Canary

CMAT’s latest album EURO-COUNTRY is available now.

Singer CMAT says ‘f*ck Reform’ and tells UK artists to get off the fence

Willem Moore — Sun, 24 May 2026 20:09:45 +0000

Speaking at the Ivor Novello awards, singer CMAT has spoken out against Reform UK and the far right. She’s also called on her fellow artists to get off the fence and to take a stand:

"I have no time, sympathy or empathy for anybody that decides to make life more difficult for people who are just trying to live" – @cmatbaby sticks it to Reform, Farage and fascists during her powerful @IvorsAcademy speech#CMAT #IvorNovello2026 pic.twitter.com/wMS1dVI9MS

— NME (@NME) May 22, 2026

CMAT “F*ck Reform”

CMAT (real name Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson) was born in Dublin — the capital of the Republic of Ireland. She has spoken out on social issues before, and is a fierce defender of trans rights. As part of this, CMAT released a t-shirt that raises money for the Transgender Equality Network Ireland which claims that “The T in CMAT stands for Trans rights”. Thompson also spoke out against the singer Roisin Murphy:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by PinkNews (@pinknews)

Speaking on trans rights and the law, the Canary’s Em Colquhoun wrote:

Prioritising the legal definitions of sex and gender over and above the reality of trans lives will always be reductive, further entrenching a ‘hostile environment‘ for trans people. But that is precisely what lawfare-waging TERFs want. The more convoluted the law, the colder the chilling effect on LGBTQ+ people’s freedoms of movement and expression.

At the end of the day, it’s not the law that needs to be changed, but the general attitudes towards trans people in this country. The law may influence this, but the problems have taken root far deeper than statutes.

Luck of the draw

Speaking to Ivor Novello Awards audience, Irish singer CMAT said:

I happen to be a legal immigrant in this country only because Ireland was lucky enough to get colonised 8 years ago by England. And that is actually the only difference between me and you admin wise.

As Thompson notes, Irish citizens can live and work in the UK. She’s certainly not British, however, and she’s clearly not aligned with the rampant flag shaggers who want to keep other migrants out.

The reason these fascist goons aren’t campaigning to send Thompson back is simple; it’s because the ‘anti-migration’ movement is just racism rebranded. And this is why so many Reform politicians keep finding themselves exposed for blatantly racist comments.

Speaking on her philosophy of songwriting, Thompson explained:

I have a very specific idea of what songwriting is supposed to be for and I think it is to reflect the times through your own personal view so that everybody can have something to connect to and something to learn from years later.

As an example of what she’s talking about, there’s a song on her most recent album titled Lord, Let that Tesla Crash. That’s particularly relevant today, because Tesla owner Elon Musk came out to support the far-right Restore Britain:

Restore Britain https://t.co/y6b0RnO7p7

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 24, 2026

Stand for something

Closing out her speech, Thompson called on her peers to do more to meet the moment:

Now what would compel my fellow artists in the room, it is not the time to sit on the fence. Fascism is on the rise. That c*nt Bertie Ahern recently showed his true colours.

Providing context on this, the Canary’s Robert Freeman wrote:

Taoiseach (prime minister) Micheál Martin has responded tepidly to appallingly bigoted remarks by his predecessor Bertie Ahern on a voter’s doorstep. The voter recorded the ex-Fianna Fáil leader saying he didn’t approve of Africans entering Ireland, and vilifying the next generation of Muslims who he said were set to cause “problems.”

Instead of condemning Ahern’s overt racism and Islamophobia, Martin said the remarks were “not appropriate,” “correct, or proper” — a slap on the wrist at best.

Thompson finished by saying:

F*ck Reform.

F*ck Nigel Farage.

I have no time, sympathy, or empathy for anybody that decides to make life more difficult for people who are just trying to live. And that’s what this record is about.

There are many good reasons to figuratively “f*ck” Reform too. As Ed Sykes recently reported for the Canary, the Greater Manchester Police arrested several Labour operators in May on the suspicion that they ran fake candidates in the Tameside local elections. Reform attempted to capitalise on this, as Sykes reported:

In Gorton and Denton, Farage’s party lost by well over 4,000 votes. But it had a tantrum anyway. It quickly blamed ‘family voting‘ for the result, trying to sow seeds of suspicion, particularly about Muslim backers of the Green Party, by suggesting men had told their wives how to vote.

Greater Manchester Police ended its investigation into Reform’s allegations a month later because there was no reliable evidence.

That hasn’t stopped Reform voices continuing to spread smears and misinformation, though. Because like Farage, racist Gorton-and-Denton-by-election-loser Matt Goodwin also responded to the news of the Tameside arrests by referring back to the Islamophobic lies about Gorton and Denton and failing to mention Tameside itself.

And this is really just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the reasons why Farage & .co can go f*ck themselves.

Featured image via Getty Images (Eamonn M.McCormack)

Arnold’s wife defended the tattoo as follows:

Reform councillor claims Swastika tattoo is a ‘Buddhist peace symbol’

Willem Moore — Sun, 24 May 2026 19:58:02 +0000

Another Reform member has been exposed for having an alleged link to Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Party. The latest is Barnsley councillor Andy Arnold who was photographed over multiple years with a Swastika tattoo. In response, Arnold’s wife has claimed it was actually a Buddhist symbol of peace:

Swastika tattoo visible in public social media photos of Reform UK councillor Andy Arnold https://t.co/6i2H313usn

— The Star, Sheffield (@SheffieldStar) May 23, 2026

Reform — Symbolism

Putting it mildly, the Star reported:

The swastika is strongly associated with Nazi Germany and Adolf Hitler’s regime and the Holocaust

Although it’s true the Swastika has existed for thousands of years, most people in Britain don’t know that. As such, it’s a strange thing for a white Brit to get tattooed on their forearm.

The only context I can provide is that, in his late teens, my husband briefly explored Buddhism and had a symbol tattooed on his arm during that period.

He has never been involved with, supported, or held views associated with Nazism or any extremist ideology.

The problem is he’s in Reform UK; a party which scapegoats migrants like Hitler scapegoated the Jews; a party pursuing mass-deportation policies reminiscent of 1930s Germany.

Speaking of deportations and Swastikas, members of the British far-right recently launched ‘Operation Overlord’ which saw activists travelling to France to bother refugees. As the Canary’s Joe Glenton wrote:

A far-right group that started going to Calais to hassle asylum seekers seems to have fallen out. They’ve also managed to get banned by the French government after swastika graffiti started appearing everywhere. Incredible work, boys.

The group named itself Operation Overlord after the D-Day landings. An operation in which US and British troops spent a good few days killing people who shared virtually the exact political views of these chicken nugget-brained man-babies. This lot were – note, WERE – closely tied to Operation Raise the Colours. Yes, the flags-on-lamp-posts people. The Overlord group started up in 2024. Their modus operandi was to strut around French beaches making macho content.

Misunderstandings

Mrs Arnold continued:

The tattoo was later covered because the symbol was frequently misunderstood and people incorrectly associated it with something entirely different from its original religious context.

Unfortunately, the meaning was often misinterpreted without understanding the background behind it.

Oh wow, who could have seen that coming?

While it’s not impossible to believe that a boneheaded teenager with an interest in tattoos and Eastern spirituality might get a Swastika tattoo, the problem is Arnold had his until at least 2024. He’s no spring chicken, either, so he put up with several decades of ‘misunderstandings’ before making the change.

This is the tattoo in question by the way (see his left arm):

Given that Arnold is in fact himself a tattoo artist, it’s a problem he could easily have rid himself of if he wanted to.

Reform’s hippy to Hitler pipeline

If Arnold is telling the truth, he wouldn’t be the first white Brit to dabble with the Eastern swastika. He also wouldn’t be the most famous, with that award going to Kula Shaker frontman Crispian Mills. As Far Out magazine reported:

The influence of Indian culture and raga rock was pertinent in all that Kula Shaker did, but this wound up landing Mills in some very hot water in 1997 when he claimed in interviews that the swastika was a “brilliant image” with respect to its traditional Indian origins. For those unaware, the swastika was originally a symbol used in the Hindu religion to denote wellbeing and prosperity before it was reappropriated by the Nazis. However, for obvious reasons, when Mills said this, the reaction wasn’t exactly receptive.

Prompting a deluge from the British press, Mills and the rest of the band were exiled to the land of what we would now consider ‘cancel culture’, with The Independent in particular running an especially bruising line that said the frontman “had dabbled with Nazism”.

At a first glance, Arnold’s tattoo does look more like the Buddhist version than the Nazi one, but as Reform Party UK Exposed highlighted:

Educate yourself. pic.twitter.com/aYHv8mDKnI

— Reform Party UK Exposed (@reformexposed) May 22, 2026

The thing is, it actually wouldn’t be that surprising if Arnold went on a journey from hippy to fascist. This might be surprising to hear if you’ve never met or thought about hippies, but some of these people are inherently vulnerable to far-right propaganda.

As Ossiana Tepfenhart wrote on Medium:

In order to radicalize someone, you need to hook them in and appeal to them. This tends to happen with people who have a lot of the traits found in crunchy/spiritual/rave groups, including:

You feel locked out or unheard by mainstream society. This is basically spirituality groups and rave groups in a nutshell. Radicalization can only happen when you don’t feel accepted by the people around you.

You don’t trust society or conventional beliefs. Crunchy people, for example, are very skeptical of processed foods and are more likely to lean on alternative medicine. This flies in the face of traditional wisdom which tells you to trust in science rather than “woo woo” stuff.

You are jaded with the shitty behavior you see in others. A lot of people distrust doctors because they were treated badly by them. A lot of people also have severe trauma related to traditional religious organizations that they haven’t unpacked.

You just want an answer to make the world make sense. Many people in hippie-esque circles feel lost about their sense of the world. Radicalization is rough because it literally seeks out people who want an answer and a way to live and pretends to give them what they need.

So yeah. Radicalization towards the right wing happens when you take disaffected people, often with trauma, and claim to give them an easy-to-use solution to all their problems. Little do they know they’re being sold a bad bag.

Traditionalism

Tepfenhart is far from the only one observing this pipeline. Getting away from the Eastern connection, Catherine Tebaldi of the Global Network on Extremism & Technology wrote:

Digital traditionalist women carefully cultivate winsome images on Instagram: harvesting fields of beets with the folds of muslin dresses and aprons spilling around bare feet, canning and pickling them in vegetable jars surrounded by laughing blonde children. In the winter, the family stamps sugar cookies with intricate runic patterns, or braid evergreen branches and holly to celebrate the festival of Yule. The accompanying text and videos celebrate health and wellness, but this goes beyond simply bodily health to what they call “reviving folk vitality”: celebrating northern European tradition, heroic men and women at home with a large white family; herbalism and natural health; paganism and occult mythology, and the belief in a white racial spirituality.

This ideology has can be traced through history to the ‘fascist ecology’ of the Third Reich; the Nazi Party had a ‘green wing’ preoccupied with ecology, eugenics and esoteric racial essences. To describe the group with deep roots in the far-right and in contemporary practices of health and nature I use the term Granola Nazis. Their style is taken up by a broader anti-modern movement of digital traditionalism.

And now we’ve come full circle. The Nazis also chose the Swastika for its ancient history, and while an interest in traditionalism and history isn’t itself an indicator that a person is far right, it’s certainly a contributing factor when presenting in someone with a tendency towards selfishness.

So yeah, the truth is we can’t definitively say that Arnold’s tattoo is a Nazi symbol. At the same time, if Arnold was a councillor in 1930s Germany, we can guess which party he would have gravitated towards.

Featured image via Getty Images (Finnbarr Webster)

Sam Dumitriu of the Britain Remade thinktank had 5 points on the new policy:

Reform’s new overtime tax policy torn to shreds

Willem Moore — Sun, 24 May 2026 19:48:10 +0000

Reform UK unveiled an attention-grabbing new policy proposal on Sunday 24 May:

Reform will scrap income tax on overtime.

It's time to make work pay. pic.twitter.com/Q0luvT9WPM

— Nigel Farage MP (@Nigel_Farage) May 24, 2026

The problem for Reform is that the policy has also grabbed the attention of people who think things through.

Reform — “Avoidance opportunities”

1. This appears to be an import of Trump’s extremely dumb (but clearly popular) ‘no tax on tips’ policy.

2. If your aim is to boost growth and incentivise work, this isn’t a good use of £5bn. It’s a luxury policy in all honesty: can they honestly say £5bn couldn’t go further elsewhere (either in tax cuts, infrastructure investment, or just improving public services)?

3. This will likely create lots of avoidance opportunities.

4. There will also be genuine cases of unfairness. What about workers with second jobs?

5. This is likely to create a massive cliff-edge problem where taking an extra hour of overtime or getting a raise leaves someone thousands of pounds worse off.

To be clear, Britain Remade isn’t a left-wing think tank; it’s actually linked to the Tories. You could respond by saying ‘well of course they’d object to a Reform policy‘, but arguably the Tories would be more likely to steal it it it made sense (and it wouldn’t be the first time they’d poached an idea from Farage).

One banker offered a perspective on how businesses could exploit these “avoidance opportunities”:

If someone on £75k/year with a 41 hour week with 1 hour guaranteed overtime restructured the contract to earn minimum wage (age 21+ at £12.21/hour) for the first 40 hours which is £25,396.80 and the remaining £49,603.20 is overtime this would reduce their tax by about £17,000! https://t.co/XWUInbOlwt

— David Hollidge (@DavidHollidge) May 23, 2026

This tax specialist did the same:

I've only been thinking about this for about 10 minutes, but take someone earning, say, £50k in a 40 hour week doing an hour's overtime (extra £1,250 a year). Their hourly rate is currently £24/hr.

They could agree to change their contract so that:

– The first 40 hours a… https://t.co/jwWlj2vR6X

— Stuart (@StuartMaggs) May 23, 2026

Steve Loftus is another figure on the centre right who took issue with Reform’s policy, noting:

France did this in 2007 in almost exactly the same way.

It cost €4.5b a year in lost revenue for no gain. No more hours were worked, people just shifted their work to game the system.

It did nothing but give people more take home pay and it ended in 2012.

But if you want to give people more take home pay there are a dozen easier way to do it.

Gimmicks

Finally getting to someone who isn’t a banker or a tax wonk, trade unionist commenter Josh noted:

The UK working time directive means you can't be forced to work more than an average of 48 hours a week.

Reform's attempts to normalise 40+ hour working weeks are a clear attempt to set an agenda of rolling back on employment rights workers have fought for over the past century https://t.co/hU9Wp88TgF

— Josh (@jhendy_10) May 23, 2026

The Trades Union Congress’s general secretary Paul Nowak, meanwhile, said the following:

Nigel Farage’s overtime tax proposal is just a cynical gimmick.

Working people don’t need politicians encouraging a culture of ever-longer hours. They need decent pay rises, secure jobs and strong rights at work.

If Mr Farage was truly serious about reducing the tax burden on workers, he’d support fairer taxes on wealth and clamping down on tax avoiders in his own ranks like Richard Tice. But that might upset his corporate donors.

He added:

Reform want to strip away protections that keep workers safe and healthy – including limits on excessive hours and rights to paid holidays and rest breaks.

And Farage’s claim to stand up for working people is frankly laughable. He wants to tear up the Employment Rights Act and scrap protections like day one sick pay, bans on exploitative zero-hours contracts and measures to stop fire-and-rehire abuses.

This is not a plan to make work pay. It’s a charter for weaker rights, longer hours and exhaustion at work.

And what about the millions of workers – mainly women – who work part time? Does Nigel Farage think their jobs matter less?

Popularity contest

While Reform is proposing ill-thought-out tinkering, the Green Party has been proposing more serious solutions. As the Canary’s Rachel Charlton-Dailey wrote:

the Greens have proposed to introduce a 10:1 pay ratio. This would mean the highest-paid person in a company couldn’t earn more than ten times what the lowest-earning employees do.

In practice, minimum-wage employees would get a pay rise, but crucially, we would also see the end to sky-high executive salaries and ridiculous bonuses.

The overtime tax policy has at least proven to be popular with the Sun’s Kate Ferguson:

Breaking news – a politician actually proposes to cut tax.

Reform UK will stop taking workers for mugs and ban tax on overtime.

Robert Jenrick writes for us on Reform UK's new policy…https://t.co/jbX2LUZGBw

— Kate Ferguson (@kateferguson4) May 23, 2026

So it’s a question of who you trust; the nation’s least trustworthy newspaper or everyone else.

Featured image via Getty Images (Ryan Jenkinson)

Reform’s fascist deportation plan ‘to cost £50bn’

Willem Moore — Sun, 24 May 2026 19:24:23 +0000

Reform UK’s Robert Jenrick became unstuck when questioned about his party’s mass deportation plans. As commentators Mukhtar and Saul Staniforth highlighted, however, the focus on cost is frankly disgusting given the human element:

Trevor Philips is a weird guy. https://t.co/qMcp4Dw9Je

— Mukhtar (@I_amMukhtar) May 24, 2026

Reform — the cost

Host Trevor Phillips put the following to Reform’s Robert Jenrick:

[Zia] Yusuf wants to deport 1 billion illegal immigrants. That’s the number he says. The cost of each enforced return at the moment is about £49,000, which means that the cost of your deportation programme would work out at £50 billion. £10 billion a year. Straightforward arithmetic, the cost, it’s ONS numbers, £49,000 apiece. Are you going to stump up £10 billion each year for sending people back home?

The problem with putting things in cost terms is that people don’t really give a shit about the price if they agree with the policy. People on the left think we should fund the NHS no matter what; people on the far-right think the same about deportation.

Providing a more human perspective, Richard Sanders of Double Down News said:

Reform is proposing the deportation of 2 million people – including people legally here.

“Politically it feels quite clever doesn’t it,” says Trevor Phillips, and leads a discussion that revolves entirely around whether it is affordable and practical.

These are people who sweep our streets, look after disabled people, keep the care sector functioning. People who work incredibly hard and are invariably very badly paid. People who have families, lives, hopes, dreams. Without whom the economy simply wouldn’t function.

This country has arrived at an appalling place.

Back to the cost, our own Rose Cocker wrote:

We’ll leave aside for a moment the absolutely dire racism and xenophobia of any Reform ‘promise’. That’s basically a given at this point.

Rather, this proposal is bloody ridiculous on a purely practical level – and it illustrates one of the many (many) massive problems with these authoritarian jerks.

As Cocker highlighted, the plan is “un-costed” and “eye-wateringly complex”. As far as we can tell, this complexity doesn’t result from the plan being well-thought out, but from it being completely unconsidered.

Reform will say anything

Jenrick is also attracting attention because of a resurfaced video:

It would be a shame if this video was shared far and wide.

Do you really want these charlatans running the country?! pic.twitter.com/0VoO8J9Cl0

— Cllr Scott Cameron (@CllrScottC) May 24, 2026

In the above, Farage says:

You might have seen pictures of Robert Jenrick turning up outside the Bell Hotel, the migrant hotel in Epping in Essex. And what he’s saying is, “I’m on your side. I’m with you, the people. What’s going on is a disgrace.” Well, when he was immigration minister just a couple of years back, it was very, very different. Here he is boasting that he’s going to open more migrant hotels than all the ministers that went before him.

The video then cuts to a clip of Jenrick saying:

We have procured more hotels very rapidly and more are coming on board literally every day. More hotels have been coming online almost every month throughout the whole of this year. So, Suella Bravman and her predecessor Priti Patel were procuring more hotels. What I have done in my short tenure is ramp that up and procure even more.

Farage returns to say:

Yes, that was Robert Jenrick, and under him, as immigration minister, we got up to 56,000 people who’d crossed the Channel by boat living in hotels. He put more people in hotels than even this Labour government. And here we are three years later and he turns up and says, I’m on your side. My advice to you would be to say this man is a fraud. This man is not to be trusted and certainly his party aren’t either.

What this demonstrates is that neither men take this issue seriously; really it’s just a political football to them.

If Jenrick cared, he wouldn’t have flipped his position so easily when it became convenient. If Farage cared, he wouldn’t have accepted Jenrick into Reform.

