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London mayor Sadiq Khan has called for “urgent clarity” from the Metropolitan Police over the force’s treatment of protesters during the coronation on Saturday.

A total of 64 people were arrested around the coronation – including 13 people to “prevent a breach of the peace”, and a man with an unused megaphone, who police said could “scare the horses”.

The Metropolitan Police said on Sunday night that four people had been charged – two for drug offences, one for disorderly conduct, and one charged with a religiously aggravated offence.

Of the others, one was arrested on a warrant for non-payment of fines and remains in police custody. The remaining people were either released on police bail or freed without further charge.

There have been reports volunteers who were handing out rape alarms to keep women safe in the early hours of Saturday morning were also taken into custody.

It is not clear whether these were part of the figures released by the police.

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Met Police commander Karen Findlay defended the force’s action during the coronation, saying they policed “proportionately” and within the “context” of the large-scale event.

But Mr Khan – who has oversight of the force as mayor – said some of the arrests “raise questions”, adding: “Whilst investigations are ongoing, I’ve sought urgent clarity from Met leaders on the action taken.”

Anti-monarchy campaign group Republic said a number of their team were arrested “as we prepared for a peaceful and lawful protest”, and they were “detained for the rest of the day”.

The group’s leader, Graham Smith – who was arrested himself – released a statement on Sunday saying: “These arrests are a direct attack on our democracy and the fundamental rights of every person in the country.

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Republic chief on coronation arrests

“The right to protest peacefully in the UK no longer exists. Instead we have a freedom to protest that is contingent on political decisions made by ministers and senior police officers.”

Westminster MPs have also questioned the police’s decisions on the day.

‘Tory legislation could be to blame’

Liberal Democrats deputy leader Daisy Cooper told Sky News’ Sophy Ridge on Sunday she had “concerns” the force did not get the balance right when it came to ensuring the event went ahead safely while allowing peaceful protest.

“Whether you are royalist or whether you are republican, we should all be able to agree on free speech and the right to protest,” she added.

Ms Cooper said new laws brought in by the Conservative government days ahead of the coronation, which give police more power to tackle disruptive protests, could be to blame.

The legislation carries up to a year in jail for demonstrators blocking roads, airports and railways, and lets officers stop and search anyone they suspect is planning to cause disruption.

The Lib Dem MP said the “far ranging, sweeping powers” would have “a real kind of chilling effect on the right to peaceful protest”.

While it was not yet clear if the measures were used by police on Saturday, it needed to be investigated, she added.

Deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, Daisy Cooper.
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Deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, Daisy Cooper

Met urged to provide ‘accountability’

Labour’s Wes Streeting also called for the force to provide “accountability” over the concerns that have been raised about its coronation operation.

The shadow health secretary told Sophy Ridge: “I think it’s the accountability that’s important.

“Where concerns have been raised, whether that’s by Republic, the campaign for an elected head of state, or people more generally just concerned about what they’ve read in the papers or seen on the telly, it’s important that the police provide that accountability.”

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Police ‘accountability’ is ‘important’

Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer said police had to “balance the right to protest, which is important in a democracy” with the right of other people “to enjoy what was a fabulous day”.

“Overall, they managed to get that balance right,” she added.

The minister also defended the new laws, saying she had “huge confidence” in the police and trusted them to use the new powers.

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‘I have huge confidence in the police’

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Her Tory colleague, deputy party chairman and MP Lee Anderson, went further, however.

In a tweet on Saturday, he attacked protesters going to the coronation, saying: “Not My King? If you do not wish to live in a country that has a monarchy the solution is not to turn up with your silly boards. The solution is to emigrate.”

Senior Labour MP Sir Chris Bryant later tweeted: “Freedom of speech is the silver thread that runs through a parliamentary constitutional monarchy.”

‘Proportionate’ policing

Met commander Findlay said the force “absolutely understands public concern following the arrests”.

But she said it was their “duty” to police protests “in a proportionate manner in line with relevant legislation”.

The senior officer also said context was important, adding: “The coronation is a once-in-a-generation event and that is a key consideration in our assessment.”

And she insisted a protest “involving large numbers” went ahead “with police knowledge and no intervention”.

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US envoy meets Putin for talks – as Trump urges Russia to ‘get moving’ on Ukraine

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US envoy meets Putin for talks - as Trump urges Russia to 'get moving' on Ukraine

Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff has met Vladimir Putin for talks in Russia – as the US president called on Moscow to “get moving” with ending the war in Ukraine.

