As it happened: Liz Truss resigns as British prime minister; ADF troops deployed to assist with Victoria, NSW floods

Carlsen’s surprise defeat to Niemann and his subsequent withdrawal from the Sinquefield Cup in St Louis, Missouri in September sparked a furore of comments and allegations, including from Nakamura, that the American had cheated.

Weeks after the Sinquefield Cup, the Norwegian resigned after just one move against Niemann in an online tournament and said later in September he believed the American had ”cheated more - and more recently - than he has publicly admitted”.

In a statement, lawyers for Chess.com said there was no merit to Niemann’s allegations and that the company was saddened by his decision to take legal action.

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Reuters

AFP Acting Commander Anita van Hilst said the arrest should “send a strong message that the AFP and its partners are working tirelessly to identify and prosecute anyone who breaks the law by harassing, menacing or threatening politicians”.

“The AFP supports the political expression and freedom of speech, however when it leads to criminal behaviour, including threats and harassment, even online, it will not be tolerated,” Hilst said.

The man has been granted bail.

Calling the jury in just before 4pm on Friday, ACT Supreme Court Chief Justice Lucy McCallum urged its members against speaking to anyone about the case over the weekend and to shut down any potential exchange.

“It’s extremely important at this stage you don’t engage in conversation,” McCallum said. “Give yourself a social media-free holiday.”

She said they could not begin deliberating again until all 12 were back in the jury room on Monday.

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One possibility is through the law governing the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States to review Musk’s deals and operations for national security risks, they said.

The interagency panel, known as CFIUS, reviews acquisitions of US businesses by foreign buyers. It is not clear if a CFIUS review -- which would involve assessments by the Departments of State, Defence, and Homeland Security, among others -- would offer the government a legal way to conduct a review, the people said.

One element of the $US44 billion Twitter deal that could trigger a CFIUS review is the presence of foreign investors in Musk’s consortium. The group includes Prince Alwaleed bin Talal of Saudi Arabia, Binance Holdings-- a digital-asset exchange founded and run by a Chinese native -- and Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund.

The panel operates behind closed doors and rarely confirms when it is conducting reviews. CFIUS also holds the power to review deals that have already been consummated.

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Reuters

Her resignation has left a bitterly divided Conservative Party with the challenge of choosing Britain’s third prime minister in a matter of months amid growing calls for a general election.

Sunak, who stood against Truss for the Tory leadership in the summer, had warned that his rival’s economic plans would set off panic in the markets if she pressed ahead with a massive package of debt-funded tax cuts.

But the race now threatens to be overshadowed by a campaign to bring back former PM Boris Johnson, who several Tory MPs have publicly implored to run. Others, however, regard the prospect of him returning with horror.

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“We assess that Iranian military personnel were on the ground in Crimea and assisted Russia in these operations,” Kirby said. He added that it appeared a relatively small number of Iranians were involved.

There was no immediate public reaction to the US allegations from Tehran. Russia’s defence and foreign ministries did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The United States is now concerned that Russia may seek to acquire advanced conventional weapons from Iran such as surface-to-surface missiles for use against Ukraine, Kirby said.

He said the United States is going to pursue all means to “expose, deter and confront” Iran’s supply of munitions to Russia, including more sanctions.

“Iran and Russia, they can lie to the world, but they certainly can’t hide the facts, and the fact is this: Tehran is now directly engaged on the ground,” he said.

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Reuters

“I’m very pleased to see that all of those approvals now have been given,” the premier told reporters on Friday.

“The project ... means a lot of jobs to the Toowoomba economy, and as my government said, we would wait for the outcome of the court cases.

“Those court cases have been closed and those approvals have now been finalised.”

New Hope Group CEO Rob Bishop said the project is the “most reviewed and scrutinised” in Queensland’s history.

“The Queensland government critically assessed the project and found it stacks up environmentally, socially and financially,” he said.

Ms Palaszczuk insists a new thermal coal mine won’t interfere with her government’s plans to reach 70 per cent renewable energy by 2032.

“Countries still need coal, we are still using coal in our coal fired power plants,” she said.

New Hope exhausted its last reserves at New Acland in November and has made almost 300 workers redundant since 2019.

The Oakey Coal Action Alliance and Lock the Gate Alliance have doggedly opposed a third mine at the site, which they fear will impact on local landholders, farmers and the environment.

New Hope says the project will not rely on groundwater bores for any of its mining operations.

“New Acland Mine purchases all its water requirements from the Wetalla Wastewater Reclamation Facility under an existing long-term supply contract with the Toowoomba Regional Council,” Bishop said.

Opponents have flagged their intention to “interrogate the lawfulness” of the water licence.

New Hope previously estimated it will pay as much as 80 per cent of royalties to itself thanks to its land holdings in the area.

Most of the New Acland site is subject to old land titles, meaning the rights to resources in the ground are retained by the landowner.

AAP