WORLD NEWS
Prince Harry and Meghan’s white-hot ‘fury’ over ‘sidelining Christmas snub’
At the start of 2020, Harry and Meghan dropped the bombshell that they were quitting their royal roles – and their decision was reportedly spurred on by an incident at Christmas, just weeks before
09:00, 23 Dec 2025
Harry and Meghan will spend their seventh consecutive Christmas away from the royal family(Image: BACKGRID)
The Sussexes will be once again celebrating Christmas thousands of miles away from the Royal Family. Harry and Meghan – who remain largely estranged from members of The Firm – will instead likely remain at their home in Montecito, while the likes of King Charles, Prince William and Princess Kate gather for their celebrations in Sandringham.
The last time Harry spent Christmas with the royals was back in 2018, following his wedding in May earlier that year. The following December, they spent the festive season in Canada during an extended break from their royal duties. Mere weeks later, the Sussexes dropped the bombshell news they were quitting royal life. And according to one royal expert, it was an incident that took place in Christmas 2019 that tipped the couple over the edge.
READ MORE: Prince Harry and Meghan’s ‘rude’ rant about Royal Family that ‘included late Queen’READ MORE: Meghan Markle snubbed from life-changing royal meeting over ‘leak fears’READ MORE: ‘Awkward’ Prince Harry looks like ‘a fish out of water’ in Meghan’s new Christmas video
The late Queen seen giving her Christmas address in 2019
Harry, Meghan, and their baby son Archie spent the festive season in Canada with her mum, Doria Ragland. Like so many, they watched the late Queen’s Christmas message – but were reportedly infuriated by one key detail.
The couple were said to be upset when they saw family portraits on display on the late Queen’s desk, but none featured the Sussexes. In the book Finding Freedom, authors Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand claimed the couple believed the Royal Family were “conspiring against them” with the move. They said Harry and Meghan also felt they had “long been sidelined by the institution and were not a fundamental part of its future”.
They wrote: “One didn’t have to look further than the family photos displayed during the Queen’s Speech on Christmas Day. In the Green Drawing Room at Buckingham Palace , where the Queen delivered her address, viewers glimpsed photos of the [Waleses] and their children, Charles and Camilla, Prince Philip , and a black-and-white image of George VI. Noticeably absent was a photo of Harry, Meghan, and their new baby, Archie.”
Harry and Meghan were also said to have been upset by a photo of the Queen with her heirs(Image: PA)
The authors said palace sources insisted the photos were chosen to represent the “direct line of succession”. However, Omid and Carolyn said Harry and Meghan felt it was “yet another sign that they needed to consider their own path.”
It wasn’t the only ‘snub’ that reportedly pushed the Sussexes to cut ties. A sweet snapshot of Prince George proved to be a ‘wake up call’ for Harry and Meghan, and cemented their decision to leave the Firm, an expert has claimed.
The image in question showed the late Queen with her three heirs, the then-Prince Charles, Prince William and Prince George, who was six at the time, in the throne room at Buckingham Palace. It was released at the beginning of 2020, days before Harry and Meghan confirmed they planned to step down as working royals.
On the face of it, the picture simply showcased the future of the monarchy and mirrored many historic portraits. But it is alleged to have caused upset behind the scenes.
In his book Meghan: A Hollywood Princess, Andrew Morton wrote: “The royal couple suspected that the entire institution was conspiring against them. As they saw it, the evidence was all around them. The unspoken code was straightforward: the future of the monarchy was assured, with or without Meghan and Harry.”
WORLD NEWS
Keir’s last Christmas in No10? Voters believe Starmer will be gone within a year as anger mounts in Labour ranks at shambolic government
Voters believe Keir Starmer is spending his last Christmas in No10 as anger mounts within Labour ranks.
YouGov research found half of the public expect the PM to be gone within a year, including 19 per cent who are ‘definite’ about his demise.
That compared to just 35 per cent who thought he has a chance of surviving until the next festive season.
The growing sense of doom surrounding the premier is a stark contrast to his triumphant arrival in Downing Street just 17 months ago, on the back of a landslide election victory.
The government’s misery deepened today as announced another humiliating U-turn, watering down the inheritance tax raid on family farms just days after Sir Keir insisted it was ‘sensible’.
Despairing Labour insiders have complained that the leadership seems to have learned nothing from the debacle over the winter fuel allowance and abortive effort at benefits reforms.
They now braced for a climbdown on business rates increases, which have seen Sir Keir and other Labour MPs banned from pubs across the country.
Labour Party chair Anna Turley told Sky News at the weekend that Sir Keir would ‘absolutely’ still be PM next Christmas.
But Wes Streeting, Angela Rayner and Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham are increasingly seen as on manoeuvres with the PM looking down the barrel of apocalyptic local elections in May.
Voters also appear pessimistic about the prospects in 2026, with just 15 per cent hopeful their own financial situation will improve over the next year, while 40 per cent expect things to get worse.
Some 39 per cent anticipate little change.
Despite the grim backdrop, the latest YouGov poll did show Reform’s advantage on headline voting intention narrowing from 10 points to five.
Sir Keir’s allies will be watching closely to see if that trend continues to show up in the New Year.
Voters believe Keir Starmer is spending his last Christmas in No10 as anger mounts within Labour ranks
Under the original plan unveiled by Rachel Reeves in the 2024 Budget farmers faced paying IHT at a 20 per cent rate on agricultural property and land worth more than £1million from April.
It triggered a huge wave of protests in London and a backlash from Labour MPs in rural seats.
But in the PM’s latest U-turn Defra today lifted that threshold to £2.5million, admitting that it had acted after it ‘listened to concerns of the farming community’.
A Defra spokesman said the change would halve the number of farms affected by the change to Agricultural Property Relief.
NFU President Tom Bradshaw said: ‘I am thankful common sense has prevailed and government has listened.
‘From the start the government said it was trying to protect the family farm and the change announced today brings this much closer to reality for many.’
But shadow environment secretary Victoria Atkins said the change to the ‘vindictive’ scheme would be ‘too late for some’, adding: ‘Businesses and lives have been lost.
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Keir’s last Christmas in No10? Voters believe Starmer will be gone within a year as anger mounts in Labour ranks at shambolic government
New South Wales police constable Scott Dyson was one of two officers wounded when investigators allege Naveed Akram and his father Sajid opened fire on the Bondi beach crowd killing 15
Man tackles alleged gunman at Bondi Beach
A police officer injured in the Bondi terror attack endured surgery almost every day before he came out of a medically induced coma, his family said today.
New South Wales police constable Scott Dyson was one of two officers wounded when investigators allege Naveed Akram and his father Sajid opened fire on a crowd of more than 1,000 people at Sydney’s Archer Park. The attack killed 15 people and injured dozens more.
Accused gunman Naveed Akram, 24, faces 15 murder charges and one terrorism charge, while his father, 50, was shot dead by police at the scene. The Akrams allegedly threw three pipe bombs and a ‘tennis ball’ explosive device at people celebrating a Jewish festival. They were ‘viable’ but did not explode, according to court documents.
