‘Nobody has been harder … about Donald Trump than me,’ Maher says after fellow comedian compared his meal with US president to meeting Hitler

Bill Maher has responded to Larry David’s satirical essay in the New York Times that compared Maher’s glowing account of having dinner with Donald Trump to dining with Adolf Hitler.

Maher, a vocal critic of Trump in the past, had dinner with the US president and a group of his high-profile supporters, including their mutual friend Kid Rock, on 31 March. On an episode of his talkshow Real Time on 11 April, Maher described Trump as “gracious” and “much more self-aware than he lets on”, saying: “Everything I’ve ever not liked about him was – I swear to God – absent, at least on this night with this guy.”

Belfast rappers criticised by US conservatives and Sharon Osbourne for the pro-Palestine and anti-Israel content of their set

Irish-language rap group Kneecap have responded to criticism of statements they made about Israel during their Coachella performance on the weekend, saying that statements are “not aggressive” in comparison to Israel’s attacks on Gaza.

During their second set at the Coachella music festival in California on 18 April, the rap group, known for their political performances and support of Palestine, led the crowd in chants of “free, free Palestine”. Messages displayed on the stage’s screens during their set read: “Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people” and “It is being enabled by the US government who arm and fund Israel despite their war crimes.” Another read: “Fuck Israel. Free Palestine.”