Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth faces a second day of grilling from Democrats on Capitol Hill, with senators getting their first opportunity Thursday to confront or praise the Pentagon chief over his handling of the Iran war.

Hegseth battled with Democrats — and some Republicans — a day earlier during a nearly six-hour House Armed Services Committee hearing, where he faced sharp questioning over the war’s costs in dollars, lives and the diminishing stockpiles of critical weapons.

The Senate Armed Services Committee will hear a similar presentation on the Trump administration’s 2027 military budget proposal, which would boost defense spending to a historic $1.5 trillion. Hegseth and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Dan Caine, will again stress the need for more drones, missile defense systems and warships.

Here’s the latest:

Defense secretary claims that 60-day legal limit for war is on pause during ceasefire

The Trump administration is running up against a 60-day limit for the Iran war that is instituted by the War Powers Act of 1973. The law requires that Congress must declare war or authorize the use of force, although it does provide for presidents to have a 30-day extension to draw down hostilities if it notifies Congress.

The 60-day limit for the Iran war will be reached Friday. However, Hegseth told senators, “We are in a cease fire right now, which our understanding means the 60-day clock pauses or stops in a ceasefire.”

Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine responded, “I do not believe the statute would support that,” and added that he had “serious constitutional concerns.”

Sen. Ernst lists accomplishments of ousted top Army uniformed officer

Saying she was “disappointed” to see Gen. Randy George’s retirement “hastened,” Republican Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa noted that the officer “pulled the Army out of its worst recruiting crisis since the Vietnam era” and trimmed “nonessential” Army positions.

George is one of several top military officers to be dismissed since Trump returned to office. In early April, the Pentagon said George would be “retiring from his position as the 41st Chief of Staff of the Army effective immediately.”

George had held the post of Army chief of staff, which typically runs for four years, since August 2023.

“He had 38 years of honorable service. He achieved the greatest Army recruitment and modernization effort in a generation,” Ernst said. “So I want to thank him for his service.”

Senators question whether the Pentagon has resources to prevent civilian casualties

Senators wanted to know what the Defense Department is doing to prevent deaths of civilians, especially after outdated intelligence contributed to the U.S. striking an elementary school in Iran and killing over 165 people.

Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand asked Hegseth, “What is your response to targeting that has resulted in the destruction of schools, hospitals, civilian places? Why did you cut by 90% the division that’s supposed to help you not target civilians?”

Hegseth responded that the Pentagon has an “ironclad commitment” to do more than other countries to prevent civilian deaths.

Still, Sen. Mike Rounds, a South Dakota Republican, continued Gillibrand’s line of questioning. He asked Hegseth whether the Pentagon still has the resources necessary to protect civilians.

Hegseth said it has “every resource necessary” and that humans are kept in the loop when AI is involved in military decisions.

Democratic senator grills defense officials on release of Ukraine funding

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, a New Hampshire Democrat, pushed Hegseth and other defense officials for details on how the Pentagon plans to use $400 million that Congress has allotted for Ukraine.

Hegseth told lawmakers a day earlier that the funding had been released. His actions came after Sen. Mitch McConnell, the former Senate Republican leader, penned an op-ed slamming the delay in releasing the funds.

But Shaheen pointed out that the Pentagon has not given Congress details on how it plans to spend the money. Hegseth told her that it would also be used as part of a program to sell military equipment first to NATO allies.

Shaheen shot back that it “was not the intent of Congress in providing that $400 million.”

The Defense Department’s current budget request includes no funding for Ukraine.

Top defense official confirms Russian involvement in Iran war

The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Dan Caine, told senators Russian President Vladimir Putin has aided Iran’s war effort.

He declined to go into details, citing the public nature of the hearing, but said, ”There’s definitely some action there.”

The chair of the committee, Republican Sen. Roger Wicker, agreed, saying “there’s no question that Vladimir Putin’s Russia is taking serious action to undermine our efforts for success in Iran.”

Hegseth again has harsh words for critics

“As I said yesterday, and I’ll say it again today, the biggest adversary we face at this point are the reckless naysayers and defeatist words of congressional Democrats and some Republicans,” Hegseth said in his opening statement to the Senate panel.

