UK

Sara Sharif’s father and stepmother have been found guilty of murdering the 10-year-old before fleeing to Pakistan. Sara was hooded, tied up, beaten with a cricket bat, burnt with an iron and even bitten in a “brutal” campaign of abuse in the weeks before her death on 8 August last year, the Old Bailey heard.

A police officer who sexually assaulted a six-year-old girl on duty has been jailed. Dean Dempster, 35, from Manchester, attacked the child when he was responding to a domestic disturbance on 29 December 2023 while on duty in Oldham. During the investigation, it was also found he had superimposed his face onto child abuse images.

Sara Sharif’s murder-accused father has told jurors he “takes full responsibility” for the death of his daughter. Minicab driver Urfan Sharif, 42, called police in the early hours of 10 August last year saying he had beaten her “too much” for being “naughty”, the court previously heard. The 10-year-old’s body was found in a bunkbed

The Archbishop of Canterbury has resigned after a report found the Church of England covered up sexual abuse by a barrister. The independent Makin review into John Smyth QC’s abuse of children and young men was published last week. Across five decades in three different countries and involving as many as 130 boys and young

WARNING: This article contains language and content some readers may find distressing As a single mum, Lucy* looked forward to her rare nights out. A few years ago, during after-work drinks at a local pub, she started feeling unwell. When she collapsed and passed out, a bouncer called an ambulance. Lucy’s drink had been spiked.

Gary Lineker will step down as host of Match Of The Day at the end of the season, the BBC has confirmed. The 63-year-old will continue to host coverage of the FA Cup in 2025/26 and the World Cup in 2026, the broadcaster announced. Lineker will continue with the MOTD Top Ten podcast while his

A six-month expected lifespan and the ability to take the fatal drugs will be requirements for someone to end their own life under proposed assisted dying legislation. Someone with disability or mental health issues will not be eligible for assisted dying under the plans, published in the End of Life Bill on Tuesday. MPs will

A former soldier accused of spying for Iran has pleaded guilty to escaping from prison under a food catering truck and going on the run for four days while he was awaiting trial. Daniel Khalife, 23, from Kingston, southwest London, changed his plea to a charge of escaping from lawful custody, halfway through giving evidence

Sir Keir Starmer will attend Armistice Day commemorations in France on Monday – the first UK leader to do so since Winston Churchill in the Second World War. Towns and cities across France will mark the 106th anniversary of the Armistice agreement in 1918 that brought fighting in the First World War to an end.

The King led the nation’s Remembrance Sunday commemorations as he laid a wreath at the Cenotaph during a two-minute silence. Charles, who is still receiving cancer treatment, paid his respects without the Queen, who did not attend events in central London due to a chest infection. He appeared alongside his son Prince William and daughter-in-law,

The Princess of Wales has joined other senior royals at the Royal British Legion’s Festival of Remembrance. Both wearing poppies, Kate and the Prince of Wales were seen talking to one another before taking their seats at the Royal Albert Hall. They were later pictured applauding on the balcony during the service that included a

A police officer who shot an innocent man he suspected was a terrorist in the wake of the 7/7 London bombings has spoken about the killing for the first time. Jean Charles de Menezes, a 27-year-old electrician, was killed a fortnight after suicide bombers targeted three Tube lines and a London bus on 7 July

The Metropolitan Police has referred two cases to the police watchdog following complaints about investigations into allegations made against Mohamed al Fayed. The force has voluntarily referred the cases to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) after receiving complaints from two women regarding prior police investigations into allegations against the former Harrods and Fulham

In Altrincham near Manchester asylum seekers are just settling in at the Cresta Court Hotel, many of them just days after making a treacherous journey across the English Channel. But, as the new arrivals find sanctuary in a northern town, their presence is causing controversy. The government said it would end the use of hotels

Prince William has described the past year as “brutal” and probably “the hardest year in my life” following his father and wife being diagnosed with cancer. In a wide-ranging and surprisingly personal interview at the end of his week-long tour of Cape Town, the Prince of Wales was asked how hard the last year has

Three men have been arrested in connection with a deadly house explosion in Newcastle. Seven-year-old Archie York and Jason Laws, who was in his 30s, were killed following the blast in Violet Close, in the Benwell and Elswick area of the city in October. Police said at the time that six others were taken to

