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      Police order closure of right-wing conference attended by Nigel Farage and Suella Braverman

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      For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsPolice in Brussels have stormed a right-wing conference attended by Nigel Farage and Suella Braverman after orders for the event to be shut down. Local authorities ordered the controversial National Conservatism (NatCon) Conference to be closed to “guarantee public safety”.Ms Braverman, the former home secretary, and Mr Farage, the former Ukip leader, were among the political names advertised to speak at the event on Tuesday alongside right-wing Hungarian autocrat Viktor Orban. Officers arrived after the event began at the Claridge venue in central Brussels to tell organisers the event would be shut down. According to a report on social media, police arrived while Mr Farage was addressing the event, giving attendees 15 minutes to leave the venue. However, officers did not appear to force the event to shut down and speeches continued.Police have now said they will not let anyone else into the venue and people can leave and not re-enter. The conference has already had to move location twice after mayors within the Brussels region refused the meeting’s chosen venues. Police officers at the venue after the National Conservatism Conference was ordered to be shut down More

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      Sunak says Israel has UK’s full support after ‘unprecedented’ Iran attack but all sides must show restraint

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      For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsRishi Sunak has doubled down on Britain’s backing for Israel after Iran’s “unprecedented” attack, but urged all sides to “show restraint” amid fears the Middle East crisis could spiral out of control.The prime minister said the “reckless and dangerous escalation” by Iran on Saturday night risked plunging the region into a deeper crisis, as he hit out at Tehran for trying to “sow chaos in their own back yard”. Addressing MPs for the first time since Iran launched more than 170 drones, 30 cruise missiles and 120 ballistic missiles on the nation, Mr Sunak said G7 countries were united in condemning the assault and were working on a package of measures to pile pressure on Iran.He added that he would speak to Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu to express Britain’s solidarity and discuss “how we can prevent further escalation” – warning that Israel’s security “is non-negotiable” as part of a “fundamental condition for peace in the region”. But in a sign that Britain’s support for Israel’s campaign against Hamas in Gaza is unwavering, the PM repeated that Israel has the “right” to seek to defeat the militant organisation. Mr Netanyahu is considering how to respond to Tehran, with the UK, France, Germany and the European Union all echoing calls by the US for Israel to avoid an escalation that could spark a wider war. Rishi Sunak condemned the ‘reckless and dangerous’ escalation by Iran More

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      Identities of seven aid workers killed by Israeli strike in Gaza revealed as Sunak demands investigation

