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A 48-year-old man is to be executed by lethal injection in the southern US state of Florida on Tuesday for the 2000 murder of a newspaper employee who was abducted while on her lunch break.Michael Tanzi is scheduled to be put to death at 6:00 pm (2200 GMT) at the Florida State Prison in Raiford for the murder of Janet Acosta, 49.Tanzi would be the third Death Row inmate to be executed in Florida this year and the 11th in the United States.Tanzi confessed to the murder of Acosta, an employee of the Miami Herald newspaper, and was sentenced to death in 2003.He kidnapped Acosta while she was eating lunch in her van, forced her to withdraw money from ATM machines and sexually assaulted her before strangling her and dumping her body.He also confessed — but was never charged — with the murder of another woman, and a police detective described Tanzi to the Miami Herald as a “fledgling serial killer.”Tanzi’s lawyers have tried to halt his execution arguing that there could be problems with the lethal injection because he is “morbidly obese,” but their appeals have been rejected.His execution is one of two scheduled to be carried out in the United States this week.Mikal Mahdi, 42, is to be executed by firing squad in South Carolina on Friday for the 2004 murder of an off-duty police officer.Mahdi would be the second person executed by firing squad in South Carolina this year.The vast majority of US executions since the Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976 have been performed using lethal injection.There were 25 executions in the United States last year.The death penalty has been abolished in 23 of the 50 US states, while three others — California, Oregon and Pennsylvania — have moratoriums in place.President Donald Trump is a proponent of capital punishment and on his first day in office called for an expansion of its use “for the vilest crimes.”Attorney General Pam Bondi announced last week that federal prosecutors would seek the death penalty for Luigi Mangione, charged with the December 4 murder in New York of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

Prince Harry’s lawyer outlined in court threats made against him, including calls for his murder, as King Charles’s youngest son Tuesday appealed against an “unjustified” decision to restrict his police protection in the UK.Harry, who has been angered by the government’s decision, watched proceedings unfold from inside London’s Royal Courts of Justice during a rare visit to London.Following Harry’s dramatic split with the royal family in 2020 and subsequent move to North America with his wife Meghan, they are no longer considered as working royals.The British government said he would therefore no longer be given the “same degree” of publicly funded protection when in the UK, but solely on a case-by-case basis.The 40-year-old prince took legal action against the interior ministry and, after his initial case was rejected last year, has now brought the challenge before the Court of Appeal in central London.In a written submission, the prince’s lawyers warned of threats made against the royal’s security.”Al-Qaeda recently called for (Harry) to be murdered,” and he and Meghan were “involved in a dangerous car pursuit with paparazzi in New York City” in May 2023, the submission said.And his lawyer Shaheed Fatima said the prince “does not accept that ‘bespoke’ means ‘better’.””In fact, in his submission, it means that he has been singled out for different, unjustified and inferior treatment.”- ‘Forced to step back’ -The Duke of Sussex and his American wife Meghan Markle are now largely estranged from the royal family, having started a new life in California.But King Charles III’s younger son has said security concerns have hampered his ability to visit home and he has only rarely returned to the UK for short visits.In a written submission to the appeals court, Harry’s lawyers said the prince and Meghan “felt forced to step back” from frontline royal duties because “they considered they were not being protected by the institution”. Harry was widely criticised when in his autobiography “Spare” he claimed to have killed 25 people in Afghanistan, sparking ire from the Taliban.Harry’s mother, Princess Diana, was killed in a high-speed car crash in Paris in 1997 as she tried to escape paparazzi photographers.The prince’s legal battle centres on a February 2020 decision to downgrade his security, made by the UK’s interior ministry and a committee that deals with the protection of royals and public figures.The High Court ruled in February 2024 against Harry’s case, saying the government had acted lawfully. The prince’s initial bid to appeal was refused in April 2024 and he was ordered to pay about £1,000,000 ($1.27 million) in legal costs, according to The Times newspaper. However, the following month, a judge said Harry could in fact challenge the decision at the Court of Appeal.Fatima argued the committee had failed to carry out an assessment of the risks posed to Harry and the High Court had been wrong to overlook that.- ‘Right to safety’ -“This appeal concerns the most fundamental right — to safety and security of person,” Fatima said on Tuesday.Harry, dressed in a dark suit with blue patterned tie, looked on in the courtroom, occasionally whispering into the ear of another member of his legal team, or writing in a notebook.In its submission to the court, the government insisted Harry’s security “would be considered depending on the circumstances” given his change of position.The hearing is expected to finish on Wednesday, with some parts to be held in private due to security concerns.A decision in writing is expected at a later date.Harry, who has pursued several legal suits against British UK tabloid dailies, is also embroiled in a separate row over a charity he co-founded in southern Africa. A bitter boardroom battle has seen the prince resign as patron of the Sentebale charity.Its chair, Sophie Chandauka, has accused him of “bullying” and being involved in a “cover up”.Harry has in turn hit out at what he called “blatant lies” and the UK-based charity watchdog has launched an investigation.

