Labour’s left-wing factions have united behind a call for a “major reset” – warning the party will “only survive if it chooses a different path”.

The statement, from a coalition of MPs, councillors and activists, comes after a major intervention from Angela Rayner, in which she criticised Sir Keir Starmer’s “un-British” immigration reforms and said Labour’s “very survival” is “at stake”.

The former deputy prime minister was speaking at a reception hosted by Mainstream, a centre-left organisation which advocates for practical left policies and is closely aligned with Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham.

Her language has been echoed by a new “Reset the Labour Party” statement, which calls for a change of course in the wake of the Gorton and Denton by-election disaster and potentially catastrophic local elections in May.

The statement, launching with an official website this evening and seen by Sky News, calls for bolder ideas and a more democratic culture within the party, hitting out at the “pandering to the far right” from the “top down” leadership.

It is supported by Mainstream as well as Momentum – the organisation that spearheaded Corbynmania.

The campaign also has the support of a broad group of Labour MPs, ranging from those in the Socialist Campaign Group like John McDonnell and Richard Burgon, to centre left figures from the Tribune group and Mainstream – such as Simon Opher and Paula Barker.

The collaboration is significant, as there have historically been clashes between Labour’s left and centre-left.

It is part of an attempt for progressive figures to gain seats on the party’s ruling National Executive Committee (NEC), which is facing elections later this year.

Highlighting Labour’s “growing electoral threat” the statement says: “Members from across our party’s progressive majority are uniting behind a call to urgently reset the Labour Party. The upcoming National Executive Committee elections are an opportunity to do just that.

“We stand against the insular, centralising approach of the current leadership that refuses to draw on the energy, talent and ideas of our whole movement, the continued underfunding of public services and local government, and the pandering to the talking points of the far right.”

Internal elections

Labour’s NEC sets the overall strategic direction of the party and has an influence on party rules and discipline and candidate selection.

Nine Constituency Labour Party (CLP) representatives are up for election on the body, with Mainstream and Momentum backing a different set of three candidates.

While this is not a joint slate, all of their candidates have signed the statement, as well as independent candidates.

It is hoped this will signal to members common ground between those standing from the broad left, who will be going up against those backed by Labour to Win – a pro-leadership group.

‘Choose a different path’

The NEC elections are not until the summer, but in going public now it signals the deep-rooted anger within many corners of the party about the direction of travel.

Last month’s Gorton and Denton by-election saw Labour come third, behind the Greens and Reform UK in a seat they had controlled for 100 years, after the NEC blocked Mr Burnham from standing.

The party has also lost to Reform UK in Runcorn, and to Plaid Cymru in Caerphilly.

With support for Labour collapsing across the country, there is growing speculation Sir Keir could face a leadership challenge following May’s local elections, which insiders expect to be a “bloodbath”.

The reset statement warns Labour can “only survive…if we choose a different path”, with policies such as wealth taxes and taking essential services into democratic ownership.

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It also calls for rebuilding democracy within the party, saying that means restoring “genuinely open” candidate selections, “ending the suspension of MPs for legitimate scrutiny of the government” and moving away from “top-down control”.

And it also warns members are giving up on Labour in “anger or disappointment”, and rebuilding membership “must be a priority for Labour’s success”.

The statement has been signed by councillors across the country, while other MPs names include jury trial critic Charlotte Nichols, Open Labour’s Alex Sobel and welfare rebels Chris Hinchliff and Neil Duncan-Jordan.

Rayner warns Labour ‘running out of time’

Ms Rayner – often tipped as a frontrunner to replace the prime minister – is not one of the signatories, but last night she made similar remarks as she praised Mainstream’s “radical realism”.

She said the “very survival of the Labour Party is at stake” and that the government is “running out of time” to deliver change as people have the impression it has been “defending the status quo”.

As well as criticising migration reforms, she said the government must pursue a relentless battle on the cost of living if it wants to emulate the success of centre-left governments in Norway and Canada that have bounced back to win amid rising populism.