Large groups of youths have been throwing fireworks, bricks and bottles at police in Edinburgh, during a night of disorder across the city. Video posted online shows officers responding to Bonfire Night incidents in the Sighthill, Niddrie, Gracemount and Gilmerton areas. Riot police have been seen on the streets of Edinburgh, wearing helmets and carrying

Police have made a direct appeal to those involved in the murder of a teenager to finally bring her family closure, exactly 30 years after she disappeared. Lindsay Rimer, 13, went out to buy a box of Corn Flakes late in the evening on 7 November 1994 and never returned home. Her body was found

The Queen is unwell with a chest infection and has withdrawn from her engagements this week, Buckingham Palace has announced. A palace spokesperson said Camilla’s doctors “have advised a short period of rest” and added that “with great regret, Her Majesty has therefore had to withdraw from her engagements for this week”. They added the

An apparent firebomb attack at a DHL warehouse in Birmingham, linked to Russian-backed saboteurs, was believed to be a trial run for a US attack, according to Polish officials. Poland’s National Prosecutor’s Office has confirmed four arrests after parcels “containing explosives” were allegedly sent via courier companies to countries including the UK. Counter-terror police in

More cases of a new strain of mpox have been detected in the UK, officials say. Last week, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said a single case of the mpox virus variant Clade 1b had been confirmed in London. The agency has now announced a further two cases have been detected. The two patients

Another £75m will go towards “smashing the gangs” as the government beefs up its new Border Security Command unit. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is set to announce the additional funding as he hosts the Interpol general assembly in Glasgow from today, the first time the UK has hosted it in more than 50 years.

Kemi Badenoch has made her first senior appointment as the new Conservative Party leader. It is understood that Rebecca Harris, MP for the Essex constituency of Castle Point, will be the party’s chief whip – replacing Stuart Andrew. Mr Andrew wrote on the X social media platform: “It has been an honour and a privilege

The family of a father murdered by a newly released prisoner are suing the Scottish government amid claims the authorities are refusing to take responsibility for “failures”. Stuart Quinn, a violent criminal with a history of psychotic episodes, stabbed dad-of-one Alan Geddes 40 times in Aberdeen in 2019 – hours after he was freed from

Police investigating historical sex offence allegations against Russell Brand have handed a file of evidence to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), it is understood. A statement from the Metropolitan Police said: “Following an investigation by Channel 4’s Dispatches and The Sunday Times in September 2023, the Met received a number of reports of sexual offences

Footage of the moment 10-year-old Sara Sharif’s alleged killers were detained after police boarded their plane back to the UK has been played in court. As they are approached by officers, Sara‘s stepmother Beinash Batool is heard saying: “I think you’re looking for us.” Batool, 30, Sara’s father Urfan Sharif, 42, and uncle Faisal Malik,

Six teenagers have been arrested after a 13-year-old girl was reportedly stabbed and found with multiple injuries at the side of a major road in East Yorkshire. Police said the girl had sustained “lacerations to her neck, abdomen, chest and back” and was rushed to hospital for what they described as “life threatening injuries”. Four

First things first: don’t panic. What you need to know is this. The budget has not gone down well in financial markets. Indeed, it’s gone down about as badly as any budget in recent years, save for Liz Truss’s mini-budget. The pound is weaker. Government bond yields (essentially, the interest rate the exchequer pays on

A teenager who broke into the home of a British mother in Australia – where another teen stabbed her to death – has been cleared of murder. Emma Lovell, 41, was killed in North Lakes, Queensland, on Boxing Day in 2022 while fending off two intruders. In May this year, the teenage attacker who pleaded

The chancellor cannot rule out more tax rises in the next five years, despite raising the burden to its highest level since comparable records began. Speaking to Sky News following Labour’s first fiscal event since 2010, Rachel Reeves said it would be “irresponsible” to promise there will not be further tax rises. However, she suggested

As mother-of-three Danielle pushes two prams down the street in south London, her only thought is where will they all sleep tonight? The 21-year-old, whose children are all under the age of five, had a council house in Southwark but had to move out because she faced threats of violence. “I didn’t know that going

Budgets are all about numbers. In the coming 24 hours, we’ll be engulfed with all sorts of figures – about the state of the economy, about the size of the deficit, about the fiscal rules the new chancellor is planning to introduce in the coming months. But in fact most budgets, this one included, can

The teenager accused of stabbing three girls to death in Southport faces a separate terror charge after police said a biological toxin and an al Qaeda training manual were found in a search of his home. Axel Rudakubana, 18, from Lancashire, had already been charged with three counts of murder and 10 counts of attempted