Read the daily news to learn English

Australian director Phillip Noyce shoots feature film for Saudi Arabia celebrating ‘heroism of security men in combating drugs’

The acclaimed Australian film-maker Phillip Noyce is being paid by the Saudi regime to make a feature film portraying the repressive state’s narcotics officers as heroes. The Watchful Eyes, based on a real Saudi ministry of interior narcotics case, is billed as a dramatic depiction of the “heroism of security men in combating drugs”. Saudi authorities executed 356 people last year, including 243 for drug-related cases, and analysts say an increase in the kingdom’s execution rate is largely due to its “war on drugs”. Noyce has enjoyed a decades-long career with directing credits including the 1970s classic Newsfront, Dead Calm, Rabbit-Proof Fence, Patriot Games, Clear and Present Danger and The Bone Collector. Filming for The Watchful Eyes began in Saudi Arabia in December and it will be released this year. The Saudi Gazette news site reported: “The film will be shot entirely in the Kingdom and is expected to deliver a compelling artistic experience that highlights the heroism of Saudi security forces and introduces their efforts in combating crime to audiences around the world.” Noyce, 76, has been escorted around filming locations and prisons by Turki al-Sheikh, a royal adviser dogged by allegations of human rights violations, including the detention of people who criticise him on social media. Al-Sheikh, the chair of the country’s General Entertainment Authority, is known internationally for spearheading the Saudi bid to dominate world boxing and kickstarting moves to increase its influence on international football. A close confidant of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Al-Sheikh has posted multiple photos and videos of “the great director Phillip Noyce”, saying The Watchful Eyes is a feature “inspired by a true story taken from the case files of Saudi Arabia’s drug enforcement officers”. Noyce said he had accepted the job “for the challenge of working outside my comfort zone” and for the opportunity “to investigate a previously closed society” but did not address specific questions about the ethics of making a film paid for by the Saudi regime. Joey Shea, a Saudi Arabia senior researcher for Human Rights Watch, said the Saudi government used its huge investments in sport and entertainment as part of a strategy to whitewash its human rights record. “Given the subject matter of this film from what’s publicly available, combined with the reality of the rights abuses that have been so inextricably linked with this new war on drugs by the Saudi government, it’s really, really disturbing the role that these narratives may play in covering up the reality of these executions that have just been served the last few years,” Shea said. The Watchful Eyes is described by officials as a “massive production” and a “grand Saudi epic”. Noyce said the film was financed and produced by a Saudi entertainment company, Sela, which is backed by the Public Investment Fund, Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, to produce content to boost the local film industry. The regime aims to make the country a leading global production destination as part of Prince Mohammed’s Vision 2030 plan for economic diversification to reduce reliance on the oil industry. Noyce described The Watchful Eyes as “a low-budget kidnapping thriller”. “Gritty and raw and shot entirely in Arabic, I don’t think the movie will attract any tourists to Saudi Arabia,” he said. Asked about the country’s human rights record and executions for drug offences, Noyce said: “I guess the story could be edited to send an anti-drug message, but the story I shot was told from the highly emotional point of view of the lead detective in the hunt for a missing child. “Surprisingly, Sela never once interfered from a creative point of view.” In March the BBC was accused of making “glossy propaganda films” after its commercial arm teamed up with the Saudis. Jeed Basyouni, who researches the death penalty in the region for the legal action non-governmental organisation Reprieve, said the number of executions in Saudi Arabia continued to grow while officials sold a false vision of the kingdom. “It is essential that the world sees this rebranding for what it is – a flimsy attempt to disguise brutal abuses of human rights,” she said. “The purpose of culture-washing is to legitimise the human rights abuses carried out by the Saudi regime, using the arts, comedy and film to portray a tolerant government when in reality, anyone who offends the men in power risks winding up dead.” The Public Investment Fund has backed the LIV Golf Tour to the tune of more than $5bn since 2021 but funding will cease at the end of the year, in part because of the conflict in the Middle East.

