Main section | News | The Guardian

Front page

Barack Obama declares Iraq war a success

President told an audience of soldiers at Fort Bragg that the final pullout after nearly nine years of conflict is a 'historic' moment
Guns for goalposts? Fifa mulls Brazilian plans for World Cup disarmament drive

Brazil wants to give free or cut-price 2014 World Cup tickets to people who hand in guns and use destroyed weapons to make goalposts
EU tensions between UK and France rise as Cameron agitates treaty deal

Nicolas Sarkozy reportedly calls British prime minister 'an obstinate kid' over EU summit veto

UK news p4

Housing benefit cuts defeated by House of Lords in welfare reform vote

Peers, including 13 Lib Dems and one Tory, voted by 258 to 190 to limit coalition's proposed penalties for social housing tenants
UK unemployment hits 17-year high

Youth unemployment stays above 1 million as private sector fails to fill jobs gap left by public sector cuts
Women told: your place is on the dole

With 1.09 million women unemployed in the UK, schemes to help them into work are now even more crucial
Transatlantic rowers rescued after boat is struck by 'enormous wave'

Briton Tom Fancett and Dutchman Tom Sauer rescued from life-raft by cruise ship 500 miles south-west of Canary Islands
Karen Woo, the medic killed by Taliban, helped up to 2,000 people, inquest told

Verdict of unlawful killing for British aid worker shot dead along with nine colleagues on expedition to remote area of Afghanistan

UK news p5

Roger McGough becomes new Poetry Society president

'Patron saint of poetry' takes up role as Arts Council restores more funding in wake of summer's internal battles
Green measures will not lead to 'astronomical' energy bills: analysis

Household energy bills will rise by £190 by 2020, but charges for renewables and energy efficiency measures will contribute just £110 of the increase, UK government climate advisers calculate

UK news p7

Stephen Lawrence trial: Gary Dobson's mother says he was at home all night

Pauline Dobson tells the court she could hear her son Gary in his room all evening while she had friends over for a meal

UK news p10

Prime minister's questions – or an unpleasant football match?

Simon Hoggart: As youth unemployment reaches new horrible levels, members of House of Commons are busy trying to trump each other first

UK news p12

Cameron puts £400m into helping families out of 'responsibility deficit'

The cash is part of the government's response to the summer riots and will fund a national network of family caseworkers
Theresa May to review stop and search in wake of Reading the Riots study

Home secretary says use of police tactic should be proportionate as Ed Miliband criticises her 'simplistic' response to riots

UK news p13

Met police must 'do things differently' after riots, says senior commissioner

Lynne Owens, chief of public order policing, has launched internal review but defends stop and search as 'essential tool'

UK news p14

Labour promotes NHS 'plan B' in last-ditch attempt to derail reforms

Doctors, nurses and midwives are urged to join campaign for 'stability plan' – Labour's alternative to NHS shakeup
UK sportswomen lament 'abysmal' coverage of women in sport

Top female players in bid to boost profile of sportswomen after BBC's all-male Sports Personality of the Year award shortlist

UK news p15

Leveson: Milly Dowler case is not the only reason for inquiry

Judge says evidence of tabloid misconduct he has heard so far dispels any doubt of the need for investigation. By David Leigh

UK news p16

Supernova explosion gives a glimpse of how ingredients for life are created

Scientists capture SN2011fe supernova in Pinwheel galaxy as it spews heavy elements necessary for life into space
Alcohol misuse 'significantly higher' in armed forces

Calls for Ministry of Defence to look at why 13% of military have a drink problem compared to 6% in general population

UK news p17

Evidence for unknown Viking king Airdeconut found in Lancashire

201-piece silver hoard from AD900 discovered by a metal detectorist in Silverdale, Lancashire
Glastonbury tankard returns home

Lavishly carved 16th-century oak cup was given to Arundells of Wardour for safekeeping during dissolution of monasteries

UK news p18

Russell Hoban, cult author, dies aged 86

Author of post-apocalyptic classic Riddley Walker as well as numerous children's books described himself as 'an addict to writing'
OFT investigates cost of motor insurance

Investigation will focus on provision of third-party vehicle repairs and whether it provides car owners with value for money
Fingerprint evidence 'based on opinion rather than fact'

Public inquiry into case of a former police officer accused of leaving her print at crime scene concludes she was innocent
Devon woman jailed for 168 days for killing kitten in microwave