Putting things into perspective, John Ranson wrote for the Canary:

Currently, to apply for asylum in the UK, you have to get here first. Among a range of appallingly risky options, coming by boat seems like one of the better ones. I know it’s not something I’d do for a laugh. I doubt I’d even be capable of managing it. I had enough trouble with a Dorsetshire picnic cruise. And a single tube journey left me in bits. So the thought of making a journey of thousands of miles with small kids, culminating in running the Channel gauntlet on a glorified lilo, isn’t something I can even contemplate.

The people who make these crossing are brave; the cowards who run Reform UK aren’t even brave enough to stand by their own convictions.

Predictable

The sad truth in all this is that Labour politicians may one day try to copy Reform’s plan – as evil and costly as it is. After home secretary Shabana Mahmood spoke about the “divisions” caused by migration, the Canary’s Maryam Jameela wrote:

First of all, these “divisions” – a watering down of the terrifying racism permeating our streets – are not happening because migration is an issue. They’re happening because politicians like Shabana Mahmood weaponise the very very few people that seek asylum in this country in an effort to appeal to racist voters.

She added:

They’re not people who are merely ‘concerned’ about “divisions” from migration. Do you think these people give a fuck about the statistics on how few asylum seekers actually come to this country? Do you think they’ll actually vote for Labour politicians desperately trying to court them? Will they fuck.

Jameela’s prediction has proven to be entirely correct. On 21 May, Starmer announced:

Net migration has fallen 82%.

I promised to restore control to our borders. My government is delivering.

I know there’s more to do, we’re introducing a skills-based migration system that rewards contribution and ends our reliance on cheap overseas workers.

— Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) May 21, 2026

The reason this is doing nothing for Labour or Starmer’s popularity is that it was never about where people came from; it was always about what they look like. And as long as there are minority groups living in Britain, there will be craven politicians finding ways to demonise them.

Unsurprising

It’s no mystery why some voters are drawn in by anti-migrant rhetoric. As the Canary’s Nandita Lal reported:

the Resolution Foundation found that Britain’s living standards slowdown over the past 20 years meant that families had suffered £20,000 of lost living standards growth over that period.

The narrative of fiscal scarcity used by mainstream parties to justify welfare cuts while military spending soars, is a political choice that deepens the very inequalities fuelling the far-right.

The poorer Britons get, the easier it is to convince some of us that refugees and migrants are to blame. But we cannot allow human beings to serve as pawns in the political games of bankers and chancers like Farage and Jenrick.

Featured image via Sky News

Serious scabies outbreak in Israeli occupation prisons is part of the policy of torture and slow killing used against Palestinian political prisoners

Charlie Jaay — Sun, 24 May 2026 19:07:24 +0000

A dangerous and rapidly escalating outbreak of the skin disease scabies is again sweeping through Israeli occupation prisons. This is causing huge suffering to the many thousands of Palestinian political prisoners who, for the past few years, have intentionally had the worst conditions ever inflicted on them.

Abdullah al-Zighari, head of the Palestinian Prisoners’ Society, told the Canary:

The Israeli occupation system is carrying out acts of retaliation against Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons, by denying them the necessary medical care, posing a serious threat to their lives.

“Intentional health catastrophe” and deliberate deprivation of treatment for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli occupation prisons

During April and May, Palestinian Prisoners’ Society (PPS) lawyers conducted dozens of visits to Palestinian political prisoners. They found “shocking levels of human suffering and an intentional health catastrophe…amid deliberate deprivation of treatment and healthcare”.

These lawyers witnessed a complete lack of minimum hygiene standards and humane care. They have stated that diseases and epidemics are “being used as systematic tools of torture against Palestinian political prisoners”. In overcrowded cells, where no fewer than eight prisoners are held, at least three of them are infected with scabies.

Israeli occupation authorities have also cancelled many scheduled lawyer visits in the past few days, citing scabies infections in the prisons.

The testimonies of widespread scabies infections were from Ofer, Megiddo, Naqab and Ganot prisoners. In Megiddo, Palestinians have also experienced other serious health problems. These include severe abdominal and head pain, and intense aches, raising grave concerns about the spread of additional diseases and epidemics.

The health conditions, according to the PPS, are “deadly”. Some prisoners have remained infected with scabies for more than five consecutive months, without any serious medical intervention or treatment.

If left untreated, scabies causes bacterial skin infections which can spread into the bloodstream and become life-threatening. Because of the occupation’s intentional absence of any treatment, the PPS states that many prisoners now also suffer from boils, ulcers and severe infections. Others are unable to sleep due to intense itching and continuous pain. Some are unable to move normally because their health has deteriorated so badly.

Prisoners have told the PPS lawyers that their psychological suffering has reached unprecedented levels. This is due to the prolonged physical and mental exhaustion they have suffered for many months due to scabies.

Systematic policy of Israeli occupation prison system to destroy political prisoners physically and psychologically.

The policies and measures imposed by the occupation’s prison administration have led to this serious outbreak, which continues to spread. Prisoners are intentionally deprived of personal hygiene supplies, cells are severely overcrowded, and there is a lack of ventilation. Prisoners are deprived of sunlight, and are also forced to wash and wear clothes while still wet. This is because the Israeli occupation has intentionally ensured there is a severe lack of clothing inside prisons.

According to the PPS lawyers:

The prison system is using disease, epidemics and medical crimes as tools of slow killing against detainees, within a systematic policy aimed at destroying them physically and psychologically. These policies have, since the start of the genocide in Gaza, led to the killing of 89 identified Palestinian prisoners in Israeli occupation prisons.

Diseases, including scabies, were among the most prominent factors contributing to the deaths of several prisoners. These deaths occurred amid the continued policy of denial of treatment, and ongoing medical crimes. This continuous state of complicity must come to an end.

Al Zighari tells us:

This scabies outbreak comes within the context of a systematic campaign of revenge. The Israeli occupation authorities bear full responsibility for this, alongside the international human rights and legal system that has failed to provide protection for Palestinian detainees inside prisons. The world must assume its responsibilities and act urgently to stop the extermination and abuses being inflicted upon Palestinian detainees inside Israeli prisons.

There are currently around 9400 Palestinian prisoners, 3600 of whom are imprisoned without trial or charge. 84 of these are women, 360 are children.

Featured image via Abid Katib/Getty Images

By Charlie Jaay

The foul racism of leading Israel mouthpieces in response to mosque shooting

Skwawkbox — Sun, 24 May 2026 18:23:12 +0000

Laura Loomer (screenshot).

Laura Loomer is one of the best-known, most fanatical US Israel mouthpieces. She is also one of the closest to the Trump regime and has advocated feeding immigrants to alligators. She is also one of the most odious. And in response to the San Diego mosque shooting, she spewed out naked racism that would see her on trial had she — unthinkably — been a Muslim saying a quarter of the same about a synagogue attack.

Two fascist gunmen murdered three Muslims in the attack. Many US ‘mainstream’ media outlets somehow managed to make it about a nearby synagogue that was not attacked. But Loomer immediately wanted to doubt that the attack happened at all. Not just that — she claimed that those who attend it are evil would-be murderers and wanted the government’s deportation thugs set on the victims:

Laura Loomer — safety through deportation

Loomer soon seemed to realise that denying the reality of the shooting was untenable even for her. But she dialled the hate up even further. This time, to ‘keep Muslims safe’, she wanted every US Muslim deported. Imagine if some antisemitic race thug said that about US Jews:

In a country where the white majority are literally there through invasion and displacement of the native inhabitants — that applies to Loomer’s favourite place too — it’s Muslims who are the invaders, apparently. And now, according to Laura Loomer, the shooting was a ‘false flag’ designed to get sympathy. Every accusation is a confession:

Not a one-off

This is anything but a one-off for Loomer. She has called for the ’rounding up’ of Muslims — again, a call that would see her immediately arrested if said about Jewish people:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Thorns of a Rose (@thornsof.a.rose)

And for a “war with Islam”:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Rise Above Justice Movement (@riseabovejusticemovement)

And her hatred and gaslighting of Muslims dates back years:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Akhbar.Sara (@akhbar.sara)

Nor is Loomer unusual among the pro-Israel right — including in the US Congress and Senate:

Zionism is racism. The more fanatical an adherent is, the more easily they slip into evil.

Featured image via Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Watch: “think of the 10,000 Palestinian prisoners” — flotilla abductees arrive in Ireland

Skwawkbox — Sun, 24 May 2026 16:36:48 +0000

Irish citizens criminally abducted by Israel from the humanitarian Gaza flotilla arrived back in Ireland last night. Israel beat, tortured and in many cases raped or sexually assaulted them and hundreds of volunteers from other countries. But their thoughts and words were for the 10,000+ Palestinians — including 400 children — Israel holds without charge. They are tortured and raped every day, even more brutally.

Flotilla vs daily reality

The white faces among the flotilla victims has generated a small amount of equivocating western media interest. But for the Palestinians, such abuse is an everyday, horrific reality:

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A post shared by Éire Global Sumud (@eire_globalsumud)

The terror state being its true self.

Featured image via Natalia Campos/Getty Images

As Hannah Sharland reported for the Canary on 19 May:

Burnham slammed for saying he won’t renationalise Thames Water

Willem Moore — Sun, 24 May 2026 12:49:42 +0000

It’s been widely reported that Andy Burnham wants to ‘renationalise’ vital public industries and utilities. This sounds good, because people hate privatisation, and they want the UK to once more own its own assets. The problem, of course, is that Burnham isn’t planning to renationalise anything, as he keeps admitting:

Andy Burnham says we could have a "localised public control option" for Thames Water

What does that mean? Who is in charge? Where do the profits go?

We need nothing less than permanent PUBLIC OWNERSHIP of Thames Water with households, workers and anti sewage groups on the board pic.twitter.com/0s1OT1mMzz

— Cat Hobbs (@CatHobbs) May 23, 2026

Half measures

We observed early on that political commentators and outlets like the Guardian were reporting on Burnham’s plans to ‘renationalise’ utilities. Take the following clip, for example:

Andy Burnham: “I don’t blame anyone who left our party. I don’t blame anyone who voted for other parties”.

“We need to renationalise water, energy and housing.” pic.twitter.com/lS5TXENvXG

— Tory Fibs (@ToryFibs) May 16, 2026

Despite it being presented as a quote, Burnham did not talk about ‘renationalising’ anything in the above; instead he talked about putting utilities under “stronger public control”. Now, Burnham is setting the record straight, with the Times reporting:

He has also spoken of stronger public control over utility companies. “I use that phrase advisedly. People then shorthand it as nationalisation; it’s not the same thing,” he said, pointing to Greater Manchester’s bus services, which are run by private operators.

It’s good that Burnham is using terms “advisedly”, we suppose, but we’d advise he investigates what the public actually wants. As YouGov polling has shown:

Dead-eyed Labour centrists will ask: ‘as long as these services are efficient, what does it matter?‘

It matters because these services will not remain efficient if private operators remain in the mix. If we allow them to retain a stake, they will use their foothold to push for more and more power until eventually they own the lot. We’re seeing this happening in the NHS right now. And we cannot let the fox in the henhouse simply because Andy Burnham is ‘mad for it’.

You do, though

Burnham also told the Times:

Thames Water, for instance, you don’t just say ‘nationalise water’. You could have a localised public control option there.

Sorry, Andy, but we are just saying ‘nationalise water‘, and so is the majority of the public.

We ‘ve reported on scandal, after scandal, after scandal relating to these private water companies; why would we want these proven crooks to retain any degree of control over our most vital resource?

the government has so far actively refused to bring Thames Water into special administration. It has repeatedly fallen back on water industry spin to justify pursuing a ‘market-led’ – privatised – solution. Now, ministers and Ofwat are poised to sign a deal that would allow it to dodge fines for the next four years.

If working with private water companies worked, we wouldn’t have to spare them from paying fines; they would simply be able to profit from the service without incurring them.

Burnham — more of the same

Of course, it’s easy to understand why crooked Labour politicians would want private money in the mix. These people are in the same social circles as the fat cats who profit from privatisation, and ‘everyman’ Burnham is literally a graduate of Cambridge University.

We will say this for Burnham, though; he is at least making it clear what he is and isn’t offering. Hopefully people listen to him now so they’re not surprised in 12 months when Labour’s polling is back in the sewer along with Britain’s poorly treated water.

Featured image via Getty Images (Leon Neal)

EU regulations stipulate that:

Ireland’s communications minister hid attempts to pressure media regulator

Robert Freeman — Sun, 24 May 2026 12:25:16 +0000

As part of dodgy attempts to affect media coverage he was unhappy with, Fine Gael minister for communications Patrick O’Donovan held a call with Ireland’s media regulator “outside normal communication channels“. He then failed to disclose that the conversation took place.

The Ditch reports that on Saturday April 11 O’Donovan spoke to Coimisiún na Meán’s (The Media Commission or CnaM) Rónán Ó Domhnaill to:

…express concern regarding media coverage of the fuel protests and to ask whether there was a mechanism for the minister within the legislation to ask for an examination of the broadcast coverage of the protests.

The protests in early April were led by hauliers and farmers opposed to the rising cost of fuel. The recent spike in prices has been caused by the US-‘Israeli’-led illegal war on Iran, and the latter’s perfectly reasonable response of closing the Strait of Hormuz, a vital oil corridor. Ireland’s government carries a share of the blame in this, due to its role in weapons shipments for the aggressors, and its failure to criticise the mass murder taking place.

Ireland — Minister likely broke EU law on press interference

Rather than accept this failure, O’Donovan — likely breaching EU rules on ministers pressuring media – sought to shift the narrative in press coverage. The Ditch note that O’Donovan complained about:

…“a lack of balance” in an RTÉ radio broadcast that included three opposition spokespeople and one government representative and “Prime Time interviewing protestor James Geoghegan in a gentle way”.

An internal note from CnaM reported that O’Donovan said:

…the media only giving the side of the protestors in their news reports, and not the victims of the blockades.

O’Donovan also bemoaned:

…a journalist broadcasting from a protest from inside an unauthorised portacabin belonging to protestors.

The latter seems an entirely reasonable thing for a journalist to do as a means of conveying the reality of a protest environment. The public clearly thought RTÉ’s coverage was adequate, with the broadcaster only receiving nine complaints following the protests’ main period.

O’Donovan went on to say on Monday April 13 that he was intending to speak to Coimisiún na Meán about his dissatisfaction on fuel protest reporting. He failed to declare that he’d already been jockeying behind the scenes via that informal phone call to find a way of pressuring media organisations.

Those public comments had already generated furore, with National Union of Journalists assistant general secretary Séamus Dooley describing them as “sinister and deeply disturbing.” Dooley said:

The Media Minister is not a bystander but is in a position to influence the allocation of funds, the approval of commercial radio licenses and overall policy on broadcasting.

It is not his role to dictate to the independent regulator or to apply pressure on media organisations. RTÉ is a public service broadcaster not a State broadcaster and is independently regulated in the interests of democracy. You cannot have a ‘slightly independent’ public service broadcaster.

O’Donovan’s ‘Trumpian’ attacks on the media

Dooley continued:

There’s no place for Trumpian ad hominem attacks on journalists and the Minister’s comments have caused genuine concern.

Upon hearing of O’Donovan’s phone call, Dooley told The Ditch that the minister “crossed a line by phoning the commissioner”. He also said:

…individually and collectively commissioners should not be subject to political pressure of any type.

O’Donovan dodgy campaign wasn’t without success, however, as The Ditch report that he managed to extract “two concessions from the regulator“. The minutes from the department of culture, communications and sport, stemming from a subsequent Tuesday April 14 meeting with CnaM, reveal that the commission will:

…”examine the issue of broadcasters producing an anonymised schedule of complaints on an annual basis” and “will provide a briefing to the minister on their work on protecting democracy”

The minutes also failed to mention the minister’s Saturday phone call with commissioner Ó Domhnaill.

Member States shall respect the effective editorial freedom and independence of media service providers in the exercise of their professional activities. Member States, including their national regulatory authorities and bodies, shall not interfere in or try to influence the editorial policies and editorial decisions of media service providers.

Given ministers are high-profile figures whose words frequently receive wide circulation, any public statement commenting on press coverage would amount to a move to “interfere in” or “influence” media. Phoning up commissioners on a Saturday outside formal channels is a further step beyond that, and neglecting to report said phone call merely compounds the misconduct.

If the minister wants nice things said about him, maybe he should focus on ensuring his government change policy away from warmongering and impoverishing its own citizens, rather than complaining when the press reports on the consequences of those disastrous decisions.

Featured image via the Canary

By Robert Freeman

Reform is panicking about a party to its right in Makerfield

Willem Moore — Sun, 24 May 2026 11:23:48 +0000

Reform UK was once an insurgent political party that aimed to steal hard-right voters from the Tory Party. At first, it seemed like Reform’s goal was to force concessions from the Tories — much like how UKIP did with the Brexit referendum. Surprising many, however, Reform actually ended up overtaking the Tories in the polls.

In response, Farage attempted to replace the Conservatives completely by softening some of the rhetoric and accepting bus-loads of Tory defectors. Predictably, this led to another insurgent political party emerging — this time seeking to steal hard-right voters from Reform UK.

The party in question is Restore Britain, and the latest polling suggests it could deny Reform a victory in the Makerfield by-election:

The Times have just released a new poll for the Makerfield by-election by Survation.

Robert Kenyon is the only candidate who can stop Andy Burnham.

This is a two horse race – nobody else comes close. pic.twitter.com/zZ75PasBdt

— Nigel Farage MP (@Nigel_Farage) May 23, 2026

Reform VS Restore

The leader of Restore is ex-Reform MP Rupert Lowe. The TLDR of Lowe leaving Reform is as follows:

Lowe began criticising Farage (seemingly in coordination with Elon Musk).
Farage suggested Lowe wouldn’t be anywhere near office without Nigel’s cult of personality (a.k.a. Reform).
Reform suspended Lowe and reported him to the police for ‘verbal threats’ and “serious bullying” of female staffers.

Lowe would later form Restore in February 2026. The move came after Farage opened the floodgates to Tory defectors – a move which proved incredibly unpopular with Reform activists. Farage’s party would also hint at working with the Tories to ensure an election victory. As anyone could have predicted, this all made it harder for Reform to claim that it was an ‘alternative’ to the Tories.

By the end of April, Politico’s Poll of Polls showed that Reform’s polling had dropped from highs of 30%+ to 24%. Since the local elections and the chaos around Keir Starmer’s position as PM, the party has clawed its way back up to 26%:

Now, Reform faces two threats. The first is the bounce that Labour gets from Andy Burnham:

Striking things about this poll

Labour are ahead after tanking in Red Wall in locals (Burnham effect)

How well Restore are doing

How badly Conservatives are doing

The third party of the right https://t.co/ds74ZHstBj

— Lewis Goodall (@lewis_goodall) May 23, 2026

The second is that this by-election is going to shine a light on Restore Britain. And if Lowe’s party is able to dent Reform’s polling with hardly any national recognition, imagine what they can achieve with it.

On the march

Reform has adopted a stance of viciously attacking any and all opponents. Recently, this saw the party and its social media operation turn on a Makerfield charity director who dared to criticise them turning up at an event for disabled people without an invite:

They are trying to present the woman running a cafe for people with special needs as the ‘uniparty’.

This is political cannibalism, where you demonise just about anyone if you perceive them to get in your way. Certainly curious to see if it works! https://t.co/wH2IpfdeVO

— Aaron Bastani (@AaronBastani) May 23, 2026

We’re also seeing suspicious bot activity like this:

The electoral commission has to look into this.
It's clearly orchestrated. The question is – who is paying for it? Putin? Harborne? Farage? Some tech bro? pic.twitter.com/dgWGvxkZFq

— Dr Iain Overton (@iainoverton) May 23, 2026

Given all this, it’s unsurprising that Reform is gunning for Restore:

Vote Restore. Get Burnham. https://t.co/Vx0sYB9RY0

— Reform UK (@reformparty_uk) May 23, 2026

One commenter argued that Reform isn’t best-positioned to make this argument:

Reform split the vote and allowed Keir Starmer a super majority and all the Faragistas said that was fine.