Ukraine war briefing: Putin threat to foreign embassies in Kyiv

Russia has told foreign embassies in Kyiv to evacuate their staff in case it decides to attack the Ukrainian capital during the Victory Day parade in Moscow this weekend. It comes despite the Ukrainian president offering a truce extending before, during and potentially after the anniversary if Russia halts attacks on Ukraine. Vladimir Putin, the Russian ruler, has demanded a narrow ceasefire on strictly his own terms to protect his showpiece annual parade. In a note to foreign diplomatic missions and international organisations, Russia warned it would launch a “retaliatory” strike on the Ukrainian capital, “including against decision-making centres”, if Ukraine disrupted the commemorations this Saturday. It urged them to “ensure the timely evacuation of personnel from diplomatic and other missions, as well as citizens, from the city of Kyiv”. Ukraine proposed its own ceasefire starting on 6 May, which Russia ignored. Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukraine’s president, said Russia – which did not confirm its adherence to Ukraine’s proposal – had committed 1,820 violations by late morning on Wednesday. “Russia’s choice is an obvious spurning of a ceasefire and of saving lives,” he said. Ukraine was ready to work for peace but “if the one person in Moscow who cannot live without war is interested only in a parade and nothing else, that is another matter”, Zelenskyy said. “Russia has fought to the point where even their main parade now depends on us.” On Wednesday, Russian drones hit a kindergarten in the north-eastern city of Sumy, killing a security guard and wounding two others, officials said. No children were there at the time, Luke Harding writes. Russian attacks on 14 regions of Ukraine since last Friday have killed at least 70 civilians and wounded more than 500, the UN human rights monitoring mission in Ukraine said on Wednesday. Five people were killed by a Ukrainian drone strike on the city of Dzhankoi in occupied Crimea, according to the Russia-installed governor, Sergei Aksyonov. Hungary has returned cash and gold of Ukraine’s Oschadbank seized by Budapest’s security service in March, VZelenskyy said on Wednesday, welcoming the move toward normalising strained ties. Under the now lame-duck prime minister Viktor Orbán, who lost recent elections to Péter Magyar, Hungary detained seven Ukrainians transporting around $82m in cash and gold. Ukraine denounced the seizure as racketeering and said it was a routine transfer. Both funds and gold were back in Ukraine in full, Zelenskyy said on Wednesday, stressing Hungary’s “constructive approach and civilised step”. Magyar is due to take the oath of office on Saturday. The Russian pavilion at the Venice Biennale was temporarily shut down after the activist group Pussy Riot staged a chaotic protest against Russia’s inclusion in the art festival. Wearing pink balaclavas, the protesters ran towards the Russian pavilion where they gathered outside and lit pink, blue and yellow flares while playing punk music and shouting slogans, including “Blood is Russia’s art”. They wore slogans on their bodies such as “Curated by Putin, dead bodies included”, “Russia kills, biennale exhibits” and “Russian art, Ukrainian blood”. A statue outside the pavilion was wrapped in a Ukrainian flag. Nadya Tolokonnikova, a founding member of Pussy Riot who led the protest, said: “It’s weird to me that Europe keeps saying that Ukraine is a shield for the entire European continent but it opens its doors time and time again to Russian propaganda. It’s heartbreaking for me.” Ukraine is seeking to build its drones with fewer parts from China – and Taiwan is emerging as alternative source, write Alicia Chen and Yu-chen Li. Despite repeated denials from Beijing, Ukraine accuses China of aiding Russia with military goods. Broader concerns about China’s dominance of supply chains mean Ukraine along with Europe, the US and other countries is turning to Taiwan as an alternative supplier. Taiwan, with its strengths in semiconductors and electronics integration, is a “100% a valuable partner”, said Bohdan Diorditsa, chief international alliances officer at Vyriy, one of Ukraine’s leading drone makers and a vocal advocate for local production and less reliance on Chinese components. Sweden’s coast guard detained a tanker suspected of being part of Russia’s oil-carrying “shadow fleet”. The Jin Hui was boarded on Sunday as it sailed under a suspected false flag in Swedish waters in the Baltic Sea. Officials said there were also concerns about the seaworthiness of the vessel, which was sailing under a Syrian flag. The tanker is on EU, UK and Ukrainian sanctions lists. It is the fifth vessel sailing in Swedish territorial waters to come under coast guard investigation in recent weeks. Russia’s embassy in Sweden did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday. The EU should abolish its unanimous decision-making rule that has let member states hold key decisions “hostage”, according to Germany’s foreign minister. Johann Wadephul said the EU should be able to “move faster” with weighted majority decisions, or agreements among smaller groups of EU countries. He did not name – but seemed to have in mind – Hungary, which under Orbán stymied urgent EU measures such as aid to Ukraine. “Blockades” of decisions by lone EU countries “have sometimes held the EU hostage to national and extraneous interests”, Wadephul said, also calling for Brussels to be given more power to withhold EU funds from countries “who violate our common values”.

