolandas Kvederis, aged 49, at a property in Ranfurley Road on Thursday night, March 26.
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Police attended the scene following reports that a man had been injured in an altercation. Mr Kvederis was pronounced dead at the property.
Two men were arrested on suspicion of murder following the incident, and the other has since been released unconditionally.
The charged man is due to appear before Lisburn Magistrates’ Court later this morning, Monday, March 30.Police said that, as is standard procedure, the charge will be reviewed by the Public Prosecution Service.
Alice Solomons of Sharples School is the North West winner of the Inspiring History Teaching Awards.
The head of history has worked as a teacher for 10 years, with all of that time having been spent at Sharples. She became director of history role in her very first year of teaching, and has been there since.
Now, she has been recognised for her work, “raising engagement” in history and transforming its uptake at GCSE level.
Alice Solomons (Image: Alice Solomons)
Speaking to The Bolton News, Ms Solomons said: “It was just a shock, really, and a massive honour to be recognised for all of the work at the department since I started 10 years ago.
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“It is all I’ve ever known, because the head of department left in December and I had started in the September, the job came up in May and I got it.
“The status of history at the school has changed massively, because of the work that has been put in at Key Stage Three – the work that the department as a whole has done, not just me.
“Students really enjoy the subject. A lot of people think history is boring, what’s the relevance. But we have shown why it is relevant and now it is popular at GCSE, it validates your work.”
History department winning an award (Image: Alice Solomons)
She thanked Ann Webster, the former headteacher who “trusted her to do it at such a young age”, current headteacher Caroline Molyneux, her family, in particular her mum, for being the “reason she is so enthusiastic about history” and her own history teacher, Rebecca Grantham, at Rivington and Blackrod High School.
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She was nominated for the award by history teacher Hollie Elias, with Ms Solomons adding: “She said she’d nominated me because of how much support I gave her as a new employee and the department as a whole, even though I wasn’t working at the time.”
She will also be attending a swanky ceremony at the Tower of London in June for the awards, saying to be recognised at a place which features in so many of her lessons is “surreal”.
Alice at the colosseum (Image: Alice Solomons)
Award organisers said in a statement: “Through her dedication to storytelling, debate and immersive activities – such as virtual reality experiences of First World War trenches – the judges praised Alice’s approach which has raised the engagement of history within Sharples School.
“Under her leadership, the subject has become one of the school’s most popular GCSE subjects with uptake rising 622 per cent since 2019.
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“Alongside her commitment to lesser-known, diverse histories, Alice has also received glowing feedback from trainees, saying they ‘could not have asked for a better teacher to learn from’.”
Watch: Zelensky visits Jordan as Kyiv looks to shore up Middle east defence ties
Zelensky visits Jordan as Kyiv looks to shore up Middle east defence ties
James Reynolds30 March 2026 08:00
Israel bolsters artillery stockpiles as Lebanon war widens
Israel’s ministry of defence on Monday said that it had placed a $48 million order for “tens of thousands” of 155mm artillery shells from Israeli defence company Elbit Systems.
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The order was part of a broader ministry strategy to reduce Israel’s reliance on foreign munitions and expand domestic production, the ministry said in a statement.
It did not say when the munitions would be delivered.
An Israeli artillery unit fires towards Lebanon, amid escalating hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah (Reuters)
James Reynolds30 March 2026 07:45
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Recap: Trump says talks progressing as Israel widens invasion of Lebanon
Over the weekend, Donald Trump said that the US and Iran have been meeting directly and indirectly, appraising the new leaders of the country as being “very reasonable”.
In an apparent climbdown from criticism over the leadership of Iran, Trump said on Sunday he thought the US had already accomplished regime change in the country.
Pakistan, acting as an intermediary between the US and Iran, said it was preparing to host “meaningful talks” in the coming days aimed at ending the war.
US eyes possible Kharg invasion
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Trump’s comments came even as more US troops arrived in the region, giving Trump the option of launching a ground offensive.
In an interview with Financial Times published on Sunday, Trump said he wanted to “take the oil in Iran” and could seize the export hub of Kharg Island. Taking control of Kharg would require ground troops.
Iran’s parliament speaker accused the US of trying to negotiate while also planning an invasion, and said Iran was ready to respond if needed.
