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UK Government Flouted Own Rules Designed to Stop Gaza Intelligence Harming Palestinian Civilians

Support our mission to provide fearless stories about and outside the media system Read our Digital / Print Editions Packed with exclusive investigations, analysis, and features SUBSCRIBE TODAY The UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) holds no human-rights risk assessments, ministerial approvals or internal guidance relating to British intelligence-sharing with Israel, despite there having been over 600 RAF intelligence-gathering flights over Gaza, Byline Times can reveal. The disclosure, revealed through a Freedom of Information request by Byline Times, raises questions about whether the United Kingdom applied its own intelligence-sharing safeguards while operating over a warzone marked by mass civilian deaths and credible allegations of genocide. Over 600 of RAF Shadow R1 intelligence-gathering missions have taken place over Gaza since late 2023, gathering signals and imagery during some of the most destructive phases of the conflict. Dozens more sub-contracted US company spy flights were also hired. The last flight took place on 10 October 2025. Ministers claimed the flights were tied to hostage-recovery efforts. But the purpose and limits of the operations have never been made clear, and the UK has refused to confirm what intelligence was subsequently shared with Israel. ENJOYING THIS ARTICLE? HELP US TO PRODUCE MORE Receive the monthly Byline Times newspaper and help to support fearless, independent journalism that breaks stories, shapes the agenda and holds power to account. PAY ANNUALLY - £39.50 A YEAR PAY MONTHLY - £3.75 A MONTH MORE OPTIONS We're not funded by a billionaire oligarch or an offshore hedge-fund. We rely on our readers to fund our journalism. If you like what we do, please subscribe. Rules Broken? Under Whitehall's own rules, any sharing of intelligence between states should trigger the Overseas Security and Justice Assistance framework (OJSA). Such a framework, introduced under the Conservative-led government in 2011, requires officials to assess the human-rights situation in any intelligence-sharing partner country, identify risks of complicity in abuses and consult ministers if those risks are serious. As the government notes: "All organisations regularly involved in security and justice assistance should have a designated internal OSJA Lead, known to the FCDO, who can advise their personnel on the OSJA process and ensure consistency of application." The UK's intelligence agencies told Parliament in 2024 that they take OSJA seriously, describing it as essential to preventing Britain from aiding torture, unlawful killings or other violations. "Whenever possible," the Conservative government noted, "the UK promotes human rights compliance with those countries with which the Government works." Yet when the FCDO was asked by Byline Times under the Freedom of Information Act for OSJA assessments relating to Israel since 2023, the FCDO responded that such "information (was) not held." The department also said it held no ministerial submissions, no internal risk analyses and no guidance on applying OSJA to intelligence-sharing with Israel's security services. EXCLUSIVE Pro-Trump Tech Billionaires Are Poised to Cash In on Gaza's 'Peace' Deal The same digital technologies that helped the Israeli military target Gazans are now being embedded in its peacetime infrastructure, with Trump-supporting billionaires poised to benefit Nafeez Ahmed Oversight Breakdown Britain's intelligence agencies have told Parliament they pause cooperation when foreign partners breach assurances, and that ministers must approve any higher-risk engagement. There is recent precedent: when the United States authorised the destruction of suspected drug-smuggling boats in the Caribbean and Pacific - a tactic the UK feared could lead to unlawful killings - Britain halted intelligence-sharing on counter-narcotics. Such breaks in cooperation are rare within an alliance that normally exchanges signals intelligence as routine....

Maurice Glasman and Morgan McSweeney: The Bannon-Inspired 'Blue Labour' Lobby Behind Shabana Mahmood

