Ex-Google chief Matt Brittin made new BBC director-general

US First Lady Melania Trump brought a surprise guest to a White House event on Wednesday -- a walking, talking, humanoid robot.

Instead of husband President Donald Trump at her side, it was the "Figure 3" android that accompanied Melania down the famous red carpet.

The 55-year-old Melania, whose signature focus as first lady is on AI and digital spaces, was hosting a summit on empowering children with educational technology.

"Thank you First Lady Melania Trump for inviting me to the White House," said the gray-and-black robot, gesturing with its hands in its brief opening remarks.

It then walked off the way it came.

There was applause from guests in the East Room of the White House, who included French first lady Brigitte Macron.

"It's fair to state you're my first American-made humanoid guest in the White House," said Slovenian-born Melania, reading from a prepared statement.

The former model, mother to the president's youngest son, 20-year-old Barron, went on to talk about how humanoid-based artificial intelligence would soon be used to educate children.

"Imagine a humanoid educator named Plato. Access to the classical studies is now instantaneous," she said. 

"Predictably, our children will develop deep critical thinking, and independent reasoning abilities."

Melania Trump has been taking on an increasingly public-facing role in recent months, after being an initially elusive presence at the White House early in her husband's second term.

She has hosted a number of events on AI and protecting children online.

But she has also taken on several money-spinning projects including a documentary called "Melania," made in a multi-million-dollar deal with Amazon, and an audiobook of her autobiography that is narrated by AI.

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The discovery of the oldest ever dog DNA suggests they have been our best friends for nearly 16,000 years -- 5,000 years earlier than had previously been thought, new research said Wednesday.

Despite being ubiquitous in the homes, backyards and hearts of people across the world, surprisingly little is known about where dogs come from.

"It's just an interesting mystery," Swedish geneticist Pontus Skoglund of the UK's Francis Crick Institute told reporters.

Dogs are most likely a mix of two types of grey wolves, he said. However exactly when dogs diverged from wolves has been difficult to trace, partly because their ancient bones are tricky to tell apart.

That is why scientists behind two new studies published in the journal Nature sequenced the genomes from archaeological remains, shedding light on the elusive origins of our furry friends.

The first study revealed that the world's oldest canine DNA was discovered in a piece of a skull in Pinarbasi in what is now Turkey.

The female puppy, which was perhaps "a few months old", probably looked like a small wolf when it lived roughly 15,800 years ago, according to study co-author Laurent Frantz of the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich.

Before Wednesday, the oldest-known dog DNA was from 10,900 years ago.

Also breaking that record was genetic evidence the team found in southwest England dating back 14,300 years, which illustrated how early dogs had spread across Europe.

Frantz said scientists could not prove exactly what role these dogs had among humans living during the last Ice Age.

"But I think we can assume that they must have played a role because they would have been expensive to feed," he said.

Perhaps the dogs were used for hunting or protection, he speculated. 

Even if these dogs were not treated the same as pets are today, there was likely still a strong bond, he said, adding that "kids will still have played with puppies".

Another sign of a close relationship was that puppies had been found buried above human graves in Pinarbasi.

- 'Search for the missing link' -

For the other study, a large team of researchers compared the genomes of 216 dog and wolf remains from across Europe.

This allowed them to chart how dogs evolved on the continent.

Starting around 10,000 years ago, there was a huge migration of people from southwest Asia to Europe during what is known as the Neolithic agricultural revolution.

This mass arrival of farmers resulted in human genetic mixing as people from different areas met and had children.

However, this genetic mixing did not happen at the same time with dogs, the researchers were surprised to find.

It seems the hunter-gatherers who had been living in Europe before the farmers arrived had already been keeping dogs.

"Dogs were clearly important to our ancestors, as the first farmers seem to have adopted previous hunter-gatherer dogs into their groups as they moved into Europe," said study co-author Skoglund.

This suggests that dogs must have been domesticated well before that point.

And there is still a "genetic abyss between dogs and wolves", Skoglund added.

"The search for the missing link continues."

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The NBA Board of Governors voted on Wednesday to authorize the league to explore potential expansion teams for Las Vegas and Seattle that would bring the league to 32 clubs.

The move is the first step in a lengthy process that could lead to a new team in Seattle, where the SuperSonics once played before moving to Oklahoma City, and Las Vegas, which has hosted NBA All-Star events and each year hosts Summer League games involving recruits and free agents.

