The Guardian World

Exclusive: Documents show German party’s scramble to request support after president’s 2016 election win and co-leader’s pursuit of Steve Bannon

A data leak from Germany’s far-right German Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) has revealed the extent of efforts by the party to court Donald Trump and other leading figures in the Maga movement, stretching back more than a decade.

The trove reveals the pains the AfD took in wooing the president, whom they saw from the beginning as a potential ally, with senior party officials agonising over the wording of an obsequious congratulatory telegram when he was elected in 2016, which included the wish that his “hopes as a person be fulfilled”.

Trump’s latest tactic to champion Republicans at midterm rallies? Assessing men’s bodies in meticulous detail

Speaking at a rally in Youngstown, Ohio, earlier this month, to support the Republican senator Jon Husted, Donald Trump broke from his prepared remarks.

Trump said he had recently learned that Husted played football at university. The president, 80, said this had prompted him to conduct a physical assessment of Husted.

Investigation marks rare move by DoJ against an ally of the US president. Plus, why the world’s coral reefs are facing a dire future

Good morning. Corey Lewandowski, a former political adviser to Donald Trump and ⁠top aide at the Department ⁠of Homeland Security, ​is under criminal investigation over allegations he profited off his role in the US government. The Department of Justice has not yet issued subpoenas or other legal demands in the criminal investigation, and a lawyer ​for Lewandowski did not immediately respond to ‌a request for comment. The justice department under Trump has investigated several prominent critics of the president, but investigations of people close to Trump have been rare.

Lewandowski served as a top aide to Kristi Noem during her tenure as homeland security secretary. Lewandowski allegedly signed some DHS contracts despite having questionable legal authority ​as a special government ‌employee, according to one ​DHS official. Certain grants ​and contracts, including those involving the Federal Emergency Management Agency, were put on hold at Lewandowski’s direction, according to two other sources.

Where else has Trump suffered a legal setback? Donald Trump has been ordered by a US judge to cooperate with the discovery process mandated for his lawsuit against the BBC and to sit for a deposition by 11 December – or else he could be subject to sanctions, including possible dismissal of the $10bn lawsuit.

What request has Trump claimed he made of Google? Trump has said Google rejected his request to rename the Atlantic Ocean after himself or America. Google has previously acceded to Trump’s demands, with locations labelled “Gulf of America” and “Lake America” for US users at the president’s request.

Latest negative economic update comes as John Healey prepares to announce budget next week

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Retail sales in Great Britain fell more steeply than expected last month, the latest negative economic update before the chancellor, John Healey, announces his budget next week.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the volume of goods sold fell 0.4% month on month in September, much steeper than economists’ consensus expectations of a 0.1% fall.

World’s second largest brewer says use of drugs such as Wegovy can reduce desire to drink alcohol

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Heineken has warned British bars and pubs that the boom in popularity of weight-loss drugs could lead to a fall in sales of beer and cider.

The world’s second-largest brewer sent a presentation to British hospitality customers earlier this month that said the use of GLP-1 medication – such as Ozempic and Wegovy – could reduce the desire to drink alcohol. This in turn could result in “fullness and fewer serves” of pints in pubs and bars, it added.

An old idea springs anew as a chorus of influential voices predicts that AI may trigger crises of vast magnitude

In a preface to his book Capitalism and Freedom, the American economist Milton Friedman famously observed that a crisis can propel once-fringe ideas into the political mainstream.

“Only a crisis – actual or perceived – produces real change. When that crisis occurs, the actions that are taken depend on the ideas that are lying around,” he wrote. The job of intellectuals, thinktanks and economists, he argued, is to refine the quality of these ambient ideas, so that good ones are ready when disaster strikes.

Linda Williams, who was attacked in 2004, says force’s handling of her case was ‘like being raped all over again’

A detective who was raped by the former Scotland Yard officer David Carrick has called for the head of the Metropolitan police to resign, saying the handling of her case was “like being raped all over again”.

Linda Williams, 60, who has waived her right to anonymity, was attacked by Carrick in 2004. She launched a legal case against the Met for failing to protect her against the serial rapist, and has now settled for an undisclosed six-figure sum without the force admitting liability.

Exclusive: Photographer Simon Montgomery told ‘state’s interest in regulated immigration’ outweighs his family concerns

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A British photographer is facing deportation from Sweden and forced separation from his 16-month-old son after authorities ruled in favour of the country’s immigration interests.

Simon Montgomery’s application to remain after the birth of his son last year was rejected on several grounds by Sweden’s migration agency, a decision that was then upheld by the migration court.

Storm Adam brings heavy rain to Valencia, Alicante and Balearic Islands, as Storm Austen gusts strike England and Wales

Storm Adam brought torrential rain to eastern Spain earlier this week. In Pego, Alicante, 632mm fell in 36 hours, with 430mm of this falling in just six hours, while the Valencian town of Olivia received 600mm in 24 hours.

The severe flooding led 145 municipalities across Valencia and Alicante to impose a temporary lockdown on about 850,000 people on Monday. At least five people have died, 500 have been rescued and 2,100 evacuated.

Search and rescue efforts under way after quake strikes region’s north, with at least seven aftershocks recorded

A magnitude-7 earthquake has hit Tibet, killing at least 16 people, injuring 54 and destroying hundreds of homes in the northern regional city of Nagqu, official media have said.