Support our mission to provide fearless stories about and outside the media system Read our Digital / Print Editions Packed with exclusive investigations, analysis, and features SUBSCRIBE TODAY 'Blue Labour' founder Lord Maurice Glasman - who reportedly met with Keir Starmer's Chief of Staff ahead of the Government's announcement of its tough new asylum policy - told Byline Times that Steve Bannon is one of the greatest politicians of our age, just months before the former Trump campaign manager was linked to Jeffrey Epstein. Prior to the more recent revelations of the closeness of Epstein and Bannon, the Labour peer said that Donald Trump's former White House chief, Bannon, was one of the most important political figures of recent times because he had successfully built a nationalist working-class movement against mass immigration and globalisation in the United States. Asked about Bannon's extreme views - such as those on Islam; his support for the AfD in Germany; and his claim during a far-right rally in France in 2018 that the crowd should "wear" accusations of racism, nativism, and xenophobia "as a badge of honour" - Glasman said "as the son of immigrants myself, I of course hate and disagree with these ideas". "But, if we are to hold them off in Britain, we need a Blue Labour movement based on nationalist industrial revival," he added. The release by the US House Oversight Committee of emails from the estate of Jeffrey Epstein has revealed that Steve Bannon was one of Epstein's most frequent visitors after his first conviction in 2008, but before his arrest in 2019 on suspicion of a much broader range of trafficking and sexual offences. In emails and text messages, Bannon - whose War Room podcast had often platformed QAnon conspiracies that the Democratic Party is run by a paedophile ring - seemed unconcerned with Epstein's previous convictions, and planned with him how to fund and staff the extension of the 'Make America Great Again' movement to Europe. 'Blue Labour' & the Thiel Effect The ideology of the 'Make America Great Again' movement has transformed politics in the United States - and is now flowing into the UK. Nafeez Ahmed and Peter Jukes investigate how this influence is being transmitted Nafeez Ahmed Epstein is documented as advising him on who to meet in Europe, planning his itinerary in Paris and Rome, and giving him advice on how to keep the financial structures opaque. Among the topics discussed at that time were "Brexit" and the parliamentary tumult of Theresa May's premiership in 2018, when Bannon claimed he was liaising with Nigel Farage, Boris Johnson, and Jacob Rees-Mogg on how to "overthrow" the Government. Farage has been a friend of Bannon's since 2012, and in a now-deleted video in 2016, Farage thanked Bannon and his publishing outfit, Breitbart, following the Brexit vote: "Well done, Bannon. Well done, Breitbart. You've helped with this hugely." Glasman told this newspaper he was introduced to Bannon by Nigel Farage at Trump's second inauguration in January, which he was invited to by Vice President JD Vance. Both Glasman and Farage are regulars on GB News, the channel co-owned by Sir Paul Marshall, which has recently launched a US-based show. It consistently frames the UK as in need of 'saving' by Trump's America. In a recent interview with the broadcaster, the President reiterated his threat to sue the BBC for $1 billion over the editing of his speech on January 6, 2021, in a Panorama broadcast more than a year ago. At Trump's inauguration, Bannon took Glasman to a Trump rally, which the peer said had opened his eyes to the energy of the 'MAGA' movement. Glasman has since appeared on Bannon's War Room podcast. He said he spoke to Bannon for several months after the inauguration. Glasman said he also talks regularly with Farage, whom he ranks alongside Bannon as one of the most influential political movers in this era. With his belief that the Labour Party under Keir Starmer is in the same s...

TUC Chief Warns Labour to Stop 'Slippery Slope' Towards Nigel Farage's Anti-Migrant Politics

