Democrats have introduced a resolution to strip a pro-Trump Republican lawmaker of her committee assignments over her past posts on social media. Marjorie Taylor Greene has embraced conspiracy theories, including that school shootings and 9/11 were staged. The group of Democrats that filed the resolution called it a “line-in-the-sand moment for the Republican Party”. The Georgia congresswoman last month introduced a measure attempting to impeach US President Joe Biden. She tweeted on Monday: “If Democrats remove me from my committees, I can assure them that the precedent they are setting will be used extensively against members on their side once we regain the majority after the 2022 elections. “And we will regain the majority, make no mistake about that.” Elected to Congress in November, Mrs Greene was assigned to the Education and Labour Committee and the Budget Committee by House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy.(BBC)…[+]

The Kent variant of coronavirus that has been spreading around the UK appears to be undergoing some worrying new genetic changes, say scientists. Tests on some samples show a mutation, called E484K, already seen in the South Africa and Brazil variants that are of concern. Although this change may reduce vaccine effectiveness, the current ones in use should still work, say experts. The UK has already stepped up measures to control the spread of new variants. Urgent testing for the South Africa variant is starting in parts of England and travel restrictions have been introduced to stop more cases entering from abroad. Experts working with Public Health England have only found a handful of cases of the UK variant with the E484K mutation – it was seen in 11 out of 214,159 samples that they tested.(BBC)…[+]

Rapper Silento has been arrested and charged with the murder of his cousin. DeKalb County Police Department confirmed that Silento, real name Ricky Hawk, was arrested on 1 February after his cousin, Frederick Rooks, was found shot dead on 21 January. The 23-year-old had a hit with his single Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae) in 2015, which reached No.3 in America and No.19 in the UK. He’s currently being held in DeKalb County Jail and is charged with murder. According to XXL magazine, the 34-year-old victim was found bleeding heavily after suffering gunshot wounds to his face and leg in a suburb of Georgia, US. Newsbeat has contacted Silento’s management for a statement, but they are yet respond. Shortly before his arrest, he shared a request on his Instagram story inviting his 494,000 followers to send him money via CashApp for “selfies, videos and shoutouts”. The one-hit wonder shot to fame with Watch Me in 2015, but it was his only hit single. The video has been watched more than 1.7 billion times on YouTube.(BBC)…[+]

Gunmen opened fire on activists from El Salvador’s main opposition party, killing two people, a rare political attack that has shocked one of Latin America’s most violent countries. The Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN) supporters were returning from a campaign rally when their lorry came under fire by suspects in a car. The attack on the left-wing party came four weeks before legislative and municipal elections are due to be held. Three people have been arrested. The attack happened in the centre of the capital, San Salvador, on Sunday afternoon local time in front of one of the offices of the FMLN party. Five other people were injured

The prominent anti-Trump Lincoln Project has disavowed its co-founder John Weaver after several men accused him of sending them overtly sexual and unsolicited messages. At least one man was underage when Mr Weaver allegedly first made contact. In a statement, the Republican group labelled the 61-year-old “a predator, a liar and an abuser”. Without admitting specifics, Mr Weaver apologised for the pain he caused by “living a deeply closeted life”.

Comedian Eddie Izzard has completed her 31-day virtual marathon run by raising over £200k for charity. Speaking from her treadmill after Sunday’s double marathon, she said she felt “very honoured” by the support. The livestreamed runs, held across different virtual cities, are part of her Make Humanity Great Again goodwill initiative. Actor George Clooney helped Izzard cross the finish line in London and urged people to stay Covid-safe. “Remember, we’re almost through this everybody, hang tight!” he said. “Wear a mask, stay distanced, we’re almost there.”

A Covid-19 vaccination centre at the Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles was forced to close for an hour on Saturday after protests by anti-vaccine and far-right groups, local media report. Around 50 protesters stalled motorists who had been waiting for hours. The demonstrators carried placards decrying the effectiveness of the vaccine. Protesters told people to “turn back”, while one man shouted: “You’re a lab rat”, the Los Angeles Times reported. The Los Angeles Fire Department closed the entrance to the stadium around 14:00 local time (22:00 GMT) as a precaution. The Los Angeles Police Department tweeted that it “did NOT close the gates” to the stadium and all scheduled vaccines would be delivered. California Governor Gavin Newsom tweeted that that stadium was “back up and running”.(BBC)…[+]

The UK will apply to join a free trade area with 11 Asia and Pacific nations on Monday, a year after it officially left the EU. Joining the group of “fast-growing nations” will boost UK exports, the government says.

The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership – or CPTPP – covers a market of around 500 million people. But they are harder to reach than neighbouring markets in Europe. Members include Australia, Canada, Japan and New Zealand. Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam are also founder members of the bloc, which was established in 2018. “In future it’s going to be Asia-Pacific countries in particular where the big markets are, where growing middle-class markets are, for British products,” International Trade Secretary Liz Truss told the BBC’s Andrew Marr. “Of course British businesses will have to reach out and take these opportunities, but what I’m doing is I’m creating the opportunities, the low tariffs, removing those barriers so they can go out and do that.” (BBC)…[+]

France has imposed new Covid-19 border restrictions, but has once again resisted a new nationwide lockdown. All but essential travel from outside the EU has been banned, while testing requirements on travellers from within the EU has been tightened. PM Jean Castex said France’s night curfew would be more tightly enforced and large shopping centres would close. But the measures were seen as mild and favouring the economy. Some doctors fear they will not curb infections.The new border restrictions will affect the UK, now no longer in the EU, but the French transport minister clarified on Twitter that hauliers transporting goods to or from the UK would not be affected.

What – you thought Donald Trump would go off to Mar-a-Lago and only concern himself with his golf swing? That was never going to happen. And though we may not be getting the hourly glimpse into whatever is on his mind, thanks to the Twitter ban, this first substantive statement from the former president, following his meeting with the House of Representatives minority Republican leader, Kevin McCarthy, is reassuringly familiar.

But let me spool back very quickly. This is going to be the quick one-minute recap that you get on later episodes of a TV box set. McCarthy had been a cheerleader for Trump. Always supportive; always riding to his side. But then, after the storming of the Capitol on 6 January, the most senior Republican congressman went his own way and said this: “The president bears responsibility for Wednesday’s attack on Congress by mob rioters. He should have immediately denounced the mob when he saw what was unfolding.“(BBC)…[+]