Gina Robins, who put the pet in the oven after falling out with its owner, showed little remorse, says magistrate
Judge tells court reporters: 'Twitter as much as you wish'

Guidance from lord chief justice means journalists no longer have to make application to tweet, text or email from courts

UK news p19

Badger culling will go ahead in 2012

Caroline Spelman says there is no alternative but to approve culls, in an attempt to reduce number of cattle contracting bovine TB
Royal family to mark Queen's diamond jubilee with visits to Commonwealth

The Queen will confine herself to a tour of the UK, while Charles, William, Harry and other royals are dispatched abroad

Eyewitness p20

Eyewitness: Hanging tough

Picture:
Photographs from the Guardian Eyewitness series

International p22

Pakistan to impose Nato transit tax following 'friendly fire' troop deaths

Plan to tax all supplies sent through Pakistan territory is latest retaliation for soldiers shelled by US helicopter
Afghan woman jailed after being raped is freed after two years in Kabul prison

Woman sentenced to 12 years in prison for 'adultery' after reporting rape to police is finally released

International p23

Vladimir Putin expected to face questions over protests on live TV show

Russian PM hosts televised call-in show as he faces unprecedented challenge to his domination of Russian politics
Liège attack: police find body at Belgian gunman's flat as city mourns victims

City holds minute's silence as police say Nordine Amrani also murdered cleaner at his flat before the city centre attack

International p24

Indonesian punks detained and shaved by police

Police in Indonesia's most conservative province round up 65 youths at punk concert over perceived threat to Islamic values
Syrian rebels gun down eight soldiers in retaliation after civilian deaths

Men described as defectors from the armed forces ambush a convoy of four jeeps on the outskirts of Hama
Butter shortage puts the knife into Norwegian Christmas plans

Anxious citizens turn to online auctions and generous Danes as supply crisis imperils traditional festive baking
Chinese villagers in standoff with riot police call on government to intervene

Wukan village residents have barricaded themselves in over a land dispute in which one person has died

International p25

Pakistani president Zardari due to leave Dubai hospital

But it remains unclear when the leader will return to his country after receiving treatment for a 'mini-stroke'
Renault descendants demand payout for state confiscation

Grandchildren of Louis Renault begin legal battle to clear his name and counter allegations that he collaborated with Nazis
Kenya's Samburu people 'violently evicted' after US charities buy land

Around 2,000 Samburu families have stayed squatting on edge of disputed territory, says NGO Survival International

Financial p26

Focus DIY customers, unsecured creditors and staff get nothing after collapse

£600,000 available for £820m debt not worth paying after secured creditors got all their money back, say administrators
Superdry takes hard line on discounts as Christmas approaches

Faltering fashion retailer claims rivals are 'making a big mistake' by cutting prices
China imposes tariff on US car imports

Additional duties will be charged on larger-engined American cars with General Motors, Chrysler and BMW all affected
Stock markets slump as euro hits 11-month low against the dollar

Italy's crucial 10-year bond rate rises to 7.17% amid fears it will be forced to seek bailout

Financial p27

Betfair boss quits early with £6m of share options

David Yu will leave at end of year, instead of waiting for arrival of Breon Corcoran from Paddy Power in August
Unemployment is only stabilising in Chris Grayling's mind

Larry Elliott: The employment minister's Panglossian view of the UK labour market may be proved accurate, but I wouldn't bet on it
Lloyds board has handled Horta-Osório's return well

Nils Pratley: Sir Win Bischoff has even staked his job on it – shareholders are sure to remember that promise
Lloyds bank boss Horta-Osório returning to work after sick leave

Lloyds Banking Group chief executive, António Horta-Osório, will return to work in January after insomnia-induced collapse
Co-operative Bank named as preferred bidder for 632 Lloyds branches

If deal is concluded, Co-op would have nearly 1,000 bank branches and more than 11 million customers

Financial p29

Thomas Cook makes £398m loss, putting up to 1,000 jobs at risk

Almost one in six branches in UK may face closure as board makes big writedowns to restore balance sheet credibility

Financial p30

Logica to axe 1,300 jobs as firms slash technology spending

Anglo-Dutch technology services firm issues profits warning as it brings forward a restructuring that will cut 3.2% of workforce

