Politics
Why Does Sunlight Make Me Sneeze? ACHOO Syndrome Explained
I’ve begun to refer to a junction near my home as “sneeze corner”.
While the pavement outside my flat is shady, the path perpendicular to it is almost always sunny – inevitably, passing from one to the other makes my eyes water and my nose twitch. I usually sneeze about three times afterwards.
It turns out I am not alone, and that I likely have a condition with a (surprisingly cute) name: ACHOO syndrome.
What is ACHOO syndrome?
The name, which stands for Autosomal Dominant Compelling Helio-Ophthalmic Outburst, refers to “uncontrollable sneezing in response to the sudden exposure to bright light, typically intense sunlight”, the clinician resource book Medical Genetics Summaries (MGS) explained. It’s also known as photic sneezing.
The Cleveland Clinic said it could happen due to all kinds of sudden bright light, though it’s more common in sunlight.
Those with the condition find that when they go from dark (or shade) into bright light quickly, they can’t help but sneeze.
What are the symptoms of ACHOO syndrome?
The main symptom is sneezing, or wanting to sneeze, when met with sudden light. It’s not the light itself, but the change in intensity from dimmer light to a brighter kind, that appears to trigger the response.
It might also manifest as a “prickling feeling” in your nose.
In fact, MGS said, about 25% of people who already feel that prickling go on to sneeze in sunlight. But ”‘pure’ photic sneezing is far less common,” they added.
Dr Tan Zhibin, an associate consultant at the Department of Neurology at the National Neuroscience Institute, said in some cases, it can lead to over 40 back-to-back sneezes at a time.
Why does ACHOO syndrome happen?
Researchers aren’t really sure.
Genes seem to have something to do with it: if one of your parents has ACHOO syndrome, you have a 50-50 chance of getting it too.
Still, not only has the genetic basis of ACHOO syndrome remained “unknown” to scientists, but the mechanisms behind photic sneezing is a bit of a mystery, too.
Some think it has to do with “over-excitability of the visual cortex in response to light, leading to a stronger activation of the secondary somatosensory areas”.
That means bright light might make the part of the brain that processes sight react a little too strongly, affecting other parts of our mind that deal with physical touch and sensory processing.
Another theory is that there might be a crossed wire between the part of your brain that senses irritants and tells you to sneeze, and the section that tells your eyes’ pupils to constrict in bright light.
How common is ACHOO syndrome?
Again, we’re not sure – but The Cleveland Clinic puts it at anywhere from 18-35% of the population.
Research shows that it may be more common in people who are:
- white, especially women,
- affected by a deviated septum.
Is ACHOO syndrome dangerous?
Not in and of itself. But, like anything that temporarily distracts you, it might have knock-on effects.
One case study documented a 26-year-old whose sudden sneezing was linked to three motor vehicle accidents while he was driving a scooter.
It might also put you at risk if you’re having dental surgery and a dentist shines a bright lamp onto your face. And eye tests can prove tricky, too.
Experts think ACHOO syndrome might also pose risks for high-wire acrobats, some athletes (like baseball players), pilots, and drivers exiting tunnels into bright daylight.
Speaking to the Cleveland Clinic, allergist Dr Dylan Timberlake said: “You certainly wouldn’t want [photic sneezing] to happen when you’re behind the wheel or operating heavy machinery.”
He added it’s probably worth bringing it up with your healthcare providers before they do any procedures, just in case.
This may be especially true if you’re about to undergo eye surgery. Eye injections used to administer anaesthesia to the area might elicit sneezes in people with the syndrome, too, Healthline said.
How can I lower my risk of sneezing in sunlight?
Shielding your eyes from the sun before leaving a dark area and wearing sunglasses or a hat that provides shade might help.
Healthline explained that taking antihistamines might also reduce your risk of photic sneezing if you have seasonal allergies.
But right now, there are no medications or surgeries to target ACHOO syndrome specifically.
Fans have found themselves facing rejections, restrictions, and outright bans for short-term visa applications to the US for this year’s men’s FIFA World Cup.
Of course, this is hardly a surprise, given the Trump administration’s undisguised racism and Islamophobia. However, the news underscores existing criticisms of FIFA for awarding hosting responsibilities to the US in the first place.
World Cup chaos entirely expected
The states unveiled its bid to host the 2026 world cup back in 2017. Under the banner ‘United 2026’, it was a joint endeavor between the US, Canada, and Mexico. The latter two countries will host 13 matches each, with the US taking the remaining 78.
The United 2026 bid won out in June 2018 – in the middle of Trump’s first term. The US dictator had instated his first ban on seven Muslim-majority countries in January, just five months prior. Even at the time, FIFA president Gianni Infantino stated that:
Teams who qualify for a World Cup need to have access to the country, otherwise there is no World Cup. That is obvious.