Defending Trump’s budget request, Hegseth said the president “inherited a defense industrial base that had been hollowed out by years of America last policies, resulting in a diminished capacity to project strength.”

Similar to his Wednesday remarks to a House committee, Gen. Dan Caine said it was his duty as Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman “to ensure our civilian leadership has a comprehensive range of military options and the associated risks required to make the nation’s hardest and most complex decisions.”

Man accused of trying to kill Trump at correspondents’ gala agrees to remain jailed for now

Cole Thomas Allen did not enter a plea during his brief appearance Thursday before U.S. Magistrate Moxila Upadhyaya.

Prosecutors allege Allen planned his attack for weeks and tracked Trump’s movements online before he ran through a magnetometer at the Washington Hilton on Saturday night while holding a long gun and disrupted one of the highest-profile annual events in the nation’s capital.

Allen was injured during the attack but wasn’t shot. A Secret Service officer was shot but was wearing a bullet-resistant vest and survived, officials say. Prosecutors have said they believe Allen fired his shotgun at least once and that a Secret Service agent fired five shots. They have not publicly confirmed that it was Allen’s bullet that struck the agent’s vest.

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Chinese foreign minister speaks with Rubio ahead of Trump’s planned China trip

Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi on Thursday spoke with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and called leader-level diplomacy the “guiding star” of the China-U.S. relations, the Chinese foreign ministry said.

The call came just about two weeks before President Trump plans to travel to China for the first time since 2017 and hold talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

Wang credited the “strategic leadership” by Xi and Trump for the overall stability in China-U.S. relations and said both sides should cherish it and well prepare for “high-level interactions.”

Wang urged the U.S. side to make the “right choice” over the Taiwan issue, which he said is the most risky in China-U.S. relations. Beijing considers the self-governed island part of Chinese territory and vows to seize it by force if necessary, while Washington opposes use of force in the Taiwan Strait.

Anti-war protester disrupts Hegseth hearing

A protester in a pink shirt disrupted Hegseth’s opening statement before the Senate Armed Services Committee.

The man stood, unfurled a hand-written sign and yelled, “Pete Hegseth, you’re a war criminal.”

Within seconds, he was removed by Capitol Police officers. Several other people dressed in similar pink shirts have also left the hearing room.

The committee chair, Republican Sen. Roger Wicker, continued the hearing by saying he respected First Amendment rights to free speech, but that anyone who disrupts the hearing would be removed.

Top Democrat on military panel gives sweeping critique of Hegseth’s leadership

Sen. Jack Reed, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, did not hold back in his opening statement directed toward Hegseth.

From the war with Iran to Hegseth’s efforts to remake military culture, Reed dressed down the defense secretary’s actions and warned they could do long-term harm.

Reed argued that the war with Iran has left the U.S. in a worse strategic position than when it was started because the Strait of Hormuz is closed and 13 U.S. military members have been killed. Many others have been injured, and equipment has been destroyed.

“The American people’s trust in our military took 250 years to build. You are dismantling it in a fraction of that time,” Reed concluded.

Panel chairman decries ‘axis of aggressors’ in Hegseth Senate hearing

In opening remarks, GOP Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi outlined threats to the United States he said were a “growing alliance” of China, Russia, Iran and North Korea, saying the current moment represents “the most dangerous security environment since World War II.”

Saying Chinese President Xi Jinping led a “growing alliance” among the countries, Wicker said they shared a goal ”to oppose America’s interests and the interests of other like minded, democratic countries across the globe.”

“Ties have never been closer among these four dictators,” Wicker said. “Among these four dictatorships, they support each other’s aggressive endeavors.”

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis says he’ll sign redistricting bill when he gets it

The Republican Florida governor told reporters Thursday he would not delay signing the new congressional map the GOP-dominated Legislature passed Wednesday at his and President Trump’s urging.

There had been some speculation that DeSantis could hold the bill for as long as possible — as much as two weeks or so depending on when the Legislature adjourns — to delay when the bill’s critics can file lawsuits challenging the measure.

The new map is intended to help Republicans gain as many as four more U.S. House seats in November, making the GOP advantage in Florida up to 24-4.

DeSantis said Wednesday’s U.S. Supreme Court decision curtailing the strength of nonwhite voters in redistricting vindicated his decision to call a special session for what he insists is a “race neutral” map.