Global temperatures hovered at historic highs in March, the EU agency that monitors climate change said on Tuesday, prolonging an unprecedented heat streak that has pushed the bounds of scientific explanation. In Europe, it was the hottest March ever recorded by a significant margin, said the Copernicus Climate Change Service. That drove rainfall extremes across a continent warming faster than any other, as planet-heating fossil fuel emissions keep rising.The world meanwhile saw the second-hottest March in the Copernicus dataset, sustaining a near-unbroken spell of record or near-record-breaking temperatures that has persisted since July 2023.Since then, virtually every month has been at least 1.5 degrees Celsius hotter than it was before the industrial revolution, when humans began burning massive amounts of coal, oil and gas.March was 1.6C above pre-industrial times, extending an anomaly so unusual that scientists are still trying to fully explain it.”That we’re still at 1.6C above preindustrial is indeed remarkable,” said Friederike Otto of the Grantham Institute for Climate Change and the Environment at Imperial College London. “We’re very firmly in the grip of human-caused climate change,” she told AFP.Scientists had predicted the extreme run of global temperatures would subside after a warming El Nino event peaked in early 2024, but they have stubbornly lingered well into 2025. “We are still experiencing extremely high temperatures worldwide. This is an exceptional situation,” Robert Vautard, a leading scientist with the United Nations’ climate expert panel IPCC, told AFP. – ‘Climate breakdown’ – Scientists warn that every fraction of a degree of global warming increases the intensity and frequency of extreme weather events such as heatwaves, heavy rainfall and droughts.Climate change is not just about rising temperatures but the knock-on effect of all that extra heat being trapped in the atmosphere and seas by greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane.Warmer seas mean higher evaporation and greater moisture in the atmosphere, causing heavier deluges and feeding energy into storms.This also affects global rainfall patterns.March in Europe was 0.26C above the previous hottest record for the month set in 2014, Copernicus said.Some parts of the continent experienced the “driest March on record and others their wettest” for about half a century, said Samantha Burgess of the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, which runs the Copernicus climate monitor. Bill McGuire, a climate scientist from University College London, said the contrasting extremes “shows clearly how a destabilised climate means more and bigger weather extremes”.”As climate breakdown progresses, more broken records are only to be expected,” he told AFP.Concerns over the global economy were dominating headlines at a time when India was enduring scorching heat and Australia was swamped by floods, said Helen Clarkson, CEO of Climate Group.”The threat to the planet is existential, but our attention is elsewhere,” Clarkson said.- Puzzling heat -The global heat surge pushed 2023 and then 2024 to be the hottest years on record.Last year was also the first full calendar year to exceed 1.5C — the safer warming limit agreed by most nations under the Paris climate accord.This single year breach does not represent a permanent crossing of the 1.5C threshold, which is measured over decades. But scientists warn the goal is slipping out of reach.If the 30-year trend leading up to then continued, the world would hit 1.5C by June 2030.Scientists are unanimous that burning fossil fuels has largely driven long-term global warming.But they are less certain about what else might have contributed to this record heat spike.Vautard said there were “phenomena that remain to be explained,” but the exceptional temperatures still fell within the upper range of scientific projections of climate change.Experts think changes in global cloud patterns, airborne pollution and Earth’s ability to store carbon in natural sinks like forests and oceans could be among factors contributing to the planet overheating.Scientists say the current period is likely to be the warmest the Earth has been for the last 125,000 years.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has fired a top US admiral assigned to NATO, the Pentagon announced Tuesday, saying her removal was due to a loss of confidence in her ability to lead.Vice Admiral Shoshana Chatfield is the latest in a string of senior officers — including multiple women — to be dismissed by Donald Trump’s administration, part of a rare major shakeup of top US military leadership that began shortly after the president returned to office in January.The various firings have led to accusations that Trump and his administration are seeking to politicize the traditionally apolitical US military and ensure it is led by people who are personally loyal to the president.Hegseth removed Chatfield “from her position as US representative to NATO’s military committee due to a loss of confidence in her