Netanyahu greenlights wider invasion in Lebanon
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Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said meanwhile on Sunday that he had ordered the military to expand its operations in southern Lebanon, blaming Hezbollah rocket fire.
Israel said last week it was enlarging a ‘buffer zone’ up to the Litani River.
Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis joined the conflict on Saturday, launching their first attacks on Israel and raising the prospect they could target and thus block a second key shipping route, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
Israeli authorities said on Sunday that they had intercepted two drones launched from Yemen.
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Supreme leader still out of frame
Iran’s new supreme leader thanked the Iraqi people and religious leadership for their support of Iran, according to Iran’s state media. But it was unclear how the message was conveyed.
Mojtaba Khamenei still has not been seen since his appointment as the third supreme leader of Iran in early March.
James Reynolds30 March 2026 07:30
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Australia PM calls for clarity from Trump on objectives of Iran war
Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese has said he wanted more certainty from US president Donald Trump on the objectives of the ongoing war in Iran.
“I want to see more certainty in what the objectives of the war are and I want to see a de-escalation,” Albanese said, responding to a question about his view on how Trump was prosecuting the war.
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar30 March 2026 07:20
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Watch: Trump ducks question about Iran invasion
Trump ducks question about Iran invasion
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar30 March 2026 07:04
Trump considering military action to seize Iran’s uranium – report
US president Donald Trump is reportedly considering a military operation to remove nearly 1,000 pounds of uranium from Iran.
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President Trump is still weighing the risk of the operation and has yet to pass the order, US officials familiar with the matter told the Wall Street Journal.
Trump and key allies have privately agreed a targeted operation could seize the uranium without significantly prolonging the war, the report said.
However, former US military officers and experts warned any attempt to extract the uranium would be highly complex and carry significant risks.
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar30 March 2026 07:00
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Iran dismisses Pakistan talks
Iran’s parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, dismissed the talks in Pakistan as a cover after some 2,500 US Marines trained in amphibious landings arrived in the Middle East.
He said Iranian forces were “waiting for the arrival of American troops on the ground to set them on fire and punish their regional partners forever,” according to state media.
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar30 March 2026 06:42
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Protest in Washington DC in support of Iranians’ ‘fight for freedom’
A woman holds up a sign featuring an image of Reza Pahlavi, son of the last shah of Iran, and US President Donald Trump as demonstrators march toward the White House during a rally in support of Iranians’ fight for freedom, in Washington, DC, on March 29, 2026. The event, organized by DCProtests4Iran, brought together members of the Iranian diaspora from the Washington, DC metropolitan area and surrounding states. (Photo by Amid FARAHI / AFP via Getty Images) (AFP via Getty Images)
A woman holds up a sign featuring an image of Reza Pahlavi, son of the last shah of Iran, and US President Donald Trump as demonstrators march toward the White House during a rally in support of Iranians’ fight for freedom, in Washington, DC, on March 29, 2026. The event, organized by DCProtests4Iran, brought together members of the Iranian diaspora from the Washington, DC metropolitan area and surrounding states. (Photo by Amid FARAHI / AFP via Getty Images) (AFP via Getty Images)
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar30 March 2026 06:40
Trump calls Iran’s current leaders ‘very reasonable’
President Donald Trump said the US and Iran have been meeting “directly and indirectly” and that Iran’s new leaders have been “very reasonable”, as more US troops arrived in the region and Tehran warned it will not accept humiliation.
Mr Trump’s remarks came after Pakistan, which is acting as an intermediary between Tehran and Washington, said it was preparing to host “meaningful talks” in the coming days aimed at ending the month-long Iran war.
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“I think we’ll make a deal with them, I’m pretty sure, but it’s possible we won’t,” Mr Trump told reporters last evening as he traveled aboard Air Force One to Washington.
Mr Trump said he thought the US had already accomplished regime change in Tehran after strikes killed the country’s supreme leader and other top officials, but said twice that their replacements seemed “reasonable”.
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar30 March 2026 06:20
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New Zealand warns inflation will go ‘much higher’ if Iran war drags on
New Zealand’s finance minister said this morning that inflation was likely to rise “much higher” this year and stay outside the central bank’s target range if the conflict in the Middle East drags on.