Hegseth’s Senate hearing is starting

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is sitting before senators in what’s expected to be another fiery hearing on the Hill.

The defense secretary’s hearing is ostensibly to discuss the Pentagon’s $1.5 trillion budget request to Congress, but it’s the first time that senators will get to publicly question him since the Iran War began nearly two months ago. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Dan Caine, is also seated beside Hegseth.

The defense secretary also appeared for a House hearing Wednesday and he drew a large crowd of anti-war protesters to the hallways of the House office building where the hearing was held.

On Thursday, things feel a bit more low-key in the Senate, although there are a handful of people in the hearing room wearing pink shirts that state “Peace with Iran.”

Top Chinese and US trade officials speak ahead of planned state visit

Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng on Thursday spoke by video with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, China’s state media reported, ahead of a planned state visit by President Trump to Beijing in mid-May.

The two sides had a “candid, in-depth and constructive” exchange, the state broadcaster China Central Television said. The Chinese side lodged “solemn concerns” over recent restrictive trade measures imposed by the U.S. on China, but the statement didn’t specify the measures.

Last week, the U.S. Treasury sanctioned a China-based oil refinery and 40 shippers involved in transporting Iranian oil. The U.S. Trade Representative Office this week held a hearing on the use of forced labor in foreign goods.

Trump takes another dig at German leader

The president is continuing to pillory German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who’s been increasingly critical of the U.S.-Israel war against Iran.

Trump in a social media post said Merz “should spend more time on ending the war with Russia/Ukraine” and “fixing his broken Country, especially Immigration and Energy” and less time concerning himself with the Iran war.

The latest criticism by Trump of Merz came the day after the U.S. president announced he was reviewing the U.S. military presence in Germany, a NATO ally that hosts several American military installations.

Trump administration appeals order blocking government from cutting vaccine recommendations

U.S. officials are appealing a judge’s order that blocks the government from cutting the number of vaccines recommended for every U.S. child.

Government lawyers on Wednesday filed the one-sentence appeal.

It was a delayed response to a March 16 order by U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy, who blocked an order by U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. — announced in January — to end broad recommendations for all children to be vaccinated against flu, rotavirus, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, some forms of meningitis and RSV.

Murphy’s order also stopped a meeting of a Kennedy-appointed vaccine advisory committee. The stay continues while the appeal is considered.

White House is facing a War Powers Resolution deadline

The Trump administration is constrained by the 1973 law, which requires several notification and approval steps meant to keep a commander-in-chief’s military powers in check.

One of its provisions is that military action authorized by the president must end after 60 days unless Congress has explicitly approved it, or has declared war. That 60-day clock runs out Friday.

One White House official said the administration is in “active conversations” with lawmakers on addressing the deadline, but did not elaborate. The official was granted anonymity to discuss private deliberations. The administration can request a 30-day extension by telling Congress in writing that there’s a continued need for military action. The White House, which has long stressed that the president is working toward a diplomatic option in Iran, hasn’t indicated publicly whether Trump will seek that extension.

— Seung Min Kim

Trump floats a new plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz

Under the plan, the United States would continue its blockade on Iranian ports, while coordinating with allies to impose higher costs on Iran’s attempts to subvert the free flow of energy, according to a senior administration official.

Trump is weighing multiple diplomatic and policy options to push Iran to end its chokehold on the waterway, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly.

— Aamer Madhani

US jobless aid filings fall to 189,000 last week despite multiple economic headwinds and Iran war

U.S. jobless aid applications for the week ending April 25 fell by 26,000 by to 189,000, down from the previous week’s 215,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That’s well below the 214,000 new applications analysts surveyed by the data firm FactSet were expecting.

Filings for unemployment benefits are considered a proxy for U.S. layoffs and are close to a real-time indicator of the health of the job market.

The four-week moving average of jobless claims, which evens out some of the weekly volatility, came in at 207,500, about 3,500 lower than the previous week.

The total number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits for the previous week ending April 18 fell to 1.79 million, a decrease of 23,000.

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US economy grew 2% from January-March, recovering from last fall’s federal shutdown

But the outlook is clouded by the Iran war.