READ MORE: Bondi Beach attack suspect ‘did firearms training with his dad’READ MORE: Bondi Beach girl, 14, took bullet shielding toddlers as gunmen opened fire
Police officer Scott Dyson who has come out of a coma(Image: PA)
The pair also recorded a video manifesto in October in which they are seen in front of the Islamic State group flag, police said. Mr Dyson’s family told of the agony and treatment which their son had endured after being placed in an induced coma due to his injuries.
He has been forced to undergo surgery ‘almost daily’ since the atrocity on December 14 on Australia’s most iconic beach. His loved ones said in a statement today. “Our family would like to share that Scott has been getting stronger each day, and today, he was woken up for the first time.
“There is still a long way to go in his recovery, but this is a positive sign. We would like to thank the public for the support, messages and well wishes shown to Scott and our family during this difficult time.”
Police officer Jack Hibbert who was injured in attack
The family of probationary constable Jack Hibbert also said he had been discharged from hospital. However, he may lose the sight in one eye due to the injuries which he received.
Police officer Jack Hibbert, 22, may lose the sight in one eye after he “responded with courage, instinct, and selflessness” during the attack. He had been patrolling Bondi when he was shot twice, once in his head and once in his shoulder, and had lost vision in one eye.
Last week his family said in a statement released by police: “Jack is just 22 years old and has only been in the police force for four months. In the face of a violent and tragic incident, he responded with courage, instinct, and selflessness, continuing to protect and help others whilst injured.
Bondi Beach, scene of the attack(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
“Jack was simply doing his job, a job he deeply loves, driven by a commitment to protect the community, even at great personal cost.”
Today they added: “While he is home, he is still recovering and will need space, support, and continued positive thoughts during this time. As a family, we couldn’t ask for anything more – having our Jack home, especially for Christmas, truly feels like a miracle.”
NSW Health on Tuesday said 12 patients remained in hospital receiving care in the aftermath of the attack. Four patients are in a stable but critical condition.
Russia launched a major overnight missile and drone attack on Ukraine that killed at least three people – including a four-year-old child.
Officials say Russia fired more than 650 drones and three dozen missiles in an assault that began during the night and stretched into daylight hours Tuesday.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the barrage struck homes and the power grid in 13 regions across Ukraine, causing widespread outages in bitter temperatures.
It comes a day after he described recent progress towards a peace deal as “quite solid”.
The bombardment demonstrated Russian President Vladimir Putin’s intention of pursuing the invasion of Ukraine, Mr Zelenskyy said in an online post.
A damaged apartment building in Kyiv. Pic: Reuters
A damaged apartment building in Kyiv. Pic: Reuters
Ukrainian and European officials have said Putin is not sincerely engaging with US-led peace efforts.
The attack “is an extremely clear signal of Russian priorities,” Mr Zelenskyy said.
“A strike before Christmas, when people want to be with their families, at home, in safety. A strike, in fact, in the midst of negotiations that are being conducted to end this war. Putin cannot accept the fact that we must stop killing.”
US President Donald Trump has for months been pressing for a peace agreement, but the negotiations have become entangled in the very different demands from Moscow and Kyiv.
US envoy Steve Witkoff described talks in Florida with Ukrainian and European representatives as “productive and constructive”.
A drone explodes during a Russian missile and drone strike, in Kyiv. Pic: Reuters
Trump was less effusive on Monday, saying, “The talks are going along.”
Initial reports from Ukrainian emergency services said the child died in Ukraine’s northwestern Zhytomyr region, while a drone killed a woman in the Kyiv region, and another civilian death was recorded in the western Khmelnytskyi region, according to Mr Zelenskyy.
Russia launched 635 drones of various types and 38 missiles, Ukraine’s air force said. Air defences stopped 587 drones and 34 missiles, it said.
Read more
Russian general killed by car bomb and Moscow blames Ukraine
Putin didn’t sound like he will alter his course anytime soon
Polish and allied fighter jets were deployed after the Russian airstrikes towards western Ukraine, near Poland’s border.
“Fighter jets were scrambled, and ground-based air-defence and radar reconnaissance systems were put on heightened readiness,” the operational command of Poland’s armed forces said.
It was the ninth large-scale Russian attack on Ukraine’s energy system this year and left multiple regions in the west without power, while emergency power outages were in place across the country, acting Energy Minister Artem Nekraso said. Work to restore power would begin as soon as the security situation permitted, he said.
Ukraine’s largest private energy supplier, DTEK, said the attack targeted thermal power stations in what it said was the seventh major strike on the company’s facilities since October.
DTEK’s thermal power plants have been hit more than 220 times since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in February 2022. Those attacks have killed four workers and wounded 59.
Authorities in the western regions of Rivne, Ternopil and Lviv, as well as the northern Sumy region, reported damage to energy infrastructure or power outages after the attack.
In the southern Odesa region, Russia struck energy, port, transport, industrial and residential infrastructure, according to regional head Oleh Kiper.
A merchant ship and over 120 homes were damaged, he said.
NewsFeed
A mother and her teenage son died in fighting between the Syrian military and Kurdish-led SDF forces in Aleppo. The violence began shortly after talks in Damascus on integrating SDF forces into the army. Al Jazeera’s Ayman Oghanna is in Aleppo, where a truce has been called.
Published On 23 Dec 2025
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Israel’s parliament has extended an order allowing the government to shut down foreign broadcasters operating in the country.
The legislation, passed by 22 votes to 10, expands temporary powers introduced during the Gaza war to shutter outlets seen as a threat to national security.
It allows the government for the next two years to cease operations of a foreign outlet even in peace time and without the need for a court order.
Originally dubbed the “Al Jazeera Law”, the powers were used to shut down the Qatari-owned channel’s offices and block its broadcasts in May 2024.
Israel accused Al Jazeera – which has been a strong critic of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza – of anti-Israel bias and of supporting Hamas in its coverage.
Al Jazeera denied the accusations and condemned Israel’s actions, calling it a “criminal act” and an attack on press freedom.
The Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) said last year that the temporary order violated “freedom of expression, the right to information and freedom of the press, and blocks citizens and residents from receiving a variety of information that does not fit the Israeli narrative or is not broadcast on Israeli media channels”.
The legislation extending the order was passed hours after the Israeli cabinet approved a plan to shut down Army Radio, or Galei Tzahal (GLZ), a state-funded station that is operated by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) but is editorially independent.
Under the plan proposed by Defence Minister Israel Katz, the station will cease operations by 1 March 2026.
Katz argued that Army Radio, which employs both active duty soldiers and civilians, “no longer serves as a mouthpiece and ear for soldiers and broadcasts political and divisive content that is not in line with IDF values”.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the cabinet meeting that a station broadcasting under the authority of the military was highly unusual.
“I think it exists in North Korea and maybe a few other countries, and we probably don’t want to be counted among them,” he said.
The Union of Journalists and Journalists’ Organisations said they would petition the High Court of Justice against the decision, calling it “a severe and unlawful infringement on freedom of expression and freedom of the press”.
The Israel Democracy Institute (IDI) think tank said shutting Army Radio constituted a serious violation of freedom of expression and effectively wiped out half of Israel’s independent public radio news broadcasts.
