When boyband Five went to prison: the police wanted autographs
One morning in December 2000 I was outside the office of the Official PlayStation magazine in Dublin, where I worked, when I saw Jason 'J' Brown, a member of the pop group Five, walking along the street. I approached Brown and asked if the band would like to do an interview for the mag. Brown was keen and gave me his tour manager's number to set it up. The interview never happened. That afternoon Brown and his bandmate Ritchie Neville were arrested and imprisoned following a fight in Temple Bar. Nine months later the band broke up under the weight of court cases, exhaustion and nervous breakdowns.
So it comes as a surprise to be seated in front of Brown, Neville, and their bandmates —
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The Guardian
2 hours ago
- The Guardian
Claims that UK spy agencies aided CIA torture after 9/11 to be heard in rare trial
The UK government's decades-long efforts to keep details of its intelligence agencies' involvement in the CIA's notorious post-9/11 torture programme hidden will face an 'unprecedented' challenge this week as two cases are brought before a secretive court. The cases, filed by two prisoners held at the US military prison at Guantánamo Bay, will be heard across a rare four-day trial at the investigatory powers tribunal (IPT), which has been investigating claims the UK's intelligence agencies were complicit in their mistreatment. Starting on Tuesday, the trial will place a spotlight back on what is considered one of British intelligence's darkest chapters, reviving longstanding questions about the extent of the UK's involvement in the CIA's kidnapping and detention of terrorism suspects in a global network of secret prisons known as black sites. The hearings begin six years after ministers shelved a judicial inquiry into alleged UK complicity, which David Cameron, the prime minister who ordered it, once said was necessary as 'the longer these questions remain unanswered, the bigger the stain on our reputation as a country'. The claims before the IPT have been brought by Mustafa al-Hawsawi, who is accused by the US of aiding the hijackers behind the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, who is alleged to have plotted al-Qaida's bombing of an American naval ship in 2000. Captured by the CIA in the early 2000s, the men were rendered between black sites, where they were systematically tortured and subjected to brutal and degrading treatment. Methods included what the CIA referred to as 'rectal feeding', a form of sexual assault according to medical experts. After several years in CIA detention, Hawsawi and Nashiri – who were among a group of 120 of the CIA's 'high-value detainees' – were transferred to Guantánamo Bay in 2006. They have been there since. Both men face charges carrying the death penalty, though neither of their cases at a special US military court have yet gone to trial. Lawyers for the men have told the IPT there is credible evidence to infer that UK spy agencies, including MI5 and MI6, unlawfully 'aided, abetted, encouraged, facilitated, procured and/or conspired' with the US in their torture and mistreatment. Working in secret, the IPT has been examining the allegations over the past two years. Led by a senior judge, the tribunal is an unusual court that can adopt an inquisitorial process and has unique powers to obtain classified information from the intelligence agencies. So far, the government has successfully prevented any findings from the investigation being disclosed, even to the complainants' lawyers. But the trial is expected to compel the government to confront, in open court, uncomfortable legal questions about what constitutes complicity in torture. 'This level of judicial scrutiny is unprecedented,' said Chris Esdaile, a senior legal adviser at Redress, an NGO that works with torture victims and which represents Hawsawi. 'Until now, efforts to lift the veil of secrecy and consider the full extent of the UK's involvement in the CIA's black site programme have been thwarted.' When Cameron announced the judge-led public inquiry into allegations of UK complicity in the mistreatment of terrorism suspects in 2010, he told parliament: 'Let me state clearly: we need to know the answers.' Nine years later, the government abandoned that commitment. This was despite parliament's intelligence and security committee concluding that British intelligence officers had been involved in 'inexcusable' activities, including hundreds of cases in which prisoners were mistreated, and scores of rendition operations. Publishing its findings in 2018, the committee emphasised its work had been 'terminated prematurely' due in part to obstruction by ministers and spy chiefs. It insisted there were 'questions and incidents' that 'remain unanswered and uninvestigated'. Among its findings, however, were key details that Hawsawi and Nashiri's lawyers used to persuade the IPT to investigate. Crucially, the committee had highlighted instances in which MI6 had supplied questions to be used in CIA interrogations of two other high-value detainees it knew were being mistreated. On the eve of the trial, evidence has now emerged that in 2003, while Hawsawi was held by the US in a black site in Afghanistan where he was repeatedly tortured, CIA headquarters sent a cable to interrogators, telling them Hawsawi should be 'pressed' for information about alleged terrorist activity in the UK. The cable, which Hawsawi's lawyers are understood to have shared with the IPT, was declassified by the US in 2017 but only recently identified by Unredacted, a research unit at the University of Westminster that investigates UK national security practices. Its director, Sam Raphael, who has spent years researching the torture programme, said the cable suggested there had been a 'clear interest in interrogating Hawsawi about specific UK-based operatives and plots at a time when he was being subjected to the worst kind of treatment'. He added: 'It raises an obvious and important question the tribunal should address: was British intelligence, which we know was directly and deeply involved in post-9/11 prisoner abuse, feeding the questions to the CIA?' A spokesperson for the government declined to comment on the claims before the IPT. The government previously said that it 'does not confirm or deny allegations, assertions or speculation about the activities of UK intelligence agencies'.