Support our mission to provide fearless stories about and outside the media system Read our Digital / Print Editions Packed with exclusive investigations, analysis, and features SUBSCRIBE TODAY Support our mission to provide fearless stories about and outside the media system Read our Digital / Print Editions Packed with exclusive investigations, analysis, and features SUBSCRIBE TODAY Labour must not seek to "Out-Farage Farage", the leader of Britain's trade union movement has warned, as Keir Starmer's Government faces a backlash from Labour MPs over its recent migration and asylum policies. The Home Secretary on Monday unveiled a series of hardline plans to limit the rights of refugees seeking asylum in the UK, saying that the UK must not offer a "golden ticket" to those arriving here. The plans, which include proposals to make asylum seekers wait up to 20 years for permanent residence in the UK, and a controversial pledge to seize the assets, including jewellery of those seeking refuge, have caused outrage among many Labour MPs Labour MP for Stroud, Simon Opher, was among those who urged his party to "push back on the racist agenda of Reform rather than echo it". This is a sentiment which is shared by Paul Nowak, General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress. Speaking to Byline Times in advance of the Government's latest plans, Nowak said: "I've been very clear in terms of Labour: I don't think you can out-Farage Farage." Nigel Farage will "always up the ante further" on migration, he argues. "That doesn't mean the Government shouldn't have a values-based, sensible, fair approach to migration. "But as soon as you start using their language, aping their rhetoric, I think that's a slippery slope…It's not where Labour wants to be politically or morally. And I don't think there's any electoral advantage in it either, because if that's what you want, you'll go and vote for Nigel Farage." The TUC leader, who represents Britain's 5.5 million member-strong union movement, was speaking before this week's announcement from Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, where she pledged "the most sweeping reforms of the asylum system in modern times" and "a clear plan to make it less attractive for illegal migrants to come to Britain [and] make it easier to remove illegal migrants off British soil." In an interview with this outlet at the TUC's central London HQ, Congress House, last week, Paul Nowak said: "Lots of people care about migration, but lots of people care about the state of the NHS. Lots of people care about economic insecurity and the cost of living crisis as well. Farage has got nothing to say about those things. I think Labour should be talking about those things." ENJOYING THIS ARTICLE? HELP US TO PRODUCE MORE Receive the monthly Byline Times newspaper and help to support fearless, independent journalism that breaks stories, shapes the agenda and holds power to account. PAY ANNUALLY - £39.50 A YEAR PAY MONTHLY - £3.75 A MONTH MORE OPTIONS We're not funded by a billionaire oligarch or an offshore hedge-fund. We rely on our readers to fund our journalism. If you like what we do, please subscribe. 'Nasty Brand of Politics' He added that anti-migrant policies could backfire: "If you want to vote for that nasty brand of politics, you'll vote for the real deal, rather than the…imitators." But Nowak saved most of his ire for Reform UK, noting the party's backing for mass deportations of migrants "echoes the National Front of the 1970s". While Nowak is concerned by the rise of Reform - and the party's effect on political debate in the UK - does not believe their rise is unassailable. "I don't think Nigel Farage in Number 10…is by any stretch inevitable." But the party is "poisoning the political discourse", he added. "Our job is to expose the gap between what Reform says and what Reform does." Asked how the union movement was engaging with the party, Nowak says: "We're very clear at the TUC: we won't platform Reform. What we will do is e...

Jeffrey Epstein Had Access to Trump's Inner Circle, While Working With Steve Bannon

Support our mission to provide fearless stories about and outside the media system Read our Digital / Print Editions Packed with exclusive investigations, analysis, and features SUBSCRIBE TODAY Private messages obtained from Jeffrey Epstein's communications archive and released by the House Oversight Committee show that months before his arrest, he had a direct line into President Donald Trump's inner circle during his first administration. The messages ramped up as his former chief strategist Steve Bannon was working to rehabilitate Epstein's public image in the hours leading up to the convicted sex offender's final arrest in July 2019. Messages from March that year show Epstein passing Bannon detailed sensitive information about private tensions inside Trump's White House - including the President's frustrations with Vice President Mike Pence, his view that Mike Pompeo would be a better running mate, and a specific internal dispute in which Trump asked John Kelly and Jared Kushner to try to remove one another. The files confirm that Epstein had knowledge only available to the President, very senior advisors, family insiders, or someone with direct access to them. None of this was public at the time, but each element emerged months later through media reporting, indicating that Epstein had access to Trump's inner circle - a revelation which sits uneasily with Trump's claim to have cut him off years earlier. The messages also show that around this time Bannon was helping the convicted sex offender - charged with operating a vast international sex trafficking ring involving underage girls - to prepare a documentary intended to relaunch his reputation. This included plans to film on Epstein's private Caribbean island, with the two men coordinating schedules until moments before Epstein was taken into federal custody. Just a week prior to his arrest, Epstein sent a message to Bannon appearing to show that he believed Trump was aware, or would be aware, of their ongoing relationship. Alongside these exchanges, the archive places Epstein inside Bannon's wider political operations. In 2018, internal briefings on Bannon's efforts to build a European alliance of right-wing parties - which named Matteo Salvini, Viktor Orban and Nigel Farage - were circulated to Epstein as part of a shared email thread. Other messages show Epstein offering political guidance as Bannon followed the prosecution of Paul Manafort and discussed senior State Department figures and foreign diplomats. Together, the communications show that Epstein remained in active political and strategic contact with one of the most influential figures of the Trump movement - with Donald Trump, according to Epstein, aware of the connection as it unfolded. Epstein's Direct Line Into the Trump Inner Circle On 12 March 2019, during a sequence of messages sent within minutes of each other, Epstein reported Donald Trump's private views about Vice President Mike Pence and other senior advisers. At 14:46:08, Epstein wrote: "Djt. Now really down on pence" At 14:46:55, he added: "thinks Pompeo would be better vp" At 14:47:12: "Says pence not really loyal" And at 14:47:38: "And yes he did ask Kelly to get rid of jared , and then jared to get rid of Kelly. Par for the course" Bannon responded in real time, beginning at 14:46:31: "How did u hear and why is he" Two minutes later, at 14:50:06, he replied: "This is why things f***ed up" And at 14:50:17: "Pompeo much better VP" These details - including Trump's consideration of replacing Pence with Mike Pompeo and the President's internal manoeuvring between John Kelly and Jared Kushner - were not public at the time. They would have been known only to senior officials or individuals with direct access to them. Taken together, the messages show Epstein receiving and sharing highly sensitive internal White House information within minutes, months before any of it surfaced publicly. A message sent on 28 June 2019 shows Jeffrey Epstein appear...