As part of the process, the NBA engaged investment bank PJT Partners as a strategic adviser to evaluate prospective markets, ownership groups, arena infrastructure and broader economic implications of adding two new teams.

"Today's vote reflects our board's interest in exploring potential expansion to Las Vegas and Seattle -– two markets with a long history of support for NBA basketball," NBA commissioner Adam Silver said.

"We look forward to taking this next step and engaging with interested parties."

It would take approval by 23 of the NBA's 30 governors to pass any motion on adding new teams, a move still several steps away.

Team values have skyrocketed in recent years with the price tag for any new club expected to be in the range of $7 billion to $10 billion.

The Phoenix Suns were sold in 2022 for a then-record NBA sum of $4 billion, but the Boston Celtics were sold last year for $6.1 billion and the Los Angeles Lakers were sold the same year for $10 billion -- the highest-ever price paid for a US sports team.

Expectations are for the league to add the new teams, if approved, in the 2028-29 campaign.

The NBA last expanded in 2004 when adding a team in Charlotte, North Carolina.

- Sporting hotbeds -

Should Seattle and Las Vegas both land expansion teams, the league would likely place both in the Western Conference and move one current West team into the Eastern Conference, with the Memphis Grizzlies and Minnesota Timberwolves most often mentioned as likely teams to make that shift.

The Seattle SuperSonics joined the NBA in 1967 as an expansion team and won the city's only NBA title in 1979. The Sonics made their last NBA Finals in 1996, losing to Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls.

Seattle boasted such top players as Spencer Haywood and Gary Payton, and Kevin Durant captured the 2008 NBA Rookie of the Year award in the final season before the team relocated to Oklahoma City, which celebrated a first NBA title in its new home last season.

Las Vegas has been the home of the Women's NBA Aces since 2018 and that team has taken three of the past four WNBA crowns.

Both cities have seen a boost in sporting fortunes in recent years, each landing a National Hockey League expansion club -- the Vegas Golden Knights opening in 2017 and Seattle Kraken starting in 2021 -- which have drawn impressive crowds.

Each city has an NFL squad and Las Vegas is scheduled to match Seattle with a Major League Baseball team in 2028 when a new stadium opens for the former Oakland Athletics.

The NFL Raiders moved to Las Vegas from Oakland in 2020 and Vegas also hosts many special sporting events, including a Formula One race.

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Here are the latest facts about Iran's control of the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial trade waterway virtually closed off by its forces in the Middle East war.

A fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas passed through the strait in peacetime -- before the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran on February 28, prompting it to retaliate across the region.

- How are ships crossing? -

Maritime trackers indicate that a handful of vessels are still crossing daily through the strait, which is guarded by Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) -- most of them leaving the Gulf.

Some have taken a new Iranian-approved route through its waters, dubbed the "Tehran Toll Booth" by leading shipping journal Lloyd's List.

At least one vetted vessel paid $2 million to use the corridor around Larak Island just off Iran's coast, it reported.

Lloyd's List cited sources as saying that governments from countries including India, Pakistan and China discussed vessel transits directly with Tehran, with the IRGC establishing a registration system of "approved ships".

On Tuesday, IRGC naval commander Alireza Tangsiri said on X the force had "turned back" a container ship "due to failure to comply with legal protocols and lack of permission to pass through".

Ship tracker MarineTraffic showed that the vessel, the Selen, was bound for Pakistan.

- What vessels have used the corridor? -

Lloyd's List reported Monday that it had tracked more than 20 ships using the emerging route, most of them Greek-owned but others Indian-, Pakistani-owned or linked to China.

In a sign that commodity vessels were gaining approval to use the route, since the start of last week four that crossed the Strait of Hormuz kept their AIS transponders on while using the corridor, while at least five more that crossed sent signals in close proximity to the passage, an AFP analysis of Kpler data showed.

Over half of those crossing since Sunday specified the nationality of their owner, crew or cargo using their AIS signals, it showed.

By comparison, from March 1 to 21 only about 10 percent of ships navigating the strait did so.

"Vessels are using AIS messages to signal political neutrality or distance from Western, Israeli, or otherwise sensitive affiliations," Kpler trade risk analyst Ana Subasic told AFP.

But she noted they are "self-declared, easily altered, and do not change a vessel's legal identity" and therefore should not be considered "a reliable security solution". 

- What has Iran said publicly? -

In a statement dated Sunday and released late Tuesday via the International Maritime Organization, Tehran reiterated its stance that the strait was open, but only to some.