ability to lead,” Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement, without providing further details.Chatfield is a helicopter pilot by training who previously deployed to the Pacific and Gulf in support of carrier strike group and amphibious ready group operations, according to her NATO biography.She was also a senior military assistant to the supreme allied commander for Europe, served as the deputy US military representative to NATO’s military committee, and taught political science at the US Air Force Academy, among other positions.Democratic lawmakers slammed her removal, with Representative Adam Smith saying “our country is less safe because of President Trump’s actions,” while Senator Jack Reed said the move was “unjustified” and “disgraceful.”- Other top officers sacked -“The silence from my Republican colleagues is deeply troubling. In less than three months, President Trump has fired 10 generals and admirals without explanation, including our most experienced combat leaders,” Reed said.Chatfield’s dismissal comes shortly after Trump fired General Timothy Haugh, the head of the highly sensitive US National Security Agency, and his deputy Wendy Noble at the apparent urging of far-right conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer.He also dismissed officials from the National Security Council (NSC) last week.The New York Times reported Thursday that — after meeting with Loomer the previous day — Trump fired six people from the NSC, including three senior officials on the body that advises the president on top foreign policy matters from Ukraine to Gaza.In February, Trump abruptly fired the top US military officer, general Charles “CQ” Brown, without explanation, less than two years into his four-year term as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.Hegseth also announced the removal of admiral Lisa Franchetti — the first woman to lead the Navy — as well as the vice chief of staff of the Air Force and three top military lawyers.And in January, admiral Linda Fagan, the first woman to lead one of the six US military services, was removed as the head of the Coast Guard, with an official citing alleged “leadership deficiencies.”The Pentagon has also taken aim at pro-diversity efforts — and reportedly officials who supported them — with the purge of such content sweeping up articles on the African American Tuskegee Airmen and veteran Jackie Robinson, the first Black player in Major League Baseball in the modern era.

Stock markets regained some ground on Tuesday, even as trade tensions between the United States and China escalated sharply after days of turmoil over US President Donald Trump’s tariffs offensive.Trump has upended the world economy with sweeping tariffs that have raised the spectre of an international recession, but has ruled out any pause in his aggressive trade policy despite a dramatic market sell-off.Steep tariffs come into effect against goods from a raft of nations on Wednesday, with Chinese products facing a 34-percent levy that Beijing will counter with a similar duty on Thursday.Trump has warned he would impose additional levies of 50 percent if Beijing refused to stop pushing back against his tariffs.”I have great respect for China but they can not do this,” Trump said at the White House.China swiftly hit back, blasting what it called “blackmailing” by the United States and vowing “countermeasures” if Washington imposes more tariffs.”If the US insists on going its own way, China will fight it to the end,” a spokesperson for Beijing’s commerce ministry said on Tuesday.- ‘Ignorant, impolite’ -In a mounting war of words, China’s foreign ministry also condemned “ignorant and impolite” remarks by US Vice President JD Vance in which he complained the United States had for too long borrowed money from “Chinese peasants”.The ministry said that “pressure, threats and blackmail are not the right way to deal with China”.The European Union sought to cool tensions, with the bloc’s chief Ursula von der Leyen warning against worsening the trade conflict in a call with Chinese Premier Li Qiang.She stressed the “vital importance of stability” for the world’s economy as well as “the need to avoid further escalation,” according to a readout from EU officials.The Chinese premier told von der Leyen that the world’s number two economy has the “tools” necessary to weather economic headwinds.”China can fully hedge against adverse external effects, and is fully confident of maintaining sustained and healthy economic development,” he said, according to state news agency Xinhua. The EU said Tuesday that it expects to present as soon as next week its response to the 20-percent levies it is facing under Trump’s latest tariff wave, with Germany and France advocating a tax targeting US tech giants.But Brussels has also proposed an exemption from tariffs on industrial products, including cars, which Trump said was not enough to resolve the US trade deficit with the EU.”The European Union has been very, very bad to us,” Trump said.In retaliation for US levies introduced