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Agent-tracking app ICEBlock sues Trump administration in free speech fight | Donald Trump News

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Agent-tracking app ICEBlock sues Trump administration in free speech fight | Donald Trump News


The Trump administration has accused ICEBlock of making federal agents vulnerable to attack and called for its removal.

Published On 9 Dec 2025

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The developer of a popular app used to monitor and share alerts about immigration enforcement activities has sued the administration of United States President Donald Trump for pressuring Apple to remove it.

ICEBlock, whose name refers to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), had one million users before it was dropped from Apple’s app store, according to a lawsuit filed on Monday.

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Developer Joshua Aaron alleged in the complaint that the Trump administration’s campaign against the tracking app amounted to a violation of free speech.

“When we see our government doing something wrong, it’s our duty as citizens of this nation to hold them accountable, and that is exactly what we’re doing with this lawsuit,” Aaron said in the lawsuit.

The suit calls on the district court system to protect the Texas-based software company from “unlawful threats” under the Trump administration.

It also names as defendants some of Trump’s highest-level officials, including Attorney General Pam Bondi, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and ICE’s acting director, Todd Lyons.

First released in April, ICEBlock quickly became a widely used tool across the US as communities sought ways to share information about immigration raids.

Since returning to office for a second term, Trump has pushed a campaign of mass deportation, targeting a wide range of immigrants, many of whom are in the country legally.

Those raids, many carried out by heavily armed immigration agents in military-style attire, have also faced repeated accusations of human rights abuses.

Critics have questioned the violence used in some arrests, as well as the ICE officers’ use of face masks and plainclothes to conceal their identities.

There have also been reports of inhumane conditions once immigrants are in custody, including overcrowding, a lack of sanitation and faeces-smeared walls.

Human rights advocates have also questioned the speed with which deportations are being carried out, claiming the immigrants arrested have no opportunity to exercise their due process rights and are often prevented from contacting lawyers.

Even US citizens have been accidentally detained in the immigration sweeps. Some immigrants have been deported despite court orders mandating that they remain in the US.

The Trump administration has faced fierce criticism and judicial rebukes for its tactics.

But it maintains that software like ICEBlock puts federal immigration agents in danger of retaliation.

“ICEBlock is designed to put ICE agents at risk just for doing their jobs, and violence against law enforcement is an intolerable red line,” Attorney General Bondi has said.

In October, ICEBlock was pulled from Apple’s app store, a popular platform for downloading mobile software. The Justice Department confirmed that it had contacted Apple to push for the removal.

The lawsuit states that the tech company told Aaron the app had been removed following “information provided to Apple by law enforcement”.

Aaron has countered that the app is an exercise of essential free speech rights and is meant to help protect people from overbearing government activity.

“We’re basically asking the court to set a precedent and affirm that ICEBlock is, in fact, First Amendment-protected speech and that I did nothing wrong by creating it,” Aaron told The Associated Press news agency in an interview.

“I mean, these are people that are wearing masks — which is the antithesis of everything about this country — and they are not identifying themselves, and they’re zip-tying children, and they’re throwing women into vans.”



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Pete Hegseth sent shockwaves through Washington with his Pentagon press shakeup… here’s what really changed behind the scenes

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Pete Hegseth sent shockwaves through Washington with his Pentagon press shakeup… here’s what really changed behind the scenes



Pete Hegseth sent shockwaves through Washington with his Pentagon press shakeup… the Daily Mail’s US Senior Political Reporter Elina Shirazi explains what’s really changed behind the scenes.

Shirazi has spoken out against the Pentagon and the Department of War’s new media policy, aimed at restricting journalists’ access and requiring all outlets to sign contracts. 

The Pentagon’s new media contract requires journalists to have their articles approved by officials before public release, sparking backlash from reporters.

Click above to watch the full video. 



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Smirking thug headbutted his partner said 'She's my bird, I'll do what I want'

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Smirking thug headbutted his partner said 'She's my bird, I'll do what I want'




Thug Steffan Pattie, 28, has been jailed for 24 months – this is a breaking story



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US forces seize oil tanker off coast of Venezuela – reports | World News

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US forces seize oil tanker off coast of Venezuela – reports | World News



US forces have intercepted and seized a sanctioned oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, according to reports.

The White House are yet to comment on the reported seizure of the unnamed vessel.

