Charlie Alford

US defence secretary Pete Hegseth is being an absolute crayon again

Post author:Joe Glenton
Post published:17 July 2026
Post last modified:17 July 2026

US defence secretary and far-right tattooed plonker Pete Hegseth has pledged to test the testosterone levels of US military personnel. another normal one for Pete, then. In one of his irredeemably weird X posts, the former soldier and alleged danger announced that the US military would be “a High T department”: The High-T Department of War. pic.twitter.com/hlAUq3j2cD — Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (@SecWar) July 15, 2026 The defence secretary wants to test soldiers over 30 to ensure: you have the right testosterone levels to operate at your absolute best. Public health scientist and epidemiologist Eric Feigl-Ding said: I used to…

Defence secretary confident Burnham will resource the military

Post author:The Canary
Post published:6 July 2026
Post last modified:6 July 2026

Dan Jarvis, the new defence secretary, has told the Guardian he doesn’t have “a shred of doubt” that incoming prime minister, Andy Burnham, will ensure the military gets the resources it needs. Jarvis, whose donors include Labour Together millionaires and recruitment firms PSD and Odgers Berndtson (who are linked to private healthcare), says he is confident the PM-in-waiting “values national security”. He said: What I absolutely will want to see is that in the next spending review we commit the resources to evidence the trajectory to 3.5% [of GDP]. I’ve known Andy for a very long time, and I have not…

Starmer is cutting jobs in a fawning gesture to Trump’s call for increase in defence spending

Post author:The Canary
Post published:3 July 2026
Post last modified:4 July 2026

The UK’s ambassador to the USA, Christian Turner, penned an opinion piece this week by declaring that Trump is “correct” that allies must spend more and that Britain has “heard that message” and is “acting on it,” referring to Starmer’s new Defence Investment Plan (DIP). Starmer announced £298bn of investment, including £15bn of additional spending on top of last year’s Spending Review, over the next four years, saying the plan goes “further still” in response to growing threats and the changing nature of conflict. President Trump has been consistent, and he is correct: America’s allies must do more for their own defense and…

BBC and Sky unite to push defence spend propaganda

Post author:Willem Moore
Post published:28 June 2026
Post last modified:28 June 2026

Over the past few months, we’ve been told that we have to massively increase defence spending. While the media — BBC, Sky and others — usually shouts down calls for spending bumps, they haven’t just accepted this line of thought; they’re actually bullying politicians into agreeing: #TrevorPhillips interrogating Steve Reed on why the govt isn't increasing 'defence' spending by more and doing it faster. This is the narrative our mainstream media is pushing. pic.twitter.com/uH48PPFNUU — Saul Staniforth (@SaulStaniforth) June 28, 2026 The Military Industrial Complex If you’re wondering why we need to increase defence spending, the most common answers are: Vaguely gesturing…

Hegseth’s tantrum at UK defence secretary Dan Jarvis can’t stop US decline

Post author:Joe Glenton
Post published:20 June 2026
Post last modified:20 June 2026

US defence secretary Pete Hegseth threw a tantrum at his new UK counterpart Dan Jarvis over a supposed lack of cooperation in the war the US just lost with Iran. As well as this fake claim (the UK cooperated plenty), Hegseth blasted European partners for not doing his bidding during the illegal, unprovoked war. Hegseth and Jarvis were in Europe for a conference of NATO defence ministers. Former US Marine Hegseth, famous for his extreme-right tattoos, reportedly accused: some countries of “free riding” and others of being shameful for not allowing their airbases to be used by US jets bombing Iran…

General who led shadowy army psy-ops unit is new Economist defence editor

Post author:Joe Glenton
Post published:19 June 2026
Post last modified:19 June 2026

The UK legacy media are having a normal one again. The Economist magazine just announced a currently serving British Army general would become its new defence editor upon leaving the military. Turner led 77 Brigade, the army’s propaganda unit, from 2020 to 2022. Current defence editor Shashank Joshi announced Turner as his replacement on 18 June: I’m delighted that Alex Turner will succeed me as defence editor of @TheEconomist later this year. Alex, who is currently an army officer, is highly experienced, an accomplished military historian and a talented writer. He will be a fantastic journalist. https://t.co/kqgT3E39uz — Shashank Joshi (@shashj)…

The corporate lobbyists behind new defence secretary Dan Jarvis

Post author:Ed Sykes
Post published:13 June 2026
Post last modified:13 June 2026

New defence secretary Dan Jarvis has previously received around half a million pounds in donations from corporate lobbyists. So, as mainstream media outlets say the Labour right-winger “once looked like the future” and “is a fine choice“, let’s look into the dark money that’s been fuelling his political career. Jarvis and his local Labour Party in Barnsley have done such an awful job at countering Tory damage to the town in recent decades that it turned to Reform in the 2026 local elections. And when you look at where Jarvis’s funds come from, you can understand why the people of Barnsley…

Hunger striker nears 130 days in defence of Athens Prosfygika community

Post author:The Canary
Post published:12 June 2026
Post last modified:13 June 2026

Aristotelis Chantzis has entered the 130th day of a hunger strike in defence of the Community of Squatted Prosfygika in central Athens, as concerns continue to grow over plans to evict residents and redevelop the historic neighbourhood. The second hunger striker, Suzon Doppagne, who joined the protest in solidarity on 1 May, is approaching 50 days of her hunger strike. More members of the community, some of them with serious health problems, have also announced plans to join the hunger strike. The protest comes in response to a redevelopment plan approved by the regional government of Attica in June 2025 that…

Defence Universities Alliance condemned as a threat to academic freedom

Post author:The Canary
Post published:29 May 2026
Post last modified:8 June 2026

A growing group of academics, students, trade unionists, education advocates, and civil society organisations across the UK has condemned the Ministry of Defence’s newly launched Defence Universities Alliance. They’re warning that the initiative represents a dangerous escalation in the militarisation of higher education. Demilitarise Education has released an official public statement opposing the Defence Universities Alliance. Ten organisations and groups across the UK have endorsed the statement, including: World Beyond War. Action on Armed Violence. Loughborough Action for Palestine. Stop the War. Boycott, Divest, Sanction Group – UCL. CND. People & Planet. University & College Workers for Palestine. Quakers in Britain.…

Israel’s far-right defence minister openly pledges to ethnically cleanse Gaza

Post author:Joe Glenton
Post published:29 May 2026
Post last modified:8 June 2026

The settler-colonial state’s far-right defence minister, Israel Katz, has openly stated Israel’s intention to ethnically cleanse Gaza. Genocidal intentions have being central to Israeli state ideology. Lawyers and human rights groups attacked Katz. The Guardian reported on 29 May: Katz said the mass departure of Palestinians from Gaza would go hand in hand with the exclusion of Hamas from power. Katz himself said: We committed that Hamas will not rule Gaza civilly or militarily, and so it shall be, and also the voluntary emigration plan from Gaza will be implemented. Everything at the right timing and in the right manner. Yet…