The Commerce Department reported Thursday that gross domestic product — the nation’s output of goods and services — rebounded from a lackluster 0.5% expansion the last three months of 2025. The federal government’s spending and investment grew at a 9.3% annual rate in the first quarter, adding more than half a percentage point to growth after lopping off 1.16 percentage points in fourth-quarter 2025.

Growth in consumer spending, which accounts for 70% of U.S. economic activity, slowed to 1.6% in the first quarter from 1.9% at the end of 2025. But business investment, likely driven by investments in artificial intelligence, rose at an 8.7% pace.

Iran has blocked the Strait of Hormuz through which a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas passes. That has driven energy prices higher, fueling inflation and hurting consumers.

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A key inflation gauge jumps in March as Iran war-driven gas prices squeeze budgets

It’s the latest sign that the Iran war is pushing up the cost of living and delaying any interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.

An inflation gauge monitored by the Fed rose 0.7% in March from February, up slightly from the previous month. Compared with a year ago, prices rose 3.5%, the biggest increase in almost three years.

Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, core inflation rose 0.3% in March from February, and it was 3.2% higher than a year earlier. The annual figure is above February’s reading of 3%.

Rising gas prices have caused inflation to move further away from the Fed’s 2% target, which has caused the central bank to keep its key short-term interest rate unchanged after cutting it three times last year. The Fed typically keeps rates elevated — or even raises them — to combat higher inflation.

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New ‘bluster’ from Trump? Germany faces new threat about reduced US military presence in Europe

President Trump has again threatened that the United States could reduce its military presence in Germany, a key NATO ally and the European Union’s largest economy. Europeans have heard this before.

Trump’s social media post on Wednesday followed comments by Chancellor Friedrich Merz that the U.S. was being “ humiliated ” by Tehran as it slow-walks its diplomacy over the U.S.-Israel war against Iran.

Trump has mused for years about reducing America’s military presence in Germany, and has recently repeatedly railed against NATO for the its refusal to assist the U.S. in its two-month-old war.

U.S. allies at NATO have been waiting for the Trump administration to pull troops out since just after it came to office, warning that Europe would have to look after its own security, and that of Ukraine, in the future.

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Full federal appeals court won’t rehear $83 million defamation verdict against Trump

A divided federal appeals court said Wednesday it won’t grant a rare meeting of its active judges to hear an appeal of an $83 million verdict against President Donald Trump for defaming a magazine advice columnist over an encounter three decades ago.

The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision to reject a so-called “en banc” hearing comes several months after Trump appealed to the Supreme Court another jury’s decision to grant $5 million the writer, E. Jean Carroll, after concluding he had sexually abused her in a department store dressing room in 1996 and later defamed her. The high court hasn’t yet decided whether to hear the case.

Lawyers for Trump did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Carroll’s attorney, Roberta Kaplan, said in a statement that her client was “eager for this case, originally filed in 2019, to be over so that she can finally obtain justice.”

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Environmental Protection Agency boss backs big budget cuts but Congress will get the final say

Senate Democrats accused the Trump administration of abandoning the Environmental Protection Agency’s mission to protect human health and the environment at a congressional hearing Wednesday, slamming agency leadership over a proposal to cut its budget in half.

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin’s appearance before the Senate environment committee was his last of three budget hearings this week where he argued for sharply reduced funding for the agency, which already has seen its staffing reduced to its lowest level in decades under his leadership. During much of the week, the former Republican congressman from New York took an aggressive approach, responding to Democrats in the House and Senate with his own questions and at times accusing them of being unprepared or failing to care about the EPA’s track record.

Zeldin has eliminated major climate change programs, promoted deregulatory efforts he calls the biggest in American history and canceled billions of dollars in Biden-era environmental justice grants to halt what he calls “EPA’s radical diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.”

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Brent crude surges over $120 a barrel on Iran war worries, while world stocks are mixed

The price of Brent crude oil briefly surged past $126 a barrel early Thursday as stalled U.S.-Iran talks raised doubts over the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and a permanent end to the Iran war.

Brent crude to be delivered in June jumped 3.3% to $121.90 after briefly soaring past $126 per barrel. Brent to be delivered in July rose 1.4% to $112.02.