Two officials told the Reuters news agency that the operation was led by the US Coast Guard. They did not name the tanker nor say specifically where the incident took place.

It would mark the latest escalation from the Trump administration, which has in recent weeks ramped up pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

The US accuses Mr Maduro of presiding over a narcotrafficking operation, which he denies.

Throughout the year, the Pentagon has conducted more than 20 strikes against purported drug-trafficking vessels in waters near Venezuela and Colombia, killing more than 80 suspects.

It also comes as US President Donald Trump suggested numerous times that the US could strike Venezuela on land.

Speaking to Politico on Tuesday, he declined to comment on whether US troops would enter the country, but said that Mr Maduro’s “days are numbered”.

According to US news outlet Bloomberg, the Maduro government describes US actions as a grab for Venezuela’s oil reserves – among the biggest in the world.

This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.

Please refresh the page for the latest version.

You can receive breaking news alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News app. You can also follow us on WhatsApp and subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.



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Oldest evidence of deliberate fire use found in England | History News

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Oldest evidence of deliberate fire use found in England | History News


Humans may have made fire 350,000 years earlier than previously thought, scientists say.

Published On 10 Dec 2025

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Scientists have uncovered the oldest-known evidence of deliberate fire-making by prehistoric humans in Suffolk, Britain – revealing it happened some 350,000 years earlier than experts previously believed.

The site, a former clay pit near the village of Barnham, contains a hearth made by Neanderthals about 415,000 years ago.

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Until now, the earliest known evidence of humans making fire dated to around 50,000 years ago at a site in northern France, also linked to Neanderthals.

Researchers identified the remains of a repeatedly used campfire, including heated clay, flint tools shattered by intense heat and two pieces of iron pyrite – a mineral that sparks when struck against flint to ignite tinder.

“We think humans brought pyrite to the site with the intention of making fire. And this has huge implications, pushing back the earliest fire-making,” said archaeologist Nick Ashton, curator of Palaeolithic Collections at the British Museum in London.

While there are even older signs of humans using naturally occurring wildfires in Africa, this is the earliest proof that people knew how to start their own fires.

Fire was a crucial turning point in human evolution. Controlled flames allowed ancient hunter-gatherers to live in colder environments, cook food, and protect themselves from predators. Cooking also helped our ancestors get more energy from meat, roots and tubers, fuelling the growth of larger brains and enabling communities to support more people.

Scientists say fire likely transformed social life as well. It brought people together at night to share warmth, food and conversation, possibly encouraging storytelling, language and cultural beliefs.

“The campfire becomes a social hub,” British Museum archaeologist and study co-author Rob Davis said. “We’re a species who have used fire to really shape the world around us – and now we know this is something Neanderthals were doing far earlier than we thought, just like us.”

The evidence at Barnham suggests repeated fire use at temperatures above 700 degrees Celsius (1,292 degrees Fahrenheit), pointing to deliberate fire-starting rather than reliance on natural flames. The team spent four years testing the materials to confirm the hearth’s age and human origin.

The finding supports the view that Neanderthals, and possibly their close relatives such as the Denisovans, were far more innovative than once assumed, sharing key survival skills long before the emergence of modern-day humans.



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Australia news live: Victorian students await VCE results and Atar scores; Treasury optimistic on business forecast | Australia news

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Australia news live: Victorian students await VCE results and Atar scores; Treasury optimistic on business forecast | Australia news


Victorian students receive VCE results and Atar scores

Adeshola Ore

Ethan Bundle-Bell is among more than 65,000 Victorian students who will graduate with their Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE) today.

At the same time, Victorian students will become the first in the country to receive their Australian Tertiary Admission Rankings (Atar) scores, with the remaining states and territories to follow next week.

Bundle-Bell, a Gunditjmara and Butchulla man, is the first in his family to complete year 12 after he undertook the vocational major program at Braybrook Secondary College in Melbourne’s west. The program is a practical and alternative pathway for students to secure a high school certificate.

While the cohort does not receive an Atar score, they do receive their VCE and a statement of results.

They account for 9,777 of the record 65,586 students graduating with their VCEs this year, according to the state government.

You can read more about Bundle-Bell’s alternative pathway to VCE here:

More than 15,300 students received at least one study score of 40 or higher, while 664 students have received at least one maximum study score of 50.

