Syngenta says it will stop making pesticide linked to Parkinson’s disease

Company will halt production of controversial paraquat weed killer by end of June as it faces thousands of lawsuits

Syngenta, maker of a controversial pesticide linked to Parkinson’s disease, said on Tuesday that it will stop making its paraquat weed killer by the end of June.

The announcement comes as the company is facing several thousand lawsuits brought by people in the US who allege they developed Parkinson’s disease due to their exposure to Syngenta’s paraquat products.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/mar/03/syngesta-pesticide-parkinsons

Ron DeSantis spent $1.2m per day to open and operate ‘Alligator Alcatraz’

After spending taxpayers’ money, Florida governor will likely be left holding bill for $608m promised by Trump administration

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Ron DeSantis, Florida’s Republican governor, spent $1.2m of taxpayers’ money per day to open and operate the notorious immigration jail known as Alligator Alcatraz, court records obtained by the independent investigative news website the Florida Tributary reveal.

A switch in position by Donald Trump’s administration also now looks likely to leave Florida on the hook for at least $608m spent on the harsh Everglades detention and deportation facility and other immigration jails, the outlet said. That was despite gloating by DeSantis in September that the state would be reimbursed from federal funds.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/mar/02/ron-desantis-12-million-on-alligator-alcatraz

UK personnel just 200 metres away from Iranian missile strike

British forces in Bahrain and Iraq being drawn into Iran conflict in defence of civilian sites and military assets

• US-Israeli attack on Iran – live updates

Three hundred British personnel were within 200 metres (650ft) of an Iranian missile and drone strike on the US naval base in Bahrain on Saturday, one of several incidents where UK forces have been drawn into the war in the Middle East.

No casualties were reported. The strike was one of more than 25 waves of retaliatory attacks in response to the massive US-Israeli joint bombing campaign launched against Iran on Saturday.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/01/iran-missile-strikes-bahrain-iraq-uk-military-personnel-middle-east

A visual guide to US-Israeli strikes on Iran – and Tehran’s response

Missiles and bombs landed across Iran, hitting political and security targets in Tehran, including supreme leader’s residence

• US-Israeli attack on Iran – live updates

• US and Israel strikes on Iran – what we know so far

The US and Israel have announced the beginning of an unprecedented joint operation against Iran, beginning with a wide-ranging bombing campaign aimed at regime change.

Israeli jets and US missiles struck hundreds of targets across Iran, sending residents fleeing in panic from major urban centres. Among the targets were Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khameini, and Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian, as well as weapons facilities across the country.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/feb/28/us-israel-strikes-iran-tehran-response-visual-guide

Bobby J Brown, US actor known for The Wire, dies aged 62

Brown, third member of hit HBO series to die since December, was trapped in barn fire while trying to jumpstart car at home

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The Wire actor Bobby J Brown died recently in a barn fire at his Maryland home, making him the third cast member of the acclaimed HBO show to pass away since December.

According to authorities and a statement on social media from his daughter, Reina, the 62-year-old Brown had gone into a barn at his residence in the St Mary’s county community of Chaptico at about 10pm on 24 February to try to jumpstart a car. It evidently ignited during the attempt, and Brown asked his wife for a fire extinguisher.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/feb/27/bobby-j-brown-actor-dies-the-wire

Netflix given four days to match ‘superior’ Paramount offer for Warner Bros Discovery

WBD board says $31-per-share offer constitutes ‘company superior proposal’, triggering Netflix’s window to respond

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Netflix has been given four days to beat a sweetened offer by Paramount Skydance for the assets of Warner Bros Discovery in the latest twist in the battle for control of the media giant.

In an announcement on Thursday afternoon, WBD said that its board had determined Paramount’s revised offer to be a “company superior proposal” compared with Netflix’s $82.7bn deal – triggering Netflix’s window to respond.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/feb/26/netflix-paramount-warner-bros

Vance says Minnesota’s Medicaid funds halted as part of Trump’s ‘war on fraud’

Vice-president makes announcement with Mehmet Oz, who says other states will be next after Minnesota

JD Vance announced on Wednesday that the Trump administration would “temporarily halt” more than a quarter-billion dollars in Medicaid reimbursements to the state of Minnesota as part of Donald Trump’s newly announced “war on fraud”.

“What we’re doing is we are stopping the federal payments that will go to the state government until the state government takes its obligations seriously to stop the fraud that’s being perpetrated against the American taxpayer,” the vice-president said at a press conference in Washington, where he was joined by Mehmet Oz, administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/feb/25/jd-vance-minnesota-medicaid