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Tuesday briefing: Inside the suspected bomb plot at RAF Fairford

Good morning. Vehicles suspected of carrying explosives zipping across Britain, entirely unbeknownst to authorities, is a disconcerting prospect. Initially, it seemed precisely this had occurred in Gloucestershire early on Sunday. A major attack on RAF Fairford appeared to have been scuppered by “pure luck”, a local farmer said, after she noticed suspicious vans and masked men on an otherwise deserted country lane. Had she not tipped off police, the vigilant villager believes the five men arrested on terror offences would not have been apprehended. That account prompted questions about whether police and security services had been caught off guard. Bu new details emerging suggest there are competing, if not conflicting, versions of how events unfolded in the Cotswolds this weekend. So what exactly happened in the early hours of Sunday morning? In today’s First Edition, we’ll explore this, and some other unanswered questions, with the help of Guardian international security correspondent Jason Burke. Before that, this morning’s headlines. Five big stories Energy | Andy Burnham will take his first major step to putting Britain’s utility companies into public control when, at the Labour conference, he announces a new government-backed body to invest in the electricity grid. Immigration | Home secretary Shabana Mahmood has signalled she is considering watering down her plans to make it harder for foreign workers to claim permanent residence in the UK, amid growing demands for a U-turn from cabinet colleagues and unions. AI | Two of the “godfathers” of modern AI and senior executives at OpenAI and Anthropic have warned governments to prepare for an AI “intelligence explosion”, which they say could be the most consequential technological development in history. Petrol | The price of diesel on UK forecourts has hit an all-time high average of 199.18p a litre, as the conflict in the Middle East continues to drive the cost of fuel to record levels. Ebola | A senior member of the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s ruling party was beaten to death on Sunday after appearing on a radio programme to raise awareness about the Ebola outbreak, a party representative has said. In depth: What we do (and don’t) know about a suspected bomb plot in the Cotswolds In the early hours of Sunday, a farmer from the village of Whelford was travelling home from a party along quiet rural roads. She was about to drop off a friend, while her husband dozed in the passenger seat. Around 1am, however, she encountered three vans “parked in a really weird fan shape” blocking the path to her farm, close to RAF Fairford, an airbase operated by the US air force. Forced to turn around, she then described seeing “a large group of hooded and masked men” at a nearby junction, who quickly dispersed. After a failed attempt to contact the Ministry of Defence, she phoned the police at 1.36am and posted in the local residents’ WhatsApp group. Roughly 10 minutes later, armed officers were on the scene. Five men were arrested 300 metres from the base’s perimeter, first under the Explosives Act, and subsequently also on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act. All five – UK nationals from London aged between 23 and 25 – were released on bail yesterday. In interviews, the farmer, who has remained anonymous, reiterated her belief that her tip off “foiled whatever plans” were unfolding. “I am absolutely staggered that it was left to me, as a member of the public, to see and report this,” she said. That the high-security site was so exposed, and that the vans suspected of carrying explosives in its vicinity went totally unnoticed, has since raised questions. While thanking the farmer for her efforts, defence secretary Wes Streeting was quick to cast doubt on her assertions, hinting that UK security services were aware and that her account only offered “a partial picture”. Donald Trump has claimed the US and UK agencies worked together and had the five men “under view for a long time”, adding the suspects “were looking to do big damage to our fort, and working with the British worked out great”. The farmer acknowledged there had been “activity” by what she “assumed were plain-clothed police officers” in the area in recent days. Another local told the BBC that while walking their dog early on Saturday evening they were stopped by armed police and told to return home. Gloucestershire constabulary said they were first alerted to the suspicious vans at 12.45am on Sunday – almost an hour before the farmer’s 999 call. Counter-terror police have confirmed the three vehicles had been travelling overnight and been subject to extensive examination, with the support of military assets and forensic experts. It is now understood that the material found inside them was not viable explosives, but police have said the investigation is continuing. And then there’s the expeditious nature of the response: the speed with which armed officers and police helicopters arrived at a rural location in the middle of the night appears improbable. *** Questions around the arrests Police are still working to establish motive. Yesterday afternoon, the head of UK National Counter Terrorism Policing, Laurence Taylor, confirmed it may have been the work of proxies, or individuals working on behalf of a foreign state. On Monday night, US secretary of state Marco Rubio told Fox News that a foreign actor was involved in the suspected plot, but provided no evidence for his claims. Iran is the centre of speculation, having explicitly stated it considers RAF Fairford “a legitimate target”. Yesterday, the Iranian embassy said it “categorically rejects” any involvement. Used by the US military for decades, RAF Fairford’s two-mile