Additionally, more than 1,150 students received the Victorian Pathways Certificate, which prepared students for future studies or entry into the workforce.

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Updated at 20.44 CET

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Aukus meetings begin in Washington

Pete Hegseth has kicked off a series of meetings with British and Australian defence counterparts in Washington that are aimed at moving forward with the large nuclear submarine building and technology sharing pact between the three nations known as known as Aukus.

“Fantastic to be meeting today with Secretary Hegseth and with John Healey,” deputy PM and defence minister Richard Marles told reporters.

Our focus was very much on delivery. We’ve now seen reviews in each of our three countries, as our governments have come into power. They have been done and the absolute focus in respect of all of our three countries, was to harness our systems to deliver Aukus pillar one to make sure that we’re doing everything at full speed ahead, – full steam ahead, as President Donald Trump has given us this motto – in terms of delivering on submarines.

On pillar 2, we spoke about how we can make sure we have all the momentum that we need to see that co-operation around advanced technology. So, a really important meeting today. There’s a lot of energy and momentum around the delivery of Aukus but a very significant meeting, particularly in the context of it being Secretary Hegseth’s first.

The deal was originally inked in 2021. The Pentagon recently determined that the agreement was in the US national security interest.

It includes the sale of three US-built nuclear-powered submarines to Australia starting in 2032.

Read Ben Doherty’s analysis of where the agreement currently stands:

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Treasury’s optimistic forecast on business investment

Patrick ComminsPatrick Commins

The Treasury believes business investment in this financial year will grow twice as quickly as previously estimated, according to extracts from next week’s midyear budget.

National accounts figures showed a surge in companies’ spending in the three months to September, which the Australia Bureau of Statistics attributed to “major datacentre investment across NSW and Victoria”.

The updated Treasury forecasts show business investment is expected to grow by 3% in 2025-26, against the pre-election forecast of 1.5%, before returning to the anticipated pace of 1.5% in the next financial year.

“Construction of datacentres has accelerated and the accompanying fit-out with equipment has increased six-fold in the past five years,” the documents will say.

Non-mining investment growth has also been substantially upgraded, from a forecast 1% in this financial year to 4% in the latest estimates.

Jim Chalmers said the midyear economic and fiscal outlook would “show that the private sector recovery that we’ve been planning for and preparing for is really taking shape”.

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Updated at 21.01 CET

Sarah Malick has also written about the anniversary of the riots. She was a young journalism student when she watched news footage of hundreds of young white men storming the beach.

Geographically, the Arab lads of Bankstown and Shire boys of Cronulla were neighbours, but culturally the consequences of infringing West Side Story-beach lines were clear. The 2005 beach riots made international headlines. Southern Cross-tattooed patriots marked their territory, scrawling “100% Aussie pride” in the sand and popularising the slogan: “You flew here, we grew here.”

For a young feminist Muslim woman from western Sydney who had just adopted hijab after moving out of home, it highlighted every political nerve I balanced on like a high-wire artist.

The myth of the riots, that the beach was not for people like her, is one she’s pushing back on. Read her reflections here:

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Today, 11 December, marks 20 years since the Cronulla riots. Daisy Dumas recently looked at whether attitudes have changed in the decades since.

Some say Australia still has not tackled racism, and fear social media is a more powerful tool than text messages and talkback radio that stirred up Sydney rioters in 2005. Read more here:

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Victorian students receive VCE results and Atar scores

Adeshola OreAdeshola Ore

Ethan Bundle-Bell is among more than 65,000 Victorian students who will graduate with their Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE) today.

At the same time, Victorian students will become the first in the country to receive their Australian Tertiary Admission Rankings (Atar) scores, with the remaining states and territories to follow next week.

Bundle-Bell, a Gunditjmara and Butchulla man, is the first in his family to complete year 12 after he undertook the vocational major program at Braybrook Secondary College in Melbourne’s west. The program is a practical and alternative pathway for students to secure a high school certificate.

While the cohort does not receive an Atar score, they do receive their VCE and a statement of results.

They account for 9,777 of the record 65,586 students graduating with their VCEs this year, according to the state government.

You can read more about Bundle-Bell’s alternative pathway to VCE here:

More than 15,300 students received at least one study score of 40 or higher, while 664 students have received at least one maximum study score of 50.

Additionally, more than 1,150 students received the Victorian Pathways Certificate, which prepared students for future studies or entry into the workforce.

