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The search for Jay Slater in an area of Tenerife has been called off, police have said, nearly two weeks after his disappearance.

The British teenager, from Oswaldtwistle, near Blackburn in Lancashire, has been missing in Tenerife since 17 June, when he vanished the morning after a rave.

The Civil Guard called for volunteers to join a new search in the Masca area – near his last-known location – on Saturday.

It has now confirmed to Sky News that the search has ended. Police are keeping the investigation open and could yet open up searches in the south of the island, but have not provided an update.

A handful of volunteers turned up to help rescue teams on Saturday, forming a total group of 30 to 40 people scouring a huge area of rugged and hilly terrain.

view of the Los Carrizales ravine where British teenager Jay Slater is being searched for, with the island of La Gomera in the distance, on the island of Tenerife, Spain, June 27, 2024. REUTERS/Borja Suarez
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The Los Carrizales ravine where Jay Slater was being searched for. Pic: Reuters

Mr Slater, 19, had been on holiday with friends on the Spanish island and was last pictured at Papayago, a nightclub hosting the end of the NRG festival, late on 16 June.

After the event ended, he got in a car travelling to a small Airbnb in Masca with two men, who police said on Saturday are “not relevant” to the case.

His last known location was the Rural de Teno Park in the north of the island – which is about an 11-hour walk from his accommodation.

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‘I just want him back’

A local cafe owner told Sky News he tried to catch a bus back to Los Cristianos, where he was staying.

Ofelia Medina Hernandez said she spoke to the teenager at 8am on 17 June, telling him a bus was due at 10am – but he set off walking and she said she later drove past him “walking fast”.

A missing persons poster for Jay Slater in Tenerife
Image:
A missing persons poster for Jay Slater in Tenerife

The apprentice bricklayer called a friend holidaying with him at around 8.30am on 17 June and said he was going to walk back after missing the bus.

He also told his friend he was lost and in need of water, with only 1% charge on his phone.

Read more:
Jay Slater’s family welcomes TikToker in search
Teen’s disappearance in Tenerife shrouded in speculation

On Friday, Mr Slater’s friend Brad Hargreaves told ITV’s This Morning he had been on a video call with him before his disappearance when he heard him go off the road.

He said he could see his friend’s feet “sliding” down the hill and hear he was walking on gravel.

Meanwhile, Mr Slater’s family shared a blurry image of what they believe could be the missing teenager captured on CCTV in a nearby town 10 hours after he was first reported missing.

Mr Slater's family have shared a blurry image of what they believe could be the missing teenager
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Mr Slater’s family shared a blurry image of what they believe could be the missing teenager

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Local police and the Civil Guard, along with Mr Slater’s family, have been involved in the search.

Since his disappearance, rumours and conspiracy theories have emerged amid online speculation on social media.

Some social media sleuths have even travelled to Tenerife to try and find him.

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Husband’s tribute to mother-of-two killed by falling tree branch in Blackburn

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Husband's tribute to mother-of-two killed by falling tree branch in Blackburn

A mother-of-two who died after being hit by a falling tree branch on the way home from a family outing would do “everything she could for anyone”, her husband has said.

Madia Kauser, 32, was walking with her family in Witton Park in Blackburn, Lancashire, on 11 August when the incident happened.

She is reported to have pushed her young daughter to safety.

A joint investigation is being carried out by Lancashire Police and the Health and Safety Executive and any witnesses are being asked to come forward.

In a tribute issued by police, her husband Wasim Khan described her as the “most beautiful woman in the world” and said he feels “completely lost without her”.

He said: “My wife, a mother-of-two, a daughter, sister and a friend we lost to a tragic event that came on the way home from a family day out in the park.

“She was the most beautiful woman in the world, she did everything for our two children, she did everything she could for anyone and would bring smiles whenever she entered the room.

“She was my comfort, my partner in life and the love of my life.

“We have so many great memories, went through pain together and started a family together.

“Honestly, I feel completely lost without her and I do not know how to put into words how much I miss her face, her character and her presence. My one and only.”

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Detective Inspector Iain Czapowski said: “This is an absolutely tragic incident which has cost a young woman her life and my thoughts are with her loved ones.

“We are working closely with our colleagues from the Health and Safety Executive and with the co-operation of the council to try and establish the full circumstances of what happened, and I would like to speak to anyone with information which could assist with that.

“I am especially keen to speak to anyone who actually saw what happened on that fateful night and I would urge them to contact us.”