long runway was specially constructed by the Americans to allow long-range bombers to take off and land. Fairford has played a significant role in Trump’s war on Iran; since former prime minister Keir Starmer allowed the US to use UK bases in its assaults, bomb-laden American B-52 and B-1 planes have regularly been spotted taking off. The airbase is one of only two available to the US in Europe that can facilitate these operations, after Spain, France, Italy and Switzerland rejected similar American requests. “Most observers and analysts would place Iran at the top of the list of potential suspects here,” Jason Burke, the Guardian’s international security correspondent, tells me, “though we have very little in the way of information to work on, so it’s entirely possible an altogether different scenario is at play.” As for the five suspects, their being British nationals is likely of little help when determining who may be behind the plot. “The Iranian modus operandi – borrowing a leaf from the Russian playbook – relies on using local hires,” Jason says. “Instead of deploying their own intelligence operatives, they recruit low-grade agents on the ground, some of whom may not fully realise what they are involved in.” *** Growing security concerns Since the US-Israel war on Iran began, a series of UK security incidents have been linked with Iran. Earlier this month, a man and a woman were arrested after raids on homes in north London on suspicion of assisting Iran’s foreign intelligence service. In March, four Jewish community ambulances were destroyed in an arson attack – counter-terror police explored the possible involvement of Iranian proxies, though aside from a reference to a “terrorist connection”, no mention of Iran was made by prosecutors in court when four men admitted responsibility. Similar suggestions have been made about tens of other antisemitic attacks in the UK and Europe – Iran’s embassy in the UK has denied any involvement. In April, Jason reported that, while direct proof of Iran’s involvement in incidents on UK soil remained elusive, the consensus among security officials was the attacks look to be part of a campaign of hybrid warfare launched by Tehran. Since then, Jason says, more evidence has emerged, in part due to the prosecution of 32-year-old Iraqi national Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi in a US court. “This case laid out in extraordinary detail how he, on behalf of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps, commissioned, organised, and executed a series of attacks in Europe, including in Britain.” *** A significant escalation If Iran is proven to be responsible, an intended attack on this scale would represent a significant escalation. “It would be a major step up from targeting synagogues, Israeli embassies and US-owned banks,” says Jason, “given this is a piece of major military infrastructure in Britain.” With Andy Burnham leading a new government, it’s possible there may be a recalibration of UK foreign policy. He has said he’d be willing to deviate from Trump when necessary. Burnham’s foreign secretary, Ed Miliband, was reportedly central to attempts made during a national security meeting to dissuade then-PM Starmer from granting the US permission to use UK bases. But this would not significantly alter the risk of attacks, Jason says. “Iran’s targets are not necessarily chosen to directly punish a country; most experts believe they are selected to sow division in societies, distract policymakers, and divert resources.” For now, the investigation continues. What else we’ve been enjoying Palliative nurse Jane Turner makes a poignant point in this column: regardless of your belief about assisted dying, every side agrees on the need to radically improve end-of-life care in the UK. Charlie Lindlar, newsletters team I devoured Jess Cartner-Morley’s interview with Celia Birtwell, in which Birtwell talks about her friendship with David Hockney and her marriage to Ossie Clark: “He was spectacular, at the beginning,” says Birtwell – even if he did leave her the day after their wedding, pregnant, to honeymoon in Barbados on his own. Lucinda Everett, newsletters team Some vital tips in this piece by Sarah Phillips on the conversations every couple should have to keep a household running safely and happily – I’ve already pencilled in my first weekly “check-in”. Charlie All of the photographs in this gallery of the Porthcawl Elvis festival are wonderful. But my favourite has to be of Brian, AKA Smurf Elvis, who remixed his costume this year after a decade of attending the largest gathering of Elvis fans in Europe. Lucinda Rob Draper’s look back at how Arsenal’s hiring of Arsène Wenger changed football is brilliantly reported – make sure to share it with your nearest mustachioed graphic designer friend called Sam, Ed or Harry. Charlie Sport Nations League | Israeli football team captain Manor Solomon has hit out at Ireland after his team’s 3-o loss in a politically charged Nations League game, saying “They hate us and we don’t like them.” Rugby | In west Wales, fans want to know why the Scarlets and Ospreys, two teams who have won titles and turned out hundreds of Test players, are on the chopping block under the Welsh Rugby Union’s proposal to cut a club by 2028. Football | The Fifa president, Gianni Infantino, is poised to bow to demands from Uefa and Concacaf to distribute more money from its $6bn cash reserves to member associations. The front pages The Guardian splashes on “PM unveils electricity grid plan in push for public control of utilities”. The Mail leads with “PM to vow public control of energy, water and housing” and the Mirror looks at Burnham’s energy prices pledge with “Taking back power”. The Financial Times also reports “Burnham to outline plans for social care, welfare and ‘control’ of utilities.” The Times