As the Canary has previously reported, the US has now issued visas for the Iranian national team players and technical staff. However, it didn’t do likewise for 15 members of the Iranian administrative and organizational staff. This, in turn, led the Iranian Football Federation to accuse Washington of:
discrimination and political interference in sports.
However, it’s not just the players and their staff who have been affected by blatantly discriminatory US visa policies. BBC analysis suggests that fans from over a quarter of participating countries have faced high rates of visa rejections, travel restriction, or outright travel bans for the World Cup.
‘This World Cup is not ours’
The BBC analysed the US State Department’s own data for October 2024 to the end of September 2025. The figures pertaining to any application for a B1 business and B2 tourist visa, rather than focusing on the World Cup.
It found that 11 of the 48 competing countries faced visa rejection rates above 40%. The 11 countries are Algeria, Cape Verde, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ecuador, Egypt, Ghana, Haiti, Iran, Senegal and Uzbekistan. The average rejection rate for similar visas across all countries was 34%.
For Jordan, in particular, the US rejected 57% of visa applications over the October 2024-September 2025 period. Abu Kass, leader of Jordan’s football fan association, was just one among many whom the US state department turned away without a stated reason. Kass said:
This World Cup is not ours. It’s not for Arabs this World Cup, it’s for them. If the head of the fan association was refused, who will be accepted?
As of 21 January, the Trump administration placed a visa freeze on a further 75 countries. Added to existing bans, over 46% of the world’s nations were barred from immigrating to the US. Of course, this included a high proportion of majority-Muslim nations, and an overwhelming number of Black/brown-majority populations.
These bans were nominally limited to immigrant visas, rather than short-term visas (i.e. those needed for a World Cup visit). However, Trump has also placed even greater restrictions on fans from Iran, Ivory Coast, Haiti, and Senegal, barring fans from obtaining even a visiting visa.
‘Segregation that doesn’t dare speak its name’
Speaking on behalf of the National Committee for the Support of the Elephants, the Ivory Coast’s fan association, Julien Kouadio Adonis said:
It’s a form of segregation that doesn’t dare speak its name, but the proof is there.
No European country has faced this kind of restriction. Why Africa?
Adonis’ comments strike at the very heart of the matter.
The US Department of Homeland Security made the feeble claim that it was concerned with the possibility that people might overstay their temporary visas. However, the counties it has chosen to single out – again, nations with majority Black, Brown and Muslim populations – clearly display the racism and Islamophobia at play.
The Trump administration is a white supremacist project. The US is a settler-colonial state dedicated to the creation of a hostile environment for immigrants, which Trump’s presidency has thrown that fact into sharp relief. Alongside Israel, it has spent recent months waging an illegal war against Iran.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino claimed that:
FIFA’s social impact campaigns will showcase the FIFA World Cup 2026 as a powerful celebration of unity, diversity, and shared passion.
Through our Football Unites the World, No Racism, Unite for Peace, Unite for Education, and Be Active campaigns, FIFA is aiming to use football’s unique power to build bridges and convey a strong message to promote peace, education, anti-racism, and a healthy lifestyle.
However, the very fact that the US is hosting this year’s World Cup is proof that racism is alive and well at the heart of football’s international organising body. What are claims of unity, peace and diversity worth when a host country treats Black, Brown, and Muslim fans as nothing more than illegal-immigrants-in-waiting?
Featured image via Getty/Jia Haocheng
This article contains major spoilers for the final episode of Tip Toe.
The final instalment of Russell T Davies’ Tip Toe is likely to be the most brutal episode of TV you watch this year.
Starring Alan Cumming and David Morrissey, the five-part drama centres around two neighbours who become embroiled in an all-encompassing feud, exacerbated by the current climate of divisive rhetoric, misinformation and rising bigotry.
While episode one had already made it clear that the show would end with Alan’s character, Leo, hanged from a lamppost outside of his house, the finale focussed on the events leading up to this moment.
Speaking to HuffPost UK in the lead-up to the drama’s release, Russell made it clear that he didn’t view Tip Toe as a cautionary tale about a not-too-distant future, but a reflection on the modern world as he sees it.
“If this was the story of a Jew who’d been hanged from a lamppost, not one person would be doubting the credibility of the story,” he claimed. “In fact, I’d be told that I was out of date, because it’s literally happening out there, in front of us.”
Describing the world depicted in Tip Toe, he continued: “I think it’s here. Again, if I was Jewish, I would be pointing at those victims [of hate crimes] and the violence [directed towards them] and saying, ‘here we are’ right now.”
The difference in the events of the Tip Toe finale, Russell claimed, is the “formality to what happens”.