Benchmark U.S. crude climbed 1.3% to $108.28 per barrel.

Before the war began in late February, Brent crude was trading around $70 per barrel.

There’s no clear path to an end to the war. The U.S. has continued its blockade of Iranian ports while the Strait of Hormuz is closed, pushing oil prices higher. Reports Thursday suggesting a possible escalation by Trump doused hopes for a quick end to the conflict.

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Two soldiers “lost control” in the fatal shootings of five people in Belfast almost 54 years ago, a coroner has said.

The British Army soldiers did not use reasonable force in the shooting of a Catholic priest, a father-of-six and three teenagers in two areas of west Belfast on July 9 1972, the coroner ruled.

Mr Justice Scoffield said that Father Noel Fitzpatrick, 42, father-of-six Patrick Butler, 38, and teenagers David McCafferty and Margaret Gargan were unarmed and posed no risk when they were shot.

He said Father Fitzpatrick and Mr Butler were killed by the same bullet as the priest looked left and Mr Butler looked right as they attempted to cross the road from an alleyway.

David McCafferty, 15, was seeking to retrieve the body of the priest when he was shot in the back, the coroner said.

A soldier who fired the shots that killed all three, known only as Soldier A, was less than 100 metres away at Corry’s Timber Yard.

The coroner concluded that the soldier “fired prematurely”, “lost control” and shot without having first made an assessment of the risk, if any, they posed.

He said he was satisfied that no warning was given, and that the three victims were not carrying a weapon.

He said even if the soldier believed he needed to use force to defend himself, the force used was not reasonable.

A soldier known only as Soldier E, who was located at the same woodyard as Soldier A, shot Margaret Gargan, 13, in the head while she stood on a pavement and spoke to friends, the coroner said.

He was unable to conclude whether the other teenager, 16-year-old John Dougal, was armed when he was shot.

He said the teenager was a member of the junior wing of the Provisional IRA but said on balance he concluded he had not progressed into the ranks of the adult IRA. The coroner said even if John had been in possession of a firearm, he was not using it and was likely running away when he was shot in the back.

He said: “With John Dougal shot in the back as he ran from the area and taking into account the requirements of the yellow card, the force used by Soldier A was not reasonable.”

He said that Soldier A, who shot John Dougal, Fr Fitzpatrick, Mr Butler and David McCafferty, and Soldier E, who shot Margaret Gargan, had “overreacted and lost control”.

Mr Justice Scoffield rejected the British Army’s explanation that the soldiers were reacting to a mass “coordinated” attack on Corry’s Timber Yard, where the soldiers were based, and said the brigade radio logs “hugely undermine” that narrative.

He said he also rejected the civilian case that “not one shot had been fired” by civilians before British Army soldiers began firing and said that was “much too simplistic an analysis”.

He said that while soldiers may have been influenced by civilian firing, they were not responding to “a coordinated attack by a mass of gunmen”.

He said the soldiers based in the woodyard had been apprehensive about the breakdown of an IRA ceasefire and had been “expecting an armed attack and were, no doubt, nervous and fearful of such a possibility”.

Families and friends of the five gathered at Belfast Coroner’s Court for the long-awaited findings.

There was applause as they walked together holding a banner which read “time for truth”.

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The group included former Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams, junior minister Aisling Reilly, West Belfast MP Conor Maskey and People Before Profit MLA Gerry Carroll.

The inquest concluded in April 2024, just hours before the former government’s guillotine on conflict-related court cases as part of new legacy laws coming into effect.

It was the last of the coronial investigations into Troubles-related deaths completed before the May 1 deadline of the Legacy Act, which is currently being reviewed under the Labour Government.

It had been a fresh inquest ordered by Northern Ireland’s attorney general in 2014 after an original inquest in 1973 returned an open verdict. Before reading out his findings, which number some 640 pages, Mr Justice Scoffield apologised to the families for the length of the wait, saying he had taken some time to consider matters.

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During a trial in July 2024, he was convicted of rape, two counts of sexual assault, and voyeurism against four women while in January this year, he was found guilty of raping a woman in London in March 2015, and the attempted rape and sexual assault of another woman in Thailand in December 2019. He pleaded guilty to one count of voyeurism.