It said "non-hostile vessels" and those not "belonging to or associated with" Israel, the US and other "aggressors" could cross "subject to compliance with... the realities arising from the ongoing conflict".  

The foreign ministry statement added that ships linked to qualifying countries could "benefit from safe passage" but "in coordination with the competent Iranian authorities".

- What does international law say? -

The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea -- which was adopted in 1982 and came into force in 1994 -- guarantees a right to navigate through straits such as Hormuz.

"All ships and aircraft enjoy the right of transit passage... for the purpose of continuous and expeditious transit of the strait," it states.

Although Iran has never ratified the convention, "the transit passage regime is widely regarded as part of customary international law," Marco Roscini, international law professor at Westminster Law School, told AFP.

- Is Iran acting illegally? -

Charging fees to cross the strait would "lack a valid legal basis", Roscini said.

Shipowners risk violating the law and Western sanctions if they pay a toll.

Transit passage rights through straits remain applicable during armed conflicts and suspending commercial navigation through Hormuz "cannot be lawful" barring exceptional circumstances, he added.

However in its statement to the IMO, Iran said it acted in self-defence, taking "necessary and proportionate measures" to prevent its enemies from using the strait, in line with international law.

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© Agence France-Presse

In a rare occurrence in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, twin mountain gorillas were recently born in the Virunga National Park, renowned for its biodiversity but threatened by conflict. 

"The twins, believed to be a female and a male, are approximately two weeks old and are being closely monitored by field teams," the park authorities said Tuesday in a statement.

A similar event was reported in January in the park with the birth of male twins.

Despite the recent events, twin births among gorillas, and particularly the threatened mountain gorilla species, are considered highly unusual by experts. 

"The arrival of twins among gorillas is a special occasion given their rarity," Tara Stoinski, CEO and chief scientific officer of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, told AFP. 

"From our nearly 60-year mountain gorilla database... we know that they occur in less than one percent of births." 

The survival of gorilla twins poses a challenge because "not only must the mother carry two infants, which makes walking more difficult particularly in the first few weeks... they must produce more milk, which is energetically very expensive," Stoinski explained.

Virunga National Park is the oldest nature reserve in Africa, inaugurated in 1925, and is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

But intensified conflict in the eastern DRC, where the Rwanda-backed M23 armed group has seized swathes of territory in recent years, poses threats to the site.

Virunga's forests are also believed to have been used as a hideout by fighters from the ADF militia, which has pledged allegiance to the Islamic State jihadist group.

Globally, the mountain gorilla population is estimated at 1,063 living in the wild, with some 350 gorillas recorded in Virunga in 2021, according to park authorities.

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A former nurse made history Wednesday when she was enthroned as Archbishop of Canterbury, the first woman to lead the centuries-old mother church of the world's 85 million-strong Anglican community.

Sarah Mullally, 63, formally steps into the role after an abuse scandal led to the departure of her predecessor.

The former midwife was formally installed in the historic ceremony at Canterbury Cathedral in southeast England in front of around 2,000 people including heir to the throne Prince William and his wife Catherine.

In accordance with tradition, the ceremony began with Mullally knocking three times with a staff on the cathedral's west door to request admission.

Dressed in deep yellow-gold robes, she was greeted by local school children who asked why she had been sent.

"I am sent as archbishop to serve you, to proclaim the love of Christ and with you to worship and love him with heart and soul, mind and strength," she responded.

The ceremony then culminated with Mullally being seated in two different thrones.

The seats symbolise the dual responsibilities of the role -- as a bishop in the diocese of Canterbury and as the spiritual leader of Anglicans worldwide.

Mullally's predecessor Justin Welby announced his resignation as head of the Church of England in November 2024 over failures in handling an abuse scandal.

He stepped down after a report found the Church of England had covered up a 1970s serial abuse case and that he failed to report the abuses to authorities when they came to his attention in 2013.

- Chief nurse -

Mullally has stressed her commitment to "do all I can to ensure that the Church becomes safer and also responds well to victims and survivors of abuse."

The church was "seeking to become more trauma informed, listening to survivors and victims of abuse", she said in an interview with the BBC this week.

The Church of England became the country's state establishment church following King Henry VIII's split from the Roman Catholic Church in the 1530s.

The British monarch is its supreme governor, while the Archbishop of Canterbury is seen as the spiritual leader of Anglicans worldwide.