in mid-March on steel and aluminium, the EU plans tariffs of up to 25 percent on US goods ranging from soybeans to motorcycles and make-up, according to a document seen by AFP.But US bourbon was spared after Trump threatened to hit European wine and spirits with massive retaliatory duties.A 10 percent “baseline” tariff on US imports from around the world took effect Saturday.Trump’s tariffs have roiled global markets, with trillions of dollars wiped off combined stock market valuations in recent sessions.But Wall Street stocks surged at the open Tuesday, with all three major US indices up more than three percent as Trump reported a “great call” with South Korea’s leader while US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Japan had sought quick negotiations. Europe’s main stock markets were up around three percent in afternoon trade while Asia’s leading indices also rose after suffering particularly heavy falls on Monday. Trump believes the tariffs will revive America’s lost manufacturing base by forcing foreign companies to relocate to the United States, rather than making goods abroad.But most economists question that and say his tariffs are arbitrary.Despite the turmoil, Trump said Monday he was “not looking” at any pause in tariff implementation.He also scrapped any meetings with China but said Washington was ready for talks with any country willing to negotiate. More than 50 nations have sought reach out to the US leader, according to the White House. While meeting Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the first leader to lobby Trump in person over the levies, Trump said: “There can be permanent tariffs, and there can also be negotiations, because there are things that we need beyond tariffs.”burs-sr/lth

China vowed Tuesday to “fight to the end” after US President Donald Trump threatened to further ramp up tariffs but the EU warned against escalating a trade war as hard-hit global markets steadied.Trump has upended the world economy with sweeping tariffs that have raised the spectre of an international recession, but has ruled out any pause in his aggressive trade policy despite a dramatic market sell-off.Beijing — Washington’s major economic rival but also a key trading partner — responded by announcing its own 34 percent duties on US goods to come into effect on Thursday, deepening a showdown between the world’s two largest economies. The swift retaliation from China sparked a fresh warning from Trump that he would impose additional levies of 50 percent if Beijing refused to stop pushing back against his barrage of tariffs — a move that would drive the overall duties on Chinese goods to 104 percent.”I have great respect for China but they can not do this,” Trump said at the White House.”We are going to have one shot at this… I’ll tell you what, it is an honour to do it.”China swiftly hit back, blasting what it called “blackmailing” by the United States and vowing “countermeasures” if Washington imposes tariffs on top of the 34 percent extra that were due to come in force on Wednesday.”If the US insists on going its own way, China will fight it to the end,” a spokesperson for Beijing’s commerce ministry said on Tuesday.- ‘Ignorant, impolite’ -In a mounting war of words between Beijing and Washington, China’s foreign ministry also condemned “ignorant and impolite” remarks by US Vice President JD Vance in which he complained the United States had for too long borrowed money from “Chinese peasants”.The ministry said that “pressure, threats and blackmail are not the right way to deal with China”.The European Union sought to cool tensions, with the bloc’s chief Ursula von der Leyen warning against worsening the trade conflict in a call with Chinese Premier Li Qiang.She stressed the “vital importance of stability” for the world’s economy, urged a “negotiated solution” and emphasised “the need to avoid further escalation,” according to a readout from EU officials.The bloc said Tuesday that it expects to present as soon as next week its response to the 20-percent levies it is facing under Trump’s latest tariff wave, with Germany and France advocating a tax targeting US tech giants.But Brussels has also proposed an exemption from tariffs on industrial products, including cars, which Trump said Monday was not enough to resolve the US trade deficit with the EU.”The European Union has been very, very bad to us,” Trump said.In retaliation for US levies introduced in mid-March on steel and aluminium, the EU plans tariffs of up to 25 percent on US goods ranging from soybeans to motorcycles and make-up, according to a document seen by AFP.But US bourbon was spared after Trump threatened to hit European alcoholic drinks with massive retaliatory duties.A 10 percent “baseline” tariff on US imports from around the world took effect Saturday, and a slew of countries will be hit by higher duties from Wednesday, including China and EU nations.Trump’s tariffs have roiled global markets, with trillions of dollars wiped off combined stock market valuations in recent sessions.Stock markets staged a