Mr Witkoff, who has been pressing the Kremlin to accept a truce, visited Mr Putin in St Petersburg after earlier meeting the Russian leader’s international co-operation envoy Kirill Dmitriev.

Mr Putin was shown on state TV greeting Mr Witkoff at the city’s presidential library at the start of the latest discussions about the search for a peace deal on Ukraine.

Before Friday’s meeting, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov played down expectations of a breakthrough and told state media the visit would not be “momentous”.

Follow the latest updates on the war in Ukraine

However, Sky News Moscow correspondent Ivor Bennett said he believes the meeting – Mr Witkoff’s third with Mr Putin this year – is significant as a sign of the Trump administration’s “increasing frustration at the lack of progress on peace talks”.

Earlier on Friday, Mr Trump issued his latest social media statement on trying to end the war, writing on Truth Social: “Russia has to get moving. Too many people ere [sic] DYING, thousands a week, in a terrible and senseless war – A war that should have never happened, and wouldn’t have happened, if I were President!!!”

Dialogue between the US and Russia, aimed at agreeing a ceasefire ahead of a possible peace deal to end the war, has recently appeared to have stalled over disagreements around conditions for a full pause.

President Donald Trump speaks at a cabinet meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House, Thursday, April 10, 2025, in Washington. (Pool via AP)
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Mr Trump, pictured at a cabinet meeting at the White House earlier this week, has called for Russia to ‘get moving’. Pic: AP

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Secondary sanctions could be imposed on countries that buy Russian oil, Mr Trump has said, if he feels Moscow is dragging its feet on a deal.

Mr Putin has said he is ready in principle to agree a full ceasefire, but argues crucial conditions have yet to be agreed – and that what he calls the root causes of the war have yet to be addressed.

The Russian president wants to dismantle Ukraine as an independent, functioning state and has demanded Kyiv recognise Moscow’s annexation of Crimea and other partly occupied areas, and pull its forces out, as well as a pledge for Ukraine to never join NATO and for the size of its army to be limited.

Zelenskyy renews support calls after attack on home city

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Children killed in strike on Zelenskyy’s home town

Meanwhile, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy has renewed his appeals for more Patriot air defence systems after the deaths of 20 people, including nine children, who were killed when a Russian missile hit apartment buildings and a playground in his home city of Kryvyi Rih last week.

Speaking online at a meeting of the so-called Ramstein group of about 50 nations that provide military support to Ukraine, named after a previous meeting at America’s Ramstein air base in Germany in 2022, Mr Zelenskyy said recent Russian attacks showed Moscow was not ready to accept and implement any realistic and effective peace proposals.

Mr Zelenskyy also made his evening address to the nation, saying: “Ukraine is not just asking – we are ready to buy appropriate additional systems.”

The UK’s defence secretary, John Healy, has said this is “the critical year” for Ukraine – and has confirmed £450m in funding for a military support package.

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Tech executive and his family die after sightseeing helicopter crashes in New York

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Tech executive and his family die after sightseeing helicopter crashes in New York

A family of five Spanish tourists, including three children, have been killed in a helicopter crash in New York City.

A New York City Hall spokesman identified two of those killed as Agustin Escobar, a Siemens executive, and Merce Camprubi Montal – believed to be his wife, NBC News reported.

The pilot was also killed as the aircraft crashed into the Hudson River at around 3.17pm on Thursday.

New York Police commissioner Jessica Tisch said divers had recovered all those on board from the helicopter, which was upside down in the water.

“Four victims were pronounced dead on scene and two more were removed to local area hospitals, where sadly both succumbed to their injuries,” she said.

The helicopter ended up submerged and upside down. Pic: Reuters
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The helicopter was submerged upside down in the Hudson. Pic: Reuters

A crane lifted out the wreck of the helicopter on Thursday evening. Pic: AP
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A crane lifted out the wreckage on Thursday evening. Pic: AP

The Spanish president Pedro Sanchez called the news “devastating”.

“An unimaginable tragedy. I share the grief of the victims’ loved ones at this heartbreaking time,” he wrote on X.

Rotor blade ‘flew off’

The aircraft was on a tourist flight of Manhattan, run by the New York Helicopters company.

Witnesses described seeing the main rotor blade flying off moments before it dropped out the sky.

Agustin Escobar and Merce Camprubi Montal.
Pic: Facebook
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Agustin Escobar and Merce Camprubi Montal.
Pic: Facebook

Lesly Camacho, a worker at a restaurant along the river in Hoboken, said she saw the helicopter spinning uncontrollably before it slammed into the water.