“The decision to shut down a public media organisation is not an isolated move. It is part of a broader and worrying pattern of ongoing harm to Israeli democracy,” it warned.
Australia’s most populous state, where the Bondi Beach shooting took place just over a week ago, was preparing to pass new gun and hate speech laws.
New South Wales has convened an emergency parliamentary session to push through what it calls the “toughest firearm reforms in the country.” The vote was expected later Tuesday or in the early hours of Wednesday.
The Terrorism and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2025 passed the NSW Legislative Assembly, the lower house, on Monday and was expected to also get approval from the upper house.
The move comes after the Bondi mass shooting on December 14, in which 15 people were killed and more were wounded in what authorities described as an antisemitic terrorist attack.
Responding to political pressure following the attack, state and federal governments have outlined proposals for gun law reforms and a comprehensive hate speech ban.
Australians commemorate Bondi Beach terror attack
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How Is NSW tightening gun laws?
These are the most significant changes to gun ownership under the proposed law:
- Limit most individuals to owning four firearms, and up to 10 for farmers and sport shooters
- Reduce magazine capacity for high-powered weapons to five or 10 rounds, depending on the weapon
- Reclassify straight-pull/pump-action and button/lever release firearms, limiting access primarily to farmers
- Completely ban firearms that use belt-fed magazines
- Cut gun license terms from five years to two years to ensure more frequent background checks
- Limit gun licenses to Australian citizens (a change that would have excluded one of the alleged Bondi attackers)
Where does the public stand on the new gun restrictions?
The vast majority of Australians across the political spectrum want a reform of gun laws, according to a new poll published Tuesday.
The Resolve Political Monitor poll found three-quarters of people in the country want tougher regulation. Restricting gun access ranked among the top priorities, alongside tackling crime and preventing terrorist attacks.
In nearly all Australian states and territories, there is currently no limit on the number of guns an individual can own. In NSW, for example, 75 people own more than 100 guns each, according to NSW police data, and one license holder has 298 weapons.
Australia’s prime minister apologizes for Bondi attack
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NSW introducing curbs on protests and hate speech
In addition to firearm restrictions, the NSW government wants to limit public assemblies and protests in certain areas following a terrorist attack.
Under the bill:
- The police commissioner can suspend an authorized protest in a specific area for 14 days if the assembly is likely to cause people to fear harassment, intimidation, or violence
- It also bans the display of ‘terrorist symbols,’ including the flag of the ‘Islamic State’
Australia’s federal government, meanwhile, is pushing for laws that criminalize hate preaching, penalize attempts to radicalize minors, and ban membership in registered extremist groups. It also plans a gun buyback, the largest since 1996, paying owners to surrender surplus, newly banned, and illegal firearms.
Edited by: Darko Janjevic
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A police officer shot in the head and rendered blind in one eye during the Bondi beach shooting has been released from hospital to be reunited with his family for Christmas.
Probationary constable Jack Hibbert, 22, was shot twice while he was patrolling the Chanukah event at the Bondi beach when two gunmen, a father and son, began firing on 14 December.
He continued helping people attending the event even after he was hurt, until he no longer could and fell down.
At the hospital, the constable underwent a number of surgeries but still lost vision in one eye.
On Tuesday, his family confirmed he had been discharged from the hospital, describing it as a “miracle”.
“As a family, we couldn’t ask for anything more,” his family said in a statement, “having our Jack home, especially for Christmas, truly feels like a miracle.”
“We are deeply grateful for the overwhelming support, kind messages and well wishes from the community, Jack’s colleagues, friends, and the emergency services,” they said, thanking medical staff for taking “exceptional care” of the constable.
The constable was just four months into the job when the attack unfolded.
open image in gallery
Jack Hibbert was injured in the Bondi Beach attack (New South Wales Police)
At least 15 people were killed, and 40 were injured in the attack, which was later condemned as a terrorist act by the government.
Suspect Naveed Akram, 24, faces multiple murder charges and one terrorism charge while his father, 50, was shot dead by police at the scene.
He was transferred from hospital to prison on Monday and was set to face a Sydney court again in the new year.
Meanwhile, another police officer who was injured in the attack has woken up from a coma, his family said.
New South Wales police constable Scott Dyson was wounded and was put in a medically induced coma after he underwent surgery ”almost daily”, his family said.
“Our family would like to share that Scott has been getting stronger each day, and today, he was woken up for the first time,” they said. “There is still a long way to go in his recovery, but this is a positive sign. We would like to thank the public for the support, messages and well wishes shown to Scott and our family during this difficult time.”
NSW Health said on Tuesday that 12 people injured in the attack remained in hospital receiving care.
Four of them were in critical but stable condition.
open image in gallery
Map of where the attack took place on 14 December (PA Graphics)
In the wake of the incident, New South Wales is set to pass tougher gun laws, ban the display of terrorist symbols, and curb protests.
The proposed law is expected to clear the state parliament’s upper house on Tuesday.
Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese said his government would address hate speech and gun control, working with states on new laws.
He apologised to Australian Jews and the broader community and acknowledged the anger directed towards him.
“I feel the weight of responsibility for an atrocity that happened whilst I’m prime minister,” he said.
“And I’m sorry for what the Jewish community and our nation as a whole has experienced.”
NEED TO KNOW
- Taylor Swift has shared a romantic letter her fiancé Travis Kelce sent to her before her final three Eras Tour shows in Vancouver in December last year
- The pop superstar read out Kelce’s note during episode six of her Eras Tour docuseries, The End of an Era, which dropped on Tuesday, Dec. 23
- Kelce’s words came after Swift called the Kansas City Chiefs tight end the same thing during an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on Dec. 10
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are on the same page!
During the sixth episode of Swift’s Eras Tour docuseries Taylor Swift: The End of an Era, titled “Remember This Moment,” Swift, 36, reveals the romantic letter her now-fiancé sent to her before her final three shows in Vancouver in December 2024.
In the episode, which dropped on Tuesday, Dec. 23, Taylor can be seen backstage with her mom, Andrea Swift, as she reads out the note from the Kansas City Chiefs star, 36, who calls her “the love of my life.”
“So many unbelievable memories on this tour but my favorite one is seeing you in concert for the first time and being mesmerized and swept off my feet by a woman who doesn’t even know me,” Taylor says with a smile while sitting beside a large bouquet of white roses.
“Selfishly I say thank you for creating this legendary tour and to Robert [Allen] for making you stop through Kansas City, Missouri, that night too in KC was the beginning of me meeting the love of my life,” she adds.
Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift in ‘Taylor Swift | The End of an Era’.
Disney+
The pop superstar then appears to finish reading the rest of the note but does not say the words out loud.
“Aww my God!” Taylor says as she reacts to the letter. “So much for no emotions on the last three shows,” she adds to her mom.
The revelation of Kelce’s sweet words comes just days after Taylor called the tight end the love of her life during an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on Dec. 10, as Swift reflected on her engagement and other major life events to have happened in 2025.