Macron says ‘all parties must lift the blockades’ – as it happened

We’re wrapping up this live coverage now but a full report is here, and below a recap of the day’s major developments. Thanks for joining us. Donald Trump said a deal with Iran to end the war was “very possible” after “very good talks” over the past 24 hours. While again claiming Iran “badly” wants to make a deal, the US president told reporters in the Oval Office on Wednesday: “We’ll see whether or not they are agreeing. And if they don’t agree, they’ll end up agreeing shortly thereafter. That’s the way it is.” Later Trump said he expected the war would “be over quickly”. He earlier issued a fresh ultimatum to Tehran, telling it to accept a deal to end the war or face a new wave of US bombing “at a much higher level and intensity than it was before”. Iran said on Wednesday it was reviewing a US peace proposal that sources told Reuters would formally end the war while leaving unresolved the key US demands that Iran suspend its nuclear program and reopen the strait of Hormuz. Separately Iran’s top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said Washington was seeking through various means “to destroy the country’s cohesion in order to force us to surrender”. Israel’s military attacked Beirut’s southern suburbs for the first time in weeks amid the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the IDF was targeting the unnamed commander of Hezbollah’s Radwan force. A source close to Hezbollah said a senior commander had been killed in the Israeli attacks and named him as “Malek Ballout, the operations commander in the Radwan force”, Agence France-Presse reported. US forces disabled an Iran-flagged unladen oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman, enforcing the US blockade, as the ship tried to sail towards an Iranian port, US Central Command said. An Israeli strike in Lebanon’s eastern Bekaa valley on Wednesday killed four people, Lebanon’s health ministry said, with local media reporting the attack took place before the Israeli army issued a warning to evacuate the area along with 11 other towns. Trump’s abrupt reversal on his plan to help ships through the strait of Hormuz came after key Gulf ally Saudi Arabia suspended the US military’s ability to use its airspace and a base to carry out the operation, NBC News quoted two US officials as saying. They said Trump’s announcement of “Project Freedom” via social media on Sunday surprised Gulf allies and angered the Saudi leadership, the report said. French president Emmanuel Macron called for “all parties to lift the blockades” to allow for the resumption of traffic in the Hormuz strait, after a meeting with Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian. Pope Leo surprised 13 priests from southern Lebanon by joining a video call from Rome on Wednesday, telling them they were in his prayers and he hoped peace would soon prevail along the border.

Tame the water or let it flow? New Zealand grapples with how to protect its braided rivers