goes with “Labour split on prospect of ending triple lock”, the Telegraph has “Burnham signals end of triple lock”, while The i Paper says “End of UK state pension triple lock moves a step closer”. The Sun looks at the RAF terror drama, asking “Plot’s going on, PM?” Today in Focus The Pussy Riot activist turned Kremlin informer In August, Rita Flores, a Russian artist, activist and former member of the Pussy Riot collective, revealed in a video that she had been working as an informant for Russia’s FSB security service, a cooperation she only broke days after fleeing the country. Masha Alekhina, a founding member of Pussy Riot who was jailed for her support of the group and fled the country, tells Helen Pidd about why she does not feel angry at her former comrade in activism. Cartoon of the day | Ben Jennings The Upside A bit of good news to remind you that the world’s not all bad Our weekly series The pet I’ll never forget is always a source of joy. And the story of scruffy little terrier Dennis is no exception. Sophia Money-Coutts got Dennis in 2024 with her then-boyfriend, but within three months the couple had split. “I was distracted from my sadness by this small, bouncy, intensely disobedient dog,” says Money-Coutts, explaining that he raced after every squirrel, raided her bins, licked a man she was dating during an amorous moment, and “once farted on Jilly Cooper’s sofa”. Dennis had accompanied Money-Coutts, a journalist, to an interview with the animal-loving novelist, whose response was typically indulgent. “It doesn’t matter a bit, does it darling?” she recalls Cooper crying, clutching Dennis closer to her. “He can do whatever he likes.” Sign up here for a weekly roundup of The Upside, sent to you every Sunday Bored at work? And finally, the Guardian’s puzzles are here to keep you entertained throughout the day. Until tomorrow. Quick crossword Cryptic crossword Wordiply

Why is South Korea so angry with Ukraine over two North Korean prisoners of war?

South Korea and Ukraine are locked in an escalating diplomatic dispute over who agreed what regarding the circumstances of two prisoners of war captured fighting for Russia. Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, told the UN general assembly last week that his country had “sent two North Korean prisoners of war to the Republic of Korea”. Seoul had long said it would take the men. But rather than celebrate, on Monday South Korea summoned Ukraine’s most senior diplomat in Seoul and demanded an apology. Here’s a brief guide to what has happened, and why. Who are the PoWs and what has happened to them? Ukrainian forces captured the two men in Russia’s Kursk region in January 2025. They were among thousands of troops Pyongyang sent to fight for Moscow. Both men later said they wanted to go to South Korea, which regards North Koreans as its own citizens. In July, Zelenskyy and South Korea’s president, Lee Jae Myung, agreed to resolve the issue while respecting the soldiers’ “free will”. The captured pair reportedly arrived in South Korea via a third country earlier this month. North Koreans arriving in the South as defectors are usually questioned by the National Intelligence Service before being sent to a state resettlement centre, although sensitive cases can reportedly bypass the centre. Why is Seoul so angry? Seoul says Kyiv requested secrecy about the transfer, fearing domestic criticism for passing up the opportunity to exchange them for “a large number” of Ukrainian prisoners. South Korea says it agreed, citing the safety of the two men and their families as well as diplomatic and security considerations. After Zelenskyy revealed the transfer in his UN speech, Lee said on X that Ukraine had broken a “non-disclosure agreement” and that this was regrettable. Zelenskyy’s adviser Dmytro Lytvyn responded on Facebook that there had been no such agreement, prompting accusations from Lee’s critics that the president, whose approval rating has hit a low of 37.9%, had lied. Lee’s office called Kyiv’s statement “false” and said its conduct “seriously damages trust” between the two governments. On Monday, the foreign ministry summoned Ukraine’s chargé d’affaires, demanding an apology at governmental level. Was there actually an agreement? South Korea’s foreign ministry told Ukraine’s envoy there had been a “clear agreement”. Asked by the Guardian the same day whether anything had been put in writing, the ministry said only that the two sides “had decided to handle it confidentially”. Ukraine’s embassy in Seoul did not respond to a request for comment. Has North Korea said anything? No. South Korea’s unification ministry said it had “not identified any related developments so far” and would continue monitoring. North Korea has glorified soldiers who killed themselves rather than be captured. The transfer of two who survived and chose the South is “a fatal matter” for Pyongyang, says Cho Han-bum of the Korea Institute for National Unification. Having built a “heroic narrative” around its troops, the regime is unlikely to disclose the transfer domestically, he says. How big a diplomatic incident is this? After Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, South Korea condemned Moscow’s actions, joined western sanctions and, in July, pledged a $100m support package. But it has kept the war at arm’s length, refusing to send weapons directly to Kyiv, in line with its practice of not supplying lethal arms to countries at war. Before the war, Russia was one of South Korea’s biggest trading partners. Lee’s government is also keen to improve relations with Pyongyang. The row has turned that cautious support for Kyiv into open criticism, largely from Lee’s own camp. Kim Byung-joo, a Democratic party lawmaker, said there was “no reason or need” to support Ukraine and has urged the government to review its aid “immediately”.

