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'Best student in the class' Greek man in his 80s back at school after life of toil

Everything I learn is interesting,\" says Vasillis Panayiotaropoulos. \"Being here opens the mind.\" It's 7.45pm. The bell has rung and the world of classical Greece beckons for the pensioner, who has neatly laid out his pencil case and books.

Turkish woman convicted under anti-terror laws for sharing Guardian article

A Turkish woman who shared a Guardian article on social media about a British woman killed fighting with Kurdish forces in Syria has described how she was twice convicted of \"sharing terrorist propaganda\" in an Istanbul court.

President elect's eldest son now key influence in cabinet choices

Donald Trump Jr has emerged as his family's most influential adviser as his father builds the most controversial cabinet in modern US history, sources say.

Ghana Fight to save country from scourge of illegal goldmining

Felicity Nelson recalls her 17-day detention in September vividly.

'It's make or break' Tusk hopes Polish election will end political gridlock

Donald Tusk's broad-based government in Poland is gearing up for a crucial presidential election next year, after a first year in office that has been marked by clashes with the current president, Andrzej Duda, as well as splits within the ruling coalition.

Nearly 500 drones aimed at Ukraine in the past week, says Zelenskyy

Ukraine's president said yesterday that the country had been targeted by nearly 500 drones and more than 20 missiles in the past week, and complained that Russia was using the country as \"a testing ground\" for its munitions.

Beijing is 'unnerved' by North Korea's closeness to Russia, claims US official

China is increasingly uncomfortable about North Korea's engagement with Russia and finds the growing cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow \"unnerving\", Kurt Campbell, the US deputy secretary of state, has said.

Study shows one in seven A&E patients are repeat visitors

One in seven A&E patients are repeat visitors with unmet medical needs who feel they have nowhere else to go, according to research that found most are 70 or over with multiple conditions or 50 and under with mental ill-health.

Minister says Russians are using AI to damage UK infrastructure

Russia and other British adversaries are trying to use artificial intelligence to enhance cyber-attacks against the nation's infrastructure, the cabinet minister Pat McFadden will tell a Nato conference in London today.

Brexit left 'humiliated' EU in lurch, says Merkel

Angela Merkel has said she felt \"tormented\" over the result of the Brexit referendum and viewed it as a \"humiliation, a disgrace\" for the EU that Britain was leaving.

Low pay risks 'talent drain' of artists from UK

Earnings for visual artists in Britain have plunged by 40% since 2010, with experts predicting a \"talent drain\" from the UK because EU countries offer more attractive working environments.

Wicked start for film based on Broadway show

Wicked had the biggest opening weekend for a film based on a Broadway musical, distributor Universal said yesterday, beating the global debut of Les Miserable.

Stage review Treasure cave moves to Lidl in this poppy urban panto

A wonky romance sits at the heart of this overhauled Arabian Nights folktale. Aladdin is a local lad, working at his mum's launderette in Shepherd's Bush market. Jasmine is an Indian princess who wants to be \"normal\" but is hemmed in by bodyguards.

UAE Killing of rabbi is 'act of antisemitic terror' - Israel

Israel said yesterday that an Israeli-Moldovan rabbi who went missing in the United Arab Emirates was killed in what it described as a \"heinous antisemitic terror incident\".

Hundreds flee northern Gaza as Israeli army orders fresh evacuations

The Israeli military has ordered the evacuation of new areas of northern Gaza, setting off a fresh wave of civilian displacements yesterday as intense airstrikes continued across much of the territory.

Media Minister urges boycott of left-leaning newspaper

Israel's government is set to punish the country's leading left-leaning newspaper, Ha'aretz, by ordering a boycott of the publication by government officials or anyone working for a government-funded body, and stopping all government advertising in its pages or website.

'Life in the midst of death' Palestinian artists seek help to display work in 'biennale'

Palestinian artists in Gaza plan to stage a \"biennale\" exhibition as an act of defiance against Israel's military onslaught and to focus attention on the plight of the territory's 2.3 million people after more than 13 months of bombardment.

Violence on social media feeds leaves teenagers too scared to go out, study finds

Hundreds of thousands of teenagers are afraid to go out because of the violence they see on their social media feeds, a major study of children in England and Wales has found.

Five dead and thousands left without power after Britain hit by flooding and storms

Heavy rain and thawing snow caused flooding across Britain this weekend as Storm Bert battered the country, with five deaths reported.

London auctioneers accused of selling looted antiquities

The auction house Bonhams is facing calls to withdraw a Roman antiquity from a London sale as it faces claims that it was looted from Turkey.

Relatives' battles 'Too often you feel like someone to be handled'

Gurpreet Singh Johal is sitting in a London hotel lobby the night before he is due to meet David Lammy.

Government announces plans to stop drink spiking

Thousands of bar staff will be trained to spot and stop drink spiking under government plans in England and Wales as prime minister Keir Starmer steps up efforts to tackle violence against women and girls.

Laverne given the all-clear after cancer treatment

Lauren Laverne, the presenter of Desert Island Discs, has said she has been given the \"all clear\" after undergoing treatment for cancer.

NHS bosses face lifetime ban for silencing whistleblowers

NHS managers who silence whistleblowers or endanger patients through misconduct face being sacked and barred from working in the health service for life under radical government plans to regulate thousands of bosses for the first time.

The $300bn climate finance pact is likely to be followed by equally bitter battles

Money will be 'mobilised' rather than provided - a nice distinction that allows for the inclusion of private co-investing

Popularity has its price as cities and beauty spots get ready to bring in 'tourist taxes'

Millions of tourists coming to the UK will soon be asked to pay local visitor taxes as cash-strapped councils seek extra money for services.

Mad, bad and open to the public: the museum dedicated to Byron

A museum dedicated to the flamboyant British poet and satirist Lord Byron is due to open in the northern Italian city of Ravenna, in the same building where he pursued an intense affair with the wife of an aristocrat and completed some of his most famous works.

Ministers opposed to assisted dying 'giving false impression', peer says

Senior ministers who have spoken out against assisted dying are giving voters a \"false impression\" about the government's position, a leading proponent of changing the law has said.

'Slippery slope' arguments Echoes of 1960s abortion debate

\"It is entirely possible that future generations will puzzle over how such a fundamental right could ever be denied to them.\" These are the words of David Steel, the former leader of the Liberal party and a Westminster MP for more than three decades, referring to this Friday's historic vote in parliament on whether to legalise assisted dying.

No alternative to raising tax, defiant chancellor to tell CBI

A defiant Rachel Reeves will rebuke critics of her tax-raising budget today, telling disgruntled business leaders that they have offered \"no alternatives\" to her plans.