Lisa Heald, from Radcliffe, went on holiday to Dalyan in Turkey with her family last August, to celebrate her husband, James Heald, turning 50.

A few days into what was supposed to be a week-long relaxing vacation, the family were walking back to where they were staying after enjoying a meal together, when Lisa asked her son, Branigan Smith, to take a photo.

Obliging, the 21-year-old, took the picture and handed his mum the phone back, then she said he collapsed right in front of her, and before she knew it, another English tourist who had seen what had happened, ran over and began CPR, explaining she was a doctor.

Lisa, 46, said: “He’d not been ill. He’d not said he was not feeling too great that night. His behaviour was no different to Branigan at any other point.”

Lisa Heald with her son Branigan Smith (Image: Lisa Heald)

Mum-of-three Lisa said the emergency services were then called and she and her husband had to follow Branigan in the ambulance for a 20-minute journey, which she described as feeling “like a lifetime” to the nearest hospital.

When they arrived, Branigan was being looked after in a cubicle, and she said the language barrier was making things difficult.

But thankfully, a kind waiter who recognised the family from earlier in the holiday had heard about what happened, and came to the hospital to help translate for the family.

Sadly, doctors told her that they tried for 50 minutes to revive Branigan, but their efforts were unsuccessful.

Lisa, who works as a compliance manager, said she remembered “feeling numb” and having to identify her son’s body.

Branigan worked as a travel agent, and Lisa said he had a travel insurance policy that covered his repatriation. His body arrived in the UK on September 3, 2025.

She said the cause of his death is still unknown, and this has made processing his death even more difficult for her family.

Branigan was a keen football fan (Image: Lisa Heald)

Lisa said: “It’s so hard not knowing. Would it have always happened? Would it have happened at home? Was it always going to be that night?

“They’re just things that we, I don’t know if we’ll ever get the answers to.

“And could it happen to somebody else? Could it happen to another?

“Thinking about going on holiday and stuff, you live in fear that something might happen like that again.”

Branigan had two sisters, McKenzie and Daisy Smith, aged 27 and 14, and Lisa says if she did know his cause of death was an illness, this could mean that they could be tested.

She said it was “heartwarming” when customers from the travel agent, whom she had never met, attended his funeral.

Lisa said: “Branigan went to the gym four times a week. He was a healthy young lad.

Branigan Smith with his sisters, McKenzie and Daisy Smith (Image: Lisa Heald)

“He loved football. He was a massive Bolton Wanderers fan, hence why he’s called Branigan because there was a goalkeeper called Keith Branagan.

“He loved travel. That’s why he studied travel and tourism in college.

“He was such a lovable, happy boy. I’ve never known anyone who laughed and was as happy as Branigan was.”

Now Lisa has organised a football match in memory of Branigan, who used to play for Radcliffe Juniors and Westbury when he was young.

It will be held at 7.30pm on Friday, May 22, at Radcliffe FC, Neuven Stadium, Colshaw Close.

The match will see the two teams set against one another and will cost £1 to attend, with all funds going to the British Heart Foundation.

Lisa said she chose the charity because, although there is no official cause of death for Branigan yet, it could have been that he suffered a sudden cardiac death.

She said somebody has donated a trophy in her son’s name, which will now be the Branigan Smith Memorial Cup, and she has been asked to present this on the night.

Emergency services were called to the southbound carriageway close to the Mandale Interchange in Middlesbrough at 2.16pm today (April 30).

AA and Traffic England confirmed there had been a ‘medical incident’ with the North East Ambulance Service (NEAS) saying one person was taken to hospital.

A spokesperson for the NEAS said: “We were called to a road traffic incident in Middlesbrough at 2.16pm on April 30.

“We dispatched a double crewed ambulance and a specialist paramedic. One patient was taken to James Cook Hospital.” 

A spokesperson for AA Traffic Maps added: “Traffic congestion and one lane closed due to medical incident on A19 Southbound at A1130 Acklam Road (Mandale Interchange).”

The lane has since been reopened.

Brian Gately, known to family and friends as Big Bri, died after reports of an altercation with a group of people outside his home on Samphire Street, Port Clarence.

The incident happened at around 9.15pm on November 28, 2022. There were multiple arrests at the time but never any charges until now.