‘It keeps growing’: the tent camp that stands against Spain’s housing crisis

Wielding a broom and dustpan, Marta García, 60, darted past the edges of tents, sweeping up bits of litter as she passed a poster that read: “What kind of times are these, when we need to defend the obvious?” On Saturday, as tens of thousands of people took to the streets of Madrid to protest against the country’s deepening housing crisis, the retired schoolteacher was among a small group who had sought to take the protest one step further. “At first we were 10 tents,” she said, gesturing to the sprawling encampment set up in the central Puerta del Sol plaza behind her. “Now, we’re more than 300 tents, and it keeps growing.” Days earlier, many across Spain had watched in shock as news channels showed Maricarmen Abascal, an 87-year-old woman with a disability, being evicted from the home where she had lived for seven decades. The shock soon gave way to anger as the octogenarian was shown being brought out of her home on a stretcher, flanked by protesters on one side and police officers on the other. Housing campaigners seized on the moment. “The whole country has seen that housing speculation has no mercy on anyone,” said Alicia del Río of the Madrid Tenants’ Union. “We’re not sad, we’re angry. And we’re not going to stop until we change things.” Abascal’s lawyers reportedly reached a deal for her to return home on Monday evening. “If this agreement we have reached is signed, it will obviously be a better and happier outcome for everyone,” her lawyer, Beatriz Duro, told reporters, saying it could “help to change the paradigm when it comes to housing in general”. At the encampment earlier on Monday, many described the days of nationwide protests and the encampment as a turning point in a movement that had long simmered as rents rose by 80% within a decade, while the cost of homes climbed by 63%. “We need stability,” said David Iglesias, 25, as he described how the ever-soaring prices had forced people to put their lives on hold to try to keep a roof over their heads. “People who want to have children should be able to do so, even if they are renting. People who dream of becoming musicians or barbers should have the chance to do so and not have to worry that they need to work, work, work to pay for housing,” he said. “It’s an endless loop that is undermining the mental health of young people.” As he spoke, a large banner flapped nearby, reading: “You can speculate on watches, jewels, cryptobros and Ferraris. But not on our fucking homes.” The swelling encampment had prompted a raft of comparisons to 2011, when the Indignados, or 15M movement, began with a month-long occupation of the same Madrid plaza before snowballing into a force that had reshaped Spanish politics. Iglesias, however, brushed off the similarity. “That was about a general demand for change,” he said. “But we have a goal, and if this goal isn’t met by Tuesday, we’ll have to take action somehow.” It was a nod to the informal camp slogan, launched by housing campaigners and oft-repeated by protesters in recent days: “Either the rentier economy falls, or the government does.” As Spain’s government gears up for its weekly Tuesday meeting, campaigners have put forward a list of demands, from measures to halt evictions to the regulation of short-term and room rentals, making it clear that this is being seen as a make-or-break moment. On Sunday, Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, said his government was “working around the clock to introduce a royal decree on housing on Tuesday”. The protests have put the Socialist leader in a complicated spot; while his coalition government includes leftwing forces who have long pushed for change, Spain’s fractured parliament means his chances are slim of attracting support for measures that could bring about real change. Still, the momentum has continued to grow across the country, fuelled by the campaigners who occupied the offices of Madrid’s social housing agency on Monday to those in Barcelona who began the day by blocking off major thoroughfares. “Today cannot be a day like all others,” said Enric Aragonès of the Barcelona Tenants’ union, ahead of a protest planned for Tuesday evening in the city. “There are only 24 hours left until we find out whether the government will approve a decree that is a sham or genuine.” In Madrid, the calls for change had attracted a diverse group, including Oscar-winning film director Pedro Almodóvar, who visited on Sunday to voice his support for the protesters. “The housing problem is paralysing Spanish life,” he told broadcaster RTVE. Sitting cross-legged in a tent and knitting to pass the time, Guillermo Esteve said he was part of a group of vegans who had decided to show their support by joining the encampment. “We’re a group of people who believe we can do things better,” he said, describing his hope that this would be part of a sweeping change that would start with the real estate sector, then address the precarity of the labour market and eventually tackle production systems. “We want laws that give us hope, not what we have now.” The sentiment was echoed by García, the retired schoolteacher. “This camp is an example of how people still believe that things can change,” she said. “I have my life sorted out; I have a house. But I have two daughters who are sharing bedrooms because they have no other choice. So I can’t just sit around doing nothing.” This was how she had ended up in the heart of Madrid on a Monday afternoon, sweeping the city’s central plaza, she added with a laugh. “Look, if I didn’t think this was going to amount to anything, I would just stay home and cry,” she said. “But I have to stay helpful.” With contribution from Stephen Burgen in Barcelona