Number 10 has since declined to give the migration reforms its full backing, but insisted today that Sir Keir “shares an impatience” to deliver change and is “firmly on the side of working people”.

Meanwhile the prime minister has previously vowed to face down any leadership challenge and insists he will lead Labour into the next election.

Lone wolf attackers inspired by extremist ideologies pose the most likely terrorist threat to the U.S. homeland, according to the 2026 Annual Threat Assessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community.

The 34-page document was released by Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard Wednesday, who testified at a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on worldwide threats alongside other key military and Trump administration officials.

The 2025 threat assessment similarly warned that terrorist threats to the U.S. increasingly come from individuals acting alone or in small groups.

The new report says ISIS and al-Qaeda remain intent on targeting the United States, but their ability to plan and execute complex attacks has been significantly degraded over time.

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Officials warn that individuals radicalized online are increasingly carrying out or attempting attacks with little direction, often using simple tactics and requiring minimal coordination.

“Jihadist narratives that address personal grievances may be attractive to individuals seeking validation of violent desires or moral clarity, even if they lack familiarity with Islam. Such content normalizes intolerance of other beliefs and persons and attracts followers to Islamism,” the threat report reads in part. “Anti-Western and anti-Semitic narratives probably influence Muslim youths facing integration challenges or who are disaffected by the West’s role abroad, including with the Israel–HAMAS conflict.”

It notes that al-Qaeda and ISIS have expanded in recent years primarily through local conflicts in Africa, where some of their largest and most violent affiliates are now based.

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The intelligence community is continuing to monitor developments in the Middle East, particularly how the terrorism landscape may evolve following Operation Epic Fury, according to the assessment.

DNI Gabbard told lawmakers on Capitol Hill that stricter border enforcement has helped limit terrorist access to the U.S. and lowered the risk of potential attacks.

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“Since January, U.S. officials have only had a handful of encounters at our borders with individuals associated with terrorist groups. This is a positive trend,” she said. “However, our interagency coordinated efforts to continue to identify, locate, and remove known or suspected terrorists who may already be in the United States continues with vigilance.”

“In 2025, there were at least three Islamist terrorist attacks in the United States. Law enforcement disrupted at least 15 US-based Islamist terrorist plotters. Roughly half of last year’s disrupted plotters had some online contact with Islamist terrorists,” Gabbard added.

A DJ and his foster sister who sexually abused young girls they met at discos have been given more time in jail after it was found their previous convictions were merely “the tip of the iceberg”.

Darren Gibson, 56, and Rebecca Kirton, 41, were jailed for 24 years and 12 years respectively in 2024 for grooming and abusing three teenage girls.

But on Wednesday at Leeds Crown Court, Gibson and Kirton were given more jail time for sexual offences including rape, attempted rape and indecent assault, as 12 more victims were discovered after their first convictions were reported in the media.

Gibson was jailed for an additional 12 years after pleading guilty to 34 offences against 12 girls, aged between 10 and 15, between 1997 and 2005.

Judge Mushtaq Khokhar said Gibson was a paedophile who used his job to gain access to young girls, adding: “It is rare to come across such a prolific offender as you.”

Kirton was jailed for an additional seven years and six months after pleading guilty to 14 sexual offences between 2002 and 2004.

She was also jailed for an additional six months for contempt of court after refusing to attend the sentencing hearing.

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Senior crown prosecutor Julie Moss said: “Darren Gibson systematically preyed on young girls over several years, using his position as a DJ at local children’s events to target young children and take advantage of trust placed in him by the local community to cover up his criminality.

“Rebecca Kirton was not a passive bystander. She actively facilitated Gibson’s abuse, helped him access his victims and frequently carried out the abhorrent abuse herself.

“Gibson thought only of himself and his own sexual gratification through all of his offending.