But now Restore are doing it to them and the Faragistas are furious. It's almost as if they are TWO TIER! https://t.co/Ixm7fjnVZm

— Alexander Hall (@AEHALL1983) May 23, 2026

Reform’s attack on Restore will drive up the latter party’s profile. This will allow Lowe to directly speak to the public, and to potentially convince those with doubts about Farage that there’s an alternative. The timing really couldn’t be worse for Farage, either, because there are many good reasons to have doubts about him right now — key among them the £5m ‘gift’ he failed to declare:

Here are the facts as laid down by Derbyshire:
1) Farage says he won’t run
2) crypto billionaire pays him £5mill
3) Farage U-turns and runs
4) Farage hides the donation
5) Farage announces if he wins the election he will slash capital gains tax for crypto firms

Same old same old https://t.co/ViEIFZkf3A

— Alonso Gurmendi (@Alonso_GD) May 6, 2026

The optics say it all: Farage, a public school boy in cords and tweed, fresh from receiving £5m from another public school boy, nodding along as Kenyon argues that Britain’s real problem is teenagers who cannot be hired on the minimum wage. https://t.co/gA42bUhOKE

— Dr Iain Overton (@iainoverton) May 23, 2026

Reform was already moving further rightwards to stop the drift towards Restore. A recent example of this was the plan to punish citizens who don’t vote for Reform. As we reported:

Reform’s new policy is to build migrant ‘detention centres’ (what would more accurately be called ‘concentration camps’) in areas which don’t vote Reform. The party has denied its new policy constitutes a ‘threat’. The reason it’s being interpreted as one is because Reform argued people shouldn’t want detention centres in their area. Therefore, it’s clearly a threat by the party’s own logic.

This is a perfect illustration of the problem facing Reform. No serious practical solutions. Just political posturing. Which works fine when you’re trying to make a breakthrough. But won’t cut it when you need to move to being a serious alternative government. https://t.co/szML6sTV9g

— (((Dan Hodges))) (@DPJHodges) May 4, 2026

The problem Farage has is the problem Kemi Badenoch and the Tories have. Politicians to their right can simply say ‘well of course they’d say that now, but they won’t follow through on it‘. Eventually Rupert Lowe will let his supporters down too, and someone will emerge to his right. Oh, and we’re already seeing signs of this. As commenter Mukhtar noted:

People are resigning from Rupert Lowe’s party, including local branch chairs, after discovering that former Tory MP Scott Benton is now employed by Restore and has access to the membership database. Scott Benton resigned as a Tory MP after he was caught in an undercover sting offering lobbying access to the gambling industry.

They’ve now found a photo of him with a Hebrew tattoo and are saying this is not what Rupert Lowe promised them. The people Restore are attracting is certainly something.

The following are examples of right-wing accounts commenting on the matter:

This is new Restore communications lead Scott Benton back when he was a Tory MP explaining to an undercover journalist posing as a gambling lobbyist how he’d be willing to lobby Ministers in exchange for cash.

Restore have hired a corrupt former Tory MP. Restore is a disgrace. pic.twitter.com/lV4lNJyfrR

— Wolf (@WorldByWolf) May 22, 2026

This is Scott Benton.

A disgraced former Tory MP who was forced out due to his involvement with the Gambling Industry.

He now has full access to Restore's database of membership after being employed by the party.

As you can see he has a Ba'al and 'israel' tattoo.

Mossad… pic.twitter.com/1QVH6pHEIf

— UNN (@UnityNewsNet) May 22, 2026

Increased attention will also mean more people learn that Lowe once had his groundskeeper execute his pet dog with a shotgun.

Reform? Restore? Reject!

Honestly, we don’t want Reform or Restore to do well. At the same time, we’d be happy for the two parties to do just well enough to cancel each other out.

Forgetting Repulse and Reject, we shouldn’t ignore the fact that Andy Burnham seems to be offering little more than reheated Starmerism. As we’ve reported:

For too long, UK politicians have exclusively tried to appeal to frothing right wingers. We wish that Burnham was the man to pull us out of this death loop, but Burnham himself keeps telling us otherwise.

Featured image Getty Images (Sean Gallup) / Getty Images (Carl Court)

The 2026 World Cup could turn into a global climate crisis

Alaa Shamali — Sun, 24 May 2026 10:56:21 +0000

A few days before the kickoff of the 2026 World Cup, environmental warnings are escalating around the tournament, which is supposed to be the biggest in football history, but is now poised to become the “most climate-destructive” since the tournament began.

The Guardian revealed that the edition, which will be held in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, does not appear to be just an exceptional sporting event, but a massive project that could leave an unprecedented carbon footprint. This is due to the enormous expansion in the number of teams, matches, and host cities, alongside the almost complete reliance on air travel across an entire continent.

Record emissions… A World Cup the size of a continent

According to the report, the 2026 World Cup could cause the emission of nearly 9 million tons of carbon dioxide, a figure approaching double the average emissions recorded by previous editions of the tournament.

The newspaper believes the main reason for this increase is the unprecedented geographical nature of the World Cup, as matches will be spread across dozens of cities spanning three countries. This entails thousands of air travel miles for teams, fans, media, and sponsors.

For the first time in World Cup history, the tournament will transform into something resembling a “giant air transport network,” at a time when climate issues and emissions reduction are a growing global priority.

The biggest change in the 2026 edition is the increase in the number of participating teams from 32 to 48 and the increase in the number of matches to 104, which The Guardian report considers the key turning point in the inflation of the tournament’s environmental impact.

Every extra match means more travel, more energy consumption, and more logistical pressure, while criticism of FIFA’s commercial expansion policies is mounting.

Environmental voices believe that football has entered a new phase where economic and marketing interests take precedence over climate considerations, especially with FIFA’s endeavor to turn the World Cup into the biggest event ever in terms of revenues, sponsorships, and spectators.

The issue of “sustainability” haunts FIFA

The report directed direct criticism at the “sustainability” discourse promoted by the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA), arguing that talking about an environmentally friendly tournament appears contradictory given the expected emissions figures.

It also recalled the controversy surrounding the Qatar 2022 World Cup, after FIFA faced criticism for declaring the tournament “carbon-neutral,” at a time when Swiss regulatory bodies deemed the evidence provided insufficient to prove those claims.

The intensity of the criticism grows with the continued presence of oil and energy companies among the international federation’s most prominent commercial partners, which raises questions about the seriousness of the environmental rhetoric adopted by the world’s largest football institution.

The concerns were not limited to emissions only, as the report pointed to climate warnings related to high temperatures during the tournament, especially in some US cities expected to host matches in the peak of summer.

According to studies relied upon by the newspaper, a quarter of the tournament’s matches may be played in heat conditions dangerous to players and fans. This could impose unprecedented health and sporting challenges, and perhaps lead to a reconsideration of match times or even future hosting policies.

Football vs. climate

What the latest reports reveal is that the World Cup is no longer merely a global sporting event; it has become part of the international debate on climate and sustainability.

As FIFA prepares to organize the largest edition in history, questions are mounting about the true environmental cost of this expansion, and whether football can truly reconcile commercial growth with climate preservation, or whether the 2026 World Cup will be the moment the world’s most popular game turned into one of the most environmentally controversial sporting events.

Featured image via Hector Vivas/Getty Images

By Alaa Shamali

Does the 2026 World Cup ball really need charging?

Alaa Shamali — Sun, 24 May 2026 10:48:18 +0000

The World Cup ball is no longer just a piece of rubber and air, as fans have known it for decades, but has transformed in the 2026 World Cup into a comprehensive technological tool containing electronic sensors and advanced tracking systems, to the extent that it requires charging before matches.

The Spanish newspaper AS revealed that the new official match ball for the 2026 World Cup, named “Trionda,” contains a smart chip embedded within its structure, which necessitates pre-charging so it can transmit data during games.

The newspaper explained in its report that the battery works for several continuous hours, while the sensor remains extremely light so players do not feel its presence during play.

What is inside the World Cup ball?

According to FIFA, the International Federation of Association Football, the ball relies on “Connected Ball Technology,” a smart system that allows real-time tracking of every movement the ball makes on the field.

The “TRIONDA” contains a high-precision motion sensor that operates at a frequency of up to 500 times per second, allowing it to monitor the ball’s speed, direction, spin, and moment of touch with extreme accuracy.

This data is sent directly to the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system to support refereeing decisions, particularly in cases of offside, handballs, and controversial calls.

What has changed compared to the 2022 World Cup?

One of the most notable developments in the 2026 edition concerns the method of fixing the sensor inside the ball.

In the 2022 Qatar World Cup, the sensor was fixed in the centre of the ball via an internal suspension system. In the 2026 edition, it has been integrated within one of the ball’s panels itself, a geometric change that reports described as a major step toward improving balance and stability during flight.

To compensate for this change, counterweights were distributed inside the other panels to maintain the ball’s stability during play, which some reports considered a shift from a “smart ball” to a “complete data system within the ball itself.”

How does the technology work during matches?

According to what AS newspaper and accompanying technical reports indicated, the ball’s data does not work separately but is integrated with a sophisticated camera system surrounding the stadium.

The system relies on 12 tracking cameras distributed inside the stadium, monitoring the locations of players and the ball, and analyzing movement at a rate of nearly 50 times per second.

The information is then sent directly to the VAR room, where it is used to determine: the moment the ball was passed, semi-automated offside situations, goal-line crossing, and certain handballs and precise contacts.

A ball that doubles as an “extra referee”

The most prominent paradox in the 2026 World Cup is that the ball itself has become part of the refereeing system.

While technology was previously limited to cameras and screens, the ball now transmits data directly to the referees, a scene that reflects the major transformation football is undergoing toward the world of artificial intelligence and real-time data analysis.

Featured image via Florencia Tan Jun/Getty Images

By Alaa Shamali

Canary to launch a daily newspaper – and they’re going to hate it

The Canary — Sat, 23 May 2026 16:44:58 +0000

After 10 years of bringing you truth without agenda online, the Canary has now done what no left-wing media outlet has done in decades: launch a daily print newspaper. It is set to challenge every mainstream media outlet. Plus, it will bring the Canary’s no-nonsense news that disrupts power to a wider audience. And, you just know the MSM and establishment are going to hate it, too. But why the hell would we do this at a time when fewer and fewer people are actually buying newspapers?

Meet the Canary (again)

If you don’t know the Canary, we launched in October 2015 with a budget of just £500. Since then, we’ve made it our job to hold the powerful to account. We’ve done this by publishing stories that matter to you, the ordinary person. And we’ve always done this, whether the state, the rich and powerful, and the corporate media like it or not.

We’ve consistently held the right-wing in the UK and beyond to account – whether that be the Tories, Reform, or this latest version we’re apparently calling the Labour Party. The Canary has never shied away from calling a spade a spade – and that includes the genocidal, ethnonationalist, pseudo-state of Israel and the racist Zionist ideology that runs and maintains it.

What’s also been central to what we do is disrupting the system that keeps most of us oppressed in one way or another. For the Canary, everything is connected – whether that’s the Zionist-led genocide against the Palestinian people that’s seen the IDF decapitating children on TikTok or supermarkets price-gouging your loaf of bread while crying because they’re rich shareholders need even more profit.

Profiting of our misery

To many people, these events may seem unrelated. But they are absolutely not. The same people that profit off the mass-slaughter of Black and Brown people in Palestine, Lebanon, and Sudan are the same people who profit off you paying £1.40 for some bread.

These are the same people that profit off companies like Palantir spying on you and buying your data. They profit off the continuous massive increases in your energy bills. And they also profit off you not being able to afford to drive your car – while not being able to afford a train fare either.

However, there’s a common theme with rich and powerful people who literally don’t care if you live or die. They are all mates with, and backed by, most politicians.

The Zionists responsible for killing 20,000 children in Gaza; the shareholders laughing while you can’t afford bread; the big tech companies using your information to make money, and the oil barons who mean you can’t afford to fill up your tank: they all have Nigel Farage, Kemi Badenoch, and Keir Starmer in their back pockets or up their arses.

We think that’s bullshit – and that it needs to change. But that change can only happen if everyone has access to the information they need to make the choice to change in the first place.

That’s where the Canary’s daily print newspaper comes in.

We can all make change

We know that left-wing politics is inaccessible for many people. And we also know that around four million people in the UK don’t have the internet at home. So, we want to bring the truth about what is going on in the world to a whole, new audience. That’s the voters left-wing politicians and other media have ignored or been too stuck-up to talk to: working-class people who hold down two jobs and only have time to get their news via a daily paper or TV.

The so-called left-wing in this country have ignored millions of people for too long. We think that needs to change. And by having the Canary next to the Sun, the Mirror, and the Daily Mail, we can give more people the chance to actually read the news – not propaganda.

So, welcome to the Canary in print. £1.20. Monday to Friday. Across England and Wales. We’d love you to join us each day – and let’s start making that change together.

Use our interactive map to find your nearest stockist. Yellow pins are newsagents where the Canary will be available from Tuesday 26 May. Red ones are newsagents that are coming soon. And yes, we are already working on a home delivery option, too!

Featured image via the Canary

https://www.thecanary.co/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/WhatsApp-Video-2026-05-22-at-23.14.56.mp4

West Bank — They left us our houses and took everything else

Charlie Jaay — Sat, 23 May 2026 00:54:24 +0000

The occupied West Bank village of al Mughayyir has again been under attack by the army and the settlers.

Non-stop intimidation and harassment from settlers and soldiers

Early in the morning of 20 May, the occupation army blocked the entrance, preventing any movement in and out of the village.

It then attacked the boys’ school with tear gas, which led to several injuries and cases of suffocation among students. This was by no means an isolated incident. Students suffer almost daily as a result of the army’s repeated firing of gas canisters towards the school.

Then the settlers set fire to wheat crops belonging to al Mughayyir resident Saeed Hussein Abu Aliya. People rushed to the scene to help extinguish the blaze.

https://www.thecanary.co/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/WhatsApp-Video-2026-05-22-at-23.26.27.mp4

The occupation’s army stormed the village before sunset. They began firing tear gas, sound bombs, and live ammunition at people’s homes for no reason.

https://www.thecanary.co/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/WhatsApp-Video-2026-05-22-at-23.27.08.mp4

At night, they again set up a checkpoint at the entrance to the village, preventing dozens of vehicles from entering al Mughayyir. Those residents had no option but to sleep in the neighbouring village of Abu Falah, where residents opened their homes to those in need. Soldiers were also on patrol amongst the vehicles inside the village. They ordered civilians not to get out of their vehicles unless they wanted to get shot.

No arrests but plenty of beatings

The Israeli occupation forces later began raiding houses. They assaulted young men and children without any reason, and left a trail of destruction.

Marzouk Abu Naim, head of al Mughayyir Village Council, told the Canary:

No one was arrested. But every young man in every house they stormed received his share of beatings.

One of those targeted was Palestinian activist and medic Mohammed Abu Naim. At around 3am, approximately 20 Israeli occupation soldiers raided his home. One soldier grabbed him from behind while another beat him from the front. While some soldiers ransacked the house, others punched him in the face and whipped him with a belt, causing extensive property damage

The following morning, the army was on patrol to protect an illegal settler who was grazing his sheep in private fields belonging to residents. Crops were set alight in the village, by the army. When residents tried to put the fire out, they were met with live bullets and tear gas fired by the nearby soldiers.

https://www.thecanary.co/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/WhatsApp-Video-2026-05-22-at-23.31.39.mp4

The same situation that is happening in al Mughayyir is now occurring throughout the occupied West Bank. Before 7 October 2023, there was only one settler on al Mughayyir’s land, keeping sheep. He arrived in 2020 and had the protection of the army.

West Bank — The Israeli occupation has stolen 4300 hectares of land and left residents with only 100 hectares

Abu Naim tells us:

Although we made many complaints to try and get him to leave, we didn’t know at the time that this was the start of their project. Now we understand why they were protecting him, and refused to move him. He was brought in by the government to start taking over the area.

There are now nine illegal settler outposts around the village. All the green fields are under Israeli occupation control, and residents are unable to go outside the vicinity of the immediate village. 43,000 dunums of land — the equivalent of 4,300 hectares, have been taken from them, and they have been left with only 1000 dunums.

Abu Naim says: “They have left just our houses and taken everything else.”

Settlers and the occupation’s army have brought nothing but suffering and hardship to the people of al Mughayyir. One day in April 2024, more than 400 settlers, who had come from all over the West Bank, attacked the village. Around 30 homes were set alight, along with cars. The army helped and protected these settlers. The occupation does not allow Palestinians to protect themselves, so when residents attempted to protect their homes and family, they were met with gunfire.

One resident was martyred that day, and 70 were injured. And when the attacks started, they closed all village entrances so people could not come and help. The ambulances were also unable to enter, to help the wounded.

More than 70 residents of al Mughayyir are currently in prison, mainly since 7 October 2023. Most of them, according to Abu Naim, are under the age of 20.

Residents of al Mughayyir can no longer rely on agriculture, as the Israeli occupation has destroyed it

He says:

These young men usually protect their homes while attacks inside the village take place. They also face attacks from settlers around the village, while herding sheep. Settlers and the army work together. They do the same job, the same crime as each other. And so when someone tries to protect his family they arrest him.

Until recently, many residents of al Mughayyir relied on agriculture. They used to get their food and also crops for their animals for the whole year from the fields. But this is no longer possible. The Israeli occupation has destroyed the village agriculture, in a variety of ways.

In August 2025, the military said people posed a danger to settlers who pass along the main road of the village. So they spent two days using bulldozers to uproot 11,000 olive trees, and damage crops. Olive trees are extremely important to Palestinians. They are not only a source of income, but also part of their heritage and connection to the land.

Abu Naim says:

Settlers also harvested everything and took it away to feed their sheep, which are all stolen, by the way. Settlers don’t buy sheep. When they want them, they attack a village or farm, mainly at night, with the help of the military and the police. Palestinians transporting their sheep from one farm to another can also find themselves being stopped by soldiers at a checkpoint. They are then blindfolded, and the settlers come and steal the sheep from inside their vehicle. Two months ago, at our village checkpoint, there was a big truck with more than 30 sheep inside. A settler from the nearest settlement was called and, according to the driver who understood Hebrew, was told to take as many sheep as he wanted. The soldiers told him he could have more sheep than the 11 he had taken, but the settler said he didn’t have the room. All of them are thieves- the army, the police and the settlers.

West Bank — Israeli occupation often steals livestock and money from Palestinians at village checkpoint

At the entrance to the village there is often a checkpoint. Abu Naim accuses all soldiers there of being thieves. He says they stop the drivers and search through their pockets for money. They even know that Thursday is payday. A resident recently had 800 NIS — approximately £200 — stolen from his pocket. So he made an official complaint. When the soldiers at the checkpoint found out about the complaint, they assaulted the man and arrested him.

The Jewish supremacist state of “Israel” is intentionally making life unbearable for Palestinians throughout the occupied territory. The intention is to forcibly displace them from their land, erase all that is Palestinian, and make the land their own. But this will never happen.

Abu Naim tells us:

Although we have lost hope in the international community, we still have hope with God. We pray to our God to finish these thieves and the occupation, who are destroying everything in our lives. The occupation has the aim of getting the 3500 villagers to leave here and to make them think they will have a better life somewhere else. But we don’t pay attention to this. We are going nowhere, and are determined to stay here even if we die in front of their tanks.

Featured image via the author

By Charlie Jaay

FIFA has a ‘crazy’ idea for the 2030 World Cup

Alaa Shamali — Sat, 23 May 2026 00:37:55 +0000

Global football is moving toward a new phase of organisational debate, as the proposal to expand the 2030 World Cup to 64 teams has resurfaced in discussions within the FIFA, a development that reflects a broadening scope of thinking about the future of the world’s most-watched tournament.