mild rebound on Tuesday, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rising 1.5 percent after crashing 13.2 percent the previous day in its worst performance since 1997.Shares in Tokyo leapt after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggested that Japan would get “priority” in negotiations as they had sought talks quickly.European markets also clawed back some ground, with London, Paris and Frankfurt all up more than two percent in afternoon trade while oil prices edged higher.Trump believes the tariffs will revive America’s lost manufacturing base by forcing foreign companies to relocate to the United States, rather than making goods abroad.But most economists question that and say his tariffs are arbitrary.Despite the turmoil, Trump said Monday he was “not looking” at any pause in tariff implementation.He also scrapped any meetings with China but said Washington was ready for talks with any country willing to negotiate. More than 50 nations have sought reach out to the US leader, according to the White House. While meeting Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the first leader to lobby Trump in person over the levies, Trump said: “There can be permanent tariffs, and there can also be negotiations, because there are things that we need beyond tariffs.”burs-sr/rl

Prince Harry’s lawyer told a UK appeal court on Tuesday that paring back the royal’s personal security during his visits to Britain was “unjustified”.Harry, who is appealing against the government decision, watched proceedings unfold from inside London’s Royal Courts of Justice during a rare visit to the British capital.Following Harry’s dramatic split with the royal family in 2020 and subsequent move to North America, the British government said he would no longer be given the “same degree” of publicly funded protection when in the UK.But the 40-year-old prince took legal action against the interior ministry and, after his initial case was rejected last year, has now brought the challenge before the Court of Appeal in central London.”The appellant does not accept that ‘bespoke’ means ‘better’,” the Duke of Sussex’s lawyer, Shaheed Fatima, told the hearing when she opened the case.”In fact, in his submission, it means that he has been singled out for different, unjustified and inferior treatment.”Harry and his American wife Meghan are no longer classified as working royals following their acrimonious departure from the UK in 2020, which has left them largely estranged from the family. They have started a new life in California but King Charles III’s younger son has said security concerns have hampered his ability to visit home and he has only rarely returned to the UK for short visits.- ‘The UK is my home’ -“The UK is my home. The UK is central to the heritage of my children,” Harry said in a written statement read out by his lawyers at a hearing in 2023.”That cannot happen if it’s not possible to keep them safe. I cannot put my wife in danger like that and, given my experiences in life, I am reluctant to unnecessarily put myself in harm’s way too.”Harry’s mother, Princess Diana, was killed in a high-speed car crash in Paris in 1997 as she tried to escape paparazzi photographers.The prince’s legal battle centres on a February 2020 decision to downgrade his security, made by the UK’s interior ministry and a committee that deals with the protection of royals and public figures.Britain’s High Court was previously told the decision followed a change in Harry’s status after he stopped being a working member of the royal family.The High Court ruled in February 2024 against Harry’s case, saying the government had acted lawfully. The prince’s initial bid to appeal was refused in April 2024 and he was ordered to pay about £1,000,000 ($1.27 million) in legal costs, according to The Times newspaper. However, the following month, a judge said Harry could in fact challenge the decision at the Court of Appeal.Fatima argued that the committee had failed to carry out an assessment of the risks posed to Harry and that the High Court had been wrong to overlook that.- ‘Bespoke’ -“This appeal concerns the most fundamental right — to safety and security of person,” Fatima said on Tuesday. Harry, dressed in a dark suit with blue patterned tie, looked on, occasionally whispering into the ear of another member of his legal team.The government has argued the committee was entitled to conclude Harry’s protection should be “bespoke” and considered on a “case-by-case” basis.The hearing is expected to finish on Wednesday, with parts held in private due to security concerns. Harry, who has pursued several legal suits against British UK tabloid dailies, is also embroiled in a separate row over a charity he co-founded in southern Africa. A bitter boardroom battle has seen the prince resign as patron of the Sentebale charity.Its chair, Sophie Chandauka, has accused him of “bullying” and being involved in a “cover up”.Harry has in turn hit out at what he called “blatant lies” and the UK-based charity watchdog has launched an investigation.