“Getting engaged to the love of my life, getting all my music back. Those were two things that just might never have happened. They could have just never happened. It wasn’t like, ‘Oh, it’s just a matter of time.’ ” she told host Stephen Colbert.
“Both of those things could have just never arrived in my life, and I’m so grateful for both of those things happening,” she added.
Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift kiss in ‘The End of an Era’.
Disney Plus
Kelce attended the Eras Tour in July 2023 at the Kansas City Chiefs’ Arrowhead Stadium in Missouri and tried — and failed — to meet the musician during one of the stops.
The NFL star admitted this during an episode of his and his brother Jason Kelce’s New Heights podcast, where he also shared that he had made a personalized friendship bracelet for Taylor with his number on it and was “a little butthurt” that he wasn’t able to execute his plan to give it to her personally.
In a preview for her Eras Tour docuseries, Taylor said of the moment, “The most meaningful relationship I’ve ever had started with a man saying that he was butthurt that I didn’t want to meet him… Greatest surprise of my life.”
Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift’s engagement photo.
Taylor Swift & Travis Kelce
She then went on to finally reveal who played matchmaker with her and Travis as she and her mom, 67, discussed Travis’ public plea in episode four of the docuseries.
“I’m looking at the headlines and perusing around on the Internet and I see that this guy came to your show and he brought a friendship bracelet and wants to meet you,” Andrea recalled. “So I call up my resident expert on the Kansas City Chiefs, my cousin Robin, and I go, ‘Tell me about this guy named Travis Kelce.’ ”
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“She goes, ‘Oh my God, he is the nicest guy! And he really loves his mom.’ And I went, ‘Ding, ding, ding, ding,’ ” Andrea said with a laugh. “And then I said, ‘Now, how in the world am I going to get her to meet him?’ ”
Admitting she was “very non-athlete” before meeting Travis, Taylor recalled her mom calling her “with this tone of, ‘Hey, I know you’re not gonna react well to this, but there’s a guy…’ ”
“He’s really cute!” Andrea added.
“You said something to the effect of, ‘You gotta start doing something different,’ ” the “Wood” singer shared with a laugh.
Andrea also called Travis’ gesture of making her daughter a friendship bracelet “so earnest” and “the sweetest thing” as he he had tried to get her attention with something from “your world.”
“To me that really said a lot. So I thought that was really sweet and I liked it,” Andrea noted.
WORLD NEWS
Evri Christmas parcel chaos: Moment courier ‘delivers’ parcel before picking it up and driving off – as dozens of customers complain of missing or damaged packages
This is the moment an Evri courier ‘delivered’ a parcel before picking it up and driving off – as dozens more complaints flooded in about missing or damaged deliveries.
Footage taken on a home security system shows the man walking up to the front door of the house and tapping details into a handheld device. But instead of leaving the box, he tucks it under his arm and walks away with it to his car.
After flabbergasted homeowner Steve Beresford posted the footage on Facebook he was contacted by a woman who lived a few miles away and had footage of what appears to be the same man turning up at her home and acting suspiciously.
He went up to her front door with a package – although she wasn’t expecting a delivery – and walked away with it again.
The individual returned the following day and stopped on her driveway before getting out briefly and then driving off. She now fears he may have been scoping out her house for a burglary.
Details of the incidents, which were reported to police who confirmed they had been linked by the investigating officer, coincide with an influx of further complaints about Evri services.
New complaints the Mail can reveal today alone include –
- Ingrid McNeil, from Glasgow, losing a £200 necklace after selling it on eBay;
- Londoner Ruth Sloneem not receiving a £375 coat bought from Sweaty Betty;
- Conor Cooney, from Maidstone, never receiving four items from Disney;
- Customer in Bournemouth saying four parcels she’d ordered had not turned up;
CCTV footage shows the courier driver walking away with the parcel moments after he appeared to have confirmed delivery on a hand held device. Homeowner Steve Beresford, 61, said notification of the delivery appeared on his wife’s mobile
Kaz Hill believes it’s the same courier who turned up at her house in Frieston with a parcel – but took it with him when he left
Retired BT service engineer Mr Beresford said he felt ‘violated’ by the ‘theft’ – but Evri claims there was a misunderstanding because the courier had a partial address
Ingrid McNeil, who is 56 and works for a housing association, posted a necklace she had sold on eBay on December 8, but the parcel failed to reach its destination.
‘The one and only email I got from Evri was that the parcel was on its way back to me. I have never received it,’ she said.
‘The tracking number gets you nowhere – saying they are experiencing ”technical issues”. I’ve received no necklace or compensation.
‘Out of the goodness of my heart I refunded the buyer as I didn’t want them out of pocket.’
Ms McNeil went on to say she had emailed Evri ‘about 20 times’ – but to no avail, as she has been led to believe the parcel was either lost or stolen on the way to the seller in Warwickshire.
Another customer complained of losing the ‘most expensive coat’ she had ‘ever bought’.
Ruth Sloneem, from Pinner in north London, said: ‘I am so infuriated not to have received my really expensive coat ordered from Sweaty Betty which was promised within 24 hours. That was a week ago.
‘Their message says there was a delivery problem and they would get back to me in 24 hours. I have sent many messages but heard nothing.
‘They are the worst delivery company. Why do companies use them.’
Ms Sloneem said she had ordered the Nimbus Longline Waterproof Puffer Coat for £375. But she has now been left with nothing but an ‘order number and Evri tracking number’ – ‘neither of which allows you to speak to anyone’.
Conor Cooney, from Maidstone, Kent, said he had been expecting four items from Disney this month.
However, Mr Cooney was disappointed to discover the gifts, which he had bought for his children and other family members for Christmas, ‘only contained two items’ – despite the fact he had ordered four.
He said: ‘I called Disney customer service and the first question they asked is “was the branded box at all damaged or tampered with”.
‘The problem is, the delivery hadn’t arrived in a branded box. It looked as though someone at Evri had opened the box, taken a couple of items and then wrapped the others in a black plastic delivery bag and stuck a label on it.’
Mr Cooney said it was the two ‘cheaper’ items that had been repackaged and redelivered.
He added, ironically: ‘Nice to know that Christmas orders are safe with one of the biggest delivery firms in the country!’
Louis Tremblay, nine, (centre, pictured with dad Adam, left, and mum Lauren, right) was left distraught after a rogue delivery driver threw his Christmas present in the bin
Tish Burbridge, a pensioner in Salisbury, has complained of missing ‘six or seven deliveries’ over the last eight months
In Bournemouth, one customer claimed none of four parcels she had ordered over the past two and a half months had turned up.
Overall, ‘£1,000’ worth of items had ‘gone missing this time’, she said.
The buyer, who wished to remain anonymous, said: ‘Essentially, every parcel I’ve ordered that is then passed to Evri has not been delivered since October.
‘I’ve raised it with Evri each time that multiple parcels are going missing, but the situation has obviously not improved or been remedied.’
Earlier this week, the Mail revealed how one of Evri’s drivers had been sacked after he was caught on camera hurling fragile packages into the back of his van.
Customers complained he laughed when they complained about crumpled parcels.
Around 30 current and former couriers also told BBC Panorama how they were under pressure to deliver more and more items.
