International
Ex-Senior UK Tory Defects To Fringe Right-Wing Party
Embattled UK leader Rishi Sunak suffered a fresh blow Monday when a former ally defected to a right-wing populist party that is worrying the ruling Conservatives ahead of this year’s general election.
Lee Anderson announced that he was joining Reform UK, weeks after he was suspended from Sunak’s Conservative party over comments widely condemned as racist and Islamophobic.
The 57-year-old former deputy chair of the Tories became the first MP to represent Reform, whose honorary president is arch-Eurosceptic and Brexit figurehead Nigel Farage.
The fringe party is currently polling at around 10 percent in opinion surveys, which if replicated at the election could split the right-wing vote in key constituencies.
That would make it even harder for the Tories, in power since 2010, to fend off a resurgent main opposition Labour party that is currently soaring ahead in national polls.
To blunt Reform’s impact, Sunak could take his party further rightward, continuing a trend in recent decades that has accelerated following the 2016 referendum on leaving the European Union.
Doing so risks alienating more socially liberal voters, however.
Anderson is an MP in a so-called “Red Wall” seat of working-class voters in northern England that are crucial to both the Conservatives and Labour’s chances of winning the election.
The seats were former Labour strongholds before ex-prime minister Boris Johnson flipped them for the Conservatives during his landslide win at the last election in 2019 on a promise to “get Brexit done”.
The New Conservatives, a group of MPs on the right of the Tory party who have rebelled against Sunak, said the Conservative party was responsible for Anderson’s defection.
“We cannot pretend any longer that ‘the plan is working’. We need to change course urgently,” the group said in a statement.
– Populist –
Reform rails against immigration, net-zero energy policies and what it calls overbearing “nanny state” government regulations, and its members regularly heap praise on former US president Donald Trump.
“I want my country back,” Anderson told reporters in London as he announced his defection.
He had been widely tipped to join Reform after he was suspended from the parliamentary party of the Conservatives in February for refusing to apologise after saying London’s Labour mayor Sadiq Khan was controlled by Islamists.
“Anderson’s defection does highlight the ongoing electoral problem facing Rishi Sunak, with attacks coming from the left and right,” said Emma Levin of the polling firm Savanta.
But she cautioned that the move “will likely mean very little in national polling terms”.
“Lee Anderson’s name recognition among the wider public is low, and if voters are aware of him, it is probably because they saw (and disagreed) with his comments that led to his suspension from the Conservative party,” Levin said.
In the UK, a by-election is not automatically triggered if an MP changes party affiliation, though they may choose to stand down and seek re-election under their new allegiance or as an independent.
Sunak has yet to announce the date of the general election but has said it will be held in the second half of the year.
AFP
The FBI’s Salt Lake City Field Office on Friday released video footage of the man suspected of fatally shooting conservative activist Charlie Kirk fleeing a rooftop after the incident on September 10, 2025.
The bureau, in a statement accompanied by the video link shared on X on Friday, noted that the video shows the shooter climbing onto a rooftop shortly before the attack and then jumping off and fleeing the scene after firing the fatal shots.
Investigators also reportedly found the weapon and ammunition used in the shooting in a wooded area near the university.
The agency wrote, “The FBI has released a video and more photos of the shooter in the Utah Valley shooting. The subject is seen jumping from the rooftop of a building after the shooting.
“Around 12 pm Mountain Time on September 10, 2025, the subject climbed up to a rooftop; after he shot and killed Charlie Kirk, he jumped off and ran away. He left a gun and ammunition in a wooded area near the university.
“Trace evidence collected from the rooftop scene included shoe impressions, a forearm imprint, and a palm print. Anyone with information in this case should call the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI or visit fbi.gov/utahvalleyshooting.”
The bureau added that it is working closely with law enforcement partners to seek justice in the murder of Charlie Kirk.
Credit: X| FBISaltLakeCity
Burkina Faso’s military government has eliminated visa fees for all African nationals, aiming to strengthen Pan-African ties and promote regional integration.
The announcement was made Thursday by Security Minister Mahamadou Sana following a cabinet meeting led by junta leader Captain Ibrahim Traoré.
“From now on, any citizen from an African country wishing to go to Burkina Faso will not pay any amount to cover visa fees,” Sana said. However, visitors must still complete an online application, subject to approval.
The move aligns Burkina Faso with other African nations like Ghana, Rwanda, and Kenya, which support the African Union’s free movement agenda.
While West African nationals had already enjoyed visa-free access under ECOWAS, the new policy extends this to all Africans—months after Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger exited the bloc, accusing it of advancing Western interests.
Officials say the visa waiver reflects Burkina Faso’s Pan-Africanist vision and is expected to boost tourism, cultural exchange, and the country’s global profile.
The decision comes amid ongoing security challenges, as the country continues to battle a growing Islamist insurgency controlling parts of its territory.
International
Trump vows to hunts down killers of Charlie Kirk, global leaders react
Kirk, a powerful voice in conservative politics at just 31 years old, was shot dead during an event at Utah Valley University in Utah, Wednesday.
U.S. President Donald Trump says :”My administration will find each and every one of those who contributed to the assassination of Charlie Kirk, and to other political violence, including the organizations that fund it and support it.”
Trump said on a video posted to his Truth Social website hours after Kirk’s murder, hailing Kirk as a “martyr for truth,described the atrocity as a “Dark moment for America.”
Other world leaders strongly condemned the politically-motivated murder of right-wing activist and Trump ally Charlie Kirk.
Kirk, a powerful voice in conservative politics at just 31 years old, was shot dead during an event at Utah Valley University in Utah, Wednesday.
Here’s how world leaders reacted to his death:
“No justification’ – Canada
“I am appalled by the murder of Charlie Kirk. There is no justification for political violence and every act of it threatens democracy,” Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said on X.
‘Must be free to debate’ – Britain
“We must all be free to debate openly and freely without fear — there can be no justification for political violence,” British Prime Minister Keir Starmer wrote on X.
‘Deep wound for democracy’ – Italy
An atrocious murder, a deep wound for democracy and for those who believe in freedom. My condolences to his family, to his loved ones, and to the American conservative community,” Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on X.‘
Murdered for speaking truth’ – Israel
“Charlie Kirk was murdered for speaking truth and defending freedom. A lion-hearted friend of Israel, he fought the lies and stood tall for Judeo-Christian civilization,” wrote Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on X.
“I spoke to him only two weeks ago and invited him to Israel. Sadly, that visit will not take place.”
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