Apologies, I have withdrawn this article because I consider that it was misleading. It referred to a YouGov poll of 3 March 2026 [ed: 2nd March] instead of a more recent one.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/apr/13/donald-trump-pope-leo
President Donald Trump has delivered an extraordinary broadside against Pope Leo XIV, saying he didn’t think the US-born leader of the Catholic church was “doing a very good job” and that he was “a very liberal person”, while also suggesting the pontiff should “stop catering to the Radical Left”.
Flying back to Washington from Florida on Sunday night, Trump used a lengthy social media post to sharply criticise Leo, then kept it up in comments on the tarmac to reporters.
“I’m not a fan of Pope Leo,” he said.
Trump’s comments came after Leo suggested over the weekend that a “delusion of omnipotence” was fuelling the US-Israel war in Iran. While it’s not unusual for popes and presidents to be at cross-purposes, it’s exceedingly rare for the pope to criticise a US leader – and Trump’s stinging response is equally uncommon.
“Pope Leo is WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy,” the president wrote in his post, adding: “I don’t want a Pope who thinks it’s OK for Iran to have a Nuclear Weapon.”
He repeated that sentiment in comments to reporters, saying: “We don’t like a pope who says it’s OK to have a nuclear weapon.”
Later, he posted a clearly AI-generated image of himself as a Jesus-like figure, appearing to “cure” a man.
Article continues at https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/apr/13/donald-trump-pope-leo
Annie Lennox and Miriam Margolyes are among artists who have accused the Metropolitan police of giving preferential treatment to a far-right demonstration led by Tommy Robinson over a pro-Palestine protest in London on the same day.
The pro-Palestine movement has had its preferred route through central London for its annual commemoration of Nakba – the mass expulsion of Palestinians – rejected by the Met, while the “Unite the Kingdom” demonstration will take place on the same date in Kingsway, the Strand, Trafalgar Square, Whitehall and Parliament Square. Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, posted on X: “London is ours on May 16th.”
An open letter saying that the Met “must not favour the far right over Palestine” has also been signed by the actors Samuel West and Khalid Abdalla, the musicians Billy Bragg and Nadine Shah, as well as MPs, academics, lawyers, trade union and civil society leaders. The Met said the decision was based on the relative scale of the demonstrations.
Billy Howle, who starred in the TV shows The Perfect Couple and The Serpent and also signed the letter, said: “The shocking decision of the police to exclusively favour a far-right demonstration and block this important annual commemoration from the political heart of London will send shivers down the spines of every person of good conscience. It must be overturned.”
The letter says that the pro-Palestine movement informed the force on 18 December of its intention to march on the nearest Saturday to Nakba Day, in keeping with a tradition dating back more than a decade, but that the Met has “instead given over the political centre of London to a hate march called by racist thug ‘Tommy Robinson’”. It calls on the force to “immediately reverse this shameful decision”.
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Article continues at https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/apr/10/met-police-tommy-robinson-far-right-protest-palestine-march-london
https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/trump-announces-hormuz-blockade-us-and-iran-fail-reach-deal
President Donald Trump waves after arriving on Air Force One at Miami International Airport, April 11, 2026, in MiamiUS PRESIDENT Donald Trump ramped up tensions even further in the Middle East today, announcing that the US navy would “immediately” begin a blockade to stop ships from entering or leaving the Strait of Hormuz.
This followed Iranian and US negotiators leaving the Pakistani capital Islamabad after failing to reach a deal in marathon peace talks to end the illegal and unprovoked war on Iran launched by the US and Israel.
In his first public comments after the 21-hour talks, the far-right US president sought to assume control over the waterway thorough which 20 per cent of global oil supplies passed before the war began, hoping to eliminate Iran’s key source of leverage.
The prospect of a US blockade is likely to further alarm global energy markets and send oil and gas prices soaring.
It was not immediately clear how a blockade might be carried out, but Mr Trump said the goal was to ensure that all ships could use the strait.
“It’s going to be all or none and that’s the way it is,” he insisted.
Mr Trump said he has “instructed our navy to seek and interdict every vessel in international waters that has paid a toll to Iran. No-one who pays an illegal toll will have safe passage on the high seas.”
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Article continues at https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/trump-announces-hormuz-blockade-us-and-iran-fail-reach-deal
https://www.thecanary.co/uk/analysis/2026/04/10/lebanon-mod/
The UK military has told the Canary that British war drone circled Lebanon for 13 hours on 8 April 2026 was not there. This is despite is being visible on an aircraft tracking platform. The Cyprus-launched aircraft circled a key battlefield in Israel’s current air and ground assault on Lebanon. It was there despite the UK calling for a ceasefire.
Journalist Matt Kennard, who originally spotted the aircraft, reported that 18 people had been killed in Baalbek, in Lebanon’s east, at time of the flight:
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The Canary asked the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) for more details about why a British military aircraft was over Lebanon during the Israeli assault.
MOD communications officer Luc Wilson told us:
The aircraft in question was not conducting operations over Lebanon.
‘Operations’? It was a military drone out on annual leave, was it?
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See the original article at https://www.thecanary.co/uk/analysis/2026/04/10/lebanon-mod/