“If Leo had been beaten to death or stabbed, again, that happened yesterday, in Birmingham, or Manchester, or Edinburgh,” he said. “It happens.
“But the fact that there’s a formality to the death, it’s unusual. That’s why I wanted to give it a historical status. It’s like Mussolini hanging from a lamppost – it has happened within our lifetimes, or certainly within the lifetimes of our parents. This has happened.”
David agreed during a separate interview: “You only need to look at the news now to know that we’re not talking about some vague future events, it’s right here, right now.”
Both Alan and David told HuffPost UK that they knew as soon as they read the script for Tip Toe that it was going to make for a “difficult” shoot thanks to its subject matter.
“We said, ‘oh, we have to look after ourselves’ in the readthrough at the start,” Alan recalled, with David saying that he and his co-star “checked in with each other”, as did other members of the crew.
“That meant that the experience – although it was exhausting and really knackering – you were held,” the former Walking Dead star explained.
“And Lala, my dog was there,” Alan noted. “It’s so funny – in the street, where all the horrible stuff happens, at the end of the street, as you look out of their doors, to the left and round the corner, there’s a little caravan, and that’s where I would go, and Lala would be there.”
He added: “And actually, she’s an extra. In the scene where I go into Clive’s house for the last time – when I say, ‘I’m just popping in’ – she’s an extra, one of the [assistant directors] walks up behind me.”
All five episodes of Tip Toe are now available to watch now on Channel 4’s streaming service. Episodes four and five will also air on Channel 4 on Monday and Tuesday night, respectively.
Budget airline Ryanair, like other airlines, is notoriously strict about the size of the bags you can bring with you on holiday.
And speaking to The Times recently, boss Michael O’Leary seems to have given his staff a reason to hit passengers harder with fees.
He told the publication he’s planning to increase bonuses for staff members who identify and fine people carrying oversized luggage.
At the moment, he said, the number of passengers found to be bringing too much baggage to the airport has fallen significantly, leading to a drop in corresponding fines.
How much do Ryanair staff get paid for fining oversized bags?
At the moment, O’Leary said, his staff get paid €2.50 (about £2.16 as of the time of writing) for every oversized bag they fine. He wants to raise that by a euro (about 87p) for successful spotters.
“The number of outsized bags is falling from, I don’t know, 0.0001[%] to 0.00001[%],” the controversial businessman said.
“As the numbers fall, I think we will up the rate of commission, from €2.50 to €3.50 or so. Everybody must know, do not show up with a bag that doesn’t fit in the sizer because you will be charged.”
At the moment, Ryanair’s site reads, passengers who “bring an oversize [check-in] bag (over 55x40x20cm) to the boarding gate will either have their bag refused or, where available, placed in the hold of the aircraft for a fee of £/€ 70.00 [or] £/€ 75.00”.
That means staff currently receive just over 3% of the highest total fine in commission. The proposed change would raise their commission to over 4.5%.
How can I beat Ryanair baggage fines?
Speaking to HuffPost UK previously, Hannah Mayfield, a money expert with travel insurance company PayingTooMuch, said “even if your bag looks like it fits, you could still get fined due to technicalities”.
“Some airlines count weight as well as dimensions, while others impose last-minute gate checks – especially on full flights,” she said.
“I’ve even seen recent cases where passengers have been charged because the wheels or handles of their suitcase are slightly over the size restrictions.”
To lower the odds of getting caught out, she advised passengers to stay informed about their airline’s baggage rules and measure luggage before travelling.
Ryanair’s rules for 20kg check-in bags are:
- Dimensions should be no greater than 55x40x20cm,
- Weight should be no more than 20kg.
Their rules for 23kg check-in bags are:
- Dimensions should be no greater than 80x120x120cm,
- Weight should be no more than 23kg.
Their rules for 10kg check-in bags are:
- That these need to be purchased separately at checkout if you haven’t bought a Priority ticket: otherwise, you can pay €/£35.99-€/£40 in the airport for them,
- Weight should be no more than 10kg,
- Dimensions should be no greater than 55x40x20cm.
Their rules for personal bags are:
- Dimensions should be no bigger than 40x30x20cm,
- The bag should fit under the seat in front of you on the plane.
We’ve written before at HuffPost UK about when you can (and cannot) eat mouldy cheese, as well as the best way to store everything from potatoes to raspberries.
But what about fresh ginger (you know, the knobbly “root” that’s actually a rhizome, or underground stem)? Is there a way to prevent that annoying soft, brown mushiness before you need to cook with it?
Well, the answer partly depends on how quickly you’re planning to use it. But if you want your ginger to last for “weeks” without freezing, experts agree that placing it straight in your fridge isn’t the best move.
How should I store ginger in the fridge?
