Headline

UK Slashes Graduate Visa From Two Years To 18 Months

Published

1 year ago

May 12, 2025

The UK government has cut the Graduate Route visa from two years to 18 months, part of a sweeping crackdown on what it describes as “systemic abuse and mission drift” in international education, asylum, and family immigration.

The announcement, part of a broader Immigration White Paper released Monday, is paired with tougher compliance rules for universities, a legal reset on asylum and deportation decisions, and stricter enforcement powers to curb visa fraud.

“Migration must be controlled and compliant. Our reforms will close the backdoors and shut down abuse across the system,” the Home Office stated on its website.

Graduate Route Shortened, Sponsors Face Scrutiny

The Graduate Route — previously offering two years of post-study work rights — will now offer only 18 months, with a tighter pathway to work visas and fewer rights to bring dependants.

“The Graduate Route has not met its original objectives.

“It has become a loophole for unsponsored work and a magnet for abuse,” the document said.

Only institutions meeting “enhanced compliance standards” will be allowed to retain international recruitment licenses. Universities found to have low progression-to-work rates or engaged in misleading recruitment practices will face sanctions.

“We will take action against sponsors who undermine the integrity of the system,” it added.

Asylum Claims’ New Rejection Rules

The asylum system will also be restructured.

Applicants whose home country conditions have not materially changed — or who fail to claim upon arrival — may now be automatically refused under new admissibility rules.

“We will prevent late, opportunistic asylum claims and re-establish control over our border.

“The threshold for protection will be restored to its intended level,” the Home Office declared.

Tougher Deportation For Foreign Criminals

The government also promises legislation to expand deportation powers, allowing the removal of all foreign offenders, not just those jailed for more than 12 months.

“Deportation will apply to all foreign nationals convicted of offences, with increased focus on crimes involving violence against women and girls,” the paper stated.

The government also plans to restrict the use of Article 8 (right to family life) in appeals.

“Parliament, not the courts, should decide who stays. We will legislate to reset the balance,” the document read.

Visa Sponsorship To Face Penalties For Abuse

In a warning to universities, employers, and other sponsors, the Home Office said it will impose financial penalties, licence revocations, and recruitment bans for those found to have facilitated visa abuse.

“Sponsorship is a privilege, not a right.

“Sponsors will be held accountable for their international recruitment practices,” it read.

Bold Plan Necessary
These changes, the Home Office says, are part of a long-term plan to “restore credibility, reduce numbers, and deliver an immigration system the public can trust.”

“This is about rebuilding integrity.

“We’re making it clear that the UK welcomes global talent — but not at the cost of public confidence or border control,” said Home Secretary Yvette Cooper.

Headline

Strait Of Hormuz: US Announces Sanctions Against Iran

Published

9 minutes ago

May 28, 2026

Editor

The United States Treasury has announced sanctions against Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority.

Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, said this in a statement on Wednesday.

The statement extended the threat of sanctions to anyone paying the fees, saying they may be providing support to and receiving services from Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, and therefore may be exposed to sanctions risk.

“The Iranian military’s latest attempt to extort global maritime trade is proof that Economic Fury has left the regime desperate for cash.

“Treasury has deprived the Iranian regime of revenue for their weapons programs, terrorist proxies, and nuclear ambitions,” Bessent said.

Bessent added that the US has succeeded in disrupting tens of billions of dollars’ worth of revenue from being accessible to Tehran.

Headline

US Launches New Airstrikes On Iran

Published

12 minutes ago

May 28, 2026

Editor

The United States has launched new airstrikes in southern Iran.

The strike shot down four one-way attack drones that posed a threat around the Strait of Hormuz and then a ground control site.

A US official revealed that American forces struck an Iranian ground control station in Bandar Abbas that was about to launch a fifth drone.

The official described the strikes as purely defensive, saying the US intended to maintain the ceasefire.

Report says this is the second time in three days that the US has carried out self-defense strikes against Iranian military targets in southern Iran.

Recall that on Monday the US carried out airstrikes against Iranian missile locations and boats that US Central Command said were preparing to launch mines in the Strait of Hormuz.

Headline

Woman Passes Out After Receiving 100 Strokes Of Cane

Published

4 days ago

May 24, 2026

Editor

A woman has passed out after she and her partner were each flogged 100 times in public for engaging in sex outside marriage under strict Sharia laws in Indonesia’s Aceh province.

The woman, whose identity was not disclosed, was later carried away after the punishment was carried out in Banda Aceh, located at the northern tip of Sumatra island on Thursday.

A masked official dressed in brown robes administered the caning before members of the public who gathered to witness the punishment.

Her partner was also seen wincing in pain while receiving the lashes.

The pair were among several individuals punished for violating Sharia regulations in the province.

Authorities from the Banda Aceh Sharia Court and the Prosecutor’s Office handed down punishments ranging from 25 to 100 lashes for offences including extramarital sex allegedly arranged through online applications.

Aceh remains the only province in Muslim-majority Indonesia operating under Sharia law, where unmarried couples are prohibited from having sexual relations.

Caning is commonly used in the province as punishment for offences such as gambling, alcohol consumption, same-sex relations and sex outside marriage.

Under Aceh’s Sharia regulations, child rape offenders face some of the harshest penalties, including up to 200 strokes of the cane, a prison sentence of as long as 200 months or fines equivalent to two kilograms of gold.

The punishments are usually carried out publicly as a way of shaming offenders in addition to inflicting physical pain.

Such canings are often conducted outside mosques or in open public spaces, with residents watching and taking photographs during the exercise.

Human rights organisations have continued to condemn the practice, arguing that it causes emotional trauma and violates international human rights standards.

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have repeatedly criticised the punishments, saying they conflict with Indonesia’s constitution and global legal obligations.

Amnesty said in a statement: “Caning contravenes Indonesia’s constitution and is in clear violation of international human rights law and standards.

‘It constitutes a cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment and can amount to torture in violation of the UN Convention against Torture and other international covenants, to which Indonesia is a State Party.’”

Despite the criticism, local authorities have defended the punishments as part of Aceh’s religious and cultural identity, insisting they serve as a deterrent against immoral behaviour.

Earlier in January, another couple in the province reportedly received 140 lashes each after being found guilty of drinking alcohol and engaging in sex outside marriage.

(Daily Mail)