According to AS newspaper, the idea, which originated as a proposal from the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL), is no longer a fleeting suggestion, but has transformed into a file under discussion within some decision-making circles at FIFA, amidst growing support from parties who believe the World Cup should move toward a more inclusive and expansive model.

This shift comes at a sensitive time, as the first expanded 48-team edition of the World Cup in 2026 has not yet begun, making the discussion about the new expansion a proactive step that reflects a remarkable acceleration in redrawing the shape of the tournament.

Greater inclusivity and a new philosophy driven by FIFA

The newspaper confirms in its report that this trend resonates within the general vision of the International Federation of Association Football, led by its president, Gianni Infantino, who constantly puts forward the idea that the World Cup is not exclusive to traditional powers, but a global platform that should provide an opportunity for the largest possible number of nations.

This philosophy is based on the gradual shift in the landscape of rising national teams, with teams such as Jordan, Uzbekistan, Cape Verde, and Curaçao getting closer to participating in the 2026 World Cup, which is read within FIFA as evidence of the expanding global competition base.

In this context, the idea of 64 teams seems like a natural extension of the desire to transform the tournament into a more “open” space, even if this comes at the expense of some traditional balances in the quality of competition.

World Cup 2030 — the centennial edition

The 2030 edition carries an exceptional character as it celebrates 100 years since the start of the first World Cup in history. Hosting duties are shared by Spain, Morocco, and Portugal, alongside symbolic matches in Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay, in a geographically and organizationally unprecedented format.

However, this great ambition collides with clear practical challenges, most notably infrastructure and the pressure of the international calendar, in addition to renewed controversy within Spain regarding the readiness of some host cities.

Although the official structure of the tournament is still based on 48 teams, the report indicates that FIFA has not yet entered the final decision-making phase regarding organizational details, leaving the door open for adjustments that could completely reconfigure the shape of the tournament.

The ‘AS’ newspaper believes that what was viewed years ago as an exaggerated or impractical idea is now part of a realistic discussion within decision-making offices, a clear indication that the next World Cup may not only be a celebration of the centenary but a turning point in the history of the tournament itself.

Featured image via Ton Molina/Getty Images

By Alaa Shamali

Labour’s summer cost of living policies reduce it to the Groupon administration

James Wright — Sat, 23 May 2026 00:11:08 +0000

Labour has announced some cost of living policies that treat voters as children. Rather than any significant economic strategy for real change, the ruling party is offering voters temporary gimmicks like no import tariffs on chocolate and biscuits for the summer.

Instead, Labour could deliver cost price essentials such as water, energy and telecomms to significantly reduce costs for every person and business.

Labour — The gimmicks

It’s almost laughable. This is the Groupon administration. As well as cutting costs for supermarkets on trivial items, the ruling party is cutting VAT on summer days out for families from 20% to 5%.

The temporary tax cut is from 25 June to 1 September.

Labour says it only ‘expects’ companies running supermarkets not to simply keep the reduced tariff gains. The same seems to be true of the reduced VAT gains on theme parks, zoos and other days out. Companies could just pocket the cost decrease and keep prices the same.

The policies show an affront to democracy

The way Labour is conducting the policies show a further entrenchment of corporatism. The government is proposing policies to supermarkets that the corporations can choose whether or not to accept. Indeed, corporations rejected a proposal on price controls on food staples.

That’s opposed to Labour actually regulating the economy for the public good. That said, it would be easier to do so if the ruling party was working off a democratically-backed manifesto instead of just doing whatever once in government.

“Shield workers”

The secretary general of the TUC, Paul Nowak, told the Guardian Labour needs to be “bolder” than its summer policies:

Any practical steps to help families with the cost of living crisis are a good thing, but we’ve barely begun to experience the economic fallout of the Iran war – and the threat to living standards is going to grow as the war drags on. The government will need to be bolder to shield workers and households from Trump’s illegal war.

Indeed, the huge profits made by corporate middlemen and utilities shows the ‘cost of living crisis’ is manufactured. Labour could do more.

Featured image via Stefan Rousseau-Pool/Getty Images

By James Wright

UK government throws another £65m at war satellite upgrade

Joe Glenton — Fri, 22 May 2026 23:53:28 +0000

The UK has earmarked £65m to upgrade Skynet (actual name), a war satellite system once used to fly drones over Afghanistan. The system contains software run by yet another global military firm with interests in AI war systems. That is the second one this week.

A government press release once again conflated business and public safety with lucrative defence interests:

Vital emergency services, military operations and British businesses will be better protected through a new system to protect UK satellites and the services they provide from space.

20% of UK economy reliant on satellite services which are essential for military operations, navigation, money transfers and global communications.

Has anyone thought to separate them? Probably not…

Borealis satellite software

The press release said a new software called Borealis would improve the Skynet satellite system:

The new software, known as Borealis, is now operational six months ahead of schedule and will better protect the UK by improving the awareness and ability to track objects in space.

This includes debris and satellites from adversaries that might be a threat to UK satellites, with Borealis providing the military with crucial information to protect and defend space systems and assets.

Defence minister Luke Pollard said:

Space is now a contested domain. Protecting our satellites from adversaries keeps our economy moving and keeps us all safe. As we increase defence spending we are investing in new defensive capabilities in all domains, including UK space-based capabilities.

While the UK’s chief space cadet — joking, the head of UK Space Command — General Paul Tedman said:

Protecting and defending the invisible front line in space requires us to see and understand what is happening in orbit and then make decisions at machine speed.

Adding that the new technology would provide his troops with “actionable choices”.

Space minister (actual job title) Liz Lloyd added:

Borealis represents a significant step forward in the UK’s ability to monitor, protect and defend the critical space capabilities.

This joint investment by the UK Space Agency and Space Command, backed by British expertise and jobs, ensures the UK remains a world leader in understanding and protecting the space environment for generations to come.

The main winner here seems to be IT firm CGI. Whose head of death and destruction (defence and intelligence) Neil Timms claimed:

Delivering Borealis to operational readiness half a year early highlights CGI’s track record in delivering complex, secure space systems. By combining deep domain expertise with modern engineering practices, we’ve provided a scalable capability that can adapt as mission demands and the threat landscape continue to evolve.

Pure jargonese and about as clear as mud. What is clear is that CGI has global interests in defence, intelligence, oil and gas and healthcare. Sounds a bit like Palantir… hmmm

Turns out CGI has interests in sovereign AI (AI for nation-states). The CGI website says very little beyond claiming to have proven results in:

Defense and security environments with disconnected and edge AI.

We’re not sure what ‘edge AI’ is but it sounds like something Palantir boss Alex Karp does in his spare time. Joke! Please don’t sue us. We’re just a very high-spirited newsroom on a Friday!

Campaign against the Arms Trade reported in 2019 that CGI acquired SCISYS Group, another IT firm whose military activities include:

work on the Astute submarine, the Warrior infantry fighting vehicle and the F-35 Lightning combat aircraft.

Amazing how so much the ‘IT’ profession has moved from two Warhammer fans in a basement office to remotely killing people around the world. Sign of the times, we suppose…

UK NGO Drone Wars has covered Skynet and the militarisation of space for many years. The organisation reported in 2010:

The [Skynet] satellites enable RAF pilots sitting in their base in the Nevada desert to fly Reaper drones and launch their missiles over Afghanistan. Via Skynet 5’s high-bandwidth connection, information and video from the Reapers over Afghanistan is beamed to Creech USAF base in Nevada and to the UK.

So that’s another £65m fired into space, quite literally. And with space minister Liz Lloyd, First Space Lord Tedman and actual space cadet Luke Pollard at the helm of the Starship Starmer-prise, there’s no doubt we’ll all be safer and more prosperous for it.

Right? RIGHT?

Featured image via Matt Cardy/Getty Images

INTERVIEWS: Inside Bolivia’s deepening political turmoil, hopes meet revolt

Cameron Baillie — Fri, 22 May 2026 23:21:31 +0000

Bolivia is in full-scale political crisis mode over one week into an indefinite general strike. Workers are organising against the neoliberal US-aligned administration led by President Rodrigo Paz.

A massive crowd assembled in La Paz’s working class twin city, El Alto, to demand Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz resign

Indigenous-led demonstrations come as the Bolivian regime was caught preparing to launch a US-backed operation to kidnap Evo Morales with 2,000+ troops & cops pic.twitter.com/DWwwaLGGf8

— Wyatt Reed (@wyattreed13) May 17, 2026

The South American state is fraught with popular mobilisations, fuel and inflationary crises, widespread discontent and blatantly escalating US interference.

Many demonstrators direct their anger against the relatively new Paz-led government. Unions are leading strategic road blockades and walkouts to pressure Paz’s neoliberal regime to not betray the promises which brought him to power.

Security forces have clashed with strikers and protestors in multiple cities, allegedly under government direction to shoot even live ammunition at protestors.

Caravans numbering thousands of marchers are converging on administrative capital La Paz. Unions representing peasant and proletarian workers are leading the charge.

Unions in significant industrial regions, Potosí and Santa Cruz, have now joined. These represent dominant mining and agro-industry regions respectively.

Unionised medical worker Almin Arminda Iglesias explained the situation directly to the Canary:

…the situation here in Bolivia is serious. The workers’ representatives submitted their list of demands as they do every year, but this government turned a deaf ear to our requests, especially the wage increase — in other words, it doesn’t want to raise our salaries.

The cost of the family food basket has gone up, this government is favoring big businessmen by lowering their taxes and allowing free export of certain foods, leaving the population without adequate supply. It has already been several days of strikes and mobilizations.

On top of that, the persecution of workers’ leaders has begun.

Bajan de lo mas profundo de Bolivia los campesinos, indígenas, a sumarse al clamor popular por una Bolivia soberana y rechazar los paquetazos impuestos por el BM, FMI, bajo la anuencia de Rodrigo Paz y sus marionetas serviles en complicidad con el gran capital extranjero. pic.twitter.com/jJ5oc74oFp

— El Fantasma (@AlTopeyPunto891) May 21, 2026

Bolivia — On the edge of revolution?

Bolivia’s staunchly militant indigenous, peasant and industrial working classes have sustained peaceful but effective road blockades in the countryside. Demonstrators in the cities have clashed with police forces.

One militant wing, the ponchos rojos (Red Ponchos), was recorded practicing combat-style formations and promising to take up arms against their right-wing government if necessary. They vow to defend their class, their 36 national communities and their natural world by any means necessary.

This is what Bolivia’s general strike looks like in rural areas. All the villages occupy the stretch of highway nearest to them, cutting off all trade and travel between cities.

This is in Tiraque Province, Cochabamba. pic.twitter.com/QNLL3ZYPU6

— Ollie Vargas (@Ollie_Vargas_) May 18, 2026

Os “Ponchos Rojos” estão liderando ENORMES rebeliões populares contra o governo de extrema direita de Rodrigo Paz na Bolívia

Vídeos mostram a polícia RECUANDO diante de manifestantes armados com chicotes, paus e pedras em El Alto, enquanto bloqueios e greves se espalham… pic.twitter.com/gRTfUyObUS

— O Papo (@O_Papo_) May 17, 2026

The Paz government was elected in 2025 on a promise of what was called “centre-right” reform by the global corporate media. Paz campaigned on a platform of “capitalism for all” and quickly bowed to the US.

One of Paz’s immediate moves in office was to cut fuel subsidies, which were a lifeline for many in the low-income country but which also drained the state’s coffers. Bolivia became dependent on imports following the commodity boom and then sold these imported petro-fuels at a discount.

Speaking directly to the Canary, unionised indigenous Bolivian food seller Vilma Paredes said:

The people endure, the people have memory, they neither forget nor forgive. A people that removed two presidents in this century — do you think they won’t be able to do it now? More and more lies are being exposed, coming to light.

If the president doesn’t come clean with the indigenous peoples and ask for forgiveness, there’s no going back. The government is sinking deeper and deeper…

La policía es corrida a LATIGAZOS por los ponchos rojos de Bolivia.
La revolución obrera y campesina está triunfando.
El régimen de Rodrigo Paz está en sus últimas horas. pic.twitter.com/AXCEwXPPuG

— The Chad Grabois gordo geopolítica (@ChadGrabois) May 17, 2026

#Bolivia: Members of the indigenous “Ponchos Rojos” movement have threatened an armed uprising against President Rodrigo Paz amid Bolivia’s worsening economic and fuel crisis and the ongoing nationwide unrest.

The group, historically linked to Aymara mobilizations and allied… pic.twitter.com/RwTgEuwUCL

— POPULAR FRONT (@PopularFront_) May 19, 2026

Not without costs

The popular uprising underway in Bolivia is not without costs. ‘Struggle’ bears its name for a reason.

Unionised psychiatrist Roger Peña told the Canary that, although many understand the Paz administration appears to be set on directing wealth upwards, there is genuine need for some reform around fuel. But the illegal US-Zionist war on Iran has exacerbated fuel crises further, and the people are reacting, Peña said.

Some people understand that Evo Morales and the popular movement are trying to carry out a coup, according to Peña, or see it as sedition by the COB. (I contend that the name of a ‘coup’ driven from below, rather than imposed from above, is rightly called a revolution.) Others support the COB but with great difficulty:

There are people who, if they do not work a day, they cannot eat. … Sadly, it’s the poorest.

Certainly, there are people who are against these mobilisations. …

But it’s the government who are presenting charges for sedition.

Miles de mineros y obreros bolivianos se unieron contra el régimen de Rodrigo Paz, títere de EEUU, que quiere entregar los recursos y privatizar el pais para entregárselo al imperio.

El imperialismo quiere que Bolivia sea otra Argentina, el pueblo mandó a parar y está luchando… pic.twitter.com/ChMd9vfQXU

— Daniel Mayakovski (@DaniMayakovski) May 22, 2026

Yet clearly the mobilisations have drawn out many thousands, if not millions, across the country. Two contacts in Bolivia’s union movement, more and less sympathetic, confirmed to the Canary that it’s led overwhelmingly by indigenous and peasant workers. As white power reasserts itself over the historic progress made by indigenous Americans nationally and regionally, Morales wrote on X:

[Paz,] Being a foreigner, he surely hates Bolivians. He criminalizes, persecutes, and represses indigenous people. He thinks and acts like an imperialist, neoliberal, and neocolonialist.

Separately, Morales wrote of US hypocrisy on X:

The US does not defend democracy nor respect International Law. It finances right-wing coups d’état. It invades countries and steals their natural resources. It defends submissive and sellout governments. The US supported the 2019 coup d’état of the Gringo against the Indian to seize our lithium.

The Bank of Bolivia

Now Bolivians charge, against Paz, that his government seemingly intends to sabotage any potential incoming popular government. Footage emerged of armoured private bank vehicles “vacating” the Bank of Bolivia, with accusations that they seek to empty it like was done to Venezuela under the US-backed anti-democratic Juan Guaidó coup in 2019. The Bank of England holds Venezuelan gold for ransom years later.

In one heart-breaking video shared online, an older man tells viewers that his own son, a policeman, is “there to repress me.” It underscores the structures and divisions that can tear apart a society. See it below:

Bolivian worker on strike: My own son is standing over there to repress me. pic.twitter.com/a00OyIlAFq

— Ollie Vargas (@Ollie_Vargas_) May 20, 2026

There appears to be no end in sight for many until the resignation of Rodrigo Paz. Many doubtless recognise that, whatever the immediate costs of popular revolt, the cost of subservience to US empire are greater.

Day 9 of the general strike in Bolivia. People are composing protest songs while doing night shift at the barricades pic.twitter.com/FnY5OZYTEa

— Ollie Vargas (@Ollie_Vargas_) May 22, 2026

Featured image taken from X via the Canary

By Cameron Baillie

Bolivian puppet regime and US Pentagon target leftist strike leaders

Cameron Baillie — Fri, 22 May 2026 22:24:43 +0000

Bolivia — Government targeting leftist leaders

Strikes and police crackdowns across Bolivia have led to at least 90, perhaps over 120, arrests on leftists.

The Bolivian justice department and policing Commander General have issued arrest warrants for the ongoing general strike‘s leadership. This is aimed explicitly at the Bolivian Workers’ Central (COB)-led strikes.

COB strike leaders — David Quispe Machaca, Juan Hector Huacani Guachalla, Justino Apaza Callisaya, Winston Jemio Quispe Gutierrez and Nilton Condori Alanoc — are being charged with:

“Terrorism;”
“Financing terrorism;”
“Instigation of delinquency;”
“Delinquent association;”
“Activities against the security of transport routes;” and
“Activities against the security of public services.”

The government has presented no clear evidence for “terroristic” activities or the financing of them. Meanwhile, “delinquency” can be stretched to cover basically anything. As regards transport routes and public services, the Bolivian people frequently disrupt roads for political action (I experienced these firsthand in July 2025, with zero arrests). Attempts to criminalise this activity now indicate fragility in Paz’s regime.

These targeted attacks come as the indigenous movement, still led from formal political exile by Evo Morales, made the Paz administration an ultimatum of 90 days. They demand a new general election after Paz secured only two governorships out of nine in April’s regional elections — despite his election less than a year ago.

Bolivia’s government has ordered the arrest of all the main leaders of the indigenous movements and mineworkers unions.

They’re being charged for Terrorism for having organised the general strike against hunger. Strike continues regardless, now in day 7. pic.twitter.com/5ISk3KPb68

— Ollie Vargas (@Ollie_Vargas_) May 19, 2026

US imperial involvement

Ex-president of Bolivia and longstanding indigenous socialist leader Evo Morales claimed on 15 May that the US military sought to “detain or kill” him in a military operation. Regional independent journalist Ollie Vargas confirmed the operation with leaked documents detailing over 2,300 troops and DEA (US) involvement. (See the Canary‘s full explainer.)

US Deputy Secretary of State Chris Landau pinned the popular uprising on the “support of organized crime and drug traffickers,” without any supporting evidence. It’s a common tactic of US imperialists to equate coca farmers with narcotics producers, where coca has an ancient connection to indigenous Andean peoples.

Let there be no mistake: those who lost overwhelmingly at the ballot box in Bolivia last year are trying to overthrow President @Rodrigo_PazP by organizing RIOTS and BLOCKADES with the support of organized crime and drug traffickers. I spoke with my friend President Paz this…

— Christopher Landau (@DeputySecState) May 19, 2026

Now US hemispheric hawk, Landau’s boss, Marco Rubio himself has joined in the fray. Absurdly, Marco ‘Narco’ Rubio — whose brother-in-law is a convicted cocaine trafficker — declared on X that the US:

will not allow criminals and drug traffickers to overthrow democratically elected leaders in our hemisphere.

This comes after Trump’s presidential pardons of high-profile convicted drug traffickers, like Honduran ex-president Juan Orlando Hernández. This suggests clear bias in how the US selectively deploys narcotics laws. Deepening US collaboration with the Ecuadorian presidential Noboa oligarch family, credibly accused of drug trafficking, demonstrate how selectively the US weaponises these sentiments.

The US has a long and dark history of doing exactly that, from Panama to Colombia to, most recently, Honduras. The latest is with the direct aid of Benjamin Netanyahu (see: ‘Hondurasgate‘). In every instance the US has happily backed or overlooked drug lords and despots wherever they were an alternative to leftists.

Screenshot of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s X account — via X

Regional solidarity and hostility

Colombian socialist President Gustavo Petro repeatedly voiced support for the Bolivian workers’ struggles. He denounced weaponised US equation of indigenous coca farming with narcotics production. Petro adds:

An attack on a legitimate former president and indigenous leader like Evo Morales will only fill all of Latin America with blood.

As the flag of the early US proclaims, it is by respecting diversity and dialogue that democracy and liberty will grow in the Americas.

Evo Morales thanked Petro for his messages of solidarity, alongside Honduran socialist ex-president Manuel Zelaya. The latter also voiced support for the Bolivian workers’ struggles.

National governments across the Americas are making clear their entire submission to the imperial control of the US Pentagon complex. They’ve all banded themselves neatly together under the (seemingly Marvel-inspired) name ‘Shield of the Americas‘.

