Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said he is prepared to abandon Ukraine’s pursuit of NATO membership in exchange for tighter Western security guarantees. His comments came as he has been holding talks with United States and European envoys aimed at ending Ukraine’s war with Russia.

US President Donald Trump, who has opposed NATO membership for Ukraine, has been pressuring Kyiv to sign a deal with Russia on terms that experts say favour Moscow.

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The move marks a big shift for Ukraine. Zelenskyy described the latest proposal as a concession by Kyiv, after years of pressing for NATO membership as the strongest deterrent against future Russian attacks.

So will Kyiv be able to get security guarantees from its Western allies? And what would be the parameter of the security deal?

What did Zelenskyy actually say?

In audio messages shared with journalists via a WhatsApp group ahead of the meeting, Zelenskyy said that Kyiv now expects alternative security guarantees comparable to those enjoyed by NATO alliance members.

“From the very beginning, Ukraine’s desire was to join NATO; these are real security guarantees. Some partners from the US and Europe did not support this direction,” Zelenskyy said.

“Bilateral security guarantees between Ukraine and the US, Article 5-like guarantees for us from the US, and security guarantees from European colleagues, as well as other countries – Canada, Japan – are an opportunity to prevent another Russian invasion,” he said.

“These security guarantees are an opportunity to prevent another wave of Russian aggression,” he said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has long said that Ukraine’s NATO aspirations are a threat to Russian security.

Zelenskyy said that Ukraine, the European Union and the US were reviewing a 28-point plan that could culminate in a ceasefire, though he reiterated that Kyiv was not holding direct talks with Russia.

Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff said “a lot of progress was made” as he and the US president’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, met with Zelenskyy in the German capital city of Berlin on Sunday.

The Ukrainian president also stressed that new security guarantees must be legally binding and endorsed by the US government. Looking ahead, he said he was expecting feedback following talks between Ukrainian and American officials in Germany.

For their part, however, many Ukrainians remain sceptical of this latest round of talks. Reporting from Kyiv, Al Jazeera’s Audrey MacAlpine said that “it’s been months and months of false hope when it comes to diplomatic discussions. Many of them have historically fizzled out. So … the reality of peace still seems far away.”

On Monday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that “this [NATO] issue is one of the cornerstones and requires special discussion”, and that Moscow is now waiting for Washington “provide us with the concept that is being discussed in Berlin”.

What will be the likely contours of a new security guarantee?

The security guarantees now under discussion would fall short of NATO’s Article 5 – meaning an attack on one is an attack on all. Instead of joining NATO, Ukraine would receive bespoke guarantees from the US and key European powers – set out in bilateral or plurilateral treaties.

These guarantees would likely commit partners to swift and tangible support if Ukraine were attacked again, including military assistance, intelligence sharing, arms supplies, sanctions and financial aid.

Unlike in Article 5, however, the guarantees would not trigger automatic collective defence. Each guarantor’s obligations would be defined separately, potentially with conditions, and without NATO’s integrated command structures.

The final version of the deal, however, would only be known after Kyiv’s Western allies agree on it. It is still unclear how much progress has been made on the issue.

What obstacles still remain?

For months, Washington has tried to balance the competing demands of Russia and Ukraine. Trump has been pushing hard for a conclusion to the war, and is said to be growing increasingly frustrated with delays.

Efforts to find common ground have faced significant hurdles, including the future of Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, much of which is under Russian occupation.

Putin has made it a central condition for peace that Ukraine withdraw its forces from the remaining areas of Donetsk under Kyiv’s control – a demand Ukraine has consistently rejected.

Zelenskyy said the US had proposed that Ukraine pull out of Donetsk and turn the area into a demilitarised free economic zone, an idea he dismissed as impractical. “I do not consider this fair, because who will manage this economic zone?” he said.

“If we are talking about some buffer zone along the line of contact … only a police mission should be there, and troops should withdraw, then the question is very simple. If Ukrainian troops withdraw 5-10 kilometres [3-6 miles], for example, then why do Russian troops not withdraw deeper into the occupied territories by the same distance?”

Calling the matter “very sensitive,” Zelenskyy said a freeze along the existing line of contact would be preferable, adding that “today a fair possible option is we stand where we stand”.

On the flip side, Putin’s foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov told the business newspaper Kommersant that Russian police and national guard forces would remain in parts of Donetsk even if the region were designated a demilitarised zone under a future peace plan.

Ushakov cautioned that reaching a compromise could take considerable time, arguing that US proposals reflecting Russian demands had been “worsened” by revisions suggested by Ukraine and its European partners.

In remarks broadcast Sunday on Russian state television, Ushakov said that “the contribution of Ukrainians and Europeans to these documents is unlikely to be constructive”, warning that Moscow would have “very strong objections”.

He also said territorial issues were a major topic when Witkoff and Kushner met with Putin earlier this month. “The Americans know and understand our position,” Ushakov said.

Are other discussions also taking place?

On Sunday, Zelenskyy said he spoke with French President Emmanuel Macron shortly before meeting Trump’s envoys, thanking him on X for his support and noting, “We are coordinating closely and working together for the sake of our shared security.”

Macron responded, noting that “France is, and will remain, at Ukraine’s side to build a robust and lasting peace – one that can guarantee Ukraine’s security and sovereignty, and that of Europe, over the long term.”

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who has led European support efforts alongside Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, said on Saturday that “the decades of the ‘Pax Americana’ are largely over for us in Europe and for us in Germany as well.”

However, he warned that Putin’s objective is “a fundamental change to the borders in Europe, the restoration of the old Soviet Union within its borders… If Ukraine falls, he won’t stop,” Merz said at a party conference in Munich on Saturday.

Putin has denied any intention to reestablish the Soviet Union, or to attack European allies.

However, for years, Putin has decried the expansion of NATO around Russia’s borders. On February 24, 2022, the day Russia launched its full-scale invasion, Putin said in a televised address: “Any further expansion of the North Atlantic alliance’s infrastructure or the ongoing efforts to gain a military foothold of the Ukrainian territory are unacceptable for us.”

What’s happening on the battlefront?

Over the weekend, Ukraine’s air force said that Russia had launched ballistic missiles and 138 attack drones overnight. Of those, 110 were intercepted or destroyed, though missile and drone strikes were recorded at six locations.

Zelenskyy said on Sunday that hundreds of thousands of families in the southern, eastern and northeastern regions of Ukraine remain without electricity, and that officials were working to restore power, heat and water after a large-scale attack the previous night.

He added that Russia had fired more than 1,500 strike drones, 900 guided aerial bombs and 46 missiles of various types at Ukraine over the past week. Russia’s Defence Ministry said its air defences shot down 235 Ukrainian drones late Saturday and early Sunday.

In the Krasnodar region, drones struck the town of Afipsky, which houses an oil refinery. Authorities said blasts shattered windows in residential buildings but reported no damage to the refinery.

Fighting has also intensified in the Black Sea. Russian forces recently struck Ukrainian ports, damaging Turkish-owned vessels, including a ship carrying food supplies. An attack on Odesa set grain silos ablaze, according to Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Oleksii Kuleba.

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Shooting victims named in reports as Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov and Ella Cook

The two people killed in Saturday’s shooting have been identified as MukhammadAziz Umurzokov and Ella Cook, according to reports.

Aspiring neurosurgeon Umurzokov was identified by his family in a Gofundme page. In a message on the site, they said: “He was incredibly kind, funny, and smart. He had big dreams of becoming a neurosurgeon and helping people. He continues to be my family’s biggest role model in all aspects.