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Updated at 20.44 CET

Welcome

Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the top overnight stories and then it will be Nick Visser with the main action.

Victorian students’ Atar and study scores will be available online from 7am, marking the end of more than 13 years of schooling. They will be the first to receive their scores, with the remaining states and territories to follow next week.

Police in Melbourne have uncovered suspected human remains as they investigate the disappearance of a toddler more than a decade ago. We’ll have more details in a moment and will bring any updates as we have them.

And the Treasury believes business investment in this financial year will grow twice as quickly as previously estimated, according to extracts from next week’s midyear budget.

We have more details, and there’s more economic news at 11.30am with the latest unemployment figures.

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Italian cooking awarded special Unesco status

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Italian cooking awarded special Unesco status


Italian cooking has been awarded special cultural heritage status by the United Nations’ cultural agency Unesco.

National favourites including pizza are already on Unesco’s list of “intangible cultural heritage”, but now Italian cooking traditions and the way they are practiced and transmitted have been awarded.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who has been pushing for her country’s cuisine to be recognised since her election, said: “For us Italians, cuisine is not just food or a collection of recipes. It is so much more: it is culture, tradition, work, wealth.”

For millions of fans the news confirms what they already believed – from Sicilian Cannoli to Calabrian ‘Nduja – Italian is the best.

The announcement was made during a Unesco assembly meeting in the Indian capital Delhi on Wednesday.

The cultural agency described Italian cuisine as a “means of connecting with family and the community, whether at home, in schools, or through festivals, ceremonies and social gatherings”.

Koshary, the spicy dish of lentils, rice, and pasta available at countless Egyptian food stalls, was also added to the list of intangible cultural heritage.

Other countries have had their “practices, skills, traditions and social practices related to foodways” recognised by Unesco, a spokesperson from the agency told the BBC.

Previous examples include “Washoku, traditional dietary cultures of the Japanese, notably for the celebration of New Year, Breakfast culture in Malaysia: dining experience in a multi-ethnic society, or the Gastronomic meal of the French,” the spokesperson added.

Speaking to La Repubblica, the Rome-based daily newspaper, chef Michelangelo Mammoliti said the news filled him with a great sense of pride both personally as an Italian, as well as professionally as a chef.

“Italy is one of the nations where regional cuisine has a very big impact on culture and traditions,” said the chef, whose restaurant La Rei Natura in Piedmont is the only new three-star restaurant in the 2026 Michelin Guide.

Italy’s industry leaders and government ministers will be hoping that the move further boosts tourism to the country, which already welcomes 80 million international visitors annually.

Luigi Scordamaglia, CEO of Filiera Italia, which represents all the food and wine companies in the production chain, told Ansa news agency that the move from Unesco marked a success “for the entire Made in Italy supply chain”.

Mr Scordamaglia also spoke about the role of the Mediterranean diet in promoting good health.

He added: “When we talk about the Mediterranean diet, we’re talking about our wonderful Italian cuisine, which shares its principles, first and foremost those of balance and variety.”

Swimming pool culture in Iceland; the practice of Cuban Son music and dance; and the art of playing, singing and making the lahuta from Albania also entered Unesco’s list of intangible cultural heritage.



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Major oil pipeline spill reported in eastern Germany – DW – 12/10/2025

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Major oil pipeline spill reported in eastern Germany – DW – 12/10/2025


State authorities in Brandenburg reported a major oil spill north of Berlin late on Wednesday, saying there had been an accident affecting a pipeline connecting a major oil refinery to the Baltic Sea port of Rostock. 

“An accident occurred on the PCK piepline near Gramzow/Zehnebeck, resulting in a large oil spill,” a spokesman for Brandenburg’s Environment Ministry said. “Emergency services are on site. No information can be provided at this time about the cause of the exact extent of the damage.” 

The fire department later estimated that roughly 200,000 liters (about 52,835 gallons) of oil had escaped from the pipeline at a pumping station in Gramzow. For orientation, that amount of liquid would fill a little less than one-tenth of an Olympic swimming pool. 

Alexander Trenn of the Schwedt fire department said the leak had a pressure of around 20 bar (roughly 290 psi) at its peak, causing a fountain of oil several meters high to spew out. 

Specialist machinery was being used to remove the spilled oil. Clean-up operations would continue into Thursday morning, he said. Trenn said around 100 fire department officers and some 25 company employees were working on site.

