The British government should steer clear of using Britain’s crime-fighting and espionage expertise as a bargaining chip in Brexit negotiations, a leading MEP has said. Claude Moraes, a Labour MEP for London, who chairs the European parliament’s influential civil liberties, justice and home affairs committee, said the UK would not be able to withdraw from cooperation on security and defence, because working with European neighbours benefitted both sides.

“It is not going to be a question of politics, it is a question of reality,” Moraes said.

“[Security] is an area of strength for the UK, but it should not be overstated in the negotiations, because we would be understating the contributions of other countries and many of these things can be mutually beneficial.”

Theresa May – who before becoming prime minister had been the longest-serving home secretary of modern times – delivered a veiled warning to EU governments last month that security cooperation could suffer if the UK got a bad deal. Announcing her Brexit white paper, the prime minister said Britain wanted “to be a good friend and neighbour in every way, and that includes defending the safety and security of all of our citizens”. Adding a caveat, she warned that “a punitive deal” would be “an act of calamitous self harm for the countries of Europe”.(the guardian)…[+]

Rosita Mabuiango’s birth in a tree above swirling waters 17 years ago thrust her into instant stardom, drawing global attention to the worst floods to hit Mozambique in recent memory. The images of Rosita draped in dirty linen, moments after she and her mother were winched to safety by a helicopter, touched the world, helping raise funds for tens of thousands of flood survivors.

But these days, the teenager does not consider herself special. “I’m normal, it’s just a different way of being born,” she said. Rosita was born on 1 March 2000, four days after her marooned mother clambered into a tree to escape deadly floods ripping through southern Mozambique.(The guardian)…[+]

An Indian man who was shot and wounded at a bar in suburban Kansas City last week says he wished the killing of his best friend during the attack had all been a dream, but that the incident, apparently fueled by racism, “doesn’t reflect the true spirit of Kansas”.Alok Madasani, 32, addressed a crowd of hundreds during a vigil on Sunday night at the Ball Conference Center in Olathe. He described the fatal shooting last Wednesday of his friend and co-worker, Srinivas Kuchibhotla, as “a senseless crime,” the Kansas City Star reported.

“The main reason why I am here is that’s what my best friend, Srinivas, would have done,” Madasani said. “He would have been here for me.” Another patron, Ian Grillot, 24, was also wounded when he tried to intervene in the shooting at Austins Bar and Grill in Olathe. A bullet went through Grillot’s right hand and into his chest, just missing a major artery but fracturing a vertebra in his neck.(the guardian)…[+]