The former Minneapolis police officer jailed for the murder of George Floyd has appealed against his conviction. Derek Chauvin was sentenced in June to 22-and-a-half years in a case that made global headlines and sparked protests. He had 90 days to lodge an appeal from date of sentencing and the application is based on five
US
The American special envoy to Haiti has resigned in protest at the “inhumane” deportation of hundreds of Haitian migrants back to their country from a camp on the US-Mexican border. Daniel Foote said that conditions in the Caribbean nation were so bad that US officials were confined to secure compounds because of the danger of
The US is buying a further 500 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to donate to other countries, bringing its total commitment to over a billion jabs, President Joe Biden has announced. “To beat the pandemic here, we need to beat it everywhere,” Mr Biden said. “For every one shot we’ve administered to date in America, we
Parked vehicles have created a steel barrier which stretches for miles along the US border with Mexico in the latest measure to deter migrants from crossing into Texas. The US has been expelling Haitians from a large makeshift camp at the border, which at one point had attracted more than 12,000 migrants. Around 8,600 people
Boris Johnson has hailed “real progress” on US-UK trade – despite his earlier refusal to commit to securing a free trade deal between the two countries by the time of the next general election. Speaking as he met US Vice President Kamala Harris in Washington DC, the prime minister spoke of British and American collaboration
The US will again double the money it gives to help developing nations respond to climate change, President Biden has announced. Mr Biden said in April that America would double its contribution to $5.7bn (£4.2bn), but speaking at the United Nations General Assembly he said it would increase again to over $11bn (£8bn). In his
A US doctor who said he performed an abortion in defiance of a new Texas law is being sued by two people seeking to test the legality of the state’s near-total ban on the procedure. Former lawyers in Arkansas and Illinois have filed lawsuits against Dr Alan Braid, who in a weekend Washington Post opinion
Vaccinated passengers will be able to enter the US from the UK and EU from November onwards, ending almost two years of coronavirus travel restrictions. The new rules would be part of broader policy changes for international travel and will apply to fully vaccinated people – meaning those who have received two doses of a
A body found in Wyoming is believed to be that of missing Gabby Petito, US officials have said. The FBI said the body was found by law enforcement agents who had spent the past two days searching campgrounds. “Full forensic identification has not been completed to confirm 100% that we found Gabby, but her family
New York multi-millionaire and property heir Robert Durst has been convicted of his best friend’s murder in a case that has fascinated America for years following an infamous TV documentary. A jury in Los Angeles reached the guilty verdict after a total of just seven hours of deliberation over three days. They concluded that he
A SpaceX capsule carrying the first all-civilian crew into space has touched back down on Earth after three days in orbit. The four amateur astronauts orbited the planet every 90 minutes at a speed of more than 17,000mph and an altitude of up to 363 miles – higher than the International Space Station and Hubble
Police are searching for the boyfriend of a woman who went missing while the couple were on a road trip across the US. Officers in Florida say they are working with the FBI to find 23-year-old Brian Laundrie, regarded as a person of interest in the disappearance of his girlfriend, Gabrielle “Gabby” Petito. Mr Laundrie
An influential US government advisory panel has rejected plans to give COVID-19 booster jabs to most Americans – only backing them for people aged 65 and over, and those at high risk of severe disease. The decisions were made by a committee of experts who advise the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and deliver a
The base of the world’s largest tree has been wrapped in a flame-resistant blanket, in an attempt to save it from wildfires raging through California. The General Sherman Tree, located in a national park in the Sierra Nevada, was covered in an aluminium wrapping that can withstand intense heat for short periods. In Sequoia National
A new security deal between the United States, Britain, and Australia in the Indo-Pacific “severely damages regional peace” and “intensifies the arms race”, China has said. On Wednesday, the three western powers announced they will establish a security partnership that will help Australia acquire US nuclear-powered submarines. In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian
Four amateur astronauts are due to spend about three days in orbit in a world first, after they blasted off from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida on Wednesday evening. The Inspiration4 mission, backed by SpaceX, was organised by entrepreneur Jared Isaacman, who is also one of the passengers. They are the first all-civilian crew