Astonishingly, the US-led ‘Shield’ — note which countries it includes — denounced actions they see as:

subverting the constitutional order and destabilizing the democratically elected government of Bolivia.

…Because the US would never do that to a sovereign Latin American government, right? (See: Cuba, Mexico, Colombia and Venezuela today; Chile, Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, etc. yesterday.)

Taken from X @Ollie_Vargas_

People rightly mocked Paz‘s Bolivian Foreign Ministry for merely translating and sharing US government statements without any amendments. It’s hard to crystallise subservience to empire much clearer.

There could be no greater confirmation that Paz’s government is captured. Paz, and so Bolivia’s unmatched access to lithium reserves, are entirely bent to US and foreign capitalist interests.

From a US Gov website section ‘Shield of the Americas‘

Featured image taken from X via the Canary

By Cameron Baillie

Shapeshifting Burnham ditches trans rights to panic-grab Reform votes

Antifabot — Fri, 22 May 2026 21:22:59 +0000

Greater Manchester mayor and Makerfield by-election hopeful Andy Burnham has dumped his past defence of Trans people to protect his bid for Westminster, it seems. Journalist Alex Wickham has revealed that Burnham now backs the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) restrictions on single-sex spaces. This u-turn appears to be nothing but a transparent bid for Reform votes, something we could have predicted coming a mile off.

NEW: Another Andy Burnham u-turn appeared designed at dropping his past positions to win Reform votes

He says he supports the EHRC guidance on single sex spaces and the Supreme Court ruling

Previously he said trans women should be able to use female toilets

— Alex Wickham (@alexwickham) May 22, 2026

A political shapeshifter

This policy shift directly contradicts Burnham’s previous stance and public record. He had previously slammed single-sex restrictions on bathrooms, claiming only a minority of people object to Trans women using female toilets.

However, the EHRC has now laid its 300-page statutory, and very confusing legislation before parliament on Thursday 21 May 2026. The new rules allow providers of services to exclude Trans people from single-sex spaces like hospital wards and bathrooms. And of course, Burnham has bent to government pressure and has toed the line. And not least of all because his bid for Westminster could be scuppered by Reform UK.

This updated code creates a total mess of legalese that simply ignores everyday, lived experiences. As a relatively masculine cis woman, this new code scares me. The thought that I could be stopped going to the toilet by some dude because I have a partially shaved head and a deeper voice is unsettling as hell. And where does this end? Are we going to have genital inspectors on the door, offering you a polo and a spritz of perfume if your body conforms enough to get in? And if this is a scary thought for me, how the hell are our Trans brothers and sisters feeling right now? And what about Intersex people? Urgh, this reeks of misogyny. Any woman who sees this legislation as a positive has no idea the power they have just given to a male dominated society.

Trans rights lead Jess O’Thompson warns it treats trans people as a third sex by forcing them to use separate spaces, which violates human rights law. O’Thompson stated:

It still treats Trans people as a third sex, suggesting they should be made to use separate spaces – entirely ignoring the harm this causes, and human rights law. We will keep fighting this discriminatory approach.

Prioritising legal definitions over reality means the EHRC creates an even more hostile environment for people who just want to live their lives. We need to just learn to leave people alone.

Reform has Burnham running scared, it seems

This ridiculous u-turn comes as Burnham is campaigning as Labour candidate for the Makerfield by-election. The safe-seat was specifically resigned by Josh Simons to give Burnham a clear path to return to Westminster.

But then again, Burnham may have a reason to panic, as Reform candidate Robert Kenyon may actually pose a threat. Burnham needs to win back a fifth of the voters who have drifted to Reform to secure the seat. And what better way to do that than to throw Trans people under the bus?

Look he’s desperate to win the by-election and one day emerge as PM. Principles and previous policy opinions are completely dispensable- 4 U turns this week already. Consistent with how he was when last MP. He will let down his soft left supporters. https://t.co/bFFWGueoeg

— Gwynoro Jones (@Gwynoro) May 22, 2026

Additionally to this, he has pivoted on a number of policies to win those votes back. He used to say he wanted the UK to rejoin the EU in his lifetime. Binned that one on Thursday, claiming it wasn’t a priority. Actually more likely because Makerfield constituents voted overwhelmingly to leave. His previous criticisms of Westminster’s fiscal rules on strict borrowing limits? Binned.

Burnham has proven he’s willing to throw marginalised people under the bus for a sniff of a seat in Westminster. The question is, will the people of Makerfield see through it? Or are they going to be happy to elect a man who shapes his principles around nothing but gaining more power?

Time will tell.

Featured image via Facebook

By Antifabot

Legitimise and reintegrate: Syria’s ex-Al Qaeda president to attend G7 conference

Joe Glenton — Fri, 22 May 2026 20:40:40 +0000

Former Al Qaeda member and US-backed Syrian president Ahmed Al-Sharaa will be a guest at the influential G7 forum. Al-Sharaa’s presence is about Syria’s reintegration into the global capitalist economy. Syria’s use by Western powers as a “potential strategic hub for supply chains” will also be discussed given the Strait of Hormuz is blocked.

The G7 is a multinational economic and political forum made up of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the US. The EU is a non-enumerated member.

It meets annually:

to coordinate policy on global economic, security, and other critical issues, acting as a platform for shaping international responses to challenges like climate change, economic crises, and security threats.

Modern Diplomacy reported on 21 May:

Syria will participate in the upcoming G7 Summit in France as a guest nation, marking its first presence at the forum since its creation in 1975.

The country will be represented by President Ahmed al Sharaa, following an invitation linked to broader discussions on global supply chain stability and post-conflict economic rebuilding.

Economist Joseph Daher told New Arab:

The meeting is part of a continuous process to legitimise this government and reintegrate it regionally and internationally, as evidenced in the last few weeks, for example, by the issuance of visa cards and allowing international transactions.

Al-Sharaa replaced Syrian president Bashar Al-Assad in 2024. He was previously head of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a split from the Syrian wing of Al Qaeda.

Syria — Al Qaeda and the global economy

Al-Sharaa visited the White House in November 2025. It was a bizarre spectacle. The Canary wrote at the time:

for 25 years the US carried out a campaign of world-spanning violence. Entire countries were destroyed, with millions killed, injured and displaced in the process. Unknown and unnamed thousands were imprisoned and tortured. All in the name, as global audiences were told, of defeating Al Qaeda – a sinister network of death. Never mind that we created and turbocharged one of our own, on a far bigger scale, to attempt the task.

Clearly, these narratives still hold a singular power. Al-Qaeda and 9/11 are still cited to justify officially sanctioned use of violence — from bombing Venezuela to repressing the American left in recent months.

But the undeniable fact is that yesterday a former Al-Qaeda leader — until very recently — was in the White House smiling.

Daher felt Al-Sharaa’s guest appearance was less about helping ordinary Syrian’s and more about serving a colonial agenda:

The Syrian people are clearly not on the agenda for these meetings; this is about consolidating a state that serves [foreign] interests.

New Arab reported:

An invitation to Sharaa to attend the 15-17 June summit in Évian-les-Bains, southeastern France, was hand-delivered to Syrian Finance Minister Yisr Barnieh, who attended the group’s financial talks earlier this week in Paris.

The outlet said that the country was seeking to attract economic investment to rebuild. The leadership saw the Hormuz crisis as a chance to do so:

Regional powers, particularly the Gulf Arab states, and international interests, notably Western states, are converging on Syria, all seeking stability and commercial opportunities, facilitated by a government willing to serve their needs.

And:

At the same time, the ruling authority headed by Ahmed al-Sharaa seeks to embed itself within Western hegemonic infrastructure, while hedging its bets by pursuing ties with Russia and other alternatives.

The Western powers have gone a step further than before. Under a former Al Qaeda leadership, Syria is being reintegrated into the global economy.

This is being done under the aegis of Trump’s failing war in Iran. The G7 nations seem to hope that after a decade and a half of brutal civil war, Syria can be a hub for some form of economic workaround, offsetting the impacts of the latest US-Israeli disaster in the region.

Featured image via Justin Tallis – WPA Pool/Getty Images

Why Enfield has more Labour councillors than it needed to have

Ed Sykes — Fri, 22 May 2026 19:04:27 +0000

Labour lost control of Enfield Council at the local election but, with more coordination and cooperation, progressives could have easily taken even more seats from Labour.

Enfield Independent leader to Greens: ‘If we had formed an alliance, we would have won’

A strong independent campaign hoped to play a key role in taking overall control away from Labour. But while there had previously been talks with local Greens, the Green Party chose to stand across Enfield, including in wards independents were targeting. Conservatives ended up with 31 councillors, Labour with 27, and the Greens with 5.

In Upper Edmonton ward, for example, Labour got all three council seats. But if Enfield Community Independents and Greens had run a joint campaign, it’s very possible that Labour would have got no councillors at all.

Enfield Community Independents (ECI) leader Khalid Sadur stood in Upper Edmonton. And as he told the Canary:

If one of us had stepped down, we would have won. If we had formed an alliance, we would have won.

The lesson is clear, he said:

If we stand separately, we will lose, and Labour will get in.

Both progressive forces, Sadur stressed, had something different to offer in the election. The Greens had a big national media profile, especially considering the wave of attention current leader Zack Polanski has received. But ECI had been out in the community for years building connections with local people. As Sadur insisted:

We know the people on the ground… We are local residents – we came from a really grassroots approach, where we literally brought people along and got them to vote for the first time…

The people that we spoke to are the people who voted for us, and they absolutely bought into the idea that they needed local people to represent them on their local council — people who knew their area, weren’t taking them for granted like the existing Labour Party, who don’t have councillors who live in the ward.

He even added that, in the areas ECI was campaigning:

There was no one on the ground apart from us. We were out canvassing, leafletting. But we never saw any other party on the streets.

‘We have to put egos aside’ to stop Reform

In our current political system, many voters do depend on a national profile and vote accordingly. And partly on this basis, Greens made some gains in Enfield. But even without a national profile, ECI candidates got hundreds upon hundreds of votes from hard campaigning on the ground, and were a real challenger in some areas.

The point Sadur made was that the Greens couldn’t win solely with a national profile on their side, and ECI weren’t able to win on local campaigning alone (without a big national profile behind them). With this in mind, he said:

The goal really is to try and get us together, such that we can then come together and actually campaign together, bring the expertise that we have — in terms of the campaigning history and background and experience – together with the profile of the Greens, and form a challenge.

In a call for unity, Sadur said:

The battle lines need to be drawn for the next general election very clearly. It’s going to be left versus right.

There needs to be a single candidate on the left who’s going to be able to take on the right.

We cannot afford to split the left vote and allow Reform in.

We have to put egos aside and do actually what’s in the best interests of our residents, our constituents, and frankly, our country.

He added:

There needs to be a commitment to do this together. Because we’ve got three elections’ worth of data. So we know where our voters are, we know where the postal voters are. The Greens need our help and assistance on that. Together, we are a formidable force locally. We need unity, not division.

This is an important message not just in Enfield, but across the country. Because it’s clearly no longer time for party political games. It’s time to join together in a spirit of cooperation and mount a strong resistance to the fascists of Reform.

Featured image via Leon Neal/Getty Images

By Ed Sykes

Unions welcome ‘Summer Savings’ plan but want it to go further

The Canary — Fri, 22 May 2026 16:43:20 +0000

Trade unions have offered a guarded welcome to the government’s ‘Summer Savings’ plans. These include several measures which aim to ease summer holiday expense for families with children.

Labour affiliated transport union TSSA has welcomed as an ‘important first step’ the government’s introduction of free bus travel for under-16s in England across August.

This was part a series of measures that chancellor Rachel Reeves outlined, called ‘Great British Summer Savings’. It also includes a temporary reduction in VAT across Scotland, England and Wales from June to September. The reduction applies to admission tickets for family shows and attractions and children’s menu meals.

In April, TSSA called on ministers to tackle the cost of living crisis by making public transport free for a year.

Commenting, TSSA general secretary Maryam Eslamdoust said:

It’s good to see the government taking this important first step by providing free bus travel for young people for the summer months, along with other assistance.

We have been clear that action needed to be taken quickly to help the many people who are struggling simply to pay for the basics in life.

Undoubtedly measures like those which have been announced can make a real difference and this is what a Labour government should be doing.

However, the chancellor should now look at extending support as part of a wider package of help, well beyond the summer months. Not only would doing so assist those most in need, it will help the wider economy.

Performers should share in Summer Savings boost

Meanwhile, performing arts and entertainment trade union Equity has welcomed the announcement of government help for family days out over the summer school holidays. It wants to ensure that any increased revenue from the ‘Summer Savings’ scheme passes on to performers and creatives.

Equity points out that the industries in scope are responsible for employing or engaging large numbers of performers and creatives. It says many of them are in precarious, insecure and low-paid work. So, while a boost to ticket sales would be welcome, the union wants workers to share in the uplift.

An Equity spokesperson said:

We welcome government measures to boost the live performance, theatre and cinema sectors and promotions to help families become audiences at these events.

We want to see workers share in the uplift in sales and expect Society Of London Theatres, UK Theatre, theme park operators and others engaging performers and creatives to ensure increased sales and profits are passed on to the performers and creative workforce who are the heart of this industry.

Featured image via Getty Images

Reform losers resurrect racist election smear after Manchester arrests

Ed Sykes — Fri, 22 May 2026 16:04:32 +0000

Reform lost the Gorton and Denton by-election in February, but the Thatcherite bigots are still trying to call this massive defeat into question. How? With racist dog-whistles, and by talking about something different that some other people reportedly did somewhere else in Greater Manchester…

Farage’s not-so-subtle dog-whistle

Keir Starmer’s Labour Party, no stranger to dodgy tricks itself, reportedly got fake independent candidates to run in Tameside’s local elections to split the vote in its favour. And on 21 May, police arrested five people in connection to the controversial events in St Peter’s ward (which isn’t in the Gorton and Denton constituency).

In a clear response to the news, Farage spoke about the events in relation to Gorton and Denton – a different election in a different place – and avoided mentioning St Peter’s ward entirely. He said:

I have warned repeatedly over many years about election fraud and always been ignored.

The Gorton & Denton by-election was a disgrace, but at last there have been some arrests in Greater Manchester.

— Nigel Farage MP (@Nigel_Farage) May 22, 2026

In other words, he carefully hinted at a connection without specifically alleging that the same thing had happened in the same place.

Farage’s aim seemed clear: to use the Tameside arrests exposing Labour’s dirty tactics to resurrect Islamophobic lies about “family voting”, instead of admitting that the Greens battered Reform fair and square in Gorton and Denton.

Reform’s tantrums

In Gorton and Denton, Farage’s party lost by well over 4,000 votes. But it had a tantrum anyway. It quickly blamed ‘family voting‘ for the result, trying to sow seeds of suspicion, particularly about Muslim backers of the Green Party, by suggesting men had told their wives how to vote.

Greater Manchester Police ended its investigation into Reform’s allegations a month later because there was no reliable evidence.

That hasn’t stopped Reform voices continuing to spread smears and misinformation, though. Because like Farage, racist Gorton-and-Denton-by-election-loser Matt Goodwin also responded to the news of the Tameside arrests by referring back to the Islamophobic lies about Gorton and Denton and failing to mention Tameside itself.

Other far-right agitators have joined in the ‘nudge nudge, wink wink’ dog-whistle campaign too.

They know exactly what they’re doing. And they don’t care. Because truth gets in the way of spreading hate and division.

Featured image via Christopher Furlong/Getty Images

By Ed Sykes

Moog 4 prepare to stand trial

The Canary — Fri, 22 May 2026 16:00:36 +0000

The Moog 4 are comprised of four pro-Palestine activists who were arrested and remanded to prison for six months in August 2025. Their trial is due to start at Birmingham Crown Court on 4 June 2026. Regardless of the outcome, it is an action that has shed new light on the UK government’s facilitation of the genocide in Gaza

Moog Inc.

You might associate the name Moog with electronic instruments and synthesisers. It turns out Robert Moog had an equally inventive cousin, Bill, who went into aviation and engineering.

The company that bears Bill’s name supplies key parts to the global F-35 programme and for the M-346 trainer aircraft – specifically, flight actuators. These are essential parts that no other company makes.

In the recent Al-Haq judicial review, the High Court ruled that exports for the F-35 to Israel could not be suspended, because the programme is overseen by the US. The M-346 is another matter.

M-346

Reporting from Declassified UK explains how the M-346 trains would-be Israeli fighter jet pilots, who have carried out much of the destruction of Gaza, Lebanon, and Iran. The Israeli Air Force, always prone to brag, claims that they can have pilots go from training to live deployment is as little as six months.

The UK government knows all about this. In an internal briefing written by the Foreign Office, they concluded that the M-346 “facilitates the development of an offensive capability”. In their own words, the M-346 facilitates genocide, but they have spent more time prevaricating about what the words “facilitation” and “genocide” mean rather than doing their due diligence to halt even the risk of the slaughter of Palestinians, as is their duty under international law.

Chris Bryant MP was asked about all of this during a select committee meeting in 2025. He said:

the assessment is that the training of an aircraft pilot on such equipment would take so long that they would not be among the people who would be engaged in fighter combat in Gaza.

But the briefing Bryant received on the M-346 does not mention anything about the time taken to train pilots, and if he’d done his own research he’d know it does not take long at all, so it appears Bryant was simply making this up on the spot.

The only argument that Bryant’s briefing made was that, since these trainer aircraft are not used over Gaza themselves, because they have no direct “combat utility”, then exports can continue. This contradicts the government’s own assessment of the M-346 facilitating an offensive capability.

Moog’s shipments to Israel

Last year Declassified reported that they had acquired records of at least 10 shipments going from Wolverhampton to Israel. (They now have many more.)

Moog has done everything in its power to keep its shipping routes open, with the full support of the UK government and its courts. Following the Moog 4’s action, the company took out an injunction – an characteristically American tactic not often used in the UK – that makes any disruption outside the factory illegal. They also changed their shipping patterns in response.

If Moog did this to avoid scrutiny, they probably shouldn’t have started shipping parts via Belgium… Unlike the UK, Belgium does have a full arms embargo on Israel, which includes shipments from other countries over land or through its airspace. As previously reported by the Canary, Moog were caught trucking their military components to Liege airport, before flying them out to Israel from there. Their shipments were seized and a criminal investigation has been opened in Belgium into Moog’s activities as a result.

This hardly comes as a surprise. In 2024, Moog were fined almost $2m for bribing Indian officials to acquire public tenders. They are a company that will do anything to maintain its profits, with no concern for business ethics, never mind human life.

Moog 4 on trial

Despite all of this, Moog are not on trial or under investigation — at least not in this country. Instead, the UK government seeks to convict four people for trying to do what they should have done two years ago, which is stop this country’s corporate facilitation of Israel’s genocide in Gaza.

The activists are alleged to have caused £1.2m worth of damage to Moog’s factory. Given that four of the Filton 6 may be sentenced as terrorists for their direct action, similarly on the basis of a high level of property damage, there are concerns that the Moog 4 will face the same repressive treatment.

There is a clear pattern in this country showing that the UK wants to designate protesters as terrorists, when all they have done is try to uphold international law and save Palestinian lives. Under their scaremongering use of the Terrorism Act, which is having a chilling effect across this country, what is really happening is that the moral conduct of normal citizens is being outlawed by a government that would rather sit on its hands and rake in profits. They will brutalise anyone who puts human life before their pockets. We cannot allow this to continue.

Featured image via the Canary

A fox is running in Makerfield by-election to challenge Hunting Act loopholes

Antifabot — Fri, 22 May 2026 15:42:54 +0000

A brave animal advocate has announced he will throw his hat into the ring for the upcoming Makerfield by-election. But there’s a catch. He’s going to be running dressed as a giant fox.

Robert Pownall aims to directly defy Labour and its failure to strengthen the Hunting Act. This stunt is a direct message to Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham, as he attempts to re-enter Westminster.