And the firm came bottom of a customer satisfaction survey of parcel delivery companies conducted by Ofcom in October.
Steve Beresford, 61, who lives in Sibsey, Lincolnshire, had bought a £21 candy cane infinity light for his wife, Beverley, 62, as she had decorated the Christmas tree with candy canes.
Describing the moment he discovered what had happened to the gift, he told the Mail: ‘I felt violated. I felt sick.
‘I’m disabled and have fibromyalgia [a chronic condition causing widespread musculoskeletal pain] and this triggered it, so I started having panic attacks and anxiety.
‘It’s not just stealing people’s Christmas presents. It’s all the upset and stress that goes with it.’
The couple were out for lunch when they received a notification on Mrs Beresford’s mobile phone that the delivery had been made on Monday.
The arrived home an hour later and ‘searched high and low’ but couldn’t find the package, so they contacted Evri by email.
Former BT service engineer Mr Beresford said apart from an automated response – which said they would be contacted within 24 hours – no one had been in touch with them.
‘So we thought we’d check the CCTV footage and you could have knocked me down with a feather,’ he added.
‘We couldn’t believe that we were seeing. We’d caught him [taking the package] as clear as day.
‘I told the police ‘I hope you find him and he’s behind bars for Christmas’. The officer agreed with me and said ‘Wouldn’t that be nice?’
After putting the footage on Facebook because he was so ‘livid’ about what had happened, he was contacted by Kaz Hill, who lives a few miles away in Frieston.
Ms Hill explained the same man turned up at her house on December 9 with a package, went up to her front door, and then left with the box.
An Evri subcontractor was arrested by Hampshire Police on Monday after up to 120 parcels were stolen just days before Christmas. Pictured is a photo of the stash
CCTV footage showed him standing outside her property. It cut out before he walked away but she said she was in at the time and saw what happened.
He returned in his silver car the following day, parked in her driveway before briefly getting out, then drove off again.
‘It looks like he pretends to put it down, then makes it look like no one is home, then takes it back. But he doesn’t even ring the doorbell,’ said Ms Hill, who was in at the time.
‘The second time he scared me, as he was just in his car on the drive for quite a while and then just before he left he got out of the car and looked back at the house.’
She contacted police, who issued an incident number but told her they couldn’t take any further action.
‘Technically it was not a crime as nothing was stolen as I wasn’t expecting a package,’ Ms Hill said.
‘However, the guy is clearly pretending to deliver, then pocketing the goods. The police can’t do anything but have said that they will just keep compiling info on him.’
Extraordinary footage taken on December 10 in the Norfolk village of Watton showed another EVRI delivery driver hurling parcels into the back of his van.
Astonished recipients described how the man ‘laughed off’ complaints when he handed over crumpled boxes.
The driver is also said to have abandoned a pile of items in a high street before he crossed the road to deliver a package.
The incidents happened in the same county where people waiting for Evri deliveries had to search for items themselves earlier this year when the courier left them in undergrowth, on bins, in hedges and in the street.
MPs representing a number of constituencies have raised concerns about the company’s service recently.
Caroline Dinenage, who represent Gosport in Hampshire, said she knew of ‘numerous’ cases of Evri parcels being ‘dumped or marked as delivered with no attempt made to actually reach the recipient’.
In a letter to chief executive Martijn de Lange, she wrote: ‘With Christmas fast-approaching, residents are understandably distressed and frustrated by these failures, particularly where valuable gifts are involved.’
Evri registered 41 per cent dissatisfaction among customers in a poll conducted by Ofcom in October. The next worst was Yodel on 33 per cent and DPD with 26 per cent.
Amazon came top with a 16 per cent dissatisfaction rate, with FedEx and UPS second on 18 per cent.
Video filmed in Timsbury, Hampshire captured the moment an Evri delivery driver appeared to steal a Christmas present from a customer’s doorstep. Evri said it was investigating the incident
The survey found 4.2 billion parcels had been delivered by all firms in the previous year – higher than the pandemic peak of four billion.
The company, which rebranded from Hermes UK in 2022, has been owned by American investment firm Apollo Global Management since last year.
In the financial year 2023-24, Evri’s pre-tax profit almost doubled to nearly £120m.
New footage this week showed one courier putting a nine-year-old Louis Tremblay’s Christmas present in a bin without putting a note through his family’s door.
After receiving a message saying the present – a flip book US YouTuber Andymation – had been delivered, his parents checked their CCTV to see the driver opening the lid of a bin on their drive before putting the parcel inside. The bin was later collected.
In Salisbury, a courier has been sacked after a pensioner complained of missing ‘six or seven deliveries’ over the last eight months.
Tish Burbridge, a pensioner in the Wiltshire city, told the Salisbury Journal: ‘It’s extraordinarily annoying and also, you know, I’m now on a pension and money is tight, and I can’t afford to lose money like that. It’s just, it’s just not practicable.’
Meanwhile, an Evri subcontractor was arrested on Monday in Southampton after up to 120 parcels were stolen just days before Christmas.
In nearby Timsbury, footage appeared to show a driver swipe a parcel from a family’s doorstep – before allegedly making off with it under her coat.
Toni Fryer, 47, vowed to ‘never use Evri again’ after her son’s Christmas present disappeared on December 15. Evri confirmed it was investigating the incident.
Elsewhere, in Manchester, a delivery driver working for the phone was filmed on a Ring doorbell throwing packages containing glassware onto the ground before referring to the recipients as ‘dirty c***s’.
A Lincolnshire Police spokeswoman said they had received a report of a theft in Sibsey, adding: ‘A parcel was reportedly delivered to the address by a delivery man and the man left the scene taking the parcel with him. Enquiries are ongoing.’
The spokeswoman confirmed the force had also received ‘a report of a man acting suspiciously in the Old Leake area of Boston’.
An Evri spokesman said of the incident at Mr Beresford’s house: ‘Unfortunately, this parcel didn’t have a house number or name, which understandably confused the courier who was new to delivering in the area.
‘The courier followed our guidance and took the parcel away with them as they were unsure if they were delivering to the correct address.’
Attempts had been made to contact the customer, he added.
General Secretary of the Co-operative Party Joe Fortune warned the decision ignored fans, and demanded the Independent Football regulator ensures this never happens again
11:01, 23 Dec 2025
Boxing Day is set to host one Premier League match(Image: MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Just one Premier League game on Boxing day is a betrayal of fans and stamps on a tradition that brings families together, the Co-Operative party has claimed.
General Secretary of the Co-operative Party Joe Fortune warned the decision left behind those who made it the beautiful game, and demanded the Independent Football regulator (IFR) ensures this never happens again.
In a letter to its chair, David Kogan, Mr Fortune called for action to prevent issues with scheduling, suggested the Premier League do more to boost grassroots football, and pushed for reform of ownership structures.
READ MORE: Premier League fixture changes for TV over Boxing Day and New Year confirmedREAD MORE: Just one Premier League game on Boxing Day due to Sky Sports and TNT Sport obligations
General Secretary of the Co-operative Party Joe Fortune condemned the decision
He said: “We are told this abandonment of tradition and fan values is due to expanded European club competitions placing pressure on the domestic schedule, clashing with the Premier League’s commitment to televise a set number of matches on weekends.