When British settlers started building Christchurch city 170 years ago, they largely ignored the nearby Waimakariri River, which twists from the South Island’s alps towards the eastern shore. But rain and glacial shifts compelled the braided river – a globally rare form of river with many woven channels – to take on a new shape, occasionally flooding land and depositing tonnes of shingle in its wake. By the 1920s, the Waimakariri was described as a “flood menace” in a report to authorities, one that showed a “deficiency of nature, which must be made good by the art of man”. With that, the river was brought into submission, slowly hemmed in with stopbanks, exotic tree planting and gravel extraction. Now it requires endless maintenance to tame the river and prevent the risks of flooding to homes, infrastructure and the nearby airport. “People say you shouldn’t be interfering with the river; the outcome if we don’t is worse,” Fred Brooks, a river engineer with the local regional council, Environment Canterbury, says. “It has been intervened in so much at this point, you have to keep intervening.” The Waimakariri is one of about 150 braided rivers across New Zealand, 60% of which are concentrated in the South Island’s Canterbury region. The unique river systems are found in just a handful of other places around the world, including Alaska, Canada and the Himalayas. These systems face – and also pose – a complex set of challenges. They have been disrupted to make room for farming and allow communities to develop, but those changes are damaging ecosystems and species, affecting water quality and exposing communities to flood risk. Concerns are growing over the future and resilience of braided rivers, prompting questions over how the country can live alongside them while preventing their further decline. “Braided rivers are iconic – we use their iconography all over the place,” says Jo Hoyle, a river geomorphologist at Earth Sciences New Zealand. “And yet, are we really looking after them?” Changing the course Unlike single-channel rivers, braided rivers are dynamic. They begin in alpine ranges, rushing down slopes towards the plains, where they carry gravel and carve out channels that split, weave and fan out into numerous strands. A braided river may forge out new channels across wide areas, while retreating from existing paths. A large dumping of rain might compel the river to return to its former ground. Over time, Canterbury’s braided rivers have been deliberately narrowed. Their gravel beds have been gouged out for flood protection and to build roads, and water has been taken to feed intensive dairy farming. In the Waimakariri, diggers and trucks extract gravel most days to stop the river breaching the stopbanks and flooding tens of thousands of homes. Due to the interventions, the Waimakariri may struggle to return to its natural state. But for the region’s many other rivers, a question looms: should the rivers be given more room to flow naturally? “It’s not an easy question to answer,” Hoyle says, as she wades through a small channel on the edges of the Rakaia – a large braided river, south of Christchurch. “It’s not a feasible concept to just let rivers roam – so what we are asking is: how much room do these rivers actually need to be a river, to support ecological life and have enough room to flood without causing too much damage?” When the river changes course, it leaves behind valuable land, which landowners quickly take over, a process known as agricultural encroachment. If the river tries to move back, the landowner might put in protection to stop it. “And it will happen on the other side of the river, so there is this ratcheting in, and the river becomes narrower and narrower,” Hoyle says. A study of nine of Canterbury’s rivers showed they had narrowed by 50% on average, and more than 90% in some segments. Landowners are legally allowed to move in on braided riverbeds when the water retreats, but scientists and river advocates want that changed. Deliberate narrowing is a problem for species, and it is setting people up for disaster from flooding, Hoyle says, adding that managed retreat should be explored. “The land on either side is really valuable day-to-day, but it is really vulnerable to big floods,” she says. ‘You don’t even see fish’ Problems beneath the surface of braided rivers are also emerging, as communities report plummeting fish populations and pollution in their nets. Rakaia River has built a reputation around its salmon fishing, so much so that an 11-meter-high statue of a salmon has become a town landmark. This year, the annual salmon fishing competition went ahead with a surprising caveat: no fishing allowed. “There are less and less fish,” Chris Agnew, the competition’s president, tells the Guardian, steering his jet boat up the river mouth, while shags, silhouetted against the golden sky, crisscross above. According to Fish & Game, there were just 608 salmon in the Rakaia during the 2024-25 season. In 1996, they counted more than 20,000. Scientists are still trying to understand the population slumps, but there are theories: warming oceans and changes to the river, including sediment buildup, pollution and altered water flow, could be affecting breeding habits and behaviour. River birds are also declining, says Frances Schmechel, biodiversity manager at Environment Canterbury. Introduced weeds create cover for predators, while exotic willow trees, which were planted to prevent riverbanks from eroding, are now “exploding” in some areas. Their dense root systems stop rivers from flowing and behaving naturally. Stokell’s smelt, a tiny, once-abundant native fish, is now classified as nationally critical. Bruce Kelly, a local angler has fished the Rakaia for 40 years. “At least before when you didn’t catch a fish, you would see a couple. Now you don’t even see them.” Agnew worries about the community’s identity. As for the famous salmon statue: “Maybe it will become a monument to the past,” he says. Braided rivers ‘fundamental’ to tribes There are also deep concerns about the water quality of New Zealand’s rivers. Environment Canterbury found nearly a third of Canterbury’s lakes and rivers – especially near urban and agricultural areas – were deemed unsafe to swim in due to E coli and pathogens in 2025. The decades-long decline of rivers and fresh water compelled South Island iwi (tribe) Ngāi Tahu to take a landmark case against the Crown in 2017, seeking to have their rangatiratanga – governing authority and self-determination – recognised over South Island’s waterways. A high court decision is imminent. “Braided rivers are fundamental to how we exist as a tribe,” says Gabrielle Huria, the chief executive of Ngāi Tahu’s freshwater strategy, adding the tribe has watched the rivers change with horror. The tribe have long practised traditional food gathering along braided rivers. But Huria, like others, stopped when she discovered cow faeces in her fishing nets. Managing rivers requires a rethink, Huria says, calling for a system that supports public health, river quality and business, while preventing further encroachment. “We have a saying: ‘the river goes where it will’. We need to be a lot smarter.” The minister for resource management, Chris Bishop, told the Guardian he was looking forward to seeing a select committee’s recommendations on the law allowing landowners to move in on riverbeds, while the minister for conservation, Tama Potaka, said the government was “committed to protecting and restoring” braided rivers. Back at the Rakaia, Hoyle turns a river stone over in her hand. For years she has paid close attention to the rivers, but she fears the community has become detached from their plight. “Having those discussions … around how we want to live alongside our rivers needs to happen,” she says. “The only way we will get change is making the community more aware of what the risks are and what we stand to lose.”