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      For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsAll seven aid worker “heroes” with World Central Kitchen killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza on Monday have been identified. The humanitarian group, which delivers food aid to war and disaster zones, said the seven were returning from coordinating an aid shipment in central Gaza when they were killed. WCK said the following individuals died when the IDF struck their three-car convoy: Saifeddin Issam Ayab Abutaha, 25, of Palestine; Lalzawmi Frankcom, 43, of Australia; Damian Soból, 35, of Poland; Jacob Flickinger, 33, a US-Canadian dual citizen; along with UK citizens John Chapman, 57, James Henderson, 33, and James Kirby, 47.“These 7 beautiful souls were killed by the IDF in a strike as they were returning from a full day’s mission,” WCK CEO Erin Gore said Tuesday in a statement. “Their smiles, laughter, and voices are forever embedded in our memories. And we have countless memories of them giving their best selves to the world. We are reeling from our loss. The world’s loss.” The organisation noted that Abutaha, Frankcom, Soból, and Flickinger were part of WCK’s relief team, while Chapman, Henderson, and Kirby were part of the group’s security team. Monday’s killings have prompted international condemnation.UK prime minister Rishi Sunak demanded a “thorough and transparent investigation” from Israel.On Tuesday evening, Mr Sunak telephoned Benjamin Netanyahu to say that “far too many aid workers and ordinary civilians have lost their lives in Gaza” and that the situation there is “increasingly intolerable”.The White House said it was also “outraged” by the strike on workers with WCK, a charity that has been supplying food to starving Palestinians who are on the brink of famine amid Israel’s total war on the besieged strip. Zomi Frankcom (left) was killed in ther airstrike“Unfortunately over the last day there was a tragic incident of an unintended strike of our forces on innocent people in the Gaza Strip,” Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement, promising that Israeli officials were thoroughly “checking” into the incident and that the country’s armed forces “will do everything for this not to happen again”.The IDF attacked the convoy because officials believed an armed member of Hamas was traveling with the group, though no such person was traveling along with the aid workers, Israeli newspaper Haaretz reports. An Israeli army source told the outlet that the strike wasn’t a matter of poor coordination, but rather because “every commander sets the rules for himself.”The charity had just offloaded 100 tonnes of food aid from a barge which sailed from Cyprus when Israel attacked their vehicle convoy on Gaza’s coastal road in Deir al-Balah. WCK said on Tuesday it was pausing all work in the occupied Palestinian territory.WCK said its convoy of three vehicles was hit despite the charity coordinating on its movements with the Israeli military, and the fact that two of the cars hit were clearly marked as aid vehicles. Damian Sobol, 35, started volunteering with WCK in the border town of Przemysl at the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of UkraineForeign secretary David Cameron called on Israel to “immediately investigate”, adding that the government wanted “a full, transparent explanation of what happened”.“This is not only an attack against WCK, this is an attack on humanitarian organisations showing up in the most dire of situations where food is being used as a weapon of war,” said Ms Gore of WCK said in a previous statement. “This is unforgivable.”Mr Soból started volunteering with WCK in the border town of Przemysl at the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine where he was helping feed refugees. He joined WCK’s response to the earthquakes in Turkey. More recently he started working for WCK in Gaza.Nate Mook, the former chief executive of WCK who first hired Ms Frankcom, described her as a “shining star” and “gift to the world” who had dedicated her life to helping people. “The news of her death, the killing of seven members of the World Central Kitchen is devastating for their families, friends and the world,” he told The Independent.“It is unfathomable that they are not with us any more. They were all truly dedicated to their work, trying to do what they could in the most desperate and dangerous of situations.”One of the destroyed vehicles from the World Central Kitchen convoy Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, the Israeli military’s top spokesperson, said officials were reviewing the incident at the highest level. He said an independent investigation would be launched that “will help us reduce the risk of such an event from occurring again”.WCK founder, celebrity chef Jose Andres, said the deaths were a “tragedy”. “I am heartbroken and grieving for their families and friends and our whole WCK family,” Andres wrote in a statement. “These are people – angels – I served alongside in Ukraine, Gaza, Turkey, Morocco, Bahamas, Indonesia.“They are not faceless… they are not nameless. The Israeli government needs to stop this indiscriminate killing. It needs to stop restricting humanitarian aid, stop killing civilians and aid workers, and stop using food as a weapon. No more innocent lives lost. Peace starts with our shared humanity. It needs to start now.”It is not the first time Israel has been accused of bombing humanitarian aid convoys and distribution centres and of killing humanitarian aid workers. Jamie McGoldrick, the UN’s aid coordinator for the occupied Palestinian territory, said this was “not an isolated incident” and that Gaza was one of the most dangerous places on earth for humanitarian workers. “As of 20 March, at least 196 humanitarians had been killed in the Occupied Palestinian Territory since October 2023. This is nearly three times the death toll recorded in any single conflict in a year,” he said in a statement. “Since October 2023, the OPT has become one of the world’s most dangerous and difficult places to work.” The UN’s Palestinian refugee agency told The Independent that over 170 of their staffers had been killed in the bombardment and a tank shell hit one of its aid convoys in February along the same coastal road WCK had been on. The agency said that a supply distribution centre was also hit in March, and convoys had come under Israeli fire in December. Alicia Kearns, a Conservative MP and the chair of the foreign affairs committee, said that there was still no explanation for the January bombing of the Medical Aid for Palestine complex in a declared safe zone which had also been deconflicted directly with the Israeli military. Four British doctors who were there at the time only just survived. She called for a “thorough and swift investigation” into the latest incident. “And also [into] what impact it will have on the ability of the maritime corridor to function given it is World Central Kitchen who were receiving and distributing the desperately needed aid,” she tweeted. “Humanitarian agencies must be given the assurances they need that their people will be protected.”Francesca Albanese, a UN special rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, called for sanctions on Israel. “On the day Israel bombed a foreign embassy in a third country [Syria], it also killed WCK humanitarian workers. Israel is crossing every possible red line, still with full impunity. Sanctions now. Indictments now.”It came hours after Israeli troops ended a devastating two-week raid on Gaza’s largest hospital, al-Shifa, leaving the facility a torched, gutted shell.Footage showed al-Shifa’s main buildings had been reduced to a charred mess, with what looked like flattened bodies and body parts smashed in the ground, which had been chewed up by bulldozers. Israel claimed it launched the raid on the north Gaza hospital because senior Hamas operatives had regrouped there and were planning attacks. After the troops withdrew, hundreds of Palestinians returned to search for lost loved ones or examine the damage – with Palestinian journalists reporting people had been killed by Israeli soldiers. Among the dead were Ahmed Maqadma and his mother – both doctors at al-Shifa and his cousin, said Dr Ghassan Abu Sitta, a Palestinian-British doctor who volunteered at al-Shifa and other hospitals during the first months of the war before returning to Britain. The fate of the three had been unknown since they talked by phone with family as they tried to leave al-Shifa nearly a week ago and the line suddenly went dead. On Monday, relatives found their bodies with gunshot wounds about a block from the hospital, said Abu Sitta, who is in touch with the family.  More

