LONDON // Nine women and three men were sworn in as a jury yesterday to hear Britain’s tabloid phone hacking trial – and warned by the judge to ignore a morass of “inaccurate and misleading” reports about the high-profile case.
Two former senior executives in Rupert Murdoch’s media empire – former News of the World editors Rebekah Brooks and Andy Coulson – and six others face charges stemming from the revelation that employees at the Murdoch-owned tabloid eavesdropped on the phone voicemails of celebrities, politicians, crime victims and others in their search for scoops. They all deny the charges.
The scandal led Mr Murdoch to shut the 168-year-old newspaper and continues to shake Britain’s media, police and political establishments.
Judge John Saunders told the jury at London’s Central Criminal Court that the case had received “an unprecedented amount” of publicity that they must ignore in order to try the defendants on the evidence alone.
“Not only the defendants are on trial; British justice is on trial,” he said.
Mr Saunders said much commentary on the case in the UK had been “inaccurate and misleading” as well as “offensive and demeaning to some of the defendants”.
“It is essential that you put all that material ... out of your mind,” he said.
The judge also told the jury to ignore the storm of chatter about the case, from tweets from opinionated celebrities to the satirical magazine Private Eye, which emblazoned a picture of the flame-haired Ms Brooks on the cover of its latest “Halloween special” issue.
“It is meant to be satire,” he told the jury. “You ignore it.
“It is the verdict of you 12, and only you 12, that we want at the end of this trial,” he said.
The eight defendants were told to stand in the dock as the seven-count indictment was read against them. Prosecution lawyer Andrew Edis is due to begin his case today, outlining in detail the allegations of criminal activity by the former media high-flyers.
The case – expected to last up to six months – is the first major criminal trial spawned by the 2011 revelation that the News of the World had hacked the mobile phone voicemails of kidnapped 13-year-old Milly Dowler, who was later found murdered.
Ms Brooks, 45, edited both the News of the World and its sister paper, The Sun, and was chief executive of Mr Murdoch’s British newspaper division. Mr Coulson, 45, also edited the News of the World before becoming communications chief to Prime Minister David Cameron.
Both face charges of conspiring to intercept communications – phone hacking – and conspiring to commit misconduct in a public office, which refers to illegal payments to officials.
Former News of the World managing editor Stuart Kuttner and former news editor Ian Edmondson also are charged with phone hacking – in conjunction with Ms Brooks, Mr Coulson and others – over a period stretching from 2000 to 2006.
The paper’s former royal editor, Clive Goodman, is charged with conspiring to commit misconduct in a public office alongside Mr Coulson.
Brooks, her husband Charles Brooks, her former assistant Cheryl Carter and former News International security chief Mark Hanna are charged with attempting to obstruct the phone hacking investigation by withholding documents, computers and other equipment from police.
The phone-hacking scandal spurred a media-ethics inquiry led by a judge and wide-ranging criminal investigations into hacking, bribery and other illegal behaviour.
Dozens of journalists and officials have been arrested, and Britain’s free-wheeling press is under intense political pressure to submit to tougher regulation.
*Associated Press
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All couples are unique and have to create a financial blueprint that is most suitable for their relationship, says Vijay Valecha, chief investment officer at Century Financial. He offers his top five tips for couples to better manage their finances.
Discuss your assets and debts: When married, it’s important to understand each other’s personal financial situation. It’s necessary to know upfront what each party brings to the table, as debts and assets affect spending habits and joint loan qualifications. Discussing all aspects of their finances as a couple prevents anyone from being blindsided later.
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Money date nights: Talking about money should be a healthy, ongoing conversation and couples should not wait for something to go wrong. They should set time aside every month to talk about future financial decisions and see the progress they’ve made together towards accomplishing their goals.
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
Notable salonnières of the Middle East through history
Al Khasan (Okaz, Saudi Arabia)
Tamadir bint Amr Al Harith, known simply as Al Khasan, was a poet from Najd famed for elegies, earning great renown for the eulogy of her brothers Mu’awiyah and Sakhr, both killed in tribal wars. Although not a salonnière, this prestigious 7th century poet fostered a culture of literary criticism and could be found standing in the souq of Okaz and reciting her poetry, publicly pronouncing her views and inviting others to join in the debate on scholarship. She later converted to Islam.
Maryana Marrash (Aleppo)
A poet and writer, Marrash helped revive the tradition of the salon and was an active part of the Nadha movement, or Arab Renaissance. Born to an established family in Aleppo in Ottoman Syria in 1848, Marrash was educated at missionary schools in Aleppo and Beirut at a time when many women did not receive an education. After touring Europe, she began to host salons where writers played chess and cards, competed in the art of poetry, and discussed literature and politics. An accomplished singer and canon player, music and dancing were a part of these evenings.
Princess Nazil Fadil (Cairo)
Princess Nazil Fadil gathered religious, literary and political elite together at her Cairo palace, although she stopped short of inviting women. The princess, a niece of Khedive Ismail, believed that Egypt’s situation could only be solved through education and she donated her own property to help fund the first modern Egyptian University in Cairo.
Mayy Ziyadah (Cairo)
Ziyadah was the first to entertain both men and women at her Cairo salon, founded in 1913. The writer, poet, public speaker and critic, her writing explored language, religious identity, language, nationalism and hierarchy. Born in Nazareth, Palestine, to a Lebanese father and Palestinian mother, her salon was open to different social classes and earned comparisons with souq of where Al Khansa herself once recited.
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Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?
The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.
A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.
Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.
The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.
When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.
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