Robert De Niro is set to receive an honorary Palme d’Or at the Cannes festival this year, with rumours that Tom Cruise will join him and other stars on the French Riviera.The industry is buzzing with speculation about who will attend the world’s premier film event one month before it kicks off in the south of France.Cinemas are desperate for some stardust and sparkling new films after a weak start to 2025.Cannes president Iris Knobloch and long-time director Thierry Fremaux will unveil the selection of in-competition films and other major premieres at a press conference in Paris on Thursday.They confirmed on Monday that De Niro, star of “Taxi Driver” and “Godfather Part II”, was to be given an honorary Palme d’Or at the opening ceremony on May 13 for his contribution to cinema.”With his restrained style, expressed through the softness of a smile or the hardness of a glance, Robert De Niro has become a legend of cinema,” the festival said in a statement in French.Fellow Hollywood icon Tom Cruise, now 62, has also been tipped to appear in Cannes three years after making a dramatic helicopter entrance at the festival for “Top Gun: Maverick.” Rumours suggest he may return with the latest instalment of “Mission: Impossible”, which has been billed as the final chapter in the saga.The film is slated for release in French cinemas on May 21, which would be perfect timing for a Cannes launch out of competition.Many cinema owners are in need of a blockbuster and are banking on Cruise’s star power to sell tickets after a terrible start to 2025 that has been marked by a series of expensive Hollywood flops.These include Disney’s live-action “Snow White,” superhero sequel “Captain America: Brave New World” and bizarre sci-fi movie “Mickey 17”. The much-hyped “A Minecraft Movie”, released last week, was panned by critics but might help to lift the gloom after a record-breaking opening weekend in the United States.That saw fans of the legendary computer game flock to cinemas. – Contenders -The head of the Cannes jury this year is French screen legend Juliette Binoche, who will hand out the famed Palme d’Or for best film. Around 20 movies are set to compete in the top category, looking to emulate the success of last year’s winner, “Anora” by Sean Baker. Terrence Malick, who won the Palme d’Or for “The Tree of Life” 14 years ago, has been tipped to return with a long-awaited project inspired by biblical stories.Other festival veterans could also return, such as Jim Jarmusch (“Broken Flowers”, “Dead Man”), whose latest film stars Cate Blanchett and Adam Driver. Wes Anderson, 55, has also assembled yet another star-studded cast for his latest film, featuring Benicio Del Toro, Tom Hanks and Scarlett Johansson.Johansson, 40, could bring a breath of fresh air to the festival by presenting her directorial debut, “Eleanor the Great”. Another actress-turned-director, Kristen Stewart, 34, has also recently completed her first feature film.Experts have also suggested the new master of American horror, 38-year-old Ari Aster -— known for his chilling films “Hereditary” and “Midsommar” -— could make his Cannes debut with a movie starring Joaquin Phoenix and Emma Stone.Three French female directors, Julia Ducournau (2021 Palme d’Or winner for “Titane”), Rebecca Zlotowski (“Other People’s Children”, “An Easy Girl”) or Alice Winocour, who has made a film about Paris Fashion Week starring Angelina Jolie, have also been named as contenders.Exiled Russian filmmakers such as Kirill Serebrennikov, Andrey Zvyagintsev and rising talent Kantemir Balagov could also feature.The festival has yet to announce its opening film or the full composition of the jury.