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      Vladimir Putin could target UK again with novichok-style attack, warns Grant Shapps

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      For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsVladimir Putin could target the UK with another novichok-style poisoning attempt, Britain’s defence secretary has warned.Grant Shapps compared the threat Mr Putin poses to that of Nazi Germany’s Adolf Hitler.Mr Shapps, along with a number of Western leaders, blamed the Kremlin for the recent death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died in an Arctic penal colony on 16 February.Vladimir Putin could murder again on UK soil, Britain’s defence secretary has warned in a series of fiery commentsMr Shapps told The Sun: “Putin has Navalny’s blood on his hands. Navalny should never have been in prison. His crime was standing up to an autocratic and now dictatorial Putin, who has a long history of bumping off his opponents.“He does it at home and abroad. And the world must not waver or bend to that kind of squalid leadership. We know what happens when you do – you end up with the mess of the last century.”Grant Shapps compared the threat posed by Russian President to that of Nazi Germany’s Adolf HitlerNavalny, 47, was given life-saving treatment in Germany in 2020 after he was poisoned with novichok – the same deadly nerve agent that had been used by Putin’s GRU spy agency to target the former Russian agent Sergei Skripal, 72, and his daughter Yulia, 39, in Salisbury in 2018. Although the Skripals survived, British citizen Dawn Sturgess, 44, died after coming into contact with the military-grade nerve agent from a discarded perfume bottle.Branding Putin a despotic leader who had lost any semblance of legitimacy, the defence secretary warned of another novichok-style killing on the streets of Britain.Sergei Skripal talks to his lawyer from behind bars in 2006 He said: “Look what happened in Salisbury. We’ve seen what Putin is capable of.“His behaviour makes him a pariah. He thinks the more he does it the stronger he gets. But in the eyes of the world it makes him more desperate and weaker.”Asked if the UK could be hit by another novichok attack, he replied: “We are always tracking and trying to prevent those things. But do I think he has intent? You have seen that. So, yes.”He added: “Because it’s so far outside of the parameters of civilisation, it’s sometimes hard for the Brits to believe. But it’s Putin’s modus operandi. His approach if he doesn’t like someone is, don’t vote them out, just bump them off.”Yulia Skripal, who was poisoned in Salisbury along with her father, Russian spy Sergei SkripalMr Shapps described the Russian president as “right up there” among the most serious threats to world peace since Hitler.Putin has denied any involvement in novichok attacks in the UK.The defence secretary’s warning comes after Saturday marked the two-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.Dawn Sturgess was poisoned in AmesburyOn 24 February 2022, Putin shocked the world by launching a brutal all-out invasion of Ukraine, sending troops, tanks and warplanes in their masses across Russia’s border under the cover of darkness.While the Kremlin is reported to have believed its “special military operation” would bring the capital Kyiv under Russia’s grip in just 10 days, the extraordinary show of defiance by Ukrainians to fight for their country’s existence has instead seen the war now enter its third year.The CPS issued European Arrest Warrants for Russian nationals Alexander Petrov (left) and Ruslan Boshirov in connection with the Salisbury poisonings Over the course of 24 months, battle lines have shifted dramatically as Volodymyr Zelensky’s troops pushed Russian invaders back hundreds of miles to enter into a grinding war of attrition centred in battle-hardened Donbas, where both armies are paying for small tactical and symbolic gains with thousands of lives.Yet while the fighting hotspots have become more centralised, albeit along a 600-mile front line, the fate of Ukraine is increasingly at the mercy of geopolitical developments.Seeking to justify his lengthy war, and his moves to transform Russia’s economy into a vast war machine, Putin is increasingly casting the conflict as an existential battle against the West. More