Vietnamese government accused of abducting human rights activists

Vietnamese authorities have detained three activists, including a Norwegian and an Australian, on what have been described as “fabricated” charges. The Vietnamese government said the three confessed to being members of Viet Tan – a pro-democracy organisation – which it describes as a terrorist group. In a statement, Viet Tan said it “strongly condemns the abduction of two of its members in Cambodia and the fabricated charges issued by the Vietnamese communist authorities to cover up an act of transnational repression”. It is not clear if the third person is a Viet Tan member as well. Tran Hiep, a 50-year-old Vietnamese Australian democracy campaigner, was due to return to Bangkok, Thailand, to reunite with his wife, Chloe Dang, after a short trip to Phnom Penh, Cambodia, to meet with human rights defenders. Earlier, his wife implored the federal government to find him and bring him home after he failed to board his flight. He had not communicated with his wife since 18 September, leaving her worried for his safety. “My family and I are really worried about his safety, and we just only want to know where he is and what happened to him,” Dang said from Bangkok airport before boarding a flight to Melbourne. “My husband deserves protection, and I really hope the Australian government will continue to put pressure on Cambodia to do an investigation to find out where he is right now.” Anthony Albanese said the government was providing consular assistance. “That’s what Australian governments do for our citizens. And we’ll continue to engage directly with the family,” the Australian prime minister said. Hiep, a freelance IT professional who founded the Australian Alliance to Combat Human Trafficking, was travelling with another human rights activist Nguyen Duc Thuan, who is also Vietnamese and holds a Norwegian passport. The pair travelled to Cambodia to meet with dissident Vietnamese activists for training. According to a Vietnamese government statement, they were arrested entering Vietnam from the Cambodian border along with a third person, Thai Cong Truong Son. The statement describes the three Vietnamese-born people as illegal immigrants and says they will be investigated for alleged terrorism and forging identity documents. Viet Tan says it aims to “overcome dictatorship and build the foundation for a sustainable democracy”, and that it was “committed to peaceful, nonviolent struggle”. “We are convinced that nonviolent means are most effective for generating maximum civic participation,” the organisation said on its website. Human Rights Watch has previously described Viet Tan as “an opposition political party … which operates openly and lawfully in many countries including Australia, but which Hanoi arbitrarily labels ‘terrorist’”. Vietnam in recent years has ramped up its crackdown on dissidents, with more than 55 activists arrested under broad criminal laws in 2025. On 18 September, Human Rights Watch said more than 160 political prisoners were currently locked up in Vietnam, and that activists faced “police harassment, intimidation, surveillance, and interrogation on a daily basis”. Viet Tan urged the Norwegian and Australian authorities to ask for access to the Hiep and Thuan, to “ensure their wellbeing and access to needed medication”. It said the pair had “no intention” of entering Vietnam and the claim they had done so illegally was a “blatant fabrication” to cover up their abduction. “Viet Tan is particularly concerned that To Lam’s police state is using its security apparatus to pursue and repress activists and foreign nationals even beyond Vietnam’s borders,” it said. “Meeting with, exchanging ideas with, and supporting human rights defenders, democracy activists, and civil society is a peaceful form of advocacy to advance freedom, democracy, and human rights in Vietnam.” Civil society groups and United Nations human rights experts have repeatedly warned of growing cooperation between Vietnamese authorities and neighbouring governments targeting advocates. Viet Tan, a pro-democracy diaspora political party, had earlier described the pair’s disappearance as concerning given previous cases involving Vietnamese dissidents vanishing in neighbouring countries and subsequently appearing in custody in Vietnam. “Their disappearance is not an ordinary ‘missing person’ incident. Both men are longtime human rights advocates and Viet Tan members,” the organisation said. Asia Human Rights & Labour Advocates director Phil Robertson labelled it an “unacceptable outrage” and that countries like Australia “continuing business as usual” was not acceptable. “[It] demonstrates yet again that Hanoi is arguably the most vicious and pernicious practitioner of transnational repression today in Southeast Asia,” he said. Dang, 36, said fretting over her husband’s whereabouts had taken a psychological toll. “It’s been 11 days and I’m really in the dark,” she said, choking back tears. “I don’t know where he is and how he’s doing – it’s driving me crazy. “Everything is really uncertain.” The Australian government confirmed consular officials were in contact with Dang but declined to comment further. “The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is providing consular assistance to the family of an Australian reported missing in Cambodia,” a department spokesperson said on Monday. The families of the missing men have filed an appeal with the UN working group on enforced or involuntary disappearances.