Comment & debate p31

Bradley Manning deserves a medal

Glenn Greenwald: The prosecution of the whistleblower and alleged WikiLeaks source Bradley Manning is an exercise in intimidation, not justice
Perhaps Newt Gingrich filched his bright ideas from Europe

Ha-Joon Chang: Yes, Gingrich espouses child labour. But Sarkozy, Merkel and Cameron want to go back to the 18th century too

Comment & debate p32

Alex Salmond's broadsides mask tough questions about Scotland in Europe

Peter Geoghegan: David Cameron's 'non' is a boon for the SNP. But when it comes to the EU, it is Dublin that offers a salutary lesson for the party
Will Hollywood's Paradise Lost lead us out of financial hell?

Randeep Ramesh: Will Paradise Lost the movie offer up the same parallel of our times as John Milton's poem?
Obesity is about poverty and cheap food, not a lack of moral fibre

Zoe Williams: It's more palatable to blame diabetes on lifestyle than accept the fact that on a penny-per-calorie basis, a Big Mac is simply cheaper

Comment & debate p33

Diary

Hugh Muir: Is this another chore for Whitehall? Helping raise dosh for the Tories?
How James Murdoch's phone-hacking cover-ups went belly-up

David Leigh: The latest phone-hacking emails show James Murdoch has shifted his story repeatedly and sought to blame subordinates

Editorials & reply p34

Country diary: Strathnairn

Ray Collier finds that the first of the winter snows leads to a badger paw-print mystery
Corrections and clarifications

Christine Hemming | Bernard Jenkin | Vladimir Terluk | Scottish independence | Frozen Planet polar bears | Women in the military | David Luiz
Civil partnerships: questions for the church

Editorial: on civil partnerships the church has recognised the moral wrongness of discrimination while failing to embrace the moral rightness of equality
In praise of … the package tour

One of Britain's great institutions has become an endangered species with the news of Thomas Cook's business losses
Iraq: retreat from Baghdad

Editorial: America is leaving the war in Iraq, but it's far from over. Nor is the country or the region stable

Editorials & reply p35

Registration is an electoral issue

Letters: Boundaries should be drawn on the total number of constituents, not just the number of registered voters
Bringing back life to the high street

Letters: Town centres are in the state that they are in today as a direct consequence of Michael Heseltine and Nicholas Ridley "freeing up" the planning system
RBS managers and Labour in the dock

Letters: The eurozone is not the only crisis that UK plc is facing. Yesterday a report into the near collapse of the Royal Bank of Scotland cited poor management as a key flaw
Hurrah for Higgs

Letters: How nice to remember it was suggested by an Englishman
Ahead of our targets on climate change? Not by this measurement…

Response: We are not getting the full picture on emissions because the figures exclude imports, says John Barrett
Way to go in Serbia

Letters: Recent reports highlight the crippling impact caused by a lack of rule of law and endemic corruption in Serbia's business community
Hot and cold about Frozen Planet

Letters: It simply isn't possible to state under what conditions shots were taken without breaking up the story

Obituaries p36

Russell Hoban obituary

Prolific author acclaimed for his post-apocalyptic tale Riddley Walker
Richard Morant obituary

Actor best known as the doctor in Poldark

Obituaries p37

George Whitman obituary

Founder of the Shakespeare and Company bookshop in Paris

Reviews p38

Pahud/Bronfman – review

The Swiss flautist Emmanuel Pahud has got it, and he flaunts it. Shame about the repertoire, writes Guy Dammann
Mercy and Grand: The Tom Waits Project – review

Gavin Bryars and his 'circus band' celebrate the songs of Tom Waits alongside those of Kurt Weill in a gripping and moving evening, writes Tim Ashley
The Snow Queen – review

Tell Tale Hearts' method of letting the children help tell the story pays dividends in this familial, inclusive show, writes Alfred Hickling
Dublin Carol – review

Michael Billington: Conor McPherson provides a vivid portrait of alcoholic hell without ever quite, as he did in the acclaimed The Weir, offering an anatomy of Ireland itself
Copyright Christmas – review

Duckie's shop of horrors takes aim at the sickness of Christmas in this gloriously sinister production, writes Lyn Gardner

Weather p39

Weatherwatch: Measuring the most severe gales to hit the British Isles

Stephen Moss reviews those high winds which shook down the bridge over the Firth of Tay