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Kneecap rapper greeted by hundreds of supporters as he arrives at court on terror charge

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Kneecap rapper greeted by hundreds of supporters as he arrives at court on terror charge

A member of rap trio Kneecap was greeted by hundreds of supporters as he arrived at court this morning, charged with allegedly supporting a proscribed terror organisation.

Liam Og O hAnnaidh, who performs under the name Mo Chara, is accused of displaying a flag in support of Hezbollah at a gig in London in November last year.

Demonstrators waving flags and holding banners in support of the rapper greeted him with cheers as he made his way into Westminster Magistrates’ Court.

The rapper is mobbed by fans and media as he arrives at court. Pics: PA
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The rapper is mobbed by fans and media as he arrives at court. Pics: PA

Supported by his Kneecap bandmates Naoise O Caireallain and JJ O Dochartaigh, it took the rapper more than a minute to enter the building as security officers worked to usher him inside through a crowd of photographers.

Fans held signs which read “Free Mo Chara”, while others waved Irish and Palestinian flags.

As the hearing got under way, O hAnnaidh confirmed his name, date of birth and address, with the court hearing an Irish language interpreter would be present.

During a previous hearing, prosecutors said the 27-year-old is “well within his rights” to voice his opinions on the Israel-Palestine conflict, but said the alleged incident at the O2 Forum in Kentish Town was a “wholly different thing”.

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O hAnnaidh is yet to enter a plea to the charge.

Bandmates Naoise O Caireallain (pictured, centre) and JJ O Dochartaigh are supporting O hAnnaidh. Pic: Reuters
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Bandmates Naoise O Caireallain (pictured, centre) and JJ O Dochartaigh are supporting O hAnnaidh. Pic: Reuters

Who are Kneecap?

Kneecap put out their first single in 2017 and rose to wider prominence in 2024 after the release of their debut album and an eponymously titled film – a fictionalised retelling of how the band came together and their fight to save the Irish language.

The film, in which the trio play themselves and co-star alongside starring Oscar nominee Michael Fassbender, won the BAFTA for outstanding debut earlier this year, for director and writer Rich Peppiatt.

Last year, they won a discrimination case against the UK government after Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch tried to refuse them a £14,250 funding award when she was business secretary.

They are known for songs including H.O.O.D, Fine Art, and Better Way To Live, featuring Fontaines DC frontman Grian Chatten.

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Asylum seekers face being removed from Epping hotel after council granted High Court injunction

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Asylum seekers face being removed from Epping hotel after council granted High Court injunction

A council has won its bid to temporarily block asylum seekers from being housed at a hotel in Essex.

Epping Forest District Council sought an interim injunction to stop migrants from being accommodated at the Bell Hotel in Epping, which is owned by Somani Hotels Limited.

A government attempt to delay the application was rejected by the High Court judge earlier on Tuesday.

The interim injunction now means the hotel has to be cleared of its occupants within 14 days.

Somani Hotels said it intended to appeal the decision.

Several protests have been held outside the hotel in recent weeks after an asylum seeker housed there was charged with sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl.

Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, 38, was charged with trying to kiss a teenage girl and denies the allegations. He is due to stand trial later this month.

Police officers ahead of a demonstration outside The Bell Hotel in July. Pic: PA
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Police officers ahead of a demonstration outside The Bell Hotel in July. Pic: PA

At a hearing last week, barristers for the council claimed Somani Hotels breached planning rules because the site is not being used for its intended purpose as a hotel.

Philip Coppel KC, for the council, said the problem was “getting out of hand” and “causing great anxiety” to local people.

He said the hotel “is no more a hotel [to asylum seekers] than a borstal to a young offender”.

File pic: PA
Image:
File pic: PA

Piers Riley-Smith, for Somani Hotels Limited, said a “draconian” injunction would cause “hardship” for those in the hotel, arguing “political views” were not grounds for an injunction to be granted.

He also said contracts to house asylum seekers were a “financial lifeline” for the hotel, which was only 1% full in August 2022, when it was open to paying customers.

Protesters and counter-demonstrators outside The Bell Hotel in July. Pic: PA
Image:
Protesters and counter-demonstrators outside The Bell Hotel in July. Pic: PA

The hotel housed migrants from May 2020 to March 2021, then from October 2022 to April 2024, with the council never instigating any formal enforcement proceedings against this use, Mr Riley-Smith said.

They were being placed there again in April 2025 and Mr Riley-Smith said a planning application was not made “having taken advice from the Home Office”.

At the end of the hearing last week, Mr Justice Eyre ordered that Somani Hotels could not “accept any new applications” from asylum seekers to stay at the site until he had made his ruling on the temporary injunction.

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