‘Children are dying’: Fiji hopes declaring an HIV emergency will help it tackle crisis

On a recent Friday night, Dr Kesaia Tuidraki’s medical team parked its mobile clinic outside McDonald’s in downtown Suva, Fiji, and grabbed any kid they could to be tested for HIV. Of the 97 people screened, mostly teenagers – some on their way to get a burger, others to buy drugs – one in six tested positive. “Children are suffering, children are dying, and if that doesn’t move you I don’t know what will,” Tuidraki, country director of Medical Services Pacific, tells the Guardian. Fijian authorities this month called a national health emergency to deal with surging HIV cases, with an estimated one in 60 adults now living with the virus. It comes as new infections surge, with 2,016 new cases diagnosed in 2025 – rising by 27% in a year, and representing a 12-fold increase since 2010, according to UNAids. In a close-knit island nation of about 930,000 people, an estimated 9,100 are now living with the virus. But only a fraction of those are tested and access treatment, prompting the government to scale up its pandemic announcement – first made in February 2025 – and mobilise urgent measures to prevent its spread. Dr Jason Mitchell, the head of Fiji’s HIV epidemic response, said it could take between five and 10 years to get a handle on the virus, and in the meantime he would expect numbers to rise. Critics say moves to stem the spread of a disease that is being driven by cases in the young, with new diagnoses highest in those aged between 15 and 34, has been too slow. The crisis is complex and inextricably linked to the drug epidemic – more than 42% of new cases in 2025 were due to sharing contaminated needles or equipment. Health advocates and social workers say primary school-age children are among those injecting themselves and friends are using the same contaminated needle, a problem raised by advocates as far back as 2019. “I know these young boys, they ask me for syringes,” injecting drug user Rochelle*, who is living with HIV, tells the Guardian. “Whenever I have them I give them out. Someone has to give them, they’re already accessing the drugs.” Rochelle, 38, says she tries to tell the boys not to share. Sometimes the kids listen – but not always. Under current law, giving out syringes is technically considered aiding and abetting drug use. A concern among some politicians and medical professionals is that providing needles would encourage drug use – despite evidence from UNAids that this is not the case –and advocates are urging the government to let them distribute thousands of needles and syringes sitting untouched in a Suva warehouse. “It’s really sad, honestly. We can’t wait any more, there are boxes and boxes already here,” Tuidraki says. Mitchell says he expects a change to the HIV Act to be passed within the next two weeks, allowing public health workers to distribute needles. He adds that the government has been “cautious” in announcing the emergency, which his unit had been asking for since June. Those leading the response say increased powers arising from the emergency declaration will help to quell the rapid spread of HIV, including to vulnerable populations like mothers and babies, at an estimated extra cost of $23m FJD (US$10.2m) a year. “The immediate crisis right now is the spread of HIV, which is why the needle and syringe programme is critical,” UNAids, the UN agency that fights HIV and Aids, regional director Eamonn Murphy said. ‘People are scared’ The epidemic is complex but heavily linked to methamphetamine use. Fiji is a drug-running hub in the Pacific for methamphetamine bound for Australian and New Zealand markets, but use escalated during Covid when borders were closed and it began circulating domestically. While Fijians want the crisis addressed, there has also been a backlash. Only 39% of those living with HIV in Fiji know their status, according to UNAids, and some of those spoken to by the Guardian continued to live in denial or refuse testing. “There are people blaming the [queer] community, blaming women as irresponsible people, there’s a lot of cyberbullying. Minorities are being attacked online,” Mark Shaheel Lal, an advocate who lives with HIV, says. “Now it’s more like a scandal and people are scared.” UNAids is also concerned about the spread of the virus to the Pacific, with rising cases seen in Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea. In November, Australia’s minister for foreign affairs, Penny Wong, announced A$48m for Pacific countries to fight HIV/Aids, while New Zealand committed NZ$4.2m to Fiji in July. The introduction of PreP – or pre-exposure prophylaxis – an HIV prevention drug, would be a “gamechanger,” says Mitchell, who adds that one injection could be offered every six months for those at higher risk. It would be especially important for women who are not able to push for safe sex practices with partners. Two in every 100 pregnant women now have HIV. “You