The Guardian
British centre-left daily newspaper, owned by the Scott Trust, with no paywall.
Last refreshed: 30 March 2026
Does breaking a government legal secret make a newspaper a national security risk?
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- What is The Guardian?
- The Guardian is a British centre-left daily newspaper founded in 1821, now based in London with US and Australian editions. It is owned by the Scott Trust, which guarantees editorial independence, and is funded by reader contributions and advertising without a paywall.Source: The Guardian
- Did The Guardian break the story about the UK attorney general saying the war is illegal?
- Yes. The Guardian was the primary outlet to report that Attorney General Lord Hermer KC had assessed that British base access for US-Israeli operations in the 2026 Iran conflict does not accord with international law. The disclosure became the central legal fact in the UK parliamentary debate.Source: The Guardian
- Who owns The Guardian newspaper?
- The Guardian is owned by the Scott Trust, a structure established in 1936 specifically to guarantee the newspaper’s editorial independence in perpetuity. It is not owned by a commercial media group or individual proprietor.Source: Scott Trust
- How is The Guardian different from the BBC in covering the Iran conflict?
- The Guardian published the Hermer legal advice story as an investigative scoop, naming the Attorney General’s assessment that UK base access may breach international law. The BBC reports from the same landscape but as a public broadcaster operates under different editorial constraints around government-sensitive material.Source: Lowdown
- What happened after The Guardian reported the Hermer legal advice?
- Keir Starmer formally rejected calls for a parliamentary vote on UK involvement, framing base access as specific and limited defensive purposes. The Jewish Chronicle published a critical counter-response attacking Hermer’s legal position, and the story dominated the UK domestic debate on the conflict.Source: Lowdown
Background
The Guardian is a British national daily newspaper founded in Manchester in 1821, now headquartered in London with major US and Australian editions. Owned by the Scott Trust since 1936, it operates without a paywall, funded by reader contributions and advertising. Its editorial stance is centre-left; past investigations include the Snowden disclosures, Cambridge Analytica, and the Panama Papers.
In the 2026 Iran conflict, The Guardian broke the story that Lord Hermer KC, the UK Attorney General, had assessed that British base access for US-Israeli operations does not accord with international law. That disclosure became the central legal fact in the UK parliamentary debate; Keir Starmer formally rejected calls for a Commons vote, framing access as specific and limited defensive purposes.
The Jewish Chronicle published a critical response attacking Hermer’s position after The Guardian’s report, illustrating how a single disclosure can split UK media along editorial lines. The tension between investigative journalism that exposes legal risk and state pressure to keep sensitive advice quiet is the recurring question The Guardian’s model forces into view.