“He always lent a helping hand to anyone in need without hesitation, and was the most kind-hearted person our family knew. Our family is incredibly devastated by this loss.”

The Gofundme appeal had raised nearly $230,000 by Monday morning.

MukhammadAziz Umurzokov Photograph: GoFundMe

The Providence Journal reports that Cook’s death was announced during a service at the Cathedral Church of the Advent in Birmingham, Alabama, where she was reportedly a parishioner. The Rev Craig Smalley said in livestreamed remarks: “Many of you heard about the tragedy … And sadly, tragically, one of those people is one of our parishioners.”

Ella Cook Photograph: GoFundMe

Smalley said Cook was a “bright light”, “incredibly grounded and generous and faithful”.

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Updated at 16.11 CET

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Authorities ask public for tips as manhunt for shooter continues

As the investigation continues, authorities in Rhode Island are asking “anyone with relevant information, including video or photo evidence, to submit it by phone or through the FBI tip line”.

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Updated at 16.19 CET

Alabama senators have paid tribute to Ella Cook, one of the victims of the shooting, who was from Alabama.

“I am heartbroken to hear that Mountain Brook’s Ella Cook was among those killed over the weekend at Brown University” Senator Tommy Tuberville said. “Our hearts and our prayers are with the Cook family and everyone impacted by this senseless killing.”

In another post, Senator Katie Britt said that she joins the “Mountain Brook community and all of Alabama in mourning the heartbreaking loss of one of our own, Ella Cook, who was senselessly killed over the weekend on Brown University’s campus.”

“There are no words that can ease the pain Ella’s family and friends are enduring right now” she said.

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Updated at 16.09 CET

The University of Rhode Island said that it will not hold in person exams today.

Online exams, the school said, will proceed as scheduled.

“Importantly, there is no known threat to our campuses” the university said. “This decision follows consideration of concerns shared by members of our community.”

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Providence mayor says search for shooter continues after person of interest released

Providence mayor Brett Smiley appeared on Good Morning America this morning, and said that after authorities reviewed the evidence in the case, it was “determined that this person of interest needed to be released”.

“We continue with our investigation” Smiley said. “To be clear, we’ve never stopped our investigation. Providence police and our partners at the State Police, the FBI and others have continuously run down leads and worked this case beyond the person of interest who had been detained.”

“As you have seen many times, we do have a short small clip of video footage that we do believe is the person that we’re looking for” he said. “And right now we don’t have any evidence to suggest that it was more than that individual which has been seen in that video.”

The mayor said that there is currently enhanced police presence both on campus at Brown and throughout the city of Providence.

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Updated at 16.17 CET

Ella Cook called ‘an incredible light’ in tributes after shooting

One of the victims killed in Saturday’s shooting has been identified as student Ella Cook, who was from Alabama.

Her name was announced during a church service at the Cathedral Church of the Advent in Birmingham, Alabama, where the Reverend said she attended.

“Tragically, one of our parishioners, Ella Cook, was one of those who was killed yesterday,” Reverend Craig Smalley said during the service on Sunday, which was live streamed. “And those of you who knew her, those of you who know her, she was an incredible, grounded, faithful bright light.

“Not only here growing up here at the Advent in the myriad ways in which she served faithfully and the ways in which she encouraged and lift up those around her, but at Brown University she was an incredible light in that particular place,” Smalley said.

The New York Young Republican Club also put out a statement on Sunday expressing their “deepest condolences to the family of Ella Cook” who they said was “the Vice President of the College Republicans at Brown University.”

In another statement, Martin Bertao, the president of the College Republicans of America, said that “we are devastated to learn of the loss of our Brown College Republicans Vice President, Ella Cook.”

“Ella was known for her bold, brave, and kind heart as she served her chapter and her fellow classmates” they added.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt reposted the College Republicans of America post, and wrote: “There are no words. Thinking of her family and friends, especially her parents. God please bless them.”

Ella Cook Photograph: GoFundMeShare

Updated at 16.15 CET

Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov remembered for ‘sharp intellect, kind heart’

More tributes to Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov came from the American Uzbekistan Association, who said he “was known for his sharp intellect, kind heart, and quiet willingness to help anyone in need”.

The association wrote on Instagram, praising his “humility and compassion” as well as his “curiosity, discipline, and generosity”.

The statement added:

More than a gifted student, Aziz was a beloved son, brother, and friend. He had a future filled with promise, and his life was cut short far too soon. His passing has left an immeasurable void in the hearts of his family, friends, classmates, and the broader Uzbek American community.

On behalf of the American Uzbekistan Association, we extend our deepest and most heartfelt condolences to Mukhammad Aziz’s family during this time of unimaginable grief. We stand with them in mourning and are grateful to all who have offered prayers, messages of support, and solidarity.

Mukhammad Aziz will be remembered for his kindness, his potential, and the light he brought into the lives of others. His memory will endure.

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Updated at 16.13 CET

One of the nine people injured in the shooting was named as Kendall Turner in media reports.

The Raleigh News & Observers reported Turner, from Durham, North Carolina, was among those wounded in the mass shooting on Saturday.

“We were saddened to learn that Kendall Turner ‘25, a beloved Durham Academy alumna, was wounded in the mass shooting that occurred at Brown University yesterday,” the publication quotes Michael Ulku-Steiner, who leads the school, as saying. “Her family has informed us that she is currently in critical but stable condition and is receiving care at a local hospital. Her parents are with her. We hope for her continued strength and recovery.”

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The US ambassador to Uzbekistan paid tribute to Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov.

In a statement, Jonathan Henick said: “I am deeply saddened by reports of the tragic death of Brown University student Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov on December 13. We extend our sincere condolences to Mr. Umurzokov’s family, friends, and fellow students and mourn the loss of his bright future.”

MukhammadAziz Umurzokov Photograph: GoFundMeShare

Updated at 15.13 CET

Shooting victims named in reports as Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov and Ella Cook

The two people killed in Saturday’s shooting have been identified as MukhammadAziz Umurzokov and Ella Cook, according to reports.

Aspiring neurosurgeon Umurzokov was identified by his family in a Gofundme page. In a message on the site, they said: “He was incredibly kind, funny, and smart. He had big dreams of becoming a neurosurgeon and helping people. He continues to be my family’s biggest role model in all aspects.

“He always lent a helping hand to anyone in need without hesitation, and was the most kind-hearted person our family knew. Our family is incredibly devastated by this loss.”

The Gofundme appeal had raised nearly $230,000 by Monday morning.

MukhammadAziz Umurzokov Photograph: GoFundMe

The Providence Journal reports that Cook’s death was announced during a service at the Cathedral Church of the Advent in Birmingham, Alabama, where she was reportedly a parishioner. The Rev Craig Smalley said in livestreamed remarks: “Many of you heard about the tragedy … And sadly, tragically, one of those people is one of our parishioners.”

Ella Cook Photograph: GoFundMe

Smalley said Cook was a “bright light”, “incredibly grounded and generous and faithful”.

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Updated at 16.11 CET

The FBI director, Kash Patel, said on Sunday that the FBI had activated its “cellular analysis survey team to provide critical geolocation capabilities” to aid with the investigation.

“We have deployed local and national resources to process and reconstruct the shooting scene – providing HQ and Lab elements on scene” he said, adding that the agency said also “set up a digital media intake portal to ingest images and video from the public” related to the shooting.

The FBI’s victim specialists are also “fully integrating with our partners to provide resources to victims and survivors of this horrific violence” he said. “This FBI will continue an all out 24/7 campaign until justice is fully served”.