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      Nigel Farage tells right-wing US event that ‘religious sectarianism’ is new threat in UK

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      Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UKSign up to our Brexit email for the latest insightFormer Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage appeared to forget a large part of British history on Wednesday when he told a gathering of American conservatives that “religious sectarianism” was a new problem in British politics.Speaking at an “international summit” held on the eve of the 2024 Conservative Political Action Conference alongside former British Prime Minister Liz Truss and other right-wing international figures, Mr Farage told attendees that Western nations are facing now a “huge internal problem” that he described as a “new phenomenon”.That phenomenon, which he said was “beginning to dominate British politics,” was “religious sectarianism”.Mr Farage was referring to the pro-Palestinian voices protesting outside the House of Commons as Parliament debated the Israel-Gaza war, and he complained about “religious hatred” that “exists against Israel, against the Jewish people” and blamed “successive labour and conservative governments” for having “pursued completely irresponsible immigration policies” and not encouraging integration by Muslim immigrants.”Now we have radical Islam is becoming mainstream in British politics. We will have by the 2029 general election, we will have a radical Islamic party represented in Westminster and this is why borders, you can’t be a proper country, unless you control your borders,” he said. “The internal threats of religious divide and sectarianism, that happening to us first, but if you’re not very careful … all of us will face it”.Mr Farage’s comments about religious sectarianism appeared to whitewash centuries of British history and leave out important moments such as the 16th century English Reformation, during which Henry VIII broke the Church of England away from the authority of the Catholic Church. The former Brexit Party leader and Ukip MEP also appeared to leave out of his analysis the bloody English Civil War, the beheading of Charles I and the restoration of the monarchy in 1660, all driven by causes including sectarian disputes between Catholics and Protestants.Former UK prime minister Liz Truss and ex-Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage at CPAC in Washington DCHe also did not seem to count in his analysis the three decades of The Troubles, during which Catholic Irish Republicans, Protestant Unionists and British troops fought a quasi-guerilla war over the status of Northern Ireland which killed more than 3,500 people, the majority of whom were civilians.The decades of violence only came to an end with the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, which established a power-sharing devolved government in Belfast.Asked if he wanted to clarify his comments, Mr Farage – who has appeared at rallies with Donald Trump – told The Independent that he believed sectarianism was indeed a new phenomenon in Britain.“We’ve had it in Northern Ireland, we’ve seen the baleful effects of it, and it’s now coming to England. I’ve never seen it in my lifetime,” he said. More

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      Trump boosters, Biden attacks – and a Liz Truss speech: What to expect at Republicans’ CPAC event this week