US fires on Iranian-flagged oil tanker as Trump gives Tehran fresh ultimatum

The US military fired on an Iranian-flagged oil tanker on Wednesday, shortly after Donald Trump issued a fresh ultimatum to Tehran, telling it to accept a deal to end the war or face a new wave of US bombing “at a much higher level and intensity than it was before”. The US fighter fired several rounds and “disabled the tanker’s rudder” as it attempted to breach the US’s blockade of Iranian ports, US Central Command said in a social media post. The attack came after the US president’s social media announcement – the latest in a rapid series of dramatic and often contradictory changes in policy amid unconfirmed reports of progress in stalled negotiations between Tehran and Washington. “Assuming Iran agrees to give what has been agreed to, which is perhaps a big assumption, the already legendary Epic Fury will be at an end,” the US president posted on his Truth Social platform, referring to the military operation he launched with Israel against Iran in February. “If they don’t agree, the bombing starts, and it will be, sadly, at a much higher level and intensity than it was before.” Benjamin Netanyahu, who was scheduled to talk to Trump on Wednesday evening, said in a video released by his office that Israel was “prepared for all scenarios”. Iran’s most senior negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, remained defiant on Wednesday, saying Washington was seeking Tehran’s surrender through various means including a naval blockade. “The enemy, in its new design, is seeking, through a naval blockade, economic pressure and media manipulation, to destroy the country’s cohesion in order to force us to surrender,” Ghalibaf, the speaker of the Iranian parliament, said in a voice message published on his official Telegram channel. Earlier on Wednesday, Axios reported that Washington and Tehran were close to agreeing on a one-page memorandum of understanding to end the war. The US-based news outlet reported that the US expected Iran to respond to several key points in the next 48 hours and that while nothing had yet been agreed, this was the closest the parties had been to a deal. Officials in Pakistan told the Guardian that an initial framework could possibly be agreed within 48 hours but that nothing was certain and that talks remained “difficult”. Late on Tuesday, Trump had abruptly ordered an indefinite pause to a naval effort to guide stranded commercial ships through the strait of Hormuz. More than 800 ships and roughly 20,000 crew members remain stranded west of the narrow waterway. Iran has threatened to deploy mines, drones, missiles and fast-attack craft, making passage through the strait too risky for commercial shipping and raising fuel prices around the world. Trump wrote on social media that the decision to halt the new naval effort, called Project Freedom, just a day after it began came after requests from “mediator Pakistan and other countries”. He posted: “Great Progress has been made toward a Complete and Final Agreement.” He said Washington’s blockade of Iranian ports, which is aimed at forcing Iran to make concessions in negotiations to end the war, would remain in place. Citing two unnamed US officials, NBC reported Project Freedom’s abrupt pause was the result of Saudi Arabian opposition to the US plan, with the kingdom telling Washington it would stop US planes using its Prince Sultan airbase or flying through its airspace. Meanwhile, France’s aircraft carrier strike group is moving south of the Suez Canal and into the Red Sea in preparation for a potential French-British mission in the strait of Hormuz, the French president, Emmanuel Macron, said on Wednesday. Trump, who is due to visit Beijing next week, has threatened in recent weeks to restart the joint US-Israeli air offensive against Iran, but has also repeatedly indicated his desire for a negotiated end to the conflict. Analysts suggested the US president may be seeking something that could be portrayed as a breakthrough before arriving in Beijing. China called on Monday for a comprehensive ceasefire in the Iran war. Beijing has close economic and political ties to Tehran but has failed to exert significant leverage over the radical Islamist Iranian regime since the war began. The Trump administration may want China to exploit that relationship to convince Iran to open the strait. Trump’s trip will be his first visit to China during his second term and the first by a US president since his previous visit, in 2017. A senior Pakistani political source described “things … moving forward” with a focus in talks on obtaining a permanent ceasefire and “opening of the strait of Hormuz by both, at least for 60 days”. The source added: “That gives a chance for both parties to talk out all important matters, including uranium enrichment. But nothing is finalised yet. Things are under discussion. We expect something to come out before the US president visits China.”. Another Pakistani official said there was still a lack of trust between Iran and the US. “There is still ambiguity in talks and nothing is completely decided. It is still 50/50 and things can go either way,” they said. “The moment the US ends the blockade and the strait of Hormuz remains open, that will be the beginning of real talks. “As long as there is a blockade from both sides, talks remain difficult. That’s why a framework of understanding to end the blockade for at least 30 to 60 days for further negotiations is important. It can be a trust-building measure.” Analysts say an external guarantor of any deal is essential. The official said: “Pakistan and Iran both want China to become a guarantor but … does China even have that power over both parties? Everyone has their doubts.” The news of a possible deal sent the price of oil tumbling, after it had jumped as much as 6% earlier in the week. Many observers believe wide gaps remain between Iran and the US, making a durable ceasefire unlikely in the short term. The Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said on Wednesday that Tehran would convey its position to Pakistan after “finalising its views”. Elsewhere, Israel hit Beirut on Wednesday for the first time since agreeing to a ceasefire with Hezbollah last month, with Israel saying it targeted a commander of the militant group’s elite Radwan force in the city’s southern suburbs. Israeli media reported that the commander – who Agency France-Presse identified as Malek Ballout – was killed in the strike, but there was no immediate confirmation from the Israeli military or Hezbollah. At least 11 other people were killed in strikes across the south and east, according to the Lebanese health ministry. Later on Wednesday, Trump said in an interview with PBS he was optimistic about reaching an agreement with Iran before his trip to China. “I think it’s got a very good chance of ending, and if it doesn’t end, we have to go back to bombing the hell out of them,” Trump told the broadcaster. Trump insisted that under any deal Tehran would “export” its highly enriched uranium – necessary for making a nuclear weapon – to the US, a demand that experts say Iran cannot accept. The Iran war, which began with an Israeli strike that killed Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, appears to have reached a stalemate. Iran is taking huge economic losses, which may escalate if it begins to run out of storage capacity for its oil, while Trump is under pressure domestically and internationally as fuel prices surge in the US and globally. Control of the strait and the threat to restart attacks on nearby countries’ oil and other infrastructure in the Gulf are the two main cards Iran can play in negotiations.