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Brown University cancels ‘all remaining in-person exams’ for the semester

On Sunday, Brown University said that the school has cancelled “all remaining in-person exams” for Fall 2025 courses in the wake of the shooting.

In a statement, the university’s provost said that “we must balance the importance of providing clear guidance on educational assessment with our responsibility to ensure the thriving of every member of our community.”

“We have decided to cancel all remaining in-person exams for Fall 2025 courses at all schools, with the exception of the Warren Alpert Medical School and the IE Brown Executive MBA program in the School of Professional Studies (SPS)” they added.

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Updated at 16.13 CET

Brown University has told the university community that despite individual that was detained being released and as law enforcement continues to investigate, they do not “believe there is any immediate threat to Brown or the local community.”

In a statement on Sunday night, the university added that “as Providence police continue to lead this investigation, they have informed Brown that they are continuing their search efforts, which includes ongoing coordination with multiple agencies.”

The school said that its Department of Public Safety has more than doubled its staffing, and that there “continues to be a heightened amount of local, state and federal police activity in the area”.

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Updated at 16.10 CET

The Providence Police have said that investigation is ongoing and remains fully active between all agencies.

The police announced on Sunday night that the person of interest was being released and said that since the first call to 911, they have “not received any specific threats to our community.”

They asked that any and all video and photo evidence be submitted via phone or via the FBI tip line.

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Brown University announced on Sunday that it was temporarily delaying the release of admissions decisions for applicants who were meant to find out today whether they had been admitted to the school.

“The Brown University community suffered an unthinkable tragedy on Saturday evening” the school said in a post. “We are faced with the reality of mourning the loss of members of our community taken from us from a terrible act of violence, even as we acknowledge that we’re on the eve of a very important day for our many talented applicants to Brown.”

The school added: “While we remain excited about the dedicated students eager to join Brown, we are prioritizing care and support for our community and anticipate a brief delay in the release of admission decisions. We are going to delay notifications for up to 48 hours and appreciate your patience and understanding as we grieve, heal, and begin to move forward together.”

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‘Person of interest’ detained over Brown University shooting is to be released, officials say

The hunt for a gunman who killed two people and injured nine others at Brown University continued on Monday after authorities released their sole person of interest on Sunday.

The person in their 20s was released after the investigation ended up going in a “different direction”, according to the mayor of Providence, Brett Smiley.

“We have not yet solved this case, but I am confident we are going to do that in the near future,” Rhode Island attorney general Peter Neronha said, adding there was only a “quantum of evidence which justified detaining this person as a person of interest”.

Students stand in front of the Van Wickle Gates after placing flowers following the shooting at Brown University. Photograph: Kylie Cooper/Reuters

The Providence police department said the investigation is “active and ongoing”, with local officers working with state police, the FBI and other law enforcement agencies.

A gunman – dressed in black – opened fire at the Ivy League university in Providence, Rhode Island, during final exams at one of America’s most prestigious colleges on Saturday.

Authorities are now searching for additional video evidence that could help them track down the suspect.

Brown University said in a statement that local police “have advised they do not believe there is any immediate threat to Brown or the local community.”

The identities of the two people killed have not yet been released, but the university has confirmed they were both students.

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The fight over California’s new congressional map designed to help Democrats flip congressional House seats will go to court Monday as a panel of federal judges considers whether the district boundaries approved by voters last month can be used in elections.

The hearing in Los Angeles sets the stage for a high-stakes legal and political fight between the Trump administration and Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, who’s been eyeing a 2028 presidential run. The lawsuit asks a three-judge panel to grant a temporary restraining order by Dec. 19 — the date candidates can take the first official steps to run in the 2026 election.

Voters approved California’s new U.S. House map in November through Proposition 50. It’s designed to help Democrats flip as many as five congressional House seats in the midterm elections next year. It was Newsom’s response to a Republican-led effort in Texas backed by President Donald Trump.

The redistricting showdown between the nation’s two most populous states has spread nationally, with efforts aiming to determine which party controls Congress for the second half of Trump’s term. Missouri, North Carolina and Ohio have adopted new district lines that could provide a partisan advantage.

Some plans are facing legal challenges, but the Supreme Court ruled earlier this month to allow Texas to use its new map for the 2026 election. The Justice Department has only sued California.

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The Supreme Court ruled earlier this month to allow Texas to use its new map for the 2026 election. The Justice Department has only sued California (Getty Images)

The U.S. Justice Department, joining a case brought by the California Republican Party, has accused California of gerrymandering its map in violation of the Constitution by using race as a factor to favor Hispanic voters. Republicans want the court to prohibit California from using the new map. Voters approved the map for the 2026, 2028 and 2030 elections. State Democrats said they’re confident the lawsuit will fail.

“In letting Texas use its gerrymandered maps, the Supreme Court noted that California’s maps, like Texas’s, were drawn for lawful reasons,” Newsom’s spokesperson Brandon Richards said in a statement. “That should be the beginning and the end of this Republican effort to silence the voters of California.”

New U.S. House maps are drawn across the country after the Census every 10 years. Some states like California rely on an independent commission to draw maps, while others like Texas let politicians draw them. The effort to create new maps in the middle of the decade is highly unusual.

Paul Mitchell, a redistricting consultant who drew the map for Democrats, is expected to offer testimony. The Justice Department alleges that Mitchell and state leaders admitted that they redrew some districts to have a Latino majority.

The lawsuit cites a news release from state Democrats that says the new map “retains and expands Voting Rights Act districts that empower Latino voters” while making no changes to Black majority districts in the Oakland and Los Angeles areas. The federal Voting Rights Act, passed in the 1960s, sets rules for drawing districts to ensure minority groups have adequate political power. The lawsuit also cites a Cal Poly Pomona and Caltech study that concludes the new map would increase Latino voting power.

“Race cannot be used as a proxy to advance political interests, but that is precisely what the California General Assembly did with Proposition 50 — the recent ballot initiative that junked California’s pre-existing electoral map in favor of a rush-job rejiggering of California’s congressional district lines,” the lawsuit said.

House Democrats need to gain just a handful of seats next year to take control of the chamber, which would imperil Trump’s agenda for the remainder of his term and open the way for congressional investigations into his administration. Republicans hold 219 seats, to Democrats’ 214.

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Rob Reiner has died at the age of 78. He and his wife, Michele, were found dead by apparent homicide inside their Brentwood, Calif., home on Dec. 14, TMZ first reported. According to multiple sources, the couple were killed by their son Nick, and their bodies were discovered by their daughter Romy.

Around 3:30 p.m., the Los Angeles Fire Department responded to a call to provide medical aid, the LAFD told PEOPLE. When they arrived, they found a man, 78, and a woman, 68. Both were dead at the scene. Sources confirm the deceased were Rob and Michele.

CBS via Getty; Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty

The Reiners had been married since 1989.

Reiner became famous for his role as Mike — a.k.a. Meathead — on the 1970s classic Norman Lear sitcom All in the Family. After leaving the series, he became a successful director, with iconic movies including This Is Spinal Tap, The Princess Bride, When Harry Met Sally… and A Few Good Men.

Reiner was born in the Bronx, N.Y., in 1947. His father was legendary comedian Carl Reiner and his mother was actress and singer Estelle Lebost. 

Rob Reiner in 1977.

20th Century Fox/Archive Photos/Getty 

Reiner didn’t know at the time that his future wife, Penny Marshall, was living across the street. She told PEOPLE in 1976 that the one time they came close to meeting was when she got Carl’s autograph in a grocery store; she kept it. 