Chasing accountability with tail held high

Pownall is the founder of wildlife protection organisation Protect the Wild and confirmed his bid for parliament on Friday 22 May 2026. His campaign will see him scurrying around the constituency totally kitted out in a full fox costume. His aim is to encourage people to respond to the government’s hunting consultation and to support stronger legislation against fox hunting.

This fox would get my vote

This symbolic protest lands in the middle of a political battleground. The by-election was triggered by the sudden resignation of Labour MP Josh Simons. But Burnham is facing a challenge from Reform, after Labour lost all of its 22 seats in Wigan just a few miles away.

Pownall previously stood in the May 2026 Scottish parliament elections dressed as a giant gannet. For those of you who aren’t sure what a gannet is, it’s a stunning seabird and Pownall pulled that stunt to bring attention to the controversial guga hunt in the north of Scotland.

Now, he is turning his focus – and his tail – to the loopholes that allow illegal fox hunting to continue in England.

Beyond party politics

It was over 20 years ago that the Hunting Act banned chasing and killing of foxes with hounds. But it hasn’t stopped the hunt at all, and I have seen it with my own eyes.

Currently, huntsmen can claim that they have laid ‘scent trails’ and that they’re merely following these through the woods with baying hounds. It’s bullshit and nothing more than a smokescreen to allow them to go out and murder innocent wildlife.

Pownall stated:

For over 20 years, hunts across the country have continued chasing and killing foxes, deer and hare because of loopholes, exemptions and weak enforcement of the hunting ban. Labour supporters were promised stronger protection for wildlife. We intend to make sure that they don’t quietly wriggle out of delivering them.

Protecting the wild

Protect the Wild is absolutely fierce in what it does, exposing instances of wildlife persecution regularly. Its campaigns have managed to get several major landowners to totally ban trail hunting on their properties.

The group was the first in recent times to expose a hunt mercilessly killing a hound, purely because it wasn’t quite up to standard. It’s disgusting, the way these people can see sentient life, a living and breathing creature, like it’s nothing but a tool.

I would trust this fox more than most MPs

This new campaign focuses heavily on ending legal loopholes. Pownall wants to increase police enforcement powers – something that I personally believe needs to happen, as I have been there during illegal hunts and witnessed the police refusing to even attend.

Vitally, Pownall also wants to drive public participation in the current government consultation. Most people in the UK are entirely against fox hunting. I mean, come on. Who actually thinks it is okay to murder a defenceless, fluffy little fox? Especially when it’s done by jumped-up rich parasites on horses. The political delay on the matter doesn’t match public opinion. At all.

This isn’t about left versus right; this is about saving lives. The public settled this debate years ago. The problem is that politicians are dragging their feet. So, if these politicians won’t speak for foxes, then maybe foxes need to start standing for parliament themselves.

Featured image via Carl Court / Getty Images

By Antifabot

Muslims unite at funeral prayer for San Diego heroes

The Canary — Fri, 22 May 2026 15:41:21 +0000

A funeral prayer held on 21 May for three Muslim men killed in an Islamophobic hate-crime shooting in San Diego was attended by more than 2,000 people.

The San Diego deadly anti-Muslim terror attack took place earlier this week. Two teenagers known for their white supremacist views were responsible for the attack. They fled the mosque in their vehicle and were later ⁠found dead from self-inflicted gunshots.

More than 2,000 people gathered at Mission Valley River Park in San Diego for the funeral prayer for the three men killed while trying to stop the attack on the city’s largest mosque. The men are being hailed as heroes for confronting the attackers and preventing further… pic.twitter.com/Jr7ns2YoF2

— TRT World (@trtworld) May 22, 2026

“God is the greatest,” attendees chanted in Arabic, raising their hands. Police have indicated that the three victims took action that prevented further bloodshed and casualties — an act that deeply affected the local muslims present.

More than 2,000 people gathered for funeral prayers in San Diego for three men killed while confronting gunmen at the city’s largest mosque.

Community members said the victims’ actions helped save lives during the assault. pic.twitter.com/f2GGar4QPH

— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) May 22, 2026

The US House of Representatives also held a moment of silence on Wednesday to commemorate the men.

The US House of Representatives on Wednesday observed a moment of silence for victims of the recent shooting in the Islamic Center of San Diego

Three people were killed in a shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego in the US on Tuesday, May 19, when two teenage gunmen opened… pic.twitter.com/MYnAcRoo6f

— Anadolu English (@anadoluagency) May 22, 2026

The tribute was led by San Diego Representative Sara Jacobs, who said:

This tragedy didn’t happen in a vacuum.We let it happen by refusing to actually do something and stop the rise of Islamophobia and anti-Muslim hate, and hatred of all kinds. For decades, the Islamic Center has been the target of hate speech and vandalism and yelling by people driving by.

Disturbing pattern

According to the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), there has been a disturbing pattern of anti-Muslim attacks targeting mosques in the US. This includes a litany of hate crimes from planned mass shootings, to arson attacks, bomb threats, and violent assaults against Muslim worshipers in Tennessee, Michigan, Virginia, Florida, and Minnesota. These incidents have deeply impacted the muslims in those communities.

It said the latest civil rights report documented 8,683 anti-Muslim bias complaints in 2025. This is the highest recorded number since the organisation began compiling these reports in 1996. It lays bare a worrying trend for muslims nationwide.

CAIR has also reported a 1,450 percent increase in anti-Muslim extremist rhetoric by officials in the 15 months after February 2025; such rhetoric contributes to heightened anxiety among muslims living in affected areas.

San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria had previously declared that San Diego ‘stood with Israel.’ Later, he was heckled. This happened when he was supposedly offering sympathy to San Diego’s Muslim community earlier this week.

A San Diego resident publicly confronted Mayor Todd Gloria during a press briefing following the deadly attack on the Islamic Center of San Diego, where two teenage gunmen killed three mosque attendees including a security guard in an attack authorities are investigating as a… pic.twitter.com/cxktU2G9Ir

— VPol (@VocalPolitics1) May 19, 2026

The woman accused Gloria of ignoring repeated warnings from Muslim residents and amplifying pro-Israel rhetoric amid rising anti-Muslim hostility.

The moment was captured on video and quickly spread across social media, with many echoing the woman’s criticism.

Featured image via Sandy Huffaker/Getty Images

Pro-Palestine Greens tell party: stop binning candidates to pander to Israel lobby

Skwawkbox — Fri, 22 May 2026 15:30:19 +0000

The Greens for Palestine group has issued a strong demand to its party functionaries: stop throwing our candidates under the bus to pander to the Israel lobby.

The message comes after the Greens’ Makerfield by-election candidate stepped down – presumably pressured – for sharing a post about Golders Green. The group of party members wants to know – who is selecting Green candidates, party members or the Israel lobby, the Zionist Labour party and hostile press?

Greens for Palestine call out cowardice dressed as pragmatism

It reads:

Yesterday, we witnessed yet another chilling example of the same press that has spent over a year providing apologia for the Zionist genocide of the Palestinian people, releasing smear pieces against members of Manchester’ Green Party to bend the Makerfield by-election to their will.

We have seen multiple instances of this playbook throughout the recent local elections. Local and national party figures, rather than standing with their own comrades, have believed what is written in the press and thrown fellow party members under the bus at the whim of the Zionist lobby. This is cowardice veiled in pragmatism.

So we ask, plainly and with deep frustration: Who is in control of who the Greens select as candidates? Is it Green members? Is it the press? Is it the Labour Party? Or is it the lobby? It should be Green members themselves. And if that is truly our party’s principle, then we strongly suggest that the party massively, step up its support for anti Zionist candidates. Not silently or reluctantly. But publicly, robustly, and without apology.

Greens For Palestine provided extensive support to candidates smeared in the recent local elections. We will continue to do so whenever and wherever we are needed. We will show up where the party will not.

We need to hit back

The letter goes on to demand the party’s cowardly executives “hit back” to protect members and candidates and stand up against the horrors of Israel’s genocide of the Palestinians:

It is apparent that the party has not provided this support. It is a failure of nerve. And it leaves our members exposed to a coordinated, well-funded campaign gf misinformation and prejudice that the party seems unwilling to confront.

When the Green Party capitulates, we will lose future MPs and councillors who have called out Israel’s genocide, and speak up for Palestinians’ self-determination. This is by design.

More than ever we need bold people in British politics and a government who can end the UK’s complicity in the genocide and illegal occupation of Palestine. As we can so obviously see, the public want this too. They have supported Zack Polanski and the Green Party’s unwavering stance.

We need to hit back. We must be brave and forthright in our defence of our candidates. Silence will not protect them. Steadfast support will.

We have watched a livestreamed Genocide. We are seeing the extermination of the Palestinian people. Dogs used to rape Palestinians, children targeted by snipers, torture, death and mass destruction.. We are letting the people that defend this force our party to turn its back on the democratic decisions of our membership.

Let us be unequivocal:

Anti-Zionism is not antisemitism.
Palestine must be freed.
Zionism is racism.
We are an anti-racist party and will not tolerate anti-Palestinian racism.

Justice, not a racist veto

It ends:

These are not fringe positions, they are core matters of justice, rooted in international law, human rights and the very anti-colonial values this party claims to stand on.

We call on the Executive to issue clear, public solidarity with any Green candidate smeared for their principled support for Palestinian freedom. We call on you to fund and resource that solidarity. And we call on you to stop acting as if the press or the lobby have a veto over our democratic processes.

In solidarity and resolve,
Greens For Palestine

The call is badly needed. Party leader Zack Polanski started strongly against the witch-hunt by a Zionist establishment terrified by the popularity of the Greens and Polanski’s firm statements against Israel’s genocide and colonialism. But that has given way to an increasing tendency of the party to cave to lobby attacks rather than stand their ground.

That has to change. And it needs to start right the hell now.

Featured image via Getty/Leon Neal

London mayor Sadiq Khan and Met police in row over £50m Palantir deal

Joe Glenton — Fri, 22 May 2026 15:19:24 +0000

London mayor Sadiq Khan has royally annoyed the Met Police after he blocked a £50m deal to hand the cops Palantir technology. Palantir is the genocide-linked AI war firm which has won major military and NHS contracts. Palantir’s founders have openly espoused a far-right ideology.

The Guardian reported:

After the UK’s largest police force had agreed to use Palantir’s AI technology to automate intelligence analysis in criminal investigations, Khan intervened, citing “serious concerns” about how the deal had been struck.

The mayor’s office said there had been a “clear and serious breach” of procurement rules and said police had only seriously considered one supplier (Palantir).

Palantir’s close links to the Labour government have caused major concerns. The UK arm of the company is led by Louis Moseley, grandson of fascist aristocrat Oswald Mosley. US founders Peter Thiel and Alex Karp have a severe aversion to democracy and view their job as defending ‘Western’ civilisation.

There’s a useful primer on their worldview available here.

The paper said:

The deal would have been Palantir’s largest yet in British policing, after others worth £330m and £240m with NHS England and the Ministry of Defence.

The row has been inflamed by the fact that Khan has previously made clear that Londoners only wanted to see public money being paid to companies that “share the values of our city”.

Palantir technology is widely used by the US and Israeli militaries and was founded with the help of the CIA. The company also services Trump’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) paramilitaries.

‘Cultures’ and ‘civilisations’ – Palantir’s wacky worldview

Karp claimed in a bizarre X thread manifesto in April 2026 that:

Some cultures have produced vital advances; others remain dysfunctional and regressive.

Liberal Democrat MP Victoria Collins said:

Palantir’s ‘manifesto’ sounds like the ramblings of a supervillain.

A company that has such naked ideological motivations and lack of respect for democratic rule of law should be nowhere near our public services.

Khan’s deputy mayor for crime Kaya Comer-Schwartz told the Guardian:

I have not been provided with any acceptable explanation for this failure, which I regard as a clear and serious breach of the applicable procedural requirements.

Naturally the Met was “disappointed” at being blocked from using the supervillain firm’s technology:

A Palantir spokesperson said:

Palantir software is helping to increase NHS operations, reduce the time it takes to diagnose cancer, keep Royal Navy ships at sea for longer, and protect women and children from domestic violence.

Palantir has also moved to take over large parts of the UK war machine. And on 21 May the Canary reported on how UK legacy media outlet the Telegraph was reportedly using Palantir software.

At heart, this is an argument within the establishment. Khan and the Met’s disagreement is over procurement processes. Questions about the morality of using a genocide-linked AI firm run by far-right ideologues has barely featured in their back-and-forth. The rest of us must continue to forcefully make those missing arguments.

Palantir is willing to help states kill for profit, but the fact they are moving into policing, healthcare, and the media suggests they also want to remake the world in their own deviant image.

Featured image via Getty/Dan Kitwood

“They have no soul but we’re stronger” – flotilla activist on Israel’s rape and violence

Skwawkbox — Fri, 22 May 2026 14:47:42 +0000

Australian anti-genocide activist Juliet Lamont has spoken of the horrors she and other volunteer flotilla crew members suffered after their abduction by Israel in international waters. The Global Sumud Flotilla ships were trying to deliver humanitarian aid to Palestinians under Israel’s illegal starvation blockade.

Deported crew members show signs of torture and report numerous rapes and the deliberate breaking of bones. Israeli fascist minister Itamar Ben-Gvir himself posted video of the volunteers being beaten and humiliated. But after her own deportation, Lamont gave more detail on what was perpetrated on her and others.

It’s truly horrific – but she and her fellow humanitarians are unbowed.

Trigger warning

Absolute bombshell. Prominent Australian activist Juliet Lamont exposes the terrifying reality of Zionist detention.

She confirms Israeli forces systematically tortured activists, detailing horrific sexual assaults and beatings. MSM is actively hiding these war crimes. pic.twitter.com/85vkh7pFqi

— Furkan Gözükara (@FurkanGozukara) May 21, 2026

Keir Starmer remains disgustingly silent on the crimes Israel has perpetrated on UK citizens among the crew. He has found time to boast about his racist immigration policies and blather about golf, though.

Most other Western governments are little better. Some ‘mainstream’ media outlets have given this scandal some derisory coverage, but only because many of those tortured and raped have fair skin. Palestinians suffer these horrors daily, to deafening silence from western politicians and ‘mainstream’ media.

Featured image via Instagram

Pro-Israel influence inquiry petition to be debated on June 22

The Canary — Fri, 22 May 2026 14:45:42 +0000

A petition demanding a public inquiry into pro-Israel influence on UK politics and democracy will be debated in Parliament on 22 June 2026, according to an update published on the Petitions Committee’s page on 21 May 2026.

The petition reads:

We feel that the horrific devastation in Gaza, the ongoing suppression of Palestinians in the West Bank, and the UK’s political response underline the urgent need to scrutinise how pro-Israel organisations, networks, and lobbying efforts may shape government decisions, party policy, and public debate.

Petition debates cannot change the law or force a vote, but they can raise awareness and put pressure on the government.

The petition was launched in January and has now passed 115,000 signatures.

A petition is eligible for a debate if it reaches 100,000 signatures, though the committee has discretion over whether to schedule one.

Israel: Starmer government does not support public inquiry

The government responded on 17 April 2026, stating it does not support a public inquiry.

It said it already takes foreign influence seriously and is taking action, including transparency measures and the recent Rycroft review into foreign financial interference.

Notably, the Rycroft review does not mention Israel or the United States at all. It focuses instead on Russia, China, and Iran.

At least half of Keir Starmer’s front bench accepted Israeli or pro-Israel cash. If any cabinet MPs like David Lammy, Rachel Reeves, or Yvette Cooper show up to this debate, colour us surprised.

The Starmer government has shown less than zero interest in holding Israel to account for its crimes. Under Starmer, the UK has operated near-daily spy flights over Gaza from December 2023 onwards.

Just recently, the Foreign Office (FCDO) closed down its unit that tracked Israeli atrocities and breaches of humanitarian law in Gaza and Lebanon.

Don’t hold your breath for any meaningful action on 22 June.

Featured image via Getty/Charles McQuillan

Trump is trying to reinstate US sanctions on humanitarian Francesca Albanese

Skwawkbox — Fri, 22 May 2026 14:38:05 +0000

The Trump regime has filed an emergency appeal to try to overturn a court ruling blocking its punitive sanctions on UN rights and international law expert Francesca Albanese. The US had targeted Albanese, as well as International Criminal Court judges and lawyers, with heavy sanctions because of their pronouncements on Israel’s genocide and other crimes in Gaza.

For now, the US Treasury has been forced to lift the sanctions in response to the court order. However, the Trump administration is trying to overturn the ruling. Justice Department assistant attorney general Brett Shumate said on X that her department is applying for “emergency relief” to restore the sanctions. She also claimed that:

UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese has undermined the national security and foreign policy of the United States.

None of which is a crime for an Italian, of course, but it illustrates the extent of US arrogance and entitlement, especially in connection with the Israeli colony.

The US government’s application claims that the district court’s injunction is “fundamentally flawed” and that “foreign citizens outside US territory do not possess rights under the US Constitution”. Foreign citizens outside the US are also not obliged to defer to US “national security and foreign policy”, of course, but presumably that’s a hair Trump is not willing to split.

Trump war on free speech

US district judge Richard Leon ruled last week that the Trump administration was violating Albanese’s free speech rights by sanctioning her for criticizing Israel’s genocide. The US government has removed the sanctions but claimed that this “does not reflect a change in policy”. A State Department spokesperson said the sanctions will be immediately reimposed if the appeal court overturns the injunction.

Albanese was sanctioned for writing a report that corporations supporting Israel’s occupation of Palestine. Giant companies accused include Palantir, Amazon and Microsoft. The sanctions left Albanese and other victims unable to hold bank accounts or credit cards.

The sanctions prohibited Albanese from entering the US, accessing US banking and payment systems, and engaging in business with anyone based in the country. The US Israel lobby has also tried to block the sale of Albanese’s new book highlighting its crimes in occupied Palestine. She was honoured in early May 2026 by the Spanish government for her service to humanity.

Featured image via Getty/Evan Vucci-Pool

Watch: Reform’s would-be new Kirklees council leader doesn’t understand… anything much

Skwawkbox — Fri, 22 May 2026 14:27:59 +0000

Kirklees council remains leaderless after councillors were unable to choose at a meeting yesterday; Reform are the biggest party, but short of a majority. Labour was wiped out in this month’s local elections.

But the meeting saw some comedy as Reform UK’s would-be leader had to admit that neither she nor her 28 councillors understood what they were voting for. Or anything else, really:

@kirkleesgreenparty Councillor Sarah Wood – Reform’s choice to lead Kirklees Council apparently doesn’t understand how the Council runs #huddersfield #westyorkshire ♬ original sound – Kirklees Green Party

Reform farce

Wood and her party objected that the votes on council processes were “unconstitutional”, because none of them understood anything. Cllr Tanisha Bramwell of the left-leaning Kirklees Community Independents group pointed out to Wood that it’s her job as a councillor and group leader to familiarise herself and her colleagues with what being a councillor involves, not the job of others to educate them:

When you are elected you have to prioritise educating yourself on how to be the best councillor and representative for your area, that is on you. To call that unconstitutional is absolutely incorrect and it is not right.

At one point, 27 councillors voted against making the council’s votes proportional – something normally rubber-stamped – then changed their minds and voted for it. The council will reconvene on Thursday 28 May to vote again.

Reform chaos

Reform’s chaos hasn’t been limited to Kirklees. Councillors have had to resign or are being investigated for sharing Nazi flags and making white supremacist and/or Islamophobic comments. In one case, a new councillor made comments about melting Nigerian people down to fill potholes. He has only been “temporarily” axed.

But even if Reform councillors manage to avoid racism scandals (so far), they’ve shown an inability to actually run anything. Not just an inability, but an apparent disinterest in even giving it a proper go.

Take Kent council as an example. Reform took control of it in 2025, promising to mount a ‘DOGE’-style programme of cuts to reduce waste and save money. Reform councillors then couldn’t find any savings to make – so they made them up and quickly got found out. That’s actually very ‘DOGE-like’, but not in any kind of way to boast about.