Mullally, who is married with two children, becomes the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury, the first having been appointed in the late sixth century.

She worked in Britain's state-run National Health Service for more than three decades, rising to become its chief nursing officer for England in 1999.

Ordained a priest in 2002, she became the first female Bishop of London in 2018, only four years after the church began allowing women bishops after years of bitter factional wrangling.

Some churches around the Anglican world have long permitted women bishops, with the first appointed in the United States in 1989.

Others, however, remain opposed such as the Archbishop of the Anglican Church of Rwanda, Laurent Mbanda.

He has previously insisted the "majority of the Anglican Communion still believes that the Bible requires a male-only episcopacy".

More than 40 of England's 108 bishops are now women, with a similar proportion among priests, after women clergy were first permitted in the early 1990s.

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The economic cost of carbon emissions is far higher than previously estimated, said a new study Wednesday that links big polluters to tens of trillions of dollars in climate-related damages worldwide.

The study in the journal Nature measures how human-caused warming affects economic growth and assigns a share of global damages to specific emitters -- from major economies to oil giants.

The findings land as a growing wave of lawsuits seek to hold fossil fuel producers and other carbon-heavy businesses accountable for climate "loss and damage".

Claimants argue that large polluters are legally liable for their outsized contribution to climate change and its associated extreme weather events, particularly in poorer nations.

This study did not seek to answer the "legal and ethical" question of compensation, said Marshall Burke, a professor at Stanford University and the study's lead author.

"Our goal was first and foremost scientific, but we hope to contribute to the broader policy discussion of how to measure loss and damage and what to do about it," Burke told AFP.

It does offer "guidance" on the scale of potential costs and a framework "for estimating how specific emissions from specific emitters at specific points in time lead to damages" worldwide, he added.

They assessed the impact of rising temperatures on economic factors including labour productivity and agriculture, but also some associated climate-driven weather extremes.

US emissions between 1990 and 2020 were the largest source of estimated global damages at $10.2 trillion followed by China ($8.7 trillion) and the European Union ($6.4 trillion).

Emissions linked to Saudi oil giant Saudi Aramco between 1988 and 2015 resulted in $3 trillion in cumulative global economic damages by 2020, the study also said.

- Settling debts -

But the authors found the largest share of climate damages lies ahead.

"We were surprised not only by the overall magnitude of estimated damages, which are in the tens of trillions of dollars, but also by how much larger future damages from past emissions are than past damages from past emissions," Burke said. 

One tonne of C02 emitted in 1990 caused about $180 in global damages by 2020, but was expected to inflict a further $1,840 through 2100 -- roughly 10 times more than the costs already incurred.

This is because CO2 has a long lifespan, lingering in the atmosphere where it contributes to warming for decades to come.

For this reason "settling debts for past damages will not settle debts for past emissions", the authors wrote.

Even under relatively conservative assumptions, the cost per tonne of carbon emitted is far higher than many government estimates.

The research also highlights how high-emitting activities such as air travel contribute to future damage. Taking a long-haul flight each year over a decade, for example, could generate around $25,000 in losses by 2100.

As emissions rise and poorer nations bear the brunt, wealthy countries and fossil fuel businesses are facing mounting scrutiny over their disproportionate role in driving climate damage.

Last year, a separate Nature study found extreme heat linked to emissions from 111 fossil fuel companies caused $28 trillion in global economic losses between 1991 and 2020.

Companies have long argued it is impossible to attribute harm from a global problem to any single emitter, and courts have been cautious about awarding compensation.

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The BBC named a former Google executive with no television or journalism experience as its next director-general Wednesday.

The long-expected appointment of Matt Brittin to the high-profile role comes as the under-fire British broadcaster faces drastic shifts in the media landscape and a $10-billion lawsuit brought by US President Donald Trump.

Brittin, 57, said he was honoured to be appointed at a "moment of real risk, yet also real opportunity".

"Now, more than ever, we need a thriving  BBC that works for everyone in a complex, uncertain and fast-changing world," he added.

The British-born executive was president for over a decade of Google's Europe, Middle East and Africa division, which earns around a third of its revenue. He had previously worked as a consultant for McKinsey. 

Samir Shah, chairman of the BBC board, said Brittin "brings to the BBC deep experience of leading a high-profile and highly-complex organisation through transformation."

He "is an outstanding leader and has the skills needed to navigate the organisation through the many changes taking place in the media market," Shah added.