Speaking to Martha Stewart’s site, Abbie Leeson, the owner of The Ginger People and Gin Gin, who buys tonnes of ginger roots a year, said that wrapping paper in kitchen roll and then placing it in an airtight bag can extend its lifespan in the fridge.
This way, she said, it “can last three to four weeks”.
Culinary site The Spruce Eats, meanwhile, advised placing unpeeled ginger in a zip-sealed bag before pushing the air out of it and placing it in your fridge’s vegetable drawer.
If that’s not an option, they added, keep it in its brown paper bag before placing it in there.
Food52 recommended the same plastic bag method, too.
How can I keep peeled or cut ginger fresh?
The plastic bag method is best for unpeeled ginger you want to use in a matter of weeks.
But if you’ve sliced and/or peeled it, you’ll need to take extra steps to maintain its freshness.
“If you accidentally peel more ginger than you need, you can preserve the extra piece by placing it in a small glass jar and adding enough vodka or sherry to cover it completely,” The Spruce Eats wrote.
It’ll keep for several weeks that way, they added – just make sure you bin it if the booze gets cloudy, as that shows bacteria growth.
If that feels a bit much for an extra centimetre or two of ginger, use the same fridge technique as you would for unpeeled ginger; just make sure you dab the exposed sides with a sheet of kitchen roll first, said Food52.
How can I keep ginger fresh for months?
If you want to keep your ginger fresh for up to four months, freezing is king.
Chef, author, and culinary creator Sohla El-Waylly told Serious Eats that she peels and freezes ginger whole in a zip-sealed bag when she plans to grate it.
For all other uses, she purees ginger and places it in a freezer bag; I’ve used ice cube trays before, as it’s easier to pull single-serve sizes out that way.
The British Social Attitudes (BSA) survey is the gold standard of its kind. Conducted annually since 1983 by the National Centre for Social Research, it does not merely track voting intention but probes the values, discontents and self-understanding of the British people. When its 43rd report turns its attention to Reform UK, the results demand careful reading, because they are simultaneously more encouraging and more challenging for the party than the headline writers have managed to convey.
The report, authored by Sir John Curtice along with Georgie Morton and Jerome Swan, was published on 2 June 2026. Its central finding has already been widely quoted: Reform’s support is driven not merely as a protest against the system, but by a settled, coherent and emotionally committed worldview. Curtice describes Reform supporters as having ‘a level of emotional attachment that neither Labour nor the Conservatives have managed to inspire in voters for decades’. It is an extraordinary achievement for a party founded less than a decade ago, and it should be recognised as such before the problems are discussed.
Reform has been continuously ahead in the opinion polls since the spring of 2025. The BSA gives this polling reality a structural explanation: Reform’s support is not a mood, it is a movement. As many as 23 per cent of Reform supporters say they identify ‘very strongly’ with their party, well above the 11 per cent figure for supporters across its competitors. In an age of political fragmentation, that degree of partisan loyalty is a formidable political asset.
The demographic base, whatever anxieties it may generate in some quarters of the party, is in many respects a strength. Support for Reform stands at 49 per cent among those who would vote to stay out of the EU, while just nine per cent of those who would vote to rejoin back the party. That community, the Brexit coalition, is large, its motivations durable and its appetite for representation acute. Reform has successfully positioned itself as its natural heir to what Curtice describes as the ideological coalition that took Boris Johnson to his 2019 landslide.
Crucially, the BSA confirms that the rise is not built on sand. Although Reform supporters are more likely to be unhappy about public services and the cost of living, the party’s growth since 2024 has been driven primarily by ideology rather than discontent alone. This matters enormously for the question of durability. A protest vote collapses when the object of protest recedes; an ideologically rooted vote persists. The implication, as Curtice notes, is that Labour improving NHS waiting times will not, on its own, puncture Reform’s rise. The party has captured something deeper in the national psyche.
The survey also finds that the average British respondent has moved in what the authors call an ‘authoritarian’ direction since 2022. Support for the welfare state is also in decline. In other words, the electorate is, on balance, drifting towards Reform rather than away from it. Public attitudes on affirmative-action policies, immigration and transgenderism have all moved in directions more congenial to Reform’s platform. The party is not swimming against the tide, but riding it.
Reform supporters are also notably engaged: 43 per cent say they have ‘a great deal’ or ‘quite a lot’ of interest in politics, somewhat higher than the 39 per cent figure among the public in general. They are not apathetic disengagers who have wandered in from the cold – they are active, motivated and committed. That is the raw material of a serious political organisation.
Now for the bad news for Reform. Twenty-eight per cent of men support the party, compared with 19 per cent of women, a nine-point gap that is wider than the five-point difference between the sexes in their propensity to vote Leave in 2016. The gender gap is sharpest among the young. Among those aged under 35, there is now a 13-point difference between men and women in support for Reform, compared with just six points in 2024.