“This is just another example of the ever-expanding monetisation of football coming above the experience of fans.
“Fans are increasingly priced out of enjoying the game, while ownership of our country’s top teams is dominated by foreign companies or states.
“Football – and indeed all sport – should always be centred around the people who make it so magic, the fans who give up their time and money to a shared experience with their community.
“This decision is completely ignorant to those fans and communities, and has understandably caused outrage.”
The day after Christmas has become an iconic part of the football calendar, with top-flight ties often filling a decent chunk of the day on December 26. This year Boxing Day will see the fewest top-flight games take place since the Second World War. Eight matches were played in 2024 on the same date.
His comments were echoed by Labour MP Anneliese Midgley, who sits on Westminster’s Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee.
She said: “Boxing Day football has been part of the English game and a family tradition for generations – including in my own.
“Fans are always told football is nothing without them, but decisions like this show how often they’re treated as an afterthought, with kick-off times that don’t work, rising costs and traditions quietly pushed aside. It’s time fans were properly listened to again.”
Responding, an IFR spokesperson said: “Fans are central to the IFR’s mission and our future licensing regime will require clubs to demonstrate meaningful engagement with their fans on key decisions such as stadium moves, club heritage and ticket pricing.
“If standards fall below what the IFR considers adequate and effective engagement, we will work with clubs to bring them back to the required standards and where necessary impose sanctions where clubs are in breach of our regime.”
Liverpool manager Arne Slot says star forward Alexander Isak will be on the sidelines until at least late February.
Published On 23 Dec 2025
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Alexander Isak is expected to be out of action for two months after fracturing his leg against Tottenham, with Liverpool manager Arne Slot accusing Tottenham’s Micky van de Ven of making a “reckless challenge”.
The Sweden striker was injured in a tackle from the defender in the act of scoring the opening goal in Saturday’s 2-1 victory and limped off the pitch.
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Liverpool said in a statement on Monday that the forward had had an operation on an ankle injury that included a fibula fracture.
“It’s going to be a long injury, for a couple of months,” Slot told reporters on Tuesday, “So, yeah, that’s a big, big, big disappointment for him. And as a result, also of course for us.”
Slot described Van de Ven’s tackle as “reckless”.
“I think I said a lot about the tackle of Xavi Simons [sent off earlier in the game for Spurs], which for me was completely unintentional, and I don’t think you will ever get an injury out of a tackle like that.
“The tackle of Van de Ven, if you make that tackle 10 times, I think 10 times there’s a serious chance that a player gets a serious injury.”
Isak, centre, gets injured in a challenge with Tottenham Hotspur’s Dutch defender #37 Micky van de Ven at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, on December 20, 2025 [Justin Tallis/AFP]
Isak’s challenging year continues
Isak’s injury is the latest setback for the forward after he signed from Newcastle for a British record 125 million pounds ($168m) in September.
A dispute with Newcastle meant he did not have a proper preseason programme and arrived at Liverpool well behind his teammates in terms of fitness.
His season was then interrupted by a groin injury.
The 26-year-old has scored just three goals in 16 appearances since completing his protracted move to Anfield.
Isak’s absence will be a major blow for Reds boss Slot, with Mohamed Salah at the Africa Cup of Nations and Cody Gakpo not ready to return from a muscle injury until early in the new year.
It leaves Slot with Hugo Ekitike, who has five goals in his past four games, and the little-used Federico Chiesa as his only senior forwards.
Liverpool, whose Premier League title defence collapsed after a shocking run of results, have climbed to fifth in the table after extending their unbeaten league run to five games.
Isak’s injury raises the prospect of Liverpool moving to boost their attack in the January transfer window, with Bournemouth winger Antoine Semenyo linked with a move to Anfield.
It may also change the conversation around Salah, who had been linked with a move to Saudi Arabia following his recent claim that he had been thrown under the bus by the club and no longer had a relationship with Slot.
Salah’s rant, which came after he was left on the bench for three successive matches, prompted Liverpool to leave him out of the squad for a Champions League match at Inter Milan.
But he returned to action as a substitute against Brighton before leaving for international duty.
Liverpool host bottom side Wolves on Saturday.
WORLD NEWS
Non-crime hate incident recording system for police ‘not fit for purpose’ – UK politics live | Politics
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Four-day week may be considered a sign of failure, England councils told
Steve Reed, the secretary of state for housing, communities and local government, has written to all councils to warn that adopting a four-day week for staff puts them at risk of being declared a failing authority, Jamie Grierson reports.
As Jamie reports, 25 councils have discussed a four-day week policy and one, South Cambridgeshire district council, has already moved to the pattern.
This is quite a shift from Labour. At the time of the 2019 general election, when Jeremy Corbyn was leader, Labour was committed to the goal of reducing average working hours over the course of a decade so as to in effect introduce a four-day working week for everyone.
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Lib Dems call for creation of fly tipping hotline to improve reporting of ‘mountain of rubbish’ problems
Last month Ed Davey, the Lib Dem leader, raised an incident of fly tipping in Oxfordshire at PMQs. That is not the sort of topic that normally comes up at PMQs, although anyone who has seen the pictures will know why Davey, and his party, felt this had to be raised at the highest level.
Not letting go, the Lib Dems have today released some polling that suggests this is a widespread problem, and that it is getting worse. According to the poll by Savanta, commissioned by the party and carried out last month, 20% of people say they have seen ‘mountain of rubbish’ fly tipping in their area, on a scale similar to the Kidlington incident raised at PMQs.
Among the 1 in 5 who did say fly tipping was a problem for them locally, 66% of them thought organised criminal gangs were involved, and 64% of them said they thought the problem had got worse in the past 12 months.
Tim Farron, the Lib Dem environment spokespeson, said:
These figures show that the scandalous mountain of filth in Oxfordshire is just the tip of the iceberg. From our riversides to our rural lanes, criminal gangs are turning this country into an environmental wild west.
What’s worse – we don’t even know the true scale of the problem. Communities are being left to deal with filthy waste whilst criminal operations run rings around a system that all but looks the other way.
We cannot go on like this. Liberal Democrats are calling on the government to urgently clean up illegal waste sites and set up a new fly-tipping hotline to improve public reporting and detection of large-scale waste sites across the country.
In a thread on social media yesterday, Calum Miller, the Lib Dem MP for Bicester and Woodstock, recalled how he was first alerted to the problem at Kidlington and how he got the Environment Agency to respond.
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Non-crime hate incident recording system for police ‘not fit for purpose’ and must be replaced, expert body to tell Home Office
Good morning. With Christmas just two days away, the Westminster tap of news, which normally gushes strongly, is down to a dribble. There is not much on the government’s grid today, apart from an announcement about a plan to ensure young people leaving care in England will receive free prescriptions, and dental and eye services up to their 25th birthday, which we’ve written up here …
… and also confirmation that some former mineworkers are getting a £100-a-week boost to their pensions as a result of a change to the British Coal Staff Superannuation Scheme announced in the budget.