The Reiners moved to Beverly Hills when Rob was 12. “Rob was independent very early, maybe too early,” Carl told PEOPLE in 1976. “He was racing to be me, I guess. I rocked him and I diapered him, but I didn’t give him enough of myself. He has a strong sense of making it on his own.”

He attended Beverly Hills High School, where his classmates included Richard Dreyfuss and Albert Brooks. Then he attended film school at UCLA.

The cast of ‘All in the Family’: (from left) Rob Reiner, Jean Stapleton, Carroll O’Connor and Sally Struthers.

CBS via Getty

By the late ‘60s, Reiner was making appearances on TV, with guest spots on That Girl, Batman, The Andy Griffith Show and The Partridge Family. He was hired as a writer for The Smothers Brothers show; one of his coworkers in the writers’ room was a young Steve Martin. 

In Los Angeles, he met Marshall, whose brother was director Garry Marshall. They fell in love and married in 1971. PEOPLE called the couple “Hollywood’s Hapsburgs” because of how many of their family members were in the business. Reiner also adopted Marshall’s daughter Tracy from a previous marriage.

Julie Kavner and Rob Reiner with their Emmys in 1978.

AP Photo

Marshall and Reiner both auditioned for All in the Family, though only Reiner booked a role. The sitcom, which ran for nine seasons, became an enormous hit; for seasons 2 through 6, it was the No. 1 show on television. Reiner received five Emmy nominations for his role as Meathead, winning twice.

“The show was a total collaborative effort,” Reiner told PEOPLE about the series, whose ensemble cast included Carroll O’Connor as Archie, Jean Stapleton as Edith and Sally Struthers as Gloria.

Just as All in the Family fell from its perch, a new show rose: Laverne and Shirley, starring Marshall as Laverne. “I love it!” Reiner told PEOPLE in 1976. “I’d like my family to be in control of the airwaves as long as possible.”

Rob Reiner in 1987.

George Rose/Getty

Reiner and Struthers left the show in 1978 after its penultimate season. Reiner was focused on developing his own projects as a writer and director.

He and Marshall also ended their marriage. She told PEOPLE in 1980 that it wasn’t a dramatic end. “We just asked each other, ‘Is this it? Are we happy? I don’t think so.’ So we decided to try a separation.” Their divorce was finalized in 1981. They remained on good terms until Marshall’s death in 2018.

Rob Reiner on the set of ‘The American President’ in 1995.

Universal/Getty

Reiner made his directorial debut with 1984’s This Is Spinal Tap, the mockumentary about a fictional rock band. The film was critically acclaimed, though it was not a box-office success. Once it was released on VHS, it became immensely popular. It was chosen for the National Film Registry in 2002.

Reiner’s next films were 1985’s The Sure Thing and 1986’s Stand By Me. The latter became one of the most iconic of the ’80s and featured future stars like Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman and Kiefer Sutherland. Richard Dreyfuss also appeared in a small role.

“That’s the one that means the most to me, that has the most emotional connection for me of all the films I’ve made,” Reiner told Slash Film in 2023. “I don’t know if it’s my best, but it’s the one that means the most to me.” 

Carl, Estelle and Rob Reiner in 2002.

Alex Berliner/BEI/Shutterstock 

In 1987, Reiner directed The Princess Bride, another modern classic. It included Reiner’s good friend Billy Crystal in a supporting role. Reflecting on the tongue-in-cheek fairytale and its legacy, Reiner told PEOPLE in 2007, “At the end of the day, The Princess Bride is about true love conquering all, and that’s timeless.” The movie joined the National Film Registry in 2016.

Then, in 1989, came When Harry Met Sally…. “I wanted to make a movie about what men and women go through,” he told PEOPLE in 2019. “I had been single for 10 years and was making an utter mess of my personal life. I always figured I would have to have a female voice for it, and what better than the most brilliant, incisive, observant female voice in America?”

Rob Reiner.

 Aaron Rapoport/Corbis/Getty

Nora Ephron signed on to write the script. “Sally became an extension of Nora, and Harry was like an extension of me,” Reiner explained. For Sally, they cast relatively unknown actress Meg Ryan. Rob had a harder time casting Harry.

He did not want to cast Crystal at first. “Whenever you do something this personal and you’re best friends, if it doesn’t work, it’s like, ‘Oy!’” Reiner told PEOPLE in 2019. “Finally, I said, ‘Aw, f— it; he’s perfect!’”

Reiner loved putting his family members in his films. His mother utters one of When Harry Met Sally…’s most famous lines: “I’ll have what she’s having.” His daughter Tracy plays one of Harry’s girlfriends, Emily the baker.

Rob Reiner in 2017.

Neilson Barnard/Getty

When Harry Met Sally… initially ended with Harry and Sally parting ways; Reiner changed the ending, in part, because he had met and fallen for Michele Singer during filming, changing his own attitude about romance. They married in 1989. 

When Harry Met Sally… was added to the National Film Registry in 2022. Ephron would go on to direct her own movies, and Reiner had a role in Ephron’s Sleepless in Seattle as Tom Hanks’ friend. 

His next films included 1990’s Misery, 1992’s A Few Good Men, 1995’s The American President, 1999’s The Story of Us, 2005’s Rumor Has It… and 2007’s The Bucket List. In 2024, he began filming Spinal Tap II. Reiner also appeared in films as an actor, including 1990’s Postcards From the Edge, 1996’s The First Wives Club and 2013’s The Wolf of Wall Street. On TV, he cameoed as himself on It’s Garry Shandling’s Show, The Larry Sanders Show, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, The Simpsons, Hannah Montana and 30 Rock. On New Girl, he played the father of Zooey Deschanel’s character.

Reiner and Singer welcomed three children together, Jake, Nick and Romy.

Rob and Michele Reiner in 2014.

Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic

His mother Estelle died in 2008, and his father Carl died in 2020. “He was my guiding light,” Reiner wrote in a tribute for his dad at the time. 

“I was lucky to have a man in my life who conducted his career in a way that was very honorable and decent,” he told The New York Times in 2024. “I saw how he treated other people, and I saw how he handled his fame. People have always asked me, ‘Did he sit down and give you advice?’ And I said, ‘No, he never gave me any advice. He just lived a certain way, and that was the best advice I could have gotten.’”

Reiner was an active voice for liberal causes. He co-founded the American Foundation for Equal Rights, which initiated the court challenge against California’s Prop 8, campaigned for higher taxes on cigarettes and was an outspoken critic of Donald Trump.

Talking about his philosophy as a director, he told The Guardian in 2018, “I want everyone around me to feel comfortable and happy. And then I can come into work and be like: ‘Hey, I get to spend today with these people today! Isn’t that great? Aren’t I lucky?’”

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By NOOR QURASHI, NEWS REPORTER

Published: 09:17 EST, 15 December 2025 | Updated: 09:28 EST, 15 December 2025

Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado has suffered a fractured vertebra after escaping the country via fishing boat.

The Nobel Peace Prize laureate was said to have sustained the injury last Monday during a high-risk sea crossing to Norway.

It comes a day after Ms Machado voice support for Washington’s pressure campaign against president Nicolas Maduro.

She had said in an interview she ‘absolutely supports President Trump’s strategy’ adding Venezuelan people are ‘very grateful to him’ as he is a ‘champion of freedom in this hemisphere’.

The injury to Ms Machado reportedly occurred due to severe weather onboard the vessel, including strong winds and large waves.

Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado (pictured) has suffered a fractured vertebra after escaping from Venezuela via fishing boat

This is a breaking news story. More to come 

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Nobel Peace Prize winner is treated in Norway after suffering fractured vertebra during her escape from Venezuela in small fishing boat

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Tensions were high in the North East on Sunday, as Sunderland and Newcastle clashed in the first Tyne-Wear derby to be played in the Premier League for almost a decade

14:20, 15 Dec 2025Updated 14:23, 15 Dec 2025

A brawl broke out after the match(Image: X)

Shocking footage has emerged of a mass brawl breaking out inside a packed bar following Sunday’s Tyne-Wear derby. Bitter rivals Sunderland and Newcastle faced off in the Premier League for the first time in nearly a decade.

An own goal from Newcastle striker Nick Woltemade gave Sunderland all the points at the Stadium of Light, sending the home fans wild with happiness. But there were ugly scenes at a bar where the match was screened.

Violence broke out shortly after the full-time whistle, as a video which has gone viral on social media shows around 15 people fighting with one another. The screams of women and children could be heard as things turned ugly.

A man can be seen falling over a table and onto the floor after a chair was thrown overhead. A woman wearing a Newcastle shirt then desperately scrambles away on her knees, as a wave of bodies comes towards her.

The same man picks up a table in retaliation, hurling it at two others men in tracksuits. Punches are then thrown as chairs fly across the room.

READ MORE: Newcastle owners’ stance on SACKING Eddie Howe as Sunderland loss sparks inquestREAD MORE: Alan Shearer blasts ‘rotten, pathetic’ Newcastle as Eddie Howe called out over Sunderland blow

Eventually, the chaos stopped. Some revellers left the room while went to the other side for safety, with the wails from the horrified children still going.

Mirror Football has contacted Northumbria Police for comment.

That was a stark contrast to the jubilation at Sunderland’s ground, as the hosts extended their unbeaten run in league derbies against Newcastle to 10 games. The match was, unsurprisingly, a fiery affair, with little goalmouth action but plenty of thunderous challenges.

“Proud and happy,” Sunderland boss Regis Le Bris told Sky Sports. “It was a derby and we were expected [to win] by our fans. This win is well deserved, we were mature and the lads were incredible.

A woman had to scramble away on her knees(Image: X)A man fell over a table after a chair was hurled(Image: X)

“During the first half tactically it was really good, just small details about the shape, then it was a question of being more clinical in the final third. We had good control and some times were more patient. It was a good level of maturity, so happy for the lads and it is good for our fans. It’s good for the region, the club, the fans

“We knew before it was a special game but we have to reset quickly as we have another tough challenge in Brighton in one week so let’s go again.”

Newcastle manager Eddie Howe, meanwhile, apologised for his team’s performance, adding: “It’s a horrible feeling, it’s very painful. It was not our finest game.

Punches were thrown between revellers(Image: X)The same man threw a table at two young men(Image: X)

“It’s so disappointing, we know our performance was not what it needed to be. But, no, I don’t think it will define our season. Nothing is lost today.

“It was a game of very few chances settled by a freak goal and we couldn’t create the openings we wanted. The effort was there but the quality wasn’t.

“We were disappointed with our creative output. We haven’t delivered. It’s difficult to take.”

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A father and son have been identified as the suspected shooters in the terror attack on a Jewish event in Bondi Beach which killed at least 15 people.

More than 1,000 people were celebrating the Jewish festival of Hanukkah on the beach on Sunday evening when two people opened fire on them.

Those killed in the attack range from 10 years of age to 87, including a rabbi and a Holocaust survivor, while 38 others have been injured.

One of the alleged gunmen has been named by New South Wales (NSW) police as 24-year-old Naveed Akram, while the other has been identified as his 50-year-old father Sajid Akram.

How did they carry out the attack?

Footage shows the gunmen start firing into the crowd from a footbridge that leads over a car park to the beach.

Sky News has identified from the footage that the younger gunman was using a rifle, while the older one was using a semi-automatic shotgun.

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1:02

What’s been said about the gunmen

Police commissioner Mal Lanyon said officers searched two properties in connection with the suspects and found that the father had six firearms licenced to him.

Follow live: 15 people and gunman killed in shooting

He said they were confident that those firearms were the six found at the scene of the shooting.

More footage from the scene showed that a man, later identified as 43-year-old fruit shop owner Ahmed al Ahmed, tackled and disarmed one of the gunmen, believed to be the son Naveed, before pointing his own weapon at him, which was empty.

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0:58

Moment ‘hero’ disarmed gunman

The footage then showed the disarmed shooter running towards where Sajid was located. Mr Ahmed was shot twice in the incident and required surgery, his family said.

The shooting is estimated to have gone on for roughly 10 minutes from 6.47pm. Eventually, the police took down the gunmen 75 seconds apart on the bridge.

Read more:
The victims of Bondi terror attack
Eyewitness accounts of ‘utter panic and chaos’

The father was killed at the scene by police, while the son was shot and wounded.

He is being treated at a hospital, according to police. Mr Lanyon said he “may well” face criminal charges.

In an update on Monday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told ABC that the suspect was in a coma.

He also said there were a range of IEDs and “explosive devices” in their car that they intended to use to “cause further damage”.

What do we know about their backgrounds?

Sajid Akram arrived in Australia in 1998 on a student visa and transferred to a partner visa three years later, before becoming a permanent resident, according to Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke. Officials have not disclosed what country he migrated from.

He had his gun licence for approximately a decade and held a gun club membership, Mr Lanyon said.

The younger suspect was an Australian-born citizen who first came to the attention of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) in October 2019, Mr Albanese told reporters.

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1:02

Younger gunman was part of 2019 ‘investigation’

“He was examined on the basis of being associated with others and the assessment was made that there was no indication of any ongoing threat or threat of him engaging in violence,” Mr Albanese said.

Mr Albanese said the suspect was investigated for six months over his connections to two people who later went to jail, one man for planning terror attacks.

He said he was not put on a watch list because the investigation uncovered no evidence that he was planning or considering any act of antisemitic violence.

Neither the father nor son have been on the ASIO’s radar since the 7 October Hamas attacks, he added.

What do we know about the motives?

New South Wales Police designated the attack a terrorist incident, and Mr Lanyon said a “significant investigation” would be led by counterterrorism and that “no stone will be left unturned”.

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3:42

Community mourns after attack

“When I asked for calm, that is really important,” he said. “This is not a time for retribution. This is a time to allow the police to do their duty. So police are responding to make sure that all of the community is safe.”

Mr Albanese called the massacre an act of antisemitic terrorism that struck at the heart of the nation.

On Monday, he said the attackers were “two evil people… driven by ideology” whose actions were the result of an “extreme perversion of Islam”.

NSW Premier Chris Minns said after the attack: “This attack was designed to target Sydney’s Jewish community on the first day of Hanukkah. What should have been a night of peace and joy celebrated in that community with families and supporters has been shattered by this horrifying, evil attack.”

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Australia’s spy agency has revealed that one of the men who carried out the country’s worst massacre in three decades was investigated for links to ISIL. Police say Naveed Akram and his father Sajid targeted Jewish Australians celebrating Hanukkah at the country’s most famous beach.

Published On 15 Dec 202515 Dec 2025

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Kruger rejects suggestions Farage schoolboy racism claims have damaged support for Reform UK in polls

In his Q&A, Danny Kruger was also asked whether he was concerned whether the Guardian reports about people at school with Nigel Farage saying they recall him being racist as a pupil, which have been widely followed up, and the party’s response to them, which has alternated between outright denial and suggestions that any comments were banter, or taken out of context, or misremembered, have damaged the party’s poll ratings. Support for the party has flatlined, or fallen, since the stories started appearing.