can’t hide a bottle of pills, but you can get an injection,” says Michell. For now, women are already being offered three HIV tests during pregnancy and sexual reproductive hubs are operating at the three main hospitals. ________ “There’s no miracles in the HIV response, it does not happen overnight. Unfortunately people are thinking this is like Covid, it’s very much not,” Mitchell says. His team plans to open new clinics, integrate testing and treatment into GP services, work on harm reduction, and hire at least 100 more staff. He says that the increase in cases means more people are getting tested, which is a positive. “Burnout is a major concern – we didn’t just start working yesterday, we’ve been working for 21 months. It’s difficult, and the difficulty is that all of it is preventable. It should not be happening.” But in many areas, including rural localities, access to treatment continues to lag. Drug Free World Fiji founder and campaigner Kalesi Volatabu is still haunted by the 15-year-old girl she met when she started pushing for a safe needle programme six years ago. A drug mule who smuggled methamphetamine to New Zealand and Australia, she had names for the three main veins on the back of her hand; breakfast, lunch, and dinner. “We had no idea of the severity, of the depth of the drug trade in this country, of the HIV crisis. Even I was naive, at the beginning, and everything was unreported for the longest time. We failed to act then – will we now?” *Name has been changed

Ukraine war briefing: Putin orders army expansion as Zelenskyy says more North Koreans to be deployed in Russia

Russian president Vladimir Putin has ordered ⁠an increase in the size ⁠of the army to 1.55 ⁠million active ‌servicemen, according ‌to a ‌presidential decree on Monday. The order comes as both Russia and Ukraine suffer mounting casualties in the more than four-and-a-half-year Ukraine war. The expansion, which follows a similar increase ordered in August, ‌will put the size of Russia’s armed forces at ⁠2,441,630. Of those are 1,550,000 active servicemen, an increase of 15,500. Ukrainian president ⁠Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on X on ‌Monday ‌there were now more than 8,000 ‌North Korean troops on ⁠Russian territory and preparations were under way to ‌deploy another 10,000 troops. Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un confirmed for the first time last year that North Korea had sent troops to fight for Russia in the war with Ukraine, with both leaders describing the soldiers as “heroes”. Citing “new data” on the deployment of North Korean troops to Russia, ⁠Zelenskyy said they were “being selected for training and subsequent deployment to Russia”. North Korea has sent an estimated 14,000 to 15,000 ⁠troops to support Russia’s war in Ukraine since 2024, according to Ukrainian and South Korean estimates, with most deployed in the Kursk region to help repel a ‌Ukrainian incursion. Explosions ⁠were heard in the Ukrainian capital of ⁠Kyiv early ⁠on Tuesday, a Reuters witness said, as Russia ⁠continues its near-daily attacks. Missile ‌debris fell in the ‌courtyard of a residential building, among other damage, and a non-residential building caught fire in another ‌part of the city, Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram. On Monday, Zelenskyy said nine ⁠people had been killed and more than 80 injured in Russian drone strikes throughout ‌the country, including in Kyiv. Pope Leo urged Russia and ⁠Ukraine to sit down and discuss how to end their war, hours after ⁠he had urged ⁠European leaders seeking to end conflicts to make concessions to achieve peace. Addressing a press conference aboard his flight to Rome on Monday after ‌a four-day trip ‌to France, Leo said the 1.4-billion-member Catholic church had an obligation ‌to call for peace and respect of human life. “The Church has a responsibility to promote these values, continually inviting leaders – from Russia and Ukraine, as well as other countries – to come together, sit down, engage ‌in dialogue,” the pope said. Nato’s top military commander said Russia’s sabotage campaign in Europe was failing to put countries off supporting Ukraine. “State-directed sabotage is growing increasingly brazen,” US general Alexus Grynkewich told a committee of EU lawmakers on Monday. Nato’s supreme allied commander for Europe cited recent incidents including the discovery of an explosive-laden drone at a German airport and a Russian naval ship firing flares at a Danish helicopter. “These are clear examples of attempts to instil fear and fracture our unified support to Ukraine. It isn’t working,” he said. Ukraine will postpone some spending commitments, including reconstruction work, because of delays in receiving aid from its foreign backers, Ukraine’s prime minister said. The government would carry out these projects eventually, “but for now, all resources must be directed toward critical areas”, Sergiy Koretsky said on Telegram on Monday. Russia’s