Search and rescue efforts continued after at least 339 homes and 20 livestock sheds collapsed, the Nagqu media office said, citing city government officials. It was the biggest quake in the region in the past five years, according to China’s national broadcaster CCTV.

Economic fallout from war in Middle East adds to pressures on consumers and on chancellor before budget

Consumer confidence in the UK has fallen at the fastest rate outside the Covid pandemic since the 2016 Brexit vote as the escalating economic damage from the war in the Middle East hits Britain.

With less than a week before John Healey’s first budget, the latest barometer from the data company GfK indicated confidence plunged by 11 percentage points in October to -24 amid pressure on consumers from the rising cost of living.

Case filed in 2022 by patient unable to afford medicine leads to cap on drug prices for millions who face ruin if diagnosed

The Indian government has moved to reduce the price of cancer drugs after a retired bank clerk took her case to the supreme court.

From next month, 137 cancer drugs in India will be cheaper as the government tries to tackle the tragedy of poorer patients either forgoing treatment, selling land or falling into debt to meet the high cost of some medicines, which are making large profits for hospitals and pharmacists.

Officials will call on UK to ‘step up’ financial support at Brussels summit – with post-Brexit issues also on agenda

EU leaders will press Andy Burnham at a summit in Brussels to contribute more to Ukraine’s defence effort in 2027.

EU officials argue that the UK, Canada and Japan should do more to support Ukraine, but entreaties to these G7 countries for extra financial aid at recent international meetings have not been answered, Brussels says.

Regular users detail their frustrations – and question whether Andy Burnham’s crackdown on antisocial behaviour will actually work

Andy Burnham has announced a campaign against nuisance behaviour on public transport, including “headphone dodgers” who play loud music.

“We’ve all been on the train when someone starts blasting music or videos from their phone,” Burnham said in a statement. “It gets on your nerves and can quickly spoil the journey.”

In today’s newsletter: ​Born from the fury surrounding the deadly Novi Sad station collapse, Serbia’s Student List has taken its protests all the way to the elections in an unprecedented grassroots campaign

Good morning. As waves of youth-led protests swell across Europe, prompted by the cost of living, unaffordable housing and education standards, in Serbia the younger generation is taking on the apparatus of the state itself.

In tight-run parliamentary elections this Sunday, the country’s most consequential political movement in decades, Student List, is challenging former Slobodan Milošević henchman Aleksandar Vučić and his 12-year domination of Serbian politics.

UK news | Every Briton is being urged to stock up to nine litres of bottled water and three days’ worth of food in new government guidance designed to ensure that households can survive a weather, cyber or other serious emergency.

Ukraine | Russia has carried out a massive “demonstrative” attack on Ukraine, bombarding Kyiv with ballistic missiles just hours after Vladimir Putin said he had agreed to resume trilateral negotiations.

UK politics | Nigel Farage’s newest billionaire donor was in business with a powerful Iranian religious foundation under the authority of the country’s supreme leader.

Europe news | Emmanuel Macron has said “illegitimate” demonstrations will be banned over the coming days as France seeks to get a grip on civil unrest after some of its worst street violence in years.

Energy | Great Britain is expected to pay some of the highest energy costs in Europe this winter as its reliance on imports to ensure a steady supply is forecast to deepen.

Official forecasts show country will meet energy demand by paying high prices to secure imports

Great Britain is expected to pay some of the highest energy costs in Europe this winter as its reliance on imports to ensure a steady supply is forecast to deepen.

Energy system operators have said the country will have enough gas and electricity to meet demand over the coldest months – in part because of paying higher market prices than neighbouring markets to secure imports.

Protests and fringe violence expose sharp divide between marginalised and immigrant youth and those with greater prospects

Martina Miccichè was filming riot police kicking and beating a teenager with batons as they dragged him along Piazza del Duomo, the central Milan square hosting its cathedral, when she was struck by a flying object, causing a deep gash and bruising near her right eye.

The journalist had joined hundreds of mostly young people marching through the northern Italian city on Saturday afternoon to protest over soaring living costs and unaffordable housing, echoing the wider wave of economic discontent fuelling protests across Europe.

Exclusive: Wes Streeting says MoD in talks amid legal challenge by LGBT staff forced out of military

Wes Streeting is pursuing an out-of-court resolution to a legal battle over compensation for gay veterans who were forced to resign from the armed forces because of their sexuality.

The defence secretary told the Guardian the Ministry of Defence was holding talks this week in the midst of a high court challenge over rules that blocked some veterans receiving £50,000 payments despite being forced out of military service.

Visa quotas, university fees and NHS surcharges remain sticking points ahead of post-Brexit negotiations next month

A deadline for a youth mobility scheme between the EU and the UK could be deferred by six months in a bid to ensure Andy Burnham has a successful “reset” summit on 20 November, diplomats have said.

EU ambassadors in Brussels on Wednesday heard that the UK was still insisting on international tuition fees, quotas and an NHS surcharge for EU students. This has fuelled fears the summit could fail, just as the prime minister is promising to unveil a new vision for Britain’s long-term relationship with the EU.

High inflation, low growth and rising unemployment can be added to the federal treasurer’s wall of worries

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Jim Chalmers in a speech last week offered the scant encouragement that the economy would be “a bit better” in a year’s time.

Fast forward to Friday morning, and the treasurer revealed that his officials were busy downgrading their forecasts ahead of December’s mid-year budget update to show slower growth and higher unemployment.