In response, Kruger rejected suggestions this was a problem. He explained:

The polling remains very, very positive for Reform. We are clearly well ahead of every other party. And that is sustained and consistent in every single poll that you see.

And I’m confident that that will continue.

But this is a battle we’re in. The right in politics is split. And I’ve said consistently, and I think the evidence is overwhelming, that the Conservative party remains a blocker to a centre-right government in this country. And the right thing for every Conservative voter or activist or member to do is to join Reform if you want to see change and get rid of this failing Labour government.

The Politico poll of polls shows the recent drop in Reform’s polling started on 21 November, three days after the first Guardian report was published. That implies there is a link.

Politico poll of polls Photograph: Politico

But polling experts are not convinced. This is what Luke Tryl, the pollster from More in Common, said on this topic on social media at the start of December.

Reform % was down across most polls last week. What is driving it? Farage school comments, Gill & Russia, Mahmood asylum reform? I suspect answer is simpler: Reform do best when its issues are in focus (migration,crime,lack of faith in politics) & less so when it’s the economy

Here is the clip from the Q&A.

‘Are you worried allegations about Farage’s time at school may have hurt your party’s ability to win over new voters?’@harry_horton asks Reform’s Danny Kruger

‘The polling remains very positive for Reform… and I’m confident that that will continue,’ Kruger says pic.twitter.com/bbi8oielf1

— ITVPolitics (@ITVNewsPolitics) December 15, 2025

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Tories claim resident doctors strike going ahead because government has been ‘weak’ with unions

The Tories have claimed that the BMA’s decision to go ahead with the resident doctors strike in England is a result of the government being “weak” with unions.

Commenting on the announcement (see 1.18am), Stuart Andrew, the shadow health secretary, said:

The BMA rejecting Labour’s offer just shows how weak this government is in the face of militant unions.

We Conservatives repeatedly warned Labour that by giving inflation busting pay rises last year they would set a dangerous precedent. And now we see the consequences of their capitulation, with more disruption, more demands and no end in sight.

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Updated at 14.25 CET

Resident doctors in England vote to go ahead with strike

Resident doctors in England will strike as planned this week after they voted to reject the government’s latest offer to end the long-running pay and jobs dispute, Denis Campbell reports.

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Kruger rejects suggestions Farage schoolboy racism claims have damaged support for Reform UK in polls

In his Q&A, Danny Kruger was also asked whether he was concerned whether the Guardian reports about people at school with Nigel Farage saying they recall him being racist as a pupil, which have been widely followed up, and the party’s response to them, which has alternated between outright denial and suggestions that any comments were banter, or taken out of context, or misremembered, have damaged the party’s poll ratings. Support for the party has flatlined, or fallen, since the stories started appearing.

In response, Kruger rejected suggestions this was a problem. He explained:

The polling remains very, very positive for Reform. We are clearly well ahead of every other party. And that is sustained and consistent in every single poll that you see.

And I’m confident that that will continue.

But this is a battle we’re in. The right in politics is split. And I’ve said consistently, and I think the evidence is overwhelming, that the Conservative party remains a blocker to a centre-right government in this country. And the right thing for every Conservative voter or activist or member to do is to join Reform if you want to see change and get rid of this failing Labour government.

The Politico poll of polls shows the recent drop in Reform’s polling started on 21 November, three days after the first Guardian report was published. That implies there is a link.

Politico poll of polls Photograph: Politico

But polling experts are not convinced. This is what Luke Tryl, the pollster from More in Common, said on this topic on social media at the start of December.

Reform % was down across most polls last week. What is driving it? Farage school comments, Gill & Russia, Mahmood asylum reform? I suspect answer is simpler: Reform do best when its issues are in focus (migration,crime,lack of faith in politics) & less so when it’s the economy

Here is the clip from the Q&A.

‘Are you worried allegations about Farage’s time at school may have hurt your party’s ability to win over new voters?’@harry_horton asks Reform’s Danny Kruger

‘The polling remains very positive for Reform… and I’m confident that that will continue,’ Kruger says pic.twitter.com/bbi8oielf1

— ITVPolitics (@ITVNewsPolitics) December 15, 2025

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Danny Kruger welcomes celebrity sex worker Bonnie Blue backing Reform UK, saying he won’t be ‘judgmental’

Danny Kruger was the Reform UK MP speaking at the party’s press conference this morning. An evangelical Christian, Kruger was an unexpected recruit when he defected to Nigel Farage’s party from the Tories in September. In his book Covenant in 2023, setting out his personal, political philosophy, Kruger argued: “The purpose of politics is the cultivation of the conditions of virtue, of the moral impulses that make good conduct, and that these conditions are the normative dispositions of a conservative society.”

So it was perfectly reasonable for someone to ask, at his Q&A this morning, how Kruger felt when he learned last week that Reform has been endorsed by the celebrity sex worker Bonnie Blue. As she explained in an article for the Spectator, she is impressed by the party’s policies on immigration and inheritance tax.

Kruger said he was happy to welcome the Bonnie Blue endorsement. He explained:

On Bonnie Blue I mean, listen, we’ll take votes wherever we can get them.

We know we want all the support we can get, quite like Bonnie Blue.

But we, you know, we’re not going to be fussy about that.

But listen, I mean, you know I’m not going to be judgmental about people who want to vote Reform.

In response to questions about Reform and racism, Kruger was also reluctant to moralise. Asked by my colleague Peter Walker about the more than 20 contemporaries who have come forward to say they remember Nigel Farage making racist comments as a pupil at Dulwich college, and whether he agreed with Richard Tice, who said the accusers were all lying, or whether he agreed with Farage, who at time has claimed people misremembered what happened, Kruger said that he and colleagues repeatedly answered questions about this and that he had “nothing more to say”.

And asked about a report saying that Chris Parry, Reform’s candidate for mayor of Hampshire and the Solent, posted a message on social media in February saying that David Lammy should “go home to the Caribbean” and whether this was racist, Kruger said that he was not aware of the details of this case and that this was not a matter for him. But he claimed that Farage has taken action to deal with racism in the party. And he described Parry, a former navy officer, as “a distinguished public servant” and said it was good to have his support.

UPDATE: Here is the clip.

‘We want all the support we can get – quite like Bonnie Blue’

Reform MP Danny Kruger was asked if he welcomes adult content creator Bonnie Blue’s support for Reform UK

‘I’m not going to be judgemental about people who want to vote Reform’ pic.twitter.com/TWuKu97qWZ

— ITVPolitics (@ITVNewsPolitics) December 15, 2025

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Updated at 14.14 CET

Reform UK announces plans to gut HR and comms departments as part of plan to save £5bn by axing civil servant jobs

Reform UK has now released a short document about what it describes at phase one of its plan to reform the civil service. It claims the civil service “has become bloated, overstaffed, and has failed to deliver what is expected by the British people”. It says that its plans would remove the equivalent of 68,500 jobs, saving £5.2bn a year once the cuts are in place.

This chart shows where the jobs would go. In HR and communications, Reform want to get rid of more than half existing posts.

Reform UK plan to cut civil service jobs Photograph: Reform UK

Reform also says it would increase the bonus pool for civil servants by 400% to attract “the finest talent” and to incentivise high performers.

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Updated at 13.00 CET

Armed forces chief says Russian threat to Nato will require ‘whole nation stepping up’ to make UK more resilient

Blaise Metreweli, the new head of MI6, is not the only defence and security figure giving a big speech today.