Brittin's name has been circulating in the UK media for weeks, after the current director-general, Tim Davie resigned in November over the editing of a documentary about Trump.

The Times wrote that appointing a tech executive with no broadcasting experience "has raised some eyebrows".

"While his experience in the world of big tech could be an advantage, Mr Brittin will have to quickly demonstrate a commitment to public service broadcasting," opposition lawmaker Caroline Dinenage told the daily.

A columnist at the right-wing Daily Telegraph wrote that Brittin was "just what the BBC doesn't need: a new Lefty boss".

Davie, who has held the BBC post since 2020, will step down on April 2, and Brittin will take on the challenging role on May 18.

The BBC had described it as one of "the most important, high-profile public posts in the UK".

Brittin stepped down from Google last year after 18 years saying he wanted a break.

- 'Dr Who' fan -

Last year he became a fellow of the Royal Television Society, which hands out prestigious awards.

In his acceptance speech he admitted to "imposter syndrome".

He voiced admiration for the British television industry he had "been trying to get into for a very long time", saying his favourite shows included cult BBC sci-fi series "Doctor Who".

Brittin updated his Linkedin profile on Wednesday after the appointment was announced, saying "Got a job" and "Gap year: completed".

He grew up in southern England and was educated at the University of Cambridge, but he has said his late father grew up in a small shop in London with "BBC wireless (radio) for news and entertainment".

He represented Great Britain at the Olympics as a rower after competing in the university Boat Race against Oxford as a student.

Early in his career he worked at Trinity Mirror newspaper group, now called Reach, in non-journalistic roles.

Last year he was made a CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) for services to technology and digital skills.

- 'Under pressure' -

The BBC said earlier this month it had formally asked a US federal court in Florida to dismiss Trump's lawsuit over the editing of a speech he gave to supporters ahead of the US Capitol riot in 2021 in a BBC documentary.a

The film was "never aired in Florida -- or the US" or available to stream there on any platform, a BBC spokesperson said.

Brittin takes up the job at a politically sensitive time for the BBC, which is due to renegotiate the Royal Charter that outlines the corporation's governance. Its current charter will end next year.

A sizeable proportion of the BBC's income comes from the licence fee, which is payable by all UK households with a television, or whose occupants watch live screening online.

But the BBC lost more than £1.1 billion in revenues last year as fewer homes felt the need to apply for one, a parliamentary committee report said in November.

It also found that while the BBC remained "a trusted institution", it was "under pressure" struggling to retain its foothold in an evolving media landscape and among younger people.

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(The Center Square) – The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is defending federal agents’ actions in three Minnesota shootings while pushing back on claims of “unprecedented noncooperation” raised in a lawsuit filed by the state.

Minnesota sued the U.S. Department of Justice and DHS on Tuesday, arguing the agencies have refused to turn over evidence tied to the January deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, as well as the shooting of Julio Sosa-Celis.

“The State of Minnesota has the authority and responsibility to protect against and address violence within its borders, including by prosecuting homicides, attempted homicides, and assaults,” the lawsuit states, arguing that access to federal evidence is central to that responsibility. “At stake is not only Plaintiffs’ access to evidence central to these shootings but also a fundamental principle of our constitutional system: that the States retain the sovereign authority—and responsibility—to investigate crimes committed within their borders.”

The lawsuit, led by Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison alongside Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty and Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Superintendent Drew Evans, asks a federal court to compel the federal government to release the evidence. In addition to the DOJ and DHS, it also names U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi and former Secretary of the U.S. DHS Kristi Noem as defendants. 

In response, a DHS spokesperson told The Center Square that all use-of-force incidents involving Immigration and Customs Enforcement are reviewed under strict agency protocols.

“Every use of force incident and any discharge of an ICE firearm must be properly reported and reviewed by the agency in accordance with agency policy, procedure, and guidelines,” the spokesperson said. “All shootings are initially reviewed by an appropriate law enforcement agency. Following a review of the incident by the appropriate investigative agency, ICE and CBP conduct an independent review of the critical incident.”

The shootings occurred during a period of heightened federal enforcement in the Twin Cities under Operation Metro Surge, which brought thousands of agents to the area and led to sustained public protests, particularly after the January deaths of Good and Pretti.

DHS pointed to released footage of Good’s shooting, saying it supports the agency’s account that the officer acted in self-defense.

