Strike comes amid congressional turmoil over legality of US attacks on suspected drug smugglers

The Pentagon announced on Thursday that the US military had conducted another deadly strike on a boat suspected of carrying illegal narcotics, killing four men in the eastern Pacific, as questions mount over the legality of the attacks.

Video of the new strike was posted on social media by the US southern command, based in Florida, with a statement saying that, at the direction of Pete Hegseth, the defense secretary, “Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel in international waters operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization”.

Latest effort to control communications comes as regulator claims apps being used to ‘conduct terrorist activities’

Russian authorities blocked access to Snapchat and imposed restrictions on Apple’s video calling service, FaceTime, the latest step in an effort to tighten control over the internet and communications online, according to state-run news agencies and the country’s communications regulator.

The state internet regulator Roskomnadzor alleged in a statement that both apps were being “used to organize and conduct terrorist activities on the territory of the country, to recruit perpetrators [and] commit fraud and other crimes against our citizens”. Apple did not respond to an emailed request for comment, nor did Snap Inc.

A 15-year quest ends with a monument, drawing crowds and nostalgia as Detroit embraces its cult-film past

The statue looms and glints at more than 11 feet tall and weighing 3,500 pounds, looking out at the city with, how to put it … a characteristically stern expression?

Despite its daunting appearance and history as a crimefighter of last resort, the giant new bronze figure of the movie character RoboCop is being seen as a symbol of hope, drawing fans and eliciting selfie mania since it began standing guard over Detroit on Wednesday afternoon.

Late-night hosts discussed outrage over Hegseth’s authorization of extrajudicial killings near Venezuela and Trump’s cabinet meeting naps

Late-night hosts tore into Pete Hegseth’s Venezuelan boat blame game, Donald Trump’s cabinet meeting naps and the annual Spotify Wrapped lists.

The Guardian’s picture editors select photographs from around the world

The imposing concrete buildings that defined British postwar architecture held a vision of the future – but many fell into disrepair. A new book finds the finest examples

Trump’s comments come after an hours-long meeting at the Kremlin between US envoys and Vladimir Putin failed to achieve a breakthrough

• Analysis: the Ukraine peace deal has stumbled yet again over an inevitable obstacle: Putin

The path ahead for Ukraine peace talks is unclear, Donald Trump has said, after what he called “reasonably good” talks between Russian president Vladimir Putin and US envoys which nonetheless failed to achieve a breakthrough.

After their hours-long meeting at the Kremlin on Tuesday, US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, were set to meet top Ukrainian negotiator Rustem Umerov in Florida on Thursday.

Waitrose has published its annual report on what goes into the middle-class shopping trolley – and the results are spicy

Name: Posh nosh.

Age: We’re talking new food trends here, so – new.

Carrie Cracknell, Nina Raine and Belarus Free Theatre’s Natalia Kaliada and Nicolai Khalezin share memories of working with the playwright and ‘guardian angel’

Natalia Kaliada and Nicolai Khalezin, co-founding artistic directors of Belarus Free Theatre

Late-night hosts discussed a bizarre televised cabinet meeting, dismal approval ratings and yet another Trump posting spree on Truth Social

Late-night hosts tore into Donald Trump’s five-hour Truth Social posting spree and his inability to stay awake during cabinet meetings.

Jack Lueders-Booth has been racing, repairing and photographing motorbikes for decades. His new book captures those people who crave the risk and romance of the road

Nesrine Malik and Jason Okundaye deliver your weekly dose of Black life and culture from around the world

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