Sir Richard Knighton, who as chief of the defence staff is head of the armed forces, is also giving a speech, to the Royal United Services Institute this evening, and he will say the threat from Russia is so serious that the whole nation, and not just the military, needs to step up to increase Britain’s resilience.

According to extracts released in advance, he will say:

The situation is more dangerous than I have known during my career and the response requires more than simply strengthening our armed forces. A new era for defence doesn’t just mean our military and government stepping up – as we are – it means our whole nation stepping up …

Our armed forces always need to be ready to fight and win – that’s why readiness is such a priority.

But deterrence is also about our resilience to these threats, it’s about how we harness all our national power, from universities, to industry, the rail network to the NHS. It’s about our defence and resilience being a higher national priority for all of us. An ‘all-in’ mentality.

And that will require people who are not soldiers, sailors or aviators to nevertheless invest their skills – and money – in innovation and problem solving on the nation’s behalf.

As an example of what he means by the whole nation stepping up, Knighton will announce that £50m is being set aside to establish defence technical excellence colleges. They will provide courses needed to train staff for defence employers quickly. He will explain:

Five colleges in England, and others across the UK, will gain specialist status and major new funding to train people in the skills needed to secure new defence jobs, and help deliver on the ambitions set out in the SDR.

In addition to training young people for the new jobs of the future, this funding will also support thousands of short courses so defence employers can upskill existing staff quickly, providing the versatility that they – and we – need.

Knighton will say that the war in Ukraine has shown Vladimir Putin’s willingness to target neighbouring states, including their civilian populations, and he will say Russia has made it clear it wants to destroy Nato.

The Russian leadership has made clear that it wishes to challenge, limit, divide and ultimately destroy Nato, in former President Medvedev’s words, aspiring to “the disappearance of Ukraine and the disappearance of Nato – preferably both”.

The Ministry of Defence is describing Knighton’s speech as “rallying cry to the nation”.

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Danny Kruger, the Reform UK MP in charge of the party’s planning for government, is about to hold a press conference. There is a live feed here.

According to the Sun, the party is announcing plans to save £5bn by getting rid of 68,000 civil servant jobs.

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Yesterday the Labour MP Andrew Gwynne dismissed as “idle speculation” reports he could resign his Gorton and Denton seat in Greater Manchester as part of an Andy Burnham “coup” against Keir Starmer.

In their London Playbook briefing for Politico, Sam Blewett and Noah Keate suggest that, even if a seat like Gorton and Denton were to become available, Labour’s national executive committee (which is controlled by Keir Starmer supporters) would not necessarily let Burnham stand as the candidate.

Figures on Labour’s ruling NEC are still talking down the prospect that Burnham would make it past a selection board to become a candidate, particularly if it’s a seat outside his Manchester fiefdom. “Why would the NEC of the Labour Party spend £100,000 trying to get someone elected whose intention was to run against the leader?” as one official put it to Playbook. “That would be mad and completely self-destructive.”

But, in posts on social media, Rob Ford, a politics professor at Manchster University, questions whether, in practice, the NEC would feel strong enough to block a Burnham candidature.

‘Absolute power’ on paper doesn’t translate to absolute power in practice. Whether the NEC feels able to do this comes down to, I expect, whether vetoing a Burnham return would provoke a leadership challenge or a serious PLP revolt. I suspect it may well do.

If enough MPs were to say to the whips or Downing Street “If you do this, you have basically lost us for good” then an NEC veto becomes a pyrrhic victory for Starmer and his colleagues – yes they can do it, but by doing so they risk ending up in office but not in power.

Personally I think the bigger risk for Burnham is he either (a) loses the Commons by-election or (b) wins the by-election but then Labour lose the Greater Manchester Mayoral by-election that follows. Either one would seriously damage his brand.

By-election loss would damage his claim to be a vote winner, loss of GM would make his move to the Commons look like putting personal interest before the interests of the party (or of GM)

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Yvette Cooper calls for immediate release of Jimmy Lai after his conviction for sedition offences

Yvette Cooper, the foreign secretary, has issued a statement calling for the immediate release of Jimmy Lai after the media tycoon and pro-democracy campaigner was convicted in Hong Kong of national security and sedition offences.

Statement from Yvette Cooper Photograph: Foreign OfficeShare

Rishi Sunak to give evidence to Covid inquiry about econonomic response to pandemic

Rishi Sunak is giving evidence to the Covid inquiry this morning. The inquiry has moved on to the module looking at the economic response to the pandemic, and Sunak, who was chancellor at the time, is giving evidence all today, and tomorrow morning.

Yohannes Lowe is covering it in a separate live blog.

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Green leader Zack Polanski has highest approval ratings of all UK party leaders, poll suggests

Later today Zack Polanski, the Green party leader, is due to announce some councillor defections. He will do so buoyed up by some polling from Opinium suggesting he is the most popular of the UK party leaders. It says:

The Greens’ leader, Zack Polanski, is currently the most popular party leader with voters at net -1, with the Lib Dems’ Ed Davey close behind on net -4.

No political leader is in net positive territory with voters, with Keir Starmer most unpopular at net -43 (+2), while Kemi Badenoch is up four points at net -10 and Nigel Farage stands at net -12 (+2). [Changes from Opinium polling three weeks ago.]

Opinium also found that the Green party outperforms Labour and the Conservatives when voters are asked to rate the parties according to a series of positive indicators.

Polling on Green party, versus Labour and Tories Photograph: Opinium

The only indicator where Labour and the Tories beat the Greens is “ready for government”, although the Greens are only one point ahead of the Tories on “can be trusted to take big decisions”.

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Updated at 11.17 CET

Government announces extra funding for safe housing for domestic abuse survivors

Good morning. The news will be dominated by two foreign stories today: the ongoing response to the Hanukah killings at Bondi beach, which we are covering on a live blog here, and the latest talks in Berlin tonight on peace proposals for Ukraine. Keir Starmer is a key partner in this process, and he will be flying to Germany to attend.

But first he will have to spend 90 minutes at the Commons liaison committee taking questions, not on foreign policy, but instead mostly on “the Plan for Change: one year on”. These hearings normally don’t reveal as much as a lengthy interrogation of the PM on policy probably should, but there is shortage of complaints about the government’s record over the past year and there are plenty of interesting questions that could be asked.

Part of Labour’s plan for change is to halve violence against women and girls over a decade and this week we are getting a series of announcements about that. As Geraldine McElvie reported at the weekend, all police forces in England and Wales are going to get a dedicated rape and sexual offences teams by 2029.

There is more today. The government is announcing that councils will receive a further £19m aimed at providing safe housing for domestic abuse survivors as part of the violence against women and girls (VAWG) strategy.

PA Media has more details. It says:

Ministers said the funding would help local authorities offer victims access to a “fresh start” on top of £480m already pledged over the next three years for support including refuges and sanctuary schemes.

Shabana Mahmood, the home secretary, is set to unveil sweeping reforms to the criminal justice system this week as part of government plans to halve Vawg, which it has declared a “national emergency”, within a decade.

Around £500m will go towards the domestic abuse safe accommodation duty, which places a statutory requirement on local authorities to provide support to survivors and children in safe accommodation.

Measures can include access to housing in refuges or confidential locations, or security upgrades such as lock changes and alarms for people staying in their own home.

Homelessness minister Alison McGovern said: “This funding will help local authorities provide safe accommodation and tailored support, including refuges and sanctuary schemes, so every survivor can access safety, stability and a fresh start.”

Mahmood will unveil the VAWG strategy on Thursday, the last day the Commons is sitting before the Christmas recess.

Here is the agenda for the day.

