Benedict Garman
@benedictgarman.com
Investigative journalist, currently with BBC Verify.
In Gaza, Israel's military is operating up to 1.5km beyond the line it said it'd withdraw to after October's ceasefire - the Yellow Line - and moving the concrete blocks meant to mark it as it goes w/ @emmapengelly.bsky.social www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Israel building new land barriers in Gaza and displacing families
Experts have told the BBC that the earthworks suggest Israel is planning for a long-term internal border.
bbc.co.uk
“If the government decides, very quickly, to bulldoze the Statue of Liberty... nothing can be done?” asked Judge Patricia Millett. “I think that’s right, yes,” responded DOJ attorney Yaakov Roth www.politico.com/news/2026/06...
Trump could also tear down the Statue of Liberty, DOJ argues in defense of White House ballroom
Justice Department lawyers said the courts are powerless to intervene in the dispute over the former East Wing.
politico.com
Solar to surpass coal in Texas power generation in 2026, EIA says reut.rs/42txeh0
Solar to surpass coal in Texas power generation in 2026, EIA says
Annual electric power generation from utility-scale solar will surpass that from coal for the first time in 2026 within the electricity grid, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said in its latest Short-Term Energy Outlook on Wednesday.
reut.rs
EXC: An RAF airport was used by a private plane linked to Jeffrey Epstein as late as 2013, DoJ files show Pressure is growing on MoD to reveal info on Epstein use of military airbases w/ @reporterrwright.ft.com giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...
Jet linked to Epstein landed at RAF base in 2013, documents show
MPs urge Ministry of Defence to publish any information it has about the use of air bases by the convicted sex offender
giftarticle.ft.com
Accountability: "The board swiftly voted to issue a letter of reprimand to America PAC." That'll teach em. newrepublic.com/post/206857/...
Turns Out There Was Voter Fraud in Georgia—by Elon Musk
The state board of elections found Musk’s PAC sent prefilled ballot applications.
newrepublic.com
Bagging profits. Bags now account for £16bn - 15% - of European airline revenue
We’ve seen the same question come up repeatedly in response to this post. Prosecutors have a duty under ethical rules to disclose to judges not only the laws that support their position, but also adverse authority that undermines it.
NEW: Trump Says He Will Now Raise Global Tariff to 15 Percent www.nytimes.com/2026/02/21/b...
Trump Says He Will Raise Global Tariff to 15 Percent
nytimes.com
There's got to be a better alternative to paywalls. Web publications need a working business model, but this obstacle-filled hellscape is more like hurdling than surfing. The faster the information landscape deteriorates, the harder publishers make it to access anything of quality.
Exclusive: The US State Department is developing an online portal to enable people in Europe and elsewhere to see content banned by their governments including alleged hate speech and terrorist propaganda, sources told Reuters reut.rs/4cySsA6
Exclusive: US plans online portal to bypass content bans in Europe and elsewhere
The U.S. State Department is developing an online portal that will enable people in Europe and elsewhere to see content banned by their governments including alleged hate speech and terrorist propagan...
reut.rs
While the 23-year-old's death was reported in March 2025, it was not made clear that a federal agent fired the fatal shot.
ICE Agent Fatally Shot US Citizen in Texas Last Year, Records Show
newsweek.com
RFK Jr.: ‘Time In Hot Cars Helps Babies To Sweat Out Toxins’ https://theonion.com/rfk-jr-time-in-hot-cars-helps-babies-to-sweat-out-toxins/
My dad Bob would have been 72 today.
When Dad died, the thing I missed most was arguing about politics – and everything else
Much has been written about the EU referendum’s damage to our political culture; little attention has been paid to the way it destroyed my ability to talk to my father.
newstatesman.com
Is there any non-obvious but genuinely good reason for this, or is it straight up as bad as it seems?
Jim Waterson@jim.londoncentric.media · 6mo agoI'd missed that the government last week ordered the deletion of the site Courtsdesk. It's hard to describe how impossible it is for journalists to find court listings in UK. There's countless hearings I'd send a reporter to... if I knew they were happening. www.legalcheek.com/2026/02/mini...