Nature reserves situated near PCK’s Schwedt refinery on Polish border

A major oil refinery is located near the border to Poland in Schwedt, operated by PCK. The company says on its website that the facility can process 11.5 million metric tons of oil a year, “making it one of the largest crude oil processing sites in Germany.”

Meanwhile, the AFP news agency cited a PCK spokeswoman as saying that “deliberate external influence” such as sabotage could already be “ruled out.”

The PCK oil refinery in Schwedt, Germany, pictured on July 8, 2024.The PCK oil refinery in Schwedt is one of Germany’s largestImage: Patrick Pleul/dpa/picture alliance

Local public broadcaster rbb reported that by 19:45 local time (1845 UTC/GMT), “the leak was for the most part plugged, although some oil was still leaking out.” 

Pipelines connect the refinery to the major port of Rostock to the northwest. 

Gramzow is situated slightly northwest of Schwedt, on the northern tip of a large nature reserve to the north of Berlin. The refinery is also next to another national park.

The areas between Berlin and the Polish border are heavily forested and also the site of the Oder River, which serves as the border much of the time. 

Edited by Sean Sinico 



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Climber charged with manslaughter after ‘leaving girlfriend to die’ on Austria’s highest peak

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Climber charged with manslaughter after ‘leaving girlfriend to die’ on Austria’s highest peak



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A seasoned Alpine climber has been charged with manslaughter after he left his girlfriend on Austria’s highest mountain, the Grossglockner, before she froze to death.

Thomas Plamberger and Kerstin Gurtner were just 50 metres away from the 3,798m (12,460ft) summit when she fell sick, suffering from exhaustion and disorientation, according to the Innsbruck public prosecutor’s office.

Mr Plamberger decided to leave her at 2am on Sunday, 19 January this year and descend to the nearest mountain hut to seek help, only returning six and a half hours later in the morning to find her dead.

Gurtner, 33, froze to death alone on the mountain after she was left in -8C temperatures, with winds of up to 45mph contributing to “feels like” temperatures as low as -20C.

Prosecutors undertook an 11-month investigation into the incident and examined the couple’s mobile phones, sports watches, and photographs of their climb, as well as commissioning an independent report from an Alpine mountaineering expert.

They have now charged Mr Plamberger with negligent manslaughter, arguing that he made nine key mistakes that led to Gurtner’s death, from not planning the expedition properly to failing to make contact with search teams and police.

Plamberger has denied any wrongdoing. His lawyer has previously rejected part of the Innsbruck prosecutors’ timeline of events, claiming he left Gurtner on the mountain “by mutual agreement”.

The Grossglockner is known to be one of the more challenging climbs in the Austrian Alps

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The Grossglockner is known to be one of the more challenging climbs in the Austrian Alps (Getty/iStock)

Prosecutors say the couple set off two hours too late on the morning of 18 January to realistically summit Grossglockner and return safely.

They effectively became stranded by stormy weather at approximately 8.50pm, but prosecutors allege that Mr Plamberger made no attempts to call for help and did not issue any distress signals to a police helicopter that flew over their position at 10.50pm.

Police tried to call Mr Plamberger multiple times before he called an officer back at 12.35am. The prosecutor’s office said the contents of the call remained “unclear” but that Mr Plamberger then put his phone on silent and no further contact was made.

“At approximately 2am, the defendant left his girlfriend unprotected, exhausted, hypothermic, and disoriented about 50m below the summit cross of the Grossglockner. The woman froze to death,” the statement said.

“Since the defendant, unlike his girlfriend, was already very experienced with alpine high-altitude tours and had planned the tour, he was to be considered the responsible guide of the tour,” it added.

The Grossglockner is the highest mountain peak in Austria and is considered one of the most challenging climbs in the Austrian Alps, requiring full climbing and glacier gear.

The couple were metres away from the summit when Kerstin Gurtner fell sick

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The couple were metres away from the summit when Kerstin Gurtner fell sick (AFP/Getty)

Yet police said Mr Plamberger allowed his girlfriend to use a splitboard – a snowboard that can be divided into two parts to be used like skis for climbing – and soft snowboard boots, equipment that prosecutors said was unsuitable for their high-alpine winter route.