This is not simply an inconvenience. It is a structural ceiling on the party’s growth. There are roughly equal numbers of men and women in the electorate, and no party has governed modern Britain while being unable to speak to one half of it. Nor is it reducible to a simple messaging failure: the gap reflects genuine differences on the issues Reform has chosen to lead on. It is simply a fact that women are less socially conservative.
The education gradient presents a related challenge. Forty per cent of those whose highest educational qualification is below A-level support Reform, but just nine per cent of graduates do so. This is the most dramatic divide in the survey. It makes Reform structurally weak in the professional and managerial classes who disproportionately staff public institutions, shape media narratives, run businesses and dominate the leadership of local authorities. Winning councils, as Reform discovered in May 2025 and 2026, requires the capacity to govern, and governing requires some penetration of the graduate professional world.
The ethnic composition of Reform’s support base is a further limitation. Just one in 12 Britons from a minority ethnic background supports Reform. In large urban areas, this could pose practical problems for winning seats.
The welfare and spending data also contain a cautionary note. Reform supporters are considerably more hostile to welfare spending than the general public, with 78 per cent saying that unemployment benefits are too high and discourage people from finding work, compared with 60 per cent of the general public. Yet only 32 per cent of Reform voters want taxes and spending reduced – the most common response (42 per cent) is that both should remain at the same level. Reform’s supporters are hostile to welfare as a moral and cultural proposition, not as an economic one. The party’s rhetoric of smaller government may sometimes run ahead of what its own voters actually want delivered.
So, has Reform reached its high water mark of public support? Curtice states that ‘something like 30 per cent looks like not an absolute ceiling, but they are unlikely to rise much above that given the character of the campaign issues that they are emphasising’. That ceiling comment deserves scrutiny. At historic levels of vote-share concentration, 30 per cent was not a winning number. In fragmented contemporary Britain, it may be, which Curtice does acknowledge. But ‘potentially’ is not ‘certainly’, and Reform’s route to government requires either broadening its appeal or relying on a degree of vote efficiency that the BSA data cannot confirm.
What, then, should Reform take from this? Several things.
On the gender gap: the party needs to understand that this is not simply a communications problem, as if the right social-media campaign aimed at women would close a nine-point chasm. Women are, on average, more sympathetic to welfare spending and more cautious about the hardest edges of culture-war positioning. Reform does not need to abandon its platform, but it does need to demonstrate that its worldview has genuine application to the lives of women. The cost of living, public safety, housing, GP access and family stability – these are not ‘culture war’ issues, they are the substance of daily life. Reform’s instinct to lead always on immigration risks signalling to women that the party has not thought seriously about what concerns them most. Candidates and spokespeople who can speak to these concerns, without abandoning the broader Reform prospectus, are worth their weight in gold. The party should be looking deliberately for such voices.
On education and class: governing parties need graduates. The party needs, over time, to develop a language that speaks to the entrepreneurial, the technical, the practically educated, as distinct from the credentialled professional-managerial class that it is unlikely to win in large numbers. The small employers and own-account workers in the BSA data are already strongly disposed towards Reform – that is a constituency that could be deepened and organised.
The BSA, in short, confirms that Reform is a serious, durable political force with deep roots in a distinctive and politically committed section of British society. It also confirms that the path to government runs through territory the party has not yet entered: women under 55, graduates, ethnic-minority communities and the professional classes. These are not natural Reform voters and pretending otherwise would be foolish.
But the way to begin closing those gaps is not by softening the platform beyond recognition. It is by demonstrating, in councils, in parliament and in policy, that the socially conservative worldview the British Social Attitudes survey so precisely maps can be translated into competent, honest and effective government. That demonstration, more than any repositioning exercise, is what will determine whether Reform’s poll lead can translate into something more significant.
Will it be the foundation for something historically significant, or merely the high watermark of a long, important, but ultimately unsuccessful insurgency?
Gawain Towler is a commentator and an elected board member of Reform UK. This is an edited version of an article that originally appeared on his Substack.
Zack Polanski has defended his call to free the Palestinian revolutionary Marwan Barghouti. In doing so, he’s shone a light on a figure who is almost universally ignored by the Western media:
Good. Let's talk about Marwan Barghouti.
Imprisoned for 25 years. Nelson Mandela: “What is happening to Barghouti is exactly the same as what happened to me." Free Marwan.https://t.co/EoTcJkttRd https://t.co/CNh7Z0mSz6
— Zack Polanski (@ZackPolanski) June 7, 2026
An inter-Parliamentary Union report found he was not given a fair trial.