offensive has battered Ukraine’s economy, causing billions of dollars in destruction and punching a huge hole in its neighbour’s finances. Putin has ordered the Russian assets of German retailer Metro AG to be placed under temporary administration, amid Russian-German tensions over the Ukraine war. The order, posted on Monday on the government website, did not state a reason. The step follows similar steps against the Russia businesses of global food company Nestlé and French retailer Auchan under a 2023 decree aimed at businesses associated with “unfriendly countries”. Temporary administration has led to local owners taking over the Russia businesses of French dairy concern Danone and Danish brewer Carlsberg at knockdown prices. A Russian jet-powered drone struck a Ukrainian village near the Polish border earlier on Monday, damaging a border checkpoint, a regional Ukrainian official said. The official did not give details about the nature of the checkpoint or extent of damage from the blast. Russia has launched multiple attacks near Ukraine’s border with Poland in recent weeks, drawing condemnation from Warsaw and its European allies.

Marine Le Pen hails RN senate surge as ‘milestone’ towards French presidency

The French far-right leader Marine Le Pen has said her 2027 presidential campaign will be boosted after her anti-immigration party, the National Rally (RN), and its allies improved to a record 14 seats in partial senate elections this weekend. Le Pen called the results a “historic victory” and a “major milestone” after her party cleared the 10-seat threshold to be able to form a senate group for the first time, after an indirect vote by local officials including mayors and councillors. The party’s progress in the senate will allow it higher visibility and more funding in the second house of parliament before next spring’s presidential election. Le Pen is polling high as Emmanuel Macron prepares to step down after 10 years in office. The French investigative website Mediapart reported on Monday that the RN party president, Jordan Bardella, allegedly made antisemitic comments in writing in 2013, when he was a young party member. The alleged comments in a chat, which Mediapart said it had authenticated, included: “The Jew has to dominate other peoples, crush them, and rob them; a Zionist is necessarily a Jew, and fundamentally so.” He was also alleged to have written “all the banks are owned by Jews”. Bardella responded on X that he “formally” rejected the allegations, which he described as “crude forgeries”, saying he would take legal action. The RN MP Sébastien Chenu called the senate gains “a boost for the presidential campaign” and said there was “no more glass ceiling” for the party. Edwige Diaz, who secured a large senate win for the RN in Gironde outside Bordeaux, told Le Parisien: “This will be very useful for us before the presidential election.” The 348-seat senate is France’s second chamber of parliament alongside the national assembly. Final results on Monday morning showed the senate remained dominated by the traditional right and centre right. The upper chamber’s president of more than a decade, Gerard Larcher, 77, from the rightwing party Les Républicains, is expected to be re-elected next week. Although the RN is now the biggest single opposition party in the national assembly and has the largest number of French members of the European parliament, it has until now never had a grouping in the senate, where its presence has been small. Nine RN senators were elected on Sunday, in addition to the three who won seats in 2023. The RN ally, Éric Ciotti’s Union of the Right for the Republic party, won two seats. The RN had entered the senate for the first time with two seats in 2014, when it was known as the Front National. The senate has an indirect voting system, with local elected officials choosing new senators for half the upper chamber every three years, each to serve a six-year term. Sunday’s vote by local mayors and councillors reflected the RN’s growth in support in medium towns at the last local elections in March. It also showed the party has support among independent rural mayors. Bardella called on politicians on the traditional right to join forces with his party. The Socialist senator Laurence Rossignol said a crucial question would be whether the right and centre right in the senate now moved closer to the RN and hardened their own stance on issues such as immigration and welfare benefits. She told Public Sénat TV: “Will there be a republican barrier against RN ideas? That will be key.” The right, the centre and the left’s Socialists remain the three major forces in the upper house. The radical left party La France Insoumise won a senate seat for the first time, with Gabriel Amard elected in the Rhône. Jean-Luc Mélenchon, the party’s leader, who is the highest-polling left candidate for the presidency, said Amard’s win was a “good omen” for his own 2027 presidential campaign.