Keep quiet ‘so we don’t go to jail’: the Israelis charged with bribery after suspicious bets placed on Iran strikes

Since users of the leading prediction market Polymarket have been able to wager on the outcomes of war, fears have been raised that those betting on bombs falling from the sky may be privy to non-public information about military strikes. There has been much reported about suspicions of insider trading on war, but who exactly is believed to be placing these bets has remained unclear. In February, Israeli authorities charged two suspects with committing security offences, bribery and obstruction of justice, alleging they used classified information to bet on the timing of military operations on Polymarket. The claims in the indictment follow reporting in the Guardian in January, which revealed a cluster of jointly funded Polymarket accounts wagering on strikes involving Iran and Israel between June 2025 and January 2026, generating profits of about $156,000, according to publicly available blockchain data. Since then, there have been growing reports of possible insider trading on prediction markets – where traders can bet using crypto wallets, particularly around the Iran war, with suspicious accounts racking up millions of dollars in profits. Now, after local journalists successfully appealed to narrow a gag order, Tel Aviv court documents allege more about the people who prosecutors say have profited by betting on lethal military strikes and how they received their information. The documents reveal that one suspect is Omer Ziv, 30, from Tel Aviv. Social media accounts belonging to Omer Ziv – that match details from the indictment and blockchain data, including photos, date of birth and interests – say that Ziv has worked as an affiliate marketing manager in the online gambling industry for eight years, according to LinkedIn. Account activity also suggests he’s a fan of prediction markets; Ziv frequently responded to Kalshi company announcements and was recommended by other users for a chief of staff position at the firm. Days before the arrest, a Kalshi executive unveiled new markets allowing traders to bet on whether crypto prices would rise or fall within 15 minutes. Ziv commented asking when they might shrink to one-minute intervals – “asking for a degen friend”. (“Degen” is internet slang for a person who engages in high-risk and speculative trading.) The account has been inactive since. It is not known whether the transactions on the accounts linked to Ziv are, as prosecutors allege, the result of any illegality. The second defendant is a major in the Israeli air force reserves, whose identity, including details relating to his position, will remain undisclosed on national security grounds, the judge ruled. Prosecutors have summoned 45 witnesses to testify before court. Both defendants have been ordered to remain in custody until the end of the trial. Besides the indictment and the gag order decision, no further court documents have been released as of yet – standard for classified trials, experts in Israeli law told the Guardian. Ziv’s lawyer did not respond to multiple requests for comment. The major’s lawyers declined to comment. The defendants’ pleas are not yet publicly known. Other reservists were also arrested on suspicion of similar crimes, but were released according to a February statement by Israeli authorities. Both defendants have argued this amounts to selective enforcement – defences they seek to assert in court, according to the decision document. In a statement shared with NBC News at the time of arrest, the major’s lawyers said their client had made “significant contributions to the security of the state”, adding they had “strong allegations” about the indictment – including the improper conduct of the investigative authorities, which led to a violation of security. “We are convinced that after these are presented, the case will end in a completely different way than when it was opened,” Ran Cohen Rochverger and Naor Alon Sosnosky said. There’s been just one other arrest over suspected betting using classified information: federal authorities charged a US soldier on Thursday with insider trading relating to the removal of Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro from office. The differing charges – one state alleging fraud, the other espionage – underscores the lack of legal precedent when it comes to war gambling. The cases offer a rare window into how these platforms might be used to leverage the secrets of war to turn a profit. In June 2025, a market on Polymarket caught Ziv’s attention, the indictment alleges. “Israeli military action against Iran before July?” Ziv had previously been acquainted with a major in the Israeli air force, according to the indictment. A reservist since 2009, he is the unnamed defendant also being prosecuted. The pair allegedly met while working at a gaming tech company. Ziv brought the Polymarket question to the major’s attention, prosecutors say. The following day, 10 June, the major began active emergency service. The pair allegedly agreed that the major would share confidential