Prince Harry was in a UK court on Tuesday for the latest stage of his legal challenge against a government decision to downgrade his personal security when he visits Britain.The self-exiled royal entered the Royal Courts of Justice in central London around 9:30 am (0830 GMT), AFP reporters saw, where judges at the complex’s Court of Appeal were to begin considering his case.Following Harry’s dramatic split with the royal family in 2020 and subsequent move to North America, the British government said he would no longer be given the “same degree” of publicly funded protection when in the UK.But the 40-year-old prince took legal action against the interior ministry and, after his initial case was rejected last year, he has now brought the challenge before London’s Court of Appeal.Harry and his American wife Meghan are no longer classified as working royals following their acrimonious departure from the UK in 2020, which has left them largely estranged from the family. They have started a new life in California but King Charles III’s younger son has said security concerns have hampered his ability to visit home and he has only rarely returned to the UK for short visits.- ‘The UK is my home’ -“The UK is my home. The UK is central to the heritage of my children,” he said in a written statement read out by his lawyers at a hearing in 2023.”That cannot happen if it’s not possible to keep them safe. I cannot put my wife in danger like that and, given my experiences in life, I am reluctant to unnecessarily put myself in harm’s way too.”Harry’s mother, Princess Diana, was killed in a high-speed car crash in Paris in 1997 as she tried to escape paparazzi photographers.Last week, the Court of Appeal said sections of the hearing, which is set to take place on Tuesday and Wednesday, would be held in private due to security concerns. Tuesday’s hearing comes on the same day as “Confessions of a Female Founder”, a new podcast by Harry’s wife, was due to be launched.- ‘Singled out’ -The prince’s legal battle centres on a February 2020 decision to downgrade his security, made by the UK’s interior ministry and a committee that deals with the protection of royals and public figures.Britain’s High Court was previously told the decision followed a change in Harry’s status after he stopped being a working member of the royal family.The High Court ruled in February 2024 against Harry’s case, saying the government had acted lawfully. The prince’s initial bid to appeal was refused in April 2024 and he was ordered to pay about £1,000,000 ($1.27 million) in legal costs, according to The Times newspaper. However, the following month, a judge said Harry could in fact challenge the decision at the Court of Appeal.Harry’s lawyers told the High Court he was “singled out” and treated “less favourably” in the committee’s decision, claiming that alleged flaws made the downgrade “unlawful and unfair”.The government argued the committee was entitled to conclude Harry’s protection should be “bespoke” and considered on a “case-by-case” basis.Harry, who has taken several legal suits against British UK tabloid dailies, is also embroiled in a separate row over a charity he co-founded in southern Africa. A bitter boardroom battle has seen the prince resign as patron of the Sentebale charity.Its chair, Sophie Chandauka, has accused him of “bullying” and being involved in a “cover up”.Harry has in turn hit out at what he called “blatant lies” and the UK-based charity watchdog has launched an investigation.

A prominent American academic was detained on Tuesday and charged with insulting Thailand’s monarchy, his lawyer told AFP, in a rare case of a foreign national falling foul of the kingdom’s strict lese-majeste law.Paul Chambers, who has spent more than a decade teaching Southeast Asia politics in Thailand, is in pre-trial detention awaiting a decision on his bail request, lawyer Wannaphat Jenroumjit said.”He denied the charge,” Wannaphat told AFP.Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn and his close family are protected from criticism by the lese-majeste law, with each offence punishable by up to 15 years in jail.The Thai military filed a complaint earlier this year against Chambers, a lecturer at Naresuan University in northern Thailand, over an article linked to an online discussion. He was informed of the charge last week and told to report to a police station in the northern Phitsanulok province Tuesday to formally respond.”We have to check all details, but the defendant said he didn’t do it and I believe the law will protect him,” Wannaphat said. Chambers told AFP last week he felt “intimidated” by the situation, but was being supported by the US embassy and colleagues at his university.Charges under Thailand’s royal defamation law have surged in recent years and critics say it is misused to stifle dissent. Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) told AFP it is “rare” for a foreign national to face such charges.International watchdogs have expressed concern over its increasing use against academics, activists, and even students.One man in northern Thailand was jailed for at least 50 years for lese-majeste last year, while a woman got 43 years in 2021.And in 2023 a man was jailed for two years for selling satirical calendars featuring rubber ducks that a court said defamed the king.