Headline

Boris Johnson Lied To MPs Over COVID-19 Parties – Report

Published

2 years ago

June 15, 2023

Boris Johnson deliberately lied to MPs about lockdown-breaking parties during the Covid pandemic that would have seen him face a 90-day suspension had he not quit as a lawmaker, a parliament committee ruled Thursday.

The Privileges Committee, which probes breaches of House of Commons rules, concluded that Johnson was guilty of “repeated contempts (of parliament) and… seeking to undermine the parliamentary process”.

“The contempt was all the more serious because it was committed by the prime minister, the most senior member of the government,” they stated in a damning 106-page report.

“There is no precedent for a prime minister having been found to have deliberately misled the House.

“He misled the House on an issue of the greatest importance to the House and to the public, and did so repeatedly.”

The seven-member committee, which has a majority of MPs from Johnson’s own Conservative party, has powers to recommend sanctions on rule-breakers that have to be voted on by MPs.

But Johnson, 58, avoided having to face his peers — and the humiliation of potentially having to run for re-election in his constituency — by resigning as an MP just days before the report was released.

– ‘Borisconi’ –

In his resignation statement last Friday, Johnson — who quit as prime minister last July due to “Partygate” and a string of other scandals — claimed he was the victim of a stitch-up by his political opponents in a “kangaroo court”.

He was unrepentant again on Thursday, calling the report “deranged” and the 14-month inquiry into his statements to parliament a “charade”.

He insisted his attendance at the Downing Street parties in question was “lawful, and required” by his job.

“This is a dreadful day for MPs and for democracy,” Johnson said in an angry 1,700-word statement.

“This decision means that no MP is free from vendetta, or expulsion on trumped-up charges by a tiny minority who want to see him or her gone from the Commons.

“I do not have the slightest contempt for Parliament, or for the important work that should be done by the Privileges Committee.

“But for the Privileges Committee to use its prerogatives in this anti-democratic way, to bring about what is intended to be the final knife-thrust in a protracted political assassination –- that is beneath contempt.”

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s official spokesman refused to comment on Johnson’s attack, saying the committee was “properly constituted… carrying out work at the behest of parliament”.

The main opposition Labour party’s deputy leader, Angela Rayner, likened Johnson’s outburst to “a toddler that’s thrown his toys out of the pram because he’s been caught and he doesn’t like it”.

Johnson’s former editor at the Daily Telegraph Max Hastings said the committee had shown the ex-leader “for what he always was”, and called for a restoration of trust in politicians.

“We need to show that we reject the Trump school of life and Berlusconi school of life,” he told the BBC, referring to the populist former US president and late Italian prime minister.

“We don’t want a Borisconi in public life.”

– ‘Serious contempt’ –
“Partygate” saw Johnson and dozens of government officials fined by police for breaking the social distancing laws the government set to curtail the spread of Covid-19.

Months of newspaper revelations about boozy gatherings, including on the eve of the socially distanced funeral of Queen Elizabeth II’s husband, Philip, caused widespread public outrage.

It contributed to a ministerial rebellion that forced Johnson to resign as prime minister last July, though he still hinted at a political comeback.

The committee’s long-awaited report was even more critical than expected, particularly in relation to the sanction it would have recommended.

The MPs had provisionally agreed to a suspension long enough to potentially trigger a “recall” by-election in Johnson’s Uxbridge and South Ruislip constituency, in outer northwest London.

But they said his critical comments since giving evidence to the inquiry earlier this year aggravated the sanction, ruling that he was “complicit in the campaign of abuse and attempted intimidation of the committee”.

Revealing details of some of the report’s conclusions last week before it was published was also “a very serious contempt”, they added.

Johnson, the populist architect of Brexit, led the Conservative party to a landslide victory at the last general election in December 2019, but only won a 7,200-vote majority in his own constituency.

The committee recommended that Johnson be stripped of his parliamentary pass as a former MP. A vote is due on Monday — Johnson’s 59th birthday.

Headline

Trump Threatens To Unleash ‘Hell’ On Hamas

Published

1 day ago

October 4, 2025

Editor

US President Donald Trump has given Hamas until 2200 GMT on Sunday to accept his 20-point plan for peace in Gaza, warning the Palestinian militant group faced “all hell” if it did not agree to the terms.

The US leader set the deadline — which would fall at 1:00 a.m. Monday in Gaza — after an official for the Islamist movement told AFP earlier on Friday that the group still needed time to study the proposal to end nearly two years of devastating war in the Palestinian territory.

“If this LAST CHANCE agreement is not reached, all HELL, like no one has ever seen before, will break out against Hamas,” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform.

The proposal, backed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calls for a ceasefire, the release of hostages within 72 hours, Hamas’s disarmament and a gradual Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

That would be followed by a post-war transitional authority headed by Trump himself.

“Hamas is still continuing consultations regarding Trump’s plan… and has informed mediators that the consultations are ongoing and need some time,” the official said on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly on the matter.

On Tuesday, Trump gave Hamas “three or four days” to accept his plan, which has been welcomed by world powers, including Arab and Muslim nations.

Mohammad Nazzal, a member of Hamas’s political bureau, said in a statement Friday that the “plan has points of concern, and we will announce our position on it soon.”

As Hamas mulled Trump’s peace plan this week, a Palestinian source close to the group’s leadership told AFP on Wednesday that the Islamist movement wanted to amend some clauses, including the one on disarmament.

Hamas leaders also want “international guarantees” for a full Israeli withdrawal and that no assassination attempts would be made inside or outside Gaza, the source added.

Another source familiar with the negotiations told AFP that the group was split over Trump’s plan.

Structurally, the group’s leadership is divided between officials based in the Gaza Strip and those abroad, particularly in Qatar.