JUST IN: Judge deals BBC setback in 1st notable ruling in Trump's $5-10B defamation suit on splicing of 1/6/21 Ellipse speech. Judge Roy Altman (Trump) rejects as "premature" bid to halt discovery as BBC contends that FL fed court has no jurisdiction. Doc: storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
Order on Motion to Stay – #26 in Trump v. British Broadcasting Corporation (S.D. Fla., 1:25-cv-25894) – CourtListener.com
ORDER DENYING MOTION TO STAY DISCOVERY: We ORDER and ADJUDGE that the BBC Parties' Motion to Stay Discovery [ECF No. 18] is DENIED. Signed by Judge Roy K. Altman on 2/11/2026. See attached document fo...
storage.courtlistener.com
A Kafkaesque saga in which the government has failed to produce critical video footage from an ICE detention facility has reached new levels of absurdity. @jasonkoebler.bsky.social reports. Read here: www.404media.co/government-l...
Brilliant and important bit of journalism.
Jim Waterson@jim.londoncentric.media · 6mo agoHate-filled fake videos about London are everywhere. We've obtained a recording of a TikToker confessing to secretly filming Londoners in their homes for clicks. He says it's not political. He just wants to make money from far-right anger. Read what he says: www.londoncentric.media/p/london-tik...
Some archives, but not the latest, have been salvaged: simonwillison.net/2026/Feb/5/t...
Spotlighting The World Factbook as We Bid a Fond Farewell
Somewhat devastating news today from CIA: One of CIA’s oldest and most recognizable intelligence publications, The World Factbook, has sunset. There's not even a hint as to why they decided …
simonwillison.net
Bummer www.abc.net.au/news/2026-02...
CIA says it will cease publishing the CIA World Factbook
A statement on the CIA's website gives no reason for the decision, simply stating that the Factbook has been "sunset" while encouraging readers to "stay curious about the world and find ways to explor...
abc.net.au
'Watching snooker will never be the same again' might seem like hyperbole, but with the loss of John Virgo, it really will never be the same. He was the sound of snooker. www.bbc.co.uk/sport/snooke...
John Virgo obituary: Snooker, Big Break and BBC commentary - the Salford sage leaves his stage
John Virgo was an excellent snooker player, a hugely popular TV figure, and one of the great voices of his beloved sport.
bbc.co.uk
New: Together with colleagues I’ve been testing Grok. The chatbot still produces sexualized images — even when told the subjects don’t consent. even when told the photos will be used for public humiliation. even when told the subjects are survivors of abuse. www.reuters.com/business/des...
Exclusive: Despite new curbs, Elon Musk’s Grok at times produces sexualized images - even when told subjects didn’t consent
Elon Musk’s flagship artificial intelligence chatbot, Grok, continues to generate sexualized images of people even when users explicitly warn that the subjects do not consent, Reuters has found.
reuters.com
Don was taken into custody by federal agents last night in Los Angeles.
I'm not prone to exaggeration but this is probably the biggest scoop I've ever been involved in Mandelson's partner took £10,000 from Epstein to pay for his osteopath course while Mandelson was de facto UK deputy prime minister, according to new files more to follow www.ft.com/content/c950...
Jeffrey Epstein sent £10,000 to Mandelson’s husband, emails show
Epstein sent Reinaldo Avila da Silva payment in 2009
ft.com
At least one of the newly released Epstein file is already down. This link no longer appears to work (www.justice.gov/epstein/file...) It contained an FBI email chain outlining an allegation against Trump involving sexual activities with a child. This is a screenshot from that email chain.
Full extended analysis of shooting of Alex Pretti, w/ @rosatkins.bsky.social @tomrjoyner.bsky.social @emmapengelly.bsky.social @paulybrown.bsky.social www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOMX...
Analysing the Minneapolis shooting of Alex Pretti | BBC News
YouTube video by BBC News
youtube.com
9 city prosecutors band together to bring charges against federal officers. Called Fight Against Federal Overreach, or FAFO, which NYT says is a "slang term for negative consequences." www.nytimes.com/live/2026/01...
Satellite imagery shows the Israeli military has just paved one of its bases deep inside Gaza. “This looks like Israel digging in rather than preparing to leave,” said @drhahellyer.bsky.social "It signals a clear lack of commitment to Phase 2." www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cy...
BBC Verify: What tracking data and satellite imagery can tell us about US forces in the Gulf
Latest updates from the BBC's specialists in fact-checking, verifying video and tackling disinformation.
bbc.co.uk
The killing of Alex Pretti is a heartbreaking tragedy. It should also be a wake-up call to every American, regardless of party, that many of our core values as a nation are increasingly under assault.
