How a rogue letting agency destroyed homes and caused hundreds of thousands of pounds in damage. Sirin Kale reports

Hajaj Hajaj was 79 when he rented out his house in south London, so his daughter, Kinda Jackson, urged him to use a reputable lettings agent for peace of mind. He hired a company called Imperial after being impressed by the professionalism of the agent, Shan Miah.

But, Kinda tells Helen Pidd, her father became seriously ill with Covid and almost died, and when he came out of hospital it was to find his wife had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, meaning he suddenly needed to pay for her care. He then discovered that during this time the rent for his property had suddenly stopped.

• Buffalo quarterback rewarded for MVP season
• Pittsburgh make move for Seattle receiver
• Davante Adams agrees to deal with Rams
• Garrett agrees new deal to stay with Browns

NFL MVP Josh Allen was rewarded Sunday with a contract extension worth $330m, with $250m of it guaranteed, which makes him among the league’s highest-paid players.

The Buffalo Bills announced the agreement, while two people with knowledge of the deal revealed the contract’s value to the Associated Press. The new deal adds two years to Allen’s contract and locks the 28-year-old in through the 2030 season.

The Guardian’s Paul Lewis and Rob Evans on investigating one of England’s most covert police units and learning that they were using the identities of dead children. Frank Bennett reflects on the impact of discovering that a police spy had stolen his dead brother’s identity to infiltrate two leftwing organisations, and to deceive a woman into a sexual relationship

The Undercover Police Scandal: Love and Lies Exposed is available now on ITVX

This episode first aired on 9 December 2020.

In 2018, Frank Bennett’s sister Honor received a hand-delivered letter from a public inquiry about their 18-year-old brother Michael Hartley, who had been reported missing at sea, believed dead, 50 years before. For a moment, they thought Michael had been found, but in fact, the letter revealed that their dead brother’s identity had been stolen by a police officer who had penetrated two leftwing organisations. Using this false identity, the police spy had deceived a woman into a sexual relationship and had been prosecuted during his deployment. Frank talks to Anushka Asthana about his childhood and the impact his brother’s death had on him and his family. Knowing that, years on, his brother’s name had been used by police has had a huge impact on his mental health, he says. Frank describes the police’s behaviour as “disgusting”.

• Kansas City wideout faced third-degree felony charge
• Worthy was taken in first round of last year’s draft

Xavier Worthy was released Saturday after a district attorney in Texas declined to pursue charges against the Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver following an arrest in which he had been accused of felony domestic violence.

Williamson County district attorney Shawn Dick told the Austin American-Statesman his office had spoken with witnesses and was not accepting the case at this time. He also said Worthy and his lawyers were fully cooperating with the investigation.

Francis pays tribute to ‘miracle of tenderness’ after doctors report slight improvement in his condition

Pope Francis has issued a message from his hospital bed thanking medical staff and volunteers for the “miracle of tenderness” that they offer the sick, as he continues his recovery from pneumonia.

After more than three weeks in hospital, the 88-year-old pontiff is responding well to treatment and has shown a “gradual, slight improvement” in recent days, doctors said.

Since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in 2021, they have banned education for women and girls beyond sixth grade and most employment

Strategy is not likely to earn Democrats’ votes, so Trump is leaning on Republicans to force it through

US House Republicans unveiled a spending bill Saturday that would keep federal agencies funded through 30 September, pushing ahead with a go-it-alone strategy that seems certain to spark a major confrontation with Democrats over the contours of government spending.

The 99-page bill would provide a slight boost to defense programs while trimming non-defense programs below 2024 budget year levels. That approach is likely to be a non-starter for most Democrats who have long insisted that defense and non-defense spending move in the same direction.

This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.

The Slovenian fought back from a horrible crash on the white roads of Tuscany to triumph again

From Istanbul and Warsaw to New York and Los Angeles, activists demand equality and the end of gender-based violence

Women took to the streets of cities across Europe, Africa and elsewhere to mark International Women’s Day with demands for ending inequality and gender-based violence.

On the Asian side of Turkey’s biggest city, Istanbul, a rally in Kadiköy saw members of dozens of women’s groups listen to speeches, dance and sing in the spring sunshine. The colorful protest was overseen by a large police presence, including officers in riot gear and a water cannon truck.

• Osasuna match postponed by death of Carles Miñarro Garcia
• Barcelona extend ‘heartfelt condolences’ to his family

Barcelona called off their match against Osasuna on Saturday night after their first-team doctor, Carles Miñarro Garcia, died. The game was scheduled to start at 9pm local time but an announcement was made shortly beforehand.

“FC Barcelona is deeply saddened to announce the passing of first-team doctor Carles Miñarro Garcia this evening,” the club statement said. “For this reason, the match between FC Barcelona and CA Osasuna has been postponed to a later date. The FC Barcelona board of directors and all staff extend our heartfelt condolences to his family and friends during this difficult time.”

The two women were said to have been stargazing with three male travellers when the incident took place

Two men have been arrested in India in connection with the alleged rape of an Israeli and a local woman.

The Israeli woman and her homestay operator were said to be stargazing with three male travellers in Koppal town in southern Karnataka state on Thursday night.

Guardian investigative editor Paul Lewis and investigative reporter Rob Evans detail their decade-long investigation into undercover policing. At least 139 officers were given fake identities to monitor the inner workings of more than 1,000 political groups. Jessica, a former member of one of those groups, describes the impact of discovering that a man with whom she began a relationship in 1992 was actually an undercover cop

The Undercover Police Scandal: Love and Lies Exposed is available on ITVX

This episode first aired on 8 December 2020.

In 2010, Mark Stone, an environmental activist, was on holiday with his girlfriend when she discovered a passport for a man called Mark Kennedy in the glove box of their van. The man she was in a relationship with was actually a police officer who for seven years had lived deep undercover at the heart of the environmental protest movement. When the story became public, senior officers tried to quell the outcry, insisting that Kennedy was merely a rogue officer. In fact, the opposite was true. Kennedy was just one of many footsoldiers who had been routinely infiltrating political groups, mostly on the left, since as far back as 1968.