Much of Hamas’s leadership has also been wiped out in Israeli attacks throughout the war.

The source told AFP that “the first (opinion) supports unconditional approval, as the priority is a ceasefire under Trump’s guarantees, with mediators ensuring Israel implements the plan”.

“The second has serious reservations regarding key clauses… They favour conditional approval with clarifications reflecting Hamas’s and the resistance factions’ demands,” the source added.

Hugh Lovatt, a senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, said “ultimately it’s not just about convincing Hamas leadership in Doha, but also the leadership in Gaza, as well as Hamas members and fighters in Gaza.”

“Additionally, Hamas must then be able to convince other factions in Gaza,” he added.

The war was triggered by Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 66,288 Palestinians, according to health ministry figures in the Hamas-run territory that the United Nations considers reliable.

Their data does not distinguish between civilians and combatants, but indicates that more than half of the dead are women and children.

Headline

Israeli Forces Strike Gaza Despite Trump’s Ceasefire Call

Published

1 day ago

October 4, 2025

Editor

Gaza’s civil defence agency said Saturday that Israel carried out dozens of attacks on Gaza City despite US President Donald Trump’s appeal to end bombardments after Hamas accepted a ceasefire deal.

“It was a very violent night, during which the (Israeli army) carried out dozens of air strikes and artillery shelling on Gaza City and other areas in the Strip, despite President Trump’s call to halt the bombing,” civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP.

Bassal, whose agency is a rescue force which operates under Hamas authority, added that 20 homes were destroyed in the overnight bombardments.

“The situation is very serious in Gaza City,” Bassal said, adding that his teams were not able to reach all the casualties due to the “presence of tanks and the ongoing bombardment”.

Contacted by AFP, the Israeli military said it was “checking” reports of overnight bombardments on Gaza City.

Gaza City’s Baptist Hospital said in a statement that it received casualties from a strike on a home in Tuffah neighbourhood, including four dead and “several wounded”.

Nasser Hospital in south Gaza’s Khan Yunis said two children were killed and eight people were wounded in a drone strike on a tent in a camp for displaced Gazans.

The peace plan for Gaza, presented by Trump this week and backed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calls for a ceasefire, the release of hostages within 72 hours, Hamas’s disarmament and a gradual Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

Hamas said on Friday it was ready to release hostages held in Gaza under the Trump plan, but wanted negotiations on the details and a say in the future of the Palestinian territory.

AFP

Headline

Prosecutors Seek 11-year Sentence For Diddy, Citing ‘Lack Of Remorse’

Published

2 days ago

October 3, 2025

Editor

Prosecutors urged a federal judge Friday to sentence Sean “Diddy” Combs to more than a decade behind bars for his conviction on two prostitution-related counts, saying the music mogul had shown a lack of remorse.

“This is not a person who has accepted responsibility,” prosecutor Christy Slavik told the New York court at Diddy’s sentencing hearing.

“His remorse was qualified. It’s as though he thinks the law doesn’t apply to him,” Slavik said in arguing for an 11-year prison sentence for the 55-year-old hip-hop innovator. ” “His respect for the law is just lip service.”

Combs’s lawyers have asked the judge for a 14-month sentence, which would effectively be time served.

Slavik said Combs had booked speaking engagements in Miami next week in anticipation of a light sentence, which she called “the height of hubris.”

Judge Arun Subramanian for his part said federal sentencing guidelines suggested a prison term of between six and seven years although he has the latitude to impose more or less.

The judge also noted an apparent lack of remorse, saying Combs has “challenged his factual guilt full-throatedly.”

Combs was expected to address the court at the sentencing hearing after submitting a letter to the judge on Thursday pleading for mercy and saying he had “lost my way.”

Following two months of often searing testimony, jurors in July rejected the most serious charges of sex trafficking and racketeering against Combs, sparing him the prospect of life in prison.

Combs’s mother and six of his children were in court on Friday and have submitted letters to the judge in his support.

In his plea to the judge, Combs apologised for his conduct, saying he was “scared to death” to be away from his family and vowing he “will never commit a crime again.”

“I lost my way,” he wrote. “I got lost in my journey. Lost in the drugs and the excess.”

Combs’s former girlfriend, Casandra Ventura, asked the judge in a letter of her own to consider “the many lives that Sean Combs has upended with his abuse and control.”

– ‘Humbled and broken’ –

Ventura, the 39-year-old singer known as Cassie, testified for days while heavily pregnant.

She described in wrenching detail physical, emotional and sexual abuse she suffered while in a more than decade-long relationship with Combs.

Ventura and another woman, identified as Jane, said they were coerced into performing so-called “freak-offs”: sexual marathons with hired men that Combs directed and sometimes filmed.

“The entire courtroom watched actual footage of Combs kicking and beating me as I tried to run away from a freak off in 2016,” Ventura wrote.

“People watched this footage dozens of times, seeing my body thrown to the ground, my hands over my head, curled into a fetal position to shield me from the worst blows,” she said, noting she has nightmares and flashbacks “on a regular, everyday basis.”

Ventura said she and her family had left the New York area for fear of “retribution” from Combs if he is released.

The defense didn’t deny Combs’s sexual activity but insisted it was consensual.

They also didn’t deny Combs’s years of violence against both romantic partners as well as employees — but they said it didn’t meet the legal threshold for the grave charges he faced.

Jurors took their side.

The conviction on lesser if still serious counts stemmed from a federal statute that makes it illegal to transport people across state lines for prostitution.

Combs has been incarcerated in Brooklyn for more than a year.

He said his time in prison has left him “reborn.”

“I have been humbled and broken to my core,” Combs wrote.
AFP