“The released footage corroborates what DHS has stated all along—that this individual was impeding law enforcement and weaponized her vehicle in an attempt to kill or cause bodily harm to federal law enforcement,” the spokesperson said. “The officer was in fear of his own life, the lives of his fellow officers and acted in self-defense.”

DHS added that Good had been “stalking, harassing and impeding law enforcement” throughout the morning, ignored repeated commands to stop and exit her vehicle, and then struck a federal officer.

“She then proceeded to weaponize her vehicle, a deadly weapon, and hit a federal law enforcement officer,” the agency said, adding that the officer fired “fearing for his life, the lives of his fellow law enforcement, and the safety of the public.” DHS emphasized that “peaceful protest is a sacred First Amendment right” but said “this was not that.”

Regarding the shooting of Pretti, DHS said the FBI is leading the investigation with Homeland Security Investigations assisting, while U.S. Customs and Border Protection is conducting a separate internal review.

In the case of Sosa-Celis, however, DHS acknowledged potential misconduct, saying a joint review by ICE and the Department of Justice found that sworn testimony from two officers “appears to have made untruthful statements.”

Both officers were placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and could face termination or criminal prosecution.

“Lying under oath is a serious federal offense,” DHS said. “The men and women of ICE are entrusted with upholding the rule of law and are held to the highest standards of professionalism, integrity, and ethical conduct. Violations of this sacred sworn oath will not be tolerated.”

Ellison said the lawsuit is necessary to ensure accountability and access to evidence.

“I’m suing the federal government for access to evidence in the shootings of Renee Good, Alex Pretti, and Julio Sosa-Celis,” Ellison said. “It’s astonishing this lawsuit is even necessary, but in Minnesota, nobody is above the law.”

The lawsuit argues that cooperation between federal and state authorities is not optional, pushing for the release of more information by the federal government.

“Cooperation is not merely customary,” the lawsuit states. “It reflects the basic structure of American federalism.”

DHS said all three cases remain under investigation.

An obscure group has claimed to have carried out a clutch of low-level attacks which have rattled the Jewish community in several European cities.

But experts question whether the group, which has called itself Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya (HAYI) in online posts, really exists or is just a front for Iranian intelligence.

Jewish communities in Belgium, Britain and the Netherlands have each been targeted since the US-Israeli war with Iran began in late February.

Ambulances run by Jewish volunteers were set on fire in London, a car was torched in Antwerp, synagogues hit with explosives in Liege and Rotterdam, and a Jewish school targeted in Amsterdam.

Although police have generally been careful not to ascribe motives, pro-Iran social media accounts have posted footage and said the HAYI group carried out the attacks.

A European security source who requested anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the topic pointed out that the HAYI group was unknown before the war.

"So it is indeed likely at this stage that it is a front group," the source said.

Laurence Bindner, a specialist in online radicalisation, said the group was first mentioned after the Liege attack on March 9.

She told AFP the logo used by the group shared similarities with that of the so-called axis of resistance, an informal Iran-led military alliance.

- 'A facade' -

Julian Lanches, of the Dutch ICCT research centre, also cast doubt on the group's authenticity in a research note on Monday.

After the Amsterdam attack on March 16, claims of responsibility were published first on pro-Iranian accounts before making it onto a supposedly official HAYI account on Telegram.

Yet the official account had only a few dozen followers at the time.

Lanches also wrote that the group had claimed responsibility for attacks that do not seem to have happened, calling these messages "likely disinformation".

All of which raised the question, he wrote, of "whether HAYI is a genuine terrorist group or merely serves as a facade for Iranian hybrid operations".

The Israeli authorities are in no doubt about the nature of the attacks and the group.

Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli said the attack on ambulances in London's Golders Green area was "the latest link in the terror chain" involving HAYI, which he labelled "an Iranian-backed proxy".

"From Liege and Rotterdam to Golders Green, Tehran deploys local cells to terrorise Jewish communities," he posted on social media site X on Monday.

- Child recruitment? -

Bindner said it was a "credible hypothesis" that the attacks had been outsourced to young operatives who may not even know who is employing them.

"They recruit operatives, sometimes minors, sometimes in criminal networks," she said.

"They instruct them to act, to film themselves, to send the video, which is then formatted with the group's graphics and logo."

European intelligence agencies have long accused Iran of using criminal networks to conduct clandestine operations in Europe.

"We are probably looking at a dual logic of a front group and subcontracting," Bindner said, allowing "plausible deniability on the part of the masterminds".

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