Author: Darren Smith

Textile fragments from Viking Age boat graves in Sweden, dismissed for more than a century as ordinary funeral garments, have been found to contain Arabic script spelling out the words “Allah” and “Ali,” according to research reported by the BBC’s Tharik Hussain, raising fresh questions about contact between Viking and Muslim societies. Burial costumes recovered from Viking Age graves in Sweden have been found to contain patterns spelling out Arabic words, including “Allah” and “Ali,” according to new research reported by BBC journalist Tharik Hussain. The garments, taken from graves dating to the 9th and 10th centuries, had spent more…

More than 1,100 migrants crossed the English Channel to the UK in small boats on Saturday, the highest number recorded on a single day so far in 2025, as Defence Secretary John Healey said Britain had “lost control of its borders over the last five years.” More than 1,100 migrants arrived in the UK on Saturday after crossing the English Channel, marking the highest daily total recorded so far in 2025. According to the latest Home Office figures, 1,195 people made the crossing in 19 small boats. The figures push the total number of arrivals so far this year to…

The White House has said it is monitoring the case of Lucy Connolly, who is serving a 31-month prison sentence over a social media post written in the aftermath of the Southport attacks, as tensions grow between the Trump administration and Sir Keir Starmer’s government over free speech. The White House has confirmed it is monitoring the case of Lucy Connolly, the wife of a Conservative councillor who was jailed for 31 months over a social media post she wrote following the Southport attacks, amid rising tensions between the US and UK governments over free speech. Connolly was arrested on…

The BBC has faced significant criticism over its handling of the documentary Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone, after it emerged that its 13-year-old narrator was the son of a Hamas official, prompting the broadcaster to pull the film, launch a review and eventually apologise following twelve days of disputed explanations. The BBC has come under sustained criticism over its handling of the documentary Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone, after it emerged shortly after broadcast that the film’s 13-year-old narrator was the son of a Hamas official. The programme, produced by independent production company Hoyo Films and billed as…

Hungary’s corporate tax rate of 7.5 per cent has placed it ahead of traditional tax havens including Ireland, Cyprus and Malta, according to findings from the European Parliament’s Special Committee on Financial Crimes, Tax Evasion and Tax Avoidance. The committee identified Hungary as one of seven European countries displaying characteristics of a tax haven, with its low multinational tax rate raising concerns about aggressive tax planning structures being exploited by international corporations. Co-rapporteur Jeppe Kofod stated: “Europe has a serious money laundering and tax fraud problem. We have the world’s largest, richest and most integrated single market with free movement…