Josh MacAlister, the children’s minister, has been giving interviews this morning about the care leavers announcement.
We’re in one of those weeks where, even more than usual, news organisations have to find their own stories. In politics we’ve got a report from Peter Walker about Reform UK’s plan to slash aid spending (or, rather, slash it even more than it has been slashed already).
“Plans by Reform UK to slash the aid budget by 90% would not cover existing contributions to global bodies such as the UN and World Bank, shredding Britain’s international influence and risking its standing within those organisations, charities and other parties have warned,” Peter writes.
The Telegraph is splashing on a story by Charles Hymas, its home affairs editor, saying that “non-crime hate incidents [NCHIs] are to be scrapped under plans that police chiefs will present to the home secretary next month”. This sounds like something pencilled in for the 2026 No 10 news grid, but Hymas has spoken to Lord Herbert, the former Tory policing minister who is now chair of the College of Policing, an organisation that works with the Home Office on policing policy, and he has confirmed that NCHIs are for the chop. He told the paper:
NCHIs will go as a concept. That system will be scrapped and replaced with a completely different system.
There will be no recording of anything like it on crime databases. Instead, only the most serious category of what will be treated as anti-social behaviour will be recorded. It’s a sea change.
The police started recording NCHIs following a recommendation in William Macpherson’s 1999 report into the murder of Stephen Lawrence. Macpherson said the police should create “a comprehensive system of reporting and recording of all racist incidents and crimes”.
Herbert told the Telegraph that the system was no longer “fit for purpose” because of the growth in social media and the advent of smartphones. He said:
It’s drawn police into an area that I don’t believe they wanted to be in. Police have been caricatured that they wanted to be involved in this, but I haven’t met a copper who does.
While some police officers argue that recording NCHIs is a useful way of recording behaviour that will escalate into criminality, the system has also generated countless stories (not least in the Telegraph) about police forces becoming over-preoccupied with offensive tweets.
According to the Telegraph, under the new system officers will not log hate speech incidents on crime databases, and will instead treat them as intelligence reports. They will also be given a “common sense” checklist so that they only intervene in cases of serious anti-social behaviour. Herbert told the paper the police had to be careful “not to throw the baby out with the bathwater”.
Ministers, including Keir Starmer and Shabana Mahmood, the home secretary, have repeatedly said (normally in response to press reports about alleged excessive police responses to NCHIs) that they want the police to focus on what matters to the public and the Telegraph says the College of Policing plans are likely to be accepted by the Home Office. Mahmood is on record as saying that the police should be able to distinguish between “content [on social media] that is offensive, rude, ill-mannered, and incitement to violence, incitement to hatred”.
There is nothing much in the diary for today. But we’ll find some news somewhere.
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Updated at 11.04 CET
North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un and his daughter Ju Ae have opened what state media calls an “attractive mountainous tourist resort and leisure ground for the people.”
According to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), five luxury hotels have opened their doors in Samjiyon, a remote northern city near China.
Pyongyang promoted its latest luxury hotels, featuring amenities such as barbecue restaurants, hot tubs and leisure spaces, despite widespread economic hardship across the country.
Kim toured bedrooms and other facilities at new hotels
Kim, who attended the ceremonies on Saturday, declared the resort “clear proof of the rising status of our people,” despite the hardships most North Koreans endure.
He personally inspected the facilities, even testing the firmness of the beds for good measure, according to KCNA. His daughter, believed by many analysts to be the heir apparent, was by his side for the grand tour.
Kim toured ‘bedrooms of hotels, cosy leisure spaces and commercial and public catering facilities,’ according to KCNA Image: YONHAP NEWS AGENCY/picture alliance
State media insisted the hotels were proof citizens have “nothing to envy in the world.”
The opening comes as Kim seeks to highlight the country’s economic progress ahead of a party congress next year, when a new development plan is expected to be unveiled.
According to KCNA he said the new resort was “clear proof of the ever-growing ideal of our people and our state’s potential for development.”
Foreign tourists likely the target market
Tourism to North Korea remains a tightly choreographed affair mostly limited to government-approved tours that offer only controlled glimpses of life in the hermit kingdom.
But Kim is on a drive to boost tourism, and the opening of the new hotels at Samjiyon follows North Korea’s launch of the Wonsan Kalma Coastal Tourist Zone earlier this year.
Among the facilities on show were both indoor and outdoor bathsImage: KCNA/KNS/AFP
He declared Samjiyon to be an “innovative and highly civilized city representing the tourism culture of the country.”
“The main target demographic is foreigners,” Peter Ward, a research fellow at the Sejong Institute in Seoul, told AFP. But, he added, visits to Samjiyon could also serve as rewards for “productive units” of workers.
Lim Eul-Chul, a professor at the Institute for Far Eastern Studies at Kyungnam University, said “large-scale group tourism could soon be accommodated via border regions with China.”
Edited by: Richard Connor, Darko Janjevic
WORLD NEWS
Ukraine-Russia war latest: Zelensky says three dead after Putin launches attack with 650 drones and 30 missiles
Senior Russian diplomat warns of Russia-Nato clash
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A four-year-old boy was among at least three people killed after Russia fired more than 650 drones and 30 missiles at Ukraine overnight, Volodymyr Zelensky has said.
Thirteen regions came under attack in total, Mr Zelensky said, adding that those killed were in the Kyiv, Khmelnytskyi and Zhytomyr regions.
A 76-year-old woman was killed in the attack on Kyiv, in which three people were injured, including a 16-year-old girl.
The attack also targeted energy infrastructure, particularly in Ukraine’s western regions, prime minister Yulia Svyrydenko said.
Mr Zelensky said the strike sends an “extremely clear signal about Russia’s priorities”, noting that it took place “in the midst of negotiations aimed at ending this war”. He urged Ukraine’s Western partners to increase pressure on Moscow.
During the attack, Poland has scrambled aircraft in the early hours of this morning as a “preventive” measure aimed at “securing and protecting the airspace”.
Russia’s major air attack came just hours after Volodymyr Zelensky warned Putin could strike hard over the festive period. Most parts of the war-hit nation were reported to be under air raid alerts.
Zelensky says progress in US-led peace talks ‘quite solid’
Initial drafts of US proposals for a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia meet many of Kyiv’s demands, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said.
But he suggested that neither side in the almost four-year war is likely to get everything it wants in talks on reaching a settlement.
“Overall, it looks quite solid at this stage,” the Ukrainian leader said of recent talks with US officials who are trying to steer the neighbouring countries toward compromises.
“There are some things we are probably not ready for, and I’m sure there are things the Russians are not ready for either,” Mr Zelensky told reporters in Kyiv.
Alex Croft23 December 2025 10:06
In pictures: Russian launches huge air attack on Kyiv
At least one person has died in the attack on Kyiv (REUTERS)
Three people were injured, including a 16-year-old (REUTERS)
Russia launched dozens of missiles and 600 drones overnight, the Ukrainian prime minister said (REUTERS)
It comes after the Kremlin said weekend peace talks failed to produce a breakthrough (via REUTERS)
Alex Croft23 December 2025 09:42
Woman, 76, killed and three injured in Russian attack on Kyiv
A 76-year-old woman has been killed in Russia’s large-scale attack on Kyiv, according to the region’s military administration.