Polanski speaks up for Barghouti
Writing on Barghouti in 2025, Joe Glenton reported for the Canary:
He was sentenced to five life sentences in 2002. For murder charges he denies. By a coloniser court whose authority he rejects. In a trial which experts say was full of illegalities.
He’s a sort of Palestinian everyman, known for his calm demeanour, who learned Hebrew in jail and spent years in exile. He spent years in hiding, dodging Israeli assassination attempts.
Also in 2025, a released Palestinian detainee reported that Israeli authorities were torturing Barghouti. His son Omar said:
I woke up to a phone call from a released prisoner this morning. He told me, “Your father was physically abused. They broke his teeth and ribs, cut off part of his ear, and broke his fingers in stages for fun…
What do I do? Who do I talk to? Who can we turn to? We’re living with this nightmare every day… Oh God, have mercy on me. My father is 66 years old now. Oh God, where will he find the strength?”
Polanski has attracted criticism from the British gutter press, because these people are still willing to take the genocidal Israel at its word:
Are people seriously voting for this guy? Really? @ZackPolanski is openly and proudly giving his wholehearted support to a CONVICTED TERRORIST WHO KILLED FIVE INNOCENT PEOPLE. That's who Marwan Barghouti is.
And that tells us exactly who Zack Polanski is too. This man is a… https://t.co/4AVYzBy5EF
— Julia Hartley-Brewer (@JuliaHB1) June 7, 2026
War crimes
There are many reports of Israel using torture against Palestinian detainees. As Alaa Shamali reported for the Canary in December:
Documented Palestinian testimonies reveal the use of sexual violence, including rape, as a systematic means of torture inside Israeli prisons, in one of the most serious violations suffered by Palestinian prisoners since the start of Israel’s war on Gaza, amid widespread international silence and accusations of political collusion that provides cover for the continuation of these crimes.
Most recently, detainees claimed Israel uses dogs to rape them. The claims became so un-ignorable that even the usually compliant New York Times reported on them. And the evidence has only continued to grow since then:
Guards at Israel’s notorious Sde Teiman torture camp have admitted their colleagues use dogs to rape Palestinian captives there, according to a prominent Israeli analyst.
Shaiel Ben-Ephraim, a geopolitical expert who opposes Israel’s genocide in Gaza, said he spoke to two guards… pic.twitter.com/xUJoIM2XSZ — Novara Media (@novaramedia) April 20, 2026
Clear messaging
So yes, this is why Zack Polanski is calling for Barghouti’s release.
Because Israel cannot be trusted to tell the truth about why it detained people, and because it cannot be trusted to keep them safe once they’re detained.
Featured image via Jon Rowley (Getty Images) / Uriel Sinai (Getty Images)
By Willem Moore
In an NBC interview recorded on Friday, US President Donald Trump repeatedly defended his war of choice on Iran. He said Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu was a “good comrade” but disagreed with him, stating that strikes on Lebanon should be more surgical than they are.
However, the Financial Times (FT) reported that Trump later insisted he “calls the shots” and that Netanyahu has “no choice” but to accept any deal with Iran. The FT said they had verified a leaked call in which Trump called Netanyahu “fucking crazy” and told him he would be in prison without him.
“I call all the shots. Netanyahu doesn’t call the shots.” My telephone interview with Trump this afternoon. https://t.co/l4OSrFYw6z
— Edward Luce (@EdwardGLuce) June 7, 2026
Then, Trump began to call on Israel and Iran to “immediately stop shooting,” and said the peace deal was “proceeding,” cautioning against “ignorance or stupidity.” Probably yours, Trump.
It is foolish to believe that Trump is indeed not calling the shots.
The escalated attacks on Lebanon by Israel in the past week probably have his blessing, but he needs to disguise his hand in them using ramblings and prevarications, as his poll numbers are tanking.
Just like in real life, Trump’s behaviour in the NBC interview is CHAOTIC.
The interview with NBC finally ended with Trump walking off when pressed about his claims that the US elections in 2020 were rigged, and they are currently being rigged in California, calling the interviewer “crooked.”
Trump and his war on Iran
Sunday 7 June 2026 marked the 100 days since the US began its war of choice on Iran.
Trump boasted about his decapitation strategy, saying in the NBC interview he had achieved “regime change, actually.” He boasted that he had “wiped out” Iran’s military capabilities.
He acknowledged Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of the former supreme leader, as part of Iran’s leadership structure, but had not met him. Trump said Iranian officials seek his “concurrence” and that “they do pay homage to him.”
Mojtaba won’t meet poor Donald. You did kill his father, the rambling president needed reminding, perhaps.
Trump went back and forth on the status of the deal throughout the interview. At times, he claimed negotiations were progressing and that Iran was “begging to make a deal,” calling them “desperate” and “proud” with “no choice.”