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      Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inboxGet our free Inside Washington emailOnce again, a throng of conservative activists, Republican elected officials and young right-wingers will descend on National Harbor just outside of Washington, DC for the annual Conservative Political Action Conference.CPAC has served multiple purposes throughout the years. It often showcases new conservative talent, sets the tone for what major policies conservatives will champion in the next election and often allows potential candidates for president to test the waters. Indeed, in 2011, Donald Trump gave his first political speech at the conservative gathering. It debuted his conservative star turn and laid the groundwork for him becoming the Republican nominee for president in 2016 and winning the presidency. This year, though, with Mr Trump being the presumptive nominee, CPAC – which runs from Wednesday to Saturday – will have a different tone and will serve as a booster for his campaign against Joe Biden in the general election.Here’s what to expect this week at CPAC.All Trump all the timeSince Mr Trump spoke at the conference in 2011, he and CPAC have become inseparable. Its host Matt Schlapp and his wife Mercedes, who served in Trump’s administration, became two of his most indefatigable defenders. In a reflection of how non-competitive the Republican presidential primary is, it will not feature other presidential candidates, as was the case when former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley spoke at the conference last year shortly after she announced her candidacy. Vivek Ramaswamy gave a barn-burner speech that previewed his campaign as a right-wing gadfly. This time around, there will be a heavy focus on Donald Trump, with sessions titled “Trump: Our Ace in the Hole” and House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan’s panel entitled “What You Talkin Bout Fani Willis,” a dig at the Fulton County District Attorney who has investigated Mr Trump for his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election in Georgia. In fact, one panel will be entitled “Cat Fight? Michelle vs. Kamala,” as if to pit two female hate figures for the right against each other. Similarly, former Trump administration officials including counselor Steve Bannon, former deputy assistant Sebastian Gorka and former deputy press secretary Hogan Gidley and former secretary of Housing and Urban Development Ben Carson will speak.The Apprentice AuditionWith Mr Trump’s nomination a foregone conclusion, the real spectacle will be the slate of speakers who want to be his running mate. Representative Elise Stefanik, the formerly moderate New York Republican who is Mr Trump’s woman inside House Republican leadership, will speak on Friday, as well South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem. Ohio Senator JD Vance, the white-working-class-explainer-turned-Trump-critic-turned-apologist, will also make an appearance on Friday. But absent from the slate as of right now are Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Senator Tim Scott, the South Carolina Republican and former presidential candidate.Similarly, Jim McLaughlin, who typically runs the CPAC Straw poll, will reveal who movement conservatives want to be the running mate for Mr Trump. Last year, failed Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake won the staw poll. But given that she is now running for Senate in what’s expected to be a knockout race with Democratic Representative Ruben Gallego and Senator Kyrsten Sinema if she runs, she is likely out of the running. Battling on the border and BidenomicsMany polls show Mr Trump leading Mr Biden ahead of November. But Mr Trump remains incredibly unpopular with general election voters. That means they will need to find a winning message. Judging by the agenda, the battle plan seems fairly clear: hit Mr Biden on immigration and the economy. The first day will feature a panel entitled “Trump’s Wall Vs. Biden’s Gaps” that will feature Tom Homan, who served as the director of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement during the Trump administration, and House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mark Green, who last week announced he was leaving Congress after the House successfully impeached Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. In the same token, there will be panels entitled “Bidenomics: Bad for America’s Health,” with some of Mr Trump’s former economic advisers. Of course, there are some holes in this. While Americans still feel lousy about the economy, their sentiments are slightly changing and unlike in 2012, unemployment remains low. In the same token, while inflation is still ticking upward, prices are not rising as rapidly as they did in 2022. Similarly, the special election in New York’s 3rd district showed Republicans paid a price after Mr Trump and House Republicans blew up the bipartisan agreement that would have swapped restrictions for aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. This might also be why plenty of the events focusing on combating antisemitism might ring hollow as wellCPAC goes globalCPAC has also not only become a showcase for Republicans wanting to boast about their conservative credentials. In recent years, it’s become a showcase for other right-wing politicians who might not find as receptive of an audience in their own home countries or as a way to show that American-style conservatism can win abroad. In this vein, Nayib Bukele, the president of El Salvador, will speak as well as the controversial newly-elected Argentinian President, Javier Millei. In the same vein Nigel Farage, a champion of Brexit and a mainstay of CPAC, will also speak. But more peculiarly, Liz Truss, the former British prime minister whose tenure lasted only 50 days, will appear as part of her larger effort to reach out to American conservatives and rehabilitate her image. More

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      Harris warns ‘Russia is responsible’ for Navalny death as world leaders react