information about the timing of military action, while Ziv would place bets using his own funds across multiple newly created Polymarket accounts with vague usernames. Three of the four Polymarket accounts attributed to Ziv in the indictment match the Guardian’s earlier reporting, with corresponding usernames, dates and profits. The Guardian identified a crypto wallet that funded the Polymarket accounts that also contains five video clips, in NFT format, that appear to show Ziv. On 12 June, at an air force base in southern Israel, the major was allegedly briefed that “Operation Roaring Lion” would begin before midnight. He relayed the information to Ziv via WhatsApp, urging him to increase his bets, according to the indictment. In a separate group chat, prosecutors say Ziv told five friends that a strike was imminent, but warned them to keep quiet, “so we don’t go to jail”. Allegations about what role, if any, the major played in the operation remain under seal, but he is a senior ranked official. That evening, as the jets took off, he allegedly typed to Ziv: “It’s already happening.” Shortly after midnight, Tehran awoke to explosions. About 200 Israeli jets struck more than 100 targets across the city. The indictment alleges that Ziv sent the major a screenshot over WhatsApp showing the bets had paid off: roughly $128,000 in gains, split between them. It marked the beginning of the 12-day war, during which the pair allegedly placed three further bets tied to the timing of Israeli and US military actions. The conflict killed more than 1,000 people and injured more than 7,000. The pair’s total profits allegedly reached just over $152,000 that month, according to the indictment. This aligns with the username, dates and profits of bets reported by the Guardian. Within a day of the major returning from base, the two met, according to the indictment. Prosecutors said Ziv helped him set up a crypto wallet to receive his share, which was later converted into cash. They then returned to their separate lives, the indictment says. They allegedly reconnected in September, when the major was again summoned for “operational activities”, this time during Israeli strikes on Houthi-controlled targets in Yemen. These bets were placed using a new account titled “Methuselah”, named after the oldest human in the Bible, who lived for 969 years. Next, in early January 2026, he allegedly told Ziv that tensions were “heating up” and believed strikes on Iran would happen that month. But this time, suspicion spread. Polymarket users began speculating on social media that these bets appeared to be informed by insider knowledge. Alarmed, Ziv cancelled positions and changed usernames, prosecutors allege. The pair deleted WhatsApp messages and wiped photos, fearing an investigation, according to the indictment. Later that month, Ziv travelled to Barcelona for an online gambling conference, according to his social media. In one photo, he stands with colleagues, arms slung around shoulders, all smiling. Then his account went silent. Two days after that photo was shared, Ziv was arrested. The major was detained shortly afterwards. Blockchains, which allow users to remain anonymous, are also permanent ledgers. Every transaction is recorded, timestamped and publicly accessible. When those transactions intersect with centralized exchanges such as Coinbase or Binance, which require identity verification, authorities can subpoena user details. Israeli prosecutors have charged both men with bribery, security offences and obstruction of justice. Ziv faces an additional charge of aggravated espionage – the unauthorized collection of secret information with intent to harm national security – which carries a potential life sentence. Only a handful of Israelis have ever been convicted of aggravated espionage. In 1988, a nuclear technician leaked details of Israel’s weapons programme to the Sunday Times and was sentenced to 18 years in prison, much of it in solitary confinement. During the cold war, two academics were convicted of spying for the Soviet Union. The press was initially restricted in reporting Ziv’s identity but the judge ruled on 27 March that “public hearings are the lifeblood of the democratic regime” suspended only in “exceptional circumstances”, lifting a publication ban on Ziv’s identity. The major’s identity remains anonymous. “Due to his alleged knowledge of military secrets and role in attacks, naming the major would put him in grave danger,” said Prof Zohar Goshen, co-director of Columbia University’s Center for Israeli Legal Studies. The case raises broader security and ethical concerns about the rise of bets tied to military action on Polymarket, which did not respond to requests for comment. Unlike the political motivations of spies and whistleblowers, war markets risk incentivizing sensitive intelligence to be divulged anonymously for profit. It also underscores how these markets blur the line between speculation and exploitation – turning death and destruction into financial derivatives. All quotations from court documents have been translated from Hebrew by the Guardian

