US

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

The Pentagon has admitted a drone strike in Kabul that killed 10 civilians, including up to 7 children, was a “tragic mistake”. General Kenneth Franklin McKenzie Jr, head of US central command, said it is “unlikely” the vehicle targeted on 29 August – or those who died – were associated with ISIS-K or were 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 US judge has ruled that legal papers relating to a sexual assault lawsuit can be served to Prince Andrew via his LA-based lawyers. The Duke of York, 61, has been accused of “actively evading” formal efforts to serve him with a lawsuit on behalf of Virginia Giuffre, who launched legal proceedings against him last

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

The first all-civilian crew ever to orbit the earth have blasted off on their historic mission. The Dragon capsule containing the four citizen astronauts was launched atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. The launch is the latest giant leap in a new era of commercial space travel. One of

The US’s top military officer took secret action to limit former president Donald Trump’s ability to launch a military strike or deploy nuclear weapons, according to a new book. Joint Chiefs Chairman General Mark Milley was worried Mr Trump would “go rogue” in the wake of the 6 January attack on the US Capitol. It

Extreme weather will cost the US well over $100bn (£72bn) this year, according to President Biden. Mr Biden said nearly one in three American communities had been hit by weather disasters in the past few months. Speaking at Colorado’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Mr Biden said: “We know what the driver is – climate change.

Hurricane Nicholas has made landfall along the Texas coast, bringing the threat of up to 20 inches (50cm) of rainfall to parts of the Gulf Coast which have already been battered by storms this year. Nicholas is the 14th named storm of the 2021 Atlantic hurricane season. Nearly all of Texas’ coastline is under a

Los Angeles Police Department has confirmed it has been told by its missing persons unit that British actress Tanya Fear has been found alive. The actress, who starred in Doctor Who in 2018, was last seen leaving her Hollywood Bowl apartment, in Los Angeles, on Thursday 9 September. A statement posted on the FindTanyaFear Twitter

Prince Andrew plans to challenge a US court’s jurisdiction over a civil lawsuit by a woman who accused him of sexual assault, according to a court filing. In the filing with the US District Court in Manhattan, a lawyer for the Duke of York said the prince also plans to contest that he was properly

A US court will hold a pre-trial conference today in the civil suit filed by a woman who claims Prince Andrew sexually assaulted her. The hearing, which will take place in New York City, will look at whether Virginia Giuffre’s legal team has done enough to deliver papers regarding the civil lawsuit to the Duke

The FBI has released a newly declassified document detailing support given to the Saudi hijackers in the lead up to the 9/11 terror attacks. Released on the 20th anniversary of the attacks, it details contact the hijackers had with Saudi associates in the US but does not provide proof senior Saudi government officials were complicit

It was a “beautiful late summer morning in New York”, remembers Mike McCormick, an air traffic manager at the New York air traffic control centre. “I’d spent a long weekend with my young son,” he recalled, including his son’s first visit to the World Trade Center, and had celebrated his birthday with his wife in

Families remembered their loved ones 20 years after the 9/11 terror attacks in the US, with grieving relatives vowing to “never forget” those who lost their lives. Six moments of silence were observed in New York City to mark the moments when four commercial planes crashed and when the the two World Trade Center towers

In the spot where the Twin Towers once stood, there is now a calmness – a peace in the heart of New York City. The only sound is water, cascading endlessly into two vast square voids, one for each tower. They are voids that will never be filled, representing holes for so many who mourn

American companies with more than 100 employees must ensure their staff are vaccinated against coronavirus or tested weekly, President Joe Biden has said. He has also tightened the rules for federal employees, saying they have 75 days to get vaccinated. If not, their employment could be terminated unless they are exempt. Previously, they had a

A three-year-old child has been killed and his sister injured after nearly 150 rounds were fired into a home in North Carolina. Eleven people were inside the property in Charlotte when “multiple vehicles” arrived and began shooting shortly before midnight on Tuesday. Police said they responded to multiple calls for help around 11.45pm. They arrived

It’s almost 20 years since the September 11 attacks but for many survivors, the pain and trauma are still raw. Some were left with life-changing physical injuries, while many still struggle with the mental torment caused by the events of that day. One of the most severely injured survivors, Lauren Manning, suffered burns to more

To look at the front page of the New York Times of Tuesday, September 11th, 2001 is to reach back into another era – an era, in many ways, which doesn’t look very different to that of today. The president was under pressure over the economy, there was violence in the Middle East and the