The Guardian
2 hours ago
- The Guardian
A free flat for a fortnight: the German city offering perks to fight depopulation
If you're considering moving to a German ex-communist model city that is trying to lure new residents with a range of perks, including free accommodation and rounds of drinks with locals, take it from Tom Hanks: Eisenhüttenstadt has many charms. While filming outside Berlin in 2011, the Hollywood actor and history buff took a mini field trip 60 miles east to what he called Iron Hut City and was instantly smitten. 'An amazing architectural place,' he said, pronouncing it 'fascinating'. He returned sprinkling stardust again three years later, even acquiring a vintage Trabant car he shipped back to Los Angeles. 'People still live there – it's actually a gorgeous place,' Hanks said. People do still live in Eisenhüttenstadt, perhaps better translated as Ironworks City – just not enough, say the city's administrators. The population is now less than half the 53,000 it counted before the fall of the Berlin Wall. An early 2000s guidebook described it as a Truman Show version of the GDR. But just as residents battled successfully after reunification to retain the giant steel plant the city was built around after the second world war, Eisenhüttenstadt is not going to wither and die of depopulation without a fight. 'Many people left us looking for work, especially the young,' mayor Frank Balzer said. 'We're at a point where we're trying to draw new people to secure the future of our companies and the attractiveness of the city.' The new Probewohnen programme will allow a handful of newcomers or returnees to try out living and working in Eisenhüttenstadt as it celebrates its 75th anniversary. It is modelled on similar schemes that have been successful in other shrinking east German communities and could be expanded if it bears fruit. Those chosen and their families will be given a furnished flat in the city centre for two weeks in September, opportunities to sit in with potential employers, and a recreation package including meet-and-greet Stammtisch evenings in a local pub as well as hiking excursions in the surrounding canal-laced forested region on the Polish border. Julia Basan, the municipal economic development officer spearheading the campaign, said her phone has been ringing non-stop since she announced it last month, with 500 people already submitting their requests ahead of a 5 July deadline. 'I even got an application in Pashto,' Basan said, adding that an American family of seven had also thrown their hat in the ring. She declined to identify the applicants on data protection grounds. Balzer said 'Germans and Europeans' with the right paperwork, language skills and job qualifications would have the best shot due to labour laws but no serious contender would be rejected out of hand. Both Balzer and Basan's families have roots in Eisenhüttenstadt stretching back to its beginnings as Stalinstadt (Stalin City) from 1953-61. It was the first city to be founded – in East or West Germany – after the Nazi period, and was born of a socialist vision of how work and family life could be blended in the right surroundings for the good of all. Axel Drieschner, curator at the city's Utopia and Everyday Life museum, said repeated attempts to diversify away from steel production had largely failed, meaning the erstwhile Soviet-style city risked becoming a ghost town if the plant closed. Eisenhüttenstadt has 'pioneer spirit in its genes – people were brought here to roll up their sleeves and build something new,' he said. 'The big question is, can we build on that tradition for the future with a positive vision. Perhaps with new pioneers.' Most of the cheaper Plattenbauten, or prefab housing blocks, on the city's fringes were demolished as their occupants died off or left town. But the elegant 1950s-era neoclassical buildings Hanks raved about, with their leafy inner courtyards decked out with playgrounds, have been handsomely refurbished. From nearly any vantage point in the city, the chimneys of the steel mill puffing out white smoke can be seen down the planners' clear street axes – a constant reminder of the enduring dependence on one sector. After communism, the plant was privatised and downsized, with staff counts plunging from 11,000 people to about 2,500 employees today. Multinational giant ArcelorMittal is now overseeing a transition to 'green' steel with a smaller carbon footprint – one more bid for Eisenhüttenstadt to reinvent itself for a new century. Asked about his fears around Donald Trump's swingeing steel import tariffs, Balzer, a Social Democrat, said most of what was produced locally went to eastern Europe or stayed in Germany. 'But our parent company could be badly affected,' he added. Sign up to This is Europe The most pressing stories and debates for Europeans – from identity to economics to the environment after newsletter promotion Daniel Kubiak, a scholar at Berlin's Humboldt University's Institute for Empirical Integration and Migration Research, said introductory schemes like the one in Eisenhüttenstadt offer a chance to break down stubborn prejudices. 