10.30am: Rishi Sunak, the former PM and former chancellor, gives evidence to the Covid inquiry about the economic response to the pandemic.

Morning: Kemi Badenoch is on a visit to promote the Conservative party’s call for an end the 2030 ban on new petrol and diesel cars.

11am: Danny Kruger, who is in charge of Reform UK’s planning for government, holds a press conference.

11.30am: Downing Street holds a lobby briefing.

2pm: Keir Starmer gives evidence to the Commons liaison committee.

2.30pm: John Healey, the defence secretary, takes questions in the Commons.

Afternoon: Blaise Metreweli gives her first speech at the new head of MI6. As Dan Sabbagh reports, she will warn that assassination plots, sabotage, cyber-attacks and the manipulation of information by Russia and other hostile states mean that “the frontline is everywhere”.

After 3.30pm: MPs vote to overturn last week’s Lords defeat on the employment rights bill.

Afternoon: Starmer flies to Berlin for talks about Ukraine.

5pm: Zack Polanski, the Green party, speaks at a press conference to announce councillor defections to his party.

If you want to contact me, please post a message below the line when comments are open (normally between 10am and 3pm at the moment), or message me on social media. I can’t read all the messages BTL, but if you put “Andrew” in a message aimed at me, I am more likely to see it because I search for posts containing that word.

If you want to flag something up urgently, it is best to use social media. You can reach me on Bluesky at @andrewsparrowgdn.bsky.social. The Guardian has given up posting from its official accounts on X, but individual Guardian journalists are there, I still have my account, and if you message me there at @AndrewSparrow, I will see it and respond if necessary.

I find it very helpful when readers point out mistakes, even minor typos. No error is too small to correct. And I find your questions very interesting too. I can’t promise to reply to them all, but I will try to reply to as many as I can, either BTL or sometimes in the blog.

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Updated at 11.17 CET

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The bigger the boom, the deeper and longer the bust. After two decades of runaway growth, by 2020, China’s real estate bubble had pushed home prices to more than 17 times the average salaries.

A perfect storm drove the boom, including reforms in 1998 that shifted housing from state provision to private ownership, the migration of nearly half a billion Chinese from rural areas to cities and abundant credit from state banks.

A frenzy of construction transformed China’s skyline, families poured savings into apartments and property speculation became the norm, helping millions of middle-class households to feel richer and spend more.

The turning point came during the country’s first wave of COVID-19 lockdowns when President Xi Jinping’s government imposed sweeping new rules on how much debt property developers could take on. The result of the “three red lines” reforms was brutal. Real estate giants like Evergrande, Country Garden and dozens of smaller firms defaulted, with more than 70 developers either going bust or needing state-backed bailouts to survive.

More than five years later, the subsequent bust shows no sign of easing. According to Barclays, a British bank, more than $18 trillion (€15.38 trillion) in household wealth has evaporated as home values collapse. Meanwhile, construction activity — once a key driver of gross domestic product (GDP) — has slumped so badly that it now drags overall growth below Beijing’s targets.

Beijing censors private property data 

In a sign of just how sensitive the downturn has become, Chinese officials last month told private data providers to stop publishing home sales figures, cutting off one of the few independent windows into the current woes in the real estate market.

The move followed a 42% year-on-year drop in new home sales by the top 100 builders in October, the largest monthly drop in 18 months, according to China Real Estate Information.

Anne Stevenson-Yang, founder and research director of the Taipei-based J Capital Research, thinks this move helps mask the true price decline.

“You likely have a market-wide drop of 50%, which could go down to 85% before it balances out,” she told DW.

Giving an example of a colleague from the central city of Xi’an who was offered three homes for the price of one by a developer, Stevenson-Yang said it was the equivalent of a two-thirds drop on each property.

In Tier‑1 cities like Beijing and Shanghai, average home prices have slipped by about 10% from their peak, Oxford Economics wrote in September, with cooling demand for luxury units spurring even steeper markdowns. The worst effect is, however, felt in Tier‑2 and Tier‑3 cities, including Chengdu and Dongguan, where values plunged by up to 30%.

Half-built and empty apartments litter the skyline

Across China, the crash has left half‑finished projects, ghost cities and millions of households trapped in negative equity, sparking public anger and sporadic protests as buyers hope that Beijing will step in with stimulus measures to shore up demand.

“There’s still a lot of excess supply — up to 3-5 years of unsold apartments and housing, mostly in the smaller cities,” George Magnus, research associate at the UK’s University of Oxford China Center, told DW. “It’ll take a long time to clear, especially as the cohort of first-time buyers — 20-35 year olds — is now declining.”

Having climbed to 1.41 billion, China’s population is now slipping backwards, marking the end of decades of growth.

Demand for construction raw materials, including steel and cement, is downImage: CFOTO/CFOTO/picture alliance

China’s major economic growth driver evaporates

Real estate once accounted for up to a quarter of China’s GDP, helping growth remain in double digits for more than a decade during the 2000s and early 2010s. The slowdown has since dragged economic growth to around 5% last year — still impressive, but down sharply from the boom years due to the knock-on effects on the rest of the country.

“[Chinese] steel and cement prices and output are dropping, employment and [business] investment are weak — all of them collateral damage [from the property crash],” Stevenson-Yang told DW.

China was the world’s largest consumer of iron ore, copper, steel, and cement, much of it tied to construction. Exporters Australia, Brazil and Chile are among the global players suffering from the falloff in Chinese demand. As homeowners feel the pinch, the slowdown weakens household consumption, reducing imports of foreign luxury brands and autos.

Property long served as the cornerstone of household wealth in ChinaImage: Zhou Jianping/dpa/picture alliance

Targeted stimulus, no broad rescue

Beijing is keen to avoid another speculative bubble, so stimulus measures to prop up the real estate market have not been as generous as in previous downturns. The Chinese government stepped in after the 2008 global financial crisis, the 2015 stock market crash and during the pandemic. 

Rather than coming to the rescue this time, many China watchers believe the government is allowing home prices to deflate gradually so that policymakers can prioritize stability and long‑term restructuring over short-term stimulus.

“You get to a point that you can’t stimulate because the amount of money required would be too great — it would be inflationary,” said Stevenson-Yang.

Bloomberg reported last month that Beijing is, however, considering subsidizing mortgage interest payments, lowering transaction fees and offering bigger income tax rebates for borrowers.

Millions of Chinese homeowners are in negative equityImage: Lian Fei/Blue Jean Images/IMAGO

Prices could drop for many more years

Property crashes typically take around five years to play out. In the United States, the housing bust that began in 2007 took until 2012 for prices to stabilize. In Spain, the post‑2008 collapse also dragged on for roughly five years before recovery signs appeared.

Japan’s post-bubble collapse, from 1991 to the 2000s, is often cited as the most prolonged real estate crisis, with home values stagnating for more than a decade and never fully regaining their pre‑bubble highs.

Stevenson-Yang believes the Chinese property sector is on course for another “10 years of negative or flat growth,” while analysts at S&P Global Ratings believe the downturn could persist well into the late 2020s. Some forecasts hint at recovery next year or in 2027.

That’s a hard pill for ordinary Chinese families to swallow. Many of them poured their savings into apartments that have lost value, leaving them stuck with mortgages they can’t escape and homes they can’t sell. Worse still, property values may remain far below the dizzying highs of 2020 for the foreseeable future.

The story is the same the world over, according to Magnus, where homeowners often assume that prices will continue to rise forever.

“When the party ends and the cycle goes into reverse … the consequences can be very serious,” he told DW.

Edited by: Rob Mudge

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