Pussy Riot protest at Venice Biennale forces Russian pavilion to briefly close

The Russian pavilion at the Venice Biennale was forced temporarily to shut its doors on the second day of the preview after the activist group Pussy Riot staged a chaotic protest against the country’s inclusion in the art festival. Wearing pink balaclavas, the protesters ran towards the Russian pavilion where they gathered outside and lit pink, blue and yellow flares while playing punk music and shouting slogans, including “Blood is Russia’s Art”. At one stage the group of about 40 activists, including members of the feminist activist group Femen, attempted to enter the Russian pavilion but were pushed back by police, who lined the entrance. Some members had slogans, such as “Curated by Putin, dead bodies included”, “Russia kills, biennale exhibits” and “Russian art, Ukrainian blood” written on their bodies. A statue outside the pavilion was wrapped in a Ukrainian flag. Nadya Tolokonnikova, a founding member of Pussy Riot, said she had been horrified by the sight of people partying at the Russian pavilion during the first day, where crates of prosecco were loaded into the space, which was also playing loud techno music. Tolokonnikova, who led the protest, said: “It’s weird to me that Europe keeps saying that Ukraine is a shield for the entire European continent but it opens its doors time and time again to Russian propaganda. It’s heartbreaking for me.” The activist pleaded with Pietrangelo Buttafuoco, the president of the biennale, to “stop taking Russian money” and speak to the group. In a press statement Pussy Riot offered to curate the 2028 Russian pavilion, pledging to use work by artists who are or have been imprisoned in Russian correctional facilities. A diplomatic row over Russia’s involvement has been escalating. The Financial Times reported that the European Commission had told the Italian government and the biennale’s organisers that allowing the Russian delegation to participate would breach EU sanctions. No one was arrested during the protest, which drew a large crowd of onlookers, many of whom were bewildered visitors who had just made it into the event after standing in long queues, which snaked out of the festival site. There has been a tense buildup to the biennale, with politics often overshadowing the art on display. Before the event, the jury – which selects the winner of the Golden Lion prizes – resigned en masse after stating they would not consider entries from countries whose leaders were subject to international arrest warrants (which would have barred them from including Russia and Israel). An Italian news outlet claimed that the jury resigned after they were told by the biennale’s legal team that they could be held personally responsible if Israel decided to pursue the matter legally. On Wednesday, a representative from the biennale confirmed to the Guardian that the report was accurate. At the official opening of the British pavilion for Lubaina Himid, a representative of the British ambassador said that no minister had attended the event because of Russian involvement. It is customary for a minister to open the pavilion, although the UK’s entry is managed by the British Council rather than the government. The Guardian has approached the Department for Media, Culture and Sport for comment. An hour after the Pussy Riot protest, the Art Not Genocide Alliance (Anga) staged a demonstration outside the Israeli pavilion in the Arsenale. The pavilion was locked from the inside while the group gathered in front of its doors to protest against Israel’s inclusion over its war in Gaza. More than 200 participants in the event have signed a letter demanding the cancellation of the Israeli pavilion, billed as “a collective refusal to allow you to platform the Israeli state as it commits genocide”. Israel’s foreign ministry has condemned Anga, calling the group’s actions “anti-Israeli political indoctrination” and “direct discrimination”. On Friday a demonstration coordinated by Anga is expected, which organisers say includes Italian labour unions, art workers at the event, curators and nearly 20 artists who have work on display in national pavilions. The Guardian understands some artists may create picket lines outside their pavilions and ask visitors not to enter. Protest and politics are not new at the biennale. In 1968 there were protests that spilled over from the wider student movement that summer, primarily aimed at the US over the Vietnam war. Six years later, the entire event was dedicated to the people of Chile, who were then under the rule of the military dictator Augusto Pinochet. A government spokesperson said: “The UK strongly opposes Russia’s participation at the Venice Biennale. We stand in solidarity with the people of Ukraine who have endured more than four years of illegal Russian aggression. “As a result we have made the decision not to have government ministers attend the Biennale this year.”

Understanding the challenges of living with a cleft lip | Letters

With reference to the article by Hugh Davies about his experiences of having been born with a cleft lip (A moment that changed me: I cried about my cleft lip for the first time in my 60s, 29 April), it is fantastic to see cleft experiences given national attention, especially when there is still so much misunderstanding about what a cleft truly is. It is often assumed to be a small cosmetic difference. In reality, it shapes feeding, hearing, speech, dental development, facial growth and emotional wellbeing from the very first days of life. Someone in their 60s speaking openly about the lifelong impact of this is powerful. The reforms that regionalised cleft care in the early 2000s have meant that experiences have changed since Hugh’s childhood. Today’s children benefit from coordinated surgical care, better speech and hearing support, and a far stronger understanding of psychological needs. However, there is still so much we do not know, particularly about the journey into adulthood. A current UK-wide research programme funded by the National Institute of Health and Care Research – the Cleft@18-23 study – is addressing this gap. It aims to understand the experiences, challenges and hopes of young adults aged 18 to 23 born with a cleft. There are research clinics taking place across the UK that young people can attend, or they can take part in online interviews to share their experiences. Young people have helped shape this study and they have spoken movingly about how different their experiences are from older generations and how meaningful it feels to build a community that spans ages. Stories like the one you published remind us why this work matters and why every generation’s voice deserves to be heard. Dr Stephanie van Eeden Cleft@18-23 study, University of Bristol • I agree with a lot of what Hugh Davies states about cleft palate. I am also in my 60s, also with a cleft palate. Our facial features do affect how others respond to us and judge our intelligence, which can have lifetime consequences. It makes one shy in social situations, but it also makes one more determined to be the best person one can be, regardless of what others think. I was lucky to be treated by a top surgeon who worked in the local hospital when I was a child. I feel sorry for less fortunate children in poor countries with fewer treatment opportunities. The Operation Smile charity is very important. Kenneth Low York