“There was a bunch of smoke coming out. It was spinning pretty fast, and it landed in the water really hard,” she said.

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Witness saw ‘parts flying off’ helicopter

Another witness said “the chopper blade flew off”.

“I don’t know what happened to the tail, but it just straight up dropped,” Avi Rakesh told Sky’s US partner, NBC News.

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Video on social media showed parts of the Bell 206 helicopter tumbling through the air and landing in the river.

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New York mayor confirms six dead

First responders walk along Pier 40, Thursday, April 10, 2025, in New York, across from where a helicopter went down in the Hudson River in Jersey City, N.J. (AP Photo/Jennifer Peltz)
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The crash happened near Pier 40. Pic: AP

New York Mayor Eric Adams confirmed the six deaths and said authorities believed the tourists were from Spain.

He said the flight had taken off from a downtown heliport at around 3pm.

Debris floats in the water at the scene where the helicopter crashed into the Hudson River.
Pic: AP
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Pic: Cover Images/AP

The crash happened close to Pier 40 and the Holland tunnel, which links lower Manhattan’s Tribeca neighbourhood with Jersey City to its west.

Tracking service Flight Radar 24 published what it said was the helicopter’s route, with the aircraft appearing to be in the sky for 15 minutes before the crash.

The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board have started an investigation.

Agustin Escobar.
Pic:Europa Press/AP
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Agustin Escobar.
Pic: Europa Press/AP

Thursday’s incident comes less than three month after 67 people died when an army helicopter and American Airlines jet collided over the Potomac River in Washington DC.

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Ksenia Karelina: Ballerina arrives home in US after ‘nightmare’ of Russian penal colony

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Ksenia Karelina: Ballerina arrives home in US after 'nightmare' of Russian penal colony

A former ballerina who spent more than a year in a Russian jail for donating £40 to a charity supporting Ukraine has returned home to the US after being freed in a prisoner exchange.

Ksenia Karelina landed at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland at around 11pm, local time, on Thursday.

A smiling Ms Karelina was greeted on the runway by her fiance, the professional boxer Chris van Heerden, and given flowers by Morgan Ortagus, President Donald Trump’s deputy special envoy to the Middle East.

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Ksenia Karelina arrives Thursday, April 10, 2025, at Joint Base Andrews, Md. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
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Ksenia Karelina arrives at Joint Base Andrews. Pic: AP

Van Heerden said in a statement he was “overjoyed to hear that the love of my life, Ksenia Karelina, is on her way home from wrongful detention in Russia.

“She has endured a nightmare for 15 months and I cannot wait to hold her. Our dog, Boots, is also eagerly awaiting her return.”

He thanked Mr Trump and his envoys, as well as prominent public figures who had championed her case, including Dana White, a friend of Mr Trump and CEO of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).

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Ms Karelina, 34, a US-Russian citizen also identified as Ksenia Khavana, was accused of treason when she was arrested in Yekaterinburg, in southwestern Russia, while visiting family in February last year.

Investigators searched her mobile phone and found she made a $51.80 (£40) donation to Razom, a charity that provides aid to Ukraine, on the first day of Russia’s invasion in 2022.

She admitted the charge at a closed trial in the city in August last year and was later jailed for 12 years, to be served in a penal colony.

At a cabinet meeting on Thursday, Mr Trump, who wants to normalise relations with Moscow, said the Kremlin “released the young ballerina and she is now out, and that was good. So we appreciate that”.

Ksenia Karelina is hugged by her boyfriend Chris van Heerden.
Pic: Reuters
Image:
Ksenia Karelina is hugged by her boyfriend, Chris van Heerden. Pic: Reuters

He said the release followed conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Russian security services accused her of “proactively” collecting money for a Ukrainian organisation that was supplying gear to Kyiv’s forces.

The First Department, a Russian rights group, said the charges stemmed from a $51.80 donation to a US charity aiding Ukraine.

Washington, which had called her case “absolutely ludicrous”, released Arthur Petrov, who it was holding on charges of smuggling sensitive microelectronics to Russia, in the prisoner swap in Abu Dhabi.

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Karelina was among a growing number of Americans arrested in Russia in recent years as tensions between Moscow and Washington spiked over the war in Ukraine.

Her release is the latest in a series of high-profile prisoner exchanges Russia and the US carried out in the last three years – and the second since Mr Trump took office.

White House national security adviser Mike Waltz said members of the Trump administration “continue to work around the clock to ensure Americans detained abroad are returned home to their families”.

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