He also allegedly failed to move his girlfriend to a position where she would be sheltered from the wind or to give her their bivouac sleeping bag or aluminium foil blankets to keep her warm before he left.

Prosecutors said the woman was inexperienced and had never undertaken an alpine tour of this length, difficulty, and altitude.

In a series of posts on his now-deleted Instagram, Mr Plamberger said Gurtner’s death was “hurting so much”.

“I miss you so much. It hurts so incredibly much. Forever in my heart. Without you, time is meaningless”, he wrote on social media, and co-signed the obituary her parents wrote, according to Bild.

Tributes on Gurtner’s page since her death have described her as a “beloved daughter, sister, sister-in-law, godmother, granddaughter, partner and friend”.

“Thank you, dear Kerstin, for being you, for being you, and for your soul always will be. Thank you for the mark you left not only on me, but on so many others. Through you, you live on here as well,” a friend of Gurtner wrote.



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‘Just Friends’ Star Amy Smart Recall Hilarious Ryan Reynolds Moments, 20 Years Later (Exclusive)

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‘Just Friends’ Star Amy Smart Recall Hilarious Ryan Reynolds Moments, 20 Years Later (Exclusive)


NEED TO KNOW

  • Just Friends was released Nov. 23, 2005
  • The classic stars Ryan Reynolds as Chris, headed back to his hometown years after leaving and transforming his life, with hopes of running into best friend and former crush Jamie (Amy Smart)
  • Twenty years later, PEOPLE spoke with director Roger Kumble and actress Amy Smart about memories from making the film

Just Friends has worked its way into the list of comedic greats that came out of the mid-aughts.

The film stars Ryan Reynolds as Chris Brander, who returns to his hometown in the prime of his life after being bullied mercilessly throughout high school. His only refuge was best friend Jamie Palamino (Amy Smart), who stuck around their hometown after Chris fled. When they’re reunited, both are looking for the comfort of something old while trying to process how different Chris is from who he once was.

Roger Kumble directed the movie, part rom-com, part Christmas movie, and all hilarity. He tells PEOPLE that he knew from the jump he wanted Ryan Reynolds to play the lead.

“I had been a huge Ryan Reynolds fan from Two Guys and a Girl and an Amy Smart fan. New Line had a good relationship with Amy because they had made Butterfly Effect. And so they said, ‘You can make that movie. You’re going to go to Regina, Saskatchewan to do it.’ And I said, ‘Great.’ ”

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Ryan Reynolds and Amy Smart in “Just Friends”.

Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Reynolds plays a hilarious post-glow-up Chris, who tries to impress Jamie, who, in turn, knows him too well to be impressed by the artifice he’s presenting.

“I think when he’s in high school, he’s very insecure about his look but he’s also so genuine, and their friendship is so strong and real. When any relationship is that strong and real, the looks go sort of to the back, when you’re so connected,” Smart says of Chris’s character.

“I think for him, obviously, he’s haunted by his overweightness in the film at the beginning, and then he’s overcompensated in life as an adult. ”

Amy Smart as Jamie Palamino.

Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Of stepping into Jamie, she continued, “For me, it’s always really bringing the grounding myself in the character and figuring out what she wants, what she needs. With comedy, you have to commit even more. To make it funny, the circumstances have to be that much more intense.”

“What I enjoyed about this is obviously a lot of my scenes are with Ryan, and he is just innately so funny that it was a big challenge to hold the laughter in.”

Ryan Reynolds and Amy Smart as Chris and Jamie.

Roger Kumble and Ryan Reynolds filming Just Friends

Roger Kumble and Ryan Reynolds working on “Just Friends”.

Ryan Reynolds and Amy Smart as Chris and Jamie.
Credit:

New Line Productions, Inc

Roger Kumble and Ryan Reynolds working on “Just Friends”.
Credit:

Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Of the scenes that stick out in her head, Smart shares, “I think the scene where he’s freaking out in the car and she has to return his gloves… it was one take, and I do break a little bit in it, but I tried my best to keep a straight face.”

“He was just losing it! In the best way, so it was really hard,” she continued.

“When I think back to my fondest memories of it, aside from being so cold and having so much fun in all the scenes, Ryan in the fat suit was the most endearing thing I’ve ever seen.”

Ryan Reynolds as Chris Brander in “Just Friends”.

Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Kumble appreciated “always being able to riff with… and I never use the word genius, but I will when it comes to Ryan.”