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      For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsUS Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday placed blame for the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny squarely on the shoulders of Russian president Vladimir Putin, leading a string of world leaders who have reacted in horror to the news.Ms Harris told attendees at the annual Munich Security Conference that the US government is still working to confirm the facts and circumstances of Navalny’s passing, but called the development “terrible news” while offering prayers to his family, including his wife Yulia Navalnaya, who is also attending the conference.“If confirmed, this would be a further sign of Putin’s brutality,” said Ms Harris, who then added: “Whatever story they tell, let us be clear, Russia is responsible”.Ms Harris’ comments echoed remarks made by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in the hours after Navalny’s death was announced in Russian state media. Mr Blinken, who is attending the conference as part of the US delegation led by Ms Harris, told reporters travelling with him in Germany that Russia had “persecuted, poisoned, and imprisoned” the anti-corruption activist for decades and said the report of his death, if true, “underscores the weakness and rot at the heart of the system that Putin has built”. “Russia is responsible for this,” Mr Blinken said.He added that he and other US officials would be “talking to the many other countries concerned about Alexei Navalny, especially if these reports turn out to be true”.Mr Blinken’s British counterpart, Foreign Secretary Lord David Cameron, said there should be “consequences” for Vladimir Putin as he blamed Alexei Navalny’s death on the “action that Putin’s Russia took”. Speaking to broadcasters in Munich, the Foreign Secretary said: “Alexei Navalny was an incredibly brave fighter against corruption and he gave up everything in campaigning for what he believed in, and my heart goes out to his wife and to his family. “We should be clear about what has happened here. Putin’s Russia imprisoned him, trumped up charges against him, poisoned him, sent him to an Arctic penal colony and now he’s tragically died.” “We should hold Putin accountable for this, and no one should be in any doubt about the dreadful nature of Putin’s regime in Russia after what has just happened.” Asked whether there should be consequences, Lord Cameron said: “There should be consequences because there’s no doubt in my mind that this man was a brave fighter against corruption, for justice, for democracy, and look what Putin’s Russia did to him. “They trumped up charges, they imprisoned him, they poisoned him, they sent him to an Arctic penal colony and he’s died, and that is because of the action that Putin’s Russia took”.Other world leaders weighed in on reports of Navalny’s death in similar fashion, with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak describing it as “terrible news”. “As the fiercest advocate for Russian democracy, Alexei Navalny demonstrated incredible courage throughout his life,” he added.Nato Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said he was “deeply saddened and disturbed” by the news. “We need to establish all the facts, and Russia needs to answer all the serious questions about the circumstances of his death,” he warned.Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky went further, saying it was “obvious” Putin was directly behind the death.That view was backed by Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics, who said Mr Navalny had been “brutally murdered by the Kremlin”.”Whatever your thoughts about Alexei Navalny as the politician, he was just brutally murdered by the Kremlin. That’s a fact and that is something one should know about the true nature of Russia’s current regime. My condolences to the family and friends,” he wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. The European Union also said it holds Russia responsible for the death, EU Council President Charles Michel said. “Alexei Navalny fought for the values of freedom and democracy,” he said. “For his ideals, he made the ultimate sacrifice. The EU holds the Russian regime solely responsible for this tragic death.”Sweden’s minister of foreign affairs Tobias Billstrom said that if the news was true it was another “terrible crime” by Putin’s regime. US national security adviser Jake Sullivan told National Public Radio (NPR): “If it’s confirmed, it is a terrible tragedy. And given the Russian government’s long and sordid history of doing harm to its opponents, it raises real and obvious questions about what happened here.” More

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      Watch live: World leaders arrive for 60th Munich Security Conference

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      For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsWatch live as world leaders arrive for the 60th Munich Security Conference beginning on Friday, 16 February.UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres opens the conference at a critical time, as violence in Gaza escalates amid calls for ceasefires; the US presidential election campaign heats up; and calls to bolster support and aid for Ukraine increase.An estimated 50 world leaders are expected to attend the annual event that bills itself as the world’s leading forum for debating international security policy. The governments of Russia and Iran have not been invited.US Vice President Kamala Harris is scheduled to address the conference on its opening day. She returns after speaking at the 2022 and 2023 conferences, but now faces the task of assuring Nato allies will be protected after recent comments from Donald Trump.On Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy will make his first in-person appearance at the conference since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, having addressed last year’s conference virtually. More