Finance minister Nicola Willis said the latest treasury department modelling had inflation peaking higher than previously expected based on a scenario with “a longer conflict with deeper disruption to supply chains”.
“They think inflation will go much higher this year, and it will stay out of our target band,” Ms Willis told reporters.
Data released in January showed fourth-quarter inflation of 3.1 per cent breached the central bank’s target band of 1 per cent to 3 per cent. With energy prices rising, markets are increasingly pricing in a near-term policy tightening.
About 2,000 residents are currently on Darlington Borough Council’s waiting list for a home despite a shortage of available properties.
But rival Conservative councillors fear the area’s value green spaces could soon be lost and be chosen by developers for new housing schemes.
At last Thursday’s council meeting, councillors were asked to back plans to formally designate Bellburn Field, a triangle of land off Sparrow Hall Drive in Whinfield ward, and Tommy Crooks Park as protected community green spaces.
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With more than 1,000 families on the waiting list naming the Whinfield area of the borough as their preferred option for a new home, opposition members fear sites like Sparrowhall Drive could be chosen for development.
Jonathan Dulston, leader of the Conservatives, said: “We understand the need to build affordable and quality housing across the borough. It has to be sensible but there are areas where the impact on the community has to be a priority, not making a profit for the council.”
The motion, backed by Conservative colleague Cllr Scott Durham, urged the council to “give a clear and binding commitment that Darlington Borough Council will not sell, lease, or otherwise dispose of these pieces of land for development or private ownership.”
Although it was not supported by cross-party councillors, leaders agreed in principle to protect Tommy Crooks Park and the Bellburn Field.
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But for Sparrow Hall Drive, Darlington Borough Council confirmed that, in February 2022, the land was included as part of the council’s housing allocation, meaning it is available for development.
The then Conservative-led administration removed Springfield Park, also in the Whinfield ward, from the allocation but did not remove Sparrow Hall Drive.
Chris McEwan, Labour deputy leader, said: “Cllrs Dulston and Durham are more interested in playing political games than improving residents’ lives. More focused on Facebook than facts.
“Now, they are calling on Tommy Crooks Park, Bellburn Field, and land at Sparrow Hall Drive to be protected. But if that is their priority, then why didn’t they protect them in the Local Plan that they published and voted for?”
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And highlighting the council’s ongoing housing issues, Cllr McEwan said the local authority needs to balance protecting valued green spaces with the need for new homes that residents “desperately need”.
He added: “We have nearly 2,000 people on our housing waiting list. We have over a thousand families naming Whinfield as one of their preferences.
“We need more council housing and I will work to deliver on that – and that’s why we are exploring this site.”
Their victim was left with ‘devastating injuries’, including a slash from his forehead to his lip
07:50, 30 Mar 2026Updated 07:51, 30 Mar 2026
A man was stabbed 17 times by three thugs wielding zombie knives in a daylight attack on a Cambridge home. Nathan Brown-Bonnett, Joel Farrow-Brown and Liam Cafferkey attacked their victim at this home in Drayton Road, Cambridge, just after 3pm on July 24, 2025.
The 45-year-old victim was stabbed 17 times, and a slash to his face from his forehead to lip. He also suffered a degloving wound to his right shoulder. The man had to undergo multiple blood transfusions and plastic surgery. A 41-year-old woman in the property also received a minor cut to her stomach.
CCTV from nearby properties captured the three suspects running from the scene. Cambridgeshire Police used this to identify the men. Appearing at Peterborough Crown Court on March 25, the trio, of no fixed addresses, were sentenced after previously pleading guilty to grievous bodily harm with intent. Farrow-Brown also pleaded guilty to eight counts of beating an emergency worker.
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Brown-Bonnett, 46, was sentenced to eight years and one month in prison, Farrow-Brown, 27, to nine years and Cafferkey, 25, to seven years and two months.
Detective Constable Edward Mcauley, who investigated, said: “This was a shocking and completely unprovoked attack that left a man with devastating injuries. The level of violence used was extreme and there is absolutely no place for this kind of behaviour in our communities.
“Thanks to diligent investigative work, these three men have been brought to justice and will now spend a significant time behind bars. We hope this sentence provides reassurance to the public that we will relentlessly pursue those who carry knives and commit violent offences.”
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