“We would just try to top each other with funny. And the scene where he comes back and Samantha’s drugged up and eating toothpaste, we were just kind of like, ‘Oh, let’s have her eat toothpaste and wear a Bugs Bunny bandage around her forehead,’ ” he laughs.

“She pulled it off and just the timing of the slap fight and her popping up with a mouthful of toothpaste, that was a blast to shoot.”

Just Friends is available on Digital & Blu-ray and currently streaming on Apple TV and Peacock.



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Driver on hippy crack ploughed Mercedes into club revellers in horrific attack that left one victim with broken neck, ribs, pelvis, collar bones, shoulder blades and collapsed lungs

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Driver on hippy crack ploughed Mercedes into club revellers in horrific attack that left one victim with broken neck, ribs, pelvis, collar bones, shoulder blades and collapsed lungs


A driver high on laughing gas ploughed his Mercedes into revellers in a horrific attack which left one victim with several broken bones.

Chilling CCTV shows 22-year-old Mohammed Suffi weaponising his Mercedes after violence erupted outside the Tunnel Club in Birmingham. 

Six people were mown down in the hit-and-run rampage, including student Caliston Calistus, whose body was dragged beneath the bonnet.

Mr Calistus suffered ‘catastrophic’ injuries such as  fractured ribs, a shattered pelvis, broken collar bone, multiple fractures to his shoulder blades and neck, and collapsed lungs. 

Jurors were told Suffi, ‘egged on’ by a friend and high on nitrous oxide, showed no mercy as he repeatedly drove at partygoers before fleeing. 

Birmingham Crown Court heard he later tried to dump the wrecked car in an industrial park and leave the UK altogether. 

He went on trial accused of attempted murder and an alternative charge of causing grievous bodily harm with intent. Suffi, of Aston, who had already admitted dangerous driving, yesterday was found guilty of the lesser charge.

He will be sentenced in February next year and was warned to expect a ‘significant and immediate’ prison term.

Chilling CCTV shows 22-year-old Mohammed Suffi weaponise his Mercedes after violence erupted outside the Tunnel Club in Birmingham 

Six people were mown down in the hit-and-run rampage, including student Caliston Calistus, whose body was dragged beneath the bonnet

Six people were mown down in the hit-and-run rampage, including student Caliston Calistus, whose body was dragged beneath the bonnet

During the trial, Daniel Oscroft, prosecuting, told the jury the night began with Suffi and friends attending a student event: ‘Witnesses described the atmosphere being lively and well controlled until tension started to rise and security intervened in a dispute involving the defendant’s group.’

Security footage earlier showed Suffi clutching a nitrous oxide balloon. He and his associates were kicked out around 2.20am but ‘continued to act aggressively and did not let it go.’ 

Mr Oscroft said Suffi had earlier been captured on security cameras holding a balloon, likely to have contained nitrous oxide.

By about 2.20am after aggressive behaviour and a confrontation with security the defendant and his associates were ejected from the club.

After regrouping, they returned and sparked a ‘full blown fight’ as crowds poured out. Mr Oscroft said: ‘Suffi started to drive aggressively. 

‘The vehicle reversed and circled back and round and drove at pedestrians knocking people over.’ 

He said there came a point when Mr Calistus became involved in a fight with another man and they moved forward into the road.

Footage shows the car turning around before dragging a man lying in the road for several metres before it drives over him with a sickening bump.

Mr Oscroft said Suffi drove straight at them and added: ‘You can see both Mr Calistus and the other male disappear under the front bumper.

‘You see the vehicle rise and fall over the two bodies.

‘Their bodies are further down the road. Suffi could have stopped. Instead he drove over them. He deliberately drove at them and drove over them.’

Police set up a cordon around the scene while forensics officers swept the area outside The Tunnel Club

Police set up a cordon around the scene while forensics officers swept the area outside The Tunnel Club

Mr Calistus needed major surgery and spent three weeks in hospital.

Mr Oscroft added: ‘You will not be surprised to learn that he thought he was going to die.’

Three other Birmingham men pleaded guilty to being involved in the mass brawl outside the nightclub and will also be sentenced in February.

Armaan Abid, 23, of Aston, Daanyal Hussain, 21, of Small Heath, and Mustafa Gohari, 21, of Acocks Green, all earlier admitted affray.



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