Brian Gately died after a suspected altercation with a group of people outside his home on Samphire Street, Port Clarence. (Image: Cleveland Police)

Cleveland Police confirmed that Ashley Cooper, 29, of Gisburn Road in Billingham and Dean Barnett, 26, of Rowan Tree Gardens in Redcar, have both been charged with manslaughter.

Barnett is due to appear at Teesside Magistrates’ Court on June 8, and Cooper is due to appear at the same court on June 10.

In November 2024, following a renewed appeal for information, Mr Gately’s family spoke of the impact of his death and their continued search for answers.

They said: “There has been no closure for us as a family after losing Big Bri. We are a big family, and we all miss him so much.

“Some of Bri’s grandkids never got to meet their grandad, and without knowing what really happened to him, we cannot explain this to all of the kids and we can’t have any closure.

“Big Bri loved Christmas. It was a big time for him, and everyone went to his on Christmas Day. He loved having everyone together.

“As we head towards Christmas as a family, without Big Bri again, we want to ask anyone who has any information at all to please tell the police.

“Please help our family get the answers we need to try and move forward and get some closure.”

​Scarborough Town Councillors have said they do not want to see ​the Duchess pub at 152 Hovingham Drive, Scarborough, converted into three flats as proposed by RPC Scarborough Ltd.

​The outline proposal for the site, which is near Scarborough Hospital, would include the construction of detached bungalows if it is approved by the planning authority.

​Town councillors said they were opposed to the proposal over a loss of amenity for local residents and proposed setting up an online page to raise awareness of the proposal among the community.

​Cllr Chris Clarke said the company behind the plan had “no track record or experience in the ownership or operation of public houses” and suggested that “the company’s primary focus is not the operation of a public house”.

​Speaking at a meeting of Scarborough Town Council’s community and place committee on Wednesday, April 29, he added: “The proposal does not sufficiently demonstrate any sort of commitment by RPC to the continued operation of the premises as a viable public house, and on this basis, I call for refusal.”

​Cllr David Knowles said: “It’s the only pub on that large housing development and because it’s a big pub, it used to do food.

​“So, I don’t think it’s been given a fair crack at the whip in terms of how it’s been promoted and marketed, and it probably could do better.”

At the meeting, committee members voted against the conversion of the pub, which will be decided by the local planning authority.

​However, in a statement submitted as part of the planning application, the pub’s former licensee gave their support to the conversion as the pub “is not commercially viable, and the local community do not view it as a significant community asset”.

​​The ex-licensee said: “The local community did not support the pub and did not appear to view the public house as a community asset in any significant way, and I have heard no significant negative comments following its closure.

​”They also noted that the pub “barely broke even”.

​​Submitted plans state that the proposed development would retain the existing building’s scale and massing with no increase in building height.

​​“The existing two-storey form is retained; this ensures the development remains compatible with neighbouring residential properties.”

​​The applicant said that the conversion of the pub would have positive impacts, including a reduction in noise associated with pub operations, reduced evening and late-night activity, and added that the building would continue to be occupied and maintained.

​​Submitted plans also state that the proposed bungalow development would be located a “sufficient distance away from the Duchess building and adjacent housing”.

​They add: “The proposed bungalow design is in response to the local context and is designed to reflect the scale, form, heights and layout arrangements of the existing buildings.”

​​North Yorkshire Council has not set a date for deciding on the application which is currently open to representations from members of the public.

John Higgins produced a battling display to fight back from 3-1 down to draw level at 4-4 against Shaun Murphy in the opening session of their World Championship semi-final at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield.

It was far from fluent from the four-time world champion, whose highest break of 50 gave him the eighth frame of the contest.

Indeed, for most of Thursday afternoon he appeared to still be feeling the effects of his late-night quarter-final victory over Neil Robertson, as he failed to make a number of easy pots in an error-strewn showing.

However, not for the first time in the tournament, he exhibited all his resolve and granite matchplay qualities that makes him such a dangerous opponent.

Their best-of-33 encounter resumes on Friday at 10:00 BST, with the remaining last-four match, between China’s Wu Yize and Northern Ireland’s Mark Allen, starting at 19:00 on Thursday.