'Many eastern German cities need these campaigns because despite all the problems, the image is usually worse than the reality,' he said. Kubiak said Eisenhüttenstadt's structural challenges were hardly unique, comparing them with those in the north-east of England, southern Italy and eastern Poland. But he said evolving ways of working offered an opportunity for a new generation of risk takers. 'In an age of working from home, the expansion of broadband internet and dynamic career paths, this (programme) could be attractive to young people who are so badly needed in east German cities. But the longtime residents have to do their part too' in making people feel welcome, he said. Precariousness and a pervasive sense among older residents that the town's best days are behind it have given rise to strong support for the far-right Alternative für Deutschland party, which won nearly 40% of local votes in the February general election. When the Guardian visited, a small demonstration under an AfD banner proceeded down the linden-lined high street, once named Lenin Avenue, with an elderly organiser denouncing the 'war mongers' behind the German government's arms shipments to Ukraine. Enrico Hartrampf of GeWi property management, which runs the bulk of local housing stock, said most of the town's older residents had never lived anywhere else. 'It means it can be hard for them to see how good we have it here,' he said. 'Tell anyone in Berlin we pay an average of €6.50 per square metre in rent and see what they say.' In a vicious circle, however, the AfD profits from fears of decay while creating an image problem for Eisenhüttenstadt, turning off some highly qualified potential applicants the city says it craves. A report by a Berlin public broadcaster about the Probewohnen programme last month drew dozens of comments on social media saying the anti-immigrant, pro-Kremlin party's firm foothold in town would put them off. Refugees like 19-year-old Shakib from Herat in western Afghanistan have helped staunch depopulation in Eisenhüttenstadt, particularly since the 2015 influx under former chancellor Angela Merkel that brought him to Germany. But they have not always received a warm welcome. 'There are a lot of opportunities and jobs and no crime – but unfortunately also a lot of racism here in the east, from the old and the young,' said Shakib, who is training as a paramedic in the staff-starved healthcare industry. Local elections are scheduled for 28 September, just after the Probewohnen period, and polls indicate the AfD could come out on top. However, many residents say that while there are plenty of disgruntled voters, they do not set the tone in town, which they describe as friendly, open and even optimistic. 'I studied in Berlin and Potsdam and decided to come back,' said teacher Josephine Geller, 30, adding she had seen a marked improvement in the town's attractiveness for educated women like her over the last decade. 'They've renovated a lot and it's a great place to live with children – not too big and not too small. You can reach everything on a bike and we love the lakes.' Sarah Kuhnke, 27, who trains nurses, said she also saw a bright future for Eisenhüttenstadt. 'There might not be a lot of cafes and bars but people from all over come to see our remarkable architecture and natural beauty,' she said. 'It's worth it to try living here.'
Sky News
4 hours ago
- Sky News
Snoop Dogg says he hopes to open burger van at Celtic Park
Snoop Dogg says he hopes to set up a burger van at Celtic's stadium and wants to serve fans himself. The US rapper, 53, has described the football club's supporters as "special" and the best fans in European football. And Snoop, who played Glasgow 's OVO Hydro arena in 2023, has also said he strongly identifies with the club's mascot Hoopy the Hound. He said a fast-food van at Celtic Park would become a foodie "Paradise" which is a nickname for the ground in the Parkhead area of the city. Snoop told the Sunday Mail: "I would love to bring a pop-up burger [van] to a sports stadium to show fans that food at stadiums can be good. "It's got to be Celtic Park, man. The secret to a good burger is the love in the preparation. The ground beef has got to be mixed with some secret spices, then add a good quality cheese and some maple-cured bacon. "The Celtic fans are gonna love it, and to make sure they are just right, Snoop is going to be serving them himself." But he said he would not be taking his culinary ventures to Rangers - Celtic's Old Firm rivals at Ibrox. The Drop It Like It's Hot star told the paper: "Am I going to bring my burgers to Rangers as well? Nah, I think we will give that a miss." The musician has previously spoken of investing in Celtic, similar to Hollywood actor Ryan Reynolds's involvement with Wrexham FC. Snoop has already published a cookbook and claims to have spoken to chef Gordon Ramsay about a possible venture in Glasgow together. The keen sports fan worked as a correspondent for NBC at the Paris Olympics last year, and has launched two youth football leagues, as well as being a vocal advocate for pay equality for female athletes.