Voters are 'Really Disappointed' in Keir Starmer's Government, Says Leader of Britain's Biggest Union

Support our mission to provide fearless stories about and outside the media system Read our Digital / Print Editions Packed with exclusive investigations, analysis, and features SUBSCRIBE TODAY The leader of Britain's largest trade union says she can understand why voters are turning away from Labour - because the cost of living has either "stagnated or it's got worse" since the party came to power. Christina McAnea, who is running again to be leader of Unison, representing 1.3 million largely public-sector workers, told Byline Times: "People are really disappointed about what's happened since Labour came in, because there was a high expectation that they would come in and somehow life would get better. But if you look at what's happening to the cost of living, it's pretty much stagnated, or it's got worse." She noted that housing, energy and food costs have "not stopped going up." "People aren't feeling that anything that the Government has done has made their life better. You can understand why they'll turn to alternative parties that can make easy promises without actually having to deliver," McAnea said. "Until Labour can turn [the cost of living] around, they'll continue to look for an alternative." However, voters would come up against the "reality that Reform doesn't have any answers." "They get away with murder in the media…They don't seem to get much scrutiny or challenge. They're allowed to say whatever they like, and nobody challenges them. [They claim] 'we're going to save hundreds of thousands of pounds in local government in these 10 councils.' No, you're not. It's a total lie. You haven't saved anything," the union leader said. ENJOYING THIS ARTICLE? HELP US TO PRODUCE MORE Receive the monthly Byline Times newspaper and help to support fearless, independent journalism that breaks stories, shapes the agenda and holds power to account. PAY ANNUALLY - £39.50 A YEAR PAY MONTHLY - £3.75 A MONTH MORE OPTIONS We're not funded by a billionaire oligarch or an offshore hedge-fund. We rely on our readers to fund our journalism. If you like what we do, please subscribe. Critical Friend McAnea is widely seen as being close to Keir Starmer, and her support for the Government has spurred an insurgent campaign against her by opponent Andrea Egan, a Bolton-based social worker. But McAnea hit back at those claims in an interview with this outlet, saying: "I could go into meetings with Government ministers and come out and put out a press release saying, "This is shocking. We're not getting what we want," and it would please Andrea's faction, and it would probably get me a headline and get me in the news. Would it help the members? Probably not." She said she was making headway with ministers, pushing hard for progressive changes, including in the Budget on November 26th. "We've been pushing very hard for things like a 10% tax on the profits the banks make. We're pushing to see that they bring in a tax on people who have assets of more than £5 million… "I'm not underestimating the difficulties facing [the Government]. Quite frankly, I'd hate to be Rachel Reeves at this point in time, but I would love to see them being a bit brave and bold." Asked about rumours of a leadership challenge against Keir Starmer, she added: "Nobody's contacted me who wants to stand against Keir Starmer…If it's happening, I am not aware of it. I'm sure there's lots of machinations going on behind the scenes, but…nobody's coming to us about it." The fundamental point for her, however, is this: "Divided parties don't win elections." The Scottish trade unionist also expressed frustration with the Government not communicating some of the popular policies they are pushing through - such as the Employment Rights Bill, which is set to transform workers' rights in the UK and reverse a raft of anti-union laws. "I think they need to perhaps have a proper communication strategy with it…It is a huge improvement on workers' rights." EXCLUSIVE Challenger to Lead Br...