Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Monday 29 May 2017

1. Manchester attack: Missed warnings examined

MI5 has opened two inquiries into how it missed the danger posed by Salman Abedi, the Manchester bomber, despite claims that the authorities were repeatedly warned about his extremist views. A 23-year-old man was arrested early this morning in Sussex in connection with the attack. A total of 14 people are now in custody for it.

2. BA flight disruption continues into third day

Passengers are facing a third day of disruption to BA flights, caused by a power outage which crashed a computer system. Already this morning, 13 short-haul flights have been cancelled, though the firm says it plans to run all long-haul flights and a "high proportion" of short today. Thousands of passengers were affected this weekend.

3. Merkel: EU must go it alone now

German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned yesterday that the EU can no longer "completely depend on others", after "very unsatisfactory" G7 and Nato talks. She hinted that the UK and US are no longer the trustworthy allies they have been since WW2. She said: "We Europeans truly have to take our fate into our own hands."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

4. Northern Ireland: Man shot dead in front of son

Police say only luck prevented a small boy from being shot as his father was murdered in a Sainsbury's car park in Bangor, Northern Ireland, yesterday. It has been reported that more than 100 people witnessed the shooting, with between four and six bullets fired at the 35-year-old. Police called the crime a "cold-blooded murder".

5. Trump urged to acknowledge Portland attack

Donald Trump is under pressure to acknowledge the heroism of two men who were stabbed to death while trying to stop a racist attack on a Muslim teenager on a train in Portland, Oregon. Taliesin Myrddin Namkai-Meche, 23, and Rick Best, 53, lost their lives on Friday. Trump tweeted 10 times on Sunday without mentioning them.

6. Abbott: I've changed my hairstyle and my mind

Shadow home secretary Diane Abbott yesterday told the BBC's Andrew Marr that she has changed her mind since she told a magazine in the 1980s that a defeat of the British state by the IRA would be "a great liberation". She said: "I had a rather splendid afro at the time. I don't have the same hairstyle, I don't have the same views."

7. North Korea conducts successful missile test

North Korea has conducted its third missile test in three weeks, apparently successfully. A Scud ballistic missile flew 280 miles before landing in Japanese waters. Experts say the latest test suggests the secretive dictatorship is making progress towards constructing missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads over long distances.

8. RBS settlement decision due this week

A judge has demanded to be told this week if a multi-million pound agreement has been reached between bailed-out bank RBS and thousands of out-of-pocket shareholders, who want £520m compensation. A settlement will mean disgraced boss Fred Goodwin, stripped of his knighthood in 2012, will not have to appear in court.

9. Wine-growing boom in England and Wales

A record number of wine companies were launched in England and Wales last year, HMRC says. Sixty-four firms set out to make wine, buoyed in part by the weak pound which makes UK-made drinks a more attractive prospect for overseas buyers. A Norfolk wine was named best still white at the prestigious Decanter awards this month.

10. Briefing: The dessert culture of Pakistan

Pakistan has long been a passageway for communities and cultures, and a confluence of diverse influences, says food writer Sumayya Usmani.

Over hundreds and thousands of years, Pakistan has inherited many traditions and its past has left an indelible mark on the contemporary culture and cooking of its people: in a rich and turbulent history, Mongol invaders and Alexander the Great's armies have swept through the country, and it has been ruled by Mughal emperors as well as the British.

The country's culinary fabric has also been touched by its geographic borders with Afghanistan and Iran, and enhanced by Muslim emigrants from India. It is home to a multitude of ethnicities, each of which brings its own recipes and heritage.

Putting the dessert culture of Pakistan on the map