Three people were also injured, including a 16-year-old girl, military administration chief Mykola Kalashnyk said.
The attack caused a fire to break out in a two-storey house in the Vyshhorod district.
Two houses were also damaged in the Obukhiv district, where windows were blown out and roofs damaged, authorities added.
Alex Croft23 December 2025 09:17
Boy, 4, among three people dead after Russia fires 680 drones and missiles – Zelensky
A massive Russian strike on Ukraine on Tuesday killed at least three people, including a four-year-old child, president Volodymyr Zelensky said.
More than 650 drones and more than 30 missiles were launched at Ukraine, he said.
A woman was killed in the Kyiv region, one person was killed in the Khmelnytskyi region, and the four-year-old was killed in the Zhytomyr region after a Russian drone attacked a residential building, the Ukrainian president said in an update on social media.
“This Russian strike sends an extremely clear signal about Russia’s priorities. An attack was carried out essentially in the midst of negotiations aimed at ending this war,” he said in a post on the Telegram messaging app.
Mr Zelensky urged Ukraine’s Western partners to increase pressure on Moscow.
The Kyiv region was one of the main targets of the attack (via REUTERS)
Alex Croft23 December 2025 08:52
Russia fires dozens of missiles and 600 drones in overnight attack, says Ukrainian PM
Russia launched dozens of missiles and more than 600 drones in its early morning air attack across Ukraine including on the capital Kyiv, prime minister Yulia Svyrydenko said.
Earlier, the head of Kyiv’s military administration, Timur Tkachenko, urged people to stay in their shelters until given the all-clear.
Ukraine’s energy sector was again one of the main targets of the attacks, prompting emergency power outages in a number of regions, including the capital Kyiv and its surrounding region, Ukraine’s energy ministry said on Tuesday.
It was infrastructure in Ukraine’s western regions which suffered the most damage, Ms Svyrydenko added.
Alex Croft23 December 2025 08:26
In photos: Major Russian attack on Kyiv region destroys houses and apartments
Aftermath of a Russian missile and drone attack in Kyiv region (Reuters)A firefighter works at the site of a house heavily damaged during Russian early morning drone and missile strikes in Kyiv region (Reuters)Emergency responders work at the site of a Russian drone strike on an apartment building in Kyiv (Reuters)
Firefighters work at the site of a house heavily damaged during Russian early morning drone and missile strikes in Kyiv region (Reuters)
Arpan Rai23 December 2025 08:01
Buildings in Kyiv attacked in overnight Russia attack
Russian forces have attacked Kyiv and Ukraine’s energy infrastructure in the early hours today, triggering emergency outages, just two days after US-led Miami peace talks ended.
As of 6.20am GMT, air raid alerts covered nearly all of Ukraine, according to the country’s air force.
Debris fell near a residential building in Kyiv’s Sviatoshynskyi district, damaging windows, mayor Vitali Klitschko said on the Telegram messaging app.
Arpan Rai23 December 2025 07:52
Watch: Senior Russian diplomat warns of Russia-Nato clash
Senior Russian diplomat warns of Russia-Nato clash
Arpan Rai23 December 2025 07:32
Russia bombards Ukraine hours after Zelensky warns of Christmas strikes
Russia launched a major early morning air attack on Ukraine today, the Ukrainian military said, just hours after Volodymyr Zelensky warned Putin could strike hard over the festive period.
“Air defence forces are working to eliminate the threat in the sky over the capital,” the Kyiv military administration said on Telegram.
It urged residents to remain in shelters until the all-clear is given.
Officials did not immediately report casualties or damage. The full-scale of the attack was not immediately known.
Just hours earlier, Zelensky said Ukraine is amping up its intelligence and air defence work ahead of Christmas as Russian forces are expected to carry out massive air strikes.
“We understand that precisely on these days they may – this is in their nature – carry out massive strikes on Christmas. And today we had a Staff meeting on this, and the number one issue was air defence: the protection of our cities, villages, and communities, especially on the 23rd, 24th, and 25th. This needs to be paid attention to,” Zelensky had said.
A power genertor placed outside a house with a decorated Christmas tree during power outage in the southern city of Odesa (AFP via Getty Images)
Arpan Rai23 December 2025 06:47
Hundreds of Russian drones target Ukraine; emergency power outages imposed
Several Ukrainian cities are under a major air raid alert as Russian forces launched a large-scale missile and drone attack, including hitting energy sites in the war-hit country’s far western regions.
Ukrainian public broadcaster reported explosions in the western cities of Rivne, in the communities of Burshtyn and Rohatyn in the Ivano-Frankivsk oblast. Explosions were also heard on the outskirts of Cherkasy city.
Ukraine’s Air Force has warned of hundreds of Russian drones and dozens of missiles launched in Ukraine’s direction as air raid alerts were sounded in almost all parts of the country.
Emergency power outages have been imposed in several regions in view of Russian attacks on the energy infrastructure, Ukraine’s energy ministry said.
“As soon as the security situation allows, rescue teams and energy specialists will begin addressing the consequences of the attack to restore electricity supply in the regions as quickly as possible,” the ministry said.
Cars drive on a street during a power outage in the southern city of Odesa following Russian missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructures (AFP via Getty Images)
Arpan Rai23 December 2025 06:39
NEED TO KNOW
- A 2-year-old boy is dead after a car crash on a highway near Peterborough, England, on Saturday, Dec. 20
- “Our thoughts are with the parents and family of this young child who has tragically lost his life in this collision,” said Sergeant David McIlwhan
- A 64-year-old driver has been granted bail after being arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving
A toddler is dead and five other people are seriously injured after their broken down vehicle was struck by another car.
At around 6:20 p.m. local time on Saturday, Dec. 20, a Toyota Auris that had broken down in a live lane of the A1 northbound carriageway near Peterborough, England, was hit by a Volkswagen Touran, Cambridgeshire Police confirmed in a news release.
A 2-year-old boy from London, who had been traveling in the Toyota, was killed in the crash.
The A1 highway in the U.K.
Google Maps
Five others who had been in the same vehicle were rushed to Peterborough City Hospital with serious injuries, police added.
The 64-year-old driver of the Volkswagen, who was from Peterborough, was “slightly injured” in the crash, police said. He was arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving, but has since been released on bail until March 20.
“Our thoughts are with the parents and family of this young child who has tragically lost his life in this collision,” said Sergeant David McIlwhan in a statement obtained by PEOPLE. “The family is being supported by specialist family liaison officers.”
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Stock image of a police car in the U.K.
georgeclerk/Getty
Sgt McIlwhan added, “I would appeal for anyone who witnessed the collision or has dashcam footage but was unable to stop at the scene, to get in touch.”
Police have advised anyone with information regarding the incident to report it online, quoting incident 401 of December 20. Alternatively, reports can be made by calling 101.
Cambridgeshire Police did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for further comment amid their ongoing investigation.