“Both he and Kirton showed complete disregard for the devastating and lasting impact of their actions on very young and clearly vulnerable children.”

Several members of Team USA didn’t appear to want anything to do with a second-place finish in the 2026 World Baseball Classic.

The United States squad was given silver medals after falling to Venezuela, 3-2, in the WBC final on Tuesday in Miami. However, shortly after receiving them from MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, several players stripped them off.

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Mason Miller could hardly wait to take his medal off, doing so before he even shared an embrace with manager Mark DeRosa. Kyle Schwarber waited a bit longer, taking it off just as he got to the steps of his dugout.

Logan Webb and Garrett Whitlock were also captured with their medals in their hands, rather than around their necks.

This was Miller’s WBC debut, while Schwarber was on the team that lost in the 2023 final to Japan, also in Miami.

Eduardo Rodriguez, the soon-to-be 33-year-old Venezuelan left-hander, had thrown to a 5.02 ERA over the past two seasons with the Arizona Diamondbacks, but you wouldn’t think so , the way he was living on the corners and keeping Team USA off balance throughout his 4.1-inning start. Team USA’s offense continued to get blanked until the eighth inning, when Bryce Harper tied the game with a two-out, two-run homer.

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But Venezuela didn’t skip a beat in the top of the ninth inning, as Garrett Whitlock, who had been great in a high-leverage role earlier in the tournament, didn’t look like his usual self. He issued a walk to start the inning, and after Venezuela’s pinch-runner, Javier Sanoja, stole second base, Eugenio Suarez smashed a changeup to left-center field for a go-ahead double to retake the lead.

Daniel Palencia got the call in the bottom of the ninth for Venezuela after closing out Italy, and the Chicago Cubs agreed this would be the only moment he could throw again. 

He made the best of the opportunity, striking out Kyle Schwarber, getting Gunnar Henderson to pop up to Maikel Garcia, and striking out Roman Anthony to seal an emotional victory for Venezuela.

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Venezuela won its first World Baseball Classic title in the short history of the event, which began in 2006. For the U.S., it was its second consecutive loss in the title game after winning it all in 2017.

Fox News’ Scott Thompson contributed to this report.

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A reported airstrike on a hospital in Afghanistan that allegedly left hundreds dead is drawing growing scrutiny, not only over the strike itself but over what critics describe as a muted international response.

Afghanistan’s Taliban-led government said more than 400 people were killed and hundreds were wounded after a strike hit the Omid Hospital, a major drug rehabilitation facility in Kabul, according to Reuters. Civilians, including children, also have been killed in escalating cross-border strikes in Pakistan, The Associated Press reported. 

The casualty figures have not been independently verified.

The strike comes amid a rapidly escalating military campaign between Pakistan and Afghanistan that has intensified over the past three weeks.

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Cross-border airstrikes and clashes have expanded across multiple provinces, with Pakistan targeting what it says are bases of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a militant group responsible for attacks inside Pakistan and designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S. The Taliban government has accused Islamabad of violating Afghanistan’s sovereignty.

At a United Nations briefing Wednesday, a U.N. spokesperson said the conflict has now entered its third week, with widespread civilian impact. More than 115,000 people have been displaced, more than 300 shelters damaged or destroyed, and at least 25 health facilities closed or disrupted due to the fighting, according to U.N. humanitarian agencies.

Pakistan has denied targeting a hospital, saying the operation struck militant infrastructure.

“Since the beginning of this counterterrorism campaign, Pakistan has sought to defend and protect the people of Pakistan … by targeting terrorists and terrorist infrastructure that are incubated and nurtured by the Afghan Taliban,” Prime Minister’s spokesperson Mosharraf Zaidi told Fox News Digital.

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Zaidi said the strike targeted weapons and ammunition at Camp Phoenix in Kabul and insisted, “There are no civilian hospitals in Camp Phoenix,” adding that reports of a rehabilitation facility being hit may be due to “secondary explosions” from stored weapons.