Other times, he suggested the deal could fall apart, saying his red line for restarting military action would be :
If we don’t make a deal, I’m going to blow the hell out of them, to be honest with you. That’s actually the easier path.
He said he will keep all 50,000 U.S. troops in the region for now, saying it would be “foolhardy” to send them home before a deal is reached.
How does one keep up with him?
Campaign promise on ending wars
When pressed on his long-standing campaign promise of “no new wars,” Trump flatly denied ever making such a pledge.
I didn’t guarantee no war. Why would I have built the strongest military in the world?
Obviously, in the real world, Trump campaigned heavily on the promise that he would not start a new war during this campaign in 2024.
He argued that his “military exercise” against Iran was not an endless war at all, saying:
I don’t like these endless wars. This is not an endless war. We’ve been doing this for three months
Get it? If you call a war just a “military exercise,” as Trump insists it is, it stops being a war.
Trump, in fact, thinks previous wars are due to “stupid people” and his three-month war is okay, saying:
You were in Vietnam for 19 years because stupid people… Every war you were in for years. Look at Iraq. Look what you were. You were there for years.
Anti-Weaponization Fund
Trump defended plans for a $1.776 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund,” even though his own Department of Justice has shelved the idea.
He still thinks it was “a great idea” and said he would be “disappointed” if it were not approved:
People have been destroyed by crooked politicians and they should be reimbursed for that.
The proposed $1.776 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund” was intended to reimburse those who claimed the Biden government weaponized the legal system against them.
Those who lined up to apply included Enrique Tarrio of the Proud Boys, George Santos, Michael Cohen, Roger Stone, Mike Lindell, more than 1,500 January 6 defendants, anti-abortion activists, and Moms for Liberty.
Claims of election fraud
The interview ended with Trump walking off after claiming that the 2020 election was rigged and that the same thing is currently happening in California.
He alleged that California election officials were taking too long to count votes, which he insisted was proof of cheating.
When asked for evidence, he did not provide any, saying that looking at the situation was enough. He then called the interviewer crooked and abruptly ended the interview, saying he had had enough.
He lasted in an interview for almost forty minutes, albeit prevaricating, rambling, and dodging questions along the way. Keeping his cool that long must mean that Trump is sensing he has got to play along with some rules, with his support fraying.
By Monday, just three days after the NBC interview, Trump was calling on Israel and Iran to stop fighting immediately.
He claimed both sides were looking for a ceasefire, and that final peace negotiations were moving forward, though he warned that ignorance or stupidity could still get in the way. Trump’s own stupidity probably prevents him from seeing it.
Featured image via Getty/Kevin Dietsch
By The Canary
Politics
Tony award winner Bourzgui’s acceptance speech compares Zionists and billionaires to vampires
Musician Ali Louis Bourzgui won a Tony award last night, 7 June, for his portrayal of a vampire in the musical adaptation of The Lost Boys. As he received his award, he compared Zionists and billionaires to the vampires of the show – people “who have shunned their own humanity in order to achieve a nonexistent sense of superiority”.
And in case anyone was still unclear what he meant, he used his speech to wish freedom to the Palestinian people from occupation, as well as to praise the immigrants and trans people constantly targeted by the US fascist regime:
Tony award winner speaks out
The full transcript of Bourzgui’s remarkable speech accepting a Tony award is below:
Sometimes humanity needs a fantastical lens outside of ourselves to look at and explore questions about our own nature. Vampires represent those who have shunned their own humanity in order to achieve a nonexistent sense of superiority.
The billionaires will never find happiness from their money. The colonizers will never find fulfillment from the land and lives they steal. The fascists will never find meaning from their conformity, not in this lifetime or eternity.
People like to say that theater is a form of escape, but I’ve found more than ever that in this season and time that the theater is one of the last places people can come to worship the power of true collective human presence. We take a moment to recondition our addiction to desensitization. We ask how we can see ourselves in a stranger’s story and then carry that sentiment out into the world that needs us
to ask that more than ever.This is dedicated to the beautiful tapestry of immigrant families who make this country really special. May you one day not have to audition for the empathy that should be freely given by this country that benefits from your beauty.
For the queer and trans communities who have and always will exist no matter what people in power try to take away from them.
For the people of Palestine who deserve to live a free life, a full life without occupation.
For Arab theater makers and artists, may we continue to tell our stories and show our faces so our humanity becomes undeniable and our families can no longer be written off as merely collateral damage. May they know the beauty of our kisses upon each cheek and the romance of a language rooted in passion for love and life itself.
If there’s one thing we can learn from vampires, it’s that life is short, but that’s its gift.