In Derbyshire, one of Reform’s first acts in control was to “betray local people” by closing care homes – presumably ones that looked after some of their older base. Reform in Lancashire planned to privatise the council’s privately-run care homes but had to back down after outraged locals rose up against the plan.

In Durham, a Reform councillor wanted to cut council workers’ pay to fund his own pay rise. And in Lincolnshire, former Tory Andrea Jenkyns – now Reform mayor – campaigned on a promise to cut “woke wastage”. She then immediately asked for a massive increase in funding for her own office. To justify this, she listed a string of issues that… are not the mayor’s job.

No surprises here

Reform is awful at government. Unsurprising given the jokers that populate it. Let’s be clear, Labour councils are often no better and just as corrupt. Neither party is a solution to the massive ills inflicted on the UK by red and blue Tory governments and having either of them in national government is a catastrophe.

But regardless, let’s enjoy the little rays of sunshine when they all show themselves up, at least. Hopefully the country – including the racism-challenged currently supporting them – wakes up in time to avoid either disaster next time round.

Featured image via Getty/Dan Kitwood

Premier League clubs ‘complicit in Israeli apartheid’ says report

The Canary — Fri, 22 May 2026 14:24:56 +0000

The International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP) and War on Want have issued letters to 15 Premier League clubs. They’re raising concerns about the clubs’ complicity in Israeli atrocities via their ties to companies linked to Israel’s genocide in Gaza and apartheid across the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

These findings come from War on Want’s latest report: Red Card: English Premier League Sportswashing of Israel’s Atrocities against the Palestinians. ICJP has also supported the report.

The report details the connections of at least 15 Premier League club sponsors to Israel’s devastating military assault and blockade on Gaza, construction of illegal settlements, and wider system of apartheid.

The companies identified include:

AXA.
BP.
Canon.
Carlsberg.
Cisco.
Coca-Cola.
Eurobank.
Evelyn Partners.
Expedia/Hotels.com.
Hewlett Packard Enterprise.
HSBC.
Standard Chartered.
Oracle.
Sony.

The report names nine clubs with complicit sponsors:

Arsenal.
Chelsea.
Crystal Palace.
Everton.
Fulham.
Liverpool.
Manchester City.
Manchester United.
Tottenham Hotspur.
Two others, Brighton and Burnley, have sponsors at risk of complicity.

Premier League itself is complicit

Alarmingly, every single one of the 20 Premier League clubs has indirect sponsorship from Barclays Bank. Barclays is the main sponsor of the Premier League despite decades-long links to systematic racial discrimination. That includes apartheid South Africa and Israel’s apartheid against Palestinians. The sponsorship deal with Barclays makes a mockery of the Premier League’s campaign to ‘kick racism out of football’.

War on Want and ICJP wrote to the clubs in March, as well as to the English Football Association (FA) and the English Premier League (EPL) itself, to inform them of the report’s main findings and the risk of complicity in the atrocities themselves faced by clubs if they do not cease the business relationships as soon as possible.

Israel’s attacks on Palestinian football

Red Card reveals how Israel’s genocide, illegal occupation and apartheid has hit Palestine’s football ecosystem hard. Since October 2023:

Israel has destroyed or damaged 265 sports facilities.
Israel has killed at least 565 members of the Palestinian Football Association, including the “Palestinian Pelé” Sulaiman al-Obaid.
Domestic football leagues in Gaza and the West Bank have collapsed.
Israel has turned stadiums into detention sites.
Israel has blocked the import of astroturf for Palestinian teams to play on.

Israel’s attacks on Palestinian football are a microcosm of its wider genocide. Since 2023, at least 72,000 Palestinians have been killed and 172,000 injured in Gaza. 92% of homes in Gaza have been destroyed or damaged. And 93% of schools have been destroyed or severely damaged.

War on Want’s report is calling for:

The Premier League to introduce an immediate ban on sponsorship from companies linked to genocide, apartheid and illegal occupation.
Clubs to review and terminate sponsorship agreements identified in the report.
The UK Government to uphold international law and ensure that UK-based companies are not contributing to illegal occupation, apartheid and genocide.

Órlaith Roe, ICJP’s public affairs and communications officer, said:

Premier League football prides itself on standing against racism and discrimination, but as with so many other areas, Palestinians are the exception, with Israel uniquely being granted impunity for its human rights abuses against Palestinian people. The failure to act is a glaring double standard, standing in sharp contrast to the response taken against other states, including Russia.

The rhetoric of equality and inclusion rings hollow while Palestinian footballers and fans face oppression, and Israel and the Israel Football Association are allowed to continue competing as though nothing has happened. Football’s governing bodies can no longer avoid meaningful action – the case for showing Israel a red card is now overwhelming.

Neil Sammonds, War on Want’s senior campaigner on Palestine, said:

These clubs speak proudly about equality, inclusion and community. Yet behind the branding, some are helping sanitise corporations connected to some of the gravest crimes and humanitarian catastrophes of our time.

Palestinian footballers are being killed. Stadiums are turned into detention camps. Child players are buried beneath rubble. The Premier League has shown before that it can act when sponsorship becomes morally toxic. The question is why Palestinian lives appear to count for less.

Featured image via Alex Pantling / Getty Images

New EHRC guidance both clarifies and complicates the legal rights of trans people

Em Colquhoun — Fri, 22 May 2026 13:55:40 +0000

There is a familiar refrain that follows my partner and I as we navigate the UK’s public bathrooms. As a gender-nonconforming couple, we’re painfully aware of the transphobic discourse that overshadows our daily lives. Approaching a set of bathrooms whilst out and about, and not wanting to draw more attention to ourselves, one or both of us will groan, before announcing with resignation:

Time to do ‘gender’…

It will be a situation familiar to many trans people. The so-called ‘bathroom ban’, fought for by anti-trans activists, has become notorious for making the lives of cis and trans people alike more complicated. Not only is it an infringement on the human rights of trans people themselves, but it inevitably leads to the policing of people of all gender expressions. Cis people too find themselves viewed with suspicion and even harassed for not looking a ‘certain’ way.

It is a situation unlikely to change in the near future. A new ‘code of practice’ document released by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has set out new (but no less convoluted) guidance on how public institutions and services are to cater to those with ‘protected characteristics’ and avoid discrimination.

Despite its claims to provide clarity with regards to various “everyday situations”, it’s a total mess of legalese that fails in simplifying the lived experiences of cis and trans people in the UK today.

Responses to the update

In an explainer video posted on their website, EHRC chair Mary Ann Stephenson says:

The code outlines how the Equality Act 2010 works in relation to the provision of services, public functions, and associations and explains the steps that should be taken to ensure people are not discriminated against.

The document itself claims to be:

based on the principle that people with the protected characteristics set out in the [Equality] Act should not be discriminated against, harassed or victimised when using any service provided publicly or privately.

TERF groups have already claimed a tentative victory in response to the new guidance.

Lobby group Sex Matters argues:

Nothing in the code of practice changes the Equality Act 2010. What it does is provide detailed, practical guidance on how to interpret the act.

In particular, the group claims that previous guidance on the Equality Act:

was ambiguous about the relationship between the protected characteristics of sex and gender.

For example, the old guidance suggested that:

a service provider … should treat transsexual people according to the gender role in which they present.

This notion of “presentation” was underpinned by the principle of “self-identification”. Regardless of how a service provider visually perceives a person’s gender, they should defer to how that person identifies themselves.

Sex Matters argue that the “new code of practice has removed that error”, leading trans advocacy group TransActual to conclude:

The newly published EHRC Code of Practice leaves trans people in the UK today with less rights than they had prior to last year’s Supreme Court ruling.

But does it really? The new guidance certainly gives TERFs more ammunition in their never-ending lawfare campaigning against people who are just trying to live their lives, but claims that it removes previous errors of interpretation around certain social interactions appear to be overstated.

Summarising analysis from the Good Law Project, which argues that the “updated code of practice rows back on some of the most harmful elements in the previous draft”, trans rights lead Jess O’Thomson explains:

It’s good to see clear guidance that associations can be for multiple protected characteristics – so you can have an organisation for both cis and trans women. And the suggestion of checking people’s birth certificates before they can use the toilet has been axed.

But it still treats trans people as a third sex, suggesting they should be made to use separate spaces – entirely ignoring the harm this causes, and human rights law. We will keep fighting this discriminatory approach.

‘Biology’ as a euphemism

The problems that persist with the new guidance all come down to different interpretations of sex and gender. In short, the guidance seeks to clarify the legal definition of these terms, and how public service providers can navigate the EHRC’s legal framework in a variety of hypothetical scenarios. What the document provides, then, is legal cover for individuals and organisations. But it remains the case that the law does not neatly cohere with (nor determine) the lived experiences of those concerned.

For example, what does it mean when the guidance says it uses “the expression ‘biological sex’ to describe the sex of a person at birth”? To cut through the vague euphemism, it means the bathroom you use should be determined by what genitals you have. As a foundation that is supposed to alleviate the complications of ‘perceived’ gender expression, it doesn’t hold up under scrutiny.

Many intersex people, for example, have testified to invasive and discriminatory medical treatment on the basis that their “sex at birth” is no less determined by a medical professional’s perceptions. It has long been the case that people born with ambiguous genitalia are subjected to decisions made about their bodies by doctors, who even encourage parents to consent to surgeries that can ‘correct’ their child’s genitals and make them look more ‘normal’.

Outside of medical professionals and intimate partners, however, who else is going to be interacting with our genitals during the day-to-day? Certainly not a random Starbucks employee! It is for this reason that so many of the hypothetical situations listed in the new guidance unavoidably fall back on other people’s perceptions of an individual’s gender expression – despite Sex Matters suggesting this ‘error’ has been removed.

As it turns out, you can’t just legislate away the complexities of social context and cultural interpretation…

The absence of trans testimonies

Contradictions continue to hamper this most irrational of debates because, alongside what is visible, many of the things that determine our gender cannot be seen. And this isn’t simply limited to a person’s genitals.

Speaking personally, as a trans woman, my hormone profile is not that of a biological man. A combination of testosterone blockers and hormone replacement therapy has fundamentally changed my inner emotional landscape. As far as outward appearances go, I continue to be misgendered often. But many of the women in my family present as more ‘masculine’ than most anyway. In fact, compared side by side, I’m the spitting image of the woman that gave birth to me.

Too much information? Yeah, probably! The EHRC’s new guidance goes to great lengths to try and ‘clarify’ how businesses and public bodies can avoid falling foul of the UK’s discrimination laws, but the fact remains that people’s lived experiences are more diverse than the law could ever truly account for. This is a problem that the EHRC – whenever it does decide to listen to trans people – cannot avoid. As a result, ‘clarification’ paradoxically means even more ‘complication’.

Prioritising the legal definitions of sex and gender over and above the reality of trans lives will always be reductive, further entrenching a ‘hostile environment‘ for trans people. But that is precisely what lawfare-waging TERFs want. The more convoluted the law, the colder the chilling effect on LGBTQ+ people’s freedoms of movement and expression.

At the end of the day, it’s not the law that needs to be changed, but the general attitudes towards trans people in this country. The law may influence this, but the problems have taken root far deeper than statutes.

Featured image via Getty/Ian Forsyth

By Em Colquhoun

Reform’s Suella Braverman blames Tories for “exodus” of Brits

The Canary — Fri, 22 May 2026 13:27:38 +0000

Tory-Reform turncoat, MP Suella Braverman, is angry that Brits are leaving Britain. Falling immigration has not yet filled the void that exists in place of her soul.

“The brightest and the best are leaving the UK,” Suella Braverman wrote in response to a Telegraph report featuring immigration stats from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). She noted that the position was untenable. The Telegraph reported that in 2025, 75,000 more Britons aged 16–34 left the UK — the highest number on record since the ONS changed its methodology in 2021.

The brightest and the best are leaving the UK.

This can’t go on. https://t.co/Z5JKxQtK2Z

— Suella Braverman (@SuellaBraverman) May 21, 2026

The Telegraph’s article — headlined ‘Young Britons turn their backs on Starmer’s high-tax UK’ — implies this was due to Starmer’s high-taxation policies. However, data published by the ONS suggests work and study patterns are likely drivers. Suella Braverman doesn’t seem to agree.

Sharp fall in net migration

Overall, the ONS report found that net migration to the UK fell to an estimated 171,000 in the year ending December 2025. That’s nearly half the revised estimate of 331,000 for the year ending December 2024.

The ONS also cited a 47% drop in non-EU nationals arriving for work-related reasons. This followed government changes restricting skilled worker visa and stopping most foreign students from bringing dependants, as well as closing the Health and Care route for overseas care workers. Critics have argued that these policies were strongly influenced and pedalled during Suella Braverman’s tenure as home secretary.

Even the Telegraph concedes that the fall in net migration stems from Tory policies introduced during her time in office. This included restrictions on workers and students ability to bring dependants, as well as salary increases to and raising the salary threshold for foreign workers.

The former (Tory) home secretary defected to Reform just earlier this year. Since then, Suella Braverman has blamed the Tories for ‘out-of-control immigration‘ and high taxes. But isn’t something missing here — didn’t she loyally serve in the very government she’s now publicly bashing. It’s safe to say that Suella Braverman really is politically homeless.

The real problems of inequality, soaring corporate profits, complicity in genocide are the ones Reform conveniently sidesteps, just like the ‘uniparty’ system they claim to oppose.

Immigration was never the real issue, was it, Suella?

Featured image via the Canary

Most Democrats now oppose US aid to Israel and war on Iran

Ed Sykes — Fri, 22 May 2026 12:36:45 +0000

Israel’s genocide in Gaza and US-led war on Iran is pushing Democratic voters to increasingly oppose the sacred economic and military aid pact between Washington and Israel.

Democratic voters change tack

Results from a New York Times 2026 Siena poll shows that on the question of economic and military support to Israel:

68% of Democratic voters stood in opposition
25% of Democratic voters support the supply of aid
7% were ambivalent

The poll also addressed the thorny question of Democratic party support for Trump’s unilateral decision to invade Iran. Polling data suggests that:

93% believed it was the wrong decision
5% believed it was the right decision
2% were ambivalent

Plummeting support for Israel

Similarly, it found that:

47% of Democratic voters believe their party is too supportive of Israel
9% said Democrats are not supportive enough of Israel
33% believe Democrats are about right on support of Israel
12% were ambivalent

In terms of support for Palestinians, 60% of 2024 Democratic voters sympathised more with Palestinians, while only 16% sympathise more with Israelis. And even the US as a whole is now more sympathetic towards Palestinians (37%) than towards Israelis (35%).

A recent CNN report also highlights shifting attitudes among Democratic voters on hot-button issues. Net favourability of Israel among moderate/conservative democratic voters plummeted between 2022 and now, the outlet reported. The data suggests the favourability pendulum swung away from support for Israel in 2025.

With prominent Democratic politicians remain openly supportive of Israel, they appear out of step with voters on other issues. It’s hardly surprising that 54% of 2024 Democratic voters had felt dissatisfied with the party.

Most Democratic voters and non-voters think the US is heading “in the wrong direction”, with 90% of 2024 Democratic voters (and 75% of non-voters) agreeing that:

The economic system in this country is generally unfair to most Americans

With this in mind, it makes sense that people would want politicians to focus on domestic problems rather than fuelling conflict abroad. Accordingly, 51% of Democratic voters (and 74% of non-voters) agree that the US:

should pay less attention to problems overseas and concentrate more on problems here at home

Will the Democrats get their house in order?

Commenting on the shifting sands of public opinion, Al Jazeera points out that:

Leading up to the 2024 vote, Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza was one of the most contentious and divisive issues for the Democrats and Harris.

Commenting further, the outlet added:

Some polls have suggested that the Gaza policy was one of the main reasons Harris lost the election.

A 2025 IMEU Policy Project survey showed that Gaza was a top issue for people who voted for Biden in 2020, but did not back Harris four years later.

Yet, there are zero mentions of Gaza and Israel in the 192 pages of the autopsy report.

Left-leaning Action for a Progressive Future produced an autopsy on the Democrats’ 2024 election loss which agreed on the role the Gaza genocide played. The report blamed:

Democratic elites’ complicity and failure to take or promise meaningful action over Israel’s genocide in Gaza.
The abandonment of working-class voters and excessive cosiness with corporate elites.
The alienation of many young voters between the ages of 18 and 29, along with voter disenchantment in general.
Joe Biden’s selfish decision to run again despite clearly being unable to.

If the Democratic Party is to pose a real challenge to the far-right Donald Trump regime, it needs to start listening to its voter base — urgently.

Featured image via Getty Images/the Canary

By Ed Sykes

How Palmer and Foden lost Tuchel’s battle for the England number 10s

Faz Ali — Fri, 22 May 2026 12:21:48 +0000

Two years can feel like a lifetime in football, and none more so than for Cole Palmer and Phil Foden who were firmly at the top of the England pecking order after Euro 2024. They were winners of major individual awards, fixtures in Gareth Southgate’s big-game plans, and widely tipped to be central to England’s future. Fast forward to the present and both are conspicuously absent from Thomas Tuchel’s World Cup squad. The shift is stark, and it’s driven by one brutal truth: form matters more than pedigree under Tuchel.

Palmer and Foden’s trajectories were once parallel. Both came through Manchester City’s academy, both collected domestic and individual honours, and both looked like automatic selections for tournament football. But football’s calendar is unforgiving. A dip in output, a few underwhelming displays and one coach’s clear preference for current performance over past glories have reshaped the selection map.

England squad selection: decline in output

Palmer’s first seasons at Chelsea were explosive, 37 Premier League goals across his opening two campaigns set expectations sky-high. This season, though, the edge has dulled. Nine goals in 25 league appearances is respectable, but it lacks the consistent flash that once made him look like the next elite player. The moments that once defined him, sudden, decisive interventions, have been fewer and far between.

Foden’s slide has been longer and more jagged. After a purple patch before Christmas that produced six goals in five games, he has not scored since. That’s a sharp fall from the 2023–24 campaign when he hit 19 league goals and 27 in all competitions. Sporadic moments, a clever backheel assist here, a bright touch there, have not been enough to convince Tuchel that he offers the kind of reliable, match‑shaping influence the manager demands.

The Uruguay test that mattered

If there is a single turning point for Phil Foden, it was the friendly against Uruguay in March. With Harry Kane absent, Tuchel tried Foden in the central number 10 role. The experiment failed. Foden drifted, struggled to impose himself and was substituted early in the second half, replaced by Palmer. That substitution, and the lack of impact that preceded it, felt decisive. Tuchel’s selection philosophy is clear: give players a chance, but don’t let reputation override what you see on the pitch. Foden’s performance in that match looked to have closed the door.

Palmer, meanwhile, had his own opportunities but could not force a reappraisal. Moments of brilliance that once made him a must‑pick were not frequent enough to dislodge Tuchel’s growing conviction that other options offered more immediate value.

Tuchel’s ruthless pragmatism

Tuchel has shown little patience for reputational inertia. He has repeatedly picked players on the basis of current form and tactical fit rather than name recognition. Jude Bellingham’s place was never in doubt; Tuchel has picked Morgan Rogers from Aston Villa and rewarded consistent club performances. That approach leaves little room for players whose recent output is patchy.

Tuchel’s selections have also highlighted a preference for variety and unpredictability in the attacking midfield slots. He wants players who can change the tempo, add pace and create different angles of attack, attributes that have become decisive in his thinking.

The replacements

Eberechi Eze is the clearest beneficiary. His season at Arsenal, seven league goals and two assists in a title-winning campaign may not leap off the stat sheet, but his performances for Tuchel in qualifying have been persuasive. Three goals in six qualifiers and a style that offers pace, unpredictability and directness have made him a compelling alternative to the more familiar names.

Morgan Rogers has also earned trust through consistent displays, while other contenders have shown enough to convince Tuchel that they can slot into the system and deliver. Even Morgan Gibbs‑White, despite a late scoring surge at club level, has not done enough in Tuchel’s eyes to force selection, underlining how selective the coach has been.