The United Nations on Wednesday, two days after the attack, condemned the reported strike, with Secretary-General António Guterres, through a spokesperson, “strongly condemning” an airstrike that “reportedly resulted in the death (and) injury of civilians at a hospital,” and calling for an independent investigation.

Still, some analysts say the response does not match the scale of the incident.

“UN officials swiftly condemned U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran’s regime as unlawful ‘aggression’ … Yet Pakistan’s airstrike on Kabul’s Omid Hospital — killing over 400 civilians — has drawn only a belated ‘strong condemnation’ … and standard pleas for ‘de-escalation’,” Executive Director of UN Watch Hillel Neuer told Fox News Digital.

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“This restrained response — no personal outrage from Guterres, no emergency session naming Pakistan, and no equivalent chorus from UN rapporteurs, or agencies like WHO, UN Women, and UNICEF — reveals rank hypocrisy,” he said. “When hundreds of vulnerable Afghans die in a hospital, the UN offers measured words. Yet when the U.S. or Israel can be blamed — justifiably or not — the condemnation is immediate and overwhelming. When some victims matter far more than others, the UN reveals its cynical political agenda. This double standard doesn’t uphold human rights, it erodes them.” 

Human rights lawyer Arsen Ostrovsky echoed that criticism in a post on X, calling the strike “an absolute massacre,” while noting what he described as a lack of global outrage: “World outrage? Zero. Could barely muster p17 in the newspaper here.”

MS NOW is cutting an hour off “Morning Joe” as part of a major programming overhaul at the liberal cable network.

Starting in June, the 9 a.m. ET hour of “Morning Joe” will be replaced with a new program hosted by Stephanie Ruhle. MS NOW insisted Wednesday the move will “further strengthen MS NOW’s lineup of trusted journalists and programming,” although cutting the program hosted by Joe Scarborough, Mika Brzezinski, and Willie Geist raises eyebrows across the media industry. 

An MS NOW insider told Fox News Digital that Scarborough and Brzezinski, who are married, were tired of the physical toll that hosting four hours of television took and wanted to dial it back. 

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“Morning Joe” was previously only three hours anyway, but it added the 9 a.m. ET hour in 2022 in order to help the network. But the extra hour leaves Scarborough and Brzezinski “beaten up for the whole day,” according to the insider. 

“It’s a lot,” they added. “The physical toll is extraordinary.”

The insider, who is close to “Morning Joe,” said that Scarborough even thought about walking away and “probably would have” if Kamala Harris won the 2024 presidential election. Instead, they “stuck around” after President Donald Trump prevailed but will now “slow down, pull back a little” by shedding the extra hour. 

Scarborough is a former GOP congressman who became an independent after Trump first took office in 2017.

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The “Morning Joe” anchors have launched a newsletter and plan to spend extra time on podcasts and live events. 

“Four hours of linear TV, in 2026, it just doesn’t make sense,” the insider said. 

A second MS NOW insider suggested Scarborough and Brzezinski never cared for the 9 a.m. timeslot anyway. 

“On one hand, they’re losing real estate and a little influence. On the other hand, I don’t think they really like that hour,” the second insider told Fox News Digital. “I don’t think they’re probably too broken up about it.”

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This isn’t the first time an MS NOW — formerly MSNBC — personality wanted a reduced workload, as primetime host Rachel Maddow famously cut her show to once per week in 2022. 

Meanwhile, Ruhle had been wanting to get off nights for a long time, according to the first insider, and will take over the 9 a.m. ET hour. Ali Velshi will host “The 11th Hour” once Ruhle shifts to mornings. 

Other MS NOW changes include Alicia Menedez landing a new daytime program, Luke Russert joining “The Weeknight,” Jacob Soboroff anchoring a weekend show and Chris Jansing being named chief political reporter. 

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Ana Cabrera, who joined the network in 2023 from CNN and had served as a dayside host, announced Wednesday she was leaving MS NOW.