Find beauty in the ephemeral and gratitude in what is not promised, and always invest in the people that want to see you blossom into your truest self and hold that space for them in return.
I dedicate this award to my late mentor, Ralph Petillo. Thank you.
Israel is a terror state. Billionaires shouldn’t exist. Free Palestine and someone find some more awards for Ali Louis Bourzgui.
Featured image via Getty/Theo Wargo
By Skwawkbox
Downing Street insists Keir Starmer is is “getting on with the job” as he tries to push through major policies in what could be his final weeks in No.10.
On Monday, the prime minister gave tech companies three months to introduce measures to prevent children sending and receiving explicit images on their mobile phones.
“This is not an impossible challenge,” the PM said in a speech at London Tech Week. “These are some of the most innovative companies in the world and I believe they can solve it.
“But if they choose not to, then we will act and we will change the law because when it comes to the safety of our children, standing by is not an option.”
The PM is also expected to finally unveil the government’s long-awaited defence investment plan ahead of a Nato summit being held in Turkey next month.
All of this activity is taking place against the backdrop of next week’s Makerfield by-election, when Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham appears on course to become an MP once again.
An opinion poll last week gave him a 10-point lead over his Reform UK rival, Robert Kenyon, and one Labour MP who has knocked on doors in the seat told HuffPost UK that “feels about right”.
Burnham admitted last week that he plans to replace Starmer as PM, with speculation mounting that he could launch his leadership bid within days of his return to Westminster.
The prime minister’s official spokesman denied that Starmer is in a hurry to create a legacy he can point to if his time in office is entering its final weeks.
He said: “The prime minister has made it clear that he is very much focused on the job in hand as the PM.
″[The tech announcement] is further evidence of the prime minister being determined to take action when it puts people at risk.
“He is getting on with the job and delivering for the British people in a number of different ways.”
Allies of Starmer have made it clear that he will definitely stand in any leadership contest, with former health secretary Wes Streeting also insisting that he plans to throw his hat into the ring.
Despite the sudden burst of activity emanating from No.10, Westminster is currently in a holding pattern as we await the verdict of the people of Makerfield.
Whether Burnham wins or loses, it still seems certain that Starmer will face a leadership challenge.
A month may have passed since the May 7 elections which saw Labour thrashed in England, Scotland and Wales, but the feelings of anger and disenchantment are still raw among the party’s MPs.
Starmer may well be “getting on with the job” right now, but it is unlikely that he will be able to for much longer.
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I won’t bore you with details of the endless travel difficulties we’re experiencing right now. You get it – fuel prices are high, meaning lots of us are opting for staycations in the UK this year.
With the school holidays approaching, Airbnbs are getting booked up fast, and options for places to stay in the UK are dwindling by the minute. And while camping is always an option, it’s certainly not for everyone.
So, if you’re looking for the perfect in-between, I’ve found just the thing for you: the ‘Airbnb of campervans’.
Romanticised in everything from On The Road to Little Miss Sunshine, there’s nothing like a road trip to get some bonding time in, whether that’s with your partner, family, or friends.
Understandably, you might not want to invest in an entire campervan or motorhome to be responsible for year-round. But, if you’re anything like me, a road trip is something you’ll want to do at least once in your life.
For a happy medium, Goboony has a range of rental campervans and motorhomes to meet every need you could have. You only need a driving license to get behind the wheel, and you can choose from electric or diesel-powered vehicles.
Then there are sleeping arrangements to consider (some can sleep a whole family) and whether you want to take a furry friend along with you for the ride.
As well as a stylish motorhome for a few days, Goboony also offers insurance and around the clock roadside assistance, so you can travel to the prettiest spots in the UK without worrying about breakdowns (motor or emotional) or damage.
If you’re considering a mobile holiday this summer, I’ve gone ahead and picked out the chicest motorhomes on Goboony right now – all you have to do is find the best dates to suit you.
Best campervans for a staycation in the UK
Location: West Sussex
Vehicle type: 5 berth Mercedes-Benz Campervan
Sleeps: 5 people
Weekly mileage limit: 1,000 miles.
Location: Shawlands
Vehicle type: Vauxhall
Weekly mileage limit: 1,000 miles
Sleeps: 2 people.
Location: Glasgow
Vehicle type: Volkswagen campervan
Weekly mileage limit: 1,000 miles
Sleeps: 2 people.
Location: Greater London
Vehicle type: Citroën campervan
Weekly mileage limit: 1,000 miles
Sleeps: 3 people.
Location: Oxfordshire
Vehicle type: Lamborghini campervan
Weekly mileage limit: 1,000 miles
Sleeps: 4 people.
Location: Oxfordshire
Vehicle type: Volkswagen campervan
Weekly mileage limit: 1,000 miles
Sleeps: 6 people.
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