Reality check for Palmer and Foden

Once predicted as guaranteed starters, Palmer and Foden now face the humbling reality of being judged on present form. That is a hard lesson for two players who have already achieved so much so young. But it is also a reminder of the merciless nature of elite international selection: past awards and promise count for little when a manager is building a squad for a specific tournament and a specific tactical plan.

For both players the path back is straightforward in theory: rediscover the consistency and cutting edge that made them indispensable. In practice it will require sustained excellence at club level, adaptability to Tuchel’s tactical demands, and the kind of decisive performances that force a manager to rethink his plans.

Tuchel’s message to England players is unambiguous, the plane to the World Cup is for those who are delivering now. For Palmer and Foden, the challenge is to make sure the next selection window tells a different story.

Featured image via Getty/Alex Pantling

By Faz Ali

Stephen Bunting beats Luke Humphries to win Premier League Darts

Faz Ali — Fri, 22 May 2026 12:05:52 +0000

Stephen Bunting closed the Premier League darts stage in style in Sheffield, beating Luke Humphries 6-3. Meanwhile, Humphries’ run to the final means he will avoid a semi-final against Luke Littler at Finals Night in London.

Bunting’s night was more than a single result. He averaged north of 106 and landed seven 180s across his matches, producing a high-quality display that lifted him to fifth in the final table. A finish that secures his place among the season’s top performers and underlines his consistency. His Sheffield run included a 161 checkout and a string of 100-plus finishes that swung momentum in his favour.

Darts: key results

Quarter-finals: Bunting beat Jonny Clayton; Gerwyn Price beat Gian van Veen; Luke Littler edged Josh Rock; Luke Humphries beat Michael van Gerwen.
Semi-finals: Humphries dismantled Littler 6-1; Bunting overcame Price 6-3.
Final: Bunting 6–3 Humphries.

Humphries’ semi-final win over Littler was decisive: a 6-1 scoreline that not only booked his place in the Sheffield final but also rearranged the Finals Night draw. Instead of facing world No 1 Luke Littler in a semi, Humphries will meet Jonny Clayton at The O2; Littler will play Gerwyn Price. That switch matters because it changes matchups and tactical approaches for the four qualifiers.

Humphries: form and positioning

Humphries leaves Sheffield with mixed takeaways. He reached his fourth consecutive nightly final and moved up the standings to third overall, confirming his spot at Finals Night. His route there featured strong scoring and a 100-plus average in key matches, but the final exposed vulnerabilities that Bunting exploited. Humphries’ ability to peak at the right moments keeps him a live threat in London.

Meanwhile, Littler scraped past Josh Rock in the quarters but was well short of his best in Sheffield. The 19-year-old’s form dipped enough that he missed the chance to extend his nightly-win tally, leaving him to regroup before Finals Night. The four qualifiers for The O2 are now set: Littler, Humphries, Jonny Clayton and Gerwyn Price, a compact, high-stakes field where small margins will decide the title.

Sheffield closed the league phase with a clean result: Bunting’s best night of the season, Humphries’ tactical success in avoiding Littler in the semis, and a Finals Night draw that sets up tight, high-quality semis at The O2 next week.

Featured image via Getty/Carl Recine

By Faz Ali

Can Southampton rebuild after Spygate?

Faz Ali — Fri, 22 May 2026 10:56:29 +0000

Southampton held its hands up, admitting to spying charges after it was caught red-handed covertly filing opponents. For this clear violation of the rules, they have received more than a light slap on the wrist despite protesting the severity of the sanctions against it.

The saga, known as Spygate, exposes colossal leadership failures under Tonda Eckert’s management, which cost the team its Championship play-offs. Middlesbrough will take their place.

Golf course loiterer

Recovering from the reputational damage will take more than a points deduction. It remains to be seen if Eckert will remain at the helm or lose his job, having accepted responsibility for covert spying operations against Oxford, Ipswich and Middlesbrough. The damage is clear. Southampton have now slid down the league table and will start the next season with a reduced points penalty, as the Football Association (FA) continue their separate investigation.

It is true that English football allows competing teams to observe each other. That said, tactical training sessions are off-limits as is secret filming. Southampton clearly crossed that line and chose to act in bad faith, an independent English Football League commission found.

These practices were well hidden up until Middlesbrough spotted unusual movements by a camera-wielding bloke loitering around the golf course adjacent to the football pitch where they’d been training. This prompted an internal investigation, steered by none other than high-profile sports lawyer Nick De Marco KC.

The death knell was the evidentiary trail they uncovered. The golf course loiterer was found to be Will Salt, a Southampton analyst intern.Middlesbrough’s lawyer identified credit card transactions linking Salt to payments made at the golf club.

Bad-faith espionage

The event triggered a wider look at Southampton’s scouting practices. As investigations widened, further evidence implicated Southampton in similar surveillance operations against Ipswich and Oxford. It was a act of bad-faith espionage — systematic and planned. Footage was captured, stored and circulated within Southampton’s analysis unit.

Aware this was no ‘it wasn’t me’ (shaggy) moment, Southampton admitted filming closed trainings while arguing that material hadn’t produced a decisive on‑field advantage. The independent commission was more interested in the intent than the outcome of actions which the EFL panel concluded had breached of competition rules and dented trust.

Findings and sanctions

The EFL commission concluded filming operation was “contrived” and “deliberate,” directed from senior levels. They expelled Southampton from the play‑off final and imposed a points deduction for the next season. The original penalty was reduced after mitigation was accepted, but the expulsion stood.

The panel’s reasoning rested on three pillars:

Deliberate intent — filming was not accidental nor a case of a rogue employee acting alone. The operation was planned and authorised.
Pressure on staff — junior employees were reportedly instructed to take actions they felt were wrong, treated as an aggravating factor.
Integrity of competition — even if the footage did not influence match results, the act of covertly filming private training sessions undermined the fairness of the play‑offs.

Reports and speculations bubbling on social media, and the sports media landscape more broadly, capture the extent of the reputational damage. Spygate calls into question Southampton’s professional integrity and reputation. It may also result in more suspensions or dismissals once the FA has concluded its separate probe.

Is recovery possible?

The drama underscores that in elite sports, governance matters. Clubs must have clear, enforceable boundaries around scouting and analysis. What analysts may view as a “competitive edge” can at the same time be illegal and unethical. Eckert was the man responsible for drawing and policing that line, and ultimately failed to protect his team.

The road to recovery will be long. Southampton must manage player morale, reassure sponsors and supporters, and prepare for the FA’s disciplinary process. In the long term, the club needs clearer compliance structures, independent oversight and a culture reset to abandon the “winning at any cost” mentality. Time will tell if Eckert can weather the storm.

Featured image via the Canary

By Faz Ali

Karma: commander in murder of 6yo Hind Rajab ‘seriously wounded’ in Lebanon

Skwawkbox — Fri, 22 May 2026 10:44:56 +0000

Israeli military commander Meir Biderman has been “seriously wounded” by Hezbollah during Israel’s war of aggression on Lebanon: he commanded a unit during the Gaza genocide that murdered 6-year-old Hind Rajab, her family, and two paramedics sent to try to help them. Palestinian despatchers had agreed safe passage for the ambulance.

The Hind Rajab Foundation have filed a case with the International Criminal Court over the brutal murder of Hind.

Hind Rajab murderer now the one who is ‘severely weakened’

In April, Biderman announced on Israeli TV that he and his unit has “severely weakened” Lebanese resistance. Since then, Israel has suffered heavy casualties from armed Lebanese ‘FPV’ drones. Despite initial reports that the attack involved an improvised roadside bomb, one of the drones has now injured Biderman and two other occupation troops. The explosion inflicted serious head wounds on Biderman. His condition was critical, but Israeli media now claim he has been stabilised.

It’s safe to say Biderman is not receiving much sympathy in responses on social media to news of his injury.

Featured image via Getty/Amir Levy

Greens’ Makerfield candidate withdraws after Israel lobby pile-on

Skwawkbox — Fri, 22 May 2026 10:24:45 +0000

Chris Kennedy has withdrawn as the Green party’s candidate in the Makerfield by-election. The party’s announcement describes the reason as “personal and family reasons”. However, it is notable that Kennedy was the target of a huge pile-on by the UK Israel lobby before his withdrawal for sharing a post describing the the attack on Golders Green ambulances as a false-flag attack.

Kennedy apologised and deleted the comment.

Makerfield: worrying sign

The efforts the Israel lobby made to drive out a left-wing candidate are another worrying indication about Burnham’s candidacy. It suggests that Israel advocates want to help Burnham win so they can extract a ‘quid pro quo’ for one of their number, Josh Simons, resigning as Makerfield’s MP to open the way for him.

The withdrawal could well be another example of the Greens’ increasing tendency to cave to lobby attacks rather than stand their ground over Israel’s genocide, other crimes and propaganda tactics.

Featured image via Getty/Ryan Jenkinson

Corbyn presses Burnham to put words into action on Gaza genocide

The Canary — Fri, 22 May 2026 09:59:33 +0000

Jeremy Corbyn has written to Andy Burnham, reminding him that in October 2023 the Manchester mayor spoke out against the “widespread suffering” caused by Israel in Gaza, and has called on Burnham to back a Gaza genocide inquiry into the UK’s role in the conflict.

He also asked whether Burnham would end all military cooperation with Israel, including arms sales, the supply of F-35 components, and intelligence sharing.

I have written to Andy Burnham to ask whether he would establish an independent public inquiry into the British government’s complicity in genocide. pic.twitter.com/vBUkmcGicC

— Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) May 21, 2026

Corbyn presses Burnham

Burnham is standing as the Labour candidate in the Makerfield by-election, hoping to return to parliament to challenge Keir Starmer for the Labour leadership.

Your Party also questioned Burnham’s position on Gaza, asking whether it would differ from Starmer’s.

15% of every F-35 jet bombing Gaza is made in Britain. Lancashire. Edinburgh. Brighton.

Even when his government admitted F-35s could be used for war crimes, Starmer kept selling the parts.

What would Burnham do? Jeremy Corbyn has put the question to him.

— Your Party (@thisisyourparty) May 22, 2026

Burnham has not specified his position on arms sales to Israel or other issues like the proscription of Palestine Action. He has, however, been a member or supporter of the Labour Friends of Israel group since at least 2015.

Matt Kennard called Burnham “Starmer with a Scouse accent.” He noted that during the Labour leader elections in 2015, he stated that the first trip as Labour leader would be to Israel.

During 2015 Labour leadership election, @AndyBurnhamGM promised the Israel lobby his first trip as Labour leader would be to the apartheid colony

Keir Starmer with a scouse accent pic.twitter.com/QgKekMdls8

— Matt Kennard (@kennardmatt) May 19, 2026

Private Members Bill

In June 2025, Corbyn introduced a Private Member’s Bill in Parliament calling for an independent public inquiry into Britain’s involvement in Israel’s genocide in Gaza.

The Bill had the support of more than 50 MPs, including Labour MPs Richard Burgon, Nadia Whittome, Ian Byrne, Bell Ribeiro-Addy, and several human rights organisations.

Starmer’s government rejected the need for an inquiry, claiming:

there is no confusion about UK military operations in Gaza.

Then, Corbyn’s independently convened Gaza Tribunal in September, with two international law specialists, which concluded that the British government had been an active participant in one of the “greatest crimes of our time.”

We held The Gaza Tribunal to expose the full scale of Britain’s complicity in genocide.

Our conclusion: the British government has been an active participant in one of the greatest crimes of our time.

Read the full report below. https://t.co/ygDHNka1Ay

— Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) March 16, 2026

Burnham – pick a side quickly! Now that Starmer is campaigning for you, are you going to choose his policies too?

Featured image via Alishia Abodunde/Getty Images

Released Gaza flotilla abductees raped, signs of torture

Skwawkbox — Fri, 22 May 2026 09:03:47 +0000

Content warning: contains graphic images of torture and abuse

The first Flotilla volunteers criminally abducted week by Israel as they sailed to Gaza with humanitarian supplies have begun to make their way home after deportation. They show horrific signs of torture and violence at the hands of their evil, supremacist captors. Brazilian activist Thiago Avila detailed how many flotilla volunteers suffered rape and other sexual violence:

The Freedom Flotilla said in a statement:

The horrific assault on flotilla volunteers must be understood in the broader context of an entrenched system of violence in which Israeli soldiers, police, and prison guards have long operated with impunity. Sexual violence, including rape, gang-rape, humiliating strip searches, and other forms of sexual torture, has been repeatedly committed against Palestinians in Israeli custody and documented by Israeli, Palestinian, and international human rights organizations.

The marks of torture were clearly visible on those willing to show them:

Flotilla participants are arriving at Istanbul airport. This is what Israel military and prison personnel did to them. pic.twitter.com/DbbXxJWi55

— Heidi Matthews (@Heidi__Matthews) May 21, 2026

Flotilla: white faces = a little media interest

The UK and most other Western governments have remained shamefully silent about Israel’s kidnapping, humiliation and torture of their citizens. There is the slightest sign of interest among some ‘mainstream’ media outlets, but far from enough. Their hypocrisy and cowardice was deftly mocked by author Michael Rosen. Soon after the abductions, fascist ‘security’ minister Itamar Ben-Gvir posted footage of his attempts to humiliate and intimidate the captives. On his Facebook page, Rosen pointed out that the evils of the likes of Ben-Gvir have caught media interest only because some of those being abused are white:

But Israel has spent years inflicting far worse on the Palestinians, to destroy or drive them out. More than ten thousand Palestinians are currently held without trial, beaten, tortured, raped and often killed, as international law professor Laurent Lambert pointed out in response to the flotilla images:

These tortured humanitarian activists have endured little compared to the atrociously tortured Palestinian men, women and children who have become victims of rape in Israeli prisons. pic.twitter.com/R5ANe60jci

— Laurent (@LaurentALambert) May 21, 2026

Israel is a colonial terror outpost masquerading as a state.

Featured image via Getty/Uriel Sinai

Even Starmer is now campaigning to get Starmer out

Skwawkbox — Fri, 22 May 2026 08:21:24 +0000

Keir Starmer has said he is going to Makerfield to campaign for Andy Burnham in the manufactured by-election there. And he says he wants everyone else to do the same, no matter what “other discussions are going on”. In doing so, he has become the first PM in history to campaign for his own removal:

NEW: Keir Starmer says he’ll be travelling to Makerfield to campaign for Andy Burnham

“I want everybody to be involved in the campaign, whatever other discussions are going on”

— Politics UK (@PolitlcsUK) May 21, 2026

Backfire

The messaging is most likely an attempt by Starmer to project strength, while secretly banking on Burnham to lose and save Starmer’s skin. In fact, given Starmer’s massive public unpopularity and his record of driving voters away in by-elections, his appearance in Makerfield is probably a direct sabotage attempt.

Definitely wants Andy Burnham to lose then. #MoreChaosWithKeir

— Andrea K Heywood#VoteGreen (@andreaheywood11) May 21, 2026

But given the weakness and awfulness of any MPs currently hoping to ‘challenge’ Starmer, it may backfire. Voters seeing Starmer will be acutely reminded that voting in Burnham is their only realistic hope of getting rid of the Brylcreemed blancmange before 2029.

Featured image via the Canary

British banking giant to cut 15% of jobs to AI. The left needs a vision for tech.

James Wright — Thu, 21 May 2026 23:04:29 +0000

British banking giant Standard Chartered could cut more than 7,500 jobs and replace them with AI and automation. More broadly, analysis from Morgan Stanley has found that UK companies that had used AI for a least a year had net losses of 8% of jobs over only the last 12 months. This was the highest level among countries analysed.

Where’s the left’s vision?

AI and automation is actually an opportunity for progression. But the left needs an alternative vision for how the technology is implemented.

Speaking of the job losses, the CEO of Standard Chartered, which is Asia focused, said:

It’s not cost-cutting. It’s replacing in some cases lower-value human capital with the financial capital and the investment capital we’re putting in

“Lower-value human capital” is quite the way to view workers. But the chief executive does make the point that, with AI and automation, capital will essentially become labour. If one has the investment to automate, one has the labour.

Replacing menial jobs with AI and automation can be progress. It could liberate people, enabling them to be creative, establish skills they never had the time for, study, participate democratically and socialise.

But people need some kind of citizens’ dividend from robotic labour in order to survive with less hours or no job.

Study suggests AI netting job losses

In its analysis, Morgan Stanley found that the UK experienced the worst rate of net AI job losses in 2025, compared to other countries. Japan was second with net losses of 7%, then Germany and Australia with net losses of 4%.

So far, UK companies had an average productivity increase of 11.5%.

The research suggests that AI is not actually creating jobs at the same pace as it is replacing them. And the left needs a modern vision for the technology.

Featured image via Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

By James Wright

Somaliland and Israel agree to open embassies as genocide state’s influence in Africa grows

Joe Glenton — Thu, 21 May 2026 22:46:02 +0000

Israel and Somaliland have agreed to open embassies in Jerusalem and Hargeisa. Israel’s influence in the strategic Horn of Africa is growing. And there have been warnings Israel might ethnically cleanse Palestinians out of Palestine and into the country.

Israel was one of the first countries to recognise Somaliland, a breakaway territory of Somalia, in the early 1990s. UN members railed against the move, but the US defended Israel while not recognising Somaliland itself.

Middle East Eye reported on 19 May:

Somaliland is opening an embassy in Jerusalem, and Israel will reciprocate by opening one in the breakaway region of Somalia, in the latest sign that the two are deepening their ties.

The breakaway country’s ambassador to Israel Mohamed Hagi said:

I am pleased to announce that the Republic of Somaliland’s embassy will be located in Jerusalem – the embassy will be opened soon.

Israel will also establish its embassy in Hargeisa, reflecting growing friendship, mutual respect, and strategic cooperation between our two peoples.

Somaliland borders Somalia, Ethiopia and Djibouti. The latter is home to a major US colonial base and the US has an entire task force devoted to the Horn of Africa.

Israel’s 1991 recognition of breakaway country also caused concerns among other countries in the region:

The move elicited a particularly strong response from Arab and Muslim states that are wary of Israel gaining a foothold in the strategic Horn of Africa through an unrecognised state.

MEE said:

In return for Israeli recognition, Somaliland said it would sign up to the Abraham Accords, the US-led agreements in which Morocco, Bahrain, and the UAE established full diplomatic ties with Israel in 2020 and 2021. Sudan’s agreement to normalise remains unratified amid its civil war.

Somaliland is a strategic node in a wider struggle for influence playing out in the region. The unrecognised state is 30km south of the Bab el-Mandab Strait, the narrow waterway that connects the Gulf of Aden with the Red Sea.

And there are fears that Israel could remove Palestinians from their land, depositing them in Somaliland. Responsible Statecraft wrote on 7 January 2026:

Somali officials have made particularly attention-grabbing claims, alleging that Somaliland is now set to host an Israeli military base and perhaps even camps for Palestinians forcibly displaced from Gaza.

MEE‘s Turkey bureau chief Ragip Soylu said at the time:

NEW: Somaliland agreed three conditions to be recognised by Israel:

1- the resettlement of Palestinians in Somaliland.

2- An Israeli military base on the Gulf of Aden coast.

3- Somaliland’s inclusion to the Abraham Accords.

— Somali President HSM

pic.twitter.com/8Z85hEYHLp

— Ragıp Soylu (@ragipsoylu) December 31, 2025

The former colonial power in the region, Britain, also has some things to answer for:

During the colonial period, British authorities governed Somaliland as a separate entity from the rest of the territory that would one day become Somalia, which Italy controlled at the time. Somaliland even briefly existed as an independent state in 1960, garnering recognition from roughly 30 other countries.

But days after its foundation, Somaliland realigned with Somalia, starting a chain of events which led to civil war and a genocide of some 50,000 Somaliland citizens.

Somaliland is, among other things, a node in the imperial architecture of the region and a one-time colonial possession of the western powers. Israel’s influence appears to follow a similar pattern of outside interference. Only 30 miles from the narrow strait where Red Sea trade flows into the Gulf of Aden, Somaliland’s strategic value is clearly attractive to regional and world powers.

Featured image via the Canary